March 20 is World Happiness Day and the date certainly forces, rather than celebrating, to reflect on the conditions of well-being and satisfaction in which employees perform their tasks in companies in the midst of the pandemic.
(Read: Teleworkers, new players in the world of work)
Experts point out that the conditions of virtuality and isolation have sent people a collection account, so at this time they show exhaustion and dissatisfaction.
(Read: Companies will continue to work flexibly or remotely after covid-19)
A study conducted in four cities of the country shows that 4 out of 10 Colombians say they feel quite exhausted and 7 out of 10 would consider changing their activity if they could.
It also shows that women feel more exhausted than men. Those who express this condition the most are between 25 and 35 years old. The main causes of fatigue are related to the inability to disconnect from technology, more intense work and the inability to take vacations.
Exhaustion, according to FTI Consulting, which conducted the study, is noted by the fact that half say that time is not enough for them to stop and stop during the day, because it would be a “waste of time.”
A person spends about 90,000 hours of his life at work, which would represent about a third of his life. Hence, the importance of well-being and happiness, warns LIVE 13.5 °, organizer of the first week of happiness from March 18 to 23, commissioned by the World Happiness Foundation.
It ensures that “overworked, stressed, underpaid, frustrated or sick workers cannot improve in the workplace, causing a significant drop in performance”.
And he adds that this is one of the reasons why companies like IBM, Google, Deloitte and others have named directors of happiness and directors of Mindfulness in their organizations.
WHAT TO DO
Deloitte has published a series of tips for companies aimed at improving the quality of life of employees in terms of teleworking. Among them, he mentions ensuring the physical and mental well-being of employees.
An organization that cares and has the happiness of its employees at the center of its business must act to maintain and improve this status. The key to attracting and keeping employees happy is the development of wellness programs and work incentives, which influence motivation, commitment and productivity.
For Camilo Mejía Landucci, CEO of Buk Columbia, by betting on the welfare of the workforce, beyond the health benefits, the concern of companies for the needs of their employees is obvious, in an environment that provides confidence.
By increasing happiness, conflicts are reduced, there are fewer accidents at work and it is easier to face both personal and professional challenges. “Positive emotions lead employees to develop creative, flexible and optimistic thinking, which helps in crisis and emergency situations at work,” says Mejía.
Rafael González, partner of 3weeks Consulting Latam says that in strategies to ensure the well-being of employees it is necessary to contribute to neuroscientific advances that help to understand the treatment of negative thoughts and unpleasant emotions typical of the context in which we live everywhere in the world, such as anxiety. , frustration, fear, uncertainty.
“The value of digital culture and, therefore, of telework is indisputable (productivity, costs, mobility, environmental pollution …). Studies show that there is a positive correlation between telecommuting and welfare, but I am afraid that reality sometimes says otherwise. There is a big gap in identifying, paying attention and accompanying employees in the emotional, nutritional / food and mental aspects. Here is the great challenge of this wellness practice “, he concludes.
Ways to improve
An application aims to train people, personally or as employees of a company, to be happy. It’s called Munay and has 1,200 downloads since it was released in January. It covers 7 areas of human relationships: couple, family, friends, community, resources and work.
“A happy person always wants to offer the best of himself in the environment in which he is. People should not be happier to be more productive, this is the use of happiness as a means to an end, and happiness is an end in itself, ”says Munay CEO Camilo Mejía Zacipa.