The global wellness industry is worth approximately $3.7 trillion. In the past, no one really focused on various aspects of wellness — at least not nearly as much as they do today. In fact, wellness programs are even breaking their way into the workplace.
According to Market Watch, meditation and similar wellness trends are finding their way into plenty of businesses across the country and globe, and not just smalltime shops, either. Google, Apple, and Nike are three of the most popular companies that are opening up meditation rooms to give employees a peaceful and quiet space to focus on their wellness.
Pearson, a publishing organization with offices across the globe, took the meditation room to an all-new level: transforming all of their rooms into all-around wellness pods to be used for meditation and other peaceful activities. Considering that almost 37% of employee time is spent in meetings, having a place to re-center could help change the way we work for good.
“They have become part of the culture,” said Angela Schwers, Senior Vice President of Human Resources at Pearson. “You can dim the lighting, you can be in the dark… The wellness rooms are used every hour of every day. We get such positive feedback, it’s been such a part of our culture we’d hear noise if we weren’t going to offer them anymore.”
According to Live Well, more than 35 million Americans currently experiment with meditation. A new U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) report shows that 14.2% of American adults surveyed in 2017 said they had practiced meditation at least once throughout the year — up from only 4.1% for 2012.
Office life might seem like a walk in the park compared to some career fields, but these environments can result in all kinds of stress. When employees are stressed out about approaching deadlines, familial issues, or simply cannot focus; heading into a meditation room to focus on his or her wellness could be a lifesaver.
“It’s massively helpful to know that there is a space to quiet the noise for even 10 minutes, and just center on breathing and being still amidst all of the deadlines and activity we have flying our way,” added Janna Dinolfo, manager of virtual events for Pearson’s D.C. office.
