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Managers and team leaders have a crucial role in the workplace because they have the power to influence morale through the relationships they have with their team. When morale is high, workers perform better and generally stay with a company for longer. If you want to foster a better relationship with your team, then try these five tips that will get results. Embrace Your Position Many leaders haven’t done managerial training. They often acquire the position by progressing through the company and applying for a promotion. This can leave some people in this position feeling a little awkward about their role. If you feel like this then remind yourself that great leaders aren’t born, they are made and it all starts with the right mind-set. If you believe in yourself and learn to feel comfortable with delegating tasks and giving meaningful feedback, then your team will respond accordingly. Be Approachable In order to be approachable, you need to be friendly and demonstrate that you are trustworthy. This means having an open-door policy where workers can come and discuss any concerns that they have about their job or any issues that prevent them from working effectively. A Harvard Business Review survey found that a staggering 56 percent of employees would trust a stranger more than their boss, which shows that in many organizations there is a climate of distrust between managers and workers. If you want your staff to trust you more then be sure to do these four things:• Be open and friendly• Do what you say• Be respectful of other people’s ideas• Be honest and supportive You could also give them a task that you wouldn’t normally ask them to do because by doing this, you are showing them that you trust them. And humans are generally reciprocal by their very nature. If someone puts their trust in us, we are much more likely to put our trust in them. Show Appreciation According to Office Vibe, 89 percent of bosses think that the primary reason employees leave a company is to find a job that pays better when in actual fact, the figure is only 12 percent. The main reason why people leave a firm is that they don’t feel valued. This is backed up by research gathered by Global Studies. They found that the most common reason for people to leave their job was that they felt unappreciated. Over time this issue can lead to low employee retention rates. However, it can easily be fixed by demonstrating good people skills and showing appreciation. A simple ‘thank you’ or praise for a job well done can do wonders for morale. Know Your Team Do you know the names of everyone in your team? If not, then learn them because people tend to do better when they are acknowledged. In addition, find out what motivates them and implement strategies to increase engagement. When people are fully engaged at work they feel better about doing their job and perform better as a result. Encourage Social Connections Most of us spend a third of our lives working and one of the crucial factors in feeling satisfied at work is the social connections that we make with our colleagues. The author of How to Be Happy at work, Annie McKee says, “one of the ways we can make ourselves happy and feel more fulfilled in our workplaces is to build friendships with the people that work with us…” Be sure to encourage this because it’s beneficial to your team’s happiness and well being, and it’s good for business. As someone in a position of power, you can help to cultivate a better working environment through the meaningful interactions that you have with your team.

Whether you have your own business, are self-employed, or run a side hustle on evenings and weekends, you’ll know that working from home on your own can leave you feeling somehow both liberated and powerless at the same time. You have the freedom to spend your time however you like, but without the structure of a standard workplace, it can be hard to make sure that you accomplish everything that you want each day. If you find it difficult to stay productive when you work from home, there are some simple things you can do to ensure that you make the most of every day: Get dressed and get out of the house One of the best things about working from home is that there’s no dress code and no one can tell if you haven’t ironed your clothes. To those in standard 9 to 5 jobs, working in your pajamas sounds like great fun, but in reality, it isn’t that conducive to being productive.Our morning routines are part of the waking up process. While those of us who work at home get to skip the long commute and bad coffee in the work cafeteria, simply rolling out of bed in our pajamas and sitting down at our desk to work normally isn’t the best way of getting our brains going. We need to work a little harder to get ourselves in the best mindset for a day at our laptops and getting out of the house, even for a short walk around the block, is a really effective way of doing that. While it might seem obvious that getting up and going for a walk is good for your mental health, fresh air has actually been proven to increase productivity. A study by Harvard University in 2017 showed that breathing better air led to significantly better decision-making performance among their participants, in particular, they showed marked improvements in making strategic decisions and planning than those in a stale office environment. So get dressed and go for a jog, say hello to the neighbors, or just run out and get yourself a coffee, you’ll reap the benefits once you get back home. Have a dedicated workspace Working at the kitchen table or on the sofa might be fine for a little while, but if your morning has to begin with clearing away the leftover dishes and your children’s bags or wiping up spills before you can really even put your laptop down, it’s not going to get you into that working mindset. Find a space that can be your desk whenever you need it; this should be a place that can stay organised and free of distractions so that when you sit down, you are ready to get to work. Having a space to work that’s separate from the space you live and sleep in will help you get both into and out of the work mindset more easily. If you’re working from your bed, you might find it tempting to