May 19, 2004
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in this issue
-- Productivity is up - but are employees getting too stressed out at work?
-- Perfect Labor Storm Alerts #146 to #150
-- Stop Hiring High-Risk Hourly/Entry-level Employees with CBI and SELECT
-- Select the Right Test
-- Interview Questions That Every Manager Must Ask
-- Stop the Resu-mess. Screen Candidates Online Anytime and Cut Your Resume Screening and Interviewing Time in Half.
-- I just know you wanted to know this.

Greetings:

What's the dumbest thing you ever heard a candidate tell you at an interview? Send in your tales to intervi ew@chrysaliscorporation.com

To learn more about The Chrysalis Corporation or to read back issues of The Total View, visit our website at www.chrys aliscor poration.com

Productivity is up - but are employees getting too stressed out at work?
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With less people expected to do more at work and our pace of life just getting faster and more hectic, it is no wonder we are all feeling a bit tired. We are all being asked to do more and become more flexible. But have you ever wondered why some people seem to just keep on going and going and going just like the Energizer(R) bunny while others seem to have a tough time staying awake past their mid-morning break?

Just imagine waking up in the morning and the first thing you do is fill up your "energy" tank. No, I'm not talking about stopping by at the local convenience store to fill up your SUV but filling up that "tank" within you - the tank that gives you the energy you need to get you through the day.

That's exactly what happens every single day. Whether that first jolt comes from a cup of java or reading a Biblical passage, it doesn't matter. What does matter is that each of us gets a full tank of energy each day. While some of us have larger tanks than others, we all leave home with a full tank.

How long that tank lasts and how effective we are at using it depends on several things. But nothing is so powerful on our effectiveness as our personal behavioral style and the environment in which we are expected to operate.

As individuals, we have natural preferences. We choose how we respond to or move away from the 4 Ps - Problems, People, Pace, and Procedures. When we act naturally according to these behavioral preferences, we are energized. Likewise when asked to act against our natural preferences, this requires more energy than normal and we tire easily. If asked to do this too often or for a prolonged period of time, we get fatigued and burned out.

A model that assesses the 4 Ps is called DISC. As a quick refresher, DISC is a model of behavior developed by William M. Marston. Marston's model has been tested, proven accurate, and validated for effectiveness with millions of people for more than 40 years.

In the DISC model, four styles are associated with Marston's Behavioral Model. They are: Direct, Influence, Steadiness, and Compliance. These relate respectively to how energized or de-energized we are when dealing with Problems, People, Pace and Procedures.

Let's take a look at how placing ourselves in situations requiring different styles can "drain" our tanks quickly. In this column, I'll focus on the D style. In future newsletters, I will write about the other three - and if you have a story you would like to share related to stress in the workplace, please email me at iwolfe@super-solutions.com

"D" behavioral styles are energized by meeting problems and challenges head on. But "D"s make up only eighteen percent of the population. So many of you might relate to Steve's situation.

Steve dreads conflict. The good news is that individuals like Steve are quite patient. The bad news is that they let situations fester. Many times they hope the problem will go away without his or her intervention.

Steve is the owner of a 75 employee manufacturing plant. He's been putting off disciplining his woefully under-performing and in-your-face manager for months.

Push has come to shove for Steve and today is the moment of truth. Steve didn't sleep a wink all night worrying about this day. He knows that Michael won't take this quietly. If Michael handed in his resignation, Steve wouldn't be upset one bit. In fact, it would be a relief.

Steve's behavioral preference is what you might refer as a "low D". This means Steve prefers to shy away from conflict and any form of confrontation. Arguments just wipe him out. To face Michael, Steve needs to stretch himself out of his comfort zone. The situation require that Steve become more direct, blunt and assertive. This moves him into what we call his adapted style.

Using a two-graph DISC model (like that used in the Managing for Success (r) suite of assessments, we can compare Steve's natural style and his adapted. Steve "scores" a 20 on the D natural scale. In order to effectively deal with Michael, Steve needs to stretch his D to at least a 60 on the adapted side. I often describe this stretch as the "rubber-band effect".

In pulling his D upward, he is forced to expend extra energy. This diverts energy away from other important activities. Remember each of us has only so much personal energy to go around. Diverting our energies to worrying induces workplace stress and anxiety, only hampering our performance.

As soon as his meeting is over with Michael, Steve feels like someone just sucked the life right out of him. That rubber band I described above is released as Michael leaves the room and Steve's D style snaps back to his naturally low D state. Instead of going back to work, Steve just wants calm.

But wait - right around the corner lurks another problem. "Steve", his assistant calls out, "Mr. Jones wants you to call him right away. He seemed angry and said it was urgent."

Whereas if Steve was a natural high D, confrontations like that between Michael and Steve would have just re-charged his batteries. High D's are ready for another fight, another challenge, another competition right after the first one is over. They don't miss a beat before they are ready to take battle again - just bring 'em on, they say. Low Ds on the other hand just hope they never have to go through that situation again. While Steve is dialing Mr. Jones' number, he's wondering how long he can keep this up.

We're all expected to adapt our behaviors situationally. But when we are expected to constantly and continuously live our work life in the adapted state, we eventually exhaust ourselves and run out of energy to re-shape that rubber band.

The more often and the longer we are asked to adapt our styles, the more likely it is that we will fatigue, be stressed and burn-out. There is new research confirming studies of the past - individuals whose behavioral styles are mismatched to the job and/or team are also stressing out their physical health systems.

It is not uncommon to hear managers and employees alike share with us stories of failing health, rising blood pressure, increasing cholesterol, worsening musculoskeletal pains and even strokes and heart attacks that can be traced back to mis-matches between an individual's personal style and the style required by the job.

As employers search for new solutions to improve the wellness of their workforce and improve retention and productivity, a tool to head-off employee burnout and identify sources of poor performance before it is too late is the Managing for Success (r) Style Analysis.

When using DISC, employers and employees can learn to recognize proactively the situations that might cause undue stress on employees, resulting in lower productivity, higher absenteeism and more turnover. By working with employees to teach them the skills to lessen the stress during adaptation or changing the environment to minimize these situations, employers will enjoy a healthier, more productive workforce.

Follow this link to learn more about the suite of Managing for Success (r) DISC assessments and view sample reports on-line.

Perfect Labor Storm Alerts #146 to #150
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Fact #146: Of the approximately 12.3 million illicit drug users in the United States, 77% are employed. Source: U.S. Department of Labor

Fact #147: For every 1000 employees, there are 84 problem drinkers.

Fact #148: For every 1000 employees, there are 453 lost workdays due to sickness, injury, and absence as a result of problem drinking.

Fact #149: For every 1000 employees, there are 417 work days of lowered productivity.

Fact #150: The cost of alcohol-related problems costs each business $56,686 in work days lost to sickness, injury and accidents.

Order your copy of The Perfect Labor Storm Fact Book today!

Stop Hiring High-Risk Hourly/Entry-level Employees with CBI and SELECT
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Counter-Productive Behavior Index(tm) is the most cost-effective screening test to identify these high risk work- related attitudes and behaviors: