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The Changing Paradigm of Work
Groundbreaking Research Conducted During COVID
Michael C. Bush, CEO, Great Place to Work®, US
People who feel cared for at work do a better job and help these businesses thrive. The Breakers was on the list of the best workplace for inclusion. Starting with trust, purpose, and values.
Leadership potential and innovation by all are important factors to consider, the economy, covid and racial tensions are on all CEOs’ minds recently, and their impact on physical health and mental health. Fear stops inclusion and innovation and keeps people thinking small. Emotional, psychological, and physical safety is required in order to flourish. People want respect from their leader and feel that their leader has credibility and fairness.
Leaders must care and exhibit high-trust leadership behaviors:
Keeping a Business Running During a Pandemic
Paul Leone, CEO, The Breakers Palm Beach, US
Paul speaks about the preparation they have made over 35 years for the ‘rainy day’; when you are prepared for the worst-case scenario you are better able to adapt and take any necessary action. In March, they decided to close, even when bringing in over one million USD daily, in order to lead the way for the industry during the pandemic, two weeks before it became mandatory by government mandate, costing The Breakers $15 million USD, and paying all staff in full.
They were closed for a total of 8 weeks, reopening on May 2nd, and now running at 35% occupancy. They strived to use ‘informed common sense’, in the midst of so much conflicting information from media and politicians. Since reopening, restaurant and retail sales were almost back to normal despite the reduced occupancy, this is attributed to the trust people in the community have for The Breakers as a reputable business, clients felt comfortable enough to return, even during a pandemic.
Achieving Health Equity
Moderated by Nicola Finley, MD, Board Certified Internal Medicine Physician, Canyon Ranch, US
Pamela Garmon Johnson, National Vice-President for Health Equity Impact and Partnerships at the American Heart Association, US
Elizabeth Aquino, Ph.D., RN, Associate Professor, DePaul University, School of Nursing, US
Health disparities affect many segments of the population. Trust is an important factor when people of color see their healthcare provider, Elizabeth talks about initiatives to encourage more people of color to go into the healthcare industry. When people feel like they are not being heard, they can ask to see another provider and we must empower them to advocate for themselves more. Not everyone feels capable to speak up and may not have someone to advocate for them.
Pamela highlighted the importance of access to quality food, which can really make a big difference to health. Approximately 80% of disabled people typically do not have employment which then puts this demographic in a more vulnerable position for the level of healthcare. Not all disabilities can be seen by others, and policies such as cancellation times can discriminate against these people who can experience unexpected pain or symptoms preventing them from attending. Travel times to see specialists are often not considered, which can be an additional barrier.
Wellness in India: Research & Results
Dr. M, Founder & CEO, Wellness 2020, Singapore
Founder of a yoga retreat in Rishikesh, India, Dr. M is active in the medical, health, and wellness communities. Yoga is complemented by several other wellness modalities to educate and bring people together. The ideal life of 100 years is separated into four quarters, with a mission for each segment, with the last focusing on being happy and healthy, “don’t retire and be at your best when you die!” Dr. M. focuses on education and technology and sees wellness being delivered via apps aiming to get to everyone, however in India, not everyone has access to this technology.
A surprise call with Deborah Szekely and Alex Von Bidder de Rancho La Puerta, Tecate, México
Deborah explains that everyone needs to take responsibility for their health, “it is so easy to be healthy and so hard to be sick.”
Michelle Gamble, VP, Business Development, Global Wellness Summit, US
Presenting the Summit sponsors for 2020:
The Wellness Moonshot Goes Global! Unveiling the 2021 Calendar Design
The Wellness Moonshot: A World Free of Preventable Disease
“Shark Tank of Wellness” Global Student Competition
Global student competition to birth a fresh wellness concept with $10,000 in prize money!
Sponsored by Chiva-Som, Hyatt Hotels Corporation, ResortSuite
Finalists:
Liam Campbell: Savannah College of Art and Design, US
Professor: Gauri Misra-Deshpande, Professor, Savannah College of Art & Design, US
Wellness Innovation: Melo, a multifunctional pregnancy pillow to enhance sleep/rest. This memory foam pregnancy pillow uses sound therapy and personalized relaxation music to calm the fetus during sleep and enhance brain development. The device can be controlled by an app on your smartphone. Liam aims to price this at $20 usd to the consumer market.
Balázs Csatlós: University of Pannonia, Hungary
Professor: Dr. Judit Sulyok, University of Pannonia, Hungary
Wellness Innovation: Sleeping Beauty sleep mask, a new high-tech solution for getting a good night’s sleep. Encourages deep restorative sleep via sound therapy via white noise along with a sleep monitor and brainwave detector to track metrics, all connected to an app on your smartphone. Easy to travel with and use at home “sleep is a non-negotiable biological need.” Balázs aims to utilize the hospitality industry to trial the device and SEO to reach consumers once testing is complete and data supports the use.
Krysta Silva: Savannah College of Art and Design, US
Professor: Gauri Misra-Deshpande, Professor, Savannah College of Art & Design, US
Wellness Innovation: Samii, a set of utensils that detects and alerts users to allergenic proteins in food. Paired with an app, Samii users can select their specific allergens and avoid intake. Around 32 million Americans have food allergies, this can prevent unnecessary trips to the ER and medical costs.
Wellness Sharks | Judging Panel:
Karen Campbell, Business Development Consultant, Chiva-Som, Thailand
Frank Pitsikalis, Founder & CEO, ResortSuite, Canada
Julia Sutton, COO of Exhale, a division of Hyatt Corporation, US
Wellness Technology: Start-Ups from the Start-Up Nation: Introducing the winner that walked away with a $400K Investment!
