Are you ready to thrive?

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You have some star performers. You have a lot of people who try hard - mostly. And then there's a group who ... well, you wonder how they manage to put their socks on. This is normal - it will even follow a normal distribution in all probability - and it'll contain a normal mixture of underperformance, sickness and retention problems, most of which you could probably do without.

But are you ready to thrive?

Performance-related problems are all caused by something - some cognitive, practical, social or emotional issues that are affecting your people's time at work. But many of the things that cause upset and stress, reducing people's ability to collaborate and even think are not talked about. Some we don't even have ready words for, even though business is starting to take notice of neuroscience. So getting to the bottom of these unseen disruptors of your productivity will involve stepping outside the everyday language and tools of the HR department.

This is our everyday currency at WeThrive - we spend our time helping organisations of all sizes dig into the underlying social and emotional landscape of their employees' experience of work, rooting out the origins of the stresses that lie behind underperformance, illness and retention problems. But not everyone wants to know what is going on.

Can of worms

Some people prefer to do nothing, saying 'we're not ready as a company' or 'we don't want to open a can of worms'. Some feel it is too big a leap, or are not confident about following through from the results. That's quite natural, but unfortunate; even the most serene office is hiding a normal amount of human confusion, under-skilling, resource gaps, social problems and other frustrations.

Confidence pays

This anxiety comes about because we are wired to fear the unknown in case it turns out to be a threat. But there are straightforward strategies for dealing with the results, whatever they turn out to be. What's more, history says that cans of worms generally fester and get worse with time, so the dice are loaded in favour of those who roll up their sleeves and get stuck in - especially when they have a plan.

Hierarchy of actions

Faced with a need for action, however you have discovered it, there are three things you can do:

• act now where possible
• schedule action for when it becomes possible
• reframe the problem and move on

Act now where possible

If it is desirable and practical to act straight away, this is best. People really like it when a problem is tackled as soon as it is discovered - the shorter the learning loop the better.

Where teams are put together for a special project it is normal to find out that, even though the group have a clear picture in their own minds of what they think they have been recruited for, the picture is not shared by the others. Consequently they don't co-operate easily and there is too much double-handling, re-work, confusion and frustration in the group. Oddly, they all think they are on the same page, but coming from teams with different assumptions and local ways of using language, the picture in one person's head doesn't transfer directly to another's.   This causes all sorts of other frustrations, which should tackled head-on. One immediate response would be a workshop to uncover the communication problems and set new standards. There its also an opportunity here for staff to put names to the effects they were feeling. This increases emotional intelligence and gives people the skills to diagnose and solve such frustrations in the future.

Schedule action for when it becomes possible

If something can't be done immediately, acknowledge the problem and set a timetable for when work will start to relieve it. The first step in reducing the upset associated with a problem is acknowledging its existence, and people are further calmed when they know that the time for proper resolution is getting nearer.

Sometimes we find resourcing problems across a team, a department or even a whole company, on a scale that is compromising everyone's work but which has never been quantified, let alone acknowledged or tackled. There is rarely the budget to sort these out straight away, even if that was physically possible. However, where there is a business case for change and that change has to be delayed, it is a good idea to thank staff for bringing it up, acknowledge the frustration they are experiencing and ask them to contribute to the solutions. As well as a horizon for what was previously an endless problem, this gives people a sense of control over the issue, as well as being a meaningful exercise that contributes to their sense of their position in the organisation. All of which contribute to their wellbeing at work.

Reframe the problem and move on

Some things don't change. In some seasonal businesses there will always going to be a great deal of pressure at peak times, for example. Run a survey at peak times and people will likely say they have no time to stop and think. This is accepted in many industries: in the Press when the print deadline approaches, for example, or in the NHS during 'winter pressures' when the beds are full and elderly casualties are stacking up on trollies in the corridors.

But even though this is normal that doesn't mean it is good - it prevents learning among other things, as it is the breaks from task-focussed activity that allow us to consolidate memory, so people who work continuously risk getting stuck in unhelpful patterns of behaviour. So, to the degree that it is possible to get people some respite, it should be offered. It's the humane thing to do, and also prevents burnout, so it's a good investment.

Still wondering if it's the right thing to do?

If so, you know the answer already. You would have left by now if you didn't already get the idea that people will contribute more if their cognitive, practical, social and emotional needs are met at work. So if you are still worried about whether the company is 'ready' to engage with the workplace issues using WeThrive, remember one thing.

Anxiety is caused by uncertainty

Assuming there isn't actually a murderer in the room, anxiety is always related to uncertainty. Reduce uncertainty and you'll reduce anxiety. Now, you could do that by keeping to the status quo, not rocking the boat. But all the unknown issues would still be there, developing with time to cause who-knows-what in the future. So here's a suggestion.

Who tastes, knows

There's one sure way to get a handle on the implications of a course of action, and that's to try it. Try it in a safe place, on the exec team or the HR team, or in a team where you know there are problems that aren't fully understood. We guarantee that you will find out a great deal that you didn't know, even in teams that seem well-sorted, never mind those that are in difficulty. Knowledge is power - and knowledge of the unseen stressors in your people is the most powerful ally you can have. Try WeThrive today, free, and see a whole new perspective on the people issues in your organisation.