Being a manager can be stressful. You are responsible for the work of others, you need to achieve company objectives, and you do not always have the resources or control that you would like.

However, understanding what may be causing you stress will make it easier for you to identify ways of alleviating it.

Five causes of stress and how they appear

Charles Handy, the management theorist, identified five common causes of stress likely to affect managers:

• The need to be innovative – As a manager, it will be your responsibility to look for ways in which you can improve the work that is being done in your department. Implementing such changes can be difficult in change-adverse cultures. Continual innovation can also be hard to sustain.
• Responsibility for the work of others – As a manager, you have to be able to trust and rely on your team members. You also have to be able to motivate, support, encourage, organize, and control them, when necessary. All of this takes time, effort, and skill and presents challenges that are different from simply doing your own work.
• Unclear boundaries – Coordinating activities can be stressful. To do your job well, you may need information or resources from people over whom you have no specific authority. Getting them to supply what you need, when you need it, can be difficult.
• Relationship problems – Poor relationships with colleagues, peers, or bosses are common causes of stress. Relationships can be damaged by a number of things, but the most common cause is misunderstanding. This can be rectified and needs to be addressed before too much harm is done.
• Career uncertainty – In a rapidly changing business world, many managers fear layoffs as a result of mergers, takeovers, or downsizing. Unfortunately, many managers find it difficult to concentrate on their current jobs when they constantly have this fear in the back of their minds.

Stress versus pressure

There is a difference between pressure and stress. Some pressure is inevitable, and many managers thrive on the adrenalin it generates and will happily seek out additional work and responsibilities. But it is important to know the difference between the two:

• Pressure – Pressure can energize and motivate. Pressure can mean having a lot of work to do. There is a danger that if pressure is not contained, it could lead to stress.
• Stress – Stress is a response to things that seem to be out of control. Stress can be debilitating, leading to irritability and insecurity. Stress occurs when that work cannot be completed because of factors seemingly outside of your control.

Because of their very nature, it may not be possible to control all the causes of stress, but they can and should be reduced.

Minimizing stress

Having identified the causes of stress that are affecting you, you can take appropriate steps to reduce it:

• The need to be innovative – You can lessen your stress by ensuring that the goals that you have negotiated and agreed upon and all the objectives you have set are SMART: specific, measurable, achievable, realistic, and timely.
• Responsibility for the work of others – This stress can be lessened if you carefully identify the tasks that can be delegated and then systematically monitor progress. A structured staff appraisal system and regular feedback can also help to ensure that employees understand what is required of them.
• Unclear boundaries – It is important that you work with your colleagues to clarify everyone's individual roles. If coworkers have to report to more than one manager, priorities must be negotiated and clear reporting lines should be established.
• Relationship problems – To lessen this possible cause of stress, you must be prepared to communicate with your colleagues, listen to their concerns, and collaborate with them whenever possible.
• Career uncertainty – In today's business environment, there is a greater level of career uncertainty for everyone. Therefore, it is important for you to make sure that you have your own personal development plans that include developing transferable skills.

Prolonged stress can have a detrimental effect on managers' abilities to do their jobs effectively and on their general well-being.

It is therefore important not to just ignore stress and hope that things will improve. Be objective. Stand back from the situation, look at the causes of the stress, and identify appropriate ways of dealing with it.

Some people may feel that looking for causes of stress is like looking for an excuse, but it does not help to view it in this way. Identifying the root of any problem and then identifying ways in which it can be solved are vital management skills.