Creating safety and leading by example

In the US, May is widely recognized as Mental Health Awareness Month, bringing light to and de-stigmatizing the millions of Americans—and millions more around the globe—living with mental health struggles.

As leaders of organizations, communities, and families, we have a special responsibility to recognize and support those on our teams who face mental health battles.

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Welcome back to the Leader’s Playground!

What to Check Out This Week

This book, Mind the Inclusion Gap, is authored by a good friend of mine Suzy Levy, and I couldn’t be more proud. As we consider our role in building healthy and happy teams, it’s imperative to keep in mind that marginalized groups experience higher rates of mental health struggles.

Why isn’t change happening more rapidly? What are we doing wrong? Or better yet, what should we be doing differently if we want to drive different outcomes?

Although most of us are curious about diversity, and some would go so far as to call ourselves allies, very few of us are skilled in inclusion. In the absence of knowing what to do, we double down on being nice and hope that will be enough. Unfortunately, this optimistic attitude may harm as much as help.

This book is for anyone who wants to dive into the complex task of supporting diversity and increasing inclusion. It’s filled with insight and practical know-how. It will help you navigate the polarized and divisive issues we face, and move beyond just talking about diversity to playing an active role in shaping an inclusive future.

Leadership Lessons

I wrote a little while back about our duty as leaders to cultivate psychological safety in the workplace, and I believe creating an environment of support and understanding around mental health is very similar.

Part of creating that supportive environment means combating the stigma that is still so unfortunately associated with mental illness diagnoses and mental health struggles in general. It’s such a common human experience, and there’s no need for anyone to feel alone in it.

A recent study revealed that 1 in 4 people in the UK will experience a mental health issue each year, and that 1 in 6 experience ongoing struggles. It’s more common than many of us realize or talk about. But as leaders, we can change that by modeling supportive behavior and facilitating connected, caring environments for our teams where they can share their experiences if they wish, and feel less alone in them.

I believe a powerful way to do this is to be open with our own stories, to the degree we’re able and comfortable, as a means of de-stigmatizing mental health issues.

I wrote openly in my first book, Be More Wrong, about my own battles as a young man that led to me being hospitalized after collapsing on a golf course due to overwhelm and total burnout. I’d been living a life that didn’t align with my values and desires, and I didn’t even realize it until the anxiety became too much to bear.

It was a turning point, and I’m lucky that I had the resources and support available to me to overcome that challenging time.

I also try to write as openly as I can about the more ongoing struggles I face with imposter syndrome and insecurity as a leader. So many face imposter syndrome (about 1 in 3 men, and 1 in 2 women in executive roles), and talking openly about it helps to unburden some of the shame and isolation that can come with it.

My two biggest breakthroughs came from engaging with two sources of wisdom in particular.

The first was the coaching of Jamie Smart, author of Clarity: Clear Mind, Better Performance, Bigger Results. Through his work, Jamie helped reframe my feelings as being a reflection of my thoughts in the moment.

I started working on my meditation and reflection time. And with time, as I learned to reframe my desires from banishing thoughts to embracing them, I was able to find strength.

The second major influence was my work with Positive Intelligence. Now an effort to help revolutionize and support “mental fitness” for everyone of all ages and backgrounds, the concept comes from Shirzad Chamine’s New York Times bestselling book Positive Intelligence about achieving our highest potential.  

Central to Chamine’s work is the concept of Judges and Saboteurs—those nasty voices in our head that lie in an effort to protect us, but only undermine our greatest selves and sabotage (done by the “saboteur”) our potential.

Learning to recognize my own saboteurs in my head and how they create my negative mindset has helped me find more freedom from them. I’m grateful I have been able to tap into this work to build my resilience as a daily habit.

And the truth is, it’s a forever-process. I don’t think we really ever “arrive” at the finish line. Rather, we continually learn, grow, stumble, and learn again.

In the next issue of The Leader’s Playground, I’ll share some more detailed insights on ways leaders can continue supporting their teams’ mental health by building connection, offering meaningful support for those who need it most, and practicing out-loud advocacy for marginalized individuals.

I hope you come back to check it out, and of course, please share your stories of struggle and triumph—we’re in this together.

The Latest from the Leadership Tales

I’m excited to welcome onto the Leadership Tales Podcast my friend and transatlantic transplant, Adam Billing!

Adam is the Founder and CEO of Treehouse Innovation, a consultancy that specializes in design thinking and building cultures of innovation and experimentation. We (myself and my company, PotentialSquared) have been partnering with Treehouse Innovation for years, and I am continually impressed with the way that Adam leads and inspires his team and the work they are able to accomplish.

Tune in today, as Adam and I discuss the fundamentals of design thinking, how to encourage experimentation, and the common pitfalls many organizations experience when trying to implement design thinking. You’ll walk away from this conversation with plenty of ideas on how to help your team innovate!

You can check it out and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen to podcasts—and if you can, please leave a review. Each review helps put our show in front of more listeners, which means more opportunities for those who need them.

Until next time...

I appreciate you reading this issue, and I do hope you’ll join me in raising awareness of the mental health struggles so many of us—or our dear friends and neighbors—face daily.

We are poised as leaders to support, and not doing so just isn’t an option. By telling our own stories, and creating safe containers for others to do the same, we can facilitate connection and begin to combat the isolation and stigma so often felt by those who believe they are alone in their experiences.

This is the work!

Thanks again for joining me, and please do forward this on to a friend who may enjoy it—the best way to gain wisdom is in community. The more, the merrier!

See you in two weeks.

Cheers,

Colin

To learn more about my book, Be More Wrong: How Failure Makes You an Outstanding Leader, click here.