We’re living in a time where productivity is king, and a culture of “no days off” is often promoted and encouraged.
It’s as if we view rest as unproductive or lazy, but that couldn’t be farther from the truth.
Alex Soojung-Kim Pan, author of Rest: Why You Get More Done When You Work Less, states, “Rest is not this optional leftover activity. The better you are at resting, the better you are at working.”
Rest is restorative, rebalancing, and ultimately can help us be more productive.
So many of us fall victim to the thought that if we’re busy, we’re being productive, but the truth is we could afford to slim down our schedule and be more intentional with where our time is spent.
So, what can employers do to ensure their employees get more rest?
Set clear boundaries around their work schedule:
Don’t expect employees to respond or see emails outside regular working hours and commit to sending out communications only during business hours.
If any changes to the schedule are expected, be sure to communicate these well ahead of time so employees can organize accordingly.
Additionally, ensure employees are leaving work on time most days.
Remind and encourage employees to take their vacation days:
Many Americans are leaving vacation days on the table. Encourage employees to take full advantage of their vacation time by occasionally reminding them how much time they have left and inquiring about when they’d like to use it.
Make the process of requesting time off as simple as possible.
Encourage employees to take their lunch breaks away from their desks:
It’s far too common for employees to scarf down their lunch with one hand still on the keyboard, but this isn’t conducive to digestive or mental health.
Instead, encourage employees to go out and get lunch or offer a space where they can gather to eat and relax.
Provide a meditation room or offer a monthly meditation class:
A meditation room doesn’t have to be fancy – the room should be quiet and have some comfortable seating or yoga mats available.
If this isn’t possible, consider offering meditation sessions as part of your benefits.
VitaliTeam Workplace Wellness helps companies build thriving cultures with a focus on whole-person well-being, social connection, and data-based organizational health initiatives.
Schedule a discovery call today to learn more about how we can help you promote overall organizational health and the individual wellbeing of each member of your team while boosting productivity and profitability.
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Adeola Mead is a Naturopathic Physician with 15+ years of clinical and corporate consultancy experience.
Vitaliteam Workplace Wellness provides and curates health/wellness services and experiences centered on holistic, personalized care for individuals while fostering social connection and positive team cultures.
We are a “Boutique EAP” agency that is hyper focused on identifying and comprehensively addressing the root cause issues underlying individual and organizational health concerns.
Contact us for a complimentary health consult or corporate wellness discovery call.