Wellness at work: Making the most of every moment

Wellness at work does not get the attention it did during the pandemic. Yet, many employees still might be feeling blue. It's not sugar cookies and twinkling lights for everyone. HR leaders can support the team in a myriad of ways.

Author Elizabeth De Sevo wrote “Choose Your MOMents” How the sudden loss of my mother taught me how to live to help people cope with their grief and make the most of their own time in this world. She speaks to professionals about how to succeed at work while keeping life in perspective. Recently, De Sovo sat down with HR Exchange Network to help us understand how to make the most of every moment: 

HREN: What was the motivation for writing your book?

ED: My book, “Choose Your MOMents” was inspired by the incredible lesson I learned when my mother died unexpectedly. The first line of the book is, “It's inevitable that death is a part of life, but what if it was death itself, that taught us how to live,” and that is exactly what happened to me.

In the midst of the grief, I felt lost and disconnected from the world around me, wondering how my own life would continue. Until the evening before the funeral, seeing my mother one last time, I came to the realization that often the things we think matter don’t. All that matters are the moments.  Life is a series of moments and we get to choose how to live them, a simple yet very powerful message.

Just prior, my mind had been racing with questions about my mom's last moments wondering if she ate tasty food, listened to her favorite song, saw a sunset, or if she even laughed.  What I was actually wondering, was whether her last moments were joyful, beautiful, or meaningful. We tend to chase the big milestones in life or the next best thing, thinking that it will bring us happiness and fulfillment, ultimately forgetting that the quality of our lives depends on the quality of our moments. 

Life is a series of moments and we get to choose how to live them.  This concept carried me through grief and reminded me that even in the most challenging circumstances, I have the ability to choose how I experience them. 

It helped me to build resilience, gave me a sense of empowerment, and most importantly, a path forward. There is a quote in the book that says, “When you are moved by your message, you create movement.” The motivation behind my book and workshop is to empower people to live each moment with intention and choice, now being called “MOMents,” in honor of my mom.  It is about providing tools to help people embrace presence and intentionality, whether they are navigating personal loss or the everyday challenges of life.

HREN: How can HR leaders use the concepts in the book to reach the talent that they are managing? 

ED: As HR leaders are the go-to professionals when it comes to solving the problems and relieving the stress of others, they can use the concepts of the book to better equip themselves and support their teams more effectively. It opens up the conversation of grief in the workplace and the understanding that there are many forms of loss that people carry into their professional lives (divorce, career and company changes, job loss, children leaving home, medical diagnosis, and the list goes on and on).

“Choose Your MOMents” offers practical and actionable tools that can be easily implemented into daily life. It is designed to cultivate well-being, build resilience, strengthen connection, and create a sense of fulfillment, which ultimately unlocks stronger performance. 

HREN: How can these ideas that you share empower individuals both personally and professionally? 

ED: As we bring our whole selves into the workplace, any improvement we make in one area is felt in the other.  The “MOMents” message will impact your whole self and empower you to make intentional choices that will enrich your overall well-being, mentally, emotionally, and physically. It fosters a positive mindset and attitude, builds resilience and strength and helps create a sense of fulfillment and happiness in all facets of your life.

The quotes in the book and the “MOMents” strategies in the workshop address essential areas of personal and professional growth including, purpose, passion, learning, forgiveness, adaptability, connection, and contribution.  It guides people to reengage in their work and lives with more meaning.

HREN: You talk about being present in the moment and prioritizing what really matters. Why is that important? What are some best practices for those leaders who may be struggling to get their priorities straight? 

ED: Our MOMents are our most precious asset.  There is a quote in the book that says “Time is for investing, not just spending.”  We tend to treat our days as something to get through instead of something to live, filling each hour with to-do lists, obligations, deadlines, running from one task to the next. “Choose Your MOMents” reminds us to bring intention into where our thoughts, time, and energy go. When we are in autopilot mode, time slips away from us yet when we are present, our moments become richer and more meaningful. 

A simple practice to bring yourself back on track is to reflect and ask, am I spending this moment or am I investing in it?  That question shifts us from autopilot to intention. So, even in those unavoidable spending moments, (meetings, errands, daily demands), we can look for small ways to add value to them. Turning them into a moment of connection, presence, appreciation, or purpose. As a quote in the book that says, “You can go from ordinary to extraordinary with just a decision.”

HREN: This is the holiday season, which can be hard for many people because of the grief that you address in the book. What's your message to those who might be having a harder time right now? 

ED: Yes, the holiday season can be so difficult when loved ones are missing.  This will be my first holiday without both of my parents as my dad died earlier this year, and I will be leaning on “MOMents” to carry me through it.  I once heard a grief defined as love looking for a place to go, so I would encourage anyone that is suffering to pour that love into their moments, into connection and into living. Grief, at its core, reminds us how much we value life, and how we choose to live our moments becomes its greatest expression. That is what brings me comfort.

HREN: Any overarching advice you'd like to share with the audience? If so, what?

ED: We have a lot more influence over lives than we might realize as we are shaping our moments every day. There is a quote in the book that saysm “You are the artist, and you are the masterpiece.” With every thought we think, every word we speak, and every action we take, we are actively designing the life we are living. We have the freedom to sculpt and mold our moments intentionally, starting with just a choice. 

HREN: Is there anything else you'd like to share? If so, what? 

ED: There is a quote in the book that says, “There isn't one right answer. The right answer is the one that resonates with you.” It is my hope that among the 80 quotes in the book and the strategies shared in the workshop that each person will discover what resonates most with them, so they can create and live better MOMents.   

You can reach Elizabeth Elizabeth De Sevo on LinkedIn or on her website. 

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