Mental health doesn’t just matter in May. It matters every single day.

How can we keep Mental Health Awareness Month going all year round?

While we acknowledge Mental Health Awareness Month in May, I believe it’s important to think about mental health all year round. Personally, I’m greatly concerned about the growing issues of anxiety, depression, addiction, and suicide. Many are experiencing stress, isolation and loneliness - both in our communities and in the workplace. Earlier in my career, I worked in a place where our mission statement was: “It’s everyone’s job to bring everyone in.” I think these words are more relevant today than they ever were.

As the month of May draws to a close, let’s remember that mental wellbeing matters to all of us. ?The greatest act of our humanness is to recognize those around us so that they know they are seen, heard and valued every day. And, of course, it doesn’t just matter in May – it matters every single day.

We learned from one pandemic. Now we could be facing another crisis.

During the Covid-19 pandemic, many of us became more in tune with ourselves, our families, and the things that matter most in our lives. We realized just how adaptable and resilient we could be. This is a real cause for celebration.

However, for many people, the pandemic (combined with ongoing economic uncertainty and social and political unrest around the world) also had a negative impact on mental health – and the extent of that impact is still unclear. We just don’t know yet what the full impact will be. What we do know is that 90% of US adults think the country is experiencing a mental health crisis. Some go as far as to suggest we’re facing a mental health pandemic.

Mental wellbeing and work

Employers can help to break down the stigma around mental health by encouraging open, honest conversations in the workplace. Recently, I contributed to a Forbes article on our changing psychological contract with work. The article highlights how employees expect space to self-define and be true to their authentic selves in an environment of psychological safety, without judgment or repercussions. These evolving expectations require leaders to take a more holistic view of health, including mental wellbeing.

What can leaders do to promote positive mental health?

Accenture’s Future of Work research found that 66% of CEOs believe that the pandemic has revealed a need to do things differently from an organizational and people perspective – and yet only 26% have a future-ready strategy that is holistically focused on changing how, why and where we work. Employees’ mental health and wellbeing needs to be central to that future-ready strategy.

Many leaders find it difficult to prioritize mental health – often because they are so focused on delivering strong financial results and shareholder value. However, I really do believe that if we take care of our employees, the bottom line will take care of itself.

Here are three steps you can take:

1. Keep the conversation going. We need our leaders to be open and authentic. Nothing beats telling your own personal story. When leaders can share the experiences that they’ve had honestly and with greater vulnerability, we know that employees feel a sense of connection and belonging.
2. Make work meaningful. The US Surgeon General, concerned that loneliness and lack of social connection is having profound effects on our mental and physical health, has urged us to prioritize meaningful relationships. As well as encouraging very human connections in the workplace, leaders can make work meaningful by communicating a very clear sense of purpose. They can bring the organization’s values to life through the things they say and do every day.
3. Build task forces. At Accenture, we have a vast network of trained mental health allies around the world. These allies provide compassionate support and connect individuals in need to professional help. We have our own Chief Health Officer, Dr Tam, who is committed to promoting positive mental health across our business.

Take care of yourself, too

I know the importance of self-care and looking after your mental health. For me, time with my family fills me up and enables me to support the colleagues and clients I partner with every day. I feel fortunate to have a job I love and where I can help others.

Recently, I’ve been working with Dr Michael Gervais, a leading expert on the relationship between the mind and human performance. As Michael says, mental health is more complex than “I'm okay” or “I'm not okay.” There is a vast grey area between the two, and that area is where most of us are on a day-to-day basis. I’ve learned a lot from him about the power of gratitude. By making gratitude a regular part of my day – truly thinking and feeling it – I set the foundation for mental wellbeing.

Normalize the conversation

Taking care of our mental health is just as important as taking care of our physical health. Together, we can normalize conversations about our wellbeing and prioritize mental wellness.

So, as we reflect on Mental Health Awareness Month, let’s all think about the things we can do every day to keep that awareness going all year round.

See what Accenture is doing to support mental health and wellness every day.