DIGITAL DETOX – Dedicate an hour to removing non-value-adding applications from your phone and curating your email. This will reduce your stress and digital footprint.

DIGITAL DETOX – This is something new I’m doing for my well-being. My social media account is full of non-value-adding and sometimes disturbing content. My emails are full of promos and subscription letters, and my phone just won’t stop sending notifications from different platforms. All this caused distress to me; I often got distracted, and my productivity was affected. I lost control of my digital life, and it is affecting my mental and emotional health.

When I was finally made aware of what I was going through, I embarked on a digital detox journey.

I distanced myself from social media, deleted apps from my phone, and logged out of all accounts. I set aside dedicated hours to unsubscribe from newsletters and promotional emails. I also created rule sets to ensure that emails are properly categorized. And I adopted the principles of digital minimalism, curating my online presence to only include apps and services that truly added value to my life.

The transformation was remarkable! The digital detox not only reduced my anxiety but also opened up new horizons. Now I have more productive time for my self planning travels and social work. I am not confined to my own world anymore!

Find an activity with a friend that you both enjoy doing to go out and move around. Can be as simple as a walk or joining a intramural sports league

It is easy to get overwhelmed with life’s stresses and anxieties, and we can often lose sight and take for granted some the simple gifts. Reminding yourself of the positive can help change your attitude to become a better version of yourself, one who is ready to tackle challenges and improve both ourselves, and the world around us.

I have been drinking 8ozs of water first thing when I wake up in the morning, and it makes me crave water the rest of the day.

Something new I’m doing for my well-being is hosting a Zoom meeting periodically for my friends from elementary school. It started three years ago when my dad passed away. Due to the Pandemic we couldn’t hold a traditional funeral. Instead we held a Zoom memorial for which I put together a presentation (if interested, see https://drive.google.com/file/d/1JbbxYUw3BCvoYks81UQhRm3Di7cFIbMr/view?usp=sharing — runs about five minutes with GREAT music by the Flecktones) which, by itself, was a very healing process for me and helped my deal with the grief. Anyhow, after the memorial, I dropped into one of the “Zoom Rooms” where I found a bunch of my buddies from way back. We enjoyed catching up with each other so much, we decided to make it a regular activity and since then we’ve convened 35 times (!), about every three weeks or so for roughly 90 minutes each time. We’ve also included more of our classmates, and I believe that this gathering has helped all of us grow closer and feel more connected — to each other and to life in general. I highly encourage others to try this form of “group therapy”! 😉

Every day before bedtime, take a moment to reflect on a few things you’re grateful for. This exercise has helped me improve my mood and thrive by moving my focus to the positive aspects of my life.

Over the last year and half, I’ve been put into practice the ideas of the Wisdom Pyramid (Brett McCracken), which is similar to the well-known food pyramid. Basically, just like carbs are at the base of the food pyramid, I ensure that the vast majority of my time and energy is spent in relationship with family, community and wise people. The 2nd level is nature and beauty. Spend time in nature and creating things with my hands/mind. I spend 10-20 minutes outside each morning before I start my day and I’ve really picked up my woodworking hobby! The 3rd level is books. Spend time reading both fiction and non-fiction (I’ve replaced streaming TV with this and found that I sleep easier and better). The 4th is the internet. Use it as a tool only and only on sites that are necessary for improving your perspective and well-being. Lastly, social media. Just as oil and fats are at the top of the food pyramid, use very sparingly and just for fun. This has really helped my mental health over the last year.

I have supported the well-being of a friend, family member or my community by encouraging him to take training hikes prior to a backpacking trip with his son. Larry knew that I like to hike to reduce the stress related to a high priority, high demand client, so he invited me to join them. When I asked Larry what he was doing to train for this trip, he was told me he was walking at a local, flat walking loop in a community park.

Knowing what a trip like this required for physical conditioning, I insisted that we start doing training hikes together. Our first training hike showed Larry that he was ill prepared to climb a mountain. I let him set the pace for the first few hikes and we stopped as often as needed. With each successive hike, we would go further and further without stopping. Frequently on the hikes, I would point out stops that we used to make that we were now blowing by to let him know that I noticed the improvements and encouraged him to keep up the good work.

