What are the biggest sources of stress in the services industry and how can we combat them?

The services industries have always been known for being busy and professionals have to react to customer behaviours, legal requirements and pressure in terms of financial measures on a day to day basis, sometimes unexpectedly. Particularly busy times of year, stressful home lives and pressure of underperformance or new promotion can cause this to mount and if left unchecked, can result in high levels of stress.

A little stress in our lives is often healthy, if we have time to respond and reflect on our experiences between occurrences. The Stress Management Society define stress as your body’s way of responding to an overwhelming amount of pressure. Having excessive pressure or demand placed upon us can lead to physical symptoms such as depression, anxiety, panic attacks, nausea and can lead to time off work to regroup and resolve. According to HSE there are 11.7million lost work days due to stress in the UK (estimates based on self-reports from the Labour Force Survey 2015/16).

As busy professionals, we need to find ways to alleviate the physical symptoms of stress and address the mental ones, both in the moment and afterwards. Taking steps in the moment to be objective by physically removing yourself for a short break may help you see more clearly. Taking up a mentor or buddy system in times of new promotion within your company could ease levels of anxiety and uncertainty for staff who lack experience. 

Work and life balances are so important. According to MentalHealth.org, prevention is better than cure, and we should all take time to ensure our physical health is strong enough to cope, by eating well, being aware of unnecessary stimuli, exercising and taking time out. Lack of rest and sleep can also have a huge impact on wellbeing as detailed by Nestmaven.com. For full details on tips for getting a good night’s sleep read their guide on How to sleep better.

Flexibility in management of people through organisational culture is an invaluable tool in ensuring good management of work practices and business performance. Ensuring there is a culture of support and perspective in the industry, puts value back in the employee-employer relationship.