Creating a healthy workplace culture has manifold benefits as healthy and happy employees lead to increased productivity which in turn benefits the company. With Covid-19 looming over our country and the world, it has become even more necessary to pursue wellness in all aspects of our lives including workplaces.
Health and wellness have become the prime areas of focus in the Covid-19 times and we need to sync our mind, body and soul to stay positive, emphasised Ashwini Kumar Choubey, Minister of State for Health & Family Welfare, in a wellness session organised by PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry. The session was moderated by Dr Yogesh Srivastav, principal director, PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
The minister stressed on yoga and meditation, living in a clean environment to cleanse our body and mind. He cited examples of simpler times when people used to have a healthy lifestyle and intake herbs such as Galoy, Ashwagandha and other Ayurvedic medicines regularly. Ashwini Kumar Choubey asserted, “Your thoughts, behaviour and actions affect your wellness levels. It’s crucial to keep your mind and body healthy. I have been doing yoga, pranayama, suryanamaskar and chanting Saraswati Mantra daily since childhood. Eat according to the season, in moderation and increase the intake of nutrient-rich foods. Consuming warm water, tulsi, sattu and Ayurvedic herbs is also beneficial.”
Col Harmit Singh Sethi (Retd), group head and executive director- Corporate Affairs & Incubation at Dalmia Bharat Group, spoke about the concept of wellness and its eight major dimensions: Physical, emotional, spiritual, social, financial, environmental, occupational and intellectual. According to Sethi, the secret for wellness is to master these dimensions. He also talked about Pathogenesis (origination and development of a disease) and Salutogenesis approach (mental and physical wellness).
Shagun Singhal Garg, motivational speaker, columnist and educationist spoke about the importance of choosing words carefully as they carry energy. Uttering the right words will invite wellness as the mind listens. An effort is needed to change harmful habits. Garg stressed upon the need to quiet our mind to improve the wellness of life. She said, “It can be achieved through appreciating ourselves, listening to our inner voice for motivation, being proud of small and big achievements and self-competition. We should not limit ourselves based on other people’s opinions — be it on social media or in our personal lives.”
Following a 21-day strategy of leading a healthy life and making changes such as saying no to fried and processed food, saying yes to natural foods, fruits and veggies, yoga, meditation and good sleep can improve your quality of life. Garg also touched upon the idea of spiritual wellness through kindness and compassion.
While this pandemic led us to stay socially isolated under lockdown, it has also made us concerned about each other and society, said Anjali Singh, MD, Corporate Bank Operations at Deutsche Bank. It has changed our work culture, and the companies enabled the staff to work from home and even set up workspaces for them. “We need to secure their health through medical insurance. Creating safe working spaces with doctors on call, ambulance and insurance specific to Covid-19 emergencies is also needed,” asserted Singh.
She said, “We also need to change our way of communication and form creative ways to communicate with our employees and leadership. While there is no stigma attached to physical illness the same can’t be said about mental illness. With these changing times, we need to have gender diversity sessions and look after the mental health of our employees.”
Rajat Banerjee, head Corporate Affairs at Amway India Ltd, mentioned that while Covid-19 has given us tough moments, it’s time that we focus on a healthy workspace for the wellness of employees. Globally, there has been a 38% surge in immunity-boosting supplements such as Vitamin C, D, multivitamins, Chyawanprash and others, he said, adding that their sale will continue even after the pandemic is over.
Dr D.K. Aggarwal, president, PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry, mentioned that in these indispensable times, there is a need to focus on wellness especially at the workplace. We need to take holistic measures to keep our body, mind and soul healthy by practising yoga, meditation, exercising, healthy diet and taking natural medicines. Yoga can help lower down stress levels, anxiety and depression and at the same time provide us peace and strengthen our body.
Dr Aruna Abhey Oswal, Chairperson, WE Committee, PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry said that the positive impact of the pandemic is that we are going back to our roots and taking care of our mind, body and soul.
“Companies should promote 15-minute yoga and pranayama sessions, positive and hygienic environment for holistic wellness in the office,” opined Minister Choubey. He concluded the event by advising everyone to “stay connected to nature and earth, consume Kadha, Sattu, fruits and vegetables and expose yourself to morning sunlight for 10 to 15 minutes.”