workplace wellbeing

helping workplaces support people doing demanding work.

Work has always been about more than earning a living. Work provides purpose, identity, routine, and connection, and a sense of contribution. For many people, work is where they strive to make a meaningful difference.

Somewhere along the line, work changed.

Today’s workplaces move faster than ever. Expectations continue to grow, technology has blurred boundaries between work and home, and many roles require people to navigate increasing complexity, uncertainty, and emotional demands. The people who care deeply about doing good work are often the ones carrying the greatest psychological load.

For organisations, the challenge is no longer in just attracting talented people. It’s creating workplaces where people can continue to perform at a high level without sacrificing their wellbeing. Sustainable performance happens when people are supported to do meaningful work in psychologically healthy environments.

understanding the psychology of demanding work

Not all work places the same demands on people.

The psychology of demanding work explores how people think, feel, perform, and recover when their work requires sustained cognitive, emotional, ethical or interpersonal effect. We work with organisations whose people solve complex problems, care for others, lead teams, make difficult decisions or carry significant responsibility. Whether it’s in healthcare, research, consulting, law, energy, or other high-performance environments, these roles ask a great deal of their people.

Over time, ongoing work pressures can lead to burnout, chronic stress, decision fatigue, compassion fatigue, traumatic stress, moral distress, and reduced engagement. These aren’t simply individual challenges - they affect team dynamics, leadership effectiveness, retention, productivity, and organisational culture. Understanding the psychology behind these experiences enables organisations to move beyond reacting to problems and towards creating workplaces where people can thrive.

burnout: more than exhaustion

Our niche is in supporting workplaces navigating the psychology of demanding work - high performers, people who care deeply about doing good work, work in elite domains, healthcare work, emotionally-demanding work. Burnout is one of the main areas we support organisations with. It has become one of the defining workplace issues of our time.

Burnout is rarely the result of single events of an inability of the individual to cope. Rather, it emerges when capable, committed people face ongoing workplace demands without sufficient opportunities to recover. Preventing burnout requires more than encouraging resilience in employees, but rather understanding the interaction between individuals, teams, leaders, and the organisation. Helping organisations prevent burnout - and supporting people experiencing it - is at the heart of our work.

How we partner with organisations

Each organisation is unique, which is why we take a tailored, collaborative approach in helping organisations understand the hidden patterns that affect performance and wellbeing. Our workplace services include:

• Burnout prevention and recovery programs

• Mental health and wellbeing workshops

• Leadership support

• Clinician-led Employee Assistance Program (EAP)

• Executive coaching and psychological support

• Consultation on psychologically healthy workplace and organisational wellbeing initiatives.

Whether we’re supporting one employee, facilitating a leadership workshop, or partnering with an organisation over many years, our focus remains on helping people sustain meaningful, high-quality work while supporting healthier organisations.

why organisations choose us

We’re a boutique psychology practice that combines evidence-based knowledge with genuine relationships. Our clients value psychologists who take the time to understand their organisation and the unique pressures their people face.

WHAT WORKPLACES CAN DO TO HELP MENTAL HEALTH

Given that 1 in 5 Australians will, in a 12-month period, experience significant mental health issues, it’s helpful to reflect on how this statistic translates to work environments. We may not pause to consider:

• That a colleague’s avoidance of team meetings, or of reporting project updates, may reflect social anxiety rather than laziness.

• That a team mate’s withdrawal from team lunches and making small talk may reflect depression rather than antisocial behaviour.

• That someone’s abruptness may reflect not their personality, but the immense pressure and overwhelm that they face in life.

Workplaces investing in mental health also makes good business sense in light of reports into the Return on Investment (ROI) for organisations across a range of mental health initiatives. Of particular note are findings from Deloitte’s 2020 updated paper examining Mental Health and Employers: Refreshing the case for investment where organisation-wide proactive approaches (for example, group-based workshops and training targeting shifting culture and stigma, and increasing mental health awareness) were found to yield higher ROIs compared to reactive, individual one-on-one services.

The bottom line for organisations? Do something that helps spark a conversation and bring about real change for employees. Great takeaways from the Deloitte report include:

• Increase mental health literacy and awareness by holding organisation-wide training. Helping managers and employees identify the early warning signs of poor mental health means they can access early support to help them bounce back sooner.

• Build capability when it comes to helping teams and individuals to address mental health and build resilience. Through training, equip employees with the skills to have conversations with someone they notice isn’t travelling well (e.g. managers, or peer support individuals), and also to develop evidence-based tools and skills (e.g. CBT, ACT, Mindfulness, Positive psychology) to help themselves.

• Shift the culture and stigma around mental health. Make mental health check-ins part of meetings to gauge how the team is travelling, particularly around times of stress and change. Organisation-wide training around stigma, unconscious bias, and open discussions around the importance of staying psychologically well should all be part of an organisation’s mental health conversation. Aim for ease around discussions of mental health to be on par with that around physical health.

• Provideeasy access to support for employees to help themselves, be it through managers, mental health champions, peer support individuals, or Employee Assistance Programs.

If you’re keen to see how The Skill Collective can assist with your organisation’s mental wellbeing drop us a line and start a conversation for support. We offer training and workshops, as well as consult with organisations on wellbeing programs. We also offer boutique EAP services. Additionally, we work alongside Perquiro, an organisational psychology consultancy that provides bespoke solutions for addressing job design and organisational culture - these are critical to driving positive mental health outcomes for a more resilient and engaged workforce.

WHAT individuals CAN DO FOR workplace wellbeing

You may be but one individual, but there is much that you can do to boost mental health (and, in turn, performance) in the workplace. Think about the workplace in which you felt most supported and at your healthiest psychologically. Chances are it wasn’t just job-related aspects such as workload and salary, but things such as positive team environment, social activities, or a caring work family. These things make a difference on a daily basis, and you can be the change in your workplace. Try:

• Small actions make a big difference. Simple actions such as saying hello in the morning, or offering to grab your colleague the occasional coffee can make a difference to feelings of belonging and connectedness.

• Check in regularly with colleagues, not just annually on RU OK? Day. We love RU OK? Day, but that question can be asked more frequently that each year in September if something seems different with your colleague.

• Call out stigma and bias when you hear it.

• Grab our resources. Take a look through our blog for a range of topics on mental health, performance, and wellbeing.

• Reach out to EAP or a psychologist (that’s us!) to help with reactive mental health issues or to take a preventative approach when it comes to protecting your mental health.

helpful RESOURCES

Below are some helpful articles on the topic of work, specially curated from our blog.

REFERENCES

Australian Bureau of Statistics (2009). National Survey of Mental Health and Wellbeing: Summary of Results, 4326.0, 2007. ABS: Canberra. http://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/Latestproducts/4326.0Main%20Features32007?opendocument&tabname=Summary&prodno=4326.0&issue=2007&num=&view=

Deloitte (2020). Mental health and employers: Refreshing the case for investment. www2.deloitte.com/uk/en/pages/consulting/articles/mental-health-and-employers-refreshing-the-case-for-investment.html

PwC and Beyond blue (2014). Creating a mentally healthy workplace: Return on investment analysis. https://www.headsup.org.au/docs/default-source/resources/beyondblue_workplaceroi_finalreport_may-2014.pdf

www.news-medical.net/news/20200729/Mental-health-problems-peak-alongside-COVID-19-in-Australia.aspx