WELCOA is often the first stop when organizations are looking for wellness resources. Their name carries a lot of weight in our industry and I’m thrilled that they are doing some exciting things to evolve the wellness industry.
A critical part of that team is Sara Rauch, Director of Strategy and Planning at WELCOA. I wanted to rerun this episode with Sara for two reasons. One is that she alludes to the changes they are making at WELCOA around the benchmarks and checklist which are now out and being used. It’s kind of fun to see progress.
Also, Sara is just a wonderful person. She’s the most put together person I know, handling things with a calm demeanor when I would be freaking out. Plus, she’s got some mean dance moves!
In this interview, Sara tells us a bit about the inner workings of WELCOA, some upcoming updates to the Well Workplace Checklist and Award, why WELCOA’s a neutral force in the market and she shares a deeply personal story that led her into the field of organizational/industrial psych and wellness.
If you haven’t already joined us on Facebook, please join us there.
For links mentioned in today's episode visit https://redesigningwellness.com/2017/06/055-dream-bigger-sara-rauch-director-strategy-planning-welcoa/
With 45% of households not being able to cover a $400 emergency and 30% of households having no savings, it’s no surprise that financial wellness continues to be a hot topic as we move into 2019. Since this is still relatively new territory for wellness professionals, I brought on today’s guest, Shane Robson-Smith, to help us navigate this area of wellbeing.
Shane and his wife had big ideas about the abundant life they wanted to lead but found themselves buried under a new mortgage payment, $20,000 in consumer debt and over $100,000 in student loans leaving them broke and living paycheck-to-paycheck.
Together, they used the vision they had for their married life to start living below their means, stuck to a budget, paid off their debt, and started saving and investing for future goals.
Today, Shane enjoys an active lifestyle, building his dream business, traveling internationally with his wife and three kids and is on course to retire more than 10 years earlier than most working folks these days.
In this interview, Shane tells his story of getting out of debt, financial stressors he often sees, the personal and professional impact of financial stress, and some common mistakes employers make when addressing financial wellness. Shane jam packs some helpful stats in this interview and leaves us with some really good tangible tips.
If you haven’t already joined the Redesigning Wellness Community on Facebook, we’d love to have you join us! You can join HERE.
For links mentioned in today's episode visit https://redesigningwellness.com/
Welcome to the RD podcast! It’s that time of year where I like to reflect on what happened over the course of the year and I thought who better to do this with than Bob Merberg. We did this last year and selfishly it was fun.
When Bob and I get together to talk. We talk. A lot. This is a long interview but it didn’t feel that way to me, so hopefully it doesn’t to you. Bob Merberg, Principal Consultant at Jozito LLC has led the way in sustainable, healthy workplaces for more than 20 years.
The Institute for Healthcare Consumerism in 2014 named Bob an IHC Superstar for Employee Empowerment, and in 2017 a team of industry experts convened by the Rochester Business Journal recognized him for creativity and ability to effect measurable improvements, sustainability, and program outcomes. Check out Bob’s full bio below.
In this interview, Bob and I discuss our reflections on wellness over the past year, what we’ve learned, anything we have changed our minds about (this is interesting because we slightly disagree on this one) and the directions were headed in 2019.
You’re Invited! I want to invite you to a free webinar, “7 Critical Steps to Increase Your Impact and Influence as a Wellness Professional” on December 13 at 2 pm EST. Register HERE.
Many health promotion efforts are stuck in an old paradigm, operating on outdated thinking or flawed assumptions.
This webinar will separate myth from reality – and jump start your path to confidently bringing your organization into the next generation of worksite wellness. You’ll leave with valuable insights and practical takeaways on the following four topics:
You can register for the webinar HERE.
For links mentioned in today's episode visit https://redesigningwellness.com/
A person in the c-suite to oversee the wellbeing of employees…sounds awesome right? The concept of a Chief Wellness Officer is a relatively new concept gaining traction at places like the University of Pennsylvania and Stanford. It’s a promising concept but what does a person in this role actually do? Today guest, Dr. Bill Satterwhite, Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center’s first Chief Wellness Officer, breaks it down for us.
