Wellbeing is difficult to manage in a world that praises long hours and late nights. That's why well-known TV host and journalist, Claudia Winkleman, joined us in the Yuniverse for a LIVE webinar all about how she's managed to balance wellbeing and a demanding career in the media.What you'll learnHow Claudia has managed wellbeing throughout the years of her successful career.How companies can approach wellbeing inclusively vs. taking a one-size-fits-all approach.How employees of all ages stay at the top of their game.5 Tips From Claudia Winkleman on How to Manage Wellbeing What does wellbeing look like in the world of media? Well, we sat down with Claudia Winkleman from BBC One’s The Traitors to get her thoughts. And little did we know: it’d become one of our most-loved webinars to date! Because, unlike traditional perspectives on wellness in the media world, she has a very real, raw and refreshing perspective on making health and wellness sustainable. And we’ve broken down her top 5 tips below. 1. Approach wellbeing from a light-touch perspective Wellbeing is often perceived as a massive undertaking. People often get overwhelmed with all of the habits, routines expensive food and strict expectations that come with the narrative of what it means to be “healthy”.But Claudia emphasises how we need to start squashing those unrealistic expectations. “Of course wellbeing is very important,” begins Claudia, “But I think you can go overboard.”And to avoid getting swept up in the trends around this touchy subject, Claudia suggests that it “should be treated with a lightness of touch”. Meaning you don’t have to pressure yourself to hit the gym everyday, meditate every morning for 20 minutes or walk 5k before bed — because the effects can be counterproductive. “The days you do miss whatever it is you’re supposed to do,” Claudia says. “You feel stressed.”The key is finding something that works well for you, and making decisions in your life that align well with the type of wellbeing practices you value. And there’s no one-size-fits-all approach.“Everything works differently for different people,” Claudia begins. “I recently got a dog because I knew my posture was so bad [...], I needed to be out walking — not on my phone.”For some, wellbeing may be art, walking, swimming — whatever it is, you don’t have to abide by everyone else's ideas of what wellbeing is. Look at the gaps in your life, where you feel you could do better, and find something to fill that gap.2. Sleep is a must — napping at work should be okay!We all know sleep is important. But to Claudia — it’s a must. “I’m a massive believer in sleep,” Claudia expresses. “I nap all the time.” If she had to spend some time doing a quick pick-me-up for whatever reason, her go-to would be to take a quick nap. Not only that, but she’s a big proponent of workplaces having napping areas accessible to employees, and spaces where employees can get away from the noise — but most importantly, time to reset. “My dad always used to say I’m either a 10 or a 0,” she expresses. “I’m not good at seven. Seven is exhausting, all day every day. So to get back up to a chunky nine, you need to go down.” And the way Claudia manages that energy is by taking 40-minute naps, or however much time she has, before needing to re-exert herself — because it allows her time to rejuvenate. Find something that rejuvenates you be it exercise, sleep etc. 3. Don’t put all of your search for happiness in one placeWith the rise of social media and the ever-growing need for instant gratification in the world, we’ve started losing sight of the truth: That life can’t be happy all the time! Having that expectation actually brings a whole lot of extra unhappiness, stress and anger.“I think this desire to be happy all the time is reckless and ridiculous,” she says. “Those moments of pure happiness, they come around not as often as you think. All people do on social media is: ‘look at my life!”, but I think it gives a false impression of how we should feel all the time. So if you’re in a job that you don’t love that much, suck it up — might be for a couple of years, but you might be able to pay rent and you might be okay. I think this looking for joy in everything — we’re on a hiding to nothing because it’s not going to work.” Sometimes, you have to power through a rough time at work or an interim job until you reach where you want to be. The key is understanding that it’s a season of your life, and taking care of yourself in the best way you can with what you have. Stop thinking about what you aren’t doing enough of and start recognising yourself for doing all you can. It’s easy to put all of our happiness into one bucket — and some people look for it in their careers. But the end result of that search for happiness in one thing isn’t quite how it works. Because even the healthiest people and healthiest workplaces out there aren’t always healthy and happy 24/7 — and that’s okay! And companies shouldn’t have to feel the pressure of being the sole provider of wellbeing and happiness in people’s lives. Sure, they have a role, but happiness also has to come externally for employees.“I once worked somewhere, I was working really hard, it was before telly,” she begins. “The office had a revolving door. So I would leave at nine o’clock and then go back the next morning first thing and my mum said: ‘there has to be something between the revolving door’. So even if you’re knackered, go to the movie with your friend. Even if you’re knackered, call your friend. There has to be something else. So if anything, I think companies should force that.” The key is realising work is work, and life is happening too. Not everything lies in the happiness of one place — and you’ll be better at work, and happier because life is going well. Sometimes it’s okay to not be happy in every possible area and place, and you have to simply put up with it. Because you will never find happiness everywhere all at once — and looking for it only leads to stress and disappointment. 4. Wellbeing is fluid“We all know that sometimes things are harder to do than other times,” expresses Claudia. “Sometimes it’s as easy as breathing to order the healthy stuff. And sometimes that is, for whatever reason — and it might not even have a reason — actually impossible. And the only thing that’s gonna get you through that Tuesday is a toasty.” And that’s okay, Claudia says. Wellbeing doesn’t always mean meditation or exercise — sometimes it means giving into those temptations and listening to what you need in that moment —even the YuLife office has Nutella and Cocoa Puffs! Because sometimes indulgence is the definition of wellbeing.And what those temptations are will vary from person to person. “A friend of mine only likes watching classic films with a box of matchmakers when she feels a bit wobbly,” she adds. “I need to buy some sh*t that I don’t need from Amazon.” 5. Find friends who are there for the long haulUnfortunately, as we get older and busier with work and families, we stop seeing as much of our friends as we may like. But according to Claudia it’s vital to do what you can to maintain those connections and keep them prominent in your life. “I'm only really interested in bad weather friends. It’s super easy to be there when the world’s great. A good friend or a friend group is the greatest gift,” she says. “If somebody said to me, ‘what are you most proud of?’, it wouldn’t be reading out loud on the telly — of course it would be my kids, my marriage — but my friends who I give the same amount of attention to as a boyfriend. We look after each other.” Having a support system or your “tribe” and community around you is a vital aspect of wellbeing that isn’t always talked about. Oftentimes, wellbeing gets pinned under “self-care” as the habits or practices we do daily for ourselves. While those are all part of your holistic wellbeing, what truly makes up the foundation of our lives and happiness are the people we spend our time with.Because even if your work situation isn’t the brightest, it’s the people we come home to that make all the difference. And when things are good in our relationships, they also make us better at our work. So the best way an employer can support an employee's wellbeing is to think of their people as human beings who need community and relationships — and ensure these things are respected and encouraged daily. "It’s that kind of shared bonding and somebody laughing at you and you laughing at them together. You’re at work a lot, you hope it’s nice — but it’s the other stuff that you have to water,” Claudia expresses. “With love, we’ll always keep everything in perspective because that’s all we need. About YuLifeYuLife is working to reimagine the insurance industry by protecting lives, rewarding living and inspiring life. We’re on a mission to transform traditional insurance into a life-enhancing experience each employee will value and use daily. How does it work?Our award-winning app uses behavioural science and game mechanics to reward your people for living well while offering protection in case of crisis. And with our top-rated employee assistance programme, your team gets access to mental, financial and social support, virtual GPs, nutritionists, life coaches and more to help them live their best lives.Because we believe that your employees should benefit from their insurance from day one — and that wellbeing should be accessible every day, for everyone.Request a demo for your team today.