Companies often turn to material benefits and perks such as annual bonuses, club membership, private health care, game rooms, discounted canteen, share options etc, in the hope that it will make their employees happier and want to stay longer with the company.
However research suggests that these efforts, while appreciated, aren’t effective drivers of long-term well-being. Instead, it encourages leaders to be mindful of the following three things:
- Inspiration. Remind employees how their work is making a different – somewhere some else really appreciates the innovation or produce they are making. Circulate and distributing client or customer testimonials and make sure to announcing when corporate profits are donated to charities or when the Christmas gifts are sent to the local homeless shelter. These are just a couple of examples of how to be inspiring.
- Self-Care. Create a culture in which it is acceptable and encouraged to exercise, take breaks from work, and have more strict boundaries between work and home. Finding ways to reduce job stress ultimately increases well-being and engagement. Don’t allow the culture of “who stays the latest” to establish itself. Make sure it is acceptable for your staff to have a quality personal life – when are the most innovative and complex problems solved – not sitting at your desk!
- Kindness. Don’t forget to show you care about your staff as people, not just employees. Simply asking how someone is doing personally and really listening to their answer is a good first step.