Day 2 of the backpacking trip required a climb of over 3,900 feet to Icewater Spring Shelter on the Appalachian Trail at 5,920 feet AMSL. There were stops along the way up for Larry to catch his breath and rest before we started climbing again. When we got to the shelter, Larry put his hand on my shoulder and said “Thank you bud. Without you, I would have never been able to do this!” Making a difference in someone else’s life is what the good life is all about. The photo attached is at the end of our trip and was taken at Newfound Gap in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Larry is the gentleman in the middle and I’m in the blue jacket.

Take some time to relax and reflect- you know you cant fill from an empty cup

Use the snowball method to get out of debt! It helps to see progress early on to stay motivated.

Something new I’m doing for my well-being is that I have quit alcohol and I have put in the effort to do strength training 3 days in a week and 3 days of sports. Quitting alcohol has helped me with better sleep, healthier gut and increased energy levels throughout the day.

Caffeine fiend? try to transition to tea midday 🙂

Taking a simple 20-30 minute walk between calls and tasks can turnaround your emotional wellbeing and also boost your thinking

Something I have found to be a great help is grounding. When you feel overwhelmed, look for 5 things you can see, 4 you can feel, 3 you hear, 2 you smell and 1 you can taste. This really helps to bring yourself back to reality when things start spiraling.

Focusing on your surroundings aims your mind on the things around you and takes your thoughts off the anxiety etc.

United Kingdom

Maizie Cox

Grounding is a fantastic technique

E M

United Kingdom

Emily Mellor

Great tip Simon, thank you

You cannot take money with you when you go.

Something new I’m doing for my well-being is reading the Bible everyday for guidance on the struggles in my life.

Someone who has inspired me in my well-being is my sister! She is continually planning hiking trips, walks in the park, frisbee sessions with her dog, and fruit-foraging adventures. I’m lucky to live in the same city as her so I can join on the fun.

For every minute spent in organizing, an hour is earned.

-Benjamin Franklin

“We generate fears while we wait. We overcome them by action.” – Dr. Henry Link

From September 2022 until July 2023 I have been taking part in a charity project which has its aim to gather funds to support children with critical illnesses through biking.

The initiative is called Team Rynkeby and it is a European project that started in Denmark that is now present in 9 countries. Participants not only do their best to get as many companies and private persons as sponsors but they also train together twice a week and at the end of this period they all bike to Paris to mark the end of the project year and reveal the amount of the collected funds.

Thanks to the project I got stability and a new routine in my everyday life, helped with balancing my swinging mood, strengthened my social skills that I felt that I am slowly losing since the pandemic, I became physically stronger and it also gave a different perspective of the world, what some really enthusiastic people can achieve together to do a substantial change in several children’s lives, to give them hope and future.

The Stockholm team that I was part of biked 1400 km from Malmö in the south of Sweden to Paris between 7-15th of July crossing 5 countries. The community feeling got extremely tight between the members having spent 9 days non-stop together with a tight schedule. Because of this fact the week after getting back home I signed up again to try to get even more out from my own and the team’s effort. For those of you around, see you 6th of July in Paris! 🙂

The biggest lesson I learned throughout this period is that the single biggest step I could do to improve my own well-being is to take the first step, whatever that is. In my case, joining a team and embarking on the journey together. At the end, the reward is uplifting and it creates a memory for life for you and for the children that you help with this effort.

One AECOM resource I’m using to prioritize my well-being is

New Girl Fan? Nick Miller Fan?

Jake Johnson (the actor who plays Nick Miller on New Girl) started a podcast called “We’re Here to Help”. An instant mood booster!

Something new I’m doing for my well-being is listening to a new podcast. If you are a New Girl fan or a Jake Johnson fan, please keep reading. This is important.
Jake Johnson (the actor who plays Nick Miller on New Girl) started a podcast with his bff and comedian, Gareth Reynolds. The podcast is called “We’re Here to Help” and it is centered around people calling and describing a problem they have. The duo then makes several pitches to their callers with their best advice. They will always be on your side of the problem, and while the advice may not be completely sound, it is hysterical. I promise it will be the funniest 30 minute podcast you listen to today while working, on your commute home, or on your hot girl walk.

South Africa

Naledi Ramorobi

Thanks for sharing Megan! I’ll definitely give this a listen.

Listen to the Happier Podcast for a weekly tip to improve your well-being.

I’m focusing on my well-being by connecting with nature. Life is busy, sometimes we spend too long staring at a computer screen, my daily walk with the dogs helps me de-stress and appreciate my beautiful surroundings.

South Africa

Naledi Ramorobi

Great story Karen, and I completely relate. Such cute babies by the way :-)!

