Balance sheets can wait – Your health can’t.

As a country, we are quickly becoming the numero uno in a totally wrong way. Yes, I am talking about the untimely death of young professionals, due to heart attack. The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) had conducted multiple important surveys and studies related to heart disease and sudden deaths among young adults in India, focusing especially on the age group between 18 and 45 years, who appeared healthy but died suddenly between October 2021 and March 2023. Some pressing factors contributing to the heart attacks were found to be extreme work pressure, stress, poor sleep and change in lifestyle.

When was the last time any of us visited the doctor for that persisting heart burn? This is typical of most young professionals today. But being in the majority is not a win. The body is a living thing. It can be compared to a car or machinery. While we service our cars periodically; shouldn’t we give a similar or better care to our body? Being young, our body can tolerate a lot of misuse but only up to a point, after that it will go kaput. Imagine being hospitalized for 20 days for any ailment, after the first day’s bouquets and “Get well soon” cards, the company will find a temporary replacement immediately. This is the harsh reality. Would we not do it if we are running a company, to show a healthy balance-sheet at the year end? Yes, I hear the message, that for survival, we need to be indispensable, but not at the cost of our health.

With deep involvement, most of us carry our office work all along with us affecting our driving, family life, and sleep. Such an involvement will lead to spiraling health issues like, poor digestion and disturbed sleep. These quickly manifest into further complications like higher blood pressure, higher heart rate, irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), insomnia and cardiovascular diseases. Partying with friends might sound like the perfect get away but leaving these ailments unattended, may result in obesity, diabetes and other chronic diseases.

Working in a closed atmosphere without healthy food and fresh air will reduce our productivity level and also affects the functioning of our brain. Faster burn-out in the office will lead to typical symptoms like feeling detached and doubting our own selves. The stressed working atmosphere will affect the memory and decision-making capability.

In today’s demanding world, trying to be healthy is not a ‘nice-to-have’ quality but a necessity, since the value of human capital is very much in need now. There is no shame in caring for one’s health. It is a smart move to be focused on our well-being. We should set clear practices and targets to avoid work related stress.

• A daily eight-hour sleep pattern is a must.
• Join a gym and exercise regularly. Don’t just pay the gym membership and expect miracles to happen like most people.
• Consume healthy foods (more of fruits, veggies and grains) and avoid junk food.
• Spend quality time with family, which is a great stress buster. Plan surprise family outings and impromptu gatherings with friends.
• Mute all official calls, emails and texts while at home.
• Seek professional help to manage the stress if required. Seeking professional help to manage stress is no more a taboo.

In addition to managing the stress and illness in our lives, consider the following aspects.

• We break our backs and sacrifice our health to be a leader in our respective work areas. We try earning more or get promoted to the next level. We do all of this to earn enough to have a better and comfortable life. Why limit our money source to job only? Consider a steady secondary income from investments or monetizing other skills.
  Learn about investments from professionals. Gradually, your investment income will grow. Explore your passion and check out the on-line opportunities for showcasing talents. This also act as a diversion from office stress.
• Many of us might have dreamt of graduating from ivy leagues but wouldn’t have made it eventually and this doesn’t make us any less of a person. We might still have decent jobs and a loving family, while a few have excelled to become leaders in respective fields. This norm applies to career aspirations also. Typically, in any large company, with 80 managers, there will only be four directors and one CEO. Earning a comfortable salary with good perks as a manager and not becoming a Director or CXO should not deter us. Realistically, there cannot be 20 Directors or 6 CXOs in such a company. Do have a reality check rather than risking your health. Often, such senior selections happen by being in the right place at the right time; luck does play a greater role.

A well-rested heathy body and mind performs better in office and is more productive. Becoming and maintaining good health is not a luxury but a necessity for all professionals. Earning loads of money is of no use if we don’t have good health to enjoy it. Let’s prioritize our health, so that we can work better tomorrow and, in the years to come.