From the CEO: There’s a lesson for us in Guy Sebastian’s regret

On my mind at the moment is how everyone in the greater events sector is coping mentally. Sadly and wrongly – at least in my opinion – mental health is still somewhat of a taboo subject in our society.

From the early days of European settlement, the Australian culture has been built upon ‘she’ll be right’ and ‘need to be resilient’ attitudes, so that the challenges our magnificent brown land and remoteness from other continents presented could be managed. We’ve needed to survive. That line of thinking has served us well and gotten us to where we are, arguably the best country in the world.

Those same attitudes have done us a disservice though. We’ve gotten so occupied surviving, that it’s gotten in the way of living. I can’t believe how busy so many of us are, even those of us working under lock down conditions and government restrictions. And from home. We’re busy being busy.

Guy Sebastian’s song ‘Choir’ is about a friend of his who unexpectedly committed suicide, but it’s some of the verse 2 lyrics that resonate with my thinking:

* Yeah, yeah, we fill up all our days with

Workin' and grindin' just to make ends meet

Too busy to call, we'll catch up next week

And then it gets to next week, and we say maybe next week

And then before you know, we all feeling old

Asking ourselves, "Where did my friends go?"

Life had gotten in the way of them catching up. Even phone calls were put off from week to week. Then the chance for those two people to speak ever again became impossible. That’s obviously left him wondering and regretful about what might be different if had called to say g’day, or ask how his mate was doing.

I’m encouraging people across the sector to check in on their friends and colleagues in these tough times to, God forbid, avoid being in the same situation as Guy. None of us ever really knows what’s going on for someone else, but maybe, just maybe, a phone call from you can make all the difference to not only their day – but yours too. It’s the old adage – do we live to work, or work to live? At the end of the day, will 10 minutes more spent on a task make it perfect or as much of a difference to the world as would a 10 minute chat with someone who unbeknownst to you could be doing it tough.

Good friendships and relationships are built over time, and are hard come by. Don’t let time, or lack of, be the reason for their undoing or loss and you asking “Where did my friends go?”

Continuing with the analogy, we can consider our sector the choir. When we’re all ‘singing’ together, our lives and world are better for it. But we need all the voices in tune, so please check in with your mates to ensure they show up for practice.

Anyone who would benefit from mental health support may wish to consider contacting an appropriate organisation recommended on the Mental Health Australia ‘Need help’ web page.

* Source: Song – “Choir”
Album – “T.R.U.T.H.