Bolt’s
“triple treble” feat was driven to make history! Mo Farah completed
double-double after accidently tripped in his 10,000 meter finals. Sindhu
fought valiantly to win India’s first silver medal in Badminton.
These folks
are driven by competitive spirit and hunger to reach the top. They are in
excellent physical and mental health. But that was just the means to reach the
end.
Why do we
play sports?
I think when
we were kids, sports was all about FUN. Competition, challenge & engagement
motivated us to run to playing fields everyday.
We were
never told in school or by our parents to play sports for good health.
By-product of playing active sports was increased fitness levels & mental
health.
Professional
sports person play for recognition, special treatment & for money. When we
watch Olympians in action, their endurance, strength, flexibility and fitness
levels awe us. But I don’t think any one of them consider wellness as their key objective while
adopting sports.
This is the
crux of “corporate employee wellness programs?”
It cannot be
sold to employees as wellness or health programs. You cannot preach them in
their adulthood “what to eat, how much to walk or when to sleep?”
When we
started corporate employee wellness initiative in 2012, we positioned GetActive as a FUN & ENGAGEMENT initiative for employees. We designed
competition, team events, individual challenges based on STEPS.
With HR
team, we designed framework for recognition, motivation & rewards for
participation and performance.
Outcome was
mind-boggling. We consistently achieved 75%+ engagement. We were able to show
tangible results on health parameters like weight-loss, energy levels and
stress. We could help employees manage conditions like diabetes, migraine,
acidity and joint pains. Cisco results is a case in
point.
Like
Olympic, we need to view corporate wellness in a different light. Outcome would
be ACTIVE & ENERGIZED employees. But message & program should be
aligned with the interest of employees.
At GetActive, we
continue to focus in helping corporates to become ACTIVE. We do this with FUN.
Outcome is happy & healthy workforce. We thus help build a lifelong habit
of staying active & healthy.
Contribution: Mohammed Hussain Naseem – Founder
& CEO