by Inge Beckers | March, 2023 | Inge Beckers, Work
Life is never a straight line. There is no one perfect recipe to create a perfectly happy life. Sometimes everything is great, and we are in a flow, enjoying everything we do and sometimes we feel like we are standing still and maybe even going backwards. Life is a journey, with ups and downs, but always with opportunities. It is clear that recent events have had a huge effect in many ways, also in the workplace. I hear employees saying they feel exhausted, disconnected, or disengaged. I hear leaders saying their challenges have amplified. This new way of working is not so easy and there is no manual that teaches us how to deal with this fast-changing working environment. Or how to create the mental space to think and create, on top of getting the normal work done. How can we address this? One way to do this is ‘holding space’, a concept widely used in psychology that has also become a leadership practice fostering innovative practices and a more inclusive work environment. Holding space We can define holding space as being physically, mentally, and emotionally present so that someone else can find the way to growth or the solution to a problem. It is an approach to create time and validation without judgment. It is about listening, staying present, and making it known that the other person is safe to feel and share their feelings. It is about being supportive without stepping in. Holding space at work is creating a workplace culture that promotes listening over talking and that values respect over dominance. It is a...
by Roland Majla | March, 2023 | Roland Majla, Work
Have you ever wondered why do we have to work? What is work and why does working seem so natural in every country in the world? Is it normal, natural, and healthy? We were part of the jungle, not too long ago. I say not too long ago, because 30 or 40.000 years is not too long from the perspective of our planet’s age. What was it like to wander in the African savannah or in the Siberian plateau back then? And then about 5 or 6000 years ago working became a thing starting with Ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia, but it was not until the time of the Industrial Revolution when full-time jobs became part of people’s lives. And then here we are today, where work is everywhere, so are our bills, taxes, and pension schemes. So why do we spend so much of our free time committing to 8 hours a day, 5 days a week to work? Some of us are looking for fulfillment, but not so many of us believe that fulfillment can be confused with monetary gratification. Consider the following question when asked to someone on his or her deathbed: What do you wish you would have spent more time doing? I doubt that they would say they would have been better off spending more time eating peanut butter sandwiches, or playing on PlayStation? Although, I guess a tiny minority of us would not mind these activities to do all their lives. I think most of us would opt to say something like: I wish I had spent more time making something meaningful, like studying...
by Tracy Bevan | February, 2023 | Tracy Bevan, Work
Acknowledging the value of staff wellbeing has come a long way in the last few years. The pandemic bought the topic into sharp relief and did much to convert policies into practical action. There was a genuine need to check in with isolated employees to make sure they were OK. If a colleague asked ‘How are you doing?’ it was a real question not a social nicety, and it felt like a safe space to say ‘Actually, I’m finding this really hard’. Because we all suffered to some degree, the global experience of Covid did much to narrow the divide between the, generally, mentally healthy and those who have experience of mental ill-health. The ‘us and them’ distinction at the root of stigma diminished. Mental Health and Mental Ill Health It’s a strange by-product of the disease model of mental health that we define our mental wellbeing in the negative. We refer to our ‘mental health’ when we are actually talking about ‘mental ill health’. In fact, mental wellbeing is much more than the absence of mental illness, and it can be helpful to think of them as two different constructs, not opposites on the same continuum (Cheavens et al., 2006). To use an analogy with our physical health; when we break a bone or have high blood pressure, we go to the doctor with the goal of getting it fixed but we are aware that the most important aspect of managing our physical health is the day to day maintenance; exercising, eating well, good sleep and so on. It’s this regular effort that keeps us healthy. Likewise,...
by Inge Beckers | September, 2022 | Inge Beckers, Work
When I give webinars or training on topics about wellbeing, communication or leadership I often share my mantra of “stop-pause-reflect.” Usually, the people in my audience all have a very busy schedule and they feel as if they are putting out fires all day long. Numerous calls, too many meetings, too many emails. They feel overwhelmed. And I have to admit, sometimes I do too. I have learned that pausing to reflect is not a privilege but a must. Consciously taking a moment to stop, take stock and reflect on what is happening can be quite illuminating. We can then see more clearly what is really important, what drives us and what keeps us busy. It can help us to make better choices to stay on course in the right direction. Taking time to reflect creates greater self-awareness and helps us to separate our own perception from a situation as an objective observer. It allows us to notice our thoughts and feelings and become aware of our internal stories. We can then shift from reacting blindly to responding thoughtfully. It is not so easy Reflection is important and valuable, but it turns out it is not so easy. First of all, we have to make time for it. We really have to schedule time for this in our calendar, otherwise, it is not going to happen and we will be consumed by the everyday tasks as usual. We might forget that time is our most valuable asset in life, we cannot get it back once it is spent. We should choose wisely how we spend it. Do we...
by Tracy Bevan | June, 2022 | Tracy Bevan, Work
The company I work for went through a merger this month and I’ve been planted into a new role. In many ways it is very similar to my previous position but with any new organisation comes new ways of doing things; new policies, new procedures and crucially a new culture. Workplace Culture I write this from the viewpoint of an employee; I’m not an expert in organisational culture but it is a topic that has always fascinated the psychologist in me. I’ve worked within many organisations over the years, from local government to third-sector charities and housing associations. As I settle in to each new place there is that feeling, after a few months, of becoming known. You start to be a part of things, a part of the family. Your role – what you do – may be very similar, you may even have the same job title, but the way you do things, the attitudes and behaviours you adopt, can differ substantially. Organisations are a construct shaped by many different elements; employees, managers, directors, the CEO, a Board and other stakeholders. They all put a stamp on its character. Some places are more top-down, others may be more organic, some carry a more historic sense of institution, but each has a personality of its own, an identity beyond that of its constituent parts. Newbies are assimilated and we find a place for ourselves – or realise it is not the right fit and perhaps move on. Belonging For me, my place has often been on the outskirts. I am an observer by nature and I...
by Inge Beckers | December, 2021 | Inge Beckers, Work
Have you ever worked with a negative person, a chronic complainer who always points out why things are not going to work, often called a naysayer? And have you felt how this affects your mood and drains the energy in you and your team? You have probably come across the opposite type of person. Someone who brings positivity into a room, who has the ability to cheer you up when you are down, who makes you feel better about yourself. These are what we call positive energizers, they have the capacity to spread positivity. And by positivity, we don’t mean the happy flappy superficial thing, but the genuine open-minded approach based on the science of positive psychology. The natural attraction of positive energy When we look at nature, we see a natural tendency towards light or positive energy. The most well-known source of energy is the sun. The sun gives life to all species, including human beings. Every living system has a tendency toward the light (life-giving) and away from darkness (danger). This is called the ‘heliotropic effect’ Think about it, if you have a choice would you rather spend time with a positive or a negative person? Energy can have different forms. Some energies, when used, will diminish in strength. For example, when you do a sports activity, you will become physically exhausted. The same goes for mental or emotional energy. When we use it, we get tired and sometimes even worn out. But when we use our relational energy and interact with positive people this energy grows. We don’t get exhausted from being with people we...
