When you walk into your workspace, do you bring your most authentic self or do you feel the need to reach for a different mask? Does your workspace resemble a “death chamber of the spirit” or is it a place where people look forward to come to work everyday because they feel alive, excited and engaged?
The quest for increased personal productivity, for making the best possible use of our limited time has left many people living fragmented, stressed-out lives. When the brokenness of an individual is compounded with the brokenness of the workspace, people become demoralised, ignoble, and self-centred. In short, people become dehumanised.
This lack of “humanness" could be a major contributing factor to the growing number of disengaged workers. According to a Gallup survey, up to 85 percent of workers worldwide are disengaged at work. The majority of employees report feeling disconnected from their management team and its vision. On average, initial enthusiasm on the job evanesces after a mere six months.
Organisations ought to be viewed as habitats for humans and ensure that their employees aren’t required to check their humanity at the door by putting on a mask and becoming a machine. Humans who bring their whole selves to the workspace are happier, more engaged, and less likely to leave.
With that in mind, let’s take a look at a few ways we can put ourselves and our team in a better position to thrive.
Re-think the workspace culture: In my experience working with clients on both short and long-term projects, I am often left dumbfounded by how easily the goal of the company gets assassinated by its very own culture. As an example, if a business’ goals are creativity/innovation and entrepreneurial thinking, the traditional command-and-control, low tolerance for mistake culture would be the antithesis of what is required to triumph. To emerge victorious, a culture where employees feel save to make mistakes need to be cultivated. Employees must be empowered to ‘skill’ themselves with smart strategies instead of ‘kill’ themselves with obsolete systems. They must be encouraged to “cross-pollinate”, learn from each other and apply insights.
Practice mindfulness in the midst of madness: The growing trend for open concepts in the workspace drives the need for quiet time and privacy. It isn’t just the openness that distracts us, interfering with our ability to concentrate. Our constant need for multi-tasking coupled with our endless inner dialogue diverts our attention. Practicing mindfulness clears our thinking and sharpens our ability to focus.
The Chinese word for mindfulness (念) has two parts: the upper part (今) means "now," and the lower part (心) means “heart." In essence, it simply means “to remember" - to pay attention, to be present…deliberately directing your “heart” back to the “now”, the present moment.
Look for what’s “right” with the world: We live in a “bad news” world and everywhere we turn to, we are reminded of the sorry state of affairs that is staring us in the eye. The truth is, most media are privately owned and information is distorted to serve a purpose. News is hardly an accurate picture of world affairs but more a cherry picking of headlines to sell papers.
When we allow ourselves to be constantly bombarded by bad news, it is difficult not to let the negativity overshadow our existence. As the saying goes, ENERGY flows where ATTENTION goes as governed by INTENTION. Jonathan Edwards, a philosopher from the 18th century puts it this way, “The ideas and images in men’s minds are the invisible powers that constantly govern them”.
In order to flourish, we must first nourish our mind, body and spirit. Remember, there is a lot of good going on around us and we need to actively seek it out. Before you can change the world, you first need to change YOUR inner world.
Be of good report and keep your mind on that which inspires reverence or awe; dignified, worthy of respect instead of sordid stories that pollutes your mind.
Get playful: It’s not about snooker tables and vending machines. Play in our species serves many valuable purposes. In the workspace, it fosters collaboration, high-level reasoning, insightful problem solving, and all sorts of creative endeavours. Play helps us understand the personality of our fellow workers and that understanding humanises the workspace. No wonder Greek philosopher Plato states that one can learn more about a person in an hour of play than from a lifetime of conversation.
Lose Your Balance: Instead of striving for work/life balance, look at life as an energy economy game instead. Each day, ask yourself, “Are my energy expenditures (actions, reactions, thoughts, and feelings) productive or nonproductive? During the course of my day, have I accumulated more peace or more stress?”
A thriving workspace rarely happens by osmosis. Neither can it happen overnight. It requires grit, resilience and the presence of a human-centred leader. Does your company culture bring out the best in people…or is it bringing out the mess? Do your people fearlessly bring their highest self to their biggest challenges or do they prefer to stay quivered in their cocoons? If it is the latter, what changes are you prepared to make?
My buddy, Dilip Mukerjea, an accomplished author, creativity/innovation expert puts it this way - We must move on from enclosing ourselves within bricks and mortar to liberating ourselves with brains and wits.
🇹🇼Joshua Voon
17 years experience in People and Organisational Development.
Designed and facilitated numerous experiential development initiatives, including all written program materials.
Clients include - LVMH, HSBC, The Obama Foundation
✅Curious to find out more?Keen to explore how we could work together? Please contact
Bernice
☎️Signal/Line/WhatsApp：+601116149114 或
📪Email: [email protected]
----------------------------------------------------------
❤️「玩美商業」需要您的課金打賞，請我們喝杯☕️咖啡吧🙏🙏
🌟推薦閱讀：
----------------------------------------------------------
✅歡迎訂閱【玩美人生】YouTube： https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCOYSBB-Hg4VxOqNP_F_HA_g?sub_confirmation=1
✅歡迎追蹤【玩美商業】IG: https://www.instagram.com/twpl.entrepreneur/
✅歡迎追蹤【玩美人生】FB: https://web.facebook.com/thewholepackagelife