Health and wellbeing - yes, let’s talk more about it

Whoa! I feel good

Many popular songs perfectly describe what feeling well means. Art, in general, can easily express it through the use of colours, images, shapes and materials, but if you're asked to describe it or explain what a sense of wellbeing is, it can be tough.

Describing what comfort is starts from our personal view because it can be completely different from a person to another. However, some facts about wellbeing give us clues that can help us to define what it is.

Thinking about a physical space, we can certainly say that a building with good lighting, ventilation and biophilic design elements represents a shared idea of wellbeing. Another example could be of a school, where having creative spaces and good acoustics that enhance the learning of students. What about workplaces? Being in a beautiful office with comfy furniture and distraction-free spaces seem to be vital for a productive day at work, right?

All these examples show how personal wellbeing is deeply connected with our social life and to what we are exposed to. Feeling good and having a sense of comfort is the result of several aspects starting from the environment and the relationship we build in our life. 

Wellbeing reflects both the mental and physical

Wellbeing is defined by the WHO as “a state of complete physical, mental and social wellbeing, and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity”.

Wellbeing lies between our sense of being healthy and feeling healthy. To help satisfy the description of wellbeing, there is another term that is often associated with it: comfort.

Comfort, from Latin, etymologically means to strengthen greatly, but as a noun, it describes the ability to provide relaxation and satisfaction. Therefore it is important to understand how health, combined with wellbeing, can guide us to find the proper balance and reach comfort. When you can define wellbeing you have already initiated one of the first steps, to protect and nurture comfort in your life. 

5 ways to wellbeing

Despite the idea that wellbeing represents a personal state, it is useful to identify common ways and elements to reach comfort on a more general and shared level. Because wellbeing does not merely belong to our private sphere, it also plays a fundamental role in our social and working life. 

Here are a few essential steps to find daily wellbeing in your life:

1. Take a break  You should accept your emotion and most of all you should listen to your body. When you have too much to do, and the list of tasks becomes overwhelming, take a break. Five minutes, ten or even more. Don’t be afraid of refreshing your mind and get distracted before getting back to your workload. Dealing with stress in the right way is the key to preserve your wellbeing and prioritize projects and goals. 
   
   
2. Keep on learning  Socrate’s most famous quote “The only true wisdom is in knowing you know nothing.” This summarises the idea behind continued learning. Be open and curious to try new things, perhaps creative activities to develop new skills and to provide a lot of food for thought. Coming back to the question of what is wellbeing, learning something unexpected or different represents an excellent way to get new satisfaction and take a break for a moment from all the rest. 
   
   
3. Socialise more, in-person  Our digital era gives us various ways of socializing but nothing can be better than meeting the people you love and get to know your colleagues and neighbours with a nice chat in person. Interacting with others, laughing and sharing a meal with a good company is one of the best gifts for yourself. Also, expanding your circle of friends will give you more ideas and various points of view, a sort of different and unique learning time while communicating. What else?
   
   
4. Exercise  Yes, as we know, exercise is the essential factor to have a healthy life both physical and mental. Having an active life and exercising daily increases the blood flow and therefore let us feel more energetic and mentally active. One of the wellbeing definitions is certainly represented by the act of moving our body. Going to the gym, walking the dog, doing some yoga at home. Any activity is good as far as we keep it as a daily routine, maybe to share with friends as well. 
   
   
5. Keep a sleeping routine  We all agree on the fact that sleeping plays a pivotal role in our wellbeing and health standards. However, being stimulated by endless inputs and several devices can easily ruin our routine and shorten our sleeping hours. Insomnia can also appear as a worse consequence of modern habits. That is why associating comfort and wellbeing to sleep is not anymore a banal discourse. Moreover, the sleeping time should be seen also from a quality perspective, for example, how can we have a good night surrounded by tedious noises? 

Tada! Now you have a good list of tips to start your journey to find your equilibrium and be more productive and relaxed. Remember you should define wellbeing as a practice, not a quick fix from a day to another.

What about wellbeing at work?

Now that we figured out how to reach personal wellbeing following some good habits on a daily basis, we should understand how wellbeing can be improved in our work life. Because we spend almost 70% of our day in offices or other workplaces like hospitals, shops, restaurants, factories or schools, it is vital to focus on what is wellbeing at work and how to increase it. Working in a healthy environment reflects the level of safety especially regarding physical work, the workplace culture, the involvement and learning growth of employees.

As an employer, it is important to comprehend how productivity is deeply linked with employee wellbeing. Providing comfort and creating a positive working environment is the key to success for enterprises of all sizes. A workspace should promote collaboration among employees, giving a place where interacting represents the most efficient way to achieve common goals and develop new skills and knowledge. Moreover, a healthy workplace is based on diversity, inclusion and sustainability. 

Aha! That’s how to improve wellbeing in your workplace!

Improving wellbeing at work starts also from a look at the space itself. Is there enough ventilation in your office? The indoor quality can be improved? How often your employees are getting distracted and why? One of the most common answers in all workplaces finds noise as the first problem of decreased productivity and loss of attention. Undoubtedly, stay focused in an open office with phone calls, people chatting or loud noises from the outside can be difficult. Being exposed to noise all day at work can lead to high levels of stress, headaches and therefore it will impact our sleep and wellbeing. It is pivotal to include good acoustics while designing workspaces and to ensure a healthy environment where our work won’t be constantly interrupted by unwanted sounds.

Regarding office work, it is important to consider light as well. Staring at screens for hours represents an exhausting exercise for our eyes and that is why an optimal usage of natural light becomes crucial to work with comfort. Installing a ceiling with high-quality acoustics and light reflection properties can be a beneficial solution for various settings such as office spaces, schools, and hospitals. By addressing the issue of noise through effective sound absorption, and enhancing the natural light within the space, employees may experience increased productivity, students may see improved study results, and patients may experience a better overall outcome.

Ceiling design to change employees wellbeing

Find here more about our acoustic ceiling solutions and how they can improve your wellbeing and enhance productivity thanks to their great sound absorption materials and light reflection. 

Luckily, we have a beautiful range of modern acoustic solutions that can make your office sound as good as it looks. Workers can create, concentrate and collaborate, while your Rockfon products quietly absorb noisy distractions.

Our ceilings and wall solutions don’t just have high noise reduction values, they’re resistant to mould and bacteria and are easy to clean. They also come in a range of colours – from calm and inspiring to energising. And some models even reflect daylight for visual comfort and wellbeing. Rockfon products tick a lot of other boxes. They’re sustainably sourced and manufactured. So when you choose Rockfon you make a responsible choice for the planet as well as your workplace.

Sounds beautiful.