Prevent Burnout with Trauma Informed Leadership

In trauma-informed organizations, the cornerstone is fostering safe, trusting, and respectful relationships, not only between staff and clients but also among staff and their supervisors. These organizations recognize that many employees carry the weight of past painful experiences, which can influence their interactions in both present and future contexts. Such experiences, known as "triggers," are more than mere memories; they are powerful reminders that can provoke undesired reactions. When triggered, individuals may respond as if the current situation resembles past emotionally negative events and in that moment, strive to regain a sense of safety. Instead of merely addressing negative behaviors, trauma-informed agencies cultivate a leadership culture focused on minimizing actions and interactions that could serve as triggers.

Stress Triggers at Work

Triggers serve as reminders of times when individuals felt powerless and vulnerable to physical and/or emotional pain. Consequently, when triggered, people experience a sense of threat. When someone is triggered, they will react from an activated nervous system in a way that can seem either combative (fight), avoidant and non-compliant (flight), or passive (freeze).

In the workplace, both employees and leaders can experience triggers. Employees can feel threatened when they feel undervalued, misunderstood, ignored, criticized, controlled, a loss of autonomy, or that they are being judged or assessed. On the other hand, leaders might feel threatened when they experience insecurity about their own decisions, abilities, or self-worth. Triggers for supervisors can occur when staff raise concerns, disagree with ideas or decisions, request changes or additional support, voice differing opinions, underperform, or become withdrawn.

Such situations can lead both employees and supervisors to feel inadequate and criticized. Nevertheless, it is crucial for leaders, who hold more power in the relationship, to avoid misusing that power to restore their own sense of safety. Doing so would only leave employees feeling disempowered and unsafe, ultimately undermining the trauma-informed culture.

Trauma Informed Leadership Skills

The most effective trauma-informed skill for mitigating triggers is known as attunement. Attunement involves a kinesthetic and emotional awareness of others, enabling supervisors to perceive the underlying emotions driving an employee's behavior. This skill requires maintaining calmness, demonstrating empathy, engaging in self-reflection, and fostering collaboration.

For example, when an employee strongly opposes a leadership decision, instead of saying, “I’m sorry you don’t like this decision, but I have a responsibility for the bottom line of this company and I am just trying to do my job,” a supervisor might say:

• “Interesting, I hadn't thought of it that way, could you help me better understand your perspective.”
• “Please share with me how this decision impacts you? I would like to help you find solutions."
• “I’m sorry this is so frustrating for you, help me understand your perspective and let’s see what solutions we can find together.”
• “I hear you, and those are great ideas, can I have some time to think about them and then we can talk more about this in a couple of days?”

Trauma-informed leaders acknowledge that in order to prevent burnout they must avoid behaviors that are triggering for those they supervise. They accomplish this by understanding that their position holds more power than those they oversee; therefore, they must possess the integrity to avoid misusing that power for their own self-preservation. This requires a great deal of empathy and self-awareness.

Attunement helps leaders understand that employees are not acting out of stubbornness, arrogance, or a desire to be difficult. Instead, they are responding from a place of pain triggered by the leader's actions. The leader's behavior highlighted their own authority and reminded the employee of their lesser power, prompting self-protection. When leaders ensure employees feel emotionally and physically safe, trust flourishes, creating an environment free of defensiveness. Employees can then feel secure enough to be honest, reflective, and open to feedback, enabling them to grow, develop, and ultimately realize their full potential.

Visit My Work BALANCE to learn how your organization can implement these trauma-informed strategies.

Resources

Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. (2014). Trauma-Informed Care in Behavioral Health Services. Treatment Improvement Protocol (TIP) Series, No. 57. Center for Substance Abuse Treatment (US). https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK207204/

Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration: Practical Guide for Implementing a
Trauma-Informed Approach. SAMHSA Publication No. PEP23-06-05-005. Rockville, MD: National
Mental Health and Substance Use Policy Laboratory. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services
Administration, 2023.