Wellness is the buzz! what you need to know.

Wellness is the buzz! What you need to know.
Green shakes and salads for breakfast, Pilates, yoga, salsa dancing, spin
classes, pumping iron, veggies, zumba, swimming, kickboxing, stress
management, jogger's high, aroma therapy, deep breathing, meditation.

Today's compulsive preoccupation with health reflects the more than 2 billion
dollars a year we spend on gym memberships alone.

Businesses across the nation are spending as much as 416 dollars per employee on wellness programs.

But all is not the picture of health and wellbeing.

At the same time, only 8% of the people who have gym memberships use them. According to CBS news, $110 billion
was spent last year on fast food, clearly a waste of money if good health is the goal. With such an obsession for
health, why this disconnect? Why do so many of us still struggle with achieving good health and well being?

Because what is logical doesn’t necessarily motivate us to action, we respond emotionally and not logically.
Motivation and enthusiasm are vital components of this emotional process. An inspired individual trumps logic any
day.

When Robert L. was told by his doctor he needed to quit smoking or he would develop a serious lung related
condition, this didn't impact him as much as when his new date told him how much she is attracted to non smokers.
He quit the next day.

Take the case of Shasha S. a data entry employee with a major car company. Shasha liked her job and regulary
showed up on time. She also got along well with her co-workers and enjoyed the respect she received from her
superiors. But Shasha never exercised and didn't eat properly. Her obesity was becoming a problem for her and her
work. She showed difficulty in getting around.
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Her breathing became difficult. Her employer realized the value of Shasha's role in the company and his ability to
make a difference company wide. He put out an anonymous survey and asked everyone to list the areas of personal
health they wanted to improve. A walkathon was started with points awarded for measurable behavior changes.
One program was called: points for pounds. Employees would redeem the points, earned for a day of recognition
and a huge selection of tangible rewards. Shasha's employer asked her to head up the program.

The results were amazing because the program directly appealed to everyone's desire to be involved and
recognized. In Robert and Shasha's case, everyone benefited from their change in behavior and new self image.
Performance improved. Incentive programs that inspire and motivate prove highly effective.

Although many businesses see wellness programs solely as a way to lower health-care costs, the additional positive
benefits to your overall workforce are immeasurable. No doubt cost savings are a real and tangible benefit of a
healthier workforce. Also true are the rewards that a healthier workforce offer.

According to Dr. Jack Groppel, Ph.D., Co-Founder, Human Performance Institute, and Vice President, Applied Science
and Performance Training, Wellness & Prevention, Inc "If your employees feel good, they perform better. And if they
perform at a higher level, so will your company." Despite the mounting scientific research that directly links good
health with improved company performance, many of today’s top leaders still need convincing that good health is
good business.

Unfortunately many business leaders don't understand the problems they create for their businesses and their
employees by ignoring this issue.

Individuals are more likely to modify their behavior in a culture that provides sincere recognition and rewards. Not
understanding these facts undermines performance, creates employee absenteeism, undermines loyalty, retention
and profits. Dr Groppel points out that "the breakneck pace being laid out in our corporate world is biologically
incompatible with our basic human needs."

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Time with family and friends, participating in hobbies, getting physical exercise, or even sleeping. The enlightened
business leader knows how to creatively incorporate these needs into a workforce environment. Working with a
professional incentive company can help reverse negative behavior trends and motivate change. It’s a matter of
simple arithmetic: depleted, unengaged, low energy employees mean less productive employees which in turn
"creates a vicious cycle of dysfunctional, survival-based behaviors that can significantly hinder company
performance." notes Dr Groppel.

To steal from an old popular slogan, "Things go better with good health."

Empowering employee good health.
As an observant business leader, you should invest some effort in monitoring the health of your employees. One
idea worth implementing is the one Shasha's employer used. Send out an anonymous employee survey that asks
"what areas of your health would you like to improve on?" Then set up a program that will effect that improvement.
Good health involves more than just the body; it also involves the mind and the spirit. Having effective
communication tools and a simple wellness initiative will work miracles in bringing about positive behavior.

Here are some simple indicators that reflect a balanced state of health:
Radiant glow, clear eyes, good appearance, upbeat, friendly personality, tendency to smile, cares about their job,
receptive.

