Wellbeing Posts

[Lionelgee]

Hello All,

A while ago I was posting wellbeing related content here on AULRO, However for various reasons I stopped writing such posts.

I just checked with Incisor and I was given the green light to provide a link to my LinkedIn page where I have been contributing weekly post for the past five weeks. If you would like to have a gecko at the content the posts should be available through clicking on the following link

https://www.linkedin.com/in/dr-lionel-evans-0b543719
(https://www.linkedin.com/in/dr-lionel-evans-0b543719)
These posts are comments initially about Organisational change could incur the risk of Moral Injury in the workplace.

As per the first sentences in Part A the topic is increasingly relevant internationally. If it this is a sign of the times, I hope what I post will provide some tips and tricks for both new and more mature hands. The best outcome possible is to avoid too much damage being done to individuals and the people they share their lives with. Later on I will be concentrating more directly on wellbeing and expand it outside of the workplace. There are still some foundational points to describe before the concentration on wellbeing gets posted up.

Please feel free to visit the LinkedIn site. The posts are a proactive way of keeping my brain active while I continue on the quest to gain meaningful employment. Also, people might be interested in the topics I discuss too. It is okay if you want to discuss the content of the LinkedIn posts here on AULRO.

If you like what you read on the LinkedIn posts please give me a 'thumbs up' or a 'like' or whatever system LinkedIn uses!

Anyway ... enjoy! Take care and stay well.

Kind regards
Dr. Lionel

[p38arover]

To be honest, I never read that sort of stuff as I believe it’s hogwash. Ditto with all the feel-good crap stories on YouTube.

[NavyDiver]

To be honest, I never read that sort of stuff as I believe it’s hogwash. Ditto with all the feel-good crap stories on YouTube.
RUOK Ron[thumbsupbig]

[Lionelgee]

To be honest, I never read that sort of stuff as I believe it’s hogwash. Ditto with all the feel-good crap stories on YouTube.

Hello Ron, now don't hold back there!

[p38arover]

RUOK Ron[thumbsupbig]

I think so. I've always been this negative about "feel good" stuff.

When I worked for OTC (1965-2002), they'd have stuff like this every so often which we had to attend and at the end I'd proclaim it was rubbish. Don't think it went down well with the presenters. Other staff would tell me after we'd left that they agreed but weren't game to say anything (the same with team building programmes). I didn't care. Never understood how people could be so keen about it.

[NavyDiver]

I think so. I've always been this negative about "feel good" stuff.

When I worked for OTC (1965-2002), they'd have stuff like this every so often which we had to attend and at the end I'd proclaim it was rubbish. Don't think it went down well with the presenters. Other staff would tell me after we'd left that they agreed but weren't game to say anything (the same with team building programmes). I didn't care. Never understood how people could be so keen about it.

Glad to hear you sharing your thoughts mate. We all need to relax in OUR way not the prescribed way I think.

What ever rocks your boat [thumbsupbig] Mines running of course[bigwhistle][bigwhistle]

[p38arover]

^^ I’ve never understood why anyone would run (or walk) for pleasure. (Or play/watch sport.)

[austastar]

I think so. I've always been this negative about "feel good" stuff.

When I worked for OTC (1965-2002), they'd have stuff like this every so often which we had to attend and at the end I'd proclaim it was rubbish. Don't think it went down well with the presenters. Other staff would tell me after we'd left that they agreed but weren't game to say anything (the same with team building programmes). I didn't care. Never understood how people could be so keen about it.Ditto at Uni Tas, loads of bollocks I suspect imported from USA after their disastrous attempt to stop the dominoes falling in a funny country far far away .
Cheers

[RANDLOVER]

I suspect a lot of people like meetings, training, etc, so that they can get out of actually working. Also a lot of training is targeted as the slowest learner, which is why I like the online modules, where I have just skipped to the end and answered the common sense questions.

[101RRS]

I am with Ron, this is a a Land Rover, 4wd, camping, leisure site not a bleeding hearts club.

If you feel the need for some feel good input there are plenty of places to get it.

