Good mental health in the workplace includes validating the work you are doing.
The past few years have seen a turnaround in the awareness of mental health conditions and how they affect us in the workplace. Phrases like ‘trigger warning’, ‘PTSD’ and ‘workplace toxicity’ are becoming commonplace, and a wider acceptance of the importance of nurturing mental health has been found.
The key to building positive and inclusive workspaces that feed resilient mindsets is ensuring communication remains open. The way for a leader to do that is by facilitating a ‘coaching culture’ – putting the team ahead of yourself and remaining open to learning. The first thing to understand is that a workplace’s policies and procedures should guide the behaviour within that space. Businesses with well-established values generally have healthier cultures and happy employees. This reinforces the need to establish a foundation of values that guide an organisation.
Nobody can force anger out of you. If you find that a certain manager or coworker continually brings out frustration in you, there may be some internal work you need to do ahead of approaching the HR department to file a complaint. Journalling to better examine the scenarios that have been playing out by questioning and answering yourself honestly:
- Have I done what is expected of me in this role?
- Am I fulfilling the duties of my position?
- Did I behave respectfully towards my team?
- What has upset me most about this conflict?
An emotional space
The best thing to do is to rely on existing policies and procedures to guide the process. Anyone who is bullying or harassing employees will be taken to task if the organisation is invested in their growth.
As difficult as it may be, it is worth looking at if the job is vital to your overall career growth and if there could be better options available.
The hardest part can be the self-awareness journey when individuals realise that perhaps their boss was acting within reason, but they have allowed their own emotions to control and guide the situation. It can be normal for workplaces to be stressful and demanding; the difference lies in how an individual copes with the demands of a job.
A toxic work environment is different from an environment in which an individual may not thrive, and recognising this is key to recovering from workplace trauma. People tend to spotlight the negative elements of their workspaces, which seems to heighten their feelings of insecurity and anxiety.
Having a ‘crucial conversation’ with a manager is tough, but the best start is having a hard conversation with yourself. Recovering from bullying at work requires confidence-building exercises and the willingness to take accountability.
Constantly work on yourself. This can be doing anything important to you and is not limited to growing your career. Commit to doing things that make you happy. Set healthy boundaries. Decide on non-negotiables around your health, work life and hobbies.
Stop seeking external validation. Decide on the values you wish to uphold and set goals to achieve them. Do not only seek affirmation from others, as you can validate yourself by acknowledging your strengths.
Text | Alvin Govender
Photography | fizkes
Alvin Govender is the CEO of Awakening Leadership.
For more information, go to awakeningleadership.co.za
