Lately, I’ve been listening to The Anxious Achiever podcast, hosted by Morra Aarons-Mele. Its mission is to reframe how we think about mental health and neurodivergence at work.
It is encouraging to know that more is being done to shed a light on the issues of mental health and diversity in the workplace. But there’s a great need for understanding how we can thrive not despite of, but because of our unique mental health and neurological differences.
Anxiety is normal – it’s the most common mental illness in the world. But the way we’ve been taught and conditioned to deal with it, as well as other conditions such as bipolar disorder, OCD, dyslexia, ADHD, depression, social anxiety, autism, etc. – is not.
People need tools to aid understanding of themselves and each other. When nothing is done to address mental health in the workplace, the potential for strong performance and success is compromised.
I recommend this podcast because it brings such an important topic to the forefront that has traditionally been considered taboo, especially since so many of us are impacted. Hearing from leaders who discuss their personal mental health challenges and share actionable tips to successfully navigate their careers and workplaces has been helpful. The Anxious Achiever can help leaders and teams understand and manage how anxiety and other conditions show up for them at work, lead and thrive through uncertainty, use their challenges to their advantage, and create mentally healthy teams and cultures.