7 female Talent leaders share what they do to make good health a priority

We would often equate a healthy lifestyle to staying physically fit and maintaining an active way of life. It is, however, more than that and keeping good mental health is just as important too.
This week is Women’s Health Week and we thought we would shine the light on what are some of our female Talent Acquisition and sourcing leaders doing to keep themselves feeling healthy, both physically and emotionally.
Note to all you gentlemen out there – these health tips are applicable to you too, so get onto it and let us all start investing more time in ourselves so we are better able to look after the ones we love and care about.

Helena Bugeja
Head of Resourcing (acting) at ANZ

My team and I have had a few great sessions with a wellbeing coach to help us learn and practice good wellbeing practices. I’ve also been listening to a great podcast called A Loving Kindness and it really helps me build up a mindfulness habit.

On the physical side, I try and get my 10,000 steps in everyday and I wear a Hybrid watch to help keep me honest!

Jessi Carroll
Head of Executive Talent Acquisition at Medibank

It’s all about maintaining a good balance – I enjoy great wholesome foods, pilates every Friday morning, some cheeky dark chocolate and red wine on the weekends will always keep me motivated to going back to the gym on Mondays.

I also make sure I carve out time to relax each week and get some R&R, it could be a massage, breakfast with a friend, or quality time with my husband.

My top health tip – carry water with you, wherever you go! And try to limit the amount of coffees you have each day.

Alana Bennett
Head of Talent at oOh! Media

Physically, I exercise most mornings, this is a combination of pilates, running and strength workouts.

In terms of mental health, what I cannot do without is my nightly debrief with my family – I have two little boys and I’m trying to instil the importance of sharing all our experiences (the good, the bad, the ugly) so that we can teach them how they flow through these experiences in life.

I’ve found apps on mindfulness very useful too and I interchange between “Stop, Breathe & Think”, “Smiling Mind” and “Insight Timer”. When you’re learning to practise mindfulness/meditation, it’s much easier to be guided through your learning.

I’m also the Queen of Meal Prepping, so I meal prep every weekend and it involves making lunches and dinners for the week ahead – this means regardless of what is thrown my way that week I have prepared healthy, nutritious food for me and my family.

Remember your success is determined by how you fuel your body, this is the food you eat, the amount of exercise you do, the quality of the sleep you get and importantly how you respect your mental health.

Emily Alexander
Recruitment Manager at DXC Technology

I’ve been attending classes at Power Living for a number of years, and yoga gives me time to myself, to create my personal headspace and allowing me to find clarity.
There is always more work to be done so I have learnt to have limits and maintain some daily breaks to give me time away from the computer. The 15-minute reset when I grab a coffee with a colleague, the walk around the block when I need to think of a new approach to solve the problems I’m facing really helps.
Top health tips – keep talking it out with someone, a friend, a mentor, a colleague, your sister… you don’t need to solve it with that person, I just find it better to not exist and stress in isolation. Discussing problems with people in similar situations reduces stress levels!
Also, try not to take it all too seriously. Talent Acquisition ain’t quite brain surgery so do your job well, be kind, and remember everyone you deal with is just another human being like you. 🙂

Sarah Purches
Talent Acquisition Consultant at RMIT Online

I actually write down my intentions every new moon and full moon. That includes the things I need to let go of that are no longer serving me. The things I would like to welcome into my life and manifest. And sometimes it will be a list of goals or wishes or things I am grateful for.
As TA professionals, especially if you work in small teams, it can be quite hectic and it’s important that we learn how to respect our time and set boundaries. You don’t have to say yes to everything, put yourself and your wellbeing first.
I have always said “if no one is going to die, everything will be fine, so choose you”. At the end of the day it’s about respectful communication, inwards and outwards.

Shannon Pritchett
Editor at SourceCon

First, I make sure to eat healthy, and that’s my most important tip. I had to learn this the hard way, but it’s very easy to fall into the habit of eating food that will hurt your daily performance. Setting up a routine can help overcome this.
I am also someone who needs to walk away from work at the end of the day and I coach swimming in the evenings after work and that has become a much-needed daily mental break.
I am a fan of yoga. Concentrating on your body and breathing helps to keep me centred and focused. For that, I’d usually turn to YouTube, there are thousands of different yoga exercise and classes free on YouTube. You can also start and stop these videos at any time. So, if you only have 20 minutes, find a quick 20-minute yoga video on YouTube.

Cathy Riach
National Recruitment & Resourcing Manager at BAE Systems Australia

10,000 steps a day is my main routine. Typically that includes a power walk or interval jog (or shuffle!) for at least 3km each morning. The rest of the steps I’ll naturally get while dashing around! If I’m short, then I leverage my OCD tendency and pace around until I crack the 10K!

What I do find effective in stressful situations is simply to focus on steady breathing to calm my heart rate (plug for Fit Bit!). Positive self-talk is also useful. You’ve also got to do things that treat the soul. Whether that be outings with family, a massage, a good book or a visit to the hairdresser (my fav), do things that make you feel good.
Nothing is more important than your health. How many roles you filled or how much you billed won’t matter to anyone if you fall off your perch!  Balance work with a focus on you. Take time to breathe and look after yourself inside and out. You’ll do a better job as a result and enjoy it all so much more!
 

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