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Coping with Job Stress
Software development is an inherently stressful job - it just comes with the territory. The competition is fierce and the hours are long and the expectations are very high. So your focus shouldn't be, "how can I de-stress my job," but "how can I learn to cope effectively with the stress around me." If you've read my "Stress Management Rant" you know that I've got definite views on how to cope with stress - your strategy has to be based firmly on the physiology and psychology of stress, or it simply won't work. And my main recommendation is that you start taking control of your job, not letting it control you. Here are some ideas.
Dealing With Overwork
One of the hallmarks of a stressful job is the overwork factor: that there is always more to do than you can handle, no matter how hard you try to catch up. If you find yourself taking work home more than once a week, or if you have to work weekends more than once a month, you're dealing with an overwork situation, and you should look at your work/life balance. If you find that your work and life are out of balance, I can help you set and enforce boundaries and limits on what the job demands of you.
Burnout
People often think that "burnout" and "stress" mean the same thing, but job burnout is actually the result of prolonged job stress. A programmer suffering from burnout has disconnected emotionally from her job: she no longer cares about doing her work well, or taking care of customers, or getting along with colleagues. Repairing the damage of burnout requires treatment from a therapist, but as a coach I can help you recognize the symptoms of burnout before it happens, and learn to avoid the job stress that causes burnout.
The Office Bully
The office bully is one of the most unpleasant sources of job stress. An office bully uses the power of his position to intimidate and browbeat you into doing what he wants. He might be verbally abusive, or use office politics to undermine your authority, or even sabotage your projects to make you look bad. An office bully is often the source of sexual harassment. Unfortunately, bullying isn't (yet) illegal, but more and more companies are banning bullying behavior because it can cripple a workplace. As a coach, I can help you recognize who the office bully is, and make a plan to make the cost of bullying you higher than he is willing to pay.
What Are Your Options?
If you're already stressed out by your job, your boss, or your work environment, it can be very hard to look realistically at your options: one of the crippling effects of stress is to make everything look more hopeless than it really is. But in fact there are probably plenty of things you can do today to start shedding the stress and taking back control of your life. Some of the options, like transferring to another department, require cooperation from your employer; but others are well within your control. Did you know, for example, that learning counteracts stress? If you can set out to learn new job skills it will give you more flexibility and you will start to feel better at once. Even simple acts like straightening your desk or taking a walk will make you feel better. I can help you identify your options, choose the ones that are most likely to help, and put them in play.
Can This Job Be Saved?
And if, despite your best efforts, your workplace is still stressful, you might have to think about leaving and finding a better job. I know that this is a big decision, and that it involves more than your work: it will affect your family and your financial future. While I can't tell you what to do, I can help you think through a big decision like this and help you make up your mind to do the right thing, then carry through on your decision.