Employees reveal 10 simple things that boost mental health at work
Kind gestures are the cornerstone of any healthy working environment – and now employees have revealed which small acts of kindness they appreciate most.
A new study of 2,000 employees found that a manager saying ‘thank you’ is the best way to boost mental health in the office, followed by a customer or client saying ‘thank you’, and getting a ‘pat of the back’ for a job well done.
The survey, which was commissioned by British Gas, found that a colleague helping you when they are busy themselves is always appreciated, as is being able to finish early due to family commitments, and even just someone offering to make you a cup of tea or coffee.
Celebrating your birthday with a cake or card was another well-received gesture, as is being included on team activities, your workplace offering free lunches or breakfasts, and someone offering to help pick up a job for you.
Top 10 ways to boost employees’ mental health
A manager saying ‘thank you’
A customer or client saying ‘thank you’
Getting a ‘pat on the back’ for a job well done
When someone helps you even though they are busy themselves
Being able to finish early due to family commitments
Someone offering to make you a cup of tea or coffee
Getting a cake or card on your birthday
Someone picking up a job for you to help you out
Free lunches or breakfasts
When you are included in team activities
More than eight in 10 respondents (84%) said that receiving a kind gesture makes their job worthwhile, while one in 10 added that the positive feeling it gives them lasts all day.
Most employees experience a kind gesture on average twice per week, and 61% say they perform better as a result.
"For me, it really is the little things that make all the difference in the workplace," Alison Snowden, an engineer for British Gas, says. "I’ve worked in my current job for nearly 30 years now, and those small moments of appreciation are so important."
Employee morale has always been an important component for an individual’s mental health. In fact, one 2019 study found that a daily small gesture from employers can lower rates of depression in workers. A separate study found that kind gestures in the workplace can result in more motivation, better performance, and higher retention rates.
Plus, being the person who does an act of kindness can have its benefits too, with one study finding that doing a small gesture for someone else can improve their life satisfaction.
So, overall? Being kind to others, especially in the workplace, is a win-win.
Additional reporting by SWNS.
Workplace mental health: Read more
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