The Covid-19 pandemic has offered society an opportunity to recognise how broken we have become, the importance of mental health and the need to reset for the future, according to leading Australian, Tim Costello.
Mr Costello, a Baptist minister, the former CEO of World Vision Australia and recognised for his humanitarianism and leadership in social service, told the RiseX Conference that the pandemic had created a catalyst for Australians to come together to change and build a better world.
“The virus as it spreads is hopefully also spreading awareness of the deep and longstanding brokenness in our humanity,” Mr Costello said.
¨I have welcomed the ethical solidarity this pandemic has brought us. All of us are biologically connected by an invisible virus and all of us are vulnerable if we do not act together,” he told the conference.¨
Mr Costello began his presentation with the quote from Thomas Piane; ¨The harder the conflict the more glorious the triumph,¨ which he said captured his thinking about how we need to stand together by first expressing our feelings and then identifying what really matters to us.
Nowhere was this more important than reflecting on how we work, Mr Costello said with Covid and its associated lockdowns highlighting the real need to address employees’ mental health.
Real estate was a particularly vulnerable industry, he said with 46% of real estate practitioners identifying that they felt the stress of the job before Covid.
”This competitive lifestyle brings very severe mental health’s stresses and issues,¨ Mr Costello said.
However Covid had given us time to pause, recognise what is broken in our world and give us a new perspective on how to change the way we live and prioritise mental wellness.
Mr Costello urged conference attendees to find inspiration in other things that are contagious like hope, solidarity, patience and empathy. Such an approach would turn the crisis in to a catalyst for positive change.
”It is not the event itself that determines the outcome of our mental health it is a choice we make how we react,” he said.
The process of confronting this crisis and creating a better world that prioritizes our mental health begins with resetting our values.
¨All of us have a change to reset out values, to live with a greater sense of perspective and deeper appreciation of each other – no shadows moving through life but actually embracing life and what really matters.¨
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