Personify Health

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'Share it. But don't cry and embarrass us.' Just the straight talking words I needed to hear when I sound boarded with Ian Molyneux and George Kasparis about my opener for the Wellbeing Leaders Masterclass. They were injecting humour into something super serious which I massively appreciated. I'll be honest and say that I find it really uncomfortable when people share deeply personal stories to ultimately sell something ..... It's just not how I roll. I do of course believe in sharing our lived experiences, but for the right reasons. Which is why I needed to sense check with people who tell me how it is rather than what I want to hear. The theme of our Masterclass was 'Be the Why' where we encouraged our guests to define their own purpose - in themselves and the work they do. I opened the day sharing my personal 'why' which meant looking out at a room full of people, many of them strangers and being incredibly vulnerable. I don't let a lot of people 'in' fully to my personal life so this really was a first. But it felt right. The timing. The topic. And the 'why?' I shared the story (with her consent) of how my mum was in a catastrophic accident last year and was given less than 1% chance of survival. The only reason she survived and was called a 'medical miracle' was because she was in such good health when the unthinkable happened. The point of the story wasn't the drama. It was the 'why'. Health isn't a 'nice to have'. It's the thing which lets us survive the moments we never see coming. A moment of truth which set the tone for the whole day and a reminder that purpose is often forged in the hardest chapters of our lives. Oh and George and Ian were both thrilled I kept it together and didn't release my ugly cry. Although I know that if I had, they'd have been amongst the first to support me.

My fireside chat with Dr Alex George would definitely feature on my career highlights reel. And possibly even on that of some of our Masterclass guests, since the feedback was extraordinary. Alex is one of those rare people who can move between vulnerability, science, humour and straight talking clarity without losing the room for a second. We could have easily filled another hour ... probably two! We covered a lot of ground in our time together - neurodiversity, the realities of supporting friends, loved ones and colleagues through mental health crisis, and the impact of losing his little brother to suicide. A loss which has shaped his advocacy in the most powerful way. And then there was the moment he shared something deeply personal: When he was feeling suicidal himself he paused, put his trainers on and instead went for a run. And that run quite literally saved his life. It echoed the sentiment that physical activity isn't a nice to have - it's an actual lifeline. I loved how aligned our perspectives were. We move through the world differently but we share the same truth that mental and physical health are inseparable, and leaders need to treat them that way. Dr Alex, you're an incredible man, an extraordinary advocate, and our conversation is one I will never forget. To you, thank you. Personify Health

**Buildings get structural surveys. Workforces don't.** Last week I shared a reframe from Claire Knowles at Lockton that got a lot of traction: stop calling it wellbeing. Call it people risk reduction. The analogy that resonated most was the building insurance one. You don't just pay the premium and hope for the best. You maintain the building to reduce the likelihood of a claim. So let's take that analogy a bit further. When you insure a commercial building, you know exactly what you're protecting. You have a survey. A risk rating. A maintenance schedule. Documented checks. And insurers price their premium based on the condition of the asset. Now think about how most organisations approach their people. They buy the insurance. They wait for a claim. They renew. No survey. No risk rating. No maintenance schedule. Just a benefits package and a hope that nobody gets seriously ill. The building would be uninsurable on that basis. So why is it still the default model for workforce health? The organisations starting to get this right aren't doing anything radical. They're just treating their people the same way a good facilities manager treats a building…. proactively, systematically, and with an eye on what prevention actually costs versus what a claim does. The language is changing. The business case is there. The tools exist. The survey is overdue. ----- How mature is your employee wellbeing strategy? Take our 10-minute assessment to see how your employee wellbeing strategy stacks up in today’s economy: https://lnkd.in/eDsg4dZz #EmployeeWellbeing #PeopleRisk #WorkplaceHealth #HR #PersonifyHealth

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