It is Sunday evening.
Your stomach is in knots while you’re curled up on the couch searching for a new Netflix series to begin, but you simply keep scrolling and scrolling.
A part of you wants to stay up really late watching TV to delay the inevitable: Monday, but another part wants to access your work email and get ahead of the flood.
Sounds recognizable?
Even if you currently adore your job, most of us have been in your position. At the end of every weekend, it’s possible that some of the teams you manage feel this way. Perhaps you do too.
Employee engagement and performance are impacted when they anticipate Monday with dread, and this tension has a negative impact on their wellbeing.
According to studies, Mondays are when people’s wellbeing is at its lowest and weekends and vacations are when it is at its highest.
Physical health is only one aspect of wellbeing. It is composed of five components that interact to either help you succeed or fail. The five components are: community, purpose, social, financial, and physical.
Reduced well-being over time increases absenteeism, raises healthcare expenses for the company, and increases turnover.
Wouldn’t you want to attempt if there was a way to raise employee well-being levels on Monday to a level close to where they are on the weekend?
Reduced well-being over time increases absenteeism, raises healthcare expenses for the company, and increases turnover.
There may not be a magic bullet to turn Monday morning into Friday afternoon, but there are several tried-and-true methods for making Mondays fun on their own terms, as accepted by employees and leaders.
What Makes Weekends Great in the First Place?
Not to emphasize the obvious, but you have a fair amount of time and location freedom on the weekends.
You occasionally have duties, but for the most part you are free to go where you like, engage in pursuits that are meaningful to you, and discover your hobbies.
According to research, people, particularly millennials, look for flexibility, a sense of purpose, and development possibilities as three of the most important aspects when selecting a workplace.
And nowadays, people have a choice in where they work. Due to the low national unemployment rate, it is a buyer’s market. Employees will seek out those benefits elsewhere if they can.
How to Provide Flexibility People Will Value
As the lines between work and life become more hazy, employees desire flexibility of both time and location.
Make sure you set a good example for the people you manage if your firm has a policy that encourages the two types of flexibility that are most frequently requested: remote working and flexible scheduling.
According to research, people, particularly millennials, look for flexibility, a sense of purpose, and development possibilities as three of the most important aspects when selecting a workplace.
Work periodically from home or a coffee shop. Show that it’s acceptable to leave early to attend your child’s game and then catch up later in the evening.
Communicate with your staff to let them know you value them as people and will work with them to accommodate specific needs if your firm doesn’t allow much or any flexibility. Create a culture where asking questions is acceptable.
Additionally, you can be flexible in inventive ways:
- Make Fridays in the summer shorter
- As a team, work from the coffee shop
- Promote rest periods
- Organize gatherings in a limited number
- Encourage staff members to discuss hobbies and interests at work
Make sure you set a good example for the people you manage if your firm has a policy that encourages the two types of flexibility that are most frequently requested: remote working and flexible scheduling.
Who knows, perhaps the increasing engagement figures will encourage other employees in the firm to follow your example.
Increase Your Sense of Purpose
People want to contribute to an endeavor they can be proud of as a group. This frequently shows itself on the weekends in the things you do with your partner, kids, or friends.
But work may provide just as much of a sense of purpose, and here are some suggestions to help your employees make that a reality:
Share the mission and values of the business.
Allow them to see the project’s wider vision.
Ask for suggestions on procedures.
Encourage them to participate in setting career goals.
Inform them of your own personal objectives and incorporate them into your professional responsibilities.
Your employees will be prepared to get things done when they arrive on Monday morning because they will feel like they are a part of something greater than themselves and are accomplishing their own goals through their job.
How to Grow Your Staff
Everybody wants to develop into their ideal selves.
On your days off, you might read a book, go to church, listen to a podcast, or have a conversation with a close friend to learn more about yourself and improve personally.
According to experts, those that actively pursue growth are more likely to be successful, yet those same individuals will grow impatient if they don’t advance in their current position.
Your high performers are the ones who will be most productive and innovative, and they might even be the company’s future leaders, despite the allure of spending all your time trying to persuade the underachievers to put out some effort.
Target them with your development efforts:
- Be a reliable role model
- Have regular coaching discussions
- Give opportunities for ongoing education
- Find out what they want to improve on by asking them
- Let them develop
To elaborate on the previous point, letting someone grow could also imply letting them go.
Recognizing a gifted individual who might surpass your team or your own capacity to mentor them requires a generous leader.
Help them network with other leaders and position them for success in the future rather than maintaining them in their position because it’s easier for you to do so. It is preferable to lose them to a different position within the business than to an offer from a rival!
According to experts, those that actively pursue growth are more likely to be successful, yet those same individuals will grow impatient if they don’t advance in their current position.
When you provide employees more flexibility, purpose, and development, you have the power to greatly raise their wellbeing.
Your company will appreciate the increased output and lower staff turnover, and your workers will appreciate how much less like Mondays they now feel.
