Stress can kill, and unfortunately, stress in the workplace is all too common. It has become a simple fact of life in most work environments where it impacts both the overall level of health and well-being of your employees and their productivity, which hurts your bottom line.
The latest statistics on stress in the workplace will terrify you.
The Impacts Of Stress On Your Employees
First and foremost, a staggering 76% of employees cite their workplace as the driving force and most significant contributor to their stress levels, with 77% of stressed out employees reporting the manifestation of physical symptoms as a result of that stress and 73% of employees reporting psychological symptoms arising from it.
It gets worse though. Fully 60% of stressed out employees say that they’ve contemplated quitting their jobs as a means of getting away from their major stressors. How many people do you have working for you right now? What does sixty percent look like for you? How much trouble would your company be if, in a perfect storm, sixty percent of your workforce broke down under the strain and left? Odds are that your business simply couldn’t weather that storm.
Now consider that a whopping one third of employees report that they are working under conditions they describe as extreme stress and consider how close you might be to a crisis without even realizing it.
Stress Impacts Productivity
The statistics above paint a grim picture from the perspective of your employees, but there are hard numbers surrounding the impact of stress on your bottom line too. Here are a few highlights:
- On the average, stress costs employers some $300 billion every year, manifesting itself in the form of missed work and health issues.
- 54% of workers report that stress causes them to become argumentative, which can be devastating to your company’s culture and destroy any hope of a harmonious work environment.
- Globally, 87% of employees report feeling emotionally disconnected and ambivalent about their jobs. An ambivalent employee is a less productive employee.
- A stressed-out employee is approximately 10% less productive than a non-stressed employee. Multiplied out by the number of stressed employees you have, the total cost can be staggering.
Obviously then, it’s a major problem and at first glance, you might think it’s an intractable one. That’s thankfully not true. There are a number of things you can do to reduce workplace stress and improve working conditions for the people who work for you. Best of all, these are things you can start introducing right now, today:
- The power of smiles. Smiles put everyone at ease and are contagious. The more you do it, the more your employees will and gradually, more smiling faces at work will begin to lift everyone’s spirits. It sounds silly but it really does work.
- The power of good morning. You may not realize it, but many of your employees may think of you as distant and unapproachable. You’re the boss after all. The simple act of saying good morning and stopping to talk with the people who work for you can have a powerful, profound impact and put people more at ease almost instantly.
- Encourage healthy eating habits. You can do that by offering healthy food options in the vending machines you have at work and if you’ve got a cafeteria, instruct your kitchen staff to start offering healthy options, especially at breakfast.
- Encourage your employees to listen to music at work to help them relax. Using ear buds of course. That might not be possible in every case, but where it is possible, it will have a big impact.
- Be sure to hand out stress relievers & stress balls as part of your employee recognition program. Stress relief gifts are low cost, fun little gifts that will make a notable difference. Here are a few to consider:
There are lots of other things you can do, of course but if you limit yourself to just the tips mentioned above, you’ll be amazed at the transformation in your workplace.
How The Humble Stress Ball Could Benefit Your Whole Staff
The statistics are grim. A staggering 40% of people cite stress as the reason they leave their jobs to find another. It’s the #1 cause of job turnover in America. Anything you, as owner or manager, do to reduce the stress levels of the employees working for you has to be counted as a good thing.
Can you believe that the humble stress ball can reduce the stress levels of those who use them? It’s true! Beyond that, stress balls offer a variety of other benefits, including:
Stress Relievers Can Help Relieve Arthritis Pain and Ward Off Capral Tunnel Syndrome
Let’s start with the biggest benefit of the stress ball.
If you have arthritis, you know that rubbing your aching joints will make them feel better. Squeezing a stress ball accomplishes the same goal, just in a slightly different manner. It stimulates the nerves in the palms in such a way that it increases endorphin production. In addition to stimulating nerves in the palms that transmit signals to the brain to increase endorphin production, a stress ball strengthening muscles in the hand. Between the strengthening and the endorphin production, a stress ball cannot only relieve arthritis pain, but possibly prevent carpal tunnel syndrome.
Can Help with Anxious Behaviors
Do you know a foot tapper? A desk thrummer (someone who wraps their fingers in a rhythmic pattern on their desk while they’re working)? Odds are that you do. These are habitual nervous behaviors, and simply by giving your body something else to do, in this case, squeezing a stress ball, you can break those nervous habits in short order.
