Employee health is now included in the ledger of business assets. As a result, leaders are searching for wellness programs but don’t know where to start. Sometimes, a “wellness program” continues to be an abstract idea.
As the Founder of ZaaS and having been in the wellness space for 14+ years, I talk to a lot of prospective clients. Here are some trends that I am noticing.
- HR leads, People Teams, and Office Managers are asked to ensure employees don’t slip into the “Great Resignation” while balancing a new hybrid work model.
- Because of this, the same group is now tasked with creating a “wellness program.” They are also being asked to be resourceful, with little or no budget.
- Wellness attempts are unsuccessful, usually due to a lack of experience, expertise, and/or budget.
If you are in this position, I see you, and I can help. Here are 3 do-it-yourself workplace wellness program ideas to get you started and increase engagement at work.
Workplace Wellness Channel
If your team uses Teams, Slack, or a similar communication platform, create a wellness channel to share health and well-being tips. You can post 30-second Desk Stretch videos, wellness articles, podcasts, and healthy recipes. You can also use this platform to ask questions and see your employees’ interests. This can be your go-to place for everything wellness.
Podcast Club (aka Pod Squad)
The notion of a Book Club is always welcome, but books these days are TL;DR (too long; didn’t read). Instead of a book, consider a short article or podcast related to wellness.
In one of our client channels, we shared “The 7 Types of Rest that Every Person Needs.” This sparked a conversation about what kind of rest we all need (the most common are physical, sensory, and emotional rest). This conversation is organically followed by tactics to help hold each other accountable.
You can ask the wellness channel for topics or something you notice trending in conversation with colleagues. For additional support, ask us! We have a database of ideas.
Workplace Wellness Challenges
A challenge can create powerful momentum if you are starting a new initiative. Fitness challenges or word games can facilitate competition and collaboration to motivate employees. A few free, easy games you can implement with your team include a Meditation Marathon, Wordle, Words with Friends, NYT daily mini crosswords, Semantle, Word Master, and Globle.
We recently shared the Meditation Marathon with a new client. Employees take an average of 10 minutes every morning to meditate for four weeks. We shared this challenge on the company wellness Slack channel to keep engagement and share best practices. At the end of the four weeks, we shared the benefits we noticed, the obstacles, and the next steps to keep practicing.
One Size DOES NOT Fit All in Workplace Wellness
Keep in mind there is no one-size-fits-all solution. Personal well-being is a delicate combination that requires care and thoughtfulness. These simple, free workplace wellness program ideas can be your first step to creating a successful wellness program. For best results, try at least two of these three strategies.
Zen as a Service is a Global Wellbeing Platform for SMB, B Corps, and enterprise companies. Click here to get your ZaaS on!
