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Journaling at Work to Boost Employee Mental Wellness
What if another improvement surrounding employee mental well-being and mental health included: encouraging employees to journal at work?
At a time when many employees are feeling burnt-out and exhausted at work, employers in all industries should be considering how they can make improvements to employees’ well-being. Employee well-being is the notion that employee’s mental, physical, emotional, and spiritual health matters for the overall well-being of a company. If employee’s are feeling drained, overworked, and unmotivated - that affects a company’s output, culture, and employee experience.
Most senior leaders get it and are on board to make positive changes. The Future Workplace 2021 HR Sentiment survey found that 68% of senior HR leaders (of which 40% were CHROs) rated employee well-being and mental health as a top priority (Forbes). Accordingly, there are a variety of improvements some employers are making including: giving workers more control over how they work, offering more flexibility, and providing employees a greater opportunity to contribute their voice to an organization’s culture (Harvard Business Review).
What if another improvement surrounding employee mental well-being and mental health included: encouraging employees to journal at work?
Journaling is a powerful tool. Encouraging employees to jot down their thoughts, feelings, and frustrations helps give them space to process and to reflect on what’s gone right and what wrong throughout their work week.
Many studies on journaling show a variety of possible health benefits including:
- Reducing stress
- Identifying and tracking goals
- Achieving those goals
- Tracking problems so you can recognize triggers
- Finding inspiration
- Improving self-confidence
- Overcoming fears
- Identifying and addressing negative thoughts and behaviors
- Starting a habit of using self-talk and creating mantras (Talkspace)
The Happier Mind Journal shares a list of 11 ways journaling can also help you become a more productive employee including:
- Develop a positive habit
- Clarify your feelings
- Resolve conflicts and solve problems
Journaling at work is an easy, beneficial mindfulness practice that benefits employees health in the long run. Plus, it can even be leveraged for career growth (the good trade). What if a manager encouraged employees to have a journal and bring it to work? Additionally, at the end of each day or each week, what if a manager suggested that employees answer a journal prompt for 5 minutes. Examples of prompts could be: What did you do today and what values did that align with? How did that make you feel? Were others involved? Did you see something else someone did that really helped you?
Exercise: At the end of each week, have employees reflect back on lessons learned or accomplishments achieved by journaling for 5 minutes before the end of the work day.
In addition: Here are 10 work journal prompts you can give employees to help start their workday (Create Cultivate).
It’s been studied that when you write something down, you learn from it. Journaling at work is a great way for employees to reflect on their past week whether it be a project stalled, a new initiative worked toward, or a change in process - journaling about it helps. Giving employees a way to express what they value and to realize the impact that they make in their roles is good for employee well-being and growing your business from the inside out.
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