IS STRESS GOOD ?
IS STRESS NECESSARILY BAD FOR YOU?
A few months ago I shared research with you on the true effects of stress on people and this information will be repeated below. In the mean time I have come across something that bears out the finding that it is not stress that is bad for people, but rather how we perceive and react to stress. Kelly McGonigal, a research psychologist, describes valuable ways of thinking about stress and how to go about deriving the greatest benefit from stress. This 15-minute TED talk has been viewed by over two million people.
http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=ted+talks+kelly+stress&FORM=VIRE1#view=detail&mid=F54D455CF0DE444E1ADBF54D455CF0DE444E1ADB
ANOTHER PERSPECTIVE ON STRESS
For many years organisations have been trying to reduce the stress levels of their employees. What are the reasons behind this? It was believed that an employee who is less stressed will function better and be more productive. The terms in which stress is and always has been described are very gloomy:
*Stress is linked to six potentially deadly diseases.
*70–90% of doctor’s visits are for stress-related problems.
*Stress has a negative effect on our organs.
The irony is: If one concentrates solely on these facts one becomes even more stressed!
It is undeniable that high stress levels can have a negative effect, but that is not the whole story. There is also a great deal of other research which indicates that stress
• can improve our performance and
• our overall wellbeing!
This amounts to an alternative reality that is just as valid as the reality that stress is bad for us.
In the light of these facts Shawn Achor (the author of Before Happiness) did some research on the possible effect on people of realising that stress can be good for them.
In his research with managers at UBS he found the following:
*Hormones are secreted during the stress response which improve people’s performance as regards both cognitive tasks and memory.
*The speed at which the brain processes information can increase when someone is under stress.
*Stress can help people to flourish emotionally because their immunity is better and the rate of physical recovery is improved.
*In 40–90% of cases stress leads to spiritual strength, deeper social ties, better priorities and enhanced discovery of meaning. This is known as post-traumatic growth.
When a group of people were made aware of these facts, they
experienced (in comparison with a control group) a 23% reduction in symptoms (symptoms associated with stress, such as headaches, backache and fatigue). On a scale of 1–4 their productivity rose from 1.9 to 2.6 (almost a 30% improvement).
The team of researchers then trained 200 managers through a programme (“Rethinking Stress”) in which emphasis was placed on ways of using stress to their advantage. The effect of this was even more dramatic. Not only did their stress levels fall, but stress became increasingly beneficial.
Remember: Stress is a fight or flight response and the more you try to fight it or flee from it, the worse it gets. Instead one should follow a different strategy: acknowledge the fact that stress can boost your productivity and performance. Remember the research findings. It changes one’s focus.
A few months ago I shared research with you on the true effects of stress on people and this information will be repeated below. In the mean time I have come across something that bears out the finding that it is not stress that is bad for people, but rather how we perceive and react to stress. Kelly McGonigal, a research psychologist, describes valuable ways of thinking about stress and how to go about deriving the greatest benefit from stress. This 15-minute TED talk has been viewed by over two million people.
http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=ted+talks+kelly+stress&FORM=VIRE1#view=detail&mid=F54D455CF0DE444E1ADBF54D455CF0DE444E1ADB
ANOTHER PERSPECTIVE ON STRESS
For many years organisations have been trying to reduce the stress levels of their employees. What are the reasons behind this? It was believed that an employee who is less stressed will function better and be more productive. The terms in which stress is and always has been described are very gloomy:
*Stress is linked to six potentially deadly diseases.
*70–90% of doctor’s visits are for stress-related problems.
*Stress has a negative effect on our organs.
The irony is: If one concentrates solely on these facts one becomes even more stressed!
It is undeniable that high stress levels can have a negative effect, but that is not the whole story. There is also a great deal of other research which indicates that stress
• can improve our performance and
• our overall wellbeing!
This amounts to an alternative reality that is just as valid as the reality that stress is bad for us.
In the light of these facts Shawn Achor (the author of Before Happiness) did some research on the possible effect on people of realising that stress can be good for them.
In his research with managers at UBS he found the following:
*Hormones are secreted during the stress response which improve people’s performance as regards both cognitive tasks and memory.
*The speed at which the brain processes information can increase when someone is under stress.
*Stress can help people to flourish emotionally because their immunity is better and the rate of physical recovery is improved.
*In 40–90% of cases stress leads to spiritual strength, deeper social ties, better priorities and enhanced discovery of meaning. This is known as post-traumatic growth.
When a group of people were made aware of these facts, they
experienced (in comparison with a control group) a 23% reduction in symptoms (symptoms associated with stress, such as headaches, backache and fatigue). On a scale of 1–4 their productivity rose from 1.9 to 2.6 (almost a 30% improvement).
The team of researchers then trained 200 managers through a programme (“Rethinking Stress”) in which emphasis was placed on ways of using stress to their advantage. The effect of this was even more dramatic. Not only did their stress levels fall, but stress became increasingly beneficial.
Remember: Stress is a fight or flight response and the more you try to fight it or flee from it, the worse it gets. Instead one should follow a different strategy: acknowledge the fact that stress can boost your productivity and performance. Remember the research findings. It changes one’s focus.
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