World Wellbeing Week kicks off on the 24th of June, and there’s no better time to focus on your own wellbeing and practice some much-needed self-care! Regardless of whether you’re already in the workforce or still studying, stress, burnout, and general low health have ways of creeping up on you. However, to keep smiles on your dials, the team at Explore Careers has put together a few wellness tips and tricks that are bound to fend off the winter blues.
The Purpose of World Wellbeing Week
World Wellbeing Week is a yearly initiative organised by Wellbeing World to showcase the various components of wellbeing and share ideas on how we can keep ourselves healthy! It’s also a time when employers are encouraged to show appreciation for their hard working employees and provide support in the form of wellbeing initiatives (so it’s about education, self-care and fun: how good is that?)
However, that’s not all! Here are a few more reasons as to why World Wellbeing Week is so important:
- It gives us the opportunity to share personal journeys
- It facilitates discussions about wellness tips and tricks
- It provides education about the multiple dimensions of wellbeing
And much more!
While wellbeing should be prioritised year-round, World Wellbeing Week takes place yearly, during the last week of June, meaning that the 2024 iteration will run from the 24th – 28th (and we couldn’t be more excited)!
What is Wellness and Wellbeing?
Wellbeing can be a tricky term to describe. In short, it’s the combination of our physical and mental health factors, but we can dive a lot deeper than that. In fact, there are said to be seven dimensions of wellbeing that we all need to address, including:
- Social Wellbeing
- Physical Wellbeing
- Emotional Wellbeing
- Financial Wellbeing
- Professional Wellbeing
- Community Wellbeing
- Environmental Wellbeing
While all of these factors might seem a little overwhelming, they all boil down to a few things; happiness, health and satisfaction. As long as you can tick off these three boxes, you’re good to go!
Discover the Importance of Wellbeing
According to Mates in Mind, there were 875,000 cases of work-related stress, depression or anxiety in 2022/23. Moreover, mental health issues are thought to account for 49% of all work-related ill-health and 54% of days off. If that doesn’t sell you on the importance of wellness, we don’t know what will!
Even if you aren’t yet a member of the workforce, the same goes for students. Between the pressure to get good grades, keep on top of homework, attend all classes and nurture relationships with friends, students face a lot of stress as well.
What Can Negatively Affect our Wellbeing?
Before we look at some wellbeing tips and tricks, it’s important to recognise the stressors that negatively affect our wellbeing so that we can try to minimise them. For students, some key risk factors are:
- Academic worries
- Parental expectations
- Poor physical health
- Stress
- Discrimination and Bullying
- Lack of emotional support
However, if you’re already in the workforce, your stressors might also include:
- Job dissatisfaction
- Extreme workload
- Low pay rates
If you’ve identified any of these issues as things that affect your own wellbeing, well done: acknowledging an issue is the first step! The next best action is to share your feelings with someone you trust. Remember, there isn’t anything you have to go through alone.
Improve Your Wellbeing, Both Mental and Physical!
Regardless of what your daily schedule looks like, you’re bound to find some strategies for wellness-improvement in our list below. Don’t forget, you don’t have to implement all of these at once; every small step counts!
Wellbeing Tips for Students
- Manage your study/life balance
- Make time for family and friends
- Clock in between 7-9 hours of sleep per night
- Take regular breaks from social media (we know we might not be too popular for this tip, but it works!)
- Try not to worry about grades too much
Wellbeing Tips for Employees
- Take your lunch break (yes, even if you’re super busy)
- Make time to stretch your legs and get some sun
- Practice positive self-talk
- Be honest about your wellbeing needs when talking to management
Other Ways to Celebrate World Wellbeing Week
If you’re after some wellbeing tips that aren’t work or school-related, try these ones on for size: we think they’re perfect ways to celebrate!
1. Do one thing to improve your wellbeing everyday
The best part about this option is that it only has to be as difficult as you want it to be! Whether your ‘one thing’ is calling a friend to fulfil social needs, going for a walk to get some exercise in, or writing in your diary to reconnect with your emotions, there’s bound to be a self-care exercise that resonates with you!
2. Educate yourself on the importance of wellbeing
If you’re reading this article, it’s clear that you’re already interested in improving your wellbeing, so why not take it a step further? Head over to Awareness Days, Mates in Mind, or Loving Life to discover insightful teachings on what wellbeing is, why it’s important, and how to best look after yourself.
3. Talk to your friends and family about wellbeing
Have you ever heard the quote, “A problem shared is a problem halved?” The sentiment behind it, advising against bottling up your emotions, is a key concept when looking after your wellbeing! If something is stressing you out, turn to a trusted friend or family member. Sharing your issues with another is never a burden; give your loved ones the privilege of being able to help!
4. Learn how to cook a delicious, healthy meal
Number four on the list is one of our favourite ways to celebrate. Nourishing, delicious food is crucial for maintaining your physical health (and giving you that warm, fuzzy feeling during the colder months). So, hop online and dig through some recipes, or do it the old-fashioned way and pick up a cookbook; good food equals improved wellbeing!
5. Create a habit tracker
If you have a few ideas on how you can improve your wellbeing (and you need a way to hold yourself accountable), a habit tracker is a great place to start. They don’t just keep track of all the self-care tasks you want to complete, but they’re also super satisfying to look at when you’re on a streak.
Look After Yourself This World Wellbeing Week
Now that you’re armed with tonnes of wellbeing-related tips and tricks, it’s time to go out and put them to good use! Remember, wellbeing is all about feeling healthy and satisfied, so go out and start working towards a happier you!
