If your Finance department is like most, employees pride themselves on how much they get done when the clock’s ticking. But is dealing with the constant stress the hardest part of Finance’s job — or the best?

The common myth that a “stressed out” workplace negatively impacts employee performance seems drastically overstated, according to the latest survey by Towers Perrin. In fact, 68% of respondents said they were actually energized by on-the-job stress.

Finance and accounting departments aren’t just “dealing” with problems that spring up on a daily basis — they’re using them as a springboard to perform. The more challenging work is, the more focused and interested people are in it throughout their daily routines.

That’s not the only myth busted by the survey. Odds are good you’ve spent a day or two feeling like you’re buried under spreadsheets or a slave to e-mail. But over the long-term, the perception of technology as a “virtual prison” doesn’t apply to Finance pros — 86% of them feel technology actually helps draw a line between personal and professional lives.

The reasoning? It’s not a matter of how much time is spent using technology, but how much work is getting done with it. People are becoming more realistic about business demands, and technology’s helping to get more work done in the same number of hours.

Which brings us to the survey’s last finding: How much are both you and employees working? You may have seen your fair share of 50+ hour work weeks — especially during year-end closings — but 45 hours per week is still the average across all industries.

What’s more important is why people are working. Finance pros are great at their jobs, but almost three-quarters of respondents (72%) agree that work comes after personal and family life. The majority of people still work to live, with only 9% putting Finance before anything else in their lives.

How do you feel about your work in Finance? Are these workplace myths really smashed, or do you disagree with the survey’s results? Sound off and let us know below in the comments section.

Tags: Morale, Productivity, Stress, Workplace myths