Channel Islands Edition ISSN 2516-3426
No.20
January/February/March 2019 Happy | Healthy | Inspired
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FEATURING
Will YOU be a Leader in WellBeing in 2019? How Work Can Be Made Meaningful What Makes a Good Business? Parenting Teens with Gratitude Four Ways Children Say Their Wellbeing Can Be Improved
SOMETHING FOR EVERYONE
7 Steps to Help You Push Your Reset Button Move Your Body with An Attitude of Gratitude Stop Trying to Manage Stress; Learn to Live Stress-Free The Positive Impact of Compassion And much more to inspire, energise and make you FEEL GOOD!
£3.99
Appreciation is a wonderful thing
Good HealthGood Business
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WELCOME
Welcome
WORDS: Beverley Le Cuirot, Founder and Editor
Welcome to our ‘Gratitude and Appreciation’ edition. This edition is all about gratitude, appreciation – of self and of others – healthy self-esteem, charitable giving, generosity of time, effort and means, and seeing the best in everything and everyone around us. Sounds idealistic, but there is good evidence to prove that the more we appreciate, the more we will have to appreciate, and conversely so, also. “There is just as much beauty visible to us in the landscape as we are prepared to appreciate, not a grain more.” ~Henry David Thoreau Certainly, since I have given thanks on a regular daily basis to all that I have, opportunities have appeared a plenty. And this is why working on this edition has been a pure delight. The content is so abundant; and the number of International and Local contributors who have once again agreed to share their knowledge is truly overwhelming, we are so very grateful to each and every one of them for supporting us. Appreciation is everywhere. Said to the cornerstone of society – evident since the beginning of time. Statues are unveiled to celebrate people who have made a difference in our world. Airports, parks and buildings are named after great leaders. Awards ceremonies celebrate the achievements of people in all walks of life – and every day we have the opportunity to inspire greatness in others. All we have to do is say ‘Thank You’, and mean it.
Our greatest human need is to be understood and appreciated. Sam Walton, founder of Wal-Mart, once said "Appreciate everything your associates do. Nothing else can quite substitute for a few well-chosen, well-timed, sincere words of praise. They're absolutely free and worth a fortune." And when appreciating those around you, remember to include yourself with that, too. I am as inspired as ever by the content in this edition, and I hope you feel the same way when you read it. Thank YOU for your time and support. Happy, healthy regards, as always!
Beverley beverley@wellbeingworld.je
If you would like to buy yourself, a friend, colleague or loved one a subscription to WellBeing World magazine, please visit: www.wellbeingworldmagazine.com Alternatively, please speak with your Employer and suggest to them that they join our Employer Scheme to purchase copies for your organisation – we’d be eternally grateful to you. Thank you.
Creating a WORLD of Difference
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CONTENTS
How to Practice Gratitude, Even in Tough Times
12
Need an Achievable Goal for 2019? South Coast Charity Challenge
22
How to Bring Your Whole Self to Work
40
Four Ways Children Say Their Wellbeing Can Be Improved
54
Emotional Intelligence and Mindfulness
74
Life is Happening For You, Not Against You
84
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CONTENTS WELCOME
Contents Introducing our International Guest Contributors … And our Local Expert Contributors
6 8
FEATURES Making Gratitude Real How to Practice Gratitude, Even in Tough Times The 5-Minute Gratitude Exercise Why Appreciating Your Team is Good for Business
10 12 14 16
WHAT’S NEW Introducing: The Leaders in WellBeing Awards 18 Jersey’s First Truly Flexible Recruitment Solution 20 Need an Achievable Goal for 2019? South Coast Charity Challenge 22 New Change4Life Campaign to Help Families Reduce Sugar Intake 24
SPECIAL FOCUS: GOOD BUSINESS Celebrating Business for the Common Good How Businesses Are Changing the World From Management to Meaning
26 28 30
ENTREPRENEUR Imagining the Upside of Automation
32
WORK Our Approach to Employee Engagement is Not Working How Work Can Be Made More Meaningful The “Depressing” Reason About Our Workplaces How to Bring Your Whole Self to Work Small Actions, Big Impacts: Authenticity in Leadership
34 36 38 40 42
BODY Neurofeedback: Regenerating the Brain 5 Ways to Support Your Health Journey
44 46
FITNESS Move Your Body with an Attitude of Gratitude 10 Signs You’re a Mentally Strong Person
48 50
CHILDREN Parenting Teens with Gratitude Four Ways Children Say Their Wellbeing Can Be Improved Samarès School Life
52 54 56
Thank You and Disclaimer: WellBeing World would like to thank all of our contributors, members and advertisers for making our magazine what it is; and to you, our readers, for your support. We aim to bring you properly researched information that enables you to make wise health decisions and which support your general health and wellbeing.
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RESET 7 Steps to Help You Push Your Reset Button Stop Trying to Manage Stress; Learn to Live Stress-Free Five Benefits of Yoga Nidra The Positive Impact of Compassion
58 60 62 64
FOOD 20 Superfoods for People Over 50
66
MIND Self-Esteem: A Healthy Sense of Overall Value Creative Writing for Emotional Health Gratitude, Passive Emotion or Motivator of Action? Emotional Intelligence and Mindfulness It’s Not 1 in 4; It’s All of Us – Why Mental Health is About Everyone
68 70 72 74 76
LIFE Do You Have an Attitude of Gratitude? Have You Ever Talked to Your Clutter? Removing Toxic People from Your Life in 9 Steps Life is Happening For You, Not Against You How I Stayed Healthy and Happy During the Worst of Times
78 80 82 84 86
WORLD Psychology in the Middle East (and Beyond)
88
BOOKS Book Review – Great Reads for Gratitude and Appreciation
90
WELLBEING BUSINESS DIRECTORY 92
10% of the sales proceeds of this edition of WellBeing World will be donated to Jersey Mencap. Jersey Mencap support children and adults with a learning disability in Jersey. They strive for improved services, choice and opportunity, and your support will help their projects to thrive. You can read more about their work and the South Coast Challenge on pages 22/23 – and also at their website at: www.jerseymencap.org
Although every effort is made to ensure the veracity of published information, WellBeing World and its Directors and Publishers cannot be held responsible for the information contained herein or for the views and actions of individual contributors. All contributors are qualified to practice in their own fields of expertise. If in doubt, please consult with a medical practitioner before acting on health information received.
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CONTRIBUTORS
Introducing our International Guest Contributors:
We are delighted to welcome so many distinguished authors, thinkers and inspirational experts from around the world.
Aidan Kearney
Amy McCae
Amy Morin
Carrie Copley
Performance & Business Psychologist
Certified Life Coach & Mindfulness Meditation Teacher
Psychotherapist and Author
Founder, Love Your Life
Chris Rackliffe
Christine Carter Senior Fellow, Greater Good Science Centre
David A. Morrison
Deanne Barrett M.A
Founder, Guts Greatness Glory
Director, Gratitudeworks Enterprises Inc
Award-winning Storyteller, Motivator and Marketer
Faith Canter
Graeme Codrington
Professor Katie Bailey
Kerri Richardson
Author, Coach & Explorer
Founding Partner & Futurist @ TomorrowToday Global
Prof. of Work and Employment, King’s College London
Author, Lifestyle Designer & Coach
Dr Louise Lambert
Mark C Crowley
Mike Robbins
Dr Nausheen Pasha-Zaidi
Editor, Middle East Journal of Positive Psychology
Speaker, Podcaster & Change Agent
Author, Thought-Leader & Speaker
Teacher of Psychology, Houston Community College
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CONTRIBUTORS WELCOME
Dr. Paul White
Naz Beheshti
Dr. Paul White is a psychologist, author, speaker, and consultant who “makes work relationships work”.
As an executive wellness coach and consultant, Naz empowers leaders to tap into their highest potential for creativity, vitality, and success though mindset and behaviour change.
For the past 20 years, he has improved numerous businesses, schools, government agencies and nonprofit organisations by helping them:
• Create positive workplace relationships and improve staff morale.
• Eliminate the cynicism, sarcasm and lack of trust that often is associated with traditional employee recognition programmes. • Overcome the obstacles to help staff communicate authentic appreciation to one another.
A frequently sought after keynote speaker and leadership trainer, Dr. White has given lectures around the world, including North America, Europe, South America, Asia, and the Caribbean. He has spoken to Microsoft managers, SHRM and association conferences across North America, at international conferences, and to numerous national organisations. He is co-author of three books, including The 5 Languages of Appreciation in the Workplace, written with Dr. Gary Chapman which has sold over 325,000 copies worldwide. Based on their extensive research and expertise, Dr. White and Dr. Chapman have developed a unique way for organisations to improve staff morale, increase employee engagement, and create enhanced levels of trust. His most recent book, The Vibrant Workplace: Overcoming the Obstacles to Building a Culture of Appreciation, was cited as the #1 HR book released in 2017.
Practicing a holistic approach, Naz’s company, Prananaz, helps organisations improve company culture, employee engagement and wellbeing and business outcomes that is rooted in mindfulness, neuroscience, and positive psychology. Working at startups and Fortune 500 companies have provided Naz with a deep understanding of the challenges leaders and professionals face in high pressure environments. She has first-hand experience working with and learning from some of the top business leaders and wellness experts in the world, including the late Steve Jobs and the Dalai Lama. Her career began as the personal and executive assistant to Steve Jobs, the cofounder and CEO of Apple. Jobs, her mentor, remains a wellspring of inspiration, especially in regard to her forthcoming book, Pause. Breathe. Choose. : Become the CEO of Your Life and Well-Being. He had an early and profound influence on her belief that the ultimate wealth is wellbeing. In 2012, Naz founded Prananaz Inc., which provides customised, high-touch, high-tech corporate wellness solutions and delivers speaking, coaching, consulting, and training to teams and organisations of all sizes.
More info: www.prananaz.com and www.nazbeheshti.com Naz’s article ‘Our Approach To Employee Engagement Is Not Working’ can be found on pages 34/35.
More info: www.drpaulwhite.com
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CONTRIBUTORS
...And our Local Expert Contributors:
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Alex Wiles
Beverley Le Cuirot
Cesca Abbott
Debbie Thompson
Jersey Mencap
WellBeing World
Healthhaus
Jersey Sport Psychology and Healthhaus
Debi Monro
Dreena Collins
Elzbieta Demont
Katie Stevens
Samarès School
Highlands College
Premier Biofeedback
Rowlands
Lorna Jackson
Matt Riley
Nathalie Le Mottee
Simon Nash
Health Point Clinic
Hand Picked Hotels
Healthhaus
Insight Group
FEATURES
Making Gratitude Real WORDS: Christine Carter, Senior Fellow at the Greater Good Science Centre
One of the most powerful positive emotions we have in this life is gratitude; mountains of research indicate that gratitude is part of the happiness holy grail. Compared with those who don’t practice gratitude, scientists have found that people who practice gratitude:
• Are considerably more enthusiastic, interested, and determined • Feel 25% happier
• Are more likely to be both kind and helpful to others And that’s not all. Gratitude studies report long laundry lists of the benefits of gratitude. For example, people who jotted down something they were grateful for online every day for just two weeks (using an app created by the Greater Good Science Centre) showed higher stress resilience and greater satisfaction with life, and they reported fewer headaches, less congestion, and a reduction in stomach pain, coughs, and sore throats.
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Gratitude is a skill, like learning to speak a new language or swing a bat. It can be taught, and it needs to be practiced consciously and deliberately. Yet, unlike learning a new language, practicing gratitude can be blissfully simple. Just count the things in your life that you feel thankful for. Do it in a way that works for you; one size does not fit all with gratitude practices. The key to creating routine gratitude practices that work is to add in an element of creativity and novelty. Think up a practice that you find fun and simple, and each time you practice, try to think of novel things that you are grateful for or new dimensions of those things and people you appreciate. Here are some ideas to get you started:
Contemplate death and destruction. (Bet you didn’t see that one coming!) When researchers have people visualise their own death in detail, their gratitude increases. Similarly, simply imagining not having something you love can make you feel more grateful for it. When researchers had volunteers envision the sudden disappearance of their romantic partners from their lives, they felt a lot more gratitude for them. We also feel more gratitude when we imagine that positive life events never happened – like landing a new job or moving closer to family.
Keep a gratitude journal.
This can be handwritten in a journal or kept online (there are loads of web-based versions) or even just jotted down in your calendar. As an alternative, text your appreciation to people who have helped you out.
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Give up – or change up – what you really love.
I know, depriving yourself doesn’t seem fun, but entitlement and adaptation undermine appreciation. Gratitude actually arises naturally in conditions of scarcity, for example, when we are hungry, we are more grateful for food than when we are full. Not surprisingly, research shows that we enjoy things more when we give them up for a little while; for example, people who gave up chocolate for seven days enjoyed it more at the end of the week than people who indulged all week. More surprisingly, people report enjoying their favourite TV shows more when they are interrupted occasionally (even by commercials). This is probably why Lent is a common religious practice!
to write a few adjectives that describe what they appreciate about one another on the inside of the place cards. Don’t ask people to write something about everyone present unless they want to – you don’t want to force the exercise. But do make sure that everyone has at least one thing written inside their place card so that during the meal you can go around the table and share appreciations.
Keep a group “gratitude list” or a collection of things that colleagues or family members feel thankful for.
Post a huge sheet of paper in a public place and ask everyone to contribute to it when the spirit moves them. Anything can go on the list, no matter how insignificant or important – people, places, stuff, events, nature. Variations on this theme are endless; try gratitude garlands, walls, trees – anything you can put a sticky note on or hang a tag on will work.
Start a tradition of writing “appreciations” on place cards at family dinners or celebrations.
Depending on your comfort level for group sharing, make folded place cards for each person present, and then ask people
Write letters for “large” and “small” gratitudes.
Large: Write a thank-you letter to someone who is important to you but you haven’t properly thanked for something non-material, and then deliver it in person and read it out loud. Small: Text a quick and unexpected thank-you note for kind words spoken to someone who lent a helping hand, or to say thanks for a fun day.
The Greater Good Science Center at the University of California, Berkeley studies the psychology, sociology, and neuroscience of wellbeing, and teaches skills that foster a thriving, resilient, and compassionate society.
More info: www.greatergood.berkeley.edu
Christine is the author of ‘The Sweet Spot: How to Accomplish More by Doing Less’ (Ballantine Books, 2015). This article is from a series about flourishing from the “Science of Finding Flow,” an online course she created as a companion to her book. If you would like to go on to the next class or start the course from the beginning – visit this link, it’s free!
https://www.christinecarter.com/science-of-finding-flow-tag/
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FEATURES
How to Practice Gratitude, Even in Tough Times Seven simple ways to be more grateful. WORDS: Chris Rackliffe
I know this might sound crazy, but I’m grateful for every single tough time I’ve ever endured. Of course, it was a completely different story at the time. I felt devastated when love was lost, disillusioned when I didn’t land those “perfect” professional opportunities, and denied by the Universe for not getting the good fortune I thought I deserved. Ultimately, though, there were bigger, better, bolder things in store for me. Looking back now, I appreciate the winding road from Point A to Point D as opposed to the direct path I thought it should’ve been. What I thought were detours along the way were actually the main attractions themselves—opportunities for me to learn lessons that would help me further down the line, as well as opportunities for me to grow into a more evolved version of myself. That’s the real power of gratitude: It can transform challenges into opportunities and setbacks into comebacks. Research suggests that it can even help with closure and emotional coping.
practiced in the small, everyday moments like brewing a cup of tea, making the bed, taking a shower and cooking. When we strip our lives down to these easy activities, it helps us better appreciate the fundamental aspects of living such as breathing, eating, sleeping and bonding. So, celebrate the simple pleasures of life. Be grateful that you’ve been blessed with another day on this planet. Relish in the knowledge that even if all you do today is breathe and eat, you’ve succeeded in enjoying life in its simplest form of conscious being. And that’s all that was ever expected of you.
Gratitude is what propels you to that higher ground – to a freedom from the constant fear of the weather changes in life. It reminds you of the roots you grew during previous storms and that it’s always sunny even if you can’t see it from where you currently stand.
Think about your 100% success rate.
Value the ebb and flow – the sun and storms – of life.
Just like the breath that flows in and out of you dozens of times each minute, life cycles through periods of inhaling and exhaling, sun and storms. Trust that even though the terrain may seem treacherous right now, it won’t always be this way. Truth is, the rain in our lives can wash us clean by reminding us of what really matters. Try to look for the sun – the good or the lesson – in any situation. And then appreciate the sun even more when it actually returns.
Focus on and celebrate little wins.
When things are particularly difficult, it can be hard to face the day. Don’t fret – it’s perfectly normal to struggle when you’re dealing with trauma or truly tough challenges. Instead of trying to achieve everything all at once, just focus on one thing at a time. Gratitude, I’ve found, is best 12
You may not even realise this, but thus far, you have a perfect score for surviving what you’ve been through. You have successfully endured every challenge you’ve ever faced before. The lessons learned in your lowest lows prepare you to receive the blessings of your highest highs. This time will be no different. How do I know? Because it’s about progress and growth—not “winning” and perfection. So, go forward with the knowledge that no matter what comes your way you’ll push through because you always have.
Realise that growth isn’t linear.
As much as you may want the events in your life to progress in an easy, clean and linear fashion that makes a lot of sense, it just doesn’t work that way. You’ll face things you never expected to experience. You’ll have to relearn lessons you thought you already learned. You’ll be thrown for more than your fair share of detours and loops and plot twists. The key is to embrace the journey. Instead of rebelling and resisting, accept and appreciate.
FEATURES
Shift your focus to all the ways this experience is shaping and preparing you for the future. When you reframe your life in this way, you’ll welcome change with open arms because you’ll recognise how it’s actually helping instead of hurting you.
Limit the labels.
The events of your life are neither “good” nor “bad,” “happy” nor “sad”. Those are internal interpretations based on your perspective and your experience leading up to this point. When you learn to see life outside of this dichotomy, you can embrace the gray area of growth and possibility instead of focusing on extremes. Bottom line: You often don’t get to control what happens to you, but you do get to control how you internalise and respond to the stimuli. The more you accept this life lesson, the more grateful you’ll become.
Remember everything you wished for that manifested in your life.
When things aren’t going your way, it’s so easy to fall into the trap of focusing on what you don’t have. But remember: You have accomplished so many things you wished for in the past. This isn’t about
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what you lack, it’s about counting your blessings. So, acknowledge and cherish your progress. It will help you recognise how far you’ve come.
Show your appreciation.
One of the best ways to be grateful is to practice expressing it on a daily basis. Whether spoken out loud to yourself or to a friend, or written down in a gratitude journal, communicating all of the things that you’re grateful for in this moment or on this day will help you flex and grow this muscle. And then it’ll be just as easy to express gratitude in the darker moments as it is in the sunnier ones.
More info: www.crackliffe.com
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FEATURES
The 5-Minute Gratitude Exercise Everyone at one time or another experiences problems that consume them. These may be; relationship challenges, work problems, health issues, financial challenges...
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FEATURES
The list is numerous. These issues grab hold and overwhelm you and your energy. Sometimes so much so you are exhausted by these problems. They grab so tight you wonder if you will ever move forward. How do you lessen the grasp your challenges have on you and your energy? What could have you seeing a way of positive change? The 5 Minute Gratitude Exercise just may be what you have been looking for. The practice of acknowledging gratitude lessens the heaviness these issues have on you, your energy, and your ability to see through your challenges, enabling you to create space for new and more a more positive view on the situation.
It takes 5 minutes and 7 steps … 1. For one minute ponder the
issue that has consumed your energy. 2. Focus on how you are feeling as you think about the problem. 3. For the second minute think of something you are grateful for around that issue.
My doctor told me I have cancer. I am grateful that they caught it early. Or maybe, I am so lucky to have the doctor and his support staff to assist me with this. This layoff has made it difficult to pay my bills and I worry about where the money will come from until I find work. I am thankful my mortgage was paid off last year so that I do not have that expense presently. Or possibly, I have an abundance of love and support in my life to see me through this experience.
4. Once you have identified something you are grateful for, close your eyes and focus on it. Let your thoughts wander and soon other things for which you are grateful in other areas of your life will begin to emerge. Positive thoughts attract positive thoughts. 5. As these thoughts speak to you, imagine there is a volume knob inside your head, a physical knob like the one on a car radio, not the digital one. Now, imagine reaching out and turning up the volume on these thoughts of gratitude to a point where it is comfortable, but stretches you a little.
"When you find yourself being sucked down into the “woeis-me” syndrome, or consumed by your problems, stop for five minutes and give this exercise a go."
Some examples might be:
My spouse and I are having difficulties at the moment. I am grateful for my best friend as I can call and talk with her and feel I have someone who I can share my feelings. Or, you can focus on something you love about your spouse.
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These are just examples to get you going. Think of what is in your life around the issue that you can be grateful for even though the issue seems to hold you so. There’s always something to be grateful for even in a difficult situation. It may require a little searching but it’s there.
6. Just like that song where you crank up the volume because it feels good. Let this volume of gratitude fill you with that same sense. 7. Notice how you feel. Hold onto this feeling and when you feel yourself stuck by the situation, go find this feeling and think of another thought of gratitude to add.
When you find yourself being sucked down into the “woe-isme” syndrome, or consumed by your problems, stop for five minutes and give this exercise a go.
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FEATURES
Why Appreciating Your Team Is Good for Business WORDS: Dr. Paul White
Good employees are not easy to find, develop or keep. Anyone who has lost a key team member (especially unexpectedly) and tried to find a replacement knows this. It’s difficult to find a person with the training and experience needed to do the job and someone who has the character qualities you desire. As a business leader, you are at risk for misunderstanding how to keep your team members. Many owners and managers believe their employees are motivated primarily by financial gain; that employees will stay if they are given more money. Research studies for decades have debunked this belief. The vast majority of employees, when they voluntarily leave a company, report they don’t leave for more money. In fact, 79% report that a primary reason they leave is because they don't feel appreciated. Many business leaders don’t believe this, so let me offer you some compelling data. In a global study of 200,000 employees, the Boston Consulting Group found the #1 factor employees related to enjoying their job was that they felt appreciated (financial compensation didn’t show up until #8).
You may think you are doing okay in this area – that your employees know you appreciate them. Sorry, probably not. A national Globoforce employee recognition survey found that 51% of managers think they do a good job of recognising employees for work well done. But the problem is: only 17% of the employees felt their manager did an adequate job of recognising them for doing a good job. Obviously, there is a disconnect somewhere. What we have found is that:
1. Employees want to feel valued and appreciated at work. 2. Most employees don’t feel appreciated. 3. A majority of leaders either: a) Don’t care how their employees feel b) Think they are doing an adequate job of communicating appreciation, or
c) Don’t know what else to do
(beyond what they’ve been doing).
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FEATURES
How Appreciation Impacts the Financial Status of a Business
Ultimately, running a business is about serving your clients well and making a profit doing so. As a result, many leaders think, “Yes, I want people to enjoy their work, but I’m not a cheerleader, and we’ve got work to get done.” True. But consider this. We know that when team members truly feel valued and appreciated, good things happen. Conversely, when staff doesn't feel valued:
• tardiness increases • people call in “sick” more often • productivity decreases • policies and procedures are not regularly followed • more conflict occurs over petty issues • people become more irritable • customer complaints increase • persevering to solve a problem situation declines • internal theft rises • turnover increases (which is the #1 non-productive cost to companies) Now, do you see the financial impact of your staff feeling appreciated?
