Corporate Wellness Programmes Can Increase Your Company's Productivity
Physical fitness and mental health are two words most commonly bandied about in the millennial lexicon. With attention spans plummeting and lifestyle related illnesses at an all-time high, companies have been forced to look at the mind, body and soul connection through new lenses.
It is not unusual for those working in offices to be spending upward of 12 hours at their workplace and a couple of hours commuting to and from it. This duration at work is characterised by long periods of sitting hunched over the computer and being constantly bombarded with information on all the senses. The day is punctuated by innumerable cups of tea or coffee and snacks from the office cafeteria. And for most individuals the work rolls over to their homes, which no lonåger remains a sacred sanctuary for resting one’s mind and body.
Wellness considers looking at more than an individual’s physical body and delves into the unchartered realms of the human consciousness. The human mind is capable of storing, assimilating and disseminating information at tremendous speed but is tremendously affected by factors like poor quality diet and sleep.
Compounded by ever increasing stress levels due to deadlines and market competition, it is only inevitable that the average individual succumb to various lifestyle induced illnesses. The strength of any organisation are its employees and just how important it is to ensure their overall well-being cannot be stressed enough. At the most superficial level, the well-being of employees would reduce absenteeism and promote high levels of focus and attention on the job. On a more subtle level, employees would consider the workplace as more than merely a source of income and would enjoy their time spent there, leading to a positive work environment.
Corporate wellness programmes are of various formats. They could start off from the fitness angle of exercise-based classes, which might include yoga to forums where industry experts are invited to talk to employees on various subjects to help them reassess their current lifestyle choices. There are various well-documented benefits of exercising, such as increasing muscle strength and improving endurance and flexibility. Exercising also promotes organ health while revitalising and rejuvenating the entire body.
Various breathing and meditation practices help bring our individual rhythm in sync with the universal rhythm. When this happens, we move health forward to wellness, which translates to well-being which is a key factor in the evolution of mankind. When the physical, mental and spiritual bodies are aligned, sympathy, empathy, compassion, creativity, vision, productivity, self-confidence, self esteem, philanthropy, and benevolence, all pour forth, aiding the evolution of mankind.
Wellness programmes make us aware of how essential it is for us to connect with the five elements of nature. Pranayama makes us aware of the fragility of our lives and of the need to become entrenched in the moment, as it is all we truly own. On a more basic level, it makes us aware of our breath, but more importantly, teaches us to treat our minds with respect and keep our body tuned to the highest frequency. With such an outcome, corporate wellness programmes would help employees deliver well beyond what is expected of them while transforming their lives along the way.