put down your laptop and drift off. Equally, at the end of the day, if your workspace is separate, you might not be so easily tempted into logging back onto your computer to check your emails when you should be sleeping! If you share your home with others, like a partner, children, or roommates, make sure that they also understand that this is your workspace and that when you’re working, you’re not to be disturbed unnecessarily. Set a schedule and stick to it One of the most difficult things about working for yourself at home is knowing when to stop. If a client is emailing you at 8 pm, should you respond? How about 10 pm? Most normal companies have business hours – for example, between 9 am and 5 pm, Monday to Saturday. Most of us wouldn’t turn up to a regular job on the weekend and log on for half an hour, but it’s easy to do at home. While it can feel uncomfortable, especially if you work for yourself, it’s really important to set boundaries. Most of the things we think of after we’ve signed off for the night are not emergencies that need to be attended to immediately. On the rare occasion that you really do need to finish a task that day, of course, you should make sure it’s done. The rest of the time, simply adding it to your to-do list for the following morning is enough. That way, you know that it will be taken care of as soon as possible within your working hours, but you still get to enjoy your evening with family or friends. Having clear working times will encourage you to work hard within those hours to get tasks finished on time, and will ensure that you can relax outside those hours, and get the downtime that your body and mind need to stay healthy and productive. Make a to-do list everyday While not quite the same level of pressure as a boss looking over your shoulder, it’s surprising the boost that ticking off a task on the page can give you. Without a list, it can be easy to forget smaller tasks or to get your priorities wrong and waste time on less important jobs leaving you scrambling to finish that one key project. When you start work in the morning, review the list you’ve made for the day and add anything else that you can think of. You can also include personal tasks or “life admin” in a separate section if helpful. You can then use this list to help structure your day; maybe you want to get a larger project finished before your lunch break and keep the smaller tasks for the afternoon so you can fit them in around a phone meeting. Having a list of tasks and planning out each day at the start will super boost your productivity and having all your tasks in one place allows you to prioritize them

Employees may leave because of a difficult work environment, a bad boss, or a work-life balance that is no longer sustainable. Why do employees leave when there are no clear reasons to do so, however? It can take some work to discover why such unforeseen resignations occur. If you can spot such trouble when it appears on the horizon, you may be able to act pre-emptively. Here are five reasons why employees sometimes want to leave when everything seems right. They hope to find a better life elsewhere It used to be that being happy and satisfied with your job was good enough. Today, however, jobs need to be far more than simply satisfactory; they need to help employees feel that they are making a difference. Workers need their job to help them feel proud of who they are. When an employee leaves the job even when they have no apparent reason to complain, it usually means that something made them want to reevaluate everything. Maybe they went through a personal crisis, or maybe they saw how someone quit their job to start their own business. You can find out what is going on by conducting employee reviews. These should be carefully aimed at uncovering not just what your employees have done at work, but also uncover how fulfilled they feel. Employees look at who else gets recognition The absence of recognition isn’t always the problem. Sometimes employees may be recognized adequately, but not in the way that they hope for. For instance, many employees do not want applause. They want quiet recognition. You can only know this by asking at your employee reviews. Employees also want to be recognized in well-defined ways. They do not want recognition for vague achievements. Some research has uncovered that as much as employees care about finding recognition for themselves, they care deeply about who else is recognized. Context helps them learn how much value their own recognition carries. Recognition needs to be consistent and meaningful. Employees need flexibility Flexible working formats are being offered everywhere. People work from home far more than ever before. When employees see other companies offer better work-from-home arrangements, they would like to find a better deal for themselves. Offering flexibility at work is vital. Inflexible job definitions can be unacceptable The average worker has worked at a dozen different jobs by the time he turns fifty. As much as people change jobs, however, they often chafe at the inflexible nature of the job descriptions that they function under. While well-defined job descriptions are a good thing, inflexible ones are not. Employees hope to start with specific job descriptions, but then to be able to mold them to suit their needs. Such freedom is important to employees. Employees dislike red tape Employees today want to see their workplaces function nimbly, and without too much process or too many rules. Things that slow down work can have a detrimental effect on employee satisfaction. Employees need autonomy and freedom. If they aren’t trusted to do things on their own, they feel they should look elsewhere. Work isn’t a two-way street Employees quickly recognize when a job is just about serving the company. They rarely see that the company is as eager to serve them. They can begin to feel like they are simply cogs in the wheel serving the larger good but never paid attention to themselves. While it can be difficult to change the way a company operates, it’s important to move in the direction of helping employees be their best. While these insights can be hard to implement it is important to try. If you don’t act quickly, it’s possible that your employees will.

