Family First Workplace Culture is Possible!
I’ve had some great bosses in my career. Under their leadership, I’ve learned to care for a team, communicate and drive a shared vision, understand the financial impact of decisions, and other invaluable lessons. I’m thankful for how God placed these leaders in my life and how they’ve helped shape my leadership style. Now that I have the responsibility to set workplace culture, I often think about the lessons they taught me.
Anyone Can Influence Workplace Culture
Before talking about culture from a leadership position, I want to be clear that anyone can help set a healthy culture. Leaders, by the nature of their position, have this responsibility, but all of us can influence culture. Let’s take gossip as an example. If you gossip at work, you are adding to the problem, but if you redirect someone who is gossiping or change the subject to something productive, you’re helping to set a healthy culture. Anyone can do this.
The Leader’s Role in Setting Culture
Now, let’s look at how leaders have the responsibility to set culture, whether that “weight” is desired or not. If you hold a position of influence and don’t help set a healthy culture, there is a risk an unhealthy one will take over. For example, one of the unhealthy cultures I’ve been a part of maintained the default position that “everything is urgent.” In this setting, urgency defined every task, even when something wasn’t urgent. I work in healthcare, so there are absolutely time-sensitive needs, urgent situations, and even emergencies. For example, callouts require quick calls to cover shifts, especially during the current workforce shortage. I am not talking about those instances. I’m talking about the routine items that could wait until the next workday.
The Impact of After-Hours Communication
When you are a leader and send a late-night text asking a question that could wait until the next morning, you might be sending some inadvertent signals. An employee could think that you don’t value their time with family, that you expect them to work at night, or even that you are clearing your to-do list when the timing is convenient for you. These messages could slowly lead this employee to disengage at work and be less productive. Understandably, a spouse may eventually say something like, “I need you to be present.” Over time, this could lead the employee to start looking for another job. And to top it off, when there is a true emergency, this employee may not be as willing to drop everything on a Friday night since so many other nights have been “chipped away.”
How to Promote Work-Life Balance as a Leader
What can you do to promote a healthy balance if you are in a leadership role? It is absolutely your responsibility to set the culture, so work to set it in a way that honors the family. Instead of sharing your great ideas at night, set up regular meetings to communicate these ideas. Instead of texting a question, email it and let your employees know that you don’t expect them to respond to these night-emails until the next day. Side note: be careful about responding to emails at night because your team may think you expect immediate responses. If you are worried about forgetting, try creating a separate to-do list or scheduling your email to be sent in the morning.
Addressing Work-Life Balance with Your Boss
What can you do if your family time is being negatively impacted by work? Be open with your boss and ask if non-urgent items could be sent through email or saved until the next workday. Let them know that you love your family and that protecting time with them will help you become a better employee. Make sure they understand that you are more than willing to deal with urgent items whenever they arise (and they will arise).
Let’s Build a Family-First Culture Together
Let’s be a generation that sets a family-first culture and not just talk about it. I’m thankful for the many leaders I’ve had who helped me see how important this is for the health of families and organizations.
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