TALKS FOR YOUR ORGANIZATION
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Availability is limited for Fall/Winter.
”Dr. Bill is one of the best presenters we have ever heard, his knowledge and expertise in workplace mental health is remarkable.
Angela RossHealth & Safety Coordinator, Town of Hinton
”Dr. Bill Howatt served as the Keynote Speaker for two of our corporate safety forums over the last couple of years. Dr. Howatt’s presentations have contributed to progressing the conversation on mental health and wellbeing within the organization. Not only have our employees benefitted from his knowledge early on in the pandemic through his ‘Mental Fitness 101’ presentation, Dr. Howatt also helped our employees understand the anxiety associated with a return to office through his ‘Ready to Return?’ presentation. Dr. Howatt is becoming a household name with our workforce and we look forward to working with him in the future.
Said MohamudIOL
”Bill Howatt reached over 300 of our people leaders helping them understand the importance of mental fitness, for them and for the people who rely on them. He made concepts relatable, digestible and removed any stigma associated with this sensitive topic. Feedback from Softchoice leaders include “this is some of the best training I’ve ever received at a leadership conference”….”thank you for investing in mental heath and wellness, this topic is situation critical and I feel better equipped to support my people”…. “Bill Howatt was amazing, great content topic, great speaker!” In the Spring Bill came back to speak to all of Softchoice, the feedback was consistent “so relatable…thank you for speaking so freely about his important topic”….”really like the idea of a mental fitness plan…and journaling”… “we really needed to talk about this as an organization, everyone is working through their own “stuff”…understanding where to start tackling my own mental health and wellness is so helpful!”
Sara LockhartSoft Choice Team
”Dr. Bill Howatt's leadership session on building psychologically safe workplaces was extremely well-received by our audience of Ontario Public Service leaders. It had the largest attendance to date for our mental health speakers series. Dr. Howatt's dynamic presentation style engaged participants throughout the session, and those in attendance said it helped them to better understand their pivotal role in fostering psychological health and safety among their own teams.
Kristen DelormeAssistant Deputy Minister, Ontario Public Service
”Dr. Bill Howatt is a very accomplished speaker and he has spoken at several Conference Board events including Workshops, Executive Networks, Conferences, and Webinars. He has also conducted internal workshops for staff at the Conference Board on developing coping skills. Both our staff, our clients and participants at events have enjoyed Bill's sessions. We highly recommend Bill for any speaking engagements you have on topics surrounding workplace mental health.
Charles BoyerExecutive Network Manager Workplace Health, Wellness, and Safety The Conference Board of Canada
Dr. Bill Howatt’s goal is to help employers problem-solve for workplace mental health. Many employers are unsure where to start or how to impact workplace mental health. There are three common reasons why workers and leaders struggle with mental health: being trapped in fear, insecure social connections, and being stuck in regret.
Using an approach called Howatt Works, Dr. Bill helps employers UNLOCK workplace mental health by finding the right combination of three mental fitness protective factors–these are actions that reduce mental harm and promote mental health.
- Support employers with workplace mental health strategy and planning
- Support leaders to become psychologically-safe leaders
- Educate employees to promote their behavioral health
Howatt Works yields greater revenue opportunity and alchemizes pain into motivation. Organizations that ‘get’ mental health right witness a corresponding positive effect on revenue. Mental health is a huge, yet commonly-missed opportunity for organizations seeking to grow.
Dr. Bill offers three signatured talks to help employers discover more opportunities to grow, and resolve mental health problems in the workplace.
Check out Dr. Bill’s collection of books to see how this can further support your organization, and inquire about bulk discounts.
Mental Health Talks
MENTAL HEALTH TALK
No More Languishing
No more languishing or feeling ‘blah’ – discover the road to flourishing!
Workers’ and leaders’ emotional well-being is determined by the amount of time they spend in pleasant emotions (e.g., flourishing) and unpleasant emotions (e.g., languishing). Languishing is not a mental illness. It is a negative mental state that drains emotional well-being. When stress, uncertainty, or fear occupy the mind, this increases the risk of living in a constant state of languishing (i.e., feeling ‘blah’). An estimated 60% of the workforce is stuck in a chronic state of languishing that negatively impacts their employee experience, productivity, and mental health. The longer a person is stuck in languishing, the greater their risk of sick time, disability, and resignation.
