Making impactful decisions without impacting your mental health 

For Bupa Global, wellness is their business. Helping to keep you at your best, all year round with premium health plans. Here, they discuss how to make the best decisions for your company and your mental health.

COVID-19 has led to businesses having to make difficult decisions at speed. So how can you make a good decision and maintain your mental health?

According to Laura Trendall-Morrison, founder of The GameChanger Consultancy, the first move may surprise you:… pause.

‘When facing a crisis,’ says Trendall-Morrison, ‘with many decisions to make that can have serious consequences, it can feel overwhelming. Pause and collect your thoughts to bring order to the situation.’

She suggests identifying and listing decisions to be made and then assessing them: Who needs information and how fast? Who are the stakeholders or people affected by the decision? What is the material value of the decision? Most importantly, what happens if no decision is made?

With so much going on, it can be hard as an executive to remember to take care of yourself, especially in terms of mental health – resilience is the starting point. The impact this situation may have on our mental health shouldn’t be underestimated.

Tara Swart, a neuroscientist, executive coach, and lecturer at MIT’s Sloan School of Management, stresses the importance of looking after your mental health and wellbeing, to be able to make the best decisions for others.

Stress causes spikes of cortisol in the brain, which can negatively impact thinking and the ability to control emotions. And at sustained levels, it can cause people to potentially make rash decisions.

According to Swart, a well-fed, rested and oxygenated brain is necessary for mental resilience and peak performance amid stress and uncertainty.

Bupa Global’s People Director, Grant Conway also highlights the need for clear lines of communication with employees, ‘ensuring they’re kept informed and reassured has been crucial in helping employees through the uncertainty.’

Similarly, to provide customers with the latest information, Bupa Global has created a COVID-19 hub on its website, updated daily, providing customers with the latest information.

Trendall-Morrison says while the current circumstances may call for difficult decisions to be made, it also presents an opportunity to take a step back to assess the purpose and vision of your company.

‘Are you best to continue in the present form,’ she says, ‘or will this mean new ways to deliver products and services will emerge?’

‘Allow teams to be creative and innovative and take suggestions from all employees and stakeholders.’

Peace of mind can be found by knowing that you’ve been transparent and acted right by your stakeholders.

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To find out how a Bupa Global health plan puts you in control of your health, talk to our Private Client team today on 0371 346 0407 or visit Bupa Global