Common indicators of workplace anxiety include constant worry or fear related to job performance, deadlines, or interactions with colleagues.
Work-induced anxiety is common for many people and can be specifically triggered by workplace stressors and often subsides outside work hours. It’s typically less severe and more manageable than anxiety disorders.
Anxiety disorders (e.g., generalized anxiety or social anxiety disorder), in contrast, are clinical conditions that persist across various life situations, not just work. They’re generally more severe, impact overall functioning, and often require professional treatment. While work anxiety may improve with workplace changes, anxiety disorders need more comprehensive management strategies.
A stressful work environment can worsen anxiety, creating a cycle that affects your personal well-being and professional success.
Certain aspects of any workplace can trigger anxiety, such as hierarchical structures allowing superiors to impose sanctions, the pressure of demands that could lead to failure, and rivalry among colleagues.
Work-related anxiety involves feeling nervous, uncertain, uptight, or stressed about work issues. If you have workplace anxiety, you may consistently worry about a number of issues, including your performance, financial well-being, and relationships with co-workers.
Unmanaged anxiety can lead to burnout, long-term health issues, and being absent from work often (which can, in turn, trigger anxiety).
This article explores some of the ways in which anxiety can be triggered at work, as well as practical strategies to manage anxiety at work, helping you create a healthier, more balanced approach to your career and mental health.
Physical symptoms
Physical symptoms are the body’s way of responding to stress and anxiety. These are bodily reactions to stress and anxiety in the workplace and can include the following signs:
- headaches;
- increased heart rate;
- high blood pressure;
- muscle tension;
- fatigue;
- gastrointestinal issues;
- stomachaches;
- difficulty sleeping.
Sarah Bemish, a Nurse Practitioner specializing in general psychiatry, explains that some people also have dermatological symptoms: “It’s not unheard of for people to break out in rashes with acute stress.”
How to manage physical symptoms
Below are some ways in which physical symptoms of anxiety at work can be managed:
Practice Deep Breathing Exercises
Take slow, deep breaths. Inhale slowly through your nose for four seconds, hold for seven seconds, and exhale slowly through your mouth for eight seconds. Repeat this cycle for a few minutes to calm your nervous system, until you feel more relaxed.
Dr. Rangan Chatterjee, a medical doctor, explains that “fast, shallow breathing which happens when you’re stressed is effectively telling your brain that you’re running from a lion…if you breathe slowly, you’re giving your brain a signal that you’re in a place of calm.”
Engage in Quick Physical Activities
Try brief physical activities like stretching, jogging on the spot, jumping jacks, doing 20 squats, or climbing some stairs. Short bursts of activity increase blood flow and reduce muscle tension, which can help reduce stress hormones and interrupt anxious thoughts.
Tanya Dalton explains that “as little as five minutes of exposure to nature can have really dramatic benefits. Especially when coupled with exercises like walking or even running.”
Maintain Healthy Habits
Eat a balanced diet rich in fruits, vegetables, and whole grains. Avoid processed foods and excessive caffeine or sugar, which can worsen anxiety symptoms.
Aim for regular exercise (at least 30 minutes of intense exercise three or four times a week).
Dyer (2023) recommends “useful tips for establishing strong, automatic, ingrained health habits,” including celebrating “small successes with health-enhancing rewards.”
Performance anxiety
Performance anxiety refers to excessive worry and fear about one’s ability to complete tasks or meet expectations in the workplace. It can significantly impact job performance and satisfaction.
Signs of performance anxiety may include:
- Difficulty concentrating or maintaining focus
- Disengagement with work
- Decline in productivity
- Becoming overly critical of one’s work
- Fear of failure
- Difficulty making decisions
- Decreased work performance
What can cause performance anxiety?
Performance anxiety could be caused by the following:
- High workloads and unrealistic deadlines, which create constant pressure and overwhelm
- Unclear job expectations and lack of control over work tasks can cause feelings of uncertainty and helplessness
- Inadequate job skills or feeling inadequate
- Insufficient resources
- Lack of necessary equipment
How to manage performance anxiety
Below are some ways in which performance anxiety at work can be managed:
Use positive visualization
When facing performance anxiety, like before an important presentation, use the power of visualization. Instead of dwelling on potential failure, vividly imagine yourself succeeding.
