Getting to grips with mental health?

Posted by Amanda Whiteford

Mental health issues are far more widely talked about now than ever before. Organisations are increasingly taking positive action through wellbeing programmes and mental health champions to provide support to those who need it, but where does that leave line managers working to deliver on corporate goals whilst retaining and developing talented staff? Here’s a checklist of things you can do to support all your talented people, day to day.

First, we need to recognise that some people are stronger in mental health terms than others, just as some people are physically stronger. We all have a breaking-point and recognising our stress signals can help us avoid overload and stay strong. If possible, look for the stress signals in your team members – be observant, listen carefully to what’s said and not said in meetings, check-in with people about how they feel about their work before requesting extra hours or suggesting additional responsibilities. Even sharing our own frailties can be enormously motivating to others, tackling at a stroke the fear that they are alone and not coping as well as others do.

Secondly, be alert to some of the key turning points in our lives when we may need a helping hand.
For some of us moving out of education to full-time work will be a big transition; perhaps finding somewhere new to live, making new friends, understanding a new culture and group norms, managing our money and so on. For these people:

• Make sure you organise a ‘buddy’ for them, someone to show them the ropes in those first few months
• Check-in with them yourself each week to see how they are settling in
• Ensure you follow up on any induction programme to see what information ‘landed’ with them and whether there are any gaps in their knowledge and understanding of the organisation and its expectations
• Make sure they are clear on their new role and responsibilities and feel they have the capabilities to manage
• Keep your own expectations about the speed and quality of their work realistic in those opening months and if they are pressurising themselves to be perfect remember to point out none of us are!
• Help them identify some useful career tactics to help them transition from education to work – T&P’s Professional Success Cards are great for this

What about others aspiring to a new role or additional responsibilities, hungry for stretch and challenge to help them achieve their career aspirations? Here you can use your coaching skills to help them identify whether the amount of stretch and challenge they are seeking is manageable against their other life commitments and whether their timescales are realistic. If not, help them consider what adjustments could be made to keep their goals in sight without overloading themselves and experiencing burnout in the process.

Perhaps your team member is trying to balance new personal responsibilities alongside their career like a new baby or elder care. Here issues like lack of sleep, financial worries, appointments can come to the fore so be flexible in your management approach. Do you really need to measure inputs? Measure outputs instead – that way your team member can work flexible hours and deliver their work on time as well as managing to attend that out-patient clinic with their elderly father.

What about those who are highly talented but less resilient to setbacks. History is littered with examples of highly talented people who seemed to pay a high price in terms of their mental health. Recent studies show employees are still unwilling to admit to mental health issues which they may have struggled with for years. If you make a habit of making time for your team, holding 121 meetings, you can learn to gauge when they seem relaxed and are really enjoying work and when they appear more stressed or withdrawn. At those points just by listening to their concerns, offering support either through agreeing different working hours, or a reduction in work volume, you can give them that extra room they need to manage their way through that particular period more effectively.

Finally, make sure you know about your organisation’s well-being policies, medical insurance and employee assistance programmes so you can point your team in the right direction when appropriate. Emphasise in team meetings the value of a lunch break, taking a walk or visiting the gym, of working sensible hours and having time to enjoy friendships and activities outside of work. Not only will this keep people mentally and physically healthy they’ll be more effective and productive when they are at work – a win: win all round! Developing your coaching skills will also be enormously helpful.

TAKE AWAY
As line managers we don’t have to be mental health experts to support all of our team when they need it, we just have to be empathetic, aware of our own frailties and those of others, willing to listen, be flexible and kind. Talent comes in all shapes and sizes – keeping yours on track through good times and bad will make you a highly prized talent manager and a great person to work alongside.