Employee Recognition vs. Authentic Appreciation
A key concept to understand is that not everyone feels appreciated in the same way. That is, not everyone values a verbal compliment. From our work with over 165,000 employees who have taken our Motivating By Appreciation Inventory, less than 50% choose words of affirmation as their primary appreciation language. Some people feel valued when you spend individual time with them. Others appreciate working together on tasks or getting some practical help. In fact, we’ve identified five languages of appreciation important in the workplace (outlined in the book of the same name).
"A key concept to understand is that not everyone feels appreciated in the same way. That is, not everyone values a verbal compliment."
While 85-90% of all companies have some form of employee recognition programme, employee engagement has actually decreased. Why? Because employee recognition is effective at rewarding performance, but it does a lousy job of helping employees feel valued as individuals. Most employee recognition programmes are designed in a way that they are generic (everyone gets the same certificate and gift card), group-based (a lot of introverts hate going up in front a group), focus solely on high performers (leaving out the majority of employees), and are viewed an inauthentic (“It’s accounting’s turn to get the award this month”).
Keys for Communicating Authentic Appreciation
In working with employees from thousands of companies across the world, we’ve found four key factors necessary for employees to truly feel valued. Employees feel valued when appreciation is:
1. Communicated regularly (not just once a year at a performance review) 2. Shared in the language most important to the recipient (not what makes you feel appreciated) 3. Delivered individually and personally (not as a group “blast email 4. Perceived as authentic (not just “going through the motions”)
Your employees are your organisation’s most valuable asset (try accomplishing the tasks at hand without them!) Increasingly, finding quality team members has become a limiting factor to growing businesses. To be a successful leader, you need to make sure you know how to communicate appreciation in the ways that are meaningful to each of them. If you don’t, they won’t perform as well, and you will eventually lose key team members. That is a business challenge you don’t need, and that you can avoid.
Paul White, PhD, is a psychologist, speaker and co-author of the best-selling The 5 Languages of Appreciation in the Workplace, along with Dr. Gary Chapman. He also published The Vibrant Workplace: Overcoming the Obstacles to Building a Culture of Appreciation in 2017.
More info: www.appreciationatwork.com
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WHAT’S NEW
Why Global Wellbeing is the New Healthy Looking for Leaders in Physical, Mental, Emotional and Social Wellbeing
We are living longer and the way we are thinking about ageing is changing. With a focus on longevity and wellbeing, being healthy is no longer enough. Individuals are looking for guidance and leadership on managing their physical, mental, emotional and social wellbeing and are looking to employers to help them. In practice, this means a focus on prevention and keeping people healthy, as opposed to treating individuals after they become ill. In a recent comprehensive global study in 2018 (in Brazil, China, France, India, the UK and the USA), the following trends were identified:
entrepreneurs, health and wellbeing practitioners, government bodies, departments and schools, charities and not-for-profit organisations.
• Sleep is becoming a priority – in the US, Brazil and India, respondents saw the link between exercise and sleep, and understood sleep to be a part of their overall wellbeing.
• Lead from the top ‘being the change you want to see in your organisation’.
• People are exercising to extend their lives, not solely because they want to diet or lose weight.
• Eating healthy isn’t just about losing weight, it’s the foundation of high quality life – respondents from all six countries all rating healthy eating as a huge priority in the future of wellbeing. According to Virgin Pulse, with an increased focus on preparing for the future, employees, from their twenties to their sixties, are looking for employers who ‘get it’ and who are willing to make the investment in dynamic places to work, where valuing holistic wellbeing is a top priority.
Introducing Leaders in WellBeing 2019
Which is why WellBeing World will be launching the ‘Leaders in WellBeing’ Summit & Awards in 2019 to celebrate the wellbeing initiatives and activities of organisations and individuals; including corporates,
More info: www.leadersinwellbeing.com
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Specifically the Awards will recognise organisations which: • Create a work environment that is a safe and inspiring place to be.
• Empower employees to work in a way that will bring out their best ‘work self ’. • Give employees a voice and encourage them to use it.
• Participate in ongoing dialogue to drive a healthy culture. • Invite continuous improvement through new ideas, creativity and monitoring.
Full details for the Summit and Awards will be announced in January/February and entries to the Awards will be invited from February to early April. Judging will take place at the end of April. The Leaders in WellBeing Summit will be held during ‘World WellBeing Week’ (more news of which soon!) at the end of June, along with a prestigious Summer Ball to recognise the winners of the Leaders in WellBeing Awards.
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SPONSORED CONTENT
Work Around You – Jersey’s First Truly Flexible Recruitment Solution WORDS: Katie Stevens, Recruitment Consultant, Rowlands
Those who know Rowlands will be aware that we pride ourselves on our modern, proactive approach to recruitment and our open, friendly way of working. We really engage with our candidates and clients to understand their career aspirations with a genuine interest and plan to help. We understand that searching for a new job can be very time consuming and difficult, when you are juggling a multitude of tasks, both in your professional and personal life. There may also be times when you wonder whether the career you’re in is the right fit. You may enjoy your position, but you’re also open to new options and fresh challenges that provide greater personal reward. We are keen to help; to work with you to weigh up your current situation and make these important
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career decisions at a time when you can focus, rather than when you may be stressed or feel the pressure of other activities. Sometimes dashing out in a break is just not possible and not always conducive to clear decision making! So, with this in mind, we’re rolling out ‘Work Around You’, a brand new initiative that helps make starting your job search far easier. We want to ensure that you are in control of your career path and this can only be done when you have time set aside to
think about and discuss it. We firmly believe that your busy week shouldn’t be holding you back from your next move and we are here to ensure that your career aspirations come first! The Work Around You service has become the Rowlands WAY!
Why our ‘Work Around You’ initiative is different
Work Around You is unique because it offers you the chance to discuss your future and start your job search outside of normal working hours. You will be able to select a time to talk about your prospective career opportunities before or after work, at a time that suits you.
No time during the working day? Can’t make it during the busy weekday period? Work Around You
WHAT’S NEW
is also offering you the chance to speak to our recruitment experts over the weekend. All you need to do is get in touch with one of our team members to arrange a time that’s convenient for you. This can be done via Skype, telephone call or meeting one of our recruitment experts for a relaxed, informal chat.
Who benefits from the ‘Work Around You’ initiative?
While this service is open to anyone considering a new career opportunity, it’s primarily aimed at those who have less flexibility during the weekdays. This service is also appropriate for candidates who may not be ‘actively’ seeking job opportunities but instead, want to keep their eye on the market and are ready for their next career challenge.
What does the process involve?
Once you get in touch with us, we’ll have an informal conversation about your current situation, previous work experience and your career aspirations. We’ll also take time to discuss the current employment market. This will involve exploring the current career opportunities available to you, and looking at which companies or sectors would best suit your preference and skill set.
Why we’ve introduced ‘Work Around You’ One of the core components of the Work Around You initiative is ensuring you feel at ease when considering your future. Not only is job seeking time-consuming, but it can be a daunting prospect, especially if you find that you are rushing interview preparations due to your busy workdays. It’s also perfect for those who’d prefer to keep their future career ambitions discrete and feel more comfortable with this approach than the traditional meeting during working hours.
Rowlands is breaking the mould
Work Around You is unlike any other recruitment concept on the island, because it puts you in control. No one likes waking up in two minds over their current career path, so if you’re considering a change in career, or just curious about what the job market has to offer, why not get in touch? We can begin discussing your career opportunities and we are happy to give you a call to discuss the Work Around You initiative at a time that suits you! Making the right career decisions and looking for ways of improving your working life in terms of productivity, aspiration and enjoyment is something we all think about. It is becoming more accepted that flexibility in the workplace and finding the right balance between work and home life offers benefits to both the employee and their employer. At Rowlands, we are keen to support and encourage a level of flexibility within the job search and recruitment process and feel that the WAY scheme is a significant step forward. If your busy schedule is holding you back from making a positive change in your career, get in touch with the Rowlands team today to find out how our new WAY initiative can work for/help you.
More info: www.rowlands.co.uk
Creating a WORLD of Difference
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WHAT’S NEW
? 9 1 0 2 or f l oa G le b a v ie h c A Need an Jersey Mencap South Coast Charity Challenge Sunday, 19th May, 2019. Registration is Now Open! WORDS: Alex Wiles, Manager, Jersey Mencap
For most of us a marathon might just be a little out of grasp given the amount of time and effort needed to train but many of us look to the start of a new year to get back on track with a fitness regime and setting a realistic goal might just help our motivation.
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WHAT’S NEW
Perhaps our resolutions might include supporting a charity, being more community minded and getting a bit more exercise? Jersey Mencap have it all right here. Below are 10 reasons to sign up for Jersey Mencap’s South Coast Charity Challenge – a charity sponsored walk on Sunday, 19th May 2019: Achievable: The course is approximately 15 miles with the first half being mostly flat. Starting at La Rocque, the walk takes in many of Jersey’s beautiful bays at a gentle pace, this is not a race. Charitable: Every penny raised from the South Coast Charity Challenge will be used in Jersey to help children and adults with a learning disability. Affordable: With so many charity events, Jersey Mencap work hard to keep this sponsored walk wallet-friendly with early-bird online registration fees starting at just £17. We are reliant on donations and sponsorship money being raised but we don’t set a minimum. Support Local: Completing a local event and knowing that the fundraising is making a real difference to our community provides that feel-good-factor. Solo or in a group: This walk regularly attracts around 600 participants, some in groups and many solo walkers – we even put out dog bowls for our four-legged fundraisers.
What is a Learning Disability? Learning disabilities are neurologically-based processing problems. These processing problems can interfere with learning basic skills such as reading, writing and/or maths. They can also interfere with higher level skills such as organisation, time planning, abstract reasoning, long or short term memory and attention. It is important to realise that learning disabilities can affect an individual’s life beyond academics and can impact relationships with family, friends and in the workplace. According to the NHS, a learning disability affects the way a person understands information and how they communicate. This means they can have difficulty: • • •
Understanding new or complex information Learning new skills Coping independently
A learning disability can be mild, moderate or severe. Some people with a mild learning disability can talk easily and look after themselves but may need a bit longer than usual to learn new skills. Other people may not be able to communicate at all and have other disabilities as well.
Creating a WORLD of Difference
Inclusive: A shorter, wheelchair friendly walk will also take place and you’ll see many of our Jersey Mencap members completing this. Fun: Relax, enjoy the views and the company. Give yourself the time and space to cherish Jersey in the Spring. Community: Jersey Mencap couldn’t host this event without the support of a wonderful team of volunteers and sponsors: Liberty Bus, Waitrose, Lloyds Bank, SGB Hire & VEND. Environmental: We are working to minimise our impact on the environment and ask participants to leave their car at home that day. Liberty Bus will be providing a free shuttle-bus service from the finish line near Corbiere. We also encourage ‘Bring Your Own’ water bottle with an opportunity to refill at checkpoints. Cake: Need more convincing? Then you have to experience our famous cake stand at the finish line. After 15 miles and a few steep climbs, you will have earned your sweet reward. We believe there can’t be too many calories if it’s a charity event?
Register now: at www.jerseymencap.org
Some adults with a learning disability are able to live independently, while others need help with everyday tasks, such as washing and dressing, for their whole lives. It depends on the person’s abilities and the level of care and support they receive. Children and young people with a learning disability may also have special educational needs (SEN). Some learning disabilities are diagnosed at birth, such as Down’s syndrome. Others might not be discovered until the child is old enough to talk or walk. Once your child is diagnosed with a learning disability, your GP can refer you for any specialist support you may need. You’ll begin to get to know the team of professionals who will be involved in your or your child’s care. The right support from professionals – such as GPs, paediatricians (doctors who specialise in treating children), speech and language therapists, physiotherapists, educational and clinical psychologists and social care – helps people with a learning disability live as full and independent a life as possible.
There is also information available on the Mencap website at: www.mencap.org.uk/ learning-disability-explained
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WHAT’S NEW
New Change4Life Campaign to Help Families Reduce Sugar Intake As we go to print Public Health England (PHE) has launched a new Change4Life campaign to help families cut back on sugar to help tackle growing rates of childhood obesity. According to PHE, children have already exceeded the maximum recommended sugar intake for an 18 year old by the time they reach their tenth birthday (this based on their total sugar consumption from the age of 2). While children’s sugar intake has declined slightly in recent years, they are still consuming around eight more sugar cubes than they should be – equivalent to around 2,800 excess sugar cubes per year. To help parents manage this excess, Change4Life is encouraging them to ‘Make a swap when you next shop’. Making simple everyday swaps can reduce by half children’s sugar intake from products such as yoghurts, drinks and breakfast cereals – whilst
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giving them healthier versions of the foods and drinks they enjoy. The campaign suggests that families try swapping:
• A higher-sugar yoghurt (for example, a split-pot) for a lower sugar one, to halve their sugar in-take from six cubes of sugar to three. • A sugary juice drink for a no-added sugar juice drink, to cut back from two cubes to half a cube. • A higher-sugar breakfast cereal (such as a frosted or chocolate cereal) for a lower sugar cereal, to cut back from three cubes to half a cube per bowl.
While some foods and drinks remain high in sugar, many companies have reformulated products such
as yoghurts, breakfast cereals and juice drinks, meaning these swaps are a good place for families to start. Making these swaps every day could remove around 2,500 sugar cubes per year from a child’s diet, but swapping chocolate, puddings, sweets, cakes and pastries for healthier options such as malt loaf, sugar-free jellies, lower-sugar custards and rice puddings would reduce their intake even more. The campaign is an important preventative initiative. Overweight or obese children are more likely to be overweight or obese as adults, increasing their risk of heart disease and some cancers, while more young people than ever are developing Type 2 diabetes. Excess sugar can also lead to painful tooth decay, bullying and low self-esteem in childhood.
WHAT’S NEW
“Children are consuming too much sugar, but parents can take action now to prevent this building up over the years,” said Dr Alison Tedstone, chief nutritionist at PHE. “To make this easier for busy families, Change4Life is offering a straightforward solution – by making simple swaps each day, children can have healthier versions of everyday foods and drinks, while significantly reducing their sugar intake.” Families are encouraged to look for the Change4Life ‘Good Choice’ badge in shops, download the free Food Scanner app or search Change4Life to help them find lower sugar options. More info: www. nhs.uk/change4life
labelled as “healthy” or organic—or to be strategic when buying them. “I recommend checking food labels and comparing based on sugar intake,” Kirshenbaum advises. “When buying bread for my kids, for example, I choose the lowest sugar of similar styles.” Griggs recommends a mindfulness approach. “A trick I really like to use is, 4 grams of sugar equals about a packet of sugar or a sugar cube,” she says. “Take a look at the packaged item and ask yourself, ‘Would I sit down with a bowl of sugar this size and eat it?’”
How to Realistically Reduce Sugar Every Day
There are so many different approaches to food these days, everyone believing that their way is the only right way. One thing nearly everyone agrees on, though, is that reducing sugar is important to good health. But what does it mean exactly to be on a low-sugar diet – given that very few of us are actually going to give it up altogether? CleanPlates.com talked with three health practitioners about how to realistically reduce sugar every day. “I don’t really measure in grams or any specific measurement,” says nutritionist Aynsley Kishenbaum, who offers Sugar Purge, a 12-day programme to help participants reduce the sweet stuff with support. “I would consider a low-sugar diet one that’s rich in real whole foods: Lots of veggies, some fruit each day, unsweetened dairy, meat, eggs, whole grains, and legumes. Most processed foods, even if they bill themselves as low sugar, aren’t as low sugar as eating something that didn’t come out of a packet.” “It’s unrealistic to assume that you can give sugar up altogether, and frankly I think it’s counterproductive,” says registered dietician, Skylar Griggs: “You add a bit of drama to healthy eating when you try to avoid foods completely or mark them as off limits.” The simplest way to cut sugar is to avoid processed foods, even ones
Creating a WORLD of Difference
Another tip: Start by reducing added sugars, but worry less about the sugar in whole foods at first. “If there is naturally occurring sugar such as the sugar in fruits, I say go for it, so you still get that sweet taste, but with the added fibre and nutrients in the whole foods. Also, take advantage of foods that have a sweet flavour but aren’t sugary, such as cinnamon, coconut and vanilla – sprinkling cinnamon into your oats, grabbing a spoonful of coconut butter as a snack or stirring vanilla into your coffee can up the sweet quotient,” says registered dietician, Nicole Hinckley. “If there is added sugar in things such as cakes, brownies, cookies, etc., avoid these as much as you can.” “Another thing I love to tell my clients is to drink a herbal tea,” Hinckley says. “I think so many of us (including myself ) have made the habit of thinking we need something sweet after dinner or at certain times of the day. I think it especially important when you’re craving something sweet.” 25
SPECIAL FOCUS: GOOD BUSINESS
Celebrating Business for the Common Good WORDS: Beverley Le Cuirot Founder & Director, WellBeing World
I was honoured to attend the launch of the Jersey Good Business Charter in November last year, an initiative to turn the spotlight on corporate social responsibility and to celebrate how businesses contribute to the communities they serve; their people, their clients, their suppliers, the neighbourhoods in which they are located; and also the environment. I was also delighted to interview Simon Nash, of the Insight Group, who has been foundational in establishing the Charter. Not only do we have the information to share with you about the Charter’s aims and objectives, but also the highlights from the Keynote Presentations on the day. It is a commendable initiative and one I would hope all businesses will embrace for the wellbeing of us all. The Jersey Good Business Charter is a new initiative which has created a Chartermark that highlights, celebrates and encourages the contribution of businesses in Jersey to building a better community and a better world.
The aims of the Charter are fourfold to: 1. Celebrate the good that Jersey businesses do 2. Challenge more Jersey businesses to do good 3. Change the conversation on what the social
responsibilities of businesses are 4. Create a community of mutual support and encouragement of businesses and people who want to see business “doing its bit” for the good of the whole Island community. So, what does “good” mean in the context of business in Jersey? Well the Charter takes a balanced approach towards understanding that a broad ethical approach to business must, at the very least, include an ethical approach to the five areas of People, Community,
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Environment, Customers and Suppliers. What that means for any individual business will be a reflection of its own strategy, market sector and scale. The Charter is a Jersey charity with a Board of Governors including CEOs of the two largest private sector employers in Jersey, supported by leading UK business ethics professor, Dr Eve Poole. This Board is ultimately responsible for the development of the Charter standard. Applications for Charter membership are assessed by a new body; the Good Business Council. There are twelve members of the Council including leaders from Mourant, BDO, Ocorian, Hawksford and Prosperity 24/7, who serve as the “jury”, representing the best of Jersey business, who have a strong sense of what good looks like, and also a strong desire to see business in Jersey rise to its full potential. The standards and criteria of the Charter have been developed with reference to the ISO 26000 Guidance on Social Responsibility and the UN Global Compact, but they have also been adapted and refined to suit a small island economy where an employer could be considered large if it employs more than a hundred people.
Businesses can now apply to the Charter for Standard
SPECIAL FOCUS: GOOD BUSINESS
Membership. Their application must be supported by a number of commitments and examples of: Positive
contributions to the local community and to Jersey society; fair and decent employment practices; awareness of environmental issues and commitment to environmental sustainability; commitment to fair and decent relationships with suppliers and business partners and open, honest and proactive relationships to customers and stakeholders.
In due course members will be able to put themselves forward for a more rigorous process of assessment leading to the award of Silver or Gold Chartermarks, which will be a truly authentic mark of excellence in achieving business ethics outcomes across the five dimensions. The Chartermark will play an important role in continuing to position the Jersey offshore professional services sector as a world leading example of an ethical business environment that goes the extra mile to contribute meaningfully to building a better world. The Charter may also demonstrate that Jersey is not only a highly regulated, transparent and
"The Chartermark will play an important role in continuing to position the Jersey offshore professional services sector as a world leading example of an ethical business environment."
compliant jurisdiction but we also have a culture of ethical aspiration and social responsibility.
The founders of the Charter believe that Jersey’s future involves setting an example to the world as a centre of business expertise, philanthropy and corporate social responsibility – an example of what every business community can and should aspire to be. The Chartermark will provide another concrete example of the ways in which Jersey’s business community is consistently seeking to create dialogue and action about what makes for good and responsible business practice. This will challenge negative perceptions about Jersey’s activities and allow us to continue to provide a positive example to the world.
More info: www.GoodBusinessCharter.je
The Jersey Good Business Charter is a new charity which aims to turn the spotlight on Corporate Social Responsibility and how business can be a force for good.
Creating a WORLD of Difference
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SPECIAL FOCUS: GOOD BUSINESS
How Businesses Are Changing the World
A Talk by Reuben Coulter, CEO of the Transformational Business Network In November 2018, Reuben Coulter visited Jersey to speak at the Business Is Good conference. Over 130 business leaders, including WellBeing World Founder, Beverley Le Cuirot, were drawn together to explore the proposition that business can be a force for good in the world. Delegates learned that there is an ongoing global debate about the purpose of business, with economic theorists like Milton Friedman on the one hand, exemplifying the more traditional view;
to deliver results at all costs. The consequences of the discovery of the breach were phenomenal. $29 billion loss of market value in one week and $25 billion in fines and restitution.
‘There is one and only one social responsibility of business – to use its resources and engage in activities designed to increase its profits so long as it stays within the rules of the game.’
The emerging view is shown by the Mars food corporation, which to this day is still a family owned business. In 2007, John Mars, Chairman of Mars, Inc. asked, 'What is the right level of profit for the corporation?' This was an astounding question to be asked by a shareholder, as most shareholders in the world today would define the ‘right’ level of profit as the maximum that can be extracted from a value chain and distributed to them as dividends.
The emerging view is that the purpose of business goes beyond narrow economic aims, as seen in the words of Professor Klaus Schwab, founder of the World Economic Forum; ‘Only businesses driven by purpose and values will be fully able to shape and benefit from the seismic technological, social and economic transformations underway.’ So how do 21st Century business leaders navigate this contested space? Well the lesson of Volkswagen in 2015 makes it very clear that cheating is not an option! Why did VW cheat on their emissions tests? Because they had developed a culture in which the bottom line was everything and all of the incentives encouraged managers
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Catalyst, as the internal think-tank of Mars, Incorporated, was subsequently asked to examine the profound and disruptive question, which has deep moral and business implications. After initial analysis considering the relationship between profit and growth, Catalyst concluded that looking at traditional measures of business performance would be inadequate. The very definition of performance for Mars — and other companies — had to be re-thought. Their ‘Economics of Mutuality’ looks at
SPECIAL FOCUS: GOOD BUSINESS
"Only businesses driven by purpose and values will be fully able to shape and benefit from the seismic technological, social and economic transformations underway." balancing the interests of People, Planet and Profit and was supplemented by a $1bn sustainability plan to tackle climate change. But sustainable business was not just a matter of economic theory, or only something that could be championed by global multi-billion dollar brands. Coulter issued the conference with a challenge that they too could “think global and act local”. He broke it down into five actionable steps. Firstly, he said, “find your champions”. Champions are those people in the business who already get it, and are prepared to be a part of the solution. Next, “know thyself ”. Taking a CSR audit or holding an internal review is an excellent way to find out what good you are already doing as well as assessing the areas for change. After this, have a “vision for impact”. A vision for impact is not just about hoping things will get better, but actually identifying the real-world impacts that you want to see your transformed business achieving.
