The 10th of January saw an amazing day for the staff of Leeds Beckett University Business School.
A well-being day, proposed by the Dean, Professor George Lodorfos, was arranged for the hard-working staff of the business school with an array of activities for those who wanted to join in.
The day had a variety of sessions for staff to choose from beginning in the morning, such as dog therapy with ‘Moment toPaws’, as well as a sound bath with ‘We are Wellness.’
The afternoon began with an incredible lunch of tacos served by ‘Sabroso Street’, with delicious options to choose from such as shredded chicken with guacamole, pulled pork tacos topped with pineapple salsa, or cauliflower al pastor.
After lunch, there were more even more activities to choose from in line with the theme of mindfulness and wellbeing.
I spoke to Kirstie Williams from Leeds Print Workshop, to discuss the positive impact of art (more specifically lino-cutting), and how it can improve mental health and well-being.
“Lino-printing is a relief printing technique, it’s a way for people to carve a block and create their own artwork.”
“Engaging in sort of, any creative activity is beneficial for well-being, especially with mental health. It’s a really calming activity, it’s really enjoyable and it’s something that you can just absorb yourself in and stop thinking about other things for an hour or so. Especially the process of actually carving the lino, it can be really quite a therapeutic process.”
The staff in the workshop got creative and produced some wonderful and unique patterns and prints with the help of Kirstie.
Towards the end of the day, one of the final workshops was taught by Paul, a Tai Chi instructor who had been practicing martial arts for many years.
Paul taught the staff a ‘Yang’ style practice of Tai Chi and stated that Tai Chi was not just for self-defense, it was a way of practice for “relaxation, coordination, and strength.”
Paul then demonstrated and taught a sequence of Tai Chi to help those in the workshop to relax their mind and body through movement, and ultimately give the staff a taste of the benefits of Tai Chi.
The staff at Leeds Beckett Business School were well and truly treated this day, and it’s incredible to see how the University engages in protecting their staff’s wellbeing with days like this catered for all of the hard-working people in the School.
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