Imagine a movie where every character acts the same and agrees on everything. There would be no conflict and no new ideas for two hours, leaving audiences unsatisfied and unenlightened. There’s more to building a great team than putting together great individuals. To bring the right creative and innovative energy to your company, you have to mix different skill sets and personalities. If these personalities conflict, that’s all the better, assuming you manage it properly by creating an environment where people are safe to present and discuss diverse ideas. Nothing creative and innovative was ever born out of placid acceptance of the norms. Create your team to be interesting, not easy to manage, and creativity and innovation will flow from a conflict of ideas. Everyone Has Their Own Role to Play In a 2018 talk at the Stanford Graduate School of Business, Jeffrey Katzenberg, the co-founder and former CEO of Dreamworks, explained how he treats team building as a casting process. Every person has their own role to play, and their own character to add to the innovative story of your team. Katzenberg says that teams really can be more than the sum of their parts, and that if you get the mix of human capital right, “one plus one is going to equal eleven.” (youtu.be/rP-dB6f96gA) Startups with too many coders might be able to program their way through big problems, but they often end up tackling problems that no one cares about. Startups with too many designers might have great ideas for solving real-world problems, but they won’t be able to implement them without the right coding skills. And startups with too many accountants and MBAs might have a realistic view of what business is really like, but no ideas beyond copying what’s worked for others. Innovation researcher Greg Satell writes in the Harvard Business Review that, “you don’t need the best people–you need the best teams.” (hbr.org/2018/02/4-ways-to-build-an-innovative-team) The smartest individuals often flounder in the wrong team. They might not offer anything that other team members don’t already offer. They might not have the perspective to try anything new. They might be too smart for their own good, making them pretentious and uncooperative. Don’t get lost in the aura of high-energy actors who won’t play well with the team. Start from skills first. What is your team missing? Who is overloaded already? Who could expand into other roles? Like a casting director has to balance the demands of talent with roles and characters, you have to balance individual skills and personalities with the larger creative needs of your team. Think of yourself as a “knowledge broker,” as Robert Sutton of the Stanford Engineering School calls it. (hbr.org/2000/05/building-an-innovation-factory-2) Your role is not to pick the best people, but to pick people with the right selection of skills that you can guide and combine into something greater. Fermenting Constructive Conflict with Psychological Safety When building your team, don’t be afraid of a little conflict. Different ways of doing things and different ideals push creativity–if managed well. When ideas conflict, it’s a good sign that neither idea is fully formed and that something better is out there. Creativity is often waiting in the synthesis of existing ideas. The key is that no idea should be off limits, especially in initial discussions and brainstorming. Google, after doing a massive internal study, found that the best indicator of team success wasn’t personalities, skill sets or intelligence but simply “psychological safety,” meaning team members felt safe in expressing any and all opinions. (nytimes.com/2016/02/28/magazine/what-google-learned-from-its-quest-to-build-the-perfect-team.html?_r=0) Psychological safety is not the same as the “safe spaces” popular in some academic institutions. Whereas safe spaces shut down discussion by limiting opinions on controversial topics, teams promoting psychological safety have to be open to all ideas, no matter how opposed they might be to the usual way of thinking. To get the most out of your team, no team member should have to worry about being ostracized for holding the “wrong” opinion. According to creativity researcher and psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, the best creative ideas come from people questioning the basic assumptions of their “domain,” by which Csikszentmihalyi means the accepted, “set of symbolic rules and procedures” in a creative person’s field. (books.google.com/books?id=aci_Ea4c6woC) You and your team have to be willing to question standard industry practices and ideals. No great idea ever came from doing things the same way over and over again. How to Manage Conflicting Personalities Make sure everyone on your team knows their role, and set clear goals for your team to work toward. Try to keep your goals relatively open-ended. Goals should be about the problems your team needs to solve, rather than how exactly they should be solved. When finding solutions to problems, your team will inevitably conflict over the best solutions, and they will encounter new problems. In your role as a leader and knowledge broker, you will have to act as a mediator. Instead of letting coders, designers and marketers double