For business-owners it is essential to keep going despite the restrictions imposed by the Covid-19 lockdown.   Given all the difficulties this creates, many of us, whether we are employees or business owners are feeling the pressure and are generally more anxious than normal. It’s easy to slip into a downward cycle of worry, lethargy and depression.

Given the reality of the threat what we can we do? We can boost our resilience, finding ways to keep our morale up. 

Two principles are particularly useful. First, managing anxiety takes mental strength and energy, if we don’t actively recharge, we will become depleted.  Secondly the state of our morale affects the state of our immune system (At this point I have to say this doesn’t mean that anyone who becomes ill wasn’t positive enough!). So, if we pro-actively attend to our morale, we are also pro-actively attending to our health.

Let’s look at some ideas you can use for yourself, personally, and in your business:

Keep in contact with friends and relatives

Social contact is another thing that is very important to our wellbeing. This is something we are missing if we are working remotely. I am fortunate that I am marooned with dear beloved. Even so, I am resolved to talk on the phone to at least one person who isn’t him every day. You might want to talk about the situation, that’s fine. However, I would suggest you also ask them about their plans for the day, what they are hoping to achieve during this period of lockdown. In other words, try to help them see a silver lining relating to business and personal life. Ideally you will both come away from the phone call feeling slightly better not even worse!

Get into flow and out of yourself

Just ‘not thinking about it’ is hard, we need to find things that take us out of ourselves. When we are completely absorbed in things we are in a state of ‘flow’ and when we are in this state, we are not focused on our feelings. It’s like getting a holiday from your worried self.

For me writing, gardening, and complicated cooking (or these days ‘creating from what we have got to hand’) all offer me productive escape time. Sometimes it’s hard to get yourself over the initial hump into the activity, but once you’ve started to apply yourself, time falls away.

The book, ‘Positive Psychology at Work’ explains flow and other positive psychology concepts that might be useful right now. ‘Positive Organizational Development cards’ take twenty of the key positive psychology concepts, including flow, and give you questions to help you explore them and brief ideas for action. Or you can go straight to the master’s voice and get Csikszentmihalyi’s classic book, ‘Flow’.

If you have to worry, have a worry appointment

Some of us are born worriers; suggestions of optimism only increase anxiety. If you are someone who finds worrying reassuring, try to limit it so it doesn’t become overwhelming. A time-honoured technique is ‘allowing’ yourself a specific allotted time to worry as much as you like. So, if you need to, spend a specified 15 or 30 minutes allowing yourself to name all your worries, business and personal.  Write them in a diary if you like. Or arrange a strictly focused and time limited phone call with another ‘worrywart’. And when your time is up, it’s up. Stop, close that box and move on with your day knowing you have another half-hour of worry time allocated tomorrow. Allocating this time and allowing yourself a good worry, should reduce the likelihood of doing your worrying at the crack of dawn, which is the worst possible time to do it.

1. Pro-actively managing your news feed and other anxiety amplifiers

We are being offered 24-hour, worldwide updates. Following this minute-by-minute is not likely to do you any good. So, take positive control and limit your daily diet. You might choose to read rather than watch the news. One benefit of this is that there is less ‘emotional contagion’ from the written word than from a person’s voice, so less transmission of anxiety.

What we want to do is replace anxiety with optimism. Two great resources with ideas about how to do this are ‘Happy Brain Science’s Happiness at Work’ game and ‘Positran’s Positive Action Cards’. Happiness at work contains over 100 science-based ideas for how to change mood or deal with some common work challenges such as ‘I work remotely, rarely seeing colleagues face to face’. While the positive action cards, also science-based, give easy to follow instructions for over sixty ways to increase your well-being.

Count your blessings

The new science of positive psychology has proved the benefits of the old adage of counting your blessings. There is an exercise known as the ‘three good things’. At the end of each day, identify three good things that have happened during the day. It’s good practice to write them down. Doing this regularly helps train your brain to look for the positives amongst the gloom, to find the silver linings, if you like.

For instance, perhaps you saw a report in the paper on the positive effect of the lockdown for wildlife. You can find lots of similar proven exercises in Vanessa Keys excellent book: 10 keys to happier living. Based on science, written for everyone, it is full of ideas for boosting your mood.

Take exercise

Exercise is very important to both mental and physical health. Don’t stay hunched over your work screen. You know the rules about keeping your distance. Put your face mask on and get out there and yomp for an hour somewhere green.

I’ve started doing a morning workout with my almost daughter, through the wonders of the internet. She has Jo Wicks ‘Seven days of sweat’ (and I can tell you, she didn’t tell me it was called that before we started!) on the computer her end, then we link up over face time and she instructs me. It’s social time and I get a great feel-good buzz afterwards. The point is, I would never do it without her company.

