At about 10:30 last night after the Dow suffered its historic 777 point drop, I spoke with a friend who is a therapist. He was at the local high school track and intended to run off all the panic, anxiety, and fear that his clients had brought his way. Due to confidentiality, I can't mention his name, but he told me that he was fielding calls all day – many from workers in the financial sector. I said," Isn't is a bit late for such exercise?" He responded, "If I don't get rid of the stress, I'm going to blow from exhaustion." There's good reason for concern.
A survey Friday from the Association for Financial Professionals was a harbinger of even more uncertainty for the job market. Corporate finance executives said that short-term credit has tightened so much during the past two weeks, that their organizations are already reducing hiring and capital spending.
That's the kind of news that has all employees on the edge of their seat. But unfortunately, panic leads to a less attentive workforce. When employees are so concerned about whether they'll have a job next week, this is precisely the time to generate a sense of calm in the workplace.
Employers might not do this on their own, but as individuals we all have the capacity to cultivate our own resilience. That's a topic that comes up frequently here at the Work Life Monitor. Taking pause can help build up resilience. It calms the mind and scientifically can allow for that right brain creativity and perhaps better productivity to emerge. But it's a tough mission in a time like this and takes work on the part of employers and the worker.
Uncertainty breeds panic. Now is the time for complete transparency. I recently spoke with a videographer whose company laid off most of his department. He was unsure about whether he'd keep his job, let alone expand his career. After two weeks of feeling literally sick about it, burning himself out and trying to impress his boss, at my suggestion he finally had a frank chat with the upper management. The response was positive and frankly the managers had just assumed that it was clear he was the only guy they were keeping.
It's understandable that employees might not want to rock the boat, and asking for a frank chat might not yield the most positive news – but at least it might bring forth communication. (Check out Jon Gordon's blog post: Positive Ways to Deal with Uncertainty.)
The following posts might be helpful and for those who are looking for a quick relaxing fix, I'm offering a free download of a contemplative breathing exercise from my CD from JudyMartinSpeaks called Practical Chaos: Reflections on Resilience. Just click here on The Breath of Awareness.
I'd also like to point to Tom Volkar's Delightful Work post, How to Beat the Work life Blues.
Staying Afloat in a Sea of Downsized Workers
Weighing on Credit Fears in the Workplace
Recession, Depression and their Impact in the Workplace
Office Face-time in Jittery Times
