Four Techniques to Manage Anxiety at Work

An increasing number of leaders I coach have asked me to help them manage anxiety at work. These leaders are normally confident and capable but find themselves experiencing anxiety when they encounter complex, unfamiliar, high-pressure situations.  

These leaders are not alone. Workplace stress is increasing, with 77% of employees reporting workplace stress in 2023 (APA, 2023). Many of these employees also experience negative consequences from stress including exhaustion, withdrawal, anger, or reduced productivity. Some of these employees are experiencing challenges (e.g., toxic work cultures, loneliness) that are best addressed with mental health support or changes to company or leader behaviour.  

Although the leaders I am coaching experience general workplace stress, they find that anxiety impacts their performance most when they are performing specific tasks. These leaders experience anxiety in situations such as presenting to senior leaders or their company’s board, when managing staff reductions for the first time, when managing internal politics, or when managing difficult and hostile manager or stakeholder interactions.  

There are many techniques to manage anxiety for specific tasks. After identifying specifically what triggers your task-based anxiety, consider these evidence-based tips to overcome anxiety-provoking situations:   

  • Reframe. Try to change how you think or feel about the situation. Reframing helps you normalise the situation so that you focus less on your own performance and feelings and more on the task at hand. If you “expect” yourself to be able to handle the situation, question this and set new expectations for yourself. 

  • Prepare. If the situation that causes anxiety is recurring, take time to prepare. This can include identifying how to manage problems you might face, preparing messages, or proactively addressing expected challenges before the situation occurs.  

  • Practice. Increasing exposure to a task, or to similar tasks, builds new skills and confidence. If increasing your exposure to the task is not easy, consider mental rehearsals or role plays. Use these techniques to identify how to best respond to the triggers for your anxiety. 

  • Cope. Identify tactics to help you cope with anxiety when you first start experiencing worry, fear, or unease. Coping tactics vary based on the situation, but can include distracting yourself, taking deep breaths, asking questions to redirect the conversation, and more.  

As an example, I coached a leader who had anxiety when stakeholders asked questions that she could not answer. She felt she had to answer all questions to be seen as credible and trustworthy. To overcome this, we helped her reframe the situation so that she interpreted difficult questions as helpful for her to better understand and address complex strategic challenges. We identified coping mechanisms to help her address anxiety when questions were asked, and then prepared her with techniques to answer these questions even when a full answer was not possible. As a result, her anxiety decreased, and stakeholders commented on her improved executive maturity in managing challenging situations.  

Anxiety at work is not always this straightforward. Sometime, leaders need to better understand themselves and the sources of their anxiety to address the challenges. The Growth Leader Assessment provides insight into how an individual reacts to stress and the strategies they use to adapt to the situation. To go deeper, I’ve used the Resilience Readiness Inventory to help individuals understand their personal reactions to stress, the practices they use to manage stress, and the organization resources and demands they have or need to better address their anxiety. Work demands such as problematic stakeholders or a lack of voice on work challenges can overwhelm a person’s resilience strategies. In these cases, individuals may have to work on their own resilience as well as managing the challenges they face at work.   

If you experience anxiety with unfamiliar tasks or high-pressure situations at work, remember that this is normal. Even the most composed leaders experience anxiety when in very challenging situations. Try to address these situations by reframing and preparing for the situation, practicing new skills, and by learning new coping strategies. Learning to cope with task anxiety in one area will help you cope with anxiety in other areas. If anxiety is more pronounced or more general, take time to understand yourself, your resilience practices and your work demands and resources. If anxiety is more debilitating, make sure you seek counselling or other support to minimize its impact on your health and wellbeing. 

 

American Psychological Association (2023). 2023 Work in America Survey. 

 

 

Dr. James Eyring is CEO of Organisation Solutions and Lead Science Advisor for Produgie. James has over 30 years of experience assessing, coaching, and developing executives and their teams. With a PhD in Industrial / Organizational Psychology, James is actively involved in research on leadership, growth capabilities, and potential. He has taught Undergraduate and Graduate level courses and published in academic and practitioner publications. Most recently he authored book chapters on Strategic Workforce Planning and Innovations in Assessment in SIOP’s Professional Practice Series.

 

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James Eyring, PhD

Dr. James Eyring is the Chief Executive Officer of Organisation Solutions and is the Lead Science Advisor for Produgie. James oversees a global consulting practice, which includes 300 assessors and coaches located in over 30 countries. When he is not running the business, he coaches, assesses, and develops top leaders and teams to build the essential capabilities they need to perform and drive future growth. James is also an active researcher and thought leader and recently has published chapters and articles on innovations in assessment and strategic workforce planning.

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