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Monday, March 15, 2010Building the Business Case for Employee Well-Being
This article is © 2010 PositivePsychologyNews.com - Marie-Josee Salvas Shaar
In my work as a wellness consultant, one of the comments I hear most often is “Wow! I love what you do! This is so important, and so needed ! What kind of ROI can a company expect for its wellness initiatives?”
But not anymore. The Psychologically Healthy Workplace Conference held on March 5th and 6th in Washington, DC gave everyone concrete and reliable evidence to turn the topic from "nice to have" to priority. Organized by Chair David Ballard, Psy.D., MBA, the conference showed that creating a psychologically healthy workplace is about simultaneously enhancing employee and organizational performance. Indeed, organizations that actively promote healthy lifestyles achieve lower health care costs, higher productivity and healthier bottom lines.
Health and Productivity
In the pre-conference session, Nico Pronk, Ph.D., FACSM explained how a work site health promotion program optimally provides practical applications based on existing research, and also is the basis for new research questions and results. As the Vice-President of Journey Well, he has applied this model and found that there is an explicit connection between worker health and business performance. More precisely:
- 4 behaviors cause nearly 40% of all US deaths: tobacco use, poor diet, physical inactivity and alcohol use.
- The greatest opportunity to improve health lies in personal habits (as opposed to social or environmental circumstances)
- The cost of productivity loss (including absenteeism and presenteeism) for employees who have poor diets, are physically inactive, smoke and abuse of alcohol is about 5 times higher than that of employees who adopt the reverse, healthier habits.
Engagement and Productivity
Benjamin Schneider, Ph.D., then entertained the conference participants with a presentation relating employee engagement and organizational financial success. He started by exploring how engaged workers are more active than those who are merely satisfied. While the satisfied individuals are happy about and focus on what they get out of their job, the engaged people's happiness takes root in what they contribute to their work environment.
The greater adaptability, focus, persistence, proactivity and enthusiasm of the engaged employees leads to significant financial benefits. A 2005 study of 96 companies indicated that firms whose score was in the top 25% for engagement enjoyed ROAs 12% higher and profitability 11% higher than firms that scored in the bottom 25% on engagement.
For those who now wonder how to foster engagement, Schneider warns that building trust is an essential prerequisite. Your efforts are doomed to failure if your employees feel that all you want is more work for the same pay. On the other hand, if jobs are redesigned to demand and develop more skills, to challenge workers and provide meaningfulness, and if the effort is based on effective cooperation, teamwork and feedback, the initiative is indeed promising.
Getting the Ball Rolling
It is one thing to recognize that wellness is a sound business strategy; it is quite another to have a sound strategy to go about it! Michelle James, MBA of Intel and Fran Melmed, MEd of Context Communication Consulting joined forces to explain how to reach employees with our wellness efforts effectively.
Their advice? Don't try to make it a perfect pretty picture where everyone is expected to fit the same mold. These are real people we are working with. For smaller organizations, see where the employees truly stand, understand what influences the decisions they need to make, and provide support along the way. For larger businesses where individual attention is difficult, think of building multiple mechanisms so employees can experiment and find what works best for them. Newsletters, chat rooms on the intranet, webinars and podcasts are all ways to reach your employees, and help them find support within the organization.
Melmed also cited a recent meta-analysis of the literature on costs and savings associated with workplace wellness programs. The Harvard researchers leading this study found that medical costs fall by about $3.27 for every dollar spent on wellness programs and that absenteeism costs fall by about $2.73 per dollar invested. Equally interesting, employees in healthy workplaces miss on average 1.8 fewer days of work each year. If you have 100 employees, 1.8 fewer sick days per employee translates to 180 extra workdays per year, or the equivalent of 36 weeks of work! How many investments have given you that kind of return last year?
Good Place to Be!
