S03E04: Looking After Your Conservator

We team up with Lorraine Finch to talk about how to look after your conservator: we cover topics like wellbeing and self-care, while also discussing what employers and managers can do to keep staff in good condition. We talk to Dr Michelle Huws-Thomas about burnout and stress in the workplace, and we interview Sam Jenkins from the Museum Wellness Network. Also tune in for a review of ‘Objective Lessons: Self Care for Museum Workers’ by Seema Rao. 00:01:04 News in brief 00:05:11 Defining ‘wellbeing’ and ‘self care’ 00:07:32 What’s wellbeing to us? 00:17:46 Lab pets and yoga practice 00:22:11 The power of body language 00:25:23 Swedish fika and the art of taking a break 00:28:11 Different types of stress 00:35:28 Mindfulness and its place in conservation 00:41:43 Mental health: Lorraine and Jenny’s stories 00:48:45 Tips for improved wellbeing 00:50:17 Interview with Dr Michelle Huws-Thomas 01:05:41 Warning signs and remembering to recharge 01:07:30 Rust out 01:11:45 Interview with Sam Jenkins 01:21:18 Review: Objective Lessons - Self Care for Museum Professions Show Notes: - Article on clothes moth spread: https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2018/apr/22/how-to-avoid-clothes-moths-live-in-the-east-midlands - Pests in Houses Great and Small - Identification, Prevention and Eradication by Dee Lauder and David Pinniger: https://amzn.to/2HBYSBc - Museum Practice on Wellbeing: https://www.museumsassociation.org/museum-practice/wellbeing - Staff and Volunteer Wellbeing article in Museum Practice (members only): https://www.museumsassociation.org/museum-practice/wellbeing/16042018-staff-and-volunteer-wellbeing - Mind: https://www.mind.org.uk/ - Presence - Bringing Your Boldest Self to Your Biggest Challenges by Amy Cuddy: https://amzn.to/2r94Q1r - TED talk about the power of body language: https://www.ted.com/talks/amy_cuddy_your_body_language_shapes_who_you_are - What is Fika? https://www.thekitchn.com/what-in-the-world-is-fika-an-intro-to-the-swedish-coffee-break-the-art-of-fika-219297 - Headspace app: https://www.headspace.com/ - The Curse of Lovely by Jacqui Marson: https://amzn.to/2I7SXmS - Clore leadership course: https://www.cloreleadership.org/ - Rust Out: https://www.healthcentral.com/article/rustout-causes-symptoms-and-cures - Mental Health First Aid training: https://mhfaengland.org/ - Joyful Museums: http://www.joyfulmuseums.com/ - The Happy Museum Project: http://happymuseumproject.org/ - Museum 5 a day: https://twitter.com/Muse5aday - Museum Wellness Network: https://museumwellnessnetwork.wordpress.com/ - Objective Lessons - Self Care for Museum Professions: https://amzn.to/2KsSaLU Further Resources: - Jenny’s favourite yoga instructor on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/yogawithadriene/videos - The Blurt Foundation Resources: https://www.blurtitout.org/resources/ - Museum Wellness Network on Twitter: https://twitter.com/Museum_Wellness - Mental Health at Work: https://www.mind.org.uk/workplace/mental-health-at-work/ - NHS Moodzone: https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/stress-anxiety-depression/ Book Recommendations from Lorraine and Jenny: - Quiet - The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking by Susan Cain: https://amzn.to/2rbPGbV - Sane New World - Taming the Mind by Ruby Wax: https://amzn.to/2vZd6a0 - The Mind-Gut Connection by Emeran Mayer: https://amzn.to/2HKuv7C - The Self-Care Project by Jayne Hardy: https://amzn.to/2HJrqVD Support us on Patreon! http://www.patreon.com/thecword Hosted by Jenny Mathiasson, Kloe Rumsey and Lorraine Finch. Intro and outro music by DDmyzik used under a Creative Commons Attribution license. Additional sound effects and music by Calum Robertson. Made available under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International license. A Wooden Dice production, 2018.