To mark this year's World Mental Health Day, it's the perfect time to reflect on simple gestures that show you care and support your employees' mental health and wellbeing throughout the year. 

Building a compassionate workplace where your colleagues can talk openly, share problems, that are not only work related, can be healthy for your employees and your business in the longer-term. This article explores some key strategies to cultivate a compassionate workplace.

Take time to listen 

Protecting people's mental health is a topical area of concern throughout the US so while awareness campaigns are amazing, it's important employees feel ok to discuss health concerns at any point in the year. While staying productive is key, you need to make time to listen and be open to employees who are keen to share any personal or work-related problems. With a reported 1 in 4 employees feeling ignored at work, as a business leader, doing so will be at your peril and detrimental, leading to employees feeling:

• less engaged at work
• unlikely to report burnout
• less inclined to advocate for their company as a place to work
• mistrust leadership of their organization.

Whether you manage a team or have started a business independently, you want to create a safe, caring environment where every member of staff feels comfortable discussing their issues and anxieties. This year's theme for World Mental Health Day is a reminder to raise awareness of people's wellbeing and make greater efforts to safeguard yourself and your colleagues.