Solving the burnout problem at work has never been easier.
But how big is the stress problem really?
A question for practicing psychiatrist, global mental wellness pioneer, Dr. Helena Lass to answer along with why workplaces need to tackle stress now.
Dr. Helena Lass introduces in this short 8-minute high-quality video why it is important to address stress and burnout in the workplace. Check it out now.
WHO SUFFERS AND WHY IS STRESS A PROBLEM?
Stress and burnout are the occupational problems of successful professionals and business leaders as this video demonstrated. When those high performers lack practical intrapersonal skills (‘intra’ meaning inside) everything turns into a struggle that can easily lead from occasional stress to chronic stress.
“91% of workers agree that their colleagues’ stress impacts the workplace”
The 2019 Cigna Report “360 Well-Being Survey: Well & Beyond” (1) pointed out that: 87% of workers are stressed, with 12% claiming they cannot manage their stress alone with existing skills. This recent report that covered 23 countries also stated that 91% of workers agree that their colleagues’ stress impacts the workplace with a higher degree of negativity. This means that stress is a harsh reality in many workplaces around the globe.
This is an acute problem as stress, and especially positive stress, is the primary gateway to burnout and burnout again is the main pathway to depression. Stress in that sense represents the start of a downward spiral. So instead of fighting mental health problems at work, we should tackle stress. Otherwise, we end up reading reports that state that mental health costs are increasing year after year.
Back in January 2020 Deloitte updated its 2017 report about mental health (2) and showed mental health cost increase of 16% to employers compared to their previous mental health investment audit. The total cost of mental health problems in the UK in 2019 was £45 billion annually up from £37 billion in 2016). We lack a similar study for the US, but stress and burnout problems at workplaces over there seem even worse as you could notice in the video presented by Dr. Lass.
The paradox is that Deloitte showed in this report that is entitled “Mental health and employers. Refreshing the case for investment” that only 9% of all employees surveyed have attended training that focused on mental health. That means that we still lack practical workplace wide approaches to securing good mental health.
The mentioned Deloitte report showed that there is a positive case for investment in mental health by employers. Deloitte calculated that the return on investment (ROI) into mental health can on average be £5 gained for every £1 spent. The best ROI was found in proactive training that can secure excellent mental wellness for all employees in the workplace.
HOW TO SECURE MENTAL WELLNESS FOR ALL EMPLOYEES?
We explain mental wellness on the Wellness Orbit homepage (3) this way: “Mental wellness is a proactive approach to mental health. Mental wellness is a vast arena relating to the quality of life and it should not be associated with mental illnesses. In fact, all work-related mental illnesses are the result of not having good mental wellness.
While increasing numbers of employers are beginning to address problems that relate to employee mental health at work, very few are currently addressing employee mental well-being and workplace mental wellness proactively. Since mental wellness impacts 100% of your team members, securing mental wellness in workplaces should be promoted by all by employers.”
“Since mental wellness impacts 100% of your team members, securing mental wellness in workplaces should be promoted by all employers.”
As stress is common addressing it proactively needs to become a new standard. When mental health at work is approached proactively, it can be likened to going to the gym. Only for securing mental wellness we need to train our minds instead of our physical bodies.
Training intrapersonal skills enable so much more than stress-free life, it enables people to be fully present at work and enables them to perform well. When we look at it from an employer’s standpoint, then the proactive mental wellness training can give us both freedom from stress and burnout and reduce mental health risks and also allow employees to be more productive and engaged.
Come and test your stress level for free and enjoy a short mental wellness gym experience.
► References:
(1) “360 Well-Being Survey: Well & Beyond” — Cigna; 2019
(2) “Mental health and employers. Refreshing the case for investment” — Deloitte UK; January 2020
(3) Wellness Orbit homepage about the proactive mental wellness approach
