Six steps to a stress-free career

摘要

The angst begins before you even get to work. You can picture your workspace: narrow, cluttered and far too close to a loudmouthed colleague. Then there's the overactive air con - your uncomfortable chair is right in its line of fire - and that's not to mention the lack of natural light and privacy. Although it is oh-so-clear what your employer needs from you, few bosses have considered what kind of place you need from them. Work-related stress may be a hot topic these days, but little attention is paid to the importance of the physical working environment, says Jacqueline Vischer of the University of Montreal in Canada - how the wrong working space can stress you out, how the flow of people through an office or lab can affect communication and a sense of belonging, how the "feel" of a place influences the attitudes of the people who work there. We all sense these things, but few researchers have tried to quantify them, let alone address the situation.