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5 Reasons Your Whole Office Will Benefit From Office Yoga

5 Reasons Your Whole Office Will Benefit From Office Yoga

Looking to make a meaningful change to your employee’s lives? An office yoga program offers improved focus, reduced stress, and enhanced productivity in the workplace.

If you run a business in 2019, chances are good your office has some type of wellness program. These programs set employers apart in the eyes of job seekers while nurturing a company’s current workforce.

Office yoga is a natural fit for a wellness program. Almost 15% of Americans do yoga already. Bringing the practice to work is a great way to focus on employees’ health and foster community in the workplace.

Ergonomics Consultants | Solutions Northwest Inc.

These are not the only benefits an office can get from starting a corporate yoga program. There are many more. Read on as we highlight five of the most interesting benefits of doing yoga at work.

5 Benefits of Office Yoga:

1. Stress reduction improves work productivity.

Yoga has all sorts of stress-reducing effects.

It slows your breathing and makes it more deliberate. It stretches out your body, allowing for the release of endorphins. Anyone who has taken a yoga class can attest to the feeling of calm that immediately follows.

Lower stress makes better employees. Stressed employees make more mistakes in their work, miss more work due to illness, and account for greater employee turnover. Reduce your workplace’s stress, and you will foster an environment of positivity, focus, and collaboration.

2. Yoga improves posture.

Of all the physical benefits of workplace yoga, you might not think of posture first, but good posture at work is fundamental and even improves your success at work.

From a scientific perspective, humans should not sit as long as we do in our offices. Focusing on improved posture in our chairs helps us make the most of this less-than-ideal physical situation.

3. Do yoga. Digest better. Work easier.

That’s right, yoga helps you digest your food better.

Yoga detoxifies the body, which results in less heartburn and indigestion. These symptoms often mask deeper issues which can lead to time off work.

4. Your immune system benefits from yoga.

Yoga activates your immune and lymphatic systems, and its weight-bearing poses support strong bones. This means a more robust, less sickly workforce.

5. Yoga improves your confidence.

Yoga helps people get grounded in their bodies. It builds strength. And in doing these things, it gives people the confidence that comes from getting to know their bodies well.

When an office is full of confident, centered people, it shows in their work.

In conclusion.

These benefits of office yoga are only the beginning. A workplace yoga program has far-reaching effects, many of which are intangible.

Corporate yoga is a gentle, holistic practice that builds individual strength and fosters community. Yoga will not just give you healthier, happier workers, it will also show your employees that you care about them.

If you are not an office administrator or manager, we suggest contacting your office’s human resource department to see about adding office yoga to your workplace.

For more guidance on all work related health and safety issues, visit SolutionsNW.com or Contact Us for ergonomics guidance. Subscribe to our ergonomics blog for more ergonomics tips from Solutions Northwest Inc., ergonomics consultants located in Washington State, Arcata California, Oregon, Seattle, Olympia, Tacoma, and Portland.

Always Clean Your Spills at Work

Always Clean Your Spills at Work

Post By: Celeste McLaughlin, Ergonomics Manager
Produced by: Solutions Northwest, Inc. (Ergonomics Experts serving Washington, Oregon, and Arcata California)

Ergonomics Tips: Always Clean Spills at Work to Avoid Slip and Fall Injury

According to Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), most general industry incidents involve slips, trips, and falls. 

We’ve all had our clumsy spills in the office, but it’s important to understand that cleaning a spill is serious business. It may be tempting to leave the small spill for the janitor to find, but that small spill could lead to a major slip and fall injury.

According to the National Safety Council (2011), “research finds that ‘fall from the same level injury’ is one of the highest injury causes” in the workplace.

Ergonomics Consultants | Solutions Northwest Inc.

Stay proactive at the office

Always clean up spills that you see, even if it wasn’t your fault. Stay proactive, clean all spills immediately, and post proper hazard signs on wet surfaces that are being cleaned to prevent slips.

Also, be mindful that not all slips will come from spilt beverages, so it is important to keep an eye out for them while you walk around the office.

For example, wet floors from rain, exposed cords, unstable work surfaces, uneven floors, loose rugs, cluttered areas, or even dusty areas may cause employees to slip and injure themselves.

