People and businesses do continual business with those they know, like, and trust. Stay with me here, because this is definitely connected with building a healthy brand! The best way for that to happen is for you to first know, like, and trust yourself.
How Does “Healthy Me” Connect with Building a Healthy Brand?
Personal development is more than just going to a big overhyped weekend event with fire walking and chanting. It is a daily journey of continual development with mentors, instructors, and fellow leaders all helping each other to become better people. Personal development takes investment in long-term programs, and most importantly, in yourself to truly know who you are and what you can give to the world.
Until you really know yourself there is no way to like or trust yourself, and that goes double for everyone that meets you. There is brilliance and a special gift in all of us that we should each find for ourselves, and help others do the same. This innate branding is better than any dark logo on the outside, as it is a light from the inside that makes everything else shine brighter.
Wellness Programs are Always Good, Right?
Companies of all sizes have been forced into adopting wellness programs whether employees wanted them or not, and whether they worked or not. First were the bribes of increased tax incentives, followed by increased tax penalties for non-compliance. Both are incredibly bad reasons for implementing a program, as is just trying to cut health care costs.
A wellness program should be put in place for the improvement of employees both on the job and in their personal lives. It should be also added at the request of employees, after company leaders have already been seen doing a program successfully.
Work with Your Employees
The healthiest companies with the most respected brands are the companies that work with their employees for improvement in all aspects of life. The very culture of the company will show in how customers see the brand after experiencing the full-time brand ambassadors, known as employees.
Can We Really Buy Health?
Health has been highjacked from what was once a lifelong obligation and turned into a “Get Fit Quick” industry through wickedly genius marketing. This has misled most everyone, including companies, into believing they can buy health from a shelf in a store, an infomercial at 3 AM, or a slick wellness program.
People have been deceived into the notion that a bottle of pills or a 30-day extreme workout program is the answer to what ails them. Businesses have bought into this same lunacy as they purchase expensive trendy corporate wellness programs in hopes of cutting costs and gaining hip young millennial employees. However, the real trend has been greater costs – and employees revolting against added stresses and obligations during the work week!
Better Health Builds Strong People and Strong Businesses, Too
Health is not a thing to be bought or sold in the market. Health is not a logo or a catchy phrase. Health is a way of life that must be embraced and lived through committed daily actions.
Healthy companies become that way through better leadership and healthy people become that way through better living. The brand of each company and each person can be built through better health.
3 Action Steps for Building a Healthy Brand
1. Develop a Personal Growth Plan
The more personal growth everyone experiences, the more business growth a company will experience. Create a personal growth plan for your company and employees that everyone wants – one they will participate in. This will make for better consumer experiences and greater business growth each year.
2. Healthy Employees Make for a Healthy Business
The healthier everyone is the healthier the business will be. Healthy employees miss less work, go to the doctor less, and are happier overall. This will make for lower costs, reduce employee churn and an improved the bottom line every year.
3. Great Leaders Lead by Example
The greatest leaders encourage and create new leaders. Be the leader and the example for others to follow and emulate, while encouraging them to become leaders as well.
Building a Healthy Brand Pays Off
As detailed above, there’s a real link between personal health and growth, and the growth of your business. You might have had an inkling of this before, but those “wellness initiatives” based on either the carrot or the stick may have soured your opinion and pushed the concept away! Remember: you don’t have to duplicate that wasted effort.
Know that your health, employee health, and business health all combine to improve the experience for your customer – and all those customers-to-be!
Are you inspired to start building a healthy brand today? Do share your thoughts on this important need in the comments!
