Posts from — September 2008

Businesses across America are discovering something that athletes have known for many years–massage improves performance. Not just athletic performance, but performance in general.

Most people have a pretty good idea about the health benefits of a massage on a massage table in a spa. But you may not know about chair massage.

Seated chair massages can reduce stress, fatigue and pain. They also can improve function of the immune system, improves a depressive state, and increase a person’s ability to concentrate. Seated chair massage has been shown to reduce anxiety and promote relaxation while simultaneously enhancing employee alertness.

Physicians and health care providers have now come to the conclusion that there is a correlation between stress and disease and stress related ailments are the main cause of productivity decline in the workplace. More than half of all employee absence can be attributed to stress induced high blood pressure, headache, and even chronic pain. Massage as a stress management tool fits well into the corporate world’s business leaders.

Major corporations including the Ford Motor Company, American Airlines, and Bank of America are enjoying the benefits of on-site seated, fully-clothed chair massage. They are finding that massage optimizes employee performance and mental alterness. But you don’t have to be a major corporation to benefit from a seated chair massage. If you have one employee or many, all will benefit from a seated chair massage.

What have sickness, recuperation, rest, mindset, humour, energy and diet got to do with
companies? These are terms applicable in physical wellness but they are equally relevant
in the context of corporate wellness.

Turnaround has become increasingly important, given the financial crisis that hit Asia in
1997, the financial scandals plaguing the Western corporate giants and the emergence of
the economies in China and India. In some instances, the businesses appear relatively
healthy, though they are experiencing declining market share, increasing costs, losing
competitiveness and plummeting revenues. Hence, a major crisis is brewing and will hit
any time when the interest rate increases or the economy goes into recession.

Unfortunately, most troubled companies do not survive the turbulence in the marketplace.
The average life expectancy of a multinational company is about 40 to 50 years. Many
companies die prematurely. Some companies experience poor health with office politics,
egos and bureaucracy stifling human creativity, enthusiasm and commitment. Many of
these ailing companies suffer from a toxic corporate climate which urgently need to be
detoxified, while others are genetically flawed and are thus unable to handle changes in
the marketplace.

For centuries, we have been searching for the elixir of longevity. Today, the wellness and
health industry worldwide is the one of the fastest growing businesses, and it is expected
to grow exponentially to one trillion dollars in a few years’ time. Essentially, the role of
the doctor should be one of promoting wellness instead of merely concentrating on curing
the patient after he is inflicted with an ailment.

In a similar vein, companies are also seeking the same goal, that is corporate wellness.
Corporate wellness is becoming one of the greatest and most powerful terms of the
corporate dictionary. Unfortunately, it is also one of the most misunderstood. “Corporate
wellness” is not merely referring to physical and mental health programs for the
corporate executives.

The term “corporate wellness” depicts the desired state of excellent corporate physical and mental health. And it should be an actively sought-after goal.

“Corporate wellness” is the total well being and complete integration of body, mind and spirit – the realization that everything the corporate does, its strategy, leadership, mindset, culture, values has an effect on its well being. The term “corporate wellness” is used in this context to include the use of modern and alternative medicine.

Modern or Western medicine seeks to treat the symptoms such as poor productivity. The
remedy is surgery or downsizing. Alternative or Eastern medicine treats the root cause of
the corporate woes. The cause of the poor productivity is perhaps due to its dysfunctional
corporate culture. Beyond disease-free medicines, Corporate wellness also seeks for new excellent levels of corporate health such as how to improve the attitude, mindset and soul of the company.