I recently heard someone say: Did you know that the buzz of a mobile phone is more additive than many hardcore drugs? Internet lore or truth? It doesn’t really matter…the truth of the matter is that we are not doing ourselves any favors physically or mentally by being available 24/7 to technology. With global markets available to us 24/7—there is the tendency to have the expectation that we should be available for all of our customers all the time. Technology is supposed to be making life more efficient and less stressful!—but technology can make it more difficult to create a life balance. More companies are starting to realize the toll technology has been taking on the well-being of their employees.
Nothing is more powerful than an idea whose time has come— Wellness in the workplace is just such an idea. Humans were not meant to be sitting long hours in an upright position with their arms in front of them hunched over a computer day in and day out or slouching in meeting chairs for hours on end, or worse—sitting in upright chairs in a seminar taking notes. We sit or stand around reading our hand-held devices all day. It is not unusual to look around you and see more than 50% of people looking at or talking in their handheld devices in any given place—whether that’s a coffee shop, street corner, or the doctor’s office. That’s why so many companies are now putting a wellness program in place. It’s not just for high tech companies anymore either. If you are a law office, or a real estate office, or maybe an accounting firm—you are on a computer probably more than 70% of your day in the office—and the rest of the time is probably in meetings or your car.
What do we really mean by wellness in the workplace? Physical and mental breaks from work during the day is a good start. Maybe you bring in a person who leads the team in a meditation once or twice a week—teaching your employees how to step outside of themselves is valuable mental practice on many levels. Perhaps you have someone who comes in and leads everyone in a little “office Pilates or Yoga” that can be done right at your desk if you don’t have a larger room to hold a class. If you do have the space– have a lunch time class in an empty meeting room. It’s a proven fact that movement of the body causes endorphins to increase resulting in mood enhancement. Uplifting the mood and energy of your employees has many other benefits that contribute to better business practices and more business coming into your company. Another activity you can bring to your workplace is chair massage. A massage therapist comes to your office once a week or every other week and gives everyone a 15-20 minute massage. Switching it up and doing one of these activities a week is a great way to keep everyone engaged in at least one of the offerings.
All of these activities will help with spinal alignment, loosening of tight muscles, and bring about a feeling of well-being and energy to your employees’ day. Each of these activities take very little time away from the work day and they can contribute to a more efficient staff and can lead to a happier more well-balanced work place. The cost is minimal when you consider the decrease in the number of sick days or mental-health days employees take during the year and the level of cooperation that can increase with team dynamics because people feel better and more centered.
