At the Farmers’ Market recently, I met a VP at CBRE, a worldwide leader in real estate services. He mentioned that his corporation is into workplace wellness.
As a Career and Caregiving Educator, I was intrigued. Upon further research, I discovered in a CBRE report that “by 2040 the workplace will look very different to now.” The CBRE report continued:
The lines between home and work will have become blurred and people’s working lives will be characterised by much more autonomy and choice. We start by describing a future work environment where digital developments and changing attitudes will help us to be more proactive in managing our health and wellbeing whether at home or at work.
The World Health Organization’s (WHO) defines "health" as “a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.” Wellness today refers to a state of well-being, even if we have a diagnosed “illness.”
As was one of the first baby boomers, I am at the beginning of a trend mentioned in a 2006 University of San Francisco report. The report stated:
One major trend that will affect the services needed from MFTs is related to the second half of life (e.g., the large Baby Boomer cohort entering retirement, the extended life span, middle-age couples, families with aging parents, etc.).
I had no interest in pursuing MFT training at USF. At the time, I had just completed a 7-year stint as a retailer. I was not interested in clinical counseling, but rather in Life Transitions, Career Counseling, and then Career and Caregiving Education. These three areas focus on wellness, rather than medical diagnosis.
Fast forward….Imagine a work environment where workers with memory loss mixed with “normal” workers, where individuals were not labeled as disabled or memory impaired and forced into isolation or institutions, even benevolent institutions, but rather valued for their strengths, an environment where individuals of various cultural backgrounds were treated equitably.
Whatever our age, stage of life, range of abilities, or cultural heritage, according to Shabahangi, “those who have made the effort throughout their lives to grow and deepen themselves, have made a commitment to become aware and accept the struggles and sufferings alongside the joys and pleasures of life."
Today's workers are from a variety of cultural heritages, backgrounds, and abilities. In the new workplace, with the advent of robotics and other assisted technology, creative and adaptable employees or consultants find work in tune with their values, and work in healthy (mind/body/spirit) environments where their motivated skills and personal attributes are needed and appreciated.
Millenials are often called "entitled" and why not? Don't we all deserve to work in environments that enhance our wellbeing, as proposed by CBRE?
More Wellness Resources
Wellness Tree of Life: https://poeticsofaging.wordpress.com/2012/03/12/from-hoarding-to-foraging-for-memories-moving-beyond-the-dsm/
Narratives To Move Through Loss: https://www.questia.com/library/journal/1P3-1497416221/narratives-to-move-through-loss
The Integral Aging Process: http://poeticsofaging.org/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/Gelardin_The-Integral-Aging-Process.pdf
Interview: Contributing Your Unique Strengths to the World: http://mcda.net/news/mcda-2010-fall-newsletter/
Integrating Care, Caregiving, and Self-Care: http://hrms.net/seasonedpro/UC/SF/wisdom/career_coaching_instructions.asp
A Holistic, Sustainable Approach to Personal Development: http://docplayer.net/48388944-The-integral-aging-process-iap-a-holistic-sustainable-approach-to-personal-development-for-boomers-and-beyond.html
The Tightrope Artist Model of Career and Life Decision-Making: https://campus.digication.com/decision-making/Welcome/