Building your team A team is a group of individuals, working together for a shared purpose.

Gallup’s 12 Questions Do you know what is expected of you at work? In the last seven days, have you received recognition or praise for doing good work? At work, do your opinions seem to count? Does the mission/purpose of your company make you feel your job is important? In the last six months, has someone at work talked to you about your progress?

Building your team Fundamentally: communication! One to one meetings. Regular, timely, fixed agenda. Agree goals / tasks. Recap at the end! Annual appraisals- Both sides prepare Team meetings It’s hard, ongoing work!

The impact of our work Is any of this familiar? Low energy levels Lost passion for the work Low levels of job satisfaction Feeling disillusioned / cynical about your job / the sector / the people A change in sleeping habits or appetite

The impact of our work Burn out (complete exhaustion through overwork) Stress (a state of mental or emotional strain or tension resulting from adverse or demanding circumstances Compassion fatigue (don’t or can’t care any more) Vicarious trauma (taking on other peoples’ experiences of trauma)

The impact of our work Potentially 1/3 of all employees are affected by burn out in the UK http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/health-and-families/health-news/depression-and-burn-out-at-work-afflict-one-third-of-employees-9294596.html How much more likely is this to affect us and our teams when you think about the issues we are dealing with on a daily basis?

The impact of our work “The expectation that we can be immersed in suffering and loss daily and not be touched by it is as unrealistic as expecting to be able to walk through water without getting wet.”  Rachel Remen, Kitchen Table Wisdom

A glass of water?

Top tips! As a manager / leader, model basic wellbeing (lunch breaks?) Seek professional advice- there are plenty of people (e.g. HR experts, employment law specialists) many of whom will offer support for free Funders will fund supervision and staff training- don’t be shy to ask Find some trusted friends / advisers you can confide in (a burden shared…!)

Top tips! It is worth it… A thriving team of flourishing individuals who really love their work will offer the best possible service and support to those we are working with. But… and most importantly:

To close…. What is one thing that you will do, this weekend, that would count as “self care”- i.e. looking after yourself so that you can look after others? What is one area you would like to explore in terms of looking after your team and what is the next step you will take next week?