The one where the team went to Wicklow

Last week, the TimeKeeper team (not forgetting Flo, who's away on Mat leave) clocked out for a few days and got together for some good, old fashioned, quality outdoor time. We’ve grown as a company a fair bit this year, with 3 new hires and lots of training - so it was good to unplug for a while. 

We’ve previously written about the importance of taking time away from the office, the benefits of fresh air and exercise, and the impact this can have on our mental health and work performance - studies have shown time in the outdoors improves memory, attention, and creativity. Putting this into practice, our geographically spread team headed to Wicklow, Ireland, for a company retreat. Here’s what we got up to…

Planes, trains and automobiles, brought us all together, as we headed to the ‘Garden County’ for 3 days. Our home for this trip was The Druid’s Glenn, set in beautiful grounds - we were spoiled from the get go. The Irish summer rain didn’t stop us either, we enjoyed cosy lunch and scenic drives on day one, followed by dinner and cocktails to top it off. Being a remote first team spread across England, NI and ROI, it’s very rare we get together - in fact, some of us were ‘meeting’ for the first time! But we laughed and chatted throughout the evening, like we’d never been apart. We learned more about each other in 3 days than we had in 3 months.

By the second morning, the rain made way for a fresh but cloudy day - perfect for our hike. After breakfast, we got our ‘walking boots’ on and wandered out to the sticks. Before we began the hike, we stopped to take in the scenes and listen to some of founder Sean’s ‘baa’d jokes 🐑.

We embarked on the 6km Rough Bray Loop, which takes you up and down some rocky inclines, across babbling brooks, and around some beautiful waters. Less than 5 minutes in, one of us slipped knee deep into a stream we were crossing. After laughing it off, the team pulled together and powered on with soggy staff in tow. Every corner we turned and rock we climbed brought us a new scene to take in, certainly beats the usual home office! We followed the loop back up to the road, and enjoyed the view together. Everyone loved the hike, so it’s no surprise 56% of adults said exercising regularly helped them to manage stress, and therefore burnout. 

After our trek, we stopped by the stunning Powerscourt Waterfall where we snapped this team pic and headed for a well earned bite to eat.

Despite this being a company retreat, we each had some time to unwind ourselves. From the spa to the gym, golf, walks or naps - there was something for everyone to enjoy. We made our way into Bray on our second night for dinner and drinks, accompanied by a quiz with extra annual leave up for grabs. Time really flies when you’re having fun, because before we knew it, the bar was closing up and booting us out.

Our final day brought sunshine and highs of 23c (of course!). After breakfast we strolled around the Glendalough Monastic City, spotted some deer and soaked up the sun before heading off on our onward journeys home.

All in all, the first TimeKeeper Retreat was a roaring success. It was a jam-packed 3 days with lots of laughs, bonding and a good sense of camaraderie. We each took away different things from the trip, but one that we all expressed was feeling refreshed. Personally, I felt completely at peace. Being outdoors just has that effect, no work related worries - it was like being in another world. The rest of the team said ‘It was great to be away from screens for a couple of days and enjoy the beauty and nature Wicklow has to offer.’ The retreat gave us the ‘opportunity to know people on a deeper level, interests, hobbies, etc’. We felt better connected following the break together. 

The experience really rings home how beneficial it is to unplug, switch off, and get outside. Whether with your team, or using personal leave - your mind, body and work will thank you for it!