To prevent tripping, be sure not to allow any clutter (like boxes) to enter any walking paths of the office. Be sure that all tripping hazards like phone or electrical cables are properly installed and tucked away.

Make sure your HR Department has an office safety plan

OSHA mandates that employers shall provide a training program for each employee who might be exposed to fall hazards, so make sure your Human Resources department has developed an office safety plan.

Every office safety plan should be reviewed annually and updated whenever changes in procedures or the office environment could create new hazards or impact existing ones.

Additionally, posting reminders near food and drink stations is a great idea.

In conclusion, stay educated.

Stay educated by researching common office safety hazards to help prevent work related injuries. To learn more about work safety issues, visit us at SolutionsNW.com or Contact Us for more information.

Subscribe to our blog for more office and ergonomics tips from Solutions Northwest Inc., ergonomics consultants located in Washington State, Northern California, Oregon, Seattle, Olympia, Tacoma, and Portland. rgonomics c

Being a Boss vs Being Bossy

Being a Boss vs Being Bossy

Post By: Celeste McLaughlin, Ergonomics Manager
Produced by: Solutions Northwest, Inc. (Ergonomics Experts serving Washington, Oregon, and California)


Management Tips: Being a Boss vs Being Bossy
“50% of 7,200 adults surveyed left a job to get away from their manager” Gallup Poll 2015

Whether you’re a new manager or seasoned supervisor, it is important to know the difference between being the boss and just being plain bossy. The workplace can be a stressful place, there is no reason to contribute to your own stress or the stress of others on the job.

In fact, it will benefit your workplace productivity if you treat your staff right versus bossing them around just because you can.

Know the consequences of being a bad boss

The stats are in, “50% of 7,200 adults surveyed left a job to get away from their manager” according to Gallup. Poor leadership can create a poor working environment, which leads to employees fleeing the job. As a supervisor, admin, or owner, it is important you create a positive work environment for your subordinates.

According to 5Dynamics, “happy employees have been shown to be up to 20 percent more effective in the workplace than unhappy employees. The NY Times has indicated that both employees and managers are spending more and more time working in collaborative teams than working individually, showing the value of creating strong, positive team interactions.”

Give credit where credit is due

As a leader, it may be tempting to take credit for all of the work your team is doing, but if you don’t properly acknowledge your team’s hard work, then your success may not last very long.

Studies reveal that “79 percent of people who quit their jobs cite ‘lack of appreciation’ as their reason for leaving. People don’t leave companies. They leave bosses,” according to Forbes.

This means that lack of recognition is a huge deal. As the boss, it is important that your team knows that you appreciate and value them.  You play a large role in whether or not they stay with the company, a survey from Accenture shows the top reasons employees quit: “1) They don’t like their boss (31%), 2) A lack of empowerment (31%), 3) Internal politics (35%) and 4) LacErgonomics Consultants | Solutions Northwest Inc.k of recognition (43%).”

The trick is to find passion in your work

Whether you work in an industrial plant, an office, or retail store, it is important to love what you do. You don’t have to have a dream job, you can start just by focusing on short term goals at work. Hustle to achieve goals, encourage team work and positive communication among your staff, and realize that if you put passion into your work, you will begin to love your work.

When you love what you do, it becomes easier to give credit to your team and lead by example. Your positivity as a leader will become infectious in the work place and you will find it much easier to create a happy staff, which we now know leads to a more productive work place.

In Conclusion

If you’re to be a good supervisor or great manager, it is in your best interest to keep your workers happy, for the good of your state of mind and for the good of the company. If you push your team around, over work them, or fail to recognize their hard work, then you will find yourself on hard times.

Hopefully these workplace tips can help keep your workplace a positive and safe work place. For more guidance on all work related health and occupational issues, visit SolutionsNW.com or Contact Us for more information.

Be sure to subscribe to our blog for more ergonomics tips from Solutions Northwest Inc., ergonomics consultants located in Washington State, Kent, Renton, Arcadia, Northern California, Oregon, Seattle, Olympia, Tacoma, and Portland.

 

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