Surviving Work Overload
Posted by The PriorityPro on June 6, 2011 · Leave a Comment
These days I continually here about employees at every level of the organization who are overloaded with too much work. This chronic problem is mostly a result of numerous workforce reductions and vacation schedules. Many of us have experienced that dreadful sense of having far too much work to do and too little time to do it in. The option is to ignore it because you are “too busy” and to work unreasonably long hours just to stay on top of your workload. Unfortunately, the risk is that you may build up resentment, exhaustion and frustration that leads to poor quality work while you neglect other areas of your life and eventually experience intense levels of stress.
Some of the key signs that you or others may be overloaded include:
- A boss with no real sense of your job
- Increased sick leave
- A sharp rise in complaints
- Poor synergy with a team of co-workers
- Conversation breakdowns
- More consistently working longer hours and weekends
- Increase in turnover
- Increase in customer complaints
- Inefficient meetings
- Improper delegation of tasks
- Constant interruptions & distractions
- Too many emails, text messages, etc.
- Feel totally out-of-control or overwhelmed
- Employees complaining about work/life issues, limited career opportunities, or lack of skill development. If you colleagues are leaving in droves, find out why!
Work more intelligently by focusing on the things that are important for job success and reduce the time you spend on lower priority tasks. I found a tool on line at the Mind Tools site, which can help you take the first step in looking at your work, Job Analysis. According to information on their site, job analysis is a key technique for managing job overload – an important source of stress.
Also, try out some of these simple, popular and often effective solutions to many of the problems frequently encountered in the work environment:
- Proactively discuss with your boss the inefficiencies related to constant change and propose some realistic boundaries.
- Establish boundaries around when you can and cannot be interrupted by employees or colleagues.
- Turn on your phone only during designated hours or have your secretary impose a heavy filter on the incoming phone calls. If you are the secretary, keep conversations brief and get all necessary details during the first call.
- Prioritize your e-mail and correspondence. Don’t leave the email indicator on unless it’s absolutely critical for your job.
- Accept the possibility of a complete turn-about in your work as a result of uncertainties. Learn to reprioritize when change is necessary.
- Only permit emergency calls at work from family, friends, and neighbors.