Hey HR! Put on your own oxygen mask first!

Most of us have heard this advice from airlines, in the event of an emergency, reminding us that to take care of our own health and safety first. In doing so, we become more capable of helping others. Who needs to be reminded of this more than the professionals working in Human Resources?

The nature of their work ensures they are considering retention, employee engagement, career development, career progression and much more for their employee population. Working in Human Resources means a ton of energy is exerted towards others, and Human Resources professionals are some of the most intrinsically generous people I know. HR pros likely consider the well-being of others (i.e. their employee population) more often than they consider their own. This is not sustainable. We must remind HR professionals to put their ‘own mask’ on first.

I have encountered many HR professionals who consistently partner with their staff to address critical issues such as employee experience and career trajectory, but these same HR professionals are quick to neglect their own career development and engagement. This doesn’t work.

If an HR department isn’t taking care of itself, how can they properly consider the well-being of their staff? In order to keep up with the rapid speed of the advancing, changing and expanding discipline of Human Resources, an organization must ensure their HR department is fully engaged. We must take care of HR first.
There are many instances where HR must ask itself “How are we doing in this arena?” before they can ask it of their employees. That question should be asked constantly.

Lately, I’m seeing this as a bigger issue than ever before. As HR becomes even more dynamic as a discipline, Human Resources professionals must do a better job of ensuring their own team has its own ‘oxygen mask’ on first! The two biggest areas I’m noticing requiring extra attention are:

Vacation Time/Work-Life balance

How often do we hear HR professionals reminding their employee population to leave work at a reasonable hour? Or to take their allotted vacation days? Yet, sometimes you will find the HR department is one of the last to leave at the end of the day and the least likely to take a holiday. If your employees see you feeling burnt out in HR, it isn’t encouraging for their own work-life balance. If your firm (as many are!) is focused on building a more flexible work environment and encouraging balance between work and personal life, ensure your team is leading from the front. What example does your HR team set?

Communicating with Senior Leaders

Human Resources professionals often coach their employees to address their concerns with their supervisors or the leader in their group. When it comes to critical areas like performance management, asking for a raise, pursuing a promotion, expressing concerns, creating new initiatives, HR will often encourage their employees to address these with a leader. Yet, somehow, this advice is not always easy to give oneself! If your HR department encourages this type of transparency to its population, shouldn’t it start first in HR? Make sure your HR department is also coached and advised on how to address their own issues with their leaders. If Human Resources has trouble communicating to senior leaders, why would the population feel comfortable doing it? There is a mutual responsibility for leaders to ensure their HR departments know they have a voice and for HR professionals to heed their own advice around communication.

Many HR professionals may read this and think “I always do those things. I speak up when I have a concern. I manage upwards. I take all my vacation benefits, I leave work when I feel it’s reasonable. I don’t need this advice!” and you are right. You are already in the healthy category of those putting your ‘own mask’ on first and leading an exceptional example for your staff. Don’t disregard, though, that many of your peers still struggle to heed their own advice and may need your support. HR professionals must encourage each other to lead from the front, practice what they preach and protect themselves from potential burn-out. Human Resources is more challenging than ever before and HR professionals must ensure they are taking care of themselves in this process.

It relates also to Recruitment. If you are hiring within your own Human Resources department, are you practicing the same protocol you advise to your hiring managers? Are you providing the best possible candidate experience to the HR talent you meet? If not, think about what impact that has on the organization. Things have to start in HR for them to work throughout the firm.

As a Human Resources department, if you are engaged and happy at work, why wouldn’t your staff follow in your lead? If your own department worked seamlessly in areas such as communication, recruitment, collaboration, think of what a wonderful example that sets for the firm.

Think about how amazing every company would be if HR always put their ‘own mask’ on first.