For happy staff, send them to an early grave
Stressed workers told to write last letter to loved ones, then laid in a coffin to count their blessings
IN A country with the highest suicide rate in the developed world, it might seem a risky approach.
But some South Korean companies are attempting to tackle the issue of work-related stress by sending staff to attend their own mock funerals.
In Seoul, the Hyowon Healing Centre runs sessions which promise to leave those who attend them reflecting on the meaning of life.
The process involves a group of employees writing farewell letters to loved ones before getting into their own individual wooden coffins.
They lie down in their casket, hugging a picture of themselves, draped in black ribbon.
A man representing the angel of death – dressed in black with a tall hat – closes each coffin leaving those inside to reflect on how they have spent their time on earth.
The exercise is designed to help people come to terms with their own obstacles, said Jeong Yong-mun, who runs the Hyowon Centre.
He took inspiration from his previous position in a funeral company, and with an estimated 40 suicides in South Korea a day, some in the country believe it just might provide an answer to the crisis.
The Korean Neuropsychiatric Association found that a quarter of those it surveyed suffered high stress, with work-related anxiety cited as a prime cause. Park Chun-woong’s recruitment company is one of several that has been staging staff funerals at the Hyowon Centre. “Our company has always en- couraged employees to change their old ways of thinking, but it was hard to bring about any real difference,” he told the BBC.
“I thought going inside a coffin would be such a shocking experience it would completely reset their minds for a fresh start.”
The routine is intended to teach the employees to appreciate what they have, underscored by videos showing those less fortunate overcoming challenges. One video shows a terminal cancer sufferer in her final days; another shows someone born with no limbs learning to swim.
“After the coffin experience ... I hope to be more passionate in all the work I do and spend more time with my family,” said Cho Yong-tae, one employee.
Mr Park has also introduced a daily communal laughing session for staff.
“I think it really does have a positive influence,” he said. “There’s so little to laugh about in a normal office atmosphere, I think this kind of laughter helps.”