Work and wellbeing in the midst of a pandemic - a blog series
Sustainability is all about balancing social, economic and environmental needs, and as sustainability professionals this is an ethos that usually permeates our home lives as well as professional. It is an increasingly mainstreamed way of thinking – which is good, because as well as being the best way to bring about the change in behaviour our planet needs, it also means us crusaders get to stop being ‘the friend that will always glare at you for using an unnecessary straw’ in the pub or the colleague that will helpfully remind you about the SDGs at any given opportunity.
Over the last couple of decades, sustainability in HE and FE has seen a shift, from a primarily environment focus, to a wider understanding of the need for progression in all areas of sustainability. A particularly big change of focus in the last decade has been mental health and well-being, its importance, and how to have a good work (or study)/life balance.
Most of us had this pretty well sussed (with obvious room for continuous improvement) until the pandemic hit. COVID-19 is a devastating virus – with a scale of fatalities not seen for a century outside of war. It has long lasting implications for humanity, but it also has immediate implications under lockdown. How do we maintain our work/life balance during this time while continuing to ensure our own and our families well-being?
We are delving into the lives of members to find out how they manage just this! What challenges have they experienced? What positives have they found? We will share these weekly.
To kick start this – we offer up our own experiences at EAUC. We hope this is useful, and perhaps you find some things you relate to in amongst our experiences. We all have different home lives and slightly different jobs, so it has certainly been interesting to read these from our side!
When the lockdown was announced I wasn't necessarily surprised, especially after seeing numerous reports on how the outbreak had already impacted on so many lives across the world, but yet again, this hasn't stopped the anxiety feelings to kick in and for a short period (fortunately) and impact on my wellbeing. Despite the numerous worries surrounding my own family's situation as front-line workers in a different country, fears to leave my house, avalanche of nearly apocalyptic news reports and the stark uncertainty of what the future will hold, I have decided to come up with some solutions to sustain my wellbeing and use this period as a productivity boost in my personal and professional life.
Working in the sustainability sector, I have always had very flexible working opportunities, having adopted ever since I joined the organisation a blended office/home working pattern. So, working from home entirely hasn't been problematic, as we had lots of tools and plans in place to make the transition to this set up as easy as possible, something I, and many of the other staff, have been very grateful for over the years.
So, after a few weeks of working from home entirely, there are a few key ideas that I have implemented to try and make homeworking as productive as possible while keeping a positive outlook:
1. Daily walks and/or exercise have given me the motivation and improved my overall mental health
2. Keeping in contact with colleagues – we have two daily video calls set up for staff that are optional to attend. It is great to have the chance to communicate with colleagues who otherwise can seem very far away and to regularly hear the voices of people other than my family (not that I don’t love their voices - but a change is always good!)
3. Resurrect old hobbies - Interior design projects have always ranked high on my list of hobbies (some more successful than others) and with more time on my hands, I decided to give new life to some pieces of furniture and even create a couple of not too shabby wall hanging macrame.
As an individual, I don’t deal well with uncertainty, which makes a time when everything is so unsettled quite tricky, but to finish in a cheerful note, this period has also brought a number of positive changes in my life, starting with the lack of commute, therefore a reduction of my carbon footprint, becoming as sustainable as possible by shopping more locally and completing some online courses to help with my professional development which I have been putting off for quite some time.
It also made me realise how grateful I was to work for the EAUC who ensured that we all had the means and abilities to work from home and supporting us through the transition.
Over the last couple of decades, sustainability in HE and FE has seen a shift, from a primarily environment focus, to a wider understanding of the need for progression in all areas of sustainability. A particularly big change of focus in the last decade has been mental health and well-being, its importance, and how to have a good work (or study)/life balance.
Most of us had this pretty well sussed (with obvious room for continuous improvement) until the pandemic hit. COVID-19 is a devastating virus – with a scale of fatalities not seen for a century outside of war. It has long lasting implications for humanity, but it also has immediate implications under lockdown. How do we maintain our work/life balance during this time while continuing to ensure our own and our families well-being?
We are delving into the lives of members to find out how they manage just this! What challenges have they experienced? What positives have they found? We will share these weekly.
To kick start this – we offer up our own experiences at EAUC. We hope this is useful, and perhaps you find some things you relate to in amongst our experiences. We all have different home lives and slightly different jobs, so it has certainly been interesting to read these from our side!
Teodora Axente, Communications Officer, EAUC
When the lockdown was announced I wasn't necessarily surprised, especially after seeing numerous reports on how the outbreak had already impacted on so many lives across the world, but yet again, this hasn't stopped the anxiety feelings to kick in and for a short period (fortunately) and impact on my wellbeing. Despite the numerous worries surrounding my own family's situation as front-line workers in a different country, fears to leave my house, avalanche of nearly apocalyptic news reports and the stark uncertainty of what the future will hold, I have decided to come up with some solutions to sustain my wellbeing and use this period as a productivity boost in my personal and professional life.
Working in the sustainability sector, I have always had very flexible working opportunities, having adopted ever since I joined the organisation a blended office/home working pattern. So, working from home entirely hasn't been problematic, as we had lots of tools and plans in place to make the transition to this set up as easy as possible, something I, and many of the other staff, have been very grateful for over the years.
So, after a few weeks of working from home entirely, there are a few key ideas that I have implemented to try and make homeworking as productive as possible while keeping a positive outlook:
1. Daily walks and/or exercise have given me the motivation and improved my overall mental health
2. Keeping in contact with colleagues – we have two daily video calls set up for staff that are optional to attend. It is great to have the chance to communicate with colleagues who otherwise can seem very far away and to regularly hear the voices of people other than my family (not that I don’t love their voices - but a change is always good!)
3. Resurrect old hobbies - Interior design projects have always ranked high on my list of hobbies (some more successful than others) and with more time on my hands, I decided to give new life to some pieces of furniture and even create a couple of not too shabby wall hanging macrame.
As an individual, I don’t deal well with uncertainty, which makes a time when everything is so unsettled quite tricky, but to finish in a cheerful note, this period has also brought a number of positive changes in my life, starting with the lack of commute, therefore a reduction of my carbon footprint, becoming as sustainable as possible by shopping more locally and completing some online courses to help with my professional development which I have been putting off for quite some time.
It also made me realise how grateful I was to work for the EAUC who ensured that we all had the means and abilities to work from home and supporting us through the transition.
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