Hey Reader,

I know you’re doing great work. But the truth is, you can’t give your best if you’re not at your best. And if you’re not around to help create a positive impact in your community, then who will be?

To support your journey through this intense season, here are three ways you can get started with cultivating a stronger culture of well-being for your organization:

1. Replenish your closest sphere of impact.

You have many spheres of impact representing the different levels at which you can create a positive impact through your work. The first place to start with organizational change is with your closest sphere of impact as a changemaker—you!

As flight attendants remind us, you must secure your own oxygen mask first before assisting others. This concept also applies to pouring into yourself personally and professionally. If you’re consistently pouring from a full or overflowing cup, you set yourself and your team up for sustained long-term success. The result is a sustained flow of ripples of positive change through your spheres of impact.

Otherwise, your cup runs dry, you burn out, and your organizational change efforts stall or do more harm than good. This burnout usually results from trying to tackle outer spheres of impact first (e.g., being laser-focused on your organization’s or client’s needs at your own expense) without nourishing yourself first. As a result, you may often feel like you’re being crushed by the weight of the world.

Start securing your own oxygen mask today by pausing and asking yourself: What’s one small step I can take in the next seven days to improve my well-being?

This should be something you can do in 15 minutes or less. Here are a few ideas:

• Call human resources to see if mental health services are included in your insurance plan. This directory of resources is available if you need help finding affordable mental health treatment without insurance.
• Find a supportive community of like-minded peers. Here are a few places to start:
  • ​Thriving Mindfully Academy: A resource network grounded in mindfulness, self-love, and self-care.
  • ​NTEN: A community of nonprofit professionals who are using technology to change the world.
  • ​Nonprofit Professionals of Color Collective: A curated convening for people of color who are committed to their professional growth, giving and receiving support, and networking with like-minded peers.
  • ​Ask a Manager: Insights on hiring, firing, promoting, managing, and navigating workplace weirdness.
• Order a standalone alarm clock to replace your smart device alarm so that you can get a better night's sleep.
• If you have a primary care doctor, make an appointment for a check-up. Sometimes prolonged burnout and overwhelm can be signs of a health problem you may not be aware of.
• Call human resources to see if you have free or discounted access to wellness apps like Insight Timer, Calm, or Microsoft Office 365 Viva Insights (your IT person might be the right point of contact here).
• Check with your supervisor to see whether your organization provides a professional development budget. Research conferences, courses, and coaching programs you can register for with that professional development budget, if applicable.
• Time block your daily start and stop routines on your calendar.
• Request time off. Take a look at the calendar for the next 90 days and identify a few times to take time away from work, whether that’s taking a half-day on a Friday or a long weekend, or formally requesting time for a pre-planned vacation or holiday.

Once you identify your one small step, write it down.

Next, schedule a 15-minute appointment with yourself for the next 7 days. Yes, an appointment just for you! Put yourself on your calendar—seriously. During your appointment, focus on accomplishing the one small step you identified. When you’ve completed your one small step, pause, appreciate your accomplishment, and identify your next step. Rinse and repeat.

2. Check on your team.

If you manage a team or project, intentionally checking in with each of your direct reports or stakeholders on a regular basis is more critical than ever, especially in this season.

But what do I say? How do I know what my team needs? I get some variation of these questions from team leaders all the time. The simple answer is to ask questions. You don’t need to be a mind reader. You’d be surprised what asking the right questions yields. In fact, many times, people aren’t looking for a tangible solution—they just want to feel seen, heard, valued and affirmed. Simply asking and really listening is a huge first step. Sometimes there may not be much detail to share or a reluctance to speak up at first, which is completely fine. But intentionally making space so your team knows they can come to you is huge.

Here are some questions to get you started:

• What’s the single biggest challenge you’re facing with work right now?
• What do you need to make work work better for you right now?
• When was the last time you took time off work (and really unplugged)?
• What projects would you like to work on or be more involved in?
• Where do you need help?
• Are you waiting on anything from me?
• Where would you like me involved more in your day-to-day? Where would you like me to be involved less?
• Is our level of communication working for you? How would you change it?

Here are some ways to take meaningful action on feedback from your team and stakeholders:

• Be a good role model for your team. Practice what you preach.
• Don’t ask if you don’t really want to know. If you ask, acknowledge that you heard them and appreciate their feedback, even if you can’t act immediately.
• Be honest and upfront about what’s possible and what’s not (honesty builds credibility).
• Follow up promptly, even if it’s just to provide an update on something that’s still in process.
• Do what you say you will do, and don’t overpromise.
• Make meaningful check-ins a regular thing.

