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Business accelerator launches mental well-being programme

20:01 20/10/2019

Start it @KBC, the country’s largest accelerator for start-up companies, will from now on also assist fledgling entrepreneurs with their mental health needs.

Start-up accelerators like Start it @KBC help young companies grow by offering mentoring, funding and access to business networks. At Start it @KBC, prospective entrepreneurs will from now on also receive help at what they call “the personal level” by virtue of the programme’s Mental Well-being Academy.

“Working hard is necessary when running a start-up. But there has to be a good balance with attention for physical and mental health,” Start it @KBC founder and CEO Lode Uytterschaut said in a press statement. “We love to celebrate when start-ups take the spotlight, but we also want to be there for them when their light fades.”

The new mental well-being programme was launched on October 10, World Mental Health Day, and will provide emotional, physical and social support to founders who participate in the three-month accelerator programme. The goal is to ensure that participants do not neglect their mental or physical health as they tirelessly work to grow their company.

Start it @KBC staff have also been trained to recognise when participants in the accelerator programme might require help from professionals. Workshops on emotional well-being will also be organised and participants will be organized to participate in yoga sessions and sports activities.

Start it @KBC was established in 2014 and has since assisted more than 700 start-ups and scale-ups.

Photo courtesy Start it @KBC

Written by Linda A Thompson (Flanders Today)