<img src="//bat.bing.com/action/0?ti=5739614&amp;Ver=2" height="0" width="0" style="display:none; visibility: hidden;">

The Skinny

Quick, hurry.

Posted on Saturday, October 9

Share:
 

Weekly Skinny

Let’s start off on the right foot

"At the end of the day, we can endure much more than we think we can." –Frida Kahlo


 

COVID-Cases-Depression-Icon
The skinny

The CDC revealed a correlation between the rise and fall of COVID-19 cases and the rates of those reporting anxiety and depression.

This seems like a “duh” moment.

Well, it might seem so, but levels of anxiety and depression are still higher now than they were before the pandemic and could be rising again because of the delta variant.  

Are there other factors?

Unfortunately. People with lower incomes, women, and those who were harder hit by the pandemic suffered higher risk of depression. But, there’s some good news.  

Finally.

From December 2020 to June 2021, symptoms of anxiety and depression decreased. Cue applause.  

All because of #selfcare.

Actually, wrong. Buying a new candle doesn’t solve a major depressive event. This is truly a wake-up call for employers offering or thinking of offering mental health benefits. 

Why?

Because as great as self-care is, poor mental health needs to be solved with accessible benefits like therapy, medication, and employer support, not just encouragement to get aromatherapy.

Smells like teen spirit.

Entertained yet? Speaking of something not very fun, employees are still citing very high levels of burnout.  

Still?

Yes. Burnout is that annoying kid that takes the whole candy bowl even though it says, “Just take one.” And although burnout is something that’s hard to pin down, moving into the busy annual enrollment season, you also need to take heed so that burnout doesn’t take your entire candy bowl, too.  

Further reading: Is that all there is? Why burnout is a broken promise.

Date with data: 60% of women say their mental health has deteriorated to some degree during the pandemic.  

Not fun fact: Mississippi was among the states with the largest increases in anxiety and depression in 2020.

Fun fact: New York experienced both the smallest rise in anxiety scores in late 2020 and the smallest drop in the first half of this year. Must be something in the water.

For you: Walking is good for creativity and reliving stress.

Totes quotes: "Burnout is not necessarily caused by stress and overwork, but the sum total of hundreds and thousands of tiny betrayals of purpose, each one so minute that it hardly attracts notice.” –Dr. Richard Gunderma


 

work-from-home-icon
The skinny

Latest survey illustrates how remote work is good for DEI efforts.

Oh really?

Yes. Especially for Black employees. Over the past year, Black workers in knowledge roles working remotely are more likely to say that they’ve been treated more fairly, value their coworkers more, and feel more supported by management.

What’s changed?

Going virtual levels the playing field, cutting down on chit chat that can be a minefield for microaggressions.

Hate those.

Yes. And because Black and other minority employees make up a small piece of the employee pie, especially in the higher ranks, working from home helps cut down on discrimination.

So, remote work for all?

For some. Although many are exploring the hybrid work model, some organizations are demanding a return to work. But, get this: PwC announced last week that its 40,000 US client-service employees could work remotely.

Wow.

Indeed. It’s one of the biggest employers to do so to date.

Totes quotes: “I’m a big believer that it’s not showing up at a certain time and leaving at a certain time that matters; it’s getting the work done.” —Ellen Kullman, CEO of Carbon

Further reading: Here’s why flexibility, not hybrid, is what employees say they want.

 

urgency-icon
The skinny

Being addicted to urgency is a thing, and it’s not good.

What do you mean?

Do you thrive in chaos? Love to save the day?  

Didn’t buy this cape for nothing.

Welp, hate to break it to you pal, but superheroes are fun to watch but terrible to work for.  

But, I’m good at it!

I’m sure. But too many leaders are addicted to crises. And fire drills are fatiguing.  

Burn.

A true leader needs to lead, not rescue. And a team that is constantly subjected to crisis after crisis is going to be fatigued, burned out, and not happy. You can lose a lot of good people if this is how you run your ship.  

Great, here comes a boat metaphor.

You’re overboard, mate. Do you want your employees asking, “Do I really need to tie my stomach in knots for a living?” 

No.

Ok, well then listen up. The first step to overcoming urgency addition is to recognize that you have it.  

Hello, I’m addicted to urgency.

Good. Now, try to focus on clarifying timelines and expectations. Ask your team to hold you accountable if you start slipping into crisis mode. And most importantly, share information. A lot of those leaders addicted to crisis also like to hog information so they can save the day.

Totes quotes: “The best leaders are not the biggest individual contributors. Their job is not to be the genius in the room, but rather the genius maker of others.” –Scott Miller, Thought Leadership Initiatives, Fraklincovey


Here’s something to…

social-corner-icon-skinnySocial Corner

This might make you cry.

magnifying-glass-find
Empathy Insights

88% of employees thought that WFH benefits were empathetic.