Soul Food with Pia Richardson: Be part of solution to a more enriching workplace

Many years ago my husband was sold a rather expensive bed, and the sales pitch that sealed the deal was this — the average person spends approximately 1.5 hours in their car each day, and we spend a third of our life in bed, yet we think nothing of spending 15 per cent of our income on a vehicle but squabble over a few hundred dollars for a bed.

So what is my point you may ask? My point is this: we spend on average a third of our life at work — and unlike our bed it is generally not a place of rest and relaxation — so why do we find ourselves more often than not in an unfulfilling, unsupportive or disempowering workplace?

That’s not to say that your workplace is all or even any of those things, but it’s about opening up a discussion.

Why aren’t we making healthy, thriving, supportive workplaces a priority?

How can this place where we spend a third of our life enrich us rather than deplete?

What does a healthy, thriving workplace look like? What are some small manageable changes that would improve our work life?

Perhaps make your next water cooler conversation one about ways to do things better, rather than all the things that are wrong.

Larger companies in other parts of the world are starting to come on board with industry-specific changes like time outdoors for office workers, creche for larger organisations or simply working on building employee relationships in different ways. There is a whole host of things you can do to improve your work life, as both an employee and an employer.

Things that don’t have to impact the bottom line, but can actually improve productivity and reduce lost time.

Because let’s be honest, even people who are in their dream career face challenges in their work life just as even happy families still face challenges at home.

Socially responsible workplaces are the way of the future and maybe we’ll start to see big changes in the way we do “work” in our lifetime.

COVID has certainly set that ball in motion, challenging us to work differently and showing us that big change in a short time is indeed possible.

So perhaps make your next water cooler conversation one about ways to do things better, rather than all the things that are wrong.