Cómo los líderes empresariales pueden enfrentar la crisis de salud mental Cómo los líderes empresariales pueden enfrentar la crisis de salud mental

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Es el Día mundial de la Salud Mental y aún es un tema que nos elude en el mundo empresarial. Tal vez porque se siente como un tema privado, difícilmente entendemos nuestro rol frente a un reto que es altamente público.

Hace unos meses, tuve la oportunidad de tener una experiencia inmersiva en uno de los encuentros más importantes a nivel global. Entre las  palabras de bienvenida, un líder empresarial explicaba: “El bienestar emocional tiene un rol central en el sector privado, es fundamental para la innovación y colaboración,” dijo Edwin Macharia, Global Managing Partner de Dalberg, frente a más de 1000 personas que se dieron cita en la ciudad española de Bilbao la primera semana de junio.

El encuentro global “The Wellbeing Summit” o Cumbre del Bienestar, juntó a las mentes más influyentes en la intersección de la salud mental, el bienestar integral, el activismo  y la investigación científica. Este encuentro, este año 2022 no es para menos: de manera colectiva, los ponentes presentaron un reto enorme al que nos enfrentamos como sociedad de frente al bienestar integral y la salud mental.

La OMS define a la salud como “el estado de bienestar físico, mental y social, no solamente la ausencia de enfermedad” y a la salud mental como “el estado de bienestar en el que cada individuo logra su potencial, se enfrenta a los estreses normales de la vida, puede trabajar productiva y fructíferamente, y puede contribuir a su comunidad.”

La pandemia y sus secuelas presentan retos sin precedentes para la humanidad en términos de salud mental. En los últimos dos años, la estimación conservadora de suicidios está en 700,000 personas anuales; sin explicaciones alternativas, los médicos continúan atribuyendo más y más enfermedades al estrés.

Si el número previo nos genera una fuerte impresión, al llevarlo a un lapso más concreto, cada hora del día, se suicidan 81 personas en el mundo; y a ello, también encontramos el fenómeno aterrador  de school shootings, los feminicidios, los enfrentamientos por causas raciales, y más. Se estima que la mala salud mental le cuesta a la economía mundial entre $3 y $5 trillones al año en productividad reducida.

En América Latina, la salud mental continúa acarreando un tabú en el mundo empresarial, se lo habla poco pero se siente su efecto cada vez más seguido. En el mejor de los casos, se lo aborda de manera tangencial, solamente cuando los impactos se hacen visibles. Pero los diagnósticos de patologías de salud mental son sólo el primer paso. El liderazgo integral debe abordar el tema mediante prácticas, servicios y acciones tangibles que arrancan desde el lado preventivo.

Uno de los ponentes del Wellbeing Summit, el neuro-científico Richard Davidson , presentó una colección de hallazgos científicos sobre lo que él llama la “neuroplasticidad’ del cerebro – nuestra cualidad de tener una mente que puede ser moldeable mediante repetición y prácticas que re configuran cómo está programada. La tesis principal es que la compasión y felicidad es un habilidad que se puede aprender:

  • El cerebro de un monje en estado meditativo es algo replicable –   Davidson propone que la habilidad de estar presente, consciente de sus propios pensamientos es un camino de prevención buscando el bienestar mental. En un estudio del 2004  (Lutz et. al) se midieron las oscilaciones gamma, que predicen niveles de claridad de percepción, en el cerebro de un monje budista con años de experiencia en meditación. Las oscilaciones de las ondas en el cerebro de los monjes en estado meditativo eran significativamente más amplias. Es decir, cuando el cerebro se encuentra presente y perceptivo, las ondas gamma se abren. En estados de miedo o incertidumbre se contraen. Lo importante, es que los monjes tienen la capacidad de controlarlo con práctica, y que la incorporación de hábitos de manera consistente puede crear el mismo efecto en la población general.
  • La capacidad de conexión con otros re-configura el cerebro – Un estudio del 2013 (Weng et al) trabajó con un grupo de personas ofreciéndoles capacitación en técnicas meditativas de cultivar compasión. En sólo dos semanas, los neurocientíficos encontraron diferencias tangibles en imágenes de escaneos cerebrales de quienes habían participado – sus niveles de “conectividad DPLFC-Nacc”, que se asocia con comportamiento altruista (un indicador de salud mental), se muestran claramente dilatados en los scans.
  • El sentido de propósito correlaciona con la longevidad – Un meta-análisis de estudios de la última década (Cohen et. al, 2016) determinó que el sentido de propósito (incluso en las actividades diarias más mundanas)  es un predictor potente de longevidad y prevención de eventos cardiovasculares. Los efectos del bienestar son reales – un estudio del 2019 de Evans y Soliman presentaron una fuerte correlación entre la expectativa de vida promedio y el bienestar en 151 países: aquellos con percepción de bienestar más alta tienen hasta 30  años más de vida en promedio que quienes viven en países bajos niveles de bienestar emocional.

