Why corporate wellness needs a reset… or maybe breath-brain-body training with cool music

Twenty-one years ago, in my article for the Harvard Business Review detailing the worrying state of corporate health, stress and performance, the piece began like this:

These days, stress is even more rampant than it was in 1983, when Time magazine declared it to be “the epidemic of the eighties." Stress is growing: According to a survey by CareerBuilder, an on-line recruitment site, the overall percentage of worker stress increased 10% between August 2001 and May 2002. And stress hurts the bottom line: In 1999, a study of 46 million workers published by the Health Enhancement Research Organization, or HERO, revealed that health care costs are 147% higher for those individuals who are stressed or depressed, independent of other health issues.'

That was written in July 2003.

A time that now seems like centuries have passed.

The stresses today are, in some ways, intensifications of what we were already dealing with in the early 2000s given the rise of internet businesses and a growing digital impact on our lives we were only beginning to understand.

Remember, in 2003 smartphones didn’t yet exist as a mass market product that the whole world had embraced.

Social media did not exist yet.

Ponder that for a moment.

In many ways our stresses today are more troubling, polarizing, and existential -- will we survive them? -- causing increased angst, uncertainty, diminished feelings of control or cratering confidence in the future.

Thank goodness so many changes have now been instituted in corporate boardrooms, HR departments, and wellness programs so at least we’re well prepared and everyone is optimistic.

Oh, that’s right … in spite of many well-intentioned programs, do you know any industries or segments of the corporate, healthcare, academic or nonprofit worlds which figured this out and are under less stress than in those halcyon days 20 years ago?

Probably not.

Pressure at the Top Flows Downhill

The unique pressures of executive roles often lead to chronic stress, significantly impacting health, let alone corporate productivity, let alone market cap, let alone shareholder value, let along employee engagement and wellness, let alone customer satisfaction, and last but not least, well-being.

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These days it’s more complicated than ever.

Stress can exacerbate serious conditions such as cardiovascular disease, high blood pressure, chronic diseases, and neurological disorders. Research indicates a 40% increased risk of cardiovascular diseases due to high job strain. Additionally, over 60% of senior executives are known to have borderline or high hypertension levels, and chronic stress is known to contribute to the development of Type 2 diabetes and mental health issues like anxiety and depression.

The Harvard Business Review article I wrote twenty-one years ago shares a case study of a British oil company executive, Nigel, who was simultaneously facing performance issues in his division, communication breakdowns at home and at work, and high blood pressure and other cardiovascular distress.

A perfect storm, to say the least.

Through the methods outlined in the article, Nigel was able to turn things around over time, both professionally and personally.

Featured in the article was a technique for lowering stress through “breathing through your heart.

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The HeartMath work, where I was CEO at the time, was making a significant impact around the world in organizations of all sizes on four continents.

Its breath- and heart-focused techniques were appealing due to the ease of learning, practicality, and the profound measurable results on health and well-being .

Which brings me to the breath-brain-body connection, mentioned in my last newsletter .

Leveraging your Breath-Brain-Body superpower?

For the past three years I have been practicing a powerful breath-brain-body system known as?NeuroAcrobatics .

It’s become an important part of my morning routine along with gratitude practice and heart meditation.

Founded by biohacker, poet, violinist, and breath artist,?Sage Rader, I think of this uniquely artistic system?as?a practice of self-healing breath and brain games that only requires you to breathe consciously, listen to cool, curated music, and use your imagination.

Sage developed NeuroAcrobatics to help him recover from a series of debilitating health challenges and medical mistakes.

You could say he proved it in the trenches.

Sage began teaching it to elite business leaders, top law firms, A-list celebrities, high performance athletes, and special forces personnel.

Having myself studied and practiced -- and even?taught?-- various breath practices for more than 30 years, I have found the NeuroAcrobatics techniques to be eye-opening, transformative, quickly effective, and very positive for mood and brain performance.

I love to share these practices and the NeuroAcrobatics “breath artistry” aesthetic with friends, colleagues, and new clients.

Music as Self-Healer

One of the things that sets NeuroAcrobatics apart from?other breath practices is its?creative and innovative use of music.

Many breath techniques utilize "new age" music or singing bowls or ambient music that, while relaxing, can sometimes be irritating or cause the listener to dissociate too much and become ungrounded.

This may not be effective if you want to bring a more balanced, focused and high performance state into your work.

The NeuroAcrobatics playlists feature cool, relaxing tracks using what is known as "lo-fi beats".

Listening to these tracks makes me feel like I'm relaxing with friends in a lounge rather than feeling claustrophobic in a crystal meditation cave.?

The cool tracks created by the NeuroAcrobatics music team enhance the breath practices immensely.

A universal comment from a recent NeuroAcrobatics program I led at a major law firm -- "love the tracks!"

Beyond the music is the profound simplicity and usefulness of the breath practices themselves.

They have helped me:

·?????? Recover from respiratory discomfort

·?????? Prepare for a challenging meeting with a client

·?????? Strategize my work plans for a new year

·?????? Increase energy, get deeper rest, and be more available to the task at hand, instead of stuck in a negative past experience, or fretting over a future possibility.

There is no doubt that these times are stretching all of us to the limit. Whether we are an executive, an entrepreneur, a manager, a customer facing employee, a gig employee, a hybrid, or “looking for my next opportunity”, the uncertainty and strain can be debilitating.

I’ve used these practices in my own trenches of pandemic isolation, major financial setbacks, and personal tragedy.

I highly recommend NeuroAcrobatics as an essential system for 2024 and beyond.

For more information on our elite 1-1 and group sessions, contact me at [email protected] .

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For more information on 1-1 or group sessions, please DM me here or [email protected]