What one thing are you committed to doing differently in 2022 and why?

The NABS team are responsible for supporting the wellbeing of everybody working in adland. But what will they do to boost their own wellbeing, and that of their teams, in 2022? Here, some of the team share what they’ll do differently this year to bring about a dose of positivity and resilience.

This year I’m trying to start from a place of positivity and hopefulness about what is to come, at work and outside work. The last almost-two-years have created patterns of working and living as a result of adapting to try to survive through what we all thought was a temporary change. For me, that has meant unhealthy behaviours in my personal life in order to cope with the uncertainty – short-term solutions for quick fixes of happiness and comfort, which after almost two-years have culminated in feeling worse. This translates into the workplace too, we’ve been working in a reactive way to try and keep things moving, but in doing so have spun the many plates off their poles, forgetting why we put them there in the first place.

So this year, I’m trying to be about small, healthy, hopeful habits. A bit of planning, a bit of routine, scrapping the things that don’t make sense in the big picture and focussing on the things that do. Doing things that help achieve long-term goals rather than short term fixes. At home that means moving more, taking time to partake in hobbies that give me purpose and allow me to be creative, and spending more time with people I love (without sacrificing that all-important alone-time I discovered as a result of the pandemic!) At work, this means spending time with my team to plan out our work together, playing to our strengths, not taking on too much and collaborating across the organisation to support each other to achieve the important things together.  Maybe it’s not such a bad thing that we smashed those plates!

I’m in the mood for change this year. One thing I’m going to do is to meditate for two minutes a day. I’ve been trying to meditate for the past four years without success. Quite frankly, 10 minutes of sitting in silence seems impossible for me! I have realised that if I break it down into a manageable chunk of a couple of minutes, I might just do it. I can easily fit two minutes into the working day – in fact, I did a one-minute mindfulness meditation in a NABS workshop once and it reset me for the entire day. I’m hoping for more calm and clarity as a result, which should help me in my busy life as a working mum. I also read James Clear’s excellent Atomic Habits over the festive break and I’ll be implementing some of the excellent advice, such as this piece of gold: “Every action you take a vote for the person you wish to be.” Vote for positive Louise in 2022!

The one thing I’m doing differently for 2022 is trying something new to solve old problems. Like many of us 2020 and 2021 felt to me like one homogenous, featureless, bumper year from hell. Finding myself unable to distinguish between different months and trapped by my own self-limiting thoughts I decided to break my usual routines and thinking patterns, by getting some outside help from a NABS career coach. The simple act of seeking out a fresh, neutral perspective on my goals, worries and ways of working really helped me snap out of it. It was validating, challenging and motivating in equal measure. NABS career coaching (https://nabs.org.uk/how-we-can-help/career-support/) is free to everyone in our industries, whether you’re a CEO or junior creative, and it might be just the boost you’re looking for to make 2022 your year.

I came back to work from mat leave last summer at a busy time, so I didn’t have much time to think about my wellbeing. This year, I’ve got renewed energy and effort to prioritise my mental and physical wellbeing and that of the people around me. I’m putting in healthier habits at home with my family, I’ve signed up to a 10k run challenge and I’m making changes at work too. I’ve signed up to be a mental health ally at NABS, where I’m committed to checking in on the team and ensuring that everybody knows that my fellow allies and I are her to listen and support, whatever issue is impacting somebody. I’ll also be running sessions on active allyship and role models at NABS as part of my role as director of learning and development for Outvertising. I’m really excited to share my Outvertising life with the NABS team and am aiming to make a positive impact in doing so.

I am choosing intentions over resolutions in 2022. Whilst on the surface it may seem like semantics, I choose intentions as they are compassionate, kind, and qualitative.  Unlike resolutions, which tend to be defined, quantitative, and often result in guilt, disappointment, and feelings of self-resentment.  

Living in these pandemic times is challenging to our wellbeing and my intentions are around nurturing my wellbeing. I intend to be compassionate towards and with myself, I intend to honour my boundaries, I intend to respect my energy levels and plan my day accordingly, I intend be considered with my words and actions (intent vs impact), I intend to diarise daily what I am grateful for and what I am grateful to myself for.  These intentions create space for me which in turn cultivates my energy, enabling me to be present and create space for family, friends, colleagues, clients, and those I encounter.

In 2022 I am committed to: creating habits that support my wellbeing. Looking after my emotional and physical wellbeing has always a priority, but it has become even more of a conscious focus for me since I was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis. If I don’t look after these aspects of my wellbeing, it can cause a flare up in my arthritis or heighten the negative impacts of my medication, which in turn can impact my wellbeing at work. Like Louise, I’m also reading Atomic Habits and have been trying out some of the ideas. I particularly like habit stacking, the technique of tagging on a new habit to a habit I already have. What’s working for me so far? After I’ve set my morning alarm before bed (existing habit), I’ll note down what I’m grateful for that day (new habit) – showing gratitude can encourage a positive outlook, better sleep and lessen levels of stress throughout the working day. Plus, After I’ve made my breakfast (existing habit), I’ll get out any supplements I take to support my arthritis, so I can have these with food (new habit). In that way, I’m supporting myself physically to help me feel as good as I can while I work.

For help with your wellbeing this year, contact NABS www.nabs.org.uk