When people managers and employers recognize the signs of burnout in their employees, it may be time to explore some culture changes in the workplace. Here are a few suggestions to create a more connected work environment and check in with employees:

Create a human connection. Added stress and more remote work make it important to approach team members as people, and not just workers. Acknowledge it's a hard time, empathize and point employees to resources your company offers. Emotional work is as important as any other work. Encourage employees to ask for help and show them support when they do.
Set realistic expectations. Life disruptions can make people less focused and productive. Set realistic expectations for yourself and your team and remind employees to be compassionate with themselves and others.
Hold friendlier meetings. Employees working at home have lost the office's built-in sociability. There's no chatting in the hall, break room or at the copier. Set aside meeting time for personal contact, like joking and sharing. Encourage people to talk about things such as family or hobbies.
Normalize conversations around mental health. Remember, everyone struggles with mental health. Breaking the stigma surrounding burnout and mental health in the workplace is an important step to creating a culture of well-being and resilience. Implementing an anti-stigma campaign such as Make it OK and Stop the Stigma work to reduce the negative stereotypes associated with these struggles and help workers address problems they might typically hide.

There is still a lot of work to be done to improve workplace behavioral health, and the lessons of the pandemic have taught us to expect more change and more adjustment in the coming months. If there were ever a silver lining, it's that the awareness around behavioral health is growing and we now have more information and insights on how to manage employees' wellbeing in the face of life's challenges. Today's employers are being tasked with finding that perfect balance of meeting the needs of their business with meeting the needs of the people who drive those businesses each day. Navigating that change in the spirit of togetherness is the culture shift that will help us not only get through this, but emerge better and stronger.

Instant Insights /

How to help employees overcome change fatigue

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