How This B-school Is Redefining Mental Health & Its Importance
According to WHO, “Mental health is a state of well-being in which an individual realizes his or her own abilities, can cope with the normal stresses of life, can work productively, and is able to make a contribution to his or her community.” This is an extremely important element in making any individual a resilient and empathetic leader for the future. Dr. Vidyut Lata Dhir, a certified psychologist and a professor of Organizational Behavior and Leadership and Group Head of Design Thinking and Innovation at SPJIMR, felt the need to start a ‘space’ where students can have conversations about their insecurities and concerns. They can be part of an ecosystem of ‘psychological safety’ where each individual feels accepted and respected for who he/she is without feeling judged. With this intent, Vishwas was started in September 2015. Dr. Dhir leads Vishwas – a space to nurture mental well-being through its various initiatives like Flashback Fridays, Blogs, World is a Coffee Table and Weekending with Vishwas where students share their thoughts, feelings and life stories in informal settings facilitated by an expert. She also looks after the Counselling Cell to take care of the mental health of the students and get their concerns addressed by certified psychologists. InsideIIM spoke to her to find out why it is important to put stress on mental health and mental wellbeing now more than ever and how B-school managers can be good future leaders. These are the excerpts:
