The mental health of each team member is vital to business performance. Leaders at every level must intentionally and continually commit to finding ways to improve the mental health of their teams.
Finding ways to improve each team member’s mental health in the workplace requires intentional and continual leadership commitment and action. A healthy workplace requires buy-in from key stakeholders, executives, and managers all the way down to front-line supervisors and employees. It shouldn’t just be seen as something HR will take care of.
We think these ideas would go a long way to help managers support their teams better.
Enrol in workplace mental health training
Mental health symptoms aren’t new, but they impact team members at an increasing and alarming rate, making it a top area for trainers and for leaders looking to build and maintain healthier teams. The impact of mental health is complex; understanding the basics requires specialized training.
Mental health training can be a preventive approach to mental health issues whereby leaders can gain insight into the types of signs they should look for that might indicate a team member needs more help and support. This training can also offer leaders the tools they need to provide the support required.
Solicit outside professionals
Training isn’t the end of being prepared to support each team member in their quest for better mental health; it’s the beginning. Training provides a basis for being more supportive, but implementing policies and taking action to improve mental health and resilience could require mental health professionals.
Provide a means for feedback
Receiving honest feedback from each team member is possible only if they feel comfortable doing so; surveys are a great way to get specific and focused responses. It may be helpful to work with HR or outside mental health professionals to craft a questionnaire and decipher the results.
Check back in with team members
Closing the loop is often a step overlooked but critical, especially when communicating between team members and leaders. It’s not enough to get input about what’s working or not, make changes, and forget to follow up. The end-to-end feedback loop requires checking in with team members in a timely way to ensure changes that have been made are providing the level of support they need.
Be an empathetic leader
Empathy is a leadership competency; it’s the ability to lead while also making every effort to understand the experiences and needs of others. Empathy is one of the most essential characteristics of successful leaders and can offer many benefits for leaders and teams, including creating bonds, providing more insight, and increasing understanding and communication.
Welcome and encourage mental health days
Every person needs time throughout the year to regroup and recoup. Leaders should encourage every team member to take paid formal mental health days. This provides much-needed time to take a break from work-related stressors, attend mental health-related appointments, clear their heads, or have some guilt-free downtime without the risk of judgment. Mental health days should come with a no-questions-asked policy.
If you’d like to know more about how we could partner with you on this topic, please get in touch. Tel: 01623 409 824 / Email: info@dev.futureproof-training.co.uk.
