In 2024, the citizens of 64 countries – comprising 49% of the world’s population – will be participating in the democratic process to make their voices heard, according to Time Magazine. 

Elections can be nerve-wracking. According to a recent poll by the American Psychiatric Association, 73% of U.S. adults are anxious about the upcoming U.S. presidential election. There’s no escaping the potential mental health impact that the election can have on our employees, but methods do exist for organizations to minimize the stress and anxieties that often come with election season. Here are a few ways that your organization can help your staff cope with the uncertainty and potential antagonistic nature of the upcoming elections. 

Encourage your employees to vote.

‍An election can make us feel like we have little control and minimal say in our future. Encourage your employees to take what control they do have in the election by helping them to make a plan to vote. Advise them to ensure they’re registered to vote, via Headspace and When We All Vote’s voter registration portal,  and confirm they know where their polling place is and what hours it’s open. 

"From constant media coverage to endless doom scrolling, elections can bring up a lot of stress, and navigating that stress should not deter us from making our voices heard,” said Beth Lynk, Executive Director of When We All Vote. “When We All Vote is excited to partner with Headspace to create resources to help voters navigate election anxiety and ensure they are taking care of themselves, their communities and their mental health while using their voices at the ballot box.” 

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Enable your employees to get involved. 

There are many ways to participate in the political process — both nonpartisan and partisan. Involvement in the political process can help us feel like we have slightly more control over the outcome. A study found that “participation is a resource that alleviates psychological distress.” The bottom line: action can reduce your anxiety. And there are many ways to participate.

Learn more about how employers can support their teams through election anxiety in our guide.

Consider giving your employees time off — or even the day off — on or before Election Day to help ensure that they participate in the process. Encourage your employees to volunteer to become an election judge, to help others register to vote,  canvass or work a phone bank for their local or national candidates. At Headspace, we’re proud to support democracy and made Election Day a holiday for our U.S. employees.  

Give your employees space to take care of themselves. 

The lead-up to the election can be extremely stressful for many people. Advise your employees to take care of themselves. Mindfulness and meditation are proven ways to minimize the impact of stress on our bodies and on our minds. Explore our free toolkit, curated by Headspace meditation teachers and trained mental health coaches, to help you and your employees put your mental health first this election season.

Advise your employees to unplug when they can. 

As the vote draws near in your country, media coverage will crescendo. Know that you and your employees do not have to constantly tune into the chatter about the vote and political commentary. For their mental health, your employees should know it’s wise to unplug occasionally from the platforms where discussion of the election will be pervasive: social media, email, television, and radio.

Enable your employees to seek professional help if they need it. 

If you find employees are overwhelmed by the upcoming election, advise them to reach out to a mental health professional. Connecting with a mental health coach or clinician can help remind your employees that they’re not alone in their worry over the election results and help them build a plan to lessen anxiety. You can reach out to our team to learn more about Headspace’s comprehensive mental healthcare offerings.

Create a safe haven for disagreement. 

In a workplace, difficult conversations can occur amongst employees with varying opinions, or from varying backgrounds or lived experiences. Employees and their managers should feel psychological safety in the workplace, above all else, and should be able to participate in respectful discourse about business strategy and tactics — for the good of the company. 

“Employers should ensure they are supporting the needs of all employee populations, and particularly marginalized communities through facilitated conversations about race and other forms of caste, allyship initiatives, ERGs, and equity, diversity, inclusion and belonging discussions and training. Bottom line: a psychologically safe workplace is important for employees and the organization in the best of times, but it’s particularly critical during challenging and polarizing times,” said Wizdom Powell, Chief Purpose Officer at Headspace.

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Executives should model disagreeing agreeably. 

It’s critical that, as leaders, we create a workplace culture that promotes safety and trust, so that difficult conversations can take place respectfully. A proven way to promote this kind of environment is to model this kind of behavior from leadership.

Headspace Chief People Officer Karan Singh notes that “ Leaders must demonstrate empathy and respect and manage their own stress levels in healthy ways, to set the tone for their employees. Headspace’s Workforce State of Mind report found that 86% of employees say they appreciate it when leaders discuss emotional and mental health.” He added, “Listening sessions, whether at town halls, team meetings or in one on one sessions are the single most important tools that leaders can leverage. In times of uncertainty, just knowing that employees are being heard relieves a great deal of stress.”

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One of Headspace’s company values is to ‘seek truth and speak truth.’ We anchor our employees in this value to foster a culture that encourages healthy dialogue, allowing everyone to feel psychologically safe.

As we head toward election dates around the world, there may not be a way to avoid the feelings of anxiety: but there are pathways to mitigating that stress in our workplaces and in our own minds. Make sure your employees are aware of the ways that are available to them to improve their mental health this election season. Headspace is here to help.

Headspace’s comprehensive mental healthcare platform offers a full EAP replacement that includes mindfulness and meditation tools rooted in science, mental health coaching, therapy, psychiatry, work life services, and organizational support. Interested in learning about how Headspace can support your employees’ mental health – both during the election season and beyond? Contact us here.

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