The fourteenth in a series by Stress Matters, who have been asking those across the events industry – how are you doing?
Venue hire manager at Wellcome Collection, Daniel Caleb, shares how he’s been keeping connected to others during the pandemic.
I joined Wellcome Collection to set up the venue hire team and create the sales and marketing strategy 13 years ago, and I love it so much that I haven’t left. I love getting involved in new projects at Wellcome Collection, which happens a lot as I’m chair of its Social Committee and Staff Forum. As well as my day job, I’m also on the board of Unique Venues of London and a trustee of Eventwell. Both have kept me busy during the pandemic.
Right now, like everyone I think, I have up and down days. One thing that helps is our daily team check-ins. We’ve gotten creative and have different games we play. One is to guess which song was nominated by which team member on our team Spotify playlist which is now extremely eclectic. During lockdown, the Sports and Social Committee also set up a variety of events to keep everyone motivated. We’ve had quiz nights, film nights, virtual treasure hunts and we are currently even working on a panto which has been fun!
I’ve kept myself busy throughout and even managed to get a personal best on a 10k run which was a great achievement for me.
I’ve got a sister in New Zealand and a brother in America, and my pandemic low point is knowing that I won’t be seeing them and their families for over a year. The unknown about when I will see them again is really hard to deal with. Another low point is not being able to see my partner for months, but it is great when we can get together.
I’m a very sociable person and have struggled with the lack of being face to face with people. Not being with people you love is so hard.
There have been so many things I’ve learnt about myself and others. I learned how reliant I was on body language in meetings and how to adjust to that in this new virtual world. I’ve also learnt that it’s ok not to be ok and to let people know when that’s the case. This has made me more conscious of making sure I check in with people and ask how they are really doing. Eight months in and I’m also finally learning how to unmute myself as well!
I have a few things that I do to relax and look after myself. First off, I love to cook and bake – everyone knows that when I’m bored I will make a cake. I have also been keeping fit. I’m lucky that our gym moved to online classes. I’ve also found a great Facebook group for lunchtime workouts, and signed up for an online PT back in March which was really good fun. All this has also enabled me to meet and share stories with some new people. Apart from that, I do still enjoy crashing on the sofa with a good programme.
For the last month I have been listening to the Calm app and their sleep stories or soundscapes which do seem to make me fall asleep. I wish I could say it makes me more awake in the morning but I’m just not that person.
If I could travel back in time by nine months, I’d tell myself not to worry too much about trying to get all my great plans achieved during lockdown and that it’s ok to not even start some of them. Just getting through this will be enough of an achievement. Also yes, this will go on for longer than you expect.
2021 is going to be another interesting year. I’m looking forward to opening the doors to events again but I want to make sure I continue to focus on my work life balance. The main thing I’m looking forward to is catching up with friends, family and colleagues and just having a relaxing time without having to worry about Covid. Fingers crossed!
If you would like to share your story, please visit www.stressmatters.org.uk/pandemic-stories for more information.
