Ep028 - The power of Active Listening and lived experience with James Hatchman, CEO of Voice of Health

When was the last time you checked in with a friend and really listened? If there is one positive to come from this year, it is that we are more open to speak about our mental health and wellbeing. With the media starting to reference the shadow pandemic and more attention on this topic, I am really excited to speak with James Hatchman, CEO of Voice of Health. Voice of Health is a preventative mental health organisation that has developed a social platform that provides a safe place where you can share ideas with others, talk one-on-one with someone that understands you, talk without fear of judgement and utilise wellbeing-tools that develop strategies to self manage your own mental wellbeing. Voice of Health attends to the need for an effective preventative mental health solution in the Australian and global community. We value the importance of lived experience, empathy, power of perspective and self-managing your mental well-being. A number of other barriers exist that prevent people from seeking support for their mental health. These include availability of healthcare professionals, location, time, financial restrictions, stigma concerns, preference to self-manage, physical challenge or disability. We are here to eliminate those barriers. In this episode, James Hatchman and Tom Bosna discuss: Why Voice of Health was created and the market it serves The key elements of active listening How active listening in a peer to peer model can improve mental health  How the active listening course can improve mental health dialogue The future goals of Voice of Health and its application for the workplace  You can enroll in Voice of Health's active listening training for free, here. About Well Workplaces Well Workplaces is a movement by Pinnacle Health Group and our vision is for a world where workplaces lead and create healthier communities. Well Workplaces podcast has been designed to create genuine wellbeing conversations in the workplace and share expert knowledge in practical ways. Is your workplace fit for the hybrid workplace? Take the Thriving Workplace test today Connect with well workplaces on Linkedin  Join the community for exclusive events