S10 Ep16: How to Grow Wellbeing Skills with Thomas Roulet

The Business of Being Brilliant

Why do so many workplace wellbeing initiatives fall short, and what would it look like if everyone, not just HR or a handful of “champions” were equipped with real wellbeing skills for daily life at work? In this episode, Helen sits down with Thomas Roulet, Professor of Organisational Sociology and Leadership at Cambridge Judge Business School and co-author of the new book Wellbeing Intelligence: Building Better Mental Health at Work, to explore what it truly means to bake wellbeing into the DNA of organisational culture.

Together, they explore:

⭐️ Why leaders often misunderstand the signs of stress and mental health in themselves as just “bodily” symptoms (like tiredness and fidgeting) and why it’s crucial to connect the dots between mind and body

⭐️ The difference between intervention-focused and truly preventative wellbeing strategies at work

⭐️ What “wellbeing intelligence” is and why it should be democratised so everyone can champion mental health, not just a select few

⭐️ How techniques from counselling and cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) can be simply and practically used by anyone at work, not just professionals

⭐️ The impact of hybrid work, loneliness, and even new workplace technologies like AI on our wellbeing and social connections

⭐️ Culture watch-outs - how even the “best” workplaces can enable burnout when boundaries aren’t protected, and how to spot those early warning signs

⭐️ How to cultivate psychological safety so colleagues feel able to share when their workload is too much (and managers respond with genuine support)

⭐️ Small but mighty actions: from taking real breaks to deleting your email app on holiday, and sharing wellbeing practices with your team

⭐️ Why self-awareness and self-care aren’t ‘nice to haves’, but essential leadership and life skills in an always-on world.

Tune in for a fresh and practical discussion packed with research insights, lived experience, and tips you can use to support your own and others’ wellbeing at work.

About Thomas Roulet

Thomas Roulet is the Professor of Organisational Sociology andLeadership at the Judge Business School, and a Fellow in Psychologyand Behavioural Science at King's College, both at the University ofCambridge.His work focuses on the future of work, mental health in theworkplace, communication and uncertainty management. His comments areregularly featured in the Financial Times, the Economist, Bloomberg,the Telegraph, BBC or Le Monde. He writes a column for Forbes:https://www.forbes.com/sites/thomasroulet/ and has a number of papersin the Harvard Business Review and MIT Sloan Management Review inaddition to his research.In 2024, he was recognised as one of the Young Global Leaders by theWorld Economic Forum, and as an upcoming leadership thinker byThinkers50, MT/Sprout, or Nexxworks. He was made a Mid-Career Fellowof the British Academy in 2023 and Fellow of the Academy of socialsciences in 2025. In 2020, he was named among the 40 Best BusinessSchool Professors below 40, and a Business School Professor to Lookfor by Business Because.

Links:

Connect with Thomas on Linked In.

Discover Thomas’ new book here.

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