Dr. Satterwhite is one of its leaders in redesigning health care to be more proactive about health and wellness rather than reactive about sickness and disease.
He develops value-based, customized integrated solutions for self-funded employers -- including Wake Forest Baptist Health’s employees -- designed to improve their overall wellbeing in convenient, cost-effective and health-effective ways.
In this interview, we discuss his role as the Chief Wellness Officer, his approach to both employee wellness and the wellness services his team brings to clients, how they address physician burnout (including the violence they face) and of course leaves us with two tangible tips…plus a bonus tip.
You’re Invited! I want to invite you to a free webinar, “7 Critical Steps to Increase Your Impact and Influence as a Wellness Professional” on December 13 at 2 pm EST. Register HERE.
Many health promotion efforts are stuck in an old paradigm, operating on outdated thinking or flawed assumptions.
This webinar will separate myth from reality – and jump start your path to confidently bringing your organization into the next generation of worksite wellness. You’ll leave with valuable insights and practical takeaways on the following four topics:
You can register for the webinar HERE.
For links mentioned in today's episode visit https://redesigningwellness.com/
It seems as though our industry is transitioning from the word wellness to wellbeing at a rapid pace. Wellbeing is often used to separate from the traditional physical health wellness programs (although many times they are the exact same programs).
Now that the word wellbeing is thrown around by every wellness vendor and insurance plan who wants to be part of the “in crowd”, we should explore not only what it means but the various models associated with it.
Using a psychological approach and expertise, today’s guest, Dr. Gregg Henriques, created a nested model of wellbeing. Dr. Henriques is Professor of Graduate Psychology at James Madison University, teaching courses in personality theory, personality assessment, social psychology, and integrative adult psychotherapy.
In this interview, we discuss why he created a model of wellbeing and we spend most of the time diving into the model. I also fit in a question about how distressed is caused when people have negative reactions to their negative feelings.
Gregg walks us through his anacronym CALM MO, which I think we can all benefit from following. Finally, he leaves us with his tip…which is tangible but requires some thought.
If you’re ready for some deep thinking, then this interview is for you.
Have a sec for a favor? I’d greatly appreciate if you would vote me in to next year’s WELCOA Summit Intensive session! Until November 30th, you can vote for the Intensive sessions you want to see at WELCOA’s 2019 Summit. My session is titled “Next Generation Wellness: From Theory to Practice” can be found HERE.
For links mentioned in today's episode visit https://redesigningwellness.com/
Have you ever wondered why a professional in the corporate world would branch out on their own and proceed to build out wellness training to professionals in 8 countries? Today’s guest, Lisa Kelly, will answer both of these questions (and more).
Lisa Kelly of Kelly Wellness Consulting Inc., offers global, online-delivered programs featuring dynamic, experiential training in workplace wellness program design and delivery. Her mission is to create an innovative and collaborative landscape for global workplace wellness that fosters employee-driven, results-oriented wellness solutions benefiting employers, employees, and communities at large.
Lisa and I discuss her experience in toxic workplaces, the #1 challenge her Ambassadors face, the Kelly Wellness approach and if she’s changing anything now that the WELCOA benchmarks have evolved.
Have a sec for a favor? I’d greatly appreciate if you would vote me in to next year’s WELCOA Summit Intensive session! Until November 30th, you can vote for the Intensive sessions you want to see at WELCOA’s 2019 Summit. My session is titled “Next Generation Wellness: From Theory to Practice” can be found HERE.
For links mentioned in today's episode visit https://redesigningwellness.com/
Today’s repeat guest, Barbara Zabawa, owns the Center for Health and Wellness Law, LLC a law firm dedicated to improving legal access and compliance for the health and wellness industries. She is lead author of the book Rule the Rules on Workplace Wellness Programs, published by the American Bar Association.
In today’s interview we address two things. One is her advice for what employers should do now that as of January 2019 there will be no guidance as to what amount of incentive (if any) will meet the ADA’s requirement of being voluntary.
The second topic we cover is an opinion letter issued by the Department of Labor about whether the Fair Labor Standards Act requires an employer to pay employees for their time spent participating in wellness activities.
