Check out the latest coaching tip from the Zestt Consulting team on managing sick days! 🤧
Zestt Coaching tip #4 - Sick days. Hi there! Tamara here, straying from our usual video format for this tip. I’m currently on a regional Victorian train with patchy Wi-Fi, so it’s a written post today. (And train travel makes me nostalgic, so this one's a bit on the story-heavy side!) But if you're interested in a more effective approach to managing sick days, read on my friend. Friday night is family movie night in our house, and we love revisiting classics from the '80s, '90s, and early 2000s. Last week’s pick was Erin Brockovich. More swearing (by Erin) than I remembered (not ideal for my 11-year-old son’s ears!), but the powerful message of resilience, empathy, and standing up for what’s right, made it all worth it. There’s a scene where Erin, visibly unwell and contagious, keeps pushing through at work—a hallmark of dedication in the early '90s. My husband and I both commented that you wouldn't see that today! These days, that behavior would be seen as inappropriate and inconsiderate to your colleagues. A big shift! The reaction from others when you are sick at work has transformed in our post-pandemic world. Even my son feels self-conscious about coughing in class, worried it might get him sent home! So, what does this shift mean for managing sick days at work? I don’t have hard data on hand, but I’d bet my firstborn that total sick days across office-based businesses are higher now than they were in the '90s—or even five years ago. And that’s a productivity problem. So how can we address it? Well (finally) here's the Tip! Offer two kinds of “sick days” to your employees: 1. Sick-sick: You can’t work, so you take leave. 2. Work-from-home sick: You might be contagious or just a bit under the weather. You’re well enough to be productive but prefer to work from home to avoid spreading germs. Simple, but proven to be very effective. Give it a go! #sickleave #wfm #financialadvice #coachingtip