Keeping stress off in business school
Business school is intended to prepare students for the business world, but it can often be a stressful place that can sometimes cause health problems. Left unchecked, stress can lead to problems for the student regardless of age. By following a few proven methods of stress reduction, the student can become much more focused and relaxed in the classroom.
The business approach to stress reduction
Since the purpose of business school is to teach students the ways of business, it's only reasonable to use business skills to cope with the stress. In business, when the boss hands out an assignment to a new employee, the smart move is to discuss exactly what the boss wants or the “deliverable.” The same rule applies to work that's assigned by the professor. This means gaining a clear understanding of the assignment expectations and asking questions for further clarification, if needed.
Once the assignment is understood, the next step is to engage in some pre-planning of the assignment. If the project has several team members, it is vital that all team members understand what is going on with the project. The best way to do this is to provide a follow-up email after each meeting or phone conference to summarize what was said and decided upon what the next step in the project is. The email provides the needed documentation and if a team member can’t make the meeting, the email will keep them in the loop.
It's always a good idea to brief the boss about the project’s progress and to get some feedback about where the project is and what the outcome will be. The same approach can be used with a college professor. If the course project is spread out over the length of the semester, it's a good idea to have several conferences with the professor. This helps so that the project members don’t get surprised by a difference in expectations between what the professor has in mind and what the students have produced.
Take time to relax
While every business leader and manager wants results, they also don’t expect the employee to be all work and no play. Relaxation is necessary to maximize productivity. Business school is no different from the world of business in that respect. What's different is that business schools have a much more defined schedule that includes breaks. It could be Thanksgiving or Spring, perhaps the end of a term and even graduation. Regardless of the name of the break, every student needs to take some down time and “refresh the batteries” so that when the schedule resumes, the student is refreshed and able to perform.
There's also daily exercise that will help students mitigate the effects of stress. Engaging in physical exercise such as walking, running, swimming or yoga can also help to ease the effects of stress. Stress affects each person in a different way, called a trigger, and each person can develop a stress relief technique that will neutralize the effects of that trigger. Once the stress reliever is identified, it's in the best interests of the individual to practice and utilize the technique daily.
The importance of preventing and relieving stress cannot be overstated. Preventing it in college now will make life and the business world much more enjoyable.
