Lee Chambers

Workplace wellbeing has been lying to you.

They told you it starts with:

Certificates and Champions
Motivational workshops
Gym passes and exercise classes
Funky breakout spaces
A trendily named EAP
The latest tech gadget
Fruit platters and vegan options

It’s easy to sell this. External solutions, adding that wellbeing veneer.

But too many companies are falling into the “tick box trap”.

And a year on from initially posting this, with budgets being cut, nothing has changed.

In my opinion, workplace wellbeing starts with:

Realistic workloads
Clarity of role, responsibilities and boundaries
Feelings of value and appreciation
Lived vision, values and purpose
Capable leadership and management
Concise and comprehensible communication
Fair wages and safe environments

It’s not always fun to lift the hood up and see what lying beneath, but it’s much better than throwing money at solutions before you’ve even considered how you can make a difference and start building wellbeing strategically.

Nobody wants to waste their money on wellbeing. Don’t be taken in by trends, certificates and solutions, until you’ve looked strategically at where you are and what you need.

And that is something we’d be more than happy to support you with. No judgement, just effective wellbeing designed for you.

Don’t be a victim of the “tick box trap”.

#workplacewellbeing #wellbeingstrategy #socialvalue

If there’s one bias I’m becoming more aware of, it’s this.

The Motherhood Penalty

I try to be the best father I can be. Present, mindful, fun. I have high expectations and am also warm, encouraging and full of hugs.

But because I’m a man, I get slapped on the back, recognition and respect for being me.

And if I was a mother, I’d probably be being judged for the gaps and recieve little by way of praise.

These double standards need to be addressed, and if we are to break the bias beyond a week of talking, then this is something we all need to be thinking about.

I know I’ve experienced this. Have you?

#motherhood #parenthood #genderequity

Why does a lot of women’s clothing have no pockets? Because if they did

Women would cause a revolution

I wish I was joking. This was once a prevailing thought. As much political as it is sexist.

Whenever I’m speaking, the lapel mic or headset pack can go in my blazer pocket, front jean pocket, back jean pocket. The options are endless before I clamber onto a stool.

And I think about the challenges my fellow female panellists face with pockets and stools, things which never used to cross my mind 5 years ago.

But it runs much deeper than a battery pack.

Because pockets themselves are a tool to control.

Historically for women, the less they could carry, the less freedom they had. Beauty over utility. Therefore needing to carry a bag. Which can be checked, reducing privacy and autonomy.

And even when there are pockets, they are almost always shallower and more narrow.

It might sound ridiculous that I’m even talking about pockets. Aren’t there much bigger fish to fry?

But it’s important we all become curious about things that don’t impact us, and realise how frustrating these issues can be when faced daily.

There are hundreds of don’t know until you knows. From language to behaviour adjustments to mental lists. These compound over time, whether you are aware of them or not.

And with 90% of women frustrated with the impracticality of a lack of pockets

It’s worth challenging and amplifying

Even if you will never face “death by a thousand wish I had a pocket right now’s”

Here’s 14 things that can be invisible to men in the workplace

And they all involve women

Men rarely notice

That women are more likely

To be interrupted
To be on the outside of social workplace networks
To be judged more harshly and punished for underperformance or mistakes
To have their credentials or competence questioned or be expected to provide evidence
To be promoted on previous performance rather than future potential
To be negatively judged for being assertive or ambitious
To be given non promotive tasks and work housework

And that women are less likely

To be sponsored or given similar progress opportunities
To get space to contribute in meetings
To be give clear, actionable feedback
To be seen as deserving promotion to leadership
To be given stretch projects and high profile assignments
To be consider for promotive work when they are mothers
To have airtime with those most senior in their organisation

I can honestly say I wasn’t noticing these in my early career. A lot of my focus went on following the advice of working twice as hard, as a young Black lad from a lower socioeconomic background. My own microaggressions blurred my vision of gender biases.

And if you can’t see them, and they don’t happen to you, how can you challenge them?

Studies show that men’s awareness and ability to act is four times higher after they partake in allyship training which highlights gender biases and microaggressions.

Suddenly they see inequity they couldn’t see before. And they can’t unsee it. The opportunities to tackle them increase, practicing the skills of allyship.

Having been through that process myself

I can say that taking the blindfold off is an uncomfortable reality check

But it is also empowering, and makes your curious about what else you might not be seeing.

A world that was black and white, suddenly was a world full of colour

And this is just one of the reasons why I’m passionate about bringing allyship to organisations and stages across the country

Becoming accomplices, rather than opposition

Because everyone benefits when we shine a light on each others blind spots

What would you add to the list?