Guest Post by Jeni Rogers

Whenever I hear the term work-life balance, I imagine myself astride a horse. Free and enraptured in childhood joy, but totally in control of something huge, powerful, majestic. In fact, my understanding of this buzzword all began when my company paid me to ride a horse as part of new, flexible company policy.

Policies that Promote a Healthy Work-Life Balance

I will share more on this flexible policy, as well as some others that can work to drastically improve your employees’ work-life balance with small, but important tweaks to your existing policies and structure.

No Spreadsheets Allowed: Funding Personal Development

Professional development is innate to growth in any role. You need skills and tools to continue exceeding in a company, so it’s not surprising that many companies offer a bucket of funds devoted to developing professional skills. This is a great incentive, and really, who doesn’t want to be a Level II Certified Excel Ninja (with prowess in pivot tables)? Asking for a friend.

By offering your employees a company-funded personal development fund, you can show them that their happiness and growth as an individual matters too. Remember about my being paid to ride a horse? Here’s where that comes in. I didn’t get a certificate. I didn’t make a single spreadsheet. But I did feel invigorated, renewed, and I started approaching my life and my work with that energy. Every single aspect of my life improved, and my work was never stronger for that company. Bottom line? Feed your employees’ souls and passions, and they’ll fuel your bottom line.

Another approach I love that embraces employees’ passions is to help them give to organizations they care about. Set aside a charitable giving budget, and make donations to your employees’ favorite charity, in their names.

In Control vs. Controlled: Offering Flexible Hours and Scheduling

One of the easiest ways to give employee morale a boost is to offer more flexibility and freedom in their schedules. With the internet and project management tools at our disposal today, there’s far less need to tether your employees to the drudgery of a required 9 to 5 in the office. Giving your employees the option to work remotely, even a few days a month, can significantly improve job satisfaction. Offering flexibility in the hours employees choose to work is empowering, imparts trust, and helps them feel more in control of versus controlled by work.

Susan in Accounting Will Love You: Using a Singular PTO System

Paid time off, sick days, vacation — these are various name tags stuck to buckets that all hold essentially the same thing — days off work. You can extend trust and also simplify your operation by giving your employees a single bucket of paid time off (PTO) that they’re responsible for managing.

Do As I Do: Demonstrating Healthy Work-Life Balance From an Executive Level Down

Finally, your employees are watching you. So if you want to embrace a healthy work-life balance in your company fully, you need to be living it yourself, and not just saying it with a confusing, sidelong wink at the end. If you’re the last one to leave the office and send emails from bed or during vacation, you’ll inadvertently teach that behavior.

The trust you extend your employees by giving them freedom, flexibility, and worth in the form of flexible workplace policies, can help them feel balanced and deeply committed to your company.

Guest Post

Jeni Rogers is a researcher and regular contributor to TrustRadius, where she shares her knowledge of the latest trends in B2B news and software.

 

 

 

 

 

Featured Photo by Nathan Dumlao on Unsplash