How to Create a Healthy Work Environment

Last Updated on March 1, 2023 by Avia

How can we distinguish a good workplace from a suspicious one? The list is long: someone will prioritize the salary, while others may say that career opportunities matter more. Office location is also a benefit employees often take into account. However, many would agree that the most valuable work environment energizes and inspires people. Every time you are looking for a job, keep in mind that very few things are more exhausting than dealing with toxic bosses in a non-supportive environment. It doesn’t really matter how much you earn if every working day feels like a Groundhog Day.

3 Tips on How to Create a Healthy Work Environment
Closing Thoughts on How to Create a Healthy Work Environment

3 Tips on How to Create a Healthy Work Environment

Establishing a healthy work environment helps companies become more high-performing and sustainable. Their employees have a deeper sense of purpose and feel more valuable. If businesses prioritize long-term success over burn-out culture and constant pressure, they will ultimately achieve more results. Employees too can contribute to creating a more healthy and energized work environment. Here are some takeaways on how to do that.

Set a Feedback Culture

Allowing each other to express their thoughts and concerns is one of the touchstones of a healthy work environment. Yet, there is a fine line between complaining and being ready for productive dialogue and coming up with solutions afterwards. If there are no mechanisms in your company on how to give employees a voice, brainstorm with HRs and think about how it could be fixed.

How do you change the world? Bring people together. Where is the easiest big place to bring people together? In the work environment.
~Adam Neumann

Criticize, Yet Appreciate

We all make mistakes, overestimate our capacities, or don’t understand each other. Following the first tip, i.e. setting the culture of feedback, employees have to be ready to listen to both appreciation and criticizing speeches. Otherwise, there will be a huge gap between what people think and what they say to each other. Sure, people need to strike a delicate balance between pointing out some mistakes or inconsistencies and making spiteful comments. The same goes for appreciation. It’s necessary to clearly explain how someone’s contribution improved the team’s work and brought better results. Thus, employees will have realistic examples of a great job and will try to follow them.

Align Your Values With Deeds

Every company proclaims a certain set of values. It is a foundation stone for hiring since employees have to meet not only professional requirements but also share the company values. However, companies also should demonstrate they abide by them as well. So, if you feel, there is a certain level of inconsistency between what top management says and does, don’t ignore it. If your work environment lets employees give and perceive feedback, express well-founded criticism, and appreciate each other’s efforts, that won’t be a problem.

Closing Thoughts on How to Create a Healthy Work Environment

As we see, creating an energized and inspirational workplace is about communication and readiness to listen to each other. Many things depend on the employees themselves. If they have a real voice, wisely perceive criticism and appreciation, and abide by the company values together with its top management, the work environment in these companies will let people thrive.