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Team Building for Mental Health: Expert Advice on Supporting Employee Well-Being

Emma Becker

Employee mental health is on everyone’s lips—because it should be. Employers are finally addressing the elephant in the room rather than turning their backs on it.

Here’s a quick round-up of what’s happening on this matter globally:

Knowing this, 81% of employers have already laser-focused on employees’ mental wellness. One of the proven ways you can do that is via team building. In this article, we’re sharing the best team-building ideas to support your employees’ mental health and expert tips on promoting it continuously, not just once or twice per year.

So, let’s put it on the front page of your HR agenda.

Top 7 Team-Building Solutions for Promoting Mental Health at Work

1. Wellness Days

A little zen a day keeps the doctor away!

And actually, you can organize wellness days for each weekday with team-building activities to strengthen employees’ mental health:

Alternatively, schedule a quarterly or yearly Wellness Day in your company.

For example:

See how the Teradata team indulged in beach volleyball on their Q3 Well-Being Day.

Teradata beach volleyball

Source: LinkedIn

2. Digital Detoxes

Did you know that 63% of employees experience fatigue and emotional exhaustion due to excessive screen time in the workplace?

Now, imagine a whole day without Slack notifications, inbox-checking, and scrolling through other digital spaces.

That’s what digital detoxing is about. You hit pause on virtual collaboration tools, refresh, and reconnect with your co-workers in a physical environment.

For example:

Look at this Digital Detox Day at TallyMarks Consulting.

Source: LinkedIn

Remember: Turn your devices off so that no notification can buzz its way to you.

3. Creative Expression Workshops

The formula goes like this: Express Creatively = De-Stress Emotionally

The neuroscience of creativity says that creative expressions have tremendous potential to enhance well-being, especially when it comes to the power of art therapy.

Why not let your employees release their deepest feelings and emotions during a creative workshop?

A couple of ideas are:

For example:

Take a glimpse of this candle-making workshop (and aromatherapy!) at MSDI.

Source: LinkedIn

Now, think of it this way. What if someone on your sales or marketing team is an Agatha Christie in disguise? Such workshops will also help you discover hidden talents in the workplace.

4. Mental-Health-Related Holidays

Who said celebrations are only for national or federal holidays?

There are also special occasions when you can raise mental health awareness and support employee well-being at work:

For example:

Many organizations worldwide celebrate Mental Health Awareness Month in May.

Source: Instagram

5. Stress-Relieving Games

Are you looking for a secret weapon against workplace burnout?

Look no further because here are the best “stress-killers,” that is, team-building games meant for relaxing and reducing work-related tension:

Also—

Note: Casual video games (cooperative, not competitive) have also proved stress-busting.

6. Gratitude Trees or Walls

You can’t deny the positive impact of gratefulness on employee mental wellness. Nearly all workers (97%) report lower anxiety levels when expressing gratitude, and 94% feel encouraged and spurred emotionally when receiving it.

So, how about “growing” a gratitude tree in the office and adding sticky notes about who (and what for) everyone is grateful to?

Source: LinkedIn

Alternatively, you can build an appreciation or recognition wall at work. Fill it with “thank-you” notes or even tiny handmade awards for each other.

7. Volunteering and Charitable Events

Adam Young, CEO and Founder at Event Tickets Center, says, “Numerous studies show that altruistic acts of helping others evoke a “feel-good” effect and reduce stress. Not to mention that volunteer work enhances social connections and team bonds and creates a sense of purpose. Mind: It is particularly vital for the Gen-Z workforce, which seeks meaning in work and life”.

Grab the following philanthropic team-building ideas:

For example:

The locally based team members from Viatris, an international pharmaceutical company, ran a charity marathon in Helsinki.

Source: LinkedIn

How to Improve Employees’ Mental Well-Being and Build a Happier Team?

1. Normalize Mental Health Talks

Are mental health conversations open and loud in your team, or are they still disapproved and perceived with skepticism?

In fact, 42% of workers feel uncomfortable discussing mental issues at work, citing stigmatization as one of the primary reasons for that.

In this context, John Grant, Founder & CEO of Premier Bidets, believes, “Every employer should build a stigma-free culture around mental/emotional health and make a comfortable environment for workers to express freely and openly. It’s always better to talk it out rather than suppress feelings inside.”

For that, he recommends organizing regular mental health check-in circles, walk-and-talk meetings, or other similar team-building activities as a new normal in the workplace. And when you do, John Grant adds, “Be empathetic, compassionate, and supportive as a team leader or manager.”

