It's really tempting to be thinking about 2021 and what's going to happen on the other side of this. We're looking for the rainbow at the end of the storm. We want to find meaning out of the hardship that we've all been through.
And don't get me wrong; my mind has been there and we definitely have suggestions about how we can support you in 2021. I'll share them in our next newsletter.
But the storm is still blowing.
We think the priority for everyone at the moment has to be people's mental health. How are we going to support our colleagues through the next couple of months? How can we ensure everyone is ok?
My privileged position of being a coach means I see what is truly going on for people. The people I'm coaching are sharing in a way that people don't tend to share with their friends. When I see my friends, obviously we talk about our struggles. But it is in my coaching sessions that I am really seeing people's anguish and trauma. I think it is far darker out there than many of us realise.
From the bottom of my heart all I want is for us to look out for each other and support each other through the dark winter months.
What can you do so as to help with that?
You can make sure that everyone in your organisation is confident in having a conversation about mental health. This sounds a lot scarier than it is. Often all we need to do is listen without interruption or judgement. In coaching we call it 'holding the space'. The very least we can do is hold the space. Someone I was coaching today said that somebody had listened to her talk for an hour this week, and what a gift it had been.
We have an e-learning module that supports people in taking care of their mental health, and also support line managers and other people who might want to have conversations about their mental health. Connection is critical and so I'd always recommend this be accompanied by some group coaching.
We're finding group coaching is really supporting people at the moment. It offers people the space to talk about how they're really feeling. It allows them to hear other people talking about how they're feeling (therefore normalising what everybody is feeling and realising it's not just them). And then towards the end we tend to focus on accountability and action, and people start supporting each other. Helping other people is one of our five a day for our mental health. So you end up ticking a lot of those boxes in one quite short coaching session.
We also know that our constructs around masculinity can sometimes make it harder for men to ask for help. This was one of the founding thoughts of our Masculinity in the Workplace event. This year we're exploring Inclusive Leadership. There's some great speakers such as Gareth Thomas. We've got Robyn Wilder and Stuart Heritage talking about parenting in a pandemic. And there are workshops too on topics such as Unconscious Bias and Empathy. It's only £25 and you can attend for as much or as little as you want. Here's a 25% off ticket link for readers of this newsletter https://bit.ly/3nnXbbT
If you have budget get in touch. If you have a need but limited budget, still get in touch and we'll see how we can help you. If you don't want to use us, there are many different companies I respect doing some amazing things.
- https://www.northstartherapies.co.uk
- https://pushmindandbody.com
Or do it yourself. Just create some time in people's calendars to check-in and talk. All you need to do is listen without interruption or judgement.
I think this has to be our number one priority right now.
And step in to the sunshine every damn chance you can get
Rox