Building wellbeing skills takes time. Like learning a new language or exercising regularly, building wellbeing takes consistent effort. Start small and make incremental improvements such as eating healthier or spending more time outdoors.
Workers deserve a fair, stable, and secure living wage that meets both protection from harm and connection with others as essential human needs.
It is a resource
Well-being is an indispensable resource in everyday life and determined by social, economic and environmental conditions. It encompasses quality of life, overall thriving and being able to respond effectively to challenges; furthermore it can serve as an indicator for equitable resource distribution as well as overall societal resilience.
This framework is intended to serve as the cornerstone for workplace mental health and well-being initiatives, outlining five essentials that support mental wellbeing at work based on two fundamental human needs.
It is a skill
Wellbeing encompasses emotions and physical health as a whole; a sense of purpose; and a thriving community. Unfortunately, well-being does not come easily; it takes work. There are various methods available to increase wellbeing; some take longer but will yield long-term success; for starters you could start out by engaging in science-backed activities that have proven their positive effects – like yoga.
As part of their Code of Ethics and essential competencies for their jobs (ANA, 2015), nurses must learn how to prioritize their own well-being as an essential competency (ANA, 2015). Making this a priority requires taking an integrative approach across nursing education, practice and research – this may involve including well-being practices into curriculum design or creating workplace cultures that foster nurses’ own health and well-being in workplace environments – with leadership and faculty committed to making this an institutional priority.
It is a way of life
Wellbeing is an integrated way of living that encompasses multiple factors. This includes feeling happy and healthy, having social support networks and having a sense of purpose in life. Furthermore, learning new skills is crucial. Engaging in long-term activities that enhance wellbeing such as practicing mindfulness or using positive psychology techniques are beneficial in improving wellbeing.
Money plays a key role in our sense of wellbeing, but only to a certain extent. Income may increase happiness levels but cannot make up for a lack of friends or purpose in one’s life.
Workplaces can foster an environment of well-being by offering employees fair wages, adequate rest and time off, flexible work arrangements and a fair work culture. Such practices help workers balance work demands with personal life demands – essential components of mental health. Furthermore, workplaces can encourage workers to develop a growth mindset and build resilience by taking risks. Furthermore, access can also be provided to mental health supports, financial and legal services as well as caregiving benefits.
It is a way of measuring
Wellbeing is a complex concept, making its measurement difficult and subjective. Many factors can impact it including personal characteristics and cultural influence; yet measuring wellbeing remains crucial for government policymakers as it allows them to see how their policies affect people’s lives – ultimately leading to more informed decision-making by governments.
Though measuring wellbeing may present its share of challenges, there are still various methods available. One such way is using subjective well-being (SWB) scales – these measures attempt to capture how happy or satisfied people feel with their lives – although these measures do have some drawbacks; for instance, satisfaction with life may rise with income up to an extent.
A good SWB instrument must be comprehensive, possess high construct validity, and correlate highly with existing measures of the same thing. Furthermore, it should predict future health and functioning outcomes for individual people – an approach which takes a comprehensive view that includes current wellbeing outcomes as well as inequalities as well as resources needed for long-term flourishing.
