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Loading...By Craig Bulow, Corporate Away Days
As we adjust to the realities of this Covid-19 virus, it is unsurprising that many people are feeling high levels of anxiety. Because of this, it’s vitally important that business owners consider how the situation is affecting the mental wellbeing of their staff as they get used to a new way of working and living.
What can business owners do to provide the necessary support for their staff? Here are some suggestions to help you get a plan in place or take further action.
Help Reduce Stress
Team members are bound to be stressed, about the virus, about loved ones, about whether they are doing a good job from home and, generally, about job security.
One of the proven acts to alleviating stress is to have clear, honest and regular conversations with your team. Put a time in your diary to speak to them – don’t just leave it to chance.
Let them know what the business is doing, tell them the truth – avoid sugar coating. Help people understand what the company is doing and what plans it has. The truth may not be pleasant, but it is always better than a lie. If your employee loses trust when working remotely, it can be very toxic.
As well as updating them about the business, give honest, accurate and timely feedback to alleviate concerns about whether they are able to do what they need to from a home-working environment.
Maintain a Human Connection
Working from home means we lose the human connection we normally get with our colleagues in the office. This human connection is an incredibly important part of going to work and boosts engagement and morale.
Organizing regular group conference calls using Zoom or Skype is a great step. Wherever possible, ensure calls are video calls where you can all see each other. You can smile and wave to one another. You can include time to talk about work, the latest developments of COVID-19 and any worries and concerns you have. And allow time for a chat about non-work-related issues too. Ask your team how their families are, where they are exercising, what recipes they are trying to stretch provisions, etc.
Make connecting with colleagues and getting to know them socially, as well as professionally, part of the new culture within the business, and actively encourage it while working remotely. Why not try a game where, for example, you pretend your pets or family members are your co-workers and speak about them (“one of my co-workers slept all day under my feet today but the other kept barking at passers-by”).
This way you can keep the connection your team enjoys in the office and even build upon it.
Have a Clear Communication Process
When working in the office, there are established lines of communication in place and there needs to be clarity as to how this is replicated when working remotely. Employees will benefit from having a clear line of communication; knowing who to call, when to call, and how to reach the right people if they have a query.
However, you also need to avoid being overwhelmed by phone calls! When people aren’t used to working from home, they will often call to ask the simplest questions. This is normal – so set up a system to mitigate this; one which ensures you get some work done too, but it also gives employees some structure and clarity.
An organized approach to managing call times, blocking out hour slots to receive or make calls to individuals or, as discussed, a conference call for more general group discussions – are all great ways to limit a deluge of phone calls.
You might think emails are the answer. However, in the self-isolation environment, we are experiencing, emails and texts won’t cut it. Human connection is important, so pick up the phone!
Provide Access to Counselling
As an employer, it would be beneficial to offer staff some form of counseling, which could either be with an internal wellbeing / trained HR Officer or an external professional. You could offer this on a group basis as well; arrange a group conference call to share concerns with a number of employees at the same time.
The calls could be used to talk through various tools that can be used to reduce stress and anxiety; covering mindfulness techniques, sleep, rest, nutrition and diet and how to keep calm and focused. At Corporate Away Days, we are partnered with a number of Wellbeing and Mental Health professionals who can organize virtual workshops to assist your team whilst they are working from home.
Help Keep Everyone Motivated While Working Remotely
Encouraging your team to exercise is also a great way to keep them motivated and keep their mental health strong. Suggest they lay a mat inside / outside and do stretches, push-ups, sit-ups, planks, some form of body strengthening as well as cardio.
Then ask your team to share their routines and findings with colleagues, creating another topic for self-maintenance and pandemic survival at home.
More importantly, trusting and empowering staff to work from home will be a great motivator in itself. If your team feels they can achieve what they need and be recognized and praised for it, while cutting out the commute and the downsides that come with working in an office, they can look forward to a time when the virus has beaten a retreat and they can work this way to really achieve some work-life balance.
Make your goals short-term. None of us know how long this will last so you may as well plan on a month-by-month basis. If goals can be achieved in a short timeframe, it is a great way to encourage your team to stay focussed and also gives you as an employer a good excuse to sing the praises of your team on a regular basis.
And do make sure – as far as you can – that they are equipped for working at home.
Plan for the Future
Fun and laughter are some of the best ways to reduce stress. Whilst there doesn’t seem much to look forward to right now, as time passes we will be able to see the end of the pandemic. It’s a good idea to think ahead about fun things you can do in the future.
Giving your team something to look forward to, something exciting, would be a perfect way to keep them motivated, inspired and create a conversation/discussion on that group chat that has been set up.
For example, an away day out of the office with a wellbeing theme, an activity that is inspiring and engaging that allows individuals to reconnect and rebuild connections after a long period of isolation. www.corporate-away-days.co.uk offer 27 live wellbeing events that aim to connected individuals from all corners of the workplace, at all levels.
Show Appreciation
Here is an excellent example of a company showing gratitude and offering some comfort to its employees during this difficult time:
Be creative – but keep within budgets – to make sure your team knows you appreciate them. If you can’t afford a “back-to-normal bonus”, think of something else that will make them glad to be returning to normality. Can you offer them each an extra week’s holiday or a fabulous summer party? Who knows, if they found they really thrived working remotely, doing that more often could be the reward!
There is a lot to think about right now. This included the mental wellbeing of everyone in a business. Helping your team manage the stress and uncertainly of current events should be kept at the top of your business agenda.
Craig Bulow is the founder of Corporate Away Days, a corporate wellbeing events company delivering engaging, inspiring, and exciting events focussed on Mindfulness / Wellbeing and Reward / Recognition activities. Corporate Away Days also creates, designs, and builds corporate wellbeing policies and provides leading experts for interactive workshops, seminars and talks on improving mental health and overall wellbeing.
The views and opinions expressed in this blog are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of any other agency, organization, employer, or company.
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