One Meeting Minute Thought for Your Week
Why should we take steps to reduce loneliness in the workplace?
If you’ve ever been lonely, you already know one answer.
Loneliness hurts!
And, being a kind leader means helping our coworkers when they’re hurting.
If you aren’t convinced loneliness is a serious problem for the people in your business, consider what research tells us.
Loneliness is a serious problem – including in the workplace
In a report released in May 2023 the United States Surgeon General, Dr. Vivek Murthy said this:
When I first took office as Surgeon General in 2014, I didn’t view loneliness as a public health concern.
But that was before I embarked on a cross-country listening tour, where I heard stories from my fellow Americans that surprised me.
People began to tell me they felt isolated, invisible, and insignificant. Even when they couldn’t put their finger on the word “lonely,” time and time again, people of all ages and socioeconomic backgrounds, from every corner of the country, would tell me, “I have to shoulder all of life’s burdens by myself,” or “if I disappear tomorrow, no one will even notice.”
It was a lightbulb moment for me: social disconnection was far more common than I had realized. In the scientific literature, I found confirmation of what I was hearing.
In recent years, about one-in-two adults in America reported experiencing loneliness. And that was before the COVID-19 pandemic cut off so many of us from friends, loved ones, and support systems, exacerbating loneliness and isolation.
Loneliness is far more than just a bad feeling—it harms both individual and societal health.
It is associated with a greater risk of cardiovascular disease, dementia, stroke, depression, anxiety, and premature death.
The mortality impact of being socially disconnected is similar to that caused by smoking up to 15 cigarettes a day, and even greater than that associated with obesity and physical inactivity.
And the harmful consequences of a society that lacks social connection can be felt in our schools, workplaces, and civic organizations, where performance, productivity, and engagement are diminished.
The results of this report were sobering to me and I expect they are to you too.
Because I had the same thought as Dr. Robert Waldinger and Dr. Marc Schulz point out in their book, The Good Life.
“If we feel disconnected from others at work, that means we feel lonely for the majority of our waking hours.”
The Good Life – Lessons From The World’s Longest Scientific Study Of Happiness
Now that’s a serious problem!
But what can we do about it?
Let’s start making a positive impact to reduce loneliness in the workplace with what we talk about in M4 every week: our meetings!
3 ways meetings can reduce loneliness in the workplace
Because meetings necessarily involve people they give us the opportunity to fight the negative effects of loneliness.
We can do all sorts of things to strengthen our personal relationships through our meetings and I’m sure you’re already thinking of steps you can take in your next meeting.
To stimulate your creativity further, let me share 3 ways I believe meetings can reduce loneliness in the workplace.
1. Meetings provide connection with people
If you’ve never worked remotely for long periods, you may not realize how isolating the experience can be.
I’ve worked multiple times with my home office as my full-time location and it was never easy for me.
I appreciated being able to do my work without being interrupted by coworkers stopping by my desk. And, of course, I loved being able to walk my dogs over lunch!
But I missed interacting with my colleagues and I often felt disconnected and out of touch with my teammates.
Meetings, however, kept me connected.
Whether it was a one-on-one meeting or a larger group meeting, interacting with my coworkers and doing work together reduced my loneliness.
Because when I was working from home, I didn’t have the same level of “micro-connections” as I did when I was in the office.
Here’s what I mean by that statement.
When I went to get coffee in my kitchen, I didn’t get asked about my weekend by my coworker who was also taking a break away from their desk.
This happens all the time when I’m in an office setting but not when I’m working from home.
And when I finished a meeting, I couldn’t download with my teammate as we walked from the meeting conference room to our desks.
When I was at home, I just left the video call and talked to absolutely no one.
So, attending meetings became even more energizing for me when I was working remotely.
To be honest, the discussions during my meetings were often the only human interaction I had during my working hours.
People are designed for connection. We need to engage with other people to feel our best and be most productive long term.
So, remember that your meetings provide human interaction and connection for those you invite.
And that personal engagement you enable with your meetings will reduce loneliness in the workplace AND make your coworkers more productive.
Your meetings can also provide something even more important than human interaction for your teammates – Purpose.
