World Mental Health Day: Leading Through the Layers

Today, on World Mental Health Day (10th October), we pause to reflect — not just on mental health as a global issue, but as a deeply human one that we personally share.

At Surface Deep, our work has always been about going beyond appearances. We believe that beneath every title, every performance review, and every well-crafted presentation, there is a person — complex, courageous, and sometimes struggling. And that includes us.

Over the years, we’ve experienced our own mental health challenges. The moments of burn out, exhaustion, uncertainty, or disconnection that come when the world feels too fast or too heavy. We know what it’s like to keep leading, even when your internal world feels fragile. We’ve learned, often the hard way, that strength isn’t about pushing through — it’s about moving through, with awareness, compassion, and support.

Leading with Humanity

In our work with leaders and teams, we see a recurring truth: mental health doesn’t exist in isolation. It’s shaped by how we work together, how we speak to one another, and how we respond when things get difficult. When leaders are equipped to hold space for emotional complexity — their own and others’ — they unlock something powerful: trust, creativity, and resilience.

Yet, that takes courage. It means shifting from the idea of “having it all together” to being real about what’s going on beneath the surface. It means building cultures where conversations about stress, burnout, or uncertainty are not signs of weakness, but markers of strength.

We believe that every organisation can become a space where people feel seen, supported, and safe to bring their full selves to work. But this doesn’t happen by accident — it starts with awareness, then action.

From Awareness to Action

To support this, we’ve created a Team Mental Health Checklist, available to download here:

Team Mental Health Checklist.pdf

Download PDF • 63KB

It’s a simple, practical resource designed to help teams reflect on how they’re really doing — beneath the metrics and meetings.

The checklist offers prompts for honest conversation, helping teams explore questions like:

• Are we creating time and space to rest and reset?

• Do we feel safe to talk about what’s hard?

• How do we respond when someone is struggling?

These questions might seem small, but they open doors to deeper connection — and to cultures where mental wellbeing is not a side conversation, but part of the everyday rhythm of work.

A Shared Journey

This World Mental Health Day, we’re reminded that no one leads alone. We all carry invisible stories, and we all have the power to make workplaces more human. At Surface Deep, we continue to learn, to listen, and to walk this path alongside the leaders and teams we serve.

Let’s keep going deeper — not to fix what’s broken, but to see what’s true. Because when we meet ourselves and each other at that depth, real change begins.

Download your Team Mental Health Checklist today

and take one step toward leading with greater care, courage, and connection.