SIC’s Career Spotlights: Alice Lyons
Alice Lyons is a wellbeing coach, public speaker, business advisor and mental health advocate. She’s the founder of Dark Coffee, and the host of both the Mind Over Grind podcast and monthly Mental Health Meetup. Her work is focused around improving the mental health of professionals, and equipping businesses to have sustainable mental health policies. She’s also recently launched a suicide prevention project, and continues to improve the wellbeing of teams around the UK.
What motivated you to set up your company?
I struggled with depression, burnout and feelings of suicide throughout my early twenties. It affected me during my university years but then followed me into the workplace, and as a young manager, I found my difficulties compounded with the responsibilities of leading a team. This led to me having a breakdown which required me to take a bit of time out of the business. But the experience taught me the importance of cultivating strong mental health and—importantly—to be able to build these skills in the workplace. So I set up Dark Coffee to teach other people the kind of skills I wish I would have had 8ish years ago to create healthier, wellbeing-centric cultures where people feel safe, supported and understood.
How do you think being disabled/chronically ill has changed your approach to how you do your job?
I’ve always been accustomed to making adjustments to the way I work as I’ve had migraines since I was a baby, so I’ve always been keenly aware of my need to step back at certain times. It’s impossible to work at a screen, for example, when my eyeballs feel like they’re going to explode! So managing migraines has taught me to listen to my body, as well as being proactive about looking after myself, since I have a lot of lifestyle triggers which contribute to me being ill.
When it comes to my mental health, I had to literally hit a wall before I started taking it seriously. I learnt the hard way that burnout, overwork and poor lifestyle choices will be more of a hindrance than a help in my career, so it’s been a continual learning process since the breakdown.
I still get it wrong sometimes, since the demands of running a business and having 100 plates spinning at once can mean I slip into bad habits. So I keep a lot of good people around me who can keep me accountable and reign me in when I’m being a dick to myself!
What is your career advice for those who aspire to have a similar role?
Surround yourself with good people who want to see you succeed. I fundamentally wouldn’t be where I am now without having the best, most supportive, intelligent and lovely people around me who have been generous with their time, insights and kindness.
It’s nearly impossible to run a business without other people, and I think it’s foolish (and lonely) to try. So network, join peer support groups, talk to anyone and everyone you find interesting online, and demand that people be your friend!
Did you experience any setbacks when you started your business due to your disability/chronic illness? How did you overcome them?
When I am experiencing a depressive or suicidal episode, the effects can be far-ranging. A lot of people won’t be able to tell from the outside that I’m struggling, particularly because I tend to withdraw from my social engagements.
This (again) is why it’s important to have good people around you. I have trusted a lot of people with the warning signs that mean I’m struggling, and many of them have been supportive of me when I’m going through an energy slump or an emotional dip. I’ve learnt that taking my mental health into account has meant that I’ve actually been making a lot of decisions along the way to make the business sustainable—16 hour days will never work for me, so I’ve built sensible rest stops and long weekends into my calendar along the way.
What practices do you have that you would like to be mirrored in other workplaces?
I think it should be standard practice that employers ask their team members how they can support their mental wellbeing.
It might not be a case of enforcing anything drastic—something as simple as a ‘duvet day policy’ means that people feel secure enough to call in sick if they are experiencing a dip, and know that no questions will be asked on their return. This can help people to manage their mental health proactively, and can build greater trust and understanding between team members, which is always a positive thing.
Leaders can do a lot to positively impact the wellbeing culture, through having regular wellbeing check-ins and putting wellbeing services in place that meet the needs of their teams. We outsource so many of our operational functions to professionals—the wellbeing of our team members deserves this investment as much as anything else.
Which other disabled-led companies inspire you?
I heard about Kintsugi Clothing when I was on an accelerator program with their Founder, Emma McLelland. I found it so inspiring that Emma identified such a core problem in the clothing industry (the accessibility and comfort of clothing for people with mobility issues) and the fact that she so quickly and effectively brought her solution into reality. Great idea, amazing execution and style for days.