Is Workplace Stress Negotiable?
June 23rd, 2009 |
I just finished writing an article advising people to beware of the collateral damage that certain career choices can incur. Specifically, I pointed out, from personal experience and observation, that practicing law and the retail automotive industry can be hazardous to our health.
These are pressure-cookers that can elevate blood pressure, contribute to other nervous conditions, and even spawn addictions, though these maladies were beyond the scope of my article. Still, they bear mentioning, here.
I teach “Best Practices in Negotiation” at UCLA and UC Berkeley Extension, as well as privately, at corporations and other organizations. I also consult in the area, and one topic in which I’m especially interested is workplace negotiations. Typically, we discuss salaries, benefits, job assignments, setting and re-setting occupational objectives, and criteria for evaluating job performance.
In one case, called “Bud & Shirley,” we get into the thorny issue of workplace stress, focusing on an employee that has been informally tasked with mentoring and coaching new employees, though he doesn’t have a supervisor’s or a trainer’s title or pay scale. He’s stressed to the max, suggesting a “fight or flight” reaction is imminent.
This is not a good circumstance for anyone, or for the company, yet it and scenarios like it are commonplace, especially in the downsized, hollowed-out companies of the post-economic meltdown. People are pushed to the breaking point, but they are reluctant to volunteer information about their plight, lest they be seen as expendable troublemakers or slackers. Still, something has to give, to ease the pressure, to prevent an explosion.
The good news is workplace stress can be negotiated. The pace of our labors, the cooperation we get from others, and the general mood of the environment can be discussed, and by agreement, be improved. It is helpful to know that effective negotiation goes well beyond the subject of money. It affects nearly everything, including things that are worth much more.
Dr. Gary S. Goodman is a top speaker, negotiation consultant, attorney, real estate broker, TV and radio commentator and the best-selling author of 12 books, including SIX-FIGURE CONSULTING: HOW TO HAVE A GREAT SECOND CAREER. He is the creator of Nightingale-Conant’s successful audio seminar: THE LAW OF LARGE NUMBERS: HOW TO MAKE SUCCESS INEVITABLE. See: http://www.nightingale.com/prod_detail~product~Law_Large_Numbers.aspx His original class, “Best Practices in Negotiation,” is offered at UCLA & UC Berkeley Extension and at a number of other fine universities and organizations.
See: http://www.unex.berkeley.edu/cat/course1524.html
Gary conducts seminars and convention presentations around the world and can be reached at: gary@customersatisfaction.com
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