Hace un siglo, el hábito de tomarse 3 minutos después de cada comida para lavarse los dientes no existía a nivel global. Sin embargo, como sociedad, lo incorporamos como una acción de importancia para nuestra supervivencia como especie. Este principio de incentivar hábitos, promoviendo  una mente más saludable, puede tener efectos enormes en las distintas crisis que enfrentamos. La diferencia es que esta vez contamos con avances de tecnología móvil y de wearables (relojes inteligentes, tracking devices, etc) que nos permiten acelerar la incorporación de buenos hábitos de manera exponencial.

Por esta razón, no sorprende que el Dr Barry Kerzin, el médico personal del Dalai Lama, se apoya en una aplicación móvil para hacer prácticas de compasión y altruismo más accesibles a la población, o que Betterfly , la start-up unicornio Latinoamericana incentiva buenos hábitos meditativos  recompensando a los usuarios con medallas que facilitan la donación a causas. El potencial de generar impacto positivo mediante modelos de negocio que innovan con propósito es enorme.

Los retos más grandes que enfrentamos como humanidad siempre han presentado oportunidades para el empresariado que quiere marcar una diferencia.

Las buenas noticias son que podemos entrenar nuestros cerebros para crear bienestar mental y que podemos promover estos hábitos gracias a los avances de la tecnología móvil.

Con una oportunidad como esta, es cuestión de tiempo para que el sector empresarial tome el liderazgo para escalar la construcción de una sociedad más conectada consigo mismo y con su propósito. Así es cómo el mantra intangible de que “la paz interior puede crear paz para el mundo”, se convierte cada día en algo más tangible y viable conforme esta intersección única de maestros de meditación, científicos y empresarios convierten sus voluntades en una nueva realidad. Así es como el mundo empresarial puede enfrentar la crisis de salud mental: no solamente con voluntad, sino también apalancándose de tecnología y ejerciendo el liderazgo que este reto público exige.

Author bio

Michelle Arevalo-Carpenter is the Global VP of Purpose and Communities at Betterfly, the first social unicorn start-up, with operations across Latin America. Before her current role, Michelle was the CEO and co-founder of IMPAQTO, a B Corporation with a mission to support impact entrepreneurs reach their goals by building the ecosystem and network they need to thrive. Michelle is a recent mother of twins and a member of The Ecosystem Network at The Wellbeing Project.

How business leaders can face the mental health crisis How business leaders can face the mental health crisis

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October is World Mental Health Month yet, mental health remains a topic that eludes us in the business world. Perhaps because it feels like a personal issue, we hardly understand our role in the face of a challenge that is highly public. 

A few months ago, I had the opportunity to have an immersive experience in one of the most important global meetings related to mental health and wellbeing, which is a more holistic way to explore it. From the very first welcoming remarks, I was all in:  “Emotional wellbeing plays a central role in the private sector, it is essential for innovation and collaboration,” said Edwin Macharia, Global Managing Partner of Dalberg, in front of more than 1,000 people who met in the Spanish city of Bilbao the first week of June 2022.

The Wellbeing Summit for Social Change brought together the most influential minds at the intersection of mental health, holistic wellbeing, activism, arts, and scientific research. In the convening, the Summit speakers collectively presented the enormous challenge that we face as a society and the wellbeing of our people.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) defines health as “the state of physical, mental and social wellbeing, not merely the absence of disease” and mental health as “the state of well-being in which each individual achieves his or her potential, copes with normal stresses of life, can work productively and fruitfully, and can contribute to the community.”

