Emotional Support for Stressed-Out Leaders
Stressful times call for emotional support.
We often forget this as leaders.
We are tasked with being strong and holding things together for our employees, even during a global pandemic.
As we are busy providing support to our employees, we forget that we need support too.
It's easy to forget about the emotional labor that leadership requires.
As a leader you are expected to be ALL of the things for your employees. Leaders are expected to be:
Leaders: Someone who inspires and motivates employees toward a shared mission.
Managers: Someone who administers work assignments and works alongside your employees.
Coaches: Someone who coaches your employees to keep them engaged, motivated, and productive.
Advocates: Someone who advocates for your employees' workplace wellbeing, rewards, and benefits.
Emotional Support Person: Someone who listens to your employees workplace problems and finds solutions to help them with their work.
Resource Providers: Someone who makes sure your employees have the tools they need to do their job and refers employees to outside resources as needed (such as an employee assistance program).
Is it any wonder you feel stressed-out?
Leadership is a lot of work!
In talking with clients and peers right now, I'm finding a lot of leaders are feeling burned out. And they are having a tough time focusing on getting their own personal support.
As leaders, our own wellbeing is critical to our employees and our organizations' success. If we forgo finding support for ourselves, it will likely show up in our diminished ability to support others.
If you are a leader who is feeling stressed-out, and need emotional support right now, here are a couple of ideas that will take no more than 1 hour at a time. We can all find at least 1 hour in our schedule, right?
Employee Assistance Programs (EAPs) aren't just for employees, they are for leaders too! I have used an EAP in the past and found talking with someone to be super helpful in finding a path forward while dealing with stress. If you don't have an EAP, a local provider covered under your insurance plan, or an online resource such as www.betterhelp.com, may be an option for you.
“Peer Support” is Different than other kinds of support. Yes, reaching out to friends and family during stressful times is important; however, there is a big difference when we seek support from our Peers, i.e. people who are going through the exact same thing we are. Who is a trusted person in your network who is also a leader/manager/supervisor? Invite them to virtual coffee or happy hour to exchange ideas and lean on each other for support. I recently joined an HR Consultant "mastermind" group for this exact reason. I am confident my fellow HR pros are the exact people who will understand what I'm going through right now at work. I look forward to sharing ideas and support with each other.
Investing in Coaching is worth it. As someone who has invested in a lot of coaching throughout my career, I can truly say coaching has helped me move from insecurity to confidence and from confusion to clarity as a leader. Through coaching, I've received support and accountability for creating a clear plan of action to improve my leadership skills and enhance my overall career.
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