ENG 130 Module Seven Analysis of a Written Work for a Second Audience MLA - Fraser Thompson
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Jul 2, 2024
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Fraser Thompson
Professor Susan Beam
ENG-130
25 February 2024
Analysis of a Written Work for a First Audience
Deep breaths, count to ten, tell yourself you’ve got this. We all have our own ways to calm ourselves down, to re-focus, and to reduce the pressure that stress brings. Today’s world is one that is increasingly difficult to distance yourself from, to find the space necessary to recharge your batteries. With stress being linked more and more to health issues, as a young professional, it is imperative to how you can help yourself, but also as someone who is entering the workforce for the first time, it is important to know the important role prospective employers can take to maximize your longevity and be proactive in protecting and enhancing your mental health. Nicole Peluse discusses stress in her informative article “Take a Break!” by giving us important information on how to recognize stress and how to manage stress. She admits that stress is unavoidable, and that to be as productive as possible, we need to find practical solutions to lower our stress levels. From being realistic of capacity to help others, to spending time with family, Peluse gives us specific examples of how slow down and take a break when life becomes too much. Peluse provides great information for how to identify and manage stress on a personal level, and although she provides great and specific methods, she overlooks the important role of the workplace and academic institutions take in ensuring prospective new employees are prepared for the new environment and the different type of
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stress that comes with it, and how the work environment can be the deciding factor in a person’s ability manage their stress.
In her article, Peluse almost immediately confronts us with the fact that stress is an “unavoidable reality of life” (Peluse 12). She wastes no time ripping off the band-aid, and opening the conversation of a topic that is not discussed enough in society. Expertly, Peluse walks us through how to identify stress and offers some thoughtful advice on how to manage stress both for yourself and others. One of the most impactful paragraphs is when Peluse discusses how we often self-induce stress by our unrealistic expectations of ourselves and our “desire to be all things to all people” (Peluse 12). What Pelsue fails to mention, however, is that a lot of expectations are put on us by our workplace. Workplaces are filled with deadlines, misunderstandings, and many other reasons to increase our stress. Although we are given many self-help tips from Peluse, she unfortunately did not educate us on how the workplace can also be the difference maker, and what we can expect, or demand from them.
From hitting the gym, to just saying no, we are given a broad range of ways to help manage our stress levels. We are taught how to help others, what to look for, and how it will affect you. Peluse does an incredible job in describing how stress doesn’t just affect you, but those around you both positively and negatively. When our stress levels are high, we tend to become more reclusive. This in turn can affect your loved ones – grandparents who aren’t as social as they used to be may rely on you for much of their socialization. If you are stressed and aren’t feeling up to visiting them, it can lead to a decrease in oxytocin, an important stress reducing hormone (Peluse 12). We can quickly see how stress can spiral out of control and bring others down with you.
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Peluse then begins to focus on those working in the caretaker field. The last two paragraphs specifically mention caretakers and some resources available to them such as support groups and adult day cares (Peluse 12). Anyone who has been even partially responsible for the well-being of another human being knows how stressful that can be, and that it is a job with very little respite. Fewer young adults are becoming professional caretakers,
and that has a lot to do with how underpaid and overworked they are. There are a lot of young adults who are nurturing by nature but are quickly discouraged from doing that professionally once they see what the daily work of a caretaker is like. It is logical to think that if caretaking companies invested more into mental health and wellbeing, they would be more appealing to new potential workers, and more effective in retaining their current work force.
At no point in the article, does Peluse mention how our workplace affects our stress level. She partly acknowledges this in the fifth paragraph by stating “Manage your expectations” and “Realize that you have the power to say no when it becomes overwhelming” (12). This is wonderful advice, until your manager asks you to stay late on a Friday after a fifty-
hour week. Your eyes are dry, you’ve drank too much coffee, and every inch of your soul wants to tell your manager “NO!” But the reality is that we cannot say no to everything when it becomes too much. Often, we must grit our teeth and bear through it. Don’t let this get you down though, there are many ways companies are beginning to see the value of mentally healthy workers, and after all, happy workers are typically more productive.
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Analysis of a Written Work for a Second Audience
The second audience I have selected is managers or leaders of businesses. Typically, businesses want to ensure a low employee turnover, as this will not only save money, but will generally lead
to higher quality end product, and an overall better work environment. Stress is a conrtibuting factor to a companies turnover rate, whether it is the employee quitting due to stress, or the employee being let go for poor performance relating to stress. In this analysis, we will be focusing on the importance of employers being proactive about stress and how it will benefit the business.