Fourthly, “partner for success”. No-one achieves greatness on their own, and Reuben’s own experience of partnering with businesses from the $381Bn giant Johnson & Johnson to entrepreneurial Kenyan SMEs has shown him that a little bit of wise counsel saves a lot of time. Finally, he advises businesses to “think big, test small”. Testing small is about being agile and experimental, about de-risking the change in the early stages and allowing the market and stakeholders to let you know if what you are doing has legs. For an international speaker on his first trip to Jersey, Reuben’s input was warmly received at the conference. What better to close with the words of his fellow Irishman, Bono: “ You see, idealism detached from action is just a dream. But idealism allied with pragmatism, with rolling up your sleeves and making the world bend a bit, is very exciting. It's very real. It's very strong.”
Reuben is CEO of the Transformational Business Network, a global business with operations across seven countries and an impressive track record of creating and scaling businesses in developing countries to shift the development paradigm from aid to enterprise. Prior to this he served as a Fellow of the World Economic Forum, a founding CEO of a global aid organisation, and was educated at, amongst other places, Wharton College, Pennsylvania and INSEAD Business School.
Creating a WORLD of Difference
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SPECIAL FOCUS: GOOD BUSINESS
From Management to Meaning Leading Your Organisation into a Culture of Virtue and Purpose
A Talk by Dr Eve Poole Professor of Business Ethics and Leadership
Dr Eve Poole is no stranger to Jersey. In recent years she has made more than half a dozen trips to speak at corporate events and public gatherings including book launches, Business Connect seminars, Leadership Jersey gatherings and the Host Conference. In November last year, she agreed to deliver the keynote address at Business is Good. Ethical business is a key topic at the moment with many companies reviewing their approach from what used to be regarded as a marketing and public relations issue, to what is fast becoming a core aspect of business leadership. Speaking before her visit, Dr Poole said; “More and more boards of directors are now thinking hard about the business ethics agenda. I am delighted to be returning to Jersey for Business Is Good
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to join the conversation that I know is already happening in the local business community.” One of her key messages was that an ethical approach to life and business was one that came naturally to some, but that could also be virtually extinguished by a dominant culture of expediency. The alarm bell to Boards of Directors would not be the frequent objections to courses of conduct, which came
from the cautious or responsible individuals whose familiar voices of concern were often drowned out or ignored. The wake-up call would similarly not come from external factors such as regulatory fines or bad press, those always came too late – after the damage was done. The clarion warning, for those Boards who had the acuity to notice, would be the moment that the voices of concern went silent. That would signal that the culture had suppressed the vital voice of alarm, and like the mine-shaft canary who stopped singing, the silence would portend that danger was moments away. Dr Poole added that Boards who have a monoculture of Directors who are all “pale, male and stale” will have diminished their chances of even
SPECIAL FOCUS: GOOD BUSINESS
hearing such a warning, which makes corporate governance and board diversity so vital in terms of ethical decision making. She went on to argue that making a business ethical, or keeping it so, was a deliberate and progressive strategy, that required strong intention, dedicated action, and perseverance in the face of adverse pressures. It often came down to the character of the key leaders of the organisation and not just what they believed but how they actually lived out their beliefs. Writing earlier about the development of virtuous character, Dr Poole wrote: “Developing character is just like acquiring any other kind of skill, which means that we need to practise: we need to practise our underused virtues. For example, many people practise moderation and thrift by mending, re-using and recycling their existing possessions.”
message to the business community came as both challenge and encouragement. If businesses are to become the force for good in society that they are capable of, then it is going to be down to the patient, persistent small efforts of lots of ordinary people. If that seems like a tall challenge, then that’s only because we are unused to seeing how real change really happens. As Margaret Mead famously said: “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it's the only thing that ever has.”
Dr Eve Poole has a BA (Durham), MA (Edinburgh) and PhD (Cambridge). She has worked as a Management Consultant at Deloitte, Professor or Leadership at Ashridge Business School, Chair of Governors at Gordonstoun School, and Estates Commissioner of the Church of England. She is also the author of five books spanning a wide range of issues around ethics, leadership and meaning in a modern western society.
This deeply personal approach to profoundly public ethics lies at the heart of the challenge that both business leaders and political representatives are now facing. Eve’s The Jersey Good Business Charter is a new charity in the field of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), also known as Corporate Citizenship or business ethics. CSR is a field which covers the work which businesses do to make an impact on the community in which they are based. The term includes the environmental impact of business and the way businesses engage with their community, customers, suppliers and their employees. The Charity is headed by a Board of Governors and the Chairman of Governors, Brendan McMahon, was until recently Managing Partner for PwC Channel Islands. Other Governors include Dr Gunther Thumann, Chairman of Jersey Finance Limited and Anne-Marie Vibert MD of Royal Bank of Canada in the Channel Islands. The Board is also advised by Dr. Eve Poole. Mr McMahon said: “The Jersey Good Business Charter will play an important role in continuing to position the Jersey business sector as a world leading example of an ethical corporate environment that contributes meaningfully to building a better world.” “We hope that Charter will help to demonstrate the enormous contribution being made to Jersey by many of the Island’s businesses, as well as challenging the sector as a whole to raise the bar.”
Creating a WORLD of Difference
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ENTREPRENEUR
Imagining the Upside of Automation WORDS: Graeme Codrington Founding Partner & Futurist @ TomorrowToday Global
It’s a common complaint: the digital world is rushing us off our feet, distancing us from other people and generally stressing us out. This might be true, but does it have to be like that? A few years ago I was chatting to a friend who is also an entrepreneur business owner. I was boasting how I take quite a lot holidays with my wife and three daughters, totalling a good eight weeks a year off work. He looked unimpressed and asked, “But do you really take a break?” He’s right: a big danger of working from home is not that you are always home, but that you are always at work. I had been taking holidays, but my phone was always pinging away and I would check emails regularly. I was ‘always on’; and it was wearing me down.
The Unexpected Downside of the Digital Era
The phenomenal increase in the speed and efficiency of our digital tools in the last decade has been one of the great advancements in human history. It has fuelled a productivity boost that has, in turn, fuelled the growth
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of the world economy that has reached historic highs. But it has taken its toll. Not even the most ambitious predictions of the future a few decades ago could imagine the ease and speed with which information now flows. The solution is not about us continuing to speed up to match the machines - it’s about discovering what it means to be human in the digital age.
Competing - or Not - With the Machines
About a year ago, our research team at TomorrowToday embarked on a project to identify exactly what it is that machines won’t be able to do, and what we will need to
ENTREPRENEUR
keep doing in the 2020s. We identified eight key areas where people will have an advantage over machines - at least for the next few years:
Horizon Scanning And What If Thinking – computers do what they’re told, whereas we are able to imagine different scenarios and possibilities. Adaptive Intelligence, sense-making and complex problem solving – computers can solve complicated
problems, but are not able to manage complexity, paradox and morality.
Creativity and Intuition – computers do what they’re told. In the further distant future, they will no doubt develop the ability to come up with new ideas, but for the 2020s humans will be much better at doing this.
Personal Intelligence – understanding the complexity of the human experience. Diversity and Social Intelligence – the ability to successfully build relationships and navigate social structures.
Curiosity and Storytelling – people need more than data to
understand, accept and respond to the world around them.
Initiative and Entrepreneurship – this is not about leaving your job and starting your own business, but rather about the skills and mindset entrepreneurs have, including resilience, agility, the ability to deal with failure, and a ‘just get it done’ attitude. Being Tech Savvy – it’s the digital age, and we need
to speak the language of the machines and know how to program them to do what we want them to do (for the next few years at least, the machines can’t build and programme themselves). These are the things we can do better than machines. In almost everything else the machines already outstrip us, and trying to keep up or compete with them is futile. We need to know where to focus our energy and selfdevelopment efforts, and the above is as good a starting point as any.
The Surprising Upside of the Age of Automation
In addition to the good news that there are still things for people to contribute, our research also uncovered another major insight. Contrary to what the headlines in the popular press might say, the robots will not actually take our jobs. A meta-analysis of some of the most in-depth studies into workforce automation reveals that while almost every job on the planet will be subject to some level of automation, almost no job can be completely automated. We should be thinking about the automation of tasks, not whole jobs. And here there is very good news. The tasks that are most ripe for automation, and will be taken over by robots, AI, machine learning and other forms of digitisation, are the repetitive, programmatic and formulaic tasks that we might even refer to as “mindless”, “boring” and “pedantic”. Our research suggests that we’re going to actually love the machines taking over these tasks. We don’t need to fear the future so much as embrace it, as we learn to work side by side with machines, algorithms and software that do much better than us the things we didn’t like doing anyway. This does require, of course, that we have upskilled ourselves so that at least some of what we do in our jobs includes elements of the eight future-focused skills listed above. If we get it right, we can create the best of all possible worlds in the 2020s.
Take a Break - A proper one!
So, as I finish this article, I am headed for another holiday (we’re taking the family to experience South East Asia, and immerse ourselves for four weeks in a very exciting part of the world). And I will be switching off completely. I took heed of my friend’s insightful question, so now when we go away on holiday, I ignore emails completely and delete my inbox when I get back to work. I realise this is a bit extreme, but it’s important to switch off as completely as possible. Whatever works for you, take a moment to decide to engage more proactively, deliberately and intentionally with the digital world, and set yourself up for a healthy decade ahead by making some changes to the way you live and work digitally.
More info: www.thefutureofworkacademy.com / graeme@tomorrowtodayglobal.com or one of his team if he’s still on holiday.
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WORK
Our Approach to Employee Engagement Is Not Working WORDS: Naz Beheshti Founder of Prananaz
A staggering 87% of employees worldwide are not engaged. Employee engagement is sometimes referred to as the holy grail for today’s business leader, and for good reason. According to Gallup, a highly engaged workforce means the difference between a company that outperforms its competitors and one that fails to grow. It is a matter of life or death for a business. In the United States alone, businesses spend hundreds of millions of dollars to improve employee engagement. Yet progress toward a more fully engaged workforce has been minimal. Why? Although many give lip service to a holistic philosophy, most approach the issue in a piecemeal, fragmented way. There is the employee wellness bucket, the productivity bucket, the workplace culture bucket, the recruitment and retention bucket. Buckets are small and so is our thinking about employee engagement. We need to think bigger and in terms that embrace the whole of our employees. As Gallup researcher Jim Harter puts it, “The whole person comes to work, not just the worker.”
Engagement and the bottom line
The stakes are high. Gallup’s 2017 State of the Global Workplace survey finds striking differences between the most engaged workplaces and the rest of the pack: 41% less absenteeism 24% less turnover 21% greater profitability 17% greater productivity A more recent Gallup report finds employee engagement trending slightly upward in the United States at 34%, an 18-year high. We can and should do better.
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Energise the work experience
As someone with a background in health and wellness, I know the importance of exercise, a healthy diet, stress management, good sleep habits, healthy relationships and a fulfilling career. There is a wealth of evidence indicating that healthier employees are more engaged and more productive. However, wellness often becomes its own isolated bucket relegated to the HR department. As an executive coach and consultant, I have built my practice around a more expansive concept of wellbeing. When I sit down with executives and CEOs, I ask questions about their employee’s engagement with their work. Is your team emotionally committed to the organisation and its goals? Do they understand how their work results in meaningful outcomes? Do they show up every day with passion, purpose, presence, and energy? Fundamentally, I get a sense of the overall employee experience. An optimal experience at work is characterised by a feeling of total immersion in the work itself. Such immersion produces what psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi calls a “flow state,” one in which the work becomes its own reward. Every business measures its progress by metrics and has milestones and markers it seeks to achieve. However, the process has to be its own reward. A carrot-and-stick approach will not drive employee engagement.
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In order to arrive at the point where work becomes its own reward, leaders need to practice deep listening. They need to engage with employees on an individual basis and find that sweet spot where personal and organisational purpose meet. They need to create teams that challenge and bring out the best in each team member. In other words, engagement is not an HR issue. It is a leadership issue.
Feed the mind-body connection
We need to expand the way we think about engagement and about wellness. Corporate wellness programmes are often driven by concerns about healthcare costs. This is a valid concern, and it is certainly better to invest upfront in preventative measures than to pay on the back end in costly healthcare interventions. We should frame wellness programmes more broadly as proactive measures geared toward getting the best out of ourselves and our employees. We tend to think of peak performance as something that belongs to the world of elite athletes. It is instead something within reach for all of us, each in our own way, and it starts with the mindbody connection. We need to view exercise as more than a way to blow off steam or work off a few pounds. Exercise not only conditions our heart, muscles, and lungs, but also our
brains. Even in adults, exercise promotes new brain cell growth and neuroplasticity. We are better able to focus – a critical element in achieving flow – and are less prone to distraction, depression, and anxiety. We are also better able to adapt to rapid and unexpected change, an absolute must in today’s disruption-driven economy. When someone has an agile mind, we say they are good at thinking on their feet. The inferred connection between mind and body is no accident. If we can talk about well-conditioned athletes, we can talk about well-conditioned employees. I work holistically with my clients to shape a wellness regimen that addresses the whole person. We frame this programme in terms of overall life goals, not just narrow business or health goals.
The well of wellbeing
Moving beyond the bucket or silo approach to engagement means making employee wellbeing an essential element in your long-term strategic vision. Short-term interventions might produce marginal gains in certain metrics, but they will not transform your workplace or the daily experience of your employees. Employee engagement is a proxy for the vitality of your company culture. Tap deeply into the well of holistic wellbeing and you will find your employees engaged and energised, and your business enriched.
This article was originally published on Forbes.com and has been reproduced with the permission of the author.
Naz Beheshti writes about practicing mindful leadership and corporate wellness.
More info: www.prananaz.com and www.nazbeheshti.com Creating a WORLD of Difference
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How Work Can Be Made Meaningful People find meaning in their work for different reasons, but bad management can easily destroy it. WORDS: Professor Katie Bailey Professor of Work and Employment, King’s College London
While most people spend a good proportion of their life at work, few will ever stop to consider whether their work is meaningful. “Meaningfulness” is not something that tends to feature in our daily thoughts, preoccupied as we often are by more mundane matters like rent, bills and lunch. But when conversation with friends turns to complaints about work, we might fantasise giving it all up and living somewhere warm and sunny with no boss demanding round-the-clock attention. In fact, research often finds that when respondents are asked what they’d do if they to win the lottery, most would choose to carry on working. Despite our tendency to grumble about it, clearly something about work meets some of our basic human needs as laid down by Maslow’s famous hierarchy of needs, notably for belonging and achievement and, beyond this, for purpose and meaning. We have known for many years that humans are driven by an innate desire to find or foster meaning in what we do, even under the most extreme of conditions. Given how central work is to most people’s lives, it is a key place to seek meaningfulness. In my recent research with Adrian Madden we interviewed 135 people in a wide
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range of jobs to discover what they considered meaningful work, how work can be made meaningful, and how this sense of meaningfulness can be erased or destroyed.
of our respondents were bin men, and they spoke of the benefits their recycling work would bring to future generations in the form of a cleaner, greener planet.
The meaning in meaningfulness
Second, meaningfulness may not necessarily be a positive experience – meaningful moments can be tinged with sadness, such as the priests who told us that they found their work most meaningful when they were able to help and support people who were ill or bereaved.
What marks meaningfulness out as distinctive from other attitudes such as feeling satisfied or engaged? These and other positive attitudes are linked, but meaningfulness is distinctive in several ways. First, it is almost invariably associated with other people – work tends to be found meaningful if people can see it has a positive impact on others. These need not necessarily be people the worker comes into contact with, such as clients or customers. Some
Third, meaningfulness is associated with specific episodes or moments in time – it is not a continuous state but rather arises in peaks and troughs. People tend to become aware that their work has a profound
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significance for them at unexpected moments. One example from our study was an actor tasked to get inmates at a high-security prison involved in the arts. Although terrified at the thought of performing in front of prisoners she knew had committed violent crimes, she managed to connect with them and draw them into the performance. She described this experience as emotional, challenging and highly meaningful. Fourth, people do not generally tend to go home and announce, “Hey, I found my work really meaningful today!” The meaningfulness of work doesn’t always make itself known at the time at a conscious level. We need time to pause and think through what happened. And finally, a key difference of meaningfulness is that it is not just related to work. Job satisfaction is described in terms of the job. But the meaningfulness of work is described through reflection on the link between individuals’ jobs and their personal lives. One entrepreneur told us that she had set up her bakery business to make her grandfather proud.
Making and losing meaning
It’s easy to assume that only certain types of jobs, such as doctors or nurses, might offer meaning to those that do them, but we actually found the overwhelming majority of respondents found meaning
in what they did – whether they worked as retail assistants, bin men, priests, stonemasons, solicitors, or entrepreneurs. But no one found their work meaningful all the time, and it seems unrealistic to suggest that would be achievable, or desirable. But while people are adept at finding meaningfulness in what they do, managers are as skilled in destroying this meaning through their actions.
If employers want their staff to find their work meaningful, they need to tread carefully. People like to find their own meaning, by reference to what matters most to them as individuals, and organisational efforts to force the issue can lead to cynicism. However, organisations can nurture an environment that helps people to find meaning in their work through adopting authentic values, ensuring workers are in jobs that suit their skills
"By failing to involve employees in important decisions, not thanking or acknowledging them, using isolating or bullying tactics, and failing to protect employees from physical or mental harm, the worker’s sense of meaningful work is eroded, leaving only the feeling of “why do I bother?”." By failing to involve employees in important decisions, not thanking or acknowledging them, using isolating or bullying tactics, and failing to protect employees from physical or mental harm, the worker’s sense of meaningful work is eroded, leaving only the feeling of “why do I bother?”. Meaningfulness is all too easily destroyed by bad management – for example through focusing on costs rather than quality. We found that treatment by managers frequently came up in our study when our respondents discussed times they felt their work lacked meaning.
and personalities, fostering a positive and respectful working climate, and helping workers see how their work has a positive effect on others. Knowing that our work has improved the life of someone, somewhere – even just a little bit – makes the job worthwhile. This article is republished from http:// theconversation.com under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article: https://theconversation. com/how-work-can-be-mademeaningful-60714
Katie Bailey (nee Truss) is Professor of Work and Employment at King's College London. She is also a Fellow of the Academy of Social Sciences, Academic Fellow of the CIPD, Fellow of the RSA and Honorary Fellow at the Institute for Employment Studies. She has a PhD from London Business School and has led numerous research studies on employee engagement, meaningful work and strategic approaches to human resource management. Katie’s articles have appeared in leading journals including the Harvard Business Review, Sloan Management Review and Academy of Management Perspectives. She has also written or edited four books, the most recent of which, the Oxford Handbook of Meaningful Work, is due to be published by Oxford University Press in 2019. Katie works with organisations who want to find ways of enhancing engagement through meaningfulness.
More info: www.kcl.ac.uk or contact Katie at: catherine.bailey@kcl.ac.uk Creating a WORLD of Difference
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The “Depressing”Reason Our Workplaces Have Gone From Bad To Worse WORDS: Mark C. Crowley Speaker, Podcaster & Change Agent for Workplace Culture & Engagement
It is widely believed that depression is almost always the consequence of a malfunctioning brain, but in a remarkable new book by journalist (and life-long depression sufferer), Johann Hari: “Lost Connections: Uncovering the Real Causes of Depression – And the Unexpected Solutions,” we learn these beliefs are unfounded. Hari cites long-running Kings College of London research which shows that negative life events precede episodes of depression 68% of the time. “Feeling depressed is very rarely biological, and more often a response to adversity,” he writes. “Anxiety and depression are all forms of some kind of disconnection.” Following his own extensive research, Hari ultimately landed on an entirely different understanding of what’s causing so much woe in our society today – and his words might just make you wince: “What if depression is, in fact, a form of grief – for our own lives not being what they should? What if it’s a form of grief for the connections we have lost and yet still need? All of the depressed people in the world are really giving us the same message: ‘Something has gone wrong in how we live.’” While reading Hari’s book, I was struck by how much of the “disconnection” so many of us feel in our lives comes from our day-to-day experience at work. When we hear people are depressed, our instinct is to think there must be some deficiency in their personal lives. But it’s the eightplus hours a day we spend in our jobs where Hari shows our spirits aren’t being fed: “All of us have certain needs that makes us feel connected. We need to feel secure. We need to know we are valued and that we make a difference in the world. We need to feel we are growing and have inspiring work. We need a sense of belonging and to know someone is looking out for us. Depression is often the result of feeling these needs will never be met.” “We’ve disbanded our tribes in society, but without friendships, close ties and a feeling that we’re part of a group, we wither. For every good friend we have – or a boss who is supportive and caring – it reduces depression by a remarkable amount.”
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“If you want people to recover from depression – or never experience it – you need to meet their emotional needs. In our workplaces, we must return dignity and respect. We must make people our partners. It’s about restoring human nature.”
So How Do We Fix This?
Here are three ways we can start: 1. Give People Permission to Disconnect – And Hold the Line
New research reported in the U.S. News and World Report concludes we humans are doing great harm to ourselves by blurring the lines between work and home life. The lack of separation limits our ability to rejuvenate which harms us cognitively and emotionally. It’s really only since the introduction of smartphones that so many organisations have become “always on” cultures. And throughout this evolution, most organisations have failed to establish any clear boundaries on when employee workdays officially end. But near continuous contact with workers is both cruel and inhumane according to the IESE Business School’s Nuria Chinchila. “It’s causing the breakup of marriages, insufficient time with their children and an enormous lack of balance in people’s lives. In the absence of clear guidance, people react in fear to their bosses. They stay up late, interrupt dinners, and always feel compelled to ‘jump on a quick call.’” We also spend too much time in meetings which greatly interferes with our ability to complete our most important work. Companies would be wise to establish disciplines on how long meetings can last and how many hours per week employees can spend in them.
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2. Commit to Making Employee WellBeing a Core And Comprehensive Strategy
Recent surveys show more organisations are beginning to prioritise employee wellness. This is good news, but “wellness” cannot be made into a programme or a short-term initiative. And if HR owns it – without manager accountability – workers will quickly judge it to be insincere. According to Gallup, 70% of employee engagement is attributable to one’s relationship with their manager. And since we know that human thriving is directly tied to feeling safe, valued, supported and growing, we really need to shift our thinking on who’s truly qualified to become a manager of other people. Yes, we need managers who can drive results. But we also need leaders who thrive in the success of others and naturally help employees achieve their full potential. Going forward, we must demand that anyone in a management role demonstrate the ability to be driven and caring at the same time.
3. Make Everyone Feel Connected to Their Team and to All of Its Successes
We’re living in a culture where people aren’t getting the connections they need in order to be healthy human beings. It’s irrefutable that loneliness is toxic, and being part of a collective makes us happy. So, as we lead employees, we’re wiser to foster collaboration over internal competition. We’re wiser to foster a sense of family or
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tribe over individualism. And we’re wiser to create reward plans that ensure everyone wins when the team wins. Research by Stanford University Psychology Professor, Kelly McGonigal, has shown that by caring for other people, we inherently strengthen our own personal resilience. I see this as nature’s way of reminding us that we truly are all connected – and that our ability to thrive personally in our lives is fully interdependent with the thriving of others. We now have more than sufficient data to prove that we’ve inadvertently made our workplaces poisonous to our employees. So as leaders, each of us is faced with a choice. We can either simply look away, or we can take some swift and informed action. It’s my hope that the enlightened words of Harvard economist, John Kenneth Galbraith will open your heart and inspire you to do the latter: “All of the great leaders have had one characteristic in common: it was the willingness to confront unequivocally the major anxiety of their people in their time. This, and not much else, is the essence of leadership.” Mark is the author of ‘Lead From the Heart: Transformational Leadership For The 21st Century’, now being taught in eight American universities.
