If you stay long enough, you will see your colleagues rejoice and you will see them mourn. The cycle of life comes for all of us at some point. Knowing what to do to help them, is a great lesson in relationship management.

Grief experts agree that everyone responds to grief differently, and as such assisting a grieving colleague will be more subjective than objective. However, there are general things you can do to mostly show support for the teammate.

Compassion

Grief often opens the door to hopelessness, and your colleague may be repressed in a tunnel of it. The first thing you can give is compassion. Be compassionate. Genuinely recognize that this person is going through deep and incredible pain, and stay in the mental frame of compassion and empathy.

Say Less

Helping a grieving person requires more of attentive listening than speaking. Resist the urge to comfort them in your words, because it may be received differently from your intention. “Everything happens for a reason” is a line you must avoid. It is known to throw a grieving party down a more painful mental torture.

Offer to Help

A crowded mind hardly delivers on the job, and grieving people have a full mind. Offering to help them with some work go a long way to help them get better. Meanwhile, there are those that ‘work’ themselves out of the dark alleys of grief. Learn to tell if this person needs the distraction of work to get their minds clear.

Professional Help

No matter your effort, a professional counselor will benefit your colleague more at a time of grief. Helping them know about it, getting appointments and possibly, driving them to the appointment, are all ways to help them get better. Some people underestimate the power of a professional counsellor, and so would prefer to walk their road alone. Help them to see the need for it, then let them make their decision.

Many things follow the death of a loved one. Some people fall into deep depression as a result, some experience complete mental breakdown, others continue in the denial stage for long. The cycle of denial, anger, bargaining, depression and acceptance, can be shortened with adequate support, and this is the central need of a grieving colleague.

Help someone. Cheers.