Eating better, working out, getting more sleep … taking care of our physical self is relatively straightforward (even if it’s often easier said than done).
Achieving good emotional health may be a bit more complicated—but it’s just as important as achieving good physical health. And yet, emotional wellness often lands squarely on the back burner, particularly in the workplace. Why do so few people make their emotional health a priority?
According to Michael O’Donnell, the CEO of the Art & Science of Health Promotion Institute, healthcare costs are spiraling out of control. So badly, in fact, that within the next 50 to 60 years, the United States Congressional Budget Office anticipates that spending on major healthcare programs will rise from 5.5 percent of GDP to almost 19 percent, leading to unprecedented levels of federal debt. And even with all this spending, we’re not getting any healthier.
But it doesn’t have to be that way.
Enlisting the services of a wellness coach can be a fantastic way to take your company’s wellness program to the next level.
But...not all coaching services are created equal. Maybe there are gaps in their offering, or their expertise, that are holding your wellness program back from its goals.
To help you find out if your coaching service is truly moving your results forward (and to learn what features may make all the difference), take our quick quiz. (To see your results, click the "View Accuracy" button that appears at the end of the quiz. Your answers, along with our feedback, will open in a new window.)
A person’s job obviously affects their financial situation. But what about when their financial situation affects their job? Money IS important, and not managing it can affect employees’ health and performance in far-reaching ways.
So, how can employers really help their staff improve their financial well-being (other than giving them raises, of course) without resorting to cliched advice like bringing lunch to work or skipping that daily double-foam soy latte?
For wellness programs to succeed, the support of management is critical. But company leaders aren’t just responsible for choosing programs, approving budgets, and getting the ball rolling. They must also be prepared to give employees the support and encouragement needed to create a culture of wellness and positive change.
When management takes employee wellness seriously and works to foster a culture of wellness, it can result in amazing transformations to the work environment, productivity, and retention, and to each employee’s life at work … and beyond.
For better or for worse, we tend to take on the habits and mannerisms of those closest to us—which is why families are such an integral part of our lives. They shape who we are, what we do, how we feel, and even what we eat and drink.
So, when wellness program directors are evaluating possible initiatives to help employees stay on the path to better health and wellness, including the families of employees in those initiatives can be a smart approach.
When employees are asked to describe their office space, “comfortable” may not be the first word that comes to mind. But a simple Google search for “smartphone pinky” or “sitting disease” shows why wellness directors need to take another look at the physical mechanics of how we work.
With work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WMSDs)—soft-tissue injuries affecting muscles, nerves, ligaments, and tendons—accounting for 33% of workplace injuries and illnesses in 2011, it’s important to recognize the effect our work environment has on our health. But what’s even more important is learning how to prevent these issues from becoming medical problems that decrease productivity and increase costs.
Is there anything social media can’t do? It helps us connect with long-lost family and friends, keep up with current events, share news, follow our favorite celebrities, and find that must-try recipe that everyone’s talking about.
But while it connects us with one another superficially, social media rarely lets us connect in meaningful ways. That’s why it seems the more we use social media, the less happy we become—with social media leading to increased feelings of depression, low self-esteem, anxiety, and loneliness.
This lowered happiness can easily spill over into the workplace, making it important for corporate wellness programs to address social media use and the negative effects it can have.
A job with no commute? It’s a reality for an increasing number of people: 70 percent of professionals work remotely at least one day a week, while 53 percent work remotely at least half of the week.
Working remotely offers a lot of perks to employees and their employers. However, remote workers pose a unique challenge for wellness program administrators. How do you engage employees who aren’t physically present?
Just like company procedures and processes have had to adapt to the new reality of remote work, so does your wellness program.
For a wellness director, it can be frustrating to spend time and resources designing a wellness program, only to be met with a marked lack of enthusiasm. However, improving the wellness and productivity of employees is an important undertaking—one that companies almost universally embrace.
According to Willis Towers Watson’s Staying@Work report, “Nearly 90% of respondents say that improving workforce health and productivity is a core component of their organization’s overall health strategy, and nearly all (98%) said they’re committed to health and productivity improvement in the years ahead.”
So, why are some employees reluctant to participate in corporate wellness programs? And what can employers do to encourage all employees to engage?
