While you’re not responsible for your employees’ wellness, helping them stay healthy not only benefits them, it benefits you — and your bottom line. Plus, the best workforce is a healthy one, and helping them create and stick to good habits shows you care about them not only as employees but as people as well.
- Think about what wellness encompasses. Wellness means more than just physical health–consider employees’ emotional and mental well-being as well. Observe when employees seem stressed, such as on a big project, and give them “mental health time” by bringing in lunch, giving them the afternoon off or even bringing in an office masseuse or two. Make sure employees have the necessary supplies to do their jobs effectively by checking in periodically or sitting down to listen to what they need. This will help you spot any gaps that impede a process or an employee’s ability to succeed.
- Make the office a place of wellness. To promote an atmosphere friendly to that culture, take small steps to help employees feel comfortable and healthy. Make sure the kitchen and cafeteria are stocked with healthy selections, and minimize the fast food and vending machine classics (chips, candy) items. Make the dress code casual so staff can take a quick walk during lunch. And let employees take 15-20 minutes of downtime so they can come back ready to work — if they’re exhausted or distracted, they’ll use up that 20 minutes anyway, so why not make it helpful for them?
- Help them find motivation. You have competitors among your staff, so why not use that spirit in a positive way to promote wellness? Put together teams to see who can lose the most weight/inches, making a contest with a prize at the end. The teams will encourage each other, the external and internal rewards will go beyond the contest, and you’ll help create a culture of healthy habits. Plus bringing in resources to help them safely compete demonstrates your support of both their efforts and their overall well-being.
During a time of year when we could all use better health to stave off the winter colds, promoting wellness can help everyone do a little better. For advice on how to start, visit the experts at Medical Professionals.
Leave a Reply