From Mental Health to Mental Wealth in Property Management

The worse part is, I didn’t see it coming. I mean looking back now, there were obviously signs, but I was living a ‘normal life’… until I wasn’t.

I remember reading my work e-mails Christmas morning (not recommend) while the kids were still in bed and then something in my mind just ‘broke’.  The rest is history and it took me 4 long years to fully recover.

When people talk about Mental Health, the conversation often centres around anxiety, depression, addiction, illness or in some severe cases even suicide. Of course, these are incredibly important topics and should never be ignored, but I think we should also be thinking about our mental wealth.

Mental wealth is about the positive side of wellbeing, our motivation, resilience, mood, relationships and our ability to engage with the world and live life fully. It’s about building habits and environments that allow us not just to cope, but to thrive.

In a demanding profession like property management, that can sometimes feel easier said than done.

One of the first things I learned was that protecting your time outside work is essential. Checking emails in the evening, at weekends or while on holiday might seem harmless but you’re not being fully present for the people who matter most - your family and friends and that was ultimately my downfall.

The life of a property manager is often relentless. I spent ten years working in social housing management and now twenty years in block management, and the sacrifices that come with the job are significant.

Often, we work long hours during the day and then at the end of it we have to attend a residents meeting in the evening.  That’s really when we’re expected to give our peak performance as we find ourselves having to chair the meeting, answer technical questions and sometimes take minutes at the same time.  It’s no easy task.

Guidance from The Property Institute has helped in recent years by encouraging meetings to start and finish earlier, but historically it wasn’t unusual for meetings to begin at 8pm and finish after 10pm, then of course you still had to get home.

I know many other industries face similar pressures, but property management often flies under the radar despite the responsibilities we carry.

I ran a successful Block Management Department for nearly 8 years, but for the sake of my own wellbeing, I eventually decided to step back and it was one of the best decisions I ever made for my mental health at the time.

Since then, I’ve become a mental health champion in my workplace, and I’m open about my experience of recovering from burnout. I encourage colleagues and friends to talk more openly about how they are feeling. As an industry, I believe we can and should do more to promote better mental health and wellbeing. The Property Institute recently circulated a ‘Wellbeing Survey’ to its members which I hope they responded to honestly.

These types of conversations aren’t always easy, especially at work, but they are incredibly important. Admitting that you are struggling is not a sign of weakness, it simply means you need some support.

Help can come in many forms. I recently completed mental health first aid training and discovered a fantastic online resource called Hub of Hope, which connects people with local support groups and services. Since launching in 2017 it has helped over a million people find support for their mental health, and yet it’s something I hadn’t even heard of.

Over the years, whenever my own mental health has suffered, I’ve sought help. That has included counselling, Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), hypnotherapy and even EMDR therapy, which can be used to treat anxiety and depression. I’m certainly not ashamed of reaching out for support, in fact it has made me a stronger and more resilient person.

A doctor once said something to me that has always stuck:

“If you had a broken leg, you’d get it treated. Your mental health should be no different.”

Fortunately, I work for an understanding employer who provides a strong Employee Assistance Programme (EAP), which means help is available when it’s needed. These services are increasingly common across our industry and they are confidential, so even your employer will not know what is discussed.

If there is one piece of advice I would give to anyone reading this, it would be this:

Prioritise your mental wealth, because at the end of the day, you simply can’t pour from an empty cup.

Tony Martin, FTPI CertCIH AssocRICS, Deputy Head of Estate and Block Management, Caxtons