Relieving Stress

“I’m not overreacting, Ahmet. Honestly, I’m surprised you’d even suggest that!” Martha said.

We were only ten minutes into the leadership team meeting, and things were tense. The team had been on edge for the last few sessions. Little by little, they were arguing about a growing list of seemingly mundane things.

“Whether or not people are getting enough exercise while on quarantine isn’t something we should be worried about. It doesn’t even seem like something we can or should try to affect,” Ahmet replied.

“I guess we have a different opinion on the importance of the mental health of our team members, then,” she said.

I normally try to let the team hash out their debates without intervening. Usually, someone speaks up, the team members share their individual opinions, we debate, and the decision gets made. Once it does, we agree to get on board and move forward as a team.

But this was going beyond the typical debate.

“Alright, let me jump in here for a minute,” I said. “We have a lot to do on this call, and one of them is to make sure everyone is okay. Martha, how about you work with someone on your team and come up with some ideas for checking in on everyone’s general well-being and for sharing healthy lifestyle tips?”

“Will do,” she said, a bit out of sorts but satisfied and ready to move on.

The rest of the meeting progressed in a similar pattern. Someone would bring up a topic. Another person would argue strongly for the opposite side, and debate would ensue. The exchanges were feeling more competitive than productive. By the time the meeting ended, we were all exhausted. I needed to figure out what was going on.

Coincidentally, I had a call scheduled with my friend Dale, who was a terrific people leader. I admired him and how he shaped group interactions. Maybe I’d bounce this one off of him.