Anticipate, Understand and prevent risks
Psycho-socials
June 2010
The program
Day 1
What is stress ?
The consequences
Detect and act as manager
Prevent and limit the impact of
communication’s stress
Action plan
The program
Day 2
Back to the action plan
Discussions on specific cases brought by
participant
Role playing filmed formatting situation
Balance sheet
The educational objectives
Understand the nature of stress
Be aware of risks it poses
Know how to act in his role of manager cope
with stress
Acquire postures communication to allow
reduce the severity and risk
The facilitator :
Michel MAESTRALI
ESC, Master PNL, Master Coaching Paris 8, Process Com
licensed coach, member of the ICF
15 years experience in big companies (SNCF, SNCM)
and SMEs as manager, partner, officer. Last post
occupied : HRD and Finance Director in transportation
business of DSP
His profession today :
The accompanying change
The instructional project and the formation
The individual Coaching
Coaching and formation at distance
Part 1 :
What is stress ?
Part 1:
What is stress
Brainstorming
What is stress ?
Study case
Part 1 :
What is stress
Stress ?
In the phenomenon of stress, it should be
interesting to distinguish :
The external stimuli, the « Stressors »
(term coined by Hans Seyle who studied and
developed the concept of Stress in the 30s)
The stress response, all physical and
psychological reactions (Adrenaline, negative
emotions…)
The consequences of this reaction,
unnatural behavior, irritability, sleeplessness...
Part 1:
What is stress
The 3 stages of stress ?
In unusual situation or aggression of all kinds, the
body goes through three successive stages:
The alert phase, when our brain evaluates a
situation of this type, the body produces instantly
hormones (ex. adrenaline), the heart rate increases…
The resistance phase, when the perceived
situation persists in the time, the body is organized to
endure and fight (with cortisol for example)
The exhaustion phase, if the phase of resistance
extends, our resources are gradually depleted.
Part 1:
What is stress
Illustration
The stress consists in
« a transaction between the person and his
environment in which the situation is assessed by the
individual to be beyond its resources and may
endanger their well-being. »
Richard LAZARUS and Susan FOLKMAN (1984)
Part 1:
What is stress
Self – examination
Study case
Part 2 :
consequences of stress ?
Part 2:
Consequences of stress?
FAIL
Serious consequences for the
individual
decreased motivation,
difficulty for concentration,
difficulties in finding solutions,
pollution of family life and friendly,
diseases like musculoskeletal disorders (such as
back pain, the tendonitis),
diseases like cardiovascular (burn-out or
exhaustion professional, depression...)
Part 2:
Consequences of stress?
Performance of the individual
Good stress and bad stress
Two psychologists, Yerkes and Dodson, have shown
in the early 20th century that stress is good for the
performance to some level, but then, it becomes
harmful.
Optimal stress
« Good » stress
« Bad » stress
Intensity of the stress response
Part 2:
Consequences of stress?
Dysfunctional personal
When we are stressed, we tend to commit errors following logic in our interpretation of
the facts :
Arbitrary interference
(a conclusion without evidence)
“It’s,gonna wrong"
“They take me for an idiot"
The selective abstraction (consider only some
facts)
“She didn’t smile, she wants me!"
Minimization (of its successes) or maximization
(its failure)
“I mishandled the negotiations, I will surely lose market"
“It works too well, it can’t last"
Generalization
“I missed my review, I suck!"
“Anyway, it’s always the same thing"
Personalization
(Bring events to oneself)
“If the project fails, it’s my fault"
“A computer that is loose, it only happens to me"
Dichotomous thinking
(think all or nothing)
“He criticized me in a meeting, he hates me"
“If I fail completely, it’s because I’m bad"
Of “Know of to manage the stress", Dr Charly Cungi, ed. Retz, 2003 and “The stress at work", Patrick Legeron, ed. Odile Jacob, 2001
Part 3 :
act on stress
Part 3:
Act on stress
Not all equal cope with stress
Vulnerabilities
The rather impulsive personality,
angry, in a spirit of competition
The « outsiders »,who events are due
to factors external (fate, others, context...)
