Celebrating International Bike to Work Day with IDP People Experience Specialist, Nicole Lam!

“To work with purpose, champion change, have a healthy mind and body, to impact on a greener and fairer future, where I feel a space of belonging – these are the things that inspire me to get up and out every day. 

Hello! I’m Nicole Lam and I work in the Group Sustainability Team. Mostly, I support our global team to achieve its Diversity & Inclusion initiatives. 

My office desk is only a few km from my house. On the days that I work from the IDP office, I catch a bus or tram or ride my bike. Catching public transport allows me to sit and watch the world go by, or catch up on some reading and messages. It’s the perfect way to commute and avoids my car needing to add to the traffic and saves in parking and petrol costs. I have 2 active school aged kids so my mornings are pretty hectic. On Fridays, their sporting commitments get them out of the house earlier, giving me the opportunity to ride into work. I really love the Friday commute! 

Riding to work provides many things for me – it mixes up the week; I get exercise commuting; the freedom of coming and going when I’m ready without waiting for trams or buses; and it impacts my wellbeing by feeling positive emotions. Whether it’s the warm sun or sprinkles of rain, it feels good to feel the elements.

I’m very lucky that I have a bike path most of the way from home to the building. It runs through parkland and down the Yarra River in Melbourne. On the way home, I get a sense of the city and it’s people enjoying Friday as they head out to the shops, cafes, bars and parklands. It’s a great feeling. And it certainly helps having excellent “end of trip” facilities in the IDP building that inspire many in the office precinct to cycle to work. 

For those of you thinking that you would like to ride to work, but it seems hard to start, some things I recommend: 

• Prepare ahead and leave a set of clothes, shoes, toiletries at work. This reduces the mental load as well as the weight load on the day 

• Start with just one day a week. One day is one more than zero days 

• Anchor your day to an existing routine that makes riding that day easier – it might be a day that you have extra time in the morning or are able to leave home or work earlier 

• Choose a route that is more scenic. The mental stimulation helps, as does just enjoying nature 

• If you like variety, mix the route up now and then to explore different surroundings 

• Meet up with a friend or colleague and share all or part of the cycle together 

• Do a part cycle, part public transport if the ride time is a barrier 

• If you track your steps or km, the cycle still counts 

• Celebrate your cycle by patting yourself on the back, or treating yourself to a coffee, or some way that makes you feel even better for having cycled to walk  

• Replicate this in your other commutes –to school, shops, community events 

Of course, some people will not be able to cycle to work or at all. We can all make small changes in our day to day to reduce our carbon footprint, making the world and ourselves feel better for it.    

I often stop to just take the sounds and sights in and feel the outdoors. For those who also ride to work, and anyone this inspires, I would love to hear what motivates you to cycle to work and how that makes you feel. " - Nicole Lam, People Experience Specialist - Corporate, IDP