How leaders can contribute to well-being and cost saving
Can you recall a situation in which you had thoughts like these?
Wow, another task that has been added to my workload.
How much more am I supposed to do?
My supervisor does not even know how much I'm doing in the background.
Well, I have met many employees who feel that way and I remember being in such situations myself. And while I believe that every single person is responsible for their own life, for their own time management, and for their own well-being, there is a special opportunity from a leadership perspective: Leaders can and should contribute to their team's well-being.
It's maybe different from what you think.
I will not tell you to make your team happy. I don't think that you should be your team's animator, motivator, or even psychologist.
Instead, it is exactly about the opposite:
Focus on reducing misery.
Misery sounds dramatic, but it is not. As long as only one area is affected or something relatively unimportant happened. However, the bigger the pain or the more regular/constant the situation, the bigger the misery.
We all experience moments, tasks, or relationships as tough and overwhelming. And while we should develop individual strategies that help us cope and grow with our challenges, leaders should contribute from their side.
For example, by facing challenges and working on them. When something major is growing wrong, it will bring misery to your team, if you keep ignoring it.
What can you do about it?
The following three steps will improve the situation:
Observe and acknowledge what is going wrong.
Go into discomfort with the aim to change and improve the situation.
Use your power to solve what your team can't do on their own.
Another key opportunity is about reduction.
How?
By taking the time to reflect on what we are loading on somebody else's shoulders.
By critically questioning the necessity of report no. 503 which we ask for on a regular basis.
By asking our employees for feedback, not only on how they feel about their workload, but what they would eliminate, simplify, or change if they had the choice.
Most employees understand and know what is beneficial for the company, but not all of them dare questioning what has been asked for by their supervisor.
And once it is established in their routine, they keep doing the work and might need an external "disturber" to stop, think, and change.
Be that person. Help them reflect and let them know what is not needed any longer. You will not only care about their well-being, but make sure that they focus on what is now important for you and the company.
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