The causes of stress can vary. It may be the long hours on the job, heavy workload, the responsibility or tight deadlines that have you feeling bogged down.
But a recent survey has revealed the higher the risk of personal harm the more stressful the job.
Online job seeking website CareerCast released its list of top 10 most stressful jobs for 2017 – and some may surprise you.
Defence personnel, firefighters, police officers and pilots topped the list, followed by event co-ordinator, journalist, senior executive and public relations officer. Rounding out the list were taxi drivers and broadcasters.
A similar compilation by Australian job search website Adzuna included teachers, nurses, surgeons and social workers.
Stress management expert John Hinwood said the greater the responsibility at work, the higher up the stress ladder employees climbed.
“The people at the top of the list are directly responsible for the lives of others. If they make a mistake, people can die,” said Dr Hinwood, founder of Stress to Strength. “The stress rises because of the level of responsibility.
“If you’re in Afghanistan every day and you go out on patrol, you could die. You’re working on the edge.
“A social worker is working with people who are highly stressed. A taxi driver doesn’t know who they’re next passenger will be, it could be a psychopath.
“As for a journalist, the stress may not be physical but when they write something, they are always open to major criticism.”
CareerCast used 11 factors to rate the stress factor of each job. Among the demands they expected could invoke stress were travel, career growth, physical demands, environmental conditions and hazards. Others were risk of death, deadlines and working in the public eye.
“Lifeline ran a national stress poll that reported that 90 per cent of Australians said they felt stressed at one point in their lives but 40 per cent said they were extremely stressed,” Dr Hinwood said.
But it’s not all bad news, he added.
“There are two things about stress: if you don’t have it, you die. If you have too much of it, you die.
“Without stress our organs don’t work properly or we don’t raise ourselves up to achieve at a level that we are capable of achieving.”
For more information about stress and techniques to combat it: www.stresstostrength.com
The 10 most stressful jobs for 2017
1. Military personnel.
2. Firefighter.
3. Airline pilot.
4. Police officer.
5. Event co-ordinator.
6. Newspaper reporter.
7. Senior corporate executive.
8. Public relations executive.
9. Taxi driver.
10. Broadcaster.
Source: CareerCast.com