The last two years of my life have been absolutely miserable but I discuss with professionals not on forums like this.

[Saitch]

I think so. I've always been this negative about "feel good" stuff.

When I worked for OTC (1965-2002), they'd have stuff like this every so often which we had to attend and at the end I'd proclaim it was rubbish. Don't think it went down well with the presenters. Other staff would tell me after we'd left that they agreed but weren't game to say anything (the same with team building programmes). I didn't care. Never understood how people could be so keen about it.

Ron, Ron, Ron. You must understand that they were reaching out to you, to break down silos, without having to do a deep dive to evaluate your core competencies.

They wanted you to drink the Kool-aid and help you get your ducks in a row.

After some time, they would then touch base with you, to ensure everything was within your bandwidth.

[V8Ian]

Ron, Ron, Ron. You must understand that they were reaching out to you, to break down silos, without having to do a deep dive to evaluate your core competencies.

They wanted you to drink the Kool-aid and help you get your ducks in a row.

After some time, they would then touch base with you, to ensure everything was within your bandwidth.
You omitted "window of opportunity", "moving forward" and many other buzz words I cba trying to recall.

But on the original subject, some people get benefit from it. For those who don't, scroll on by, simples.

[Tombie]

100% aligned with Ron on this one...

People are getting ridiculous. DO your ****ing job! Its what you're paid to do, not who you are. If it changes, adapt..

This touchy feely BS is going way to far.

[TonyC]

I am with Ron, this is a a Land Rover, 4wd, camping, leisure site not a bleeding hearts club.

If you feel the need for some feel good input there are plenty of places to get it.

The last two years of my life have been absolutely miserable but I discuss with professionals not on forums like this.

Or to quote the forum,

"Forum: General Chat
Almost anything goes, have a look and drop in a few lines. Think of it as a campfire chat with the kids around."

There are people who have benefited greatly from "Talking" on here about stuff that's not just Land Rovers.

If it's not for you, move on, look at a different thread.

I sincerely hope your making progress your way.

Tony

[prelude]

It's all good :) On the other hand, I certainly do not have a linkedin account so can't check up on it there!

-P

[NavyDiver]

100% aligned with Ron on this one...

People are getting ridiculous. DO your ****ing job! Its what you're paid to do, not who you are. If it changes, adapt..

This touchy feely BS is going way to far.

Its a safe and secure job Tombie?

In KL two years ago a mate put up a single What was the most remarkable thing you did in the Navy?

I was LAST the earlier crew gave some good yarn plus! Dopey Ships Diver me dropped Aircraft and associate bits(!!!!!) recovery roles. Some of my roles- events has caused others a fair bit of trauma+++ Not me happily.

The last was not the last as my Hard Hat mates all sparked up to BIG stories I will not repeat as they are OMG like bits of mine. Hard Hats are Clearance Divers. They are Special Forces +++ and not soft cuddly types like me[bigrolf]

Post Traumatic Stress and your or my mental health is not a joke. Getting help if you need it is important!

Personally thank Dr. Lionel for asking and for anyone talking about the topic as too many Men have horrible outcomes as they don't find a way of dealing and coping. Camping, Fishing, 4wding or even sports like running [biggrin][biggrin][biggrin] are all stress reliving options.

What ever way rocks your boat- Do it your way. [thumbsupbig]

[RANDLOVER]

Hello All,.......

These posts are comments initially about [I]Organisational change could incur the risk of Moral Injury in the workplace.,.......

Recently I have been pondering a sort reversal of this problem, as in is it really ethical for a sports psychologist to help someone overcome their fear, so that they can fling themselves down a ski ramp, throw themselves down a mountain road on a bicycle wearing nothing but Lycra, speed down a dirt road in a rally car, as all of these risk serious injury or death, especially if they are doing it as a job and not for pleasure?

[Lionelgee]

Recently I have been pondering a sort reversal of this problem, as in is it really ethical for a sports psychologist to help someone overcome their fear, so that they can fling themselves down a ski ramp, throw themselves down a mountain road on a bicycle wearing nothing but Lycra, speed down a dirt road in a rally car, as all of these risk serious injury or death, especially if they are doing it as a job and not for pleasure?

