Tips for New Business Owners on Encouraging Employee Self-Care
It’s easy to feel like a hero when you’re running your own business. You’re the boss, and you often take on many different roles: employer, customer service representative, marketer, accountant. But if you don’t take care of yourself and your employees first and foremost, it will show in the work your company provides.
Keeping your employees healthy and happy is a sure way to provide better service, increase retention rates, and ensure everyone enjoys coming to work each day. Moms Exchange shares some great tips on accomplishing that.
Here are some tips for new business owners on encouraging self-care:
Provide healthy meals
If you want to motivate your team members to take care of themselves, it helps if they’re actually provided with the means to do so. Take a look at your current work schedule. If you’re not providing meals, try hiring someone part-time or contracting the task out to a local business to help organize this responsibility.
Having a healthier workforce actually saves companies money in the end by reducing costs related to healthcare and turnover rates, which is especially important. There are many companies nowadays that provide fresh, healthy meals on the go, such as Blue Apron.
Encourage use of wellness benefits
Many employers offer wellness benefits to their employees in order to help them take care of themselves, such as gym memberships, health insurance plans, and weight loss programs. If your company doesn’t currently offer any wellness benefits, consider proposing the idea to upper management. It can be a great way to motivate and retain your employees.
Offer stress management and mindfulness courses
One useful class you can offer to your team members is a stress management course. Classes like this are essential for keeping mental health in check and reducing the potential negative effects associated with increased levels of stress at work.
Another great course to consider is mindfulness. This class teaches employees various techniques that can help them focus better, increase their energy levels, and reduce stress by taking time for themselves throughout the day.
Improve your office ambiance
It’s very important you keep your team members satisfied with their jobs. A great way to accomplish this is by making a few adjustments to the office environment that could potentially make them happier and more productive, such as adding a ping-pong table or flat-screen TV, putting in better lighting to improve morale, or increasing the number of windows so employees can be closer to nature.
Office ambiance has been shown to improve employee satisfaction and productivity rates, as well as contributing to better overall health.
Cater to your employees’ needs
Each worker is different, and it’s important you treat them as such by catering to their individual needs. For instance, some employees may want flexible work schedules, while others would prefer a higher salary. New moms may prefer to dress more comfortably as they work to quickly cater to their babies’ needs, so you might want to loosen up your dress code. You should aim to make each of your team members equally happy with their jobs.
There’s no universal formula for employee happiness, and what makes one person happy may not be the same for someone else. That’s why it’s crucial you take the time to get to know each team member individually so you can tailor your management style in a way that benefits everyone best.
In Conclusion
There are many ways to encourage employee self-care. You can provide healthy meals, use wellness benefits offered by the company, offer courses on stress management and mindfulness, and more. Improving your employee’s mental state can only improve your business. Make sure to keep that in mind! Hopefully, this article gives you some great ideas on encouraging employee self-care.
