4 Tips for Improving Team Mental Health
When employees feel supported, they’re more likely to stay motivated, collaborate effectively, and perform at their best. Here are four practical ways you can support team mental health.
Encourage Time Off
Research shows that it’s good for business when employees take time off. This time away from the office allows them to recharge and come back with a renewed sense of drive and purpose. Using vacation time can also improve sleep, creativity, heart health, and mindfulness. Employers should encourage their employees to use their vacation time and fully disconnect. Receiving calls and emails from your boss on vacation can be stressful or guilt-inducing, which defeats the purpose of taking a vacation in the first place.
Provide Flexibility
After the response to the 2020 pandemic, many employees have grown to appreciate the flexibility and freedom that remote work offers. Mothers can be more involved in their children’s lives. Adventurous team members have the opportunity to travel during the week. And pet owners can enjoy cuddling up with their animals during a stressful day.
Allowing employees to work whenever or wherever they want can also benefit managers. Research shows that employees with flexible work schedules are more engaged, productive, and have better attendance records. As an employer, managing flexible hours doesn’t have to be a challenge. Work with your team to establish strong communication tactics and set up processes to measure performance with results, not time.
Model Healthy Behaviors
Your employees look to you for guidance and support, but you also set the tone for office behaviors and procedures. If you want your team to prioritize their mental health, prove to them that you practice what you preach. Announce when you’re going on a walk to clear your head or need to take a day off after a challenging week.
While senior management plays a huge role in establishing company culture, Forbes found that lower-level managers have a greater impact on whether employees take advantage of wellness initiatives. Managers should adopt healthy behaviors and encourage employees to prioritize their own mental health. When executives do their part to show that mental health is a priority, the entire organization feels empowered to do the same.
Make Wellness a Priority
Mental health and physical health are more connected than many people think. Poor physical health impacts our risk of developing mental health problems and vice versa. While there is only so much that can be done from inside the office, managers should encourage their employees to develop healthy lifestyles by establishing wellness initiatives that reward team members for setting and achieving health goals. When people prioritize physical health, mental health improves too.
As an employer, you should be motivated to create successful wellness initiatives for the wellbeing of your employees. It can also save you money on healthcare costs. Research suggests that wellness programs that promote healthy habits, such as working out, quitting smoking, and eating healthy, can reduce the risk of health problems, yielding you $136 in savings per member, per month!
We hope these tips help create a positive work environment for your team. If you’re overwhelmed about hiring the right candidates in the telecommunications, IT, or engineering sectors, reach out to us at info@hnmsystems.com. We would be happy to help!
