As the UK starts to open up after restrictions, each employee will have a different ‘journey’ back to what they consider normality. A recent survey revealed that 81% of employees either don’t want to come back at all or would prefer a hybrid model of work. Of those, 27% hope to remain working remotely full time, while 61% would prefer to work from home two to three days a week. Only 18% want to return to in-person work full time.
The transition from home working or furlough will need to be handled carefully, with a recognition that each employee will have had a different experience of the last 18 months. Employers should focus on staff mental wellbeing over the rest off the year, to make the transition as smooth as possible and to ensure no team member gets left behind.
Our partners at Head Talks asked two of their speakers for some tips on how to navigate the next few months.
Career coach and Head Talks ambassador Anna Percy-Davis has some helpful ideas to ease ourselves out of lockdown and back into a more “normal” life. Take time to enjoy these fresh experiences and don’t try and get back to everything at once. Forget FOMO – just be present. And don’t forget: you don’t have to be positive all the time. It’s better to share your anxieties, worries and challenges with someone you like and trust.
She has recorded a video:
Professor Paul Dolan, from LSE’s Department of Psychological and Behavioural Science, says that if we do more of his top five things, then he guarantees we will feel happier. He has shared a video on how to be happier:
If you’d like to book a speaker for your organisation like Paul or Anna, or others like ‘Ice Man’ Wim Hof, jungle explorer Bruce Parry, or round-the-world adventurer Sarah Outen to help your employees feel happier, more engaged and more productive, then contact our partners at Head Talks.
Head Talks also send out free resources and content that can help you or those around you with your mental health and wellbeing. Subscribe to their newsletter here for free: