Being Human At Work: How To Help People Show Up Without Burnout

By Helen Wada with Katherine Watkins

Over the past year on the Human Wise podcast, I’ve talked a lot about being human at work, and what it means for people to bring their “whole selves” to the corporate space. 

I began this mission for one reason: people are more stressed than ever, and burnout rates are extremely high. McKinsey Health's 2022 survey of 15,000 workers across 15 countries found that a quarter of employees experienced burnout symptoms.

Many leaders are keen to say that they want to be more human at work. Yet, we still seem to be focusing on targets and cost-cutting and less on the individuals – the people working behind the scenes.

So, what does being human at work mean in today's commercial world? And how can you support your team to show up as their best selves without burnout?

Find out in this article.

Helping people show up as their best selves

Recently on the Human Wise podcast, I was lucky enough to interview Katherine Watkins, an independent HR director and M&A expert working with boards across Europe, the Middle East and Asia.

Katherine believes that being human at work simply means being yourself.

Katherine: “Being human at work is just being yourself. It means getting up and being proud about what you're going in to do, what you're going to be working on, not having any airs on grace, and not being driven by the title or the seniority of what you do.

It also means understanding where you fit into the business world's cog because, ultimately, many of us work in environments where the success of our businesses is based on the humans who are in those businesses. Without their integrity, empathy, and ethics, working would be quite difficult and a bit of a challenge.” 

In recent times, there has been some ongoing debate about returning to traditional office environments post-pandemic. Ultimately, as the world of business continues to evolve, leaders must evolve as well by supporting their teams and treating people like grown-ups.

The question is: how?

The power of open conversations

Laura: “There's a saying that when you've met one autistic person, you've met ONLY one (not all) autistic person(s), because every autistic person is unique in their profile and presentation. The same is true of ADHD and any other neurodivergent conditions.

So, the best way to understand how to support and how to set someone up for success is to be able to have that conversation with them. However, because there’s a lot of negative stigma and possibly shame that clouds the idea of talking about neurodivergence, it's not an easy conversation to set up. Not everybody is ready.”

1. Be flexible

Katherine: “Some of the clients I work with are fine with employees coming into work a few days a week while others prefer a traditional, five-day in-office work week. However, the key [whether they work in-office or remotely] is to treat people like adults.

Balancing your requirements with some flexibility is a good way to get a lot more buy-in and credibility for good management across your teams.

For instance, if their employment contract states that they are required to be in the office from nine to five, you can ensure that they adhere to that. But on occasion, it’s worth giving them some leeway to come in at 9:30 a.m. or to leave at 3 p.m.

This balance takes some of the pressure off their shoulders and also quietens down a lot of the hubbub around coming into the office.”

2. Trust your teams and take ownership

The debate over whether or not employees should return to the office is far from settled, yet the push to get them back is getting more aggressive.

Ultimately, it boils down to examining what makes sense for the business and your teams in terms of personal and career development and ensuring that everyone is equipped with what they need for success.

Katherine: “In my professional view and experience of getting people back into the office, there isn't a one-size-fits-all solution, but it does come back down to trusting your teams. If you don't trust them, you should have remedies for handling that.

At the same time, you also need to be practical about what works for the business. That’s why as leaders, we each need to do our own little bit to take ownership and give people the support they need. That will then naturally flow towards collaboration, which, ultimately, will help businesses grow and expand.”

For many leaders, creating this collaboration can be extremely difficult because they just don’t have the time. They’re under a lot of pressure, and this translates not only into how they show up but also into how they help their teams show up.

In scenarios like this, personal accountability plays a huge role – which leads us to the next point.

3. Take personal accountability

Katherine: “You can make the time. It's just what you focus on and prioritise. What is valuable to you within your working hours? How are you going to prioritise what you do?

You have to be prepared to hit a few brick walls, fall down, get back up and just keep going, getting your communication right around what you're doing. That's how you're going to build your future.

There's a lot of control that individuals can have over their time. We just need to take a step back, think about what we need to do, and then plan it out.”

Ultimately, it’s easy to complain about the pressure we constantly face. But we need to take responsibility for what we really want, and sometimes, this means taking a step back.

It means asking yourself questions like: who are you? What are your values? What's really important to you? Therefore, what decisions are you going to make to focus and drive your own working world, your teams, and your career?

4. Think about the impact of your actions

The best leaders lead by example.

In today’s fast-paced world, it’s easy to chase earnings and spreadsheets, forgetting that behind each new decision, action, or service is a team of people who have families and rely on us to do the right thing for them.

That’s why it’s critical to consider the impact that every piece of action you take will have on your teams.

Katherine: “You have to keep asking yourself, how does everything I do positively or negatively affect the well-being, needs, and values of individuals and communities? Take that time of reflection, whether it’s five seconds, five minutes, or even ten minutes.

As a professional, I want to treat people the way I’d like to be treated. So, it’s also important to think about the well-being of your team. Can you support the people's pensions? Do you have the right employee benefits?

We don't think enough about that. If you take it down to its core, every senior leader will come with a family attached to them, and you want those people to be treated the best they can.”

The bottom line

There are so many people who bear the responsibility for building a more human working world. It doesn’t sit with just one person. It sits with employers, business leaders, unions, employees, and educational institutions.

Regardless of the category we fall into, it’s important for everyone to play their role by being more human at work and supporting the people around us to do the same.

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For more information about Katherine and the work she does, connect with her on LinkedIn.

Human Wise releases new episodes bi-weekly and is available on all major podcast platforms.