Use a project to draw you toward the future

Starting projects suggests an optimism about the future that becomes self-reinforcing. Uncertainty can act to paralyse us. By pro-actively starting a project we can break out of that paralysis. The hardest part is getting started, but once you do it will draw you forward. It might be a new business idea you want to develop. It might be a hobby. In my case this is a tapestry kit. These take me a long time to complete. But every evening I can admire the couple of square inches I’ve completed and feel I’m making progress.

Positran do another great set of cards called ‘Positive Transformation Cards’. They are resilience building cards, full of uplifting quotes and insightful questions to help you boost your optimism, hopefulness, and self-confidence in a mindful way.

Practice Appreciative Living

Appreciative Living, which is based on Appreciative Inquiry, is all about seeing and seeking out the best of life. We can’t deny the reality of a worldwide threat to our whole way of life, but we can still appreciate the things that make life worth living, today. Developing an appreciative eye, especially in times such as these, takes practice and isn’t always easy, but the benefit to our health, well-being, state of mind and ability to remain pro-active in the face of threat, in fact to our resilience, is beyond question. Keeping doing all the things you need to do to stay safe, and start living appreciatively at the same time.

Jackie Kelm is the guru of Appreciative Living, you can find her videos on YouTube and her latest book, Appreciative Living, on Amazon. Or try the Appreciative Inquiry card pack, with pictures, quotes and questions. Or you might find Appreciative Inquiry for Change Management by Lewis, Passmore and Cantore of interest for a more work orientated explanation.

As the restriction continue, and many keep working remotely, take good care of yourself, support employees and encourage everyone to make use of the tips that feel right for them. 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Sarah Lewis C.Psychol., is the principal psychologist at Appreciating Change, a strengths-based psychological consultancy that is committed to applying well-researched positive psychology ideas and interventions to workplace challenges and opportunities at an individual, team or whole organization level.

Sarah is an associated fellow of the British Psychological Society, a principal member of the Association of Business Psychologists, and a member of the International Positive Psychology Association.

Sarah is an acknowledged Appreciative Inquiry and Positive Psychology expert, a regular conference presenter and author of ‘Positive Psychology at Work’ (Wiley), Positive Psychology and Change (Wiley), ‘Appreciative Inquiry for Change Management’ (KoganPage) and Positive Psychology in Business (Pavilion).

She also collects great positive psychology resources to support consultants, trainers and coaches in their work which are sold through the Positive Psychology online shop. https://www.thepositivepsychologyshop.com/

Web: https://acukltd.com

Twitter: https://twitter.com/sarahlewis1

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sarahlewis1

Given the sudden, unexpected nature of the pandemic the energy we’re feeling right now is sadness, anxiety, despair, uncertainty and lack of control. Lockdown with our families does not replace the energy of our work teams and our colleagues and we can feel as if we have been caged.

So how can we find some uplift to sustain us in our business and our person life and we move forward?

My view is that we have to look to the unstoppable force of nature. Nature continues onwards through the cycles and seasons and which, in my part of the world, is currently celebrating spring in all its glory.

That’s the power of Natural Intelligence (NQ). NQ is the positive use of your instincts, insights, and perception. It requires you to be open to the senses, picking up invaluable information, by watching, listening, spotting patterns, noticing energetic transfer, and recognising boundaries – exactly like an animal in the wild. This translates into a dynamic combination of self-awareness, multiple intelligences and highly developed interpersonal skills.

Let me share some ideas to help you understand and access the power of your NQ and use it to support yourself and your business during lockdown.

1. Look out of the window and consider how nature endures great hardship.

Animals in the wild wake up in the morning to face far more daunting challenges than we do.

We only need to look at nature to be inspired by the qualities of courage we see as animals defend their food, territory, and their young from seemingly overwhelming odds.    We can also understand the hugely motivational stories of animals adapting to new circumstances and surviving despite severe famine, environmental disaster, drought, bushfire, Tsunami, loss of habitat, migration and man’s destruction.

Use these stories to inspire you, to help you feel motivated to tackle the current crisis head-on and thrive through it – not just survive.

• Allow yourself to slow to a new level of productivity.

Many of us will have been working night and day and risk burnout – perhaps thinking that you have to do the same number of hours that you would do in the office. The risk to your health, creativity and well-being is at stake. Animals in the wild don’t to do this they conserve energy; animals are experts at expanding or conserving energy as needed. Healthy animals rest more than they hunt; they know how to moderate their outputs and ensure something is left in the tank, should it be needed.

