From anxiety in the NBA to burnout in the boardroom: Three inspiring stories about overcoming mental health challenges
In recognition of World Mental Health Day this week, we’re revisiting three powerful stories about coping with anxiety, burnout and stress in the workplace.?
From a serial entrepreneur to an NBA All-Star to a healthcare executive — each one is a reminder that we’re all vulnerable to emotional struggle, no matter how successful we seem from the outside. They also show us how important it is to prioritize self-care and ask for help when we need it.?
Battling burnout Serial entrepreneur Ajay Kori learned from experience, “If you’re really not taking care of yourself and you're burnt out, it puts you in a situation where you’re just not as good of a leader.”?
When his flower delivery service UrbanStems hit a financial snag, Kori threw himself into saving the business, neglecting his well-being in the process. He burned himself out and came off looking overwhelmed to his investors, who asked him to step down as CEO.
Reeling from losing his leadership role, he quickly founded two new businesses but, when he found himself with more free time, he said, “I started investing it in things like meditation and journaling and working with a therapist. As I did those things, I realized, ‘Wow, I’m happier and not only that, I seem to be getting more and more effective at running these companies.’”
See Kori’s full story here .?
Sharing your struggle
In 2018, NBA All-Star Kevin Love went public about getting therapy after suffering a panic attack during a game. He was worried about the reaction from fellow players, management and fans but he got an overwhelmingly positive response, with thousands thanking him and sharing their own stories.
The experience helped strengthen Love and inspired him to create the Kevin Love Fund , providing education, research, grant-making, and advocacy around issues associated with mental health.
He said, “Nothing would've changed had I not accepted that I needed to share my struggles.”
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Love’s full story can be found here .
Admitting vulnerability
Craig Kramer realized his tendency towards silent self-reliance wasn’t helping his career — in fact, it was doing just the opposite. Coinciding mental health issues with his children made it difficult for him to focus on his work as an international government affairs leader for Johnson & Johnson. Citing performance issues, the company let him go. “I felt very lost,” Kramer recalled.?
He decided to talk about what was going on at home with J&J’s senior leadership, many of whom shared their own struggles in response. The company ended up creating a mental health ambassador position for him, launching a global campaign to help others in the company dealing with mental health issues.?
“Nothing would have changed if I had not started talking about my challenges,” Kramer said.?
More details on Kramer’s journey here .
What can workplaces do better to help support the mental well-being of employees and their families? Share your ideas in the comments section.?
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long term disability at The Home Depot Canada
1 个月In the spring of Y2K, 4 months after our second daughter was born I called home to see if we needed diapers. My wife told me that our 4-year-old daughter wanted to talk to me,. as soon as she got on the phone she asked me "dad when are you coming home?' I saw that with the hours I had to work at 50+hours per week and over 60 during inventory our kids never saw me, so I resigned within 2 weeks and never looked back.. I still worked in retail in over 5 companies, past that time, but never over 40 hours. After coming down with epilepsy at the age of 52 and went on paid leave-of-absence since I was 57, when I visit my old store my old co-workers are happy to see I am making progress .My wife of 35 years has always worked retail, for the past 35.5-years, and our oldest daughter has worked retail for the past 8-years. Our youngest cannot work because of her disability due to being allergic to many things she would come in contact to, and she is there for me along with her mom and sister. Although I cannot ever work again, I make sure my family members who are working and my old co-workers are working to their great ability.
安徽绿沃循环能源科技有限公司 - 外贸专员
1 个月Mental health is sometimes more important than physical health.
Business Owner at DinoSurffer improvments
1 个月Man's gotta have some filters in place. They gonna get clogged for sure. Clean em regularly. I do.
Am open to various career options. Will utilize my transferable skills....
1 个月How come a token professional woman or two aren't included in this article?