Team FCCS Peer Support: 3 Simple Questions to Support a Coworker

Every day, members of Team FCCS pour incredible energy, empathy, and resilience into their work - no matter their role or job title - to support children, their families, our community, and each other. Because this work can be deeply impactful and emotionally demanding, looking out for one another is an essential part of keeping our team strong.

We all experience days when the workload feels exceptionally heavy or an unexpected challenge throws off our rhythm. If you notice a colleague sitting at their desk looking overwhelmed, taking a heavy sigh, or seeming uncharacteristically quiet, reaching out can make a world of difference.

Our FCCS Peer Support team has three supportive, low-pressure questions you can ask a coworker to show you have their back:

1. "How can I help lighten your load right now?"

When someone is overwhelmed, a vague "Let me know if you need anything" forces them to do the mental work of finding a task for you. By asking how you can actively lighten their load, you open the door for immediate, practical relief. It could be as simple as making a quick copy run, routing an incoming phone call, or picking up a snack from the breakroom while they finish a critical report.

2. "Do you want to vent, or do you want to brainstorm a solution?"

Sometimes, a colleague just needs a safe space to release frustration or talk through a difficult interaction. Other times, they are looking for a fresh perspective to solve a complex problem. Asking this question gives your coworker the option to define exactly what kind of support they need in that moment, preventing you from offering unsolicited advice when they simply need an empathetic listener.

3. "Can I check back in with you later this afternoon?"

When someone is in the thick of a stressful moment, they might not have the capacity to accept help right away. By offering to follow up later, you demonstrate that your concern is genuine and ongoing, not just a passing formality. It gives them something to look forward to and reminds them that they aren't carrying the day's challenges entirely on their own.

Our Call to Action of "Valuing our Team FCCS Culture" recognizes that our greatest asset is each other. Taking just sixty seconds out of your day to ask one of these questions helps cultivate a workplace culture rooted in compassion, safety, and mutual respect. 

If you or a colleague are navigating the aftermath of a critical incident, a traumatic event, or simply the day-to-day stressors of this work, members of our agency’s internal Peer Support Team are available to talk, listen, and offer a safe space to process what you’re going through. Click here to learn more about Peer Support (you must be logged into the FCCS network to view).

If you need additional support, our Emotional Wellbeing Solutions program offers 24/7 confidential in-the-moment emotional support and connections. Any member of Team FCCS can access the program through the www.liveandworkwell.com website (use access code EAP) or by calling 800.354.3950. 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Post-Adoption Supports from FCCS Build More Forever Families for Children in Foster Care

Image
To help more children in foster care find permanency in their placement, Franklin County Children Services is providing access to more supports and long-term financial resources to families willing to commit to adoption. “I think support is very important for families,” stressed Raquel Breckenridge, Family Services Director for Permanency at FCCS. Over the past year, her Adoptions team has connected 123 children previously in the agency’s care with “forever families.” November is National Adoption Month, an opportunity to increase awareness and support for children in the foster care system who are waiting for permanent, loving families. “Over the years, we have seen an increase in permanency achieved through kinship adoptions,” pointed out Ms. Breckenridge. She adds that grandparents, aunts and uncles, other relatives and family friends often start out caring for children who can no longer safely remain in the custody of their parents. To help these kinship caregivers take the next st...
Read more

FCCS Collaboration in Courtroom Key Component to Keeping Kids Safer

Image
Spending nearly 300 hours in the courtroom - or the average time it would take to read 67 books in a single year - the legal team at Franklin County Children Services works closely with partners in the Franklin County Courts to help keep children and teens safer and create positive, lasting change for families. “All of our work is geared at children’s safety and ultimately helping to increase the functioning of the family unit,” said FCCS Deputy Chief Counsel Julie Murrell, part of the agency’s team of attorneys, legal aides, paralegals, clerks, clerical staff, and court liaisons.  The department works most often with the judges and magistrates in the Franklin County Court of Common Pleas Domestic Relations and Juvenile Branch as well as the Probate Court. And, according to Deputy Chief Counsel Jennifer Himes-Riley, the FCCS legal team is involved from the beginning of a case to custody end, assisting the family and caseworkers in finding the safest plan of care for a child.  ...
Read more

UP, UP & AWAY: FCCS, Child Safety Partners Launch New Effort to Prevent Deadly Child Drug Exposures

Image
Little kids don’t know what these drugs can do. But parents and adults do. More than 60,000 children visit emergency rooms across our country each year because of medication poisoning. The number of children under five treated after mistakenly eating or touching marijuana products grew exponentially in just four years. And as the use of fentanyl and potent painkillers continue to impact Central Ohio, doctors and poison centers are seeing more deadly and near-fatal accidental exposures among children. To educate parents and adults about how to protect young children against what can be a life-threatening accident, Franklin County Children Services (FCCS) and its child safety partners are launching a new community education effort: “Lock it UP, Clean it UP, and Put it AWAY.” “These are not cases of intentional harm. They are tragic, preventable accidents,” shared FCCS Executive Director Chip Spinning. “Little hands don’t know what they are touching, but parents and adults do. Our immedia...
Read more