More info: www.markccrowley.com
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How to Bring Your Whole Self to Work When we stop hiding our true selves and become vulnerable, our work environment is more enjoyable—and productive—for all. WORDS: Mike Robbins Author, Thought Leader and Leadership Expert
Have you ever wanted to speak up about an issue or situation at work, but were afraid to? To truly succeed in today’s business world, we must be willing to bring our whole selves to the work that we do. This means showing up authentically, leading with humility, and remembering that we’re all vulnerable, imperfect human beings doing the best we can. It’s also about having the courage to take risks, speak up, ask for help, and connect with others in a genuine way, allowing ourselves to be seen. Regardless of where you work, what kind of work you do, or with whom you work—it’s possible to show more of your true self and become more satisfied, effective, and free. And whether you’re a business owner, leader, or just someone who wants to have more influence, leading with authenticity allows you to impact your team’s culture so that they can be more authentic, too. Here are five specific things you can do to be more effective, successful, and engaged at work, while encouraging others to follow your lead.
1. Be authentic
The foundation of bringing your whole self to work is authenticity, which is about showing up honestly, without self-righteousness, and with vulnerability. I call this the Authenticity Equation: Honesty – Self-Righteousness + Vulnerability = Authenticity. It takes courage to be authentic, and it’s essential for trust, growth, and connection. Some
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simple things we can do to be more authentic at work are admit when we don’t know something, acknowledge when we’ve made a mistake, or ask for help in a genuine way. All of these take courage and require us to embrace vulnerability and let go of our need to be right.
2. Utilise the power of appreciation
ideas implemented. But behind every success or failure is a living, breathing human being. Appreciation is about focusing on our gratitude for people’s effort, as well as the human qualities and characteristics they possess that we value - such as humility, kindness, or humor - regardless of the outcomes. It is something we can express at any time.
Showing appreciation is fundamental to building strong relationships, keeping negative things in perspective,
According to a survey conducted by Glassdoor, a job recruitment and employer review website, 53%
and empowering teams. However, it is different from offering recognition. We often think of these things as the same, especially in professional settings; but recognition is based on results or performance—what people do or produce—while appreciation is about people’s inherent value or who they are. Of course, we want to do what we can to effectively recognise successful outcomes like sales results, projects completed, or
of employees said they would stay longer at their company if they felt more appreciation from their boss, and 81 percent of employees said they were motivated to work harder when they felt appreciated. And research suggests that gratitude—a close cousin of appreciation—can really transform workplaces, bringing employees greater health benefits, happiness, and job satisfaction, and better relationships with coworkers.
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3. Focus on emotional intelligence
Your emotional intelligence (EQ) is both about you (having selfawareness and being able to manage your emotions) and about how you relate to others (being socially aware and managing relationships). EQ is often more important for success than your professional skills, IQ, and experience, according to many experts. Research suggests that having greater EQ can help prevent job burnout and may improve performance on certain tasks. One of the best ways to build our EQ is to cultivate a regular mindfulness practice. Whether it’s a specific form of meditation or simply using one of the new popular apps, , taking some time to stop, breathe, and center ourselves on a regular basis allows us to be more self-aware and to manage our own emotions more effectively.
4. Embrace a growth mindset
Having a growth mindset means approaching your work and your life with an understanding that you can improve at anything if you’re willing to work hard, dedicate yourself,
and practice. It’s about looking at everything you experience (even, indeed especially, your challenges) as opportunities for growth and learning. Through her research, Stanford professor Carol Dweck found that employees with growth mindsets are 47% more likely to say their colleagues are trustworthy, 34% more likely to have a strong sense of commitment to their organisation, and 65% more likely to say their organization supports risk-taking compared to their fixed-mindset peers. Trying new things, especially those that scare us and push us out of our comfort zone, is a great way to practice having a growth mindset.
5. Create a championship team
The people you work with and the environment around you have a significant impact on your ability (or inability) to fully show up, engage, and thrive. At the same time, the more willing you are to bring your whole self to work, the more impact you can have on others. Creating a championship team is about building a culture that is conducive to people
being themselves, caring about one another, and being willing and able to do great work together. When these actions - speaking up, taking risks, and owning mistakes are modeled and celebrated, especially by those in leadership positions, it allows the team and the environment to be as psychologically safe as possible. These concepts are fairly easy to understand on the surface. But like many important aspects of life, growth, and business, it’s not the understanding of them that makes the biggest difference; it’s their application. And application takes real courage. The good news is that, if you are willing to bring your whole self to work, you can expand the impact, influence, and success of your work and your life … and help others do the same. This article was originally published in the Greater Good Science Center..
More info: www.mike-robbins.com Creating a WORLD of Difference
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Small Actions, Big Impacts
How Authentic Gratitude Can Help to Build High Performing Teams. WORDS: Aidan Kearney, BSc (Hons) PgDip, MSc, MBPsS
Imagine the scenario. You’ve put your maximum effort into a work project; you’ve gone over and above your ordinary responsibilities; you’ve put the hours in and you’ve got the result. What would you like the response of those around you; of your peers and indeed your management to be? It’s not unreasonable to suggest that they might express their thanks for a job well done. Does this always happen? And even when it does, does it always feel genuine? If you don’t get the expression of gratitude or if it seems disingenuous, how would this make you feel? Would that make you more or less likely to throw yourself into the next project in the same way? I would suggest that it probably feels uncomfortable, even emotionally painful, and that seen through a prism of cause and effect, the more you feel like this, the less likely it is you’ll over extend yourself in the future.
Immediately you could see the relevance of some of these elements to displaying authentic gratitude in a work context. Anecdotally it’s easy to recognise that having your role, work and position respected (Status) is important. To bring this to life, take the converse view and ask yourself how pleasant it feels to be ignored, disrespected or ostracised.
This might seem self-evident but actually the science and the evidence help to explain why this is the case.
Apply the same consideration to the concept of fairness. How does being treated unfairly make you feel; whether that’s in regard to decisions taken in work context or around gratitude and appreciation for your efforts. The reality is that Rock’s work is not just based on common understanding of how we interact but ties these concepts to how our brain, our thinking machine, functions.
Rock (2008) highlighted the importance of certain factors in our social interactions in his SCARF model (Status, Certainty, Autonomy, Relatedness and Fairness).
Looking at how our wonderful thinking machine functions, we understand that nature has given us a 24/7 threat detection system based around our limbic system.
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"Actions like recognising effort, expressing gratitude and showing genuine appreciation to others might seem small in isolation but if they form part of an authentic and robust culture, the impacts can be huge." This system responds to real and perceived threat in our environment seeking to move us away from threat and towards opportunity. Along with this reaction both psychological and chemical (with the release of stress hormones), we create emotional memories which we use to help inform our decisions the next time we encounter a similar scenario. So brain functioning is showing us why gratitude and appreciation are important elements in a work context. Not following through with appropriate feedback and ensuring that has appropriate authenticity (that it’s relevant and believable) can elevate stress response mechanisms, which over time can cause people to approach interactions in a defensive mode. How could you explain all of this in one word; well, how about… Trust. Trust may be something we take for granted, or maybe it’s a concept we think we understand. Actually in the world of human interaction, it’s a complex and multi-faceted concept. Having the social interactive elements of Rock’s SCARF model fulfilled can help to build trust; however, if these elements are not present or are not perceived to be, then mis-trust can develop along with associated stress and defence reactions. Imagine a team where people distrust one and other. What’s the impact? People psychologically move away from one and other, fall into silos and
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innovation and collaboration suffers – the antithesis of a high performing environment. Indeed if you were to define the elements of a high performing team, trust would be right at the core of it, as can be seen in Lencioni’s (2002) work on the 5 dysfunctions of a team. Lencioni recognised trust as being the foundation of high performing teams. Without trust; communication, accountability, commitment and results focus can all suffer. So here’s my challenge to leadership and each of you as colleagues and peers. Alongside all of the project management, the budgets and business plans, build in a culture of authentic gratitude and appreciation. You’ll help to develop trust as a dynamic in your teams and in your leadership style. You’ll help to minimise limbic centred stress and defence reactions. You’ll help people feel more connected, understood and accepted; which will meet needs for Status, Relatedness and Fairness. From there you’ll be able to build that high performing team environment which stretches each other, connects across your teams and builds genuine collaboration. Actions like recognising effort, expressing gratitude and showing genuine appreciation to others might seem small in isolation but if they form part of an authentic and robust culture, the impacts can be huge.
Aidan is a performance and business psychologist, mentor and coach. He is the founder and director of Malleable Mind Ltd, a company dedicated to assisting people to reach their full potential through harnessing mental skills and psychological flexibility. He has worked in the field of elite performance and applied business psychology for the last 5 years with both Carter Corson and Chimp Management and is one of only a handful of people, worldwide, trained personally by Professor Steve Peters in the innovative Chimp model of performance psychology. He applies his wealth of experience and understanding of neuroscience, behaviour and psychology with clients from multi-nationals to SMEs and individuals; working with CEO and boardroom level through to front-line operations, and clients including retail giants and athletes, helping them achieve their goals. With a reputation for high quality, high impact performance psychology, he deploys a client and person-centred approach and robust needs analysis to inform his work, whether delivering large-scale conference keynotes, delivering programmes or conducting one-to-one mentoring with clients.
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Neurofeedback: Regenerating the Brain WORDS: Elizabeth (Elzbieta) Demont Premier Biofeedback Jersey
Biofeedback (or neurofeedback as it is known in the USA) is often called a self-regulation method, possible thanks to the brain’s plasticity which allows the patient to change behaviours and routines, as well as fight fears, addictions, anxiety and stress.
Also known as EEG (electroencephalogram) biofeedback, it is a therapeutic intervention that provides immediate feedback from a computer-based programme which assesses a client’s brainwave activity, heart function, breathing, muscle activity, and skin temperature. The programme then uses sound or visual signals to reorganise or retrain these brain signals. By responding to this process, clients can learn to regulate and improve their brain function which may alleviate symptoms of various neurological and mental health disorders. The technique has been used by army pilots, stressed out businessmen and women, tired journalists and actors who want to learn their role more quickly. 44
Biofeedback Origins
The origin of Biofeedback dates back to the late 1950s when Hershel Toomim invented the HEG, a neurofeedback programme reading oxygenating blood flow in the brain. Isaac “Hershel” Toomim, Ph.D., was a loving father, natural inventor, scientist, and innovative thinker, creating unconventional solutions to a myriad of problems. With his late wife, Marjorie Kawin Toomim, Ph.D., he developed protocols and instruments to work with people with postraumatic stress, as well as those with brain function difficulties. Hershel then started to take an interest in computers and in 1984 he, along with Chuck Davies, successfully
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constructed the world’s first wireless Biofeedback system based on the Apple II. Biofeedback became popular in the USA in the 1990’s thanks to NASA; scientists wanted the astronauts to train better, adopt skills and knowledge much faster and react to danger quicker so used the technique to help them improve their physiological responses to different situations.
My Own Experience with EEG Biofeedback
I have been passionate about psychology and sociology since childhood. I was born in Poland, where I graduated from the Marie Curie Sklodowska University in Lublin with a degree in Social Work at the highest grade, later going on to achieve a Masters in Social Work in Educational and Child Care Facilities at Academy of Special Education in Warsaw. I am registered with the Health and Care Professions Council in the UK, as well as locally in Jersey.
various methods to try to improve my own mental health and not finding one that suited me, I decided to give biofeedback therapy a go. I saw the results and from that moment biofeedback became my new passion. It is proven to work without the need for taking medications or using CBT or DBT techniques. Not only has it improved my wellbeing and enabled me to relax, but biofeedback has helped with concentration and focus, and given me the energy to look after my children and keep supporting others in my work. In 2016, I certified as a Neurofeedback and Biofeedback Trainer through the Institute of Biofeedback and NooPsychosomatic and since then I have continued to expand my knowledge and skills in this field to ensure I provide my clients with the very best therapy possible.
"The technique has been used by army pilots, stressed out businessmen and women, tired journalists and actors who want to learn their role more quickly."
My journey of working with people with mental health problems and disabilities started when I was at university and since then I have never stopped seeking ways to help others. I moved to Jersey in 2001 where I started working at the homeless shelter assisting vulnerable adults for over eight years before moving to the Income Support Department at Social Security. Since 2014 I have been at Jersey Employment Trust, where I support people with disabilities, long-term illnesses and mental health conditions to find and sustain employment. I never tire of helping people to realise their potential and achieve success.
I am a proud mother of two amazing boys, but life has not always been easy. My youngest child has sensory needs and it has been a struggle trying to bring him up and meet his needs while taking the time to look after my own wellbeing and improve my frame of mind. Having tried
Neurofeedback can be used with children, adolescents, and adults with behaviour disorders, attention deficits, autism, ongoing developmental delays, acquired brain injuries, birth trauma, anxiety, depression, posttraumatic stress disorder, stress-related problems, and insomnia or interrupted sleep patterns. Those with age-related cognitive loss, may also find neurofeedback helpful. It may be used alone or as an adjunct intervention with other forms of therapy. It is also effective when used by healthy people for memory improvement to speed up learning and increase the ability to remember and recall information; for improved performance for those whose work causes a lot of stress, have a lot of responsibilities or are required to make quick decisions; for improved creativity; and to facilitate a greater potential for success in professional or amateur sports.
More info: www.premierbiofeedback.co.uk
Elizabeth is a registered member of Applied Psychophysiology and Biofeedback Society. Biofeedback therapy is a non-invasive therapy which typically consists of twice-a-week sessions for an average of 5 weeks. Some people need fewer sessions, while others require more. While you are sitting in a chair, the therapist will attach sensors to your scalp. A computer EEG Biofeedback programme will process your brain signals and provide information about various brainwave frequencies. Between sessions, you should start to notice changes in stress, sleep patterns, or mental clarity. Special Introductory Offer for WellBeing World readers – with this copy of WellBeing World magazine, you will qualify for a 40% discount when signing up for a block of 10 sessions. Please note the closing date for booking is 5th March 2019. Creating a WORLD of Difference
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5 Ways to Support Your Health Journey WORDS: Lorna Jackson 1st BSc (Hons) MBAcC AFN, Health Point Clinic
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you will learn natural pain relief and relaxation techniques for childbirth. This can be a great way to encourage partner involvement and provide you with an extra set of tools to complement your birth plan.
3. Cupping – involves negative pressure and suction within a glass, bamboo or silicone cup. By creating a vacuum within the cup it lifts the skin and releases soft tissue rather than the tissue compression you have during a massage. Some of the techniques involve: Static cupping – can be used over a joint or trigger point to encourage blood flow to the area and promote soft tissue release.
More info: www.healthpointclinic.co.uk 46
Sliding cupping – massage oil is placed over an injured site and the cups are slide to further promote the lift and release of softs tissue, energy and blood flow.
4. Massage treatments – include: Tui-na (Chinese massage) Swedish / Deep tissue massage Reflexology Acupressure 5. Gift vouchers – treat a friend or loved one to a tailormade gift voucher for that special occasion. At Health Point Clinic we aim to keep your healthcare simple, understandable and achievable so that you can: 1. Recover – with a support and evidence-based step-bystep personalised treatment plan to suit your own personal health goals. 2. Understand – why you feel the way you do. 3. Prevent – we will teach you how to look after and maintain your health in the long-term. 4. Enjoy life – quickly get back to doing what you love!
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Move Your Body with An Attitude of Gratitude WORDS: Nathalie Le Mottee (Founder and Managing Director) and Cesca Abbott (Fitness Manager) Healthhaus.
In today’s society where social media is at the forefront of our daily routine (we’ve checked Facebook, Instagram and our emails before we’ve even got out of bed in the morning) it’s easy to get caught up in other people’s lives. Whether you’re admiring the ‘perfect body’, the most ‘on trend’ activewear or spending hours researching the ‘quickest’ way to lose weight, we constantly want the ‘perfect’ lifestyle. In reality what we see on social media is just a highlight reel of someone’s life. We focus on what we see on the screen and forget the bigger picture. As if having to deal with the unrealistic expectations we put upon ourselves through the use of social media isn’t enough, our brains don’t help us much either.
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Picture this scenario. You’ve been really focused on your wellness over the past six weeks: You’ve been working out regularly and not overindulging, despite a very busy work schedule and family life. You’re physically stronger and you’ve noticed that your energy levels are higher so you’re rightly feeling very proud of yourself. You pack your bags along with a new top that you treated yourself to and go away for a friend's birthday weekend. You have a fabulous time - one of those that you’ll always look back fondly on.
Except that you don’t. You return home with an overwhelming feeling of guilt and self-loathing. “I was doing so well before I went away. Why did I stuff my face all weekend? Why did I consume an entire week’s worth of calories in booze in just one night? Kayla Itsines would never have done that. Why do I always ruin everything? I’m such a loser” You go home, stuff your new top into the back of your wardrobe (you don’t deserve it any more), decide your gym membership is a total waste of money and settle down for the evening, munching your way through an entire duty free size giant Toblerone that you had bought for your work colleagues.
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Have you ever noticed that negative experiences and thoughts have a far greater impact on you than positive experiences? How is it that in our minds, one weekend of overindulgence totally outweighs six weeks hard work and achievement? It is thought that our brains evolved this way to keep us safe. Our ancestors lived in a dangerous environment. They needed a mechanism to keep them alert to the daily threats and to assist them to make the right decision in life threatening situations. This protective mechanism is called the negativity bias. While there are situations in our modern day lives in which the negativity bias is useful, there are many more, such as keeping us on track with our health and fitness goals, in which it is not.
Fortunately, our brains can be rewired - we can train ourselves to see the positives in our lives and learn how to be grateful for how our body looks, how our body moves and everything that it enables us to do. As soon as you understand this it becomes possible to stand back from a situation, put it in perspective and rationalise it a little. When you do, you will feel more in control and able to focus on the positives i.e. look back at the weekend for the fun that it was and realise that one weekend doesn’t take anything away from your previous weeks of hard work. In fact sometimes it’s a good thing to let your hair down! You’ll come home, tuck into a nutritious meal and get your bag ready for the next day’s exercise session.
"Have you ever noticed that negative experiences and thoughts have a far greater impact on you than positive experiences? How is it that in our minds, one weekend of overindulgence totally outweighs six weeks hard work and achievement?"
Our top tips for forming an attitude of gratitude for your body: • As difficult as it may be, don’t compare your life to those of others. It may seem perfect, but you are only seeing a highlight reel. Plus the more time we spend dwelling on others, the less time we have to be appreciative of the positives in our own lives! • Focus less on the end goal and more on the journey. Every journey has its challenges. Be grateful for every small step you take, whether it’s positive or negative. • Try to turn a negative into a positive by reflecting on what you have learnt from it. • Don’t let one bad workout or one poor food choice set your mentality for the next day. • Perhaps most importantly - write down the positive experiences - the more time we spend thinking about them the more we can rewire our brain. Learn how to accept your body for what it is, to look after it and engage with the journey. Hopefully one day you will grow to truly love it.
More info: www.healthhaus.co.uk
Creating a WORLD of Difference
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10 Signs You're a Mentally Strong Person (Even Though Most People Think These Are Weaknesses) Many people don't recognise mental strength when they see it. WORDS: Amy Morin
As a psychotherapist and as an author of books on mental strength, I encounter many misconceptions about what it means to be mentally strong. Ironically, many of the behaviours often associated with weakness are actually a sign of strength. Our culture often values "toughness" over "true strength."
Acting tough is about external appearances. It involves creating a persona that convinces other people you're impervious to pain.
True mental strength involves working on your character. Mentally strong people are willing to be vulnerable and quite often, people confuse their openness and honesty with frailty.
Here are 10 signs of mental strength that are often viewed as weaknesses: 1) Being kind.
to do or you could develop a plan to help you succeed despite your shortcomings.
Many people seem to think being kind means you're a pushover or a people pleaser. But, showing compassion for a neighbour, giving a colleague the benefit of the doubt, and spending your spare time helping someone with a project could be a sign of strength.
4) Being patient.
Showing kindness often takes courage and confidence. What if the recipient doesn't want your help? What if your act of friendship isn't reciprocated? Strong people are willing to take those social risks.
But, reaching big goals – like getting out of debt or getting in shape--takes patience. Real change doesn't happen overnight and exercising the patience needed to get there takes strength.
2) Changing your mind.
5) Asking for help.
Changing your mind doesn't necessarily mean you're wishy washy or easily influenced. Instead, it may indicate you're open to gathering more information and hearing other ideas.
With so much emphasis on "hustle" these days, patience is often confused with inactivity or a lack of ambition.
Saying, "I can't do this on my own," is a real act of courage. Whether you ask your boss for more assistance or you reach out to a mental health professional, asking for help requires humility and strength of character.
Whether your ideas about politics have changed over time or your values have shifted as you've grown older, changing your mind might be proof you are growing and learning.
Mentally strong people don't go the journey alone. They surround themselves with people who can offer assistance along the way.
3) Acknowledging your weaknesses.
If you succeed at everything you do, it means you're living far inside your comfort zone. Making mistakes and failing means you're challenging yourself – which is clearly a sign of strength.
There's a difference between speaking the truth and putting yourself down. Acknowledging you're bad at confronting people or that you struggle to be organized might show you're strong enough to admit your imperfections. Acknowledging your weaknesses can also help you take positive action. You might delegate tasks that you struggle 50
6) Failing.
Don't let anyone convince you that your failures are proof that you're not strong enough to succeed. Instead, view failure as evidence you're stretching yourself as far as you can.
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7) Expressing emotions.
Some people are quick to show anger but lurking just beneath those angry feelings are more uncomfortable emotions, like sadness, embarrassment, and disappointment. Yet, it's often easier to say, "You're an idiot," rather than, "My feelings are hurt." Labelling your feelings and finding ways to express those emotions in a healthy way takes strength. It's much easier to deny your pain or try to convince others that you're infallible.
Trying to become a better person shows you want to create positive change in your life. Whether you join a support group, attend therapy, listen to self-help podcasts, or attend spiritual retreats, a desire for self-growth is a sign of strength.
10) Staying calm.
"Can you believe she just stood there? I would have given him a piece of my mind!" Comments like that imply people who remain calm lack the courage to stand up for themselves.
8) Walking away.
Being able to regulate your emotions is a hallmark of mental strength. That's not to say you won't feel angry (anger can be a very healthy and helpful emotion) but it does mean you'll be able to behave in a productive manner even when you feel upset.
In fact, it takes strength to step away from something that isn't working out – especially when you've devoted a lot of resources to a task (or a person). But walking away might show you're willing to act in accordance with your values – even though you might face some ridicule.
Everyone possesses mental strength to some degree and there's always room for improvement.
Whether you're walking away from a goal because the effort it takes to get there isn't a top priority, or you're walking away from a heated dispute because you know nothing productive is going to happen, walking away doesn't mean you're copping out.
9) Improving yourself.
Some people roll their eyes at someone who is reading a self-improvement book (they're usually the same people who laugh at overweight people for hitting the gym). But bettering yourself - physically, spiritually, or emotionally – is tough to do.
