HEALTH, SAFETY AND WELLNESS —
Positive workplace culture brings financial gains There are so many factors that affect the success of your Business, and it can feel overwhelming – where do you start? How can you simultaneously keep everyone happy while also growing a successful business? so grateful. What difference did their actions make to your day, or to the job?
Whether you’re an Employer or an Employee – you all have a role to play in creating a Positive Culture and enjoyable workplace, both on-site and off. Here are four simple actions which will improve your workplace culture and mindset and can be implemented easily, with no costs or resources required: 1. Start each meeting on a positive note by asking for input from each team member on what has gone well that week. What are your wins? What went smoothly? What fell into place nicely? What great savings did you make without compromising on quality? Use this in your weekly meetings, plus every time you do a site visit or get together with your team. When you make this a habit, your team members will start looking for and thinking about the positives to bring to the meeting. 2. End each meeting on a positive note by asking each team member the question ‘what would make today great?’ Materials turning up on time? An appreciative customer? A tricky job going smoothly? End your meeting by thinking and focusing on what you do want, rather than what you don’t want. This gives everyone a positive feeling to take into their day. 3. Give with purpose and reap the rewards. As a business owner it can feel like you are always being asked to donate money to local charities and groups. Rather than donating little amounts of money to lots of different charities, ask your Team members to collectively decide on one or two charities which they feel are worthwhile supporting and come up with an action to support them that involves some time and effort from your team. There is nothing quite as rewarding as an Intentional and Physical Act of Kindness – physically spending some time together as a team to help those in need. The memories of the experience and incredibly rewarding feelings of giving back will stay with you all for months afterwards. For example, helping to build a House for Homes of Hope, fixing broken toys and furniture for those who can’t afford new ones, helping to serve food at a homeless shelter or chopping firewood for the elderly. 4. Appreciate, appreciate, appreciate your team members. When it comes to appreciation a little doesn’t go a long way. A passing ‘thanks for that’ will often miss the mark. Back up your appreciation by telling your team WHY you are
It may feel strange at first, but when employees know their hard work is fully appreciated and recognised, they feel that their work is truly valued. And this not only makes them feel great, it also motivates them to maintain and improve their performance. Genuine, frequent, and heartfelt appreciation helps build staff loyalty and keeps the team engaged in the task at hand. Take this to the next level by trying the ‘Two Minute Appreciation Message for 21 days’ by Shawn Achor. Spend two minutes at the beginning of each day sending a message via email, text or any other means, thanking someone for something they have done for you. It could be a quick message to your favourite cafe thanking them for the delicious coffee, a text to your friend thanking them for the great catch-up last night, an email to your team member thanking them for their help on an important project, or a message to your subbie thanking them for their quote or for getting the job done! Each message should be two to three sentences long, which means it should also explain WHY you are so grateful to them. What difference did they make to your day? Would you have been stuck without their help? What happened to you as a result of what they did? Taking a few minutes each morning to really appreciate someone will absolutely make their day, and yours. The good feelings you’ll both receive will stay with you long after the messages have been sent and received.
‘Appreciation can make a day, even change a life. Your willingness to put it into words is all that is necessary.’ – Margaret Cousins Need help creating a positive culture within your Team? Contact me on 027 6836 777 or info@positivemindsetchallenge.com and we can make a time to discuss your needs.
Rachelle Hawes is the Director of Your Happy Place Limited. She brings a wealth of knowledge and experience in improving Mindset, Happiness and Success to their flagship Mindset Programme, the 30-Day Positive Mindset Challenge. She is also a Social Entrepreneur dedicated to Sharing Kindness, Touching Hearts and Changing Lives. www.positivemindsetchallenge.com
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