Written by: Juanita Viale, Executive Contributor
Executive Contributors at Brainz Magazine are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within their area of expertise.
Ever present are the narratives about implementing positive and healthy company cultures for improving employee productivity and loyalty as new trends like quiet quitting and The Great Resignation rise to the surface.
Concepts of well-being, mindfulness, and spirituality have seemingly been cracking the glass ceilings in companies post-Covid as mental health has dramatically shifted to the forefront of headline news.
Companies like Google and LuLuLemon have adopted conscious-based employee-centric programs encouraging well-being through personal goal-based tools and management that promote self-empowerment to foster meaning and purpose in their employees. Apps like Calm and Aura are increasingly becoming part of employee benefit packages.
Spirituality too woo-woo or the new skill?
Spirituality is about embracing the perspective that we are all connected to a higher creative source and each other as a universal concept.
One collective. One source. One energy. One God (or whatever name you call it).
Spirituality is about mindfully choosing to live with a state of mind that is aligned and open to the divine energy in us and around us.
It doesn't matter what religion you believe in or the name/symbol you give it. This is the universal energy from where we entered into this human experience and one to which we will return.
This commonality is sometimes difficult to comprehend or to remember as our attention is usually focused on the experiences, environments, people, family, and the feelings and emotions that come with the busyness of daily living.
We tend to forget the unifying feeling of connection because our brains are naturally wired for survival through our amygdala and sympathetic nervous system, our fight-or-flight response. Our attention to fear and negative thinking is the mind's way to keep us safe.
Fear makes the loudest noise in our minds!
A historic systematic study in spirituality was recently published in the Journal of American Medicine, "Spirituality in Serious Illness and Health" July 12, 2002, and found that spirituality is linked to greater longevity, decreased depression, suicide, and substance abuse.
"This study represents the most rigorous and comprehensive systematic analysis of the modern-day literature regarding health and spirituality to date," said Tracy Balboni, lead author and professor at Harvard Medical School "Our findings indicate that attention to spirituality in serious illness and health should be a vital part of future whole person-centered care."
A Spiritual Skillset
So why not broaden this application of spirituality to all areas of our life including business, by viewing it as a skillset just as we would for focused work/ flow, or high-performance hacks?
Everyone typically goes to work with some sort of mental load in their head from their personal lives. As we work, stress and pressure add more to the mental load.
Where is the release? In your body.
Negative laden energy manifests within you through Illness, depression, anxiety, negative behaviors such as not showing up to work, substance abuse, isolating tendencies such as not wanting to participate or be seen, and less motivation all of which result in less productivity.
So where can we create that mental release?
Spiritual practices offer a pathway for the gentle shifting of our stress into well-being. And the sheer beauty of it, it is available to us freely and at all times.
Developing a spiritual practice requires some level of discipline.
Spiritual practices like meditation, prayer, intention setting, acts of lovingkindness and compassion, and gratitude are ways to cultivate our spirituality.
The spiritual skillset is the ability and ease with which we can get into that place of higher connected divine energy and be fully present in the experience. With practice, spirituality eventually grows into a part of our personality and state of being.
When we are spiritually connected to this creative good feeling energy our perspective is shifted open to a greater field of possibility. We are open. And we feel good!
Discovery happens here. You see new things or perhaps see normal things differently. This is where good ideas and inspiration come from. The place where feelings of motivation prompt and excite you. And if this energy is strong enough within you, some type of action will naturally follow, a choice, a decision, a lighter mood, a movement in the direction of your new intention and attention.
The Broaden and Build Theory of positive emotion (Fredrickson, 1998, 2001) links itself to spirituality in the sense that self-transcending emotions like awe, love, peace, and gratitude can increase through spiritual practices. Two pathways are identified for the role that spirituality plays in our well-being, social and cognitive resources that provide a greater sense of well-being. (Cappellen, Toth-Gauthier, Sarouglou, Fredricksonm 2014)
Life is difficult. We get angry at others, hearts broken, dreams shattered, emotions piqued, and bear witness to unthinkable experiences of pain and trauma. The mental, emotional, physical, and psychological stress has nowhere to go, and no avenue to leave.
Spiritual practices such as meditation, active and passive prayer, and daily gratitude renew our sense of connectedness to each other and our divine nature. They are mindful transformative practices that calm and quiet our minds, deepen the sense of our higher self, open our hearts and allow for true connection with others and in our relationships. Think of a football huddle right before the game starts, they often pray, just like a theater group does before the performance begins.
You can shift your negative mental energy to a higher level of awareness because it is no longer stuck in the lower energetic frequency that drains life energy from you. Life-giving energy helps you feel stronger when the demands of your experiences are challenging. You derive mental strength, personal agency, and resilience with a magnetic presence that inspires others to do the same.
Growth happens when negative thoughts, feelings, and emotions are released and we can see them for what they were, spiritual lessons in our human evolution.
Developing a spiritual skillset will help you along this journey.
Juanita Viale, Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine
Juanita Viale guides and coaches motivated entrepreneurs and companies to Consciously boost their brand and effectively share their unique stories.
Based on the French Riviera, she provides personal Conscious marketing, positive leadership, and mindfulness coaching services.
Juanita's "Conscious Boosting" approach is based on a mindful framework of intention, connection, and authenticity. These elements serve as the foundations for delivering messages that resonate and inspire people to identify and engage with You and your Brand.
As a certified Meditation and Mindfulness Teacher, she gently guides You to reconnect with your truest authentic self and help you get aligned with your intentions.