The pandemic and its sequels present unprecedented challenges for humanity in terms of mental health. In the last two years, conservative estimates of suicides are at 700,000 people per year; with no alternative explanations, doctors continue to attribute more and more illnesses to stress. If the previous number makes a strong impression on us, when taken to a more specific period, every hour of the day, 81 people commit suicide in the world; besides, we also find the terrifying phenomenon of school shootings, femicides, clashes for racial reasons, and more. Poor mental health is estimated to cost the global economy between $3 and $5 trillion per year due to reduced productivity.

In Latin America, mental health continues to be a taboo topic in the business world, it is rarely talked about but its effects can be noticed more and more often. At best, it is approached tangentially, only when the impacts become visible. But diagnoses of mental health pathologies are only the tip of the iceberg. Business leaders must address the issue through practices, services, and tangible actions that start from the preventive side.

One of the speakers at the Wellbeing Summit, neuroscientist Richard Davidson, presented a collection of scientific findings on what he calls the brain’s ‘neuroplasticity’ – our quality of having a mind that can be molded through repetition and practices that reconfigure how it is programmed. The main thesis is that compassion and happiness are skills that can be learned. Below are a few of the findings that back up this theory that we can train ourselves to shape the health of our brain:

  • The brain of a monk in a meditative state can be replicable – Davidson proposes that the ability to be present, and aware of one’s own thoughts is a preventive path toward mental well-being. In a 2004 study (Lutz et. al) gamma oscillations, which predict levels of perceptual clarity, were measured in the brain of a Buddhist monk with years of meditation experience. The wave oscillations in the brains of the monks in a meditative state were significantly broader. That is, when the brain is present and perceptive, the gamma waves open up; in states of fear or uncertainty, they contract. The important thing is that monks have the ability to control it with practice, and incorporating habits consistently can create the same effect in the general population- we don’t necessarily need to be super-meditators to reap the benefits.
  • The ability to connect with others reconfigurates the brain – A 2013 study (Weng et al) worked with a group of people by offering training in meditative techniques for cultivating compassion. In just two weeks, the neuroscientists found tangible differences in brain scan images of those who had participated – their levels of “DPLFC-Nacc connectivity”, which is associated with altruistic behavior (an indicator of mental health), looked clearly dilated in the scans. Again, visualizing scientifically the effects of human connection on our brains.
  • A sense of purpose correlates with longevity – A meta-analysis of studies from the last decade (Cohen et. al, 2016) found that a sense of purpose (even in the most mundane daily activities) is a powerful predictor of longevity and prevention of cardiovascular events. The well-being effects are real – a 2019 study by Evans and Soliman found a strong correlation between average life expectancy and well-being across 151 countries: those who live in countries with the highest perceived well-being levels live up to 30 years longer on average than those who live in countries with low levels of emotional wellbeing.

A century ago, the habit of taking 3 minutes after each meal to brush your teeth didn’t exist globally. However, as a society, we incorporated it as an important action for our survival as a species. This principle of encouraging habits, and promoting healthier minds, can have enormous effects on the different crises we face. The difference is that this time we have advances in mobile and wearable technology (smart watches, tracking devices, etc.) that allow us to accelerate the incorporation of good habits exponentially.

For this reason, it is not surprising that Dr. Barry Kerzin, the Dalai Lama’s personal physician, relies on a mobile application to make practices of compassion and altruism more accessible to the population. Or that Betterfly, the Latin American unicorn start-up, encourages good meditative habits by rewarding users with medals that make it easy to donate to causes. The potential to generate a positive impact through business models with purpose-driven innovations is enormous.

The greatest challenges we face as humans have always presented big opportunities for the business community that wants to make a difference. The good news is that we can train our brains to create mental wellbeing and that we can promote these habits thanks to advances in mobile technology.

With an opportunity like this, it is a matter of time before the business sector takes the lead in building a society that is more connected with itself and with its purpose. This is how the intangible mantra that “inner peace can create peace for the world” becomes more tangible and viable every day as this unique intersection of meditation teachers, scientists, and start-up leaders turn their wills into a new reality. This is how the business world can face the mental health crisis: not only with will but also by leveraging technology and exercising the leadership that this public challenge demands.