down, it’s your job to force them into constructive discussions, compromises and new syntheses. Encourage conflict, but step in to interrogate your team members’ entrenched ideas. Drill down into their beliefs to uncover the assumptions that lie beneath their particular way of doing things. Keep asking them “why” until they can’t answer anymore. For example, imagine a coder who absolutely refuses to try a designers idea. First, ask them why the idea won’t work. Maybe there isn’t enough memory, but why isn’t there enough memory? Maybe some other process is hogging memory, but should it be? Maybe there’s some way to shift memory usage. Perhaps another team member has a better way of organizing this memory-hogging process, or they might have an alternative idea that wouldn’t hog so much memory in the first place. If you’ve cast your team well, there should be conflict. Different people with different backgrounds and skill sets will have different ideas. They will want to solve different problems in different ways. They will have strong opinions about

Oh, Christmas: the time of year when you drink hot apple cider, schedule sleigh rides, and worry about holiday-spawned lawsuits. If you’re like most managers, you don’t know how to tackle the season without increasing your company’s liability. You might have read that it’s illegal to put up Christmas decorations, or that you should instruct your employees to say “Happy Holidays” instead of “Merry Christmas,” but is that true? How can you keep your company protected without having to say “Bah, Humbug?” Here’s what you need to know about religious discrimination during the holiday season. Christmas Trees Aren’t Illegal Christmas trees are not a crime, nor are menorahs, Christmas songs, Kwanzaa decorations, snowflakes, or any other holiday-themed baubles — even if they’re religious. You and your employees are still allowed to celebrate, whether that’s baking sugar cookies or putting up a mini-Nativity scene on your desk. However, you need to understand the specifics of employment law and religion to make sure you don’t end up on Santa’s naughty list. Religious Discrimination You can’t discriminate against your employees based on their religious beliefs and practices. You also can’t allow your employees to harass or discriminate against their coworkers. The law recognizes several types of discrimination: disparate treatment, disparate impact, and hostile work environments. All three have been illegal since the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Disparate Treatment It’s illegal to treat people of one religion differently from people of another faith. For example, you can’t give Christian employees Christmas Day off of work and tell all of your Jewish employees they’re required to cover those shifts. You are allowed to let people take off for the holidays, but you can’t set the schedule based on religion. Disparate Impact As a manager, you have to be careful about your decisions in the workplace. If you set policy that impacts one religious group more than others, you’re still breaking the law. For example, if your company gave everyone free hams for Christmas, this would impact Muslim and Jewish employees, who traditionally don’t eat pork products. Likewise, you can’t permit holiday decorations except for unlit candles, because some religious groups celebrate winter holidays by displaying candles. It’s reasonable to tell staff the fire code won’t allow lit candles in the building — but not to ban unlit candles entirely. It can be tricky to avoid this type of discrimination because you can accidentally impact your employees even with the best of intentions. It’s best to use a committee or outside resource to make sure you’re staying inclusive. Harassment The most apparent form of religious discrimination is harassment, and it’s easy to run into trouble here. An employee might feel harassed by excessive holiday celebrations, especially if they’re pervasive or evangelical. A Nativity can be a lovely Christmas decoration for the office. A banner proclaiming that “Christ died for our sins” would be inappropriate. Likewise, an employee inviting the office to celebrate Christmas mass is appropriate; allowing that employee to send repeated invitations could turn into harassment. Make sure everyone is celebrating the holidays in a spirit of good cheer. Sexual Harassment Do your workplace holiday blow-outs include alcohol? You might want to rethink that policy. Many religions discourage or forbid their members to imbibe. Employees from those religious backgrounds won’t feel like attending a drunken end-of-the-year holiday party. Plus, you’re setting your company up for a slew of sexual harassment complaints or even legal liability for accidents caused by post-party driving under the influence. Redirect the alcohol budget towards better food — or bigger bonuses. The Grinch hasn’t stolen holiday spirit from the office. Instead, today’s employment laws make sure everyone feels included in winter celebrations. As long as you’re willing to put in some effort, you can host a rocking holiday party that raises morale without leaving anyone out in the cold. Creating a safe environment for all of your staff is indeed the best present you can get them.

