Listen To Tal Ben-
It’s time to put your feet up
IF THE idea of your staff taking 10- to 15-minute breaks every hour or two sounds like something only your competitors would encourage, Dr Tal Ben- Shahar begs to differ. These breaks are not a luxury. They are a necessity that makes staff smarter and more productive, he says
You need the breaks too, because they benefit your business health and bottom line. Better still, there is solid science to back up the claims, Ben-Shahar says.
He enjoys an enviable reputation as the “happiness guru” and the “Harvard happiness professor”. He lectured in psychology at Harvard University before moving to Israel recently to join the school of psychology at the Interdisciplinary Centre in Herzlia.
He will be in SA next month to give the keynote speech at the Leadership Stamina 2009 hosted by the PQ Institute in Bryanston, Johannesburg on July 14. He will speak on “the science of happiness, making a difference with positive psychology, and the secrets of joy and lasting fulfilment”.
Positive psychology is not just another American “warm fuzzy” (it was officially founded as a discipline in 1998 by Prof Martin Seligman from the University of Pennsylvania). It is not just a “feel- good trend” with little relevance for the real corporate world, or a fancy word for positive thinking, although it includes positive thinking, says Ben-Shahar.
Two factors distinguish it, he says: “Firstly, it focuses on what works.”
While most of the research has been done on psychopathologies (things that don’t work in the mind) such as schizophrenia, depression and anxiety, positive psychology also studies things that do work, such as love, happiness, and strengths.
But what really distinguishes it from mainstream or traditional positive thinking is its “empirical foundation”, Ben-Shahar says: It is based on rigorous research that is analysed and meta-analysed.
It is a “science of wellbeing”, and “a branch of psychology that combines scientific research with good old common sense”. (We could do with more of that as the effects of an uncommon and global lack of common sense in financial worlds takes its toll on health in minds, bodies and spirits.
But Ben-Shahar is not offering positive psychology as a panacea for all the ills created by the financial crisis. After all, there is a dearth of common sense not only in the financial world, and it is not a new phenomenon. He quotes 18th-century French philosopher Voltaire who famously said: “Common sense is not that common.”
“Positive psychology aims to make common sense more common in and out of business”, Ben-Shahar says.
It does not focus simply on breeding happiness because “the negation of unhappiness does not necessarily lead to happiness”. For example, if you are no longer depressed, you may not be particularly happy, he says. And happiness on its own does not necessarily lead to higher productivity.
When you cultivate strengths, wellbeing, and positive relationships, on the other hand, not only do you become happier, you also become more resilient and better able to deal with difficult times, hardships, anxiety and depression.
That process involves introducing certain practices that increase “positive experiences”, Ben-Shahar says. In the business world, one of these is proving to be “mini recovery times”.
Research shows that encouraging 10- to 15- minute breaks every hour or so pays dividends in ways bosses might never have otherwise imagined, he says. Such breaks are shown to increase productivity, creativity, loyalty and retention and have obvious benefits for bottom lines.
Mini recovery times are also not just smoke breaks — though they can be. Rather they should be “regular workouts”, he says, during which staff can do deep breathing and relaxation exercises, go to the gym, take a walk or simply just “be still”.
Ironically, a major barrier to creativity and productivity in the workplace is the marvels of modern technology, he says. Technology makes people feel they are able to be more in touch with the office and thus more productive. It usually has the opposite effect, Ben-Shahar says.
“It’s no coincidence that we often come up with our best ideas when we are in the shower.” That’s because human beings are not machines, he says. They need recovery periods, and function at their best when they are allowed to take heed of “natural cycles” — day and night, sleep and wake, energy and rest, etc.
Mini recovery periods make working part of a more natural process that boosts creativity and productivity, not just for your staff, but for you too, he says.
Still not convinced?
Ben Shahar suggests that you read Spark, The Revolutionary New Science of Exercise and the Brain (Little Brown and Company), written by Harvard psychiatrist Dr John Ratey.
It's a “wonderful book”, he says. “It draws on the science of physical exercise and how it contributes to brain development and physical health, and significantly improves mental functioning on all levels.”
Or you can read research by Dr Tony Schwartz in Harvard Business Review in September 2007 on the importance of a “cyclical approach to work, punctuated by recovery”, for individual and business health.
The connection is also there etymologically , Ben-Shahar says: “You need recreation for creation, to be at your best.”
Global organisations that have introduced mini breaks include major banks, he says, but the breaks are not a solution in a vacuum. They are part of an approach aligned with positive psychology known as “appreciative inquiry”, he says. It involves asking “positive questions” about individuals within an organisation, helping them to identify their personal strengths, and align their personal goals with the organisation’s goals.
Among those that have already taken appreciative enquiry on board and seen the benefits, are McDonalds, the United Nations, the US National Aeronautical and Space Administration (Nasa) and Verizon (the US telecommunications company), Ben-Shahar says.
Apart from the US, other countries including the UK and Australia and Israel have taken up the ideas, he says. They have applied them not only in business but at national level in education as well as in individual counseling and couples counseling.
So what in a nutshell then, is Ben-Shahar’s healthy message for you and your business?
“You already have plenty of resources — human and otherwise — in your organisation, but most of the potential, whether it be individual, organisational or national, is wasted.
“Positive psychology aims to draw that potential out by highlighting it. “Ben-Shahar uses the analogy of a plant: “You have a seed that has potential to become a flower or a tree. If it has no water or light shed on it, it will wither and die. It is the same with human potential. Positive psychology sheds light on human potential — what is working and what can work — and helps it to flourish,” he says.
Those breaks in your workplace increase the likelihood of your staff — and you and your business — reaching healthy potential.
PUBLISHED: 2009/06/24