Control is a strong internal drive for most healthy engaged adults. These past months have challenged this basic human need—and it’s far from over.

Employee wellbeing is eroding, the continuation of COVID-19, political and social concerns, along with familial education outcomes, adds a great deal to an already stressed workforce.

Leaders have their eyes on the horizon for the next phase of “normal" while they balance revenue with growing expenses around technology and the transition to a fully remote team.

There's an equally critical item being pushed aside in construction and it will cause more disruption into the winter: employees’ emotional wellbeing.

This wellbeing has very little to do with salary or workload. Instead, a great deal has to do with feeling connected, seen and heard.

Gallup shows employee preparedness for the continued management of business during COVID-19 are trending down. Employees and managers are 20% less likely than they were in May 2020 to strongly agree that:

• they feel well prepared to do their job;
• their employer has communicated a clear plan of action in response to COVID-19;
• their immediate supervisor keeps them informed about what's going on in the organization; and
• their organization cares about their overall wellbeing.

Gallup urges leaders to start with the managers when communicating. There is a difference between speaking with someone and being talked at. The difference is stark, especially when on the receiving end of both types of communication.

Managers are feeling extraordinarily stressed. Compared with May 2020, they're less engaged, informed or prepared. They also have worse work-life balance and physical wellbeing than their team members lower on the chain of command, whose wellbeing will also start taking a nosedive once managers can no longer cope.

Leaders should be communicating and engaging with their managers, but unless they understand how emotional intelligence works, it’s likely to come across as autocratic and, at times, dictatorial.

This trend will only continue unless leaders start engaging in a human way, and the fastest way to learn is through emotional intelligence. Each is broken down and builds on the others.

Humans are social, emotional creatures, not disposable or replaceable. No two are the same, nor will they react the same in similar situations. It’s time to start appreciating and harnessing those differences.

Construction is desperate for real leadership that understands and demonstrates that everyone matters, everyone has the capability of leading in different ways and at different times, and they are not interchangeable cogs in an unfeeling corporation.

Managers don’t need more communication; inboxes overflow, Zoom meeting after Zoom meeting and virtual happy hours drag on, but everyone still feels disconnected.

What is needed is authentic, open communication. Now is the opportunity to break old habits, start talking with managers and employees, person to person.

Emotional intelligence is a scientifically proven system of emotional connection that has shown to improve performance, engagement and strengthen ties. It’s also a skill set—one that can be taught and strengthened over time.

And it’s sorely overlooked as a fundamental business skill and is the most effective way to connect with teams, so they feel appreciated, heard and understood.

Laura K. Murray, PhD, MA—a clinical psychologist and a senior scientist in mental health at the Bloomberg School John Hopkins—writes:

“There is no doubt that leadership will be one of the most heavily tested skills throughout the coronavirus pandemic.

“It’s easy to read articles about how leaders 'should' or 'should not' behave or 'be.' In real practice, however, behavioral changes are hard and take practice, little by little. Emotional intelligence is at the core of being able to make these behavioral shifts and ultimately helping you attain all those adjectives describing stellar leadership. Research shows that EI accounts for nearly 90% of what sets high performers apart from others with similar technical skills and knowledge."

The emotional intelligence includes:

• self awareness;
• self management, including stress management;
• motivation;
• empathy; and
• social skills.

Making our way through this increasingly challenging time, pretending there is a “normal” just around the corner is only worsening the toll.

The country faces a cold, gray winter with the continued rise of drug and alcohol abuse, depression and suicide. Start addressing emotional and social skills now so managers and teams have the skillset to cope with their individual realities.

The leadership role is critical. Not only in holding the line when it comes to standards and expectations around professionalism with AEC, but also helping others get through these times.

As with all other challenges, one can either shrink from it or step toward it more engaged, connected and influential. Emotional intelligence spearheads this growth and is worth the investment.

Assessment Exercises

Here are two exercises leaders can use to create connections with teams, in the field and office.

Identify five individuals in your professional and five in your personal life that will give you candid unfiltered feedback. Ask them to answer the following questions (email is easiest, as it gives the receiver time to think):

• How well do I listen?
• Do I take time to understand others’ perspectives before jumping into problem solving or planning?
• Do you feel I have invested in others’ personal and professional development?
• Do I listen without interrupting?
• Do I listen fully without trying to fix the problem?
• Am I perceived as being open minded, caring and fair toward people I lead?

Get out into the field. Shadow an employee of the opposite sex, different background and/or culture with varying roles in your organization. Spend at least two hours with each person, paying close attention during break times. Ask thoughtful questions around their lives, where they come from and how they got to the position they have now, what their long-term plans are professionally and personally, and what they need to perform their jobs better.

Dig for problems with solutions and see if there are ways to break down information/system silos to connect teams cross functionally.