Optimising work performance and mental health

Keywords

Resilience – Work Performance – Mental Health – Organisational Influence - Burnout

In this episode of Resilience Unravelled Dr. Marie-Helene Pelletier, a registered psychologist and expert in workplace mental health, discusses the importance of resilience. She talks about the significance of bouncing back from challenges, growing through adversity and how learning and personal growth are crucial in fostering resilience. She also stresses the importance of empowering individuals, open communication, healthy boundaries, and personal agency as vital resilience components.

In addition, Marie-Helene addresses the systemic issues contributing to burnout, the need to empower individuals within workplaces and the importance of fostering open communication and setting healthy boundaries. She discusses how traditional leadership approaches hinder organisational learning, the significance of creating positive work environments for employee well-being and the importance of promoting transparency, embracing change, and honouring everyone's agency in workplace dynamics.

 Main topics

•  The importance of resilience as a real-life competency

• Challenges in the implementation of resilience

• The need for customised approaches for resilience

• Balancing individual resilience with organisational policies

• Emphasising professional conversations and personal growth.

• Strategic approaches for optimising work performance and mental health

 Timestamps

 1: Introduction to Resilience. Definition of resilience, going through adversity and emerging stronger. The approach to resilience through learning and adaptation. 00:02 - 03:16

2: Workplace Mental Health. Focus on workplace mental health, incorporating psychology and business backgrounds. Observation of high burnout rates despite available information, highlighting the need for customised solutions. 03:22 - 07:46

3: Organisational Influence. Emphasis on organisational policies and processes impacting burnout rates. The importance of treating individuals like adults and empowering them to make choices in their reactions. 10:01 - 14:41

4: Building Resilience at Work. Discussion on increasing individual agency and managing mental health in the workplace. Encouragement for organisations to prioritise learning and adaptability for improved outcomes.16:26 - 20:56

5: The Resilience Plan Book. Introduction to "The Resilience Plan: A Strategic Approach to Optimising Your Work Performance and Mental Health". Target audience of professionals and leaders seeking to enhance their resilience and performance. 23:09 - 25:45

6: Conclusion and Book Promotion. 25:43 - 25:45

 Action items

 You can find out more about Marie-Helene at https://drmarie-helene.com/

Marie-Helene’s  book is The Resilience Plan: A Strategic Approach to Optimising Your Work Performance and Mental Health  https://theresilienceplan.com/

You can connect with her at  https://www.linkedin.com/in/drmhpelletier/ or  https://www.instagram.com/drmhpelletier

   You can listen to the podcast in full and find out further information here. Our upcoming guest list is also available along with our previous blogs.
Find out more about our innovative Resilience and Burnout solutions.   

Burnout or Boreout?

We’ve all heard about burnout. There are numerous articles telling us what signs and symptoms we need to look for but, there is another lesser-known work-related condition that has very similar symptoms. Boreout, is the exact opposite of burnout, but it’s effects can be just as detrimental, with negative consequences on mental health, well-being, and performance.

Most people find themselves bored at work sometimes but if people are bored over a long period of time, stuck in their comfort zone too long or don’t experience any personal development opportunities they often start to feel their job is meaningless and their work as has no value or purpose - they are suffering from boreout.

Employees suffering from boreout may find themselves with too little to do, not enough meaningful work and responsibilities or, constantly having to deal with tasks that are monotonous and don’t utilise their skills and abilities. This can lead to feelings of frustration, dissatisfaction and a lack of motivation that leaves them unfulfilled, disengaged from their work and suffering from a decline in their overall well-being and mental health. From an organisation’s perspective, boreout can lead to reduced productivity and creativity as well as counterproductive work practice such as distraction and absenteeism.

The signs of boreout are very similar to the signs of burnout. People may feel overwhelmed, exhausted, or emotionally drained with little or no purpose or direction. Their behaviours start to change, and they begin to stretch tasks out for longer periods to seem busy and engaged. They do just what is required, come in late, leave early and take more time off sick.

Recognising these signs and taking appropriate steps to address the underlying causes by establishing effective communication and social connections, prioritising work-life balance, and ensuring that work tasks remain engaging and meaningful!  Employers need to create work environments that promote a healthy balance of challenge and support, as well as enabling open discussion about workload and job satisfaction. This might require re-evaluating job roles, providing more challenging tasks, fostering a positive work environment, providing new challenges, exploring avenues for personal and professional growth.

