No matter how much you love your job, there are probably aspects of actually going to work that you could do without.
Perhaps a coworker’s negativity gets under your skin, or you find that you’re routinely spending more time at the office than you’d like. Whatever the case may be, it always helps to know you aren’t alone.
The career networking site LinkedIn recently polled more than 1,000 working adults to find out which workplace struggles Americans face most in 2018.
Here are the most common challenges employees face today:
1. Finding work-life balance
The most common workplace struggle, according to this research, regarded work-life balance. Thirty-eight percent of respondents said they struggled with trying to find enough time for both work and their personal lives.
Attempting to find a way to have a balanced life is worthwhile. A wealth of research has indicated that job stress is far and away the leading source of stress for American adults. What’s worse is that these stress levels have been getting progressively worse in recent decades. Workers need down time in order to recover and reset. Plus, personal lives matter, too. It’s no wonder so many employees struggle with issues around finding work-life balance.
[click_to_tweet tweet=”The most common workplace struggle is work-life balance. Thirty-eight percent of respondents found it hard to make enough time for both work and their personal lives. ” quote=”The most common workplace struggle is work-life balance. Thirty-eight percent of respondents found it hard to make enough time for both work and their personal lives. “]
2. Managing the workload
Thirty-one percent of those surveyed indicated that managing their workload was a major source of stress. That’s just about one in three workers.
This result, especially when combined with the number one response, shows yet again that being overworked is too often normalized in our culture. You could try asking for help when feeling overwhelmed, if you’re someone who struggles with this, before the workplace stressors get out of hand.
3. Dealing with coworkers
One in four employees, 26 percent, said that “dealing with coworkers” was something that they struggled with in the workplace.
The people you work with can really make or break your experience with your job. Having friends at work can actually do wonders for your career. And, having a best friend at work (or, what’s come to be known conventionally as a “work spouse”) can really make an enormous impact on your day to day experience. Sixty percent of people with a work spouse say they look forward to work because of the relationship.
Unfortunately, negative or otherwise toxic coworkers can have just as powerful of an effect.
4. Workplace politics
Remember when you were in high school and you looked forward to growing up and not having to deal with so much gossip and childish behavior anymore? Well, it turns out that this kind of thing continues right into adulthood.
If you find yourself struggling to navigate delicate and exhausting office politics, it might help to know you aren’t alone. Twenty-five percent of employees surveyed said this was one of their workplace struggle.
5. Dealing with managers
Like with coworkers, a good or difficult manager can make all the difference in the world when it comes to how much you enjoy your job. Among those surveyed, 23 percent said that “dealing with managers” was often a challenge.
Previous research has also indicated that employees don’t quit companies, they quit managers. In fact, a bad boss or supervisor is the number one reason people quit their jobs. Seventy-five percent of workers who voluntarily left their job reported doing so because of their boss rather than because of the position itself.
Tell Us What You Think
What bothers you most about your workplace? We want to hear from you! Leave a comment or join the discussion on Twitter.
Leave a Reply