Social Anxiety

Conquering the Imposter Experience

Conquering the Imposter Experience

Imposter syndrome is a common experience, even among the most successful individuals like Tom Hanks, Serena Williams, and Michelle Obama. In our latest blog, we explore how these feelings of self-doubt can actually become a powerful tool for personal growth and achievement. Learn how to shift your mindset, recognize your true worth, and leverage those imposter thoughts to fuel your success. Whether you're a leader looking to create an inclusive environment or an individual battling self-doubt, this blog offers actionable insights to help you thrive.

Read more on how to conquer imposter syndrome and turn it into your secret weapon for success.

How Can Leaders Create Connectedness at Work?

How Can Leaders Create Connectedness at Work?

Workplaces can be the drivers of positive mental health outcomes.

We live in a world where a huge number of people suffer from mental ill health and access to help is poor. As employers, why not go a step further from just ‘not making things worse’ to actually making things better?

Creating social-connectedness at work is one opportunity for leaders to impact their people positively. Loneliness experienced at home can seep into the workplace and leaders have the power to not only prevent work-based loneliness, but combat loneliness overall.

Workplaces can be the engines that drive a socially connected world.

How can leaders create an environment that fosters social connection?

Do you need a Circuit Breaker?

Do you need a Circuit Breaker?

Circuit breakers are a simple solution to a potentially deadly and costly problem. When a circuit trips, we simply open the fuse box, flick a switch, and providing there is no deeper fault going on, we reset the system.

Now, imagine if we could do this with our brains. How much potential damage to our mental and physical health could we prevent if we had an automated switch that simply cut off the power to our unhelpful thought patterns before they escalated to breaking point?

How to Work through Worry

How to Work through Worry

Worrying can impact our mental health at work significantly, and has been the subject of sage advice for centuries.

Inspirational quotes about improving your mental health by simply ‘not worrying’ are easy to find, but much more difficult to put into practise.

Can you control worrying by simply choosing not to worry? And if so, how?

In this blog we will explain in simple terms what worry is, how you can control worrying, and how you can work and live your life despite having things to worry about.

How to Increase Your Social Connectedness - Even if You Work Remote

How to Increase Your Social Connectedness - Even if You Work Remote

Developing strategies to increase opportunities for social connection is a major research concern that is impacting public health policy globally at multiple levels; from the design of community living spaces to employment regulations, public health campaigns and how we harness technology.

What can individuals do to ensure they are getting the social connection they need for mental and physical wellbeing?

Firstly, establish how much social connection you need.

Loneliness: A Psychosocial Hazard?

Loneliness: A Psychosocial Hazard?

Canada - that bastion of forward thinking - is currently working on developing public health guidelines for social connection to improve population mental health, and control mental and physical health risks. Bit like your five a day, but in chit-chats rather than fruit and veg.

Does that mean Friday night pizza parties are back on the work perks list, or should even form part of your Psychosocial Risk Management plan?. (TLDR: no. For more nuance, read on).

Staying Connected: A Guide for Introverts

Staying Connected: A Guide for Introverts

Mental Health Awareness Week 2022 has just come to an end. The theme this year was ‘Reconnect - with the people and places that lift you up, hei pikinga waiora.’

The positive mental health benefits of connection are clear.

Research has found that:

  • Happier people tend to have strong social relationships

  • Social networks promote a sense of belonging and wellbeing

  • People with a higher number of close connections (three or more) were found to have a lower incidence of mental health conditions.

  • You can explore some of the research on this via the MHAW website here

But how can this help people who struggle to stay social?