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(Repost from CTV News)
It鈥檚 been said that the way we鈥檙e working isn鈥檛 working, and author Dr. David Posen couldn鈥檛 agree more.聽 The former family physician who now specializes in stress and lifestyle management says today鈥檚 work environments have become toxic with the pressures of global competition, economic uncertainty, and downsizing.

In his new book, 鈥淚s Work Killing You?: A Doctor鈥檚 Prescription for Treating Workplace Stress,鈥� Posen (http://www.davidposen.com) looks at the myth of multi-tasking and the lunacy of long hours and calls for a return to a more sensible approach to working that will not only benefit the mental health of workers, it will increase productivity.

For Posen, stress is a double-edged sword. The good kind motivates us, gives us purpose and confers the energy we need to do our work. But it becomes a problem, Posen says, when it鈥檚 too much, when it lasts too long, or when it comes too often.聽 鈥淧eople can become overwhelmed and exhausted. They鈥檒l start to become distracted, their memory starts to be affected, they don鈥檛 make decisions as well or as quickly, and they start to feel anxious, and perhaps event resentful. That鈥檚 all counter-productive,鈥� he told CTV鈥檚 Canada AM Wednesday.聽 That kind of stress not only hurts our health; it hurts our organization. When we鈥檙e overstressed, we鈥檙e inefficient, Posen says. Our productivity drops and instead of feeling excited and motivated, we just feel exhausted.

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