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Why You Need a Winter Wellbeing Plan Many people are talking about feeling low, fed up and struggling. That’s why I’m talking this week about why you need a winter wellbeing plan in your organisation, what you can do to get that started AND how you, as an individual, can boost your winter wellbeing and what are they key things to encourage others to do too. Looking at a Winter Wellbeing Plan is important right now, because if we help you to be able to support yourself or to support the people in your organisation then you and your people will feel better.  This has a positive impact on your own performance and well being and the performance of others. I've been working with a number of organisations to successfully deliver virtual trainings on all sorts of Wellbeing at Work topics such as: Working Well at Home Healthy Work Life Boundaries Mental Health Awareness for Managers Mental Health Awareness for Individuals Everything I deliver is very practical because (you'll know if you listen to my podcast) that I am all about making things easy and giving you top tips that you can take away with you. Some feedback that I had recently said I have been to a few webinars and this is the only one I have actual takeaways Emma knew her stuff had a good style and was real and I will take on board many items from her presentation she actually made me feel good and bright! If you'd like more information then get in touch with me about providing this for your organisation.   Working through the pandemic is challenging for many different reasons - and those can differ from person to person - that's why it's important to take time to refresh our routines and look at the winter wellbeing plan. What can employers do to make sure their winter wellbeing plan is effective and fits with the overall strategy? Conduct Employee Surveys and Research I see so many social media posts where people are asking “what can I do to boost engagement / bring some fun / get people together”  My answer every single time ... Ask Them. Surveys are incredibly valuable to help orgs understand what staff want AND what staff are struggling with.  However asking the right questions means you’ll get specific answers and information rather than broad generalised answers. It really is the only way to get information.  It’s also the best way – if you survey regularly to track improvements and monitor the impact of what you’re providing. Talk to me if you want info on surveys. Promote Initiatives Well Whatever it is that you decide to put in place ensure employees know what you’re offering. How are you going to tell people when so many are still working from home ?  The usual poster on the noticeboard isn’t enough.  And people needs to be told more than once- how many times have you read something and had a great intention to do it / look at it – then forgot or got time overtaken by other things?  It’s the same with other people too.   That's why you need to ensure you promote your initiatives really well.   Implement Year-Round Wellbeing Plans People won’t take the time to engage in a fad and a one off thing.  Your winter wellbeing plan and initiatives are an integral part of any wellbeing offering, it is fundamental that wellbeing schemes are run throughout the year rather than just as standalone seasonal promotions - otherwise you won’t get the results you’re hoping for.  I shouldn’t need to tell you this – you know this right? Wellbeing and winter wellbeing needs to be part of your business year round.  Talk to me about creating an entire annual wellbeing plan. How Can You Boost Your Own Winter Wellbeing? There are things we can do for ourselves and each other which really can help.  Think about how are you feeling... Are you taking breaks? Are you sitting for long periods? Are you staying hydrated and eating well? Do you have a good work life balance? Listen in to the podcast where I share what I've noticed in myself and what I'm doing about my winter wellbeing during lockdown. Regulate Your Diet I’m not a dietician but I think we all know we need to eat what’s good for us – so protein keeps you full, balances blood sugar, keeps your head clear and focussed. Reduce the caffeine and sugar  - I said this on a webinar last week about Managing Stress and Anxiety to Improve Performance and someone said about cutting out coffee and how hard it was.  So there's more about this on the podcast but in essence, cut down the intake. Limit the News The news is often a constant source of bad news and limiting the amount of news and social media you read can really help your positivity and mental wellbeing. Stay Connected I’ll be talking about connections in the next episode, and they are hugely important – so find a way to meet someone, go for a walk, I keep saying it’s ok to meet at the supermarket!! Create Coping Strategies Go back to previous podcasts where I talk more about this. Top 3 tips to handle stress Work Life balance Improve mental health. Get Out and About Think about the time of day you get out an about and be active – remember the morning and evenings have no daylight.  This was traditionally the time of year we went to work in the dark and came home in the dark – now we don’t even go out! When working from home it is very easy to sit at your desk all day and not move, however making sure you are staying active is extremely important both for your wellbeing and for your health. If you can get out in daylight – great and it will boost your Vitamin D which is good for mood so that’s a bonus.  If not – try and get out and about anyway doing something. Sleep Not getting enough sleep can affect your physical and your mental health. Establish a bedtime routine to help you relax before you go to bed. Get Support If you find you are struggling, reach out to those around you, whether that be family, friends or something else, please do reach out.   I hope that's been helpful and you can see valid reasons why you need to create a winter wellbeing plan, for yourself and your organisation.  It's vital to improve employee health and motivation, which increases performance and also vital for you as an individual to support better mental health and boost your mood.   Please do make sure you hit ‘subscribe’ so that don’t miss an episode.     If you haven’t yet  left a review, please do go and find the little button to leave a review and let me know your thoughts, key take-aways and what you value from the podcast.   Join my corporate leadership and wellbeing newsletter HERE   If you want to be increasing your performance so that you’re more resilient in these current times, so that you can focus easily, use tools and techniques to deal with all the current and unknown challenges then make sure that you either drop me an email to emma@emmalangton.com .   Or head over to my website and you can find the contact page and either send me a email from there or book an appointment straight into my diary – saving all that to-ing and fro-ing that you get when we try to get space in people’s diary.