Combating Imposter Syndrome
This article is from RISQ Consulting’s Zywave client portal, a resource available to all RISQ Consulting clients. Please contact your Benefits Consultant or Account Executive for more information or for help setting up your own login.
Imposter syndrome is a feeling of self-doubt that affects how workers view their abilities and qualifications when they don’t think they belong or deserve their job. It can affect an employee’s work by impairing job performance, contributing to burnout and reducing overall job satisfaction.
In fact, according to the International Journal of Behavioral Science, around 70% of the population has experienced imposter syndrome at least once.
With an increase in remote work environments, imposter syndrome has worsened due to a lack of in-person interaction. Face-to-face interactions can provide feedback through body language, which employees lack when working from home. When working from home, workers can also become distracted by things such as pets and children. Furthermore, these distractions can increase stress and anxiety, contributing to self-critical feelings about job performance.
All of those factors can negatively impact your well-being as an employee. Consider these strategies to help combat imposter syndrome, including when working from home:
- Let negative thoughts come and go. Negative feelings towards yourself are common. To combat the anxiety associated with them, it can be helpful to recognize them and avoid giving them further thought. Avoid being too hard on yourself.
- Get together with co-workers. If there are in-person events at your workplace, consider attending them to interact face-to-face with co-workers. You could also consider scheduling a working lunch or post-work happy hour with a co-worker.
- Talk about your experience. Sharing about your experience with imposter syndrome can help both you and those you work with feel less alone. Share your advice with co-workers to help spread knowledge and awareness.
- Practice positive self-talk. Practicing affirmations and writing down the facts can weed out the false accusations in your head. Write down the positive ways you contribute to your workplace so you can recognize your accomplishments.
- Have self-compassion. Perfection is not possible. When you’re experiencing negative thoughts, it’s essential to be kind to yourself. It’s also important to recognize that you were hired for your role for a reason.
You don’t have to combat imposter syndrome alone. Working remotely can foster feelings of isolation, but imposter syndrome affects millions of workers each year; therefore, it’s important to know you’re not the only one affected. Knowing how to combat it can help you and those you work with.
Prioritizing Your Well-being
In recent years, there has been a shift to organizations allowing employees to work remotely. This remote work option has given employees more time to focus on their well-being. While remote work can help improve overall job satisfaction, it can also have some adverse effects. Some aspects of remote work can negatively impact your mental health and, as a result, affect your physical well-being and job performance.
According to recent research from Zippia:
- Almost half (40%) of remote workers say that struggling to unplug at the end of the workday is their biggest challenge.
- Half (50%) of remote workers feel lonely at least once per week.
Driven in part by this social isolation, remote employees have started to shift towards prioritizing their well-being. With the increase in employees working from home, there has started to be a more significant focus on using extra time that was previously for commuting on other nonwork-related tasks. Some of these activities include extra sleep, leisure activities and home projects.
As a result, focusing some attention on your well-being will improve not only your physical and mental state but also your work experience. To prioritize your well-being, consider trying some of these strategies while working remotely:
- Connect with co-workers. Connecting with others is important when working remotely to combat feelings of isolation. Make time to connect throughout the week by planning meet-ups such as post-work walks or lunches.
- Exercise for 30 minutes daily. Exercise can help boost your mood and improve your overall well-being. Some typical workouts include yoga, biking, walking and stretching.
- Schedule regular breaks. Take breaks throughout your day to help prevent daily burnout. Small breaks in your workday could include taking a short walk or making a snack.
- Create a designated work space. When working in a remote environment, it’s important to have a space designated for work. This space should be somewhere you feel productive, such as a desk. Spaces like your bedroom or couch are associated with relaxation, so they may not be the best locations to be productive during the day.
If you’re a remote or hybrid employee, consider trying some of these tips to help prioritize your physical and mental health.
Every workplace is different, so consider how prioritizing your well-being can fit into your schedule. You could also reach out to your manager or co-workers to discuss prioritizing your well-being.
- Published in Blog
Stay Active While Working From Home
This article is from RISQ Consulting’s Zywave client portal, a resource available to all RISQ Consulting clients. Please contact your Benefits Consultant or Account Executive for more information or for help setting up your own login.
Working from home has many perks, but it may leave you at-risk for developing a sedentary lifestyle and unhealthy habits. It may be easy to forget about exercise when you’re home all day. The good news is you’re in control of keeping yourself active while also getting your work done; it all comes down to building healthy habits throughout the day.
This article explores the importance of an active lifestyle and how to get in your daily movement while still getting your work done.
