According to psychologist Daniel Goleman, “Emotional intelligence matters twice as much as technical and analytical skill combined for star performance… And the higher people move up in the company, the more crucial emotional intelligence becomes.” Going back in time, there were jobs for everyone. However, since then the rules have changed drastically, giving no choice to employees to choose their own faith. Moreover, they have accustomed to shorter deadlines, long working hours with no promises of job security.
Recent rise in deadly health threats are mostly linked to hectic work schedule. Several organisations in India are taking steps towards better health for their employees, some have allied with wellness companies to monitor employees’ health.
According to Ravi Krishnan, CEO & Co-founder, Stepathlon, “One of the biggest challenges we face is changing the mindset about fitness and embedding the gravity of the ill-effects of a sedentary lifestyle. Historically, in India, companies and employees have focused on illness, not on wellness. The rest of the developed world realised, more than two decades ago, that preventative programs benefit both individual and company from both a health and productivity perspective.”
The companies should also take special interest in their employees and gain their trust by offering them options to work from home or reduce their hours of work. Recently, Cognizant Technology Solutions has asked its employees in India to work from home. Too add on “Developed countries realize this and lay a lot of emphasis on productivity and efficiency. Countries like Sweden have introduced 5-6 hour work days keeping in mind that employees are most productive in that time frame. Indian organizations must initiate employee wellness programs that enable them to live better personal and professional lives”, remarks Ravi Krishnan.
However, some employees need to cut down on certain bad habits that can alter their life. For instance, cigarette breaks at work or going for drinks post work. These habits will only pile up more health issues while one is burdened with work. Time that’s gone will never come back.
There are several ways to pursue healthy lifestyle. Nonetheless, it’s crucial to segregate these issues into mental and physical categories. Usually, health deteriorates when one stops listening to body needs. It could be a simple thing like drinking water at regular intervals or stretching at your desk while working on computer. However, one of the most common health issues at work is stress. Stress alone can magnify issues that would lead to bigger risks. It is difficult to diagnose problems at the beginning, but it’s not impossible—few good habits can do the trick!
How does one inculcate good habits? It’s simple, one has to understand the knowledge, skill and desire to create a habit. For instance, an obese who wants to lose weight because it is affecting his health—is the knowledge. To understand what skills are required to lose weight, he
has to find out different ways that will help him achieve the goal. At last, he requires motivation to persevere with his plan to lose weight. Nonetheless, according to psychotherapist Alfred Adler, “The hardest thing for human beings to do is to know themselves and to change themselves.”
In some countries, like India, employees are usually over loaded with work without sufficient breaks, which can lead to stress. And stress increases the level of hormones—the rest is history when it comes to making bad choices at work in regards to health. However, it takes two hands to clap, which means organisations should help employees to work in a stress free environment. Companies can offer recreational activities to their employees—it could be a simplest thing like a small library or provide healthy food in the canteen.
“The World Economic Forum listed health as one of the top 10 global concerns last year. India’s diabetes rate has gone up by 123% in the last 25 years. We are sitting on a ticking time bomb, with an alarming 70% of our urban population in the obese or overweight bracket. An ASSOCHAM survey shows that nearly 42.5% employees in the private sector suffer from general anxiety disorders. This highlights a burning need to address employee health and wellbeing across all companies and industries”, adds Ravi Krishnan.
As an employee, it’s important for him to be self-aware of his surroundings to choose what suits him in long run, rather than become part of a never-ending rat race. As rightly put by psychotherapist Alfred Adler, “The power-hungry individual follows a path to his own destruction.” Nonetheless, all one has to do is break the bad habits, and follow a better lifestyle that will lead to his well being.
