Welcome to the Autumn edition of Powerline. Can you believe we’re almost halfway through the year?!

Power Tynan hosted the annual Walker Wayland Australasia Conference from 23rd- 26thFebruary, which included 140-plus delegates from firms across Australia, New Zealand and Indonesia. We opened the conference with Toowoomba Mayor Paul Antonio introducing our region and the opportunities that exist in our own backyard. It was an interesting perspective not only listening to what he had to say, but how people from outside our region saw the opportunities identified. We can all learn from someone taking a different perspective, as sometimes you can’t see the forest for the trees.

While we did spend some time on technical training to keep up to date with ever-changing legislation, the real benefits came from the sessions addressing wellness, teamwork, and how to get engagement. We are all a part of a team, whether it be family, friends or work, and quite often our struggle with being too busy with “life” negatively impacts on wellness, so it was interesting to see the reactions to and messages taken from these sessions.

As some of you may know, the team at Power Tynan has been trying to address wellness for many years, and have recently started talking about the ‘Wellness Wheel’ concept. With 24 hours in a day, this concept requires you to split your hours into QUALITY time spent in four categories - family/friends, ME, work and sleep. It has proven to be an interesting exercise!

We also addressed wellness from a team and business perspective, encouraging and allowing time and programs for wellness to see how it affects the team (eg. less sick days), which of course leads to better engagement within the team.

Wayne Bennett was the guest speaker at the conference, providing his insights into team engagement. His main message was that it always comes back to yourself as a leader, not only in business but also in a family setting, and how you need to create an environment where people feel valued. When this is created, you don’t have to worry about any uncertainty, as issues are dealt with upfront and at the time, you treat everyone the same and keep people accountable for their actions, with an understanding of the consequences of not working for and with the team.

Overall it was a great few days and provided a lot of time for reflection on what we do not only from a business perspective but also from a personal perspective, and how others see things differently to you. I wonder how often you sit back and question your business and look at how things can be achieved in a different way or from a different perspective, with a fresh set of eyes or a change in mindset. Remember to spend time not only in your business but on your business!