Picture yourself walking confidently into the room, delivering your points clearly, and engaging your audience effectively. Visualize positive reactions from your listeners and feeling satisfied with your performance afterwards.
This technique can help calm nerves and boost confidence. For example, if you’re anxious about forgetting your material, visualize yourself smoothly referring to your notes and continuing without missing a beat.
By repeatedly practicing this positive mental imagery, you can reduce anxiety and potentially improve your actual performance.
Develop Creative Problem-Solving Skills
When faced with limited resources, focus on developing your creative problem-solving skills. Brainstorm alternative ways to accomplish tasks with what’s available, or identify low-cost or free tools that can help fill resource gaps.
This approach not only helps you manage your workload more effectively but also demonstrates initiative and resourcefulness to your superiors.
By actively seeking solutions rather than dwelling on limitations, you can reduce anxiety about performance and feel more in control of your work situation.
Focus on the Present
Practice mindfulness techniques such as deep breathing, meditation, or grounding exercises to anchor yourself in the now. Ground yourself by focusing on what you can see, hear, and touch in your environment.
Focus on completing one task at a time, and give that task your full attention. Complete each task to the best of your ability without worrying about the outcome. As well as reducing anxiety, this should help enhance your performance.
Negative self-talk about work performance
Negative self-talk involves internal thoughts and beliefs that are critical, pessimistic, or self-defeating regarding one’s work abilities and performance.
Examples of negative self-talk that can contribute to anxiety include:
- Imposter Syndrome:
- “I do not deserve this promotion. They will soon realize I am a fraud.”
- “I am not good enough for this job.”
- Magnification:
- “That one mistake I made means the whole project is ruined.”
- Catastrophizing:
- “If I do not meet this deadline, I will get fired.”
- Personalization:
- “The client did not like my presentation–it must be all my fault.”
- “I can’t seem to do anything right.”
- All-or-Nothing Thinking:
- “This presentation either has to be perfect or it will be a complete failure.”
- Mind Reading:
- “I know they all think I am incompetent.”
- Should Statements:
- “I should be able to handle this pressure easily, so why am I feeling so anxious?”
- Negative Comparisons:
- “Everyone else on my team seems so much more confident than me.”
- “Everyone else is doing better than me.”
- Dwelling on Past Failures:
- “I messed up that presentation last year, so I am bound to mess up again.”
- Fortune Telling:
- “I am going to fail at this interview. There is no way that I will get the job.”
- “I am going to make a fool of myself.”
What can cause negative self-talk about work performance?
Negative self-talk about work performance could be caused by the following:
- Poor management practices, such as:
- providing irregular or unclear performance feedback
- treating certain staff more leniently or giving preferential treatment
- Concerns about layoffs or career advancement add to the anxiety
- Limited autonomy
- Scarce promotional opportunities
- Low self-esteem
- Setting unrealistically high standards for oneself
How to manage negative self-talk
Below are some ways in which negative self-talk about work performance can be managed:
Document Your Achievements and Feedback
Keep a record of your accomplishments, positive feedback, and successful projects. When faced with unclear or irregular performance feedback from management, refer to this personal record to counteract negative self-talk.
This practice helps maintain a more balanced and accurate view of your work performance, reducing the impact of poor management practices on your self-perception.
Seeking Professional Therapy or Counseling
Therapy is not just a last-minute resort for those with severe mental illnesses. It can benefit anyone experiencing stress or anxiety.
This can be especially useful for persistent negative self-talk regarding work when you may need a bit of extra support to talk through your cognitions and beliefs.
Utilize Employee Assistance Programs (EAPs)
Many companies offer confidential EAPs with free counseling sessions and other resources for managing mental health concerns. Take advantage of EAPs for support.
Feelings of dread about work situations
This refers to a persistent sense of fear, apprehension, or unease about work-related situations or the workplace in general that can contribute to work anxiety.
Signs that someone may have feelings of dread about work include:
- Feeling constantly on edge or overwhelmed
- Becoming easily flustered
- Difficulty sleeping the night before work days
- Physical discomfort or nausea when thinking about specific work tasks or meetings
- Frequently checking the clock or calendar, dreading the approach of certain work events or deadlines
What can cause dread about work situations?
