Would you know how to read the signs? Would you be able to identify the severity of their mental distress?
Would you feel confident in your ability to provide your team member with the appropriate support?
Would you be able to step up if a team member admitted to depression or even thoughts of suicide?
In this month’s blog we want to encourage you to imagine a 2021 filled with hope, efficacy, resilience and even a dash of optimism. “Optimism?” You scoff. “After the year from hell?? Don’t be delusional!” Well, yes. After all, wouldn’t you rather start off this year believing that you have what it takes to conquer whatever 2021 brings? You could imagine the alternative, of course. Hopelessness, doom, suffering, negativity, helplessness. Mmmm…I don’t know. Maybe it’s just me but that seems somewhat less appealing.
The human capacity for resilience is astounding, as research shows that most people who experience trauma not only do not develop PTSD, but in a quest to make sense of their experience, actually experience psychological growth.
No one could disagree that the call for true leadership is greater than ever. Regardless of the challenges brought on by 2020, the world was always going to need a greater calibre of leader to step up. Our business world is evolving in so many ways that relying on the same frameworks of leadership, or even worse, management…is simply not good enough.
It is clear that while progress is being made toward addressing mental health in New-Zealand, there is still a long way to go. Mental health exists on a continuum - we are not either mentally healthy, or mentally ill, yet the words mental health still hold connotations to mental illness for many. The reality is that most of us at some stage in our lives will experience depression or severe psychological distress.
On 23 March 2020 the New Zealand government declared a swift move into level four lockdown, during which time all non-essential services would be designated to work from home in the fight to control and limit the spread of the disease.
As we usher in the second week of level one lockdown, I’m sure many of you, like myself, find it hard to believe that it was all real. And as we look around us and observe our immediate world to be seemingly ‘back to normal’, the reality of it all may still be struggling to sink in. However, the less visible psychological fallout may be quite real for many.
During the week of 15-21 April, as we settled into level four lockdown, The Effect and ComplyPro joined to survey a small sample of New Zealanders from a range of cities across the country. The purpose of the survey was to provide a short and simple assessment of their state of wellbeing, hope and self-agency in the face of the economical and social circumstances.
Respondents were a convenience sample, accessed via Facebook and directly via the ComplyPro website. A total of 22 valid responses were collected over the span of a week. Gender was evenly represented in the sample, with ages ranging between 21-61.
Data showed that respondents generally experienced a positive mental state regardless of the circumstances, with 50% reporting that they felt mentally well ‘often’ or ‘all of the time’, and 36% reporting that they felt mentally well ‘some of the time’. Only 14% reported poor levels of mental wellness (i.e. ‘none of the time’ or ‘rarely’) at the time of the survey.
Over half of the respondents (54%) felt they had been dealing with problems well ‘often’ or ‘most of the time’, with 23% reporting they they had been dealing with problems well ‘some of the time’. Compared to self-rated levels of wellness, a higher percentage felt that they did not deal with problems as well, with 23% stating either ‘none of the time’ or ‘rarely’ in response to the statement: “I have been dealing with problems well”.
As anticipated, the majority of the sample experienced both stress and worry to some degree during this time. A large portion of the sample reported experiencing stress and worry quite regularly, with 41% reporting feelings of stress ‘often’ or ‘all the time’, and 45%, reporting feelings of worry ‘often’ or ‘all the time’. Interestingly, a considerable portion of the sample reported little experience of stress and worry, with 37% reporting feelings of stress ‘none of the time’ or ‘rarely, and 27% of the sample reporting feelings of worry ‘none of the time’ or ‘rarely’. Contrary to expectations, 43% of the sample did not tend to experience mental isolation, while only 29% reported feeling mentally isolated ‘often’ or ‘all the time’.
The most frequently rated worry was the future, followed closely by family. Mental health and money as a concern were tied, followed by job and physical health, also tied.
Even though you may be a manager or supervisor, the likelihood is that your team has been experiencing very similar emotions and worries to you. The difference is that you have chosen to take the role of leader, and with that comes certain responsibilities to your direct reports.
If you are uncertain about the way forward in addressing some of the above concerns of your team, you might want to pay close attention.
Although we find ourselves in level one lockdown, and many of the restrictions to work and income are now lifted, stress and worry may still linger. As humans we tend to prefer predictability and security, both things that remain in jeopardy for many.
When it comes to dealing with feelings of uncertainty and worry in your employees, the advice from Harvard Business Review is to:
Steel yourself: get ready to step up to the plate as a leader by looking after your wellbeing first, and ensuring you have a healthy daily routine to support you in that.
Make a plan: communicate early and often with staff with as much transparency as is reasonably possible, to ensure all possible information gaps are filled, and your people’s most immediate worries are addressed. This can be carried out through a combination of one-on-ones, team meetings and the creation of a team for centralised communication that oversees regular communication to staff via a highly visible communication platform.
Communicate with care: Be consistent with what leadership in your organisation is communicating, be thoughtful and responsive toward what your team may be fearing, be honest while holding the confidentiality of the company in matters that have not yet been given the green light, and be sincere.
Inspire: Use positive, solution-focused language that focuses on the strengths and capabilities of individuals and the team, and highlights opportunities over uncertainties.
Support: Be there for all your team. Don’t assume they will reach out to you if they are struggling. Ask questions and then listen to the answers. Validate their concerns by repeating back what you heard them say and ask questions such as “what do you need from me as your team leader going forward?”. Be honest and genuine about the extent to which you can or cannot meet their needs. If the request is not something you can accommodate, explain your reason and explore what is possible.
Where family is a concern, the right approach may seem less clear. The right answer is really the most straightforward one: Check in with your staff, ask how they are, ask how their family is, and understand where it may be within your power to offer some reassurance or options that may alleviate some of their overall worry load. In this way, even if you are unable to directly help with family related matters, which is likely to be the case, you could give your staff member the support they need to be able to cope more effectively with it, potentially the increased psychological capacity (resilience) to deal with it by, for example, reducing existing work pressure, or perhaps even the opportunity to take time away from work to dedicate to family.
As leaders, though at times you may feel helpless to control outcomes, you truly have great influence over the mindset, outlook and mental wellbeing of your teams.
Do not take that for granted.
Blog by Ance Strydom
Bullying has been around for decades, centuries even if you care to go back far enough.
With German and Dutch roots, the word bully evolved from the words used for ‘lover’ and ‘friend’. A few decades down the track and bully was used as a term of endearment and familiarity and friendly admiration between men.