The Peer Listening Experience and Support for Employee Mental Well-being
One of our Peer Listeners, Nate, explains how his work provides people with positive, productive support for dealing with life’s everyday challenges.
The ability of Kindly Human’s Peer Listeners to connect is rooted in shared experiences and cultures. When someone reaches out, they’ll find a listener who understands what they’re going through because the Peers have been there, too.
Hear Nate talk about what Peer Listeners do and how peer support helps people feel better.
As employers consider adding peer support services to their benefits, we also asked Peer Listener Nate for his thoughts on what professional peer support brings to the entire organization.
How do peer listeners help employees with their everyday challenges?
Nate: It's preventive mental well-being. We take vitamins and supplements and we do things preventatively to help our physical health. Peer support helps address some of life’s challenges before they become bigger problems.
What difference does peer listening make for an individual?
Nate: It can give them hope when they feel hopeless. It can help them to feel heard when they feel nobody's listening. It can help them to feel validated. Peer listening provides an outlet to be heard and a repository to share or place emotions that don't serve them. We help people unload some of the baggage that's weighing them down and affecting their lives.
Why should employers consider adding peer support to their benefits programs?
Nate: Peer support provides a safe, secure resource for people to be able to share what they’re thinking and feeling. Most employers would rather have their staff members talking to someone who is trained and qualified to listen rather than relying on coworkers to take on this role.
At the earliest stage when someone feels like there’s an issue, they can pick up the phone, reach out to a listener like me and let it all out. That may be the end of it—and that's the ideal solution. If challenges continue, employees have an outlet to address their personal situations while reducing the impact on the workplace.
To learn more about peer support for your organization, schedule a demo today.
