Connect is one of our 6 Pillars of Wellbeing. It’s all about building close bonds with others and experiencing a feeling of belonging.
You’ll know you’re making time to Connect when you:
Feel close to important people in your life
Put time into friendships
Show kindness to others
A great way to bring the Connect Pillar into your workplace is by creating some Connect-inspired rituals with your team. Rituals are things you do to weave wellbeing into your day, like breathing breaks or walking meetings.
Here are some ritual ideas that align with our Connect Pillar.
Start meetings with an icebreaker. Give people a riddle to solve, do a quick emoji check in (if meeting virtually), or invite everyone to share something going on in their world.
Assign people a mentor or buddy. Connect people with someone who’s not their direct manager. Give people the opportunity to learn from others.
Schedule wellbeing meetings. Where leaders show/tell how they are weaving Groov’s 6 Pillars into their routine. This gives permission for others to do the same.
Host AMAs (Ask Me Anythings) with the leadership team. Give people the option to submit questions anonymously and ahead of time.
Schedule regular team meetings. For the purpose of checking in with each other, not just to solve work-related issues.
Run a team step challenge. For example, set a goal of 7,000 steps per day. Everyone who reaches this goal goes into the draw to win a spot prize. Healthy competition is great for camaraderie!
Organise a family-friendly social event. Where your people can bring along their loved ones.
Create a ‘6 Pillars’ comms channel. For people to share what helps them stay in their Groov and exchange ideas for using the 6 Pillars of Wellbeing in everyday life.
Encourage coffee dates. Use a system to match team mates at random (such as Donut intros on Slack) to ensure everyone gets a chance to connect.
Block out lunch breaks on company calendars. Encourage people to break for lunch at the same time (if possible).
Encourage people to take breaks in common areas. Make common rooms appealing places to spend time.
Organise shared lunches. And encourage people to bring dishes reflecting their culture.
Set aside time in meetings for non-work related banter. Give people time to share what they did on the weekend and their hobbies and interests.
Decorate common areas. In ways that celebrate and reflect your people, for example for multicultural holidays or festivals.
Encourage #feedbackfriday. Make it a ritual for everyone to share some positive feedback about someone else on their team every Friday.
Create a gratitude comms channel. For people to publicly post thank you messages and share when someone has done something awesome.
Volunteer as a team. Find creative ways to give back to the community as a team, such as cleaning up a public space, putting together care packages, or hosting a workplace fundraiser.
Give your team a bonus day off. After a particularly busy period or a big win.
Celebrate birthdays. Meet for cake in the common room, decorate someone’s workspace, or get your whole team to write messages of appreciation in a card.
Acknowledge what your people do. Every fortnight, express gratitude for specific tasks your people have completed. This helps them to feel seen and valued.
Every workplace and team is unique, so experiment with different rituals until you find some that stick. The most important thing is to commit to rituals as a team. Doing things together improves communication, increases trust, and builds empathy. And when the whole team is on board, it makes it much easier to make Connect a normal part of daily life at work.