The Workplace Mental Health Pandemic

– 2 min –

ARE YOU RESPONDING APPROPRIATELY?

Even in the best companies, a large number of organizational cultures are at crisis point. Some might not acknowledge it or be paying attention, but the signs are there.

Do any or all of these sound familiar in your organization?
• Rising sick leave for mental health and anxiety related illnesses
• Low engagement and productivity
• Burnout

How can we spot the signs?

Awareness training across the organization, especially within leadership, is crucial. The workforce needs to understand basic mental health issues that anyone can face from time to time. If the leader and their team know what to watch for and where to turn for assistance, individuals are more likely to get timely, appropriate help.

Acceptance is also key. We need to accept that we are all capable of reaching a breaking point and that it’s not a sign of weakness to ask for help. Compassion for ourselves and others goes a long way towards prevention and early intervention.

What can we do about it?

Organizations need to look in the mirror.

Mental health issues usually ripple across the culture. High pressure, demanding, constantly ‘on’ environments are not healthy in the long term. Additional contributing factors are unskilled managers, including toxic managers who unconsciously inflict emotional pain, or new managers who have yet to receive any effective training in leadership.

Organizations need to be proactive.

One of the most cost-effective ways to circumvent issues is to train leaders. Whether they are experienced leaders or new team managers, they need to learn how to:
• Work one-on-one with each unique individual team member to connect around what excites and engages them
• Run highly efficient meetings so no time is wasted (online meetings are especially exhausting)
• Step up and have difficult but essential conversations in a timely and non-threatening or damaging way.

Creating a high-performance culture has always been a desire for organizations but, especially in our current world crisis, it is essential for survival. Awareness, acceptance and being proactive in resolving issues will go a long way towards promoting an organizational culture of good mental health and productivity.