Feeling good is how we feel physically, mentally and emotionally. Everyone will have times where they do not feel good. You may feel physically poorly, or mentally and emotionally drained and struggling. There will be times when you may not feel good or function well and at these times, it is important to have a toolkit that you can use to help yourself and to make positive changes. The more you practice these skills, the more you will understand what works best for you. Subsequently it is important to promote these strategies and focal points to colleagues and students.

The use of electronic devices can be disruptive in any learning environment, despite their utility to some students (i.e., note taking, vocabulary support of ESL etc.). However, non-essential use of personal devices (e.g., mobile phones, social media monitoring) in class, can be especially counterproductive- disturbing not only the student, but their learning environment ‘neighbours’ and ultimately, their instructors. This pedagogy involves requesting ‘radio silence’ -except for emergency or pre-arranged academic reasons, gives a theory-driven rationale for the request, and also facilitates student choice in response to the request.

Support for staff members across the university can come in many forms – such as line management, team meetings, support and advice from Human Resources, Employee Assistance Programme (EAP), etc. However the support from colleagues is vitally important and can be extremely beneficial when either starting a new job/ role, during challenging times or in general. Subsequently the introduction of buddying systems can be beneficial in the development of staff members, the management of work, creating a support network and improving general wellbeing. Shadowing opportunities can also be beneficial and built into the buddying system and into inductions for new members of staff.

Acknowledging emails is a very simple wellbeing practice to put in place. It takes very little time to send a quick response acknowledging receipt of an e-mail. Within a learning and teaching context, it helps to set boundaries and expectations. The acknowledgement of an e-mail reassures the recipient that you have received their communication, but also gives you a little more time to respond, helping you to manage your own workload.