PLEASURE FOR THE PRESSURE Surviving the Stress of Customer Service By J. N. Halm

“Stress is when you wake up screaming and you realize you haven't fallen asleep yet.” Author Unknown

I really wished there was something I could do to help. You could see it all over her face-she was at her breaking point. It was evident that she was really struggling. I sat quietly in the corner of the reception area and just observed her. She was the front desk personnel at one of the busiest agencies I have ever been to. I had gone to there to meet an official but had to wait since the gentleman had gone out for lunch. I patiently sat to wait but, as has become my habit, I started to observe what was happening around me.  One never knows when one is going to come across a great idea or story for an article, so I am always on the lookout.

I watched carefully as she attempted to serve the many visitors (or customers!) that were thronging in by the minute. As she attempts to respond to one person’s inquiry, another person comes in to make an enquiry. Just before she answers the second person, her phone rings and she has to pick it up. Her problems were compounded by the presence of the sizeable number of visitors that were also waiting and who would occasionally ask if they could be allowed to go upstairs.

What really got me fuming were her own colleagues who kept coming in and out to interrupt her work. Some were asking her to make calls for them while others were asking if they had received any visitors. It was simply crazy. I could not help but wonder if that day was different or if that was just a normal day for her.

I noticed that as time went on, she became increasingly impatient with customers.  There was even a point when a woman walked in with a baby who started crying immediately they entered. Just then a phone call came through and she picked the handset. However, with the wailing baby still around she seemed not to hear what the person on the line was saying. She almost yelled at the woman to take the baby outside. Bad customer service, yes but can you fault her? She was at the end of her tethers.

As I studied her I realised she had no verve for what she was doing. For customers that were requesting forms, she simply plopped the documents on the counter and turned away to see to other matters. There was no energy in her actions. Throughout the time I spent at the reception, I do not remember seeing the slightest of smiles flash across her face. From the occasional grimace on her face, I suspected that she might have been experiencing a headache. I am sure that as soon as the clock strikes 5 o’clock, she would hurriedly grab her things and dash out of the office to get home.

Hopefully, she has her own vehicle but if she does not, then she has to face the torture of standing in a long line at the trotro station or taxi rank. In fact, even if she is driving she has to face the agony of Accra’s horrible traffic. She might get home after some hours with a thumping headache. She might take some painkillers and jump into bed, hoping to get some much-needed rest. She would need every little rest she can get because whether she liked it or not, she had to be up at dawn to prepare for another hectic day in the business of handling customers.

I will not be too surprised if there are other customer-facing professionals who are having similar experiences like this lady. I am sure that even if the cases of others are not as serious as this lady’s, they may not be too different from hers.

Customer service is one of the most stressful schedules any one can ever handle in an organisation. If you add the stress of daily life in Accra or Ghana for that matter, then you have a walking, talking and ticking time-bomb. This is why I believe the management of stress should be made integral to every training programme that staff, especially those that handle customers, go through on a regular basis.

When customer-handling employees are not able to manage the pressures of the job well, there are always problems. As a customer service manager, I have to accept that sometimes the cases of poor customer service I receive can be narrowed down to a lack of proper management of the pressures that come with dealing with customers.

On its own, handling people from different backgrounds with different expectations is no mean task. It is so, so stressful. There are times when it seems as if a customer comes in just to unload their stress on you. When one adds other stress-inducing elements to this already stressful task, then the individual is likely to get to that “point of no return”.

Let us take a look at a few of the common workplace stress-inducers that pile the pressure on employees, especially customer-handling staff.

Bad Organisational Culture: If you work in an organisation where blame games are played consistently, there is always the tendency for additional pressures to be placed on the customer service staff. For instance, in such organisations, employees tend to be too cautious as they became afraid of getting things wrong and therefore just do about enough to get by. They will prefer to give “plain” service to customers because they fear that any attempt to go the extra mile might land them in trouble.

