I believe in disruption. It has driven me in my entrepreneurial career.
As a co-founder of a company that develops both the technology and programming for corporate wellness, I have experienced first-hand the urgent need to disrupt traditional work environments. Burnout, a familiar term in the industry, is on the rise. It’s on the rise because of the pressure on employees to outperform and outlast leading to mental and physical exhaustion. The future of successful work is dependent on rethinking the cultures we cultivate.
We need change. But it needs to be enduring.
Every employee deserves to experience a work culture that enables them to lead happier, healthier, and more productive lives. This is good for people and good for business. But how do we make this stick? Ironically, the answer is to be NON-disruptive.
If you have ever wondered why so many of us abandon our New Year’s resolutions, or why biggest-loser style competitions rarely produce lasting change, the answer is not a lack of willpower. It’s disruption. It’s when a mindset creates a goal that is achievable only if we put the other facets of our life on hold, and don’t take into account how we actually live our daily lives and the values we inherently hold. In contrast, non-disruption is a partnership.
On a personal level, this means approaching our own well-being with compassion. Acknowledge where you are today, look at what is already working, and embrace a wellbeing journey built on three core principles: holistic, personal and social.
Holistic
Wellbeing is more than the sum of the steps we take each day. It encompasses our physical, mental, emotional and spiritual being, as well as our professional and personal lives. Keeping these balanced so that we don’t prioritize one to the detriment of another keeps us focused on the whole person. Holistic means seeing the interconnectedness of wellbeing. For instance, respecting our need for quality sleep each night impacts the health of all our other wellbeing pillars. Celebrate the positive ripple effects one single act can make.
Personal
I am a runner. It fuels my energy, provides the stress release I need, and allows me to form great relationships through the running groups I’m a part of. For me, running is non-disruptive. It is an integral part of my life that fuels so many aspects of my wellbeing.
Social
I lean into the strength of my running group. It has kept me accountable to my training, inspired me to work harder and provided friendship in what is otherwise a very solitary pursuit. When we pursue our wellbeing in partnership with others we benefit from the support and knowledge they provide. In fact, the single most important secret to realizing one of my wellbeing goals was sharing it with my colleagues. That insight became the seed that would grow into Sprout, the company I co-founded.
Sprout helps to energize employees and cultivate a positive and more productive workplace by engaging teams to achieve their goals through community building and personalized tips, incentives and rewards. A core value for Sprout is to seamlessly integrate with the ecosystems of the companies we partner with. This includes a centralized, holistic hub that can connect the many moving parts of a wellbeing strategy, and provides wellbeing technology and programming that is configured to the needs and specificities of an organization’s population. Holistic, personalized, social – disrupt the workplace of the past with a strategy that is non-disruptive. This is the future of wellbeing.
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