We were lucky to catch up with Hailey Hechtman recently and have shared our conversation below.

Hailey, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. How did you get your first job in the field that you practice in today?

For as long as I can remember, I have been interested in people — their perspectives, their experiences, their dynamics and their stories.

This fascination with people and a desire to support them to see their potential led me into the field of psychology.

As a university student, I majored in Psychology at Queen’s University and took as many courses as possible. That said, I realized very early on attending a school that focused more on theory than practice, that I wanted something more than the textbooks and class discussions could provide. I wanted to gain hands-on experience, to interact with people and to make an impact in their lives in even the smallest way.

During orientation week during my first year, I had gone to a club fair. Like most students (and most people let’s be honest) I ended up walking around collecting all the free little giveaway items. A pen here, a tote bag there and a collection of fridge magnets.

While I lost track of most of that stuff within days of the fair, I did end up keeping one of the magnets on my fridge. A year later, I looked at the magnet, which was for a local distress line, and noticed that there was a number for interested volunteers.

I called the number, signed up for an interview and embarked on my first role within the social impact space.

That role taught me so much. Not only was able to connect with people 1:1 but as a small, volunteer-led organization I had the opportunity to trial a variety of different roles –from trainer, to recruiter, to volunteer liaison and eventually I was voted on to be the coordinator.

This was my introduction to non-profit management and became a gateway into now a decades long career of helping to cultivate impact, grow teams and build community through leadership roles in social sector organizations.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I have been a social impact leader who has dedicated my career to empowering people to see their potential. I been working for nearly a decade leading social service organizations and am extremely passionate about mental health, youth wellness and taking a strength-based approach to community development.

Starting in this field working in distress lines, I have cultivated a deep appreciation for organizational development and a person-centered approach to social supports.

I have done a number of roles that I have loved over the course of my career from founding the Yukon Distress & Support Line in northern Canada in 2014 to establishing a collective impact strategy for northern disability-serving organizations to creating foundational training for front-line workers in the territories to becoming a thought leader for mental health in the workplace and inclusive hiring.

In 2023, I became the Executive Director of Unsinkable, a mental health charity founded by Olympic champion and mental health advocate, Silken Laumann. Unsinkable harnesses the power of storytelling to bridge the gap between traditional mental health resources and innovative, psychosocial support models. The Unsinkable Storytelling, Community Champion, and Youth Council programs draw from diverse personal stories to help others discover they are not alone, and recovery is possible. All Unsinkable programs are digital first and designed for accessibility. The approach complements traditional healthcare and public health resources, and is validated by mental health experts.

Since coming into this role, we have hosted virtual events, established mental health resource guides, completed a stakeholder engagement and formulated our first multi-year strategic plan.

My vision for Unsinkable is for us to to create a more compassionate, informed and inclusive society where mental health is embraced, understood as an essential aspect of overall wellbeing and actively supported within community. Through storytelling, peer support and by cultivating community, we can help people across the mental health continuum to build their mental resiliency, access supports and feel empowered to share their stories whether at the kitchen table or on our platform.

In addition to my work with Unsinkable, I am a strong believer in volunteerism and mentorship. I am a contributing writer to KBI Inspire Magazine, a digital publication focused on youth mental health and a coach for the Fora Network for Change Rise on Boards Program.

Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?

One of the most important elements that has not only helped my build my reputation in the social impact space but has also allowed me to cultivate a community of colleagues that I can call, bounce ideas of and create new solutions with, has been acting as a communicator and amplifier for others.

I am a strong believer in collaboration, especially working in a field that is trying to solve complex human challenges and address the needs of intersectional communities. There is no one right answer or right clear cut program, we really do need to be working together in order to bring about change.

Knowing this, and being a lifelong learner, I have always reached out to people that I admire or am inspired by or see asking good questions or disrupting old ways of thinking. Whether at events, on LinkedIn, in-person or virtually, I never shy away from sending a message to let someone who that I appreciate what they are doing and want to have an opportunity to learn from them. While for some, cold emails can be intimidating, I have found this to be a great way of building a network through respect and appreciation rather than through expectation and requests.

Another major piece of this for me has been recognizing and fostering the power of bringing people together. While I love meeting one on one, there is something magical about a group of people that join a space for the explicit purpose of learning from one another. Communities of practice can go along way in helping you come up with new concepts, troubleshoot challenges and ultimately feel held by a group of people who get your frame of reference.

This does not need to be formal or overly planned, the best conversations I have had have been when I have invited a group of strangers together, around food, with some conversation questions and have let the momentum build through the sharing of stories and experiences.

The best way to build your reputation, your community and your knowledge is by being an advocate, a supporter and a promoter of others and together you rise.

Other than training/knowledge, what do you think is most helpful for succeeding in your field?

For me, the greatest learning has come from observation. Working in the social impact space, every organization that I enter into as a leader is different. While my title remains the same and some of the lessons learned and skills translate from one place to the next, so much of an organization’s context and culture needs is completely unique.

As a result, I have always ensured that when starting a new role, I leave my assumptions at the door and instead come to the existing team with a set of questions. I ask them what have been their proudest moments, what have been their biggest roadblocks, what are their hopes for their work and how do they see their strengths helping to activate our vision. I invest time in getting to know people, in identifying their potential and seeing how they respond to one another. The dynamics on a team can tell you a lot about needed systems changes, appreciations that you be mentioned and gives you a clearer picture of where the gaps may be when you eventually hire.

Taking a mindset of curiosity, asking all the beginner whys is the perfect way to not only get to know the work and the role but really dive into the why of the organization which will help you both craft a way forward and activate the enthusiasm on the team by building a roadmap that everyone has contributed to and buys into for your next steps.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.weareunsinkable.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/unsinkablestories/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/WeAreUnsinkable/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/hailey-hechtman-58a33b5b/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/unsinkable