CONTENT WARNING: this touches on difficult topics including burnout, depression, anxiety, suicide and other mental health & substance use challenges.
On October 21, 2024 I had the privilege to speak at Women in Tourism & Hospitality (WITHorg) summit at The Westin Harbour Castle, Toronto. My session was 45 minutes and titled, “Empower Your Well-being.” I have done similar presentations throughout Canada and the US for the last 4 years. This one was aimed at industry leaders in the hospitality and culinary sector that are women, non-binary or gender non-conforming but really this content is for everyone.
Knowing that many hospitality and culinary professionals can’t always get away from work to attend conferences or can’t afford them, I have shared my presentation and notes below. I am offering free public access as a way to increase inclusion and accessibility. The hope is to amplify resources and tools in hopes they reach more people. Also if you have any questions or opportunities for me to share this presentation in person, please reach out. (click to the bottom for resources and contact details).
As the Executive Director of Not 9 to 5 Org, I regularly share resources to improve well-being, workplace mental health and psychological safety for folks in the hospitality and culinary sector. This includes bars, restaurants, hotels, cafes, wineries, breweries, catering, events & more!
Anytime I present I like to start with the acknowledgement of how these topics impact each of us differently. It is crucial to understand how workplace mental health and diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) are intrinsically linked. We can not break up our identity to go to work, this expectation is dehumanizing. These topics are experienced differently by Black, Indigenous, and People of Colour (aka People of the Global majority); the LGBTQIA2S+ community; people with disabilities; and other marginalized communities. This is extremely important to understand if you are in a leadership position, a manager or an employer.
Mental wellbeing and diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) efforts are interconnected and interdependent. If you’re going to make efforts toward creating a more supportive and inclusive environment in your organization, you cannot ignore workplace mental health.
Next, I share data and research to offer context and an industry landscape. I don’t share this data to be an alarmist but more to validate the experience of the majority of hospitality and culinary professionals. These industries had a mental health epidemic before the pandemic, this is not just a result of COVID.
Although we are headquartered in Toronto, Ontario, our surveys have gone beyond Canada. In our last survey, we had over 700 participants mostly from North America but also included folks from UK, Australia & beyond.
The primary concerns of mental health challenges in hospitality and culinary sector include burnout, anxiety, depression, substance use challenges and disordered eating.
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87% agree to experiencing symptoms of burnout,
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84% agree to experiencing anxiety,
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77% agree to experiencing depression
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63% agree to experiencing disordered eating.
Even with these alarmingly high rates of mental health challenges, 67% admit to keeping their struggles to themselves and trying not to let it show.
This data shows the impact of stigma, silence and shame. Workplace mental health has been neglected in hospitality for centuries. The impact of COVID as a global trauma is different for each of us but no one is unaffected. The restaurant industry was one of the hardest hit and recovery is taking a long time!
Language helps us connect differently to topics. Expanding our vocabulary can help us better expand our understanding and change our connection to these topics.
Support skills for workplace mental health are leadership skills. All managers and leaders need to know how to facilitate mental health conversations.
What is well-being?
What is mental health?
What is workplace mental health?
What are the differences?
These terms get used interchangeably but they are not necessarily the same thing so I like to include definitions to offer clarity and expand our understanding.
Well-being refers to our sense of self and our ability to live our lives as closely as possible to the way we want to. It encapsulates the abilities to have positive relationships, promote healthy living and feel life satisfaction. It includes having good mental health, high life satisfaction, a sense of meaning or purpose, and the ability to manage stress. (source)
Mental health is defined as a state of well-being in which every individual realizes their own potential, can cope with the normal stresses of life, can work productively and fruitfully, and is able to make a contribution to their community. (source)
Workplace mental health is a joint effort between employers and employees. The employer’s role is to establish policies, processes and resources. The role of employees is to manage their mental health and seek assistance when required. (source)
Ideally your workplace offers a set of guidelines, tools, and resources and is a guide in promoting employee mental health and preventing psychological harm at work.
