Simon Blake OBE CCMI

At MHFA England we have a My Whole Self MOT which gives some questions to ask about how you are feeling, thinking etc. It is a great way of tuning into ourselves and identifying any changes we may need to make. I do not want my self-care to be another thing I must do or another thing to track, I just want to enjoy doing the things I am doing and being in the moment. If I am going to track anything it would be, do I feel in a good space, am I in balance overall. Am I enjoying my work, is the fire in my belly and am I creating space and time to get things done and doing the things I love and that bring joy!

For me this is about knowing the list will always be there and so going for the run, walking the dog, going horse riding, meeting a friend, whatever it is will all HELP me be able to power through the list. I tend not to set a goal around self-care, because for me self-care is doing the stuff which gives your brain a rest, so my goal is always to be unwavering in the knowledge that the list will always be there, to focus on the priorities and know that doing the things I love outside of work, will maintain my passion for work and the ability to power through the most important things on those never ending lists!

For me it is about creating a balanced life that work is an important part of. Work doesn't always fit into 9 - 5 and life doesn't always fit into 5 - 9. At MHFA England we are lucky that we can work flexibly. This creates a mind set where I feel in control and know I can make choices that work for me. On a day to day level, in this era of zoom and teams, I need to make sure I move plenty of times in the day. Sitting still facing a screen is my happiness hoover so I tend to do 5 min power walks and run around the block between meetings. I am *learning* to to listen to my body and brain. I get loads of signs that I may need to do more of something or less of something or nothing. When I listen to those signs I can make changes.

We spend a lot of our professional time waiting for the moment to make our point, or to say the thing we know to be true. I was once asked to do a speech that was provocative where my goal was not to impart knowledge - the truth as I saw it or what the evidence told us - but to ignite new conversation, new questions and new ways of thinking. It taught me a lot and sometimes now I will run meetings where I will encourage people to abandon orthodoxies where you say the stuff you know, and create spaces where people can think and generate new ideas. The different energy it creates is palpable.

We live in a world where there is so much information and so many free courses available. It can be easy to expect people to find the podcasts, books, free training themselves which some people do with ease. But too much information is as difficult to benefit from as too little. However, some people find it overwhelming. I love it when someone tells me about a podcast, a website, a Ted Talk etc that they have found useful and interesting so I try and do the same. I do a CEO message to all staff on Fridays, and if I have read or listened to something interesting and relevant, and I remember, I will share the link.

My first job after graduating was running a sex ed project. I met an extraordinary woman in a partner organisation and she said she thought I had an interesting way of thinking. She invited me to be part of a project advisory group, give evidence to a parliamentary committee, invited me to co-facilitate a consultation event & contribute a chapter to a book. All experiences out of my comfort zone! Through that generosity Gill ignited a curiosity for learning that I had never had at school & demonstrated learning comes in many shapes. I try - probably without the grace Gill did - to pay this forward & encourage folk to step into unchartered territory and to feel the joy of learning new things that help us navigate the highs and lows.