Better Work - with 50+ strategies for less stress and burnout, more engagement and better mental health E-Book

Nicole Tschierske

• Herausgeber: tredition
• Kategorie: Fachliteratur
• Sprache: Englisch

Seitenzahl: 225

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2023

Beschreibung

Most of us can easily name behaviours that we've seen in our best and worst leaders that impact our own work experiences, but it isn't always as easy to connect our own behaviours with others' experiences. That's where Better Work comes into play. If you're a leader who cares about doing your part to make your people's work happier, healthier, and more productive, this book is for you. In this guide, you will find 50+ strategies you can use to support yourself and your team as you cope with a heavy workload, the impact of the physical workplace, dealing with bureaucracy, and managing conflict. These are what's known as job demands. Then there are job resources such as freedom and autonomy, finding purpose or meaning, creating a positive climate, and giving great feedback. Understanding the interplay between these demands and resources is the key to designing better work. Based on the Job Demands-Resources model, Better Work offers you evidence-based confirmation for all the things you're doing well and inspiration for what to try next. In the introduction, you will find two assessments (one for job demands and one for job resources). Starting with these assessments will give you a personalised guide for reading the rest of the book. From there, you can jump to the chapters you want to focus on, follow the many cross references, and develop your own leadership training to address any specific situations as they arise. Welcome to the world of better work!

Leseprobe

Dr. Nicole Tschierske · Better Work

BETTER WORK

A Leader’s Guide to Creating Happier, Healthier,

and More Productive Workplaces.

Dr. Nicole Tschierske

© 2023 Dr. Nicole Tschierske

ISBN Softcover: 978-3-347-85748-3

ISBN Hardback: 978-3-347-85749-0

ISBN E-Book: 978-3-347-85750-6

Artwork and typesetting: Die Buchprofis, Munich

Printing and distribution on behalf of the author:

tredition GmbH, An der Strusbek 10, 22926 Ahrensburg, Germany

The work, including its parts, is protected by copyright. The author is responsible for the contents. Any exploitation is prohibited without her approval. Publication and distribution are carried out on behalf of the author, to be reached at: tredition GmbH, department "Imprint service", An der Strusbek 10, 22926 Ahrensburg, Germany.

Inhalt

Cover

Title Page

Copyright

Preface

Part 1 – Introduction

Chapter 1: the Problem with Mental Health at Work

Chapter 2: the Job Demands-Resources Model

Part 2 – Job Demands

Chapter 3: Managing a Team with a Heavy Workload

Chapter 4: Better Tasks and Getting into Flow

Chapter 5: the Physical Environment at Work

Chapter 6: the Impact of Job Security on Employees’ Health and Well-Being

Chapter 7: How to Deal with Bureaucracy at Work

Chapter 8: Clarifying Roles and Responsibilities in Teams

Chapter 9: Managing Conflict in the Workplace

Part 3 – Job Resources

Chapter 10: Autonomy and Motivation in the Workplace

Chapter 11: the Impact of Purpose on Work Performance

Chapter 12: Creating a Positive Climate in the Workplace

Chapter 13: Relationships, High-Quality Connections, and Trust at Work

Chapter 14: How to Leverage Your Strengths at Work

Chapter 15: How to Give Great Feedback to Your Team

Chapter 16: the True Impact of Pay and Time off on Your Team

Closing

Notes & References

About the Author

Better Work - with 50+ strategies for less stress and burnout, more engagement and better mental health

Cover

Title Page

Copyright

Preface

Closing

Better Work - with 50+ strategies for less stress and burnout, more engagement and better mental health

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PREFACE

I got lucky. The worst bosses I ever had simply didn’t challenge me enough or didn’t give me enough work to do. Compared to the horror stories about toxic workplaces and abusive leaders I’ve heard from others, I consider that a win.

I also got lucky with the greatest bosses I ever had. And I wish everyone could have a people leader like those men and women so they, too, could do what they do best each day and – dare I say it? – actually enjoy going to work.

If you’re reading this, I assume you’re a leader who shares a key trait with those great people leaders I had the pleasure to work for: You care a lot.