Presentation co-moderated by Amir Alroy, Co-Founder, Welltech1, and Galit Horovitz, Co-Founder, Welltech1, Israel
Around 230 companies showcased brilliant and innovative ideas to compete for the 400K prize. Physical activity, mental health, and corporate wellness were recurring themes among the entries.
Presenters:
Gal Bortman, Co-Founder & CEO, Fitv, Israel
Ari Friedrich, Co-Founder & CEO and Yaniv Lavi, Co-Founder & COO, Fitto, Israel
Gil Kerbs, Founder & CEO, Newt, Israel
Or Lustig, Co-Founder & CEO, Seatback, Israel
Michal Metzger, Co-Founder & CEO, Tolive Smoothies, Israel
Ido Polack, CEO, Amkiri, Israel
Lihi Segal, Co-Founder & CEO, Day2, Israel
Adi Wallach, Co-Founder & CEO, Calmigo, US, Israel
Lisa Wong, Co-Founder & CEO and Amit Tishler, Co-Founder & CCO, Popbase, US, Israel
Inaugural Global Wellness Summit Prize
The winner was chosen from over 80 companies submitting ideas to the “Call for Wellness Innovations” competition
Finalists:
Amai Proteins, Israel
Amkiri, Ltd., Israel
Bryte, US
FitV, Israel
Kai.ai, Israel
Metalco Workplaces, Italy
Ognomy, The Sleep Apnea App, US RunGo, Canada
Virtuleap, Israel
VISION LIVFIT FZE, United Arab Emirates Well World TV, LLC, US
WOW Wellness Group, United Arab Emirates
Award Sponsor: Welltech1
Presented by Amir Alroy, Co-Founder, Welltech1, Israel
Winner: Amai Proteins, Israel
A sweet protein to satisfy the sweet receptors!
Dancing Into Wellness: The Power of Unbridled Joy
Nicola Finley, MD, Health & Healing, Canyon Ranch, US
Nicola shared the impressive benefits of dance on many medical conditions and gave us all a ‘prescription’ for one hour of Zumba per day for the rest of our lives, before leading us in a short Zumba sequence
Breath: The New Science of a Lost Art
James Nestor, Best-Selling Author, Breath: The New Science of a Lost Art, US
Poor breathing is known to lead to many chronic conditions:
Our ability to take in free and easy breaths has declined. Our mouths have become so small that our teeth have become crocked, our ancestors never had this problem – they all had perfectly straight teeth! This also affects our ability to breathe through our noses and blocks our airways, we are the only species of the animal kingdom to suffer from this. This means many of us end up breathing through our mouths, this is extremely unhealthy and affects the way our bodies function, causing bad posture, receding chin, tired eyes, etc.
Within a couple of hours of being restricted to mouth breathing, the blood pressure shoots up, snoring increases dramatically, and sleep apnea occurs. When the opposite is tested and nose breathing is encouraged, snoring decreases and disappears within days, sleep apnea disappears and blood pressure normalizes also within days.
Effective habits:
Breathe through your nose
Breathe slowly and steadily – Rosary prayer and yoga mantras encourage this type of breathing, leading the body into a state of coherence.
Breathe less – when you reduce the number of breaths per minute you increase the efficiency.
Awareness – we can take conscious control of our breathing and impact the body
Breathing can increase heat in the extremities by 17%, allowing monks to spend time in the Himalayas wearing only their robes. Wim Hof has used breath to heat his body to fight off infection.
Your own breath can be measured by looking at heart rate variability via apps, sticking to roughly 5 seconds in and 5 seconds out, always through the nose. Habitual breathing is different however from specific breathing exercises where you may follow different patterns and breathe also through the mouth.
The Healing Power of Human Connection
Vivek Murthy, 19th US Surgeon General, Best-Selling Author of Together: The Healing Power of Human Connection in a Sometimes Lonely World
Dr. Richard Carmona, 17th US Surgeon General; Chief of Health Innovations, Canyon Ranch, US
Loneliness has become an epidemic as serious as the pandemic; as people feel they are alone, struggling with many issues. Loneliness increases risks for many other conditions and reduces the probability of successful outcomes for treatments. The importance of our relationships with other people highlights the power of social connection in combating loneliness. When people manage to build a relationship first, they do a better job of continuing dialogue in the face of disagreements. Moments of connection that leave us feeling seen and heard have a lasting effect and the benefits stay with us. “There are few medicines in the world more powerful than love, compassion, and kindness.”
The UK has now appointed a Minister of Loneliness to address this issue and tackle the health consequences of loneliness on the health system and also on the economic output of the country. Australia and various European countries are also highlighting the issue in an effort to prevent the detrimental effects of loneliness. Connection and community must be fostered in schools and organizations to buffer stress levels and bring people together, facilitating understanding and healing.
Arianna Huffington and Agapi Stassinopoulos dropped in to share their support and talk about starting and ending the day on the right note! We don’t have to turn our lives upside down, we just need to find moments of stillness throughout the day and moments to reset, this can prevent stress and burnout.
Leaving You Breathless!
Dr. Marc Cohen, Founder, Extreme Wellness Institute, Australia
Wim Hof, The Iceman, The Netherlands
James Nestor, Best-Selling Author, Breath: The New Science of a Lost Art, US
How should we breathe? Habitually for the majority of the day, should be slow, steady, and through the nose. However, breat
hing exercises for short periods of time can of course differ from this. Balance the body via breathwork and short exercises and the body will benefit the rest of the day, boosting the immune system, calming the nervous system, and benefitting overall health in so many ways.
Breathing has the ability to change our biochemistry, reducing the heart rate, increasing blood flow to the brain, and helping the body restore and repair. The correct breathing technique encourages alkalinity in the body, helping to prevent disease.
Wim led us through his simple breathing exercise as a group, 30 deep breaths in, followed by a breath-hold.
By Sara Jones, editor