Mental health (e.g., behavioral health) is not intuitive; it is a trainable skill. The majority of employees have never been trained or supported to mature intrapersonal self-care knowledge and skills required to flourish. Dr. Bill, a leading expert in workplace mental health, provides participants with practical steps to discover and maintain a flourishing mindset. He leverages his clinical, corporate, and personal experiences to offer learners insights into why people languish in the workplace, barriers to moving forward, and how mental fitness can transform how they feel and think. Like with physical health, there are no magic solutions or shortcuts. But with the knowledge and skills, a personalized mental fitness plan, and repetition, new habits can transform how employees think and feel.
Learning Objectives
- Define languishing and flourishing
- Discover how and why people experience long periods of languishing
- Understand how stress, mental health (e.g., behavioral health), and mental illness are linked
- Evaluate learners’ risk of languishing and how it impacts their work and home life
- Examine behaviors that facilitate the cure for languishing
”Many thanks to Dr. Howatt for his recent presentation on mental well-being and ‘no more languishing’. Dr. Howatt’s open and candid presentation style resonated with the team, and we very much appreciated hearing some simple and effective tips and techniques to shifting out of those ‘blah’ feelings, and daily exercises to improve mental well-being and fitness.
Ontario Fish & Wildlife Policy Branch
Book your talk with Dr. Bill today!
Mental health is not intuitive – it is a trainable skill.
MENTAL HEALTH TALK
Unlocking the Habit of Mental Fitness: How behavioral health shapes emotional well-being
One constant in all workplaces is stress, and there is no chance employers will eliminate all unwanted stress. However, employers can mitigate mental harm and promote mental health. One action is not to assume workers and leaders have the knowledge and skill to regulate their emotional well-being. On any given day, five in five employees have mental health (e.g., emotional regulation) that benefits from intentions like physical health (e.g., diet, exercise). Mental health (i.e., behavioral health) is not intuitive and is a trainable skill. Dr. Bill provides employees clarity on what they can do to positively influence their mental health by unlocking mental fitness habits. Mental fitness determines the percent of time employees feel they are flourishing (e.g., thriving) versus languishing (e.g., feeling “blah”).
Mental fitness assists employees in maturing their resiliency, which provides additional personal psychological protection (PPP) that is the last line of defence for employees from workplace mental harm. Every employee owns their mental health. However, employers must acknowledge that it is important for them to engage in behaviors like creating a psychologically safe workplace that contribute to employees’ mental health.
This short program will provide employees and employers insight into behaviors that promote emotional well-being.
Learning Objectives
- Discovering what mental health is versus mental illness and how mental fitness contributes to it.
- Explore what a mental fitness plan is and its benefits.
- Uncover how to unlock the habit of mental fitness one decision and behavior at time.
Book your talk with Dr. Bill today!
Mental health is not intuitive – it is a trainable skill.
Psychologically Safe Leadership Talks
PSYCHOLOGICALLY SAFE LEADERSHIP TALK
Becoming a Positive, Psychologically Safe Leader: Maximizing employees’ experience one interaction at a time
Organizational leaders must meet the demands of their employers as they deal with the many challenges and uncertainties in the work world. They must be flexible, ready to pivot and adapt to change, and accountable for their workers’ experience, productivity, and well-being. The future of work requires leaders to be aware of workers’ experience and emotional well-being. Workers who spend more time in positive than negative emotions are more creative, engaged, and productive, have better attendance, and are less likely to leave or experience mental harm or mental illness.
This program focuses on opportunities. Leaders who are aware that every interaction with their workers matter, are more likely to create positive emotions. The by-product is leaders are perceived as approachable, trustworthy, and caring.
Dr. Bill Howatt provides proven, applied leadership strategies for employers and leaders who care about their workers. Howatt HR’s methods increase workers’ confidence that their workplace is psychologically safe, free of fear and silence, and where they feel welcomed, valued, and included.
Learning Objectives
- Understand why and how leaders can be a protective factor
- Examine a three-step communication strategy to maximize opportunities for psychologically safe communications
- Review three conversations leaders must have with every direct report
- Explore 12 behaviours that promote positive emotions and build trust
- Introduce a six-step weekly checklist to facilitate psychologically safe leadership and inclusion
Book this talk with Dr. Bill today!
