Transcript
[00:00:07.000] - Imogen
Hello and welcome to Dear Comms, the coffee break podcast where we tackle your biggest corporate comms challenges. I'm Imogen...
[00:00:13.540] - Amanda
...and I'm Amanda. We're here to provide practical, no-nonsense advice so you can focus on what matters most: driving influence, engagement, and impact.
[00:00:23.830] - Imogen
Today's question comes from Craig. My communications team is showing signs of burnout. What can I do to address this issue and support my team effectively?
[00:00:33.390] - Amanda
This is a really tough situation, Craig, and sadly it's something that we're all too familiar with. I think especially in high-pressure roles like communications. The fast-paced nature of our work, the constant deadlines, and the always-on expectation can take a significant toll on wellbeing.
[00:00:50.960] - Imogen
A recent report I read and she highlighted that 37% of employees are close to or at burnout. That's a massive amount of people. Think about it, that's one person out of every three.
[00:01:04.400] - Amanda
Yeah, and maybe a good place to start is actually defining what burnout actually is. We throw this word around a lot, but what really is it?
[00:01:14.690] - Imogen
Simply put, burnout is a state of exhaustion. Emotional, mental, physical, caused by excessive or prolonged stress. And it's different for different people. But with burnout, people can feel detached, demotivated, and hopeless that their situation might change.
[00:01:39.830] - Amanda
[Speaker:DR_HARRIS] Yeah, and it all has physicality as well. Tiredness, headaches, loss of appetite, obvious impact on productivity. You might have difficulty concentrating, take more days off work, or be irritable and short-tempered.
[00:01:57.990] - Imogen
I think it's important to note that while burnout isn't explicitly work-related, sometimes the pressure of work in combination with external, personal, or social pressure can have a significant impact on our wellbeing.
[00:02:13.700] - Amanda
And the good news is there's, there's some practical things you can do to foster a healthier work environment for your team and help mitigate that risk burnout?
[00:02:23.310] - Imogen
One of the first things for me is about acknowledging the issue. It's really important for any leader to create a culture where burnout isn't something to, to be ashamed of. It's not a sign of weakness. We need to have open conversations with our teams and really listen to their answers.
[00:02:46.190] - Amanda
Yeah, it's often a silent issue. By being open about it, you are showing your team that you understand and that you're serious about working together to improve the situation. You know, have check-in meetings, ask people how they are, you know, are you okay? And it's not just about workload, it's also about keeping a check on sort of their mental and emotional load.
[00:03:09.750] - Imogen
And if you ask, are you okay? Don't be convinced by the first answer. Sometimes pressing just a little bit more, but how are you really? Doing can open those floodgates and can really get you a lot more insight into where they are.
[00:03:26.570] - Amanda
Yeah, it's actually the second or third question where you really get to the nitty-gritty, I think. When it comes to workload, it is important to have realistic expectations and boundaries. I think often as communicators, we're expected to be on call 24/7, and it's just not sustainable.
[00:03:45.880] - Imogen
Either expected to, or it just feels like we're expected to be on call.
[00:03:50.360] - Amanda
And if you're in an international organization, you could be dealing with different time zones and, you know, it's boundaries, isn't it? You have to set boundaries.
[00:03:59.180] - Imogen
[Speaker:KATIE_KIRKBRIDE] And this really falls on our leadership, falls on you as a leader. So, assess where you are. Are tasks evenly distributed between the team? Are there projects that you could streamline or potentially pause? We need to make sure our teams aren't constantly juggling a million tasks without a break.
[00:04:23.500] - Amanda
Yeah, it's, it's do a sense check, set clear priorities and realistic deadlines. You know, it is up to you as a leader to protect your team from a constant stream of last-minute requests. You know, how can you reduce unnecessary meetings and emails? And make sure you're encouraging your team to speak up if they're being overwhelmed. And empower them to say no if they need to. It was a colleague of mine many moons ago who said, look, you're always going to be busy. There are always going to be 10 eggs in the basket whilst you're running the race. And what you have to decide is which 2 you're going to stop from breaking this time. So, yeah, prioritization.
[00:05:12.230] - Imogen
Prioritization and— Being able to pause, I think having breaks is critical. Sometimes there's this feeling that, you know, we're working long hours, so therefore we're gonna get more done, but it's a fallacy. In reality, it's actually the opposite. You need to encourage your team to take time away. It means things like getting away from the desk at lunchtime, or even ensuring they take the holidays that they need.
