Today we’ll hear from Belinda Cannon, the Founder/Director of S O P H I E. SOPHIE is a wholesale and retail accessories label that has gone from strength to strength since inception 7 years ago. Belinda is not only an incredible female founder, but joint leader at home with her husband and 13 year old twins. Prior to these roles, Belinda has lead teams in various marketing & analytics roles over her career. Belinda has been part of our community for the last 3 years during challenging economic times, but she continues to thrive.
Let’s hear from Belinda:
- What does mental health mean to you, and why do you think it’s important to talk about it openly?
Mental health is just as important as our physical health. I believe that mental strain or illness should be treated and talked about just like you would a physical injury. It’s no different. The fact you can’t see it makes it even more important. If we talk about it, people can give support. So often, if you open up to someone, they’ll open up themselves too. The power of sharing is great.
- How do you prioritise your mental health in your daily life?
Exercise is a really big part of how I manage mental health. Tennis & running take me to places where work or stressors don’t feature. Getting good sleep, eating well & saying no are helpful too. Being realistic about what you can achieve is imperative. I can be very good at doing too much. Nothing should come in the way of protecting our mental health, we’re only letting ourselves down if we do something that we feel we should do. I will regularly assess taking on certain things at work and their impact on mental health for us as a business.
- What are some of the biggest challenges you face when addressing mental health in the workplace, and how do you overcome them?
I try to create a culture where people feel it is okay to talk about mental health. I have openly shared my struggles so I hope others know they can share too. We’re a sole women workforce & 75% of us have children. We know there is more to life than work and that any work “issue” really doesn’t matter. We learn and move on quickly form mistakes. Resource and managing workload is important – our industry is fast paced & an online store is 24/7 so we need to ensure we are adequately resourced to manage peak periods. Flexibility & part time positions are common at SOPHIE too,
- What advice would you give to other CEOs or leaders who are hesitant to address mental health in their organisations?
A great culture massively impacts performance positively. If people can’t share & don’t then there is likely an impact negatively to culture. If you yourself fail to understand how to support people – find someone who does. It’s simply not okay to not address mental health, it’s very common now & can no longer be off topic at a workplace.
#MHAW #peopleandculture #community
