How Are You Treating Your People?

May is Mental Health Awareness Month. Let’s talk employee mental wellness!

Let’s be real: employee mental health isn’t something we can dust off for 31 days a year and then ignore. Whether your team is dealing with personal grief or riding high on good news like a new puppy or a well-earned certification, how you show up as a leader truly matters.

At ConsciousHR, we work with small business owners who genuinely care about their teams, but sometimes aren’t quite sure how to support them while still running a business. So let’s break down what SMB support really means.

Support Isn’t Just for the “Bad” Times

Grief, loss, anxiety, burnout — we absolutely need to create space for employees to navigate hard seasons. But we also can’t overlook the good stuff. Employees want to feel celebrated when something amazing happens. That celebration is part of their mental wellness too. Mental wellness is all about balance and boundaries.

Have an employee who just nailed a huge project? Passed a major exam? Got engaged? Had a baby? These moments deserve recognition, either publicly or privately depending on your culture, and they’re just as vital as supporting someone through a difficult time.

When we acknowledge all of life’s chapters, we build something crucial known as psychological safety. Psychological safety is defined by the AMA as a working or learning environment that is safe for expressing vulnerability, sharing perspectives, and taking risks without fear of retribution or humiliation.

Psychological Safety with Boundaries? Yes, Please.

Creating a workplace that supports mental health doesn’t mean being available for every emotional wave. It means:

• Encouraging open, respectful conversations

• Making space for employees to share when they’re ready

• Having clear policies and boundaries so support is consistent, not chaotic

You can lead with empathy while still setting and holding expectations. That’s the sweet spot.

Policies Matter. So Do People.

Policies like PTO (Paid Time-Off), LOA (Leave of Absence), flexible scheduling, and mental health benefits aren’t just compliance tools. They’re signals to your team that their well-being is a priority.

• Got a bereavement policy? Make sure it’s clear and compassionate.

• Offering mental health days? Normalize using them (by using them yourself!).

• Have an EAP (Employee Assistance Policy)? Remind folks what’s included and how to use it confidentially.

• Thinking about expanding benefits? Chat with your team about what benefits would actually benefit them. You might be surprised at their answers!

If you want to be known as a workplace that prioritizes their people, your policies can’t just sit in the handbook collecting dust.

Why It’s Worth It

Supporting your team’s mental health is the right thing to do. It’s also the smart thing to do.

• Increased retention - People stay where they feel seen and supported.

• Positive reputation - Glassdoor tells the story. So does word-of-mouth in your industry.

• Happier humans - That means better communication, stronger performance, and higher engagement.

No one likes being treated like they don’t matter… and no one wants to lead a business known for treating people that way.

TL;DR for the Busy Business Owner

• Celebrate your people during the highs, and hold space during the lows.

• Support your values with real, useful, and accessible policies.

• Create a culture of psychological safety, paired with strong boundaries.

• Do what feels right to support your people, not just what is required.

• Mental health is health, and healthy teams build healthy businesses.

Want help making this real in your business?

This is our monthly topic in EyesOpen, which is our private HR support community built just for small business leaders like you. Inside EyesOpen, we’re talking all things mental wellness support this month, from policy tweaks to culture shifts, so you can support your people without losing sight of your business goals.

👉 Join EyesOpen and get real-time support, practical HR insight, and a community that believes doing right by your people is always good business.