Many employees do not feel comfortable in their job roles, yet stay there longer than necessary. For many employees, going to work triggers negative feelings ranging from low-level anxiety to outright distress.
According to Gallup’s State of the Global Workforce 2022 report, 60% of people feel emotionally detached when they work, and 19% report feeling unhappy at work. A survey commissioned by LinkedIn found that 80% of employed adults regularly experience anxiety on Sundays in anticipation of their upcoming work week.
Managers often contribute to their employees’ dissatisfaction, but they can also take steps to reverse people’s negative attitudes toward work.
Empathy and support
Dan Pontefract, author of the book “Work-Life Bloom: How to Nurture a Team That Flourishes,” compares the workplace to a garden and guides managers on how to manage the factors that harm work performance and create the conditions necessary for teams to “flourish.”
Leaders improve employee well-being and increase performance by creating a work environment where people feel supported and safe, allowing them to be their most authentic selves.
Work-life balance
The author argues that the search for work-life balance must end and an integration of the two must be sought, as work is not separate from life. The two elements are different but interrelated. What happens in a person’s personal life outside work affects how they feel when they arrive at work and how well they perform their role. In the same way, experiences at work affect your personal life.
It’s the supervisor’s job to identify the factors that prevent team members from thriving, and correct them to provide everyone with the necessary support, or again to the metaphor, “soil conditions,” for their “gardens” to flourish.
The components for flourishing
A team leader must demonstrate consistent and authentic behaviors to show his/her employees that they can trust him/her. Trust in employees is expressed when the leader demonstrates confidence in their abilities.
Affiliation is the next key element. Team members feel understood, safe and represented through positive, inclusive experiences. They need to see people they can relate to, perhaps because they are the same gender or race, represented in leadership positions.
It is important to ensure that team members are paid fairly and consistently, and that their efforts are rewarded and recognition shown for their contributions.
Team members experience a greater sense of satisfaction when they believe in the goals of their organization. Then actions, beliefs and intentions support the collective good and serve the interests of all stakeholders.