Author bio

Michelle Arevalo-Carpenter is the Global VP of Purpose and Communities at Betterfly, the first social unicorn start-up, with operations across Latin America. Before her current role, Michelle was the CEO and co-founder of IMPAQTO, a B Corporation with a mission to support impact entrepreneurs reach their goals by building the ecosystem and network they need to thrive. Michelle is a recent mother of twins and a member of The Ecosystem Network at The Wellbeing Project.

Michelle Arevalo-Carpenter

Betterfly / IMPAQTO

Quito,
Ecuador

Michelle is the Global VP of Purpose and Communities at Betterfly, the first social unicorn start-up, with operations across Latin America. Before her current role, Michelle was the CEO and co-founder of IMPAQTO, a B Corporation with a mission to support impact entrepreneurs reach their goals by building the ecosystem and network they need to thrive. IMPAQTO offers coworking spaces, a business accelerator, innovation consulting services and an impact investing fund to Latin American entrepreneurs building a better world. Before her career in business, Michelle was the founding Country Director of Asylum Access Ecuador, a legal clinic for refugees that later scaled to Asia, Africa and did direct advocacy at the United Nations in Geneva.

As a consultant, has focused on paths to scaling impact for grassroots organizations, including an association of families of disappeared children in El Salvador, and communities at risk of development-induced displacement in Thailand, Cambodia and India. Michelle counts a number of firsts throughout her career: with IMPAQTO, she opened the first private coworking space in Ecuador, also the first certified B Corporation in the country. She launched GreenCrowds, Ecuador’s first crowdfunding platform. She is also the first woman under 40 to be named in the top 100 reputation ranking business leaders in the Merco Ranking.

Michelle is a recent mother of twins, and is married to tech and climate entrepreneur and writer Matthew Carpenter-Arevalo. They live in Quito, the place they have chosen as their home. She holds an Mst in International Human Rights Law from the University of Oxford and a Master’s in Public Policy, UC Berkeley.

Connect with Michelle Arevalo-Carpenter on social media :

Personal Website

Luzette Jaimes

Ashoka

Washington, DC,
United States

Luzette works on social ecosystem activation and system change through the design and facilitation of transformational learning processes. She works in the areas of human development, coaching, being-well, and awareness-based leadership development for changemakers. For two decades she has focused on social entrepreneurship through different roles at Ashoka, including launching Ashoka’s Learning & Development to deepen an organizational learning culture in support of their vision of accelerating the emergence of an “Everyone a Changemaker” world. Luzette works with CoCreative – a consulting firm that designs and facilitates Multi-stakeholder Innovation Networks to solve complex problems, from community revitalization to supply chain sustainability to education. Luzette is the founder of Alive & Thriving – a human development incubator for individuals and groups, co-founder of Consciousness Coalition (CoCo Labs*) – an ecosystem catalyst for cultural evolution and consciousness expansion, and co-founder of Weaving Lab – a network focused on creating learning ecosystems for wellbeing for all. Luzette is adjunct faculty at George Washington University Center for Public Leadership’s e-Co Leadership Coaching Program. She holds a BA in Finance & Intl Rel, a MSc in Holistic Science (whole and complex systems). Professional Certified Coach PCC, Theory U facilitator, Being-well coach and mindfulness practitioner.

What does inner wellbeing mean to you?

Inner wellbeing happens when I am grounded and present to meet life as it comes. When I have a state of okay-ness, even when facing difficult situations or experiencing difficult emotions. Inner wellbeing means freedom of mental, emotional, physical and spiritual conditioning and wounds that I no longer carry and that no longer limit my capacity to flourish and feel well in the human experience.

How would you define wellbeing in one word?

quality-of-life-experience

Are there any rituals or practices you use to enhance your wellbeing?

Mindfulness, Somatic Therapy, Positive Contribution to the World, Walks in Nature, Sabbaticals, Taking Pauses, Cultivating Friendships, Creating collective soulful spaces.

Why is it important that we prioritise individual and collective wellbeing?

All we do depends on how we feel. If we prioritize wellbeing, we prioritize our life.

Do you have any favourite books, podcasts, or articles that you believe support, promote, or educate on wellbeing and related themes? 

Wellbeing Toolkit by Ashoka

Connect with Luzette Jaimes on social media :

Personal Website
Ashoka

Voices of Wellbeing | Mallika Dutt Voices of Wellbeing | Mallika Dutt

“Without the earth, we are nothing”

Mallika Dutt, founder, activist, social change leader and speaker at The Wellbeing Summit for Social Change, joins us to share how her process of healing in community, as well as being open to exploring many other healing modalities, led her to understand the importance of inner work.

Listen to Mallika’s story to find out why her work is now centered around inspiring leaders to remember their innate interconnectedness and transform their impact. In a world of division and isolation, she invites us to see our shared wellbeing with people and planet.

How can we embrace collaboration and cultivate a world where we can flourish and thrive together?

Ariane Luque

People & Culture Senior Manager at The Wellbeing Project

Madrid,
Spain

Connect with Ariane Luque on social media :

If we were having coffee and you asked me, I would tell Ariane is passionate. Passionate about people, traveling, nature, painting, cinema, music, and spending quality time with her loved ones.

She has a degree in Tourism and a master’s degree in Management with a specialization in International Business. Also, She has been involved in Human Resources and Strategic Coaching. Ariane has always worked and studied at the same time. She has had the opportunity to collaborate with professionals from all fields in hospitality and restaurant businesses, consulting, advertising, and banking… always in the administrative and human resources field.

She considers herself a down-to-earth person but always holds the dream and the goal of improving the world by doing her bit. She believes that all together we can achieve great things.

Nowadays, she considers well-being to be fundamental. Physical, emotional, psychological, and social well-being. For this reason, she is happy to be part of this wonderful project and to continue enjoying, learning, and contributing to it.

What does inner wellbeing mean to you?

For me, inner well-being is learning how to connect our inner life with the outer world in harmony. It is also about understanding what is going on inside us and learning to deal with it healthily.

How would you define wellbeing in one word?

Harmony

Are there any rituals or practices you use to enhance your wellbeing?

Breath exercises, mindfulness, therapy… I also try to write down in a notebook the reasons why I am grateful every day, goals and highlights of my day to day life.

Why is it important that we prioritise individual and collective wellbeing?

“Wellbeing inspires welldoing”. Not only for our health but also because if we are well, we will transmit this well-being to the people around us and this will be reflected in the way we work and live.

Do you have any favourite books, podcasts, or articles that you believe support, promote, or educate on wellbeing and related themes? 

In this field, my favorite book is “Your Erroneous Zones” by Wayne Dyer. I usually watch or listen to TED Talks and If you ask me about authors maybe I will say Susan David, Mario Alonso Puig, Fidel Delgado, and Emilio Duró, among others.

Peter Mortifee

Co-Creation Team Advisor at The Wellbeing Project

Vancouver, BC,
Canada

Connect with Peter Mortifee on social media :

Peter is a co-founder of the Somerset Foundation and has been its Chair since its inception in 2001. He engages in various capacities with social purpose initiatives where his input and interest relates primarily to governance, structure, strategy, tactics, policy and financial sustainability. He has been involved with the The Wellbeing Project as an advisor to its Co-Creation Team since 2014. He is a member of the global Ashoka Support Network and has engaged with several Ashoka Fellows. He is a member of Outward Bound International’s Global Ambassador Network and is a co-founder & Chair of the Chute Creek Stewardship Society which seeks to regenerate salmon spawning habitat.

He spent twenty five years training, practicing and teaching as a medical doctor. Following a medical degree at the University of British Columbia and a multi-year Internship in New Zealand, he became a specialist in Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation. In 2008, he relinquished his Clinical Assistant Professorship with the Department of Medicine at U.B.C. and retired completely from his medical practice in order to explore new ways of engaging. He is a keen photographer and explores wellbeing photographically through his social media channels and his photographic website – ReflectionsOnWellbeing.photo He also loves music and travelling. He and his wife Nancy live in Vancouver, Canada and between them they have four wonderful adult children, two delightful grandkids and at least one walking adventure every year.

– What does inner wellbeing mean to you?

It’s a fundamental personal priority.

– How would you define wellbeing in one word?

Compassion.

– Are there any rituals or practices you use to enhance your wellbeing?

Finding quiet time daily for self care.

– Why is it important that we prioritise individual and collective wellbeing?

Our future depends on it and will be shaped by it.

– Do you have any favourite books, podcasts, or articles that you believe support, promote, or educate on wellbeing and related themes? 

Anam Cara by John O’Donohue.

Personal Website
Somerset Foundation

Jonas Dinger

Managing Director

Social Impact Award

Vienna,
Austria

Jonas Dinger is Managing Director of Social Impact Award, one of the world’s largest communities of early-stage social entrepreneurs under 30, mainly active in Europe, Africa and Asia. Jonas is committed to build capacity among early-stage entrepreneurs and foster cross-sector dialogues on the topic of social entrepreneurship.

Based in Vienna, Austria, he is leading a diverse team of 100+ SIA team members and is overseeing the community growth and strategic development.

Jonas joined Social Impact Award in 2018 and was amongst other roles in the team, responsible for SIA’s program in Austria and in Germany, as well as for SIA’s international partnerships and scaling efforts. He is also regularly giving university lectures on the topic of social entrepreneurship.

Before joining Social Impact Award, Jonas worked two years at the Social Entrepreneurship Center of the Vienna University of Economics and Business as a researcher. This followed several engagements for different initiatives in the social entrepreneurship ecosystem (e.g. at GIZ, SEED – Promoting Entrepreneurship for Sustainable Development, and others). Jonas has a Master of Arts in political science having studied at University of Vienna, LMU Munich and University of Vilnius.

Connect with Jonas Dinger on social media :

Gary Shearer

The Saville Foundation

Bristol, Somerset
United Kingdom

Born and schooled in Johannesburg South Africa, having a rich full-spectrum business experience in the IT wave of the ‘70’s and ‘80’s, including being a founding management team member of the now global Datatec Group.

Co-founded award-winning New York based wine trading entity Cape Classics Inc. with my brother in 1991, with the experience of over almost two decades of tough but creative and stimulating challenges growing the business from the ground up informing much of my current journey.

In 2006 I sold my shares to participate in the realm of Social Change, and am privileged to be the CEO of The Saville Foundation working around the globe within education and enablement of individuals and communities.

I have two fabulous thirty-something children, and since 2018 have lived in the UK in Bristol with my incredible soul-partner Lara. We make trips back to South Africa as often as possible.

– What does inner wellbeing mean to you?

The feeling of contentment and happiness that bubbles inside the more I work on deprogramming myself….

– How would you define wellbeing in one word?

Self-love

– Are there any rituals or practices you use to enhance your wellbeing?

Chi-gong, Yoga, Meditation, breathwork.

– Why is it important that we prioritise individual and collective wellbeing?

Happy content people function more effectively and with repect for self and others.

Connect with Gary Shearer on social media :

Marlize Swanepoel

Sp(i)eel Arts Therapies Collective

Cape Town,
South Africa

Marlize Swanepoel is a Dramatherapist and the founding director of sp(i)eel arts therapies collective, an NPO that addresses intergenerational trauma and co-create community-based models of mental health care that are culturally informed and relevant to the South African context. She serves on the Secretariat of the South African National Arts Therapies Association (SANATA) and is a guest lecturer at the University of Cape Town. She is an enthusiastic advocate for the Arts for Health movement in South Africa that speaks to healthcare from a global South perspective. She loves being in spaces of learning, unlearning and dancing.

– What does inner wellbeing mean to you?

When I can hear my body’s cues and are able to choose caring for myself as many times as possible.

– How would you define wellbeing in one word?

Presence

– Are there any rituals or practices you use to enhance your wellbeing?

I honour the wisdom of my female cycle, to take note when I need to cocoon or when there are bursts of creative energy and I try to be in play for as much time as possible.

– Why is it important that we prioritise individual and collective wellbeing?

If we want to be able to co-regulate, we have to begin with ourselves, to be regulated when we do our work. Lasting change is possible when it comes from a grounded, reflective and thoughtful place, and not as a reactive response.

– Do you have any favourite books, podcasts, or articles that you believe support, promote, or educate on wellbeing and related themes? 

Humankind: A Hopeful History by Rutger Bregman, Everything by Bayo Akomolafe and the ancient tales and myths.

Connect with Marlize Swanepoel on social media :