My colleague Diana O’Brien wears a couple of pretty big hats. She is the chief marketing officer for Deloitte’s US and global organization. Leading a global network of marketing professionals, Diana keeps a sharp eye out for burnout—in herself and her team.

Jen Fisher: What does well-being look like in your life?

Diana O’Brien: Well-being is vitality, joy, peace and energy. It’s all the best feelings that you have when you know your life is full and you are balanced. How I get there is making a positive impact in the lives of others and living my purpose to create a place where others thrive—but first I have to take care of myself. I know when I don’t, it’s not possible for me to help anyone.

JF: What strategies do you have in place to identify expected and unexpected stressors in your life?

DO: I didn’t used to, but today I know when I’m stressed. I can feel it. Now, stress isn’t always a bad thing, right? I have a lot of good stress—like when you’re involved in a project that fascinates you but has a tight deadline. That gets my adrenaline going. And it’s fine for a bit, but you can’t live like that 24/7. Stress starts taking a toll on me, if I can’t step away. Then I have to rely on my family and good friends. There is a small group of people that give more to me than I am sure they get and I intentionally seek support now when I feel out of whack.

I also know that exercise and eating right are super important for me. Those may be obvious, but they’re also easy to forget when I start feeling pressured.

JF: And how do you make self-care a priority when you find yourself getting triggered?

DO: I honor my time. I control my own calendar 100%. I schedule the things that are most important to me first so I can be present with the people most important to me. I’m good about saying no if something’s not feasible. I used to feel I had to say yes to everything. No more.

I also honor sleep in my life. If I’m home, my husband reads to me before we go to bed–truly one of my greatest gifts. We have blackout shades, I spray lavender, and I never, ever bring my phone. I’ve taken sound advice about making the bedroom a special place for rest.

But above all else, the most effective and most important is to focus on all the things for which I am grateful. If I’m feeling down, I’ll purposely make a list of things I am grateful for in my life. And then I act on that gratitude by sending people I care about a thank you note or remind them of how grateful I am for them. That helps me not get consumed by the small stuff. The small stuff never matters very much in the end.

JF: Creativity is clearly important in your role as Deloitte’s chief marketing officer. What role does stress play in the creative process?

DO: Stress can and should enhance the creative process; it can mold unexpected outcomes. It should make us better. Sometimes creative stress can stem from the process or the team, and while I am not suggesting that it is easy, innovation and putting yourself in an uncomfortable spot can create tensions and be beneficial. So bring on stress, intensity and excitement, just don’t let it consume you because then the costs are too high.

When stress feels bad, it’s generally not because of the work specifically, rather you have let that stress get to you and you are out of balance in some way. Whenever we’re out of balance—and this is true for me, too—we’re not going to be as helpful to anyone or any process much less the creative ones.

JF: As a leader of creative teams, how do you monitor your team for signs of burnout and how do you address it?

DO: It’s super important for leaders to look out for their teams. When people are burned out, it can manifest in disconnection—they’re not as engaged, they seem down or distracted. They might seek out alcohol, or other destructive behaviors. They often lash out at others and take things personally where they normally wouldn’t. The best way we can help is to reach out, understand what’s going on for them, and ask what they need to de-stress. We’ve got to be comfortable with a full range of options from “I need to go home and play with my dog now” to “I need to go for a run” to “I need a week off.” People find it hard to make those requests, so we need to create an environment in which it’s okay to prioritize self-care. And leaders need to get used to asking what people need, rather than prescribing solutions.

JF: Can you tell me about a time you helped a stressed-out team member?

DO: Yes. And I’m afraid the source of the stress was me! A member of my staff had some serious trouble sleeping. And I realized I was contributing to it because she felt like she needed to respond to emails as soon as I sent them—and I am an early morning person. When I work it’s because I choose to, but I don’t need everyone to make the same choice I do. I realized that she’d stopped working out, seeing her trainer—exactly the things that would help her feel better, because she was trying to align to my schedule. I sat her down and we talked about it. I told her she didn’t need to get up for early morning meetings and calls. She could come into work later if that suited her schedule. And I asked her straight out, “When are you going to find time to work out?” I’m happy to report that gym time is back on her schedule!

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Author(s)

  • Jen Fisher

    𝗩𝗼𝗶𝗰𝗲 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘄𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗯𝗲𝗶𝗻𝗴 + 𝗵𝘂𝗺𝗮𝗻 𝘀𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 | 𝖡𝖾𝗌𝗍𝗌𝖾𝗅𝗅𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝖠𝗎𝗍𝗁𝗈𝗋 | 𝖳𝖤𝖣𝗑 𝖲𝗉𝖾𝖺𝗄𝖾𝗋 | 𝖧𝗈𝗌𝗍 #𝖶𝗈𝗋𝗄𝖶𝖾𝗅l | 𝖳𝗁𝗋𝗂𝗏𝖾 𝖤𝖽𝗂𝗍𝗈𝗋

    Jen Fisher is a leading voice on the intersection of work, well-being, and purpose. Her mission is to help leaders move from the legacy mindset that well-being is solely the responsibility of the individual to the forward-thinking idea of human sustainability, which supports the long-term, collective well-being of individuals, organizations, climate, and society.  

    She’s the co-author of the bestselling, award-winning book, Work Better Together: How to Cultivate Strong Relationships to Maximize Well-Being and Boost Bottom Lines, the Human Sustainability Editor-at-Large for Thrive Global, and the host of the WorkWell podcast series.

    As the first chief well-being officer of a professional services organization, Jen built and led the creation and execution of a pioneering holistic and inclusive well-being strategy that has received recognition from leading business media brands and associations.

    Jen is a frequent writer on issues impacting the workplace today, including the importance of mental health and social connection to workforce resilience, happiness, and productivity. Her work has been featured in CNBC, CNN, Fast Company, Fortune, Inc, Stanford Social Innovation Review, and Harvard Business Review, among others.

    She’s a sought-after speaker and has been featured at events including TEDx, World Happiness Summit, Out & Equal Workplace Summit, Acumen Global Gathering, WorkHuman, The Atlantic Pursuit of Happiness event, and more. She’s also lectured at top universities across the country, including Harvard, Wake Forest, Duke, and George Mason.

    Jen is passionate about sharing her breast cancer and burnout recovery journeys to help others. She’s also a healthy lifestyle enthusiast, self-care champion, exercise fanatic, sleep advocate, and book nerd! Jen lives in Miami with her husband, Albert, and dog, Fiona.

    You can find her on LinkedIn or on Twitter and Instagram @JenFish23. You can also receive her personal insights and reflections by subscribing to her newsletter, "Thoughts on Being Well" @jenfisher.substack.com.