The anxiety (personality trait)
The pessimists who focus on negative
The learned helplessness, following
failures, stories of life
Part 3:
Act on stress
Not all equal cope with stress
Resistance factors
The personality characterized by patience,
calmness, stability emotional
The « insiders », for whom events are due to
oneself and one can act on them
Those who trust in them, belief in self-efficacy
(belief in its resources, capabilities)
Optimism
Endurance
Resilience, the ability to rebuild despite
hardships (flourish integrating its failures)
Part 3:
Act on stress
Strategies for dealing with stress
Strategies focused on problem solving
Dealing with the « stressor», modify,
reduce...
Strategies focused on emotion
Reduce, control our emotion cope with
stress
Strategies ineffective
Denying the situation
Avoid the problem
Part 4 :
act on stress as a manager
Part 4:
Act on stress as a manager
Case study
Brainstorming :
What are the different role of the manager ?
Part 4:
Act on stress as a manager
A typology of 5 roles
Depending on the context, the moments
and personalities, the manager, if he wants to
be effective, must take on multiple roles
The main roles are
The relay
The actor / decision maker
The innovator
The unifying
Attendants
Part 4:
Act on stress as a manager
The relay
In this role the manager must :
pass information
Upward, downward or horizontally
 to get directions
be « bridged » decisions taken over
him
Part 4:
Act on stress as a manager
The actor/decision maker
In this role the manager must :
decide, take initiatives
enforce its decisions
follow, monitor its implementation
Setting objectives
Organizes work
Part 4:
Act on stress as a manager
The innovator
In this role the manager must :
solve problems
cope with new situations (with its
teams, its customers, suppliers…)
find and invent, as needed, solutions
fight against routine (process,
meetings…) by varying methods, formats,
subjects, roles
Part 4:
Act on stress as a manager
The attendants
In this role the manager must :
promote the development of its
collaborators
lead them to greater autonomy
contribute to their training
manage potential
Part 4:
Act on stress as a manager
The unifying
In this role the manager must :
mobilize the team, the energies
give meaning, motivation
promote cohesion
serve as an example
Part 4:
Act on stress as a manager
The pentagram of the manager
The relay
The unifying
The attendants
The actor/decision maker
The innovator
Part 4:
Act on stress as a manager
Case study
Brainstorming
The links between the role of manager and action on stress
The pentagram of the manager and
the action cope with stress
Part 4:
Act on stress as a manager
The relay (up
the information on
cases in overdue at
your hierarchy and
service hr)
The unifying
The actor/decision maker
(promoting trade in the
team, communicate,
manage conflicts)
(crop practices “stressful”, balance the
workloads)
The attendants
The innovator
(be careful with staff, exchange,
make verbalize)
(fight with routines,
promote the creativity
Part 5 :
Prevent and minimize the impact of stress by communication
Part 5:
Prevent and minimize the
impact of stress by
communication
I filters of perception
It’s important to remember that the reality on and
with which we communicate is a construction and
like the characters of myth Plato’s cave, we believe
strongly that it is reality.
To « build » this reality, we must pass through the
different filters
The neurological filters
The cultural filters
The personal filters
Part 5:
Prevent and minimize the
impact of stress by
communication
The process of elaboration of the
information
In addition to the filters of perception, enter
involved in treatment information
The billions of stimuli we receive (perception)
are processed according 3 process
The selection
The generalization
The distortion
Part 5:
Prevent and minimize the
impact of stress by
communication
Case study
To understand the concepts of representation, we will build on our numerical
representations.
Translate for you, in this text, the parts in bold in numerical elements.
Francis has often change (how many?) of society. He has worked in big societies (how
many employees?) and also in a small company (how many employees?).
In his last job, he was very well paid (how much €/month?), but since he has a
big family (how many children?), he have loads. He makes sport
regularly (how many times a month?) and has many close friends (how many?).
Part 5:
Prevent and minimize the
impact of stress by
communication
Go beyond the surface structure of the
language
active listening
surface structure of language,
what is communicated
Selection, generalization,
distortion
Representation of experience,
Deep structure of language
Selection, generalization,
distortion
Lived experience
will keep listening attitudes «directed»
empathy
Part 5:
Prevent and minimize the
impact of stress by
communication
Illustration
Listening skills, is to possess besides his own, the
brains of the other.
