I am still glowing with pride that I ran the London Marathon last week. Yes, I was very slow — 5 hours and 8 minutes to be precise! However, it is 19 years since I last ran a marathon, I am over 60 and have had three major operations since 2019, so I am actually thrilled with my result.
According to the CIPD, women over 50 are the fastest growing group in the workplace. With the average age of menopause being 51, more and more employees and employers are having to deal with this transition in the workplace. According to a recent survey of 2,000 women aged 45 to 67, conducted by Koru Kids; nearly 1 million women in the UK are considering leaving the workforce due to lack of support around the menopause.
One of our recent well-being webinars (How to be an Eco-Warrior) introduced us to a new climate change friend. Pendar Vatanian, a certified Environmental Management Systems Auditor, created a #ClimateDice game after working with schools for a decade. He hopes to boost children’s imaginations and help them to re-imagine an alternative positive future. Like us, Pendar is a firm believer in the positive power of the imagination, in business as well as education.
The days are lighter and longer. The number of people vaccinated is growing rapidly. Coronavirus cases are going down in most areas and restrictions are going to be lifting shortly. We have a renewed sense of hope! But hold on a minute… Before you rush off with new plans and direction, are you feeling prepared and in a good place mentally to move forward? Surfers are selective and only paddle for waves that are worthwhile and fit their experience category. Just imagine yourself as a surfer for a moment. Do you know how to find your next perfect wave and ride it forward?
Tax exempt virtual yoga sessions will support the well-being of your employees. Many of whom are suffering both physically and mentally under the stresses of working from home during lockdown. They also might have missed out on the usual Christmas party or other annual social event. Your organisation can offer one or more fun yoga sessions to support well-being and address problems with posture, anxiety, sleep and insomnia.
Join specialists from across a range of topics to explore well-being techniques to help you thrive. During our more traditional coaching, mentoring and leadership development work, we have noticed a demand for improving employee well-being. Connect with our diverse team on any of nine free fortnightly webinars for ideas to improve well-being for yourself or within your organisation.
Being a mentor during the Covid-19 Pandemic is different. Everything we do currently is different. From working remotely for many, to how we socialise and shop. Most people, both at work and home, are experiencing a far greater level of stress than normal. Mentees can adopt a different practical emphasis, both to maximise the impact of their learning and to support them to thrive through the chaos. Mentors need new behaviours to support their mentees in more innovative ways. And organisations need the benefits of mentoring more than ever!
What a roller-coaster six months the whole world has experienced. From the stress of moving to working from home, to being on furlough or losing your job, to the pressures of home schooling, isolation and lack of contact or being available online 24/7. Some has been work-related stress, anxiety about the global pandemic or economic recession, bereavement or grief over losing our old ‘normality’. People have had to face it all! Our collective mental health has suffered during this period. Let’s explore what impact the pandemic has taken on mental health and how coaching and mentoring can provide support to help people feel emotionally and mentally well as they go forward in this difficult period.
Every day we face alarming news, fake or otherwise, that throws our minds into turmoil. How we decide to react, engage and evaluate our situation is down to us, our mindset, our ability to be resilient and how we develop our adaptive capacity. We have two solutions to support yourselves or encourage others, to make the best choices during this pandemic, maintain good mental health and to thrive through chaos!
The months of lockdown have had a huge impact on us all. With the ongoing restrictions and uncertainty that we continue to face, and the added strain of shorter days and worsening weather, the impact and stresses are unlikely to lessen over the coming months.