Build Your Mental Muscles
Choosing to build your mental muscles is admirable. But not everyone will appreciate your efforts. Your strength may remind them of their weaknesses – or they may fail to recognise the difference between being strong and acting tough. But don't let those people stand in your way. Keep working on developing the mental strength you need to reach your greatest potential.
Amy Morin is the Author of "13 Things Mentally Strong People Don't Do"
More info: www.amymorinlcsw.com @AmyMorinLCSW This article originally appeared in Inc.com and has been reproduced with the kind permission of the author.
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Parenting Teens with Gratitude WORDS: Deanne Barrett M.A. Director of Gratitudeworks Enterprises Inc.
Gratitude is an invaluable skill when it comes to parenting teenagers. Gratitude for who your teen is right now, today, in the middle of the turbulent, awkward adolescent years, boosts your teen’s self-confidence and strengthens your relationship with them, so they’ll trust you to guide them through the tough stuff. The truth is, you know this, but you don’t always know how to put it into practice. I work with parents of teenagers who have already done a lot of parenting courses and read parenting books who are frustrated because they still don’t have the relationship with their teen that they’d like. Here’s the truth - your relationship with your teen is a reflection of the relationship you have with yourself.
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If you’re second-guessing your decisions, or beating yourselves up for your past mistakes, chances are that you’re doing that to your teen, too. You are imprinting your core beliefs about yourself onto your teen and you’re showing your teen what you believe about power, and what you know about love. Most conflicts between parents and teens come when a teen’s behaviour shines a spotlight on their parent’s beliefs; your teen is your best spiritual teacher, because in each conflict, you get to return to love. My client Hannah described it so well, “I realise that I am a task master, and that my daughter does not feel that she is good enough because she never can
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finish the list of things I ask her to do … I want to strive to let her know how much I love her.” Hannah realised that her pattern of being a “task-master” was getting in the way appreciating all that her daughter is, and all that she does. Now, Hannah is learning to see herself and her daughter through the loving eyes of gratitude. When the parent-teen relationship is strained, gratitude works. Gratitude works because when you can acknowledge the capabilities and gifts that your teen already has you empower your teen to build on those gifts so that they’ll grow more confident and independent. When your teen is feeling shaky as they struggle with their self-worth and their place in the world, you can give them the steadiness of your love for them through the practice of gratitude and appreciation. Like Hannah, Gillian was able to shift from her worried mind, into her peaceful, loving heart for her teen, “I was concerned about the road blocks my daughter was putting up. First I tried repetitive nagging, pointing out my concerns with her choices and behaviours. Then I realised that I had a pattern of looking at the negative, the things I worry about. Now I understand that I trust my daughter, she is figuring things out for herself and is doing fine. Now I'm feeling more at peace with who she is becoming.”
At the heart of raising adolescents is the struggle to let go, and yet still parent. Both Hannah and Gillian had loving intentions, and they were grateful for their teens but, like many of us, their gratitude was general, like, “I’m grateful you’re in my life”. (I can just hear their teen saying, “Yeah, but WHY?”). Teens crave positive feedback (we all do) so for gratitude to work, it needs to acknowledge the individuality of your teen, like “I’m grateful for the way you question the things that I take for granted”. This is a powerful reminder to you and your teen that they already have skills and qualities that serve them well in life. Here are two questions to help you dig deep into acknowledging your teen: One quality that my teenager has that I don’t have is … I appreciate this quality in my teenager because … When you can answer these questions, you’ll be able to feed your teen’s need to be their own person separate and distinct from you (which they need to feel in order to have the confidence to leave the nest) and they’ll feel seen and appreciated (which also boosts their confidence). When you can truly appreciate your teen for who they are, you help them understand that it is precisely their unique qualities that make them a valuable member of your family, and your community. And that goes a long way to helping your teen to create a life of meaning and purpose.
Deanne Barrett M.A. is the director of Gratitudeworks Enterprises Inc. and the founder of HeartShift Club for moms with teens. With wisdom and heart, Deanne inspires a global community of women to parent their teens from the mind AND the heart as they lead their teens into the joy and pleasure of adult life. Connect with Deanne through her website.
More info: www.gratitudework.com
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Four Ways Children Say Their Wellbeing Can Be Improved WORDS: Sinead Brophy, Professor in Public Health Informatics, and Charlotte Todd, Researcher (Child Health and Wellbeing), Swansea University
Good emotional health as a child lays the foundation for good life satisfaction in adulthood. However, in the UK children and young people’s happiness with their life is now at its lowest since 2010. Our research team, HAPPEN (Health and Attainment of Pupils in a Primary Education Network) has been investigating how we can improve child health and wellbeing. But instead of looking solely at data and statistics, and asking adult experts what they think is best, we’ve been asking the children themselves. We spoke to 2,000 children aged nine to 11 from our primary school network across South Wales, and asked them what they would change in their area to make themselves, their friends and their family healthier and happier.
1. Give us more places to play
So, what do children want? The following recommendations are the most common ideas that the youngsters put forward when we asked.
2. Create local facilities where we can be active
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… kids in my street run round the car park and road every day.
Just under 20% of children wanted more parks or green space, or for existing parks to be improved. But many UK parks are at crisis point, with declining resources available to manage them. While some funding may be available for larger parks, we can’t ignore the importance that children attach to smaller, local neighbourhood areas. These act as key places where they can meet up with their friends, play and be active.
Do a gym for kids. Open more sports clubs in the area. Again, just under 20% of answers
were from children who wanted sports facilities that they can walk to, and are suitable for their age group. This ranged from wanting more specific sport clubs, such as basketball and football, to requests for more unstructured activity venues such as skate parks. The provision of more unstructured activities has also been raised by teenagers taking part in Swansea’s ACTIVE project. Providing more local facilities could not only help improve the declining activity levels of children, but improve overall wellbeing too.
3. Clean up the streets
To stop my neighbours leaving drugs and drinking bottles out in the street. It would be better if there wasn’t litter and poo everywhere. A 2018 survey conducted by environmental charity Keep Wales Tidy showed that smoking related
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litter was found on 80% of Welsh streets, drinks litter on 43% of Welsh streets, and dog mess on 9% of Welsh streets. And our survey has highlighted how much of a problem this is for young people, with 20% of our responses coming from children requesting cleaner environments – particularly wanting litter and dog mess to be cleaned up – as well as requests for less pollution and more trees. The young participants felt this was important to provide them with a safe environment for play. And that’s without the consideration of serious health issues that come into play when hazardous litter is left on the streets.
4. Make the roads safer
Railings so children can play safely without being hit by a car.
Nearly 10% of responses were around road safety. The children regularly commented on the need for safer roads around their schools and homes. This included requests for fewer cars on the road, speed limits, zebra crossings and more school crossing officers. There are initiatives in the UK focusing on making streets more friendly places to play, such as DIY streets and playing out. However,
Creating a WORLD of Difference
“… children simply want safe spaces to play and be active.” these are just small groups, and action at policy level is ideally needed to make roads safer for children. Looking through the responses, we found a common thread: children simply want safe spaces to play and be active. What they ask for are not huge challenges. If real action is taken to address these needs, a better environment for everyone in society will be created, as well as giving children places to play and be with friends. Children are under a huge amount of pressure to achieve literacy and numeracy targets, and live in a world focused upon test after test. This means that play is becoming deprioritised, particularly at the latter stages of primary school – despite it being vital for learning a range of wellbeing skills that cannot be taught. By acting on the childrens’ suggestions, we can begin to reverse the trend of declining life satisfaction.
However, for real inroads to be made in addressing this issue, the way we, as a society, construct and value childhood needs addressing too. We need to place higher value on child well-being, listen more closely to children, and look beyond the current measurements on which young people are so narrowly judged. This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license.
Charlotte Todd receives funding from the National Centre for Population Health and Wellbeing Research (NCPHWR). Sinead Brophy is deputy director of the National Centre of Population Health and Wellbeing and is Co-Director of the Centre for Mindfulness Based Work and Research.
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Samarès School Life WORDS: Debi Morris-Monro Family Liaison Officer, Samarès School
The Wellbeing Warriors emerged from Jersey’s first Wellbeing Teachmeet in September 2018. In an age where we tend to be reactive, this was a good opportunity to be proactive and to look at how we could meet the wellbeing needs of all pupils in our school more effectively. This led to the formation of ‘Wellbeing Warriors’; a group of Year 6 students, who consistently demonstrate our school values and are good ambassadors. The students undertake school based research, pass on their knowledge of existing wellbeing provision within the school and are a voice for their peers. The Wellbeing Warriors consist of 10 students whose work captures the voice of other students in Samarès School, with a focus on the areas of leadership, physical activity, nutrition, mental health and wellbeing, antibullying and random acts of kindness. They meet weekly in their own time to undertake their work. Our
Wellbeing Warrior Leaders recently reported back some of the students’ opinions from their initial research.
What students like about their school: • • •
They like their teachers and the way they treat mistakes as an opportunity to learn They like that everyone is different They like making new friends
What students would like to see in school: •
They would like the school grounds to be developed to include a quiet area in Holly’s Garden so there is somewhere to sit and read or chat quietly with friends.
• •
•
They would like more playground equipment. They would like (even) more educational school trips to places like Jersey Zoo, Tamba Park, Ice Skating. They would like to see different lunchtimes for different age groups, so there is more space to play in the playground.
The work of the Wellbeing Warriors will ultimately be published in a school magazine to share with the rest of the school as a great way of highlighting the wellbeing provision at Samarès School and encouraging children to look after the wellbeing of themselves and others. Watch this space!
More info: d.monro@samares.sch.je 56
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7 Steps to Help You Push Your Reset Button WORDS: Carrie Copley Founder of Love Your Life
The old saying, Time Flies, always seems to come true when we have big goals and dreams that we put off for another day. Before long we will be looking forward to enjoying warmer, longer, sunnier days. Can you believe that? I believe, that time is one of our most precious commodities, and if we are not careful, it has a way of slipping away from us. At the beginning of each year, many of us set out to accomplish big things, but life gets busy and we can lose our focus, it can happen to the best of us.
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Here’s the thing, there is still TIME to accomplish your goals! So, maybe you are behind your schedule, so what! It’s time to re-evaluate, say enough is enough, and push the re-set button to get started. It’s time to create a new success plan!
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Here are 7-steps to help you push your reset button. 1. Put your big dream down in writing. Write what you want your big dream to look like and feel like. Write how your big dream will impact, you, your family and society.
5. Create a plan and break down the plan into months, weeks and days. Include celebrations in your plan to celebrate small victories along the journey.
2. Share your big dream with a couple of people close to you and ask them to help you stay accountable to yourself and your vision. Schedule check-in times with your accountability partner to reinforce your commitment to accomplishing your big dream.
6. It’s also important to be realistic and to expect
3. Ask yourself WHY this is important to you. It is
occasional setbacks. The best plans have a plan within them to overcome setbacks. Don’t let your setback be your excuse to stop.
7. Lastly, review and revise your plan on a regular basis.
important to really dig deep into your WHY. Keep asking yourself why over and over until you think you reached the real WHY.
The start of a big dream is often the hardest part. Be patient with yourself, start slow if you must, but just start. One day you will thank yourself !
4. Write your WHY down and place it around your home and office as a consistent reminder to stay focused. I’ve had clients place their why statements on the bathroom mirror, steering wheel, computer, and on their nightstand. Be creative on how you display it. It could be a single word or a sentence, but what’s important is that it gives YOU a gentle reminder.
It's time to re-evaluate, say enough is enough, and push the re-set button to get started. Learn how to dream big, find an accountability partner, discover your why, and create a success plan that works for you.
More info: www.loveyourlife2.com
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Stop Trying to Manage Stress; Learn to Live Stress-Free WORDS: Yvonne Lines Mindset Mentor and Founder, SmartLife.tips
Most of us confuse pressure with stress, or think that they are the same. Pressure comes from demanding circumstances. How we react to those circumstances is an emotional choice. We often default to feeling stressed without considering our options. Like any other emotional reaction, we have the ability to choose to feel stressed, or be resilient. If we see stress as our reaction, detached from the cause, it’s easier to process it as an emotion. Our daily pressures may be intense, but they only result in stress if we ruminate on them. That is, if we focus attention on them beyond what’s useful, to the point where we feel anxious. So instead of questioning
how we stop stressing, it may be easier to consider how to stop ruminating. Here’s a solution ... evaluate the pressures. Split them into things we can and can’t control. Ignore the ones we can’t, or choose not to change. Focus on the ones we can, and are willing to affect, until we figure out a realistic plan. Then, quickly distract our mind by moving on to something else so that there’s no space for rumination.
"Better yet, teach yourself how to switch emotional gears through a mindfulness practice such as gratitude or meditation."
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For example, if we are under pressure because we’ve overcommitted ourselves, we should figure out what we really need to do, and the things we can delegate, put off, or eliminate. Then quickly, before our mind starts harping on useless worry (rumination), let go of the situation and move on. Take action: The solution in this tip may sound easy in theory, but it will take practice to build up the reliance needed to choose where to focus your attention before it hits your emotions. Try having mindful distractions at the ready, such as time with kids, or learning a new physical skill. Better yet, teach yourself how to switch emotional gears through a mindfulness practice such as gratitude or meditation. This article was inspired by Derek Roger, Ph.D and Nick Petrie’s book, Work without Stress: Building a Resilient Mindset for Lasting Success.
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Five Benefits of Yoga Nidra Yoga Nidra: Systematic Meditation WORDS: Allison Ray Jeraci
Yoga nidra, or yogic sleep as it is commonly known, is an immensely powerful meditation technique, and one of the easiest yoga practices to develop and maintain. While the practitioner rests comfortably in savasana (corpse pose), this systematic meditation takes you through the pancha maya kosha (five layers of self ), leaving you with a sense of wholeness. No longer do you have to dread spending hours sitting on the floor waiting for liberation. Here are five benefits of developing a yoga nidra practice. 1. Anyone Can Do Yoga Nidra
Intense vinyasa flows and long asana holds are not for everyone. Yoga nidra, however, is a practice that everyone, from children to seniors, can do. It's easy to follow at any age. All that your body needs to do is lie down on the floor. And even if you can't lie down on the floor, you can still do this practice seated.
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2. You Cannot Practice Yoga Nidra Incorrectly
As you lie down, supported in savasana, all you have to do is follow the voice that is guiding you. It's likely that you will remember certain parts of the meditation and not others. Every time you come to the practice you encounter a new experience – none of which is wrong. Falling asleep is okay too, as you will still receive benefits while the unconscious mind is absorbing the practice.
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3. Yoga Nidra Is Easy to Incorporate into Your Daily Life
Seated meditation can be frustrating – trying to clear the mind, bring awareness back to the breath, or find inspiration for focusing. Yoga nidra is always guided, so there is no intense thinking or wondering why you are staring at a blank wall. A yoga nidra practice can be as short as five minutes and as long as an hour. You choose the length. You may find that the easiest way to accommodate a yoga nidra practice is to make it part of your daily bedtime routine. Put the headphones on, practice right in your bed, and then drift off to sleep. Although this is not the most conventional way to practice yoga nidra, you have no excuse not to do it if you're going to be lying down anyway.
4. It's a Simple Way to Reduce Stress
Yoga nidra promotes deep rest and relaxation that isn’t found in your average meditation practice. The stages of body scan and breath awareness alone can be practiced to calm the nervous system, leading to less stress and better health.
5. Yoga Nidra Offers the Opportunity to Learn About Yourself Intimately
Some people crave the profound relaxation that this practice instills, while other practitioners use the non-judgmental and secure atmosphere that yoga nidra provides as a window into themselves. Yoga nidra offers a space to explore what you need in the moment, as well as an opportunity to work on releasing long-held emotions. During yoga nidra you are able to experience an emotion and come “face to face” with what you want to overcome, without “diving into it” completely – meaning without feeling the emotion so completely that you become overwhelmed. Over time you continue to experience the emotion and associated feelings, moving deeper into the practice.
Yoga nidra can serve as a pathway to freedom without creating bodily stress. A samskara (mental groove) is formed by a repetitive thought or habit that is deepened in the mind and body, creating a mental impression (groove) over time. These impressions can cause negative reactions and emotions which prevent a unification of the five layers (koshas) of one's self. If these negative emotions continue to plague you, the mental/emotional layer of the self is unable to integrate with the other layers: physical, energetic, higher wisdom, and bliss body. This is where yoga nidra can be especially helpful. A samskara can be used as an intention within the yoga nidra practice. You might come into the practice knowing what you would like to work on. The intention, often prompted by the teacher, is then set at the beginning of the practice. When a samskara then arises during the practice, you may touch upon the feelings that arise, and then allow yourself to experience these feelings more and more. By working with this method (and feeling secure throughout the journey), with each subsequent practice you move deeper into a samskara, are better able to understand your reaction, and then ultimately can allow the samskara to release into the ocean of consciousness. At that point, it is no longer a deep impression. You are liberated from that samskara! Now you know! Yoga nidra is an accessible meditation practice that focuses on cultivating multiple levels of wellbeing. Practiced with consistency and awareness, you may likely discover that you can find a good amount of peace in a short period of time. This article was first published in YogaInternational.com
Allison Ray Jeraci (Schleck) is a 500-hour E-RYT, PRYT who teaches alignment based vinyasa classes, prenatal yoga and yoga nidra in New York and Connecticut. Allison released her first Yoga Nidra MP3 compilation Yoga Nidra: Meditations to Relax and Move Forward (available on iTunes) and you can follow her on Instagram @allisonschleck. We have our own qualified Yoga Nidra Practitioner in Jersey – Sarah Heron. To find out more about how this ancient Indian practice can help relax and calm the mind, and the many other health benefits associated with Yoga Nidra, why not join Sarah for one of her classes.
More info: www.yoganidrajersey.com
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The Positive Impact of Compassion WORDS: David A. Morrison Founder of Guts Greatness Glory
The dictionary definition of compassion is: “Sympathetic pity and concern for the suffering and misfortune of others.” Not overly negative, however the element I feel is missing is the how, how can you leverage and access compassion to make a difference to your life and the life of others, how can you make a positive impact with compassion? Compassion is a value. Your values and goals need to align and your values need to be easily accessible everyday as they drive your emotional state which in turn ignites your energy. To make something more accessible requires the correct definition and process to make it happen, just like in business. In years gone by, in the highly competitive world of business, values are talked about like catch phrases or goalposts to aim for to make sure you focus on the right outcomes each day. The value of compassion does not get much of a mention and I find this interesting as from my own personal experience, arming yourself with the ability to access compassion on a daily basis is one of the most transformational decisions you can make for your own personal growth and yes, this also means your business / career growth as well.
How, you might ask, how can I access compassion, still be seen as an authority, leader and results maker? It’s very simple actually, we redefine what compassion means to get the outcome we want. We will be the “disrupter” in the business values world. In my personal values list; the things which are important to me, I have compassion as no 2 on my list, and my definition is as follows: Compassion – I allow myself to experience compassion when I freely extend love and kindness to others and always check in on someone’s true intentions in every given moment.
I have made special focus on the last part of this definition as it allowed a significant transformation in my life and if you apply to your life, I am certain it will do the same for you. Picture this, busy corporate environment, tight deadlines on projects, budgets always moving and internal communications not as clear as they could be. Add in a lot of people all trying to do their best with their own emotions, fears and desires … there can be times when situations don’t work out how they should. Initially, it can be the relentless questions and reviews of your project brief, the hum and busy nature of the project however after a while you can start to misinterpret the questions, feeling like your judgment or even your leadership is coming into question. You might be always asking “why don’t they just get it”. I was experiencing this, towards the end of my corporate career, and it was not serving me well. Projects were starting to miss delivery dates, I was coming from a place of fear most of the time and was acting out of alignment with who I really was. It was effecting me and the team.
"How, you might ask, how can I access compassion, still be seen as an authority, leader and results maker?"
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RESET
Then came a big change. After completing a personal development programme I learned a variety of new skills that raised my awareness, gave me to tools to access to see myself for what I could be, and others for who they could be also. One of the key processes was understanding one’s triggers and accessing your values to serve you each day. Given my current situation I saw Love and Compassion as the two I needed to focus on. Compassion was where I was lacking most and I could now be creating a value around this. Remember our values are what are important to us, and in so doing, I could create a definition that made it easier to apply every day. Taking this new lens, a way to look at my day to day life was totally transformational. Imagine now seeing situations, the actions of others not as challenges or threats but merely an opportunity to help and serve them. In challenging situations I consciously paused in my mind and ask the question “what is this person’s true intentions right now”. In 99% of cases, they were just looking for help, they actually saw me as an expert who could assist them. As a result I started being more approachable and we started getting back into momentum.
you and learn how to embrace the positive impact of compassion on your life. There are two dominant emotional homes we live in – Fear or Love. Compassion sits in, you guessed it Love. This week, start to note or journal the moments when you feel triggered or challenged by something and ask yourself this question: “What is this person or situation’s true intentions right now and what is it trying to teach me?” Note down if this made you pause long enough to ask a better question or get a better outcome, also look for any patterns you see come up as well to ask what is a different, more productive way I could lead with compassion in this situation. A final note, leading with compassion and having a positive impact does not mean you do not have boundaries in place around what you will and won’t accept from life, this is merely a technique or a strategy to help you get more out of yourself every day.
More info: www.gutsgreatnessglory.com
Now, an exercise for you, if you are up for letting go of some habits that don’t serve
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FOOD
20 Superfoods For People Over 50 Want to stay vital longer? You might like to include these 20 superfoods into your diet. No matter how old you are, you should choose your food wisely. But when you reach a certain point in life, your body just can’t take all the junk food as well as it could when you were younger. So if you want to keep your mind sharp and your immune system up and running, check out some of the foods you should be eating. 1. Apples
We all know that an apple a day keeps the doctor away. That said, make sure you buy organic apples to avoid all the harmful pesticides. Apples can help regulate your blood sugar levels, blood pressure, and cholesterol. Plus, they’re a good source of vitamin C, potassium, fibre, and antioxidants.
2. Carrots
Carrots give a new meaning to the term superfood. They can help with everything, from skin care, eyesight, oral health, cholesterol, blood pressure, cardiovascular disease, immune system and digestion. This is due to beta-carotene, fibre, vitamins (A, C, E, K, B8), as well as minerals (potassium, copper, manganese, iron), and antioxidants they contain.
3. Beetroot
6. Dark Chocolate
Just 30-60 grams of dark chocolate a day can help lower blood pressure and bad cholesterol, prevent heart disease, protect your skin against sun damage, and improve brain function. Dark chocolate contains fibre, iron, magnesium, copper, potassium, phosphorus, zinc, selenium and manganese. It will also improve your mood due to endorphin release it causes.
7. Oatmeal
Oatmeal is high in protein and soluble fibre, manganese, phosphorus, zinc, selenium, iron, as well as B vitamins. It’s the ideal breakfast and you can upgrade your serving with some fresh or dried fruit or nuts. Oatmeal helps digestion, lowers bad cholesterol and blood sugar, promotes weight loss, and relieves constipation. Eat it with Greek Yogurt to boost the taste and nutritional value.
You can grind it, drink it as juice, make soups, or even roast it. Beetroot is a great source of vitamins A and C, minerals such as calcium, manganese, potassium and iron, as well as folic acid and fibre. It’s rich in antioxidants and it can lower blood pressure, improve exercise performance, and prevent dementia. It’s low in calories so it’s also good for weight loss.
