May saw team members at PPC Protect involved in a month of fun activities for Mental Health Awareness.
With this year’s theme being centered around loneliness, we asked people what group activities they’d like to participate in — and we had a great response.
Here’s a roundup of what we got up to!
Daily Lunchtime Walks
Sometimes, you can’t beat a nice walk with friends. Catching up and having a natter whilst also getting your steps in. But, importantly, it’s also been proven to have a major impact on mental health.
For office workers, sitting at a desk all day can sap creativity and, as we’ve all probably experienced, lead to a slump in energy and concentration — usually just after lunch.
So we ran lunchtime walks around both our offices — in Chorley and Manchester — to encourage our teams to take a break from screens and head outside for some fresh air.
Virtual Pet Show & Tell
The best thing about pets is no matter what type of day you’ve had or what mood you’re in, you can always rely on them to make you feel better.
As well as being great companions, studies have shown that animals can help to reduce stress, anxiety, and depression. They can boost self-confidence and can help you get out and about by taking them for a walk in the park.
We wanted to meet the pets of PPC Protect, so we invited our team to take 15 minutes out and have a slightly different Zoom call than what we’re used to! Check out Sophie’s dog smiling for the camera as well!
Art Session — Paint Your Feelings!
“Art washes from the soul the dust of everyday life.” — Pablo Picasso.
There’s something about creativity that focuses the mind. It distracts from the mundane. Breaks up the burnout-inducing repetition of daily life.
And if you find it hard to express your feelings and emotions, having a creative outlet can work wonders.
We arranged some time for our team to come and have a go at painting on canvas. Turns out we’ve got some hidden artistic talent at PPC Protect! Later on, we held an auction in the office to sell off our… ahem, masterpieces… and managed to raise £350 for mental health charity, Mind.We also took part in #WednesdayWellness by sharing tips, polls, and useful resources on our company’s Slack channel.
Wellness Budget
Whilst it’s been nice spending time with our colleagues generating awareness around mental health, we want our team to prosper outside of the workplace too.
So every year, we give each staff member £500 to be used for self-care.
Here are a few ways our ‘Wellness Budgets’, as we’ve come to know them, have been spent:
😌 “I use my wellness budget on a sports massage every month — it helps to relieve tension around the shoulders from the prolonged sitting, and also relieve stress mentally.” — Segev Hochberg, Co-Founder & COO
😶🌫️ “I use my wellness budget for a gym membership! It helps keep both my mental and physical health up to par. Also, a jacuzzi on the weekend never hurt anybody…” — Ayelet Bronstein, Software Engineer
💪 “I used some of my Wellness Budget to do the 28-day challenge at my local gym. The main aim was to get me back into the routine of exercising regularly and feeling more energetic. Plus sitting at a Mac all day means I’m not moving around much so it also helped me get my bum in gear!” — Amar Chana, Partnerships Lead
👟 “I was able to use the Wellness Budget to sign up with a personal trainer. In just a few months I’ve seen a huge improvement in my health and general happiness. It’s also made me far more productive and less stressed too — all those happy endorphins!” — Ellen Maulder, Marketing Co-ordinator
It’s been fantastic to get to know our team members (and their pets!) better during this Mental Health Awareness Month. Thanks to everyone that got involved.
If you want to work for a team that genuinely cares about your wellbeing, you’re in luck, we’re hiring! Check out our vacancies on our careers page.
