4 Negative Emotions Prevalent In Remote Employees That Need To Be Addressed Immediately

Ever since pandemic has hit the world, Directly or indirectly we all are facing adverse effects of it. And corporates are of no exemption! Employees had to switch to a new normal and get adapted to it as soon as possible to keep up the work.

“Too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of caring, all of which have the potential to turn a life around.”

– Leo Buscaglia, Motivational Speaker & Writer

Whether you are a leader or a key team player or even a C-suite executive, Irrespective of anything.....We all are deprived of meaningful human interactions while adjusting to working from home, resulting in a lack of control over our negative emotions.

A recent global report on remote working tells, 

- Employees are five times more likely to suffer from stress, anxiety, or depression compared to the workspace environment.

- And are twice as likely to be disengaged at work due to isolation.

The above facts are telling us that employee well being has to be given more attention and should be taken up as a high priority.

If you are a leader or someone who cares for your team, understand that these are the times where you need to Instill more Kindness and Empathy towards your team members to make them feel better while they are adjusting to the new normal.

The first stage of empathy comes from understanding more about the negative emotions and how they are affecting employees’ work performance.

And here are the 4 major negative emotions that are being observed in employees and you have to know them,

1. Frustration: This comes with a lack of work-life balance.
2. Stress: Built as team members are working in unsatisfactory conditions without any teamwork.
3. Anxiety: Due to deadlines that are hard to keep amidst distractions while working from home.
4. Loneliness: Developed due to isolation from human interactions.

So how can you help your employees or co-workers get rid of these negative emotions?

Here's a way,

1. Understand their behavior and emotional states:

Give them hope, when they are going through the hardest times in their lives. Talk personally and Listen to them. You might never know, just a listening ear and understanding behavior can give that lone remote employee enough strength to go an extra mile in all aspects of life.

2. Have a fun time:

Don’t let your smallest bonding sessions like evening coffee or the funny lunchtime conversations go away in this virtual work life. Take the lead and gather your team for the evening coffee time all together with some fun games.

3. Help remote employees work together:

Teamwork simply leads to higher productivity. It has promising benefits to help the teammates bond emotionally, builds trust, and brings human interaction to your online teams. So, set up the required tools to incorporate teamwork in your teams virtually.

4. Create psychological safety in the organization:

Here's a question before we talk about it, “Are you able to understand the deeper feelings of your team members with their tone of voice, looking into their eyes and expressions”? If not, it’s high time to take your first step now, as it has become more than a necessity now, while working with virtual teams. Create a safe place for employees to share their feelings and have transparency to build strong bonds between the team members.

You May Like: A Quick Guide For HR's To Build Successful Employee Engagement Model

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Most importantly, keep following up with your employees or co-workers and have personal talks with them. Who knows a meaningful conversation can make them feel good and bring about a positive change in their emotions.