June 2022
Winter Wellbeing
How to look after yourself and stay in your Groov during the winter months.
Wellbeing Challenges
Bring winter wellbeing front of mind for everyone with one (or more!) of the suggested wellbeing challenges below. These activities will help people beat the winter blues and take care of themselves in the colder months.
1. Organise an outdoor walk or activity
It’s normal for people to be less active and spend less time outdoors in winter, but keeping moving in enjoyable ways is great for wellbeing. On a fair weather day, organise a team walk or outdoor activity in the park. Or, bring movement into the office by organising a stretching session or light workout people can join at lunchtime.
Tips to roll out this challenge:
Outdoor activity away from the workplace:
Send out a message via your internal communication channels, such as email, text, Microsoft Teams or Slack, and invite everyone to a 30-min walk or outdoor activity to enjoy some time moving together.
Consider consulting with people or team leaders to see what day or time best suits them, and if they would prefer a walk or outdoor activity, such as a friendly football match.
If you have Wellbeing Ambassadors, ask them to attend and help spread the word to motivate people to join in.
If you and your people prefer, instead of doing the walk or outdoor activity together, suggest that people find 15 to 30-min in their workday to move in a way they enjoy. A quick walk around the block might be just what your people need.
Indoor activity at the workplace:
Send out a message via your internal communication channels, such as email, text, Microsoft Teams or Slack, and invite everyone to a stretching session or light workout in a suitable location in your workplace.
Consider consulting with people or team leaders to see what day or time best suits them.
If you have Wellbeing Ambassadors, ask them to attend and help spread the word to motivate people to join in.
If you and your people prefer, instead of doing the stretching or workout together, suggest that people find 15 to 30-min in their workday to move in a way they enjoy. Even a 5-minute stretch can work wonders!
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2: Make time to chill and recharge this winter
Many people find themselves working through the autumn and winter months without taking any time off. To help people find some time to chill and recharge, encourage everyone to take some annual leave over the winter months. A staycation at home or winter getaway could do wonders for wellbeing. If they are comfortable, people can share what they did on their time off when they are back.
Tips to roll out this challenge:
Encouraging people to take some annual leave in winter:
Send out a message via your internal communication channels, such as email, text, Microsoft Teams or Slack, and suggest that people book some annual leave during the winter months.
Consider consulting with team leaders to see what’s appropriate and fits in with your ways of working. Even an hour or half a day of annual leave could give a team member some much needed time to recharge.
If you have Wellbeing Ambassadors, if they are taking time off over winter ask them to share what they are doing with people.
If it’s not possible for people to take annual leave during winter, think about other ways you could help people make time to recharge. That could include an early finish on a Friday, or extra-long lunch break once a week.
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3. Connect with others and enjoy some food with a shared lunch
The winter months can mean less socialising and connection for people. Host a mid-winter shared lunch for your workplace to give everyone some time to connect and share delicious food. Enjoying a meal together can be a great way to connect, and something many people will enjoy. Having something to look forward to is also a great boost for morale.
Tips to roll out this challenge:
Organising a mid-winter shared lunch:
Send out a message via your internal communication channels, such as email, text, Microsoft Teams or Slack, and invite people to a mid-winter shared lunch. If that’s not possible in your workplace and budget allows, consider alternatives like going out to eat or ordering in some food for your people to enjoy together.
A shared lunch, meal out, or ordering food in could be done company wide or within teams. Consider what works best for your workplace.
Consider consulting with team leaders to see what day and time is appropriate and fits in with your ways of working.
If you have Wellbeing Ambassadors, ask them to attend and help spread the word to motivate people to join in.
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4. Beat the winter blues by celebrating your favourite things
Bring a winter gratitude practice into your workplace. Share one thing you’re grateful for this winter, whether that’s hot chocolate, warm wooly knits, or a slower pace, and more time at home. Incorporate this into a team meeting, company wide stand up, or another time that suits your workplace.
Tips to roll out this challenge:
Winter gratitude practise:
Send out a message via your internal communication channels, such as email, text, Microsoft Teams or Slack, and share something that you are grateful for this winter, and ask other people to share what they are grateful for.
Include suggestions to get the ball rolling, such as winter sports, favourite cold-weather foods and drinks, or home comforts like a warm fire or wooly blanket.
Sharing a winter gratitude could be a one off challenge, or something that you include on a regular basis in the winter months, for example at the start of a team meeting or company wide stand-up.
If you have Wellbeing Ambassadors, ask them to join in by sharing what they are grateful for at the appropriate time.
Alternative to sharing: Suggest people think about 1-3 things they are grateful for this winter and write it down.
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5. Do a board games session or trivia quiz
Learning and problem solving is wonderful for wellbeing. Puzzles, quizzes, and board games are a fun way to do this and can also bring people together. To help boost your people’s mood and morale during the winter months, host a board games session or trivia quiz. You could even bring in a games host, or have prizes up for grabs!
Tips to roll out this challenge:
Host a board games session or trivia quiz:
Send out a message via your internal communication channels, such as email, text, Microsoft Teams or Slack, and invite everyone to a board games session or trivia quiz.
Consider consulting with people or team leaders to see what day or time best suits them, and what they would prefer.
If you have Wellbeing Ambassadors, ask them to attend and help spread the word to motivate people to join in.
If doing a board games session, ask people to bring in their favourite games to the workplace. If the workplace isn’t an option, consider finding a local board games cafe or alternative venue.
If doing an online trivia quiz, have a look at what’s available online. There are plenty of options and many are free, and you can host the quiz online if that suits you and your people.
Consider hiring a games host to run the trivia quiz budget allows. You could also have prizes to encourage people to take part.
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