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Our 100% Human Symposium

How do we put the human at the heart of everything we do? This was just one of the core questions we posed at our recent 100% Human Symposium. We came together on the 21st November in the wonderful Seven Dials club in Covent Garden to explore the idea of being more human and what it means in today’s workplace. Our aim was to provide a space for sharing stories and receiving new and powerful perspectives, and from which we could take away some fresh thinking.

We were fortunate to be joined by several inspirational speakers:

  • Alison Jones, previously Managing Director at Volkswagen UK and now Group Managing Director UK of PSA Peugeot Citroen, giving us her ‘view from the board’
  • Tom Williams, sharing his experiences and learning as a professional rugby player and coach with Harlequins. To learn more about the challenges Tom has faced, take a look at this: https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/rugby-union/47882458
  • Sarah Jepson Jones, speaking about the challenges of working whilst being the mother of Gabriella, a child with complex special needs https://www.facebook.com/gabriellasgrabforindependence/
  • Andy Elwood, previously a paramedic in rescue helicopters and now a mental health campaigner and instructor. For a glimpse into Andy’s background, take a look at this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kFODtT5vOzM#action=share
  • Liam O’Dell, freelance journalist and vlogger, giving us the perspective of someone at the start of their career, who is also living with tinnitus and hearing challenges. Click here to hear Liam talking at a TEDX Youth conference: https://youtube/0e3lCYwtm9o

This day was always going to be an experiment, and we knew it would be as much about what our community would bring to it as it was about what we could offer. To those who were there – you didn’t disappoint. Your openness and compassion and your commitment to creating a safe space where we could all share our experiences and ideas were exceptional. As a result, we found this to be a truly inspirational day, and we hope it was for all of you who attended.

It’s a challenge to sum up the wide range of views and perspectives we touched on, shared and discussed, but here are some of the thoughts and themes we took away from the day.

The freedom to be yourself – this was a key thread running through our day, and was really about having the choice to disclose whatever we feel we need to, in order to feel appreciated as a human being. Alison discussed the challenge of being yourself at board level, whilst Liam talked about how easy it is to allow the social ‘mask’ to hide your true identity. All of our speakers had had to confront this challenge in some way, and make choices which were not always easy. We discussed what organisations need to do to value us more as individuals and to allow us to be who we truly are.

Choices and dilemmas – we talked about the significance of those ‘moments of choice’ we face where there isn’t an easy answer and we need to be true to ourselves in how we respond. Tom faced an incredibly challenging dilemma in his rugby career, which had far-reaching implications. Sometimes, like Andy, we make the decision to change direction and use our talents in a very different way. And like Sarah, sometimes we face life-changing situations where our choices are limited but we have to find new ways to make our lives work. One question we explored was how well supported we are in those moments of choice by the organisations, teams or individuals around us – and what the consequences are when we’re not.

Community and connection– there was much discussion about the importance of community and having a strong support network. We all recognised that a fundamental part of being human is having and making connections with others. All our speakers could point to individuals or groups who provided that invaluable support and help, often at crucial moments of their lives. Whilst we talked about the downside of social media, we recognised that connections and communities forged online can sometimes be a huge benefit and can provide a vital safety net when we need it. So how can our workplaces become places of connection which encourage us to share, support and care for each other?

Being creative and taking risks – Liam talked about creativity as central to the idea of being human, but for that to work, we need to be able to take risks and make mistakes. The more constrained we are by getting it ‘right’, the less able we are to explore opportunities and spread our wings. We questioned whether or not the organisations we work for and with are always willing to allow for mistakes and if they trust us enough to be creative. What stops our organisations from being hubs that encourage creativity and help us to learn and grow as a result? What can we do to generate a more vibrant and innovative environment in our places of work?

The importance of sharing our stories – we all had the opportunity to share our ‘six-word stories’. Our curiosity about each other’s experiences, and our openness in sharing our own, proved to be incredibly powerful. The deep-rooted attachment we have to stories is well known. Sharing them is part of our human experience, and in turn encourages others to do the same. This allows us to be vulnerable and voice our feelings, which is hugely important to our mental health. Andy discussed the importance of talking about our concerns, particularly for men, who are less inclined to share their feelings openly. Much of his work is focused on encouraging that dialogue. So how can we all help to make it easier for others to talk? And what would it take for us to share our own experiences more openly too?

Our disconnected world – we talked about how challenging it can be to be human in this often turbulent and divisive digital world – but that this also makes it so much more important. We discussed how our expectations as consumers today mean we tend to value speed and convenience over human interaction when we shop. And social media (despite the positive advantages already mentioned) can also encourage a world where we are quick to judge and slow to forgive. How can we combat this? And how can we as consumers and workers show more patience and kindness and less judgement when we communicate with others?

We finished with a call to arms. We want to create a movement which values others, is based on kindness and mutual respect and allows us all to be ourselves so that we can grow and thrive. We are already a supportive learning community with much to give. What if we were to start to build more positive and kind work environments for our colleagues, communities and for ourselves, where people are not only valued, but also placed ‘front and centre’ when decisions are made? This is the start of the journey for us, but we’re ready for the challenge.

We hope you can join us.

Further resources

Listen to our latest podcast where we discuss ‘Characters@Work’ and the social masks we so often feel the need to wear - https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-art-of-work-master-the-workplace/id1455641059#episodeGuid=33195b96-5a41-4ac1-add5-538cd117897c.

In our invitation, we included a link to our nominated mental health charity, CALM (the Campaign against Living Miserably). If you missed it and would like to contribute to this really worthwhile cause, do take a look here; https://www.thecalmzone.net.