Eight easy ways to boost your employees’ wellbeing this Blue Monday
This could be the bluest Monday in history. After two years of living through the pandemic, followed by a turbulent year of increased prices and a shaky economical and political landscape. It’s more important than ever for businesses to prioritise their employees’ wellbeing.
With today being Blue Monday, we’ve put together this list of how you can easily support your employees in beating the Monday blues. Here are our eight top suggestions.
1. Initiate kindness
When times are tough, it’s well reported that small acts of kindness can make a big difference to someone’s day. In fact, kindness not only benefits those who receive it: a study conducted by the Mental Health Foundation reported that being kind to others has a positive impact on the mental health of two-thirds of people surveyed.
Kindness can start with a simple thank you, but if you want to go further, you can read our eight top tips to bring kindness to the workplace here.
2. Ask twice
“How are you?” is one of our most common greetings, so we often reply automatically with “fine thank you” despite how we actually feel.
Instead of the usual quick hello, initiate a genuine, open conversation about how you and your colleagues are actually doing, what struggles you’re facing and how you are processing the many changes we’re facing throughout this pandemic. Sharing our feelings can make us feel a sense of relief and promotes empathy in the workplace.
3. Socialise
Laughter is often the best medicine for a dull day. Whether it’s just ten minutes at the start of your morning call, or an organised social at the end of the day, put time aside to catch up with your colleagues. Have a laugh and make sure you talk about anything except work.
4. Mindful hour
Moorepay has started a company-wide lunch hour between 12 – 1pm to encourage our employees to have a break from work and enjoy the few hours of sunlight we have. This has had a fantastic impact on our employees, who have been able to exercise and enjoy a vital vitamin D boost during the winter months.
Your company could consider initiating a similar arrangement, whether it’s a one-off or longer-term, for employees to have a break free from calls, meetings and checking on their to-do list.
5. Inspiration break
We’ve all heard the phrase “you can’t chop a tree down with a blunt axe”. Well, how will your employees drive innovation and efficiencies in your business without taking time off to sharpen their minds?
Encourage your employees to take an inspiration break this Blue Monday to learn something new. Perhaps they can start a book they’ve been too busy to read, or take an online training course to refresh some skills.
6. Recognition
Now is a great time to acknowledge the fantastic work your employees have been doing over the last year. We recommend creating a virtual wall of fame to celebrate the colleagues you’d like to give special thanks to. This could be a simple email or group message, but it will mean a lot to the colleagues who receive company-wide recognition for their work.
7. Encourage a tidy work space
A change is as good as a rest. Spending five or ten minutes to tidy where they work will not only give your employees a mental boost, it may also increase concentration with less things to distract them throughout the day.
8. Financial support
One of the reasons why Blue Monday is considered the most depressing day of the year is because many people are still recovering from the financial burden that Christmas brings. Although it’s not often discussed in these sorts of conversations, being financially secure contributes greatly towards personal wellbeing.
Now is a good time to extend any advice or support you can offer – even if it’s just some useful external resources you can find.
