Tips to help individuals and managers reduce productivity anxiety

It can be easy to feel worried or stressed that we aren’t getting through our workload as effectively as we think we should. In this post, we look at some practical actions both individuals and managers can take to help reduce feelings of anxiety relating to our productivity.

 

What is productivity anxiety?

Whilst there isn’t yet a universally accepted clinical definition for the term, it is a common expression used to describe an experience that a growing number of the working population relate to.

Productivity anxiety is a state of stress or worry that is felt by individuals at work due to any, or a combination of, the following:

• a fear of not meeting expectations regarding performance
• a constant pressure to be productive or busy
• a feeling of guilt whenever taking a break or not working
• a difficulty in relaxing or ‘switching off’ from work
• there being an overemphasis on measured output rather than the quality or impact of a piece of work

It’s an anxiety that can arise from various factors such as individual expectations, workplace culture, or more general societal pressures regarding work and success.

Recent surveys have highlighted that production anxiety is more acutely felt by those working remotely or in a hybrid environment than those fully office based.

 

Tips that may help individuals tackle productivity anxiety at work

1. Establish boundaries - introduce clear boundaries such as sticking to agreed working hours. If working at home, have a dedicated workspace that is separate from where you relax. If this is not possible, put work and any working equipment out of sight outside working hours. At work, leave your workspace to take breaks or to refresh between tasks.
2. Set realistic priorities and goals – break large tasks into smaller, more manageable and achievable steps. Resist working for long periods of time without moving and remember to take breaks, these two actions go hand in hand to help us be more productive at work.
3. Celebrate achievements – most of us tend to complete one task, sigh with relief and often don’t even draw breath before moving onto the next. Acknowledge each time a task is finished; take your eyes off the screen, move around a little to clear your head for whatever’s next, or get a hot drink and toast your progress or small win.
4. Communicate your support needs – we all need reassurance and recognition that we are on the right track and doing a good job. However, we are all individual. Some of us need more reassurance whilst other thrive with little external validation and prefer to derive it from within. Remote and hybrid working can make communication and praise less spontaneous than within an office environment. For our self-esteem it’s important that we reflect on the level of reassurance and recognition we need and communicate this to our manager and colleagues.
5. Be cautious of self-comparison – it’s easy to fall into the trap of believing other colleagues are constantly performing at a high level, seamlessly managing their workload and effectively juggling multiple priorities. However, before allowing this to make us feel inadequate and add to our anxiety, it’s worth reminding ourselves that we are not in their shoes and do not know what is going on in their minds and how they are feeling or coping.
6. Rail against perfectionist tendencies – we may have a belief ingrained from our youth that nothing short of perfect is good enough. That if a job is worth doing it’s worth doing perfectly (rather than just well or properly). In the workplace, trying to always ensure everything we do is perfect is untenable and adds a lot of pressure. Perfectionists often don’t realise that putting in less than their usual 100% effort to a task is still often seen by others as entirely sufficient. This can allow that spared effort to be used on something else, thereby with the potential to help both reduce productivity anxiety and boost output.

 

Tips that may help managers reduce productivity anxiety for all

1. Prioritise recognition – providing regular, positive feedback to everyone you manage can not only help reduce individual feelings of productivity anxiety but is an essential part of cultivating a supportive and healthy team environment.
2. Accept different working styles – not everyone works in the same way. If possible, reassure individuals that they have the autonomy to work in the way that works best for them to help them be at their most productive at work.
3. Improve communication - create safe spaces so communication on workload can take place in a calm environment. Make expectations and deadlines clear. Encourage and listen non-judgementally to opinions and concerns about work stress and capacity. Acknowledge that stress, in terms of how much we can cope with and our reaction to it, both inside work and in our lives outside, is individual but can affect performance. It is important to hear individual perceptions.
4. Monitor individuals regularly – productivity anxiety can be more acute when individuals return from holiday or when an important deadline is approaching. If someone’s anxiety persists, signpost to sources of support both within and out with the organisation. Follow up.
5. Be a role model – by practicing and sharing the individual tips in the section above, you will build trust with those who report to you that these are not only acceptable but encouraged behaviours for everyone to practice. Cultivate open discussions about mental health and promote work-life balance initiatives.

 

In  summary

Although reducing our productivity anxiety won’t happen overnight, we hope you will be inspired to try some of the suggestions above. We have also provided some links to training courses at the foot of the page that may be helpful for organisations seeking to raise awareness and tackle stress in their workplace.

This tip appeared in our late Summer 2024 newsletter. Many other mental health, resilience and wellbeing tips are available on our website – please have a browse to find some that work for you.