If the altruistic side of it isn’t enough of a draw for it to receive top-billing, then what about the impact it has on the service that you provide your clients, and therefore the success or failure of your business? If the well-being of your clients is so important, then it seems hypocritical not to start at home- yes, the people with whom you work, but even closer to home, with yourself.
Everybody has the right to feel absolutely brilliant every day at work- happy, healthy, confident, supported, challenged and inspired. It’s hard to imagine that anyone would willingly reject these things. It’s even harder to argue against the positive effects of a working environment where they flourish. Not only is a little self-love ok, it’s essential.
To have a team of individuals that function at their very best is surely an outcome to be desired. The above conditions, making up our well-being at work, are an enormous contributing factor to this outcome. Let’s start small with you and your own well-being.
In any business, our clients’ interests are at the heart of what we do. We have a duty to ensure that we’re functioning at our very best. If not, then we won’t give them very best experience. This is particularly true of any role that is client-facing. We won’t be as invested and present with each client relationship. It’s irresponsible and you can bet that our clients will pick up on it.
They’ll pick up on our fatigue or exhaustion. They’ll pick up on that absent mindedness, complacency or lack of inspiration- even if it is subconsciously. In fact, it often is. People connect emotionally before they do intellectually. The fine margins matter. To quote the late Maya Angelou, “People will forget what you did, people will forget what you said, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”
We might be saying all the right words. But if our body language and tone don’t back them up, or give away the demeanour of someone that isn’t fully invested, then they won’t ring true. When our words, body language and tone are not congruent, then people pay far more attention to the body language (55%) and the tone (38%) (Albert Mehrabian)
It’s hard to fake it, and if we’re not taking care of ourselves then it will leak out. The last thing that we want is for clients to be thinking that we don’t care. Don’t underestimate the impression created by not taking care of yourself- it won’t instill much confidence in your fitness for the job of taking care of them and their loved ones. In whatever capacity, great or small, that is our job.
We haven’t even touched on the negative impact that a lack of concern for our well-being could have on our attention to detail, clarity of thought and decision making- critical components to anyone’s performance at work.
Yes, the message is obvious, but easily neglected. It would be a shame to fall behind some of your competitors because you’re not taking care of yourself. Well-being is set to be at the top of the agenda for HR teams by 2020. Get ahead of the game and start with yourself.
The rather outdated separation between work and play, business and pleasure, and the marginalisation of well-being will no longer cut it. Everything matters. It’s naïve to think that our mental and physical well-being have no impact on our performance at work. Elite level athletes can no longer get away with eating and drinking what they want, relying on talent alone to continue performing at the top level. The approach to peak performance is more all-encompassing with strict diets, curfews, new training methods and an exploration of every aspect of their life.
Again- it all matters. It all affects performance. Otherwise, no money would be spent on it. Now, I’m not advocating a complete over-haul of your life-style choices. Far be it from my remit to point the finger, make dietary suggestions and design fitness regimes for you all. You might be really good to yourself and score extremely highly on the well-being front. That’s great. What I’m advocating is a wider acknowledgement and celebration of its impact on your performance and ultimately the outcomes that you achieve for your clients. It’s a no-brainer.
Here are 3 really simple tweaks that you could make on a day to day basis that will have an immediate impact on your well-being and performance:
- Open Up: Take a pause to explore the possible impact that your day to day physicality has on your mindset, motivation, confidence and mood. Smaller, closed off physicality massively increases cortisol (stress hormone) and reduces testosterone. How can you find more opportunities to be open and expansive? Are you sat at a desk lots, hunched over a screen? Do you spend a lot of time messaging from your phone? All of these bring you into a smaller, less expansive space. Expanding and opening up will affect the way that you feel and, therefore, your performance.
- Breath Deeper: We often don’t get enough oxygen around the body- shallow breathing. Do some exercises that get you breathing more deeply and get more oxygen flowing around the body, giving you more energy and focus. It’s science.
- Work Less: Actually, it’s not about working less, rather, fewer, more efficient hours. Whenever possible, set aside 45-60 minutes for lunch, away from your desk, away from any screen and out of the office. Use that time to be present, re-charging and not working. Whenever possible, leave earlier.
These are tiny, and really easily applied tweaks. It’s about approaching the day with purpose- preparing right and keeping yourself in good condition. Far from self-indulgent, it’s a respect for the job that you do. Not only will you feel much better but your business will reap the benefits. So, I’ll sign out in the words of Jerry Springer: “Take care of yourselves….and each other.” Your clients will thank you.
