Managing Emotions in the Workplace

Employees may likely feel stress and pressure in the workplace as job instability and uncertainty becomes more widespread than ever. The result: emotions run high. How well you manage your emotions in the workplace can have an impact on your performance, reputation, and overall career success.

It’s not always easy to manage your emotions, particularly in emotionally charged situations. It pays to remain calm, patient, empathetic, and positive as you work toward resolving issues in the workplace. The following tips can help.

• Assess yourself: The first step to managing your emotions at work, specifically the negative emotions, is to take an honest look at yourself. Are you overreacting or being defensive? Are you misdirecting your emotional response? Perhaps your frustration stems from something at home, in which case, you need to reinforce the separation between your personal life and work.
• Anticipate and plan for difficult situations: You can count on facing difficult situations at work, but in some cases you can even plan for them. For example, you may have an upcoming meeting with a co-worker who you anticipate will have a counter viewpoint to your own. Avoid launching into a heated discussion by developing a few strategies in advance, so you can diffuse the negative emotions. Consider rehearsing the conversation in your head or with a friend; practice remaining calm and maintaining a professional demeanor as part of your delivery.
• Manage time, organize, and prioritize: Effectively managing your time, staying organized, and being able to prioritize tasks at work will keep you from falling behind and missing deadlines. This, in turn, will minimize stress and the negative emotions that stress can cause.
• Take a break: If you sense you’re about to react emotionally and negatively to a situation at work, excuse yourself and take a short break. By walking away, you can regain your composure and think through a more appropriate response.
• Focus on the positive: If you concentrate on the negative aspects of a work situation, your emotional response will likely be negative. Instead, look for and think about the positive to balance your emotional response.