4 things companies can do to promote a healthy workplace
In many corporate environments, health often takes a backseat. Actively promoting a healthy workplace can bring a significant improvement in your employees’ performance by positively affecting their minds, bodies, and emotions.
One strategy that brings a huge positive impact in the workplace is focusing on improving employee health. Because managers are often preoccupied with technical matters such as meeting deadlines and streamlining workflows, health tends to be shoved aside. This should never be the case. Having a healthy workplace is so important that it affects every aspect of an employee’s life – mental performance, emotions, productivity, and energy levels.
As a manager or business owner, why not commit to transforming your workplace into a healthier one starting today? Your organisation can gain so much when you make health a number one priority. If you’re not so sure on how to incorporate health into your work environment, we’ve prepared some of the best pieces of advice below.
- Encourage work breaks
This strategy is so easy to say yet difficult to implement. In a fast-paced corporate environment, everyone tends to neglect the importance of meal breaks or rest breaks. Failure to take your mind off work even for a while can take a toll on your concentration and motivation. Moreover, it puts you at risk for conditions like heart disease and stroke. Not having that break is absolutely counterproductive to a healthy workplace.
According to Health, people should ideally charge more to avoid experiencing burnout. We’re not like batteries that perform optimally until they die – we’re humans with thoughts and feelings. Prevent stress and fatigue from sneaking up on your employees by making work breaks a requirement.
- Encourage healthy snacking
Employees in general often take snacking for granted by choosing the wrong foods. Processed carbohydrates are often the choice of many since they find them more palatable, comforting, and tasty. However, the pleasurable experience of eating poor quality snacks is only temporary. It won’t be long until a person experiences mood swings and sluggishness. The reason for this is that refined carbohydrates can cause unstable blood sugar levels which lead to more unnecessary cravings.
Take the time to sit down with your workers to discuss with them the value of eating healthy snacks. Sometimes, people fail to realize the gravity of the situation unless you present it to them. Educate your team about the negative effects of unhealthy food choices such as poor memory, depression and anxiety, cognitive decline, and exposure to diseases like type 2 diabetes and obesity.
- Identify workplace distractions that ruin your productivity at work
In a busy work environment, there are a lot of factors that negatively affect an employee’s productivity levels. A common distraction that we are all too familiar with is noise. Sources of noise include chatty co-workers, keyboard typing sounds, and office machinery. Although we’ve been used to noise, little do we know that these do more harm than we think it does to our work.
There are also times when we encounter tech problems that delay the completion of our tasks. Interruptions from office mates and food can also be issues. Whatever these factors may be, identifying them beforehand allows employees and managers to prepare for them and guard themselves from getting distracted.
- Create a positive workplace culture
The kind of culture you have affects your workers’ performance to a significant degree. An atmosphere where people feel comfortable, safe, and cared for leads to a healthy, thriving business. Remember that you need to lead by example so you can influence positive behaviors among your staff and a healthy workplace. According to Seppala and Cameron of Harvard Business Review, a positive culture leads to a highly productive workforce.
Create situations where your employees can build strong friendships with their co-workers. This fosters a team atmosphere. As a manager, encourage your staff members to express their concerns at work to facilitate problem-solving. Lastly, always inspire everyone and let them do the same.
Conclusion
By making a deliberate effort to promote health in your corporate environment, you are creating a win-win situation for everyone. You are doing your staff and your company a favor by choosing health. When employees feel good, they can perform much better. This creates a sustainable business you can be proud of.
