Travel Counsellors has launched a number of initiatives focused on physical and mental health in a bid to boost the personal wellbeing of the company’s business owners and support team colleagues.
In a take on RTE’s “Ireland’s Fittest Family”, Travel Counsellors launched “Ireland’s Fittest Travel Company” to encourage everyone to mind their health and stay positive in what was a dismal month for everyone in the country. The first challenge in January was to walk around Ireland with every form of exercise adding to the Kilometre total. In excess of 65 TC’s got behind the initiative with an average of 211 km’s per day recorded over 15 days. The group are now off to Greece for the second leg of their challenge and are determined to up the pace each day.
MD of Travel Counsellors Cathy Burke says “January has been one of the strangest in my 42-year career in Travel, and one I don’t want to ever repeat. Traditionally we were all tied to the desk for 12 hours each day in January and work flat out with little time to exercise or concentrate on health and wellbeing, so we knew we had to do something to keep the spirits up as the country locked down once again. Along with the walks our team are encouraged to challenge themselves to try something new each day with their mental wellness in mind. It might be to try a new recipe, buy yourself some flowers, have a media or tech free day, and so on.”
Travel Counsellors are also busy supporting each other in smaller “Pod” groups and organised training such as “By TC’s… For TC’s…” an initiative started in December where experts on favourite destinations do a session for their colleagues. With up to 50 people joining the session every week, the calls and presentations are recorded for those who can’t attend live, such as Mum’s or Dads who are busy home-schooling.
“The impact of the pandemic on the travel industry has been profound, and whilst we work together to come through this time, we are also increasingly mindful that these challenges have an ongoing effect on people. It’s reflective of our company culture and our duty of care to ensure that we are doing everything we can to support, guide and signpost people to all help available. Over the last few months, it’s been inspiring to see how our business owners have come together to support each other. We really see it as our responsibility as a company to use the technology and community platform we have to ensure that people can keep connected to each other, as we work through this time together.” Cathy Burke
Bernie Whelan BD Manager at Travel Counsellors adds: “Supporting trusted travel professionals to work remotely has meant that we’ve had a huge focus on boosting the motivation and mindset of people who work independently, and keeping a community culture where feeling connected to each other has always been at the heart of this approach. It’s as important to us in the head office team as it is to the Travel Counsellors to get involved.”
Alongside a dedicated personal counsellor, which is a service the company has provided to everyone at Travel Counsellors for over a decade, the company has also partnered with Laya Healthcare in Ireland so everyone at Travel Counsellors has access to a qualified and experienced professional, who will help to build a support plan for individuals, and be available to talk over the phone or through virtual meetings.
