How to Manage Highly Sensitive People

be hardworking, careful and vigilant about quality.

They can see the details and the big picture, and they can visualize different possibilities. v. Talented: Over-sensitive people can often be creative, perceptive, excellent communicators, and gifted.

HOW TO MANAGE HIGHLY SENSITIVE PEOPLE

Let us explore six approaches that you can use to motivate your highly sensitive team members, reduce their stress levels, and keep them engaged.

i. Accept Them

It can be tempting to try to help oversensitive people on your team to overcome their sensitivity. However, this often-used tactic may make them feel ashamed, rejected, inadequate, and increasingly stressed, despite your good intentions.

Oversensitive people are all not the same. They have varying triggers and are therefore sensitive in different ways. For example, loud noises may be unbearable for some, while emotional tension may affect others. So, make sure that you are open, receptive and understanding, and work hard to create and sustain a positive and relaxed workplace culture for your highly sensitive team member. Be careful not to let their quiet demeanor influence your appraisal of their performance.

ii. Address Sources of Stress

Ask your highly sensitive team members what overwhelms or irritates them. For example, feeling irritated by a humming fan, exhausted by long meetings, or upset by office gossip. Try to deal with these problems straight away, rather than dismissing their concerns.

Highly sensitive people care about their work and can be sensitive to criticism, so offer them positive feedback as well as negative. Where possible, let them know that you appreciate their traits, and clearly explain how they benefit the organization.

iii. Let Them Work Alone

Many over-sensitive people are also introverts, which means that they do their best work alone. So, allow your highly sensitive team members to work on their own wherever possible, and schedule regular breaks for them to recharge during teamwork or group events.

Since over-sensitive people are highly aware of their environment, they tend to feel uncomfortable and perform poorly when you observe them working, micromanage them, or put them on the spot. They may also perceive reminders or “checking in” as a lack of trust. So, give your highly sensitive team member space to work alone, and make it clear that you’re available when they need support.

iv. Provide a Quiet Place to Work

Offer your highly sensitive team member a calm working environment, wherever possible. This could be a quiet part of the office or a conference room, or you could allow them to work from home, if appropriate. They may also appreciate quiet time first thing in the morning to prepare for the day.

Encourage your over-sensitive people to take regular breaks during the day, especially after a group activity, as they may feel overwhelmed. A day of meetings, events, or networking will likely take its toll on a highly sensitive person’s health and wellbeing, so allow them some time to recharge alone between social gatherings.

When you do this, you will likely boost their productivity and allow them to come up with creative ideas and innovations that can benefit your team and organization.

Take Action:

Other team members might see your actions as preferential treatment. So make an effort to treat everyone equally and accommodate people’s working and environmental preferences, where possible.

v. Give Advance Warning

Many over-sensitive people manage overstimulation by preparing or developing routines, plans, and strategies for upcoming events. Whilst you can not

always prevent sudden schedule changes, try to give your highly sensitive team members as much notice as possible before meetings or activities. If they do become flustered when last-minute changes occur, give them time to recover their composure.

Take Action:

Everyone has their strengths, weaknesses, and needs, and some people require more stimulation in their environment than others. So, ask each of your team members what would make their working environment more comfortable. When you understand each person’s sensitivity level, you can optimize their potential, talents, wellbeing, and performance.

vi. Encourage your Over-sensitive People to Take

Action

In her book, Making Work For The Over-Sensitive

Person: Madam Georgina Rockson – Chief Stool

Lands Officer, Bono Region – suggests that there are also a few things you can encourage your oversensitive team members to do to help themselves at work. For example, if they are feeling overwhelmed or stressed, you could suggest that they spend a few minutes alone and take some deep breaths. You might also encourage them to take solo walks during their lunch break and to listen to soothing music with earphones. If they learn to become aware of what overwhelms them, they can avoid those triggers or take breaks afterward to get back on track.

5. IGNORANT PEOPLE: People who represent the word stupidity. They spout off information with no basis, no facts, and form opinions based on gossip and what is popular and trendy. The ignorant person has opinions on what he/she knows 1% about every story he/she has.

6. GOSSIPS

People who enjoy talking about other people and their private lives are gossips.

LET US LOOK AT SOME EXAMPLES

I have just been talking to the girls downstairs and I have got some delicious gossip.

Let us go for a coffee - I need to catch up on all the gossip. There is a lot of gossip about me going around. What have you been saying?

Some magazines contain nothing but scandal and gossip.

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CHAPTER 5 LESSONS THE YOUTH MUST LEARN

TEN IMPORTANT LESSONS THE YOUTH MUST LEARN BEFORE AGE 30

It is exciting to be a teenager. In your 20s, sometimes the fun is too much. But guess what? That is life. There are important lessons you must learn before you turn 30 years, if you want to have great years for the rest of your life. These are the ten major lessons you need to know: i. Make friends with positive people alone. ii. You cannot please everyone. iii. Bad habits will not help you. iv. Learn how to organize. v. Do not take things for granted. vi. Make budget to suit you. vii. Form savings & investment habit. viii.Ask questions; there’s no shame in not knowing. ix. Do not rush into things. x. Life is not always fair.

FIVE MISTAKES MOST YOUNG PEOPLE DO AT THEIR YOUTHFUL AGE AND REGRET LATER IN LIFE

If something is too exciting, you can suspect something is probably wrong about it. Adolescence and early adulthood is just too exciting, no wonder most of us make several mistakes at a time like that.

If you are still young, you will have opportunities to correct some of these mistakes. But if you are above 60 years, that is where you will be sorry for yourself.

These are four major mistakes that we do at our youthful stage; i. Young people spend money anyhow they like. ii. Young people think schooling is enough to get rich. iii. Young people tend to give up so easily. iv. Young people accept whatever and anything they hear

HOW YOUNG PEOPLE THINK AND HOW THEY SPEND THEIR RESOURCES

i. Young people invest without research. ii. Young people think that love alone is enough to sustain a relationship. iii. Most young people do not save money for the future. iv. Young people try to please everyone. v. Young people largely blame their parents for their misfortune. vi. Young people forget to have a relationship with the Lord

Jesus Christ. Whether young or old, this is the most important proponent to a successful life.

Whether young or old, these are some very important proponents to leading a successful life. i. Delay gratification, do not buy things because everyone is doing so. ii. Learn how to save for investment and retirement purposes.