At NorthEdge, the mental health and wellbeing of our colleagues, in our business and across our portfolio, remains at the top of our agenda. We are committed to continually raising awareness and supporting our colleagues and community in this increasingly important area.
Working within high-performance industries can result in people forgetting the importance of focusing on self-care, wellbeing and mental resilience. With International Men’s Day recently passing on the 19th November, and in light of our commitment to raising awareness of the importance of mental health in and outside of the workplace, we took the opportunity to record the last episode of this season of our Beyond the Capital podcast on this specific theme.
The latest episode sees Luke Ambler discuss the events in his life that led him to the role he has today – storyteller, motivational speaker, author, mental health campaigner and co-founder of Andy’s Man Club. Impactful takeaways include five key (and simple) steps we can all take to achieve a more balanced state mentally and physically, which provides us with the energy to be able to deal with the trials and tribulations of life and achieve high performance in a sustainable way:
- Develop an evening routine
- Sleep is key – try to ensure you’re achieving at least seven hours of sleep each night. In addition to this, Luke recommends limiting activities such as eating and using devices too close to your bedtime, and instead opt for a hot shower or bath to calm your body and mind.
- Hydration is key
- Start your day with at least 500ml of water to rehydrate your body after a night’s sleep and maintain a habit of drinking 6-8 glasses of water each day (approximately 1.2 litres).
- Keep moving
- Whether you hit the gym in the early morning or take a lunchtime walk, try to get moving at least once a day. Current recommendations are for most adults to achieve 30 minutes of exercise each day.
- Eat in moderation
- A diet that includes plenty of whole foods, fruit and vegetables keeps you feeling at your best.
- Make time for the things you love
- Spending time doing the things which you enjoy, or seeing people who make you happy, is important for a healthy mindset.
Luke also discusses why he started Andy’s Man Club and the importance of getting men to talk about their mental health – particularly given the latest data shows that men are three times more likely than women to die by suicide, with suicide being the biggest cause of male deaths under the age of 54. These are statistics which can’t be ignored and are why we want to keep sharing learnings and best practices – helping normalise the conversation on mental health and wellbeing within the private equity industry and beyond.
Andy’s Man Club started out as one club in 2016 in Yorkshire and has now grown to over 150 groups across the country, with seven trustees and over 20 members of staff and helping over 3700 people each week.
As well as taking accountability for looking after ourselves, in this episode we discuss how as business leaders we can create an environment for people to thrive and create a positive mental health culture.
Listen here.
Resources & clubs mentioned in this episode: