January Top 5 LinkedIn Recap

By The Mindful Leader Team

As we began the new year, with our shiny resolutions and predictions for 2023, we had the opportunity to read some truly insightful articles and share them with this community. And the community spoke—as we approach the end of the month, we want to share some of the most popular articles from the past three weeks with you. We based our picks on our LinkedIn engagement, which includes reactions, shares, clicks, and comments. If you want to join us on LinkedIn, click here. For each article, we’ve shared a summary and key points, as well as a link to the full article.

This month, we’ve seen a focus on psychological and emotional health in the workplace, leadership skills, and predictions for 2023. Take a look and let us know what you think of the articles in the comments below.

Emotional trauma from your past jobs is real. Here's what can help.

LinkedIn engagement number: 1,655

Emotional trauma from work can hurt both people’s self-esteem and their future careers. However, recovering from it can also help people develop post-traumatic growth, giving them a deeper understanding of themselves and their world. Work-induced emotional trauma has both mental and physical effects and can hurt people’s career possibilities and their ability to function fully at future jobs. As people need to continue working, the inability to escape a traumatic environment can create a cycle where the employee feels they are not a good worker, which then leads to depression and decreased work performance. However, as people heal, they can find that they are more resilient for having gone through the experience, and know they can be strong should they face something similar. 

Here are ways to bring healing from workplace-induced emotional trauma:

• Reframe the trauma as an opportunity for growth
• Seek counseling or cognitive behavioral therapy
• Practice mindfulness or meditation
• Develop a strong social support network
• Resilience training

Read the full article from Business Insider here. 

Psychological Safety in the Workplace is More Than Being Nice

LinkedIn engagement number: 1,601

Psychological safety has been simplified by some to mean being nice to employees or coworkers or treating those around you with respect. However, it is more than that. It is existing in an environment where you know you are safe to speak up or to take risks. Psychological safety requires a sense of trust within a group, as people must know that they will not be punished or ridiculed for suggesting new ideas or taking workplace-appropriate risks. Workplaces that foster psychological safety show higher levels of employee morale and retention, and lower levels of anxiety and depression.

Here is how to foster psychological safety:

• Be present
• Understand
• Avoid blame
• Transparency
• Stop negativity
• Inclusive decision-making
• Welcome conflict
• Champion your team

Read the full article from Entrepreneur here.

Why Self Awareness Is The Most Important Skill For Hybrid Leadership

LinkedIn engagement number: 886

There are a lot of important skills for leaders navigating the new reality of work, but chief among them is self-awareness. It requires leaders to note and explore their own emotions, values, beliefs, and more. Leadership programs should include training on self-awareness, preferably early in the program, to help ensure that leaders have a strong foundation. One way to help build self-awareness is via mindfulness training. 

Here are some reasons self-awareness is so critical right now:

• Leaders can cultivate an environment of inclusion and acceptance
• Helps leaders learn to use their superpowers
• Allows leaders to explore their own biases
• Aids leaders in being more understanding
• Improves decision making
• Enables leaders to grow
• Helps leaders keep their emotions in check
• Allows leaders to build their trust and credibility

Read the full article from Forbes here. 

How to Cultivate Emotional Intelligence as a Strategic Leader

LinkedIn engagement number: 881

Building emotional intelligence is critical for leaders. Laid out by psychologist and author Daniel Goleman in his book Emotional Intelligence, it requires a person to strengthen their self-awareness, self-regulation, motivation, empathy, and social skills. Bringing emotional intelligence to your leadership style can help fortify team alignment, increase productivity and accountability, and lead to overall better communication. 

Steps towards emotional intelligence for leaders:

• Show appreciation
• Practice what you preach
• Get to know yourself
• Get to know your people
• Provide training 

Read the full article from Entrepreneur here. 

5 employment trends that will shape the workplace in 2023

LinkedIn engagement number: 652

Since the pandemic began in earnest in 2020, workplaces have been in a constant “re-adjustment” phase. Everyone is learning what their new normal looks like in a shifting environment, especially with a potential recession looming over us. At the beginning of 2023, we need to look ahead and try to predict what changes may be coming so we can prepare for them. 

Here are five potential trends this year:

1. Upskilling and developing soft skills will take center stage 
2. Hybrid work environments will continue to be favored
3. Benefits will play a larger role in recruitment strategies
4. Pay transparency will continue to gain momentum
5. Economic uncertainty will create the need for a renewed focus on mental health

Read the full article from Fast Company here.

Were any of these your favorite articles of the month? Have another one you think we should look at? Let us know in the comments!