Posted on Feb 16, 2022
7 key warning signs to watch out for at work in 2022
January seems to have flown by and that much sought after Christmas break is now nothing but a distant memory. When returning back to work at the start of a New Year, people often feel like they are ready to go again with what they assume are topped-up energy stores and bolstered resilience. However, as we push ahead into 2022, the initial ‘new year’ motivation is quickly wearing off, re-exposing the signs of unhealthy working patterns, warns employee wellbeing specialist Lesley Cooper.
A management consultant with a background in health and wellbeing consulting in the private healthcare sector, Lesley Cooper, has over 25 years’ experience in the design and delivery of all elements of employee wellbeing management programmes. She is founder and CEO of WorkingWell, an award-winning specialist consultancy that helps organisations to manage pressure and stress in a way that facilitates a culture of sustainable high performance.
“January is notoriously one of the most difficult months for focus, particularly for those who already have entrenched unhealthy working patterns. Working towards a break of any kind typically gives people extra motivation they might not have otherwise had, so when this dies down, any wellbeing issues are left exposed,” highlights Lesley.
“It is imperative that managers are aware of what to watch out for so they can act to prevent long-term damages to their team. But individuals should also be aware of the patterns to watch out for in themselves and others. A culture of sustainable high performance is everyone’s responsibility,” she says.
To kickstart positive wellbeing and healthy working habits in 2022, Lesley has shared 7 signs to watch out for as you settle back into working life this year:
- Increasing irritability – As energy resources become more depleted, so does patience. A tell-tale sign that there may be some deeper wellbeing issues at play is increasing irritability. You might notice this within others, perhaps the way they are responding to your question, but you might also notice it within yourself if your reaction to something seems unjustified.
- Struggling to manage pressure – When your resilience is suffering, you’re likely to struggle to manage pressure in a healthy way. This might become even more obvious when working from home as you don’t have colleagues around you to help rationalise your thought processes. If you are finding self-regulation difficult, or you’re noticing frantic decision making within others, it could be a sign of a wider wellbeing issue. Emotional self-regulation should be a key skill taught by managers.
- Not taking breaks – Consciously and subconsciously, some people default into not taking regular breaks because they think it makes them appear more productive. Or their workplace glorifies overworking. This could be a sign that this individual is already burning out, but if they keep doing it they will find themselves firmly on this road.
In the same way that an axe will blunt itself against the trunk of a tree with repeated strikes, doing the same thing repeatedly for more than 90-120 minutes eventually means we lose the edge. Instead, intentional breaks with movement will break linearity after intense cognitive tasks.
- Not taking holiday – While taking more breaks is a good thing, if working hours are expanding into time properly reserved for other aspects of life then there is still a net loss of extended recovery time. 5 x 10 minute breaks does not make up for having a whole weekend or week off being totally disengaged from work. Particularly if pre-Christmas was busy, the equally busy Christmas holiday is unlikely to have been enough to properly power down. Holidays should be celebrated as an investment in the next performance wave and leaders are responsible for framing it as such.
- Skipping lunch – Those neglecting their wellbeing are likely to neglect the importance of a proper lunch break. When you skip lunch you are depriving your brain and body of the fuel they need to be effective. Because of the impact that low (or fluctuating) blood sugar has on our emotional stability and cognitive function you really can’t afford to skip lunch ever.
- Not engaging with colleagues and managers – Lacking the energy to converse with colleagues or deliberately detaching yourself from them is also a behaviour to watch out for. This could be lessening engagement within team meetings, noticeable reduction in output or stopping coming into the office. If this is the case, address sensitively with your colleague to find out what might be making them withdraw. This could be within a 10 minute decompressing chat pre or post meetings.
- Workplace stress impacting other areas – When our wellbeing might be suffering, this tends to displace our work/life balance, perhaps straining our personal relationships, preventing us from socialising or investing time in our passions. If someone’s life becomes all about work or they find they are bringing work stress home with them, this could be time for intervention to help them put down the to-do list.
“Support services should be easily accessible to prevent people from becoming more unwell, including psychologically safe spaces to explore challenges with empathy and compassion, within teams, with line managers or with healthcare professionals. However, this should not be the only action taken to protect teams. Primary intervention should analyse organisational culture trends to determine root causes and actively prevent these from occurring again. Using both forms of intervention will create a healthy workplace,” advises Lesley.
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