Your inbox has a hundred unread emails, you have 10 voicemails on your phone, and you only have an hour to finish up a big project that’s due at the end of the day. Can you feel stress tingling throughout your body? It shouldn’t really be a surprise, but this type of environment does not lead to long-term success. In fact, if you’re feeling this stressed out on a chronic basis, you’re bound to see a decline in your productivity, relationships, and health.
Stress and Productivity
The American Institute of Stress notes that 31% of employed adults have trouble managing work and family responsibilities. If a person is unable to manage their time well, they certainly won’t be working at maximum efficiency.
Productivity also decreases when a person has to work overtime. In fact, according to Forbes, for every 10% increase in overtime, there is a 2.4% decrease in productivity. Even when a person isn’t working overtime, studies show that 50% of people lose between one to five hours of work time every week because they are stressed. Overall, when people feel stressed, about 41% say that they are less productive.
Stress and Relationships
There are plenty of statistics that show just how damaging stress is with both your personal and professional relationships. According to the American Institute of Stress, 48% of people blamed stress for having a negative impact at work and home. What’ss more, 54% of people said stress caused them to fight with people close to them. If such a conflict happened at work, it could definitely put a damper on the teamwork necessary to complete a task.
Stress and Health
It’s not a big secret that stress is bad for your health. Just some of the many health problems associated with being stressed include:
- Extreme fatigue
- Headaches
- Stomachaches
- Muscle aches
- Loss of or increase in appetite
- Grinding your teeth
- Loss of libido
- Dizziness
When you’re not feeling your best, you’re certainly not going to function your best.
Avoid Stress for More Success
Clearly, stress is not the way to go if you want to be as productive as possible. To avoid being as stressed, try taking frequent breaks, limiting your responsibilities, eliminating procrastination, making to-do lists, and more. While it’s impossible to completely eliminate stress, even a small reduction could do wonders for your professional success.