Vote me in to next year’s WELCOA Summit Intensive session! Until November 30th, you can vote for the Intensive sessions you want to see at WELCOA’s 2019 Summit. My session is titled “Next Generation Wellness: From Theory to Practice” can be found HERE.
For links mentioned in today's episode visit https://redesigningwellness.com/
If you don’t already know Al Lewis, then I’m not sure where you’ve been hiding. He is quite an antagonizer in the wellness world but we’re not talking about wellness today.
Al is the founder of Quizzify, whose mission is to help companies teach their employees to utilize healthcare services appropriately.
Al and I talk about why health info (benefits, procedures, Rx) is so hard to understand, where employers are missing the mark in terms of benefit design and why they aren’t teaching their employees to become better healthcare consumers.
He also tells us the #1 question/recommendation employers and employees push back on. Finally, he provides advice on what employers can do to increase literacy and what wellness pros can do to stay in the know.
Vote me in to next year’s WELCOA Summit Intensive session! Until November 30th, you can vote for the Intensive sessions you want to see at WELCOA’s 2019 Summit. My session is titled “Next Generation Wellness: From Theory to Practice” can be found HERE.
For links mentioned in today's episode visit https://redesigningwellness.com/
Arthur Wood spoke about the importance of purpose at WELCOA’s summit this year. One thing that really resonated with me was how purpose doesn’t have to be a grandiose thing to find but rather something you can find in what you do.
Arthur Woods is a social entrepreneur named on the list for Forbes 30 Under 30, a keynote speaker and advisor to leading brands around the world on the ways we help people grow and realize their potential at work.
He is the Co-Founder of Imperative, a breakthrough learning and development platform that has pioneered the way we measure and grow purpose within organizations. Arthur came from Google where he led operations for YouTube’s Education division and oversaw YouTube for Schools
In today’s interview we discuss how Imperative came to be, Arthur explains the Purpose Economy and the benefits of companies focusing on purpose. He calls purpose a cross generational need and he demystifies purpose for us. Arthur also disputes how purpose is needed by everyone regardless of economics.
For links mentioned in today's episode visit https://redesigningwellness.com/
Jason Lauritsen is a former corporate Human Resources executive dedicated to helping leaders build organizations that are good for both people and profits. He’s a keynote speaker, employee engagement and workplace culture expert who will challenge you to think differently.
Jason led the research team for Quantum Workplace’s Best Places to Work program where he has studied the employee experience at thousands of companies to understand what the best workplaces in the world do differently than the rest.
His new book, Unlocking High Performance, is now available for pre-order.
Today, Jason starts off telling us how he got so fascinated with employee engagement, we discuss why both of us want to make work better for employees even though we work for ourselves, why relationships are so important and specifically how managers can better engage their employees.
Jason gives an excellent list of 5 questions managers can use in 1:1’s with their employees to foster a healthy relationship. Finally, he leaves us what we can do to foster more positive relationships with employees.
For links mentioned in today's episode visit https://redesigningwellness.com/
Putting on a conference is no easy task, much less a conference that challenges us to bring humanity back to the workplace. That’s exactly what today’s guests, Rosie Ward and Scott Life, talk about today.
Salveo Partners, along with a dedicated planning committee, will have their inaugural Fusion 2.0 conference this November. In this interview, Rosie and Scott tell us how the idea was sparked, who’s helping plan it, how it’s different from other conferences and the speaker line up. Don’t miss it at the end when Rosie offers listeners $200 off conference registration.
I hope to see you at the Fusion 2.0 conference this November!
For links mentioned in today's episode visit https://redesigningwellness.com/
Many of us strive to make positive change in the workplace but simply don’t have the authority to do so. Today’s guest, Chris White, gives some fantastic tips on how to get our ideas adopted.
Chris White leads the Center for Positive Organizations at the University of Michigan. The Center helps leaders build high-performing organizations that bring out the best in people through ground-breaking research, educational programs, and organizational partnerships.
At the Ross School of Business, White co-developed and teaches the MBA class on Social Intrapreneurship: creating positive change without authority. White is co-author of a book on the topic through Harvard Business Review Press, entitled Changing Your Company From the Inside Out.
