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How do you handle stress
It's happening again, similar to the last job when my boss got all freaky and I had minor flip out. This time it's just too many hours, too much information coming at me in a short amount of time. I swear we have rolled out 15 new reports in two months. At this point, I have no idea which ones my people are supposed to use.
We have conference coming up in a month and a half and I have a script and power point written in two weeks for them. This ontop of traveling all next week and having major drama at one of the hotels. My boss sends emails until 2 am and I have 2,000 in my inbox today that I need to organize. My people are two hours ahead of me, so they need my attention as early as 6 am.
I can feel my blood pressure rising and I'm starting to forget how to make similar people management decisions.
I'm trying to come up with ways to handle the stress. Turn off my phone and not call anyone back until the end of the day, is all I have come up with. Just so I can catch up and organize all these new reports, and programs.
Anyone have an idea? I want to get a handle of this before it takes over.
Re: How do you handle stress
Well, I was going to suggest you get a housekeeper.
Is this something that is just part of the field you are in? I mean, if part of your team is 2 hours ahead and needs you at 6 am, you can't change that, other than looking for a different path.
When I get overwhelmed with things that need to be done, I make a prioritized list and then just go through it one item at a time until it is done. That at least frees up the time and energy it takes to think ok what's next.
"That chick wins at Penises, for sure." -- Fenton
Prioritize, as best you can. When you get an e-mail, decide if it needs an answer right away, can wait, can be delegated, or doesn't need a response. Delegate and answer the ones that need immediate attention right away, and flag the ones that can wait. You can even set reminders if they need to be dealt with by a certain time, so you don't lose track.
Maybe only check you e-mail once an hour or so, so in between you can get some work done.
If you have multiple things that can get done quickly, do them first. You'll feel good knowing they are taken care of and out of the way; less to worry about getting to.
Then tackle only one project at a time, and do the best you can while limiting how much time you spend, knowing you have other, equally important jobs you have to get to.
I know this doesn't help much, but it gets me through my worst periods (my workload ebbs and flows seasonally, and the busy periods are pretty intense). I find that opening a window to get some fresh air helps. So does getting up periodically, even if it's just to get a drink or stretch my back; it's just enough to give me a quick break and rest my eyes for a moment.
And, if I'm alone in the office late at night (so, this would work for you if you work from home), I might occassionally let out a scream in frustration. It's amazing how much better I feel afterward.
Good luck!
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I make lots of lists and prioritize what needs to be done. It doesn't happen often, but if need be I close my office door and ask that my calls be put through to voice mail so I can plow through some work undisturbed.
I don't get too much work e-mail, but one technique F uses to deal with overwhelming amounts of e-mail is to treat it just like a regular message, and not feel the need to respond to it immediately. He doesn't check it constantly, and sets aside some time each week to organize it.
Haha, Cali. It wouldn't be the same without all the little freaks who just don't want to go to work crying in the corner.
I sit the people I am working with and for down and make sure to set expectations.
So, I have said to the General Counsel here, "OK. I have triple my normal workload right now and I don't want you to be unhappy so, we can either bring another recruiter in to assist, we can set up weekly meetings that I can prepare for by collecting your questions during the week and answering them all at once at a time we'll both be focused on your work, or we can stagger your recruitment so that we do xyz jobs first and then abc jobs". He picked the weekly meeting and staggering the recruitment and when things take longer than normal he knows why.
Now it isn't perfect, while I was on vacation one of my clients freaked out, decided they couldn't wait from Friday to Monday and set off an unnecessary fire drill in my office, but they apologized to me yesterday and said yeah they should have waited. I feel like had I not set expectations on what would happen while I was gone and how I am handling the workload now, we would have had more fire drills.
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Is that what it was like? I want to sign up for a class like that. It sounds awesome.
"That chick wins at Penises, for sure." -- Fenton
You know what's really fun? My boss both emails and IM's me. Double Trouble.
Yes, Fallin it's my industry. They think they are fricken rocket science and solving the worlds issues. I don't mind starting at 6 am, I love it. I love my people. It's the emails and last minute crap that gets me. It could just be what happens to me. I don't think I handle stress well. Maybe the first step is admitting it.