Why Human Resources Professionals need to put themselves first.
Image credit: Max van den Oetellar on Unsplash
A career in Human Resources can be incredibly rewarding, however, recently articles are stating that burnout is a very real problem for HR Professionals, and not just because of the impacts from Covid.
I have read many of these articles, and sadly their findings don’t surprise me.
My reasons for embarking on an HR career are likely similar to yours; Because there is an opportunity to make a contribution within an organisation, the work is varied, to add value, influence and guide, advise and ‘help’ employees, and ‘work with people’. It’s often fast paced, high pressured and interesting.
And yet, what you don’t often hear when you start is that it can be utterly exhausting at the same time, and actually quite a lonely role. A recent study, cited in Forbes and TIME found that 98% of HR Professionals are burnt out. 98%. That is an unbelievable statistic, and certainly not sustainable.
All the reasons for originally joining are valid - you do get to contribute to strategy, help shape and drive culture, develop people and influence decisions. You do get to work with people, every single day. And that in itself is often where the pressure comes in.
Despite the fact that we support employees, the core of a business, we can often be viewed with distrust and scepticism. In my 20 plus years in HR I was called a spy, the big brother of an organisation, the fun police, simply there to process people, and the ultimate insult, “we pay your salary”. You don’t have to take these comments, obviously, but they still happen.
As an HR Professional, do you go to the company functions and dance with abandon and drink with joy along with everyone else?
Probably not.
Why?
Because it’s simply not worth it when in the morning you either have a disciplinary, grievance or redundancy to deal with and who knows, it may be with that person you were dancing away with, with abandon.
And redundancy is life changing. Managers normally dread it, yet it’s a fact of life for us. I have lost count of the number of people I made redundant in my career. Delivering bad news is just part and parcel of the role. You deliver it with as much compassion and empathy as possible, guiding managers to do the same, however it is still bad news.
Working with managers who don’t want to have difficult conversations, versus the mavericks who you get to clean up after is hard work. The ‘without prejudice’ conversations, or legal letters you deal with, part of your job. And the managers who don’t want to have any conversations, either positive or negative with their employees lest they find themselves misquoted or quoted out of context. All part of the day job.
Do you have a seat at the leadership table? Thankfully more and more the answer to this is yes. But it’s not often enough. It needs to be better, definitely room for improvement!
And during the pandemic. Who had to cope with things like advising, writing and implementing strategies and policies for hybrid working, working from home, sick leave questions, absences, even death? HR did. You did. All whilst dealing with your own personal stuff. It’s super tough.
Working long hours? Taking work home? A deadline imposed by your business area, or a head of department who doesn’t push back hard enough on the business when they place unrealistic timeframes on you. When do you fully switch off?
Who do you confide in?
When you’ve had a bad day because you know there’s a major restructure coming up and your friend works in the affected department – who can you talk to outside of your HR colleagues?
So, those original reasons you joined up, how are they sitting right now? Feeling a bit disillusioned? Tired? Burnt out?
BUT, it’s not all doom and gloom. There are many, many, reasons to be fully engaged and embrace a truly awesome career choice.
So now is your time, your time to put yourself first. When was the last time you were really good to yourself and treated yourself with compassion?
Here are a few suggestions:
What are the things you do to reset and that bring you joy? Have a think about them and note down a list of about 10, then laminate it and put it somewhere handy. Include activities of five minutes and longer. I invite you to incorporate one of these into your day, every day. Things just for you.
Create boundaries. Whatever this means for you. I once had a manager who started at 9am on a Monday and finished at 4pm on a Friday – within that time she did whatever was needed but she ringfenced her weekends. Perhaps for you it’s getting home in time for supper with the kids, regularly. Maybe it’s personal boundaries you need to work on, for when you feel triggered or your values feel compromised. Like I said, whatever it means for you, create those boundaries.
Find yourself someone you can download to. My friend suggested this, and I fully agree; It is important to be able to speak about the uncomfortable truths that you see and experience, to the people who can actually do something about it. It might be your CEO, Head of Department, MD, Board, whoever. If you can find ways for these conversations to occur and to be acted upon then you are aligning with one of your original reasons for choosing this career path – to influence and make a difference.
Use your support network, both internal and external. Let them know how you’re feeling and lean into their support.
Remind yourself why you chose this career path, tap into the values that are in play when you’re in the flow. Ask yourself what you need more of, or less of?
Keep a ‘me’ folder or similar. Somewhere you can keep reminders of the thanks, the wins, the support. My first manager in HR suggested this to me and it definitely helped me at times.
An HR career is hugely rewarding but it’s also important for you to look after yourself, so that you can continue to support your employees. The only way you can continue to support your employees is if you work as well on your own resilience and wellbeing as you encourage them to.