2. Meetings give people purpose
When I say your meetings can reduce loneliness in the workplace by giving people purpose, I’m not only referring to the Purpose of a particular meeting.
The first P of the 3Ps for productive, effective meetings is critically important as I’ve written about many times:
Purpose – Why is this meeting being held?
People – Who needs to be in this meeting to accomplish the Purpose?
Preparation – What work needs to be done prior to the meeting to enable the People to accomplish the Purpose?
You can’t have a good meeting without being clear on the Purpose and the Purpose of the meeting does more than prevent a bad meeting.
It can help your coworkers feel less lonely.
When people are lonely, they often find it hard to identify their purpose in life and that includes their life at work.
Whether you’re working remotely or coming into an office, not knowing why you’re there increases the feeling of loneliness.
So, when you define a clear Purpose for your meetings and communicate to each person why you’ve invited them and how they are needed to accomplish the Purpose, you’ve helped them have a reason for being at work – for at least that portion of their day.
You may not have given them a purpose for all of their hours working in their job. And it’s unlikely your one meeting caused them to realize their big picture “Why” for existing.
But by defining a clear Purpose for your meeting and connecting them to it personally, you did what you could to reduce loneliness in the workplace.
You helped your coworkers who entrusted their time to you by attending your meeting to have a little more purpose and a little less loneliness.
You took the action you could in your sphere of influence – your meeting.
And that made a positive impact on someone’s life.
3. Meetings help people contribute
Lonely people tend to forget that they have something to add to the world. They feel unseen and unimportant.
Like the U.S. Surgeon General, I’ve had lonely people tell me they could simply disappear and no one would even notice.
That’s sad, isn’t it?
Thankfully, through your meetings, you can help people to not feel this way.
And, I suspect you’re already doing what you need to do to reduce loneliness in the workplace in this way.
What is it that you’re already doing?
You’re recording action items with owners and deadlines by asking the critically important question: “Who needs to do What by When?”
By applying this fundamental meeting skill, you’re helping your teammates recognize how they are uniquely contributing to your business.
Who is going to contribute to completing an action that needs to be done? – The person who is struggling with feeling unimportant and not needed.
Who is going to report back next week on the status of the action item they own? – The person who is tempted to think their disappearance would have no impact.
By setting a deadline, you’re reminding them that they’re important. They are seen and needed.
You’re letting them know that what they do IS important for the business. THEY are important and contributing to the success of your team and your company.
In other words, by reminding them of these truths through recording their action items in your meeting notes, you’re helping them fight feelings of loneliness.
More Resources to Help You Build Your Career and Your Business
To read more of my recommendations on how to build connections and reduce workplace loneliness, check out these articles:
🔷 Connect People with 2 Easy, 2-Minute Techniques (click here)
🔷 3 Things To Focus On To Lead A Successful Team (click here)
You can download the full report, Our Epidemic of Loneliness and Isolation, from the U.S. Surgeon General’s Advisory on the Healing Effects of Social Connection and Community by clicking here.
And Now a Word from Our Sponsors
The New York Times bestselling book, “The Good Life – Lessons From The World’s Longest Scientific Study Of Happiness” had a profound impact on my life and I highly recommend it.
Click here to get your copy and support M4.
The book’s description will give you an idea of what it’s all about and why I like it so much.
“What makes for a happy life, a fulfilling life? A good life? In their “captivating” (The Wall Street Journal) book, the directors of the Harvard Study of Adult Development, the longest scientific study of happiness ever conducted, show that the answer to these questions may be closer than you realize.
What makes a life fulfilling and meaningful? The simple but surprising answer is: relationships. The stronger our relationships, the more likely we are to live happy, satisfying, and healthier lives.”
That’s All for this Issue
If you’d like to know more about the fascinating Harvard study, take about 12 minutes and watch this video.
I’m confident it will give you even more motivation to use your meetings to reduce loneliness in your workplace!
Let’s lead with kindness and confidence!
Greg
Here are 3 ways I can help you when you’re ready:
- Get more free resources you can use today (Click here to Start)
- Improve on your own with digital courses (Click here to Improve)
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