– Stress at the Workplace

– Stress at the Workplace HE wAs AN EXTRAoRDINARY JAPANEsE ENTREPRENEUR, educated at the Lakeland College and the International University of Japan, who possessed a Midas touch and magically amassed trillions of Yen. As a youngster he was fearless, but soon his mind gave way to the lucre of money; indulging in forbidden activities, he perilously ignored the tenets of Shinto and soon succumbed to Karoshi. Karoshi is a Japanese word which signifies sudden death by cardiac arrest or stroke, triggered by overwork.This is a piquant situation arising when a person is worn out to a mere shadow of himself. In the Land of the Rising Sun, which is dominated by frenetic work schedules spanning almost sixteen hours a day, it can lead to bizarre situations where tens of thousands of employees commit suicide on account of this modern day ailment called karoshi confronting Japan. “The present moment is inevitable,” is a sutra which is articulated by several enlightened Masters. And only by living in the present moment can an individual annihilate the cobwebs of fear and stress which mushroom in the mind, banish fear and become truly joyous and radiant. Life is a long journey and everyone is a traveller. It is 364 | Make the mind Mt. Kailasa prudent to live and traverse purposefully and mindfully, rather than think about the past or the future and lose track in the byzantine labyrinths and consequently mislaying precious peace of mind. The Japanese entrepreneur became deceitful and snuffed out his life. Stress is a dynamic condition in which an individual is confronted with an opportunity, constraint, or demand related to what he or she desires and for which the outcome is perceived to be uncertain or unimportant. It is this element of uncertainty that leads to gathering of stress in the minds of employees at the workplace. Contrast karoshi with a Hindustani word called khamoshi. Khamoshi,simply put, implies silence. “Silence is essential. We need silence, just as much as plants need light. If our minds are crowded with words and thoughts, there is no space for us,” writes Thich Nhat Hanh. “Noble silence” envelops our minds through the practice of mindfulness and soon the human body and mind stop chattering. To appreciate the virtues of a quiet and composed mind the rectitude of silence needs to be juxtaposed against accumulated stressful conditions prevalent in our lives and organisations. Stress over a period of time has acquired a negative connotation. However, there are high end achievers who rekindle their passion to excel in high pressure conditions. Sportsmen, defence personnel, scientists, politicians or artistes rise to the occasion and deliver high octane stuff in what is referred to as ‘clutch situations’. Tension or stress in these individuals increases tautness or stretch in the mind, which make them deliver at the world stage. Even if they are girdled with negative emotions, their minds are robust and resolute enough not to capitulate and instead Tranquility, Silence and the Mind | 365 blossom like a lotus in a lake that is otherwise overflowing, and live in the present moment to accomplish their Holy Grail. These progressive minded individuals maintain a positive disposition and oust negative thoughts by remaining jaunty and cheery. Their mantra in life is to visualise the glass as half- full rather than half-empty. Thereby they become positively inclined achievers. Those not blessed with such an attitude flounder to clamber the summit and accumulate stress due to the constraints and demands they face. Constraints act as an encumbrance and a hindrance to achieving the targeted goal, while demand (high expectations) typifies a misplacement of a venture that humans crave for, which results in accumulation of stress. This occurs when high expectations do not match the desired results. In an organisational set up an excellent performance review normally triggers a jump in emoluments or even a promotion, while a below par presentation review may be interpreted as a lackadaisical performance which can even tantamount to being fired from the placement. This can be an extremely hazardous and demanding situation for the employee. Environmental factors such as economic and political uncertainties and technological changes may result in an exacting situation for the employees of an organisation. An organisation is akin to an organism which has its own limitations and can lead to intriguing situations. These include various tasks, roles and interpersonal demands. The corporate body could be hampered by structural and leadership muddles which generate worrisome conditions. An employee can also suffer from family, economic or personality misadventures which may disorient his performance and thus result in a tardy end result. Many a times privation 366 | Make the mind Mt. Kailasa of adequate social support system or hostility and perceived malevolence of co-workers affect the performance of employees and thereby lead to stressful situations. The tragic consequences of such situations are dangerous as it more often than not leads to physiological disorders like migraines, insomnia, spondylitis, diabetes, obesity, infertility, and hypertension/hypotension which can result in cardiac problems or strokes. Dreaded psychological symptoms can also arise in the form of anxiety, depression, and diminishing interest in the job at hand, which leads to Brobdingnagian vexation. The employees become careworn and haggard. They are a demotivated set of personnel whose productivity is singularly low and the organisation is plagued by a high percentage of absenteeism and turnover. Employees can also get addicted to alcohol, drug abuse or excessive smoking. Organisations need to follow a two-pronged strategy to winch the problem. Actuate the employees by offering suitable apertures and resort to mid-course corrections by stimulating the mind through proper time management, prioritising activities, rescheduling work and offering packages of mental diversion. Alternatively, employers could set up gyms and swimming pools on the premises, which exhort employees to take to physical exercise to soothe frayed nerves and also undertake wellness programmes such as the Happiness Programme of the Art of Living, Vipassana breathing technique or proper counselling and hypnosis by trained