One of the worst things that can happen to your small business is to have disgruntled employees who dread going to work. That situation often leads to reduce productivity and engagement, as well as high turnover rates. That translates to less revenue and higher costs due to hiring expenses. How you treat your employees has a direct impact on their attitude, but you’ll often be busy on big picture tasks. Your managers and team leaders must pick up the slack. Here are a few traits that you’ll want to encourage in them:   1. Encourage Practical Decision Making Surprisingly, not everyone puts practicality at the forefront of decision making. Ask anyone who’s worked at an office, and they’ll have stories of managers who’ve made bizarre and impractical decisions, often at the cost of people working under them. Encouraging and rewarding practical solutions to problems can build trust between teams and their leaders. 2. Optimism and Positivity Working at a small business can be scary for some employees, especially those living from paycheck to paycheck. Add a downer manager to the mix, and they might not be able to take it. When training or choosing managers, pick people who are upbeat and look at the bright side of things. The ability to set a positive tone for the day cannot be underestimated, and can keep productivity levels high in dark times. 3. They Enjoy The Job It’s hard to be enthusiastic about a job when your boss doesn’t seem to like it. A manager’s or team leader’s attitude has a direct impact on their team’s behavior. While some teams can endure a dour leader, generally speaking they’ll also embrace the gloom and become disconnected from the job. Make sure that anyone who leads anything in your small business enjoys their position. 4. They’re Great Motivators Motivation is, by nature, practically hard to quantify. You can only measure it by implication. Yet, the ability to motivate is something your managers must have. Spotting great motivators is a matter of studying how they interact with their team. For example, someone who can contextualize the team’s productivity relative to the small business’s overall plans can inspire motivation. Someone who just tells employees to work harder cannot. 5. Quality Focused Your small business cannot afford to have low quality output. Whatever your offering is, it must match your specifications. Those specifications are both affected by and determine the rest of your company’s functions, from your marketing campaign to your price point. Any deviation can ruin the whole plan. Managers must be quality focused. They must not settle for just any output; they must demand the right kind of productivity from their team. 6. Informed and Knowledgeable It’s hard to get a good team going when the workers know more than their managers. Trust is difficult to develop at that point, as the employees will never believe that the manager would or even could act in their best interests. A well informed, knowledgeable, and experienced, manager is of utmost importance. You don’t need them to be the best in the group, as being a team leader requires a different set of skills, but you need them to know enough that trusting them is easy for employees. 7. Good Stress Management Skills Your small business’s managers are responsible for more than ensuring productivity. They must ensure that your employees can survive the stress and pressure of working in your company. This involves having the right stress management skills and the empathy to recognize how far employees can be pushed. Empathy cannot be measured, but it can be observed. Look for people who see more the people behind the work. 8. Encourages Teamwork The best teams are often greater than the sum of their parts, or put simply, they’re better together than they are individually. Great managers can inspire this level of teamwork in their employees. Strategies vary, but generally speaking you’re looking for people who value the idea of camaraderie and synergy. Look for managers who how people fit together and how to use that to the small business’s advantage. 9. Focused On Excellence The best managers for your small business will be invested in getting the most out of their respective teams. Average leaders are satisfied with just getting the job done. Great leaders want the job done well and for everyone to be at their best. That means inspiring not just great work, but positive behavior. You’re after managers who don’t settle for having productive employees – you want leaders who want good people in their team. 10. Shares Success Having glory hogs for leaders can easily ruin your small business. Top performers feel underappreciated, even unwanted, and they’ll look for a company that will treat them as they deserve. You want managers who share credit for the team’s accomplishment. They should know that they’re enablers of greatness, not stars. Their entire focus is on making everyone under them the best they can be, not getting all the credit. Spotting great team leaders and managers is difficult, but it’s a critical component of running a successful small business. The better your leaders are, the more comfortably you can focus on bigger tasks. Fret not if you cannot find the right people – training them is always a possibility.

