Mar
03
2016
The Emotional Effects of Wellness (Or Lack Thereof)
Getting healthy is hard, especially if you feel like you have a long journey to get there. But being unhealthy is just as hard. If you’re constantly fatigued or stressed, it affects every single aspect of your life: your work, your relationships, your sleep, your happiness. It leads to feeling like you are an observer in your own life, instead of feeling like it is your own. Yet we still don’t always prioritize our health. Doesn’t make a lot of sense, does it?
As an employer, why should you prioritize your employees’ health? Isn’t that their responsibility?
Employees battling chronic disease, such as high blood pressure, diabetes, obesity, or arthritis, are distracted. The financial and physical ramifications of these diseases mean your workers cannot fully engage at work, because they are tired, in pain, and stressed. While these factors may at first seem hard to quantify, they do have a measureable impact on productivity.
But more than mitigating the cost of poor health, employees who participate in effective wellness programs are more engaged and more invested in the organization. Most of us have experienced the difference in productivity when we feel that our organization cares for our wellbeing and professional development, versus one where we feel like we are expendable and unimportant. It’s hard to be motivated when you do not feel appreciated or useful. Imagine if all of your employees were as vibrant and eager as they were when they were first hired. What could that do to your organizational culture?
So ultimately, of course, everyone is responsible for taking charge of their own health. But providing resources and support for living a healthier, more productive, and therefore a more fruitful life, can improve your organization in ways you may not have ever imagined.
