May is Mental Health Awareness Month

May 1

Written By Kaleidoscope Management Group

◢

National Alliance of Mental Illness, 2021

Yes; you guessed it. This month’s reflection is on mental health. Since May is officially Mental Health Awareness Month, it may seem like everywhere you turn it is a topic of discussion. That said, I personally don’t think enough light can be shed on the subject. With the emergency phase of the pandemic more in our rear view mirror each day (CDC relaxes mask regulations for the vaccinated!), the dust is starting to settle on what was for many the most challenging year of their life.

Company leaders, including myself, face complex decisions: from when to bring people back to work and how the workplace will look going forward to how to deliver optimal performance... all while supporting their employees. In order for employees to feel safe addressing mental health challenges, I firmly believe that leaders need to demonstrate their own humanness and vulnerability. I’m working on this myself.

KMG is always exploring ways to better support the mental health of our team. In 2020, we introduced a floating mental health day, but this is just the tip of the iceberg. We want to find more creative ways to prioritize the emotional wellbeing of our employees into our culture. In a recent article in STAT, a media company focused on health, medicine and scientific discovery, Washington University psychiatrist Jessi Gold points out: “If you care about your workforce, and you want your workforce to be happy and healthy and alive, you need to invest in mental health resources.” I continue to admire how leading companies, including our clients such as Washington University, Centene and others have taken a proactive and thoughtful approach to the topic.

So what’s next? Consider doing a self-check and invite your employees to take part as well. Ask yourself how you’re doing. How are you really doing? Don’t answer right away. Scan your body and notice what you are feeling. The power of naming what you are feeling continues to emerge in the research as a consistent theme for addressing mental health struggles.

It is a journey and one that we will all be on for some time. But I’d love to hear ways you are creating an emotional moat both for yourself and others. Thanks for being here. Take care of your mind. It’s the only one you’ve got!

Fondly,