Drought, bushfires, floods, Coronavirus. The pressure for brands to achieve Insta-fame and the public's insatiable appetite for constantly refreshed news and information, is turning many media and communication professionals into zombies.

Media professionals as young as 21 are suffering burnout.

The general decline in the mental health of young people globally has now become a WHO priority.

While stress in the media industry is nothing new, after the hellish summer of bushfires we have recently experienced, there is more concerned than ever for the health & wellbeing of frontline communication professionals.

"Things can be fine one minute and a flaming ball of fire the next.

You need to be resilient to deal with these situation in a quick, professional and efficient manner." said a regional PR practitioner

This is a world where the public demands greater empathy and authenticity not only from our politicians but equally from big brands, banks, insurance companies, supermarkets – frankly, any business.

This adds even more responsibility for content creators, story tellers and digital natives behind the scenes to deliver more innovative ways to connect and build trust with the distracted masses.

No pressure? Getting wellbeing on the agenda

It's encouraging to see the Public Relations Institute of Australia has this topic high on the agenda building on a 2018 study that showed people in the media, marketing and creative industries were 29 per cent more likely to show symptoms of anxiety than the general population.

In the UK the Public Relations and Communications Association has developed a mental health tool kit where it claims 89 per cent of public relations professionals have struggled with their mental health in the last year.

The top reasons for stress as reported; heavy workload, competing deadlines, demanding clients, low self-worth on the job and lack of work-life balance.

What this is all pointing to is a need for professionals at all stages of their careers to be more aware of the factors that undermine their ability to operate effectively in a profession where the currency is problem solving, critical thinking and fast paced decision-making.

While the industry has been obsessed with education around technology, AI and digital media and the pressure to be on top of this rapidly changing media landscape, it is equally as critical to the future of our profession that we all have a clear understanding of the personal and professional protective factors needed to maintain resilience.

Fighting the zombie culture

In two studies in 2019, Charles Sturt University researcher Dr Sharon Schoenmaker and Lecturer Victoria Erskine surveyed communication professionals and students and discovered they have a strong sense of what helps build resilience but can't always make it happen.

The research shows the following five factors help practitioners to build resilience:

* Strong relationships,

* Determination

* Reflexivity

* Apositive attitude

* Self-care practices like regular exercise, socialising with friends, mediation and mindfulness practice.   In short, prevention is much better than a cure.

But it's not all up to the individual. Organisations have a major role to play in encouraging the ability of their communication professionals to practice the initiatives that build resilience and prevent burnout.

Communication prfessionals need to know they have ongoing employment and a supportive organisational culture, that they have agency to be able to make changes and speak up. And professionals need to trust their emotional intelligence and adaptability so they can read their workmates and accurately judge their own sense of wellbeing, to collectively build resilience at work.

Resilience means learning how to be adaptable but it is so much more than that. As educators we need to model to emerging professionals how to embed resilience as a non-negotiable part of their daily practice at work.

Photo : Public Relations Lecturer/Acting Associate Dean Dr Sharon Schoenmaker and PR Lecturer Victoria Erskine representing CCI at the Orange Open Day