It’s 6 O’clock. You were supposed to be home with your family but here you are again. Stuck at the office because a client is upset. Usually, you could handle this during the day but there’s been an in flux of issues. The product isn’t working the way it should, you have HR looking for quarterly reviews, and now your client is upset. You’re experiencing role strain.
A phenomenon that happens to most professionals at some point in their career. The tasks of their job become so overwhelming that they can barely keep up.
In this article you will learn:
- What role strain is and how it looks in the workplace
- How you can manage it in your fast paced world
- What organizations can do to help with role strain.
Let’s dive in.
What does Role Strain mean?
Role strain occurs when an individual is over their capacity for a given role. A sales guy who has too large a quota. A product lead who can’t keep up with change requests. A CEO trying to raise capital while keeping the company afloat.
The equation for role strain is simple:
#Image of Obligation > Capacity#
When over capacity for an extended period of time, the negative effects begin to compound. Things like:
- Stress
- Burnout
- Feelings of inadequacy
- Weight gain
- Anxiety
- Depression
All pile up.
Role strain can look different for just about anyone. Your capacity is different from others, so something that may be simple for one person may not feel right for you.
What’s the difference between Role Strain Versus Role Conflict
Role strain involves beginning over capacity in a single role, while role conflict is when multiple roles compete for your attention.
Learn more about Role Conflict: When responsibilities start to fight each other
How to Manage Role Strain in a Fast Paced World
Managing Role Strain can feel like an endless task that requires a lot of attention. It is a continuous process that evolves as your capacity changes over time.
Pushing your capacity higher and higher is key to succeeding while managing overcommitment keeps you a float.
Time management and prioritization.
Proper prioritization is key to minimizing role strain. It is common for a business to ask a lot of their employees, however, you only have so much time in a day. Focus on your priorities.
When you start your day, ask yourself one key question:
- If I only completed one thing today, what would be the most valuable?
Most of the time, you will only have time to complete a single key task within your day. Other time is consumed by meetings, fires, and other issues.
Focusing on one key activity a day will allow you to continue to move things forward while not drowning under the mountain of things that could be done.
Unsure of what you should be doing? You may be feeling Role Ambiguity.
Leaning on Your Team to Reduce Burnout
You’re a high performer. You have become excellent at your job by not leaning on others and doing all the work yourself. Now? You can barely keep up, you’re managing a team, communicating across departments, and executing a day job.
This quickly becomes unsustainable. You need to lean on others to get the job done. This is not a sign of weakness, but a sign of leadership. The opportunity to step up is given to your team, allowing those who show initiative to shine.
Creating Dynamic teams requires high performers to realize when they need help.
Investing in Expertise and Excellence
Building up your capacity is key to beating role strain. The better you become at something, the more automatic it feels. You no longer have to commit conscious resources to the activity, it just happens smoothly.
This is why someone with 5 years of experience can out perform someone in their first year. They have had more reps. They make fewer mistakes. They take less time to execute.
You can speed up the learning process by:
- Investing in education and training
- Doing more than the people ahead of you
- Creating faster feedback loops
Becoming excellent is not just about learning what works, it’s about avoiding all the mistakes.
How can Leaders Avoid Role Strain in Their Teams
Role strain can become a major concern for an organization. If people become burnt out, frustrated, and over committed, they leave, or worse, stop trying.
Organizations can take some responsibility in providing solutions to their team members.
Providing helpful resources to Up-Skill Your Team
Invest in training, education, and coaching. The best employees are those that continue to upskill themselves, and giving them the opportunity to do so is key.
These resources will allow you to increase the capacity of your entire organization so they can handle more intense workloads. A task that used to take a manager an hour, could be done in 15 minutes with the right training. So, invest in your people.
Flexible Schedules to Decrease Role Strain
In today’s world, more focus is put on the other necessities of life. Work is not and should not be the only thing your employees do. Having a robust lifestyle allows your team to show up at their best.
Why flexible schedules are necessary today:
The role of primary caregiver to children is often shared. This means parents need more flexible schedules to take care of their children.
Health and wellness require time to workout and relax. A sedentary desk job can often lead to health challenges that show up in performance.
The best companies find ways to integrate with their team’s lives.
Managing Workload to Avoid Burnout
Checking in with your team gives them an opportunity to communicate where they are finding friction in their work. Getting ahead of unmanageable workloads fosters trust within the organization.
When your team can openly communicate why they are struggling, you can find solutions that incorporate their concerns. If you go in blind, you may solve the wrong problem.
Coaching to Conquer Role Strain
Coaches are experts at revealing priorities and values. From there, you are able to make clear decisions on what to focus on. No more overwhelming stress and burnout. Just clear thinking and moving forward.
The Forge Coaching was built on the principle that high performance requires equally intense rest and recovery. In order to be at your best, you have to find the right balance for you.
So, if you’re experiencing role strain, overwhelming stress, or burnout, reach out today.
