A great article here from Emma Mamo, Head of Workplace Wellbeing at Mind. Here Emma promotes the concept of using the concept of “Wellness Action Plans” – in essence an agreement between a line manager and their staff to help support wellness in the workplace. Useful for anyone; but essential for those with mental wellness challenges if we are going to take workplace mental wellness beyond a tick box and into practical outcomes.
On Evenhood’s website, I’ve written about how we can better train line managersto have mentally healthy conversations with their staff. Evenhood works both with line managers (through training) and individuals with mental health challenges (through coaching) to approach the disclosure and adjustment in a much more positive way.
I wish you well — Jonathan Phelan
About Jonathan Phelan
Jonathan is the author of “The Art of the Mentally Healthy Conversation” which tells the story of how Jonathan learned how to manage the challenge of a mental health condition following a child bereavement. The book helps the reader discover how to have mentally healthy conversations, which are more likely to result in support, rather than stigma. It also promotes the benefits of workplaces, universities and schools nurturing a culture in which it is normal for people to talk about their mental health and to offer mutual support for wellbeing and resilience.
Jonathan has held a senior leadership position in a large financial services organisation since 2004, with a long-term career in law, law enforcement and consumer protection. When he went through the trauma of a child bereavement he gained an insight into the obstacles people face when they have mental wellbeing challenges. More importantly he learned how to overcome those obstacles by improving the way we talk about our wellbeing and resilience.
Through his talks, workshops and book Jonathan shares his personal story. Using the drama of how mental health has been portrayed in film, and his own particular take on how our brains process information, Jonathan guides the listener to discover more effective ways to talk about mental wellbeing.
Jonathan also promotes the concept of mutual support for wellbeing; based on the belief that we should all aim to make it normal for people to talk about their mental wellbeing, just as we are already willing to talk about physical wellbeing.