For example, a cheetah, after an unsuccessful hunt, does not leave herself open to attack by depleting all her reserves, she makes sure there is enough fuel to get herself to a safe place where she can recover. She has mastered the art of multilevel recovery; sprint-break-sprint -break. The cheetah does not try to perform three hunts a day to try to increase her output or annual yield. She hunts when she needs to, and rests to ensure she has the energy she needs.

Take inspiration from the cheetah and work hard for a period, then give yourself a rest – a proper rest. When you work, put your focus into doing the work and being productive, and then stop. When you rest, focus on resting. Don’t burn yourself out by trying to work all the time – your productivity will drop, and your chance of burning out will dramatically increase.

• Don’t fight reality. Take your foot off the pedal and handle one issue at a time; aim for depth, not breadth!

Perhaps, the most important thing we need right now is courage. If you feel you need more courage, then make that your focus. It is relatively easy to lead in good times when business is buoyant. However, it takes a certain kind of leader to deal with crisis and turbulent times. What examples of courage in nature can give us inspiration?

There are more than 10,000 different species of ant. Among those species their strengths vary considerably. Most ants can carry more than three times their own weight and can survive in water for weeks, if necessary, by forming a living raft.

Hummingbirds build a nest in the same trees where hawks are nesting, confident that they can evade capture by their flying prowess. They know lesser predators will not risk coming close to nesting Hawks. A dangerous, but courageous, strategy.

What is extraordinary about animals is that they never doubt their personal power, not for a moment. Not simply because, like a cheetah, they have sharp claws and powerful jaws. Look into their eyes and see what comes back at you – and be prepared to be amazed.

• Acknowledge the current emotional environment, and your own emotions.

You will be stressed, possibly in ways you may not realise, and a stress animal is an unpredictable animal, it doesn’t always help itself. Have you ever seen a stressed sheep running into a wire fence? Without wire cutters it can be a difficult job to release them. Even though the wire may be cutting deep, the distressed animal struggles with its rescuers. Logic, patience, calmness, all disappear at this time and what should be a relatively easy release becomes a battle of wills serving nobody.

Never forget we are animals. We can end up entangled in the metaphorical barbwire, and we can panic so much we simply can’t extract ourselves, even if we’re offered a helping hand. So, take a breath, learn to manage yourself, stop and think, pause, take another breath and stay balanced.

• Become an expert in energy management.

Nature is the expert in managing energy. For most animals being aware of energy is the difference between life and death. What can we learn from nature? What anchor can this give us?

Biologically we are great big balls of vibrating energy and it is important to understand how to increase, preserve, nurture and protect this valuable asset – especially at this time. We need to be aware of our own personal energy and how this impacts the world around us. By understanding how to manage your energy you can impact your life in many ways.

The best way to become more aware of this is to observe nature; it is just as important to know how to stop as it is to know how to go. While we acknowledge how powerful the use of high energy can be, we must also recognise there are times when it is vital to use slow energy – to stop, reflect and regenerate our minds and bodies. We live in an always-on society, with the constant noise of information in our work and private lives. Covid19 gives us a chance to stop, contemplate and engage with our energy in a different way.

What is your natural energetic state?  Perhaps you’re a fast person, always moving, never stopping.  Maybe you are you slower, finding it difficult to do anything at speed, more comfortable relaxing than doing? Recognise which you are, and then consider how you can shift your energy along the spectrum just a little. Take some time and decide on which animal will provide the inspiration to guide you.

In conclusion

During Covid-19 and its aftermath we need to tap into our Natural Intelligence (NQ) as never before.  Learn the lessons Nature has to offer and let NQ guide and shape your business activities

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Rosie Tomkins is founder of the Natural Capital Consultancy and author of ‘N-stinctive’, an inspirational book that introduces better ways to lead and deliver a competitive edge in today’s fast-moving, increasingly disconnected and uncertain world.

As an alternative to traditional leadership training, Rosie unlocks the power of the natural world to provide strength and confidence to people who are shouldering huge responsibility.

Rosie is passionate about taking leaders and individuals out of their comfort zone and challenges their deeply held beliefs in a way that makes them stronger, more confident to initiate new ways and ideas.

Her clients include the GB Olympic hockey and England rugby teams, the NHS and multi-national companies in the airline, engineering and pharmaceutical industries.

Website – www.n-stinctive.com

Instagram –  https://www.instagram.com/nstinctiveintelligence/

Twitter –  https://twitter.com/n_stinctive

YouTube – https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCgCuRgTFuoWKk4BaHSlQirg

Facebook – www.facebook.com/nstinctiveintelligence/

As vast numbers of us continue to revise the way we work and move our meetings, presentations, mentoring, advising and training online we are all learning about how to make online work for us. I am one such person and have learned some valuable lessons as I have conducted meetings and coaching online. Let me what I have learned to help you make your online communications effective and create the maximum impact.

