Recognizing Emotional - Well Being at Workplace

Emotions influence and an individual's behaviour plays a vital role in decision-making. Apart from having good physical health, sound mental and emotional well-being is essential for thriving in the workplace. Emotional well-being refers to an individual's awareness of understanding and managing emotions. Emotional well-being guides an individual during times of uncertainty. An emotionally healthy person will be able to withstand difficult situations and manage them smoothly. 

Workplace stress has been prevalent for some time unknown, and in recent times, practising mindfulness has encouraged employees to handle emotional and mental stress. The pandemic Covid-19 has taken a severe toll on the mental health of individuals from almost all walks of life. Shutting down offices and shifting to remote work has increased mental and emotional stress and anxiety, which directly affects productivity. Among Gen-Z employees, adapting to changing work scenarios, managing workload, multi-tasking at the workplace, juggling between family roles, and managing work-life balance and the growing uncertainty of work has been the cause of an increase in stress, whether emotional or mental, leading to anxiety, etc. The lifestyle of "work hard and party harder" has also taken a toll on the lives of Gen-Z. Since the current majority of the workforce belongs to the millennial generation, the above reasons add to the higher depression rates. 

Recognizing employee well-being is critical for a productive workforce. Organizations and researchers have recognized that improving the all-around well-being of their employees has always benefited the organization. Thus, nowadays, apart from the usual benefits like medical insurance, yearly health check-up, etc, organisations concentrate on organising programmes to ensure the mental health of their employees and to create a platform to ensure their employees' emotional well-being as well. However, organisations and individuals have an equal level of responsibility in practising emotional well-being.

Initiatives an individual can take to improve emotional well-being:

1. Identify emotions and enhance management skills: 
An individual can start to improve their well-being by developing a deeper understanding of their emotions. A clear awareness of emotions can ensure a healthy way of handling them. One can slowly get trained to manage emotions by practising various social skills and enhancing the quality of life.

2. Problem-solving skills:
Identifying the problems that create stress at work and brainstorming ideas to solve it. 

3. Practice Mindfulness: 
Practising mindfulness will help an individual be in the present. Individuals can get involved in meditating, exercising, writing a journal, eating mindfully, travelling, etc. These activities help an individual to get aware of their surroundings and solve the problems they face. They also get better at expressing themselves.

4. Develop a Positive mindset :
A positive mindset always results in an individual's increased emotional well-being.   Recognizing others' good deeds, forgiving mistakes, and spending time with quality people all contribute to a positive mindset.

It also helps when one learns to control negative emotions like anger, etc.

Increase Social connection :
Increasing social connections can improve emotional, physical, and mental well-being. Getting involved in recreational activities, organising informal groups, volunteering to help others, and creating positive relationships among colleagues can help in developing good social connections. The virtual team meeting at regular intervals can increase the social connection among the employees. 

Organizations and leaders can adopt a culture of emotional well-being by integrating employee wellness among the employee values, along with the organization's values. Organising activities beyond the goals and objectives of an organization will always be a failure.

Companies can practice:

1. Employee Recognition Programs:
Leaders can appreciate the small efforts made by their employees and motivate them to perform better. 

2. Conducting Gratitude Sessions: 
Gratitude sessions for recognizing employee contributions at regular intervals will increase the positive mindset of an employee. 

3. Regular surveys :
Regular surveys regarding the working experience and work atmosphere can provide an opportunity to share their difficulties and problems.

4. Conducting Mental Health Programs :
The organization can conduct mental health awareness programs to remove the taboo on mental health and provide opportunities to share their genuine feelings.

Recognizing the importance of balanced emotional well-being and sound mental health is increasingly gaining importance and is being practised by many organizations.