To mark World Mental Health Day, Tania Diggory, Founder & Director of Calmer, an organisation working to support the mental health of entrepreneurs, freelancers, and business teams, provides 10 Calmer ideas to embed positive mental health practices in a way that’s both practical, beneficial and work 365 days a year.
‘World Mental Health Day is an incredible opportunity to raise the profile of mental health care around the world,’ said Tania Diggory, Founder & Director of Calmer.
‘It encourages all of us to take a moment to check in with our own mental health, and the ways we can support the mental health of the people around us too. By just implementing a few ideas you will maintain your mental well-being today and for many more days to come,’ added Diggory.
1. Take free stress management and burnout prevention training. One of the most common forms of poor mental health is stress. In the UK, over 60% of entrepreneurs reportedly experience stress and burnout. Check out The Reignite Project, a free digital training course that helps each individual to identify their symptoms, understand the stages of burnout, and implement positive steps to manage stress levels.
2. Start talking about mental health. It’s something 100% of us experience, and yet it’s not something that’s widely talked about. Begin the conversation with your friends, family, or colleagues and follow our guide to talking about mental health to get started.
3. Try breathing exercises. One things we can all do – no matter where we are, or what time it is – to alleviate stress is a breathing exercise. This small tool can help you to calm your nerves, reduce your stress levels, or simply feel more comfortable in your body.
4. Take free suicide prevention training. The theme of this year’s World Mental Health Day is suicide prevention. Every 40 seconds, someone loses their life to suicide. While Calmer is not a clinical organisation, we are partnered with Thrive Your Life for clinical mental health support, and we recommend taking this free 20 minute Life Saving Training Course to develop life-saving skills.
5. Take up exercise. The mind and body are incredibly well-connected, so it makes sense that physical exercise can support our mental health. The NHS recommends we spend at least 150 minutes per week taking part in exercise, so see if you can meet this target.
6. Build your mental resilience. Sometimes, life can feel like you’re riding a roller coaster. You may be able to see the ups and downs, but you can only minimally control the carriage you’re in. At the same time, you can learn to enjoy the ride. On a mental and emotional level, this is what resilience is. If you work for yourself, or are considering doing so, take you may wish to take our specially-designed mental resilience training.
7. Practise mindfulness at work. Mindfulness is becoming a widely-touted form of improving office cultures, with some of the world’s largest businesses encouraging their staff to practise it on a regular basis discover more in our guide to mindfulness at work.
8. Create a self-care plan. Put simply, self-care is any activity taken in order to boost physical, mental, or emotional well-being. Creating a plan that focuses on making yourself comfortable, relaxed, and feel valued can be a simple and positive way to improve your wellbeing. Discover how to create a self-care plan in our recent guide.
9. Develop a better office culture at your workplace. While mental health is an internal to each of us, our external experiences can affect it for better or worse. If you believe your office culture could be improved to boost mental health, as well as productivity and efficiency, consider getting in touch with Calmer to receive business teams support.
10. Join the Calmer community. Finally, if you would like to support your mental well-being at anytime, in any place, we recommend joining our membership platform, the Calmer Community. Each month, you’ll learn simple, sustainable techniques and evidence-based skills alongside our online community.
