What Is Workplace Spirituality and How to Help Cultivate It [Episode #760]

This week’s topic is: What Is Workplace Spirituality and How to Help Cultivate It

This is a really interesting topic because we talk a lot about spirituality here. It is one of our Four Cornerstones in our lifestyle for creating true wellness, true beauty, and true fulfillment. And the other cornerstones are food, body and emotional wellbeing. And whilst we don’t always think about spirituality in the context of our work or our career, what we will discuss today is really showing that everything is interconnected.

And so when we’re talking about expressing our spirituality, which could be really thinking about expressing love, expressing our values, expressing how we really look at the world and our personal beliefs, we don’t want to just contain it to being at home or when we’re out with our friends. There are respectful and boundaried ways to really show up as yourself across your life, including in your work, which is deeply fulfilling and feels really good, energizing and authentic.

When we are authentic in our lives, we are able to allow our energy to flow. We feel happy, we feel joyful, we feel peaceful because being who we are out in the world allows our whole nervous system to relax. It’s very stressful to try to be or project some sort of image of something that we’re not. Today, I’ll give you six very clear takeaways that you can apply to your own life. And you can see which ones fit with you and which ones don’t. Or maybe all of them resonate, however, this is a way of building that wholeness across your life, which really does nourish us in such a deep way.

Have you been wondering about this very topic? If you want to know the answer to this question sent in by a Beauty just like you, listen now to find out!

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[Question Answered]

Crissy – Oregon

I work in an office and would like to bring more spirituality into the environment. What can I do to make my work environment more in alignment with my Home life?

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Transcript:

Note: The following is the output of transcribing from an audio recording. Although the transcription is largely accurate, in some cases it is incomplete or inaccurate. This is due to inaudible passages or transcription errors. It is posted as an aid, but should not be treated as an authoritative record.

Namaste loves and welcome back for our Thursday Q&A podcast. Our topic this week is, What Is Workplace Spirituality and How to Help Cultivate It. So this is a really interesting topic because we talk a lot about spirituality here. It is one of our four cornerstones in our lifestyle for creating true wellness, true beauty, and true fulfillment. And the other cornerstones are food, body and emotional wellbeing. And whilst we don’t always think about spirituality in the context of our work or our career, what we will discuss today is really showing that everything is interconnected. And so when we’re talking about expressing our spirituality, which could be really thinking about expressing love, expressing our values, expressing how we really look at the world and our personal beliefs, we don’t wanna just contain it to being at home or when we’re out with our friends. There are respectful and boundaried ways to really show up as yourself across your life, including in your work, which is deeply fulfilling and feels really good and feels energizing and feels authentic.

And when we are authentic in our lives, we are able to allow our energy to flow. We feel happy, we feel joyful, we feel peaceful because being who we are out in the world allows our whole nervous system to relax. It’s very stressful to try to be or project some sort of image of something that we’re not. So I love this topic and we’ll talk about it. And as I mentioned, I’ll give you six very clear takeaways that you can apply to your own life. And you can see which ones fit with you and which ones don’t. Or maybe all of them resonate, but this is a way of building that wholeness, that wholeness across your life, which really does nourish us in such a deep way.

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What Is Workplace Spirituality and How to Help Cultivate It

Which is the perfect segue as we get into our show today about spirituality in the workplace. So when we’re talking about spirituality, we are not necessarily talking about formal religion, although you may think of your spiritual practices in that umbrella as well. Spirituality is really about an expanded vision of life and seeing that things aren’t just the linear, it’s not just what we see with our physical eyes, but that there’s energy behind all things.

And so spirituality is taking that perspective into the world. It means that there is a higher force, a higher power, whether it’s the universe or God or spirit or source, however you like to conceptualize it. Spirituality is about seeing this interconnectedness, this oneness of all things and starting to live in accordance with that perspective. So if we do truly believe that all things are interconnected, it means that our values might include rising compassion, seeing that we are part of everything and everything is part of us. So we don’t wanna harm anything. We don’t wanna, you know, we wanna live life with do no harm as much as possible as our mantra. We wanna walk softly and use kindness in our words and in our energy, and to live from our hearts and from our intuition. So we can think of this idea of bringing spirituality in the workplace as bringing our values into the workplace, bringing our hearts in so we don’t have to turn it off when we’re there.

We don’t have to turn into cold robotic beings, but instead create this extension of who we are into our workspace. So there is this wholeness, this oneness that comes through our lives and then therefore allows us to connect more deeply to bring our values and the love and the compassion into those around us, including at work. So there’s research around this, which is really interesting. Um, one is a study from 14 that shows that spiritually, um, inspired programs, spirituality programs can help with psychological wellbeing and human health, improved employee commitment in the workplace. There is another study that shows that workplace spirituality is rec recognized to increase integrity and job satisfaction and motivation. And yet another, uh, study shows that different, uh, models of workplace spirituality. So when we’re talking about these models, it can be a place for, um, people to worship or meditate.

