Time to Talk │ A Chance to Reflect

Time to Talk Day takes place every February. Did you take part this year? Did you make time for a conversation about mental health with someone? If you did, how did that feel?

I found it an inspiring and humbling experience. My colleague, Nick was featured in The Times, talking about his experiences with mental ill-health whilst working at a senior level in the City. I attended an event run by MindGym and heard several great speakers talk about how we can tackle and reduce the stigma of mental ill-health in the workplace. The Twitter machine was also churning out all sorts of brilliant vlogs, blogs, stats and facts.

On a more personal level, there were my own reflections….

Increasingly I’ve been hearing from friends, family and colleagues about their struggles to maintain balanced mental health. So much of what they tell me resonates. The fear, frustration and confusion arising from poor mental health, either their own or their loved ones, is very real. I feel privileged to be trusted with the concerns that most of us barely have the nerve to admit to ourselves. Let alone say aloud. The difficulty of talking openly about these feelings cannot be under-estimated.

Recently, I’ve been supporting clients in their efforts to build resilience in the workplace. I am always impressed by how willing people are to share, support and seek new solutions for tackling mental ill-health. This curiosity and openness to new ideas is driven by a growth mindset, something I believe is a critical part of moving forward in challenging times.

Share you Time to Talk experiences in the comments below. Or get in touch to talk more about your own situation.