Video-Making for Business

There are some simple strategies to ensure that your business video is of the best possible quality to serve as an effective vehicle for your message.

With his permission, I refer to Haydn Rushworth – Senior Research and Communications Officer at the National Assembly for Wales – and a superb video he recently posted on LinkedIn. In it, he shares, then demonstrates, simple but effective tips for producing better video from any device: 

1. Don’t stand or sit with a window behind you – you quickly turn into a silhouette. Facing a window or source of natural light gives much better lighting for your videos.
2. Wherever possible, find a quiet place. Background noise can be incredibly distracting for you and those you communicate with. The quieter the location, the better people are able to focus.
3. Use a tripod, wall, or lean your device against a steady object to ensure the video is smooth. Holding your device or moving around often compromises the video quality and focus, meaning you are harder to follow. Keeping a steady shot allows you to more readily replicate a face-to-face conversation and ensure people maintain focus on you.
4. Look at the lens, not the screen – more on this later.
5. Ensure you are in focus – this can be done on most smartphones by simply tapping the screen and ensuring the lighting is adequate.
6. Choose a flattering camera angle. Ensure the device is at least at eye level – nobody wants to see up your nostrils.
7. Film in landscape (horizontal) mode where applicable – the video is then easier to post and view across multiple platforms.

Communication Strategies

Once I adopted online communication, I quickly discovered several strategies that have served me well as a professional speaker are equally vital when communicating via technology:

Eye contact – this should be maintained 30% of the time for a conversation to be deemed fit for purpose. To establish and maintain relationships of trust and respect, this rises to between 60% and 70%.

In online communication, it is incredibly tempting to look at the face on screen for much of the time, thinking you are making eye contact. You are not. Eye contact is made by looking at the camera lens. Stick a Post-It Note or arrow near the lens (or, if you’re like me, a pair of sticky eyes) as a reminder that when you speak, this is where you should look. It takes practice, but it will pay dividends as viewers will feel more involved in the experience. 

Vocal variety – When you give a stand-up presentation, people can see your entire person and can therefore read facial expression, body language and gesture. Speaking on camera limits this, which places more emphasis on the voice. Varying pitch, pace and volume can help you tell your story with greater authenticity and emphasise key points with greater authority. It will require an investment of energy and commitment, but your voice will need to compensate for these other aspects of communication that are hindered by the limitations of online platforms to help your message be delivered with clarity. If you are optimistic, sound optimistic. If you are concerned, sound concerned. This will make it much easier for participants to correctly interpret your intended message.

Speaking from the heart –I highly recommend ‘Storytelling Made Easy’ by Michael Hauge. All meaningful communication elicits emotion and our stories are one of the most effective ways to achieve this. In these difficult times, an authentic personal story can bond individuals. It takes vulnerability and courage, but never underestimate the power of a sincere story, compliment, or expression of gratitude. Endeavour to start each interaction with something of this kind; it will help foster a positive spirit and ensure any succeeding communications are better received.

Improving the Experience

Communication is highly nuanced. When we speak in person, it is much easier to read facial expressions, observe gestures, detect body language, and discern variations in vocal tone. All of these combine to give us a clearer a picture of precisely what is being said from how it is being said.

Online communication can present barriers to detecting some of these nuances. Poor video quality may obscure facial expression, intermittent audio reception may betray the subtle variations of the voice and restrictive camera angles may hide the true meaning of body language or gestures.

Though it may require a small financial investment, a HD webcam, good pair of over-ear headphones and USB microphone are three pieces of equipment that have notably improved my online communication experience: I can see more clearly, hear more clearly and speak more clearly. My hands are also free to use appropriate accompanying gestures, not being encumbered with wires or handheld equipment. I would estimate the total cost to be around £100, but they have proved invaluable to my communication. I highly recommend this investment, especially if you are providing sensitive services such as coaching, mentoring or counselling; this improved equipment will help facilitate a more immersive experience for all participants.

The move to working online may have been a big change for you.  I hope the points above will help you to make the most of the experience.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Simon Day is a member of Toastmasters International, a not-for-profit organisation that has provided communication and leadership skills since 1924 through a worldwide network of clubs. There are more than 400 clubs and 10,000 members in the UK and Ireland. Members follow a structured educational programme to gain skills and confidence in public and impromptu speaking, chairing meetings and time management. To find your nearest club, visit www.toastmasters.org

When we decided to move to remote working (ahead of the Government’s advice) we held a morning meeting to discuss it with the team and we collectively said farewell to our physical office that afternoon.

