COMMENT: Mental health is a hot topic, and with the clocks changing recently a swathe of conversation will erupt with annual reliability about SAD, depression and, by extension, mental health challenges as a whole. But while the public conversation is key to removing any stigma associated with mental health, without other actions it only pays lip service to this often crippling and sometimes devastating problem that we are all vulnerable to.
The property industry, encompassing real estate and construction, has its own challenges, with many of us subjected to daily and continual pressures to meet programme, cost, safety and quality targets. These constant targets from one project or development on to another can, if not managed, manifest in unhealthy and destructive results.
I have seen it for myself with colleagues struggling to “keep up” with the stresses of the fast track nature of the real estate industry, trying to find the resources to keep them on track with lack of skills and unrealistic timeframes to deliver. We need to look at resources to enable all of us to manage and balance our working and private lives.
We all need support
The challenges around mental health problems resonate personally with me, from family and friends who have faced issues, some of whom survived and some who unfortunately did not. Having grown up in east London, I have seen and experienced the different psychological challenges that life in the industry can exacerbate. We have a serious challenge when it comes to poverty in London, and with that can come mental health challenges that make it hard for individuals, especially young people, to move forward and make a success of their lives.
Mental health affects people from all demographics and can cause serious side effects from self harm, drug abuse, excessive drinking, obesity to isolation and even suicide.
I have also seen the enormous strain and burnout experienced by people who, on the outside, appear to have it all, or who are at least on their way to having it all. Then there’s the rest of us in between, who seem fine, but are often struggling with the flippantly dubbed ‘daily grind’, and whose everyday challenges are just as valid as those at either end of a more extreme spectrum.
None of these are good for the individual or companies, and none are good for the community as a whole. Some of us are capable of keeping multiple “plates spinning”, others find it difficult to even start a single “plate” rotating.
Help is available
There are already wonderful organisations that make a significant effort, with much success, to counter the mental health challenge. For example, Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) England works to transform workplace mental health by equipping people with the skills to support their own and others’ wellbeing.
Their goal is one of empowerment to notice the signs of mental ill health, encouraging the breaking down of barriers and listening in a non-judgemental way in order to help individuals navigate towards support for recovery. Their approach is proactive and inspiring – it’s something I can attest to, having trained with them as a Mental Health First Aider myself.
The Lord Mayor’s Appeal Trust works for changes in the City of London that will have a transformational impact on people’s lives, aiming to help 1m people thrive. The appeal aspires to be a catalyst for changes such as reducing the stigma associated with mental health, reducing gender and class inequality, and tackling poverty of opportunity in areas of deprivation in our city, all of which often suffocate talent and potential.
These initiatives, and others like them – Mates in Mind, CALM – do incredible work, but it isn’t work that has an end point, and in order to really benefit from it, we need to make it sustainable, through fundraising, voluntary support, and creating environments that make their services as accessible as possible.
One way I think we can do this is by introducing “charity rooms and spaces” across cities, for charities to use to assist workers, especially younger people.
Some other measures can include simple aids in the workplace – biophilia, quiet zones, breakout spaces, occupation health professionals in the workplace, helplines and simple pictorial guides on mindfulness and meditations. If it all sounds very “soft”, “snowflake like” or “weak” – think again.
The challenges presented by mental health problems, no matter how large or small, can be isolating to the individual, but they are the responsibility of us all in the property community, because we all face them in varying guises, and we are all the poorer as a community if we let them fester.
Andrew Heath-Richardson is director of development at Canary Wharf Group
If you need help with any issues raised in this article, you can get support from:
- Mind, the mental health charity 0300 123 3393 – provides advice and support to anyone experiencing a mental health problem
- The Samaritans 116 123 – confidential 24-hour support for people who are experiencing feelings of distress, despair or suicidal thoughts
- LionHeart 0800 009 2960 or 0121 289 330 – charity for RICS professionals and real estate professionals
