According to the National Alliance on Mental Illness, each year, one in five U.S. adults experience mental illness each year. When it comes to the country’s youth, one in six (ages six to 17) experience a mental health disorder each year.
While millions of Americans face the reality of living with a mental health condition, it affects everyone directly or indirectly through family, friends or coworkers.
Mental Illness Awareness week is a critical time to raise awareness, but startups like MYNDY believe mental health conditions are important to discuss year-round.
Lissy Alden built the research-based platform to help users understand what they need to do to strengthen their mind. “The vision of MYNDY is to create a new, fun and inspiring language, community, measurement, tools and product to support and celebrate the world in their mental fitness practice,” she says.
MYNDY focuses on 6 key muscles that contribute to mental wellness: focus, confidence, optimism, resilience, energy and heart. The company believes these are not just personal characteristics or traits, but elements that can be developed and fortified through routine exercises.
“We believe that when an individual is equipped with the right tools and resources to build and practice their own mental fitness routine, they’re empowered to navigate the complexities of life with more ease,” says Alden.
MYNDY offers classes to exercise the core muscles. From Group Workout Sessions to the Art & Science of Goal-Setting, the platform offers classes that involve movements, coaching and discussions.
Before MYNDY, Alden worked with high-growth organizations on building company culture and enhancing workforce engagement. She’s advised an array of Fortune 500 companies, such as JPMorgan, American Express, and The New York Times.
No matter the industry, she learned that many employees from high performing organizations tended to struggle with mental health. This inspired the Cornell University graduate to launch MYNDY as a tool to help people thrive personally and professionally without suffering from burnout.
Alden’s company works with organizations such as MIT and Google to continue in its mission. But she wants MYNDY to reach individual professionals, from companies big and small, as well. Her goal is to let everyone, from the global CEO to the small business woner, know “that we are a different, optimistic and a warm way to approach your mental fitness.”
She continues, “Every single day we’re working to learn and get better with and for our customers they’re the boss.”
Alden, who got her MBA from MIT, says success will rely heavily on her marketing strategy. As CEO and founder, she is focused on “building the messaging brand and the process of articulating visually what we’re all about and how we’re different from most mental health programs.”
She adds it’s all about the details, including the company’s web address, MYNDY.co. “It’s traditional and modern,” says Alden. “Traditional because .co isn’t hard to explain, it sounds like ‘company.’ Modern because it isn’t the usual .com or .org domain. It’s a new kind of company!”
Alden has persevered through corporate and startup life, and says anyone with a passion for disruption can also overcome burnout and achieve the dream. They just have to keep a few things in mind: “Just keep going,” she says. “Breathe and keep going. Because progress is usually seen in the rearview mirror but rarely felt day to day! You got this.”
