Inspiring Session on Stress and Success at YMCA Newark and Sherwood
On Thursday October 9th , YMCA Newark and Sherwood Community and Activity Village
hosted the YMCA Regional Strategic Leaders Group in our beautiful conferencing facilities.
The event was delivered by a guest speaker Dr. Peter Olusoga and featured a truly inspiring
session entitled “Workplace Resilience – Stress and Success”.
The Strategic Leaders Regional Group is made up of leaders from YMCA’s across the
Midlands and this event was organised as part of their 2025 in-person meeting series.
About Dr. Peter Olusoga
Dr. Peter Olusoga is a Senior Lecturer in Psychology, whose current research focuses on
stress, burnout, and well-being in sports, with a particular interest in high-performance
environments and elite coaching.
In addition to research, Dr. Olusoga is a Chartered Psychologist with the British Psychological Society (BPS),
and a sport psychology consultant.
He is widely known and recommended as being an engaging, calm and insightful speaker
who deeply understands all aspects of stress and the reasons behind it. He supports leaders
to craft strategies to enable their teams to better cope with workplace stress and build resilience.
Exploring the Nature of Stress
The half-day session began by exploring what stress actually is, and what forms we may experience it in,
allowing everyone in attendance to really think and reflect about the things
that cause them stress.
Stress can come in different forms and can usually be branded into organisational, personal
and performance-related categories.
Developing Coping Mechanisms and Resilience
Attendees reviewed different mechanisms of dealing and coping with stress and how to
develop techniques to remain calm and manage it in a positive way.
Further discussions took place centring around different times of the week, month and year
where stress levels increase and the importance of prioritising well-being during those times.
Along with the members of the Strategic Leaders Group, the session also welcomed attendees
from YMCA Robin Hood Group departments including Supported Housing and
Children’s Residential Care as well as the group’s Mental Health First Aiders.
Grace Hickling, P&C Advisor and Mental Health First Aider, shared her thoughts about the
session:
“I really enjoyed the workplace resilience session held at YMCA CAV. The information
shared was insightful and thought provoking, and I’m already applying some of the
strategies in my work. Dr. Pete's approachable and engaging style made the session
especially valuable, and I’m looking forward to listening to his podcast”.
Find Out More
Dr. Peter Olusoga can be found on the following platforms:
Instagram: @eightypercentmental
Podcast: Eighty Percent Mental