2. Implement DEI Initiatives

Diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) are “very” or “extremely important” for 64% of workers. Yet, only 56% of companies have DEI strategies in the workplace.

Let’s look at several ideas you may take for your DEI strategy to support employee wellness and build a diverse, happy team.

Depending on your team’s peculiarities and needs, you can develop a unique workplace program for embracing gender-based, racial, or generational diversity.

For example:

Luizalabs created the “Lab Girls” program to reinforce their genuine commitment to gender equality in the workplace. 

Source: LinkedIn

When asked about diversity holidays, Maryanne Fiedler, Director of Marketing at Psychic Source, remarked: “A DEI holiday should be more than just a calendar date to remind you of diverse employees. It’s a chance to demonstrate that you hear and value them and emphasize how their uniqueness truly enriches your team on every level: mental, spiritual, and social.”

For example:

The company launched an employee storytelling series for DEI holidays specifically (like Pride Month or Hispanic Heritage Month). Psychic Source reveals stories from underrepresented groups and minorities to volume up their voices.

Source: Instagram

You can’t disregard this DEI initiative if you have a geographically distributed team.

Reyansh Mestry, Head of Marketing at TopSource Worldwide, shares, “Beyond professional exchange on global payroll services, our team members are super-enthusiastic about cultural swaps. During such team-building events, we travel office-to-office and meet in person for better intercultural understanding and connection.”

Source: LinkedIn

“Besides, he adds, “a new environment always works like a reset button for the mind.”

3. Create Team Identifiers for a Better Fellowship Vibe

For Maya Kirianova, Marketing Associate at Mito Red Light Therapy, emotional well-being at work also depends on “the fellowship factor.” She says, “When you visually distinguish your colleagues as members of one inseparable unit, teamwork no longer seems like an obligation. You start feeling the team’s chemistry and the ‘pulse of us’ and support each other no matter what. Ultimately, this contributes to overall workplace happiness.”

That said, he brings up the importance of symbolic markers, just like in brotherhoods or sisterhoods, to enhance the feeling of togetherness and ignite a collaborative team spirit:

Moreover, this initiative is backed up financially. The staff can spend their red shoe allowance on anything, from heels to sneakers, as long as they’re red and match their personalities (that’s where inclusion meets diversity).

4. Invest in Wellness Tools

More than half of companies (55%) consider investing in mindfulness and meditation programs, and 65% opt for telemedicine solutions for employees.

Some have already done it successfully.

For example:

Rodger Desai, CEO of Prove, mentions, “Prove is a people-first workplace, and our goal is holistic employee well-being. Since we’re a hybrid workplace, we provide digital well-being solutions for Provers to be physically, psychologically, and financially safe and sound.”

Provers (Prove employees) use the Modern Health app with 1:1 psychotherapy sessions, live Circles with co-workers, meditation exercises, and more.

Consider other workplace wellness apps like these:

For example:

At Santander, a global leader in banking and finance, workers get free access to Gympass, Limeade, Betterfly, and Thrive, among other services, to build a physically and mentally healthy team.

Source: Santander.com

5. Set Up Special Areas to Unite and Battle Stress

See how you can help your staffers fight workplace anxiety or deadline pressure in a special environment (in-office or virtual) designed for team building and mental health support.

For In-Office Teams

For offices, Jesse Hanson, Content Manager at Online Solitaire & World of Card Games, recommends setting up both tech-free and tech-full zones. “Create a tech-free area for team-building activities to let your workers’ minds relax and take rest from screens. On the other side (of the office), you can design a tech-full zone for playing video games: gaming chairs, monitors, game consoles, VR headsets, etc.”

For example:

Here’s a no-tech zone in Zillow’s workspace.

Source: Zillow

Now, look at this tech-packed gaming room at Spotify.

Source: X.com

For Hybrid and Remote Teams

The following fact may be an eye-opener for you: Every fourth remote employee feels lonely and disconnected from colleagues.

If you manage a hybrid workforce or run a work-at-home team, establish online “water coolers” or informal chat rooms for more effective team bonding remotely. You can easily do that with Nimble Café! In addition to project management features, Nimble offers a virtual space for chatting, relaxing, or recognizing achievements—whatever you wish!

Putting Your Team Together for Positive Mental Health

At the bottom line, as we’re closing our employee well-being playbook, remember that a mentally healthy team is a productive and happy team.

So, it’s time to join Nimble to humanize work and build a healthier and happier workplace of the future. It will help you create a supportive and collaborative online environment, make connectivity your team’s superpower, and level up together as never before.

 

Try Nimble and #HumanizeWork for business success!

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