You probably get a kick out of doing your own work well, knowing your team delivers stellar work on the tightest timelines, and you care deeply about your team members’ happiness, well-being, and professional advancement.

You probably also noticed that it’s getting tougher and tougher to cope with the workload, complexity, and overall pressure your workplace puts on you and on your team. What’s more, you’re likely worried for the welfare of your team. Maybe you’ve seen a case of burnout among them already, and having a team that’s happy and motivated rather than tired and cynical seems like a pipe dream.

And because you and I care so much about doing excellent work and having fun while doing it, I wrote this book as a source of inspiration.

Inspiration to do better work with and create better workplaces for your team.

This is not a “how to be a leader 101” kind of book, however. People like you – and those great leaders I worked for – are doing many things right intuitively (and you’ve likely been through a ton of leadership training, too).

Instead, this book is

• a confirmation for all the things you’re doing well (and an explanation for why it’s working).

• a source of inspiration for you as you figure out what to try next when you’re at your wits end (it can feel lonely and frustrating to try to protect your team from the craze that’s corporate life).

• something you can read from start to finish, but maybe shouldn’t. This book is perhaps better used as a reference book. There are two self-assessments in the Introduction. Use those to determine your focus as you read parts 2 and 3.

Above all, this book is about teaching you how to spot job demands (the things that drain your energy) and how to manage them. But it will also give you plenty of ideas on how to create job resources (the things that motivate you) for yourself and your team. If you start applying the information here and putting into action what you learn, you’ll sleep better, have more energy, and feel more satisfied and motivated at work. But also, you’ll feel more engaged and committed, progress faster, and feel generally healthier.

There are just a few more things you should know before you start reading. First, I’m a scientist, so what I share in this book is backed and inspired by studies and research. You can find all references at the end of the book. For better readability I’ve not used a scientific citation style, even when I’ve quoted some authors directly.

I was born in East Germany and if I have learned anything from that culture, it’s to be practical and pragmatic. So this book doesn’t have lengthy stories, but is dense in information and suggestions for what you can try.

I also know that studies and books are always secondhand reality and what works for you and your team in your current situation can only be learned through continuous experimentation.

It’s my heartfelt hope that the ideas in this book nudge you into action and help you to create a happier, healthier, and more productive workplace where your team can thrive.

PART 1 – INTRODUCTION

“Enthusiastic employees excel in their work because they maintain the balance between the energy they give and the energy they receive.” – Arnold B. Bakker

Answering the question of what creates a happier, healthier, and more productive workplace starts with mental health. So what impacts mental health at work? And what are companies doing to support their employees when it comes to their mental health? There are three levers that help create and sustain mental health at work: (1) helping employees build their individual resilience and well-being; (2) teaching leaders to interact with their teams in a way that builds both internal and interpersonal resources; and (3) designing and structuring work and the workplace to reduce the demands it puts on people. However, most companies only pay attention to (1) – or maybe (1) and (2), if we’re lucky. So how can you, as a leader, start creating positive change when it comes to mental health in the workplace?

Chapter 1: The Problem with Mental Health at Work

The statistics about mental health in the workplace speak for themselves:

• From 2010 to 2020, the number of days lost due to mental illness in Germany increased by 56 percent. Over the same period, no comparable upward trend can be observed in sick leave overall.

• 16% of professionals surveyed by Korn Ferry have quit jobs because of stress.

• 52% of survey respondents in the US experienced burnout in 2021. And that’s up 21% from pre-COVID surveys, says the Employee Burnout Report from Indeed.

And based on a study they did in the UK, Deloitte concluded:

“Poor mental health has an impact on employers’ costs. The estimated total annual costs of absenteeism, presenteeism (attending work while ill, and so underperforming or being less productive) and labour turnover have increased by 25% since 2019, reaching an estimated annual total of £53–56 billion in 2020-21 (£43–46 billion in the private sector and £10 billion in the public sector).”

But how exactly does stress impact the work your team does? You can see what I call the Vortex of Stress and Burnout in the diagram below.

