Sudden events or changes at work occur no matter how a person plans. This normally comes with panic and pressure but as an employee, how you respond to the unexpected is very crucial. The ability to counter such situations depends largely on how well an individual works under pressure. Having the capacity to work under pressure, according to experts, involves dealing with constraints which are often outside of your control - these might be resource or time constraints, the difficulty of the task or having insufficient knowledge required to complete the task, or unforeseen changes or problems. Dr Alphonse Uworwabayeho, a lecturer of mathematics at University of Rwanda’s College of Education says it’s ideal to understand that performing well under pressure is both a personal and professional quality. He says that it’s important for employees and employers to rather embrace working under pressure and see it as an opportunity, and most importantly, pay attention to the nature of the pressure one is under. “The ability to work under pressure means you can still perform your job duties well, even in the presence of stress. This in the long run means that such individuals can instantly improve their chances of securing better jobs in future and among other benefits that might come along,” he says. Faustin Mutabazi, the chief executive officer at Educational Consultancy Bureau, an organisation that supports education and curriculum activities in Kigali believes that one of the most important aspect to put into consideration when working under pressure, is to plan ahead and do this on a daily basis or even weekly depending on an individual and the work they are involved in. He points out that failing to plan is planning to fail, noting that regardless of the pressure you have or are facing, it’s ideal to take time and plan your course of action; adding that this would prevent one from missing important details that could cause even bigger problems down the line. Besides, he highlights that planning also helps one see the situation from a broader perspective, helping them to understand what is really at stake. “Moving forward, with your plan at hand, it’s important to now start breaking it down into smaller, more-manageable steps. This will keep you from feeling overwhelmed or falling even further behind then, work on staying resilient,” he says. Studies also back up Mutabazi’s sentiments, establishing that preparing for not only what to do but also what you know is vital to help you stay calm under pressure. For instance, one may not be able to plan for every possible contingency, but they can prepare for the known variables. If the pressure comes in the form of important deadlines, sales pitches, presentations, or other items scheduled on your calendar, planning accordingly becomes your number one priority. Uworwabayeho says that it’s also important to share roles or rather assign work to others, especially if one is in a managerial or a supervisor role. The lecturer explains that if one manages a team, they shouldn’t take everything on by themselves but instead, delegate such that everyone contributes to managing the task load and the pressure that comes with it. Besides, he adds that in case one can’t seek help from a team, they can still ask for help from their immediate supervisors or managers. It’s also believed that there is need for one to always schedule breaks whenever they can- Skip lunch and regular breaks when working on a complicated and rushed assignment. But taking those breaks has also been established to help ease the burden. This can be done by simply taking five minutes to refresh your mind, taking a walk or getting a drink of water, these are all known to help one free their mind from the task at hand for a little while. Mutabazi notes that another aspect is for one to always know and understand their limits. Here, he explains that while the ability to work under pressure is a good quality to have in any organisation, one should be in a position to understand how much pressure they can withstand. According to him, it’s believed that as an individual, one can only handle so much pressure at a time, and trying to push past your limit can be seriously detrimental to your physical and mental well-being.