There is also a growing body of evidence that supports laughter as a health builder.

We as individuals all have a responsibility to take care of our own health. As an employer, however, you can
motivate your workforce and boost profits!

"Take care of your body with steadfast fidelity. The soul must see through these eyes alone, and if they are dim, the
whole world is clouded." Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe

"A man too busy to take care of his health is like a mechanic too busy to take care of his tools."
Spanish Proverb

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The Case for Implementing a Wellness Program in your company.
The thought of running a workplace wellness incentive program may strike you as not worth it. Of course you can't
snap your fingers and order all your employees healthy. People don't change their behavior overnight. Changes take
time and effort. Research suggests a wellness program is worth your time and effort. This fact is also important for
CFOs who are being asked more and more to grapple with overall costs and workforce performance.

Corporate wellness programs operate on the premise that it is necessary to spend money to save money. So, savings
associated with these programs are expressed as a return on investment, or ROI, ratio. According to US Corporate
Wellness, the average ROI programs ranged from 3:1 to 5:1 in 2009. Organizations saved $3 to $5 in health care and
other costs for every dollar they spent on wellness programs. In some instances, the ROI can be as high as 13:1.
These saving resulted from reduced sick leave, health care, workers' compensation and disability management costs.

Maybe you already provide health benefits. This is good. Health benefits help employees to not ignore their health
problems.

We can all agree there are limits to what doctors can do to promote overall wellness. Maybe your own doctor has
mentioned this to you. Generally, your employees will go to their doctor when they've got a big or obvious problem.
Many however, forget the doctors' advice for ongoing lifestyle or behavioral changes. Some of us use the very
availability of pharmaceuticals and other medications as an escape to making fundamental lifestyle changes.

The enlightened employer realizes he or she has communication channels to their workforce that others don't
possess. Your employees will have a harder time tuning you out than others in their lives. Using today's
communication tools in the form of emails, memos, or meetings and the latest social engagement tools, will give you
powerful access to convey health information and create a health minded company culture. Fact is more and more
employers are implementing wellness motivation ideas to promote employee health and well-being.

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Some Benefits of Workplace Wellness Programs.
The incredible amount of data available supporting employee wellness programs has appeared in the media and on-
line. Many companies offer on-site health screenings, exercise equipment and even meditation classes. Employee
cafeterias have made the switch from junk food to healthy food. More and more organizations across industry lines
are recognizing and going with tangible rewards for their workers who lose weight or reduce their cholesterol. A big
wellness focus is on smoking cessation and other addiction treatment programs.

Running a small business and dealing day to day with the growing regulatory and tax pressures, implementing a
wellness program will certainly be limited. You can however still respond to your employees' most pressing health
needs. Working with an incentive professional can offer ideas for you that might include a select menu of fitness and
behavioral activities and some education and guidance toward more specialized health treatments or programs.

Many ideas can be free. Why not offer your workforce activities such as regular stretch breaks. Reach out to
employees for their ideas about a walking program. Discourage smoking at work or have healthier snack choices in
your vending machines. Provide healthy food lunches. It is also possible to find expert guest speakers from hospitals
and universities who will talk about wellness for no or low cost.

Kudos to today's pioneers. Those who dedicate themselves to improving wellness for all of us. Individuals like Dr
Elizabeth Barrett who along with her long time colleague, Dr. Gerald Epstein is using health patterning and mental
imagery to improve levels of health and performance unimagined 20 years ago. She talks about it on The Expat
Show™

Therapist, educator and author Diane Lang uses her expertise in multiple mental health issues and positive
psychology by conducting public workshops which integrate the latest healing paradigms. Diane is also an adjunct
professor at Montclair State University and Dover Business College.

The benefits of a healthy workforce cannot be overstated. Wellness programs work. They improve overall employee
engagement and performance, boost your company's positive environment IQ and your bottom line while they help
cut your healthcare costs.

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Good health and well being are always worth the consistent hard work we invest in it. The results will speak for
themselves. "I hated every minute of training, but I said, Don't quit. Suffer now and live the rest of your life as a
champion." Muhammad Ali
Who's going to argue with a heavyweight champion?

The road to Wellness is paved with a balanced, enhanced quality of life.
It's more than just having the data of what promotes a healthy lifestyle, you have to be engaged and motivated.

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