The science is in, and it’s undeniable that the scenic quality of our daily environments has a direct correlation to our personal wellbeing*. So when we set out to build the kind of environment that would support our people in delivering their best, we looked far and wide for some of the most innovative ideas. One such concept was the idea of the Recharge Room.

What is a recharge room? 

As the name may imply, they’re rooms where employees can take a few minutes of downtime to zone out, relax, stretch, nap, pray or even meditate. Everything in the room has been designed to support ‘recharging’ (however you choose to do that). From the tranquil forest mural wall, to the electric-massage mat, to the meditation books and puzzles, and aromatherapy kit, we designed a room that would maximize relaxation and allow employees to focus on their wellbeing.

Why create one?

People need breaks. Especially our teams who are on the frontline of a business like ours. While many employers still measure ‘frontline productivity’ based on the number of hours invested in a given task, we don’t believe that’s a very reliable organisational metric. Instead, we focus on the quality of the tasks completed, for example – feedback from our customers.

To support our people in doing their best we looked at everything they need to be productive. This includes the right tools, the right tasks, the environment around them, and an internal culture with a strong focus on positive mental health. While ‘mental health’ might still be taboo in many companies, studies^ have shown a strong correlation between meditation and improved concentration, which includes focus and over-all performance. So why not encourage this?

If predictions are true, in 9-ish months we are going to be looking at a lockdown baby boom. But what is the true cost of having a child? We look at some of the costs that don’t normally get factored in. The figure could be the cold shower you need.

The true cost.

More than two thirds of women give birth in the public system*, and while this is essentially no-cost, not everything you need is covered. For example, scans or pathology tests (if done outside the hospital) and medicines. So while these things may have a Medicare rebate, there are out-of-pocket expenses.

Have you thought about…

There are just some things that are really easy to remember to budget for. All the cute stuff for the baby that generally get parents, grandparents and friends a little ‘goo goo gah gah’. Things like baby blankets, clothing, a cot, pram, change-table. But the stuff that often gets overlooked and not budgeted for are just as important. For example, maternity clothes for mum, physiotherapy, exercise classes, regular ultrasound scans, GP visits, antenatal classes and childcare. These things can easily run into the hundreds (and thousands) of dollars over time.

We also know that once new parents bring a child into the world it’s a key prompt for many people to consider Life Insurance because once you have a child you want to ensure that they are looked after if something was to happen to you – for example death or permanent disability. Given that the cost of protecting you and your family only increases with time, it’s something that’s advantageous to lock-in as soon as possible – it can save you big bucks over the life of a policy.

There are very many things you cannot control in this world like COVID-19 and whether there will be enough toilet paper in the grocery store, but you can ensure that you take out insurance to protect your family from financial burdens should the worse happen. 

Putting a figure on it.

According to the NATSEM Income and Wealth Report from 2013, for a middle-income family in Australia, the cost of raising two kids, from birth to when they leave home is $812,000. If you’re a higher income family, this figure increases to $1.09 million whereas a lower income family can look to spend $474,000. As the cost of living has increased since this report was released, you can expect these figures to be even higher in 2020. Food for thought, right?

While no one can put a cost on how much you love your kids, there is a reality around how much you’re going to need to budget if you want to hear the patter of little feet.

*https://www.abc.net.au/life/the-cost-of-childbirth-and-the-hidden-bills-to-prepare-for/10350778

There are a lot of tips and tricks to coping with life right now, but we have waded through them all to bring you the best ways to be happier – backed by science. 

Spend money … on other people.

‘Prosocial spending’ is essentially buying things for other people and it’s been proven to be more effective than buying things for yourself. A 2012 Harvard study gave away some money to participants of the study. Half of them were asked to spend it on buying things for themselves, while the other half was asked to spend the money by buying things for others. They found that the people who spent the money on other people were happier when recalling the purchase than those who had bought something for themselves.

Sleep more.

Sleep seems to be the cure for just about everything, but stick with us on this one, here comes the science… Negative stimuli get processed by the amygdala; positive or neutral memories gets processed by the hippocampus. Sleep deprivation hits the hippocampus harder than the amygdala. The result is that sleep-deprived people fail to recall pleasant memories yet recall gloomy memories just fine.

Give gratitude.

Gratitude is the act of being thankful for simple things in our life. Practicing gratitude has been proven to increase happiness. There’s a study from Journal of Personality and Social Psychology that suggests that a conscious focus on blessings (in other words: practicing gratitude) have emotional and interpersonal benefits. When practicing gratitude, you may find you spend your day thinking about what you are going to put in your journal so your focus changes to what you can be grateful for. Life changing!

Spend more time with family and friends

Some of you might be thinking “not my family”, but did you know that staying in touch with friends and family is one of the top five regrets of the dying. Daniel Gilbert, Harvard College Professor of Psychology at Harvard University, explains it best. “We are happy when we have family, we are happy when we have friends and almost all the other things, we think make us happy are actually just ways of getting more family and friends.” And while you might not be able to physically be with them at this time, video conferencing is the next best thing. 

If all else fails, pop on some great music and bop along. Here’s our suggestion…  

With so many people working remotely we wanted to pull together some of the best tech to help you stay connect and get the most out of your day.

Staying connected.

Most people will have heard of Zoom.us, it’s a pretty great video conferencing tool that allows you to host meetings, share presentations, or run a webinar. Our bonus tip is how to use the virtual background https://youtu.be/3Zq-b51A3dA which will put your Zoom-game ahead of the rest. Plus, no list would be complete without it!

Whether you’re down the hall or halfway around the world, Slack.com is the clear front-runner in real-time team chat. The basic premise is that Slack spares email inboxes and reduces the number of clunky ccs and bccs you need to manage. Teams can be created around departments, projects, or whatever you like. Messages are sent out to teams over the transom, or you can DM individuals or smaller groups. There are a whole bunch of add-ons you can get for Slack too, our fav is https://www.heytaco.chat/.

Staying on task

Trello makes to-dos shareable with your colleagues, clients or collaborators. This web-based platform is like a virtual vision board with lists and cards that help you organise what needs to be done, what’s in process and what’s complete. You can create new boards for different projects and it’s very simple to use.

Monday.com is a great way to manage projects across remote teams. It’s a cloud-based project management platforms is aimed at small and mid-sized teams and uses labels to clearly identify who is working on what when. It’s visually a really great tool to use and at least until the novelty wears off, it’s so fun to use, you won’t know you’re working!

Staying healthy and human.

Staying fit is going to be a particular challenge over the foreseeable future, especially if you rely on classes both for the routine and motivation. Sydney Yoga Collective https://www.sydneyyogacollective.com/ is live-streaming its 32 yoga classes. It’s $10 for unlimited access and there’ll be five free classes available weekly, too. Or try recently opened personal-training studio Frame https://www.framecremorne.com/ in Melbourne is now offering six virtual classes every day. It’s $10 for one or $35 for unlimited sessions.

Want to Stephen Fry, Matthew McConaughey or Leona Lewis read you a bedtime story to unwind? Well, there an app for that. Check out https://app.www.calm.com/sleep. It’s a wonderful selection of stories, music, meditation and other things to help you get calm, stay calm or drift off to sleep without a worry in the world.

Rave.io is an app that is all about bringing people together around the media they love. So it allows you to watch Netflix, YouTube, Vimeo together or listening to music. People around the world are using it to host virtual dance parties with friends. Or you can do a movie night? The options are endless and it’s a great way to be social with the social distancing.