01 November 2024
By Live Well Build Well
Just like you can become physically fitter, you can also build your mental strength and fitness. That’s the thinking behind Live Well Build Well, a nationwide wellbeing programme helping builders and tradies manage the ups and downs of residential construction. New research shows the approach is working.
Live Well Build Well passes on mental fitness skills that help people perform under pressure, keep well and achieve a better work-life balance.
Becoming mentally fit comes from small, everyday changes
Programme leader Rafael Caso says: “We use the term mental fitness because for many people ‘mental health’ has become associated with illness rather than wellness. But the science of wellbeing tells us that small, everyday changes in how we think and what we do to keep well and be happy can add up to huge changes in our mental health. We can still thrive no matter what life throws at us.”
The programme is in its second year and is rapidly building a community around mental fitness. It encourages builders and tradies to share what they do to keep well and stay on top of their game despite the demands of the industry.
Trade-friendly video clips
Live Well Build Well’s wellbeing advisor, Professor Grant Schofield of AUT, has spent years studying the human life span and how humans can be ‘their best self’. His insights have been packaged into tradie-friendly video clips and skill-based learning modules.
The resources for the basics of mental fitness focus on these five key areas:
1. Exercise
2. Nutrition and sleep
3. Flexible thinking skills
4. Active listening skills and
5. The importance of knowing your ‘why’. Having a sense of purpose helps you to keep going in tough times.
Make your wellbeing the priority
Rafael Caso sums up the programme’s potential: “The most important part of staying mentally fit is to make your own wellbeing a priority, no matter how busy the week gets. Make time for activities that help you de-stress and recharge your batteries. Different things work for different people, so check out the Live Well Build Well website and social media feeds to see what other builders are doing and what could work for you. Even small changes can make a huge difference to how you feel at the end of each day or week. That’s how we’re really going to ‘shift the dial’ in this space.”
To learn more, visit livewellbuildwell.com and follow Live Well Build Well on socials.
Live Well Build Well programme leader Rafael Caso: “It’s really encouraging that residential construction workers are taking more action to maintain or improve their wellbeing.”
Live Well Build Well passes on mental fitness skills that help people perform under pressure, keep well and achieve a better work-life balance.
Becoming mentally fit comes from small, everyday changes
Programme leader Rafael Caso says: “We use the term mental fitness because for many people ‘mental health’ has become associated with illness rather than wellness. But the science of wellbeing tells us that small, everyday changes in how we think and what we do to keep well and be happy can add up to huge changes in our mental health. We can still thrive no matter what life throws at us.”
The programme is in its second year and is rapidly building a community around mental fitness. It encourages builders and tradies to share what they do to keep well and stay on top of their game despite the demands of the industry.
Trade-friendly video clips
Live Well Build Well’s wellbeing advisor, Professor Grant Schofield of AUT, has spent years studying the human life span and how humans can be ‘their best self’. His insights have been packaged into tradie-friendly video clips and skill-based learning modules.
The resources for the basics of mental fitness focus on these five key areas:
1. Exercise
2. Nutrition and sleep
3. Flexible thinking skills
4. Active listening skills and
5. The importance of knowing your ‘why’. Having a sense of purpose helps you to keep going in tough times.
Live Well Build Well programme leader Rafael Caso
Summary of key findings
A recent independent survey of 1,122 builders and tradies indicated the programme is having a meaningful impact on their wellbeing. The key findings were:
• After two years of Live Well, Build Well, approximately 1 in 3 residential construction workers are familiar with the programme.
• The average level of wellbeing of workers in the sector (as measured by the WHO-5’s 25-point wellbeing index) has increased almost a whole point from 15.5 in 2023 to 16.4 in 2024. A score below 13 indicates poor wellbeing.
• The proportion of workers reporting poor emotional wellbeing has decreased from 25% to 18% in the last year.
• There has also been a significant decrease (from 32% down to 23%) in the proportion of workers who state that they experienced stress all or most of the time at work.
• Compared to 2023, residential construction workers also report feeling less lonely. There was a decrease (from 12% to 7%) in those reporting feeling lonely most or all the time.
“It’s really encouraging,” says Rafael Caso, “that residential construction workers are taking more action to maintain or improve their wellbeing. From the research, we can see a strong correlation between higher participation in wellbeing activities and improved wellbeing.”
However, the research also shows that the wellbeing of those in the sector still remains slightly below that of New Zealanders overall, so there’s still work to do. And while most residential construction workers stated they were highly satisfied with their job, only two-thirds were satisfied with their current work-life balance.
A recent independent survey of 1,122 builders and tradies indicated the programme is having a meaningful impact on their wellbeing. The key findings were:
• After two years of Live Well, Build Well, approximately 1 in 3 residential construction workers are familiar with the programme.
• The average level of wellbeing of workers in the sector (as measured by the WHO-5’s 25-point wellbeing index) has increased almost a whole point from 15.5 in 2023 to 16.4 in 2024. A score below 13 indicates poor wellbeing.
• The proportion of workers reporting poor emotional wellbeing has decreased from 25% to 18% in the last year.
• There has also been a significant decrease (from 32% down to 23%) in the proportion of workers who state that they experienced stress all or most of the time at work.
• Compared to 2023, residential construction workers also report feeling less lonely. There was a decrease (from 12% to 7%) in those reporting feeling lonely most or all the time.
“It’s really encouraging,” says Rafael Caso, “that residential construction workers are taking more action to maintain or improve their wellbeing. From the research, we can see a strong correlation between higher participation in wellbeing activities and improved wellbeing.”
However, the research also shows that the wellbeing of those in the sector still remains slightly below that of New Zealanders overall, so there’s still work to do. And while most residential construction workers stated they were highly satisfied with their job, only two-thirds were satisfied with their current work-life balance.
Rafael Caso: “It’s really encouraging that residential construction workers are taking more action to maintain or improve their wellbeing.”
Rafael Caso sums up the programme’s potential: “The most important part of staying mentally fit is to make your own wellbeing a priority, no matter how busy the week gets. Make time for activities that help you de-stress and recharge your batteries. Different things work for different people, so check out the Live Well Build Well website and social media feeds to see what other builders are doing and what could work for you. Even small changes can make a huge difference to how you feel at the end of each day or week. That’s how we’re really going to ‘shift the dial’ in this space.”
To learn more, visit livewellbuildwell.com and follow Live Well Build Well on socials.
Live Well Build Well programme leader Rafael Caso: “It’s really encouraging that residential construction workers are taking more action to maintain or improve their wellbeing.”