PSYCHOLOGICALLY SAFE LEADERSHIP TALK
Self-care: The Number One Protective Factor
The most important thing a leader can do for themselves, their organization, and reports is to regulate their emotions and maintain their emotional well-being. Stigma can be a barrier to asking for help. It also can be a barrier to engaging in self-care. Forbes reported that nearly 60% of leaders feel used up at the end of the workday. Eighty-four percent of workers say poorly trained leaders create unnecessary work and stress. Leaders experiencing unpleasant emotions and stress are more prone to be reactive, short, and irritable. Leaders who are stressed and feel overwhelmed often are not in tune with how their emotional wake can impact others. Mental health (i.e., behavioral health) is a pillar of self-care. It is not intuitive; it is a trainable skill. Self-care is leaders’ ability to mitigate their risk of mental harm and promote mental health. The environment can contribute to or take away from a leader’s overall well-being. The last line of defence for a leader is their personal psychological protection (PPP).
Dr. Bill provides leaders with a framework for leadership self-care that includes practical guidance for improving and maintaining their emotional well-being.
Leaders who discover how to flourish are more prepared to cope with constant challenges, stress, and change than leaders who are languishing. Leaders who learn how to self-regulate their emotions and cope with stress by adopting self-care daily practices that promote their mental health are more likely to show up ready to meet the day’s demands.
Learning Objectives
- Understand the difference between mental illness, mental injury, and mental health.
- Discover factors that will impact a leader’s ability to regulate their emotions.
- Explore mental fitness micro-decisions and behaviors leaders can do daily to facilitate their self-care.
- Define an action plan
Book this talk with Dr. Bill today!
PSYCHOLOGICALLY SAFE LEADERSHIP TALK
Leading with Mental Health in Mind
Since the pandemic, workplace mental health has been top-of-mind for more boards, CEOs, and senior leaders. This is happening because of the growing understanding that workers’ mental (behavioral) health is related to retention, attraction, disability costs, productivity, sustainability, and quality of life. This understanding has increased the focus on psychological safety and health (PSH). PSH goals are to drive out fear and create inclusive, welcoming cultures where employees feel a sense of belonging, value, and purpose. Employers are discovering leaders’ critical role in protecting workers from mental harm and promoting mental health.
This presentation introduces leaders to four competencies and key performance behaviors (KPBs) for becoming psychologically safe leaders. Dr. Howatt is a leading international expert in workplace mental health with an extensive background in leadership development and executive and team coaching for leaders to create psychologically safe workplaces.
Learning Objectives
- Understand workplace psychological health and safety and the leader’s role.
- Explore four core competencies and KPBs that facilitate psychologically safe leadership.
- Discover how leaders can move towards psychologically safe leadership, one interaction at a time.
Book this talk with Dr. Bill today!
Employer to support HR leaders and folks who are facilitating Workplace mental health
SUPPORTING WORKPLACE MENTAL HEALTH TALK
Information is useless without transformation: How to rapidly impact workplace mental health
Workplace mental health is becoming a more significant challenge (e.g., YOY increases in STD/LTD & WCB claims due to mental illness). Knowing workers’ mental health is a growing concern is not enough. A common mistake is assuming that initiating programs and policies will be enough. For employers to positively impact workplace mental health, they must understand what psychosocial risk factors and hazards create the most considerable strain on the workers and leaders. Employers must then discover what protective factors they can facilitate using a Plan – Do – Check –Act (PDCA) approach to create the desired transformation (i.e., reducing mental harm and promoting mental health). Transformation and impactful workplace mental health initiatives drive worker engagement and productivity and lower sick time and disability costs that contribute to a secure and sustainable workforce. In 2020, companies with the highest workforce treatment scores in Just Capital’s rankings outperformed the Russell 1000 by 4.7 percent.
Dr. Howatt, an international expert in workplace mental health, provides professionals tasked with facilitating workplace mental health a framework for taking information and creating actions that put organizations on the right track to transform workplace mental health. Five in five workers and leaders have mental health. How employers and employees learn to promote and protect workplace mental health determines how well a work culture becomes psychologically safe and healthy. There are no shortcuts nor magic fixes to workplace mental health. Rapid workplace mental health transformation requires a commitment to continuous improvement, collecting the correct data, engaging workers, measurement, reporting, and auditing.
Learning Objectives
- Explore critical considerations required to create a psychologically safe workplace.
- Review the link between risk factors, hazards, and protective factors.
- Understand why workplace mental health requires a Plan – Do – Check – Approach.
- Discover how to leverage a rapid approach to workplace mental health