Next time you see your colleagues, I invite you to go beyond a simple “How’s it going?” or “How was your weekend?” Ask specific questions about challenges and what supports would be helpful. Wait for the entire answer. Really listen, and then take action based on what you’ve been told.

3. Create an organizational well-being vision statement.

This statement is a few sentences that succinctly describe what your ideal culture of well-being looks and feels like. This exercise can be done individually or as a small group.

Start small by considering this question: what’s our vision for what we want well-being to look like for our team and/or organization over the next 90 days?

Your response can just be a few rough aspirational bullet points to start with and can evolve over time. If 90 days feels like too much—or too little—time to wrap your head around, consider adjusting the time period to what works better for you, such as the next seven, 30, or 60 days. You might find it helpful to imagine what your team’s well-being would be like if you knew it was impossible for you to fail and you had every resource—money, board support, external consultants—you needed at your disposal right now.

Here are a few additional questions that may be helpful as you map out your vision:

• How do our organization’s current mission, vision, and values connect to employee well-being?
• What core values are important for promoting well-being within our organization?
• Who are the primary beneficiaries of our efforts (e.g., employees, their families, the community, etc.)?
• What specific areas of well-being will our organization focus on?

If you already have a vision statement, I invite you to review it and assess how well you’re doing at realizing it. Your vision is the foundation of your organizational strategy for creating a healthier workplace culture for the long haul. Your workplace well-being strategy outlines the steps to advance your organization's well-being. It’s a plan that clarifies your priorities, which tasks you will focus on to achieve your goals, and holds you and your organization accountable for achieving the defined goals.

Your strategy also supports you in integrating well-being activities into your organization at all levels intentionally while allocating the appropriate resources. This type of planning moves you away from superficial wellness benefits and one-off activities to embedding well-being into your organization's core. Before putting a plan into action, creating a vision is the first place to start.

Next Steps

If you don’t know where to start to create a healthier workplace culture, start by taking 15 minutes for yourself, then gradually expand your focus to your team and organization. The process of taking small steps to improve your own well-being and then replicating this at the team and organizational levels creates a sustainable path to healing burnout culture and creating more ripples of positive impact over the long term.

You can start by considering this question: which resources do we need to improve the well-being of our team that we don’t have currently?

If something seems impossible, I invite you and your team to think about why and what it would take to create the necessary conditions where aspirational changes could eventually become part of your organization’s culture.

But you don’t have to figure it all out on your own. I invite you to consider what type of support, accountability, coaching, and community you need for your journey. This is why I offer organizational well-being assessments and support teams in developing and implementing long-term well-being strategies.

If you need support for yourself or your team to navigate this season, I’m here for you. Just reply to this message or book an appointment here: mindfultechie.com/virtualtea.

Keep moving!

Meico

About Meico

I’m Meico Marquette Whitlock.

Imagine a world where leaders and teams don’t just grind through the day but thrive in their work, without sacrificing their well-being. That’s the world I’m working to create.

I’m here to help you embody what it means to truly thrive and know your well-being is your greatest asset.

As a workplace well-being strategist, I’m on a mission to help purpose-driven leaders rewrite the narrative of success. I believe that impactful work doesn’t have to come at the cost of your health or happiness, and I’ve made it my life’s work to show you how.

I’m the founder and CEO of Mindful Techie, author of How to Thrive When Work Doesn’t Love You Back and The Intention Planner, and a certified trauma-informed mindfulness teacher.

I partner with mission-driven organizations to create cultures where belonging, balance, and purpose take center stage. In a world full of burnout and overwhelm, I help you navigate life, work, and technology in harmony.

During my previous career in the tech, nonprofit, and government sectors, I experienced more than my fair share of burnout and overwhelm in the name of making a difference. As a recovering workaholic, I use what I’ve learned to help changemakers like you make an impact without self-sacrifice.

I partner with you to create strategies and deliver programs that help your team scale impact while sustaining the right balance between life, work, and technology in today’s changing world.

I have worked with organizations such as the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Cigna, and Greenpeace, and have been a featured speaker on ABC News, Fox 5, and Radio One. I'm also a former triathlete, love salsa dancing, and make the world’s best vegan chili! :-)

Are you ready to prioritize your well-being and elevate your well-doing? Let’s get started!

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