Linked: 8 Ways Managers Can Support Employees’ Mental Health
I think the article is helpful, but this one is the one that I suspect many mangers struggle with.
“Model healthy behaviors. Don’t just say you support mental health. Model it so that your team members feel they can prioritize self-care and set boundaries. More often than not, managers are so focused on their team’s well-being and on getting the work done that they forget to take care of themselves. Share that you’re taking a walk in the middle of the day, having a therapy appointment, or prioritizing a staycation (and actually turning off email) so that you don’t burn out.”
I’ve seen this, and I’ve heard a lot about it from friends and others in the professional world. Managers who do not come right out and say that you should be available 24×7, or discourage disconnecting during time off, or any number of other self-care behaviors, but who also send emails at 1AM, or stay connected themselves during their family vacations, or make comments about other peers who do try to take time for their mental health.
When pressed on their attitudes toward mental health initiatives and employee stress, they will, of course, tell you that they never told anyone to do these things, yet their actions made it the norm for their team. We need to make taking care of ourselves the norm instead.
https://hbr.org/2020/08/8-ways-managers-can-support-employees-mental-health
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