Mind is everything, what you think you become: Can mind-body well-being predict job performance?

The widespread effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on individual and societal physical health and mental well-being have permeated all aspects of life, including business and the workforce. The interaction between stress, illness, well-being, wellness, and performance is complex, including performance in entrepreneurship. The mind-body connection and its impact on wellness and illness has been studied since ancient times and infiltrates centuries-old mindfulness approaches and practices. Modernly, this connection has been researched as the mental state and physiology interaction. This study utilizes (1) machine learning techniques to test models predicting job performance by mind-body measures and (2) multiple regression modeling to investigate the interactions of mind and body measures with each other and with job performance. As the only study examining the relation between mind-body both separately and independently with job performance, the contributions are twofold. First, it advances the literature on mental and physical well-being effects on job performance. Secondly, it not only emphasizes the importance of mental challenges for the employee such as stress and anxiety, but it also highlights specific areas of mental challenges that could be addressed to improve job performance.