A person’s job plays a major role in their life. It thus comes as no surprise that those who suffer from mental health issues relating to stress often cite work as one of the top contributors to their feelings of anxiety and depression.
Luckily, there are basic steps someone can take to minimize work stress. If your job has been negatively impacting your mental wellbeing, the following tips may help.
Know What is Asked of You
One of the most common reasons employees become stressed at work is simple: they don’t feel they entirely understand what is being asked of them when they receive assignments. During the process of completing an assignment, this results in stress due to a sense of being overwhelmed or confused. Once the assignment has been completed, if a worker made an error because they didn’t fully understand how they were supposed to go about the task, their supervisor may be upset with them, resulting in even more stress.
This is an unpleasant experience that is often avoidable. Whenever you have a job to do at work, make sure you absolutely know what is expected of you. Ask questions if there is any confusion on your part.
Don’t Multitask
Many mistakenly believe they can get more done at work by handling multiple tasks at once. This is actually a recipe for stress in the long run.
Studies consistently reveal that the vast majority of people are unable to multitask effectively. They may think they can focus on multiple tasks, but this is a flawed assumption.
Trying to multitask places significant demands on your mental energy. If you make a point of only focusing on a single task at a time, you will be less likely to develop work-related stress.
Don’t Bring Work Home With You
Although there may be some occasions when it will be absolutely necessary for you to complete work tasks during what is normally your off-hours, to the best of your ability, you should strive to avoid bringing work home with you. Your mental health will benefit when you set aside time to focus on your own personal life instead of thinking about work all of the time.
All that said, while these tips can help you limit work-related stress, they are not always effective when a job or work environment is particularly stressful. While you will hopefully never develop mental health issues as a result of work stress, if this does happen, it’s worth noting that in California you may file a claim to collect workers’ compensation benefits. However, because employers and insurance companies often attempt to deny such claims, you need to enlist the help of a qualified California workers’ compensation lawyer to optimize your chances of recovering the compensation for which you may be eligible.
Our experts at Koszdin, Fields & Sherry are here to provide the representation you deserve. If you’re planning on filing a workers’ compensation claim because you’ve been stressed on the job (and perhaps off the job as well), call us at 818-812-5639 or 800-747-3447 or contact us online for more information.