Every job depends on communication, whether with customers, suppliers or co-workers. Poor communication leads to a stressful working environment and decreased productivity. Companies invest time and resources into improving communication, yet sometimes little seems to change. That is because the first step is to identify the type of communication problem, and then to devise an action plan, or else you risk wasting resources trying to solve the wrong problem. You need to identify whether the issues are systemic, organizational, interpersonal or personal.   Systemic communication problems are rooted in your business culture. For example, a firm that incentivizes competition between teams or individuals will find it hard to share good practice (why would you give away an advantage?) while a company that relies heavily on customer feedback may not hear essential messages from frontline staff. Systemic problems are self-reinforcing; they form what’s known as a “closed system.” So when staff is told to get customer feedback, but not encouraged to give their own, they feel ignored and undervalued. However, they don’t communicate this to management who, in the absence of feedback from staff, rely more heavily on customer comments, and so on. Organisational problems arise from the structure of the business. They’re common in companies that have quickly grown from a start-up with a small team to a firm with several layers of management. In a small group with a common aim, communication is natural, so they overlook it as a potential problem. As the business grows, communication pathways are left unaddressed; after all, everyone has always known the aims and ethos of the company. Consequently, new staffers feel excluded or disempowered, or they have low job satisfaction when they’re told to do things “because that’s the way we do it.” It’s also common to find that problems have to be referred up to senior management rather than addressed by frontline staff because the organization’s structure still depends on having one or two people in charge. Interpersonal problems happen between individuals or teams where neither is at fault, yet communication doesn’t seem to happen. That is often down to attitudes and expectations. If team leader X’s position is that team Y is disorganized (whether that’s true or not), they’re unlikely to ask the leader of team Y for help, even if sharing expertise or resources would benefit the company. Team leader X thinks that they’re acting in the best interests of the company; they’re not deliberately obstructive or unhelpful, but communication gets interrupted. A common problem with expectations occurs when someone is promoted to manage the team in which they previously worked. Their expectations of how people will respond influence them more than what’s happening, leading to the common complaint that “They’ve changed since they got promoted,” which in turn leads to negative feelings and lack of communication. Finally, personal communication issues arise when one person or a small group has an adverse effect, for example by spreading gossip, keeping secrets or just not passing on information. That may be because they are trying to make themselves indispensable by metering out information, or because they need to feel liked or relevant. Personal communication problems should always be the last option that you consider when trying to diagnose what’s wrong; it’s easy to scapegoat an unpopular person for what is a systemic or organizational issue. Once you’re clear where the problem lies, you can address it more effectively. A systemic problem can’t be solved unless you disrupt the “closed” feedback loop. That might mean an internal reorganization, but it can be as simple as opening up a new channel of communication to break that closed circle. If the problem is organizational, think about where the connection is weakest. Is it down from leadership to frontline workers, or up from workers up to management, or sideways between departments? Whichever direction of communication is most ineffectual is where an action plan should focus. It is best to address interpersonal communication problems by having all parties sit down together, making it clear that no individual is being blamed, and ask them to work together on the issue. Often the simple action of collaborating like this is enough to improve the situation, regardless of which measures they devise. Finally, personal communication problems should be dealt with through performance review and, if necessary, through disciplinary procedures. Communication problems in businesses can be systemic, organizational, interpersonal or personal. Strategies to solve problems often fail because the wrong issue is being addressed, for example by blaming an individual for a systemic problem or by increasing the amount of information going to frontline staff without ever improving the way they talk to each other. Identifying the nature of the problem allows you to put in place an effective targeted solution.

