How Entrepreneurs Can Help Employees Navigating Trauma

70% of people have experienced trauma: the majority of those more than three times. As an entrepreneur, if you employ people in your business, you employ people with trauma.

The impact of trauma has an impact on results at work that extend beyond turnover. Hours are lost. If employees are experiencing a reaction to trauma, they will not be making good work decisions or have the ability to innovate. Clear thinking requires a regulated nervous system which is hard to achieve if your boss is a bully or the threat of layoff is always hanging over you. 

Trauma-awareness training

It's important to learn about trauma-informed and harm-reducing practices. A Little Book of Trauma Informed Workplaces and The Empathetic Workplace are excellent resources. Work trauma is not just the headline events like a robbery or an accident. Works trauma can also include: 

• bullying
• conflict
• threat of layoffs/firing
• racism/sexism/ableism/homophobia
• overwork
• lack of clarity around work
• lack of autonomy

It's important to understand trauma triggers so that when you look at your people systems, management training and communications, you can make sure they are not creating harm. 

Work-life flexibility

Trauma removes one's sense of control and trauma survivors emphasize the importance of feeling they have some control over their own lives and work lives. Traumatized employees value flexibility in work location and work hours, which is why entrepreneurs can emphasize workplace flexibility post-COVID. 

Bearing witness

It's also important to bear witness to employees in pain. If someone trusts you enough to report a trauma to you, whether it's workplace-related or not, it's important to listen and acknowledge their pain. You can say that you are sorry they have experienced something. As humans, we are hardwired to build connections. 

Monitor who gets to be a manager

There are a lot of dysfunctional personality types who are great performers. The reality is, narcissists and sociopaths can make great workers and often perform well since people without a strong moral compass will do things others would not. There is a risk that these people will lead you into a lawsuit or scandal so it's important to pay attention to red flags such as reports of bullying or unethical behaviour. 

Serve as a role model

As the business owner, you provide the moral compass of an organization and can create a psychologically safe environment. Normalize moving past mistakes. Apologize when you are wrong. Lead by example. 

 Know how to triage trauma.

As an entrepreneur, you are not expected to heal an employee's trauma. You can show empathy and make sure that your systems are not creating more harm. You can help employees get help by providing benefits and/or time off. You can use some somatic practices like 4-7-8 breathing (sign up for the webinar below to find out more) and encourage employees to do the same. Listen, reduce harm, and connect the employee to help in the short term. In the longer term, you'll want to audit your systems for trauma-causing people and processes so this does not happen to someone else.