Our brains constantly scan the environment looking for risk. Our brains appraise the risk, which is called primary appraisal. If the risk is worthy of our time, we move to what is called secondary appraisal. This process happens all the time. It is like waking up, eating breakfast, drinking your coffee and getting dressed. It is habitual and oftentimes your secondary appraisal process is not skilled at determining the risk level and how you will deal with stress.
Stress is unavoidable. It is real and a permanent fixture in our day to day work lives. Our ability to appraise stress and move toward productive coping is something you can control.
Coping is the process of dealing with stress moment to moment. Mitigating stress is dealing with an immersive event of feeling stressed out.
Individual Coping strategies include
- Mindfulness
- Exercise
- Relationships
- Clarifying Your Role
- Improve Your Secondary Appraisal Skills By Ranking The Threat Level
Organizational Coping strategies or interventions include
- Wellness Programs
- Redesign The Employee Work Experience To Provide Greater Employee Control and Choice
- Improved Manager and Employee Relationships
- Community Building Experiences
How are you and your organization coping with stress?