Episode 226 - How to Reduce Loneliness at Work
One in five people feel lonely at work. While loneliness is often seen as a personal issue, research suggests leaders play a bigger role than they might realise in helping people feel connected, included, and supported.
Summary
One in five people feel lonely at work. While loneliness is often seen as a personal issue, research suggests leaders play a bigger role than they might realise in helping people feel connected, included, and supported.
Transcript
Hello and welcome to episode 226 of the Leadership Today podcast, where each week we share practical tips to improve your leadership.
Most of us think of loneliness as something that happens outside of work. But Gallup’s latest global research found that around one in five workers feel lonely at work.
Workplace loneliness isn’t just about how people feel - research shows it’s linked to higher burnout, lower performance, more sick leave, and greater turnover. In fact, loneliness can be just as damaging to performance as job dissatisfaction.
A recent review published in Occupational Medicine found that one of the strongest workplace factors associated with lower loneliness is leadership. Leaders who are supportive, approachable, and empowering help create an environment where people feel connected and valued.
Now, leaders can’t solve every cause of loneliness. People bring their own circumstances, personalities, and experiences to work. But we can influence whether work becomes a place where people feel connected or isolated.
Here are three practical ways to help.
First, make genuine connection part of your regular conversations. Before jumping into tasks and deadlines, spend a minute asking how someone is going and really listen to the answer. People often don’t need a solution. They just need to know someone is interested.
Second, pay attention to inclusion. Most people don’t feel excluded during formal meetings. They feel excluded from the conversations before and after them. Notice who gets invited into informal discussions, brainstorming sessions, and problem-solving conversations. Small moments of inclusion often have a bigger impact than large team-building activities.
Third, be deliberate with hybrid work arrangements. People can easily become disconnected when their work patterns don’t overlap with the rest of the team. Sometimes a simple conversation about coordinating office days can dramatically improve connection and collaboration.
The key point is this. Loneliness at work isn’t simply a personal issue - it’s often a leadership issue. Every interaction either strengthens or weakens someone’s sense of belonging. As leaders, we have more influence over that than we might think.
Have a great week.
Research reference: Wright, J. K., et al. (2024). Loneliness in the workplace: a mixed-method systematic review and meta-analysis. Occupational Medicine, 73(9), 557 to 567. https://academic.oup.com/occmed/article/73/9/557/7591258
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