Page 41 - SyI Quarterly 9 final

To perform at the highest level, you need to be able to understand your own
thoughts, emotions and behaviours, it is therefore important to be aware of when
we are becoming stressed and underperforming, what is causing the stress and
what we need to do to reduce it. Coaching and mentoring can be key in helping to
do this.

According to an article in the HR Director on Coaching and Well Being, a small-
scale study of coaching for headteachers in a challenging area of Bristol showed
it had a huge impact on the confidence to manage self, others and change. Heads
reported that they had better clarity and focus, were better able to prioritise, were
more realistic about expectations of self and others, were better able to identify
strategies to manage time, stress and the job overall and were calmer, happier,
more relaxed and less worried.

The positive impact on personal health went hand in hand with professional impact,
and leadership style. One commented “At my worst, I would not have been here
without coaching support”.
A resilience and well-being coaching programme for staff undergoing a high-profile
change in the NHS found that coaching was a useful self-help tool to manage a
stressful working environment. Participants achieved what was described as a
“transformational understanding” of their individual and team resilience at work.
It enabled them to recognise that the change had the potential to deliver both the
positive and negative impacts and that while some things were out of their control,
much was still within it. The result was that they remained engaged with delivering
the change.
Where can you start? - The Institute’s Mentoring Platform

Institute members enjoy access to our Mentoring Platform as part of their member
benefits, the platform is designed with all of this in mind. You are able to connect
with like minded professionals, however each individual may be facing their own
struggles. If we remove the focus of the platform being strictly being for career
advancement, we can open the possibilities of just connecting with each other
more personally. The benefits are for both the mentor and the mentee. For the
mentor you may feel a sense of achievement in guiding another person in the right
direction, of being a pillar of support, or in turn you may feel as if you needed to
help yourself gain some perspective so by mentoring another professional you also
find yourself back on the right mental health track. For the mentee you will find that
you may feel a sense of understanding and direction, both things that are positive
charges when dealing with your mental health.
It is important to understand that you don’t need to be experiencing a mental
health problem to start developing and working on your own well-being. This is an
investment in you, which will ensure significant returns for you as an individual.