Christmas is a minefield. The list of pitfalls includes optimistic expectations of extended leave, complaints about the quality of the food at the Christmas do and Ian from accounts and his proclivity to photoshop his genitals onto the firm’s Xmas card. But by far, the most incendiary work bomb in the festive problem arsenal must be the end-of-year bonus. If you're...
Think, Feel, Do! Creating a happy and motivated team in 2024
Did you know a recent study showed that the average adult has between 12,000 to 60,000 thoughts daily? And that 95% of those thoughts are repetitive from the day before? We’re undoubtedly habitual creatures, that’s for sure. As human beings, our brain is wired to jump to conclusions, too, so when you hear something go bump in the night, your thoughts immediately go to a potential axe murderer rather than your pet knocking your phone off the nightstand.
Uncertainty certainly is a certainty these days (say that really fast three times, and I’ll give you a curly wurly). Every day, we’re not sure what fresh morsel of bizarre the news is going to serve, what politics is going to bring, what twist the economy is going to take. There is constant change - whether we embrace it or not....
Are we creating unhelpful links to phrases like ‘workplace stress’ and ‘anxiety’ and, in doing so, amplifying normal levels of human experiences to the point where people start to associate them with mental illness? How do we know when worry and anxiety are serious enough to stop us from working? Research suggests it’s younger people in particular who are most likely...
Let’s be honest: even if you love being a leader the majority of the time, there’ll be tricky weeks, days or moments. That’s the nature of leadership, right? My background is in education, and over seventeen years, I went from class teacher to head teacher - quite the journey, I can tell you! As a new head, I had to oversee...
Mix yourself a Negroni, put your feet up, grab a copy of Closer magazine. It’s Monday morning and there’s absolutely nothing to do because the robots have taken over. Who says? That waxy-faced billionaire soothsayer Elon Musk, that’s who, so it must be true. Elon revealed his dystopian prediction that artificial intelligence will eventually make paid work redundant during a Q&A...
Dark winter nights are drawing in, and end-of-year fatigue might be cropping up for you and your team. The change in seasons can have a negative impact on winter wellbeing, especially if you are one of the 2 million UK people who struggle with SAD (Seasonal Affective Disorder). If this sounds like you, then read on to find out about one...
Gallup research states that having a “best friend at work” is closely associated with positive factors such as greater employee engagement, higher retention and better safety records, now call me cynical but surely that’s straight from the University of No Sh&t, Sherlock aka common sensicles. Friends are good for you. They are why Ross, Rachel, Joey, Phoebe and Chandler remained in...
There are very few things in life that cake can’t help with. You may think this is quite a broad statement, but I stand by it. It’s not just the eating of it, though. There are various enjoyable stages: planning which cake you’d like to bake or eat, exploring new ingredients, the baking process and then… the best bit. Nope, not...
