9th August 2024 Connection

Dear Readers:

I hope you enjoyed last months’ edition on Mindset. If you haven’t read it yet, you can find the web version here.

This month, we are exploring the subject of ‘connection’:

✨✨Enter our COMPETITION to win a ticket to a Social Wellness Club event - all you have to do is follow SWC on Instagram and complete this form. Good luck! ✨✨

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Katherine

A special thanks to DMH Stallard LLP for supporting us.

Connection

Connection at Work - the importance of connection and how to fully connect whilst also embracing hybrid working.

The Social Wellness Club - we meet co-founder, Marius, and learn what SWC has to offer.

The Workplace Belonging Toolkit - an actionable guide to create a culture of belonging and human connection at work.

The Neuroscience of Trust - 8 management behaviours that are proven to generate trust.

Connection at Work

Although we may be surrounded by people, we must take active steps to ensure that we are meeting the deep need we have for social connection.

Sally explains how, “feeling seen, heard and understood by other people is critical to our wellbeing”. Relationships are built upon respect and trust and Sally talks through how this translates in the workplace, and how we can maintain quality relationships whilst hybrid working:

Sally Clarke

Sally is a wellbeing and burnout author, speaker, researcher and coach; helping people prevent burnout and embed wellbeing at work.

She prides herself on her passion for “helping people experience authentic, sustainably and healthy work lives”.

Sally co-hosts the podcast We Are Human Leaders Podcast. We really enjoyed the podcast aired on 17th June entitled, ‘You Belong Here: The Journey of Becoming Yourself, Everywhere” with Kim Dabbs.

Sally wrote the books:

• Protect Your Spark: How to Prevent Burnout and Live Authentically; and

• Relight Your Spark: How to Heal and Evolve After Burnout.

Find Sally Clarke on LinkedIn, or at via her website.

The Social Wellness Club

“Join us and experience a new way of socialising and living.”

If you haven’t come across The Social Wellness Club yet, well, you’re in for a treat! The video below will give you an overview of everything SWC has to offer and give you an insight into what the events and meet-ups look like. You can:

• Attend flagship events

• Enjoy sober socials

• Take a pop-up training session in the park

• Go for a weekend walk & talk

• Catch up at morning coffee meetups

• Connect with like-minded people in the WhatsApp community

Check out SWC’s Instagram:

There is no subscription or joining fee for joining SWC. Events start from £10, and costs are deliberately kept low to ensure that events are as accessible as possible.

At SWC you can enhance your wellbeing and connect with like-minded people.

The majority of events are held in London, but you can be part of the club wherever you are based globally as flagship events are now recorded and available online, and then you can be a part of the WhatsApp community and receive newsletters too.

Social Wellness Club stands for community, healthier living, knowledge building, and curious thinking.

SWC is entering the corporate space and looking to disrupt the current model. SWC will be working with companies to provide wellness programmes with long lasting benefits. The programmes will be linked to the community, allowing participants access to SWC events.

Every event is centred around one of four pillars of wellness: nutrition, sleep, mindfulness, and movement. Some upcoming events include:

Pilates in the Park - 17th August (London)

Mind and Muscle Pop-Up - 24th August (London)

Nutrition for Optimal Health - 10th September (London)

Run With Us Ultra X 50 - 15th September (Peak District)

✨✨Enter our COMPETITION to win a ticket to a Social Wellness Club event - all you have to do is follow SWC on Instagram and complete this form. The closing date of the competition is 19th August and the winner will be notified by SWC via Instagram and by YOOMUSE via email on Monday 19th August. Good luck! ✨✨

Connect with Marius (co-founder) on LinkedIn and find out everything you wish to know on the SWC website.

The Workplace Belonging Toolkit

Would you like a guide to create a culture of belonging and human connection at work? You’ve come to the right place!

This easy-to-read guide is designed to be as actionable as possible:

• Reflection prompts are meant for individual reflection.

• Exercises are meant to be practised with your colleagues or team.

• Case studies are examples of organisations putting these principles into action.

• Stories are meant to inspire.

The 76-page guide is both insightful and informative. You can download your own free digital copy here:

Adam (Smiley) Poswolsky

Smiley shares industry-shaping insights and practical tools to attract and retain top talent across generations, create a culture of belonging, and engage high-performing teams. Smiley says “I believe creating a culture of belonging contributes to a happier, healthier, more inclusive, and more resilient society.” 

Connect with Smiley on Linkedin, or visit his website.

The Neuroscience of Trust

Is it possible to build a happier, more loyal and more productive workforce by creating a culture of trust? Yes it is, according to Paul J Zak*.

The relationship between TRUST and EMPLOYEE ENGAGEMENT.

Through his research on the brain chemical oxytocin, Zak has developed a framework for creating a culture of trust and building a happier, more loyal, and more productive workforce.

By measuring people’s oxytocin levels, in response to various situations, Zak identified key management behaviours that stimulate oxytocin production and generate trust:

1. Recognise excellence;

2. Induce “challenge stress”;

3. Give people discretion in how they do their work;

4. Enable job crafting;

5. Share information broadly;

6. Intentionally build relationships;

7. Facilitate whole-person growth; and

8. Show vulnerability.

Ultimately, Zak concludes that managers can cultivate trust by setting a clear direction, giving people what they need to see it through, and then getting out of their way. In short, to boost engagement, treat people like responsible adults.

Experiments show that having a higher sense of purpose stimulates oxytocin production, as does trust.

The article, in The Harvard Business Review - https://hbr.org/2017/01/the-neuroscience-of-trust - describes the fascinating studies undertaken to reach his conclusion, and delves deeper into the 8 management behaviours listed above.

Here are some stats - also taken from the article:

Compared with people at low-trust companies, people at high-trust companies report:

• 74% less stress

• 106% more energy at work

• 50% higher productivity

• 13% fewer sick days

• 76% more engagement

• 29% more satisfaction with their lives

• 40% less burnout

Having a strong connection with one’s work and colleagues, feeling like a real contributor, and enjoying ample chances to learn - consistently leads to positive outcomes for both individuals and organisations. The rewards include higher productivity and better quality products. Employees suffer less chronic stress and are happier with their lives.

*Paul J Zak is the founding director of the Center for Neuroeconomics Studies and a professor of economics, psychology, and management at Claremont Graduate University, and the CEO of Immersion Neuroscience. He is the author of Trust Factor: The Science of Creating High Performance Companies.

Here’s a thought….

If we worked on overcoming our social anxieties, what difference could this make to the way we connect with others; at work and in our personal lives?

Did you know that most of us deal with some form of social anxiety to some degree and the remaining 1% of the population who have no social anxieties are, according to Hendriksen, psychopaths (‘How to be Yourself’, by Ellen Hendriksen Ph.D.),. So there we are, we are not alone and the good news is….

…It is possible to deal with the fear of being judged; to re-wire our brains and overcome our troublesome inner critics. Here are a couple of books to try - with Daring Greatly being a personal favourite of ours:

Our Mission

At YOOMUSE we believe that mental and physical health are closely linked, and this plays a huge part in our professional and personal lives. We are passionate about empowering individuals to take control of their health and wellbeing, and believe that the work environment and culture can embrace this notion and benefit massively as a result.

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