Hello RandLover,

That one is too profound for me to consider. Way above my current pay grade. Bringing it to my professional experience within the disability sector - some approaches to the disabled is to wrap them in cotton wool, because they have a disability. The individual with disability is denied the dignity of risk. They could get hurt and we could be sued for negligence. Sometimes it is not fear that holds an individual back and restricts their freedom to chose to undertake an activity. Some people due to their externally applied label 'disabled' are denied risk altogether and the dignity it can sometimes provide.

Kind regards
Lionel

[RANDLOVER]

Hello RandLover,

That one is too profound for me to consider. Way above my current pay grade. Bringing it to my professional experience within the disability sector - some approaches to the disabled is to wrap them in cotton wool, because they have a disability. The individual with disability is denied the dignity of risk. They could get hurt and we could be sued for negligence. Sometimes it is not fear that holds an individual back and restricts their freedom to chose to undertake an activity. Some people due to their externally applied label 'disabled' are denied risk altogether and the dignity it can sometimes provide.

Kind regards
Lionel

Thanks Lionel, probably too simplistic a question, as the psyche would probably have to do a full evaluation of the patient, and their motives and circumstances, including who was paying for the consult the patient or the team.

Children also suffer from other's risk aversion as they want to climb trees, ride a skateboard etc but their guardians are too scared to allow it.

Cheers,
Randy

[Lionelgee]

Thanks Lionel, probably too simplistic a question, as the psyche would probably have to do a full evaluation of the patient, and their motives and circumstances, including who was paying for the consult the patient or the team.

Children also suffer from other's risk aversion as they want to climb trees, ride a skateboard etc but their guardians are too scared to allow it.

Cheers,
Randy

G'day Randy,

Often on Facebook there are checklists of what kids used to do in the 1960-70s. The list involved all the things that used to be done without any safety equipment and very little parental consideration. A time where cuts and bruises were just a part of being a kid. This is before cyclists had helmets. When school playground equipment lacked any soft fall zones under it. Metres tall steel climbing faces. My brother and I had skateboards. It was just ... skateboard - tick. Standard clothes to suit the weather conditions - tick. Footwear - optional. Hill and walking to the top of it - tick. Push off and mount the skateboard - tick Rinse and repeat. Safety gear - what safety gear!

This ramble down memory lane is aimed at serving the purpose of suggesting that the amount of risk can vary with the times an individual is living in and their environment at the time. Also the attitude the individual holds towards risk taking. If there is fear sometimes it is hard to pinpoint what the source of that fear is. Also the degree of fear. Is it a short lived experience or is it an all encompassing phobia that the mere thought of turns someone either totally rigid or their blindly heading for the hills at a very rapid pace. Lack of risk taking can also be linked to things like fear of failure. Fear and phobia are extremely interesting things to research. One of my interview questions for my PhD into Autism and wellbeing was "When I go to learn something new, I ..." Out of the 25 participants with a diagnosis of Level 1 Autism - the old Asperger's syndrome - was the answer. I do not try and learn new things. I could fail and then I could look bad. People will make fun of me, laugh at me and then they will bully me even more. This dread of learning something new unfortunately in some cases continued well into adulthood. There was also a high prevalence of PTSD within my research sample. Go figure!

