When was the last time you considered your own impact on the way work affects you?

Michael Carroll, founder of Awake at Work, visits organisations both in the US and internationally (last month he visited Sydney to speak at the Happiness and Wellbeing Conference) to share his proposition, that “In order for us to get somewhere in our careers, we have to learn to be somewhere first – to be properly respectful, confident and present in the immediate moment.”

His point, he summarises in the following: I practice in my own mind how to be a decent person, and then I bring that to work, and I inspire the best in other people, rather than trying to make them behave in the way that I want them to behave.

Carroll is aware his concepts might sound airy fairy at first to some, but promises, “It’s not just some ‘hippy’ talk”.

“It’s actually about becoming utterly realistic about your experience. With people always trying to look to the future they’re overlooking the present, and invariably when you overlook the present, you neglect your world; you neglect your job, your colleagues, your work, your family,” Carroll said.

“The whole notion of rediscovering some sanity at work begins with slowing down and paying attention to the experience.”

The mentality of always having "to get somewhere", he said, has “a profound blind spot” - the cause of major unhappiness in the workplace.

“It’s an interesting problem we find ourselves in – we all want to succeed at work, and success tells us, hurry up, get it done, quickly and effectively.

"But the work tells you, slow down, do it right, do it properly.

“These two impulses of hurry up and slow down, if not managed well and understood well, is a source of tremendous suffering,” he said.

So what solutions does Carroll propose? What lessons can listeners take home from his talks?

Well, the first step is not to consider which message to barge into the office boardroom with and deliver to company heads. Better to begin by thinking about yourself.

“The first step is to begin with your own mind, to look at what you bring to the workplace first and foremost,” he said, which might deliver some nasty surprises.

“It’s more than likely that you’ll find that to some degree you’re bringing toxicity; that you’re coming to work angry, frustrated, fed up, afraid, disappointed, discouraged, maybe feeling like you’re not good enough.

We need to examine, what is the story that we’re telling ourselves? and begin to train our minds, rather than first trying to change the organisation. Which, Carroll adds, he’s a big fan of: “I change organisations for a living,” he said. But there’s a right way and a not-so-right way.

Carroll encourages leadership in organisations to focus on enacting health and wellbeing strategies.

“If you can get a management team to say that health and wellbeing is something that requires attention – everything from safety to vacations, to physicals for the family to quarterly cholesterol checks for people, to employee assistance programs - and really frame it strategically and communicate consistently that the organisation is genuinely concerned about the health and wellbeing of each individual and their family, that creates an atmosphere where a lot of the toxicity begins to become exposed and obvious.”

He recommends, at a strategic level, that the notion of health and wellbeing be placed as one of the top five priorities of the organisation. “Within that atmosphere,” he said, “many things can be done.”

“Whenever I’m speaking in a workplace and I ask, How would you describe your job?, the vast majority describe it as stressful , frustrating, difficult or anxiety-producing.”

He points to the thousands of studies produced to show the predominance of unhealthy, toxic workplaces where employees are stressed, anxious and demeaned at work.

But work should further our inspiration, rather than inhibit it, Carroll believes. He promotes an atmosphere in the workplace that is more inspiring and uplifting.

Carroll believes we are experiencing a crisis in the workplace, via a failure to examine the way in which we apply effort. It’s an examination that is critical to his work.

“In many respects we are all at work trying to get things done smarter, cheaper, faster, more effectively – which in a certain sense is actually quite good; it’s a beautiful part of being human. But what I call ‘always trying to get somewhere’ has really been blown out of proportion.”

He credits modern day haste as a factor contributing to the economic crisis – the constant attempts to meet a short-term goal: promotions, an annual bonus, demonstrating business growth to key stakeholders.

“It really does come down to leadership, to policy and practice, that takes it seriously. If you don’t have that mentality, if you don’t get it at that level, then you just don’t get it.”

Most people, once they hear about it, do get it though. Carroll believes people are more receptive now than ever. “Running your business in terms of humanity and thoughtfulness – and not being afraid of your vision and your mission as an organisation – it doesn’t cost dollars, it’s just intelligent.”

For more on Awake at Work click here.