What to focus on according to the experts of the WEF at Davos
With the World Economic Forum in Davos coming to an end one thing is an absolute clear message: taking care of our mental well-being is not a nice-to-have, it is a NEED-to-have. For everyone and definitely if you want to be successful as a management professional. Several political figures, CEO’s and experts addressed the subject, be it from different perspectives.
Prince William focuses on mental health at work while the prime minister of New Zealand, Jacinda Ardern, stated that her government has to focus on inter-generational well-being and societal well-being and not just on economic well-being (source: WEF). And CEO’s from different companies argued that we need a new approach to mental health and well-being at work and discussed the toxic toll of our connected lives. According to John Flint, CEO of HBSC, this is not a fuzzy, feel-good effort, but a question of performance and the most critical enabler of business strategy (source: WEF ). He explained how being at your best and not being at your best is incredibly important when it comes to for example decision-making.
In line with the above two experts stated that it is time to switch to a four-day working week as it will have a range of benefits for both workers and employers: multiple studies state that a shorter working week would make people happier and more productive. A trial at a company in New-Zealand reported lower levels of stress, higher levels of job satisfaction and an improved sense of work-life balance while the workers were 20% more productive (source: WEF).
Now to me the above states very clear that we need to give ourselves and our brain some slack on a regular basis, to disconnect and some non-doing and recovery time in order to feel, work, perform and be more well. And that is exactly what mindfulness can do for you: supporting your mental well-being by having moments to recover and to rejuvenate, giving your brain a rest, a moment to pause, to create resilience, to reflect and to understand yourself. If you want to be a successful professional, you cannot do without this. You have to take care of your mental well-being and you have to know your brain, your thinking, your mental well-being, you have to lead yourself. This is no longer a nice-to-have, but a need-to-have for professionals. And ignoring this will leave you and your company lacking behind.
Contact me if you want to know what you can do for your company to support mental well-being at work.