psychologists. “Know your enemy, know yourself and you can fight a hundred battles without disaster,” wrote Sun Tzu. Truly then, khamoshi will prevail over karoshi. and Silence “NEVER hATE YoUR ENEMIEs. IT AFFECTS your judgement,” wrote the talismanic author Mario Gianluigi Puzo. He wrote several iconic novels about the Mafiosi, crime, greed and jealousy among other antipathetic emotions. Prominent among his works were, The Godfather,The Sicilian and Omerta. Omerta refers to a code of silence imposed by the Mafia upon its members, not to divulge any secrets about their nefarious and criminal activity to the law enforcing agencies. Adherents to the cardinal principles are provided sanctuary by the Mafia, while turncoats are swiftly silenced. Silence, on the other hand, is quietude and tranquillity of the mind and self. Omerta is an enforced, an imposed silence, born of fear. Whereas in true silence, the hush and shush are voluntary. The seeker attempts to silence the mind to delve into the depths of peace. In an Advanced Meditation Course conducted by the Art of Living, a seeker asked H.H. Sri Sri Ravi Shankar that his mobile phone was cannonaded by WhatsApp messages, emails, tweets, Facebook and LinkedIn requests. “What should I do Guruji?” he asked. Gurudev smiled in his inimitable and enigmatic manner and asked the seeker not to charge his smart 368 | Make the mind Mt. Kailasa phone for a few days. The hall reverberated with applause and laughter. The purpose of the Advanced Meditation Course is to recharge our inner batteries and to connect with our true selves. This is true celebration, the best possible holiday, where the mind does not wish to break out of the tranquillity and one remains absolutely contented. The meditations are indeed so effectual and vigorous that the mind becomes truly hollow and empty. Recently H.H. Sri Sri Ravi Shankar conducted the Advanced Meditation Course across the country at various places simultaneously through Skype, where, besides the normal hollow and empty meditations, he conducted hour long meditation sessions every day, which had a salutary impact on the mind. I happened to meet a colleague at Bhubhaneswar, who was singing paeans about the efficacy of the course and specifically mentioned that his mind was indeed truly silenced. But no sooner does such a course get over, that the devout, seekers and sadhaks scramble for their smartphones. This is not a particularly intelligent act. Incidentally, this has nothing to do with the knowledge imparted, or the technique of the teacher. It is purely disrespect and feverishness displayed by the seeker. In our daily existence, it is well-nigh impossible to remain perpetually silent, but by undertaking such courses over a period, the mind becomes aware, wakeful and mindful enough to become detached from the cause and effect of various situations. This is acquisition of genuine knowledge. Knowledge can be acquired by the seeker and sadhak through relentless practice, a feeling of detachment, slaying emotions of anger and arrogance, remaining in perpetual Tranquility, Silence and the Mind | 369 dynamism and, most importantly, acquiring and inculcating traits of humility. Sage Ashtavakra through his profound knowledge and wisdom, after vanquishing Acharya Bandi in the court of Rajarishi King Janaka, was to impart some important homilies. One, shaastra (true knowledge and wisdom) is more important and lethal than shastra (weapons in an individual’s arsenal) and second, it is always bankable and worthwhile to conquer the emotions of anger and arrogance. These negative emotions and traits drain the quality of silence and rectitude from an individual’s personality. The silence and tranquillity which permeates every cell of the mind and body gets transformed into clangour and hubbub. Cacophony in the mind, which ought to have metamorphosed into symphony, does not occur. One is reminded of the film Dhoni – The Untold Story, wherein the protagonist informs his girlfriend prior to the commencement of a test match – an important cricket tour – that his mobile would be switched off. This differentiates and individuates Dhoni from other cricketers and sportsmen. His focal point was the game. All achievers do that. They see to it that their minds are not hacked by innuendoes or irrelevant issues. Or else the mind remains a prisoner of Omerta and is not truly silent. According to the Bible, Jesus was questioned whether He was the son of God. Jesus maintained silence, as it was the sagacious and prudent act to do. It is like a human wishing to explain tribulation and suffering in the body and the listener demands a testament. Just as pain cannot be explained, similarly, noble silence too cannot be demonstrated. It is an experiential 370 | Make the mind Mt. Kailasa feeling which the seeker needs to necessarily perceive through his sadhana. Buddha upon attaining enlightenment spoke about the Four Noble Truths: a) There is dukha or misery in life, which individuals experience from within and without. b) There is a cause for misery. c) It is possible to eliminate this melancholia. d) There is a path out of the wretchedness or misery. Besides the Four Noble Truths, Buddha expounded the Eight-Fold Path too. This includes – right view, right resolve, right speech, right conduct, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness and right meditativeness or samadhi. He further stressed upon sheela (proper conduct), samadhi (an equanimous meditative state) and pragya (implies enlightened awareness and mindfulness). Buddha was first and foremost a psychologist. In a methodical manner, he dissected the human mind and its various shades and functioning. The mind is essentially noise; the source or origin of the mind is silence.Therefore, Buddha accentuated the concept of nomind. A chain of thoughts constantly originates in the mind. So the mind keeps wandering in search of peace, silence and tranquillity. The true nature of all living beings is to appreciate the compass of peace, compassion, love and affection.The property and competence of silence is to subsume negative emotions such as guilt, fear, arrogance and ignorance. Thus, inner jollity and radiance encompass us with wisdom, beauty, strength, knowledge and bliss. In such a state, mental chatter in the human mind is reduced and silence subjugates Omerta in the human mind. 97