Reducing performance anxiety.

We’ve all been there. The increased heart rate, racing thoughts, feelings of dread or even panic attacks we get before our workplace skills, knowledge and performance are put to the test. The apprehension, nervousness, and fear that can arise in response to the demands and expectations of our working lives is referred to as performance anxiety and it’s a phenomenon that many people experience in their professional lives. It occurs when people feel pressure to meet high expectations, perform perfectly, or fear negative consequences for mistakes or workplace performance. In this situation anxiety can develop which manifests in various ways and can have a significant impact on an individual's overall well-being and job performance.

Workplace performance anxiety can hinder an employee's ability to perform at their best. The fear of making mistakes or being judged can lead to cautious, risk-averse behaviour and make it difficult for them to communicate their concerns or ask for feedback. Their creativity can become stifled, and collaboration reduced as they become reluctant to share new ideas or take risks. It can also negatively impact their mental and physical health, leading to burnout and decreased job satisfaction.

A psychologically safe work environment where employees feel they can share their thoughts or concerns without negative consequences and feel comfortable being themselves, leads to employees being more engaged and motivated. They are more able to openly discuss their challenges, seek help and learn from their mistakes, and are confident seeking feedback and discussing areas for improvement. Because they are happy to share ideas and work collaboratively, a more innovative and productive work environment develops. With employees feeling better supported, there is a reduction in stress and a sense of belonging and wellbeing is promoted.

Whilst a certain level of stress in the workplace is normal and can even be motivating, when anxiety becomes overwhelming and chronic, it can have detrimental effects on both mental and physical health. Building a psychologically safe workplace and addressing performance anxiety can make a significant difference in improving overall job satisfaction and productivity and provide a work environment where employees can thrive and contribute their best.

Mindfulness for organisations

Keywords

Resilience – Mindfulness – Performance – Leadership – Workplace Culture - Stress

In this episode of Resilience Unravelled Andrew MacNeill, a leadership consultant who helps individuals and teams thrive under pressure, discusses how mindfulness can be used as a tool to improve both well-being and performance in high-pressure environments.  Andrew spent 20 years in senior leadership and throughout his career led large teams in high pressure environments. He is also an accredited mindfulness teacher and brought these two worlds together in his book Organisational Mindfulness - a How-to Guide in 2019.

By integrating his leadership experience and insights from being a mindfulness teacher Andrew has developed a method to help leaders and their teams embed and implement techniques which improve performance, build psychological safety and support their own and their collective wellbeing. 

In this podcast Andrew shares his personal experience of discovering mindfulness while in a high-pressure leadership role and how it helped him cope with stress. He also explains that mindfulness is about non-judgmental present moment awareness and choosing where we place our attention intentionally.  

Main topics

• The implementation of mindfulness in organisations, particularly in meetings.

• The importance of noticing one's own biases and reactions, choosing to respond rather than react, and being present for effective decision-making.

• The need for cultural change towards mindful practices but acknowledging that it should be done thoughtfully as some people may not want to participate.

Timestamps

1: Introduction - Russell welcomes the guest, Andrew, and introduces the podcast. 00:00-00:23
2: Andrew's Work - Andrew explains that he is a leadership consultant who helps individuals and teams thrive under pressure. 00:56-02:03
3: Mindfulness - Andrew discusses how he discovered mindfulness and how it can be applied in a work context. He provides a practical example of how to practice mindfulness, and explains that it is a life-long practice. 02:05-08:28
4: Organsational Mindfulness - Andrew speaks about his book, "Organisational Mindfulness," which explains how mindfulness can be applied in a work setting. He discusses how mindfulness can help organisations support their people and deliver objectives. Andrew also explains how to implement cultural change and build skills to navigate high-stress environments.  08:51-15:24
5: Mindful Meetings - Andrew provides an example of how a program board meeting can be a practice in shared mindfulness. He explains how mindfulness can help people choose to respond rather than react in difficult meetings. 15:35-19:41
6: Conclusion - Russell and Andrew wrap up the podcast and provide information on where to find Andrew's book and services.  19:41-25:05

Action items

• Find out more about Andrew's book Organisational Mindfulness. http://www.organisationalmindfulness.co.uk/

• Find out more about Andrew at https://lxleaders.com/

 You can listen to the podcast in full and find out further information here. Our upcoming guest list is also available along with our previous blogs.
Find out more about our innovative Resilience and Burnout solutions.  

