Psychological safety with Steven Worrall
At the end of 2020, Sir John Kirwan talked to Steven Worrall about mental health in the workplace and his experiences. These lessons are as important as ever in 2021.
Find out the details and where you can listen.
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“We’re all human, we’re all trying to do the best we can.”
Steven Worrall, Managing Director of Microsoft Australia caught up with Sir John Kirwan at the end of 2020 to reflect on navigating through the year with many of the lessons still on point as we make our way through 2021.
With a refreshing approach to leadership, Steven is eager to drive change. A strong advocate for diversity, inclusion, and mental health in the workplace, Steven is the founding Chair of the Corporate Mental Health Alliance in Australia. He is also the Microsoft Global Indigenous Employee Resource Group Executive Co-Sponsor.
Steven shares his own journey on the importance of being present, adjusting your point of view, sharing experiences to help learn lessons faster, empathy and the business case for prioritising wellbeing.
Watch the full video below
Let’s delve into the details of their chat below
Declaring that he is a constant work in progress, Steven offers some of his thoughts on mental health in the workplace.
The first and most important step to support his team's wellbeing during COVID was increasing communication. As Steven said, for every person there was a different reaction or a different story to be told. It was important to remember “we’re all human, we’re all trying to do the best we can.” He encouraged his teams to have short meetings often to stay connected throughout this year, something that they have been reluctant to do in the past in order to maximise time with their corporate partners.
At Microsoft they talk about the idea of empathy. “It's really easy to talk about but hard to do consistently and authentically. What I try to remind myself continually is you can’t generalise how people react to the environment I create here in this company in Australia.”
Steven is frequently reminding himself of what it really means to be empathetic. “Being present, listening clearly, engaging on a personal level about the issues that are most impacting that person.” Listen to the full episode to find out how Steven truly connects with the people around him.
One of Steven’s biggest learnings was a period in his life where his father had cancer, his mother was in early stages of dementia and he himself had just begun his new role at Microsoft. Upon reflection Steven said he had high expectations of himself. What he should do and how he should show up. He talks about how he took a selfish point of view with his reaction, thinking about the workload that was being thrusted on him, or why it was all happening at once, it's unfair. Steven thought he was going to do it all. But, he couldn’t. He failed because he “couldn’t reach out for the help that [he] needed.”
The lesson for Steven was that it wasn't about him, it was about his parents who needed him and it was a part of life. “There's no point worrying about what has happened in the past or worrying about what might happen in the future. The only moment that matters is what's happening right now.”
In talking about these experiences openly, Steven hopes to demystify the topic and encourage others to reach out for help if they are struggling or at least learn from other people’s experiences. “The pressure that I thought was upon me at work may not have existed if I had just had a conversation with my boss, I might have been able to deal with other issues with my mum and dad if I had reached out and got more help. I'm certain you can learn these lessons and benefit from other people's experiences.”
Steven is the founding Chair of Corporate Mental Health Alliance in Australia. As someone who is very passionate about mental health, He believes that the corporate sector has to be a part of the solution. Working together with other businesses in the alliance, they can learn and improve together. The single largest killer of Australians between 15 and 44 years old is suicide. “In our largest employers this plays out pretty directly. Enough is enough.” As a large business, Microsoft recognises the privilege and responsibility that they have and the important role to play in their community and around the world.
As a passionate advocate for workplace wellbeing, Steven had some compelling cases for other businesses to prioritise mental health.
1. It’s good for business.
2. The legal aspect to provide a psychologically safe workplace.
3. The moral responsibility.
There is nothing here other than upside. To discover his passion and reasoning, listen to the full episode.
Read:
Steven Worrall’s recommendations:
Buddha’s Brain by Ph.D Rick Hansen
Your Brain at Work by David Rock
Sir John Kirwan’s recommendations:
Quiet by Susan Cain
Te Whiti-o-Rongomai by Danny Keenan