In Part I of our “Improving Leadership Capacity and Capabilities” series, we defined a three-pronged approach. Now, it’s time to explore how you can adopt it in order to navigate change with confidence and courage.
Well-Being Matters
Well-Being Matters
Have you ever thought about the connection between well-being and belonging? The idea of well-being as a workplace matter has been gaining ground well before the pandemic even began.
More recently, the idea of well-being has moved from a “nice to have” to a “need to have” as we have all adjusted to develop strategies for managing the challenges of working from home, hybrid work, and working onsite under new conditions. Organizations often have programs to support well-being, but what does this term really mean?
There are numerous definitions of well-being, and a common understanding is that it embodies a sense that things are going well in life—it encompasses an attention to the connections between mind, body, heart, and spirit. Well-being practices include fostering resilience and work-life balance, as well as physical and mental health. Leading a life of purpose and meaning has been shown to increase well-being.
What does well-being look like for someone who doesn’t have a sense of belonging in an organization? If a person feels that they cannot bring their whole self to work, both their sense of belonging and their well-being are at risk. These things go hand in hand. The emotional labor of carefully crafting a work persona that is different from one’s true self is exhausting.
As your organization works to support equity, diversity, inclusion, accessibility, and belonging, consider the role of well-being and how it intersects with each of these practices, particularly belonging.
Inclusion is an invitation to the table, belonging involves working to remove any barriers and champion participation. Well-being is the resulting positive moods and emotions that come from feeling like you belong.
Everyone in an organization has a part to play in supporting well-being and belonging. To explore how you are experiencing and supporting well-being and belonging in the workplace, ask yourself the following questions:
- How am I ensuring that my colleagues’ voices are heard?
- Who isn’t at the table to voice their opinion and why are they excluded?
- What assumptions might I be making about my colleagues? About their identity? About their feelings? About their priorities?
- Am I able to bring my whole self to work, or is there a part of my identity that I feel I need to hide?
- How am I showing respect for my colleagues?
- How am I demonstrating to my co-workers that I support their bringing their full selves to work?
- What social support does my organization offer to support the well-being of employees?
What will you do today to support your own well-being and belonging at work, as well as those around you?
Conscient Strategies was founded with the idea that every organization is capable of thriving through change. With a focus on strategy development, program implementation, workplace dynamics, and leadership development, Conscient Strategies equips leaders with the tools necessary to continuously navigate the constancy of change in ways that not only benefit their team, but, equally as important, their business outcomes as well. From mergers to c-suite changes to sudden or explosive growth, organizations turn to Conscient Strategies when change is threatening their financial health and cultural wellbeing.
Based in Washington, D.C., Conscient Strategies is comprised of a talented group of consultants, executive coaches, strategists, and account executives. The team has worked with organizations of all sizes in the private, federal, and non-profit sectors across the United States and Internationally.
You might also be interested in:
Improving Leadership Capacity and Capabilities, Part II: Putting Strategy into Action
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Consistency: The Foundation of Good Leadership
If consistency is the leadership behavior of choice, how do we determine which actions to focus our consistent attention on? How do we decide what our team needs to best drive success?
Finishing Strong
Endings are just as important, if not more so, than any other stage of the coaching journey.
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