Does your business facilitate workplace challenges? Ours did, when we entered the 2014 Round the Bays event. At the end of this event it was fair to say that our experience ticked all the boxes of a typical workplace challenge.
Improving staff morale – yip, promoting a healthy lifestyle – definitely, and increased productivity – I’d say so. Last Sunday Team TourRunners was finally put into action as we pounded the waterfront of Wellington in our respective 6.5k, 10k and half marathon events. There were definitely a few nerves in the lead-up… Reminding us somewhat of our high-school cross-country days! However Wellington really turned it on with some perfect weather conditions, and with 14,000 people buzzing at the start line, the nerves were easily substituted for excitement!
Team TourWriter (L-R) Selina, Phil, John Plimmer, Glenn and Jason smiling, before the run started.
Each Tourwriter member entered an event that would push them in a personal challenge – most had never run that far in their live’s before. For some of us, the thought of running was always just that, a thought. However, once we entered this event, we challenged ourselves to make it more than that, and by the time the event came round, it was (for some of us!) something enjoyable. Aside from promoting a healthier lifestyle, we all had so much fun working together towards our personal, shared, non-business goals.
Our boss who funded our entry for this event will be happy to know that one of the most valuable things we gained from participating was the team building experience. A little inter-office banter should never be brushed off, for it was probably this that got the team the most motivated and provided the most enjoyment. Lunchtime team runs, and following each others progress (thanks to the running app Strava) ensured that not a day went by without some cheeky training digs and some good competition and laughs among team members. This definitely raised the bar in terms of workplace enjoyment!
The team at Tourwriter has experienced firsthand the benefits that workplace challenges can bring to the work environment – has your business? After such a positive response by everyone towards our challenge, we’re already thinking about what we can do for our next one!
As much as we all personally benefited from participating in this team challenge, we didn’t just do this run for ourselves. The team at Tourwriter managed to raise over $300 for the Malaghan Institute – a fantastic charity specializing in medical research to find cures for cancer, asthma, and allergy. Our fundraising page is still open, so if you feel like donating towards a worth cause, you can do so here.