We’ve invested heavily in building a fantastic team of people and it was important to prevent them, or their families, getting ill. As a small start-up we have very little redundancy and often have one person per key task – therefore losing any one of our team would be very disruptive.

With several weeks of experience of remote working under our belts we have learnt a great deal.  I hope that sharing our tips will be useful for you in your business as you finesse your plan for remote working in the light of experience.

• Continue coaching on how to work remotely.  It’s not too late to do this, even if you are already up and running from home. It is vital that each team member is well equipped to work remotely. Team leaders should discuss the logistics of remote working with their team members; providing guidance on creating a quiet space, setting a schedule, limiting interruptions from social media and other members of the household, etc.  We coached the team on good working practice, including maintaining regular working hours, scheduling breaks, etc. We have a very committed team and we don’t want them burning out by working 24/7. It’s never too late to do this, so if you haven’t already, then do it now – even if your team has been working remotely for a few weeks already.

As a precaution, we had been advising staff to take laptops and other tools essential to remote working home with them on a daily basis for about a week before the office closure.  We asked staff who used larger monitors to take them home and paid for a taxi to facilitate this. We left the office on the 10th and have not returned.

One of the key lessons we learned from this is that it is often difficult for people to find room at home for a desk to work on. I recently took the plunge and purchased a small second hand desk from eBay, after trying to work at a coffee table for a week! The extra investment was well worth it.

• Use available resources rather than reinventing the wheel: There is a wealth of online resources out there. I would recommend https://www.notion.so and particularly Notion’s remote working guide as a source of excellent information for start-ups.  Notion is a wiki where companies share best practice and experiences to help other start-ups.  Start-ups simply do not have the resources to produce extensive guidelines and policy documents so Notion has been a life saver.  For example, in preparing our team for remote working we mined Notion.  I would particularly recommend the video Zapier’s Guide to Working Remotely.  We also used https://seedlegals.com  Free Coronavirus Workplace Policy to guide us through the swift planning and preparation stage.

• Get daily working routines in place right away: To facilitate a structured approach, I suggest starting each day with a 15 minute team stand-up at 08:45.  I would also encourage you to introduce a progress tracking tool such as https://clubhouse.io It allows you to create templates so that people can report what they did yesterday and what they intend to do today.  We use the https://slack.com  automation tool to prompt everyone at 8:30 each morning to complete this form. This is then visible to all team members.  This is so important to keep our team focussed and to keep projects moving in the right direction.

• Support remote working with inexpensive tools: Like most companies we already use collaboration software for audio conferencing, file sharing and communication. We chose Slack, from Slack Technologies Inc., although there are many offerings out there. Slack is a great option for small companies. When we want full video conferencing, we turn to Google Hangout.  This enables us to share screens, presentations, etc.

ChargedUp useshttps://Loom.com  from Loom Inc, to record processes, new code, etc., to then share with the team.  For example, the operations team have recorded all of their policies and processes via Loom.  This is so useful for on-boarding new employees.

• Ensure strict discipline for online meetings: I would strongly recommend implementing a robust meeting policy to ensure that meetings are effective and that each one is time limited, has a clear agenda and that outcomes, actions and owners are agreed. I found a great article on ‘How to run a more effective meeting’ from the New York Times Business section. https://www.nytimes.com/guides/business/how-to-run-an-effective-meeting

• Focus on staff wellbeing: Of huge importance to ChargedUp is the wellbeing and mental health of our team.  We want them to stay well so we can hit the ground running when we get through these difficult times. Feeling isolated is one of the key issues raised by habitual remote workers and so we have made a particular effort to create opportunities for colleagues to socialise together online.

The team meets online for lunch at 13:00 each day, encouraging down time and an opportunity to chat and share ideas. 

We also use https://www.donut.com to arrange 121 coffee breaks with each other. Many of the best ideas originate by the water cooler so do encourage opportunities for chatting and brainstorming.

• Reward and praise are important: Although cash may be tight, go out of your way to praise and celebrate successes. For example, I arranged for a case of Jubel beer (https://jubelbeer.com/sales/) to be sent to each staff member so that our regular Friday 17:00 beers could continue, albeit remotely. We meet online at 17:00 and celebrate our successes and have a laugh. Not only does this boost morale but also supports a local brewery.

• Looking to the future: We fully anticipate a huge bounce in our business when the crisis is over and we are using this time to plan for the next stage in ChargedUp’s expansion. This quieter time allows us to develop our capabilities, hone our processes and improve our application.

