6 ways to support good mental health in the workplace

Good mental health is important to everyone, but it can be especially hard to maintain at work. This is extra difficult currently with many team members still working remotely, working from home or operating on a hybrid model, resulting in a blurred line between where the work-day starts and where it ends.

When we’re surrounded by colleagues and deadlines, it’s easy to fall into the trap of putting your own self-care on the back burner. But if you want a happy, healthy workplace, it’s important to make sure your employees are being supported in their mental health efforts.

If you’re looking for ways to help your employees maintain a healthy mind-set while they’re on the job, here are six things you can do

1. Identify the signs of an unhealthy culture
2. Host a self-care workshop
3. Promote random acts of kindness
4. Participate in a Team Charity event
5. Promote a clear mental health policy
6. Encourage exercise at work

1. Identify the signs

The first step toward supporting good mental health at work is recognising the signs of an unhealthy workplace culture. If you notice that your employees are consistently taking more sick days than you think they should be, it may be time to take a closer look at what’s going on in your office.

Look out for employees who are isolating themselves from others or who seem overwhelmed by stressors like workloads or deadlines. A massive 81% of UK workers surveyed say they want employers to support their mental wellbeing and 40% would even look for a new job if their employer didn’t support their mental wellbeing.

Each workforce is different and there’s no one size fits all approach – each company will be facing different and unique challenges.

2. Host a mindfulness or stress-management workshop

Mental health training can be just as valuable as first aid training. Hosting a practical workshop that helps employees learn about mental health, and how to support it, can be a great way to start the conversation. If you have a training room or conference space, consider hosting a workshop on self-care or mindfulness. Companies that host regular events like these report that they help bring their employees together and make them feel more connected. It’s a great way to get people talking about mental health in the workplace.

3. Promote random acts of kindness

We all know that feeling when someone does something nice for us without expecting anything in return. It’s a great feeling! Why not spread that good feeling around with some random acts of kindness? Encourage employee participation in an office-wide “random acts of kindness” campaign; it might be as simple as bringing in coffee for everyone one morning or making sure there are always fresh flowers on someone’s desk. The goal here is to remind your employees what it feels like when someone does something nice for them, so they’ll be more inclined to do those things themselves.

4. Participate in a Team Charity event

Make charity work part of your culture by doing team-wide events where everyone contributes a little time, money or resources toward supporting an organization that does good in the community or world at large. You could do this once per quarter or once per year, depending on what fits best with your company culture and budget. From running or walking challenges that also promote health and fitness, to hosting an online fundraising campaign or running a bake sale—whatever works best for your company culture and budget will work best here! The important thing is that you’re bringing everyone together around something good-hearted and positive, which will help teams feel more connected as they work together toward a common goal. This can lead to higher morale and productivity overall.

5. Promote a clear mental health policy

A clear mental health policy lets your employees know exactly what they can expect from you and how they can approach you to talk about their mental health. Open up the conversation about mental health in the workplace and encourage others to do so as well. This will make it easier for people who are struggling with mental illness to seek support from their coworkers and managers if necessary. Take stock of your employees’ mental health by asking them about their stress levels and overall wellbeing—you’ll be surprised by what you learn! You may even find that some of them have been holding back or putting on a ‘brave face.’ Recent research revealed that just over half (51%) of UK workers feel like they have to put on a brave face for their colleagues, while 40% state that they feel less resilient now than they did before the pandemic.

6. Encourage physical exercise at work

Exercise at work can be a great way to keep your mind and body healthy, but it might not be easy to find the time. Here are some easy ways to ensure that your office environment is conducive to exercise:

• Encourage walking meetings. Steve Jobs was famous for these. He believed his most creative ideas came when he was walking and often held meetings while walking with his team. He was on to something – walking energises our brains, reduces stress, improves our mood, and can boost communication.
• Create an outdoor area where people can go for lunch breaks, so they can enjoy fresh air and sunshine while they walk off their food.
• If your workplace isn’t large enough to facilitate a gym or fitness classes, offer employee-discounted gym memberships.
• Offer flexible working hours so employees can exercise during the day or incorporate some form of movement with regular short breaks.

We don’t always realise it, but our mental health affects how we perform at work. It’s not just a matter of feeling happy or sad—our mental health has an impact on everything from our productivity to our decision-making skills and ability to collaborate with others. At a minimum, employers have a responsibility to provide a safe working environment, to respect their employees and abide by their legal obligations and rules of employment.

As you can see from the list above, supporting good mental health at work doesn’t have to be costly or complicated. Even the smallest business can take steps to support their staff, to talk about their concerns and improve workplace mental health for everyone. This will help build the resilience of your team with real, practical and easy actions that can truly make a difference.

May is Mental Health Awareness month.