The average person will spend just under 80 years on this earth. From those years, 26 of them will be spent sleeping and just over 13 of them will be spent working. Given the time and dedication we give to work each year, is it unreasonable to expect the majority of this time to be a positive, happy experience? We discuss how creating a happier workplace is important for your business.
A 2017 report on how satisfied are Australians at work by Curtin University & MWAH found that although salary matters, there are many other factors that contribute to an employee’s overall happiness that are equally (if not more) important.
“It’s what you do, how you are able to go about your work and who is alongside you that matters the most when it comes to job satisfaction.”
The authors of the report recommend that both employers and employees should dedicate resources into creating ways to make work a better place for everyone. To make sure everyone fits and that above all else, put people and their wellbeing first.
What are the benefits of creating a happier workplace?
It is well known that happy employees equal engaged employees. And engaged employees have a significant positive affect on your organisation’s bottom line. Employees that feel greater satisfaction and happiness at work tend to be more productive and have lower levels of sick leave and staff turnover.
In the words of Richard Branson, founder of the Virgin Group renowned for his “employees first” mantra:
“By putting the employee first, the customer effectively comes first by default, and in the end, the shareholder comes first by default as well.”
Likewise, Harvey Norman’s Gerry Harvey and Katie Page dedicate a lot of their time to mentoring staff as, “happy workers mean happy customer. People spend so much time at work … it’s crazy if they aren’t feeling happy.”
Put simply, happy people are better workers.
In her article, “Being Happy at Work Matters”, through her research Annie McKee suggests that people essentially want three things:
- A meaningful vision of the future: People want to be able to see the future and know how they fit in.
- A sense of purpose: People want to feel as if their work matters, and that their contributions help to achieve something really important. They want to know that they — and their organisations — are doing something big that matters to other people.
- Great relationships: Leaders, managers, and employees have all told us that close, trusting and supportive relationships are hugely important to their state of mind — and their willingness contribute to a team.
So how might you encourage your team members to have great relationships with one another? Most the time this doesn’t just happen naturally, which means employers need to create opportunities for their team to interact, bond and get to know each other better. By engaging Pinnacle Team Events we can facilitate this for you and tailor a team building program to suit the specific needs and characteristics of your team. Contact us to find out more.
