Support Material - Managing Stress

A Change for the Better

Work-life balance - Feeling a little jaded with your job? What can you do? Read on for some good advice in the first of a series on work and health.        by STEPHEN MUGFORD and DION KLEIN

It is Monday morning. You leap out. of bed, invigorated by the prospect of another week at the office you love. Or, like many Australians, do you drag yourself out of bed wishing that it wasn't Monday and loathing the fact that you have to go to work and have anything but fun?

Perhaps you are working more hours than you would like, finding the workplace stressful and tiring , and thinking that "work-life balance" is a phrase that is foreign to your boss's vocabulary?

Research shows that many of us would prefer more balance and work satisfaction ahead of increased pay but we aren't receiving either.

If you are feeling jaded and unsatisfied at your workplace, what can you do about it?

More employees are taking charge by driving healthy workplace initiatives in order to create a healthier and happier workplace throughout the day.
Such initiatives have been proven to be beneficial overseas by decreasing absenteeism and increasing productivity.
    

• It's well understood that workplace well-being results from physical, psychological and social factors:
  At. the physical level, taking breaks, eating well, exercising and getting some occasional therapy -like massage -contribute to overall health.

• Similarly, improved self-knowledge, communication and a conscious effort to get along better with others brings great reward.

• And at the social level, better team work, constructive and shared recreation and improved management all impact on overall well-being.

• An analogy that can be taken is that when we take our children to day care or off to school, we expect that institution will provide our children with, the opportunity to explore and develop physical, mental, and social/emotional aspects throughout the day.

   

Employers have a similar responsibility to offer these opportunities since their employees, though more mature, are entrusting their overall well-being to the employer to provide the best work environment possible.

Though management may not be the driver of such initiatives, they should be supportive.

Clearly, there are things individuals can do for themselves, that work groups can organise and that managers can provide.

All three levels need to be pursued to make a truly healthy workplace where well-being is the norm rather than the exception.

Maria, a 30-something executive in a high pressure Canberra office, took action for herself. After progress reports showed that she needed to improve interpersonal skills, she asked a trusted colleague to organise an informal 360-degree feedback process for her.

Not only did the feedback increase her self knowledge, but co-workers were so impressed by her honesty and courage that made a special effort a to "meet her halfway".

Chris, a senior military officer in Russell, shows what a group can do working together. He organised an exercise group of officers with the tongue-in-cheek name of "Slugs" (senior leaders under great stress). slugs met regularly for physical exercise, and not always the same old "run around the block" either - Slugs included some abseiling and other activities designed to get out of the mundane and build team.

A local government department sponsored an in-house Fitness and Health Challenge where employees were given the opportunity to partake in a 10 minute massage, a wellness seminar, and a weekly 45-minute workout over the six-week challenge period. The result was overall increased well-being, decreased distress, and increased flexibility.

Similar results occurred in this year's Fitness ACTs Corporate Health and Fitness Challenge which bad more than 300 ACT employees participate in a similar program over a four-week period.

Other benefits from these types of events are :am-building, increased communication, and laughter in the workplace.

There are endless ways which management can incorporate such programs into the daily routine of the workplace.
 

With more research being conducted by providers ; well as government departments, there will be no argument that the benefits outweigh the costs in the long run.

Stephen Mugford is a sociologist who works in the private sector and specialises in capacity
development of individuals, team and organisations. He can be contacted at stephen.mugford@qqsr.com.

Dlon Kleln is director of Balanced Concepts, a company that specialises in corporate health, fitness and personal development programs in the private and public sector. He can be contacted at drdion@bigpond.com.
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