Workplace wellbeing has come a long way. What used to be little more than an assortment of health risk assessments, gym memberships, and walking challenges has blossomed into an array of multidimensional offerings. 

Employers are investing heavily in workplace wellness programs, with 70% of organizations identifying employee wellbeing and mental health as a top priority, according to a recent McKinsey Health Research Institute survey. 

And yet…. Employees are less healthy, and they are more stressed than ever before.

​Why? 

Gallup just released its 2024 State of the Global Workplace report, and its findings are both humbling and hopeful. Humbling in the fact that we’ve got a long way to go. Rates of engagement are still low (only a third of the global workforce is engaged), but hopeful in the fact that organizations can move the needle. 

Here’s how they can: Create cultures of care. When organizations do, employees experience higher levels of wellbeing — and achieve higher levels of performance. And, big surprise — ​ who plays the biggest role in creating these cultures of care? You guessed it! Managers! Just as I’ve been sharing for a long time: Managers really do hold the key in creating a positive experience at work. 

Let’s dive into three critical insights for managers:

Did you know that June is Employee Wellness Month?

It's the perfect time to prioritize employee wellness across six key domains of wellbeing: physical, emotional, social, financial, career, and community.

Here are five ideas pulled directly from our June 2024 Employee Wellness Calendar that you can use to support employee wellbeing. [Grab the full calendar here.]
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​We all know we need to move more to be healthier, happier (one of the best things you can do to reduce stress) and even smarter (one of the best things you can do for your brain!)! And, yet - too often, we tell ourselves, "I'd love to move more, but I don't have enough time." Good news. I'm here to tell you that you always have time if you keep in mind two simple terms: EAT and NEAT. 

What do they mean, and what's the difference?

In the wake of Alexei Navalny's final message to “be scared of nothing,” something clicked in me. Maybe it’s not more positivity we need. Maybe it’s bravery.
 
As a wellness professional, I've been immersed in and surrounded by calls for positivity. "Name 3 good things! Seek out the good! Keep a positive mindset!" Positivity – or so we’ve been told – is foundational to wellbeing.
 
But positivity often falls short and feels hollow. And if you’re a leader or a manager, a blanket of positivity is not necessarily what your team is craving, especially in a time of so much uncertainty. 
 
So, what if we focused more on being BRAVE? 

• Instead of naming three good things, what if we named three brave things we did that day?
• Instead of recalling positive interactions, what we started noticing exchanges of courage?
• Instead of only providing feedback on what team members did well, what if we noted what they did bravely?

 
Being brave is especially timely as Women’s History Month wraps up. The common thread amongst the women that we admire year after year – women like Amelia Earhart, Harriet Tubman, Jane Austen, and Shirley Chisholm – is COURAGE. These women inspire us to stand firm in our beliefs, to change lives, and to make waves within our spheres of influence. 
 
While we may never be as brave as these women (or, for that matter, as brave as Navalny was), heroes like these women (and men) can teach us how we, too, can live a little more courageously. 

Here are three ways we can live more bravely:
(As a caveat, since it’s Women’s History Month, I’m steering this more toward women. But, men, you can still take note.)

Year after year, companies raise the bar on employee goals, success, and performance, but what about their wellbeing programs? Across companies, the “norm” for wellbeing initiatives is low participation, low engagement, and short-term results. 

And now, yet another study has come out indicating that – SURPRISE! – workplace wellness programs aren’t working. This time it’s British researcher, William J. Fleming, a fellow at Oxford University’s Wellbeing Research Center, who analyzed survey responses from 46,336 workers at companies that offer wellness programs. Upshot: With one notable exception, employees weren’t healthier – or happier – because of these well-intended programs. And, in some cases, they were worse off.

Why aren't wellbeing programs working?

Achieving personal wellbeing goals can be challenging, if not impossible. Why? Because more often than not, our environment is literally conspiring against us being healthy.

Think about it:

• We're born to move — but think about all the ways that we're effectively "told to sit." (It's the first thing we hear when we walk into any home or office; it's the first thing we're teaching our kids in school; and everything in our culture is built around our cars.)
• We're born to take breaks and restore — but think about all the ways that we're driven to be "always on" (and how much companies like Facebook have designed their products to make us more addicted to our phones).
• And, we're born to eat healthy foods — but think about all the ways that we are pushed toward the unhealthy option. (How many "healthy choices" are there really when we travel, for example? And, what about the fact that there's a fast food restaurant on every corner, but sources for healthy foods are so limited?)

Therefore, each of us has to become a student of our environment, uncovering all the ways that it's either driving us toward better health or just the opposite.

​Meanwhile, the big lie in wellness is that better health and wellbeing is all about personal choices. But, as recent studies show, culture shapes our health. Therefore, achieving better health and wellbeing as individuals - aka, ME AT MY BEST® - begins with what we, as communities, choose to do. 

In essence, community wellbeing = the surprising path to wellbeing for all.

What major trends will shape workplace wellness in 2024?

As we enter a new year, workplace wellness will continue to evolve — from innovative technologies to a deeper focus on mental health. Here are four major predictions that will redefine workplace wellness in the year to come.