They say change is good and for the most part, I would agree. That said, in an ever- changing economy, change is not always good. Recently, my team had a reorg. In a nutshell, I am now reporting to another manager, will have different responsibilities and big shocking news, someone was laid off.
When it comes to changes like this, it’s all about the me. I have lived through too many numerous reorgs and two financial implosions. It’s amazing how the two financial meltdowns are so different. In 2001, the economy came rebounding back and while there were layoffs, people found jobs. I luckily survived that round of layoffs but wasn’t so lucky in 2009 when even lawyers were getting laid off.
So here we are again. And honestly I was slightly freaked out at the news. Probably because, I have been at the company less than a year and not sure how it will all net out. Risk and uncertainty is good when you are in the twenties and have no ties and few responsibilities, not so much when you have responsibilities, have a child to take care of , are the sole breadwinner and have no family to lean on financially.
When my daughter was younger, it was so much easier to hide all the work turmoil but she is almost 11 and she is a pretty astute kid. For a few days, I just wandered around in shock and my stomach was in knots, just freaking out internally about how this change would impact our life.
UGH! When your mind gets muddled with that kind of pressure, I really just did not have any patience with my daughter and ended up snapping at her or telling her to do things over and over or give incomplete instructions as though she could read my mind which in turn led to my snapping at her.
I know I will get through this latest bump but I know there are few tips that can help relieve the pressure at work.
1. Take a walk – I find that I have a habit of working straight through without a break but that is actually worse on my psyche. So even if I take a 15 minute break, I find that it helps relieve the stress.
2. Network with Others in the Office – This is a tough one for me since I don’t really know that many people but I did find that even just asking how others were doing helped me feel better about the changes.
3. Laugh or Find Humour In Your Situation – I do find that humor helps even for a few minutes. I have joked on several occasions that I was happy I was alone in my cube because I was freaking out and making faces while the announcement was being made.
We shall see how out it all nets out but dealing with how I manage the stress at home is a tougher situation.
Would love to hear other’s tips on how you deal with stress and ways you don’t let your work worries bleed into your home life.
Disclosure: NYC Single Mom was not compensated for this post.
love the ferris bueler quote 🙂
Right!!
Okay, this is probably going to sound silly, but when I start to feel really stressed and overwhelmed, I think about the universe. I think about how huge it is and how much is out there that we don’t even know about it. Doing this somehow lifts me out of my own life and helps me focus and get some perspective.
I dont think it’s silly at all. Sometimes, when I feeling particularly woe as me focused, I think that too and also the good parts of my life including my daughter. Helps center me.
I take a walk all the time when I am stressed! It helps clear my mind!
Stress from a job can be so overwhelming. When I worked 60 hours a week, the stress affected my health quite a bit. I turned to morning meditation and never looked back.
morning meditation sounds like a good idea.
Job stress is hard. I try hard to keep it away from the kids but it is surrising how much they pick up on.
Agreed, it is amazing how much they pick up on it.
Sorry to hear the job is going through some turmoil. It’s tough, but know this, too, will pass. In the meantime, take deep breaths and know this is a bump in the road that you will get overcome!
Thanks for the kind words of encouragement. Yes lets hope my anxiety will pass.
I know, it’s much easier said than done when you’re in a stressful situation, but often times just meditating for a half hour or so, completely working on clearing your mind of all your worries, can really help. The unknown is always frightening, so sometimes I’ll have a talk with myself, even saying “okay this is the worst that could happen…and if that happens…here’s my plan….” – not to freak myself out more, but I find it helps me feel more in control of the fear. Hang in there!
Job stress can be really difficult not only on the mind but also on our health. It’s important to find ways to relax–if you can like going to the gym or walking. Like you said, our kids can pick up when we are stressed. A glass of red wine can do great things to unwind too! 🙂
I also just wrote a blog post to help single moms and their kids hopefully relieve some financial stress:
http://www.thelifeinsuranceinsider.com/2013/08/single-moms-top-8-life-insurance-tips-mothers/
Things will work out for the best Linda, stay positive as always!