Caution: Don’t Stress Out Your Staff

All jobs can be stressful at times. That’s a given. And, occasionally, working for an SME can be especially stressful. This is mainly because it’s such a small team that every task you perform is important and visible to everyone. One little mistake can have an impact on the business as a whole.

The thing is, there’s a difference between your employees having one particularly stressful day and being constantly stressed. People who are always anxious and worrying about work become less productive over time. Instead of focusing on the task at hand, they may end up spending more time stressing over what needs to get done.

So, to ensure your staff aren’t completely stressed out, here’s some advice.

Let them take breaks

Yes, a lunch break is in their contract and you have no problem with them taking some time to eat and maybe take a walk. But, the reality is, many people sit at their desks and eat. You need to create a working environment where your staff feels comfortable leaving their work space during the day for a short while. And it doesn’t just need to be during meal time. They may also want to have a few moments outside to drink their coffee.

This may not seem like the most productive use of time, but allowing your staff to clear their heads means they’ll be more focused once they return to their desk. This way they’ll spend their energy on machinery asset finance rather than worrying about how they’re going to get it done.  

Ensure you have the right processes in place

Processes refer to how the business is run, how tasks are assigned and who perform what function. Having the correct processes could go a long way to helping reduce stress. This is because there are checks and balances in place that make sure one person isn’t receiving four people’s workload. Good processes ensure that every person has capacity for the work they are assigned.

Processes also make sure that certain staff members aren’t handing off work to their colleagues without notifying those in charge. This all works together to ensure that no single employee has a workload they can’t handle.

Encourage a little fun

Okay, so this may sound like something you wouldn’t normally encourage in the workplace. But people who enjoy their jobs are less likely to be stressed. Laughter and relaxed chatter take away tension. “Fun” doesn’t necessarily mean throwing your staff a party every other week. It simply means not giving employees dirty looks when you hear them getting a bit loud at the coffee machine. Or maybe even having drinks on the last Friday of the month or getting pizza for lunch every second Wednesday.

*This article was brought to you by WesBank, which provides machinery asset finance.