In this interview, we discuss two main topics – how to lead positive change without authority and the energy we bring to work. Chris shares his framework on successful change and of course, tangible tips.
For links mentioned in today's episode visit https://redesigningwellness.com/
Mettie Spiess is an international mental health speaker, nationally certified corporate health coach, and the founder of A World Without Suicide. She is known as a “tiny but mighty” and a “stigma-crusher” by clients nation-wide.
Mettie shares her practical (Voice. Value. Vigilance.) leadership process with companies to effectively support employee mental health and increase the effectiveness of their wellness programs.
We start off the interview with Mettie telling her personal story, the fears and stigma around mental health at the workplace what signs do you look for and what if there are no signs? She shares her framework of Voice. Value. Vigilance. which is extremely tangible.
Let’s talk about mental health. People are struggling and at the very least, we’re in the position to highlight mental health resources available to our population.
For links mentioned in today's episode visit https://redesigningwellness.com/
Joe Nadglowski is President & CEO of the Obesity Action Coalition (OAC). The OAC is a non-profit organization formed in 2005 dedicated to elevating and empowering those affected by obesity through education, advocacy and support.
A frequent speaker and author on the importance of obesity awareness, Joe has more than 25 years of experience working in patient advocacy, public policy and education. He has been a guest of First Lady Michelle Obama at the White House to discuss childhood obesity and has testified before the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on the importance of increasing treatment options for individuals affected by obesity.
In today’s interview Joe tells his personal story about his weight, some general misconceptions about obesity and weight stigma in the workplace. We talk about the role of the wellness professional and employer when it comes to obesity. Finally, Joe leaves us with one tangible tip for creating a stigma free workplace.
For links mentioned in today's episode visit https://redesigningwellness.com/
It seems that no matter who I talk to, the topic of millennials comes up, typically when it comes to people talking about how they are driving the needs of wellness offerings, or how they want flexibility or how they are entitled. One thing I think millennials will demand is a different leadership than what today’s guest calls a “command and control” approach.
Today’s guest is Lee Caraher, CEO of Double Forte PR & Digital Marketing. Her company works with some of the top consumer and technology brands in the country. Lee’s an acclaimed communication strategist, known for her practical solutions to big problems.
Lee is the author of Millennials & Management based on her experience with failing and then succeeding at retaining Millennials. She has a reputation for building cohesive, high producing teams who have fun together at the same time.
In today’s interview, we discuss how creating a happy and low drama team is an art form, she’s honest about her management missteps and she tells a great story about when she got 360 feedback that made her realize she had some leadership gaps and what she did to change it.
Lee has a very contrary view to turnover which I loved. She leaves us with a tangible tip to building a high performance culture.
For links mentioned in today's episode visit https://redesigningwellness.com/
This episode is all about our upcoming training in February to help wellness and HR professionals take small steps into the next generation of wellness. With the wellness industry evolving, Rebecca and I want to provide a safe and supportive environment where we provide actionable and applicable advice on how to have more impact in your role.
Listen in to hear Rebecca and I chat about how and why we came up with the idea for the training, why we are the right people to teach it and a bit more about the content and who’s a good fit.
Also, don’t miss out on an opportunity to participate in a small group training starting in October. Here's a bit more about it:
For those that sign up for my February training (more weeks and more formalized), this small group training is free. If you just want to do the standalone, then it's $350. Just use this contact form if you only want the small group training.
The deadline to get in on the small group training is October 17th.
For full details on the 2019 training, visit https://redesigningwellness.com/impactandinfluence/
For links mentioned in today's episode visit https://redesigningwellness.com/
Dr. Bryan Sexton has captured the wisdom of frontline caregivers through rigorous assessments of safety culture, teamwork, and workforce resilience. His research instruments have been used around the world in over 3000 hospitals, in 30 countries. His current R01 grant from NIH is a randomized clinical trial of resilience training.
With specializations in organizational assessment, teamwork, survey development, and quantitative methods, Bryan spends his time teaching, mentoring, conducting research, and finding practical ways of getting busy caregivers to do the right thing, by making it the easy thing to do.
