Bring the outdoors inside to reduce employee stress
The new year is the perfect time to take stock of employee productivity and engagement, and with that, evaluate opportunities to improve employee satisfaction and happiness. Now, more than ever, consideration of employee well-being is crucial to the creation of a work environment where your staff – and thus, your business – can thrive.
According to a 2015 study published by the U.S. National Library of Medicine, more than 85% of a person’s daily life is spent indoors. And when considering a typical eight-hour work day, that means Americans spend, on average, a full one-third of our work days confined to an office setting. This means that when contemplating the topic of employee well-being, providing your staff with an enjoyable and inspiring space to perform their daily tasks can be just as important as that ordinary gym membership or paid time off.
One way to effectively and quickly improve the office space for your employees is to introduce live plants into the environment. According to the same study listed above, plants are proven to relieve negative psychological symptoms and physiological stress – a benefit that has positive implications for the body’s cardiovascular system. Over activation of the sympathetic nervous system caused by stress can damage this crucial function, making stress reduction a key component for a person’s overall health.
When considering what plants to add to your office environment, we have several options that can meet the needs of offices large and small to create a space that is calming and inviting to all who enter. Moveable potted plants or freestanding or hanging plant walls are a highly customizable and popular option for creating a well-defined and colorful workspace. We take the guess work out of the equation and will help you choose the best plants for your office environment, maximizing its layout, natural light and physical space. Plant walls especially ideal for break rooms, on-site exercise studios and meditation spaces that encourage employees to take a break and be in the moment.
Plant Solutions also offers maintenance-free plant installation in the form of custom MossWallArt™pieces designed to introduce enrich and enliven any décor, with a wide array of color choices and patterns made from real mosses, lichens and natural woods. MossWallArt™ designs bring the feeling of the outdoors inside and can help individuals connect to the calming elements of nature – a concept known as biophilic design and based on the principle that humans have an innate ability to heal when connected to and surrounded by nature.
Plant Solutions has worked for more than 40 years to incorporate biophilic designs into offices, businesses and homes. We are committed to bringing quality work into every job while promoting creativity and well-being. Learn more about our wellness promoting indoor plant solutions at plantsolutions.com/services/workplace-wellness.