Today´s business environment has become highly demanding and the pressure to deliver is upon senior executives 24/7. This seems to be one of the biggest leadership challenges of this century where managing stress is crucial, especially amongst members of the C-suite. And along with the pressure to meet increasing demands due to changing global economies and political uncertainty, there is a constant need for keeping a satisfied workforce.
To sum up; CEO´s are likely to have three areas of severe stress in contrast to others; “isolation, the pain of downsizing and pace of work” (Kneale , 2009). This seems to have pushed senior executives onto a destructive path of poor health, even though corporate wellness programs are implemented. These programs often becomes a part of the problem, having the opposite effect due to increased pressure and invasion of private life. So, the health of the general CEO is worse than one might think, and almost 60% of CEO´s are at cardiac risk while over 80% is medically obese. Therefore, there is an indication that to become a high performing top executive individual physical and mental health needs attention, in order to keep up with the pressure. Today´s business environment demands not only leaders, but leading “athletes”, due to the rapidly changing environment, high pace and increasing pressure to meet expectations. “Athletes” refers to being on top of the game, staying physically and mentally fit, equipped to win by having a good balance. The word “success” has become associated with pain, stress, lack of enjoyment and the pressure to perform. If nothing is done senior executive health is no longer jeopardised; it will soon have reached rock bottom. This is why I have dedicated my life to helping others and embark on this journey, doing a Doctorate of Business Administration - focusing on improving senior executive, physical and mental, health to increase work and organisational performance, and create a better work/life balance. by Ole Petter Anfinsen, Founder and Chief Executive References and sources Ansink, J. (2013). Fortune. [Online] Available at: http://fortune.com/2013/09/10/c-suite-suicides-when-exec-life-becomes-a-nightmare/ [Accessed 29 June 2017]. Berinato, S. (2016). Corporate Wellness Programs Make Us Unwell: An Interview with André Spicer. Harvard Business Review, Issue 6, 29-28. Kneale , K. (2009). Forbes. [Online] Available at: https://www.forbes.com/2009/04/16/ceo-network-management-leadership-stress.html [Accessed 29 June 2017]. Paliwal , D. (2016). Harman CEO: 5 Ways to Avoid Burnout.. Fortune, 759-759. Pyrillis, R. (2014). Embracing Wellness: CEO to CEO.. Workforce , 93(12), 16-16. Roche, M., Haar, J. & Luthans, F. (2014). The Role of Mindfulness and Psychological Capital on the Well-Being of Leaders. Journal of occupational health psychology, 19(4), . 476-489. S. Khan, K., Kunz, R., Kleijnen, J. & Antes, G. (2003). Five steps to conducting a systematic review. Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine, 96(3), 118-121. Tutton, M. (2010). CNN. [Online] Available at: http://edition.cnn.com/2010/BUSINESS/03/12/ceo.health.warning/index.html [Accessed 26 July 2017].
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Mental health is still a delicate topic and managers are more comfortable discussing physical health than mental disorders, even though more than a quarter of managers have experienced mental health problems. There is also a direct correlation between mental and physical health, where a decrease in mental health increase sick leaves and decrease effectiveness and efficiency when at work. Mental illnesses are not just mental, they are physical as they amplify into physical symptoms and complications, as e.g. anxiety causes blood and breathing problems as well as chronic physical pain. Furthermore, anxiety and depression are two of the most common mental illnesses and depression is one of the highest factors in work disability. Depression also leads to physical health issues such as heart trouble, a weakened immune system, obesity and diabetes, to only mention a few. So, one thing is for sure - it is utterly important to have a well-developed support system, promote mental health treatments and create awareness in the workplace. But it is not only depression and anxiety that threatens todays senior executives. Insecurities and the feeling of not measuring up is also a common risk to the mental stability of executives. This is being described as the “Imposter Syndrome” and is a common fear amongst many CEO´s, and to overcome this it seems to be a solution to create safe environments through support groups, coaching and mental training, where executives learn that they are not alone and most importantly, they find someone they can relate to.
Remember, you are never alone! by Ole Petter Anfinsen, Founder and Chief Executive References and sources Greenwood, J. (2016). Quarter of managers have mental health diagnosis.. Coprorate Adviser, 11 3, 1-1. Griffith, E. (2015). The rise of the CEO support group.. Fortune, 171(6),14-14. Kalish, B. M. (2014). New wellness programs focus on finances, not just fitness. Employee Benefit News, 28(2), 8-9. MacGregor, S. P., Bayod , S. & Guim, F. (2017). Executive health and performance. Training Journal , January 28-31. Seldman, M. & Seldman, J. (2008). Executive Stamina : How to Optimize Time, Energy, and Productivity to Achieve Peak Performance. 1st ed. Hoboken(New Jersey): John Wiley & Sons, Inc. . Wilkerson, B. (2009). Mental Health: The Forgotten Illness. Benefits & Compensation Digest, 46(1), 1-24. Wellness and fitness are something most people are familiar with, but some people argue that so called corporate wellness programs makes people unwell. Wellness is becoming a corporate pressure where employees are being faced with slim and muscular people, as role models, leading to anxiety, guilt and the fear of losing their jobs as they think they might be seen as undesirable workers if they don’t live up to measures.
The other paradox is that this might drive a once efficient workforce into becoming inefficient, unhappy and less productive overall, next to work intruding on their private life through a forced change in lifestyle. But it does not stop there, as it is discovered that people are starting to judge others based on wellness characteristics, and that physically fit people are more attractive for hire than the ones who are not, even if they can show to the same qualifications. It has become a corporate illness and amongst leaders wellness has evolved into a measurement of success (Berinato, 2016). by Ole Petter Anfinsen, Founder and Chief Executive |
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