Graeme McDermott’s Post

Mental health awareness is essential for every business and every individual. Healthy and happy colleagues will help your business grow and a culture that focuses on mental wellbeing will help you attract and retain the best candidates. With recent lockdowns, cost of living crisis, 24 hour office access on your phone and ever-present social media, no wonder that mental health issues are on the rise. It can affect everyone, irrespective of age and role in the workplace. Weightmans is a great place to work with a real focus on mental wellbeing and this video of our round table event, expertly chaired by Hannah Beddis, and featuring a diverse and expert panel including our Debbie Holmes, is an essential watch. The need for an open culture really comes through in the session plus lots of other great insights for individuals and businesses. For my part, and recognising that everyone has their own way of doing things, I would add the following thoughts: Give yourself and others a break. Be realistic about what you can achieve and accept that we don’t get everything right every time; learn from it and move forwards rather than dwelling on it. We all suffer setbacks and when we do, if handled in a healthy way, it can help us build resilience; Time away from the phone or laptop is just as important as time on it. Constant focus on the “now” can mean that the “urgent” can get in the way of the “important”, with diminishing returns. The ability to step back will allow you to see things from new perspectives and you and your business will be better for it; I have a great team who I trust so when I am on holiday, I don’t check my emails. My colleagues know they can contact me in the event of an emergency but not always being present encourages others to problem solve - and they get a break from me too! Find a hobby that forces you to take a break from work and your phone. Swimming, karate, gardening and music work for me (although not all at the same time!) but find what works for you; Be open with others but be alert too- a problem shared really is a problem halved so find the courage to ask for help if you need it (and give it if asked). At Weightmans, we have a culture where people can feel safe raising issues but we recognise that not everyone will do so; it is therefore important to look out for signs of struggle and to keep checking in with colleagues at all levels to make sure they are OK. Remote working makes that more difficult so keep talking to colleagues when not in the office; Work hard but rest easy too - recharging the batteries is essential for peak performance and well-being. Do I always follow my own advice? No (who does?!) but I keep trying and so far, I have managed to stay the right side of the line. Is the above a comprehensive list? No, but hopefully it will help and our webinar will give you lots of great insights and tips for you and your business so give it a watch! #weightmans #mentalhealthawareness