Many unexpected positives have emerged from the pandemic, including a wave of solidarity across the nation. Think of Clap for Carers, the official Thursday evening round of applause for NHS workers that swept the UK during the first lockdown in 2020. Consider the springing up of 3,500 local mutual aid groups on the Covid-19 Mutual Aid website. Remember the surge of millions of people who joined local support groups on Facebook and WhatsApp.
But now that the worst is behind us, will that strong sense of community prevail?
This year’s Stress Awareness Month focuses the spotlight on the importance of community-level solidarity as a valuable tool in our battle to manage modern-day stress. It aims to raise awareness of the role of a sense of belonging to a community in this battle, and to highlight how we can best nurture and harness its benefits. The key points it promotes are:
– People who are more socially connected to family, friends and/or their wider community are happier and both physically and mentally healthier than less well connected people.
– A lack of community support can make people feel lonely and socially isolated. It can also increase the risk of depression, anxiety, sleeping problems and stress.
– Socialising and volunteering are powerful ways to boost a strong sense of community spirit. Playing a sport, joining a hobby class and volunteering give us meaning and a shared sense of purpose. Such activities at once distract us from our worries and offer the opportunity to share them, both of which connect us to others and decrease our stress levels. Volunteering is especially effective to this end. When we share our skills and talents, we bring value to our communities while also benefiting from a greater sense of well-being and happiness.
What does your company do to promote a strong sense of community among employees? Do you think they should be doing more, as part of a stress-management strategy?
If you’d like to remove the stress from your job search, please get in touch with ABL. We are the UK’s leading multilingual recruitment experts. With over 124 open vacancies currently on our books and strong relationships with more than 400 leading organisations worldwide, we can help you find the job of your dreams and ace your interview. We hope to hear from you soon!