There can be mindfulness classes or meditation classes or yoga classes that are offered, or many different ways that it can be introduced into the workplace. But this, uh, this research found that it was, um, an increased job involvement, organizational performance and a sense of community. So there are practical benefits if you’re listening to this podcast, podcast and you are a manager or in charge of facilitating or creating space at work. These are, these are important, um, measure measurables for not just, you know, feeling nice and this warm fuzziness, but also it does help with actual job performance. So that’s something to take note of both on a personal and collective level. So there is a lot of benefits, and from a personal standpoint, as I mentioned, not just productivity, but we can show up and feel that we are being authentic and we are allowing our hearts to merge with a place where we spend a lot of time, which is work.

So we don’t just have to be who we are, who we really feel that we are in front of our loved ones, but we can extend that through our life in respectful boundaried ways, which we’ll get into right now and, um, in our discussion. But just to remember again, our cornerstones food, body, emotional wellbeing, and spiritual growth are ones that we wanna bring across our lives in our partnership, in our relationship to food. And so as it applies today in our workspace, so how do we do it? How do we not feel weird or that we are impinging on others’, you know, freedom or we’re not, you know, overstepping ourselves. And so that’s what we’re gonna talk about now. How do we practically apply this so that we can benefit, but it feels really good and nourishing to us at the same time.

Tip #1: Workplace Spirituality and How to Help Cultivate It: Connect your work to your value system

So the first tip is to connect your work to your value system. So in a larger sense, spirituality is the values that we hold near and dear to our heart. It includes those values such as kindness and compassion. So we wanna enter a workspace, or perhaps this is a wake up call to shift our work environment to make sure it is supportive of who we are and what we believe in. So if you are, you know, plant-based, for instance, and you’re working at a butcher shop, which I have heard from a couple people, <laugh>, it may not exactly feel aligned to you. So there will always feel a sense of restriction or blockage or that you’re not really fulfilling your highest potential, or if you really care about, you know, others’ health or welfare for instance. And you work at a place that is, um, you know, focused on sugar or putting out products, you know, for more sugar that may not align either.

So you wanna just take an honest appra appraisal, just look at where you’re spending your time in your energy and the tasks within your job as well. If part of it is, you know, you have to be, um, harsh with people or there’s a lot of, there’s just areas of your job that just don’t really feel good to you and that your energy is going towards something that you don’t really believe in, you wanna take a look at that. It may mean switching to a different position within your company or maybe having a conversation with the higher ups and the management team and saying, Hey, I’d like to focus more on this, or maybe you’re in a great place right now, or maybe you just need to make a little bit of a shift or big shift. And these are things, um, that you have to sit with.

No one can ever tell you the right answer. But the first part about introducing spirituality in the workplace, first off, is there a fit right now at all? Or maybe you’re starting to, to look at, you know, elsewhere and making sure that you can be authentic in your workplace. It doesn’t mean over the top, it doesn’t mean you’re trying to preach to people or anything like that, which could impinge on others’ freedom. But it’s important that you are in a space that feels nourishing and feels good to you in the first place. You will probably spend more time with your work colleagues and in your work environment than you will with your friends and sometimes with certain family members. So you wanna make sure that it’s aligned in the first place and make changes as needed without fear, because you will thrive if you are placed in an environment that allows you to thrive. And you’ll start to feel stagnant if you’re an environment that that makes you feel, um, constricted or, or small.

Tip #2: Workplace Spirituality and How to Help Cultivate It: Be present and vulnerable with others

So our second tip is to be present and vulnerable with others. So this doesn’t mean that you have to share your full life’s story, but what this means is we show up in the recognition that the people at work around you, your colleagues, are people <laugh>, you are a person. They’re they’re people as well. So this connection of just being really present with another human looking in their eyes and listening to them and being there when you’re with them is very powerful. And when I say vulnerable, it means that you can show your humanness, you can show your heart, you can be there as a actual, you know, living, breathing, being, instead of feeling like you always have to hide. You know, I have to say that I only worked in an office personally for about three months on my life, three to four months when I was done with backpacking and I was in New York and I was doing many things.

