The restorative power of mental health days
Ask anyone and I’m sure they could point to multiple sources of stress in their work day. The evolution of technology has created higher-pressure environments where everyone is expected to do more at once while simultaneously staying on top of everything. Throw in the fact that the average worker is distracted every 3 minutes and it takes them 23 minutes to regain that level of focus. Woof!
We spend our days doing the work we love for inspiring nonprofits – and we still feel this stress. No one is immune. So in an effort to counterbalance these outside forces and keep our team refreshed, we introduced mental health days (MHDs).
Here’s how it works. Everyone at Great Believer has to take one MHD per quarter. It’s a non-negotiable requirement, and each Believer’s manager makes sure this requirement stays on their radar.
We define MHDs as a day focused on YOU. These days are classified separately from vacation days, because we want the team to broaden their vision for how the day could take shape.
Some members of our team have meticulously planned the day in advance while others take a more spontaneous approach. Here are a few examples.
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- Catie savored her favorite pasta (a little spicy and perfectly al dente). 🍝
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- Josh’s 100-year old grandpa shared his favorite NSFW jokes. 😂
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- Ash and her partner Ryan biked around Tennessee. 🏍️
No matter how the day is spent, we encourage everyone to create the space they need to truly unwind and recharge.
We’ve surveyed our team to make sure mental health days are hitting the mark. 100% of the team said that taking mental health days has had a positive impact. Here are some more specifics on this impact:
- MHDs improve morale and attitude
- MHDs reduce fatigue and burnout
- MHDs help with early prevention of a mental health crisis
- MHDs make time and space for being yourself
“Introducing MHDs at Great Believer has truly enhanced our team’s work-life balance. We appreciate being able to take time off for ourselves, without the pressure of work constantly looming over us. We feel acknowledged as people, and not just employees, and that’s a great feeling.”
– Christine Obiora, member of Great Believer’s DEI Committee
If you’re looking for a way to give your team a sense of calm in a sea of unprecedented stress, we believe rolling out mental health days could be the solution.