By starting with a plan for remote working and then finessing that plan as you experience issues and learn from experience, it can be made to work.  Good luck for the coming weeks!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Hugo Tilmouth is CEO of ChargedUp, Europe’s largest phone charging network. Building on the British philosophy to promote sustainable innovations, ChargedUp gives customers power on-demand through its network of portable power banks. It also provides venues with a unique marketing tool that drives footfall and increases dwell time. 50 people work for the young company, which has expanded its charging network to over 3000 stations across the UK, Netherlands and Germany since 2017. The ChargedUp app now has around 210,000 users.

www.chargedup.green  

https://instagram.com/chargedupworld

https://www.linkedin.com/company/chargedupworld

https://www.facebook.com/ChargedUpWorld/

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At the start of the restrictions introduced to help combat Covid-19 it was an anxious period for many people, especially those who were working remotely for the first time.  As the lockdown looks likely to continue it is vitally important that businesses and business owners consider the impact on the mental wellbeing of their employees and support them as much as possible

What can businesses do to help their staff?  Here are some suggestions for you to consider for your staff and your business.

Helping to reduce stress

Team members are bound to be stressed, about the virus, about loved ones, about whether they are doing a good job from home and, generally, about job security.

One of the proven acts to alleviating stress is to have clear, honest and regular conversations with your team. Put a time in your diary to speak to them – don’t just leave it to chance.

Let them know what the business is doing, tell them the truth – avoid sugar coating. Help people understand what the company is doing and what plans it has. The truth may not be pleasant, but it is always better than a lie. If your employee loses trust when working remotely, it can be very toxic.

As well as updating them about the business, give honest, accurate and timely feedback to alleviate concerns about whether they are able to do what they need to from a home-working environment.

Maintaining human connection

Working from home means we lose the human connection we normally get with our colleagues in the office. This human connection is an incredibly important part of going to work and boosts engagement and morale.

Organising regular group conference calls using Zoom or Skype is a great step. Wherever possible, ensure calls are video calls where you can all see each other.  You can smile and wave to one another. You can include time to talk about work, the latest developments of COVID-19 and any worries and concerns you have.  And allow time for a chat about non-work-related issues too. Ask your team how their families are, where they are exercising, what recipes they are trying to stretch provisions, etc.

Make connecting with colleagues and getting to know them socially, as well as professionally, part of the new culture within the business, and actively encourage it while working remotely. Why not try a game where, for example, you pretend your pets or family members are your co-workers and speak about them (“one of my co-workers slept all day under my feet today but the other kept barking at passers-by”).

This way you can keep the connection your team enjoys in the office and even build upon it.

Providing counselling

As an employer, it would be beneficial to offer staff some form of counselling, which could either be with an internal wellbeing / trained HR Officer or an external professional. You could offer this on a group basis as well; arrange a group conference call to share concerns with a number of employees at the same time.

The calls could be used to talk through various tools that can be used to reduce stress and anxiety; covering mindfulness techniques, sleep, rest, nutrition and diet and how to keep calm and focused. At Corporate Away Days, we are partnered with a number of Wellbeing and Mental Health professionals who can organise virtual workshops to assist your team whilst they are working from home.

Developing a clear communication process

When working in the office, there are established lines of communication in place and there needs to be clarity as to how this is replicated when working remotely. Employees will benefit from having a clear line of communication; knowing who to call, when to call, and how to reach the right people if they have a query. 

However, you also need to avoid being overwhelmed by phone calls! When people aren’t used to working from home, they will often call to ask the simplest questions.  This is normal – so set up a system to mitigate this; one which ensures you get some work done too, but it also gives employees some structure, and clarity.

An organised approach to managing call times, blocking out hour slots to receive or make calls to individuals or, as discussed, a conference call for more general group discussions – are all great ways to limit a deluge of phone calls.

You might think emails are the answer. However, in the self-isolation environment we are experiencing, emails and texts won’t cut it. Human connection is important, so pick up the phone!

Reducing feelings of isolation

Self-isolate is a challenge. Help your employees understand ways they can be social – and stay safe.

Why not provide them with a list of the ways they can have contact with colleagues, friends and family at different times of the day; from Facetime and video chats, to phone calls and WhatsApp. Within reason, be flexible about where they fit these communications into their working day. If they belong to clubs or groups outside work can they use apps such as Houseparty or Zoom to replicate their usual meeting; whether that’s a book club, choir or wine tasting?

You can also set up virtual team building or perhaps a social event, such as a quiz or watch party.

Motivation while working remotely

Encouraging your team to exercise is also a great way to keep them motivated and keep their mental health strong. Suggest they lay a mat inside / outside and do stretches, push ups, sit ups, planks, some form of body strengthening as well as cardio.