Ensure that the well-being of your staff are also looked after, as this can prevent quiet quitting.
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From our clients
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Jonny’s expertise in communication and his personalised coaching approach has made a significant impact on me. It was so much more than public speaking coaching; it influenced numerous other aspects of my life. Under his mentorship, not only did my communication skills improve, but my confidence soared, leading to positive changes in my professional and personal relationships. I highly recommend The Speakers’ Gym for anyone looking to unlock their full potential.
Kate Bright, CEO & Founder, Umbra International Group
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The Speakers’ Gym is like the iPhone. You don’t realise you need it until you have it, and then you can’t live without it.
Magda Gonzalez, Group CFO, Monex Europe
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It was completely practical and the open-forum feedback was so valuable. You created a safe environment for everyone to learn. Thank you!
Nicola Koronka, Co-Founder and Managing Partner, Missive
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I was recommended by a friend who works in the same sector to contact The Speakers’ Gym to help me with my presentation delivery skills and I have not been disappointed with the results. Chris and Jonny work with you to provide bespoke training for your goals and needs. They are highly professional and make you feel at ease from the first minute the first session begins. I would highly recommend them to those who have a role which involves public speaking!
Julia Peake, Technical Development Manager, Sanlam
7
It has challenged both my thinking and approach and I will be sure to keep The Speakers’ Gym ‘fireworks’ readily available on my desk to refer to when not only presenting but also when needed through everyday management.
Liz Paradine – Chief Operations Manager - 7iM
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Transact first engaged with The Speaker Gym late in 2018 where Chris & Jonny made a concerted effort to get under the skin of our business and understand how they could best help us hone our presentational and empathetic skills. The resulting sessions were hugely helpful giving my team plenty of opportunity to practice and also benefit from a great deal of feedback, not just from Chris & Jonny but by including the rest of the Transact team in the feedback and group learning too. I would highly recommend The Speakers Gym
Glen Sweet, Head of Sales, Transact
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Working with The Speakers’ Gym has been fantastic. We knew what we wanted to say and who we wanted to speak to, so all we needed was technique. Or so we thought. Chris and Jonny helped us to understand the key elements of communication, through a structured process. We now think about communication in a completely different way. There’s a line they gave us that now resonates in my head, every time I write or talk to someone about what we do. We feel we’ve met two great guys and they’ve become an important part of us, our story and how we tell it to others.
Thomas Skinner, Founder, Barnaby Cecil Financial Planning
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The impact of The Speakers’ Gym™ at Mako can only be described as transformational. Over a three month period, they helped transition a group of individuals into a highly collaborative and consultative leadership team. Chris and Jonny have a unique ability to connect individuals with their true purpose, driving them towards self-reflection and ultimately growth. Overall the entire experience of working with them has been a pleasure and I am deeply grateful for their impact. They more than surpassed my expectations and I look forward to working with them again in the future!
Trystan Morgan-Schauer, CEO, Mako
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We engaged The Speakers’ Gym to provide us with clarity and direction in the look, feel and messaging of the Worldmaker brand in preparation for our official launch. From start to finish, the process has been truly collaborative. They worked with the expertise and experience in our team to create branding that truly represents who we are and what we represent, whilst moving us into a more modern, expressive space – which was our desire. We know that we’re in great hands with The Speakers’ Gym. We’ll certainly be continuing to work with them
Mollie Marti, CEO, Worldmaker International
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They first took the time to understand our brief and delivered the programme incorporating our culture and brand throughout. They were thought provoking and their unique techniques very well received.
Mairi Cameron, Learning Manager, Nucleus Financial
V
The Speakers’ Gym gave me the skills and confidence to be my normal self whilst speaking and facilitating. They took the anxiety out of public speaking and gave me practical tools to prepare for and manage public engagements. They also helped me to engage more meaningfully with my clients, for which I am thankful. Highly recommend them.
Matthew Marais, Director, Vertus Capital
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I found the sessions to be a revelation, and I wish I had known some of the techniques sooner. It has completely changed my mindset and focused me in on the needs of the audience. With that, the ability to achieve those aspirations has come more naturally. There is always room for improvement, and I will definitely be revisiting The Speakers’ Gym for a refresher from time to time.
Kelly Devlin, Wealth Management Consultant, St. James’s Place Wealth Management