I was starting to teach yoga and I was going back to nutrition school. And so I worked at this, um, office for a couple months and it, it was very, um, strange to me. And I know every office has a very different, um, climate and culture and in, you know, work environment space. This was so formal that it almost felt like people were changing their voices around each other. Like, hi, how’s it going? Ah, fine. And it was never really real. So it doesn’t mean you have to share all the boundaries of your, you know, all the details of your life, rather, but you can be more human and you can definitely be present and show up and look at someone you know into their eyes. And it makes a really big difference because other people will feel that they are seen by you and then they in turn will see you more. And then it really does bring this more connected work environment space that’s part of spirituality. It’s part of the richness of going beyond just the surface of the ego and the thinking mind and the headiness into deeper connection.

Tip #3: Workplace Spirituality and How to Help Cultivate It: Treat everyone as equal and the really see the truth

So the third tip is to treat everyone as equal and to really see the truth. So the truth is that consciousness God spirit is in every single being. And when we recognize that, then we are really bringing the truth of our spiritual practice. We are living it, we are bringing it to the workplace. And I bring this up because often there’s a hierarchy at work. This person’s the CEO or the founder of the company, and then this person is, you know, the, the messenger or whatever. And sometimes it’s like this scale of, of worth and bringing spirituality to the workplace means we’re all humans. We all are made of the divine and we are all equal.

So we treat everyone the same. We see the light of spirit in every single person no matter what their job title is. And so this is this, this also applies to yourself really feeling and knowing and understanding your own worth. So not minimizing your own contribution, whether you’re starting out and maybe you’re an assistant role or whatever, you are equal to everyone else and everyone is equal to you. So this deep sense of equality is a very important part of establishing a spiritual environment because hierarchy isn’t the truth, it’s a manmade concept to create societal structure, but it’s not the truth of who we are. So deep sense of equality pervading the workplace despite any sort of job titles, it’s very important.

Tip #4: Workplace Spirituality and How to Help Cultivate It: Keep healthy boundaries

Number four, we keep healthy boundaries. So just like I was saying, when we’re vulnerable, we don’t have to share everything. We also have this sense of what feels good to me, the lines and boundaries of what I wanna share about my personal life and what other people can share with me, and also how they treat me and how I treat others.

So if you are in a work environment where there’s storminess or chaos or moodiness, really keeping the boundary of not engaging in what feels in your heart to be unhealthy. If someone is projecting something from their personal life onto you or handling something overly emotionally in the workplace, we stay in our dignity, we stay in our space. We don’t have to demonize or we definitely don’t wanna get down to their level, but we just keep this nice sense of love, compassion, but boundaries, right? So both ways going this way and going that way, you to others and others back to you. And this way it really keeps a really healthy space where we can be open and we can be loving, but it’s not overly touchy feely, which can make people uncomfortable and can make, you know, the overall workspace, feel murky, healthy boundaries create more heart space because we know where we, where we stand and where we, where we land and where it’s okay to go, but it doesn’t cross any boundaries that would make anyone feel like it’s too much. So again, all of this is unique to inside of you and what will feel right to you, there isn’t, you know, exact guidelines for each work environment. So you just have to see what is right for your space.

So number four, you can bring up programs to higher ups or find programs that help spread spirituality across the community, across the workspace. So these should be voluntary, they should be optional, they should never be forced. But this is something that you may wanna bring up, whether it’s a mindfulness program or a meditation program or you know, a, a communal space for stillness and silence and, you know, um, people being able to practice their own spiritual religious practices in the day. Whatever it is, if you feel called to it, you can bring this up and help promote it at your space. I will say that I did a program for Hearst Hurst Media with all the different magazines and all the different parts of their media, um, organization.

I did a program with them at 9:00 AM which is 6:00 AM here in LA where we, I meditated for the whole team. Everybody got a copy of my new book. And it was really incredible to see all these beautiful faces pop up on Zoom. So it was optional and, but everyone could participate. And we got really great feedback where people felt really settled and intuitive and more awake as they went into their day, but also that they felt connected to each other. So this is an example of a program that I personally got to be part of that was really wonderful and I could see the benefits. So maybe that’s something that inspires you for your workplace or if you are a manager or a space creator at your work, something you may wanna look into as well.

Tip #5: Workplace Spirituality and How to Help Cultivate It: Be grateful for everyone and what they bring

Number five, be grateful for everyone and what they bring. So what this means is that gratitude is part of appreciation and seeing others, and again, it goes back to something that feels really simple and basic, but it’s often overlooked in the workplace. And it’s so powerful is seeing each other, not just putting on this robotic front, but being really grateful for each day and for where we are and what we’re creating, what we’re working on at work, no matter exactly what it is. But if it aligns to your values and your working there, we wanna be grateful. And though we wanna be grateful for each person, each person is a gift. Again, no matter exactly what they bring or what their personality is in some way, shape or form, they are inspiring growth. They are moving things forward. They are part of this cornucopia mix of, you know, the environment that’s there. So we wanna show up with a grateful heart.