When employees feel stressed, they become less enthusiastic about the work they’re doing. This can lead to procrastination and relying solely on deadlines as motivation, which often means that team members wait until the last minute to work on projects and when they’re feeling a time crunch, they work faster in an effort to get back on track. Working fast means they avoid difficult situations because they just want to power through. They also become pessimistic about the outcome and their own ability to deliver (i.e. painting it black). All of this means they will make more mistakes, which leads to confusion and even more mistakes. As a leader, you will want to consider what you can do to help your team avoid getting sucked into the vortex.

On a more positive note, PwC reports that in 2021, 53% of employers in the US added mental health programs to address COVID-19 concerns. And I’m sure that holds true around the globe. However, merely looking to the employee isn’t enough as highlighted by an HBR article: “An overwhelming 84% of respondents reported at least one workplace factor that negatively impacted their mental health.”

None of this is new, and the fact that companies include initiatives for mental health and safety programmes is standard and widespread. Some examples you’ve probably come across and encouraged your team to make use of include:

• Supporting national awareness days / weeks / months (such as mental health day).

• Setting up mental health resources for employees (such as online learning).

• Introducing flexible work initiatives, including the option to reduce work time.

• Providing healthy snacks or vitamins.

• Arranging topical webinars.

• Providing in-house workshops and training.

• Offering confidential support and a ʻperson of trust’ who people can contact when needed.

• Introducing mandatory lunch breaks or meeting-free days.

• Launching physical activity programmes or company exercise challenges.

• Introducing programmes that reinforce the importance of sick days and taking time off, especially for people who have known or chronic health issues.

• Sending out well-being newsletters.

• Organising social events.

While the existence of such initiatives is a great step forward, the majority of these examples address the individual level only. This means they focus on the employees and their capabilities to cope with stressors. They prepare people for facing challenging times and help them adopt an action-oriented and solution-focused mindset.

This is all brilliant, and without a doubt, those skills are valuable in the workplace (and in life). The fact that organisations offer a lifeline if and when they see their employees drowning is incredibly positive. But it only addresses part of the problem and fails to look at the root cause of how work contributes to stress and burnout. While it’s great to rescue people from drowning, what’s even better is to stop throwing them into the water in the first place.

This is where the second lever comes in – the leader. The leader’s role (or certainly part of their duty of care) is to provide guidance and take responsibility to support their team members’ well-being and mental health. But leaders often feel squeezed in the middle, trying to do what’s best for their teams while keeping those higher up the ladder happy.

Most of the leaders I know care a great deal about their staff. In fact, sometimes they care so much that their concerns for their team follow them home at the end of a long day at work. I know leaders who feel tormented and powerless at the thought of being unable to help their teams. And that’s not surprising, because leaders are people too!

However, the effectiveness of their support depends on several factors.

• First of all, their skills in supervising an employee with mental health issues. A leader can only truly support their team if the company enables them and provides managers with mental health consultations, training, and information.

• Their own capacity for that type of work. This means it’s crucial that leaders know how to look after their own well-being. When managers themselves are drowning in work and feeling close to burnout, there isn’t much left to give to others.

• Their willingness to do this work and their relationship with team members. Not all teams have enough psychological safety for mental health conversations. And the truth is that there are leaders out there who either lack empathy or aren’t cut out for this type of work.

Let’s go for the best-case scenario and assume you are a leader who cares and shows concern for your team. You make your staff aware of company offerings and even spend part of your budget on providing mental health workshops. Still, there is another piece to this puzzle because employees, leaders, and teams don’t exist in a vacuum. And that’s where the third important pillar for sustained mental health at work comes in – the work itself.

Some of the factors that come into play here include:

• Processes and operations. Are they facilitating getting work done? Or do they contain sources of stress and frustration, such as a lot of bureaucracy and doubling up on work?

• Daily and weekly tasks. How are they executed? Do you have enough autonomy and support? Can you play to your strengths and get in the zone regularly?

• Systems and tools. What about the physical environment of your workplace? Are there any stressors there? Could they be reduced by making changes to the environment or redesigning some of the systems and tools?

Here’s a short case study that illustrates how the three pillars of Employee, Leader, and Work connect and interact with each other.

A while ago, the HR leader of an organisation approached me asking for my support. In a yearly survey of their employees, they found that their well-being score was rather low. My client was puzzled because he had the impression that the organisation was providing a lot of support for people’s mental health.