Something new I’m doing for my well-being has been weight lifting and boxing. The boxing part is great after a tough day at work and helps destress. The weight lifting has been great when self doubt has set it with a few medical problems, it shows me that I am stronger than I think and that you don’t need to physically look strong as it comes from within.

Something new I’m doing for my well-being is making health choices even though it tests my will-power.

South Africa

Naledi Ramorobi

Try to incorporate the healthy choices into your daily tasks, e.g. take a walk to buy coffee if you can instead of driving, stock up on healthier snacks than processed ones, journal anywhere you can, even your phone, just to get into the habit, etc. Good luck!

Take some time to stretch out your back muscles.

Something new I’m doing for my well-being is taking part in activities and events that improve my overall wellbeing. Research has shown that music can improve our mental state and alertness, raise our mood and reduce anxiety.

I experienced this firsthand when I attended a local jazz concert that cost only R100 a ticket, equivalent to about $5. The atmosphere was amazing, the live music and performance was exceptional, and I got to network with many interesting people I hadn’t met before.

I’d recommend this to anyone looking to get out of the house and experience something new, especially as an inexpensive option, which could in turn benefit your mental, emotional and social wellbeing.

United Kingdom

Simon Holliday

Cool 😎 story l, good luck.

S K

Australia

Stephen Kearns

Live music, love it.

Stop Lying!!!
What if I told you that we are all a bunch of liars, all of us?

Annoyed by that accusation, yes?

Well what if I said that it’s 100% (maybe 99.9%) true and I can prove it?

There’s one question we get asked a lot and 9 times out of 10 we will lie through our teeth and give a totally dishonest answer.

That question is: “ARE YOU OKAY?”

I’ve certainly lied and replied “Yes I’m fine thank you” on countless occasions.

Can anyone truly say that they’ve answered that question truthfully every time they’ve been asked?
We need to start being more honest with ourselves and the people around us about our mental health. Asking for help and being honest with ourselves is the first and biggest step on the road to getting the help that we all need at times.
Sometimes we do it because we are not ready to talk just yet which, is of course totally understandable but, we should never lie to ourselves.

It’s okay to not be okay.

Sweden

Ádám Jakab

Thanks you for the eye-opening story and the brutal reality!
I have always been more open about how I really feel, good or bad, daily struggles in general as a safety and health check-in moment before the weekly meetings with my team or anyone I work closer with. While very often this is not something very appreciated and people on the other end of the call don’t open up that much (blame the virtual ways of communication of what we live in), there are some who ask back: “do you want the long or the short version?” to which I always encourage to get the long version. 🙂 It’s a great ice breaker and gets us closer while we never meet in real life.

With the winter season upon us remember that getting daily doses of Vitamin D from the sun or supplement can help mood and emotional well-being.

October is the World Mental Health ‘Month’, participate in the ‘Ask Twice’ challenge recently launched by AECOM Wellbeing: https://aecom-9.wistia.com/medias/uhimr2qtc0 and check in on colleagues.

Train your mind to see something GOOD in everything. This would help create a positive environment around you.

Affirmations are a great way to help shift your thinking from negative to positive, motivate an action, reduce stress, and/or increase self-confidence and well-being.

I’m focusing on my well-being by connecting more with friends and family!

It’s so much easier to exercise when it’s fun! As an engineer I always want to see construction sites -looking forward to what I see makes it easier to get over the next hill.

As winter is approaching in most of the countries try to keep yourself warm naturally and making sure to exercise daily.

The Koa Health Foundations app benefit is really worth downloading and exploring. It has lots of fab useful content to access and all in bitesize so you can fit it in whenever you can.

“Make peace with things you cannot change.” Diren Pillay

Humility. It’s an extremely difficult virtue to cultivate, but so useful in all aspects of your life – At work and in your personal life.

It means, apologizing first. It means being quiet even if you know you’re right. Not easy things to do.

Reframe how you look at any argument you have: Try to win the person, not the argument.

Reframe how you look at any argument you have: Try to win the person, not the argument.

Humility. It’s an extremely difficult virtue to cultivate, but so useful in all aspects of your life – At work and in your personal life.

With the prices of eggs currently at their highest in most parts of South Africa, try buying them from local farmers if you can. They most probably with have them cheaper, and possibly fresher!

Connecting with others reduces stress levels and improves the quality of your life. Have coffee with a colleague in the morning and chat. Journal positive outcomes from it to be motivated to continue!