And something that we can do before we go into work is to meditate. We do our personal practices, whether it’s five minutes or 10 minutes or longer, and then afterwards we can do our gratitude practice. And part of our gratitude practice is to be grateful for those of you know, our colleagues at work. And to set an intention for gratitude and showing up and seeing each other and seeing all your, you know, everyone that you encounter in the day with love, peace, and acceptance. People will feel when you are grateful for them and they in turn will be more grateful for you.

Tip #6: Workplace Spirituality and How to Help Cultivate It: Give up being right

And number six, give up being right. So spirituality oneness in the deepest sense is that we start to see that everything is part of oneness. And there are so many different perspectives and parts of the journey and other people’s journeys that we don’t maybe understand.

Maybe we don’t understand exactly where someone’s coming from, but when we stay open and receptive, we realize that there are many ways up the mountain and we aren’t necessarily right. Taking things out of this context or right or wrong opens up the space for infinite possibilities. And this openness is part of spirituality instead of being closed and rigid and just my way, just my path, just my religion, right, it closes us down versus openness of literally the the namaste. I see the light in you. That’s what it really means. I bow down to the light in you, I bow down to the infinite expressions of the divine in my fellow brothers and sisters. And so in the workplace I’m open to new ideas. I may feel really passionate about a project or way of going about something, but when someone brings something to my door, I can say, oh, interesting, that’s another way.

Or I didn’t think of it that way. And let me contemplate it. It doesn’t mean we have to agree or that we have to adopt everything, but the rigidity of right wrong closes down. Whereas the openness of, huh, interesting maybe creates this spiritual flow. The creative energy in the workplace, the love, the light, it is openness and curiosity are spiritual qualities. And so that will definitely allow the energy to flow more as well. So now we’ll review spirituality in the workplace means expressing love, expressing values, seeing each other’s people and celebrating the miracle of life and awareness and awakening to that. We don’t have to compartmentalize, we don’t have to shut ourselves down and only enact our beliefs and values when we are in a specific setting, rather that we can let it flow through our entire lives into the workplace. Bringing this, this wholeness, this deeper perspective of spirit universe in all things into the work.

And six practical ways to do that are, number one, to work in a place that aligns to your values system or allows you to feel your own values can be expressed. And so fundamentally, and first and foremost, if you are in a place that feels blocked or stagnant, you may wanna make some moves either within that organization or to another organization just to make sure that you are aligned. And then number two, we want to be present and vulnerable with others so that we can show up and see each other and look into each other’s eyes and be human instead of robotic. Number three, we see the truth. We live the truth, we express the truth, which is that everyone is equal. And yes, there are different job titles to create a practical structure at work, but underneath we recognize the spiritual truth, which is that every single human has a drop of spirit in them.

And so every therefore, every single human is completely and utterly equal. It does not matter what we look like, what we do or do not do, what our job title is, how important we may be deemed within the organization. These are societal, manmade structures Underneath the spiritual truth is equality. So we wanna live that and breathe that every moment of every day, including at work. And people will feel that we see past the Bs of the ego and we live the truth of equality. And then number four, we keep healthy boundaries. Oh, I actually did, um, three, twice. So there’s seven. Sorry about that, <laugh>. So number four actually is keep your healthy boundaries with yourself and with others. This means you treat yourself with the self-respect and worth. You do not let others treat you poorly. You stand up for yourself and you also share what feels good and you take in what feels good, but you keep those healthy lines.

We have some podcasts on boundaries and boundaries setting if you wanna check that out as well. Number five, find programs that spread spirituality that you may bring up to the management team or if you’re a manager yourself, which are voluntary and optional, but can be helpful in the workplace, whether it’s a a w uh, you know, a mindfulness course or meditation or whatever it is. Number six, be grateful for everyone and what they bring in every day because the energy of gratitude is a very powerful spiritual one, which will foster abundance and cooperation and love in the workplace. Love is present everywhere. We don’t have to turn it off and turn cold. We can be loving again, but boundary eat at work. And number seven is give up being right. So we can be passionate, we can have our opinions, but we wanna be open and receptive and go past black and white, right, wrong, which can feel really, um, rigid and shut things down and foster more cooperation through connectivity.

And huh, that’s a new i, new idea, a new way of looking at things. So I hope this inspires more love, peace, heart, and spirituality in your workplace. Let me know what you think. Let me know comments, other questions you have. Of course over on the podcast tab of our website, my sal luna.com, where we will put up these show notes and connect you to other shows I think you would enjoy as well as recipes, meditations, our practical enlightenment, meditations and more. We’ll be back here Monday for our next interview podcast. Till then, take great care and sending you so much love. [inaudible].