5 Tips for Leading Through Changing Times

As a leader of a team or a successful organisation, you care about the mental wellness of your people. During fast-changing times like the ones we’re in, it can be hard to support employees while trying to manage all the tasks already on your plate.

In mid-2020 we conducted some surveys to assess how people were adapting to the pandemic. We shared them along with tips for overcoming leadership challenges on the podcast: “Team Performance – Winning Ways in Uncertain Times” with co-hosts Christian Napier and Spencer Horn. Here are five of those tips to help you lead in a way that promotes corporate wellness across your organisation.

1. Create a team culture supportive of mental well-being

Something consistent with both our surveys was the notion of us being on a rollercoaster; some days we’re up and some days we’re down. This is an important thing to remember. Your staff may experience more frequent mood swings and vary considerably from day to day right now. This should be expected and is normal.

Finding a way of openly communicating where your team is at each day will likely keep you all on the same page as well as help you to adjust your leadership style as necessary.

Beyond creating a vehicle for discussing mental well-being without the stigma, what else might your team need by way of tools and other support to assist them? As businesses are making physical adaptations in preparation for staff return to work, have you also considered what mental preparations might be required in the form of Wellness Plans or Employee Assistance Programmes?

2. Adjust and manage workplace expectations

Generally speaking productivity has been down since the start of lockdown. Likely because our demands have increased with some of us taking on the dual roles of employee and homeschooler or employee and elder carer. Couple that with the inherent highs and lows of uncertainty impacting morale and focus, we’ve generally just been feeling flat.

Adjust workloads accordingly. Review project plans and deadlines. Re-examine mission critical versus defer until later. And if someone has a lot of abstract or complex tasks to get through, perhaps consider ways to share these across the team or replace some of those with fixed start and end type projects which will provide greater certainty and a sense of immediate accomplishment.

3. Respect work from home boundaries 

Working from home doesn’t create a license to work all day. Be careful to respect the needs of your team members to juggle right now. This may require greater flexibility around core hours but shouldn’t lead to extended hours.

Try to respect a more regular workday and allow time for what would have ordinarily been a commute. Perhaps even try to encourage the team to use their previous commute time for some exercise instead? Be alert to signs of fatigue, cynicism or feelings of low efficacy (signs of burnout) and be prepared to recalibrate workload if and when needed.

4. Acknowledge gender perspectives

A great article by Sheryl Sandberg (The coronavirus pandemic is creating a ‘double double shift’ for women. Employers must help) identifies women as particularly susceptible to burnout during this period. Even before the pandemic, many women were pulling what she calls a ‘double shift’; a full-time job followed by childcare and domestic work on return to the home.

During the pandemic however, women have also disproportionately had to shoulder the responsibilities for both home schooling and elder care, causing even greater strain than usual. Take care to acknowledge these additional commitments in your female colleagues and be willing to support with greater flexibility.

As for men, we know this gender is less likely to openly discuss mental well-being. So be alert to sudden and sustained changes in mood such as withdrawal or uncharacteristic aggression or cynicism which, similarly, might be reflective of fatigue or burnout and require some greater support and flexibility.

5. Provide compassionate leadership

Simon Sinek suggests doubling down on empathy right now (‘There is a light at the end of this tunnel.’ Teamwork guru shares how to thrive at work amid coronavirus crisis). Compassionate leadership is what is required of us in this moment and if we’re not naturals with the skill set of EQ, then perhaps consider who in your organisation might champion this lead with your support. Additionally, expressing gratitude for the work people are doing and for the balancing act most people are engaging with will ensure your team feels seen, heard, appreciated and supported.

Team Performance – Winning Ways in Uncertain Times

This post is part of a podcast hosted by Spencer Horn and Christian Napier. For many, these uncertain times provide an opportunity to push the reset button; to question status quo business practices; to find new, innovative ways to collaborate; and to build a foundation for a brighter future. This podcast provides the tips to do just that and features Jacqui Edmiston on Episode 13: Burnout, Breathe, camels and more. You can listen to the podcast here.

If your team is struggling with stress or burnout, giving them the tools they need to address this early can help boost their resilience and your bottom line. We bring you the training you need to benefit from lasting corporate wellness. Schedule a free discovery call today to get a custom mindfulness and mental fitness training workshop or programme for your company.