Mental health is not about feeling great or calm or being in a good mood. It is about having feelings that fit the circumstances we’re in and managing our emotional experiences, even if those feelings are negative, difficult or unpleasant.
The mental health crisis doesn’t end when we all feel good. It ends when we gain access to the education, training and support we deserve and are able to cope effectively with the distress that we will inevitably face. Investing in workplace mental health, support and resources contributes to suicide prevention and harm reduction.
“The hospitality industry mental health crisis ends when employers and workplaces acknowledge their responsibility in physical and psychological safety, leadership accountability and systemic change. These are systemic issues that require systemic solutions.”
Friendly PSA: BURNOUT IS MORE THAN STRESS.
One can experience burnout outside of work but for the context of this presentation I focus on workplace burnout. Technically, burnout can happen anywhere our efforts are made to feel diminished, undervalued, disrespected, or exploited.
But let’s get clear, what is burnout?
The World Health Organization has defined burnout as an occupational phenomenon “resulting from chronic workplace stress that has not been successfully managed” (source)
Burnout is a syndrome that develops after prolonged periods of stress or work without adequate support, such as compensation, appreciation, or mentorship (source).
McKinsey Health Institute (MHI), defines burnout as a phenomenon that happens when your job demands outstrip your resources to perform your job. It’s when you have too many things to do, and not enough tools, energy, or mind space to do them. (source)
Here are some key distinctions between exhaustion and burnout:
(source)
Burnout is often confused with chronic and prolonged stress. It actually has more to do with the balance of output versus support.
One of the leading causes of burnout is a toxic workplace, an environment where employees don’t feel supported, respected, or included. Leaders need to look at the environment they’re creating for their workers. Employers tend to overlook the role of the workplace in driving employee mental health and well-being, engagement, and performance. (source)
“We often think of employee mental health, well-being, and burnout as a personal problem. The findings are clear, the most powerful drivers of burnout are systemic organizational imbalances across job demands and job resources. Employers can and should view high rates of burnout as a powerful warning sign that the organization—not the individuals in the workforce—needs to undergo meaningful systematic change.”
(source)
Next I move away from outlining the challenges and into the solutions that can help improve well-being in the workplace.
In the last 6 years, one of the most incredible resources I have come across is Healthy Pour, a coaching and consulting firm dedicated to transforming the global landscape of work.
Below is a burnout prevention and recovery roadmap using the acronyms EMBERS and FLAMES created by the founder of Healthy Pour, Laura Louise Green, LPC. (source) Laura is a former hospitality industry professional turned licensed professional counselor and organizational consultant from Chicago, IL. She says, “these interventions have been validated over and over within the research literature, and I have organized it in such a way that can be easily adopted by anyone.”
Too often our industry is too reactive when it comes to burnout and I love that this tool takes a proactive approach. It is thorough and really highlights that we can’t just self care our way out of burnout.
Moving beyond burnout prevention and recovery, I highlight the importance of psychological safety, an environment where candor and risk is expected and encouraged without any fear of retribution. When employees feel psychologically safe, they’re empowered to show up as their full selves and take risks — leading to better team performance.
Psychological safety is the important factor that helps create effective, high-performing and productive teams.
(source)
Amy Edmondson says, “Psychological safety is literally mission critical in today’s work environment. You no longer have the option of leading through fear or managing through fear.”
In an uncertain, interdependent world, fear doesn’t work— either as a motivator or as an enabler of high performance.” (source)
𝐅𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐩𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐛𝐮𝐢𝐥𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐩𝐬𝐲𝐜𝐡𝐨𝐥𝐨𝐠𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐥 𝐬𝐚𝐟𝐞𝐭𝐲:
- Encourage knowledge-sharing, teamwork, and shared decision-making.
- Normalize opportunities to learn from mistakes.
- Lead with equity to ensure that all people feel seen and heard.
- Seek input and value everyone’s voice.
