Valentine’s Day is just a day away and people all over the world are thinking about how best to show their loved ones they care. Whether office romances are or aren’t appropriate in your company, I do think it’s important to create a ‘loving’ and happy office environment. As a study by the University of California concluded, ‘happy people’ perform better in the workplace. So, I’ve searched the web to bring you five useful infographics to help guide you there.
1.Use Your Senses…
…and build an environment that your employees, colleagues and yourself enjoy spending time in. With the average person working more than 48 hours a week in the UK, according to the TUC, and the continued pressure to achieve more with less — it’s more important than ever to do so. According to this lovely visualisation, we should be playing up to please our five senses: sight, hearing, taste, smell, and touch.
2. Identify and Adapt to Workplace Personalities…
…to enable each other in a healthy team environment. As Julie Gerstein explained in a previous post, we don’t live in a perfect world, and miscommunication, disagreement and conflicting work styles can often stop a project — and your team — dead in its tracks. Luckily, we’ve created this workplace zodiac chart to help you work out the different “signs” in your team and how best to support each other. It’s only by being aware of others’ working styles and responding appropriately that we can create a harmonious workplace.
3. Saying Thank You…
…when someone has done a good job or gone the extra mile goes a long way. According to Jennifer Dubow, Social Business Transformation Lead at IBM, “Humans respond to positive reinforcement [and the] modeling of appropriate behaviors.” Another study, highlighted by Troy Larson here, talks about the power of reward and recognition programs. This infographic breaks things down even further, noting that most employees are motivated by something as simple as praise from their manager.
4. Reducing Stress Levels…
…is a difficult but very important task. Stress is an unfortunate byproduct of modern day working life, particularly when everyone is under pressure to achieve more with less, and prove their value to their employer. As you can see here, not only does it make you less productive, but it causes some worrying physical symptoms — many of which can be lessened with exercise, acupuncture, yoga, massage and reiki — where 80% of participants say they feel calmer after a session.
5. Bring in Your Pets for a Cuddle…
…if your boss will allow it. It may not be appropriate for all companies — especially larger ones — but 55% of people say that they’d be more motivated if they had animals in the office. Research has also shown that employers who allow dogs in the office saw reduced stress levels among staff. They also help to strengthen relationships through interaction between colleagues, helping otherwise shy individuals become more engaged. And who wouldn’t want an excuse to stretch their legs and get some exercise at lunchtime by offering to walk the office canine?
However you celebrate tomorrow, we hope you have a Happy Valentine’s Day.