Building talent-centric organisations

 Keywords – Resilience – Communication Style – Leadership Alignment – Performance –Talent-centric

 In this episode of Resilience Unravelled, Dr Russell Thackeray talks to Carol Schultz a talent equity and leadership advisory expert. Recognised for her proficiency in corporate leadership, Carol spent three decades helping executives gain clarity in their careers, make bold leadership moves, and create cultures of performance.

In this podcast Carol talks about her work helping companies build talent-centric organisations. She explains that leadership alignment is crucial to achieving this goal and that she often starts with discovery meetings to identify gaps in vision and communication. She also discusses generational differences in communication preferences, the importance of diversity for avoiding groupthink and the challenge of dealing with conflict as a leader.

Carol also discusses the importance of communication and coaching for effective workplace relationships. She believes that blind spot awareness is crucial for building a talent-centric organisation but acknowledges that not all successful organisations prioritise this. She also talks about the challenge of working with people who have different beliefs or backgrounds, and how to navigate personal issues in the workplace.

Finally, she mentions her book "Powered by People," which focuses on recruitment, retention, and revenue in talent-centric organisations.

Main topics

• discovering gaps in vision, business strategy, and communication

• the differences in communication between generations

• the importance of effective communication and understanding

• coaching to uncover blind spots and give AHA moments

• getting leadership teams aligned so they can take action on other matters

• the need for effective team communication

• understanding the preferred communication style of team members

• addressing personal issues that may affect an employee's performance in the workplace.

• why leadership teams should be open to conversations about improving organisational performance

Timestamps

1: Introduction and Guest Introduction (0:00-0:24)
2: Aligning Leadership Teams (0:50-2:58)
3: Communication Differences (3:06-4:37)
4: Effective Communication Strategies (5:20-6:35)
5: Coaching for Improved Communication (15:06-17:16)
6: Overcoming Personal Biases (18:10-20:47)
7: Addressing Organisational Issues (21:03-23:26)
8: Guest's Book and Interview (25:09-27:39) 

Action items

• Read Carol’s book Powered By People: How Talent-Centric Organizations Master Recruitment, Retention, and Revenue (and How to Build One) 

• Find out more about Carol at  verticalelevation.com.

 You can listen to the podcast in full and find out further information here. Our upcoming guest list is also available along with our previous blogs.
Find out more about our innovative Resilience and Burnout solutions.  

Upskilling to retain your top talent.

According to the World Economic Forum, by 2025, 50% of employees worldwide will need to be reskilled as the adoption of technology continues, whilst LinkedIn’s ‘2022 Global Trends Report’ reveals that upskilling and development opportunities were top priorities for employees.

As we move into 2023, in the UK economic uncertainty, and a competitive labour market means businesses face an on-going talent shortage. The pandemic changed job requirements and left many people feeling unprepared as businesses quickly reorganised and traditional learning and skills development tried to adapt.

The global labour market is also changing. A report from the McKinsey Global Institute says 14% of the workforce will have to change their careers by 2030. With so many employees looking for new jobs, employers have to be creative in their retention strategy and upskilling is an effective way of retaining top talent in the organisation.

Acquiring new skills or knowledge in order to improve job performance or career opportunities is advantageous to both employers and employees. For employers, identifying skills gaps and then investing in training initiatives to upskill the current team moves the priority to talent development rather than recruitment. This helps the business to remain competitive, increases the efficiency and productivity of the current team, boosts employee motivation and job satisfaction which results in improved employee retention. From an employee perspective, it not only offers the opportunity to develop or learn new skills, but also to increase their value and enable them to take on more responsibility or higher-level, better-paid positions within their organisation.

As we move into 2023, it’s clear that employees need to be prepared for the ‘future of work’ and that businesses will need to be resilient to the economic problems ahead. Upskilling can become an important part of a businesses workforce planning, talent acquisition and retention strategy and those that show a commitment to employee growth and implement better learning and development opportunities will be the ones that attract and retain top workers.

Are your team disengaged?