If you’re not fostering psychological safety, you are failing at your responsibility as an employer, manager and leader. People need psychological safety to thrive and do their best work.
Since this presentation took place at the Women in Tourism & Hospitality (WITHorg) Summit I also shared results from the tenth anniversary of the Women in the Workplace report. This is the largest study of women in corporate America and a closer look at how women have progressed over the last decade, conducted in partnership between McKinsey & Company and Lean In. (source)
The report provides an intersectional look at the specific biases and barriers faced by Asian, Black, Latina, and LGBTQ+ women, as well as women with disabilities. This tenth-anniversary report analyzes data to better understand progress, decline, and stagnation in women’s representation and experiences in the workplace.
Over the past decade, women have made important gains at every level of the corporate pipeline (especially in senior leadership). Yet progress is surprisingly fragile, especially for women of colour, who continue to be underrepresented at every level and who view gender and race as obstacles to their advancement.
This highlights the need for equitable psychological safety and continuing to focus on supporting and advancing women in the workplace.
Change is hard and messy. This is especially apparent industry-wide as we are in a transition phase of making the culture of work more equitable.
In my presentations I always like to share personal stories. Speaking openly about how hard and messy change is has helped me realize how relatable these experiences are. I always receive a lot of positive feedback and appreciation from the audience when I am more vulnerable. I have been unlearning a lot of what I learned from working in restaurants and reimagining what it means to be a leader.
There is an enormous difference between understanding what change is needed versus actually taking action to make change. Even as a leader who discusses, champions and advocates for psychological safety, I still struggle with vulnerability and seeking help when needed. I have learned it gets easier when I share this with my team and ask them to hold me accountable. It is easy to say “lead with vulnerability” but it takes more strength to actually be vulnerable.
The next few decades of rebuilding the hospitality industry will become easier to lead and work through if we prioritize change management. I appreciated this section of the report that highlights strategies for activating employees to change work culture.
Next I dive into resources that have been developed or created by Not 9 to 5.
In 2021, we launched CNECTing. This is a first-of-its-kind educational platform that hosts educational materials and courses on hospitality workplace mental health. The courses we developed help identify, understand and respond to mental health crisis situations. They help you develop support skills and expand your language and understanding on the primary concerns of the industry.
It is free, click here to register: https://cnecting.not9to5.org/register
Once you have joined, you can access our certification course called CNECTed. It is an online, self-led certification program focusing on psychological safety, harm reduction practices and developing support skills. CNECTed provides tools employers and employees can start using right away to improve workplace mental health and decrease stigma.
Beyond industry-specific workplace mental health education, we also share free mental health support for Canadians. Earlier this year we launched a partnership with Smart Serve Ontario and GreenShield to introduce Smart Serve Cares.
The program includes free access to:
☑️ 3 hours of free virtual mental health counselling provided by GreenShield Health.☑️ Online access to GreenShield’s Digital Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) program.
☑️ Unlimited access to GreenShield’s digital health platform packed with a diverse range of online resources, articles, and educational materials.
Please click here to learn more: https://smartserve.ca/cares
If you are outside of Ontario or not Smart Serve certified you can still gain access through our partnership with GreenShield Cares. Not 9 to 5 is now connecting 18+ Canadian industry professionals to culturally sensitive, trauma-informed virtual therapy and more. Just join our free educational platform at CNECTing.not9to5.org to get the direct access link.
We are in the business of people in hospitality yet often we are not hospitable to ourselves or each other.
“There is so much emphasis on the sustainability and ethical treatment of the ingredients that we use in our menus. We are trying to push us to have the same focus on the sustainability and ethical treatment of the people producing, growing, serving, creating and cooking everything we consume.” – Hassel Aviles
If you have made it this far, wow! Thank you for your time and for being here. If you have any questions or opportunities for me to share this presentation in person, please reach out.
Email: info@not9to5.org
Website: not9to5.org
Instagram: @not9to5_
LinkedIn: Not 9 to 5 Org
