Revive & Thrive
Stage two
The second stage of the Raqi Model is the interventions which contain organizational solutions based on the actual measurement results that appear, Many burnout blogs and media stories advise changing personal behaviors to prevent or remedy burnout. Common advice includes managing exercise and sleep habits and learning new coping strategies such as yoga and meditation. While changes to personal habits and routines can help individuals become more resilient against burnout, they do not address the actual areas of work that are causing stress in the first place.
Burnout prevention and remediation begins and ends with organizational change. A canary in a coal mine alerts you to poor air quality there. But you don’t put an oxygen mask on the canary to keep the mine running, you repair/remediate the mine.
Organizational Solutions
Root Cause Solutions
The root causes for every team’s or department’s burnout are organizational problems and therefore the solution rests in deliberate organizational change. There are solutions to strengthen every work environment domain measured by the AWS, some simple and others more complex. The Maslach Burnout Toolkit Group Report lists intervention suggestions for each work area and is a great resource for designing burnout solutions.
Transformational Leadership
Transformational leadership is influencing others’ awareness of what is important. It moves people to see themselves and the opportunities and challenges of their environment in a new way. Transformational Leadership creates greater alignment around strategic visions and mission, greater unit cohesion and commitment, lower turnover, and safer work environments.
Transformational Leadership
Encompasses five leadership behaviors:
Builds Trust:
These leaders go beyond their own individual interests and focus on the interests of the group to empower and inspire pride in their followers.
Acts with Integrity:
These leaders talk about their most important values and beliefs, they focus on a desirable vision, and focus on building a commonly shared mission for the group.
Encourages Others:
These leaders behave in ways that motivate those around them by providing meaning and challenge to their followers’ work, and they encourage followers to envision a better future for the organization as well as for themselves.
Encourages Innovative Thinking:
These leaders stimulate their followers’ efforts to be innovative and creative by questioning assumptions, reframing problems, and approaching old situations in new ways.
Coaches & Develops People:
These leaders pay attention to each individual’s need for achievement and growth by acting as a coach or mentor.
To prevent and fully remedy burnout, solutions must focus on organizational change – not personal change. If the work environment continues to be overwhelming or toxic, no amount of exercise, sleep, yoga, or meditation will alleviate burnout for good. Be an organization against burnout – create meaningful change now!