YEP hosts Leeds business coach on Time to Talk day

Nikki Alderson gave her time to speak on Time to Talk Day.

Organised by charity Time to Change, the aim is to break the ice and stop people feeling awkward when speaking about their mental health.

Nikki spoke about her time as a young lawyer helping death row inmates in Jamaica and how one of the desperate men she had assisted then reached out to her for help.

Albeit in different circumstances, Nikki too found herself needing to ask for help when back in the UK working as a rape and serious sexual offences prosecution specialist.

She has since set up her own business coaching enterprise because she wanted to use her experiences to help others achieve their potential.

"I am talking about two occasions where one man on death row can have the courage to ask for help and also a professional person like me coming back to the UK, saying 'do you know what, I need some help.

"And it takes sometimes a lot of guts and emotional intelligence to acknowledge it to yourself and also to talk about it to other people."

Nikki gave her own tips on how to stay well in your working life, including devising a wellness strategy, changing mindsets, planning and prioritising and learning how to say no.

"I've hopefully made the point that you are not alone," she added. "Support can come from a variety of different places.

"If you can't just manage by talking to friends or colleagues you might then need some extra help, and that's OK.

"But I tell you what, for the tricky stuff, I think, knowing from experience, this too shall pass. When you're in the midst of it, it seems overwhelming, but knowing who to go to talk to and knowing it is a short blip, it's manageable, it's really helpful to know."