Paul’s Approach to Wellbeing
Wellbeing is a crucial part of every workplace.
It plays an important role in enhancing performance, health and happiness.
Yet, each person’s wellbeing journey is very different. What works for one individual may not work for another.
So, as part of World Wellbeing Week, that runs from the 23rd to 29th June, we caught up with Paul Schofield who has shared his thoughts and importantly, his approach to wellbeing.
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How do you support your own mental wellbeing?
For me, poor physical habits equate to poor mental health.
The older I am, and I have just turned 54, the more I realise how much physical health determines your mental health.
To me, the best ‘anti-depressant’ is the time I spend exercising – whether that’s an hour in the gym, running, walking, swimming or cycling.
I also work really hard to stick to the basics – eat less and move more! That’s not to say that I don’t enjoy myself, after all it’s all about moderation.
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Why is wellbeing important to you?
It helps me to be the best version of myself.
What works for me is ensuring that my physical health and wellbeing are on point, so I can effectively be the best version of myself and this then ensures that my ‘mental health’ box is ticked.
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What concerns you about mental wellbeing?
Mental health is often misrepresented and there isn’t much out there showing how important physical health is connected to wellbeing.
This is important regard;ess of what you do, but if your role is office based and you are sedentary with little natural movement during the working day, then you need to find ways to get your steps and movement in.
More needs to be done to help people to ‘make time’, identifying what small steps are right for them that will then have a positive impact.
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How did you start your personal wellbeing journey?
Just over 13 years ago, in my early 40s, I gave up smoking. I was conscious that I didn’t want to go straight from kicking one bad habit, towards another bad habit linked to food – snacking and binging as a replacement, which often happens.
In my teens, I was always heavily into playing sports at a decent level, and although regular exercise was not my priority in my 20s and 30s, it was quite easy for me to get back to exercising regularly in my post-smoking days.
My workload running my own Brokerage was, as you would naturally expect, very full on. Sales and client relationships were the focus and priority, but with it came the continual stress and strains of other multiple disciplines you need to run a successful business.
So, during this time, exercising first thing in the morning worked for me. It allowed me to get away from work stuff and have my time.
My mind was clear because I was organised and the time in the gym or on a run left me feeling invigorated to attack the day head-on.
A good start to the day translates into your work cycle – better results and achievements can come from a clear positive mindset. During COVID, to support my health, I set up my home gym in my garage – so now I have zero excuses.
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What is your secret to incorporating fitness into your day?
Good quality sleep, a balanced diet and getting up early!
If I roll out of bed feeling like rubbish from poor sleep or the side effects of fast food, this will affect my training and then have a knock-on effect for the whole day.
I’m lucky in that I really enjoy physical activity, which makes it easier for me to schedule this into my working day.
I am usually up early at 5.30am. The kettle goes on and I enjoy a couple of coffees while checking emails. I then focus on my schedule for that day, whether that’s in the office or at client meetings.
Being able to review my day and actions before the traditional 9am start, gives me a huge advantage as it helps me to get ahead. I can do any work without interruptions of the phone ringing and other emails to sidetrack me. A clear mind and knowing what my daily workload looks like by 7am allows me to have focus.
This also enables me to fit in a gym session, walk, swim or run – whatever I choose to do that day.
If I have an early client meeting, which means I can’t train first thing, I ‘flip the script’ and do my training in the evening. No excuses. On holidays I continue to train and retain the inner disciplines that have translated into my business mantra – keeping focused and ahead of the game.
I am also an organised person – I had to be, to operate my business successfully. Having good time management is so important in business, and I absolutely include time spent on physical health and wellbeing. This has always worked to my advantage – I don’t wait for my day to start, I make my day start and I then control the tempo.
As I head toward my mid 50’s, discipline is more important than ever. It has helped develop my skill set in the workplace and I continue to engage this discipline in my post-sale/acquisition days.
One thing that also really helps me is the fact that my wife, Vicky, joins me for training; like me, this is an important way for her to support her own wellbeing.
There are so many benefits of physical health and wellbeing that bring transferable skills into all walks of life, whether work or family life.
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What are your top tips for using fitness to support wellbeing?
- Find what works for you – for me, it’s the gym, but for others, it could be walking, golf or swimming.
- Think about when would be the best time for you to integrate fitness into your day – this either needs to fit naturally into your schedule or you have to commit to making some changes.
- Know what makes you feel at your best and what hinders you – this can help you to be more disciplined and to make better decisions and choices.
- Find a buddy, working out with a friend, colleague or partner can often support your motivation or theirs.
- Remember that new routines can take time and you don’t need to be an athlete – doing something is better than doing nothing!
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