Bryan has found that results across industries, work settings, shifts, professions, and countries highlight a great deal about reliability in high risk environments – specifically, “you are better off changing the situation, than trying to change human nature.”
He starts off by telling us how he got started studying burnout in healthcare workers, (BTW- he does an amazing southern accent), he defines the three types burnout and tools he uses to in his resilience research.
Bryan wants people to know that burnout is recoverable.
If you work in a healthcare setting or with healthcare workers, I highly recommend you ask your employees to enroll in Dr. Sexton’s WISER study. You can send your employees to bit.ly/3WISER to participate.
For links mentioned in today's episode visit https://redesigningwellness.com/
For those of you working in or with larger organizations, this episode is for you. Today I talk to LuAnn Heinen, VP of Workforce Well-being, Productivity and Human Capital for the National Business Group on Health®.
The National Business Group on Health is the nation’s only non-profit organization devoted exclusively to representing large employers’ perspective on national health policy issues and helping companies optimize business performance through health improvement, innovation and health care management.
LuAnn leads the Business Group’s initiatives on employee, family and community well-being and workforce effectiveness. These include Best Employers for Healthy Lifestyles® recognition program, Institute on Innovation in Workforce Well-being and the Institute on Health, Productivity and Human Capital.
In today’s interview, we discuss their model of the drivers of employee well-being, their 2018 trends to watch, what the well-being conversations looks like with their global employers, and future trends. LuAnn leaves us with one tangible tip for employers to consider when attempting to enhance employee well-being.
Also, click here to learn more about my upcoming training, Next Generation Wellness: From Theory to Practice.
For links mentioned in today's episode visit https://redesigningwellness.com/
Cali Williams Yost, CEO and Founder of Flex and Strategy Group, makes a bold statement….employers aren’t going to be able to attract workers under the age of 35 if they don’t incorporate flexible work.
Cali helps leaders of traditional businesses build high performance flexible work cultures that attract and retain talent, optimize resources, increase productivity and improve well-being.
For more than two decades, she has provided leaders and employees with the insights, skills and tools to confidently embrace flexibility in the way work is done.
Flexible work is Cali’s jam and she is such a dynamo. In this interview we talk about the benefits of a flexible work culture, how it impacts well-being, what employers forget when implementing a flexible work strategy and she ends with two tangible tips – one for you as an individual and one for your org.
Cali makes a great point about flexible work…it’s not just work from home. There are many ways to incorporate flexible work within organizations. Also, she does a great job answering a question I had about hospital systems and how flexible work applies to the healthcare industry.
Also, click here to learn more about my upcoming training, Next Generation Wellness: From Theory to Practice.
For links mentioned in today's episode visit https://redesigningwellness.com/
Welcome! Today’s interview is part of a series to help you grow personally and professionally. Today’s guest, Mitch Martens, is the Employee Wellness Administrator at Cedars-Sinai Health System in Los Angeles, California. He follows a simple philosophy that can be found in any of his programing…humans are motivated at the heart and when you risk going there, the possibilities are endless.
Today was a free flowing conversation and I had no questions prepared which is so unlike me. But I wanted this to be an authentic conversation and wanted to give Mitch the space to do his thing.
We talk about what Mitch calls a well giver, takes us through his career path, he’s a little vulnerable about where he still struggles with his new experiences and he asks me to think of a time when something happened that made an impact on me. I get a little vulnerable too, talking about my panic about the limited time I have left on this planet and some of my hopes and dreams.
If you’re up for a conversation between two wellness pros that gets into the personal side of wellness, then you’ll enjoy this.
Also, click here to learn more about my upcoming training, Next Generation Wellness: From Theory to Practice.
For links mentioned in today's episode visit https://redesigningwellness.com/
One thing many of us struggle with is communication and how we persuade people to join our programs, convince leaders to give us resources, ask our boss for a raise….the list goes on and on for why we need to develop persuasive communications.
People have a gazillion things going on and you need to get them to WANT to get involved. This isn’t about trickery but rather people feeling called to action.
