Well Paid, Well Appreciated, Wellbeing

Wellbeing at work is a big issue for many, but happily I’ve got a simple secret to help yourself feel good.

It’s all about being paid versus being valued.

I’m lucky in that I enjoy just about everything I do (although the paperwork concerned with being self-employed I shall pass no comment on.)

I love my writing, and my teaching, but there is one area which I treasure most of all…

And for me, that’s the secret of true well-being.

I’ve just come back from Guernsey, where I’ve been helping the finance sector with their communications. 

It was a lovely trip to a beautiful island, I enjoyed helping some terrific people, and it was financially rewarding as well.

But the week before I did some work which was unpaid, yet made me feel like I was skipping on clouds.

I was talking about media careers to students at the excellent Long Road Sixth Form College.

They were a brilliant bunch. Full of energy and ability, and reassured me about what a fine future this incredible planet has in the hands of such excellent young people.

I came away buzzing from the session, as, in truth, I did after my trip to Guernsey.

But! It was a different kind of buzz.

It felt somehow deeper, more profound.

It felt like I was handing on the baton, passing on the skills I’ve learnt over the years to the next generation, and making a real investment in the future.

Yes, it’s true I’m lucky enough to have the freedom and resources to give my time for nothing.

But if you do have any such opportunity, I would recommend taking it without a hint of hesitation.

Not just because it’s the right thing to do, but because of how it makes you feel.   

Such work may, in strictly accurate terms, be unpaid.

But the rewards are measured in terms way beyond money.