Job Stress and the Little Red Hen
We all know what job stress is but where does the Little Red Hen
come in?
The Little Red Hen was very industrious So when the president of
the company gave the Little Red Hen a complicated project to
work on, the Little Red Hen worked and worked, she worked late
every night, she worked on Saturdays, she worked on Sundays, she
even worked on Thanksgiving day.
When the project was finally finished she went to the CEO's
office to turn the project in, but guess what she found. Her
supervisor was already there. with her work, receiving
congratulations for a job well done.
The storybook Little Red Hen at least got to eat the bread, but
all our Little Red Hen got was a stress headache. This scenario
is played out in the in the workplace with a different cast and
in different locations over and over again. It's not always a
supervisor, It may be a co-worker taking the easy road to
promotions.
It is often the hardest workers who are unfairly treated. They
usually settle for nothing less than perfection and feel
resentful when their accomplishments are ignored or when someone
else gets the credit for their work.
Job stress caused by a supervisor is difficult to deal with. If
you need your job you have to play the game. However before you
decide how to handle the situation, two questions must be
answered. Is this a one time thing, or is this type of behavior
ongoing? The second question is does the supervisor treat
everyone in that way or just you. If everyone is treated as he
treated the little red hen, it is easier.
When several employees band together with complaints they are
listened to. When it is only one employee with a problem, it is
often dismissed as being "a bad day," "sour grapes," or "what's
wrong with her/him?
If you have gotten along well with this supervisor before this
"incident" it is probably best to treat it like an "incident,"
as it does not mean he will do this again.
If this supervisor has done similar things to you or other
employees, it is probably best to bring it up (in a nice way)
and ask why. However, don't expect an answer, but the supervisor
will know that you are aware of what happened.
Only you can decide how far to take this injustice. You know how
much you need the job, and how the supervisor will probably act.
Will he be defensive? Or go on the offense. Is he basically a
nice guy? If he is, he will probably settle this in some
honorable way.
If not, treat yourself to a good dinner in your favorite
restaurant, and go on to bigger things. You can't change his
basic personality. But you now know what kind of a person the
supervisor is and you can take steps to prevent this or similar
things from happening to you again.
Copyright 2006 Robert T. Lewis