The PHWPC Day 1 closed on a friendly reception where participants were able to mingle with the day’s speakers and other practitioners. I personally enjoyed meaningful conversations and collaboration opportunities. Corporate wellness is a good place to be in 2010 for people involved at all levels.
More reports from Day 2 of the conference in a few days…
Posted By: Marie-Josée Salvas Shaar @ 8:46:31 PM
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Show All » NEWSLETTER ISSUES » Fitness & Nutrition
Wednesday, February 17, 2010Stop Fussing Over Your Weaknesses!
Do you feel defeated when it comes to implementing healthier food
habits? If so, this article will give you empowerment.
You see, people who have poor eating habits tend to focus on their
weaknesses. They keep repeating to themselves "I know I shouldn't
have X (make it your preferred guilt-inducing food: chocolate, chips,
fries, bacon)." And so the cycle of fleeting pleasure, remorse, and
short-lived determination repeats itself.
Try Another Source of Motivation
Einstein once said that the definition of insanity is to keep repeating the
same behaviors over and over while expecting different outcomes. So if
obsessing over your food habits has led you to no avail in the past, don't
expect it to be a fruitful endeavor moving forward.
Rather than count on your already over-solicited mental
- Physical: Rather than give in to that brownie, put on your sneakers and go for a
walk. Research shows that people who can best resist tempting food are
those who divert their attention. Other research also shows that when a
tempting stimulus is not available, our brain activity related to it diminishes
considerably.
-
Emotional: Learn to look at that slice of pizza differently. Rather than see
the comforting flavors, envision the cholesterol deposits it will leave in your
arteries, the rising blood pressure that will ensue, and that sweaty and
out-of-breath feeling that you might experience just trying to walk up a flight
of stairs over a lifetime of pizza slices. Yuck!
Next time you want to avoid a certain food, save your mental
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Show All » NEWSLETTER ISSUES » Balance & Fulfillment
Monday, February 08, 2010Is Your Busyness Keeping You Up at Night?
I know, there aren't enough hours in the day, and you have too much to
do. If you find yourself shortening your night sleep to try and get more
done only to wake up in the middle of the night, this one is for you.
When you pack your daily schedule with one thing after another, your body
remains on high alert throughout the day. It produces stress hormones
which prompt your heart to beat quicker. As your blood circulates faster,
your body burns more energy, and you grow increasingly more tired.
Elevated levels of stress can also cause you to be more impatient,
irritable and insensitive to others, thus causing you to be even more depleted
by the end of the day. It can also erode connections between nerve cells
in your brain, thus not only causing grief today, but also in the future.
So
how can you fit a strategy that will break the cycle of depletion into your
busy day? Simple. Breathe deeply, trying to exhale for twice as
long as you inhale. Slow your breathing down by inhaling for 1 count,
exhaling for 2. Then inhale for 2, exhale for 4. Keep progressing
until you are inhaling for 5 and exhaling for 10, and do so 3 or 4 times.
Repeat the full exercise 2 or 3 times each day, more if you
can.
Taking a few long belly breaths will activate your parasympathetic system,
which is responsible for slowing down bodily processes (such as heart
rate). It will also pause your production of cortisol for a few minutes.
As you decrease your stress hormone levels, you'll be able to preserve more
energy throughout the day and sleep better at night.
Take it easy!
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Show All » NEWSLETTER ISSUES » Fitness & Nutrition
Wednesday, January 27, 2010How to Stick to Your New Year Resolutions
About half of us have been either brave or foolish enough to make New
Year resolutions for 2010. And of those who haven't made a resolution,
quite a few just gave up before they tried, thinking it probably wouldn't work
anyway.
But what if I told you that a simple tip could significantly enhance your
ability to be successful this year? Keep reading, it's coming!
New research published last October in the European Journal of Social
Psychology found that people who were asked to adopt a confident posture
(back erect, chest out) before they expressed an idea were more persuaded than
people who were asked to slouch as they shared their thoughts.
