About January’s Wellbeing Theme: Anchor

Here’s Your Admin Strategy Guide for january 2026

Traditional Definition of Anchor: A heavy object used to moor a vessel to the sea bottom.

How We’re Thinking About It: Establishing routines, habits, and values that help us stay grounded during times of transition or difficulty.

Why Anchoring Matters at Work

The start of the new year often brings fresh new goals, shifting priorities, and a pressure to start the year strong. But many people struggle to find their footing as they feel pulled in multiple directions, overwhelmed by change and opportunity before they’ve had a chance to settle into a rhythm. Although it is usually well-intentioned, without structure, many teams can easily slip into stress, distraction, or burnout before the year really gets going.

Anchors, like consistent routines, shared norms, and clear values, help employees stay grounded. They create a sense of control in moments that might feel chaotic. When teams have shared anchors, they communicate more effectively and move through transitions with ease and clarity.

The start of the year is a natural moment to put these anchors in place. As people reorient themselves after the holidays and look ahead to the year, anchors provide a more grounded and stable way to get started and manage what’s ahead.

Bringing the Theme to Life

• ⚓ Suggest Daily Grounding Practices: Encourage employees to begin and/or end their day with a simple grounding activity. Some examples include writing down one intention, taking a short mindful pause before opening emails, or doing a quick end-of-day rundown of what’s done and what’s next.

• 🔁 Create Predictable Team Routines: Set up routines your team can count on: clear agendas, set check-in times, or a standard way of sharing updates or communicating. When expectations are clear, work feels less chaotic and easier to manage.

• 🤝 Revisit Shared Community Values: Take time to discuss what matters most to the team this year. Ask your team(s) to reconnect with the values that guide their work. This can be a short discussion about what’s most important this year and how the team wants to show up. Doing so creates shared expectations and supports team alignment.

• ⏳ Protect Focus Time: If possible, establish blocks of time where employees can work without interruptions. No meetings. No unnecessary pings. Protected focus time helps people provide higher-quality work with less stress, reduces constant task switching, and lowers frustration.

This Month in Wellbeing

• 👥 Community Workshops

  • What Keeps You Grounded? | Live on Thursday, January 8th, 12pm ET
    We’ll help you identify the routines, habits, and values that help you feel grounded.

  • Your Body as an Anchor | Live on Thursday, January 15th, 12pm ET
    Learn how to recognize the physical cues that tell you when you are and aren’t feeling grounded, and practice simple movements you can use whenever you need a reset.
    Note: This session includes simple, desk-friendly movements perfect for joining right from your workspace.

  • Return to the Present | Live on Thursday, January 22nd, 12pm ET
    This guided practice will help you anchor your awareness in the here and now. Notice the mental and emotional cues that signal you might need to pause and recenter yourself in the present moment.

• 🧰 New Resources

  • Anchors: What We Return to When Life Pulls Us Off Course
    Anchors give us something to come back to. Find yours: a habit, routine, or value that helps you stay grounded when life inevitably throws you off course.

  • The Personal Curriculum: A Friendly Approach to Explore Your Interests
    Learn how to design a personal curriculum that mixes reading, watching, making, and reflecting, with playful projects that help you retain knowledge and enjoy the process.

  • Outrage, Emotion, and the Attention Trap: A Guide to Thoughtful Media Consumption
    Brain rot, rage bait, slop: the words of the year tell a story about the digital environment influencing our attention.

  • Analog Wellness: The Growing Appeal of Offline Experiences
    Explore the rise of “analog wellness”: a growing interest in slowing down, unplugging from screens, and reconnecting with everyday life outside the digital world.

What Else is Happening This Month?

January observances offer timely opportunities to introduce grounding routines, support emotional wellbeing, and reconnect teams after the holiday season:

• 🌍 New Year’s Day (Jan 1): Invite employees to ease into the year gently, encouraging them to set realistic, meaningful intentions instead of pressure-filled resolutions.

• 🧠 International Mind-Body Wellness Day (Jan 3): Share simple practices that support both physical and emotional wellbeing.

• ✊ Martin Luther King Jr. Day (Jan 19, US): Make space for reflection on equity, service, and what these values look like at work; explore opportunities for community engagement.

• 💬 National Compliment Day (Jan 24): Invite teams to offer genuine compliments that build community and connection.

• 🎉 National Fun at Work Day (Jan 30): Use playful, easy activities to boost morale and reconnect teams.

• 😊 Hunt for Happiness Week (Jan 18–24): Encourage employees to notice small moments or actions that lift their mood during the day.

• 📚 National Storytelling Week (Jan 31–Feb 8, UK): Use simple storytelling prompts to help teams share experiences and learn from each other.

January’s Wellbeing Calendar