Looking over the past year and looking forward to the New Year

We are almost at the end of 2011 and it seems to have flown past at such a rate. I met a friend for a meal last night and we had met exactly a year ago and it almost felt like a few month’s ago. This made me think about what has actually happened during 2011.

The vision of YSM (Your Stress Management) is to ‘help to prevent stress and improve wellbeing’ and since the start of the year we have had new clients from all different sectors and more large companies.

With YSM’s innovative products, the Stress Pack for Managers has proved to be a great success with interest from all areas of the UK. It has been an amazing year and that there have been large and small companies getting in touch for either our services or products. The Wellbeing Day has been a great success with the focus on health promotion. However, when employees do attend these events, they always talk about stress and how it is impacting on their bodies. This re-emphasises that stress is a big problem within the workplace and when tackled does lead to more positive and energised employees.

On a personal note, I had my book Stress Management for Carers published by Chipmunka Publishing which was amazing and I am sure will help and benefit carers and non-carers alike. Last month, I was really pleased to hear from Lynne Kennedy, editor of Business Women Scotland magazine to say that I will be joining as a contributor to BWS magazine and will cover specific topics especially on ‘how to deal with stress in the workplace’. Link to the latest issue http://issuu.com/businesswomenscotland/docs/bws.13_for_online

The next year will continue with product innovation and the latest one is our monthly Health Directions Newsletter which is personalised for each company, no matter the size. Special rates are available for the third sector.

www.yourstressmanagement.co.uk/corporate-wellbeing.html There is a sample to download plus a monthly poster, and prices are dependent on the size of the company.

YSM will continue to support companies to reduce stress at work and I sincerely hope that they will  find that it does make a huge difference to all their employees and their business. Healthy employees equates to a healthy business. Maybe this should be the main strap line of YSM for 2012.

A Happy and a Prosperous New Year to all our customers, friends and readers and as always, really happy for any comments or suggestions.

This post was written by Jessica Smyrl of Your Stress Management specialising in helping to prevent and reduce stress in the workplace, providing consultancy, training and effective and innovative support. For further details, please contact Jessica on 07899 756809.

Have a Stress free Christmas

With Christmas fast approaching and many people worried about their jobs, homes and families, it can be difficult to focus on Christmas time. I have a few areas that may help in the run up to Christmas and let me know if they are useful. There are lots of bargains, so try not to feel under pressure that you need to buy an expensive gift - if you grab a bargain it will make you feel good.

1. Make a list of all the people you need to buy for and list what you are going to buy for them. Better to plan ahead as this can be extremely stressful if you don’t know what you want to buy or forget some members of the family you need to buy for.
2. Shop if possible well before Christmas and have a clear idea of where you want to shop.
3. Take a break in-between shopping and have a cup of tea, fruit juice or water and ensure that you are having plenty of fluids and sustenance to keep hydrated and to maintain energy levels.
4. Let the bus or train take the strain instead of taking the car and having problems parking the car or try ‘park and ride’.
5. Wear comfortable shoes and clothes as this can cause you to feel sore, hot and bothered which in turn leads to feeling under pressure.
6. If you are not sure what to buy someone, get a gift voucher as almost every shop has got them available or buy online.
7. Can’t find anything suitable to buy, then check online when you go home.
8. Go with a friend or relative and enjoy the shopping experience – let them go for their presents and then meet up for a break at a specific time. This helps both of you to get what YOU want to buy.
9. Many shops offer a complimentary gift-wrapping service and this is a great stress-reliever, so use it and some ask for a donation to a charity which is a great way of giving to someone else at Christmas.
10. Remember to enjoy yourself and take some time to relax.
11. Order all your food well in advance of Christmas and pick up from the shop – this is a free service and great to use.
12. If you start to feel panicky at any time, then slow your breathing down – in through your nose and out through your mouth. Do this for a few minutes, and then carry on or just feel more relaxed and head for home and a long, relaxing soak in the bath and a fragranced candle and soft music in the background.

Stress Insight – for managers and individuals

Stress is the most common cause of long-term sickness absence within from the workplace according to a recent CIPD/Simply health survey. The new figures reveal for the first time that stress causes the majority of serious health problems for both manual and non-manual workers and the survey also found that companies planning redundancies are significantly more likely to see an increase in mental health problems among employees.

Employees Report They Are Too Stressed to Be Effective and this is from a ComPsych Survey. Two-thirds of workers report high stress levels, affecting their ability to be productive. Employees continue to be stressed, with two-thirds stating high stress levels and 29 percent coming to work when they are too stressed to be effective on five or more days per year.

I have found that many people are worried about their jobs and how they can manage financially which leads to excessive pressure and stress. However, many organisations are finding that sickness absence is a problem but a more significant problem is presenteeism.

Presenteeism is the loss in productivity that occurs when staff comes to work but function at less than full capacity because of ill health and this can be due to stress or pressure. However, it is difficult to measure, but there is now international evidence which is highlighting its scale.

When employees go to work and are not performing due to stress how are they managed? This is an area where the employee not only requires support but may require professional help. A manager should be able to speak confidentially to the employee but is the manager the problem?

Some areas which can help individuals or managers at work are:

• In life we always have choices and sometimes we do not wish to make a hard choice.
• If work is making you ill is it not time to sit up and take notice?
• Is it someone within your team who is causing you to feel under stress? Try and speak to them or speak to a manager, HR, occupational health or trade union before the situation gets worse and it has a long-term impact on your health.
• Do you stay in a job that is making you ill?
• Look at your current job objectively and find out what is making you feel so stressed and identify if there is anything that can change or ask for a change in your current job (a small change can make a big difference).
• Do you have the right skills for the job and if not, consider some training.
• Change to another job if at all possible or go to another department.
• Each individual has the power to change and make changes – it is not easy but it can be done with being positive.
• Aim to look at a negative and change it to a positive, this can help to alleviate some of that pressure.

All managers should be trained on Managing Stress so that they are able to identify stress and be able to manage it effectively.