Background
In 2021, the American Psychological Association’s 2020-2021 Work and Well-being Survey reported that in context of the pandemic, “nearly 3 in 5 employees reported negative impacts of work-related stress, including lack of interest, motivation, or energy (26%) and lack of effort at work (19%). Meanwhile, 36% reported cognitive weariness, 32% reported emotional exhaustion, and an astounding 44% reported physical fatigue—a 38% increase since 2019.”
The Dreaded Word: Burnout.
What does burnout even mean anyway? In electric circuits, burnout means “to cease to function from overload.” In combustion, it means that fire has used up all its fuel sources. In humans, it means without a break from overload, we will ourselves break down. Without some fuel or nourishment, we will be utterly spent. Consider our ever-present interactions with technology, the daily existential dread of climate change, the relentless grind culture of a (still) patriarchal, extractive, capitalist, socially-isolating culture in which there is no room to be human. Burnout is a state that most human workers now find themselves in; a state employers cannot ignore.
We at Brick Books have, at various points over the last three years, found ourselves in full burn-out mode, due in part to a change of corporate ownership, a pandemic, increasing industry pressure, and households full of children not in school. What has always brought us back to the human realm is what we specialize in as a publishing company: poetry.
It meant starting each meeting slowly, with a poem, a heart-felt check-in, or a similar moment of reflection. It meant taking the time to have true and compassionate conversations with employees about their physical and mental health. It meant committing to the slow process of articulating values and solving problems collectively. It meant supporting nurturing writing/creative time for staff outside of work hours. It meant sharing resonant books.
What we noticed was that our people had more patience to work through difficult problems and were better equipped to have difficult conversations with empathy and respect. Trust was built in diverse teams. We were able to retain people we believe in. In other words, we believe that putting the practice of poetry to work in our own organization led to transformative thinking and innovation, enhanced group connection, resilience in the face of change, and employee retention.
We know many employers want to share the responsibility for wellbeing, to create a space where their teams can thrive and grow. Poetry is this space. In fact, the word stanza – the structural unit of lines of poetry grouped together – means room. Humans need room. We need to breathe.