Personal resilience, Day 2 – 3rd of March 2020

Welcome both to those who have just joined the campaign and also to those who’ve been with us since day 1 – it feels just like yesterday!

How did you find the closing door exercise? If you missed yesterday you can find it here.

Throughout these emails we will be looking at different approaches to developing resilience.  The Day 2 is based upon research conducted by NEF; the New Economics Foundation.  The Five Ways to Wellbeing are actively promoted by the NHS and other health professionals because of their simplicity.

The Five Ways to Wellbeing

1. Connect
   We are more connected than any other generation.  Many of us have hundreds of connections on social media.  The contradiction is that loneliness and social isolation is becoming an increasing issue in our society. Connecting with others and having mutually satisfying relationships with other people is critical to our mental health.
   
   Suggested actions
   1. Arrange to meet up with a friend on a regular basis
   2. Join a group or take up a new hobby to meet up with others
   3. Visit your local shop at least weekly and have a conversation with the person serving you
   4. Volunteer for a charity
      
      
2. Be Active
   As human beings our bodies are meant to move.  However, even in farming advances in technology mean that we are becoming increasingly sedentary.  There is no evidence to say that completing 10,000 steps is the right measure, but it is a good baseline for us to work toward.
   
   Suggested actions
   1. Buy a pedometer, e.g. Fitbit and increase your activity from whatever your starting place is
   2. Download an exercise video and do it on a regular basis
   3. Listen to the radio or music and dance as if no one is watching
   4. Invite a friend to go for a regular walk or run
      
      
3. Take Notice
   In today’s society, we value busyness.  Many of us feel that we must work long hours.  Stopping, even for just a few minutes, to appreciate our surroundings can energise us.
   
   Suggested actions
   1. Take 5 minutes per day to stop and just observe your surroundings
   2. Identify one thing that you are grateful for at the end of each day
   3. Practice meditation every day for a month
      
      
4. Keep Learning
   Stimulating our thinking and challenging our brain activity is the route to a healthy mind.
   
   Suggested actions
   1. Get a different perspective by reading a different newspaper or magazine
   2. Take up a new hobby
   3. Have a look at all the great events, podcasts and reading material on offer from the Farm Advisory Service. 
      
      
5. Give
   There is a saying that it is much better to give than receive.  It is easy to give money, but greater satisfaction is gained by giving time or expertise.
   
   Suggested actions
   1. Make is a daily practice to be kind every day
   2. Seek to volunteer for something that is important to you
   3. Get involved in a community group

How would you rate your level of resilience on a level of 1(low) and 5(high)?

This initial score is the first impression that you have.  Please see the worksheet below to enable you to think more deeply about your self-assessment against the Five Ways of Wellbeing.  This will enable you to identify your areas of strengths and those areas that you may wish to improve.  Please be aware that it is not about being exceptionally strong in any area; it is much better to have balance across all 5 areas.

However you rate yourself you can take action to maintain your score if you have rated yourself as a 5 or, build your resilience from any other score from 1 to 4.

The Five Ways to Wellbeing.  Assume that the centre of the circle is 0 and the outer circle is 10. How would you rate yourself in each of the 5 areas? It is useful to think about your evidence to substantiate your self-scoring.  Your scoring will create a pattern, for example;



Please rate yourself below (there’s aversion you can print off on our website here)

Where are your areas of strength?
 
 
What do you learn about yourself from your chart?
 
 
What one area would you like to improve?
 
 

In tomorrow’s email, we will look at practical steps to build your resilience.

Hello!

Hope you’ve enjoyed the campaign so far.  The resilience meetings we’ve held have been really well received and the feedback is incredibly inspiring.

I’d love to heard from you if you’ve got any feedback about the exercises and advice that will be a part of the campaign.  I’d also love to hear how the campaign has helped you! The workshops had a really positive impact so it would be great to hear what worked for you.  You can email me here.  

Mary-Jane Lawrie