So I started by facilitating a workshop with some of their employees, and the result confirmed the points I illustrated above. Participants knew a lot about mental health. In fact, they appreciated and used many of the well-being offerings the company provided. But they were frustrated with their relationship with the leadership team and communication within the organisation. These factors influenced how unsatisfied and stressed employees felt at work, and this is what impacted their overall well-being score.

What’s more, because the root causes of the employees’ stress weren’t addressed by the company, all the great initiatives felt tokenistic to some of the participants. This proves that companies should take the time to investigate and ask questions, rather than assuming that a low well-being score means a lack of information.

In the months that followed the organisation took meaningful steps to

• continue investing in the well-being of individuals (Lever 1)

• upskilling and empowering first line leaders to help increase the team’s job resources (Lever 2, you’ll learn soon what I mean by ʻjob resources’)

• adjusting procedures so they would be more supportive of employees (Lever 3).

This approach is not only more effective but will also lead you to the actual cause of the problem. In turn, this allows companies to address (and hopefully fix) any issues.

Is Your Team Stressed Out?

How are you feeling right now? And what is your team experiencing? I believe these are some of the key questions all leaders should regularly ask themselves because the first step to managing stress factors is to become aware of how the symptoms of exhaustion and stress present themselves.

As you continue reading, you will find two self-assessments (chapter 2). The first is a set of questions to help you determine where you and your team stand when it comes to job demands or stress factors. The second is a set of questions to help you determine where you and your team stand when it comes to job resources or motivation factors. You will take these self-assessments and use your answers to determine where to focus your attention in parts 2 and 3.

After you take each assessment, I recommend that you read the relevant chapters and implement one strategy at a time. Once you’ve focused on streamlining processes in one area for 2–3 months, move onto the next area for improvement. This way, you won’t overwhelm your team (or yourself) by trying to fix everything all at once.

The self-assessments will help you become more aware of your team’s stress levels. Here are two observations from team leaders who are both struggling with exhausted, overwhelmed employees.

“We see a lot of absenteeism. Some people are calling in sick regularly. Sometimes performance drops as well – people make a lot of mistakes. Or I might see a lot of conflict about minor things, and I have to jump in and manage that”.

“I’ve seen more people being stopped by small things at work. These are challenges they face on an everyday basis, and they would normally be able to cope with them. Instead, they struggle in dealing with some of these issues effectively or at all, and they escalate things”.

The tricky thing as a leader is that the first warning signs of exhaustion are often not visible from the outside. In fact, exhaustion only becomes obvious to others when we’re already further down the spiral of exhaustion (as illustrated on the next page). That’s when they start observing changes in behaviour. Over time, this can lead to a loss of performance and the ability to handle everyday life scenarios. At worst, people can burn out or even become depressed.

As a leader, it’s important that you learn to detect the warning signs of exhaustion early. And that needs to start with yourself. Things to look out for include:

• Sleep disturbances and disorders.

• Digestive disorders.

• Muscle tension.

• Headaches.

• Feeling nervous or restless.

• Irritability and having a ʻthin skin’ for any challenges that arise.

• Lack of interest and motivation.

• Fatigue and exhaustion.

• Brooding and ruminating about issues.

• Lack of concentration.

• Aggressive behaviour.

• Feeling unable to switch off.

While the above list is quite extensive and could also indicate other issues, there are clear indicators for when you should definitely talk to a team member regarding their health status. And that’s if you notice:

• Any type of unusual and different behaviour that’s out of character.

• Fluctuations in performance or mood.

• Social withdrawal and clear changes in social behaviour.

• Loss of motivation and difficulty to ‘get going’.

• Becoming unreliable or unpunctual.

• Irritability, aggression, or arguing.

• Frequent sick leave or one-day absences.

• Suspicion that someone may be under the influence of alcohol or drugs.

