3 ways to fulfil your goals

How does the work you're doing help our customers and members?

The Employer Brand team play an important role in attracting candidates with the right skills and behaviours. We have to paint an authentic picture for candidates to help with their decision making. In doing that, candidates are able to make a more informed choice and choose whether a career at Nationwide is right for them.

This impacts further down the line by helping find the right people for the right roles, and we know this helps to provide Simply brilliant service for our customers and members. 

What does a good day look like for you?

Employer Brand is constantly evolving and looking for better ways, that's a huge part of the attraction for me. Push for better is one of our behaviours and so this resonates strongly.   With that in mind, a good day is varied, challenging, a learning opportunity, but also productive.

Last week we spent the day filming with our Security & Resilience team for a new campaign. This needed a lot of coordination, creativity and project management, as well as the real personal side of working with one of our suppliers and the business. It was a really interesting and at times quite challenging day. Full of learning opportunities, and a great way to connect with the external video team and our colleagues in Security & Resilience. It was a really enjoyable day but also gave me a chance to reflect on how can we do that better next time, and what did I learn about myself.

What do you consider the 3 most important things you do in a day to fulfil your goals?

If I can find my flow, I'm in a good space to get things done. I've often struggled with moving between different tasks and getting distracted with the intention of getting everything off my to do list. But with some self awareness I've learnt this isn't productive. So my 3 most important things are:

• Be super focused - technology can interrupt you at every opportunity so when I need to be focused I turn off all distractions and just concentrate on the one thing I need to get done. Multitasking feels like a bit of a myth to me, so I've no shame in saying if I want to get this done, I can't get distracted. 
• Get moving - I love running and will always try and get out at lunch for a run or other exercise. Even on stressful days, it helps clear my mind, brings back my focus and makes me feel better. 
• Learn to say no - I'm definitely a people pleaser, and saying no to people doesn't come easy. But sometimes you need to, so you can focus on the things that are necessary rather than nice to haves.

How do you balance work, family and your own goals?

This is a constant ebb and flow. My family and life outside Nationwide are so important to me. At the same time I love my work and so there is a fine balance of getting everything aligned, and it's always changing. I've learnt that being deliberate and focused gives me the best chance of balancing everything.

Looking at how you spend your time can be a really useful exercise, for example, how much time do you waste scrolling mindlessly on your phone. I never check my phone for the first hour of the day and instead get up with greater intention, gratitude and focus.

It's often the small changes that add up to give you a greater sense of balance.