Farnoosh Torabi is a veteran journalist and personal finance expert who has spent much of her life trying to help others have a healthier relationship with money. But we all have hangups, and varying degrees of anxiety when it comes to how we make money and how we measure success. She speaks with host Morra Aarons-Mele in this special LinkedIn live interview about her new book A Healthy State of Panic: Follow Your Fears to Build Wealth, Crush Your Career, and Win at Life. She says that in some ways facing our fears can help improve our mental health and our overall lives.

Speaking up is an essential skill in work and in leadership, but it can be scary and anxiety-inducing for many of us. This week, Morra Aarons-Mele speaks with executive coach Nihar Chhaya about how can speak up more strategically, get what you want, and manage your mental health.

Everyone needs support at work, whether that comes in the form of coaching, therapy, some combination - or something else. In this episode we look at the specific kinds of challenges that executives face with burnout and breakdowns with executive coach Dr. Chris Bittinger. We’ll learn more about coaching versus therapy, the work he does at Open Pivot, and his own mental health journey.

While information about the connection between food, gut health, and our overall well-being has come into the spotlight in recent years, it can still often be something that only the privileged have time, money, and energy to devote to. Kimberley Wilson is hoping to change that.

She’s a psychologist with a degree in nutrition, and author of the books How to Build a Healthy Brain and Unprocessed: How the Food We Eat is Fueling our Mental Health Crisis. Wilson explains how deep the connection is between mental health and what we eat, how that shows up in our daily lives, and why these ideas matter for everyone.

It was an emotional and scary week for millions of people around the world following the horrific attacks in Israel and subsequent ramp up of war. In this episode, we return to Rebecca Soffer, author of “The Modern Loss Handbook.” to offer up thoughts on dealing with grief - and work - through such a tragedy, and we share her previous episode on grief for helpful frameworks.

Anthony Sartori knows just how overlooked the mental health of retail workers can be. After finishing college in 2018, and seeing the plight of frontline workers during the beginning of the global pandemic, Sartori started the nonprofit Evolving Minds. He speaks with Morra Aarons-Mele about the goal of the organization and how companies can work to improve the lives of retail employees.

We bring ourselves to work - or to our Zoom calls - every day with the desire to be professional and to achieve. That often means trying to put whatever else is going on in our world aside, but it’s a lot easier said than done. Cynthia Kane is a certified meditation and mindfulness instructor who focuses on communication routines. She explains to host Morra Aarons-Mele why it’s so hard to focus sometimes, how that can impact our interpersonal relationships, and what we can do about it. Plus, why we fall back on communication patterns like being passive-aggressive, and how to break those habits.

Learn more about Cynthia's work here: www.kanecommunicate.com

Gabe Howard had a successful tech career when, at the age of 26, he was diagnosed with bipolar disorder. To the outside world, many people thought it was merely a case of an inflated ego. After going through a divorce, losing his job, and getting through the scare of losing health insurance, he came out the other side as a speaker and activist.

Howard is the host of a number of podcasts including “Inside Mental Health,” and he speaks with host Morra Aarons-Mele about his 2003 diagnosis, how it impacted his career, and what people still misunderstand both in and outside of the workplace about bipolar disorder.

Hear more of Howard's podcasts here: https://www.gabehoward.com/podcasts/

A huge part of breaking down stigma around mental health challenges at work is about being open and honest about our experiences. Mita Mallick is head of Inclusion, Equity and Impact at Carta and host of the LinkedIn podcast Brown Table Talk, and she speaks publicly about injustices she herself has seen and felt in her career. We speak about becoming a public figure, changing toxic workplace culture, and anxiety around achievement. 

Check out Mita’s new book here: https://www.amazon.com/Reimagine-Inclusion-Debunking-Transform-Workplace/dp/1394177097

We continue the conversation with Dean Yates, a Tasmania-based mental health advocate, former journalist, and author of the book Line in the Sand.