Work dread could be caused by the following:
- Interpersonal issues, like conflicts with colleagues or supervisors
- Negative or toxic workplace culture, including bullying, harassment, or discrimination
- Uncertainties, like job insecurity or upcoming performance evaluations
- Rapid changes within the organization, such as restructuring, mergers, or shifts in company policies, can disrupt routines and create anxiety about the future
- Changes to responsibilities
- Changes in management
- Misaligned organization culture
How to manage feelings of dread
Below are some ways in which feelings of dread about work can be managed:
Promote Open Communication with Supervisors
Seek help from HR, and talk to your manager about your workload, bullying issues, and anxieties. Discuss upcoming deadlines and ask for support when needed. Open communication can help you feel more in control and supported.
Learn stress management skills
Effective stress management involves developing assertiveness, problem-solving abilities, and resilience to improve confidence in your ability to cope.
Assertiveness helps you express your thoughts and feelings clearly, set boundaries, and manage people’s expectations. Resilience helps you become more adaptable, persevere, and recover from setbacks.
Focus on solutions
Identify the root causes of your feelings of dread. Then break down issues into actionable steps.
Good problem-solving involves identifying challenges, exploring solutions, and making informed decisions. Directing energy towards problem-solving rather than dwelling on negative outcomes helps you regain a feeling of control.
Build a Positive Micro-Culture
While you may not be able to change the overall workplace culture single-handedly, you can create a positive micro-culture within your immediate work environment.
Actively foster supportive relationships with like-minded colleagues. Initiate small, positive interactions daily, such as expressing gratitude, offering help, or sharing constructive feedback.
Organize occasional informal gatherings or collaborative projects that promote teamwork and positivity. By creating this supportive network, you can buffer against the negative effects of a toxic broader culture and reduce feelings of dread about coming to work.
Emotional signs
Emotional signs are psychological responses to workplace stress and anxiety that affect mood, behavior, and overall mental well-being.
Sarah Bemish states that emotional changes can happen gradually “so that you don’t even realize what’s happening.”
Some emotional signs of anxiety at work can include:
- Heightened irritability
- Feeling constantly on edge or overwhelmed
- Noticeable exhaustion and/or low energy levels
- Reduced interest in previously enjoyed work activities
- More difficulty with relationships outside of work, with increased conflict
What can cause emotional signs?
Emotional signs at work could be caused by the following:
- Lack of work-life balance
- Personal factors, like financial concerns, family issues, or health problems, can compound work-related anxiety, making it difficult to cope with daily responsibilities
- Long working hours
- Sudden mood swings or emotional outbursts
- Feeling emotionally numb or detached from work tasks and colleagues
How to manage strong emotions
Below are some ways in which strong emotions about work can be managed:
Practice Emotional Labeling
Take a moment to identify and label your emotions as they arise. For example, say to yourself, “I’m feeling frustrated” or “I’m experiencing anxiety.”
This practice, known as emotional labeling, can help create mental distance from intense feelings and reduce their impact. It allows you to acknowledge your emotions without being overwhelmed by them, leading to better emotional regulation in the workplace.
You can jot these labeled emotions in a small notebook or use a mood-tracking app for added awareness over time.
Use Mindfulness and Meditation Apps
Utilize apps that offer guided meditations and progressive muscle relaxation exercises. These techniques help you release physical tension and strong emotions associated with anxiety.
Good meditation apps include Calm, Insight Timer, and Smiling Mind (the latter two are free). Many exercises that only last ten minutes or less.
Engage in a Creative Activity
For a few minutes or more, immerse yourself in a creative task, such as drawing or coloring. Keep a small sketchbook or coloring book at your desk.
Focus on the process rather than the outcome, allowing yourself to relax. There are art books you can buy for this purpose such as this “Anti-Anxiety Coloring Book for Adults”.
Avoiding anxiety-provoking work situations
This involves behavioral patterns where an individual deliberately avoids or escapes from situations at work that trigger anxiety or stress.
Someone who is using avoidance at work may:
- Withdraw from colleagues
- Have increased days off work
- Procrastinate on tasks
- Avoid social interactions where possible
- Consistently arrive late or leave early to minimize time spent in the workplace
- Frequently use email or messaging instead of face-to-face communication, even for simple matters that could be easily resolved in person
What can cause avoidance of work situations?