Then ask your team to share their routines and findings with colleagues, creating another topic for self-maintenance and the pandemic survival at home.

More importantly, trusting and empowering staff to work from home will be a great motivator in itself. If your team feels they can achieve what they need and be recognised and praised for it, while cutting out the commute and the downsides that come with working in an office, they can look forward to a time when the virus has beaten a retreat and they can work this way to really achieve some work-life balance.

Make your goals short-term. None of us know how long this will last so you may as well plan on a month-by-month basis. If goals can be achieved in a short timeframe, it is a great way to encourage your team to stay focussed and also gives you as an employer a good excuse to sing the praises of your team on a regular basis.

And do make sure – as far as you can – that they are equipped for working at home.

Planning for getting back to normal

Fun and laughter are some of the best ways to reduce stress. Whilst there doesn’t seem much to look forward to right now, as time passes we will be able to see the end of the pandemic.  It’s a good idea to think ahead to fun things you can do in the future. 

Giving your team something to look forward to, something exciting, would be a perfect way to keep them motivated, inspired and create a conversation / discussion on that group chat that has been set up.

For example, an away day out of the office with a wellbeing theme, an activity that is inspiring and engaging that allows individuals to reconnect and rebuild connections after a long period of isolation. www.corporate-away-days.co.uk offer 27 live wellbeing events that aim to connected individuals from all corners of the workplace, at all levels.

Business owners have a huge amount on their plates right now. Covid-19 has created an unprecedented situation which is difficult for everyone to handle.  Because of this business owners need to do everything possible to support their employee and their mental wellbeing.  Please keep this high on your agenda and help people get through the Covid-19 period.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Craig Bulow is the founder of Corporate Away Days, a corporate wellbeing events company delivering engaging, inspiring and exciting events focussed on Wellbeing and Reward activities. Corporate Away Days also creates, designs and builds corporate wellbeing policies and provides leading experts for interactive workshops, seminars and talks on improving mental health and overall wellbeing.

Web: http://www.corporate-away-days.co.uk/

Instagram: corporateawaydays

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/craig-bulow-3b227721/ and https://www.linkedin.com/company/corporate-away-days/

It’s time for the board meeting. Or another of the regular get-togethers for the work team. And what invariably goes centre-table? The answer, of course, is a selection of bottled water.

No speaker wants to go dry-mouthed. Every participant needs to be sufficiently hydrated to stay focused, concentrate, and keep their mind on the matters in hand. If you were in any doubt, the Association of UK Dieticians (BDA) reminds us how drinking water keeps a dry mouth, lethargy, poor concentration, and dizziness at bay.

It’s for essential health reasons that you are legally required to make clean drinking water readily available for all of your employees.

So, the bottled water in the centre of the table plays a critical role. That role is made all the more important by the nature of the water you serve and the type of bottle you use.

The water

Few self-respecting offices these days are likely to leave jugs of tap water on the boardroom table – directors, clients, senior executives, and your workforce as a whole may reasonably expect better.

You – and they – want water that is clean and pure, free of the impurities that even British tap water may contain. It must have a great taste and, preferably, can be served still, sparkling or chilled.

The way to get your drinking water that clean is to install a drinking water filtration system. Modern systems can remove up to 99% of all impurities – and leave you with a refreshingly clean and great tasting drink of water.

Filtered water systems such as this connect directly to your mains water supply, so that once the system is installed, you fresh, clean water is going to cost you little more than the current price of tap water – less than 5p litre.

The bottle

If you are looking for any sense of corporate social responsibility, you will avoid the use of plastic bottles at all costs. Not only are they inelegant to look at, but plastic bottles are also widely acknowledged as the scourge of environmentalists because of the extremely long life before they degrade, together with their lasting and harmful pollution.

Consciousness about sustainability and eco-friendly solutions is now widespread, so you may demonstrate your commitment to just such concerns by doing away with single-use plastic bottles and replacing them with reusable, dishwasher-safe glass bottles.

You can even go a step further in the way you serve your bottled water. Some companies that supply elegantly designed and stylish glass bottles on which you can print your company logo – and a message reiterating your commitment to environmental sustainability.

A special printing process ensures that the logo – together with any message – is indelibly printed on your glass bottles, serving a reminder of your commitment to values of corporate social responsibility.

The next time you are setting up the board room or arranging an office meeting, consider whether the drinking water you are serving is the freshest, purest and tastiest that can be. If not, it may be time to find out more about filtered water and in-house bottling solutions.

In the world of sports technology is gradually bringing in changes, with small pieces of new tech being incorporated into old ways of doing things. In sport, this helps preserve the tradition while slowly improving every aspect.

