I won’t even venture a guess as to how many productive hours that could otherwise be spent getting your business in order are wasted by big egos, temper tantrums, and general snarkiness. Most of these lost hours could be recovered if only everyone involved in these water cooler wars could get things in perspective.

In an effort to add a few extra productive minutes to your day, I’m going to give you a few tips on how to manage workroom stress.

It’s Probably Not Important.

Have you ever gotten into a disagreement with a co-worker, only to realize an hour later that you aren’t actually certain what you were arguing about? Often, arguments escalate because no one is willing to admit that maybe, just maybe, not replacing the toner cartridge was not worth 20 minutes of personal attacks.

Life is short, save you ire for when it can actually make a difference. There will always be little inconveniences to brood over, untold hours can be saved if you are willing to just let most of them roll off of your shoulders.

Passive Aggression

Put your problems on the table. There is nothing more poisonous to an entrepreneurial working environment than unexpressed tension. When Joe in IT changes the root password on your computer for the twentieth time without telling you, don’t waste your breath telling everyone in the department how they would have been better off hiring a trained Lemur — instead work it out.

Whether that means confronting Joe about it, going to management, or just locking him out of your computer — anything is better than office politicking. Some people have made a career of getting ahead on the backs of their co-workers, it’s not worth the stress. Stow the backstabbing and get back to work.

Ego Tripping

Businesses, especially web businesses are filled with people who most clinical psychologist would classify as deeply self-obsessed egomaniacs. We love to be right and when anyone points out a flaw in our obviously flawless logic we tend to balk, loudly.

Remember that real leadership is about understanding that you will make mistakes. Better yet, it’s about understanding that even if your theory that the new social network for Bolivian dog owners might not be such a great plan is correct — that doesn’t mean that you should close yourself off to dissent. The best leaders understand that truly revolutionary ideas often arise from “happy accidents”. Close your mouth and open your ears, you might find that there are some kernels of wisdom in even “stupid” ideas.

Sleep On It

So you are about thirty seconds away from storming into the CEO’s office and telling him where he can put your stock options. Before you go take a breath. Good. Now leave it alone.

Most problems look a lot better after a few hours of sitting on them. Not only does it give you time to put the situation in perspective, but it also lets you get a better grasp on exactly how you want to deal with it, if at all.

Anger breeds strange bedfellows and the worst thing that you can do is try to argue when the voices in your head are screaming for blood. If you have to get it out, write it down and read it back to yourself. If what you read back sounds like the half-insane ramblings of a pre-teen it might be time to revise your outlook on the situation.

Move On

The most important skill that anyone who works with people can learn is to move on. When something is over, don’t waste your energy dwelling on it. You aren’t going to make a situation any better by taking every opportunity to bring up how mad you still are that they got rid of casual Fridays.

If you still feel sore about a decision, go through the proper channels to fix it. If there aren’t any left, try to mitigate the damage without letting a problem taint your entire day. The more time you spend dwelling on something that you cannot change, the bigger the problem will become in your mind. Stop the cycle before it starts.

Web 2.0 Roundup

Life is a battlefield, and one of your strongest weapons is just a little bit of patience with your fellow man. Before you let a situation get out of control, take a breath and grab a nice big glass of perspective. You’ll certainly be happier for it.

[Be sure to subscribe to the RSS feed before leaving]