Signs that You or an Associate is Stressed at Work

Are you stressed out at work? How about your co-worker or associate? There's a lot of talk about how stress can be damaging to your health, both physical and mental. But do you even know if you are stressed? What are the signs?

When I was a kid, I never understood when my parents would say they were stressed. I guess I was a fairly easy going kid, so I was never stressed. But now that I'm older, stress is fairly common in my life. Usually not to the degree that it causes unhealthy side effects, but nevertheless it's there. Usually, stress at low levels is nothing to be concerned about. But how do you know if the stress level is getting high? Here are some signs that might indicate that your stress level (or the stress level of your co-worker) is getting high. Most of these indicators are fairly common sense items, but it helps to keep them in mind when dealing with associates in the workplace.

Bad mood or attitude. Have you ever had a good relationship with a co-worker and then all of a sudden one day she snaps at you for something minor? Well, it probably because of stress. Of course, this is difficult to tell if your co-worker is always moody. But when someone who is normally easy going becomes irritable, this could be a sign of stress.

Difficulty with focusing on tasks. Earlier in my career, I tended to place people in two categories...Competent or Incompetent. But what I've come to realize that sometimes competent people have trouble focusing on their tasks if they are stressed about something. Think about it...if you're mind is constantly preoccupied with whatever it is that's stressing you out, then you won't be able to focus on your job.

Sleeping problems. Obviously, you don't see first hand how your co-workers are sleeping. But if you hear someone say that they haven't been sleeping well, this might be a sign that they are stressed. Sure the occasional nodding off during a boring meeting is probably normal. But consistently being drowsy at work could be a sign of stress.

Problems with health. If your co-worker who is normally fairly health starts to complain of health issues, this could indicate stress. By the way, keep in mind that lack of sleep can cause all sorts of health problems.

Change in how they interact with others. For instance, someone who is normally quite talkative or quick with ideas might become silent all of a sudden. Or the change can happen the other way around. This could be a sign that they are stressed about something that is causing them to feel insecure. This insecurity could manifest itself as unusual silence.