Shawnee Love   •  
June 9, 2017

You might have heard the saying “values are caught not taught” applied to parenting.   Interestingly, when it comes to workplace culture, the same principle applies.

As a leader, no matter what you pay lip service to, your employees will observe your attitude and behaviours and follow suit (or leave) because fitting in with our leaders is how employees succeed.

If you model healthy behaviours and approaches, your employees will align their behaviours with yours.  In fact, they will also learn their leadership style from you, so you are not only affecting your employees with your healthy modelling, but also influencing the lives of countless others who have yet to be lead by your leaders-in-training.

I am encouraging leaders to walk their talk when it comes to healthy behaviours and approaches, because this is the 3rd blog in our series on encouraging mental health and wellness in the workplace and frankly, the buck starts and stops with the leaders.  Consider the messages given when a boss:

• Sends 3 am emails and texts,
• Brags about getting no sleep and living on caffeine and donuts,
• Mocks meditation, yoga or “stress management” as only for wimps and emotional weaklings

Those who are in charge have to be conscious of what they do, because everyone else in their employ certainly is.  Remember to stop and smell the roses not just for your health but because it shows your employees that its okay to do that too.  And that’s good for long term health of everyone, which I will say again, is good for business.