We asked a psychic what to expect from work in 2024

As employers spend the last weeks of 2023 looking ahead toward the new year, they should be preparing for a "wellness revolution" in the workplace, says Amanda Rieger, a psychic medium, wellness coach and the founder of Soul Pathology. 

"It doesn't matter where you are on the ladder professionally, but when I feel well and whole and productive, I offer so much to whatever environment I'm in," Rieger says. "And employers are beginning to get curious about how that can be implemented to start this wellness revolution, because it's coming, whether we like it or not." 

Rieger works with individuals and workplaces to help employees tap into their "higher selves." Often, the work she does uncovers a new way of looking at what it takes for them to be successful and well in their lives. 

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"I communicate for your soul, your higher self, every version of you that ever was or ever will be. I ask, 'What are your challenges?' And I can see what's going on at a very deep fundamental level," she says. "There's been a massive paradigm shift that's happening on the employee level. The scale has been tipped — it's not work-life balance anymore. It seems to be a life-work balance."  

The fallout from COVID continues

When it comes to mental health and well-being in the workplace, there's already been an evolution in how employers have embraced support since the start of the pandemic in 2020. This year, 43% of employers offered some sort of mental health coverage within their health insurance plans, according to the American Psychological Association, while 77% of employers offered no- or low-cost virtual telehealth mental health care, according to Business Group on Health. 

Yet employers may not be reacting quickly enough to the changes the pandemic made to supporting well-being and mental health in the workplace. Sixty-seven percent of employees still report feeling stress and anxiety around work, according to a report by JobSage, and 62% say they've experienced burnout this year, according to data from Aflac. Rieger predicts those numbers will only grow unless employers abandon outdated norms around work. 

"COVID was a collective trauma, and we still have not seen all of the fallout yet because it's unfolding in real time," Rieger says. "The beauty of it is it has created this different demand from employees around what they need in order to thrive and be successful. But I'm not sure employers are even ready to embrace that." 

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For example, a focus on return-to-office mandates in 2023 is a misguided attempt at connection, Rieger says. In her work with clients up through the executive level, she's noticed a sense of frustration around these policies and how they impact employee autonomy and well-being. 

"They want to be able to go in and congregate and connect and influence and support each other, but they also want to have flexibility to work from home to do what they need to do to be trusted to do that," Rieger says. "When I feel trusted and feel recognized for the whole of who I am, I'm not just the cog that I fill as my role in my organization." 

If employers are unwilling to embrace these changes and trust employees to be their fullest selves, they'll start to see the fallout, something that's already been apparent in the strikes that have impacted industries in 2023, Rieger says. 

"Most employers really are concerned with cost, the bottom line and productivity. But something in the system must be shifted, because you can start to see an uprising happening from the workforce," Rieger says. "The old answers and the old solutions are starting to become outdated." 

A new approach to wellness

While Rieger doesn't expect a change to happen overnight, she's optimistic that employers will continue to embrace more holistic approaches to health and well-being. The results will benefit what employers really care about: Their organization's longevity and the bottom line. 

"Employers and leaders are recognizing the value of holistic well-being to create resilience, to cut costs, to enhance productivity, to attract the ideal talent that they need. This has massive implications," she says. "Looking at how we incorporate wellness will not only start to create new solutions, it will uplevel the consciousness of an organization." 

Rieger encourages employers to start small — will she be hosting more conference-room psychic readings in the near future? Perhaps not, she admits, but there are many alternatives for employers to consider when they think about health. 

"I'm not saying that employees are going to say, 'Oh, we need Reiki.' That's not going to be the first answer," she says. "But maybe benefit programs can add alternative forms of medicine, whether that's chiropractic, acupuncture, massage, yoga, mindfulness, physical fitness. That can have substantial impacts long-term." 

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The best way for employers to begin to truly shift their approach to wellness is to talk to the people who will benefit from it the most: Employees themselves. Being open to feedback, and expressing curiosity around what employees want and need, is a positive first step towards a future where people can meld their life and work more seamlessly. 

"Success is no longer defined by bottom line profits and market share dominance. Getting curious about new solutions that extend beyond the box, that's where you're going to see your success stories," Rieger says. "I am attracting more and more people who all they want to do is find peace, find happiness, find joy, be productive, be successful, enjoy life. It's not simple, but can be easy and extremely invaluable and enriching when it comes to our optimal health and well-being."