How To Create A Thriving Work Environment

Imagine this: you've just interviewed hundreds of applicants after sifting through thousands of résumés and have hired the best of those with all the skills and right attitude. Your training staff spends hours orienting them to their job responsibilities and the new employees are eager to get started. A few years later, or sometimes even a few months later, they decide to move onto another job with a different organization. Now you're stuck with the same staff shortage you started with and are back to square one. So what would it take for those employees to stick around?

In every exit interview I had, the human resource person would ask me, "What can we do to keep you, what would make you stay?" My answer was always the same, "I need something more. I have so much to offer that is not being recognized here. There are no longer opportunities for growth and I'm choosing a different direction."

I also saw that people stayed in jobs they hated simply for the paycheque. People often complained about toxic environments that were demoralizing and draining. As permanent employees, there would be no grounds to fire them, so what can you do to make things better for everyone concerned?

Imagine a way to make employees stay, so you are not constantly having to hire and train, which costs copious amounts of time and money to the organization.

Here is something to consider.

When individuals are thriving and you have an inspired manager at the helm, your organization would be recognized as a leader and have direct influence on the people they serve right from the top to the bottom. Later, if you manage to keep those front-line employees, they become the top managers in a successful growth cycle.

In a thriving environment, new insights and innovative ideas emerge, passion for the work grows, and the "mission" gets accomplished. More resources start flowing in, staff retention increases, and absenteeism from people going on stress leaves or disability becomes a thing of the past.
If people can't grow, the business or organization doesn't grow either. Lack attracts more lack and eventually people, the market, and the business crashes.

As someone who is eager to grow personally and professionally, I always jumped at opportunities to learn about self-care and self-improvement when offered both in the workplace and outside of it. I kept going to theses workshops looking for ways to stay inspired with my work and to grow with it. Yet they offered the same old strategies of how to eat well, exercise regularly, and sleep well. That just never seemed to be enough, and never really fit in well with my busy schedule.

I was more concerned about how to reach my full potential and make a deeper impact on the people I served and those workshops and training didn't offer that.

You may have found that your employees haven't created lasting change from simply bringing in nutritionists, yoga classes, or meditation instructors either.
Now, there is a solution that offers spiritual wellness strategies that does look at a person's strengths, and how to express that without taking up a lot of time. It's called Soul Care in The Workplace Program™. This program reconnects your employees with their primary motivation from when you first hired them, and restores that enthusiasm for fulfilling the mission of the organization.

5 Ways Your Organization Benefits from a Soul Care in The Workplace Program

#1. You Get $3 ROI to Every $1 Spent
Based on a Harvard study, wellness initiatives save an employer an average of $394 per employee per year, while the programs only cost an average of $159 per employee per year — creating an ROI of $3.36 for every $1 spent.

#2 Decreased Disability Rates
Marie-Hélène Pelletier, Director of Mental Health in the Workplace for Sun Life Financial revealed that, "In recent years, Canadian employers have identified mental health as the leading cause of both short-term and long-term disability claims in their organizations. Of the total economic burden caused by mental illness in Canada – about $51 billion per year – $20 billion stems from workplace losses due to disability claims, absenteeism, and lost productivity."

#3 Increases Productivity
A pure presence arises when people are moved into a full expression of who they are in their work and the flow of the day and work week becomes so easy and effortless that the mantra of "Thank God it's Friday," becomes, "Wow, it's already the weekend!" People feel productive and still have energy left over to enjoy the weekend and their evenings as they choose.

#4 Improves Performance
Sun Life Financial emphasized the fact that "more wellness resulted in better performance and that many companies are turning to workplace wellness programs as research is showing reduced absenteeism, greater productivity, and more engaged employees."

#5 Boosts Morale and Creates a Positive Work Environment
Employees will feel valued and that translates to a more valuable and sought after workplace. Imagine all the gratitude and acknowledgement you would receive for helping your employees bring out their best work by bringing out the best of themselves. True work/life balance (what everyone yearns for) is restored.

Imagine what it would be like if people actually looked forward to Mondays so they can get back into the work they love!
Well, we may not get that far right away, however by implementing a Soul Care in The Workplace Program you would be paving the way for individuals, teams, and the organization to thrive, rather than feeding into the 9 to 5 struggles to survive.
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