I recently had the privilege of attending the Southern Cross BeingWell conference on behalf of OneStaff and I learnt a few things – including the fact that Miriama Kamo is as gorgeous in real life as she is on TV!
There were several exceptional speakers whose presentations gave me more than just food for thought; they gave me a whole banquet to feast on! There is so much I could share with you but the first speaker (and the one that I most want to be when I grow up) was Michael Henderson, who is a Corporate Anthropologist – not to be confused with an Archaeologist (Ross Gellar from friends anyone?). An Anthropologist studies being human in groups, organisations, families and tribes. Cool aye? Huge, but cool.
I could have listened to Michael for hours and my complimentary notepad was quickly filled with scrawls of inspiration that I keep going back and rereading. I wanted to share my interpretation of some of his messages. I know I won’t do him the justice he deserves, but hopefully, there is something here that will resonate with you and give you a nibble to awaken your craving.
A Culture of Wellbeing
Organisations often try too hard to “set” a culture, and at times we oversimplify it. Culture is complex. Its literal meaning is “the ideas, customs and social behaviour of a particular people or society”. It’s not simply a matter of management saying what you want your culture to be and then asking people to buy into it. We need to think about:
- What we care about
- How much we care about what we care about
- How we prove we care about it
Our culture becomes who we are. It’s not tangible and can’t be measured, it’s about what’s being practised and what’s being meant. It is us, and we need to live it. Think of culture as a verb – a happening. It needs to start fresh every day and not become frozen.
To allow a culture of wellbeing to manifest, as a leader, you need to ensure you have an environment in which people feel safe to communicate; to you and to each other. You need to have an environment of care and genuineness. You must be able to participate in the culture but then step out and question – how much care was shown? Have any parts of our culture become frozen? Am I living our culture with earnest? Am I contributing positively to this, or am I sitting on the benches not taking part but expecting results?
Choosing a New Thought
Michael also spoke about the three principals of wellbeing. This was complex and there is no way I could turn my pages of notes into a summary you’d understand, so I just wanted to highlight one amazing quote he gave us:
“You are only ever one thought away from better” – Sydney Banks
I had to think about that, and initially, I thought he meant literally coming up with ideas to make yourself better. Then he elaborated and hence, another “Aha!” moment. The one thing we have total control over, that no-one else can touch, is our thoughts. We get to choose our thoughts! Aha, is right!
Feeling sad? Choose a new thought.
Feeling angry? Choose a new thought.
Feeling anxious? Choose a new thought.
And the coolest thing about this is that I got to share it with my daughter this week. She was having a rough time and was struggling to move past it. We talked about choosing a new thought. She did and it worked! So simple really, it’s hard to think it’s taken me 40 years to get it! I concur, Mr Banks, we are indeed only ever one thought away from better.
Mind + Thought + Consciousness = Reality
Mind + New Thought + New Consciousness = NEW REALITY
If you look at things this way, you’ll realise there aren’t really problems, only perspective. Is it a problem, or an opportunity? Oh, how I could go on and literally type for hours, but I have work to do, I have a culture to live in and I have new and better thoughts to think up.
If you get the chance to come along to the next BeingWell conference, you definitely should. The “Aha!” is totally worth it.
How have you been prioritising wellbeing in your company culture, or in your own life? I’d love to hear your thoughts.
