Conquering Stress in the Workplace
Michelle, an accountant, felt as if she lacked the skills she needed to deal with people in the workplace. She thought finding a job after leaving school would be difficult but found work in the hospitality industry. From there, Michelle transitioned into accountancy. However, although finding work was easy enough, she struggled with stress as she felt inadequately trained for the challenges of working in a business environment.
“Nobody really prepares you for the business environment. You go through the school system: primary, intermediate, and high school, then at some point you need to find a job because that’s just life.”
Michelle’s mission to tackle work-related stress
Michelle knew she needed help as workplace stress was affecting her mental health but she didn’t feel there were any coaching options available for her.
“I did what I normally do, and that is to search relentlessly, looking at everyone and reading a lot of reviews. I have always had people advising that there are a lot of executive coaching options out there, but I found that they were for people higher up. I felt like I was missing out because I wasn’t at that level, which I didn’t think was fair. I wasn’t happy about that, so I did some more Googling, and I found you.”
“I watched your video and felt a genuine connection with you. I liked that you were happy to help people regardless of where they were at in their life, whether that was a CEO, a recent graduate, or straight out of school. I got in touch with you, and we had our 30-minute consultation.”
“I thought this is it because you called me out, and I needed that. I didn’t want a coach that would sugarcoat things.”
Learning how to relieve job stress
Coaching is different for everybody and moves at a pace to suit each person. Michelle and I started light by looking at the work-related stress issues that were easy to deal with, quickly helping to improve her physical and emotional health.
“I remember the first couple of sessions about going for walks and just being mindful, and I always remember when you told me to just sit there and capture that moment. I thought this was so weird; why am I doing this? But it really did eliminate my stress levels. I literally took a breath of fresh air. I don’t know how to explain it, but I felt all the weight was lighter. Maybe, it was because I had been holding on to all the stress and anxiety, and I wasn’t aware of it.”
“Talking to you made me realise I don’t need to hold on to this, so the combination of talking with you and going on walks in the garden helped me let go.”
Coaching takes time and practice to get right
After we had the basics under control, Michelle and I started to explore the deeper issues causing her workplace stress. It can be hard to understand how that translates to better work practices. The process is a bit like learning how to drive a car.
When you start, you’re not sure what you’re doing, but over time, with practice, everything comes together. As things change, your relationships change and get better, and you become more effective as you exert more influence. These all help to eliminate the causes of stress in the workplace.
Michelle's coaching experience
“Initially, I didn’t think too much about it, I thought it was just something I had to do, but over time, unconsciously, it pops up almost like a little angel on my shoulder, whispering, ‘are you sure that is correct? What are you telling yourself?’ So, unconsciously it comes through.”
“Sometimes it is difficult to get it right, but it is about practice, like meditation you can’t get it right overnight. Even like yoga, you won’t be able to do all the moves instantly. The goal is not to be amazing at implementing what you’ve learned or to ‘win’. It is about constant practice. To train your mind to think, be kind to yourself and others, and not to undermine others as this isn’t the intention. This creates unnecessary stress for yourself and others.”
Reducing work-related stress
After regular coaching sessions over several months, Michelle’s hard work has paid off, and she is now in a much better place. She has learned how to reduce stress by looking at life through a different lens, which has helped improve her workplace relationships and made a positive change to both her work and personal life.
“You’ve made my life so much better. I am so much happier. Even my partner has commented on it. My clients have asked how I can be so confident, and even friends have said I’m a completely different person from my university days. I have now learnt that I can stand my ground, and I have values that I need to adhere to, and that I don’t always need to agree with other people’s opinions.”
“Everyone should do coaching.”
If work stress or anxiety control your behaviour and affect how effective you are in the workplace, find out how we can work together to improve your potential in just half an hour!
