1997
Will Hunting, a janitor at M.I.T., has a gift for mathematics, but needs help from a psychologist to find direction in his life.
126 min
CLEAR ALL
Here’s what to know about the mental load—and how to bring it up with your partner.
1
Much like the struggle to recognize the economic contributions of childcare for stay-at-home parents, there could be a similar gap in the working world. The definition of emotional labor being used here is that of unpaid, invisible work.
When workers’ emotions deviate from what’s expected of their gender, they are often left to process the backlash on their own.
Hiding your feelings can be freeing. But eventually you have to take off the mask.
3
In the episode, I share an article I read recently with some simple strategies a woman used that really made a difference in making her “invisible” emotional labor visible to her husband.
Yvonne Sawbridge says that caring professionals offer hard, emotional work. In the same way in which physical labour is recognised and accounted for in management practice, emotional labour needs to be recognised as a role requirement for nurses and other caring professions.
“The research is pretty clear that surface acting is almost always bad for you.”
All those little details, necessary but distinctly un-flashy, are sometimes referred to as “emotional labor.” In the workplace, that labor may include booking a room for a meeting, reserving an event space, or keeping morale going with a Secret Santa exchange.
It could be dragging down your job performance and psychological health.
Effective strategies for discussing the invisible load you’re shouldering in the workplace.