Plank work makes the bank* work, even virtually
by Monchette Gonda, Lifecycle Marketing Manager
Ever since I joined the Chime team 3 years ago, we’ve planked as a company on a daily basis. By plank, I mean the core exercise — in our case, that’s two minutes of holding yourself horizontally off the floor, in a push-up position or on your forearms. The imminent workout is announced each day in our #general channel on Slack: “PLANK WORK MAKES THE BANK* WORK!”
Of course, Chime is a financial technology company, not a bank. Banking services provided by, and debit card issued by, The Bancorp Bank or Stride Bank, N.A.; Members FDIC. But all of that doesn’t really rhyme with ‘plank, so we went with our catchier phrase for getting Chimers motivated.
While not always my favorite thing to do during the workday, here’s why planking is one of my favorite traditions at Chime:
Everyone’s welcome
Investors, board members, office visitors, family members — everyone is invited to plank with us. Nobody is excluded from plank time, not even the creator of Nike’s Michael Jordan advertising campaigns (we used to share an office with his agency) or the Dallas Mavericks’ executive leadership team (Mark Cuban, if you’re reading, you’re always invited). We’ve planked at our holiday party, in bars, at MLB games, in Vegas, during the Superbowl, all over the world, at all hours of the day and night. Anyone can join in. The more, the merrier.
PM pick-me-up
Sometimes it’s hard to stay focused once the late afternoon comes around. I won’t speak for other Chimers, but a two minute core workout with Shakira blasting gets enough blood pumping into my brain to get me through the rest of the workday. Plus, Chimers often bring their dogs. It makes for a delightful (but difficult!) two minutes when a puppy starts licking your face.
Plank from home
Chimers have been working from home since early March, and with our daily plank on Zoom, we’ve taken it to the next level with custom filters and backgrounds. One day, we might all use the same virtual background to commemorate someone’s Chimeversary. Another, we’ll form teams for a month-long plank challenge. It’s fun to see how an in-office tradition is finding a life of its own in the virtual world.
Building core strength and camaraderie
The environment at Chime has always been friendly and inclusive, but really feeling that has been trickier as we’ve grown and gone virtual. Planking helps combat the trend by giving us a chance to check in with each other for a few low-key moments. Just a few minutes every day add up quickly when it comes to building our company culture.
June’s Plank Challenge for a Cause
This summer, planking took on a new meaning when police brutality came to the foreground of our lives in new ways. The impact of George Floyd’s murder was deeply felt across the company and as we came together to grieve and process, we each found ways to support the Black community at Chime and beyond.
One of the small ways we made an impact was by pledging to donate $1 to the Equal Justice Initiative every time a Chime employee participated in our daily plank. Chimers banded together as teams, too, competing to achieve perfect attendance for the month. The winning teams received $500 to donate to the social justice organization of their choice. Overall, we raised $6,791 in June — by planking alone!
Planking pays off
It’s not always fun doing the difficult things in life, like exercising during work hours or working on the cutting edge of fintech. But Chimers do both anyway. Planking encourages us to push each other towards our goals on a daily basis — even in small ways, like holding the plank for a little longer. You might even say that by doing something hard that only takes a few minutes — planking — every day, we’re better prepared to take on the bigger challenges, like our mission: to make financial peace of mind a reality for everyone.
I’m reminded that not only do the little things matter, but it also matters how you do the little things. Our planking tradition is a great reminder to do the little things well and that they add up to the bigger things — and that’s how change happens.
Monchette Gonda is a Lifecycle Marketing Manager at Chime.
The way we’re working may have changed, but the reason we do what we do hasn’t — and our team is still growing even though we’re working from home. If you’d like to explore becoming a Chimer, head over to our careers page.
*Chime is a financial technology company, not a bank. Banking services provided by, and debit card issued by, The Bancorp Bank or Stride Bank, N.A.; Members FDIC.