Poor Workplace Facilities: Working in an environment where the facilities are rather stress-inducers instead of being stress-reducers can be hell. If your office happens to be close by a guy who sells CDs and DVDs, you will understand where I am coming from. Or if your office AC goes off and on at will resulting in excessive heat, you will appreciate this particular point. Try working with a computer that “hangs” after every five minutes and you will begin to know what pressure really is. What about poor furniture like an uncomfortable chair or one that requires a careful sitting style without falling to the ground? These are all potential inducers of unnecessary pressure on employees.  

Unrealistic Work Demands: When demands, which are far above what employees are capable of doing, are placed on them, stress becomes the resulting factor.  When the workload is so overwhelming, the pressure mounts. People begin to feel like the world is on their shoulders. If the organisation is one that practices performance-based remuneration, then the pressure gets to unbearable heights for the staff.

Insufficient Work Loads: Interestingly, whereas heavy job demands add stress to the employee’s life, it has also been found out that when demands are too low, stress results. When staff feel that their skills are not being put to good use chances are that they will become stressed up. Such individuals might feel under-utilised and that feeling generates stress.

Workplace Conflict: An organisation with occasional conflicts arising among staff is surely going to be a very stress-filled and stressful place to work. Unfortunately, there are many examples of such organisations around. In any business set up, employees are expected to coordinate with one another to serve customers well. Therefore if the individuals within the organisation are at loggerheads, there is an unnecessary tension that results.

Individuals will not be happy coming to work in the mornings and they will be anxious for the day to end so that they can rush home. This does not bode well for the health of the organization and the quality of service it renders to its customers. Many times, customers notice that all is not well behind the scenes and customer trust in that organisation begins to erode.  

There are many more stress-inducing elements, aside the five above, which can add more pressure to the already pressure-filled job of handling customers.

“Pressure and stress is the common cold of the psyche.” (Andrew Denton, Australian television producer/Comedian)

The underlying reason for much of the stress of the workplace has to do with individuals feeling they have no control over their affairs. When individuals have control they do not worry unnecessarily.

How are individuals like the lady in the opening vignette, who are obviously not in control of issues, supposed to survive so that they do not suffer breakdowns? That is the question I personally believe organisations are supposed to find answers to.

“Stress is not what happens to us. It's our response TO what happens. And RESPONSE is something we can choose.” (Maureen Killoran,  Life coach, trainer and author)

Recently, I came across some interesting findings by researchers from the University of Cincinnati. The finding of that research was that pleasurable activity provided more than just pleasure. It actually reduces stress by inhibiting anxiety responses in the brain. The researchers further stated that the reduced-stress effects from doing something pleasurable continued for at least seven days, suggesting a long-term benefit.

It has been suggested that food that is deemed just pleasurable like chocolates, cakes and other confectionaries or an activity such as exercising can help reduce stress. What does this mean for the individual facing a stress-filled day in the office? Simple. Find something pleasurable to do.

I once came across a writing that suggested that to relieve oneself of stress; one can keep a laugh diary. Yes, you read right-a laugh diary! The writer advises that you remind yourself of something that really made you laugh some time back. You are then supposed to list some key words to trigger your memory of that funny incident. When the stress of work begins to get to you, you need to take a look at the words in the laugh diary. As you begin to relive the past emotions you begin to neutralise the negative stressful emotions. I tried it out and it worked. I did not burst out laughing but at least it made me smile.

Some years ago, I read about how one man got through stressful situations at work. According to him, when a customer, a colleague or even his boss, begins to get on his nerves, he just looks at the one and begins to imagine the person wearing a Mickey Mouse boxer shorts or something funny like that. The scene he creates in his mind makes him laugh and that reduces his stress.

I do not know what makes you smile but I recommend that when the stress seems to be getting to you, remind yourself that life is too short to kill yourself for a job. I am aware this is not going to be easy but you must try. I wish the lady I came across that day will get to read this piece and learn to find something to put a smile on her face. Learning to find pleasure for the pressure is what “Dr. Halm” recommends for surviving the stress of customer service.