Running a business, I never underestimate the importance of taking time out and have seen just how crucial this is to increasing staff motivation and performance. Every year I take my team on a summer away day which includes a team bonding activity, delicious food and some much deserved relaxation.
Choosing a day during the slightly quieter month of August, means that there is minimal disruption to work so both the team and I can fully enjoy the day. This year we embarked on a day out in our nearest spa town of Tunbridge Wells. This might seem an unusual place to pick but it’s a pretty town within easy reach of London and, as we specialise in spa, it seemed an ideal choice. That’s the great thing when you’re arranging your own activity day, you can mould the activities around your location. In this case, it was actually one of the activities that encouraged us to choose Tunbridge Wells. Working in the spa industry I had heard great things about The Massage Company and knew they’d recently opened a new branch in Tunbridge Wells. They also had a great ‘first timer’ offer which would make our day great value. As all of my team love to have a massage and this would fulfil the ‘relaxation’ element of our trip, it was too good an opportunity not to be included in our day.
So where does the murder mystery come in? Well thankfully this has nothing to do with the massage! Instead we spent a sunny morning roaming the streets of Tunbridge Wells on a Treasure Trail. These trails are available for a number of towns in the UK and can be downloaded for a small fee. I think they’re really aimed at families but the clues were just hard enough to make it a challenge creating some fun competition between us all. At the same time, it took us on a 2.5 mile walk around some of the lesser known points of interest which you’d normally miss in the main tourist area. Discovering that the culprit was Rosemary with the bat (we think, as there was some confusion on whether it was the rope!) was a fun and successful end to the trail.
After all that activity, we met at The Ivy Brasserie for lunch where we had fantastic food and enjoyed endless uninterrupted conversation before heading off to The Massage Company for 50 minutes of massage.
Rather than me telling you how good and beneficial this was, I thought I’d leave this to the feedback from some of the team:
“I have a neck injury and am extremely careful about who massages my neck (so far it’s just my physio) however within the first 10 minutes of my TMC massage I knew that I was in safe hands and with a well-trained practitioner. My therapist managed to release the tension in my neck considerably, so I really hope TMC open a clinic in London soon as I would definitely benefit from regular massages with them!”
“The massage targeted everything that I had specified, the staff were exceptionally accommodating and I felt well looked after. I came away feeling relaxed yet energised and slightly less stressed.”
“The overall day was very relaxing as we could explore the town at our own pace along with ending the day with a massage where Abbie was very accommodating and considerate of my preferences.”
And Sophie who summed up our day perfectly…
“After a busy year, it is always important to step out of the office, discover a new area and indulge in some R&R. In true Spa PR style, our away day allowed us to use our creative brains to solve the murder mystery of Tunbridge Wells by finding ourselves amongst its stunning landmarks, make our tummies happy with a delicious lunch at The Ivy and finally, experience some tailored destressing with a massage at The Massage Company. Greeted with such friendliness and enthusiasm by my therapist Alex, I felt at home instantly and trusted that he knew exactly where I needed extra pressure to relieve the tight knots in my upper back. It was 50 minutes of heaven, if only it could have lasted longer.”
What’s more important is that in the week following our trip, the energy in our office has increased and our team seem closer than ever. A successful day out for us all.