🥇 Badge of the Month: Mental Wellbeing/ July

Miša Hennin

Hey, badge collectors!

Welcome to July's Badge of the Month! As part of our Rewards Program, Badge of the Month gives you an easy way to connect with others, earn a new badge and get 10 points. Your answers don't have to be Meister-related; we'd just like to hear from you 😃.

Want to know the rules? Check out this post.

Already know the rules? Read on to find out what this month is all about!

Badge of the Month: July 2023

Recently, we celebrated mental health awareness month at Meister 💖. Throughout the month, we participated in a range of activities focused on improving mental wellbeing in the workplace. For example, we discussed walking meetings🚶‍♀️, nutrition 🥒 and mindfulness moments 😌. For this month's badge, please share your own tips for keeping your headspace healthy at work.

Best,

Miša

Richard Vitaris

My tip is to try to learn something new every day. And that is easy to do given the widespread availability of podcasts, webinars, recorded lectures, and the like. So you don't have to go out, but it's even more fun when you do. Recently, for example, I went to a lecture on the Hubble and Web Space Telescopes at a Museum. I have never been interested in astronomy, have never owned a telescope, and have not been inside a planetarium since I was a schoolboy. And yet, that recent lecture absolutely fascinated me.

Will I buy a telescope now? Probably not. But that isn't the important thing. The important thing is that for that hour my mind was entirely focused on something new and different. For that hour my other concerns, whether personal or professional, were forgotten. And when the time came for me to return to them, I was mentally refreshed.

If you don't have time to go out, listen to a podcast or a lecture. Take a class. Or watch the Discovery Channel on TV. Nearby colleges and universities almost always have events which are free and open to the public.

Joerg Koper

https://community.meister.co/discussion/1665/badge-of-the-month-mental-wellbeing-july

Hey Miša,

that's one of my favourite topics and a very important part of my daily life 😍

From my point of view, every specific life is like a pendulum that has to be balanced the right and individual way. In my case, life's perfectly balanced with meditation, hiking, doing things that I love (even work) and healthy nutrition. Many years ago, I started a project, called Life-Balance. It's based on this philosophy.

I especially don't believe in the so called Work-Live-Balance model, because it suggests a separation of all parts, what in my opinion is totally wrong. We furthermore have to find out our own favourite things in life, that make us happy. And we all have to find out for our own, how to handle things, that normally used to produce stress.

I try to include walks into every kind of creative thinking process and project meeting as much as I can, too. We call it Walk & Talk tours. Very inspiring, relaxing and neuroscience even confirms the special effectiveness 😊

Best, Jörg

Andrew Lapidus

https://community.meister.co/discussion/comment/5853#Comment_5853

Definitely second everything Jörg has mentioned here, not just about breaking down the work-life barrier but about the practical tips for movement in our daily lives!

I've also been implementing "walking meetings" into my remote-work life. Walking is my favorite way to think, be creative, listen to music, or enjoy podcasts, so I'm surprised it took me this long to integrate it into work :D

Miša Hennin

Hi!

@Richard Vitaris Do you have any podcast recommendations? I've tried to get into them a few times now but haven't found something that grips me. I really like your suggestion of making sure we keep learning.

@Joerg Koper I have to add here the idea you shared with me about listening to music that stimulates both sides of the brain. I'm sure you'll be able to explain this better than me…

Jörg shared a calming piece of music with me, and I believe it'd be beneficial to so many people + their mental wellbeing!

@Andrew Lapidus I LOVE the idea of walking meetings. So far, I've only managed to implement this in big meetings where participation isn't necessary. I would find it hard to discuss things while walking (especially if I want to note down important info). Have you managed to walk during smaller meetings where you're actively participating?

My tip is GET UP AND STRETCH! Even if this is just reaching high up to elongate your body. I'm really trying to implement this in my daily work but it's hard to make myself do it, especially when I'm busy or engrossed in a task.

Joerg Koper

https://community.meister.co/discussion/comment/5950#Comment_5950

Hi Miša,

the music is called wingwave music. A music, that complements the regular coaching method that I'm working with and measurably lowers the pulse rate and the excitement level of the nervous system by the so-called bilateral stimulation.

I use this music a lot too while I'm in deep work modus (during programming, for example). The music even works perfectly by listening to it at low volume during creativity processes in marketing meetings etc. 😎

A short excerpt from the German explanation of the method-developers:

In addition to its balancing, positive melodies, wingwave music works primarily through a left-right beat that auditorially "touches" both hemispheres of the brain alternately via stereo headphones, thus causing optimal cooperation of all brain areas to vibrate. This bilateral auditory brain stimulation helps to reduce performance stress and supports creative processes.

A free example of the music can be downloaded here 🙂

Best, Jörg

Richard Vitaris

Misâ,

More often than not, I will listen to a lecture on a subscription site called Wonderium. Until recently, the company was called Great Courses and before that The Teaching Company. The lectures are taught by university professors known for their teaching excellence. They have lectures from every academic discipline imaginable such as philosophy, history, psychology, theology etc. most of their courses are also available on video but I tend to avoid those because I usually listen to the lectures in the car.

I seldom will listen to an entire course but will choose the lectures selectively. For example, around the time of the Coronation, I listened to some lectures on the British Royal Family.

As for podcasts, I really like This American Life. It is a radio show but each recorded broadcast is available on demand and is on a totally different topic. You can just scroll through the list until you find a topic that interests you.

As a former criminal defense attorney, I also favor the true crime genre. True crime podcasts are extremely popular in the United States. You can find podcasts about almost every high visibility criminal case.

Andrew Lapidus

https://community.meister.co/discussion/comment/5960#Comment_5960

@Richard Vitaris i'm so glad you mentioned the Great Courses — These have been a staple of my listening experience for over a decade! I can especially recommend the music and literature lectures. The lectures from professors are a great supplement to the experience of engaging with great (and sometimes "less accessible") works of art.

Miša Hennin

@Richard Vitaris,

Thanks! I'll take a look this evening. Podcasts seem like such a great way to learn and it's a shame I don't make use of them. Like with everything, there's just too much choice, so going off recommendation helps. I love history so will see what's covered by the Great Courses on periods of interest.

True crime is definitely not for me! I'm too easily freaked out 😄, but I know @Andrew Lapidus loves a good terrifying story.