8. Pears
4. Blueberries
Blueberries contain powerful antioxidants and soluble fibre. They help optimise blood sugar levels and reduce bad cholesterol. Blueberries are high in vitamins C and K and manganese. Simply add them to your oatmeal, Greek yogurt, or fruit salad to boost the flavour and your health.
Did you know that cherries contain 65 times more vitamin C than oranges? Talk about antioxidants! Other than the vitamin C and divine taste, cherries are also rich in vitamins A and B, dietary fibre, iron, and calcium. They are good for digestion, they can lower bad cholesterol, help regulate blood sugar levels, and promote weight loss.
5. Nuts
10. Apricots
Forget the crisps, instead try walnuts, almonds, hazelnuts, whatever you prefer. Or make a mix of your favourite nuts and add them to your oatmeal or salad. They’re high in protein, omega-3 fatty acids, as well as antioxidants, vitamins and minerals. They can lower bad cholesterol, promote weight loss, reduce inflammation, prevent heart attack and stroke, and help digestion. Just make sure you don’t take more than a handful a day as they’re very high in energy.
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Pears are great for people over 50 as they contain a lot of soluble fibre, vitamin C, folic acid, potassium, and antioxidants. And they taste so good, don’t they? Well, you can enjoy them guilt-free as they can actually help regulate blood sugar levels and prevent diabetes.
9. Cherries
Apricots are the perfect snack for people over 50 as they’re soft, sweet, and packed with vitamin E which is a powerful antioxidant. You can also add them to your fruit salad or oatmeal. Dried apricots are also an excellent choice as they contain iron that helps with anemia. They’re also good for your skin, blood pressure, and digestion.
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11. Strawberries
Strawberries are possibly the most popular seasonal fruit and they’re packed with vitamin C, a powerful antioxidant that prevents ageing. They’re also high in fibre and help reduce bad cholesterol and improve heart health. They’re also a source of vitamin K, manganese, magnesium, potassium, and folate.
12. Avocado
Avocado has become popular around the world not only for its delicious taste but also for its monounsaturated fats that are good for your heart. Avocados are packed with almost 20 vitamins and minerals, including vitamins K, C, B, and E, as well as potassium and copper. They can help regulate blood pressure and cholesterol levels and have anti-ageing properties.
13. Greek Yogurt
16. Quinoa
Quinoa is a favourite among vegetarians and vegans, but everyone can reap the benefits of adding it to their diet. It’s rich in antioxidants, vitamins, minerals, and dietary fibre. It’s also good for those sensitive to gluten as it’s completely gluten-free. It contains vitamin B2, magnesium, manganese, iron, phosphorus, copper, and an essential amino acid l-lysine. It’s beneficial for heart health, weight loss, gut health, bone health, and diabetes prevention.
17. Garlic
Garlic is among the most potent anti-ageing superfoods. It has antimicrobial, antiviral and antifungal properties so it’s great for treating colds and infections. Other benefits include improved cardiovascular health, lower blood pressure, blood sugar regulation, and help with dementia symptoms.
Greek yogurt is great for digestion because it’s packed with probiotics and rich in protein. It’s ideal for people over 50 as it contains less sugar, salt, and carbohydrates than regular yogurt. Since gut health is essential for absorbing all the other nutrients, probiotics will help to maintain your overall health.
18. Broccoli
14. Butternut Squash
19. Asparagus
If you like butternut squash, you’ll be happy to hear that it’s rich in powerful antioxidants such as vitamins A, C, and E. It also contains fibre, beta-carotene, folate, potassium, and manganese. It’s good for your heart, bones, nervous system, and immune system.
15. Salmon
Wild Salmon is a delicious, heart-friendly superfood rich in essential omega-3 fatty acids. It lowers blood pressure and prevents heart attack and it’s also good for your brain, skin and eyesight. It also contains vitamins B6, B12, D, and selenium, potassium, and choline.
Broccoli is a great detox food and it’s high in antioxidants. Whether you choose to eat it raw or cooked, you’ll get your daily dose of vitamins E and C. What makes it essential for people over 50 is that it helps prevent osteoporosis and weight gain. And it’s good for your eyes and skin. Asparagus is especially good for men over 50 as it helps protect the prostate and may reduce the risk of prostate cancer. This is due to its high lycopene content. Of course, women should eat it too as it’s rich in fibre, and vitamin A. Other health benefits include lowering bad cholesterol, improving eye health, and boosting your immune system.
20. Spinach
Want to stay strong over the age of 50? Then get your portion of spinach now. You can eat it raw, but if you cook it or steam it, you’ll increase its nutritional value. Spinach contains more than a dozen antioxidants, vitamins A, C, and K, as well as magnesium, manganese, zinc, and selenium. It may prevent heart disease, diabetes, and neurological disorders while boosting your eyesight, bone health, skin health, and immune system.
More info: www.healthyandpretty.com Creating a WORLD of Difference
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Self-Esteem: A Healthy Sense of Overall Value Self-esteem refers to a person’s overall sense of his or her value or worth. It can be considered a measure of how much a person “values, approves of, appreciates, prizes, or likes him or herself ” (Adler & Stewart, 2004). According to self-esteem expert Morris Rosenberg, self-esteem is quite simply one’s attitude toward oneself. He described it as a “favourable or unfavourable attitude toward the self ”. It is not fixed, but rather malleable and measurable, meaning we can test for and improve upon it, and those with a healthy self-esteem benefit as they are: • Less critical of themselves and others. • Better able to handle stress and avoid the unhealthy side effects of stress. • Less likely to develop an eating disorder. • Less likely to feel worthless, guilty, and ashamed. • More likely to be assertive about expressing and getting what they want. • Able to build strong, honest relationships and are more likely to leave unhealthy ones. • More confident in their ability to make good decisions.
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• More resilient and able to bounce back when faced with disappointment, failure, and obstacles (Allegiance Health, 2015). Not to be confused with self-confidence which is based more on external measures of success and value, selfesteem is an internal measure. One can have high selfconfidence, particularly in a certain area or field, but still lack a healthy sense of overall value or self-esteem. There are certain characteristics that distinguish how high someone’s self-esteem is. Examples of these characteristics are being open to criticism, acknowledging mistakes, being comfortable with giving and receiving compliments, and displaying a harmony between what one says, does, looks, sounds, and moves. People with high self-esteem are unafraid to show their curiosity, discuss their experiences, ideas, and opportunities. And, according to Branden, they can also enjoy the humorous aspects of their lives and are comfortable with social or personal assertiveness.
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People with high self-esteem appreciate themselves and other people. They also: • Enjoy growing as a person and finding fulfilment and meaning in their lives. • Make their own decisions and conform to what others tell them to be and do only when they agree. • See the word in realistic terms, accepting other people the way they are while pushing them toward greater confidence and a more positive direction. • Can easily concentrate on solving problems in their life. • Have loving and respectful relationships. • Know what their values are and live their life accordingly. • Speak up and tell others their opinions, calmly and kindly, and share their wants and needs with others. • Endeavour to make a constructive difference in other people’s lives (Smith & Harte). • Conversely, low self-esteem can be indicated where: • You people please • You struggle to say ‘no’ • You find it difficult asking for your needs to be met • You feel your opinion isn’t important or whatever you do is never good enough • You’re highly sensitive to others opinions • You’re easily angered or irritated • The world doesn’t feel safe • You doubt every decision • You regularly experience the emotions of sadness and worthlessness • You avoid taking risks or trying new things • You engage in addictive avoidance behaviours • You struggle with confidence • You find it difficult creating boundaries • You give more attention to your weaknesses • You are often unsure of who you are • You feel negative experiences are all consuming • You hold a pessimistic or negative outlook on life • You doubt your abilities or chances of success • You frequently experience negative emotions, such as fear, anxiety or depression • You compare yourself with others and often you come in second best Self-esteem researcher and expert Dr. John M. Grohol outlined six practical tips on how to increase your sense of self-esteem, which include:
1. Take a self-esteem inventory to give yourself a baseline. It can be as simple as writing down 10 of your strengths and 10 of your weaknesses. This will help you to begin developing an honest and realistic conception of yourself.
2. Set realistic expectations. It’s important to set small, reachable goals that are within your power. For example, setting an extremely high expectation or an expectation that someone else will change their behaviour is virtually guaranteed to make you feel like a failure, through no fault of your own. 3. Stop being a perfectionist and acknowledge both your accomplishments and mistakes. Nobody is
perfect, and trying to be will only lead to disappointment. Acknowledging your accomplishments and recognising your mistakes is the way to keep a positive outlook while learning and growing from your mistakes.
4. Explore yourself. The importance of knowing yourself
and being at peace with who you are cannot be overstated. This can take some trial and error, and you will constantly learn new things about yourself, but it is a journey that should be undertaken with purpose and zeal.
5. Be willing to adjust your self-image. We all change as we age and grow, and we must keep up with our everchanging selves if we want to set and achieve meaningful goals. 6. Stop comparing yourself to others. Comparing ourselves to others is a trap that is extremely easy to fall into, especially today with social media and the ability to project a polished, perfected appearance. The only person you should compare yourself to is you (Grohol, 2011).
The Positivity Blog also offers some helpful tips on enhancing your self-esteem, including: • Say “stop” to your inner critic. • Use healthier motivation habits. • Take a 2-minute self-appreciation break. • Write down 3 things in the evening that you can appreciate about yourself. • Do the right thing. • Replace the perfectionism. • Handle mistakes and failures in a more positive way. • Be kinder towards other people. • Try something new. • Stop falling into the comparison trap. • Spend more time with supportive people (and less time with destructive people). • Remember the “whys” of high self-esteem (Edberg, 2017).
Excerpt from a study compiled by Courtney Ackerman, a graduate of the positive organisational psychology and evaluation programme at Claremont Graduate University, and Amba Brown, an Australian Positive Psychology Author.
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Creative Writing for Emotional Health WORDS: Dreena Collins Assistant Principal, Highlands College – and Writer
I have never been a good sleeper. Years of broken sleep formed cracks in my sleep pattern that became fractures - ravines - after my son was born; he didn’t sleep through the night until he was almost eight. By the time he finally did, there seemed no hope at all for me and my insomnia. Occasionally, I have a night of terrifying stress dreams or nightmares; one night in approximately ten results in great difficulty in getting to sleep at all ... and every single night is severely broken and fragmented. I know, unfortunately, that many people can relate. In the last year, all of the above has been joined by an early morning wake up once or twice a week: usually, so frustratingly, on a Saturday or Sunday – where I have woken at 3.30 am and failed to get back to sleep. But this article is not the story of how I cannot sleep. It is the story of what I did about it.
Risk and Protection
I knew about ‘protective factors’ and ‘risk factors’, and therefore some of the things I might do to increase resilience or decrease stress. Risk factors are often external: for example, ill-health or simply ‘being female’ add to the risk of poor mental health. However, protective factors can be within our control: e.g. volunteering. Sports participation, understandably, is a powerful protective factor. In my case, I knew that my lifestyle – and no doubt mindset – reduced the likelihood that I would suddenly take up an active hobby. I have never been especially sporty, and I was astonishingly busy, so knowing that I was unlikely to begin training for a marathon, ironically added
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pressure. Not only was I a mildly stressed poor sleeper, but I was also failing to address it in a constructive way. Then I hit upon an unusual solution. I may not play sports, but I have always loved to play with words. Periodically, I have written creatively; in April, I decided to take this seriously and challenged myself to write a short-story a week. At the time, I didn’t think about reducing my stress levels or improving my sleep. But guess what? That’s what happened.
Journaling and Creative Writing
It has long been known that journal writing can have a positive influence on mental health. Writing down and expressing thoughts or emotions can help you to order them, gaining some degree of control at the same time. Journaling can enable you to prioritise concerns, and logging patterns of feelings can help you to recognise – and therefore address – any routine triggers. More systematic journaling can even lead to a ‘reframing’ of concerns, using writing for positive self-talk by identifying and challenging negative thought processes. In my case, writing was a creative hobby. I found that I loved the sense of achievement, accomplishment, when I completed a story – as Kurt Vonnegut said: “Tell stories. Write a poem to a friend, even a lousy poem. Do it as well as you possibly can. You will get an enormous reward. You will have created something.”
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Creative pursuits, are indeed, on that treasured list of protective factors for this reason – and because they can be used to nurture ourselves. When I write, I am aware that I am no longer a mum, an employee or a partner. I am me: a writer. And that’s a powerful, positive thought. Both journal writing, and creative writing, can help us to develop our skills in writing and expand our vocabulary usage. Choosing the right word to express an emotion is no mean feat. Likewise, for me, creative writing has developed my skills – but also allowed me to focus on language in a way which I like to think of as ‘mindful’. Now, when I hear unusual words, I consciously reflect on them, and enjoy them for the way they sound, or look on the page. I roll them around in my mouth; store them up for usage later: ‘melodious’; ‘salacious’; ‘rattan’. I have found it – surprisingly – relatively easy to find the time to do this as I can snatch time here and there. More importantly, I have sustained it. Perhaps this was the answer: choosing something which was achievable, realistic, and to some degree already within my gift.
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For me, this was writing. For you, this might be listening to music, cooking – revitalising an old hobby that you know you can do.
"When I write, I am aware that I am no longer a mum, an employee or a partner. I am me: a writer. And that’s a powerful, positive thought." Sleep? It would be a lie to say that my problems are solved but I do find that when I complete a story, I am significantly more likely to get some sleep. What I can say with confidence is that now, if ever I do wake at 3.30 am, I get up, make an herbal tea and start writing … I may not be sleeping, but it is certainly more constructive than lying in a state of mild panic, dwelling on the minutiae of the day. And at the end, I have a story to show for my time.
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Gratitude, Passive Emotion or Motivator of Action? WORDS: Debbie Thompson Jersey Sport Psychology and Healthhaus
The word gratitude is derived from the Latin words gratia meaning favour and gratus meaning pleasing, and usually involves achieving a positive outcome from an external source. More recently, the area of positive psychology has demonstrated how ‘gratitude is one of life’s most vitalising ingredients’ (Emmons 2013). Positive emotions don’t just make individuals feel good, they may also benefit individuals and the people around them. Research has shown that gratitude can lead to selfimprovement and positive changes in areas such as connectedness, i.e. how we feel closer and connected to others. In sport, ‘others’ play an important part – the coach who encourages and trains the athlete, parents who give up their time and also financially support their children and fellow athletes who support and motivate their team members. Many athletes know that their success has been due to the support they have had from others. Rebecca Adlington when she was 13 was grateful for her support, “I wouldn't be here without my parents and my coach,” she acknowledged. Connectedness is also important in other areas of life, and has been shown to encourage people to reach their full potential and motivate them in areas such as weight loss
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and maintaining New Year’s Resolutions. Gratitude can make us feel closer to those we trust which helps us to increase our motivation to maintain activities as exercise and healthy lifestyle choices. Showing a sense of gratitude by being kind to ourselves may help many people to develop a stronger sense of self and happiness. This may also allow individuals to accept physically their bodies or the way they appear. With access into other people’s worlds, through social media, it is easy to feel that we should have a particular look or act in a particular way even if it’s not what we really want for ourselves. We can look to athletes to see how they have embraced gratitude in their relationship with their bodies. Rebecca
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Adlington experienced criticism of her body on social media, but reflected “I’ve learnt to embrace the swimmer’s figure, because that’s what makes us so powerful through the water: these shoulders won me four Olympic medals.” Dina Asher Smith, the fastest female athlete in British history, recently talked about how the gratitude she shows towards her athletic body helps her to maintain a healthy mindset. “I am grateful to have been in competitive sport for so long, because I see bodies for what they can do, not what they look like.” Gratitude can also allow us to focus on the present and to be grateful for what we have in any one moment. In life, we often find ourselves working towards deadlines and goals and miss the details of the journey we are taking while in pursuit of the end product. When I am working with athletes, we often talk about training and competition goals and the pressures for the athlete, related to the outcome, can often be overwhelming. In these situations, we come back to the smaller steps involved, the process goals and start to focus on what is realistic for the athlete to achieve. “I think much more emphasis should be put on sport …, but not about winning, more about good mental health. There are so many transferable skills with sport; it gives you self-confidence, helps to relieve anxiety. Winning isn’t everything in sport, which may sound odd coming from an Olympian,” said Dina Asher-Smith (2018). This applies to everyday life as much as to Olympic competition.
"In life, we often find ourselves working towards deadlines and goals and miss the details of the journey we are taking while in pursuit of the end product."
Finally, life often deals us events which we would rather not have to experience, so how can we feel gratitude when things don’t go the way we would like them to?
Successful elite athletes have trained mentally and physical to be resilient, but injuries can have a devastating effect on life and careers. Earlier this year Kristina Vogel, who won team sprint gold at the London Olympics in 2012 and the individual sprint title in Rio four years later, was injured in June after a collision with another cyclist during a training session; her injury left her paralysed from the chest down. Despite these life changing injuries, Vogel said “I am very fortunate to still be alive and to have fully functioning arms. I could well have been paralysed from the neck down. I want to be a motivation for others. No matter what fate holds for you, life goes on, in my case now on four wheels instead of two. My arms are now also my legs.” Positive emotions can help people accept who they are, benefit their life and the lives of those around them. While gratitude has been traditionally seen as a passive emotion, research now suggests that we should be seeing gratitude as a motivator of action.
More info: sportpsychologyjersey@gmail.com
Debbie Thompson CPsychol AFBPsS MCSP HCP holds an MSc in Sport and Exercise Psychology; is a Chartered Physiotherapist, Chartered Psychologist in Teaching and Research, and is a Sport and Exercise Psychologist in training (PhD student).
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What the Heck Does Emotional Intelligence Have to Do With Mindfulness? WORDS: Amy McCae Certified Life Coach and Mindfulness Meditation Teacher
Although the term “Mindfulness” often invokes an image of a monk sitting on a mountain chanting “OM,” neuroscience is proving this ancient practice is worthy of exploring today. Your true power lies in this moment. If you understand who you are and your emotional processes you live not only an authentic life but also an empowered one. Mindfulness is really a brain thing and could also be referred to as attention training. Mindfulness means to pay attention on purpose in a particular way and to do so without passing judgment. It means to be aware of your thoughts, feelings, and sensations and still be at peace in that moment. Some of the core practices include; mindful breathing, mindful listening, loving kindness, and a body scan.
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Stop right now and take a moment to notice your breath. Notice where your awareness lies, notice thoughts, notice sensations, notice sounds. Now, practice paying attention to your breath for 2 minutes and whenever your mind wanders bring it back to your breath. We all have thoughts. The goal is not to control them but rather not allow them to control you. Make note of how you feel. You have just started mindful breathing by paying attention to your breath.
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In 1979 Jon Kabat-Zinn (PhD, scientist, writer, professor, Founder of MBSR and often referred to as the Godfather of Mindfulness) put Mindfulness on the map in the western world when he founded the Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction program at the University of Massachusetts. The programme was developed for chronically ill patients that were not responding well to traditional methods and has been highly successful. Essentially Jon Kabat-Zinn took the Buddhism and Voodoo Woo-doo out of Mindfulness Meditation when he created the programme. He said; “ I bent over backwards to structure it and find ways to speak about it that avoided as much as possible the risk of it being seen as Buddhist, new age, eastern mysticism, or just plain flakey. “ Since that time neuroscience has shown us compelling evidence suggesting a regular Mindfulness Meditation practice leads to chemical and structural changes in the brain that allow for you to experience the benefits. One of my favourite studies is from Sara Lazar who is Harvard neuroscientist that accidentally came across mindfulness and experienced such profound benefits that she did her own studies and now teaches mindfulness herself. You can read about her findings here: https://wapo.st/2Qj3awO
You can begin to see where the aspects of wellbeing developed could lead to things such as increased confidence, greater compassion, improved health, more fulfilling relationships, higher creativity, better success rates, and happier daily living. Mindfulness equates to self-awareness. They are the same thing. One vital aspect of self-awareness is emotional awareness. You can’t accurately know yourself if you do not know and understand your emotional processes. Emotional Intelligence may be defined as the capacity to be aware of, recognise, understand, and express emotions as well as the ability handle relationships nonjudgmentally and empathetically. Emotional intelligence is key to all personal and professional success.
"The processes and awareness are the focus not the end result. Enjoy the journey. Remember your power is in this moment."
Mindful Schools of California (and many other industry leaders) teach the neuroscience of mindfulness. Mindfulness practices deactivate the part of your brain responsible for stress (amygdala) which in turn allows you access to the part of your brain responsible for all higher levels of thinking (pre-frontal cortex). There are 9 aspects of wellbeing that are developed through a mindfulness practice/attention training/pre-frontal cortex activation: bodily regulation, insight, attuned communication, empathy, emotional regulation, fear modulation, response flexibility, intuition, and morality. (Gratitude may make this list soon).
Often referred to as “practicing the pause” when you have developed emotional intelligence you will begin to intuitively respond to people and situations as opposed to emotionally react. Imagine how many arguments you will save and how much less regret and guilt you will feel? This is truly a space of self-empowerment where you have the opportunity to think, speak, and act in line with your values. This is where you have the ability create change, be authentic, and live intentionally.
There are countless ways to begin to develop emotional intelligence including; mindfulness/attention training practices, self-assessment, journaling, learning to scan your body, and affect labelling (naming the emotion you are feeling). The problem that often arises is difficulty in sticking to a practice so it is necessary to make it a priority, schedule it, get help, get a buddy, and be kind to yourself on the journey. The processes and awareness are the focus not the end result. Enjoy the journey. Remember your power is in this moment.
More info: www.amymccae.com
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It's Not 1 in 4; It's All of Us Why Mental Health is About Everyone Report and Research: Barbara Harvey, Accenture
In November last year, Barbara Harvey had the opportunity to bring together the two passions in her working life: the love of research and her ambition to build a working environment where people feel they can talk openly about their mental health and get the support that they need quickly. Working with the team at the ‘This Can Happen’ Conference – the workplace mental health conference – Jonny Benjamin, Neil Laybourn and Zoe Sinclair – they set out to understand what it really feels like for workers today when it comes to mental health. New research, carried out by Accenture for the conference also challenges employers to look differently at the way they think about and support employees’ mental wellbeing and shows the power they have to help employees be at their best at work and at home.
As the opening speaker Barbara wanted to set the tone for the day with three key messages:
Mental health is about everyone: we often read the figure ‘1 in 4’ as a measure of how many people are affected by mental health conditions. But looked at in a different way the research found that mental health challenges
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touch almost everyone; 9 out of 10 workers have either personally (66%) experienced challenges or know someone close to them (85%) who has. As colleagues, friends, family we see the impact of mental health challenges all around us. When people feel safe to talk it makes a positive difference: for most of the 4 in 10 workers who told someone at work about what was happening with their mental health things improved: they experience less stress, they feel less lonely and their confidence increases. Almost half say it’s a relief to talk. And where companies build an open supportive culture around mental health, people are truly able to be more open, more likely to know where to go for help and twice as likely to love their jobs.
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Barbara commented: “It was a privilege to share the findings with an audience of over 750 representing more than a hundred companies. The fact that the Duke of Cambridge joined us for several hours and shared his personal experiences as a pilot in the air ambulance service was so important; having high profile people speak out about their own mental health challenges was the biggest change agent cited in our earlier research into mental health and technology. To meet him was an honour.” She is keen to share the research far and wide, hence this article. Mental health is not a minority issue. It touches almost all employees and can impact their ability to enjoy and live life to the full. 1 in 4 is the figure widely quoted in the media for the incidence of mental ill health. In the UK this figure originates from the 2007 Adult Psychiatric Morbidity Survey. The study established that 23% of adults in England in 2007 had a treated or untreated mental health condition. It’s important because establishing the incidence of mental ill health conditions – both serious and common – is essential for understanding whether the mental health of the population is improving or declining and is vital input for healthcare planning.
Why it’s Not 1 in 4.
The research involved 2170 working men and women across the UK. 66% of the employees who participated in our survey reported having personally experienced mental health challenges. These individuals either reported three or more signs of poor or declining mental health, told us directly that they have experienced or are currently experiencing mental health challenges, or said that they have had suicidal thoughts or feelings. 85% said someone close to them had experienced a mental health challenge. These individuals knew of a close friend, a colleague, or a family member who had experienced mental health challenges, or had tried to take, or taken, their own life. And overall? Nine in 10 people who participated in the survey had been touched by mental health challenges in some way. Among Millennials, that figure rose to 93%.
Creating a WORLD of Difference
Mental Health at Accenture
Barbara Harvey is the Leader of Accenture’s UK Mental Health Programme. Accenture has a holistic health and wellbeing programme that incorporates physical and mental health and focuses on awareness and prevention. It is part of a broader programme that is designed to create a culture where employees can bring their whole self to work.
1 They recognise that there is still a stigma within workplaces and society in general when it comes to talking about mental health and seeking help. 2 Accenture offers a free confidential counselling
service available through Bupa, open to all Accenture employees 24/7. The Employee Assistance Program (EAP), can also help employees with a variety of issues such as managing stress in the home or workplace, legal and financial issues and relationship problems.
3 Technology plays an important role in their
programme: online awareness training is available to all. Specifically, employees have access to Big White Wall, a confidential, professionally managed chat environment where they can remain anonymous. They have also developed a mindfulness app, and offer access to other apps to support sleep and general wellbeing.
4 They have a Mental Health Allies programme focused on getting the message across that it’s okay to talk about mental health, and also to equip people with the right skills to enable them to support colleagues in need. Today, over 1,700 Accenture employees are trained as Mental Health Allies throughout our UK business. Each has participated in a half-day classroom-based training session to increase their understanding of mental health challenges, whilst building confidence and skills in addressing common mental health challenges through roleplaying and scenario training. This training also explores the boundaries between the responsibilities of a line manager and the role of mental health allies.
More info: www.accenture.com 77
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SPONSORED CONTENT
Do You Have An Attitude of Gratitude? WORDS: Matt Riley Interim Health Club & Spa Manager of Hand Picked Hotels Jersey
In general, most of us can say that we have a lot to be grateful for, but did you know that practising gratitude and reminding ourselves of all the positive things in our lives can actually help improve our wellbeing? One of our health club members recently told me how she writes a gratitude journal at the end of each day, and how it helps her acknowledge all that she has to be grateful for, ending each day on a positive note! Studies have shown that by just writing down the things and the people in our lives that we are
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grateful for can help improve our wellbeing, helping us to sleep better, deal with stress better and boost our happiness! Gratitude plays an integral part of the holistic yoga classes we offer at L’Horizon Beach Hotel & Spa. Each session on the mat incorporates a series of poses that are not only
calming for the mind but inspire gratitude too, whether we are resting in child’s pose, the nurturing and gentle hip-opener where we fold forwards into ourselves to the low lunge or Anjaneyasana where we remain grounded while reaching up and revealing our hearts. There is nothing like the final resting pose to let go of all our tension, it’s the perfect time to close the eyes and feel gratitude for our own journey and count our blessings. It’s also an opportunity to focus our attention on other people’s wellbeing, wishing them well in their own particular journeys.
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Grand Jersey Spa and L’Horizon Spa are open Monday to Friday from 6.30am-9.30pm and Saturday, Sunday and Bank Holidays from 7am-8pm. Gift vouchers are available for special spa days with your loved ones or simply for a day of solitude.
More info: www.handpickedhotels.co.uk/grandjersey/spa www.handpickedhotels.co.uk/lhorizon/spa
Our Spas at both the AA Five Star Grand Jersey Hotel & Spa and AA Four Red Star L’Horizon Beach Hotel & Spa have been specially designed, combining ancient healing traditions and contemporary techniques to help rejuvenate both the body and mind. Guests can soothe their senses in our luxurious relaxation suites and through the colder winter months it is important to rest and recharge in preparation for spring and our award winning boutique Spas are the perfect sanctuaries to do just that. Hand Picked Hotels was the first hotel group in Jersey to introduce Touch Therapy into its Spas. This is a remarkable method of healing massage therapy especially for those who have suffered from trauma, undergone an operation or treatment for illness. Our therapists have had specialist training giving them a really thorough understanding of how to care for such clients and how to tailor treatments to suit individual clients’ needs, making our spas accessible to all.
Care Baby Unit (SCBU), helping to raise awareness of the great work that they do as well as helping to raise much needed funds.
"There is nothing like the final resting pose to let go of all our tension, it’s the perfect time to close the eyes and feel gratitude for our own journey and count our blessings."
It’s not always about direct giving, but more what skills and resources can be shared for their benefit. For example, we have hosted a number of clinics open to the public along with training sessions for therapists, tattoo artists and those in the beauty industry with DAMC. We’ve offered training facilities for SCBU at Grand Jersey too and our guests have the ability to add £1 on their total bill, this goes directly to SCBU and demonstrates how easy charitable giving can be for us all; it doesn’t have to be a grand gesture, a simple thing such as this can make a big difference. It really is quite simple to show gratitude to those that matter to you most in the simplest ways every day
and once you get into the habit you’ll notice the positive effect this has, not only on them but on you too.
So, to leave you with a few ideas of the value and benefit of gratitude, you may want to keep your own gratitude journal. If so here are a few tips: • Focus on the people to whom you are grateful and not just on the things in your life • Write in detail about particular things for which you are grateful • Reflect on what it would be like without some of the things you are grateful for, things that you have previously been taking for granted perhaps • Pay attention to the gratitudeinspiring events going on around you
Charitable giving and generosity can also be a form of gratitude, both of which we practice at Hand Picked Hotels. We work closely with our two partner charities, Donna Annand Melanoma Charity (DAMC) and Special
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Have You Ever Talked to Your Clutter? WORDS: Kerri Richardson
Yes, really. I know it sounds ridiculous, but you’d be surprised what you can learn about yourself from talking to your clutter. Natalie* is a participant in one of my current clutter courses and she was having trouble letting go of some of her mother’s items. Her mom passed away four years ago, and in addition to a treasured piece of jewelry, Natalie ended up with some random things that no one else wanted. She was keeping them stored in a box on the top shelf of her closet. She found herself see-sawing between feeling aggravated by having to shift the box around when she needed to retrieve something and waves of guilt for feeling annoyed by it at all. Natalie mentioned how she has taken that box down and put it back on the shelf about 20 times over the last four years. She lifts it with excitement to finally go through it and clear it out and then tells herself she can’t possibly get rid of any of it. “Is it that you feel you have to keep those things out of respect for your mother?”
*Not her real name 80
“Maybe,” she said. “I don’t know. It feels like there’s something else going on, but I just can’t put my finger on it.” “Have you considered opening the box and asking the items what they’re trying to tell you?” Natalie let out a nervous laugh. “Um, no,” she said. “Like talk to inanimate objects?” “Yeah. Well, kind of.” I challenged her to schedule one Pom round*in her calendar and, when the time came, to take the box down, grab her journal, and sit on the floor (doing so is such a great way to quickly ground your energy). “Then open the box and begin sifting around inside,” I told her. “This will stir the energy and wake it up a bit.”
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Natalie’s next step was to open her journal and say, out loud while looking at the items in the box, “Ok, what’s up? What do you need me to know before I can let you go?” and then start writing. No censoring. No questioning. Just let it flow. I find it takes about two or three pages in my journal to shift the writing from my head voice to that of my soul, which is where the real wisdom lies. So this takes about 10 minutes or so. Other great journal prompts to get your clutter talking are: • What does this clutter represent in my life? • What thoughts spring to mind when I look at or think about this clutter? • What’s my inner dialogue chattering on about as I sit amongst the stuff ? This technique works with all types of clutter, not just physical. Let’s say you’re considering declining a friend’s invitation for dinner because she kinda drives you nuts, but you feel bad saying no. Is the relationship truly clutter that needs clearing? Maybe a good boundary will do? Is it time for a heart-to-heart? Use the same three questions above to investigate what you’re meant to learn from this relationship. Or maybe you’d like to lose a few pounds of weight clutter but just can’t seem put down the cookie. Talk to the pounds in your journal. I guarantee, if you write beyond the initial, expected noise that comes out, you’ll discover some interesting gems to explore further. By doing the seemingly silly thing of asking your clutter what it wants you to know, it’s as if you open up a portal or give yourself permission to see it as more than
just a nuisance. Offering the space in your journal as a judgment-free zone invites the deeper message that lies within the mess to come out. It also sends a powerful message to your resistance/fear/ younger self that you care about what she has to say, which then begins to forge or deepen the relationship you have with her. When this magic happens, fewer and fewer things in life seem scary. And when you feel less afraid to step out of your comfort zone, there is nothing you can’t accomplish. Natalie’s exploration led her to discover that she kept those items because her mother would often tell her how ungrateful she was, and if she got rid of the box, then maybe her mother would’ve been right all along. Except the real clutter wasn’t the box at all. It was the belief that Natalie formed from her mother’s comments. Once we worked on flipping that old story to a new, empowering one, the box of randomness went bye bye and she felt free and fine letting it go. Often all it takes to be ready to let go of stubborn clutter is identifying what it represents in your life. Once you take the mystery away or stop making it about something it’s not, it loses its hold on you. Then you can decide from a clearer place whether you’re ready to part with it. Although the box was small and not taking up a ton of space in her closet, energetically it was encompassing her entire bedroom if not her whole house. Because that’s how powerful clutter is. Because when you’re willing to let go of the tangible stuff, you’re more willing to let go of the emotional stuff. And it’s the emotional stuff that’s the real space hog.
A Pom round (or Pomodoro Technique) is one of Kerri’s Productivity Techniques. She says: “It’s as simple as picking a task to work on and setting a timer for 25 minutes. (I swear there must’ve been studies done on that number because it totally works). Once the timer rings, you take a 5-minute break — away from the task at hand. “During my break, I’ll stand up and stretch, step outside for a breath of fresh air, throw in some laundry. Whatevs. Then, come back and do another round. I promise you that you’ll make progress on even the most daunting of projects. Give it a go, but remember, you MUST take that break!”.
More info: www.kerririchardson.com Creating a WORLD of Difference
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Removing Toxic People from Your Life in 9 Steps WORDS: Katherine Hurst
It’s hard to avoid toxic people sometimes. They sometimes appear like something else, and they’re sometimes inextricably bound up with our work or family lives. However, there are smart practical steps you can take to preserve yourself from this sort of damage. Let’s take a closer look at how to effectively and definitively remove toxic people from your life.
1. Don’t Expect Them to Change
Firstly, and most importantly, moving past toxic relationships requires true acceptance of the fact that you can’t force toxic people to change. They may imply that they can change, or you may yearn to be the one who can help them become better, but this is almost always a hopeless project. Toxic people are not motivated by what’s good for them or for their relationship with you. They’re motivated by their own complex problems and needs. When you give up the desire to change them, it’s much easier to let them go.
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2. Establish and Maintain Boundaries
Toxic people drain your resources by constantly pushing you to work harder to please them, making you compromise more and more. This is exhausting and transgresses all acceptable relationship boundaries. Give some serious thought to what you will tolerate and what you won’t from partners, family members, colleagues, and friends. When you get a sense that something’s not right in your interactions with someone, run through your mental boundary checklist and enforce these boundaries deliberately and rigidly.
3. Don’t Be Pulled Into Crises
Toxic people often make it seem like they “need you”
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because they’re always in crisis. But the important thing to know is that these are crises of their own making. They create drama deliberately in order to attract more attention and engage in manipulation, so remember this the next time you’re asked to run to their side. You might feel bad, but remember that you’re not dealing with a genuine person in distress.
4. Focus on The Solution
Toxic people give you a lot to be sad and angry about but if you focus on this, you’ll stay miserable and frustrated, even if you’re excising such a person from your social circle. Instead, turn your attention to the fact you’re clearing up a psychological and emotional mess in your life. If you spend much of your time ruminating on (and trying to understand) a toxic person’s negative behaviour, they’ll suck away all your resources even when they’re no longer in your life.
5. Own Your Difficulties and Weaknesses
When you’re in a toxic relationship of any kind, you’ll notice that the other person tends to exploit your flaws and find ways to use them against you. However, you can dramatically reduce the likelihood of this happening by simply getting to know yourself and learning to accept your weaknesses.
of themselves they don’t want to acknowledge or accept so that they can pour all their suppressed self-hatred into attacking you. See their cruel behaviour for what it is: a way of avoiding the truth about themselves.
7. Know They May Resist
Toxic people often throw tantrums when they feel ignored. This is usually because you’re stopping them from being able to control or manipulate you. They may increase their previous tactics tenfold, but eventually, they will back off and look elsewhere to meet their needs. Don’t give in when their behaviour escalates, and instead remind yourself that you’re teaching these people that their old behaviours will no longer work.
8. Choose Your Battles Carefully
On a related note, make sure you choose your battles wisely. Conflict with toxic people requires huge amounts of energy and time. Just remember you don’t need to engage in every fight that they might try to instigate. Instead, save that energy for looking after yourself, and for nourishing relationships that are genuinely healthy.
"To maintain your resilience and cope with any sadness, stay in close contact with those who make you feel safe, cherished and happy."
Balance them against your strengths, believe that you are a good person, and commit to self-improvement. That way, it’ll be old news is a toxic person tries to highlight your perceived flaws, and you won’t be easily manipulated by such a tactic.
6. Understand Projection
Part of removing toxic people from your life involves reducing their power over your emotions and that requires recognizing that they’re not really seeing you when they’re hurting you. In truth, they’re projecting onto you the parts
9. Surround Yourself with Healthy Relationships
Finally, removing toxic people from your life can be deeply painful, as you may deeply care for some of these people in spite of how difficult it is to have them in your life. To maintain your resilience and cope with any sadness, stay in close contact with those who make you feel safe, cherished and happy. These are the people who will model healthy friendships and relationships, reminding you exactly why you are choosing to sever toxic ones. Katherine Hurst is the author of The Secret Law of Attraction. She runs the world's largest Law of Attraction community with millions of followers. Her mission is to share her own experiences to inspire change and happiness in the lives of all.
More info: www.thelawofattraction.com [Free eBook Download] Clearing Negativity from Your Life https://joevitale.thelawofattraction.com/clearingnegativity
Visit the link above to instantly download this free eBook and learn how to clear negativity from your life, using a simple practice of reconciliation and forgiveness.
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Life is Happening For You, Not Against You! WORDS: Faith Canter Author, Coach & Explorer
Having suffered from depression for most of my life I always deeply believed that life sucked (especially mine) and I constantly wondered why I was being dealt such a rubbish hand … what had a done to deserve this? I know I’m not alone in these thoughts and I know a great deal of people feel this way about themselves and their lives too. However, these thoughts/beliefs are just not true. Life isn’t purposefully dealing out rubbish hands to some and amazing hands to others. It’s not a game of chance, it’s a game of choice! You see, for the most part life is offering us up alternatives, whispering in our ears, guiding us and sending us messages all the time. These
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could be things like, that person isn’t right for you, this job doesn’t work for you, you have outgrown this house, you need to let go of that, you need to move on to this, etc. But we don’t listen, we keep plodding on, thinking we don’t have a choice, feeling unfulfilled but feeling like that alternative is just too much like hard work or would take to many resources to achieve. We keep ignoring the whispers, the messages, the guidance. We keep thinking we know best or we don’t have a choice.
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So, the messages get louder. We get ill, we fall out with friends, our boss goes mental, we lose or break things, life seems to be making things harder for us. And it is, because this isn’t meant for us anymore. This is life’s way of redirecting us! Yet still we ignore it, still we don’t make the changes. Things become even harder, you become more worn out, tired, unfocused, poorly, unsatisfied.
and not experienced the incredible beauty of my life as it unfolded.
Then, what eventually happens is something really rubbish. We lose our job, someone verbally attacks us, we lose our house, our partner leaves or we become really ill.
This is the same with our bodies. Every single one of my students I speak with who has had a chronic illness agrees they didn’t go from full amazing health to chronic illness. They started getting a lot of colds, digestive issues, headaches, random ailments and maybe fatigue. They don’t listen, they think it’s normal or they only make temporary changes. The frequency and the intensity of the mental and physical health conditions continue until usually a more chronic illness is diagnosed. At this point we should finally listen, make those changes and start to find our health again, but normally we feel sorry for ourselves, wonder why we have this and take the pills, potion or lotion prescribed. But this is a symptom of something in your life not working and it’s not your body!
I and no doubt you have had many of these moments. These times when I screamed at life … ‘what else are you going to throw at me, why are you doing this, I can’t take this anymore?’. But life wasn’t against me, it was forcing the change, making me let go, move on, take a break, put my focus somewhere else. When I had CFS/ME I thought my World had finally ended. There was no hope, no cure and that was me, for the rest of my life suffering. However, I can see now that the ME/CFS saved my life. It allowed me to strip everything back, look at my health both mentally and physically and understand what I had been doing, creating and reinforcing with my thoughts and choices my whole life. I went from surviving to thriving.
We have a choice when perceived bad things happen to us. We can feel sorry for ourselves and wallow in our pain or we can see it as the very thing it is, an opportunity to let go, move on, make a change and grow.
If we don’t listen to life messages, it’s whispers and it’s guidance it’ll shout louder and then louder still and eventually it’ll scream at you ‘WAKE UP, listen, make a change’!
When my husband left me, it tore my heart in two, the grief I felt at losing him was intense. However, I knew deep down it hadn’t been working for some time. And knowing that this must be happening for me, not against me I passed through my pain very quickly and grew tenfold, in every which way. I walked the incredible 500 mile Camino de Santiago pilgrimage through Spain, I sold all my belongings and bought a campervan. I travelled the World, trained as a yoga teacher and bought land and started a project / community here in central Portugal. I felt stronger both mentally and physically than I ever had in my whole entire life.
Life, your body, the World is not against you, it’s here guiding you, redirecting you and doing it’s best to give you the best and most fulfilling life yet.
If I had slipped back into old habits and beliefs I could have wallowed in my pain for many months or even years. Not seen this as the opportunity it was for us both to grow
Check out Faith’s books Living a Life Less Toxic, Cleanse – The Holistic Detox Program for Mind, Body & Soul and Loving Yourself Inside & Out on her website.
More info: www.faithcanter.com
Creating a WORLD of Difference
When we stop thinking life is against us we become open to the new opportunities around us, we see our way through, we attract more of what works for us and we stop wasting so much time and energy on what does not. Listen to the whispers and they won’t become your worries! Life isn’t against you, it’s redirecting you to living the greatest life you can.
FaithCanter
FaithMCanter
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How I Stayed Healthy and Happy During the Worst 12 Months of My Life WORDS: Louisa Jewell MAPP (Pictured above) Speaker, Author, Positive Psychology Expert and Founder & Past-President of the Canadian Positive Psychology Association
On October 1, 2014 my husband walked out on me. We weren’t fighting, no one was unfaithful, we still loved each other (and still do) … he just wasn’t happy in our marriage. I teach happiness so I understand when someone wants to pursue their own happiness. I was devastated but I understood. I was overwhelmed with sadness but I was not angry. Mine was an amicable split. And, in a way, I think both my ex and I chose to end it that way. We CHOSE to be amicable. We swore we would not get lawyers involved or yell at each other over this. We CHOSE to be nice. And while that helped ease the devastating nature of divorce it did not help relieve the incredible sadness I felt for the loss of my husband, for the loss my children were feeling and
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for the loss of our life together. I felt so alone. I felt a tremendous hole in my life – like a limb was missing. I felt like my whole future had been erased.
only to have her bring it back a few minutes later. Every time I went to visit I watched her die a little bit more. For months I was visiting her every day. Every day she refused to eat. She didn’t want to stay any longer. On August 10, 2015, she passed away peacefully. I remember seeing her in the casket. She looked so beautiful, just like she was sleeping. Once again, the sadness was overwhelming. Both my father and mother were now gone.
A few weeks after that, my mother, who was 87 and living in a nursing home, decided that she didn’t want to eat anymore. I tried making her favourite food and fed it to her,
Then, on September 26, 2015, my father-in-law – the man who was like a father to me – died suddenly. He had been suffering with Parkinson’s disease but he was comfortable and
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we weren’t expecting it that day. Having to relive the funeral arrangements again and this sadness on top of the sadness I was already feeling was too much to bear. At this time, I was so tremendously grateful for the resilience training I had. You see, I study the science of psychological well-being and I teach it to audiences around the world. So I knew what I had to do to stay healthy and happy at this very difficult time. I was overwhelmed with grief and sadness and I wondered how people without my training get through times like this? How is it possible? I think of times like this as the ‘Olympics’ of our lives. The most challenging thing we could imagine. And I can’t imagine going to the Olympics without training first. With all the training I had, I was ready to go to the Olympics and succeeded at not falling into a depression or needing to resort to medication to get me through this (Not that there is anything wrong with that if you need it). I also didn’t binge drink or eat to fill the void. I did the opposite in fact. I ate better than ever and went to hot yoga every day. I knew that taking care of my body would be the best thing I could do for my mental wellbeing. The research really does support the idea ‘healthy body, healthy mind’. I turned to gratitude. When a door closes in our lives we often sit for so long at that closed door, angry, filled with resentment, banging on that door, wishing it would open. And yet it stays solidly shut. We forget that we have a whole life going on - if we only had the mental energy to turn our attention to all the other good things still in our lives. I decided every morning I would wake up and make a list in my mind of what I was grateful for. Good health, family, friends, living in a great city … the list goes on forever. Gratitude was my greatest resilience tool and still is to this day. You cannot be unhappy when you are
Creating a WORLD of Difference
appreciating everything around you. And there is always, always, always something to be grateful for. I also reached out to my friends. Every day. When my husband walked out, my girlfriends came to my rescue. Every day they texted, took me out, dropped by my house with food, uplifted me with kind words, took me dancing … you name it, they did it. On October 1, 2015 I
decided to invite all the girlfriends who were involved in my healing to a special thank you dinner. There were 22 women around the table. I told each one of them how they contributed to my healing. I told them all how grateful I was for their friendship. To this day, aside from my daughters, my girlfriends are the greatest gifts of my life. I was also a good friend to myself. What I mean is, I was self-compassionate. With so much going on, it would be easy to beat myself up and say negative things to myself. I wasn’t going to go there. Never once did I utter an unkind word to myself. Come hell or high water, I was going to treat myself like my best friend would treat me. With love, friendship and kindness. And that made all the difference.