Today’s guest is Jeff Tippett, speaker, author, and entrepreneur. He considers himself a motivational teacher. That means he delivers actionable content with high energy and passion all while seeking out a heartfelt connection with his audience.
In 2014, Jeff founded Targeted Persuasion, an award-winning public affairs + communications firm, and has worked with renowned brands like Airbnb, The National Restaurant Association, The League of Women Voters, The League of Conservation Voters, plus others.
Jeff and I discuss how he defines persuasive communications, how using them has helped him personally and professionally, steps to building persuasive communications and his top tip for you to start being more persuasive. I love the honor of learning from someone outside of our field because we have to get out of our wellness silos to expand our knowledge base.
Not only has Jeff shared him wisdom on this episode but he’s teaching a masterclass for those that join my upcoming training, Next Generation Wellness: From Theory to Practice.
For links mentioned in today's episode visit https://redesigningwellness.com/
This episode is part of a series of interviews I’m conducting to focus on career and self development for those who want to advance their influence and impact within their organization. I have to admit that I am a personal development junky because I believe we should be putting ourselves in the position to grow and get better. We can’t wait on our organizations to do it for us or wait to find the perfect mentor.
I hope you can use this podcast as a form of mentorship where I interview smart people like today’s guest, Dr. Marilyn Puder-York. Dr. Puder-York is an executive coach with a 30-year successful track record in helping talented executives and professionals achieve their optimal performance. A licensed psychologist, she is one of the first to apply cognitive/behavioral psychology to the enhancement of executive careers.
Marilyn starts off defining office politics and discusses some benefits and where we make mistakes. She breaks down the importance of promoting yourself without being aggressive about it.
Marilyn also explains the difference between a sponsor and a mentor. Finally, we wrap up with her advice on how to best navigate office politics. I wish I had someone like Marilyn to guide me through all of my fumbles in corporate America.
For links mentioned in today's episode visit https://redesigningwellness.com/
Although it may not mean much to you, it’s my 100th episode! Just for a stat, most podcasts don’t make it past 7 episodes. This is not to brag but rather celebrate an endeavor I took on not knowing how it would turn out. I’ve been honored to interview a series of fantastic experts, both inside the wellness industry and beyond.
I rarely do solo episodes but I wanted to share what I’ve learned over the past 2 years, a potential new direction for Redesigning Wellness and a training I’m launching for wellness professionals in September.
For links mentioned in today's episode visit https://redesigningwellness.com/
Today’s guest “can do yoga as good as a yogi, run as fast as a cheetah, and clean as good as a vacuum.”
All of this is according to her son at age 5!
Today’s guest is Debra Lafler. Her approach to wellbeing provides an integrated body-mind-spirit perspective. Debra is an employee wellness and employee assistance program manager for a large employer in Madison, WI; and also is a private coach, consultant and speaker for individuals, groups, or employers in the Madison, Wisconsin area.
Today we talk about the taboo subject of spirituality in the workplace. Debra starts off tell us about her winding road of exploration in the wellness profession and what got her curious about spirituality. She drops quite a bomb about something that happened to her about 12 years ago. I commend her for sharing something so personal. I’m not going to spoil it…you’ll have to listen.
Debra goes on to define spirituality, how it’s different than religion and ways to incorporate this concept into the workplace.
For links mentioned in today's episode visit https://redesigningwellness.com/
Dr. James Kelley is the host of the Executives After Hours podcast, where he states, “I care about who you are, not what you do. Because who you are defines what you do.” James’ new book, The Crucible’s Gift, introduces lessons from 140 diverse leaders who demonstrated the art of living more authentically.
Combining these rich, raw and insightful stories with his knowledge of business and psychology—as well as his candid accounts of what he has learned from his personal crucibles—Kelley shows how to transform what holds you back into traits that will propel you forward, encouraging you to step fully into your life.
One of the things I really like about James is that he’s transparent….he puts it all out there. He was extremely honest in this interview. In today’s episode we discuss his crucibles, including the one that made the biggest impact in his life, authentic leadership and some powerful stories from his book.
For links mentioned in today's episode visit https://redesigningwellness.com/