Policy Maker Toolkit Two: Language guide

You can use this language guide to help you communicate to small business owners about mental health.

You may already be helping small business owners through training or resources in looking after their own or their employees’ mental health. Or you may be an advocate for better mental health services for small business owners or be shaping policy to support them through better regulation, services or funding.

The way we communicate about mental health influences community perception.

You can help small business owners by using our language sets to guide your messaging. The language sets are context dependent, so whether you are providing assistance, or responding to a request for help, or feel someone is at a crisis point - there’s suggestions on how to communicate about it.

The Small Business Mental Health Working Group developed the following language sets in consultation with small business stakeholders.