^Employers who have grown accustomed to flexible employment arrangements may soon face an unpleasant surprise.

On LinkedIn's behalf, a study by YouGov surveyed nearly 3,000 executives from organizations with at least 1,000 employees and at least £250 million in revenue ($288.5 million).

According to these statistics, remote job postings are declining. In India, for example, the number of remote job postings decreased by five percentage points since April, when they peaked at 20% of all job postings.

While this is still a good deal higher than pre-pandemic averages of 2%, it is still a stark contrast to what workers would like to see.

"Flexibility is an essential component of a successful work environment, enabling employees to find a balance between their professional and personal lives." - Stuart W. Crabb

Workplace flexibility is ranked as one of the most important objectives for workers after remuneration, alongside work-life balance, skills development, and compensation.

Even though the number of jobs requiring remote work has decreased in the United States, these advertisements still garner more than half of all applicants as of September.

Data shows that remote employment accounts for 14.6% of employment possibilities globally but receives 20.2% of application submissions. The number of remote jobs in India is 11.3%, while the number of resumes is 20.3%.

Remote Job Posts vs. Applications, September 2022

Why are businesses cutting back?

LinkedIn polled its users about remote employment options and found that the trend towards remote employment was correlated with the current economic environment.

As part of a survey of executives, they were asked if the Coronavirus outbreak would force their companies to adopt more flexible working practices. In response to this question, more than 68% of executives said yes.

The current economic uncertainty has resulted in corporations in all parts of the world freezing their recruitment efforts. As a result, business leaders are under tremendous pressure to reduce costs and increase efficiency to pursue these goals.

‍Trends in workforce confidence

In the absence of an epidemic leading to a move toward flexible working and corporate wellness programs to help workers, the balance of power is now in the hands of employers.

This report also found that the current economic uncertainty adversely affects other employee benefits. In other words, 70% of CEOs agreed that skill development might need to be emphasized less in the future, and 75% said that employee well-being would likely receive less attention.

The survival of businesses depends on their ability to adapt to changing conditions. Some companies might think they can save money by reducing benefits like flexible scheduling, but they could suffer long-term consequences.

In companies that lag behind in adopting flexible and remote working, employees risk becoming demotivated and leaving for rivals who offer more attractive options. In order to survive, businesses will have to be more adaptable.

Businesses are beginning to offer a broader range of perks as a way to keep and attract workers—many still recovering from the Great Resignation. There have even been some employers who have adopted a four-day workweek.

We at TheWellnessTribe believe that businesses must be able to adapt and be flexible in order to succeed in the future.

In the long run, the winners will be those who recognize this as an opportunity, adapt and iterate, and explore new working methods.

^We live in a world full of distractions and stimulations. But imagine if there was a way to slow things down for the mind to unwind and for our body to let go of that stress.

What was the last time you devoted some time to being still, putting down your phone, and getting rid of all the distractions around you?

When was the last time you didn't do anything? 

Today, let’s discover how meditation can benefit us in our life. Whether you are new or have done some meditation before, you will find this guide very helpful. 

‍Meditation: What Exactly Is It?

So you may be asking, Well, what is meditation? Honestly, it's actually a really simple thing. In essence, meditation is a skill that trains our minds so we can maintain a calmer, clearer mind and feel more at ease mind body soul.

Thus, we're taking a few minutes out of our everyday routine and training our minds to be less distracted and more present. No need to become a monk or nun to meditate. 

Many people assume that meditation is meant to control the mind, change the mind, and get rid of thoughts and distractions. There is more to meditation than that. If you've been introduced to meditation through a workplace wellness program or other employee wellbeing program, you can make it easy at home without any help. 

‍Here’s an Example to Make It Easier

Look at meditation in this way. Imagine that you're sitting on the side of the road. Now, you have just to sit there and watch the cars. The cars are your thoughts. Sounds easy, right? We tend to feel unsettled when the traffic moves.

So to stop the cars, we run out into the road. Perhaps we even forget the point of sitting there in the first place, chasing after some. Obviously, running around all the time only increases our restlessness in mind.

So by training the mind, we can transform our relationship with those passing thoughts and feelings. Having a different perspective on things allows us to find the peace we need for prosperous mental health.

Is it possible to get distracted from the idea of the exercise sometimes? Indeed, as soon as we remember, we're back on the roadside, watching the traffic go by, entirely at ease, body and mind. A fundamental method of cultivating a sense of peace is focused attention.

"Meditation is the dissolution of thoughts in Eternal awareness or Pure consciousness without objectification, knowing without thinking, merging finitude in infinity." - Voltaire

The Art of Meditation

It's important to have something to focus our attention on when we're training our mind body soul. It could be a visualisation, a question, a word, a phrase, or maybe even something external. The most common thing to focus on is the breath.

Our focus of attention gives us an anchor. We can turn to it when we suddenly realise our minds have wandered. That, of course, will happen sometimes.

It's not that we're trying to block out thoughts or isolate ourselves from the world we live in when we focus on an object like our breath. But, rather than getting sucked into that type of thinking or distraction, we're learning to step out of it, let it go, and return to our calm, focused attention.

‍The Science Behind Meditation

The concept of focused attention is not new. Thousands of years ago, Buddhists practised meditation to achieve inner piece and happiness. People who have practised meditation for years have felt the benefits but don't necessarily know how it works physiologically.

The last 20 years have seen scientists rigorously measure blood pressure, heart rate, stress levels, and even brain structure to see what's happening.

There is something called "neuroplasticity." It explains that the brain is flexible and malleable, that it could change, and that scientists were actually witnessing this by putting monks through an fMRI scanner and noticing what was happening to the brain before, during, and after meditation.

It is now known that when we meditate, we are training a muscle, just like when we go to the gym and work out. We build it up. The same goes for that part of the brain linked to happiness and well-being.

It's getting thicker. It's getting stronger, so we actually spend more time in that place. Meditation's been proven to reduce stress, frustration, depression, and pain and also to increase happiness, heightening levels of patience, acceptance, and compassion. So even if you feel like nothing is happening when you meditate and practice mindfulness, you can be assured that it can improve your personal as well as wellbeing at workplace.

So if you wish to embark on a journey through mindfulness, let’s get started. with our Mindfulness Matters: How to Stay Steady during Storms guide.