The Importance of Being Active
The Department of Health and Human Services recommends most adults get at least 150 minutes of moderate physical activity each week, such as brisk walking or light housework. Additionally, it’s recommended to do muscle-strengthening activities two or more days per week that target major muscle groups (legs, hips, back, abdomen, chest, shoulders and arms). The good news is that you can spread your activity out during the week, so you don’t have to do it all at once.
Regular physical activity is vital for your health. There are numerous health benefits of physical activity. Most significantly, it can help maintain your weight and reduce your risk for high blood pressure, Type 2 diabetes, heart attack and stroke.
On top of the physical benefits of working out, research finds that exercise can help reduce anxiety and improve your mood and overall mental health. When you exercise, your body releases endorphins which can help you healthily cope with daily stressors.
Tips for Staying Active
Some physical activity is better than none. Adults should move more and sit less throughout the day. However, staying active while working from home can require self-discipline. Consider the following strategies for avoiding inactivity during your remote workday:
- Try a fake commute. A fake commute involves using a typical commute time period to transition and mentally set yourself up before working. Without a standard commute, you could exercise before or after your workday.
- Schedule your workout. If a fake commute doesn’t fit with your remote work routine, find ways to plan your exercise and stick to it. Building exercise into your daily planner can help you stay on track. If something comes up and you have to change a fitness appointment, reschedule it right away.
- Designate a workout spot. Find a room or corner in your home to be your workout space. You don’t need that much space for an efficient workout, just enough to move around a bit or lay down an exercise mat.
- Move every hour. It’s important not to be sedentary for long periods of time. Set a timer or use apps that remind you to stand up and move for a few minutes. Use that movement to grab a healthy snack, refill your water cup, or walk up and down the stairs.
- Go digital. Many apps, videos and on-demand programs are available to help you stay committed to exercise. Online memberships or streaming services can provide classes and workouts in the comfort of your home during workday breaks or lunchtime. You could even invite family and friends to join to increase accountability. Your employer may even offer such digital health and exercise resources.
- Keep it simple. If you already have hand weights, a yoga mat or exercise bands at home—great! If not, get creative with body-weight exercises, or consider using household items to add resistance to your routine.
Consistency is key with any fitness routine. Staying active at home makes you more likely to adopt fitness habits and live a healthy lifestyle. Health experts recommend talking to your doctor before starting new exercise programs.
- Published in Blog
Work From Home Subsidies
By Casey Kirkeby, Strategy Consultant
Attention Employers and Organizational Leaders-
What is the latest trending benefit that is helping attract and retain talent? I’m sure you are now aware that working from home is more popular now than at any time in recent history. Now ,depending on industry and rules within the workplace, it may make sense to offer a subsidy to help with an employee’s work from home set-up. This article outlines what work-from-home subsidies are and explains when it might make sense to offer them.
- Published in Blog
5 Hybrid Work Model Mistakes to Avoid
This article is from RISQ Consulting’s Zywave client portal, a resource available to all RISQ Consulting clients. Please contact your Benefits Consultant or Account Executive for more information or for help setting up your own login.
The COVID-19 pandemic forced businesses to adapt and test their operational capacities. One of the most common pivots has been remote work.
Now that workplaces are reopening, a significant number of employees want to retain their remote status. In fact, 58% of workers said they want a fully remote position, and only 3% said they wanted to return to fully in-person work, according to a recent FlexJobs survey.
So, how does a business that wants to utilize its in-person workspace deal with employees who want to stay home? For some, the answer is a hybrid work model.
Under this arrangement, employees work in person some of the time and from home the rest of the time. This can be a great compromise for a workplace, and it’s gaining popularity among employers. Many organizations are now exploring their own forms of hybrid work models.
While increased adoption of hybrid models is great news for many employees, it only works when implemented properly. That’s why it’s critical for employers developing hybrid strategies to understand potential pitfalls and adapt as necessary.
To that end, this article discusses five common hybrid work model mistakes and how to avert them.
1. Inadequate Policies
The success of any workplace program hinges on how well it can be executed. When it comes to hybrid work models, employers must have a clearly defined policy detailed in writing. Otherwise, employees and their managers won’t understand expectations, leading to confusion, improper conduct, missed deadlines and other issues.
A good hybrid work policy might include the following details, among others:
- Who is eligible for hybrid work
- How many days a week an employee is expected to work in person
- Which days and core hours an employee is allowed to work (i.e., only Monday-Friday during business hours)
- What technology is available for employees to use at home (i.e., monitors, keyboards and other equipment that may be taken home for remote work)
- Contact point for employee questions regarding scheduling
- How in-person work will function regarding shared workspaces, as applicable
2. Unfamiliar Leadership
While many employees may want to work remotely at least some of the time, that’s not always the case with company leadership. In other words, the individuals with decision-making power might not understand what working from home entails. This can be problematic when these same people write and enforce workplace policies.
