Americans work a lot. In fact, full-time U.S. employees report working an average of 47 hours per week, which is about an hour and a half more than they reported a decade ago. Research also found that nearly four in 10 full-time employees report logging 50+ hours a week.

Crazy hours at the office often lead to busy, overly stressed employees who don’t have time to care for their health and wellness. These employees are susceptible to workplace burnout. Burnout in the workplace not only has detrimental effects on employees but damaging effects on the company itself.

Some of the negative effects of employee burnout can have on a company include:

• Decreased productivity
• Increased PTO/sick leave
• More errors and workplace accidents
• Higher turnover rates 

Even more shocking is the high-cost employers pay for employee burnout. According to Harvard Business Review, the psychological and physical problems of burned-out employees cost an estimated $125 billion to $190 billion a year in healthcare spending in the U.S.

The workplace is one of the best places to practice gratitude. A grateful attitude leads to a positive and happy mindset. It also helps you learn to better appreciate the little joys in life. Unfortunately, gratitude is not often practiced in the workplace. According to a study by the John Templeton Foundation, people are less likely to express gratitude in the workplace than almost anywhere else, and a startling 60% of people never express thanks at work. 

Without gratitude at work, employees might feel unappreciated and undervalued. In turn, these employees will be less satisfied with their jobs and more likely to be looking for other opportunities. On the flip side, employees who feel gratitude from their employers and express gratitude to their colleagues are much more likely to be happy, motivated, and productive in their roles.

If you currently have a wellness program or strategy in place at your company but aren’t promoting gratitude, you’re missing a big opportunity. It’s important for wellness coordinators and HR pros to remember that employee wellness goes beyond diet and exercise – it includes a healthy and happy mindset. Though there are many ways to help employees achieve a healthy and happy mindset, we think one of the easiest ways to do so is by cultivating gratitude in the workplace.

Eating well isn’t the easiest thing in the world – especially when you’re a full-time employee! The office can be one of the most difficult places to eat healthily. Between helping your family get ready for the day, your commute, and the long day at the office, it seems impossible to prepare a full day’s worth of healthy meals. 

While it might be difficult, it’s vital to eat nutritious meals throughout the workday so that your body and mind can feel and perform their best. Healthy meals will give you more energy, boost your mood, and increase productivity throughout the workday. They can even help prevent those dreaded afternoon slumps! 

The key to eating well at work is to come prepared. Planning and preparing breakfast, lunch, and snacks will make them much easier. Meal prepping is one of the best ways to ensure that you have nutritious meals ready to go. Along with meal prepping, making some changes to your daily habits will also help you steer clear of any unhealthy temptations at work and keep your diet in check.

Keep on reading to learn some foolproof tips and ideas for eating well at work:

The cool breezes of fall bring more than pumpkin spiced treats – they bring the dreaded cold and flu season, too! There’s a reason why you hear more sneezing around the office once the temperature drops. Research shows that you are more likely to get sick during the colder seasons, and illnesses tend to last longer and have more severe symptoms as well.

One main reason for the spike in illnesses during the fall and winter is weaker immune systems. Researchers from Yale University found that immune systems slow down during the colder seasons – decreasing your body’s ability to attack and fight off harmful germs, viruses, and bacteria.

The good news is there are many ways to promote a healthy, powerful immune system. So, if you don’t feel like sniffling and coughing all season, here are nine easy, natural ways to boost your immune system:

The workplace is one of the most important places to address mental health. Sadly, however, the topic is usually avoided. It might even seem like mental illness doesn’t exist inside the office – which couldn’t be more inaccurate. In fact, mental illness affects many U.S. adults and is continuing to affect more and more people worldwide.

According to Center for Discovery: 

• One in four adults in the United States will be diagnosed with a mental health disorder in a given year.
• An average of six to eight years pass before an individual seeks professional help for their mental health disorder.
• Fear and shame associated with the stigma surrounding mental health disorders are the number one reason why individuals do not seek professional help.

Considering how common mental health issues are, it’s shocking that stigmas still exist and prevent individuals from receiving the treatment that they need. An article published by the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) notes that stigma remains a major obstacle for employees coping with mental illness. Some employees with mental illnesses hesitate in fear that their supervisors or co-workers will treat them differently, and less than a third of them receive treatment.

Many people forego the flu shot because they think they’ve waited too long. It’s mid-season, and they believe they might as well wait it out and risk their chances of coming down with the flu.

For employers, the same thing can happen. Maybe you’re calling around to different vendors, and you keep being told it’ll be a four to six-week wait. You’re wondering if it’s too late to bring in corporate flu shots this year. 

The answer? It’s not too late! 

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends that the flu vaccine should continue to be offered to unvaccinated people as long as influenza viruses are circulating. While flu outbreaks can happen as early as October, influenza activity usually peaks between December and February. The CDC also notes that as long as flu viruses are spreading, it’s not too late to get a vaccine to protect yourself and your loved ones.

It’s time to start loving yourself again. Many of us forget about the importance of self-care and its impact on our health. Self-care can help prevent burnout from work, help you manage stress, and boost your feelings of self-worth and confidence.

Practicing self-care is more than just “pampering” yourself. According to Kelsey Patel, self-care is part of the answer to how we can all better cope with daily stressors.

If you want to start prioritizing your wellbeing, you can easily add in some simple behaviors to your busy schedule to enjoy the mental, emotional, and physical benefits of self-care. Along with eating well, exercising regularly, and getting enough sleep, you can try out some of the simple suggestions below to practice better self-care: 

With the help of a great flu shot vendor, hosting an onsite flu shot clinic is easy. But when it comes to employee participation, things get a bit more challenging. Employee participation is crucial to the success of an onsite flu shot clinic. Without enough employees getting vaccinated, a flu outbreak will still occur.

As a wellness leader at your workplace, you have the opportunity to promote onsite flu shots and encourage employees to get vaccinated. If this is your first year hosting a flu shot clinic, or if you haven’t achieved desired participation rates in the past, try out some of these ideas for promoting this year’s flu shot clinic: 

Jake Schroeder is one of TotalWellness’ newest employees and one of our most inspiring wellness champions. In just a short period, Jake has contributed a lot to our team in both a professional and personal manner. Besides being an IT all-star,  Jake has made an impact on his colleagues through his positive attitude, healthy habits, and insightful conversations.

Since we’ve all learned a thing or two since Jake joined our team, we thought we would share his wellness story to help inspire you too:

It’s officially fall! The transition period from summer into winter can make it easy to cozy up, stay inside, and lose track of your health progress. Less sunlight, more rain, and cooler temperatures don’t have to affect your wellbeing. 

In fact, autumn is actually a great time to kick your wellness goals up a notch! Your schedule might be a bit less crazy, and there aren’t any summer BBQs that tempt you to splurge. Being proactive about your physical and mental health during the fall will also help prevent the winter blues from hitting hard.

So, from now until December 21^st (the first day of winter), we challenge you to boost your health and happiness this fall with these mini wellness challenges: