Here are 4 steps you can take to build a culture of wellness and help safeguard against "quiet quitting" and burnout among employees:

Be an example, practice and encourage a healthy work-life balance. Work-life balance is an essential component of reducing anxiety in the workplace and allows your employees work-free space to restore and refresh in order to contribute to a more engaged and productive workforce. HR leaders should build awareness and model good behavior and habits – not only in setting the right expectations about work-life balance, but also giving employees the permission to prioritize their mental health. This could be as simple as taking your allocated PTO and really disconnecting. This means not sending emails or calling in for meetings while on PTO so employees understand that they are allowed to disconnect while they are on PTO as well.
Foster supportive work environments and elevate mental health to a company value. As an HR leader, you play a crucial role in shaping the culture of your organization. While there is no one-size-fits-all solution, you should regularly discuss available mental health resources that your employer provides and encourage employees to use them. You must also be willing to listen to employees and be receptive to change, as well as offer new resources and ways to support their mental wellness. In addition, management and team leads should receive training on how to foster a culture of appreciation in the workplace. Gratitude and appreciation have been demonstrated to release dopamine, serotonin and oxytocin, the neurochemicals associated with optimism, positivity and human connection. Recent studies show that fostering a workplace culture of appreciation has multiple benefits, including improving overall employee wellness and job satisfaction, as well as decreasing exhaustion and cynicism among employees.
Schedule regular check-ins. Creating clear lines of communication between you, your co-workers, and employees, can help everyone feel happier, and more at ease in the workplace. Having one-on-one time with supervisors helps establish working relationships. It's also helpful for supervisors to ask how the employee is doing personally as well. This helps to identify any early warning sign that more support might be needed as well as building the relationship. Think about setting up office hours where employees can freely drop in for an informal conversation, creating regular check-ins to make space for dialogue, or repurpose open work spaces in the office for more effective team collaboration and conversation.
Raise the Emotional Intelligence (EQ) bar. Prevent (or disrupt) toxic work environments by elevating the importance of soft skills: listening, understanding the unique perspectives of team members, identifying and nurturing shared goals, using "we" not "me". Consider live trainings and other solutions to promote the development of these skills, and remember, there is no one-size-fits-all. Levels of emotional intelligence do not correlate with the number of years in the role. EQ skills can be built and learned no matter your age and leading with empathy helps to create not only better relationships but a more effective organization.

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Dear HR leaders: Mental health needs to be a part of your company's culture

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