What a Viral Facebook Post Taught Me About Workplace Wellbeing
A few weeks ago, I shared a post on Facebook that unexpectedly went a little viral.
To be honest, social media can be a fickle friend.
Sometimes I spend hours carefully crafting a post that barely gets noticed. Other times, I write something in a few minutes, hit publish, and suddenly hundreds of people are commenting and sharing their experiences.
This particular post was about staff meetings. Or so I thought.
The post questioned why we sometimes expect teachers to sit through professional learning and staff meetings that we would never consider engaging learning for students.
What followed was a flood of comments from educators sharing their frustrations, experiences, and observations.
Many spoke about "death by PowerPoint."
Others joked about icebreakers, sticky notes, butcher's paper, and meetings that could have been emails.
A few people found the post confronting. Many more found it validating.
As I read through the comments, I realised something important.
The conversation wasn't really about meetings.
It wasn't even about professional learning.
It was about people wanting to feel valued.
Teachers weren't asking for more entertainment.
They were asking for:
- their time to be respected
- their expertise to be recognised
- their experience to be acknowledged
- learning that feels relevant and meaningful
In other words, they wanted to feel that their contribution matters.
And this reflects the conversations I hear every week in schools.
Rarely do educators tell me they need another wellbeing activity.
What they often tell me is:
"I want to feel appreciated."
"I want my voice to be heard."
"I want my time to be used wisely."
"I want to know that what I do matters."
That's why I believe workplace wellbeing is about so much more than self-care initiatives or wellbeing weeks.
It's about creating workplace conditions where people feel respected, trusted, supported, and valued.
Because when people feel that their time, thinking, and contribution matter, engagement follows.
Not just in meetings. But across the whole school.
Perhaps that's the real lesson from the post.
Adults are not so different from students after all.
We all want to feel seen.
One Small Shift
Before your next meeting, lesson, conversation, or email, pause and ask yourself:
"How can I help someone feel that their time, thinking, or contribution matters?"
It might be as simple as acknowledging effort, inviting a perspective, expressing gratitude, or genuinely listening.
Small moments of mattering often create the biggest ripple effects.
Together we can make a difference.