In the past, workplace wellness programs were referred to as corporate fitness programs and were touted as a perk in larger corporations. Today, companies of all sizes, across all industry lines, are realizing that there are many benefits of implementing wellness programs. In fact, they have become a staple benefit offered to employees at all levels. There’s no doubt that helping employees adopt healthy behaviors improves their health, which in turn ensures they’ll be productive and engaged. It also benefits their personal lives by helping them gain a better work-life balance and a more positive attitude in general.   There are also some other, not so obvious reasons organizations should consider implementing a wellness program for their workers. These types of benefits are a great way to attract attention, from new talent and customers, puts companies in a more competitive position and cultivates a positive corporate culture. There are financial benefits as well such as tax incentives, or credits, and lowered health care expenses. Plus, when people are feeling good, they’re more creative problem solvers who are willing to take on projects they otherwise would find overwhelming and stressful. Attracting New Talent The people who make up a company’s workforce are its most important asset, and attracting top talent is vital to ensure ongoing success. While high salaries and other financial benefits are certainly a draw, they are not always the top consideration for job seekers. In fact, many are more focused on a company’s culture and reputation. A company-sponsored wellness program is one of the benefits that is extremely attractive, especially for individuals just entering the workforce. In fact, more than 75% of job seekers say that benefits of this type are very important to them. They want to know that their health, safety, and well-being are a priority, and organizations that demonstrate that are more likely to draw them in. Employee Retention Employee turnover is a fact of life for every organization, although the rate of turnover varies by industry. For example, the hospitality industry experiences turnover rates ranging between 25 and 30 percent, whereas finance hovers around 9 percent. Some leave because they have reached retirement age, decide to start a family, or move to another part of the country. Regardless of the reason, turnover is expensive, disruptive and demoralizing. It can also be a sign that workers feel as though the company doesn’t really care about them. Wellness programs prove that the company they work for holds them in high regard and that they’re willing to help them become healthier, happier, more successful individuals. Improved Performance Let’s face it, companies are in business to make money, and the only way to do that is by out producing the competition. Simply demanding that employees work harder to meet the executive’s expectations, or face negative consequences, isn’t the best approach. Everyone wants to feel as though they are appreciated and important. When companies show their workers that they are invested in their health and well-being, they are more likely to reciprocate by increasing production. They’ll also be more willing to offer suggestions and help implement new ideas to improve the production capacity of the entire organization. A Stronger Workforce When everyone works together as a cohesive team, creativity spikes and goals are easier to attain. Often, companies are split into departments that are directly, or indirectly, competing. When this is the case, teamwork can be illusive and collaboration is unheard of. Incorporating group exercise programs, healthy cooking classes, team sports and other activities bring people together and encourages them to work more closely with one another. Not only will they encourage one another to do well in those activities, but they’ll also be more supportive of their co-workers, and more willing to contribute to projects that benefit the company. Improved Mental Health Although the main focus of many workplace wellness programs is on physical fitness and nutrition, they are not the only important aspects of health. Absenteeism rates, low productivity, and higher turnover are often directly linked to mental health issues. Addressing mental health concerns is as important as physical health and employers who offer their workers mental health benefits have a distinct advantage over those who do not. This can come in the form of referrals to mental health professionals, peer-to-peer support groups, or paid time off for a mental health day. These kinds of benefits help to lower burnout rates, decrease workplace injuries and help prevent aggressive behaviors and violence. Better Work-Life Balance It can be difficult to achieve a healthy balance between work, family, social activities and down time. For many workers, days are dominated by long commutes, heavy work loads, stressful deadlines and uncertainty about their future. Those factors all contribute to health issues, decreased production, high rates of absenteeism and dissatisfaction. By encouraging employees to eat healthier, get more exercise, eliminate unhealthy behaviors like smoking and alcohol use, employers can help them create a more balanced, happy life. In turn, they’ll reap the rewards of a healthier, more energetic workforce. Lower Health Care Costs According to a paper published by the Centers for Disease Control in 2016, inadequate physical activity increases the cost of health care for employees. Information from over 58,000 people was compared, and the results showed that adults who are sedentary spend an average of $1,313 more per year than their more active counterparts. The study also revealed that 11.1% of the total health care costs in the U.S. was directly attributed to inactivity. That’s roughly $333 billion that could be avoided if employees were more physically active. Companies that help their people adopt and maintain healthy lifestyles and behaviors can help ease the burden and reduce health care costs. Possible Tax Benefits In some cases, your business can receive tax benefits by offering employees a wellness program. North Carolina and Indiana, for example, offer tax credits to businesses that implement an approved wellness program. Rather than acting as a deduction, however, these credits actually reduce the amount of