Avoidance of work situations could be caused by the following:
- Fear of failure or making mistakes
- Low self-esteem or lack of confidence
- Overwhelming workload
- Lack of clarity on tasks or expectations
- Interpersonal conflicts with colleagues or supervisors
- Workplace bullying or harassment
- Perfectionism or having unrealistic expectations for yourself
- Burnout–feeling emotionally and physically exhausted
How to manage avoidance of work situations
Below are some ways in which workplace avoidance can be managed:
Practice Gradual Exposure
Break the cycle of avoidance by gradually exposing yourself to anxiety-inducing work situations. Start with small, manageable tasks or interactions that cause minimal anxiety. As you successfully navigate these situations, slowly increase the challenge level.
For example, if you avoid team meetings, start by attending for just 5 minutes, then gradually increase your participation over time. This gradual exposure helps build confidence and reduces anxiety by demonstrating that you can handle these situations.
Keep a log of your progress to reinforce your achievements and motivate continued engagement.
Build a Support Network
Connect with supportive colleagues, seek mentorship from experienced colleagues, or participate in peer support networks to create a sense of community and reduce feelings of isolation.
Paul Brewerton, executive coach, explains how “studies have shown that those with stronger social networks enjoy multiple physiological, psychological and long-term health benefits than those who lack social support. This is particularly important at times of pressure and stress…”
Address perfectionism
Set realistic standards and expectations for yourself. Additionally, understand that mistakes are part of learning and growth, and everyone makes mistakes.
- Focus on getting things done rather than trying to do everything perfectly.
- Challenge the need for flawless performance.
- Embrace any imperfections as opportunities for improvement.
- Practice self-compassion.
- Celebrate your progress rather than focusing heavily on outcomes.
Lack of work-life balance
Work-life balance refers to the equilibrium between professional and personal life. A lack of it occurs when work demands consistently overshadow or interfere with personal time and well-being. This can cause high levels of anxiety in some.
Signs of someone with a lack of work-life balance may:
- Often feel overwhelmed or stressed
- Regularly working long hours
- Working for long periods without breaks
- Neglect their personal health, exercise, or nutrition
- Have difficulty disconnecting from work during personal time
- Have a decline in the quality of relationships due to work commitments
What can cause a lack of work-life balance?
A lack of work-life balance can be caused by the following:
- The job’s requirements (such as hours or responsibilities) exceed your capacity to manage work comfortably
- Excessive overtime or the inability to disconnect from work
- Unclear boundaries between work and personal time, especially when working remotely
- A high-pressure work environment with unrealistic deadlines or expectations
- Inadequate staffing, leading to employees taking on additional responsibilities
How to manage work-life balance
Below are some ways in which work-life balance can be managed:
Take Short Breaks Throughout the Day
Step away from your desk for a few minutes every hour. Take a walk outside, stretch your legs, or do some light stretches at your desk.
Tanya Dalton, world leading expert on productivity, explains that “Pushing yourself to focus on work nonstop for hours on end will only leave you drained…You know that feeling when your head starts feeling a little fuzzy? You start drifting and maybe daydreaming. We really want to time our breaks before that happens.”
Set Realistic Goals and Priorities
Setting big or unrealistic goals can be harmful to your mental health. Make your to-do lists manageable by breaking down large tasks into smaller, achievable steps.
Set realistic goals and deadlines, and do not overload yourself. Prioritize urgent tasks and learn to say no to extra work when needed.
Create Boundaries
Set aside focused work time and avoid checking work emails or messages outside your working hours, especially if you work remotely.
Finish work on time and completely disconnect after work hours to maintain a healthy work-life balance.
Develop a Consistent Routine
A structured routine provides stability. Establish a daily routine with consistent wake-up and sleep times, regular meals, and scheduled breaks. Creating a regular sleep schedule involves waking up and going to bed at consistent times, even on weekends.
Greg McKeown, author of Effortless: Make It Easier to Do What Matters Most, recommends “start(ing) with one change in your daily or weekly routine and then build(ing) on your progress…”
Request Flexible Working Hours
If possible, discuss flexible work arrangements with your manager to better manage your workload and personal needs.
This could involve starting or ending your day earlier, working remotely part-time, or having compressed workweeks to reduce stress.
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