[00:05:43.690] - Amanda
Absolutely. And it's not something I've been historically good at, but, you know, you're helping cure me of that. It is important to recharge, it's vital. And if your team is overworked or has a lot on, taking breaks might seem impossible, but they are key to maintaining productivity in the long run. So help your team see that they shouldn't feel guilty for getting away from the desk.
[00:06:08.410] - Imogen
Getting away from the desk is absolutely key if you're going to continue to be able to deliver. Everybody needs to take a mental break from the day-to-day of work. I mean, Amanda and I have a clear policy of no emails after hours and no work on the weekends. And I certainly am very strict about it, and I like to tell Amanda off a lot when she, she errs away from this strict policy.
[00:06:40.460] - Amanda
Yeah, it's true, it's true. Um, another element of creating a psychologically safe workplace is promoting work-life balance and getting away from the desk and flexible working hours. I wish more leaders would do this. If the work is being done on time and achieving what it needs to, then does it really matter when it's, uh, being done?
[00:07:03.620] - Imogen
And this is a conversation we're seeing more and more as, as there have become mandates from companies to go back into the office more for me, this culture of presenteeism is something we need to get rid of. Just because you're sitting at your desk, it doesn't mean you're actually doing anything. Back in the day, I used to make it a point of not leaving my desk until my boss left. And that meant sometimes—
[00:07:30.960] - Amanda
That rings a bell.
[00:07:32.420] - Imogen
But sometimes it meant I was sitting at my desk till 8 in the evening. Now, was I actually doing any work? No, I was waiting for my boss to leave. So, it's up to us. We need to lead by example. We need to show our team it is okay. I think most of us work to live, not live to work. And so, we need to reap the benefits of the salary we're earning.
[00:07:56.460] - Amanda
Yeah, another thing that you need to consider is providing support to manage stress.
[00:08:03.760] - Imogen
And this is not having pizza on Fridays. This is not beanbags. This is not the inane things that HR sometimes comes up with.
[00:08:13.600] - Amanda
Oh, HR. Um, no, um, but it is offering access to mental health services. It could be creating peer support systems or training on stress management. Um, you might even want to introduce a mental health day where employees can take a day off for self-care.
[00:08:31.990] - Imogen
I think they call them duvet days, which I love.
[00:08:35.200] - Amanda
They do.
[00:08:35.930] - Imogen
I love that.
[00:08:36.630] - Amanda
Yeah, they do.
[00:08:37.760] - Imogen
There are times when you just need a day watching Real Housewives of Beverly Hills with the cat or something.
[00:08:45.780] - Amanda
Real insight, this.
[00:08:47.280] - Imogen
Oh, yeah. Things you learn about me. We shouldn't forget the power of recognition and appreciation. If you are working above and beyond, it's really nice when you hear from others that they acknowledge that. They acknowledge how hard you're working and they acknowledge how difficult it is to sustain that.
[00:09:08.110] - Amanda
Yeah, and you know, some of these ideas, if you're putting them into action, it's not just about tackling burnout. You are creating a space where your team feels energized and appreciated. When people know they're valued, that their wellbeing matters, you know, they're more likely to bring their best selves to work every day.
[00:09:27.120] - Imogen
It's not, we've given some quick tips, but it is not a quick fix. Requires multifaceted and especially importantly a leader-led approach. You need to be visible in championing workplace mental health and you need to show your team how you are maintaining your own well-being because they are looking to you for guidance on how to behave.
[00:09:55.070] - Amanda
Yeah, I think it really is you leading by example. And you know what, if you don't have the answers, bring in the professionals, experts in, in mental well-being. This is something that you can't do on your own, and it's a culture shift for your entire organization.
[00:10:12.070] - Imogen
Absolutely. And as you said, it's not, it's not just your team who's going to benefit. If employees are happy and healthy, they're going to be more productive, and that directly links to the organisation's success as a whole.
[00:10:23.410] - Amanda
So for me, the key takeaway is that acknowledging and recognizing burnout, surfacing, It's supporting your team helps rebuild trust and a more supportive environment, and that's going to help you retain top talent. So think dialog, flexibility, and access to resources.
[00:10:45.060] - Imogen
And that's, that's it for today's episode. If you have any questions, you need support, let us know. In the meantime, give us 5 stars, subscribe, all of those good things. See you soon.
[00:10:57.350] - Amanda
Take care.
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