Individual stress control techniques are important. Meditation,

soothing music, biofeedback, and other techniques work well to help

people cope with the stress of our modern workplace.

The real solution, however, is to recognize that stress control is a leadership

responsibility. Leaders and managers can do more to control stress than

all of the individual stress relief techniques combined. Leaders who

implement stress control strategies see the results in reduced

absenteeism, medical costs, health care insurance expenses, workers

comp payments, accidents, complaints, and so on.

The following 13 stress control strategies minimize costs such as these and productivity

soars. The workplace is improved. Employees and their families are

happier. Business owners make more money.

Management can control stress by:

* Eliminating unreasonable expectations

* Positioning people in jobs that use their skills and abilities

* Adjusting pay for the level of responsibility assigned to individuals

* Correcting vague and arbitrary promotion policies

* Including employee in making decisions that affect their jobs

* Avoiding excessive overtime, even if there is additional compensation

* Distributing unpleasant tasks fairly

* Enforcing policies equally throughout the organization, from top to bottom

* Implementing problem-solving strategies and acceptable mediation of conflicts

* Using family stress control strategies to minimize the impact of family separation

caused by travel or long office hours

* Demonstrating concern for employee welfare

* Eliminating or minimizing intolerable conditions such as temperature, hazards, noise, light, and odors

It is difficult to remove some of these stressors when the competition is

attacking your company or when you are faced with unfavorable economic

conditions, but this challenge is just as important as anything else

facing those who wear the mantle of leadership. Making all of these

changes can seem overwhelming. However, you can make an impact by

selecting a single strategy and making a plan to improve it.