To ensure a quality hybrid work model, it’s important for policy stakeholders (e.g., management) to try it out as well, even for just a few days. Organization leaders will be better poised to spot policy blind spots after experiencing the arrangement themselves.
3. Inconsistent Communication
Staying up to date on timely developments and communication is a constant struggle for most workplaces. It can be even harder for remote workers to stay updated. This is especially the case when an organization uses varying channels for communication. While multichannel communication is generally an effective tool, employees still need to know where to expect messages to come from.
Employers exploring hybrid work models should consider standardizing which communication tools they use instead of relying on each team to pick their favorite platforms. For instance, a workplace may decide to send all communications through Microsoft Teams and Outlook. That way, employees will know to check those platforms for any critical messages.
Moreover, digital communication solutions are the best option for hybrid employees since they can reach anyone. In other words, utilizing announcement boards or similar in-person methods won’t be sufficient for a hybrid team.
4. Inequitable Celebrations
Employee celebrations are an important part of the workplace. Employees need to feel like their contributions are valuable to the organization, and praising their work is a great way to do that.
Unfortunately, not every celebration method is conducive to a hybrid work model. Consider events such as luncheons, team meetings with treats, workplace outings or other such celebrations. Some hybrid employees might not be able to attend these gatherings due to their schedules or work locations.
That’s why employers with hybrid workers should consider equitable ways to celebrate employee success. Methods might include virtual events (e.g., Zoom meeting), emails from management or electronic gift cards. Specific celebrations will vary by organization and workforce.
5. Insufficient Equipment
Workers that will be operating from their own homes, even partially, will need adequate technology. Ignoring this aspect can lead to poor productivity and cause a hybrid work model to fail before it even beings.
This means employers will need to consider how to set these workers up for success. Considerations include:
- What technology can workers bring home with them?
- Will workers be reimbursed for purchasing office equipment for their homes?
- Will workers be reimbursed for internet bills?
Additionally, employers should consider what additional training may benefit hybrid workers. For instance, they may need help connecting to an organization’s virtual private network on their home Wi-Fi.
Conclusion
Hybrid work models can provide flexibility to workers while still maintaining operational productivity—but that’s only when properly implemented. Simply allowing workers to float in and out of the office without a solid policy can lead to a variety of issues.
Reach out to RISQ Consulting for more guidance related to remote and hybrid work, including resources to help employees succeed in this emerging landscape.
- Published in Blog
How to be More Productive When Working From Home
By Jessica Carlson, Account Executive
Since March 2020 with the beginning of the Pandemic and the world shutting down, working from home has become more and more common. Even as we’re coming out of the pandemic more employers are not only allowing working from home, but some are requiring it. If you are like me, you struggled to be productive amid endless distractions. Dog must go out or will not stop barking, kids need to be fed, neighbors with people going in and out all day long, cats jumping in your lap in the middle of a zoom meeting, and the list goes on.
As soon as we could go back into the office I jumped at the chance, even if there was no one else there. But there are still days that’s it’s more convenient to not have to drive across town; so how have I been able to be productive on those days? I scoured the internet for tips and tricks. Some of the more effective tips I have listed here.
Set Up a Workstation
It’s important to have a space that is dedicated to work and only work. Try to find a spot that is away from the busyness of family life as they can distract you from focusing. You’ll want to make sure that you have all of tools you would normally have at the office, such as extra monitors. It is really difficult to go back to a single laptop monitor. And you will need to get a comfortable chair. After about a week of sitting at my table with a hard wood dining chair I borrowed my chair from the office. It was a life saver.
Stick to a Schedule
It is easy to log in early when all you have to do in the morning is turn on the computer. Or log off late when you do not have a commute home. For your own mental health, establish a routine and stick to it. Shut down your computer instead of leaving it on to check “just one more time”. Do not respond to emails when you’re watching a movie with your family. These boundaries are extremely important to separate your work and home life.
Take Breaks
When you are in the office it’s easy to get up from your desk and have a quick walk about the office. When you are at home and a coworker needs you but you’re not readily available it’s easy to feel like people think you are slacking or not doing your job because you were not sitting at your computer at that exact moment that they tried to call you. If you do not take breaks you will start to feel worn down and fatigued. Get up! Take a walk. Go on a quick bike ride during lunch. Even if it’s just going outside for a few minutes of fresh air, do something to avoid the burn out.
Keep Connected
The last, and possibly most important thing to help with productivity, is keeping connected. Communication can be difficult to maintain when your whole team works remotely. Schedule regular check in meetings. This has become a lot easier since Zoom and Microsoft Teams have come into play, since you can still meet face to face even if you’re not in the same place.
- Published in Blog