Election anxiety is real… and it’s messing with your work
73% of workers say that they are feeling election anxiety, no matter who they are voting for.
And for the next month, that will only increase, as we all face a deepening intersectionality between our professional and personal lives.
Driving to a meeting, I was on the phone with my mother, who was worried about grocery shortages due to the start of the strikes at ports. Was I crazy to be going to this meeting instead of buying paper towels?
In the middle of a Zoom call, I received a text from a friend that Iran was attacking Israel. The implications of this immediately hit me.
And I received 6 requests for political donations today…just today…while I was at work!
Even if we aren’t in advocacy, politics are wreaking havoc on our work and our mindset.
What can you do to support your staff, as they also work to keep their own election anxiety in check while they are at work?
Acknowledge and Accept the Reality
Elections always feel personal, but this year, they feel particularly meaningful. Whatever issue is most important to you, those issues are being brought up over and over again, and that can feel stressful. Reproductive rights, immigration, democracy, voting rights, LGBTQ+ rights, and the cost of living are all on the ballot. That is a lot. So it's ok for it to feel like a lot. Offer a calm space for your staff to talk to you or other trusted figures about what they are feeling. When you do this, be careful to not add fuel to the fire of their anxiety. Rather, this is a great space to practice your listening skills. You can’t solve this for them, but just being a sounding board will help build trust with and calm your colleagues.
Use your Mindful Management Skills
It's hard to encourage calm when your own anxieties are high. This is a great time to reinforce mindfulness techniques with your staff. Offer to take a walk instead of having meetings in your office. Send out a calendar invite for 5 minutes during the day that reminds your staff to stand, breathe and stretch. Or offer a subscription to a meditation app for the month.
Create a space of Gratitude
It may be election season, but it’s also the season of gratitude. And acknowledging the things you are grateful for is an exceptional tool for centering yourself and lowering anxiety. Think about starting a Gratitude Wall or a shared online Gratitude Journal. This helps drive optimism during a time that anxiety may be blocking that for us and our staff.
Lastly, remember that your staff and your clients need to get to the polls, so remember to give them the time to do that.
If the world was fair, we wouldn’t have an election during budget planning season and leading into the holiday season, but the world is not fair. As election anxiety hits your and your staff, it is ok to acknowledge the implications of it on our work. That acknowledgement is an important step in your efforts to move past it. As my therapist always taught me…you have to go through the feelings to get to the other side of them.
