In the first episode of our "Mental Health at Work" series, my colleague Jenn Mason and I tackled the critical distinction between being tired and being truly depleted. We start by defining burnout as work-related exhaustion that happens over time, while compassion fatigue comes from the emotional toll of over-identifying with the suffering of others. We contend as well, though, that depletion is a much deeper state that impacts your core motivation and ability to connect, going far beyond simple exhaustion. Jenn and I were candid about how leaders, even us, in our own trauma-informed mental health organization—often miss the signs of depletion in ourselves and our teams because the culture rewards "powering through".

We also explore the invisible burdens and emotional labor that are so inherent in leadership roles. We believe that a human-centered approach requires building in practices for replenishment. We shared some of our own personal strategies, from recognizing physical stress signals in our bodies to taking small "pit stops" during the day.

I also talked about how I started my "Freedom Fridays" (which I've talked about in previous episodes) to build in recovery time before our emotionally-demanding town hall meetings. Ultimately, we want leaders to understand that they must model these healthy behaviors to create psychological safety for their teams. By prioritizing recovery just as much as we prioritize performance, we can proactively address the root causes of depletion before they lead to bigger problems like disengagement and turnover.

Stacie

More episodes at StacieBaird.com.