Pause, as an organisation is committed to its mission of making effective, empathetic & holistic mental health care accessible to the world. We’re optimistic about a future where we can equip people with the tools necessary for them to live a healthier, happier life.

Considering the enormity of the task in front of us, we will often find ourselves in difficult situations. Whether lost at sea, in the desert or in the middle of the forest, we can trust the light from the following north stars to guide us (don’t literally try this though, please!). At any point in time, if you’re struggling with a decision, wrestling with a problem, confused, or feel lost, go through these. The way we do things will keep evolving & what we’re working on will change but as long as everything we do is guided by these principles, we should be good.

This guide will in no way give solutions to problems, but going down to first principles with the task at hand & using these would be a good starting point to get to a solution. The first five are geared externally, the last five internally, but they can be used interchangeably.

1. Lead with empathy, everything else will follow :

   Everyone is going through something that might be unfathomable to you. Give them the benefit of the doubt.

2. Peace of mind of users precedes everything else :

   As a mental health organisation, we will ALWAYS do anything we can to make life better for our users. This includes

   1. Never hounding them for anything.
   2. Making every touchpoint with the user gentle, caring & empathetic. Every piece of content, tech & touchpoint with Pause needs to feel like a safe space. The chances are, users are going through a lot. the last thing we want to do is make it worse.

3. Build solutions to our users’ problems, not products :

   We don’t build products. We build solutions. To help our users’ mental health.

4. Do whatever it takes, but solve the user’s problems the best you can.

5. Listen, then listen some more :

   Given the nature of the problem we’re solving, listening is KEY. The user can never feel like we’re not there for them. Even if there’s nothing we can do about the problem.

6. Laugh a little, or a lot :

   Shit happens, it’s going to happen again & it’ll keep happening. Stressing about things isn’t going to change anything, so might as well laugh about it & figure it out.

7. Communication is key :

   If somethings troubling you or you’re stuck somewhere, communicate it with the concerned people. Problems exist to be solved & if we don’t know what’s wrong, we’ll never be able to address them

8. Use constraint to your advantage :

   There will be times where we’ll need more money, people, technology & resources but won’t have access to them. Instead of thinking what would be ideal, try and use it to your advantage. Constraint is a powerful tool & doing more with less would help tremendously when we do get the resources.

9. There are no stupid ideas :

   If you have a hunch or an idea, take a shot & execute it fast. Set markers for what success & failure looks like for the particular problem & continue or ditch it at the appropriate time.

10. Optimise for delight, both internal & external.

11. Take your work very seriously. Don’t take yourself too seriously.