How to Ease Employee Anxiety in 4 Simple Steps

by Spectrum Wellness

Sean is a hard-working, exemplary employee. He is also close to having a meltdown. Lately his workload has been piling up and he knows he won’t be able to meet the deadlines. His excessive anxiety is disturbing his sleep, productivity and family life. He hasn’t talked to anyone about it and he doesn’t know why.

Maybe you know a Sean.

Research in the US (1) reveals that workplace stress & anxiety caused additional expenditures up to $190 billion dollars a year broken down into high demands at work ($48 billion), lack of insurance ($40 billion) and work-family conflict ($24 billion).

Without a doubt, employee anxiety is a significant problem in terms of health and costs. It might be an issue that you have to tackle as an employer or manager. It is also a topic that needs to be approached carefully and thoughtfully. So, let’s look at 4 simple steps to ease employee anxiety:

1. IDENTIFYING THE SITUATION
When it comes to figuring out if an employee is being affected by anxiety, the one thing to remember is, observe as much as possible and never assume. There are some signs that might help you to spot someone who needs help.

If he/she:

• Seems to be more emotional and over reactive when interacting with other employees.
• Is Feeling negative or dwelling on negative experiences.
• Is restless and unable to concentrate
• Appears tired and withdrawn, losing interest in activities he/she enjoyed before.

Although the above points seem to be quite clear, it might not be obvious in the case of your employee and so again, observe as much as possible.

2. REASSURE AND APPRECIATE
Something as simple as a ‘thank you’ or a greeting in the morning. Your employee might need regular reassurance that he/she is doing the right thing.

One major factor of anxiety for some employees is the constant concern of losing their job or making a bad impression with their bosses. If your employee is doing a good job, there is no harm in letting him/her know that regularly.
Anxiety might be a real challenge for some but that does not mean that they do not make a valuable contribution to the workplace. So, focusing on what they can do is key to easing their anxiety and at the same time you can help them manage what they are struggling with.

3. “TAKE A BREAK”
Research shows that deactivating and reactivating goals help to stay focused (5) and more importantly taking breaks is linked to higher job satisfaction, reduced emotional exhaustion and willingness to reach out (6).
It could be that your employee has a substantial amount of work and just wants to get done with it. However, it’s a good idea to encourage them to take a few spread-out breaks. Maybe three 20 minute breaks throughout the day rather than one lunch break.
For some, it might be difficult to self-initiate this practice and so you might need to help them initially letting them know it’s okay to do so.

4. RE-ADJUST
As the employer, you have the power to re-adjust and redistribute work between your employees. If you have identified someone who is battling anxiety, the key could be to help them re-adjust the amount of work that they do, the nature of work they do or even adjusting some aesthetic elements. There are several things you could do:

• Provide quiet rooms
• Temporarily allow flexible working hours
• Have an agreement allowing an employee to leave at short notice and time off for reasons related to therapy or counselling.
• Provide a desk near the sunlight providing a brighter workspace
• Remove or replace some work that might be too much to handle.

It is important to remember though, that taking away responsibilities with the intention of lightening the workload can sometimes prove to be counter-productive. It might cause the employee to think they are less important and effectively break down their self-esteem and suck out motivation. So, put in some thought before you re-adjust.

There you go! Four simple steps to ease employee anxiety. The mental well-being of your employees is crucial to the optimal functioning of your organization and maintaining a positive work culture. The topic of anxiety and mental health is a delicate one and naturally, when approaching it, a lot of thought and tact is involved. However, fortunately there are simple steps you can take to tackle the issue. To recap:

• Identifying the situation
• Reassure and appreciate
• “Take a break”
• Re-Adjust

References:
https://www.forbes.com/sites/hbsworkingknowledge/2015/01/26/workplace-stress-responsible-for-up-to-190-billion-in-annual-u-s-heathcare-costs/#6ab77057235a
http://www.hrzone.com/lead/culture/guide-to-anxiety-in-the-workplace-for-hr
http://www.acas.org.uk/index.aspx?articleid=5880
https://www.mind.org.uk/media/550657/resource4.pdf

http://www.health.com/home/workday-breaks-help-employees-reboot-researchers-say