How To Support Mental Health In Remote Teams

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How To Support Mental Health In Remote Teams

Eran is the CEO and cofounder of ingredient brothers, a natural ingredients importer.

When your primary point of contact with employees is 30-minute Zoom calls, where little body language is visible and an upbeat smile can hide a lot, you can lose the ability to pick up on small cues that indicate mental health struggles.

Remote work has been a saving grace for many professionals. Without the strain of professional morning preparations and an endless commute, the work/life ratio has finally come back into balance.

But at the same time, for others, it’s made it a lot harder to keep their heads above the water in an environment where it’s harder than ever for a support system to pick up on the subtle cues of mental health distress in those struggling quietly.

Whether they’re new hires, interns or introverts who are not as comfortable sharing their internal journeys with their teammates, one key mental health question has to be, “How can I create a support system that doesn’t leave anyone behind?”

Remote Work: The Enemy Of Mental Health Stability?

According to FlexJobs, 56% of employees feel that a remote work environment improves their mental health. Which makes sense, right? Getting to work in your pajama trousers and slippers? That’s a win for mental health in most of our books.

The survey showed lower rates of burnout, improved health, reduced anxiety, lower rates of depression and just a general boost in overall mental health.

But—and yes, it’s a great big “but”—these answers only reflect one side of the remote workforce. Once there, sitting snugly at home without the constraints of office turmoil and constant distractions, the results look a bit different for some.

In 2021, 49% of employees globally said they have felt isolated, being cut off from their teams due to enforced pandemic restrictions. Now that work from home and remote work have become the norm in many companies, the isolated work conditions of remote work, the strain on personal boundaries and the demands of having to be “your own captain” are taking their toll and leaving some remote teams feeling just as lonely as at the height of the lockdowns.

Without support and being part of a healthy community, employees’ mental health can backslide quickly. The creation of that community and the responsibility to create a safe culture that respects mental health lies with you, the leader and guardian of your teams.

Picking Up On The Signs Of Mental Health Distress

When employees are forthcoming and openly discuss their mental health and emotional well-being, then there’s nothing to worry about. But what about the employees who feel too vulnerable and find it difficult to open up about personal issues?

The first step is to train your team leaders to identify classic “tells” of mental health distress, the physical and behavioral changes that may be rooted in something deeper.

(Note that this is a task for team leaders and managers who interact with employees on a regular basis.)

Telltale Signs Of Mental Health Struggles To Look Out For:

• Major changes in behavior or productivity

• Lack of engagement or motivation

• Taking excessive overtime or working outside of normal business hours

• Lack of communication or responsiveness

• Observable changes in physical appearance and presentation

All of these signs could be a simple adjustment to a new environment or signs of a long week. But they can also be the first visible symptoms of someone’s mental health buckling off-screen.

That’s why each of these telltale signs needs to be addressed immediately, transparently and compassionately to identify any underlying mental health struggles.

Five Steps To Better Remote Mental Health Support

It’s understandable for people to want to protect their professional image and steer away from discussions that may be perceived as career-enders. So how do you create an ecosystem where mental health troubles aren’t seen as weakness but rather a normal part of every professional life?

Step 1

Leadership has to lead by example. They have to take personal days and step away from the company, showing employees that things won’t fall apart if you care for yourself. Leaders should also talk about personal issues on the right platform, opening the floor to conversations that fall beyond the purview of operations.

Step 2

Create a platform where sensitive questions can be asked directly. This can be in the form of scheduled feedback sessions or chat channels aimed solely at personal mental health support and conversations.

Step 3

Hire a head of people. It’s one thing smaller companies leave for too late far too often. But it’s a hire that has to fit with the people, not just the company. So make sure it’s a person employees can trust and engage with, someone who puts people first in every scenario.

Step 4

Augment your support strategies with third-party HR partners to create an anonymous buffer between employers and employees. This helps make employees feel more comfortable with sharing personal issues without feeling exposed or fearing that they will be reprimanded for issues that affect their productivity.

Step 5

Equip managers and team leaders with training that’s geared toward identifying mental health warning signs. Emotional intelligence and compassionate behavior shouldn’t be limited to HR roles. They should be prerequisites for any leader in a company who wants to support the mental health of their people.

Remote work and mental health could (and rightly should) go hand in hand. And these steps may just be the support your team needs to make remote work all it can be.


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