Mental Health Awareness Week is often a flurry of wellness webinars, mental health stats, and “it’s okay not to be okay” graphics. These are important, but behind the slogans and social posts are real people and for many, mental health isn’t a campaign; it’s their everyday.
As someone who has witnessed first-hand the complexity and challenges of mental illness affecting a loved one, I know that progress on this front isn’t just about awareness. It’s about changing how we show up for one another, especially at work.
Mental health doesn’t stop at the office door
Even in the most mission-driven sectors, there’s still a lingering sense that personal struggles should be left at home. That showing vulnerability is unprofessional. That leaders need to be resilient, even when they’re barely hanging on.
But resilience without support becomes burnout. And leadership without humanity becomes toxic. We have to move beyond performative gestures and towards cultures where mental wellbeing is genuinely prioritised throughout organisations.
What does compassionate leadership look like in practice?
Here are a few shifts I believe need to happen across workplaces:
1. Create space for real conversations: It’s not enough to have a mental health policy buried in a staff handbook. Leaders should model openness – whether that’s sharing their own challenges (if safe to do so) or making it clear that talking about mental health is not only allowed, but encouraged.
2. Build psychological safety into culture: People need to feel safe to speak up without fear of judgment, career repercussions, or being seen as less capable. That means listening (without fixing), respecting boundaries, and treating each other with care.
3. Support goes beyond one-size-fits-all: Mental health isn’t just about yoga classes and mindfulness apps. For some people, support might mean flexible hours. For others, it’s regular check-ins, access to therapy, or having a manager/colleague who notices when something is not quite right.
4. Diversity and mental health are intertwined: Racism, ableism, homophobia, transphobia, and classism all take a toll on mental wellbeing. So when we talk about inclusion, we must also talk about mental health through an intersectional lens.
Compassionate leadership lives in the everyday culture: the tone of a team meeting, the flexibility offered without fanfare, the unspoken permission to bring your full self into the room.
It’s not about grand statements or tick-box policies. It’s about building trust over time, showing care in consistent ways, and understanding that wellbeing is everyone’s business, not just HR’s. When leaders embed this mindset into how they lead, people don’t just feel supported. They feel like they belong.
Leaders need compassion too
Behind every compassionate leader is a human being with their own struggles, doubts, and vulnerabilities. We often forget that those guiding our organisations are navigating their own mental health journeys whilst simultaneously holding space for others.
The pressure on leaders is immense: to have all the answers, to remain composed in crisis, to be endlessly resilient. This unrealistic expectation creates a culture where leaders feel they must wear armour rather than show authenticity. The result? Leaders who suffer in silence, who push through exhaustion, and who eventually burn out.
True organisational wellbeing requires a two-way flow of compassion. Just as leaders create safe spaces for their teams, organisations must create safe havens for their leaders. Places where vulnerability isn't seen as weakness, where asking for help is encouraged, and where leadership burnout is treated as seriously as any other workplace health concern.
The strongest leadership teams I've witnessed are those where mutual support is embedded in their practice. Where leaders can say "I'm struggling today" without fear of judgment, where compassion flows horizontally between peers, not just vertically through hierarchies.
A personal note
This isn’t just professional for me. It’s personal. Watching someone you love struggle with their mental health is life-altering. It changes how you see support, success, and what really matters.
I'm by no means an expert when it comes to mental health, but I do know this: too often, people in crisis are left to fall through the cracks. We don't pay attention until it's too late.
At a time when mental health services are stretched to breaking point, workplaces have a bigger role than ever to play. Compassion isn’t a nice-to-have – it’s essential. Because when support systems outside of work are failing, the way someone is treated by a colleague or line manager could make all the difference.
Let’s keep talking
We want to see a world where inclusive and compassionate work culture is the norm, not the exception. This Mental Health Awareness Week, let’s commit to doing more than posting. Let’s create workplaces where people don’t just survive and count down to retirement, but where they can truly thrive.
