Starting Hard Conversations Simply

Client: Harry’s
Company: DoSomething.org
Project Role: Senior creative strategist

HARRY’S — “Mental Note”

As a company, Harry’s wants to help men be their best and is interested in talking about the mental health issues most pressing to men, even when it’s uncomfortable. With research showing men are less likely than women to have conversations about their mental health, and one in 10 men is actively experiencing depression, we needed to build a helpful path where men could kickstart those conversations.

For “Mental Note,” we provided young people with a postcard-sized handout they could share with the men in their lives. The cards featured a quick mental health check-in, included some suggested personalized self-care items, and provided contact information for mental health resources.

The simple checklists gave straightforward, actionable ways for young people to broach the topic of mental health with men in their lives—and for themselves—and move towards healthier mental health and more comfort with mental health conversations.

YouTuber and author of “Note to Self,” Connor Franta, created a humorous PSA for the campaign sharing it with his 5 million+ subscribers. Other influencers joined him to share the message more widely, including LGBTQ+ advocate and model Jake Bain, rapper Skizzy Mars, musician and trans activist Ryan Cassata, and hip-hop artist Jez Dior.

More than 103,000 young people participated, sparking mental health conversations and helping to change lives.