How to Talk About Mental Health in Classrooms and with Friends with Mental Health Pioneer, Ross Szabo

Mental health is important, talking about it is hard and that is exactly why my guest, Ross Szabo is consistently sought after as a go-to teacher on the topic. It was awesome having my friend in the diner and we kicked things off chatting about Pennsylvania diners and circus fries. We then took a classic James hard left and we talked about how Ross got into doing mental health work and the time he tried to take his life in high school. He told me about rebounding from bullying and being labeled from sharing his story. There were some of the role models who helped him early on that I loved hearing about. I then asked him why Physical Education is taught in schools but Mental Health Education is not. One of the reasons is because mental health is often approached from a reactive place, and that is something that needs to be changed.  Ross told me some ways teachers can bring mental health work into the classroom. We then shifted focus to men and mental health – what happens in adolescence that needs to be undone later.

About the Guest: 

Ross Szabo is an award-winning pioneer of the mental health movement. During his 8 years as Director of Outreach at the National Mental Health Awareness Campaign, he helped create the first youth mental health speakers’ bureau in the country and personally spoke to over one million people. He is currently the Wellness Director at Geffen Academy at UCLA and CEO of the Human Power Project. He has spoken to over 2 million people about his experiences with mental health, written 2 books and created a curriculum that is used by over 200,000 students. He also knows how to track lions in Botswana and enjoys running, but never runs from lions.

Connect with Ross and learn more:

Website: http://RossSzabo.com and www.humanpowerproject.com

Instagram: @rossszabo

Twitter: @rossszabo

About the Host: 

Friends! Here's a somewhat stuffy bio of me:  

I am an author, professional speaker, coach, host, and entrepreneur. My first book, Leading Imperfectly: The value of being authentic for leaders, professionals, and human beings, is available wherever people buy books. I speak internationally to willing and unwilling attendees about authenticity, vulnerability, and leadership. My clients include American Express, General Electric (GE), Accenture, Yale University, The Ohio State University, and many others. As a speaker, I am doing the two things I loves the most: making people think and making people laugh! 

I host my own events multiple times a year. They are 2-day events called Living Imperfectly Live (and sometimes they are 1-day virtual events). They are a space where humans from every walk of life can come together to be part of a community on the pursuit of badassery. The goal is to help attendees start living the life we say we want to live.

Alas, you're here because of an idea I had a number of years ago and didn't think I was good enough to pull it off. I finally acted on it and alas Diner Talks with James was born! As you can see from what I do in my professional life, Diner Talks is alligned with everything I believe in and teach. If this wasn't dry enough, and you would like to know more info about my speaking, events, or coaching feel free to check out my website: JamesTRobo.com.

Let’s Be Friends on Social Media!

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jamestrobo

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jamestrobo

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jamesrobilotta/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/JamesRobilottaCSP

Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/JamesTRobo

Thanks for listening!

Thanks so much for listening to our podcast! If you enjoyed this episode and think that others could benefit from listening, please share it using the social media buttons on this page.

Do you have some feedback or questions about this episode? Leave a comment in the section below!

Subscribe to the podcast

If you would like to get automatic updates of new podcast episodes, you can subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or Stitcher. You can also subscribe in your favorite podcast app.

Leave us an Apple Podcasts review

Ratings and reviews from the listeners are extremely valuable to me and greatly appreciated. They help Diner Talks podcast rank higher on Apple Podcasts, which exposes our show to more awesome listeners like you. If you have a minute, it would mean the world if you couple leave an honest review on Apple Podcasts.