Leonardo da Vinci
Part 5:
Prevent and minimize the
impact of stress by
communication
The reformulation
« Echo » or reflection
summary or abstract
clarification
reverse
Part 5:
Prevent and minimize the
impact of stress by
communication
Illustration
Norman MAIER has adapted the work of Carl ROGERS to the company by setting 14 point rules of good reformulation.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
Use its own language, without trying to repeat or rehash the words of another.
Leave an opening « is that correct ? » ; « do you think ? »
Reformulate the thinking of other as a realization : « So you think that more means are needed » and not as a statement «So we
need more resources. »
Accept silence without seeking to furnish
Don’t try to rewrite everything but only the last idea made, though it summarizes the whole
Don’t want to go beyond what is expressed
Accept contradictions without the stress : it contradicts itself, that it evolves
Don’t restate something that the other tries to hide, such a strong emotion
Reformulate the hesitations, for example between : What he would do and what he thinks should be done
Reformulate only what seems enough said
Doesn’t evaluate, or judge
Don’t interpret
Knowing that a problem may hide another
Admit that the other give itself the solution
Part 5:
Prevent and minimize the
impact of stress by
communication
Illustration
An unsolved problem is ill-posed problem.
Albert EINSTEIN
Part 5:
Prevent and minimize the
impact of stress by
communication
N
E
U
T
R
A
L
I
N
F
L
U
E
N
C
E
D
The two lines of questioning
OPEN
CLOSED
+++
INFORMATION
BINARY CHOICE
CONTROL
YES / NO
How
did you ?
THINK IN A
FRAME PREESTABLISHED
How to avoid this
risk ?
Are we
okay ?
INTERRONEGATIVE
SEARCH OF THE
YES
Don’t you think ?
The axis of the opening, depending on
the openness (which may lead to the
other several types of responses) or
closed (which directs to a single type of
answer) questions
The axis of influence, depending on
whether the issues orient in a manner
by which the questions
Part 5:
Prevent and minimize the
impact of stress by
communication
Effective questioning
Stay open-ended questions to obtain more
information
By the more or less influencied open-ended
questions, focus the attention on fields more
or less extensive
Focused on one point per question
Allow time to respond (use silences)
Be synthetic
Part 5:
Prevent and minimize the
impact of stress by
communication
Internal states
Each individual has 3 dimensions
Cognitive processes
Behaviors
Part 5:
Prevent and minimize the
impact of stress by
communication
Internal states
Cognitive processes
Behaviors
Understanding by separating
the three planes
Our question to win to separate the 3
plans, what is the registry of facts, the
registry of feelings or of judgments
In addition, its allows us also to ask our
interlocutor on plans he ignores
This is especially important that the
three plans are in interaction
Part 5:
Prevent and minimize the
impact of stress by
communication
Situation
disembodied
Situation
concrete
The questioning is more efficient in a
situation embodied
When our interlocutor tells us in a manner
«disembodied », we do withdraw that
information «intellectualized» : you don’t
ever listens
It’ better get our interlocutor in an
experience concrete : the last time i didn’t
listened
When is it ?
Where it was ?
What did you do ?
You thought what ?
You feel what ?
Part 5:
Prevent and minimize the
impact of stress by
communication
Case study
Role-playing, managerial situations related with stress
Part 6 :
My action plan during intercessional
Part 6:
My action plan during
intercessional
Case study
Compared to what has been seen so far, what are the odds in I’ll
experiment works by the next session ?
Conclusion
Stress has many dimensions
Its consequences are very serious
For ourselves, as our employees we can act on stress,
its causes, its consequences or a mix of both
In our role of manager we can act to limit and detect
stress, in case of detection of potential situations
severe : warn his superiors and HR Services
By our capacity for empathy and listening we can
relativize, verbalize and thus help to reduce impact of
stress
Bibliography
To go a little further…
Acting on Stress at Work – F Guez
and AC Delhommeau – Nathan – Les
Echos 2009
Learn to manage stress - Dr Charly
Cungi- ed. Retz, 2003
Stress at work - Patrick Legeron ed.
Odile Jacob, 2001