Play - still at the bottom of the agenda in companies
There seems to be a growing number of large corporations that are still not proactively acknowledging the enormous strain working from home has had on some working parents.
Granted, some families have benefitted immensely from the extra time together and reduced childcare costs. However, now that workplaces are starting to fill back up again we have parents who are either:
1. Utterly exhausted from navigating the constant juggle of cultivating a work/life balance with often no break from the kids.
2. Not wanting to commute to work and be away from the flexible new routine they have carved out for themselves and works around their childcare for the last couple of years.
or
3. Excited and can’t wait to get away from the kids and have adult social contact again!
It’s so important for companies to ask how parents are finding the thought of returning to work - or even just how are they feeling at the moment?
What percentage would prefer to stay at home or are there any changes you can make to ensure that employees feel heard and valued? (Great for productivity and workplace culture too!)
There are many other causes of anxiety around work that also don’t stop just with parents, however, if we solely focus on parents for a moment. What actually ARE companies doing to address this, apart from waving the ‘flexible working’ card and expecting that to be enough?
How are we equipping parents to thrive? How are we giving themselves and their children the tools that will help them heal and lower stress levels?
This is where our ‘Too busy NOT to play’ workshop comes in. It’s a bite-sized introductory catalyst that will educate and encourage the most stressed-out employees around seeing the power of play not just with their children but for themselves.
But why talk to employees about PLAY?
Play combats depression, anxiety & rigidity. It's a state of being where creativity flows and that sense of joy and wonder is facilitated within a generally non-threatened, relaxed state. This is the state I would argue is conducive to a healthy workplace environment.
We provide this by setting out simple achievable ways of tapping into the power of play without judgement and helping parents to incorporate small changes that will have a profound impact on the behaviour and conflict levels at home, which in turn increases self-esteem, energy levels, and therefore productivity.
Helping parents to understand how play builds connection based on extensive research is the ultimate goal however Debi argues that it starts with the ‘PAUSE.’
How do we connect? We PAUSE first, We attune, we identify mindset blocks, we reflect, we find perspective, we take that breath, we then use PLAY whether that’s a smile, a funny face, a game, a challenge to build that lasting connection which will equip children with the resilience-busting feeling of safety as they feel seen, heard and acknowledged.
When training and consulting the focus is around presenting parents with the research and case studies where transformation has occurred, setting out the really simple, memorable flow to ‘PAUSE, PLAY & CONNECTⓇ and then letting go to watch them embrace the power of play THEIR WAY without JUDGEMENT.
Everyone’s path is unique but I believe employers have an incredible opportunity to empower employees after such a challenging season and build them up to believe that anything is possible and that playfulness can truly be part of the answer to cultivating a balanced and healthy lifestyle.