Gwilliam, owner of Virtus Search, said he felt a responsibility to increase his knowledge to identify when situations might be overwhelming.
He said: “On a very practical level, I committed that I would upskill myself in the matters of mental health. I did a first aid mental health course and I think it’s an incredible insight into a subject that’s so vast.
“I wanted to make sure that I was going to be skilled enough at the right time if ever I sensed something was becoming too much for someone, inside and outside of work.”
His firm has become a signatory of the Mortgage Industry Mental Health Charter (MIMHC) and he has opened up his business to “be regarded as a safe space in complement to workplace equality communities and initiatives”.
Gwilliam said this was necessary because unless people felt safe, opening up about things that are affecting them is “a really big deal”. He added: “And even then, it’s hard because of a reluctance to seem vulnerable or weak.”
Encourage change
Gwilliam said he would advise businesses to encourage their employees to speak with someone externally if they are struggling.
He added: “All I can really offer is the fact that I’m an ally. I’m a committed believer in equity delivered in different aspects of business.”
He said he wanted to offer people the chance to have a non-judgmental conversation with someone who was willing to listen.
Due to his role as a headhunter, Gwilliam said this required a balance between keeping a conversation about professional change and leaning into any other concerns while remaining professional.
He said his mental health training would help him pick up not only on what is being said, but also what is not being said.
He also said people within the sector needed to stand up and make themselves available for this kind of support.
“It feels crap to be someone who knows they have those tools and those motivations, to not allow people to use it,” Gwilliam added.
Supporting all people
Gwilliam, who is also an advocate for diversity, equity and inclusion, said this support would naturally be inclusive because mental health affected all people and could be triggered by multiple factors.
He added: “Having spent a career listening to individuals about the twists and turns of their careers, I believe I can be supportive and of value to those who feel marginalised or unfairly treated and offer them an allyship that allows them to unpick the issues without fear of reprisal.
“Moreover, there are some personal issues that people might not want to bring into the workplace that are weighing heavy and having an outlet to unpack stresses and anxieties will hopefully prevent a deterioration in mental health.”
He also engaged with Jason Berry, group sales director at Crystal Specialist Finance and co-founder of MIMHC, to include social media in the charter as he said this was equally capable of causing distress to people.
Gwilliam said: “This is a time when there are so many stressors, there must be people carrying burdens that are sending them into some kind of mental health decline. If you can help them that little bit earlier, it’s so much easier.
“Mental health is a continuum; we all have mental health. The levels and depths of which the mental health illness spectrum go are really quite significant and vast, however nearly all of them started at the very early end of the spectrum and developed because they became unchecked. It’s the ability to get to them that bit earlier.”
