Chapter 9 – Deliverer
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9.4 Managing Stress
(click the activity index number to take you back to the activities index)
Being productive is an important aspect of the Deliverer role. Stress can affect our
productivity, so stress management is an important skill for Academic Coordinators. As
individuals and as leaders we all need to develop strategies to manage our stress levels.
OBJECTIVE
The objective of this activity is to develop your ability to
manage stress in the workplace.One of the first things you need to consider in managing stress is to become self-
aware about whether you are exhibiting signs and symptoms of stress. Long-term stress
that is not managed decreases your efficiency and efficacy as an Academic Coordinator.
The Effects of Stress
Stress has a number of effects on our health as well as on individual and organisational
effectiveness and performance. Stress produces adrenaline which helps us to survive in
a 'fight-or-flight' situation. Thus, it can have performance enhancing characteristics. It
may, however, do any one or more of the following:
- Interfere with clear judgement and make it difficult to take the time to make good
decisions. - Seriously reduce your enjoyment of work.
- Interfere with fine motor control.
- Cause difficult situations to be seen as a threat, not a challenge.
- Damage the positive frame of mind you need for high quality work by:
- promoting negative thinking,
- damaging self-confidence,
- narrowing attention,
- disrupting focus and concentration, and
- making it difficult to cope with distractions.
- Consume mental energy in distraction, anxiety, frustration, and temper. This is
energy that would be better devoted to the work at hand.
In the long run, stress that is not managed may seriously damage your health via
prolonged exposure to heightened levels of adrenaline. One of the ways adrenaline
prepares you for action is by diverting resources to the muscles from the areas of the
body which carry out body maintenance. This means that if you are exposed to
adrenaline for a sustained period, then your physical health may start to deteriorate and
you may also experience a range of unpleasant psychological symptoms. These include
worry and anxiety and mood changes such as depression.