Encouragement needed today

Author Victor M. Parachin tells a story: When Walt Whitman was a young, aspiring writer-long before he established himself as one of America’s premier poets – he had a tough time getting published. One of his most famous books, “Leaves of Grass,” was rejected so many times that Whitman published it himself, and working with a little print shop, he produced 800 copies.

To sell the book, he purchased newspaper ads, sent review copies to book critics and prominent citizens, and dragged copies from bookstore to bookstore in a large canvas bag. There is no record that he sold even a single one.

Yet, worse than no sales was the book’s denouncement by those who received complimentary copies from the author. “A heterogeneous mass of bombast, vulgarity, and nonsense,” wrote one critic. “We can conceive of no better reward than the lash,” declared another. Poet John Greenleaf Whittier reportedly threw his copy of the book out of a window.

Then came a letter from the preeminent poet of that day, Ralph Waldo Emerson. The letter contained three short sentences that gave Walt Whitman the encouragement he needed to keep on writing. The letter read: “Dear Sir, I am not blind to the worth of the wonderful gift: ‘Leaves of Grass.’ I find it the most extraordinary piece of wit and wisdom that America has yet contributed. I greet you at the beginning of a great career.”

Have you ever wondered what the word “encouragement” means? It means “to put courage into” someone.

The global pandemic has created a seismic shift in workplace mental health. Leaders today, more so than ever, need to place mental health at the top of their agenda. They need to address this glaring issue. The sense behind this is that people would not perform at their best when they are suffering inside. But this goes beyond just performance issues and concerns; this is a leadership issue on how we treat our people.

The problem with this is that people would not admit that they are struggling with mental health issues as they perceive this as tantamount to an admission of weakness that might jeopardize or hurt their work. People would not want to speak out about their feelings. There is this impression that their teams may ostracize them or, worst, might even lead them to be laid off.

There is a real economic recession happening, and job opportunities are scarce. The perennial fear that anything spoken out may be perceived as complaints that could result in termination. The mental health epidemic at work persists because of the stigma around it.

But these are extraordinary times. Consider remote work. Poor mental health is inescapable as there is no separation between their work and personal lives. Studies today would indicate that mental health issues have negatively affected their home life, causing things like deteriorating family relationships, isolation from friends, reduced happiness, and sleep deprivation.

The good news is that many progressive companies understand the issues, which is why they have taken a proactive approach to address this through Wellness Webinars’ presentation. I should know as I have been invited to provide many of these. These are webinars on physical, financial, emotional, and spiritual wellness. To my surprise, even attendance at these sessions is purely voluntary; the place – I mean the screen and the virtual conference platforms fill up and, in some instances, even exceeds capacity.

While technology and all these virtual platforms and webinars can help alleviate our people from suffering mental health issues, the basic principle remains that leaders’ encouragement will still be more powerful and potent.

This is that one crucial moment when leaders need to lead with empathy, show compassion, and double down on encouraging their people. Say a kind word. Set out intentionally to know how your people are coping. Find out if you have the habit of saying any of the following things out of habit and deliberately change these negative phrases into positive and encouraging statements:

“Sounds like a personal problem.”

“It’s work; it’s not supposed to be fun.”

“You’re lucky to even have a job.”

“I don’t make the rules.”

“Your job is what I say it is.”

“This is the way we’ve always done things.”

“I’ll take that under advisement.”

“I got an anonymous complaint…”

“Just figure it out.”

Be kind, be encouraging, and be human. This principle is not rocket science. It is plain good leadership, and the world needs a lot of this today.

(Connect with Francis Kong at www.facebook.com/franciskong2. Or listen to “Business Matters” Monday to Friday at 8:00 a.m. and 6:30 p.m. over 98.7 DZFE-FM ‘The Master’s Touch,’ the classical music station.)