By Karen Lewchenko ACA, Assistant Manager and Just Audit’s Mental First Aider
Our inspirational new series of articles ‘Wellbeing at work’ will cover a multitude of areas over the coming months. They will explore the many levels of wellbeing - both mental and physical – that affect us in the workplace.
As our next article will outline, wellbeing is all about you wherever you are – and your health is the product of your work and home life. We’ll look at ways you can make a difference through your work lens, with many ideas that you can carry across to every area of your life.
At Just Audit wellbeing is deeply embedded into our culture. We don’t just talk about it - we implement many guidelines (and lead by example) to make sure that every hour worked is paid for (at every level), we don’t spend silly hours at work and that our evenings, weekends and holidays are well insulated from the demands of the office. We also spend time together socially and make sure that our wellness is a priority through colleague support systems and my role as the mental health first aider.
What do we mean by ‘wellbeing at work’?
There are 5 core areas that are regularly referenced by leading organisations across the world. These are:
Connection
Our societal wellbeing stems from having healthy inter-personal connections around us. It might be through having team members who are supportive and whom you can help too. It could be having a network that provides an opportunity to share experiences, have fun and a sense of community. Some of our most meaningful relationships come from the workplace.
The word ‘culture’ crops up often in discussions around wellbeing at work and this can be grounded in the connections we make. Taking breaks, lunch-times or short walks with colleagues – or simply demonstrating genuine interest - can help forge these vital points of contact.
Activity
There are two key aspects to including activity at work, the most obvious being exercise. If you’re office-based it is really easy to form bad habits and sit at your desk all day. You could consider short walks at break times or to take phone calls. A standing desk is a good option, especially if you can choose when to stand and when to sit. Having a reminder to stand, stretch and walk around is a good idea – and perfect to time with a coffee break!
The second is activity with your workmates. You could arrange activities that are good for your spirits, help people to get to know each other and take you away from the office. This kind of activity could be physical such as hiking or running together, or it could be a pub quiz or treasure hunt – anything that has a wide appeal and helps to build the team bonds.
Learning
Continuing to learn is an excellent way to boost your self-esteem and improve your feelings of self-worth. All learning provides a sense of achievement, whether that’s a first aid course or an MBA. Learning can also be shared and have a further, secondary value for your colleagues. You might find that training, at any level, could provide new and interesting career opportunities or simply create a more fulfilled way to work in your current role.
Learning something new might be as simple as devoting 20 minutes a day to finding out more about the daily software you use - having that understanding will help you in your role and allow you to share your knowledge with others. Other ways to learn include reading a newspaper, finding an online course that tempts you to try something new or enquire about training opportunities that are directly linked to your own role.
Giving
Giving also encompasses a really important part of wellbeing which is practising kindness. You could give, as a way of connecting, in a number of ways including giving a compliment, lending a hand, asking someone how they are or sharing your knowledge, snacks or making someone a welcome hot drink.
Giving manifests in many ways and is almost always an act of kindness. It’s also a good idea to remind yourself to be kind, especially when you might be feeling under pressure or less inclined to be patient with someone. It’s not always easy but everyone will feel much better for it.
Being present
Being connected to the present moment is helpful for our mental health as it teaches us to manage the immediate tasks in hand. Ruminating, over-thinking, worrying and being anxious are usually rooted in past or future experiences so by focusing on the here and now you can be more mindful and relaxed. We’ll talk more about mindfulness in future articles.
Your environment matters – being present might lead you to have a clear out, tidy your working area, add a plant or invest in new stationery. Being present is a great way to step back and notice how you’re feeling too.
We’ll explore some of these ideas, and many more, in future articles – please do get in touch if you have any thoughts that we can include, we’d love to hear from you.
Karen’s 3 top takeaways:
Your mental health at work is affected by your mental health outside of work: all aspects of your life are inter-dependent.
There are lots of things that can improve how you’re feeling mentally and physically, many of which can start with small steps.
Be kind – to yourself and everyone around you.
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