THE LEADERSHIP EDGE! Newsletter June 2025

THE LEADERSHIP EDGE

Your Guide to Exceptional Leadership

JUNE 2025 | 850 words | 4.5-minute read

FROM LAST MONTH'S EDGE: 

1. Decision Making Challenges: Not enough data, groupthink, fear, politics, biases, speed of change, etc.

2. Best Practices: Be aware of the challenges and ensure your process is structured to make the best decision!

3. How to Get Better: Show Courage, Exhibit Deep Expertise, Develop a Strategic Perspective, Drive for Results

THIS MONTH'S FOCUS: LEADING THROUGH THE MENTAL HEALTH CRISIS

Hello Leaders! This month, I feel compelled to speak about a topic that touches more of us than we realize: mental health. As leaders, we shape the environments where people spend most of their time. That makes us key players in addressing a growing and urgent crisis.

The Reality: From the CDC: "Suicide is now the 2nd leading cause of death for the 1-44 age group. Suicide rates increased 37% between 2000 and 2018 and decreased 5% between 2018 and 2020. However, rates returned to their peak in 2022. The suicide rate among males in 2023 was approximately four times higher than the rate among females."

We don't need to wait for HR to lead the charge—it starts with us. Here are three ways to begin:

1. LEAD WITH COMMITMENT

Most organizations are still working towards well-formed and functioning mental health and wellness programs, as well as cultures to support them. To successfully begin any new company-wide initiative, it's essential to start at the top. When Johnson & Johnson created a workplace suicide prevention plan, its executives personally championed mental health initiatives and shared their own experiences to break down stigma barriers throughout the organization.

If your organization doesn't yet have a program, it might be time to champion the idea—or quietly begin something yourself. Small steps can start big changes. Get started on something today.

Action Steps:

• Publicly commit to mental health as a strategic business priority, not just an HR initiative

• Share personal stories or family experiences with mental health challenges during company meetings and communications

• Allocate budget resources to mental health programs

• Attend mental health training with your managers to demonstrate value

• Regularly communicate about mental health initiatives

REFLECTION: What's holding me back? Why haven't I done any of this in the past?

2. SHIFT THE CULTURE

Most cultures are not designed to facilitate significant behavioral changes to make it easier for employees to come forward and seek help. TiER1 Performance illuminates this point: "Sixty-nine percent of employees would hide their mental health condition from coworkers. Eighty percent of employees won't seek treatment because of fear and shame. Individuals cite workplaces as a primary reason for high rates of anxiety and depression."

One of the reasons Johnson & Johnson's program was so successful was that their leaders didn't delegate culture change to HR—they actively redesigned their organizational systems and personally modeled the behaviors they wanted to see throughout the company. Without a cultural transformation plan, it will be challenging to make mental health anything more than a 'program.'

Cultural Change Tactics:

• Advocate for comprehensive mental health benefits and expanded coverage

• Personally promote and participate in mental health awareness campaigns and events

• Have regular mental wellness check-ins with direct reports

• Implement "mental health days" and flexible work policies, then visibly use them yourself

• Revise promotion criteria to include emotional intelligence and mental health awareness

• Advocate for zero-tolerance policies for mental health discrimination

REFLECTION: Does my culture support employees in reducing the stigma surrounding mental illness?

3. START THE CONVERSATION

Imagine being the leader who reduces stigma around mental health conversations, increases the utilization of mental health benefits and programs, and, most importantly, achieves a measurable reduction in employee mental health crises while improving overall workforce well-being. That would be a transformational accomplishment!

One way to jump-start an initiative is to collaborate with someone who has already conducted the research and developed a program.

"Start the Conversation" by TiER1 was created to help people recognize the prevalence of mental illness and its impact on all of us. Greg Harmeyer, CEO, writes: "Start the Conversation was intended to encourage people within our company to have the courage to talk to friends and family about mental illness... We had hoped that by doing so, we would impact our employees, helping them deal with something that we knew must be affecting them but was likely insufficiently addressed. Little did we know how much it would impact our culture."

This program is more than just training—it's an organizational experience designed to break the stigma surrounding mental health. TiER1's comprehensive toolkit includes:

• Electronic Journey Guidebook to help your employees choose their own experience

• Weekly Email Templates to share the focus of the week and related optional activities

• Pre/Post Survey to measure impact throughout the journey

• Optional Opt-in Text Campaign for daily engagement

• Weekly Session PowerPoints with Facilitator Notes for confident delivery

REFLECTION: What positive things could happen as a result of starting a mental health program?

THE LEADERSHIP EDGE PERSPECTIVE

The question isn't whether we should act, it’s when and how. Let's make our organizations places where mental health is protected, not hidden. It starts with us.

I am passionate about this topic, and I'd love to discuss it further if you're interested. Find a time that's convenient for you on my calendar.

DIVE DEEPER

Essential Resources:

1. Workforce Mental Health -- TiER1 Performance

2. 5 Strategies for Improving Mental Health at Work by Morra Aarons-Mele -- HBR

3. Providing Support for Worker Mental Health -- CDC

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