All stress is not totally bad, some stress actually leads to productivity.
Nikki,
You are a busy person! It is important to lead a balanced life and not leave those things that help you be healthy and happy. Balance in your life will accomplish this. Practice a healthy life style, mental activity that is rewarding, exercise and spiritual rejuvenation.
Dr. Gary Carlson
Currently with work and getting my masters degree, stress is frequent, especially right now with the end of classes and projects due. I have found that for me working on the project for 30 minutes to an hour at a time, then getting up and putting in a load of laundry or cleaning up for a few minutes, then going back work, helps me decompress and come back to the paper with a clear head.
Agnes,
Stress is a matter of life we face on occasion. We need to practice good stress relievers for us. Each of us should be consistent with our activity with a balance in our life. We to have a exercise, good health practices, mental relaxing activity and spiritual rejuvenation to combat the negative stress.
Dr. Gary Carlson
Agnes,
You are so right! So many of us seem to think they can get it done at the las minute. But when you look at the final product we are not happy and this brings on the stress. If you have good organizational skills with good time management you stress will reduce.
Dr. Gary Carlson
Agnes,
We can separate stress in to bad stress and positive stress. The negative stress is usually some trauma that relates directly to the emotions for you immediately. Health, accident or loss of life are extreme negative stresses. The stress in growth in you our your family that are usually personal or family achievements through hard work do not go without stress. I know that when my wife watched each of our children grow up and finally go onto to college was stressful. It was a happy moment but also a moment of loss.
Dr. Gary Carlson
I do perform well under pressure of deadlines. I find that stress is a great motivator for me, but it cannot be chronic prolonged stress that is never relieved. Reading mysteries is my way to reduce stress.
Procrastination is one of the main reasons why so many people get stressed out. They wait till the last minute to get things done, and then they are stressed out and overwhelmed. I think it is all about time mgmt. - if you have good time mgmt skills, you do not procrastinate, and it greatly reduces stress.
For me, stress is a great motivator. I am able to be more productive and efficient when under stress. However, if the stress is not relieved in any way, and it continues for a long time, then I feel the physical and emotional impact of stress.
David,
Stress may be difficult if it is a trauma in your life. Your stres can be draining on your day to day activity. It is important to protect your health by practicing a healthy life. A regular program of exercise, good health habits, leisure mental activity and spiritual rejuvenation will help with protecting your health from stress.
David,
There is are good stresses and bad. The bad are attributable to some trauma event. Addressing these events put your best stress practices to work. If you haven't had this event happen yet you are lucky. But when it does remember what you have learned.
Dr. Gary Carlson
For me, stress in the workplace is much more often a motivator than a detractor, unless the stress becomes overbearing to the point that it becomes de-motivating. I do feel strongly that stress can be viewed either as negative or positive like everything else in life. It is up to us how we interpret our surroundings and how we view the world.
I do find that stress in the personal life becomes harder to manage and can quickly turn into a negative. That doesn't mean that it should be dealt with or viewed any differently though.
Karen,
It is our challenge to teach the subject but also to give our best advice on how total performance is expected for the course. Your expectations of performance is the same as life long living with employment and life.
Dr. Gary Carlson
Dr. Carlson: But sometimes they think that just showing up is sufficient for a good grade, and that they are trying by showing to the class. I try to remind them why school is so important and why participating in the assignments is equally important. There are times that the student just doesn't want to try.
Richard,
Team pressure should be done for positive motivation. Putting to much stress on a team causes frustration and mistakes. In highly regulated corporations it is a risk to place to much pressure on your people. They may react by cutting corners and possibly working outside the curbs of compliance. The secret is knowing how much pressure your people can take.
Dr. Gary Carlson
Stress can be both depending on the person. As a leader you have to be very careful with how much stress is applied to you team as a whole and also to each team member. It is kind of like having a very old radio that can be tuned one way for the team as a whole but then has to be tuned separately for each team member. What one team member can thrive on may totaly stop another in it's tracks.
Karen,
You are correct. But we know when we have given all we can. There is a huge difference between giving 100% and 80%. The key is to know why a student chose to go to school and remind them of this often.
Dr. Gary Carlson
Patrick: Deadlines are good and bad. They fit within the facilitators question perfectly. If you have a boss or someone that is constantly putting a deadline that "he/she" feels is "doable" then it is not seen as a motivation, but a stress factor. It depends upon how the deadline is communicated.
Dr. Carlson: That is a very interesting question as it can be both. A student who works, has a family and takes classes has a lot of things on their plate. Sometimes, the stress helps them to succeed in the classroom. Other times, the stress is such a distracter that they give up and say "I don't have time to accomplish that goal, meaning the class work". It's a shame really, as professors can only motivate so far.
James,
You re so right. Organization and motivation are important.
Dr. Gary Carlson
