Positive sustainability in workforce well-being

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A rapid transformation with the inflow of Generation Z and millennial workers has led the organization structures to become short-lived. Companies are redesigning to move faster and to adapt quickly. The nature of work has immensely changed in the last few years. The perfunctory sayings of the workforce ‘I’m managing’, ‘I’ll get along’, and ‘I’m fine’ now emerge as ‘I’m burned out’ and ‘I don’t know how long can I continue’.

Moreover, cognitive overload is dramatically reducing the level of workforce productivity. While several seminars and conclaves on employee well-being have been held in recent years, the painful picture still persists, reflecting the opposite. Today, our workforce is handling complicated challenges without them being able to adjust and cope emotionally. Work relationships are irrevocably disrupted, yet they are striving to meet deadlines. Organizations are striving hard without realizing that their employees are unable to live their purpose at work. All these have led to impulsive, uncoordinated and ineffective responses from the workforce. The joy of developing inclusive, tailored solutions is missing somewhere. Instead, the ‘fear’ of missing out has been ingrained among employees.

Thus, in this period of vast uncertainty, positive sustainability seems to be the rock that the firms have held on to. Firms are now emphasizing facing reality with staunchness and fixing it with positive affirmations, revealing five crucial elements of positive sustainability – going beyond the pursuit of perfection, fostering learning agility and grit, mindful gratitude, managing energy rather than time, and trust is crucial, which the firms have restored over time. These aspects can considerably create a healthy workplace, making decent work and inclusivity prime coordinates. By embracing such factors, a company can stimulate the process of self-attunement and harmonization. It would then build a sustainable social milieu, enhancing positive orientation. As companies help their people bring their authentic selves to work, their adaptive levels of control seem to enhance. It now imparts employees with a sense of being valued and being visible. It also helps sustain growth by putting a sense of purpose at the core and instilling intense priorities.