Equally
interesting, in a series of 2006 studies, Dr. Roy Baumeister had already
demonstrated that working on your posture can help you in other self-regulation
endeavors (such as following a budget, eating healthy, exercising more
regularly, or pretty much anything else you might have picked for your 2010
resolution!).
These two findings are quite relevant at this time of the year. If you
can remember to sit and stand tall as often as possible, you may be improving
both your confidence in and your ability to stick to your new year resolution.
Easy strategy, lots of impact! Not to mention, you'll look better and
avoid back pain in the process!
So go for it! Head above shoulders, shoulders above hips, tummy in...
looking good! :-)
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Thursday, December 10, 2009How to Avoid Feeling Lazy and Dull This Holiday Season
Yep! Holiday season is started. With endless party opportunities,
chips, mashed potatoes, gravy and creamy desserts will almost be a daily
occurrence for the next few weeks. Other
than the few pounds you might gain,
are there other consequences to this temporary change of diet?
There are - and they might be quite more significant than
you think.
New research shows that after just a few days
of high-fat diets, our muscles get lazy and our memories get worse.
Here's how this was discovered. Lab rats were assigned to one of two
conditions: low-fat versus high-fat diets.
Only 4 days into the experiment, the muscles of the rats in the
high-fat
condition became less able to use oxygen, making their hearts work
harder and
discouraging them to be physically active.
Equally important, these rats made significantly more mistakes while
finding their way out of a maze they knew, showing that their memory
was also weakened. In other words,
eating too much fat impedes high physical energy and impairs cognitive
abilities.
"It's
nothing short of a
high-fat hangover," said Gerald Weissmann, M.D., Editor-in-Chief of The
Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology
Journal."
That being said, there is no need to become a low-fat
freak (in fact, I have a few
convincing arguments against it!). So
here's the bottom line: pay attention. If you know there will
be nachos and cheese dip this afternoon, make a point to avoid fatty
meals and
snacks the rest of the day. And remember: fats that harden in the
fridge (like butter) and trans fats are the worst ones
for you.
There
is an important connection between what we eat, how our brains function, and
how our bodies perform. The link is
direct and tough to ignore - unless of course, you've already eaten so much fat
in the past few days that you can't think straight!
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Show All » NEWSLETTER ISSUES » Business & Leadership
Wednesday, November 25, 2009How Thanksgiving Can Boost Organizational Performance
I recently heard fantastic news while on a conference call hosted by the International Positive Psychology Association. The guest speaker was Dr. Kim Cameron, and he started his call with a very interesting question.
Seeing that the stock price of about 80% of corporations who downsize in a bad economy dropped, he wondered what the 20% of organizations whose stock price did not drop was doing differently.
His research showed that an organization's virtuousness makes the difference. By virtuousness, Cameron means the extent to which the organization is benevolent, highly ethical and strives for excellence, as well as the extent to which its employees flourish, experience flow and vitality.
Dr. Cameron then studied whether implementing new virtuous practices could improve performance, and found statistically significant relationships between 
virtuous interventions and:
- productivity
- quality
- innovation
- customer loyalty
- employee retention
- profitability.
If you thought fulfillment and ethics were touchy-feely concepts unrelated to the bottom-line, think again. Turns out all those values Mom taught you make a lot of business sense in the end.
Employers, why not give heartfelt thanks to your employees for all their support and hard work this Thanksgiving? After all, what would you do without them? Employees, I'm sure your boss isn't perfect, but I'm also persuaded he or she does a few things you appreciate, and making that known will help you get more of it. As Dr. Cameron's research shows, getting the good vibes flowing abundantly can only benefit the organization overall.
Want to implement a few virtuous practices in your organization? Email me: info@SmartsAndStamina.com. In the meantime, I'd like to wish you and your loved ones a very Happy Thanksgiving. And sincere thanks for being here and reading me!