That’s good for the person with the nervous habit, because its loss will often increase productivity, but it’s also good for everyone around him or her, because such habits can often be quite distracting.
The act of squeezing tenses the muscle. When the ball is released, it also releases stress from your hand and arm. This relaxed sensation produces a general feeling of release and relaxation. The Reflexology Theory has proven that the sense of relaxation you feel when playing with a stress ball strengthens the vital organs by enhancing blood circulation through the body and helping the energy pathways function more effectively.
Improve Concentration
You can usually tell if someone has difficulty concentrating by their vacant stare and their constantly fiddling with something in their hands. Studies have shown that the simple act of squeezing a stress ball rhythmically improves a person’s focus. Say goodbye to those vacant midday stares! Improve concentration by giving the person tangible to focus on.
Given all these benefits, it’s no wonder that the humble stress ball is such a popular office gift. If a majority of your employees don’t already have them, you should consider remedying that as soon as is practical.
Employee Gifts To Relieve Stress
Decrease stress and improve focus and productivity with stress relieving employee gifts from Successories. We’ve got tons of fun stress ball designs available, giving you a vast selection to choose from. We’ll provide a few examples below:
The Thanks For All You Do! Mood Dude
This fun little guy is more than just a stress reliever. With his quirky smile and wild hair, he’s also a conversation piece. In addition to that, when you squeeze him, the heat from your hand causes him to change color, shifting from blue to a vibrant orange. This is a great addition to any office!
The Thanks For Being Awesome Stress Ball
Another fun design, this one bright yellow with a smiling, egg-shaped head, holding a sign that reads “Thanks for being awesome!” It’s a great way to show your employees you’re thinking of them, while giving them a practical, valuable gift.
The Excellence Eagle Stress Reliever
This stress “ball” takes the form of a fierce, fun eagle with the phrase “Dare to Excel” emblazoned across his chest. Brimming with character, this design is one of our most fun, and is sure to be appreciated. You might even want one for yourself!
The Super Hero Stress Reliever
Do you have a “workplace superhero” in your office? If so, then this is the perfectly designed stress reliever for them. A fun little masked, caped crusader that’s sure to spark great lots of conversation and bring much needed smiles.
The “Making A Difference” Eye Poppin’ Pal Stress Reliever
These fun little stress balls have “googly eyes” and a face that contorts in wildly hilarious ways every time you squeeze it. Even better, this design comes in a variety of colors and inspirational, motivational phrases so you can customize them to match your employees’ preferences.
The “Rockstar At Work” Stress Reliever
This cool, orange, egg-shaped stress reliever has a confident smile and is sporting shades, making him one of the coolest designs we offer, perfect for your cool, epic rock stars and top performers.
The “Get It Done” Emoji Stress Reliever
Of all the stress relievers we offer, this one can accurately be described as being the sh….well, you know what we mean. It’s far and away the stress reliever most likely to evoke a laugh or smile, or start a conversation, and is sure to be appreciated.
The “Think Outside The Box” Brain Stress Reliever
If you’ve got an employee who’s super creative and has a tendency to come up with innovative solutions and look at problems in ways nobody else considers, then this is the perfect stress ball for them. It not only honors their unique contributions, but it gives them a much-needed source of stress relief in a form that’s as unique as they are. That’s win-win!
The “Awesome To The Core” Stress Reliver
Another innovative design that’s sure to be a conversation starter, this stress ball takes the form of a ripe, red apple. The perfect, fun tribute to a truly awesome employee.
The “Be A Leader” Stress Reliever
If you have an employee with demonstrated leadership skills, or leadership potential you’d like to hone, this is a great way to honor and recognize that person. Taking the form of a howling wolf, with the phrase “be a leader” emblazoned across his chest, it’s a fun, distinctive design that’s sure to be appreciated, and another design you may want for yourself!
Ship to Your Remote Employees With Our Multi Ship Option
Given the strange times we are in, your employees might be working remotely from home. Recognizing this, we now offer a multi ship option which allows you to easily ship to multiple employees with the same order. More details are on the checkout page!
If you didn’t find exactly what you were looking for in the examples we posted above — there are plenty of other designs to choose from, so spend some time browsing our site and you’re sure to find just the one you’re looking for!