Putting time and money into the development of employees’ skillsets comes with a number of benefits. Skills that develop an individual outside of work will feed back into the workplace.
The benefit of this is twofold. Staff will learn new skills which improve their confidence, mental health and wellbeing, and employers have a skilled and mentally strong workforce.
Learning new skills does not have to entail lengthy courses. Workshops are generally short, intensive courses that allow participants to take in and practice new ideas and skills in a set amount of time.
Introducing workshops to a staff development plan will mean employees stay longer because they feel they are learning and growing in their positions. This sense of wellbeing at work will affect their attitude towards the organisation and whether they go the extra mile or not.
To improve overall employee wellbeing, developing skillsets to improve and maintain mental health and wellbeing at work should be approached holistically. Instead of looking just at ways staff can manage stress better, following up with a nutrition or a physical activity workshop can be hugely beneficial.
Here are a few workshops that teach skills relating to stress management, teamwork, and the value of adopting a disciplined self-care routine that involves healthy eating and regular exercise.
Workshops that improve mental health and wellbeing
Mental Health Awareness
Unfortunately, a lot of people are still not aware of the impact that mental health issues can have on individuals, families and workplaces; or the external signs shown when they manifest. This means that in most workplaces there is no protocol for when poor mental health strikes.
Helping your staff recognise and understand the signs of common mental health issues such as anxiety and depression and teaching them how to find help or support other individuals experiencing these issues, will improve the quality of care in your workplace and the lives of employees in general.
Stress Management Training
Stress, if left untreated, can be detrimental to the long-term mental health and wellbeing of individuals, not to mention their quality of life in the present moment. Which is why offering training that teaches staff to recognise the symptoms of stress is the first step towards individual and collective wellbeing at work.
Once employees are aware of the signs of stress in themselves and members of their team, they can make informed changes and realistic decisions with regards to negotiating workload.
Resilience training, which can sometimes be found under the rubric of stress management training, teaches individuals how to deal with pressure and recognise good and bad types of stress.
Mindfulness Training
Teaching employees to become aware of what is going on in the present moment leads to a positive workplace culture. Mindfulness has been proven to be an effective antidote to stress, calming the body down into a more productive state. This is because of the positive effect it has on the part of the brain that processes emotional reactions.
Nutrition Workshops
With food being our number one source of nourishment, it would not make any sense to pay all this attention to our mental health and wellbeing without considering the impact of various foods on our bodies and minds.
Teaching staff the value of eating well and how they might put a healthy eating routine in place is a preventative measure to ill mental and physical health and will appeal to employers who want a consistent and energetic team with good levels of focus.
Physical Activity Workshops
Physical activity workshops teach the benefits of investing in a physically active lifestyle.
Good nutrition, self-awareness practice and physical activity are all components that are jointly responsible for mental health and wellbeing, so employers encouraging staff to be more physically active can expect positive effects on their workforce.
Creative Workshops
Creative workshops are an alternative route to teaching mindfulness and sometimes an easier way of helping someone experience it. Painting, drawing, writing, acting, games and sport are all ways of entering a different frame of mind.
Creative workshops also help to boost mood and encourage openness, positive relationships and teamwork.