Oh then from my perspective as a former adult vocational teacher - Trade Teacher ... Sappington (1984) suggests that the learning of a new skill requires a person to have sufficient levels of confidence and resilience to move from standing in their comfort zone and moving into the risky environment of trying something new - something that they may fail at doing. Sappington drew a series of zig-zags that progressed from the bottom of the textbox border to the top. It started from moving to safety and stepping into fear to a new point of safety - rinse and repeat until the skill is attained. For some people that first step away from safety is never taken due to their fear. I was teaching during one of those periods where government departments decide to cleave off the middle management layer. I had former public servants who were running branches that had over 10 staff. They knew their work back to front and had decades of positive runs on their career board. Then they found themselves in front of me. I was one of the youngest teachers at the TAFE college. Some of the former middle managers could not accept that they were once again at the bottom of the career path. Some last a week the shock of their loss of position and their source of their confidence - their own high level of competence was no longer accessible to them. Having found myself in a similar position a number of times in my life before and after being a TAFE Teacher I can relate to how they felt. Confidence - self-esteem- self-worth are strongly linked to competence and satisfaction and a strong sense of self-identity. Unfortunately, confidence, competence - the trio of 'selfs' are linked to resilience as well. The more you get of the confidence, competence and the trio of selves the more resilience you have. I researched why new adult learns drop out of tertiary education as part of my Bachelor of Adult Vocational Teaching at the Mount Gravatt Campus of Griffith University. I taught at Grovely TAFE College before doing my compulsory country transfer to Bundaberg. I was transferred here over thirty years ago and I am still trying to escape the place's clutches!

After a life changing event a trades person may go from being a highly competent tradie to finding themselves with a disability. Or a professional footballer caught up in bad tackle and they too become disabled. The source of their trade or sport that formed their confidence, competence and trio plus of Selfs is no long able to be tapped into. Their identity essentially becomes shattered and they need to either attempt to rebuild themselves into a close proximity of what they used to be. Or they form a new sense of identity that they can form a new cycle of competence and trio + selfs to base a new identity from that can also build their resilience. Unfortunately the alternative to this is that the task of rebuilding a shattered life is too much and self-medication occurs and this can lead to suicide. There have been a number of professional rugby league players and a couple of professional cyclists who made newspaper headlines because they unfortunately took this last route.

Well Randy - you did ask! Plus - this all appears within and complies with the description of "General Chat" too

Kind regards
Lionel

=========================================
Sappington, T. E. (1984). Creating learning environments conducive to change: The role of fear/safety in the adult learning process. Innovative Higher Education, 9(1), 19-29. Retrieved from Creating learning environments conducive to change: The role of fear/safety in the adult learning process | Innovative Higher Education (https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00903363). doi:10.1007/BF00903363

[sharmy]

ESCAPE Bundaberg! Behave yourself.

[sashadidi]

You omitted "window of opportunity", "moving forward" and many other buzz words I cba trying to recall.

But on the original subject, some people get benefit from it. For those who don't, scroll on by, simples.
I recently has to"attend " a seminar on how to do work that takes (because of health paperwork requirments} say15 hours but into 9 hours and it was labelled "working at the top of your scope".....
We told the presenters what they could do with their "scope"

[Saitch]

We told the presenters what they could do with their "scope"

Perhaps a colleague with a speech impediment could have suggested an "Arthroscopy"?

[Lionelgee]

Hello All,

As from the 2nd of August 2022 new Australia wide work place health and safety guidelines dealing with psychosocial health in the workplace were rolled out.

As per the following website ... accessed 24th of May 2025 from, New model WHS Regulations and Code of Practice to help prevent psychological harm at work | Safe Work Australia (https://www.safeworkaustralia.gov.au/media-centre/news/new-model-whs-regulations-and-code-practice-help-prevent-psychological-harm-work)
Preventing psychological harm is an essential part of creating a healthy and safe workplace.

The model work health and safety (WHS) laws now include regulations on psychosocial hazards. A new model Code of Practice on Managing psychosocial hazards at work (https://www.safeworkaustralia.gov.au/doc/model-code-practice-managing-psychosocial-hazards-work) explains the laws and how to comply with them, including practical steps to manage workplace risks to psychological health.

Safe Work Australia Chief Executive Officer Michelle Baxter said that “under work health and safety laws, PCBUs have a positive duty to do everything they reasonably can to prevent exposure to psychosocial hazards and risks.

Oh a PCBU is a ‘person conducting a business or undertaking’

Since August 2022 employers have been a bit flat footed in trying to meet the new code of practice. Hence the proliferation of compulsory staff meetings and information sessions delivered by external providers. Various providers are providing their interpretations of how to fill in the psychosocial gap. Therefore, the content varies widely.

Kind regards
Lionel