Dealing with anxiety and other mental health concerns in the workplace is now becoming a discussion point for management. It’s not that we have more anxiety than generations before, but now we’ve normalized talking about it. This is a good thing. And by talking about it, corporate leaders can take a proactive role in making a safe and healthy environment for staff.

Here are some tips to help you create a plan for mental health in your company.

SOS Method

This method is about breathing to regulate your thoughts and start moving in a new direction. If you begin to feel anxious:

• Stop
• Oxygenate (breathe deeply)
• Seek new information

This helps you recognize that your feeling is a narrow perception, and you need to break out of that way of thinking to move on. You can use this for yourself or encourage team members feeling anxious to embrace the SOS method.

Encourage Breaks

Time away from the workplace is critical. This goes for PTO as well as breaks throughout the day. Encourage your team to leave their desks or offices for lunch, go outside, or do something other than work through the lunch hour. Most people are afraid that they’ll be judged for being non-productive, but you can ensure them that productivity increases when breaks are observed.

Lead by Example

One of the most important management techniques, especially for reducing stress, is to lead by example. If you’re employees see you working past closing time, they may feel obligated to do it too. If you don’t take vacations, they won’t. You want to stress that your behavior is what they should emulate, which means that you also need to establish healthy boundaries at work.

Set Goals

Goals can sometimes alleviate stress and anxiety. Fear of the unknown causes both, so creating goals gives you and your team a clear pathway to what you need to accomplish. Look at the big picture and then determine the individual steps it will take to get you there. Then assign tasks to the person best suited to that part of the project. You’ll find that clear guidance and goals will lower stress overall.

Consider Work/Life Balance

Of course, we can’t forget about the classic work/life balance combination. Many managers are concerned about “quiet quitting” as employees are not giving extra effort on the job. To combat this, be sure to focus on work/life balance. Set boundaries about working after clocking out by not requiring work to be done at home after hours.

Do you need to hire more talent to take the stress off your current team? Nexstaff can help, so call today.