Sudden death from overwork is a recognized phenomenon in Japan, where there is even a name for it — Karōshi. We have no comparable word in the English language., but it isn’t hard to understand the concept. From BlackBerrys and iPhones to laptops and iPads, it's now possible that every waking moment can be turned from down time into potential work time, so job stress follows us wherever we go.
Each moment we’re not working can seem like a task not completed. With unemployment on the rise, people are less worried about advancing their careers and more worried than ever about losing their jobs. As companies cut back and seek to squeeze more productivity out of existing employees, or cull the bottom ten percent of workers to be replaced by someone with higher skills or a lower salary, many of us feel like we’re working at double-speed just to stay in place. This can cause a lot of stress.
Each moment we’re not working can seem like a task not completed. With unemployment on the rise, people are less worried about advancing their careers and more worried than ever about losing their jobs. As companies cut back and seek to squeeze more productivity out of existing employees, or cull the bottom ten percent of workers to be replaced by someone with higher skills or a lower salary, many of us feel like we’re working at double-speed just to stay in place. This can cause a lot of stress.
Many companies made large strides in the past decade to finding a better work-life balance for their employees, believing that this will lead to higher productivity and loyalty. Some companies have limited overtime, offer telecommuting, or even require employees to leave the office by a certain time each day. However, few workers actually take advantage of these opportunities or end up taking work home. Certain careers, such as sales and consulting, are particularly difficult to find a healthy balance due to the infamous Road Warrior lifestyle if airports, hotels, and restaurants on a regular basis.
So, how does one avoid Karōshi and actually thrive in such a stressful environment? While it's easier said than done, one key strategy is to use stress to your advantage. Distress is the most commonly-referred to type of stress, having negative implications, whereas eustress is a positive form of stress, usually related to desirable events in a person's life. Examples of eustressful situations are meeting or engaging in a challenge, coming in first place in a race, getting a promotion, watching a suspense or horror movie, riding a roller coaster, buying a new car, falling in love, and marriage. The key is to take a parallax view of key work situations and turn them into a eustressful challenge instead of a distressful event.
Both distress and eustress can be equally taxing on the body, and are cumulative in nature, depending on a person's way of adapting to the change that has caused it. The body itself cannot physically discern between distress or eustress. In addition to eustress, routine exercise will cause the release of endorphins. Produced by the pituitary gland and the hypothalmus, endorphins provide a sense of well being and control, and allow one to persist with an activity for an extended time. It is also crucial to maintain a well balanced diet, limit alcohol consumption, get an adequate amount of sleep each night, and enjoy some down time occasionally in order to maintain good health and well being during stressful times.
So, how does one avoid Karōshi and actually thrive in such a stressful environment? While it's easier said than done, one key strategy is to use stress to your advantage. Distress is the most commonly-referred to type of stress, having negative implications, whereas eustress is a positive form of stress, usually related to desirable events in a person's life. Examples of eustressful situations are meeting or engaging in a challenge, coming in first place in a race, getting a promotion, watching a suspense or horror movie, riding a roller coaster, buying a new car, falling in love, and marriage. The key is to take a parallax view of key work situations and turn them into a eustressful challenge instead of a distressful event.
Both distress and eustress can be equally taxing on the body, and are cumulative in nature, depending on a person's way of adapting to the change that has caused it. The body itself cannot physically discern between distress or eustress. In addition to eustress, routine exercise will cause the release of endorphins. Produced by the pituitary gland and the hypothalmus, endorphins provide a sense of well being and control, and allow one to persist with an activity for an extended time. It is also crucial to maintain a well balanced diet, limit alcohol consumption, get an adequate amount of sleep each night, and enjoy some down time occasionally in order to maintain good health and well being during stressful times.
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