Earlier this year Gallup reported that only 20% of employees globally are engaged so its quite possible that you work with someone who just doesn’t want to be there. Whilst an engaged workforce has a positive effect on business performance, disengaged employees can prove disastrous to an organisation so its important to realise when employees are starting to lose interest. Here are some of the things to look out for:

1. Arriving late, leaving early and generally bad timekeeping
2. A noticable drop in work output and quality
3. A change in working style with a preference for working in isolation
4. An increased number of unexplained absences
5. Not sharing ideas or fully contributing to the team
6. Making mistakes and missing deadlines when they were previously on top of things
7. An inabiity to, or disinterest in answering questions about their day-to-day role
8. Cancelling or rescheduling meetings with their managers or team members
9. A refusal to follow protocols
10. A negative reaction to change.

Once you have identified the signs of disengagement, you can start working on a plan to improve their engagement to get them back on track! Some of the ways you can do this includes:

1. Working with the employee to put a development plan in place - find out how they want to grow,  the skills they’d like to develop and potential growth opportunities
2. Setting goals with the employee so they feel more supported and can see how their work fits in with, and matters to, the organisation
3. Encouraging participation in one-on-one meetings so the employee can voice their concerns and wishes- then make sure you act on them!
4. Giving and getting regular feedback 
5. Recognising positive behaviour and strong performance in a way that the employee is comfortable with - a simple “thank you’ often works well!
6. Monitoring employee performance and potential to see if things are getting better on a continuous basis.  

Keeping employees engaged is a constant process that must be continuously worked on. Connecting and communicating effectively with employees can help you better identify and handle all levels of engagement.

Hamilton to heart attack. The theatre of perfection

The latest episode in our Resilience Unravelled series has now been released, Resilience Unravelled - Enjoy the experience as much as the result. Musical theatre and managing perfectionism.

Julian Reeve was a Music Director for over 25 years with a career that combined music and business and took him around the world.  He joined the Broadway team of Hamilton as Music Director and took it on it’s first national tour in 2017 before suffering from a heart attack which was triggered by maladaptive perfectionism. He is now based just outside Los Angeles where he is a perfectionism contributor, speaker, and author.

Julian started out as a musician before moving on to musical direction, which involves the running and creative upkeep of a show. Musical theatre can be seen to be a process rather than being creative as its essential to keep producing the same piece of music every night without mistakes to ensure the longevity of a show. The Musical Director also has to build team spirit and ensure high-level performance without burning out. Resilience is important. Julian feels you need to find the parts you enjoy and forget the bits you don't like to find the positivity which is the only thing that keeps you going. The Music Director is sometimes thought to be the least musical person in the room as their role is less about the music more about being the best leader and facilitator. Julian found his resilience by looking outside the box. He was always motivated by finding out what made his team tick and what got them to perform at their best every night. Even after five years on the same show you can still discover new things.

Julian had no idea he was a perfectionist until he was in his 40s. He suffered his heart attack 3 months after starting Hamilton and he feels his perfectionism was the cause. In his childhood he suffered from low self esteem and bullying, which led to bad lifestyle choices. Perfectionism has numerous explanations but research has shown it falls into two categories - adaptive and maladaptive. The adaptive part is what is recognised as good perfectionism, the part that gets good results, but the maladaptive side can lead to anxiety, depression, burnout and even suicide. Nothing is ever good enough. Perfectionists battle between the two and need to create equilibrium to regulate their experiences but this needs knowledge. We need to find a way to speak to perfectionists in a different way. They need self-compassion. This is made up of three elements, self-kindness, mindfulness and common humanity.

Julian now works with children and adults but his book is aimed at 6 to 12 year olds who can learn perfectionist behaviour in childhood. They need to develop self-management techniques. Warning signs include low self esteem, putting themselves down, mistakes being unacceptable, struggling to celebrate when they do well, fear of failure, all or nothing thinking and there only one way to do something.

Perfectionists need to learn self worth, to value themselves enough and to learn to love themselves.  They need to be able to say ‘I’m worth more than this’, to slow down and readdress. Perfectionism can be exciting if you can hone the gifts perfectionism gives you to the point where you become high performance.

You can listen to the podcast in full and find out further information about Julian here. Our previous podcast episodes, upcoming guest list and previous blogs are also available.

You can get in touch with Julian at www.julianreeve.com or www.captain-perfection.com