Working With Someone Who Is Always Stressed Out

Working with someone who is always stressed out just adds to your own stress at the office. Rather than seeing your co-worker as a bad person and thinking you have to change your colleague's ways, try to downplay the situation and learn how to collaborate better. See if any of these tips help the next time you encounter an overly stressed co-worker.

Remove Any Judgmental Thoughts

Try not to judge your stressed out co-worker too harshly. Everyone handles stress in different ways, and the first thing you must do when you encounter a stressed person is not to judge them. You might feel like another person's stress is a drain on your psyche. To the person who exhibits the behavior, stress may serve as a motivation for working hard and trying to provide for a family.

Acknowledge Someone's Stress

If you notice that someone you work with is under a lot of stress, reach out to the person. Ask, "Hey, I notice you've been working a lot of hours lately. How are you holding up?" Continue the conversation based on how the person responds, making statements such as "I'm sorry you're going through this. It must be hard."

Offer to Help

You may not be able to assist someone who is stressed out, but the person may at least appreciate the offer for help. Your co-worker might feel inspired by your request and then seek solutions by finding people who can help with the situation. One thing you must do when you decide to help someone is to place limits on your assistance. There is only so much you can do for another person when you have responsibilities of your own.

Try explaining to your colleague that nothing is accomplished right away or overnight. When working on a daunting task, it might take time for them to reach the end goal. Tell your teammate to imagine the project as a room filled with clothes on the floor. It may take a while to pick up all of the clothes, but if they start with a single sock, that's one less sock they have to pick up later. In other words, each little task leads to an end goal that pays big rewards once it's finished.

Praise Someone's Work Ethic

Perhaps the stressed-out colleague feels underappreciated. Compliment the person's hard work, and be specific by describing a situation you remember wherein your co-worker excelled. You can also remind them about why they were chosen for their role in the company in the first place. They were chosen because they are intelligent, have specific skills and know how to get the job done right.

Build a Relationship

Even if you can't alleviate a person's stress by offering to help or paying them a compliment, you can build a relationship with the person through your efforts. A stressed-out employee might become more productive and happier just because you tried to help him. He'll also be more willing to help you if you need assistance with a specific task.

Working with a stressed-out person might improve your soft skills, but it can also help the person deal with their struggles. Showing just a small amount of kindness and empathy can dramatically improve your workplace environment.

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