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Saturday, November 14, 2009How to Avoid Being Stuffed Like a Turkey on Thaksgiving Day
Do you tend to overeat at Thanksgiving dinner? Most of us
do. By a lot! We like to indulge, we feel we deserve it, and the
food reminds us of warm memories, so resisting just doesn't seem possible!
But then we feel stuffed, bloated, guilty, tired and the after-meal party just
isn't as enjoyable. Know the scenario?
If
you'd like to make things different this year, quit trying to resist.
Why? Because while you are telling yourself to stop eating, your brain
wiring for eating is activated, even if the verb don't precedes
it. That's why resisting something is really difficult. It increases tension,
uneasiness and dissonance. It requires a ton of self-regulation, which is
an internal resource of which we have a limited quantity. So when the
self-regulation runs out, we give up and dig in!
Instead, turn your focus to a positive and appealing alternative.
Thoughts like "I'm savoring family time" or "I really want to
make gratitude the main event tonight" will stimulate enjoyable behaviors
other than eating, thus helping you make smarter choices as you approach the
dining table. Better yet, it will help you focus on what really matters -
your family, and giving thanks.
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Wednesday, November 04, 2009Little Known Way to Avoid the Flu
Because a day in bed is not part of the game
plan...
There already aren't enough hours in a day, let alone being slowed down by a
cold. You've read a hundred times that you should wash your hands -
check. My previous newsletters have already mentioned that lack of sleep will impede
your immune function so you try to get enough Zs - check. You buy
probiotic yogurt because your doctor told you it is an ally in cold prevention
- check. What else can you do to avoid being the next victim of the swine
flu?
New research led by Sheldon Cohen, PhD has monitored a group of participants'
mood for a week before injecting the virus of the cold in their noses (sounds like fun, right?).
They then kept participants isolated in a completely sanitized hotel room for a
few days, and examined who developed the cold versus who didn't, as measured by
level of mucus produced and immune response activity.
Turns out that people who were most positive prior to being
infected were least likely
to develop the cold. Equally interesting, the less happy participants
were also more likely to report unfounded symptoms. In other words, the
better your psychological health, the better your objective and subjective
physical health.
So here's the easy strategy: research by Sonja Lyubomirsky, PhD, shows that
initiating random acts of kindness is an effective way to increase one's
happiness. For better results, try different ones on different days.
This is great news - and it deserves to be spread as quickly as the cold
itself! Since we know that emotions are contagious, I recommend you pass
it on: the more people around you lift their moods, the easier it will be for
you to do the same.
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Show All » FULL ARTICLES » Business & Leadership
Tuesday, October 27, 2009Simple Leadership Tip You Can Use Today
This article is © 2009 PositivePsychologyNews.com - Marie-Josée Salvas Shaar.
Are your employees eager to work for you most days of the week? Too few leaders can answer this question with a confident yes. Today’s a tip will help you be one of them.
Many of us envision the "ideal leader" as someone who is physically and mentally strong. Someone who gets things done. Someone who is both invigorated and invigorating, and preferably who succeeds equally well in their personal and professional lives.
When you think about it, that's the portrait of someone who knows how to capitalize on their strengths and who has the mindset of a winner. It implies enough self-respect to cultivate sensible sleep, food and exercise habits, and enough respect for others to give them the opportunity to do the same.
This ideal leader is the opposite of the overstretched, impatient and nothing-but-work mentality that is so typical. Yet, a lot of business people still think of the overstretched attitude as reflective of good business acumen. Revisiting this whole concept is long overdue.
A Leader’s Job Is to Make People the Best They Can Be
How employees perform determines to a large extent whether companies succeed. To produce and maintain first-class performance levels, employees need to be in good mental and physical health. For that reason, positively encouraging staff members to adopt healthy lifestyles is a sound leadership strategy.
And it works. In an address to the International Positive Psychology Association (IPPA), Barbara Fredrickson shared the results of a meditation research she led in a corporate setting. Commenting on her findings, she mentioned that compliance rates amongst participants were higher than ever anticipated. Curious, I asked what accounted for such high compliance rates. Her answer? Employees felt more inclined to stick with the program because it was available through work.
