Gallup recently published an article, “The Wellbeing Engagement Paradox of 2020.” They report that in contrast to more normal times, the somewhat inverse relationship between wellbeing and engagement diverged in 2020, creating new challenges for leaders.

Not surprisingly, many Americans view their wellbeing as more distressful. The myriad pandemic related personal issues from isolation to stress to worry, as well as external factors, such as social justice issues all contributed.

Normally this would portend lower employee engagement, but 2020 showed a divergence where employees were more engaged than expected. Employees working remotely seem to have fared better from an engagement perspective, again, going against the grain of what would be expected.

Leaders who proactively help their employees manage stress and stay afloat with flexibility are positioned to enjoy a healthier and more committed workforce in the future. If you just let employees deal with these issues on their own, the results can be more negative and who knows how long it will take to recover.

There are leaders who grumble about why they need to manage things like employee stress and burnout. The answer is simple. If you value your employees, you need to pay attention to the signs and do what you can to help them improve their situation.

No, they won’t exit your company now, but they will have one foot out the door if there isn’t at least an appearance that you are trying to make a difficult situation work.

By the way, don’t expect them to tell you that they are on the edge; you need to go the extra step and have the kind of conversations that will provide you with clues.

Obviously, there is much more to this topic that what was introduced here. Think of this as the beginning of a conversation and a trigger for you to manage the possible fracturing that may be occurring unbeknownst to you.