When professionals take off their stethoscopes and strap on their helmets, assess the waves rather than the real estate market or assemble their wet bags instead of airplane engines, they are getting fit for business.
Whether you are a doctor, appraiser or rocket scientist, serious business people are taking play seriously and romping in the rewards. Those in the business of play say the benefits are visible. Experts say play can improve your bottom line.
“Exercise increases productivity, improves focus, relieves stress, provides balance and makes people happy,” said Flagstaff physician Dr. Miguel Flores.
Rarely is his waiting room empty, but this busy family doctor makes it a priority to take time to kayak the white water, ski the backcountry or bike mountain trails. “As a result of play, patients and professionals are better at what they do and are more nurturing toward each other. It definitely promotes business success,” he said.
Rocky Ridge Realty broker and residential property appraiser Denny Birkland agrees. “Keeping all parties in a transaction working together can be stressful. To maintain the mental and physical energy to meet the challenges of running a business, I enjoy outdoor activities that are seasonal – skiing in the winter, surfing or paddle boarding in the summer – and yoga and regular exercise to keep me fit for these activities. They bring pleasure along with physical exertion, which relaxes the mind and soul.”
Exercise improves self-confidence and self-esteem, and reduces cardiovascular and neurohumoral responses to mental stress, reports Amer Suleman, M.D., in an article for Medscape. “Cross-sectional studies reveal that compared with sedentary individuals, active persons are more likely to be better adjusted, to perform better on tests of cognitive functioning, to exhibit reduced cardiovascular responses to stress, and to report fewer symptoms of anxiety and depression.”
While you think you are taking time away from work to exercise, Healthier Outcomes President Gillian Hood-Gabrielson suggests looking at exercise as business development time, “especially when those solutions aren’t coming while you are stuck at your desk. By stepping away from business, having some alone time and increasing your metabolism and circulation, solutions to problems will come to you, and new creative ideas will develop,” she writes on About.com.
To maintain a healthy balance in life, Flagstaff Face and Body Naturopathic Physician Dr. Ali Redwine, N.M.D., skis, mountain bikes, hikes and plays softball. “These activities help me immensely with my professional life. I am lucky to enjoy my daily work and feel blessed and thankful to have a job that I look forward to each day, but without the recreational release of my ‘play time,’ all work and daily responsibilities can become overwhelming and stressful at times.”
“Many of us have detached from ‘play’ and forget about the benefits that ‘play’ provides like more energy, a different perspective, being in the moment, stress release, empowerment and endorphins!” said Me-Shell Mijangos, founder of SwellWomen, a Maui surf and yoga retreat for women. “Sometimes you need to put yourself out of your comfort zone and ‘play’ can do just that.”
Putting people out of their comfort zone is also the business of white water river rafting companies. “People come to us because they want to see the Grand Canyon and they are willing to put themselves into a wilderness experience,” said Fred Thevenin, owner and operations manager of Arizona River Rafting Adventures (AZRA). “When we send them back to the outside world they have a better awareness of life. Physically and mentally, they feel much better.”
Corinna Hendrickson, a Reno physician’s assistant and single mom, says her high-stress job/high-stress life was wearing her down. It wasn’t until she paddled off with AZRA that she was reminded of the healing power of play. “I was going through a lot. I learned how to have fun again and how to let go. When I got off the river and came back to work, a drug rep said to me, ‘Wow! You’re really happy!’”
Canyoneers accommodates about 1,000 Colorado River rafting passengers per season. “Many of our passengers say this trip changed their life,” said President and Owner Joy Staveley. “Every other year, a group from Boeing in Seattle charters a full trip with us. These are senior engineers who are engaged in a stressful business requiring long hours of work. They like to raft the Grand Canyon with Canyoneers because it allows them to relax and unwind away from the normal routine of city life. They spend a week or two with us away from noise, traffic, computers, cell phones, deadlines, the daily news, and life’s little problems. They say they return to work rejuvenated!”
“I swear our retreats take away wrinkles!” said SwellWomen’s Mijangos. “I see a calmness and more centered woman leaving the retreats. I also see a woman who feels incredibly empowered and at the same time very relaxed…a true yin/yang vacation experience.”
Whether surfing, peddling or paddling away from business for a while, experts say the focus, energy and balance gained makes the business of play a smart investment. FBN