Speaking at an online conference, Price Harry shared some nuggets of wisdom with employers. The key takeaway was that staff should be given at least 45 minutes a day for contemplation and “inner work.”
Harry’s first public appearance this year was in his capacity as chief impact officer of BetterUp, which is a mental wellness app that he joined in March 2021.
The 37-year-old duke of Sussex pointed out that while mental fitness does require effort, it pays off in the end, as it eventually has a positive impact on “outer work” as well.
Harry opened up about his own experience of burnout – something that made him realize the importance of meditation. He lamented that he had difficulty arranging some ‘me-time’, what with looking after two young children at a $14 million mansion in California. And yet, the royal still makes a point of allocating 30 to 45 minutes every morning – which he described as “white space” – to meditate.
The royal-turned-coach described his realization that he “needs to meditate every day,” seeing that he is a “father, husband and someone starting a business.”
The same practice should be allowed and welcomed in the workplace universally, too, he argued. According to Prince Harry, “From an employer’s perspective, you can’t expect – in today’s world – people to put in the work on themselves if you’re not giving them the time to be able to do that.” Hence, it is important for employers to “say if you have the chance to do it in your own spare time that’s fantastic, but we are going to factor that into your routine at work,” the duke opined. If his advice were to be put into practice, Harry said, the “shift in global consciousness and awareness would be enormous.”
Harry went on to say that the “only way you can combat burnout and build resilience for the outside world is by doing inner work.”
Harry also offered his approach to dealing with negative experiences in life, which, according to him, should be viewed as “lessons from the universe” that are meant to make a person more resilient.
During the online summit, Alexi Robichaux, BetterUp’s CEO, introduced Prince Harry as nothing short of “one of the bravest advocates for mental fitness.”
However, Harry’s advice has apparently failed to convince some Twitter users, with critics pointing out that he has never had to hold down a regular job, and is, for that reason, not in a position to dish out work-related advice.
Others insisted the duke of Sussex has had no training to counsel people on “mental fitness.”
The royal attended Sandhurst Royal Military academy and then served in the British Army for 10 years until 2015. In January 2020, Harry and his wife Meghan announced that they had decided to become “financially independent” and stopped being working members of the British royal family.