In recent months, I’ve been posting about staff wellbeing in the human rights and humanitarian sectors and the ridiculously high levels of worker stress, trauma and burnout. I’ve emphasised that eradicating the non-profit culture of martyrdom and overwork is essential for healthy working environments.

I’ve shared studies and staff wellbeing reviews that show that the primary cause of stress and burnout is not, ironically, the distressing content of the work, but rather organisational and management failures. Given this, I’ve warned against individualising the problem by telling employees to “just breath” and focus on their own self-care.

The wellbeing crisis is a cultural, political and organisational problem that no amount of yoga or any other measure of self-care can fix. Fundamentally, it requires us recognise that human rights and humanitarian work are as much about the process as they are about the outcome. In practical terms, we’re being asked to operationalise our core-mission principles of humanity and dignity in the way we do our work. Or, to put it another way, we’re being called to put the “human” back into human rights and humanitarian work. 

It seems that what I have been saying resonates with many of you. I’d like to thank those of you who have reached out and bravely shared your stories. Amongst the painful stories of organisations in crisis, burnout, stress and trauma, there’s this ray of hope, senior managers who (com)passionately discuss their dilemmas and ask what they can to promote healthy teams.

I won’t pretend to solve complex organisational problems in a blog, but here, based on the numerous exchanges I have had with seasoned pros in the field, are five simple, achievable things that managers can do:

1. Be a Role Model

Stress and burnout spread though organisations like an infectious disease. Creating a healthy organisation is not just about offering training and therapy. It’s about eradicating the cultures of overwork and martyrdom. Let’s be clear, organisational culture is largely dictated by what managers do and say. So, if managers are perennially stressed, never stop working and, dare I say, act a bit like martyrs themselves, they’re sending a clear message that being stressed, overworked and self sacrificing is not only attractive, it’s the path to success.

2. Focus on Your Own Self-Care

Managers who struggle to role model have usually let their own self-care slip. Before telling employees to look after theirs, managers can first reflect upon where they’re at with their own self-care. The “all work and no play” NGO working model is a fast track to burnout. And it’s counterproductive. Getting out of the office, spending time with loved ones, eating well, exercising and doing things that bring us joy are essential things that managers can do to lead by example, and also ensure individual, organisational and mission longevity and sustainability.

3. Talk about Distressing Stuff

Human rights and humanitarian work are traumatic – that’s a fact. Research shows that the less open managers are to discussing distressing things, the more likely employees are to be negatively impacted. Managers who admit to their staff that certain stuff gets under their skin, don’t shy away from talking about trauma and display vulnerability, have a much better chance of fostering a healthy and humane working environment. If you’re really uncomfortable speaking about trauma, then it’s time to get professionals in to facilitate open discussions about difficult content with you and your team.

4. Get a Coach

Research repeatedly reveals the most important thing that managers can do to promote organisational wellbeing is to improve their communication, management, leadership and organisational skills. One-on-one professional coaching offers a structured and practical way for managers to set priorities based upon integrity and human values and foster healthy teams. Moreover, research shows that non-profit leaders who have a coach display better cognitive flexibility, self-awareness, collaborative relationships, leadership and communication skills.

5. Rethink Organisational Strategic Planning

Humanitarian and human rights work are just as much about a process as they are an outcome. The strategic planning process provides a great opportunity to pinpoint exactly how our core-mission values can be realised not only for the people we aim to serve, but also for our people who do the work. Re-thinking strategic planning means going beyond setting goals and determining impact and exploring how we can realise a human centred mission within our organisations and nurture organisational health and wellbeing.