27 Miles in 27 Days for Mind!

Last year, before the Coronavirus pandemic took over our collective consciousness, Joanne Wilson (Marketing and Communications Manager, Nicholas Associates Group) contacted me to tell me all about a fantastic initiative. Our National Charity Partner, Mind, was launching a campaign for students, where they would have 27 days to complete a challenge to run 27 miles.

In solidarity, we thought we could help out too by increasing awareness of this superb initiative, whilst also raising money for the 27% of students who report a mental health problem at University. Plus, I have to admit that none of us at NA Grad Placements could be classed as “gym-bunnies”; the great caveat was that we could complete this in our own time and at our own pace, alone or as a group in whatever way felt most comfortable for us. We promised Jo, we could do it!

Commencing on Monday 2 March 2020, NA Grad Placements started out by completing a series of short walks around Sheffield Business Park during our lunch breaks, sometimes complementing this activity with other jaunts we aimed to record on the popular application ‘MapMyFitness’. No doubt you saw many updates on LinkedIn to share our progress.

Like you, I never imagined at the start of March 2020, just how unusual the month would be. Not least because my Operations Director helped me put some further ‘miles-on-the-clock’ by conducting my 1-2-1 as a ‘walking meeting’. Thank goodness I had memorised my sales pipeline and GP forecasts in advance, having meticulously prepared this and more information in a report style, for the type of review you might normally have anticipated. It was a memorable occasion, to say the least.

Onwards and upwards, we continued in a similar vein. With circumstances and priorities changing on a daily basis, it really wasn’t practical to continue the challenge in unison. My colleagues tackled the miles in their own unique way and made a sterling effort in supporting this campaign.

I smashed the 27-mile barrier, completing 38.7 miles in total! In achieving this, I have my colleagues, friends and family to thank for the times they’ve accompanied me. It was a fun experience and a great way to get to know each other better, whilst enjoying a different type of break and to reset my own mind.

What was set out as a collective commitment, we achieved this challenge together and exceeded our goal. We will keep putting one foot in front of the other, wearing out the soles of our footwear and collectively keep ourselves moving forward.

Maybe to that end, it could be a reasonable analogy of the times we are now living in and our journey ahead. I’m confident that everyone will continue to support each other, to the very best of their abilities, We make steady progress together every day. We will overcome this terrible virus. We will be transformed by this shared experience. Step by step, we’re getting ever closer to the end.

Thanks for supporting our endeavours.

 

Ian Wilkinson, Business Manager

Business Manager and consultative recruitment professional.
Offering over 25 years of B2B experience in recruitment, advertising and digital marketing.

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