Bring Me Sunshine – Wellbeing for Accountants

I recently attended a recent Mercia incorporating SWAT get together which included a session run by CABA, the charity that supports the wellbeing of chartered accountants, on how we can try and work more effectively, and happily, in the modern working world. Part of the focus was on those who may work from home (in part or completely), rather than in the traditional office environment 9 to 5 and who may struggle with time management, stress, isolation or effectiveness. One thing that came out of the session was that we were generally unstressed as a band, we generally knew what distracted us from the task at hand and what triggered more stressful episodes in our working life. I am sure many of you are the same (31 January anyone?). I have a less stressful working life since I left my role in audit at a Big Four firm, probably no surprise there. But I do have distractions, especially when I’m working from home report writing and it’s a lovely sunny day outside…... I like walking so such a day is a big temptation to put the work down and go outside. More mundane distractions are emails / phone calls / the washing machine finishing its cycle, but the session was good at helping me (and others) to deal with those distractions without stressing out.

You may find that a similar session, or others focused on wellbeing, could be of benefit to you or your colleagues. There are open courses run around the country or workshops like the one I attended where CABA come to you. There are also free e-learning sessions, details of all of which can be found on the CABA website here.

And how do I deal with my distraction when working from home? I give in and go out for a walk, listen to the birds singing and feel the sun on my face for a while and return to work more energised and happier. So, my working day may contain all the right tasks, but not necessarily in the “right” order as the great Eric Morecambe would say………