The term “emotional labor” was first published by Arlie Russell Hochschild in 1983. She defined it as labor that “requires one to induce or suppress feeling in order to sustain the outward countenance that produces the proper state of mind in others.” The way I think about it is: putting resources into guiding the emotions of others
Why emotional labor matters
Emotional labor requires resources, and failing to account for it means you’re likely to misjudge your time bank and monetary budget.
- You risk burnout if you ignore emotional labor, so be aware of how much energy you are putting out there.
Takeaways
Lots of emotional labor can scale and be automated, so look for ways to make it happen
- Add emotional labor to your planning and check-in processes to help build a better team
- If you’re already amazing with emotional labor, it’ll help you scale up your greatness to help more people
- Building good systems around any kind of work increases productivity
How to “feel” better
Just by being aware that emotional labor exists, you’re better able to recognize it and recognize its role in your work.
- By recognizing this, you can be more intentional around your implicit requests for emotional labor and the need for you to reciprocate.
Make emotional labor automatic
Emoji check-ins: use a bot that sends an emoji form that asks about the past week at work
- Goal setting: make it a habit to hold weekly reviews of quarterly goals
- Lights change colors based on what is being worked on: change the environment around you