In other words, not only does a healthy workforce render better results, but due to the contractual nature of their relationship with employees, leaders are in a particularly good position to encourage their teams to achieve lifestyle changes.
Concrete Application You Can Use Today
Here’s
a simple yet effective leadership tip to integrate healthy
behaviors with business strategy. Start a new spreadsheet. On the
vertical axis, write down the names of your employees.
On the horizontal axis, write behaviors you want to
encourage consistently in your staff. For example,
you might want to give recognition more often or remind your team of a
timely priority (current promotion, specific deadline, etc). Other ideas may include expressing trust, or encouraging the use of one’s strengths. Also
as column headers, write healthy behaviors you want to encourage in your
employees (sleeping enough, turning blackberries off during meetings, making time for a nutritious lunch, etc.).
Then each time you encourage an activity for a specific employee, put a check mark in the corresponding box of your spreadsheet. Samantha seems more focused than usual today? Give her kudos, then keep track for yourself on the grid.
Over time, you may notice that you fail to reinforce certain key behaviors. Or you may be really good at giving recognition to certain employees, but not to others. Assuming everyone is deserving of appreciation, this reality check will help direct your attention towards your praise-deprived team members and make it up to them.
This technique will help you adjust your practices so they reinforce the behaviors you want to see, thus making your more of the leader you want to be. Equally important, it keeps you accountable for the behaviors you are encouraging in others, which will improve and enhance your relationships with your staff.
“The leader who exercises power with honor will work from the inside out, starting with himself.” – Blaine Lee
“Be the change you want to see in the world” – Mahatma Gandhi
Images:
Clock courtesy of Inno’vison
Happy employee courtesy of Edwin Dalorzo
References:
Fredrickson, B. (2009). Address at the International Positive Psychology Association World Congress.
Fredrickson, B. (2009). Positivity: Groundbreaking Research Reveals How to Embrace the Hidden Strength of Positive Emotions, Overcome Negativity, and Thrive. New York: Crown.
Lee, B. (1998). The Power Principle: Influence with Honor. New York: Fireside.
Loehr, J. & Schwartz, T. (2003). The Power of Full Engagement: Managing Energy, Not Time, Is the Key to High Performance and Personal Renewal. New York: Free Press.
Posted By: Marie-Josée Salvas Shaar @ 5:21:15 PMTop
Show All » NEWSLETTER ISSUES » Balance & Fulfillment
Friday, October 23, 2009What Would You Do With An Extra Hour Today?
Did you know that changing just one simple habit could dramatically
increase the quality of life of the vast majority of American adults?
Not only would it perk up their mood, but it would also improve their health,
benefit their marriages and increase their work productivity.
Want to know what it is? Very simple.
TV watching is now the most common hobby in America and the number 1 predictor
of bedtime. In other words, it's what's keeping us up at night.
Literally and figuratively.
Yes, a ton of research over the past 30 years
shows that watching too much TV is associated with increased snacking, smoking
and drinking. It correlates with less physical and sexual activity.
People who watch more TV are more likely to be obese and to suffer from
hypercholesterolemia. They tend to engage in more social comparison and
to feel depressed more often. Their ability to concentrate is also
reduced. In short, people who watch too much TV are less satisfied with
their lives, and they have good reasons to be.
How Much Is Too Much?
According to the Journal of American Medical Association (JAMA), the maximum
number of hours per month of TV watching for ideal health is 30 - or an average
of one hour per day.
TV certainly serves a purpose, but if you are an avid watcher, here's my
question to you: is it really worth that full commitment? Are there no
other activities that would be worth your time? How about reading?
Walking? Calling distant friends and family members? Learning
something new? Building miniature airplanes with popsicle sticks?
Imagine all the possibilities: what could you do with an extra hour or 2 today?
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