5 Ways to Ensure Well-being at Work

*This article was written during the Covid-19 pandemic yet remains even more important now with new ways of working post-pandemic.

Your employees are one of the biggest investments in your business. So, it makes sense to build a workplace environment which prioritises the well-being of staff. This would reduce staff absenteeism and turnover, accidents, workplace conflict, and therefore increase employee engagement, motivation, overall job satisfaction, and staff retention.

Like any health condition, mental health issues can affect a person’s work and cause substantial costs to organisations. Many experience stress, anxiety, or depression at some point in their lives, and there are things workplaces can do to build strength in staff and create a positive work environment to help with setbacks.

According to the Mental Health Foundation of New Zealand, the Five Ways to Well-being – Connect, Be Active, Take Notice, Keep Learning, Give – are proven to help people find balance, build resilience, and boost mental health and well-being. Workplaces can apply these Five Ways to Well-being and build a thriving workplace through creating a positive work culture, policies, and practices to support this.

Here is some information on how to inspire and motivate your teams to build the Five Ways of Well-being into their daily lives at work.

Connect

Connecting with other colleagues is great for enhancing well-being and building a support network.

It’s important to create an environment which allows staff to build relationships and relax during breaks. This could include outdoor furniture so staff can sit outside, encouraging team engagement, social events, social lunches, and other work events.

For employees to feel connected within a workplace, it is also good to have systems in place and procedures for bullying, harassment, and for managing interpersonal conflict. This helps people feel valued, safe, supported, and more connected to a workplace, thus improving their well-being.

“Having a good relationship with colleagues helps us stay motivated and engaged. Connecting is about being there for others, talking, listening and feeling a sense of belonging.” – Mental Health Foundation NZ.

Be Active

Staying active is fantastic for our physical and mental well-being.

It’s key for people to find balance in their lives in order to perform better at work. Workplaces can encourage this by facilitating employees with bike racks, showers, or lockers, so people have the choice to integrate exercise into their workday and commute.

Other ways to promote staying active at work includes promoting team sports and activities, getting outdoors together, and stand up or walking meetings to stay active yet productive.

Promote less sitting and more moving.

Take Notice

Employees like to feel they have purpose at work. Valuing your team means taking notice of their efforts and hard work and acknowledging this.

Really listening and taking on board what your employees are doing and what they have to say will lead to boosted well-being for staff within the workplace.

Taking notice also means being mindful at work – of ourselves personally and with the task at hand. By increasing awareness, concentration, and focus on being in the current moment, has shown to improve mood and well-being at work. This gives people improved creativity, accuracy, and productivity.

“Mindfulness meditation during breaks is also a way for staff to practise mindfulness and helps them take notice of their own actions” – Mental Health Foundation NZ

Keep Learning

A culture of continuous learning provides opportunities for people to keep growing at work, promotes well-being and resilience for teams.

There are many ways for your teams to keep learning, for example, setting new goals to reach, using newly introduced software, dealing with different personalities, learning how to improve work performance, learning new skills from one another and how to handle new challenges and tasks that arise.

Training workshops, mentorship, and courses are great ways to broaden knowledge and skills, as well as staying on top of industry insights and trends through reading or listening to relevant podcasts. Learning boosts interests and avoids boredom within the workplace.

“Being curious and seeking out new experiences stimulates the brain”

– Mental Health Foundation NZ

Give

Is there a culture of work being acknowledged and appreciated?

Giving credit when it’s due at work is a part of enhancing staff well-being. A simple thank you for your hard work goes a long way.

Alternative ways to give more at work include encouraging teams to carry out an act of kindness once a week, exploring volunteer opportunities within the community, assisting and supporting colleagues in order to learn from each other.

Your time can be one of the most valuable things you can give to someone.

According to the Mental Health Foundation New Zealand, working environments can impact mental health negatively and companies have a responsibility legally under the Health and Safety Work Act 2015, to manage risks to mental health and well-being.

Practising these Five Ways to Well-being at work will improve and enhance the mood and well-being of teams. Taking action to invest in your people will boost morale for staff and they will see you as a workplace that cares and is worth spending every day at.