Whistle While You Work

DE&I has fallen off the priority list for a lot of organisations Roles are getting chopped and/or DE&I professionals are running for the nearest exits Is it a natural evolution of the DE&I space and do we actually have too much group-think (ironically) in the field of diversity and inclusion Also, when does having a familial culture benefit inclusion and when does it become a barrier to diversity

Not quite sky-diving, jumping off buildings or racing fast cars, more like working at such a frenetic pace we get bored when things slow down. Why are we all so stressed, desperately seeking "busy" and so easily annoyed these days? Emma and Sheryl don't have all the answers but here are our humble opinions.

It's been a whole 9 months since Emma and Sheryl have done one of these storytime-style episodes. We've come through an intense period of work (separately :) and have also managed to get some rest (separately). What did we learn and have we managed to rediscover the path?

Richard Loftus is a highly experienced Marketing Director and diversity champion within the Arts and Entertainment sectors. Join this live chat where we explore why The Arts are still perceived as lacking when it comes to diversity, and the positive steps that are being taken towards inclusion.

Fellow bookworm Emma Vandore joins me to talk about the power of book clubs in creating safe spaces for inclusive conversations 📚 We'll be covering 1/ why a DE&I Book Club is a powerful tool for fostering inclusion 2/ how to set up a book club 3/ which books to start with 4/ the pros and cons of fiction vs non-fiction 5/ how to get your leadership team(s) involved

Everyone has them but does that mean they're always worth sharing? Freedom of thought and expression are protected human rights but are there boundaries we need to observe? Are the opinions of some people more important than others?

To what extent does a private school education help you get your foot in the door and make it easier to climb the ladder. I'm excited to be joined by educator, Eric Sterling as we discuss the pros and cons of private vs state school education and how we can best equip young people for the world of work, regardless of background.

Spain has recently approved a bill that would give 3 days leave per month for menstrual leave. Add that to maternity leave and potential leave for menopause-related issues and you might be left wondering whether it's right that females, or those 'assigned female at birth' (AFAB), are paid less than males. Is the gender pay gap in fact fair? We discuss.

4-day work-week is still a hot topic but how's your remote working going? Belinda Simpson heads up HR at BusinessMobiles(dot)com where they have enabled their business to work fully remote 👀 After the pandemic, they just didn't see the need to bring people back into the office, or mandate days when everyone had to come in. Check out the replay of this Linkedin Live chat to see why they did it and how it's going.

Being yourself and being vulnerable is all well and good but is there a line that shouldn't be crossed? Is there such a thing as over-sharing at work? What should we keep private and how much of ourselves should we shamelessly share?

Listen to the replay of me and Sal Naseem in this fascinating Linkedin Live. Religion and politics are two things we're told to avoid bringing up. Yet freedom of religious and political beliefs are fundamental human rights which are protected in most societies, including in the workplace. So what does that mean when we're at work? For people whose beliefs are a core part of their identity - whether about politics, religion, the environment, social justice, or veganism - are we allowed to express these freely at work or are there lines that shouldn't be crossed? How do we show up authentically at work if we cannot express our deepest of beliefs? How do we stop code-switching when it comes to expressing our religion at work?

15% of employees surveyed on the 4-day work-week trial said NO AMOUNT OF MONEY WOULD MAKE THEM GO BACK TO A 5 DAY WEEK Is the 4-day week here to stay? Sainsbury's now adds to the list of companies giving it a go. Could a 4-day week work at your organisation? I've read the reports and unpacked the findings so that you don't have to. In this 30-minute Linkedin Live chat I cover: Why 5 out of 61 companies are not yet convinced? What type of companies took part in the trial? What type of roles were included/excluded? Did everyone take the same day off? Is this the future or just a fad?

Recording of Emma and Sheryl in this live chat about whether gender equality has gone too far? What do you think? Has it gone too far or not far enough? Spoiler alert: we don't necessarily share the same perspective. If you enjoy listening to us on the Whistle While You Work podcast then the live chats are a chance to get involved in the convo.

Trigger Warning: Weight loss, diets, obesity None of us would ever body-shame someone else. We even believe that we don't judge others regarding weight. But why is it that we don't extend the same no-judgement kindness to ourselves? In some fluke of coincidence, Emma and Sheryl stepped on the scales this weekend and saw numbers that were higher than they had ever seen before. Which tipped them into a mild panic and a commitment to lower the number. But why? We discuss the social conditioning and internal dissonance that leads to our pursuit of the perfect body.

If you're fed up of talking about women's rights, abortion and Roe v Wade then this week's podcast isn't for you ;-) We also go down the rabbit hole of male circumcision so if you're a tad bit squeamish on that front, you might want to skip it as well. Apart from that, just a regular chat-cum-rant about the evolution of women's rights and how all approach these tricky topics differently. Books mentioned in the podcast include: The Righteous Mind: Why Good People Are Divided By Politics And Religion We Can Do Better Than This

Inspired by Emma's decision to cut a mini-break short and head home, we're talking about the discomfort we sometimes feel at leaving things early. Whether it's leaving a party, a relationship or a job, why do we sometimes find it difficult to leave? Leaving can cause discomfort, both for the person leaving and others. This sometimes leads to us not being brave enough to make those difficult decisions and remove ourselves from situations that no longer work. But before you throw in the towel how do you know whether it's just a minor bump in the road or whether it really is the final straw. Tune in to join in the conversation and let us know what you think.

...You'll regret it later... ... Don't leave it too long... ... You're being selfish... ...Have you considered adoption... ...Why not?... These are just some of the responses that follow when women are asked if they want children and follow it up with a "no, thank you". But why is it that women get asked and men don't? Why is it that women are even asked at all? Why aren't women who decide TO have children asked why they have CHOSEN to have children? All this and more in today's discussion.

This episode was either going to be about holidays or funerals. We're not shying away from difficult topics on this season of the podcast. We want to talk about what is front and centre - things that bring joy but also things that cause us pain, even if only temporarily, and how we deal with them. So with the recent loss of Emma's cat Edna, who turned up this week in a 'shake n vac' style tube (beautiful), and Sheryl's funeral-arranging skills being tested yet again with a family funeral to attend the next day, it seemed befitting to talk about loss and endings. If you're going through a loss of any kind - change in job, loss of your sense of identity, the ending of a relationship - you might find you identify with some of today's conversations and find it a source of comfort. Please do reach out if we can help you in any way, although we can't promise we'll organise a funer for you. The books we mention in today's podcast are: The Book About Getting Older by Dr Lucy Pollock Ancestors by Alice Roberts https://amzn.to/3txvli8

It's been almost a year since we last recorded a podcast and it feels great to be back. What have we been up to? Why haven't we been recording? We'll fill you in on what's been keeping us busy this past 12 months and share what's coming up on this season of the podcast. We talk about everything from work-life and grief to 'And Just Like That' and Mental Health. Stay tuned for more episodes with guests, interesting topics and longer conversations.

We hear the phrase all the time but is there ever a situation where we draw the line that means we will not agree to disagree? This is what we mull over in this week's episode. In an increasingly polarised society, why is it so hard for people to agree (to disagree) and how do we draw the boundaries around those things that we cannot compromise on - like homophobia, racism, misogyny, ableism? We talk about key takeaways from The Righteous Mind by Jonathan Haidt as well as delving briefly into politics. We'd love to know what you think so get in touch at https://www.reboot.global/