Blog

Updated 24th July 2023

As I drove recently through a state in middle America, which will go unnamed for fear of offending some of my nearest & dearest, I observed, as I do every time I visit the USA how unhealthy the lifestyle is. It is totally acceptable to drive everywhere; there are drive-thru fast food venues on every corner; there are few walking paths and no cycle paths; there are advertisements everywhere for every across-the-counter drug under the sun. And for too many people who were born and raised here it is a way of life, and they do not question it. The level of obesity is frightening, with young children and teenagers, never mind fully grown adults waddling, because they cannot walk properly due to their size. It seriously reminds me of the animated movie WALL-E (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0910970/). People don’t seem to realize that there is a different way to live one’s life. If children are born and reared in this environment, how can they expect to know any differently?! Call me mean, but I know that when people eat this amount of sugary and salty food and get no exercise, they are more likely to have severe health problems in time, that could otherwise easily be avoided.

What has this got to do, you may ask, with organisations and staff training?

Well my stay in the USA, got me thinking; what are the habits in organisations that people think are acceptable and healthy? People become institutionalised very quickly and often those with the best of intentions in a new role, get stuck into the way it’s always been, and they either stop questioning, or they put their head down and get on with it for the sake of keeping their job. They stop asking questions and stop looking for answers. People constantly tell me how they have settled into and accept things such as the following;

-Accepting gossiping within the department;

-Listening to a ranting team-member/ manager who blames everyone else for everything that goes wrong rather than taking responsibility themselves.

-Ignoring customer needs a) as much as they can get away with or b) because they have been indoctrinated into focusing on processes and procedures.

These are only a few examples of course, but people accept it all because this is how it’s always been and this is how it always will be. There is little consideration for the fact that rising stress levels due to these seemingly simple issues cause people to become less productive and/or ineffective. Over time the newbies become ingrained into what has always been the norm at that organization. How dangerous is this a) for the health of the individual and b) for the progress of the organization?

It is one thing to be aware of what is wrong and ineffective. In certain parts of the USA, how life is lived unhealthily by many is acceptable, with no questions asked. It is often only people who have left this particular state, (the one I am visiting), or who educate themselves about life outside of this and surrounding states and outside the USA in general, that realize that this way of life is not healthy. And even with awareness, it is difficult for them to make healthy decisions for themselves to make changes and decisions that their friends and families will also agree to. So it’s one thing to have the awareness, it’s another to have the confidence and conviction to expect anything different in behavior or to promote change, and to make sure it is seen through.

The only reason many organisations admit to needing help from external bodies or individuals, is when they record a massive drop in profits and when customers think on their feet and go to the competitor. Many organisations are reactive, rather than actively looking to get people on the same page, and improving the awareness of individuals before it gets out of control. It’s often too late by then.

Many Americans in this area, whom I have met, and seen, need to make some short to middle-term sacrifices in their lifestyle to adjust to a new way of living for the sake of long-term health. Likewise, long-term sustainability in organisations comes from short to medium term sacrifice at all levels of the organisation. Would you agree?