Toxic attitudes in the workplace are contagious and can affect company morale in a negative way. Here are a few steps on dealing with toxic attitudes in the workplace. 1. Don’t EngageNegative people feed off of an audience. If you find yourself on the receiving end of a negative tirade in the break room, don’t add fuel to their fire by engaging their negative ideas (even if you agree with them). Simply nod your head, say “that’s interesting” when they’ve finished and then go back to eating your sandwich. Your toxic coworker will sense that you’re not going to give them the attention that they want and they’ll move onto someone who will.   2. Turn the TablesIf you have a particularly attention hungry coworker who doesn’t go away after you show disinterest, turn the tables on them and be positive. Whatever situation your coworker is complaining about, find a positive aspect to it and interject that positivity into the conversation. Positivity is repellent to negative people. By turning their negative rant into a positive conversation, you’ll completely turn them off and they’ll leave you alone. If you’re able to define yourself in your office as a positive person, negative attitudes will avoid you and you’ll be able to work in peace. 3. Give Them More ResponsibilityIf you have an attitude problem in your office and a few bad apples are spoiling the bunch, you may want to give them more responsibility. Now, no one is suggesting that you give them a promotion or make them department head. The goal here is to give them enough responsibility that they’ll have to produce productive ideas but not enough that they would be able to have power over anyone else. Create a project for them that will make them accountable to everyone in the office. You could have them be the editor of the office newsletter, organize the next luncheon, select the snacks for the next meeting or decide how to organize the office supply closet. By giving these toxic personalities a taste of accountability, you force them into a situation where they have to come up with ideas, implement them and others will judge their decisions. It’s a humbling process and in most cases will completely extinguish their negative tendencies. 4. Set Up Ground RulesIf you’re experiencing negativity in specific situations like in meetings, conference calls or brainstorming sessions, it’s important to set up ground rules before hand. Negative personalities will find roots wherever they can. Don’t create a situation where negative tendencies can go unchecked. Make sure that before your meeting begins you lay out what rules you expect your team to follow. Typically, negative people don’t like breaking rules and by setting up positive parameters to your meeting, the toxic attendees will either stay silent or actually become product members of the group. Toxic personalities don’t have to run rampant in your office. By understanding how to effectively manage the negative personalities on your team, you’ll be able to take back control of your work environment and your workforce’s morale.

Vision is a clear concept of a better and brighter tomorrow. An effective vision inspires passion and excites people. Steve Jobs of Apple Computer lured John Scully from Pepsi by asking, “Do you want to spend the rest of your life making sugared water, or do you want a chance to change the world?” (Abcnews.go.com/Technology/steve-jobs-death-20-best-quotes/story?id=14681795#18). Jobs was referring to the home computer revolution that was transforming the everyday lives of so many people. He definitely had an exciting vision.   Having an exhilarating vision can be a big advantage for an employer who is trying to motivate employees. Methods for motivating workers are potentially more effective if connected to a vision. Here are three ways that can be done. Cheerleading. A church pastor once said that people can easily lose a vision in 30 days. The leader must constantly reaffirm the vision. Therefore, cheerleading and rallying the troops are absolutely necessary. The employer is a far more effective cheerleader if he or she has a clear and compelling vision. If the vision is exciting the employer and the employees should be excited. Implement employee ideas. Often an effective idea is one that a worker suggested and the boss promoted. A good idea that contributes toward fulfilling the vision is extremely helpful. The employer should implement employee ideas that make a positive impact. When that happens workers will tend to feel like they are part of the vision and are helping to make it a reality. Affirm employees. Let them know when they have done a good job, or made a good suggestion, and explain the value of their work in light of the vision. A stimulating vision gives the basis for affirmation and shows why the employees’ contributions are important. Encouraging also helps create ownership. The workers are more inclined to buy into the vision and claim it as their own when their efforts are affirmed. An employer with a thrilling view of the future is more likely to motivate employees. Workers tend to be excited if an exciting tomorrow awaits them. Cheerleading, implementing employee ideas, and affirming employees are more effective if related to a powerful vision.