Building healthy habits in 2024 event with BNP Paribas | Reflection blog

Following Mental Health Awareness week, I took some time to reflect on an event I had the pleasure of hosting at the end of January 2024, the first SFE YP event of 2024 at the BNP Paribas offices in Glasgow. The event was titled ‘Building Healthy Habits in 2024’, and was organised by the SFE Young Professional’s Mental Health & Wellbeing Workstream, a workstream of which I am a member.

We welcomed guest speakers from Two Birds (a local Gym and Lifestyle brand), Perform (a brand partnership of coffee and sport psychology), and 2 of BNP Paribas’ Wellbeing Champions from the UK-wide Wellbeing Network.

Our first speakers were Christina McDonald and Jennifer Brady from BNP Paribas, sharing some insights into the great work BNP Paribas is doing in the Wellbeing space. In their roles as Wellbeing Champions, they presented to the audience what the network has achieved so far, and what it aims to achieve in 2024. When posed with the question ‘What more do you think can be done within the industry to support mental health and wellbeing?’ they felt education was key, as the more educated we become the more awareness we can all have and spread to support each other, and also having Wellbeing as a topic of open conversation at all levels to keep the discussion going.

Our next guest speaker was Danny Stevenson from Two Birds. Two Birds is an innovative health and wellbeing brand, family founded in Glasgow in 2019, with a successful functional fitness gym and community that promotes a fun and inclusive approach to training and lifestyle.

Danny shared some insightful words on finding balance between enjoyment and fitness/exercise. He also shared personal experiences and how things like meditation can be a great tool to help. Danny shared the philosophy of his gym, located centrally in Kingston Glasgow, where it comes across that a real sense of community and fun are at the forefront for members.

Danny proceeded to present those in attendance with an exercise bike challenge, to see who could burn 10 calories on the bike in the fastest time! The audience didn’t initially seem too thrilled to take up the challenge, but after 1 or 2 individuals hopped on the bike a few others followed and the competitive spirits came in to play!

Our final guest speakers were Danny Ormonde and Jeff Webster from Perform. Jeff shared his role in the creation of the brand, with a background in Sports Psychology, and working with the Scotland Women’s National Football team. Apparently, the team are partial to a fancy coffee, but to get the right amount that will aid performance positively, your run of the mill coffee can be too acidic and will likely cause upset stomachs!  Jeff was old friends with Danny, who has a passion and background in coffee, and the mission was to find a sustainable and quality coffee, which was low in acidity. Hey presto, the coffee brand ‘Perform’ was born. By combining Danny's expertise in sourcing and roasting exceptional beans with Jeffrey's insights into health and well-being, they've birthed a coffee brand that not only delights the palate but also nourishes the mind and body. For them, Perform isn't just a brand; it's a holistic approach to fuelling your best self. We got to sample the freshly roasted coffee, which went down a treat with the coffee fans in the room.

All in all, the event was a great success, and the guest speakers were fantastic. We got some great insights into the initiatives BNP Paribas is doing for their employees, fitness and wellbeing tips from Danny at Two Birds, and some interesting insights into the relationship between coffee and performance, as well as an education into what makes a quality coffee!

My key takeaways were firstly to focus on fitness and exercise activities that you actually enjoy. Secondly, from a coffee perspective it’s reassuring to know that coffee can be good for fuelling performance, and also that as a coffee lover you should really be mindful of supporting sustainably sourced coffee and local coffee businesses. All in all, the event was a great opportunity to engage financial services colleagues in a meaningful, fun and uplifting discussion about health and wellbeing and to discuss some practical ways we can all start to build healthy habits, in 2024 and beyond.