So far, so good with my challenge. Cycling from A to B is now a regular part of my routine, and long may it continue. I am now considering selling my car as it is just sitting on the driveway. I am also looking at upgrading my bike to an electric version to make those long commutes, especially those involving hills, that little bit easier.
Regarding standing up for something I believed in, one memory comes straight to mind. In my previous job, I pushed for my company to introduce a wellness committee. At the time, I managed a team of 12 people in customer care, and as time went on, the initial enthusiasm from my team began to disappear. Working in customer care can become disheartening at times, especially if you get a bad run of phone calls where customers aren’t the happiest of campers for one reason or another. Trying not to take things personally is easier said than done in those scenarios.
I received tremendous support from my manager, but the board were not so supportive initially. I continued to push for the set-up of the committee, and I got my wish in the end. I presented an argument on some benefits I believed the committee would bring to A) my team and B) the company.
The board gave me the green light to set up the wellness committee. My employer introduced a free counselling service and made it available for all staff as part of this. We also held fun events each month focused on wellness and team building. Some of the events included yoga, meditation and a bake-off competition. Without the initial support from my manager, I don’t think I would have been able to pull that off and together, we were able to introduce positive change to the business.