On top of the above, if you know your team has a high workload and tight deadlines, and you see them white-knuckling through, this is the time to step in and do something about the situation. Unfortunately, as long as productivity remains high, very few leaders do jump in at this point. They only do so when people begin to break. You may notice that motivation and engagement are low. That there’s tension in the team, between teams, or with customers (because employees have shorter fuses due to stress). That team members take more frequent and longer sick leave. Or that high turnover becomes an issue and puts additional pressure on everyone else to pick up the slack.

When not addressed quickly, unmitigated stress can create a downward spiral that’s difficult to come back from.

“When my team is stressed, it has a massive impact. I’m a team leader, so I’m in a position where I manage the day-to-day activities but also have my own workload. If somebody comes and says ʻI’m struggling today’ or ’I need to speak to you’ then we’ll have the discussion. And usually, I have to do something about it – either speak to HR or to our head of department or take off the work. This increases my workload, and it’s also time-consuming”.

“Negative, stress-induced behaviours tend to spread. If one person is discontent, you see a ripple effect across the teams. So you have to consider the individual’s well-being, but also the well-beingof the people they’re working with. And then ultimately, you also have business concerns. Are people being productive? Are they actually doing the job?”

5 Common ‘Solutions’ That Sound Good, But Don’t Actually Work

Maybe this isn’t the first time you’ve tried to do something about the stress you’ve observed in your team. In the past few years of working with managers and leaders, I have certainly witnessed leaders taking action. And here are some examples of the ʻsolutions’ I have seen people in organisations try out. However, I believe these aren’t true solutions, and the list below outlines why.

’Solution’ #1: Thinking you can get it ALL done by working longer hours (“If we can just make it through this sprint, it’ll all be okay!”).

But… Will work really slow to a manageable pace? Taking this course of action is more likely to drive people into exhaustion and burnout. Why? Because they will soon realise that the high demands and stress levels never stop.

A Better Approach: Prioritise, plan, and balance the workload so it’s manageable. This might mean pushing back on unrealistic deadlines and too much workload.

’Solution’ #2: Using incentives to motivate people.

But … Extrinsic motivators (such as bonuses), do not change attitudes that underlie how people act or create a lasting commitment.

A Better Approach: Tap into intrinsic motivators by acknowledging individual and team contributions. Show your employees how they measurably contribute to the organisation’s success.

’Solution’ #3: Introducing wellness newsletters, meditation / mindfulness tools, or exercise challenges to offset the negative effects of work stress.

But … These only work up to a point – if at all. They don’t solve the root cause of the stress. These measures also risk feeling tokenistic if nothing changes about the way the company operates. It feels like you are putting all of the responsibility for handling stress on your employees while not taking any responsibility for creating the stress in the first place.

A Better Approach: Solve the root causes that create exhaustion, stress, overwhelm, and burnout. It’s about addressing how work is currently being done, and what adjustments can be made.

’Solution’ #4: Believing that if you lower the workload, the stress will disappear.

But … It’s not always the workload that causes stress. There are many other factors that contribute to it as well, as you’ll see in the next chapter.

A Better Approach: Don’t assume you know what is causing stress, overwhelm, and exhaustion. Instead, ask your staff. You will get a more complete answer. And with it, you will be able to find a better and more comprehensive solution.

’Solution’ #5: Thinking that engagement and motivation is the leader’s job (it’s all on you!).

But … While the leader should create an environment where there are no obstacles to motivation, team members also need to learn the right skills and mindset to motivate themselves.

A Better Approach: Give your people the tools and opportunity and accountability to learn how to better handle stress and how to self-motivate.

Truly Lowering Stress at Work

What you really need to reduce the causes of stress and increase motivation factors is a two-pronged approach. This approach is based on two decades of research conducted around the world and across industries by scientists Arnold Bakker and Evangelia Demerouti. It is referred to as the Job Demands-Resources (JD-R) model.

The great news? No big revolutions are required. These are small adjustments that you can realistically implement in your team to re-engineer the way you work and significantly increase employee engagement, happiness, and productivity.

The problem I see often is that most stress-reduction and engagement initiatives fail because they stop too soon. They only serve to create temporary improvement that then starts to backslide as illustrated in the graphic on the right. And that’s because no real, lasting changes were made. For example, when teams are at the low point, feeling stressed and unmotivated, leaders might implement mindfulness and