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Wellbeing challenge: week one

1 February 2021

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This is Week One of the MOT4U Challenge, devised to help keep you running at peak performance in the face of challenging times in general practice. The weekly challenge offers some brief exercises to take part in, and a short video to watch, all focused on your supporting your wellbeing and resilience. 

Follow and comment #mot4uchallenge on Twitter 

Let us know your thoughts and feedback after working through the  exercises and watching the video.

Presented by Sheela Hobden of Bluegreen Coaching, with Management in Practice.

The MOT4U Challenge will run for four weeks, with new posts on a Monday and Friday.


STEP 1

A quick exercise to prepare

Firstly, help yourself come to the present moment. Use 7/11 breathing to centre and calm.

  • Breathe in for 7 seconds
  • Pause
  • Breathe out for 11 seconds
  • Repeat 3 times for a ‘mindful minute’.

Check out why this works here.

This is one of the best “quick fixes” I know for reducing anxiety and tension. One thing we can control is our breathing, so if nothing else, one thing is back in our control.


STEP 2

A short drawing exercise

The ‘vehicle for wellbeing’

Take a piece of A4 paper, landscape, and draw:

  • The frame of a car
  • Steering wheel and wheels (this represents your sense of control)
  • A map (this represents you sense of purpose and direction)
  • All the windows, doors, rear view mirror and wing mirrors (this represents the different views/perspectives you have)
  • Dashed white lines on the road by your car (this represents your boundaries or ‘line in the sand’).

Each of these elements represents something for us to consider in relation to our well-being and will form the basis of the work we do together over the next few weeks.


STEP 3

The steering wheel

People who spend energy focusing on things they can control, expand their sense of control of things around them. When we feel in control, we feel much better about things that are happening around us.

When you are driving, or if you ever watched anyone driving, did you ever see them drive straight into a hazard in the road? More likely they turned left or right to avoid it.

It may seem like either option is not a favourable option, nevertheless, they are options and a response was made in relation to the choices available.

Who is holding your steering wheel?


STEP 4

Finally, here are some suggested activities for you to try, depending on how much time you have and how much you want to explore:

Something to watch

Watch this short video from Sheela Hobden for more thoughts on this theme.

Some questions to mull over

  • When you feel ‘out of control’, what one thing makes you feel better?
  • What do you currently perceive to be out of your control, that you could change your response towards?

Things to try

  • If you are on Twitter, post a picture of something you have recently gained control of (however small that may be) – include the tag #mot4uchallenge
  • Start a tally sheet and count the number of choices you make today or this week
  • Take the Locus of Control Measure found here.

Something to read

  • How do we determine our successes and failures? Read this article to find out.