It's Time To Focus on the Mental Health of Your Team Members
According to the Centers for Disease Control, as of June 2020, 26% of U.S. adults reported symptoms of trauma or stress-related disorders and 31% reported symptoms of depression or anxiety. By the end of 2020, the Medical journal JAMA spoke of mental illness as a second pandemic, as the global Covid-19 health crisis was further complicated by political unrest, economic uncertainty, social isolation, remote work, and virtual learning for students.
As a leader, this reality has implications for both the well-being of individuals on your team, as well as your overall team performance.
In recent years, over 200 million workdays were lost due to mental health conditions ($16.8 billion in employee productivity), and that was prior to Covid.
Addressing the mental health “elephant” in the room is not only necessary, it is welcomed by employees, according to this Harvard Business Review study. The vast majority of leaders (80%) will manage someone with mental illness in the course of their career, and while it is not our responsibility to diagnose or treat them, we can recognize behavioral changes, and be aware of resources that can support them. This is part of what it looks like to lead with empathy.
Right now, some of your team members are likely experiencing and struggling with symptoms of mental illness and an appropriate question to ask is, “What changes might I notice in team members that indicate support is needed?”
You may notice small signs at first, like lack of concentration during meetings and declining engagement. Perhaps you observe a change in their presentation, or quality of work. Here are some additional questions to consider as you evaluate the potential need to offer support:
Is my team member making mistakes or missing deadlines more frequently?
Is my employee having difficulty receiving feedback now more than ever?
Have I noticed a significant decline in engagement over time?
If you are beginning to see a decrease in overall productivity or emotional stability, this may be an indication that your team member is facing some challenges.
Creating a supportive culture is one of the best ways to help with the well-being of your employees, and creating psychological safety in your workplace should be a top priority. Psychological safety happens when an employee believes they will not be punished or humiliated for making mistakes, bringing up concerns, asking questions or speaking up. As a leader, you can cultivate psychological safety in numerous ways, but to get started, simply begin to adjust how you ask questions.
Instead of asking questions that result in, “Yes,” or “No,” ask more open-ended questions that are more likely to create the space for your team member to convey how they are actually doing during these turbulent times. For example...
Ask: “Where’s your stress level today on a scale from 1 to 10?” Vs. “Are you stressed out?”
Ask: “What’s been most difficult about working at home?” Vs. “Did you have a good weekend?”
Ask: “You seemed distracted or not completely yourself lately, what can I do to help?” Vs. “Are you okay?”
These open-ended questions give permission to your employee to elaborate on how they feel, and how it’s impacting their work. As a leader, this approach provides you with more insight into their situation, which can help direct an appropriate response. Effective leaders will familiarize themselves with tools and resources to help team members maintain or regain their wellbeing.
The OARS Framework
The OARS Framework provides a simple and effective way to manage these conversations and can offer practical opportunities for addressing mental health in the workplace. OARS stands for:
Open-ended questions:
By asking open-ended questions allows the conversation to go more in-depth instead of getting a yes or no answer. Start your questions with “What..?” “When…?” “Where…?” “How…?” “Why…?” “Tell me more about that…”
We understand “How are you?” is a common open-ended question, and that most will reply back with a simple, “I’m fine.” To push the conversation further, consider asking “What is your definition of ‘fine’?” or put an emphasis that you’re really listening by repeating the question “How are you really doing?”
Affirmations:
During the conversation, make it a point to include affirmations. This will require empathy, but showing positive affirmation for the person you are speaking with can make a big impact in a conversation. Remember to make sure that your response is genuine. Here are some affirmations statements you can use:
I’m so grateful you had the courage to share this with me…
I can tell you’re trying really hard to get on top of things…
You clearly have a lot of strength to be juggling so much…
I’ve always admired your tenacity…
Reflections:
Reflect back on what was shared with you. It can be through words or just emotions and behavior. Here are opening reflection statements you can use to help you practice reflecting.
I heard you say…
I can tell…
I noticed you said…
Summaries:
Wrap it all up by summarizing what was discussed and allow for additional opportunities for sharing. Below are some examples of how you can summarize to make the person feel heard (which is sometimes all we have the ability to do, and sometimes all that is needed):
There’s so much on your plate that sometimes you don’t know where to start. Did I get that right?
I’m so glad we got to talk about this today. Would it be ok if I checked in with you next week to see how you’re doing?
I know you said you’re short on time, but is there anything else you want to share with me?
Keep in mind practicing the OARS framework in your role helps create an environment where your employees can express how they’re feeling. However, it’s not your responsibility to fix things for your team.
Instead, proactively encourage your employees to check your organization’s Employee Assistance Programs (EAPs). Hand out information about EAPs like it’s like a candy jar on your desk - everyone should know it’s there and available for them to dip into at any moment.
We understand that being a holistic leader in these times is tough. You are balancing your emotional wellbeing, as you seek to support your team member’s mental health - and it can be overwhelming.
Here at sr4 Partners, we have partnered with clinical psychologist Dr. Samantha Pelican Monson to help leaders better understand the pandemic's impact on mental health, how it relates to team performance, and most importantly, to explore what you can do to have a positive impact. Click here if you’d like more information on hosting a session for your team on mental health.