There is a good chance that someone else needs to hear your story as much as your soul needs to express it. Sharing your story provides others with the comfort that they are not alone. Talking about your failures, your pain, and your triumphs speaks to what it means to be human.
— powerful words shared by our keynote Speaker Allan Kehler.
We often talk about true wealth here at Sutton, and to us that means much more than money. It means we care about your social, spiritual, and emotional wellbeing – and your mental health.
There was a time we would never talk about mental health, at least not publicly. It was whispered about behind closed doors. Today, we all need to recognize the importance of mental health, just like we would our physical health. It starts with talking about it.
We were filled with gratitude and appreciation for Allan for his vulnerability and courage in sharing his story to help us to learn, to hope, and to act. We share these insights from his presentation in the hope that you can apply them to your personal and professional life.
1. We are born resilient. You have survived 100% of your most challenging days. When we hear the word resilience, we often think about it as bouncing back. But through adversity, you don’t bounce back to your previous state. It changes you. As Allan shared, we are born to fight. Sometimes we have to remind ourselves to persevere. No matter how dark the night, the dawn will come.
2. Silence is not the answer. To someone struggling, silence feels like no one cares. Even when we can’t possibly understand what someone has gone through, four powerful words matter: “Help me to understand.” Listen. Zip it; you are not fixing it. Someone asked how to approach an employee or colleague when they didn’t know what to say to the person. Allan shared an example of what you could say: “I don’t mean to pry, but I am concerned. I am happy to listen if you ever need to talk.” The barriers to asking for help are so high. Reaching out is necessary so someone who is struggling knows they are not alone.
3. Emotions are energy. Allan illustrated this by stuffing squishy balls into a jar, each ball representing a difficult emotion. Have you ever heard someone say, “I don’t know what happened, I just lost it”? When we aren’t managing emotions effectively it has to come out somewhere. Have you ever chatted with a friend about some hard things going on in your life, and then been surprised by how much better you felt after just talking about your feelings? Teaching our kids how to feel, getting them to talk, and giving them strategies to cope is empowering. When we get our kids talking about their emotions, we can ask, “What are you going to do about it?”
Allan closed his keynote by reminding us of the importance of self-care, whatever that means for you. Take 2% for you! What 2% means is about 30 minutes a day of self-care. We can all commit to 30 minutes a day, right? We can’t take care of anyone else if we don’t take care of ourselves. Remember to put your own oxygen mask on first.
Together we are stronger. Let’s keep talking.
Take action now and check out the 6 Commitments to Creating Wellness in the Workplace and keep this Wellness Resources Sheet accessible.
To learn more about Allan, book him for an event, or order more books, visit allankehler.com.
Allan is a mental health advocate, international keynote speaker, and best-selling author of four books. He is one of Canada’s most sought-after speakers when it comes to the topic of mental health and wellness. He has stood on more than 500 stages and is recognized for his engaging style and captivating approach. Allan uses humour and compassion to create a safe space where people feel seen, heard, and supported.
Photos courtesy of David Stobbe / Stobbe Photography
