Stress Management.....the leader needs to leave his team 'Stirred but not Shaken' ! (James Bond)
Only wisdom can tell you how to manage the precarious balance...too much stress and the person chokes.Too little challenge and it leads to disengagement thus underperformance in the team.
Performance preassure during times when market is behaving strange and unpredictable is very high. Only very close observation and vigilance by the leader backed by his insights arising out of years of experience would help the leader know by sheer gut feel how to manage this delicate balance.
The 5 things I believe an effective leader should be doing to manage and keep the team Stress situation effectively under control are...
1. Always as a leader maintain team vigil...be observant. Stress is preceded by a lot of symptoms...absenteeism, low morale, fear to take pressured challenges, frequent sickness, unusual increase in grievances etc. Note these symptoms and changes in patterns.
2. Study the situation very closely...Generally, the leaders end up treating symptoms. They do not necessarily give results. May be for a short while treating the symptoms may give results in the short run but in the medium and long run, the problems recur. It is necessary therefore for the leader to make close observations to identify and put his finger on the real causes behind these problems that needs to be treated.
3.Eliminate Stress at the very source..post analysis and identification quickly get to the source and eliminate it from the room totally.
4.Launch a Calm Ball - try 'centering'...this is a technique some leaders consciously practise. Generally leaders add to the Stress confusion further by adding tension, shouting and anger.
Leaders need to calm themselves first in such situations...act calm even if you do not feel like. Rightly say Emmett & Mark Murphy 'Centering' is the method acting of Leadership. The leader should behave calm even if he feels very disturbed and aggrandised within.
5.Keep building as a leader your communications' edge with the team. In good times and bad times. The leader has to use his relational net-work effectively at the right time...if necessary, even overcommunicate to manage the Stress .
Joe Torre Manager of the New York Yankees rightly says that the leaders role in the context of managing team 'Stress' is best explained in the words of James Bond.....he needs to leave his team sufficiently - 'stirred but not shaken' !