Strategic Tips For Dealing With Stress In The Small Business Workplace

It is certainly no secret that stress is a fact of daily life ad is especially true in the small business workplace. And what makes it worse is most small business owners must face the challenges alone or with little or no support systems. A strategic thinking small business owner knows that he or she must be very aware of their own level of stress, as well as the stress levels of their employees because of the potential negative impacts.

How extensive is this stress in the small business workplace? CareerBuilder.com found in a 2006 study of 2,500 American workers that 77% of the workers felt burned out at their jobs. The National Safety Council estimates that US companies lose between $200-$300 billion a year due to absenteeism, tardiness, burnout, decreased productivity, worker's compensation claims, increased employee turnover, and medical insurance costs resulting from employee work-related stress. And a survey of more than 1,300 workers conducted by Caravan Opinion Research in 2000 found 13% claimed to have personally witnessed "desk rage" or some angry or destructive outburst at the office.

The reduction of stress in the small business workplace is a very important goal. Here are some tips on how to deal with stress in a proactive way, according to your strategic thinking business coach.

1. Commit to improved time management.

2. Commit to maintaining a well-organized office and having the equipment and materials needed to do the required work.

3. Set clearly defined goals & objectives and ensure that all parties have clear understanding of what is expected.

4. Commit to setting aside some time to get away from your desk each day and to schedule some personal time for yourself each day outside of work.

5. Develop and use a strategic TO DO List, with 4 categories of tasks - "URGENT & IMPORTANT;" "URGENT, BUT NOT IMPORTANT;" "NOT URGENT:" and "NEITHER URGENT OR IMPORTANT."

6. Deal with employee conflicts in a proactive and timely manner. Do not allow the conflicts to get worse. Take some immediate action to resolve the conflicts.

7. Learn to say "NO" when you are truly already overburdened.

8. Designate specific times each day to return phone calls and email. This will address some of the constant interruptions that result in lost focus and increased stress.

9. Keep yourself in good health.

10. Seek advice from an outside professional on how to address the stress and educate people on stress management techniques.

Your strategic thinking business coach encourages you to use strategic thinking to address the issue of stress in your workplace. If you would like to learn more about how to deal with stress in your workplace and how a strategic thinking business coach can facilitate and guide you in that endeavor, please contact Glenn Ebersole today through his website at www.businesscoach4u.com or by email at jgecoach@aol.com