If you are under pressure, how do you usually cope with stress?
Do you know any ways to avoid stress?
What do you do to relax?
2. Jobs with high stress
Which job is the most stressful?
air-traffic controller
lawyer
school teacher
journalist
medical intern
musician
police officer
realtor
fireman
stockbroker
banker
concertmaster
13. waitress/waiter
Reading tasks
3. Read the article
Passengers behaving badly
The abusive passenger is becoming a world-wide problem.
Delta Air Lines crew9 suffer1 100 verbal and physical assaults2 a month, while cabin crews9 in some airlines are seeking early retirement3 at 50 because of their stressful work.
The cause of most passenger misbehavior is stress. Overcrowding and queuing4 at the airport raises adrenaline levels. Normally these levels decrease5 through gaining control of a situation either by standing up and fighting or by running. Instead, passengers are kept in cramped6 conditions on an airplane, where they have no control. In these circumstances7, they wait for one little excuse and then let rip12. A businessman was recently less than happy
when airport staff told him his luggage had been lost.
Already frustrated by a delayed flight, he stormed onto the runway, took out a pistol and shot the airplane’s front tyre.
Much of the abuse8 is down to alcohol. The aviation consultancy discovered that 202 out of 708 major incidents noted by a US carrier10 over a six-month period were alcohol-related. Seventy-four incidents were smoking-related: more carriers10 are banning11 on-board smoking, leading the nicotine–dependent into conflict as they try to have a secret cigarette.
The scientists also blame changes in society’s views on technology and authority and stress related to mass travel.
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óõîä íà ïåíñèþ
4. î÷åðåäè
5. ñíèæàòü(ñÿ)
6. ñòåñíåííûé
7. îáñòîÿòåëüñòâà
8. îñêîðáëåíèå
9. ýêèïàæ
10. ïåðåâîç÷èê
11. ââîäèòü çàïðåò
12. òåðÿòü êîíòðîëü íàä ñîáîé
4. Understanding details:
Answer the following questions:
Why are cabin crews seeking early retirement?
What are two major causes of stress?
How can adrenaline level be controlled?
What was a businessman upset about?
5. Does smoking cause and problems during a flight?
6. Who is to be blamed for stressful situations while travelling?
5. A summary of the article
Make a summary of the article.
6. Read the article
Stressed out
Stress on the job costs American companies as much as $150 billion a year in lower productivity, unnecessary employee sick leave and higher medical costs. Three-quarters of the office workers today say they (1) ….. from stress at work. The scientists have discovered that the most stressful professions are those that (2) ….. danger and extreme pressure and those that carry a lot of responsibility without much control.
People in business may suffer from stress for many different reasons: if they are overworked, if they have to work to tight (3) ….. , if they always feel under pressure,
if they can not give their reports in on time or if they can not meet their targets.
The problem is that a high level of stress may lead to poor (4) ….. , bad relationships at work, low morale, and a loss of productivity. It is important to recognize the symptoms of stress, such as (5) ….. in communicating with colleagues, nervousness, anger, forgetfulness, lack of concentration, nail biting, overeating, loss of appetite or sleeping badly.
The best way to (6) ….. with stress is through relaxation, but sometimes the only answer is to fight back or walk away.
Vocabulary practice tasks
7. Article integrity
Insert the words where necessary to restore the integrity of the article.
health
deadlines
suffer
difficulty
involve
deal
8. Reshape the idea
Rewrite each sentence so that it becomes shorter if possible but its meaning remains the same.
A businessman was recently less than happy when airport staff told him his luggage had been lost.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
The aviation consultancy discovered that 202 out of 708 major incidents noted by a US carrier over a six-month period were alcohol-related.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
Passengers are kept in cramped conditions on an airplane, where they have no control.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
People in business may suffer from stress for many different reasons.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
Normally these levels decrease5 through gaining control of a situation either by standing up and fighting or by running.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
Cabin crews in some airlines are seeking early retirement at 50 because of their stressful work.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
Interactive tasks
9. Situations and stress
Choose three situations from the list and rank them from 1 (most stressful) to 3 (least stressful). Discuss your choices.
making a speech
having a final exam
going to the dentist
being fired
performing a concert
having an interview
writing a report with a tight deadline
dealing with a customer who has a complaint
10. Some ways to cope with stress
Which are the most effective ways of coping with stress
maintain a sense of humour
meditate
get a massage
work out in a gym
eat more sensibly
limit intake of alcohol and caffeine
spend more time with family and friends
go to the psychiatrist
quit your job
listen to relaxing music
11. Explain this
Give definitions to the following words.
a delayed flight ………………………………………………………………………………………………………
a deadline .………………………………………..…………………………….……………………………………
an assault .………………………………………………….………..………………………………………………
12. Solving a problem
Read this short article from the Japanese newspaper. Express your opinion on the subject.
Yoshiaki Nishiura, a 25-year-old truck driver from western Japan, was sacked1 because he dyed his hair brown. (This is a popular fashion with a growing number of young Japanese.) Although he apologized and dyed it black again, he was still fired. His employer, Mr Yamago, believed that behavior like Mr Nishiura’s undermined2 company discipline and corrupted morale. He blamed3 it on American influence.
‘We need drivers to maintain4 a professional appearance5 to make a good impression,’ he said. A Japanese journalist said, ‘Japanese firms expect all employees to look the same and think the same. When you enter a company, you sign away your human rights.’
Mr Nishiura is going to sue6 his employer for unfair dismissal7.
