What to do when suffering from stress not related to work

Question

I am currently under a lot of stress from different sources that are not interesting to mention on workplace but i am in a battle with myself.

I feel that I am not performing well at work because of this stress.

I can assure you this is not from work related incidents or work but I don't enjoy anymore working for the employer I am working for.

My question is should I talk to somebody about this at my workplace? For example my boss or a confidant informant or even the team where I work in (we are self government in a way).

Answer 1

I am currently under a lot of stress from different sources that are not interesting to mention on workplace but i am in a battle with myself.

The first port of call here should be to speak with a medical professional; they can make a proper assessment and advise on the best course of action medically (far better than anyone can here.) Two reasons for this - firstly, because getting the underlying problem sorted should be the priority, and secondly, because if you choose to speak about it to someone at work they then know it's a problem you're taking seriously (and you can produce a note from your doctor to prove this.)

I don't enjoy anymore working for the employer I am working for. [...] My question is should I talk to somebody about this at my workplace?

Once you've done the above, there's definitely advantages to letting your workplace know, whether that's HR or your manager (or both if appropriate) - they're then much more likely to be understanding if you're performing below par, or need to take a day.

However, you definitely shouldn't phrase it as "I'm not enjoying working here any more" - however much you try otherwise, that makes it seem as though it's your employer's fault, and you're looking to leave. That's not an impression you wish to create. "I'm struggling to perform at 100% at the moment because..." and "I'm finding things more difficult than I should at the moment because..." would be much better lines.

Answer 2

This has happened to me recently. I had personal issues affecting my work. It happens, and your manager will understand.

I chose to talk to my manager, I told him what this personal issues where (your call, you don't have to explain: I trust my manager, so I told him) and I told him I was doing my best to avoid it affecting too much the workplace. I also talked about my issues with a member of my team I'm close with.

My advice: talk to your manager and tell him you have personal issues, tell him you're doing your best to limit the impact on your job. If you're close enough, you can explain what your issues are but you're not forced to. And talk to someone you're close with (in your team or not), it always helps.

Answer 3

Yes, (most) managers are human, and you do not want them to get the wrong idea.

It is perfectly understandable that over the course of your career/life, you will have ups and downs, and your manager should know that.

A simple one-to-one discussion where you say something like "Hey boss, I am currently dealing with personal issues (no need to give too much information), so i may seem strange or appear a bit down, but I am working on it and i'm hoping to get better soon.

Try to avoid mentioning productivity, unless it really starts to cause issues, because they may not even get noticed.

But most importantly, try to identify and remove those sources of stress as soon as possible.