Gen Z and the Shift to Mental Health in Workplaces

Gen Z is transforming workplace culture by prioritizing mental health over traditional career markers, treating well-being as a non-negotiable necessity rather than a perk.

Zoomers are much more informed about health and well-being issues, and research shows they value it. Mental health expert Noel McDermott https://www.mentalhealthworks.net/ looks at what we can learn from this generation and how we can protect and prioritize our mental health in the workplace.

Noel comments: “There is a generational issue here, and Gen Z in particular are leading the way with these issues. We used to talk about feminizing the workforce, but then noticed that women were getting the same industrial diseases as their male counterparts, so it wasn’t an issue about gender but about culture.

In some ways, as the Boomer promises have not been passed down to the Gen Z generation, they have had to live more for now rather than the promise of a well-cared-for retirement. And indeed, that makes more sense. The move into workpreneurism, involving a career spanning multiple companies and even industries, has brought to stark relief the issue of quality of work life.

Any workplace wanting to attract this generation needs to take these issues seriously. This is the generation that doesn’t expect you to give it all to them but will go and get it for themselves. Tapping into that energy as a smart employer means learning from them and transforming the work environment.”

Protect your mental health:

Prevention is better than cure, as seen with Manon Bannerman taking a break from Katseyes, Alysa Lui briefly retiring, and Emma Raducanu focusing her health and mental well-being over success. These examples show that putting health first can lead to stronger returns, especially for Alysa and Emma. All three women have faced misogynist death threats and racism, yet they chose to prioritize their well-being, with hopes for Manon’s continued health.

Prioritizing mental health:

It’s maybe instructive for all of us to protect what money can’t buy, which is our mental health and well-being. And whilst poverty doesn’t help, success at any cost is hopefully being consigned to the dustbin. Success as a concept is being reformed, and as a society, we are moving to a more holistic definition that moves beyond simply picking up the mantle of previous generations’ industrial diseases like alcohol misuse or mental illness as an acceptable outcome for a successful career.

Helping staff to become ambassadors:

Thinking about work and making it more person-friendly is crucial. Predictable male commentators predict doom for work as ‘snowflakeism’ takes over hard work. Still, evidence shows otherwise; smart employers implementing flexible work and health initiatives see productivity rise and absenteeism drop. There’s a shift from deficit to asset systems—investing in staff well-being and time off encourages early help-seeking. Staff who get help become ambassadors for seeking support, likely staying in their roles. Early intervention for health issues makes treatment easier and reduces recurrence, while unhealthy behaviors that need HR intervention appear quicker in workplaces prioritizing health.

Highlight the success stories:

So what can we do? One effective and low-cost tool is to highlight success stories. Encouraging staff and leaders to share their experiences of seeking help and prioritizing self-care can promote a positive culture. Using staff journals to showcase these stories sets a tone that healthy staff equals a healthy business. Host lunchtime lectures featuring individuals with lived experiences who prioritized their health, demonstrating that well-being contributes to success rather than being sacrificed for it.

Key Mental Health Tips Outside The Workplace:

*   Connections to others – strong networks of engaged, loving, and supportive people in our lives are an absolute must; prosocial activity and activity in groups are highly rewarding neurologically. Networks form on the basis of an overlap of shared values, purpose (activities, interests), and proximity. Proximity is often the key feature in developing friendships, for example, so look local for these opportunities!

*   Active lifestyle – the single biggest health improvement you can make is to have regular exercise, ideally 3 times a week for 20 minutes. Raising your heartbeat is what you want to aim for; any more and that’s a bonus! Getting out, being active, participating in sports activities maintain overall health and well-being. High-intensity activities such as this, as well as HIIT, help manage stress hormone buildup. Stress hormones have a huge negative impact on mental health.

*   Improve your diet – having a healthy balanced diet contributes massively to a healthy mind and body. Try to reduce processed foods, eat a mix of 80-20 vegetables and fruit to meat, control portion sizes, and reduce sugar.

*   Practice good sleep hygiene – this is essential to healthy living. Sleep deprivation is a form of torture due to the psychological consequences of missing REM sleep cycles. So, work together to practice good hygiene in your sleep habits; don’t drink stimulants at night, exercise, have a simple and regular bedtime routine, reduce blue screen activity at night, and don’t use your phones in bed.

*   DOSE yourself up! Dopamine, oxytocin, serotonin, and endorphins are reward hormones that promote health and well-being, and engaging in activities that promote these will make life much more pleasant and rewarding. Some of these hormones you will get from the lifestyle medicine suggestions; endorphins come from exercise, for example, but using the DOSE mnemonic you can get more bang for your buck. For example, if you start running outside, you will get extra serotonin hormones for free. So, learning your DOSE activities really can pay off hugely.

Noel comments: “As we live longer, who really wants to have an older age with little to no quality of life? Let’s learn from our younger counterparts and achieve a better mental health and work-life balance by protecting and prioritizing our mental health in the workplace and at home.”

Mental health expert Noel McDermott is a psychotherapist and dramatherapist with over 30 years of work within the health, social care, education, and criminal justice fields. His company, Mental Health Works, provides unique mental health services for the public and other organizations. Mental Health Works offers in situ healthcare and will source, identify, and coordinate personalized teams to meet your needs – https://www.mentalhealthworks.net/