What is Workplace Spirituality?
At Heart to Heart Communications we use the word "spirituality" in the broadest sense: to allow our whole being to be expressed in the workplace, at home and within our communities. The question is not whether spirituality belongs in the workplace. The real question is whether business can thrive without spirit.
Spirituality in the workplace does not focus on theology. Instead it looks to the values and ethics that are common to most of the world's religions. All people, those with no faith background or those who practice any religion, have spirituality. Spirituality is an important part of each person's uniqueness.
Workplace spirituality shapes an environment that determines how we conduct ourselves, our business, and our interactions with others. Spirituality refers to that which comes from within. The value of the word "spirituality" is in the ongoing exploration of how it is understood in the workplace, rather than in a specific definition.
We can all recognize when spirit is blocked in our everyday work environments: low morale, low productivity, gossip, backbiting, high employee absenteeism and turnover. And we can point to some of the signs that spirit does exist in the workplace: respect, openness, trust, compassion, honesty, commitment and connectedness among the employees.