How well are your team?
If I asked how each individual in your team is coping with the current situation, could you honestly, truly tell me?
Positive mental health is an essential factor in building a productive and engaged workforce. I believe every leader has a major role to play in this area.
With many teams furloughed or working remotely, a lack of personal contact with a team leader can make difficulties harder for leaders to spot. Take key workers in the medical and care home sectors for example, where mental, emotional and physical pressures are off the scale and one to one contact limited, how can you be sure that your employees are coping?
No-one can predict what lasting impact lockdown will have on our mental health. But there’s one thing leaders can do to support their people.
Be open and ready to listen to your team
What is it your team is telling you?
If your team has concerns about this terrible virus then it’s likely other people in your organisation will feel similar.
So what are you and your senior leadership team doing to help?
Like most people, I’ve been discovering the joy of online quizzes with family and friends during lockdown. I’ve also delivered some online training workshops through the power of video conferencing. One customer experience session was for a firm of joiners - that’s a whole new sector for me but the principles of delivery remain consistent.
In both activities, everyone seemed to enjoy themselves. For the online training I had between 6 - 46 participants, so I wasn’t entirely sure whether everyone did enjoy the session.
I’m always very conscious of this during training, whether in person or online. I make a point of ensuring everyone has the opportunity to contribute.
Even in virtual meeting spaces, you can pick up on simple body language that might suggest a person is disengaged or struggling with what’s being said. However, there are some thoughts and feelings that can only be drawn out through one to one conversation.
Your role as a leader
Every leader has a responsibility to ensure each person in your team is OK. This is particularly important now when your team might be working remotely and you may not see them in your usual environment. Have you checked in with them individually to see if they’re on track and feeling alright about life, work and what’s expected of them?
Next time you have an opportunity, ask them, ‘Do you have the help and support you want and need?’
Create a safe space to talk
It’s important to create a working environment where people feel able to speak honestly and openly about how they feel. And I’m not just talking about work-related issues here. I mean all concerns - future or past, big or small, work or family, health- or colleague-related.
When people have a safe space to share concerns, aspirations, and ask questions, they are more likely to feel part of a team and become a more engaged employee.
The safer you make it for your team to talk to you, the more confident you all will feel working together.
How to create a safe space
It’s all very well saying we need to create an environment where everyone feels safe to speak up. But what does this look like in practice?
Listen before you speak - the first step is to practise active listening with the intention of fully understanding.
Never make judgements - no question or concern should be challenged or made fun of. Your team need to feel this to be confident to share.
With guidelines in place individuals can express themselves and think clearly. You’ll find them more likely to fully understand what’s expected of them and in return they will achieve for you, themselves and the organisation.
When leaders don’t make time to listen - a real life example
A colleague approached their line manager with a question about a task they were working on. The manager reacted angrily to the interruption. The manager’s abrupt and abrasive response was ‘Can’t you see I’m busy? I don’t have time for this. I told you last week, go and take another look at your notes’.
The colleague was visibly upset by their manager’s reaction. They apologised and made a hasty retreat, still unclear about what was required of them. What the manager did not realise was that this individual was struggling with personal health issues. This little exchange did nothing to help their anxiety. Perhaps the reason this person didn’t take on board all information at the start was they were preoccupied with other issues.
Enable your team to flourish and grow
As a leader, it’s within your power to make adjustments to how or when your team work. Something as simple as changing shift patterns so a parent can be home to read a bedtime story to their child can make a world of difference. When this happens it’s like seeing someone with a new lease of life. I believe there’s nothing more rewarding for a leader than enabling individuals to flourish and grow.
If you don’t do this already, please take the time to listen and create a safe space for your team to share with you. It’s very easy to ask someone how they’re feeling. It’s takes a little more practice to listen completely to the person’s response.
Remember we all need time to talk and be heard, even people in senior roles. It’s usually those you least expect to struggle who are actually struggling. We all have times when we need to talk things through with others. To play your role as leader to the fullest you need to open up and listen to what your people are telling you.