Mental Health for Leaders

A large majority of adults have experienced trauma in their lives that they carry with themselves daily. Unfortunately, the pandemic has only increased the number of adults in the workforce who now suffer from mental health issues such as PTSD. As leaders, how do we respond when these mental health issues show symptoms or limitations at work?

Today I’m joined by Dan Jolivet, who you may remember from the SHRM Round-up I did earlier this year. In our conversation today, Dan and I discuss trauma-informed management, and how it can open up a world of possibilities fo...

Many entrepreneurs start and grow their businesses to sell. They have an idea, find out how to implement it, hire the team to do the work, then they’re off to their next big idea.

But the missing piece is the health of the organization. And since people make up 95% of the work in most companies, the health of those employees is of utmost importance.

Team productivity and wellness is so much more than hiring the right talent for the right positions. I think we’ve all come to understand that mental health plays a pivo...

We know how important taking time off from work is. It allows us to disconnect from work, spend time with family, create new experiences, explore some creative interests. It’s good for our emotional and mental well being. 

But for some people, taking time off is stressful. Maybe they’re buried under debt so the thought of taking a vacation is a distant dream. Or maybe they just have so much built up paid time off (PTO) from, say, working in healthcare nonstop due to COVID. It feels really stressful to think you built up a huge bank...

Who says compassion doesn’t belong at work? Not Laura Berland, founder and executive director of the non-profit Center for Compassionate Leadership. For Laura (and, frankly, me), compassion has a very central place in the workplace and leadership.

Though there are skeptics, there is scientific evidence that compassion in the workplace supports more productive teams and more profits for the organization. But the compassion gets to start from within and this is a skill that can be taught - you can cultivate compassion within yourself and it starts with taking care of yourself first.

On th...

We know the importance of taking care of our team members in the day-to-day work. But we forget what that looks like in the big transitions that occur during systems overhauls, large acquisitions, and even leadership changes.

During these times, leadership, management, and employees are under a lot of stress, often for different reasons. Leadership and management is busy making sure that things roll out smoothly. And while some employees are strapped with making sure business as usual still happens, others are deep in the changes while also trying to keep up with their regular responsibilities.

Offering leadership training and development is essential in the workplace, for organizations of all sizes. But it must be training grounded in small behaviors, rather than big and sweeping changes so the training has lasting impact.

You’ve been there: sitting in a training room, listening to a presentation that encompasses so much information--good information--but the next day you’re challenged to remember any of it. The training wasn’t set up for success. 

This week on the podcast, I’m talking to McKendree Hickory of Life Labs Learning, an organization dedicated to ensuring that leadershi...

It’s time to start putting the humanity back in the workplace (if it was there in the first place), and that’s exactly what Cerys Cook and Swift Medical are doing. While mental health and wellness has always been on Swift’s radar, some new standard actions across the board are part of its new initiative to be people-centered and normalize mental health conversations at work.

Health and wellness benefits goes well beyond health insurance and time to attend doctor’s appointments. It’s about checking in on how you’re feeling and ensuring that your team leaders...

Have you ever taken a moment to look at who is championing empathy in the workplace? Who’s demonstrating empathy and talking about feelings and who might be hiding behind their computer screens?

It probably comes as no surprise that it’s typically women and female-identifying team members who talk about and demonstrate empathy in the workplace. This is a societal issue that started long before sexism and misogyny were recognized.

This week on the podcast, I’m talking with social science researcher and empathy pioneer Karla McLaren, M.Ed. about why this is and how we...

Everyone wants to be understood and heard and it’s usually a lack of listening and understanding that breeds conflict. No matter where it happens, conflict creates stress and unhealthy situations--something none of us should have to endure. 

The solution? If a conflict can’t be resolved, conflict resolution is the answer. But that doesn’t mean having the two people in conflict sitting down with a manager or in-house HR professional. Bias happens, and even if it’s perceived bias, it’s important for all parties involved to feel safe and that the mediator is neutral.

That’s...

Studies show that when employees find meaning in their work, they’re happier, more productive, more creative, and have higher wellbeing. And while individual employees need to do their part in finding that meaning, there’s only so much they can do without the support of their leadership. Since we work in communities, wellbeing and meaning are shared responsibilities, and leaders need to be intentional about their part in it if they want to set up their businesses for higher success.

This week I’m joined by Tamara Myles and Wes Adams, who together have researched how leader...