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Psychology in the Middle East (and Beyond) Strengthening a Sense of Identity and Regional Pride
WORDS: Dr. Louise Lambert, PhD Editor, Middle East Journal of Positive Psychology, UAE, and Dr. Nausheen Pasha-Zaidi, Professor, Houston Community College, Texas
As part of our aim to boost regional wellbeing in the Middle East/North African (MENA) region, we recently completed two important projects with respect to psychology. Our first regional textbook, “Introduction to Psychology for the Middle East (and Beyond)” was published by Cambridge Scholars in September 2018, while our second project “An Introduction to Positive Psychology for the Middle East (and Beyond)” will be published in the next few months by Springer. Our Introduction to Psychology textbook was designed for the university student currently studying in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) area of the MENA region, which includes Kuwait, United Arab Emirates, Oman, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Bahrain. In these nations, host to millions of international students, English is increasingly used as the language of instruction. Our textbook was promoted to meet their literacy needs, as well as cultural and religious identities as many of the current books are imported from the West and feature photos of individuals who bear no resemblance to the students in the region. Everyone deserves to see their own lives reflected in psychology – or what use is it otherwise? We therefore took it upon ourselves to gather over 50 regional contributors, students included, to rewrite an introductory textbook that reflected their lives.
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The text includes many of the standard psychological theories found everywhere, but it also reflects topics like Islamic feminism, sleep during Ramadan, the effects of smoking sheesha on health, Arab parenting styles, Islamic psychological models, the role of early Muslim scholars investigating human nature, Islamic views on death, the effects of war and civil strife, psychosomatic issues and mental health presentation in Muslim communities, as well as the state of psychology in the region overall. We included photos of Arab cities and local students doing activities they would recognise. We also highlighted as much regional research as possible helping to show students that careers in psychology research are possible, but more importantly, that their view of the world is “normal” and worth investigating. Students
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are happier taking the course with this new textbook; they feel they understand themselves better and enjoy seeing visuals reflecting their own region of the world. We hope that this will go a long way in strengthening a sense of identity and regional pride. We are also excited to see our second book hit the bookstores! This one focuses on positive psychology and includes the work of regional researchers in various wellbeing domains, such as positive education, positive clinical psychology, positive organisational psychology, and positive health, as well as extant fields such as policy development, the built environment, and commercial life. Other chapters include a review of Islamic conceptualisations of wellbeing, the development of a positive Islamic identity, the application of wellbeing to big data, and a historical review of wellbeing across the region. We are especially proud of this book as it can be used as a university textbook, but also as a primer for researchers, policy makers, administrators, and members of civil society who are perhaps not yet familiar with the science or the massive institutional and government efforts towards wellbeing that are currently being expressed in education, organisations and policy initiatives in the MENA region.
Spearheaded by the UAE government, the wellbeing movement has also spread to other GCC countries, including Saudi Arabia, where developments are currently underway in the first positive psychology laboratory and research centre, and Kuwait, which has implemented progressive positive educational developments across all national schools and university. We were pleased to take the lead in laying the foundation for scientific direction of this movement by proposing, exploring, discussing and debating many topics in the field as they apply to the MENA region. The text is well-researched and of interest to anyone who is interested in the development of an indigenous positive psychology not only in the Middle East, but beyond.
Creating a WORLD of Difference
Dr Louise Lambert, PhD, teaches Psychology at the United Arab Emirates University in Al Ain, UAE, and was also formerly Associate Professor at the Canadian University Dubai, UAE. She is a Canadian Registered Psychologist with over 15 years of counselling practise in the non-profit, mental health and primary healthcare sectors. She has lived in the UAE for 10 years and is working with the United Arab Emirates University’s (UAEU) Emirates Centre for Happiness Research. She is also Editor-in-Chief and founder of the Middle East Journal of Positive Psychology. A published researcher in happiness research, she works to teach individuals, and in particular university students, how to increase their wellbeing through her Happiness 101 series. Dr. Nausheen Pasha-Zaidi, teaches psychology at Houston Community College and the University of Houston-Downtown. She is an international educator with over 20 years’ experience focusing on English language development and cultural studies. Dr. Nina spent almost eight years living and working in the United Arab Emirates and continues to conduct research in the region. She is the lead editor of Mirror on the Veil: a Collection of Personal Narratives on Hijab and Veiling, which utilised participatory research to showcase the diverse experiences of people around the world. She is an advocate of indigenising psychology to better reflect the voices of those who have been traditionally marginalised in mainstream academic discourse. Her recent work focuses on better understanding the facets of resilience among international and non-traditional university students.
More info: www.cambridgescholars.com/anintroduction-to-psychology-forthe-middle-east-and-beyond
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BOOKS
Book Review
Great Reads for our theme of Gratitude and Appreciation
The 5 Languages of Appreciation in the Workplace Author: Gary Chapman and Paul White Publisher: First published by Moody Press in Sept 2012 – Updated in 2019
Is appreciation communicated regularly at your workplace? Do you truly feel valued by those with whom you work? If you express appreciation in ways that aren't meaningful to your co-workers, they may not feel valued at all. The problem is you're speaking different languages. In The 5 Languages of Appreciation in the Workplace, Dr. Gary Chapman and Dr. Paul White will help you: • Express genuine appreciation to co-workers and staff even on a tight budget. • Increase loyalty with the employees and volunteers in your organisation. • Reduce cynicism and create a more positive work environment. • Improve your ability to show appreciation for difficult colleagues. • Individualise your expressions of appreciation by speaking the right language • Convey the language of physical touch in appropriate ways. Based on the #1 New York Times bestseller, The 5 Love Languages, Drs. Chapman and White give you practical steps to make any workplace environment more encouraging and productive. Before you know it, you will learn to speak and understand the unique languages of appreciation and feel truly valued in return. What They Said – 2019 Endorsements
“The 5 Languages of Appreciation in the Workplace has helped change the way managers around the world think about appreciation in the workplace. New research on the positive benefits to organisations when employees feel valued and appreciated for their contributions, generational differences, the special needs of remote employees, and peerto-peer appreciation, are welcomed additions to a book that has already become a management classic.” ~ Peter Hart, President & CEO, Rideau, Inc. and Director, Advisory Board, Wharton Centre for Human Resources, University of Pennsylvania “There is a continual cry for authenticity in our workplaces and communities. This updated version of The 5 Languages of Appreciation in the Workplace brings a deeper understanding 90
of HOW to be authentic in expressing individual value in a variety of circumstances.” ~ Dan Agne, Owner and Principal Consultant, The Agne Group, Director of Sales Effectiveness, The Brooks Group, and Associate Pastor, Open Bible Christian Church, Dayton, Ohio “…White and Chapman have done an exceptional job of mixing statistics with stories and infusing research into relevancy. They give readers a nuanced approach to appreciating others at work that will enhance leaders’ and colleagues’ appreciation-literacy skills in being able to draw out the best in others at work (and home).” ~ David Zinger, Founder, The Global Employee Experience & Engagement Network and Co-author, People Artists: Drawing Out the Best in Others at Work “Appreciation isn’t just a manager issue; it is a co-worker issue. It is an employee appreciating their leader issue, and a vendor to employee issue, the list goes on and on. In The 5 Languages of Appreciation in the Workplace, Drs. Chapman and White give us the vision to create a culture with everyone valuing and appreciating one another no matter the role they have in the organisation.” ~Tiffany Snipes, PHR, SHRMCP, Learning & Development Consultant, BJC Institute for Learning and Development About the Authors
Gary Demonte Chapman is the author of The Five Love Languages series. He is also the senior associate pastor at Calvary Baptist Church in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Dr. Paul White is a psychologist, author, speaker, and consultant who “makes work relationships work”.
BOOKS
Appreciate – Celebrating People, Inspiring Greatness
Authors: David Sturt, Todd Nordstrom, Kevin Ames, Gary Beckstrand Publisher: O.C. Tanner Institute (14 August 2017) What They Said
“We live in an increasingly low-trust world. For too many, morale is suffering, engagement is dismal, and inspiration is lacking. Appreciate shows leaders how to counteract this by intentionally building powerful, authentic, high-trust relationships with their teams.” ~Stephen M.R. Covey, New York Times best-selling author of The Speed of Trust and co-author of Smart Trust “The most important role a leader plays is his or her ability to inspire and energise the team. In today's results-oriented business climate, appreciation and support are one of the most powerful tools we have to keep people charging ahead to learn, grow, and meet business demands.” ~Josh Bersin, Principal and Founder, Bersin by Deloitte “As an organisation, we know from first-hand experience that recognition is a key driver of engagement. It inspires our employees to give their best at work every day, and this book provides a clear and concise plan that any company can use to build a fantastic culture of appreciation.” ~Carolyn Clark, Senior Vice President, Talent & Culture, North & Central America Accor Hotels “In a business world awash with leadership models, competencies, tools and advice, Appreciate stands out. It humanises leadership theory by touching the core of what matters most to people in their personal and working lives – the need for validation of their self-worth, to be valued.” ~Deirdre Lander, Director Data, Surveys and Technology, Willis Towers Watson Hong Kong “As a student of servant leadership, Appreciate is a must read for all that truly want to lead and build great teams.” ~Bill Fields, Shop Keeper, Chairman at Fields Texas Limited Inc., and Former CEO of Walmart Stores Division “This book supports the fundamental truth about work: employee satisfaction is directly linked to customer satisfaction and profitability. A must read for business leaders at all levels.” ~Arte Nathan, President, Strategic Development Worldwide, former CHRO of Wynn Resorts
Creating a WORLD of Difference
Gratitude – A Way of Life
Author: Louise L. Hay and Friends Publisher: Hay House UK (Paperback 27 August 2004)
In this book, Louise has gathered together the insights and wisdom of some of the most inspirational teachers and authors she knows, people who have demonstrated the power of gratitude in their own lives. Renowned contributors include Wayne Dyer, Bernie Siegel, Doreen Virtue, Shakti Gawain, Alan Cohen and Dan Millman. All profits from this book benefit Louise's non-profit organisation, The Hay Foundation, which diligently works to improve the quality of life for many people, including AIDS sufferers and victims of domestic abuse. What She Said
“I have noticed that the Universe loves gratitude. The more grateful you are, the more goodies you get. When I say ‘goodies’, I don’t mean only material things. I mean all the people, places and experiences that make life so wonderfully worth living. You know how great you feel when your life is filled with love and joy and health and creativity, and you get the green lights and the parking spaces. This is how our lives are meant to be lived. The Universe is a generous, abundant giver and it lives to be appreciated.” ~Louise L. Hay. What They Said
“Her teachings of positive thinking and powerful lifeenhancing affirmations have helped millions of people to improve their lives and has made her a legend in her own lifetime.” ~Kindred Spirit Magazine
About the Author
Louise L. Hay was a lecturer and teacher, founder of Hay House Publishing and the bestselling author of 27 books. Her books have been translated into 25 different languages and are available in 33 countries worldwide. Since beginning her career as a Science of Mind minister in 1981, she assisted thousands of people in discovering and using the full potential of their own creative powers for personal growth and self-healing. 91
WELLBEING BUSINESS DIRECTORY
WellBeing Directory You will find more WellBeing practitioners at www.wellbeingworld.je We print 5,000 copies and achieve +20,000 impressions online, per edition. If you’d like to advertise in the next WellBeing Directory or in WellBeing World magazine, please contact us for a rate card at info@wellbeingworld.je 92
WELLBEING BUSINESS DIRECTORY WELCOME
AYUSH WELLNESS SPA
Awarded ‘Best Spa in the South West UK & Channel Islands’ by the Good Spa Guide, Ayush Wellness Spa offers a combination of authentic Ayurvedic therapies and luxurious spa treatments. An Ayurvedic physician works with Indian and Western therapists to provide consultations and treatments and share with you the teachings of this timeless tradition enabling you to develop practices that will help restore and maintain mind and body. The concept is authentic in an environment that advocates a healthy lifestyle, enriching both physical and emotional wellbeing. W: www.defrance.co.uk T: +44 (0) 1534 614 171 Hotel de France, St. Saviour’s Road, St Helier
ENERGETIX at UP AND ABOVE
Energetix combines sophisticated exclusive jewellery with the power of magnets. People wear the jewellery because they are fascinated by its radiance and want to have the power of magnets in their immediate vicinity all the time. All the jewellery and accessories have the same purpose, to give us moments of wellbeing in our daily life and each of these moments tells us we are on the right track. Designs for women, men, children and a great sports look. T: +44 (0) 1534 758 808 Up and Above, 50 Don Street, St Helier Order online at www.upandabovejersey.energetix.tv
Creating a WORLD of Difference
CLUB SOULGENIC
Jersey's first fully integrated fitness and wellness centre. Set in an impressive space over three floors, it provides a range of products and services incorporating fitness, nutrition, general health and mind body. The club includes collaborations with the island’s foremost wellness professionals, providing a community that motivates and rewards members on their journey to optimum health and wellbeing. Club Soulgenic. So much more than a gym.
W: www.clubsoulgenic.co.uk E: info@clubsoulgenic.co.uk T: +44 (0) 1534 733 080
GRAND JERSEY HOTEL & SPA
A subterranean haven, The Spa at Grand Jersey Hotel & Spa offers a wealth of amenities. Stretch out in the pool; lay back in the sauna; release your cares with an aromatherapy steam, or under the cascade of an exotic adventure shower. Then revel in your solitude in the comfort of the exquisite relaxation lounge, where you can sample fruit and herbal teas. The Spa offers the ultimate cocooned experience, with a range of VIP, twin and single treatment rooms, indoor heated pool and bespoke treatments from Elemis to ensure quality and results. W: www.handpickedhotels.co.uk/grandjersey E: spa.grandjersey@handpicked.co.uk T: +44 (0) 1534 288 450 Esplanade, St Helier, Jersey
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WELLBEING BUSINESS DIRECTORY
HEALTH POINT CLINIC
Lorna Jackson Acupuncture 1st BSc (Hons), MBAcC, AFN. Traditional acupuncture is more than pain management, treating headaches or back pain, it is uniquely suited to modern life as physical, emotional and mental blocks are seen as interdependent. Acupuncture is safe, gentle and it can be used by everyone, including babies, during pregnancy, sports enthusiasts and the elderly. Lorna operates from her clinics in The Lido Medical Centre and Greencliff Chiropractic Clinic. Most private health insurers cover acupuncture treatment. Please check before treatment.
W: www.healthpointclinic.co.uk E: lornajackson@healthpointclinic.co.uk T: +44 (0) 1534 852 039 (Greencliff Chiropractic) T: +44 (0) 1534 859 348 (Lido Medical Centre)
HEALTHHAUS
Healthhaus have created a community where the focus is on supporting members with a healthy, happy and sustainable approach to fitness and wellbeing. The award winning Milon Circuit uses your personalised programme to give simple, safe and results driven workouts in just 35 minutes, leaving plenty of time for a dip in the luxurious Ayush Wellness Spa. Why not contact the membership team to arrange a tour of the club and to find out how Milon training can be incorporated seamlessly into your day. They look forward to taking your fitness personally. W: www.healthhaus.co.uk E: membership@healthhaus.co.uk T: +44 (0)1534 614 800
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HEALTH QUEST
Health Quest offers a range of services. Come and relax with a gentle yet powerful Reconnective Healing session, enjoy some soothing Reiki or perhaps a series of confidential Health Coaching sessions. Hannah also offers Bio Feedback sessions using the QEST4 technology to speed up recovery from chronic illness and to bring your body back to a natural balance.
E: hannah@healthquest.co.za T: +44 (0) 7829 720 294
HELEN PAPWORTH THE AURORA LIFESTYLE
The Aurora Lifestyle is a place to not only relieve stress and improve movement, but give motivation and to inspire you on your journey to a healthier lifestyle. We help you to change your mindset through the physical, mental and emotional activities of Pilates, Sports and Indian Head Massage, and Sports Specific Equipilates (fitness for horse riders). Seeing people’s lives change in front of our eyes makes us proud and happy that we were and are a part of their journey. W: www.theauroralifestyle.co.uk E: helen@theauroralifestyle.co.uk T: +44 (0) 7797 771 846 Above Blades - Halkett Place
WellBeing World brings together more than 160 categories of health and wellbeing, with a quick and easy online search for the practitioner, supplier or retailer to suit your needs. Check us out, now!
www.wellbeingworld.je
WELLBEING BUSINESS DIRECTORY
HOTEL DE FRANCE
A 126 bedroom four star Hotel conveniently located just outside of St.Helier. Dine in the informal brasserie style Garden View Restaurant overlooking award winning gardens or at the fine dining ‘Saffrons’ Restaurant, renowned for local produce prepared with healthy Indian spices.
HUMAN HEALTH
The Ayush Wellness Spa at the Hotel offers swimming pools, sauna, steam room, treatment rooms and an extensive fitness centre. Parking and Wi-Fi are free. A friendly but professional welcome is assured.
Fuelled with passion, experience and a vision for health and vitality, Human Health Chiropractic offers expertise in chiropractic, massage and lifestyle advice facilitating rapid change and transformation within the human body. Using thorough analysis, specific correction and our unique knowledge, we tailor health care dedicated to enable you to fully experience your body’s potential. Allow us to introduce you to your “neuro spinal organ” - Your only gateway between brain to body and its true importance for your health and life.
St Saviour’s Road, St Helier, Jersey JE1 7XP W: www.defrance.co.uk E: general@defrance.co.uk T: +44 (0) 1534 614 000
1st Floor, St Peters Medical Centre, Coop Grand Marche W: www.humanhealthcentre.com E: hi@humanhealthcentre.com T: +44 (0) 1534 747 833
JERSEY INTERNATIONAL MINDFULNESS CENTRE
The only Mindfulness centre in Jersey to actively develop, research, publish and implement its findings, the team at Jersey International Mindfulness Centre ( JsyIMC) is passionate about providing a superior customer experience and tremendous value for their customers. They provide tailored mindfulness courses, taster workshops and consultation at all levels, including: performance, sports, the challenge of exams, emotional intelligence, stress and health conditions management, corporate wellbeing, with formal psychometric measurement. W: www.jsyimc.co.uk E: mindfulness@jsyimc.co.uk T: +44 (0) 1534 852 953
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L’HORIZON BEACH HOTEL & SPA
Nestled by the sea, the views are just the beginning. Step inside and let your journey of indulgence begin. The new L’Horizon Spa has been designed to offer a world of pampering whether you are visiting for a wedding, a girls’ weekend away or a break with a loved one. Enjoy a special day reviving mind and body, select an Elemis treatment, reinvigorate tired limbs with a dip in the sea-view swimming pool or simply drift away in the sleep room. Feel your cares wash away, just as the ocean washes over the golden sands of St Brelade’s Bay. W: www.handpicked.co.uk/lhorizon E: lhorizon@handpicked.co.uk T: +44 (0) 1534 743 101 La Route de la Baie, St Brelade, Jersey JE3 8EF
WELLBEING BUSINESS DIRECTORY WELCOME
MICHAEL CANAS
PREMIER BIOFEEDBACK
BSc (Hons), MPhil.
Michael is a personal trainer and performance coach. As a level 4 Master trainer with further qualifications in nutrition, physiology, anatomy and strength & conditioning, Michael offers a wide range of services catering to novices through to competitive athletes. Areas of specialisation include fat loss, health mentoring, hypertrophy, flexibility training, and diet plans. Michael also provides an online coaching platform. He is a qualified Hatha Yoga instructor, and teaches MMA, Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and Self-Defence.
E: mike.canas@gmail.com T: +44 (0) 7829 874 998
SHALBECK LIFE CENTRE
Reach your potential: enhance all learning, achieve higher grades, improve memory and study skills. Health issues addressed: relieve emotional trauma, sensory sensitivities, inflammation and discomfort. How? Neuro-Developmental and Sound Therapy, Raindrop (Aromatherapy) Massage, Health Kinesiology, Acupressure, Reflexology, Counselling and Peaceful Living Workshops. WBW Reader Offer: 10% Discount on 1st Session. Town clinic or Facetime/Skype Appointments. W: www.shalbecklifecentre.com E: claire@shalbeckcentre.com T: +44 (0) 7797 714 758 Claire T:+44 (0) 7829 856 976 Juanita 25 Pier Road, St Helier, JSY. Also monthly at Avenue Clinic, GSY
Creating a WORLD of Difference
Want to perform better? Biofeedback (also called Neurofeedback) is used today by professional athletes, directors, artists, mediators, and world-leading organisations, such as NASA and US elite forces, to take their performance to higher levels. A drug free therapy, Biofeedback Therapy treats conditions like anxiety, depression, ADD, ADHD, Autism, Recovery after Head Injuries, Learning Disabilities, as well as helps to improve concentration and attention for people who want to improve performance and achieve higher targets at work. W: www.premierbiofeedback.co.uk E: info@premierbiofeedback.co.uk T: +44 (0) 7797 773 267
SILKWORTH CHARITY GROUP
We provide hope for those that suffer with drug and/ or alcohol addiction, together with support for families and significant others. Our services are available to anyone in our local community, through statutory or personal referral, regardless of an individual’s ability to pay or not. These include; Residential Treatment Programme, Family Programme, Recovery Day Programme, Secondary Care Programme, Children’s ( 7 to 12 year old ) Programme, Workplace Education Programme, and our Schools Programme. W: www.silkworthlodge.co.uk E: info@silkworthlodge.co.uk T: +44 (0) 1534 729 060
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SOUL HEALING
Help yourself to see blessings in past experiences, beauty in the present and an inspiring future. Are you stuck in an unsatisfactory job or relationship? Is stress taking the best of you? Lost touch with yourself? Struggling with your mental wellbeing? Searching for authenticity? Maybe you don't know how to let go? Have you suffered events so bruising that you don't know how to assimilate them? You can change it with Soul Healing. Confidential, experienced and effective counselling and Emotion and Body Code healing. Service available for adults, couples, families and children. In English and Polish language. W: www.soulhealingjersey.co.uk E: soul.healing@icloud.com T: +44 (0) 7797 781 210
THE DIAMOND BODY PILATES STUDIO
Marilyn has a unique approach to teaching through her study of the Franklin Methode in Switzerland. The Franklin Methode was a three year study of anatomy in breathing and movement and with this knowledge she teaches Pilates on equipment designed by Joseph Pilates at her studio at Fort Regent. All classes and personal training is by appointment only. Suitable for both men and women regardless of age or ability. E: mwardpilates@gmail.com T: +44 (0) 1534 724 771 or Mobile +44 (0) 7797 717 803
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SYTHESIS
Synthesis hosts discovery for change within an Evolutionary Leadership framework. In a safe, supportive holding environment unpack, understand and integrate the whole of yourself. Become selfempowered by stepping onto your personal journey. Take a 360 degree look at yourself inside out and outside in. See what hinders and helps you. Get in touch with your body, thoughts, emotions and energy field. Find innovative solutions to problems providing stepping stones toward transformation. Synthesis provides all this through programmes of Personal & Corporate Coaching, Yoga, Meditation and Energy work. W: www.synthesis-therapies.co.uk E: sarah.howard@synthesis-therapies.co.uk T: +44 (0) 7797 778 965
WELLSTEPS JERSEY
Michelle Wedgbury is a certified health coach (ICF accredited*), and adult mental health first aider. She holds a certificate in Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) and is currently completing the life coaching part of her studies. She has trained and volunteered as a Samaritan and currently works with clients from a local charity who have suffered life changing illnesses. Michelle’s services include one to one coaching sessions, pop up wellness clinics and lunch and learns. Contact Michelle for a free discovery session. *International Coaching Federation E: wellstepsjersey@gmail.com T: +44 (0) 44 1534 482 638
SO UTH CO A ST H C A Y L T L I E R N GE A H C Sponsored walk from La Rocque to Corbiere Sunday 19th May 2019 Help raise funds and awareness for people with a learning disability in Jersey REGISTER ONLINE: WWW.JERSEYMENCAP.ORG OR CALL 866622