Friendship is defined by Britannica as “a state of enduring affection, esteem, intimacy, and trust between two people. In all cultures, friendships are important relationships throughout a person’s life span.”
The simple fact is – we all need friends. That’s why the International Day of Friendship is so important. Friendship requires us to show compassion and concern for others. By valuing our relationships with other people, we learn to adopt a more selfless outlook on life and become more empathetic and considerate.
30 July 2022 marks the International Day of Friendship this year. The aim of the day is to bridge gaps between different factors that make us individual, such as culture, race, gender identity, and language. When people come together, we can achieve amazing things and make the world a generally better and more peaceful place.
But how could International Friendship Day be celebrated?
There are many things to consider. When was the last time you reached out to your friends? Has life gotten a little busy lately? It’s easy to do and as adults with our own lives to lead, time can slip away, and it can often be weeks or months before you socialised with – or even spoke to – a friend. This day could be celebrated by:
- Calling a friend for a chat, or video calling if you haven’t seen a friendly face for a while
- Think about what unites us, and perhaps bring a group of friends together
- Reaching out to someone you’ve not heard from in some time
There are ways to celebrate the day at work, too. Whether you take it upon yourself, or you encourage your staff to partake as an employer. It’s easy to do one thing:
- Share your skills with someone who could use a hand
- Be kind and smile – you never know what someone else is going through
- Reach out to new colleagues (we all know it can be a little daunting when you don’t know anyone)
- Do a good thing or random act of kindness
The best thing is – even the smallest of things can have a positive impact on our mental wellbeing. As a friend, family member, employee or employer; we can all look out for one another and support anyone going through a difficult time.
If you’re an employer, that’s where Broadstone comes in. A lot of people would reach out to their boss for support if they thought they could. If you already have benefits in place to support the health & wellbeing of your staff – you are already doing something good (and being a friend of sorts for your employees).
If you haven’t or you aren’t sure whether your employees know about the help available to them, there are many options to fit in with your employee benefit needs and budget.
Some of the things we can help with include:
- Employee Assistance Programmes
- Health Cash Plans
- Occupational Health
- Income Protection
- Financial Wellbeing
- And so much more.
If you’d like to get the ball rolling or just have a chat about the kinds of employee benefits that are best suited to your Employee Value Proposition, get in touch.
