5 Tips for Managers Supporting Employee Mental Health

I’ve written and deleted the opening paragraph of this blog more times than I’d like to admit. May is Mental Health Awareness Month, and while I want to talk about it, I’m not sure how. I’m not a counselor or a psychologist, so am I really qualified to talk to you about mental health at work?

I’m not, but one purpose of the month is to make space for mental health conversations. So here are my thoughts as a boss (not an expert). I hope you’ll share yours after you read them!

1. We should talk about mental health at work.

A lot of people feel like conversations about mental health don’t have a place at work. They say it’s too personal or makes people uncomfortable. I understand why someone might feel this way. It’s a sensitive topic. But recently, I’ve seen more and more businesses focus on the health and wellbeing of their employees and recognize the need for mental health support, and I’m a big fan of the trend.

2. To support your team, you need to create a culture of safety.

I believe our role as business leaders is not to have all of the answers or to become therapists. Our role is to create work environments that help people rather than harm them and make it easy for employees to get the support they need. We can’t control everything happening in the outside world, but we can influence what happens inside our workplaces. To make sure we’re maintaining a supportive culture at The FruitGuys for everyone’s mental health, I try to ask questions like:

• Are we creating a safe and respectful environment?
• Are we setting realistic expectations?
• Are our managers leading with clarity and care?
• Are we reducing unnecessary stress where we can?
• Are we paying attention to the things in our culture or system that are making work harder than it needs to be?

3. Awareness and empathy are critical.

As business leaders, it’s important that we learn how to recognize the signs that an employee might be struggling and respond with empathy. We should always respect our employees’ right to privacy. But if we see someone struggling, I think it’s important to ask whether and how we can help. We don’t have to be therapists (unless that’s your day job), but we can offer support and let the employee know they’re not alone.

4. Tangible support programs aren’t the only thing you need.

Many businesses offer Employee Assistance Programs, mental health apps, and flexible schedules to support their employees. These programs are important, but they work best when they’re paired with a culture where people feel safe using them. Managers and leaders like us can model that behavior. If you’re using a resource and feel comfortable talking about it, go for it! Your team will feel safer following your lead.

5. The ‘perfect’ workplace doesn’t exist (and that’s a good thing).

No workplace gets mental health perfectly right. Mental health is complex, personal, and different for everyone. But we can start from a place of care. We can listen. We can reduce harm where we see it. We can make support easier to access. And we can keep reminding each other that being human and imperfect at work isn’t a weakness; it’s actually a strength. Our humanness is what brings us together as a team, and that’s how we do our best work.

In the spirit of keeping the conversation going, I’d love to hear your thoughts about mental health in the workplace. Do you agree with my five ideas or disagree? What works for your team? Email me at chiefbanana@fruitguys.com and let’s chat about it.