Being stressed out can directly affect employees productivity. Not only that, but it can even manifest in the employee retention rate and general morale of the company. All of these elements can spell disaster for any business, so it’s essential to prevent the problem from even happening. Here are four tips on how to de-stress your workforce and keep everyone happy campers!                           

  1. Contests

No, I’m not talking about sales goal contests or productivity tournaments. These contests should promote employee fun and engagement with one another. Host contests ranging from chili cook-offs and photography, to ugly sweaters and sports brackets. Make sure everyone has the opportunity to join in on the fun! Even if there are some employees that can’t enter the contest as participants, see if they would like to be judges or help with setting up the stage/area the contest will held. The idea is to get employees away from their workstations and give their minds a rest from any stress they may have.

  1. Field Day

To inject a little fun into your company culture, plan a full or half day off for the whole company. This event can take place either on the campus grounds or a nearby recreation space. Plan fun and relaxing events alike. It also helps if these kinds of days are done more than once a year – remember it’s about consistently keeping everyone less stressed – having a one day out of the office won’t necessarily work.

  1. Offer classes

Some companies offer gym memberships nowadays as apart of their benefits packages. But you want to take care of the internal stress of an employee as well, not just the outside. By offering discounts, a stipend, or free trial classes for techniques that are known de-stressors, you can win the de-stressing game. These kinds of classes could be yoga, painting, drawing, dance, writing, or taking lessons to learn to play an instrument. This can be really flexible, but the idea is to channel any negative emotion into something soothing and productive. Not to mention, this can be another perk to add to that benefits package with that gym membership!

  1. Daily checkouts

Becoming stressed can happen at any moment of any day. So it’s important to have an opportunity for your employees to have a space or activities to ground them again. This can be a variety of things that are both in and out of the office. For example, it could be having a VR headset for a quick dive into another gaming world for 15 minutes, or sponsored coffee breaks to the nearest favorite coffee shop for a breather. Either way, having a plan for employees to turn to, even if they don’t use it, is a stress reliever within itself.

Remember, the more you take care of your employees the more they will take care of you and your business. This is essential for everyone’s success! Want to learn more about ways to be productive in the workplace? Check out our blog on what makes a good team player.