Category: Leadership Development

Recently I talked about authenticity during employee hardships. With recent events in the news, including the deaths of Kate Spade and Anthony Bourdain, I wanted to dive deeper into how employers can help employees in need.

Mental health is an ever-growing concern in our nation. According to the National Alliance on Mental Illness:

• Approximately 1 in 5 adults (43.5 millions) in the U.S. experience mental illness in a given year.
• One in 25 of those Americans suffer a serious mental illness in a given year that substantially interferes with or limits one or more major life activities.
• 9% of adults in the U.S. have had at least one major depressive episode in the past year.
• 1% of adults in the U.S. experienced an anxiety disorder such as PTSD, OCD, or specific phobias.

With mental illness so prevalent in our nation, what can employers do to help employees who suffer from mental illness?

1. Understand, and make sure employees understand, what mental health benefits are covered under your health insurance plan. Going over the benefits coverage annually during open enrollment is a perfect time to educate employees on what is covered. If an employee comes to you, remind them that their insurance includes coverage for mental health services.
2. If you don’t already have one, consider adding an Employee Assistance Program (EAP) to your benefits package. Employees can contact the EAP confidentially, receive immediate counseling services for work related or personal issues, and if needed, the EAP will assist the employee with finding a mental health professional in their local area. Employers see an increase in productivity, reduced time off, reduced turnover, reduction in work related injuries, and more. It’s a win-win.
3. Listen. Listen to your employees and take what they say seriously. If you have an employee who comes to you concerned about a co-worker, don’t take their concern lightly. If an employee comes to you to discuss a problem they are having, take the time to sit and really hear what they have to say. Sometimes all that is needed is someone to listen and show compassion. Sometimes more is needed, and that is when #1 and #2 may come in handy.
4. Understand that sometimes it is bigger than you. There may be cases in which you aren’t equipped to help. I once called the local police and had them conduct a welfare check on an employee who showed signs of extreme mental distress and made an insinuative comment to a coworker one day before leaving work about what he’d do if he had a gun. (I had also provided this employee with information on his mental health coverage and the EAP).

There are also many programs and resources that employees can access within their communities, as well as online. These include:

• National Suicide Prevention Lifeline- 1-800-273-TALK (8255)
• Alabama Department of Mental Health- 1-800-367-0955
• National Alliance on Mental Health- 1-800-950-NAMI
• Project Semicolon- projectsemicolon.com

Remember that mental illness may be covered under the Americans with Disabilities Act. If an employee comes forward with their mental illness and requests accommodations, be sure to follow your organization’s ADA accommodation request procedures. If an employee needs to take leave for a mental illness, be sure to see if they qualify for leave under FMLA.

For more information on mental health in the workplace, check out the Center for Workplace Mental Health.

As we continue to explore authenticity, I think it’s important to focus on how to actually be an authentic leader. One of the best ways to learn is to pay close attention to the authentic leaders you know in real life and those who are doing the work publicly and sharing their experiences. We always look for research and subject matter experts to inform our work, so here are ten authentic leadership quotes we often reference:

10) “Authentic Leaders are not afraid to show emotion and vulnerability as they share in the challenges with their team. Developing a solid foundation of trust with open and honest communication is critical to authentic leadership.” – Farshad Asl, The “No Excuses” Mindset: A Life of Purpose, Passion, and Clarity

9) “Authentic leadership is the full expression of “me” for the benefit of “we”.” – Henna Inam, Wired for Authenticity: Seven Practices to Inspire, Adapt, & Lead

8) “Authentic leadership is revealed in the alignment of what you think, what you say, and what you do.” –Michael Holland, Founder & President, Bishop House

7) “Authenticity is the alignment of head, mouth, heart, and feet — thinking, saying, feeling, and doing the same thing — consistently. This builds trust, and followers love leaders they can trust.” – Lance Secretan, The Secretan Center, Inc.

6) “Authenticity and knowing who you are is fundamental to being an effective and long-standing leader.” -Ann Fudge

5) “Without trust we don’t truly collaborate; we merely coordinate or, at best, cooperate. It is trust that transforms a group of people into a team.” – Stephen Covey

4) “It is true that integrity alone won’t make you a leader, but without integrity you will never be one.” –Zig Ziglar

3) “Leaders who don’t listen will eventually be surrounded by people who have nothing to say.” – Andy Stanley

2) “A genuine leader is not a searcher of consensus but a molder of consensus.” – Martin Luther King, Jr.

1) “A true leader is one who is humble enough to admit their mistakes.” – John C. Maxwell

To read more about Authentic Leadership, visit my blog post Authenticity and Authentic Leadership.

People first is one company value that I feel we do right at Horizon Point. As I prepared to step on the treadmill last night around 5:30pm, my phone rang. Knowing it was a work-related call that might take a few minutes, I answered it anyway. The person on the line was in California and seeking guidance on a credentialing application. Working with individuals across time zones means, we often get calls that aren’t in our “scheduled working hours”, but it allows us to make a difference in a much larger circle, even if we are conducting virtual training at 7:30am for a group in another country.

People First. We believe people are a company and community’s greatest asset. This is why we work to foster passion and productivity in people. We realize that in all our decisions, relationships come first, and we help our clients act as leaders by cultivating and building relationships that help drive passion and productivity.

Working in the realm of development, we are tasked with helping companies and individuals grow. To that end, “People First” truly is a priority. Here are just a few ways we strive to put people first:

1. As HPC employees, our families always come first. Whether it’s a sick child, or a co-worker’s, we ensure our priorities are in order and lend a helping hand (for work or family) whenever we need to.
2. Sometimes we realize Horizon Point might not be the right choice for a client, and we refer them to another organization that can better serve them. In the long run, clients appreciate placing their needs above making a sale.
3. To touch on another company value, “Give Back”, another way we put people first is to volunteer in our community. Sometimes that means serving on a board or conducting a pro bono career coaching session to help someone who has been through a rough patch and needs guidance. This is personally my favorite way to put people first – by offering to help.

As I came on board with Horizon Point, I developed a personal mission statement that I feel fits nicely with our people first value. It reads: I will strive daily to present the best version of myself to clients, family, friends and others. I will work to empower others and help them in their journey to lead better lives.

To read more about our company values, check out Moving BEYOND WORK – Our Company Values.