Wellness in the Workplace

(gentle music) Headspace Studio. (soft music) Greetings. My name is Kessonga, and I welcome you this Thursday to Radio Headspace. So as my children are getting older, my daughters are 16 and 12 years old, it seems like they're asking for money more and more. "Can I have this? Can I have that?" I'm like, "Yeah, y'all need to get a job." (laughs) So naturally, I look back at the different jobs that I've held down in the past, some good, some bad, from a telemarketer and a tutor, to a lab tech and a bartender. All were learning experiences. A Headspace member recently asked how to stay mindful in an unhealthy work environment because many workplaces promote urgency and productivity over wellness. So I think the first thing to identify if you feel like you're working in a toxic environment is to identify exactly how it is toxic. And so, yeah, many workplaces do promote a sense of urgency and productivity over wellness, and I can imagine that that puts a lot of pressure and anxiety on a person to perform. A mindful approach you can use to counter the unhealthy work culture you're experiencing is to lead by example. So if your work stress pertains to a sense of urgency and productivity over wellness, perhaps you can demonstrate what this wellness actually looks like. Come up with mindful practices that will promote wellness in your place of work. For example, perhaps forming a sort of wellness task force with its purpose being to promote wellness in the workplace. I've seen this in a number of businesses. They do activities such as inviting various health teachers to come and do a lunch talk about a specific topic. It really does work in creating a healthier workplace environment. And also, what having a wellness task force does is create an awareness of wellness and remembering that any change starts with awareness. Another specific action that comes to mind to help promote wellness in the workplace is to actually start each meeting with just a few mindful moments and being sure to emphasize explicitly what it is that you're doing. So it may sound something like, "Before we dive into today's meeting, just in the spirit of workplace wellness, let's just take a few mindful moments to gently let our full attention settle down into this current space." And even if you're not in charge of the meeting, perhaps gently making this suggestion beforehand. So recognizing and appreciating that this may indeed take some courage on your part. So I definitely get that, especially since this may seem like a foreign suggestion going against the culture of your workplace. But again, all change starts with awareness. Also, in the case of any type of work stress being experienced, your practice outside of work is very important. Remembering that mindfulness is not just an exercise or technique. It's really a way of being. It's a way of life. And before I go today,...