🖤 Grief at Work: 3 Things Leaders Get Wrong (and 1 They Get Right)

When someone on your team experiences a death — a colleague, a loved one, or even a client — everything changes.

But most leaders and HR teams don’t know what to do next.

So they make these common mistakes:

❌ They say nothing.

Silence feels safe - not knowing what to say or do causes people to feel like this is a good option. But it’s not. It creates distance and then your grieving employee is left wondering: “Does anyone care?” 

❌ They offer one-time support.

 A card, a few days off, and flowers are nice gestures. But grief doesn’t end after the funeral or after their first day back at work. Neither should your support.

❌ They try to fix it.

Trying to cheer someone up or “help them move on” isn’t supportive — it’s damaging for the person grieving and highlights your discomfort with their process. There is no fixing grief, yours or someone else’s. Period. 

Here’s what great leaders do instead:

✅ They acknowledge the loss — personally and publicly - more than once

Asking a grieving employee how they are right now is a simple act that breaks the silence. (They stay away from the pitying “How are yooouuuuu?”) They bring the team together to help them support the grieving teammate for a time. They show the team it’s safe to talk about grief and remind the grieving person: “You matter. And so does your loss.”

Is your workplace prepared for grief?

I created a short quiz to help leaders and HR teams find out exactly where they’re strong — and where they might need support.

🎯 Take the quiz here → https://lnkd.in/gv4xNsbg

You’ll get personalized feedback + tools to help you lead with empathy and productivity.

Because grief at work isn't an “if.”

It’s a when.

#Leadership #HR #GriefAtWork #WorkplaceWellbeing #Empathy #DeathAtWork