What Is the Greatest Challenge We Face?

4 Steps for Enhancing Mental Health in the Second Wave

Dr. Ted Sun

Everywhere you turn, news about the pandemic and fears over physical health dominate the media. But what about the mental health of people? Over three weeks in July and August, Transcontinental University conducted a study that explored the greatest challenge people face. The study found that people faced mental health challenges more than physical concerns. The mental health challenges included anxiety, uncertainty, and even depression.  Not too far behind were concerns about the government, everything from ethics in the election to lack of leadership with the pandemic.

To tackle the challenge of mental health Dr. Ted Sun a renowned organizational psychologist, sees emotional intelligence as the primary weapon to heal the mental health of our community. He has the following recommendations for organizational leaders:

1. Self-Awareness: Take time to reflect on your own emotions daily. Ask yourself—how am I feeling? What is the emotion? Learning to be aware of one’s emotions can help with making wise decisions. This can be done during specific times of the day. Some examples:
   • When waking up in the morning
   • When a meeting is about to start and when it’s finished
   • When something major happens
      
2. Emotional Recognition: Have weekly meetings for teams to share their emotions in a safe environment. One practical tool is called WIFLE – What I Feel Like Expressing. Within this activity, everyone gets to share their emotion with concise words. This helps people develop their emotional expression skills as well as allow leaders to see how people are feeling before getting into business tasks and projects. In some situations, a wise choice is to help team members work through an emotion, instead of talking to people about tasks/responsibilities when they are not mentally present. The WIFLE activity also shows a great deal of care for employees when done correctly.
    
3. Gratitude: Focus on something positive and share that appreciation for what we have. We need this more than ever, as the media is filled with negative news about the pandemic, social injustice, and election problems. This can be a practical goal for every person daily:
   • Wake up, look in the mirror, and say “I love myself.” See all the triumphs that you have achieved.
   • See something positive in at least 2 people during the day and tell them what you see to appreciate them. Often, it is the little actions that make a world of difference.
   • At the end of the day, ask yourself, how did I appreciate someone today? How can I do it better tomorrow?
      
4. Positive Action: Plan and make a commitment to one positive action each day that impacts another in a positive way. Achievement is something that we all need to build healthy self-esteem and confidence. In our everyday language, many people use the word “try.” When we work with executives, integrity is always at the top of the list of how we want people to see us. The word “try” tells people that you will do something until it gets too hard then stop and say you have tried. This word diminishes integrity. To build your own confidence, always speak to people in terms of a timeline and specific deliverables. This way, you are communicating with more clarity and hold yourself accountable to specific results. Of course, when you make a commitment, write it down in your personal task list. When you check that item off after completing it, you will get a sense of accomplishment. This small positive energy is a spark within your brain. The more often you do this, the more confident you become, and people will see you as someone with integrity. This is something that we all want.

In the current challenging times, a few individual actions that drive positive emotions can have a huge impact on one’s mental health. As social creatures, we need social bonds that are positive. The wording of social distancing is one of the many negatives that harm one’s mental wellbeing. While practicing physical distancing, working to further your relationships within your social system is what the human brain needs to be healthy. Take daily action to make a difference in your life and those around you.

—
Dr.² Ted Sun is the president and founder at Transcontinental University, Located in Dublin, Ohio. With two terminal degrees (one in business and another in psychology), he is a respected author, speaker, consultant, mentor, and international professor.

Treat Yourself Like It’s Your Job

Mat Hargett

Welcome to our second newsletter! Our theme centers around self-care. So what is self-care and why is it important?

I personally like Active Minds’ definition of Self-Care:

"Self-care is important to maintaining a healthy relationship with yourself. It means doing things to take care of our minds, bodies, and souls by engaging in activities that promote well-being and reduce stress. Doing so enhances our ability to live fully, vibrantly, and effectively. The practice of self-care also reminds both you and others that your needs are valid and a priority."

You need to put your overall health first before anything else. I know this sounds selfish, but self-care has to be your number one priority. The reason: You cannot be effective in anything you do unless you are of healthy mind, body, and spirit. As an extreme example, how effective would you be as a supportive family member, friend, or coworker while lying in a hospital bed?

Are you taking care of yourself?

Unfortunately for me, I did not. I never had a self-care plan. About five years ago, I woke-up one morning and could not and did not want to get out of bed. I had depression. I angrily willed myself out of bed and then blamed everyone else for my depression and anxiety for years - day after day after day.

Then, one day I stopped blaming others and decided to take ownership of my life and do something. The first thing I did was to decide to treat myself and my life as importantly as I treated my previous jobs.

It seems so simple, but I think many of us treat our jobs more seriously than ourselves. At work, we set goals then create schedules and detailed action plans to achieve those goals.

Why not do the same for ourselves?

I started by looking at the key areas of health in my life: Physical, Emotional, Intellectual, Spiritual, Relationships, and Financial.

Again, are you taking care of yourself and your health in all areas?

Starting with the next newsletter, we will begin addressing each area of self-care. So stick with us, and we will help you develop a self-care plan to live a life of peace, hope, and happiness.