- We tie identity to work and we pile pressure on ourselves to do well
- Deadlines and bosses making us stressed
- Tools employers use to measure progress make us feel insecure
The racing heart, palpitations and sweaty palms which would be our reaction to physical danger now occur when we're in a jam in the workplace.
This is because the way we feel about ourselves and our performance at work are now inextricably entwined, says new research.
We pile more and more pressure on ourselves to excel in the office - to outperform - in order to maintain our sense of self-worth.
Writing in a new book, Psychologist and PhD student Malene Friis Andersen from the Department of Psychology, University of Copenhagen, said: 'Some reach what may seem like an obvious conclusion; that, in our modern world, the saber-toothed tiger is our boss or the deadlines that we have to meet.'
'If you have an unpleasant boss, he or she will rarely go so far as to kill you. Yet work becomes a question of life or death to the people who get caught up in stress,' explains Andersen.
Her new tome, 'Nye perspektiver på stress i arbejdslivet' (New Perspectives On Work Related Stress), sheds a light on the effects of stress in the workplace.
In it, Anderson questions the modern remedies for workplace anxiety. She also believes that employers need to accept responsibility for employes pushing themselves too hard.
Anderson explains: 'Perfectionism must be regarded as behaviour brought about by the demands made by the labour market on the employee.
'Therefore, if you are suffering from stress, it is important for the outside world not to blame you for being a perfectionist.'
During the course of her research, Anderson interviewed workers who had been forced to take time off work due to stress.
The employees questioned all had jobs where creativity, knowledge, and personal commitment were key to their roles.
Malene found that people working within this sector, where employers made higher demands, were more affected by stress.
She found that the tools these companies use to measure an employee's performance actually make the employee more insecure, inflexible and more vulnerable to stress.
She says: 'The parameters for success become too narrow.' People may feel unable to trust their own judgement which adds to their anxiety.
She emphasised that it's not just about saying no to your boss or lowering your expectations because once the symptoms of stress strike, you end up in an impossible situation 'in which your life depends on you succeeding at work'.
'This is why today stress poses an existential threat to us. The place of work has become a potential arena for fighting many major battles and achieving recognition,' she added.
THE SOLUTION FOR DEALING WITH STRESS?

There is no other meditation that can in fact do what this mental exercise can do, as any other form of meditation keeps you in your head and are not safe. One can overdo on them, lose awareness, “space out” and experience other harmful effects, like allucinations. The Roy Masters exercise is very safe for the following reasons:
- It Is Easy To Learn At Home. It does not require any special training, initiation, paying fees, or trained teachers or a group to help you with it. This is a safety feature, since teachers and groups can corrupt meditations, especially.
- You Can Do It As Often and For As Long Each Session As You Wish. This cannot be said of many other meditations. For example, please avoid any prayers or meditations that send your energy upward, as they may produce marvelous effects on the mind, but may not be safe in the long term.
- It Will Not Lead You Astray. Some types of prayers, such as affirmations, can easily lead people in directions that are not healthy. For example, some affirmations cause people to believe in things that are not really true, such as “I am happier and healthier every day.” This statement might be true, but often it is not and is just an attempt to brainwash yourself.
- It does not cause visions, hallucinations or other psychic phenomena.
- It is grounding and centering, which tends to be far safer than most others.
- It Does Not Cause Strain To The Body OR To The Mind. For example, many prayers and meditation teachers suggest one assume uncomfortable postures that are not needed, in our view, and can even damage the body over time. This particularly applies to Oriental systems such as yoga and tai chi, unfortunately. These can be good, but one must have a teacher who continuously checks to be sure there is no strain on the ligaments and joints of the body.
- It Is Not Hypnotic. In fact, Mr. Masters calls it the anti-hypnosis, as it will break many light hypnotic trances easily. Mr. Masters was a hypnotist before he taught meditation and states that this exercise can help break the effect of hypnotic speech, images, etc.
- No Dogma OR Doctrines Are Needed. In other words, there is no need or attempt to inculcate certain doctrines in order for this exercise to work. It is a pure exercise in this regard. Dogma may help some people, but it is not needed and this is another safety feature since one is not forced to learn any particular information. The exercise is mainly about removing images, thoughts, and emotions that are revealed to be untrue as one progresses with the exercise. This is very different from affirmations that seek to influence the brain in ways that are sometimes not healthy, though the affirmations may seem benign.
- It Does Not Develop “Psychic Abilities”. Some may see this as a disadvantage. However, in our experience, most people are better off without these abilities until they are sufficiently balanced to handle them properly.
- A Slow, Steady And Safe Way To Open The Energy Centers Of The Body And Heal The Body. This is a great key and benefit of this exercise that cannot be said of most prayers and meditations, sadly. The reason is the exercise is non-specific. That is, it does not target any particular thought, body organ or area, or anything else. It might be called instead an exercise in pure energy awareness of the whole person.
Don't allow work place stress, or any other kind of stress run your life, start today, by discipling your mind to stay focus.
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Sources: Bianca London from Mail Online
Lawrence Wilson, MD