It's 4:50PM on a Friday afternoon. It’s been a long week of meetings, conference calls, and a never ending deluge of emails. As you begin to shut everything down, your mind wanders to thoughts of the weekend and how you WILL eat that fourth hot dog because you deserve it! However, all those thoughts quickly shatter into a thousand pieces as you see an instant message come in from your manager. It is the dreaded message that we all know to fear – something has come up at the last minute and you will be needed in the office tomorrow. As a manager, you are
just doing what needs to be done to ensure that your team is performing to the highest standards, and that the customer is never disappointed. It’s not personal, and none of your employees are new to the “business-needs” world that we live in today. However, stress can greatly affect not only ones personal life, but also their ability as a worker. Nicole Peluse discusses stress in her informative article “Take a Break!” by giving us important information on how to recognize stress and how to manage stress. She admits that stress is unavoidable, and that to be as productive as possible, we need to find practical solutions to lower our stress levels. From being
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realistic of capacity to help others, to spending time with family, Peluse gives us specific examples of how slow down and take a break when life becomes too much. Peluse provides great information for how to identify and manage stress on a personal level, and although she provides great and specific methods, she overlooks the important role of the workplace and academic institutions take in ensuring prospective new employees are prepared for the new environment and the different type of stress that comes with it, and how the work environment
can be the deciding factor in a person’s ability manage their stress.
In her informative article, Peluse almost immediately confronts us with the fact that stress is an “unavoidable reality of life” (Peluse 12). She wastes no time ripping off the band-aid,
and opening the conversation of a topic that is not discussed enough in society. Expertly, Peluse
walks us through how to identify stress and offers some thoughtful advice on how to manage stress both for yourself and others. One of the most impactful paragraphs is when Peluse discusses how we often self-induce stress by our unrealistic expectations of ourselves and our “desire to be all things to all people” (Peluse 12). As a manager, it is important to recognize this is a basic human desire, to help others, and to be mindful not to take advantage of that in the workplace. You may have an employee who always meets deadlines, never says no to extra work, and never complains about staying late. This employee would be a huge asset to the company, but if you are not careful, they could become burned-out and lose that passion. With employees such as this, they may struggle saying no to their superior, or will consistently sacrifice family time to help the business. While this is good for the business, it is obvious that this will affect the employees’ mental wellbeing and is not sustainable. Alternatively, a manager
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should make sure to evenly rotate who they ask to work extra and provide the employee with an opportunity to say no. Pelsue backs this up in her informative article by stating “Realize that you have the power to say no…Be realistic about what you and your obligations can handle” (12).
There are many ways that a business can help manage or reduce the stress of their employees, and it is all about being proactive. Peluse provides four main ways to help manage stress: regular exercise, managing expectations, seeking help, and self-care (12). Some of these tips rely more on the employee, but as a leader there are lots of things you can do to push them
in the right direction. As a manager, you cannot force someone to run a mile, but instead you could promote a local gym, or start a steps-challenge to see who can walk the greatest number of steps in a week. Not only would something like this get some employees more exercise than they typically would, but it would also be a fun activity and healthy competition for the group. The same can be said for seeking help and self-care – you cannot force the employee to do any of these, but by providing resources, and discussing it, the chances of the employee doing these
increases. Peluse then begins to focus on those working in the caretaker field. The last two paragraphs specifically mention caretakers and some resources available to them such as support groups and adult day cares (Peluse 12). You may not be working in the caretaking industry, but as a manager, you can also view yourself as a caretaker (of sorts) for your team. Ultimately, you are responsible for their performance, and as we discussed earlier, stress have a
big impact on performance. A manager that is proactive about their subordinate’s mental health will not only do a better job at retaining their top employees, but will also be more
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attractive to potential new employees. Especially today, where stress is talked about more, and we are continuing to find out more about how it affects health, a company known to value their
employee’s mental health will stand out compared to those that don’t.
Although Peluse does not directly call out workplace stress, she partly acknowledges this in the fifth paragraph by stating “Manage your expectations” and “Realize that you have the power to say no when it becomes overwhelming” (12). Remember that feeling of your weekend dreams being crushed the next time you need someone to stay late to work on a project. Make sure they have resources available to them to help manage their stress. Work is never going to be stress-free, and we all know that. The difference between a successful and unsuccessful manager can often be how they help their employees in their time of need. Be proactive about stress, and you and your team will see the rewards, as after all, happy workers are typically more productive.
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Works Cited
Peluse, Nicole. “Take a Break!” Hudson Valley Business Journal, vol. 21, no. 24, June 2010, p. 12. EBSCOhost, search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?
direct=true&db=bwh&AN=51692948&site=eds-live&scope=site