World Mental Health Day 2024
Mental Health at Work
Company culture has a tremendous impact on our mental health, and it is something everyone in the workplace has a part in – to some degree.
Our work life is a source of stress and reward, usually absorbing the majority of our waking hours. At the same time, we all have ups and downs in our personal circumstances which can weigh heavily on our work performance.
How do we nurture a positive, rewarding work life where long-term high-performing teams are formed and strengthened? What can managers do to support the wellbeing of their players, encourage open conversations, and build mutual trust and respect?
The rewards of a healthy work environment and culture are far reaching and multi-faceted.
I love Charlie Mackesy’s expressive work – so simply profound it makes you want to cry and smile at the same time.
Take his ‘Bravest thing’ sketch in “The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse”
Courtesy of Charlie Mackesy
Why does it take courage to ask for help?
Asking for help isn’t easy for so many people. It can make us feel uncomfortable, and sometimes we just don’t know how to go about it.
Mackesy’s Horse represents that authentic leader in all of us – strong and vulnerable, powerful and sensitive.
“It formed from the idea of how I was at my strongest when I was showing weakness. That was never really around when I was a boy. You had to be tough, armour-plated. But there are other ways of being strong. There is no shame in asking for help.” Charlie explained in an interview with The Times.
Horses know an authentic leader when they see one and will happily support and follow them. They will also step up and be the leader when the herd requires it. They have a lot to teach us about participation in our own ‘work-herd’.
How can we promote mental health at work?
We can all lead by example, and all have some agency in life. Working within our sphere of influence we can grow ourselves and our team.
Study and practice the attributes of good leaders:
Emotional intelligence: authentic leaders develop an understanding of their own emotions and other peoples’. Getting well acquainted with emotions allows you to see how they are affecting behaviour and beclouding thoughts; of your own and others. This allows empathy, leading to deeper connections and cleaner decision making.✅😊
Know and accept your vulnerability: You’re human - so get over it. No one has all the answers, that’s why we work with others.👨👩🏿👧🏽👦🏼
When we hide our vulnerability behind a mask, or armour-plating as Mackesy described it, we miss out on human-to-human connection. It’s not that you obsess about your vulnerable areas, just acknowledging them helps you ask for support when entering deep waters. It also helps you spot when unhealthy people are attempting to exploit them.🫸🛑
Open and honest communication: Again, something that takes courage. Avoiding this can feel easier in the short-term but creates ‘dirty-pain’ before long. The concept of ‘clean pain’ means going through it and coming out stronger, rather than going around it and letting it fester.
When talking about a colleague who isn’t present, how would you feel if they overheard? Considering this will keep you objective and fair, and could save you a lot of trouble down the line!
Remember communication is two-way, can we as leaders make it easier for reports to give us honest opinions? Can we be open for growth when engaged in dialogue with our manager or reports?🪴
At Atlantic Pumps, we refer to these as “Courageous Conversations”, which we believe is crucial to accountability and success.
Active listening: Seek to understand before seeking to be understood (Stephen Covey). Active listening involves providing space, open questions, and ultimately understanding how the other person sees an issue, even if it differs from your own perspective.
Another Charlie Mackesy quote comes to mind “Often the best answer is just to listen”👂
Recognition and appreciation: We all have a thirst for recognition and appreciation, and for some it can be a lifesaver at times. Watch your team for opportunities to reward, and try to learn what works best for each individual. “Reward while the sweat is still on their brow” as Andy Smith, MD at Atlantic Pumps often quotes.🏅
Make help accessible: Through company policy, practice and frequent communications make it clear that employees feeling stressed, depressed or anxious won’t be judged or lose out through speaking up.
Everyone has a breakdown point, and this varies for each individual based on many factors inside and outside of work. Of course, we don’t want anyone to reach this point but when they do, they should know they will be 100% supported. When we need the most help for depression or stress, speaking up can be the hardest thing to do.
Check-ins (“pulse checks” as they’re known as at Atlantic Pumps) can be done via one-to-one meetings as well as staff satisfaction surveys.
Staff can fear that speaking up about their mental health will negatively affect their job security or career, feel like they won’t be understood, or that nothing can be done to help them.
Managers can overcome these barriers by making everyone aware of company policy, advertise who in the company has mental first-aid training, and show through positive messaging what help and support is readily available.
Working at Atlantic Pumps
Atlantic Pumps has grown rapidly over the past few years, which is both a testament to the successful working culture as well as a challenge.
Managing Director Andy Smith “Our growth is a direct result of our people, who put life into our company values every hour of the working day. We can’t take any of our staff or our customers for granted, and I hope each one of them continues to feel cared for deeply, as we grow to our next level“
Atlantic Pumps work hard to make next week’s working day simpler and smoother, whether that’s through streamlining systems, innovating products, or quality work that delivers longevity and plant uptime.
Our goal is excellent relationships, accountability, and to learn continuously through remaining ‘humble and hungry’.
Employee appreciation
Some of the ways appreciation is shown at Atlantic Pumps:
- Shout-outs: ad-hoc across the office, in meetings and company newsletters.
- Finish work earlier days: good for team rewards
- Physical and event gifts: each department manager has a choice of what they can gift their team.
- Entry to ‘spin the wheel’ type games gives a fun twist and group participation in a team members win of employee of the month.
- In addition to looking out for good performance, remember to identify those who aren’t ‘winning’ – check-in with them and develop a plan for them to succeed. No one should be overlooked.
- Clean working conditions and quality welfare facilities shows that the company values their people – don’t forget the basics!
All staff at Atlantic Pumps benefit from hot lunches, plus fruit and snacks throughout the day. Working hard for our customers, we sometimes earn breakout time for a high energy game of table tennis or a precision playoff of darts or golf putting. Want to join us? Follow us on LinkedIn for career openings in pump engineering, customer service, and other rewarding positions.
For further information on mental health, please visit the Mental Health Foundation website: mentalhealth.org.uk