United Kingdom

Simon Watson

A journal is a great way to keep your mind focusing on the positives, great suggestion!

Create a budget spreadsheet and stick to it. Managing your finances helps you develop smart money habits that put you in control of your money and empower your financial goals.

It is important to plan your week or have a weekly checklist, which can help you achieve your goals or get you closer to your targets.

South Africa

Naledi Ramorobi

This is a great tip; I do this almost everyday to ensure nothing falls through the cracks!

I had the privilege to present at the University of Pretoria to Civil Engineering students about the “Work-Ready Graduate” and one topic I covered was about “Purposeful Work” which I believe it applies to all employees. Employees who find purpose in their work are normally committed, passionate and excitement about their duties and responsibilities.

The concept of a better job has become associated with the idea of purposeful work “what matters in a person’s life.” Employees with high purpose in work are almost 10 times more likely to have high overall WELL-BEING.

Therefore, find purpose in what you do!

South Africa

Naledi Ramorobi

This is a great reminder Retang, thank you for sharing!

One way I look after my mental health is to record all the good things (big or little) that happen to me each day on a post-it note and then add it to my Happy Jar. I can then either look back on all the good things that have happened in a day, week, month or even year and balance out any negatives. This helps me to keep perspective and remind myself, things are not always as bad as they seem and more often than not, more good things than bad things happen.

R D

South Africa

Ross Dold

And then read them on New Year’s Eve – it’s a great way to look back and wrap up the year!

United Kingdom

Simon Watson

This is a great way to remind yourself of all the good things that happen. The things we tend to forget or gloss over when we are having a bad day but it’s worth remembering and holding onto those happy moments

Dr Rangan Chatterjee has 2 podcasts (& 3 books) with many episodes on all sorts of subjects around mental health & well being. Check them out – https://drchatterjee.com/blog/category/podcast/

Spending quality time with friends or family, talking to someone about how we are feeling or finding ways to help other people can all help stop you from feeling lonely and improve your mental health.

Be in the present. If we take time to be aware of ourselves and be in the present moment, noticing our own thoughts and feelings, and the world around us, we can gain a better perspective.

Menopause, Perimenopause are two very misunderstood conditions. Menopause and perimenopause symptoms can have a big impact on your life, including relationships and work. We need to be more open to conversations around menopause and perimenopause. 18th October marks World Menopause day. AECOM have Menopause champions who offer support and guidance – check out the AECOM wellbeing pages! My names Anna and I am perimenopausal and do not let it define me!

The action team of AECOM Africa who participated in the annual South Africa Engineering Action cricket league had shown that physical and mental wellbeing go hand in hand. The obvious benefit of improved physical health, was totally overshadowed by the mental wellbeing benefits experienced. How? By becoming the SAICE cup champions, the AECOM team members were gelled together by physically confronting speeding cricket balls, by running and jumping to take quick runs. They used their bodies to stop flying cricket balls and used their mental fortitude to confront the fear of pain and absorbed competitive pressures to push through their comfort zones and achieved sporting success. A trophy was won on a physical level, but team members were bonded as champions, fear was overcome and memories will treasure the success of being SAICE Action cricket champions for 2023 forever. Credit for being the SAICE Cup champions are shared amongst the team members Elana Forbes, Michael Sykes (Captain), Jan Bekker, Raynard de Lange, Jordan Hill, JJ Jonker, Wesley Klinck, Promise Majoe, Renesh Maharaj and Marius Potgieter

If you can do one thing today, spread kindness. Random Acts of Kindness (RAOK) make both the receiver and the giver feel good which then makes them more likely to be kind to other people. RAOK’s also reduce stress, boost our immune systems, and help reduce negative emotions such as anger, anxiety, and depression. They release positivity which benefits our emotional wellbeing and improves overall happiness, and can even increase our longevity and boost heart health. For RAOK ideas visit https://www.randomactsofkindness.org/

TRAVEL! You don’t have to go far or overseas to see and experience new things. Often, a forgotten little town has big gems on offer. Making a day-trip or long-weekend to a new place can be as refreshing (and a lot cheaper) than a big holiday.

South Africa

Naledi Ramorobi

This just gave me an idea to visit the Midlands!

V B

United States

Vikramaditya Bagri

Excellent idea. Especially when everything around is getting more expensive. The idea to visit small towns and places around are great. Inexpensive and you help the local economy by visiting and spending.