During uncertain times, managing your employees’ mental health is essential to supporting your workforce as a leader. The stay-at-home order has caused a potential mental health crisis. With higher stress, more social isolation, more anxiety, and a rise in emotional exhaustion leaders need to support and empathize with their employees.
The first step to helping your employees through these uncertain times is to understand the well-being of your company as a whole. This can be done through weekly company surveys or daily morning check-ins.
It is difficult to mimic informal contact when people are work-from-home and that can be trying on those who are quarantined. One way to try to replicate this is through Zoom happy hours or virtual lunches to stay in touch without the conversations revolving around work.
Once you have a pulse on the company, open the door to conversations surrounding mental health. If people need to talk about it they will, and if they would rather not they won’t elaborate. It is better to ask and try to understand how your employees are feeling rather than to not be there to support them.
If an employee does decide to confide in you regarding their state of well-being, be sure to listen with support. Try not to offer solutions immediately; listen, work to better understand, and allow your employees to feel heard. Also, don’t be afraid to open up yourself, trust is created when you allow yourself to be vulnerable as well.
When your employees confide in you, follow up with them after. This conversation isn’t something that you have once and move on from after. Once a day or week should be enough to give your employees the support they need.
Finally, share resources that can help your employees through this tough time. There are tons of available resources that help increase mental health. Even offering resources gives employees the feeling that they are cared for, and supported during this tough time.
Your employees are the backbone of your company. Show them that you care by being there for them during such a difficult, unprecedented time. Contact us to see how we can help optimize your company culture to allow your employees to feel supported and cared for.