When we mention equations there are often a lot of raised eyebrows in the audience, however, occasionally an equation comes along that is helpful with our day-to-day life and worth taking note of:

DISAPPOINTMENT = EXPECTATIONS - REALITY

If you throw around a few variables we get an idea of how this equation works. Let’s presume that for most people the aim is to minimise disappointment. This is best achieved when we strive to minimise our expectations. If our expectations match our current reality then our disappointment score would be zero. Furthermore if our reality was actually a lot better than we were expecting then disappointment decreases its hold on our existence. The main time we get submerged in large amounts of disappointment is when we are expecting something to go one way but for some reason or another, we find that in reality, this didn’t happen.  

Now, this doesn’t mean that we should always expect the worst. It’s important to...

The definition of resilience is sometimes hard to pin down. It is often thought of as the ability to bounce back in the face of adversity but as you will see, it is not that simple.

Does one think that an individual who goes through a trauma and returns to work the next day is more resilient than the individual who goes through a similar trauma, suffers with PTSD and has 6 months of therapy but then returns back to work? Both individuals have bounced back, but one took a little longer, and that’s fine. The question is whether we can maximise our ‘springiness’  when it comes to bouncing back.

Two important days are recognised in June that are relevant to this discussion. The first of which occurs in the USA on June 4th is ‘National Hug Your Cat’ day and the second is June 8th, which is ‘International Best friends day’. While they add a little chuckle as we search for a feline friend to cuddle the important point is that friendships are...

21 Employee Wellbeing Questions and Answers for 2021

We’re championing #MentalHealthAwarenessYear, to sustain our focus to become happier, healthier and more productive.

We’ve gathered the 21 most commonly asked employee wellbeing questions asked by HR Directors, wellbeing leads and business owners and will be answering one a week.

Question 1 - How can I make sure that colleagues are not overworking to help reduce stress levels?

When we worked in an office there was a natural divide between home and work. Whether you love or hate the office commute, it created a natural separation. Then, as we all worked from home, the lines between home-life and work-life were blurred. 

Were we working from home or sleeping in the office? Many worked longer days and responded to late-night emails. There was simply no obvious ‘Trumpian’ way to “build the wall!”

Job insecurity increased as people were furloughed, reducing costs to protect the...

The IQ test, or intelligence quotient, was first invented in 1904 and was for many years widely regarded as the measure of how successful a person will become in the future.  However, more recently researchers have worked towards understanding the emotional quotient  (EQ) and its effect on our future successes and failures.   

The notion was that in general, those with higher IQ’s are successful and tend to earn a better salary, however that doesn't paint the entire picture.  

Emotional intelligence is a composite of multiple skills. From understanding your emotions 'self awareness', being able to manage your emotions 'self regulation',  wanting to change 'motivation', being able to 'empathise' with others, and ultimately improving your 'social skills'. 

This unique combination of attributes, when considered together, provides for a well-rounded individual that is able to manage and lead at the highest level. ...

This week we recognise Mental Health Awareness once again and as we attempt to push Covid-19 into the rear-view mirror of our lives we ask, how do we get back on the road to making a full recovery?

We all recognise that while we initially thought the disruption to our lives was going to be a steep hill, it soon emerged that it was more like climbing Everest. However, with that in mind what steps can we apply to support our mental health as we journey into the next chapter of life after lockdown.  

Zubin & Spring (1977) suggested 4 main factors that make us susceptible to suffering with poor mental health.  These were: 1) Genetics, 2) Childhood experiences, 3) Environment, 4) Lifestyle factors.    

Obviously as you go through that list it is obvious that you aren’t able to alter your genetics or your childhood and thus you’re only able to control your environment and your lifestyle factors.

So what can we do about lifestyle factors?

We often get told that mindfulness is a hard skill to learn, especially when trying to combat stress.  And yes, we completely agree.  In times of high stress it's really difficult to commit to learning a new skill to cope and deal with that stress. 

Imagine if you woke up tomorrow and needed a filling in your tooth.  You go to the dentist and say: “What brushing and flossing can I do to sort this out?”  

The dentist looks at you puzzled and replies “the brushing and flossing is designed to help you avoid needing a filling rather than fixing one”

The point here is that healthy habits are designed to keep you well. Instead, humans have a tendency to de-prioritise healthy habits until something is broken. 

In the example of mindfulness the research shows that mindfulness practices help to calm our mind, ease stress and anxiety and over time literally change the size and shape of certain areas of our brain...

Throughout our day we make 1000’s of decisions both consciously and subconsciously. When it comes to understanding willpower we have things that we would like to be doing and things that we definitely want to stop doing. In terms of willpower we can divide these into ‘will’-power challenges and ‘won’t’-power challenges.   For example, if you want to limit eating junk food or stop watching so much TV, these would be termed won’t-power challenges.  On the other hand if you want to exercise or floss your teeth everyday these would be will-power challenges.  

So the first step in your willpower success is to divide these mentally into things that you want to be doing and things that you want to stop doing.  With this list divided appropriately, you can then start the process towards change.

Willpower is a muscle:  If you think of willpower as a muscle the more willpower press-ups you do the...

So we’ve all made it through the first quarter of 2021 and can see the sunrise of a new world balance, emerging between homelife and worklife. In that regard, we have to start planning new routines as the old ones fall away….

For some, lockdown was a significant challenge and for others it was a blessing. However, as there are glimmers in the distance of the office-cogs starting to rotate, how do we maintain some of the great work that you have put in and avoid falling back into old habits?

Previously, we discussed that habits were formed by 3 R’s - Reminder, Routine and Reward.  This habit formation principle is at the foundation of every established willpower challenge in your life.  Each is likely to have a reminder for you to do something (or not do something) and once accomplished some type of reward. 

So for those of you who are concerned with a new working routine and considering the possibility of hybrid working (half at home and half in the...

As we start the steady climb toward Spring, we ask, why does the sun feel so good?

The sun’s rays are made up of different types of UV light.  In particular UVA, UVB and UVC.  UVC is filtered by the atmosphere which only leaves UVA and UVB.  The majority of sunlight reaching us is UVA and it is this ray that is responsible for premature ageing of our skin, leaving sun spots.  On the other hand UVB is responsible for the burning of our skin and that sudden urge to reach for the Aloe Vera!  

Whilst there are clear detrimental effects of having too much UVA and UVB on our skin there are definitely significant benefits of making sure that we get enough.

There are two main reactions that happen when we are exposed to the sun.  

The most obvious one is that the sun’s rays (UVB) help us to make vitamin D.  The parts of our skin exposed to the sun immediately begin to ramp up the vitamin D manufacturing process from cholesterol and...

People often ask us for ways to help them feel better during the day.  While the answer can seem complicated and involve a deep analysis of ones nutritional habits, sleep routine, exercise program, in fact it is often better just to pause and take a look at our thoughts. 

Let’s look at the premise that, if you can conceive it, you can achieve it.  On the surface that seems like a good thing, however what if we only conceive negative emotions and thoughts, what then?  It leads to worry and anxiety.

If we break down the word, worry, in a little more detail we can start to identify what we are worried about:

1. Things that can’t be changed - past events
2. Things that will never happen - future events
3. Illogical deductive reasoning - wrong conclusions
4. Petty miscellaneous things - did I leave the iron on?
5. Real worries that we can’t do anything about - outside of your control
6. Real worries that we might be able to do something about - maybe able to control...