As an ex-pro basketball player and Olympian, I avidly follow developments, particularly the use of technology in sports. Here are five areas where tech is having an impact and improving sports…

1. Funding

Talent and effort should be all it takes to become a professional athlete. Unfortunately, funding tends to be a major deciding factor. Those without the funding can’t afford to take time out from work to train, can’t afford the best trainers, and won’t be able to access the best technology.

Until fairly recently, however, top athletes and teams have taken the lion’s share of funding and sponsorship opportunities. Less well-known athletes along with those just starting out have struggled to get the funding they need to break into the professional leagues.

The good news is that, in recent years, new sources of funding have arisen, allowing fans to financially support clubs and athletes in return for a share of future incomes. Not only does this provide an additional avenue for fans to get involved but it also provides a way for up-and-coming athletes and clubs to raise unrestricted funds, helping them to go pro.

1. Sports Equipment Design

While computers have been at the forefront of a lot of changes in sport, one of the most significant comes from the world of materials and product design and engineering.

Tennis rackets and golf clubs, for example, have seen some huge technological leaps, using new graphite shafts for better weight to strength ratio. Computers have, of course, assisted with these new designs, improving performance through the use of aerodynamics.

The deployment of new materials, such as kevlar, have also dramatically improved the strength of sails, bicycle helmets, and even football boots. Kevlar is a fibre that is around five times stronger yet much lighter than steel, making it ideal in these heavy-use situations. I see many of these new materials being applied to sports equipment in the coming years, helping to make it stronger, longer-lasting and safer.

1. Training & Nutrition

What separates the amateur and pro athletes is training. More, better training will create professional athletes out of even the most modest spark of talent. A lack of or low-quality training will hamper even the most promising of players.

Computer-aided training programmes now integrate live data into sports science models to help improve every aspect of the athlete’s performance. Tennis player can improve their services, swimmers their technique, and footballers their strike rate. What’s more, computers are now beginning to spot areas of weakness and suggest improvements, potentially helping to avoid long-term injuries building up.

New technology also makes it easier to monitor an athlete’s nutrition, computer programs have improved nutritional advice, and developments in food and drink production allow for very precise nutritional balance as well as new protein bars, energy drinks, etc.

In the future, I see more wearable technology being integrated to utilise live data and provide immediate feedback to athletes and coaches. Training and nutrition can then be quickly adapted to the athlete’s needs, improving performance while helping to avoid future injuries.

1. Engaging Fans

There has been a proliferation of new ways to watch sport ‒ from HD streaming to watching via betting sites. This has allowed fans to get involved in the action, betting on in-play odds, commenting on streams, and even just seeing more detail of the game.

There have also been now ways for fans to get involved in the action, such as fantasy leagues and in-play betting, engaging fans through personal investment. Fans can also support individual players and teams financially, through sites like Globatalent, as well as trading player-based stocks on sites like Sports Stack and Football Index.

Platforms such as Twitter have also made it easier for fans to connect directly with athletes, getting immediate responses and exclusive opportunities to meet their idols. I believe this interactive element is responsible for the resurgence of interest in sports over the past ten years and is helping athletes to build a business around their sporting career.

1. Fairness

While we’d all like for players to be good sports and professional in their attitudes, we also want to see passion bursting forth through their performance. We want them to push as hard and as far as they can go in order to surprise and delight their fans.

However, the downside to all this passion and performance has been athletes cheating or claims of unfairness in referee decisions. We’ve all been aware of the controversies surrounding goal-line decisions in international football games, for example, and Lance Armstrong’s doping scandal shocked and shook the world of cycling, damaging the reputation of the sport.

Fortunately, however, technology is improving every aspect of fairness in sport. Video referees can now be called on to make decisions using slow-motion cameras at every angle, goal-line and hawkeye technology can now deliver uncontroversial decisions in football and tennis, while anti-doping techniques can now spot a huge range of illegal performance-enhancing drugs before a scandal breaks out.

Not only will this new level of fairness help keep controversy and scandal away, but it will also bring a renewed enthusiasm for sports that have been plagued by unfairness in the past.

We still have some way to go, but now that the technology has been accepted in the sporting world, I believe we will see the rapid adoption of new technologies across every aspect of the sporting world, helping to improve everything.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Ferran Martínez is one of the co-founders of GlobaTalent. He is a former pro basketball player for FC Barcelona and Spanish National Team, a Laureus member, led sports entertainment at several private banks and is now a successful entrepreneur. He also has experience in advising in terms of investment and has done so for FC Barcelona players.

Web: https://globatalent.com/

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