At Happy Work Environment, my team and I created a mission of Bringing humanity back into business.

When we created this slogan, as Chief Executive I began to think about the deeper meaning of humanity and what it has to do with the business or workplace.

The dictionary defines humanity as: Human beings collectively; and the quality of being humane; benevolence. (Oxford Languages)

I have also linked this definition to what Albert Einstein once expressed.

"A human being is a part of the whole called by us; Universe, a part limited in time and space. He experiences himself, his thoughts and feeling as something separated from the rest, a kind of optical delusion of his consciousness. This delusion is a kind of prison for us, restricting us to our desires and affection for a few persons nearest to us. Our task must be to free ourselves from this prison by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature in its beauty."

Now I understand what humanity means to me. It also brought these questions of bringing humanity back into business.

• Is humanity lacking in the workplace? Was it there before industrialism?

• And if it needs to come back, then why?

I wasn’t aware of the meaning of humanity when I was employed in a large corporation, but in retrospect, I felt that work provided a living, but not necessarily fulfillment. I don’t entirely blame the organization, but I feel that mental and physical wellbeing could have been addressed holistically rather than quick fixes or ticking quota boxes.

Before I set myself on a challenging tour of bringing humanity back into business – I started by looking much closer to home, i.e., myself as a CEO, Are there any traits of humanity within me?

• Am I kind to another human being with whom I interact?

• Am I kind to myself so I can be kind to others?

• Am I creating a safe space for colleagues to have a dialogue without fear of feeling judged, misunderstood or repercussions?

• Am I actively listening and putting effort to understand?

• Do I treat them with the same respect as I prefer to be treated?

These are questions that I often remind myself to keep my humanity in balance and not to lose connection with myself and others.

To answer these questions, I believe that it takes one to dive deeper into some soul searching. From experience when I started my transformation journey a while back, it felt challenging to face my truth. The process of peeling off the masks and false pretensions was personally painful. Now I see clearly after the dust has settled.

Through the process, the underlying work that happened created a firm foundation by knowing my values and guiding principles. Now I operate from a place of certainty and empowerment instead of uncertainty and fear. For which I feel much better as a human - Happier and at peace. The result of connecting to my humanity helped me see the humanity in my colleagues.

I invite you to imagine how a workplace would look like when every single person is connected to their humanity.

Sincerely

David Andrew

Is it possible that kindness can be represented in a corporate P&L - Profit & Loss Statement?

Many of us live in an atmosphere of heightened anxiety or tiredness due to this pandemic. At home, perhaps homeschooling children; at work, about our families and extended families, our friends, our neighbors and communities we live in.

Alain de Botton once said, “The emotionally intelligent person knows that they will only ever be 

mentally healthy in a few areas and at certain moments.”

We are all imperfect, even leaders. We are all working to figure out our way out of this.

A misplaced comment, an emotional outburst or a cocktail of both can be signs that possible adversities are becoming too much for anyone. After all, we are all only human.

Probably there are many instances where mistreatments and misunderstandings happened and are continuing to happen throughout the corporate world.

However, in general, it must surely be a good thing if there were more kindness and care in the world during these times and after.

And there are good business reasons why leaders at all levels of any organization should learn how to demonstrate more kindness and more understanding of the whole person that shows up for work, the world we all operate in, the potential impact on our personal lives and therefore our performance at work.

When we can establish a clear link between leadership genuinely caring for our people and improved performance at work, we will have found the formula for extolling and spreading corporate kindness.

After all, it has already started to happen in the world of sustainability and sustainable business practices.

A 2013 global study by the MIT Sloan Management Review entitled “The Innovation Bottom Line” showed that the percentage of companies reporting a profit from their sustainability efforts rose by 23 percent. There is an unequivocal link between demonstrating sustainability values, such as kindness, and resultant bottom-line performance.

So why not with kindness?

The words Kindness and Business have, up until now, not often been found in the same sentence.

Perhaps one of the positives to come out of this pandemic is the reminder that whilst we talk constantly about B2B and B2C models; business is P2P - People to People.

We at Happy Work Environment, genuinely try to practice kindness in our business; giving more, caring more, engaging more, listening more.

And we believe that it is a business world and a context many, if not most, prefer to operate in.

How about you?

Kindness. It’s good for business.

Written by Keith Rozelle

Imagine the company you are working at is providing you with daily on-site meditation sessions. When you come to work, you practice guided meditation together with your colleagues, before you start your workday. Wouldn’t you like that?

It might sound like a utopia but it seems like this is a powerful incentive valued by some of the smartest companies nowadays. Recent studies show that companies save $4.58 for every $1 spent on wellness, according to Meditation.Works. Additionally, researchers have found that meditating 15 minutes per day will reduce stress levels by 40%.

Another significant benefit of meditation is the “relaxation response,” which is the ability for your body to release chemicals and brain signals that increase blood flow to the brain and slows organ activity.

Meditating at the workplace has many benefits. It increases focus and productivity, strengthens the immune system, reduces stress and anxiety, improves energy levels and sleep patterns, mood and emotional health, boosts employee morale, reduces employee absenteeism and enhances cognitive function. Best of all; it requires no equipment or special training.

It is okay if your employer is not keen on providing you and your fellow colleagues with meditation sessions practiced as a team – yet. You can still meditate at work during your break. Here is how:

• Sit comfortably at your chair.

• Close your eyes.

• Breathe deeply in a rhythmic pattern.

• While you are breathing deeply, turn your focus on each breath.

• As you become more experienced, you’ll find that your mind will be less distracted and more able to focus on each breath.

• Start with five minutes of meditation on the first day and build daily by an additional five minutes until you can comfortably meditate for 20 minutes each day.

Or alternatively, you can practice guided meditation using your earphones and your smart phone with the help of one of these efficient apps:

• Headspace

• Calm

• Insight Timer

• MINDBODY

• Buddhify

• Sahaja Yoga Meditation

Smart top management and leaders go for it and see how beneficial meditation is for both their employees and their companies’ bottom line. I hope more and more businesses around the world adopt this wonderful practice that is a perfect example of a win-win situation.

Written by Ipek Williamson

Do you have a favourite day of the week? My favourite has always been Friday. Nobody and nothing that happened on a Friday could affect my mood negatively, because Friday was the end of the workweek and eve of the weekend. It deserved being the most favourite day of the week, even better than Saturday for some reason.

Then I’ve realized why I felt that way about Friday. Because what I was excited about was not the day I was going through, but the expectation of a great weekend that would follow. So, by favouring Friday, I was not enjoying the day itself, but the anticipation of the next two days of the weekend.

Everybody’s working for the weekend. That’s what the song says. But what if I make every day of my life enjoyable so that I don’t have to wait for a specific time? What if I become mindful of now, rather than waiting for a time in future to bring me joy?

Monday Blues

If you are dreading to go to work on Monday and that’s ruining your Sunday, just stop and think. Why do you feel that way? What’s causing this feeling? What’s not going well at work that affects your time outside the work negatively? Do your loved ones deserve to live with your dreadful Sundays? How your anxiety about work affects your relationships with your family and friends?

You live just one life, and every minute of it deserves to be cherished. If something is not going well, instead of trying to live with it and making your and your loved ones’ lives an unpleasant journey, you can choose to take action. And you should. Because why accept what you have given and not create what you deserve? Why not make every day of the week the best day of the week?

So, if reading this is lighting a fire in you, and you feel like a radical change is in order, reach out to someone for help. You can reach out to me, to one of your good friends, to a mentor, to an elderly wise person. Just act and see your life transforming in front of your eyes. You deserve it, and so does everyone who loves you.

Written by Ipek Williamson