We Are All Going to Die!
Shocking, Right! At some point we are all going to leave this beautiful earth, some will leave it sooner than others. Some may be stricken with illness that is beyond our control, others simply will choose not to care enough about themselves to see the value in their own care. As a credit union industry, we want the best and brightest to be around as long as possible to help develop the next generation of leadership, and for many of us that means shedding some pounds. Its time for us to GET MOVING!
This past weekend marked a monumental moment. While my attempts at financial education have already been well implemented within my branch structure, my goals of initiating physical health had been lagging with the exception of my own personal workouts. This past Sunday changed all of that!
It was 6:30 in the morning and already reaching above 80° F in Edmond, OK. This was the first of 17 weeks of team fitness. Why 17 weeks? It is the time period that someone would typically train in order to prepare themselves for a marathon. Now, please don’t misunderstand the message here. The goal is not to have my employees all complete marathons or become some type of super endurance athletes. The goal is to simply help people GET MOVING, and setting goals while providing accountability and social interaction for the group.
In order to meet all different levels of personal fitness and fitness needs I developed with the help of my other supervisor three training plans for our employees to use as general guidelines in helping them GET MOVING. The first training plan was to help those that enjoyed walking complete a 5K walk; a second for those who are interested in completing a half-marathon, and the third was a full marathon training program. The goal is for these groups to all complete their respective races on Sunday, Nov. 21st at the Tulsa, OK Rt. 66 Marathon.
Success can be measured by knowing that 11 employees were involved in the first ever group walk and run. The success has been felt among staff members as those involved are now actively encouraging others to be involved as well. It’s the domino effect of knowing how good one person can feel when they have a system in order to be successful in personal fitness. They want their friends and colleagues to enjoy it as well. What is the end result of the plans? The hope is to help people feel better about themselves, while being more engaged at work, reducing the number of sick days, and continually building team morale. That is what I call a win-win situation, for our employees and the credit union industry. We are all going to die at some point; it’s your choice to GET MOVING and care enough about yourself and your teammates to help them stick around as long as possible to continue to develop the credit union industry.
James
Regional Finalist – Southwest
