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The push for efficiency is never-ending, and leaders looking to drive change within their departments will audit processes, practices, and technology in the pursuit of operating at 100% capacity. Yet, these leaders may overlook one of their greatest assets in driving efficiency: their employees.
Employees spend a large portion of their days at the office, and the stability and consistency of the average working routine can be a massive comfort to them, especially when other areas of their lives are nowhere near as consistent. Employees do their best work when they’re able to commit themselves 100% while in the office, when external factors don’t weigh in on their nine-to-five, distracting them and negatively affecting their productivity. While this is the ideal that employees and employers alike aspire to, the reality is that life gets in the way — and overnight, your best rockstar employees can have the quality of their work plummet due to external factors.
Because employees invest so much time and energy into the workplace, it becomes a place where their quality of life can be impacted for better or for worse. As a leader, if you want your employees to operate at 100% efficiency, your goal should be to make the workplace a sanctuary, improve communication and ensure employees can be their best selves no matter what’s happening personally. Moreover, as you invest in employee happiness, you’ll see productivity spike, satisfaction, retention, and other key performance indicators on the rise.
Managing Health Conditions
It’s no secret that significant health issues, such as cancer or heart disease, can impact employees’ ability to give 100% to their work. However, employers might not know that even more minor health issues, like vitamin deficiencies, mood disorders, and chronic fatigue, can cause a lack of motivation at work. Symptoms can include confusion, dizziness, difficulty concentrating, task avoidance, lapses in memory, chronic pain, and even absenteeism – all blooming from a smaller issue.
These symptoms constantly wage war on employee engagement, an unwelcome intrusion in the middle of the workday, and the longer they go untreated, the more severe their impact. Therefore, the most effective approach when health issues crop up is to encourage your employee to be proactive in their resolution. You can do this by:
- Pointing them to their insurance benefits: One reason people avoid going to the doctor for minor conditions is the question of coverage. Outlining clauses that apply to your employee’s specific situation will help them overcome that hesitancy, allowing them to get treated without worrying about the cost.
- Allowing them to take time off: Would you rather have an employee around the clock producing less than adequate work, or have them missing for two hours at the end of one day and come back working at 100%? Allowing them to take off early for doctor’s appointments, regardless of PTO policy, is an excellent way to show employees you prioritize work-life balance and allow them to manage their health.
- Encouraging activity: Sedentary office conditions are the cause of a large number of developing health problems. Organizing team-building activities that allow your employees to exercise, investing in standing desks, and encouraging employees to go outside on their breaks are great ways to combat this ongoing issue.
With these strategies, you allow yourself to be an active hand in addressing employee health without overstepping too far into their personal lives.
Mitigating Work-Related Stress
Of course, we must also consider how to address an unhealthy work-life balance. Work-related stress is no joke and comes with its own exhaustive list of health problems it can cause, from minor symptoms like headaches and digestive problems to more extreme, lifelong disorders. Fortunately, seeing as the workplace causes work-related stress, you have a greater deal of control over the circumstances causing the issue and can implement low-lift strategies to help employees deal with the chaos.
These strategies include:
- Encouraging regular breaks;
- Using a meditation app;
- Listening to soothing sounds at the desk;
- Reorganizing workloads and delegating tasks;
- Providing fidgets and stress balls;
- Issuing rewards for successful task completion;
- Organizing an event to allow employees to disconnect;
- Offering alternatives that provide a healthy work-life balance.
You can also point employees struggling with work stress to your insurance policy and encourage them to seek counseling. Insurance providers may also have resources available on their enrollee portal that provide additional support, helping employees better manage their anxiety inside and outside the workplace.
We hope this brief primer gave you the tools you need to assist your employees in managing their health and well-being. A good leader provides the support their employees need, no matter how that support is needed. Using these simple strategies will make your workplace happier, healthier, and more productive.