How do you maintain productivity and keep wellbeing under control?

How do you maintain productivity and keep wellbeing under control?

Wellbeing and mental health should always be on the agenda, but during these challenging times, they are absolutely critical. As employers, leaders, managers and peers, it is imperative that we go above and beyond to support each other. Here are my tips for weathering this very challenging storm.

Stay connected

We need to find reasons to keep in touch with our people. More importantly we need to try and recreate the connection that we have in person and ensure that everyone feels supported. This involves both work-related conversation through technology such as video calls and the like, but also the check ins, coffee catch ups and social occasions that often keep people loyal to an organization.

Make it fun

When you are isolated, work and the pressure of your job can often be your only focus. We all need some fun and light relief, and therefore we have a responsibility to ensure our people are experiencing this. Whether this be work-related competitions, a team quiz or a challenge, the importance of making people smile is huge during these dark times.

Consider everyone’s unique situation

You will most likely have people within your business who are on their own, or those who are juggling schooling and childcare whilst trying to meet their target. We must take responsibility for ensuring they are able to cope. Simply by asking some questions about their home situation and how they are coping or feeling will give them the opportunity to talk through some of their challenges.

Coaching

Offering your people coaching or mentoring, or potentially connecting them with someone who may be able to offer a different type of guidance, may allow them to think differently about how they are managing. It is not uncommon for people to feel more anxious in difficult times, and be worried about their health, so changing the type of conversation they can have could offer some good results.

Work in partnership with your HR business

Do not try and take on everything yourself. Most HR functions are experts in supporting businesses with wellbeing initiatives, and if individuals or teams are facing challenges personally or professionally, HR will be able to help alleviate these issues thanks to their knowledge.

Be creative

It may be very difficult for certain functions to operate as they normally would. It is therefore a good idea to think about how they can be effective and feel like they are adding value. This could be to provide tasks or projects that they can deliver on, or to take away some of their responsibilities that aren’t appropriate. When individuals don’t feel that they are achieving what they usually would, it can affect their morale and confidence. So what solutions can you offer to manage that?

Exercise

Being active can vastly improve mental health and it’s also a great way to connect people online. I would suggest things like a weekly step challenge or a virtual running club to encourage exercise during isolation. Sharing what you’ve achieved has a great impact on confidence and positivity.

This is the new normal, and unfortunately doing what we’ve always done will not work. We have to go above and beyond for our people ensuring they feel supported and connected during COVID-19 isolation. Let’s ensure they don’t feel isolated at all.