Over the past few months, managers have been facing a new problem for themselves — employee anxiety, which often not only reduces productivity, but practically paralyzes work.
And the point here is not only in the personal experiences of a particular person, but also in the mood of the team . Colleagues discuss negative news, exchange opinions, argue, and this raises the degree of general tension in the team.
And panic moods are often hidden, and this is much more dangerous. You may not notice that an employee has problems until it leads to negative consequences that will affect his work. Therefore, a manager in difficult conditions of uncertainty should carefully monitor the mood changes in the team and do everything necessary to prevent panic.
The core of anxiety is uncertainty, lack of information and expectation of negative developments. And it is these three factors that you should pay attention to when working with staff.
It appears where we encounter events, the further course of which is difficult to predict. Therefore, it is worth focusing on simple things that are always under your control. That's what the manager needs to do.
In crisis situations, companies often have to rebuild some internal processes: for example, adjust the management and project management system, strengthen some areas of activity and reduce others. And that's fine.
Such transformations are vital for business to successfully survive difficult times.
It is better to abandon the rest of the changes for a while. For example, you should not start reorganizing departments or moving to a new office. Employees need stability at this difficult time.
Traditions are one of the main mechanisms for ensuring stability. Each company has its own: joint lunches on Fridays, birthday greetings to employees, regular corporate contests. It is these activities that allow you to keep everything in the usual course and form the right atmosphere in the team.
Be sure to continue to follow the traditions even in difficult times. This will help reduce the level of anxiety in the team.
If your company does not yet have such unifying elements, then it's time to create them. There is no need to aim at something grandiose ‑ small but regular steps are enough that will form a common circle of interests among employees and stimulate a sense of pleasant expectation.
So, it is possible to organize joint master classes ‑ including in a remote format. For example, yoga classes in the evenings right in the office. Another option is to create a book club and invite employees to read business literature and once a month exchange useful ideas that they managed to glean.
Constant employment is an important factor that affects the feeling of stability and certainty. Among the key tasks of a manager now is competent planning, task control and communication with employees.
This is necessary so that they can fully immerse themselves in the work.
If you see that it is difficult for subordinates to solve some tasks, then you can temporarily turn on the micromanagement mode ‑ control of all stages of work until the situation normalizes.
Management most often does not want to share information with others in two cases: if it is negative or if it is unclear what to do next. However, employees may feel that something is being hidden from them, and begin to think out what is not really there. In order not to escalate the situation, it is worth discussing what is happening with them.
Openness is very important. Especially in difficult conditions, when the team is in constant tension and does not know what to expect around the next corner.
Provide employees with as much information as possible. Try to explain to them all the important points related to the current situation. If you do not have complete information, then at least tell us what you have already done and what you plan to do in certain circumstances.
Management and staff should have a general picture of what is happening and an understanding of what can be done.
But remember that all information must be conveyed carefully, without harsh value judgments, with respect for different positions and possible emotional reactions.
In addition, it is important to talk about what is happening around. Share with employees news about business, partners' activities, innovations, as well as the results of the work of departments.
This will allow you to tune in to a productive mood and rally the staff even more in front of the challenges that the company is facing.
An important task of the leader is to form a common positive goal for the team and lead to it, bypassing the obstacles that arise. This motivates employees and strengthens their belief that it is possible to find a way out of any difficult situation.
Managers, as well as employees, are subject to mind-scrolling, anxiety and decreased motivation due to ongoing negative events. However, the manager should be able to switch to constructive thoughts, filter out unreliable information and go out to subordinates only with a cold mind.
The leader's calmness — even if it is only external — is always transmitted to his team. Develop stress management skills to learn how to broadcast the right attitude to your subordinates.
In order for employees not to get hung up on the negative, it is necessary to give them the opportunity to switch to positive impressions. To do this, you can use different tools:
If your company has been on the market for a long time, it is useful to remember stories of successful recovery from crisis situations. Refer to past experiences when communicating with employees.
Remind them that together you have already overcome a lot and achieved a lot.
Yes, the current situation may differ from the previous ones. But what is important here is not the case itself, but how well the team acted, overcoming difficulties. Focus on this.
Allow yourself to dream together with employees, talk to them about what you want to achieve together, how you see the business and yourself in it in the future. And be sure to study the market experience and apply the best options in your company.
In conditions of turbulence, it is difficult to set long—term goals for the usual 5-7 years - we have to shorten planning horizons. But this does not mean that it should be abandoned altogether.
Let the plans shift or change, but they must be built. This gives a sense of certainty, which the team lacks so much in difficult time. And at the same time, be sure to predict possible risks so that you have a ready‑made algorithm of actions in case something goes wrong.
Discuss all this with employees in advance, and then any deviation from the intended goal will be perceived by them as an obstacle that can be overcome.