As Mental Health Awareness Week commences, it’s essential to understand and educate your team on the importance of mental wellness not only personally, but professionally.
Statistics show that 50% of reported illnesses in the workplace are related to mental health – stress, anxiety, panic, depression. Offices cannot run efficiently unless the wellness of your team and leadership is acknowledged and prioritized.
How to Promote Mental Wellness in your Organization
Understanding mental health issues, how they show up, and educating your team on how to address them as they appear. Encouraging open conversations and trainings on what types of mental health issues exist, how they can affect the workplace, and how to properly treat them.
Provide Support
Your team looks to leadership staff on professional development insight, it’s important they feel that sense of comfort in being transparent about mental health as well. Listening and creating a safe space for your staff to have a conversation about what they’re experiencing will ease the weight of the experience for all parties. Not everyone is the same – symptoms, feelings, and experiences will show up differently for every person. It’s important to acknowledge these feelings and provide resources to make a change.
Normalize the Conversation
It’s important for leaders to create a space where employees feel comfortable sharing their experiences with others, to collaborate on solutions and gain a sense of belonging.
Work life balance is key to push for mental wellness in the workplace. It’s essential employers make their team feel heard, understood, and accounted for.