Page 29 - CCCA Magazine Fall 2019

{ MEnTAL HEALTH }

goVerning mentAl heAlth:

A CAse For “shoulding”

By Wendy Lund, RN, BScN, MSc in Mindfulness Studies

ur minds are to individual resiliency distortion and narrow minded-thinking.
what governance is to organizational But is it always a bad thing? No. In fact, psychological safety “shoulds”
oresiliency. we are often called into action because we
Individuals and corporations rely on in- have a sense that we should be doing some- 1. Use a framework such as
ternal and external systems of thinking and thing we may not want to do otherwise. the national Standard
doing designed to satisfy various stake- At its core, corporate governance exists (visit www.mhcc.ca).
holders: our partners, our children or our to minimize harm and damage, and ensure 2. Take stock of your own personal
board of directors. When open to change, organizations (and their people) behave. values related to mental health
fexible to tension and motivated to do no It often begins with ensuring compliance and wellness to build awareness of
harm, we are building our capacity to be with legislation and internal policies. In beliefs that may contribute to stigma
resilient—and we should be creating an en- this case, it makes practical good sense to in the workplace.
vironment that supports the psychological start with what should be done. We should 3. Build a business case for why
health and safety of all stakeholders. also ensure systems and ways of doing this work is necessary for all
provide all stakeholders with a psychologi- stakeholders involved in your
What you maintain, you sustain cally safe and healthy workplace—as many organization.
Every time we act in the same way, a progressive organizations currently do. 4. Build a business case for the cost of
specifc neuronal pattern is repeated, doing nothing.
strengthened and becomes habituated. oh Canada
This concept is mirrored in how leaders Canada has proven itself a world leader 5. Match time, energy and resources
between proactive and reactive
and boards act and react. They are vulner- with the introduction of the National strategies.
able to groupthink, a psychological phe- Standard of Canada for Psychological
nomenon that can occur in groups where Health and Safety in the Workplace in 6. practice patience and acceptance—
there is a strong desire to conform even 2013, a voluntary set of guidelines, tools these are generational shifts that
when it may not be the right thing to do. and resources to guide organizations in require long distance vision.
Stigma surrounding mental health, for promoting mental health and preventing 7. Connect, communicate and
instance, can be subtly but systematically psychological harm at work. It helps you collaborate with all fnancial and
woven into how organizations think and understand what you should be doing. interest stakeholders.
act. Given that ensuring psychological Though the Standard may be volun-
health and safety in the workplace is rela- tary, organizations have a duty of care
tively new, many organizations are fnd- to ensure they are doing no harm when
ing it challenging to create and sustain it comes to the psychological health and If your organization has not yet started
new ways of thinking about it. safety of their human capital. to adopt the National Standard, it is time
As organizations are as vulnerable as it should. ❚
Why We “should” individuals to habituated ways of think-
“Shoulding” is one example of a mind ing, it is up to those responsible for corpo-
trap often cited as a way of thinking we rate governance to assess, plan and evalu- Wendy Lund is CEO/Founder of Wellth Management
should avoid if we want to be happier or ate best practices to ensure a minimum (wellthmanagement.ca), a frm that works collab-
feel less stressed. standard is achieved. Individual resiliency oratively with organizations to help foster psycho-
While the word itself is a little awkward, strategies are unlikely to lead to long-term logical safety and wellbeing in the workplace. With
it highlights the concept of putting pres- changes without embedding the respon- more than three decades of experience, Wendy
understands the biology of stress and resiliency.
sure on ourselves to do something. Is it a sibility at the top level. Health and safety, Her vision is to help others redefne wealth in their
bad thing? It can be when we “should” on whether physical or mental, requires a workplace and lives, which she shares through
ourselves automatically, creating cognitive top-down approach. workshops and in print.

CAnADiAn CorporATe CoUnSeL ASSoCiATion | CCCA-ACCJe.org 29