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If you have a company that is focused on creative work, such as design, marketing, or content production, you know your business benefits when your employees are at their best. When creativity is flowing, production and quality are both high. If your workers feel burnt out or tired, it will be hard for them to produce at their normal levels. 

Even companies that are not focused strictly on creative production can benefit from creative workers. Creativity helps with problem-solving. Businesses that encourage out-of-the-box thinking toward setbacks will have an advantage over competitors. Businesses with creative workers will also see an increase in productivity and quality of work.

As an employer, it's in your own best interest to have rested, creative, productive, and healthy employees and contractors. Here are some of the best ways to focus on mental health and creative flow in your workplace.

Flexible Schedules

Providing a flexible schedule for your workers can help them work at whatever time they feel most creative. Some people are at their best early in the morning or late at night. Forcing these people into traditional working hours will limit their creative output and contribute to burnout. Consider having both regular and unscheduled hours of work. 

Remote Work

Allowing remote work for part of all of your employees' hours can help them work when they’re feeling inspired. An inspired employee who is working when they're at their best can produce twice as much in the same amount of time, and it will be better work. Creative work doesn’t follow schedules and clocks, so give your employees and contractors the space and time to work when they are at their best. Your business will profit from this approach.

Work-cations

Consider hosting a group work-cation for your employees. By providing new scenery, collaboration, and a restive atmosphere, you will support mental health and creative flow. If a group trip isn’t feasible, encourage your workers to take work-cations of their own. Whether alone or with their families, the break and change of atmosphere are likely to result in a flood of their best work.

Vacations

Creative workers may benefit from more frequent vacations. Time away from the workplace is one of the best ways to spark the creative process. In contrast, becoming overly fixated on problems can make them harder to solve. When people can step away from their work more often, they come back with better ideas, better focus, and more energy. Vacations actually benefit employers as much as they do employees. 

Mental Health

Keep your workers’ mental health in mind. Employees that are overworked, depressed, or burnt out will not produce quality material. They will also not be able to keep up with their usual amount of work. Provide an environment conducive to mental health by providing access to online therapists, supporting your employees when they need time away, and allowing flexibility at work. 

Meditation

Aside from its other mental and physical advantages, meditation has been proven to be beneficial for creative flow. Meditation has been proven to increase creativity by helping people be more open-minded, improving their attention, and helping them be more resilient during periods of failure. Meditation for employees can be encouraged by providing access to meditation guides along with the space and time to use them.

Exercise

People who exercise are happier, more relaxed, and healthier, all things that are needed to be at their creative best. Encourage exercise by providing gym memberships, exercise classes at work, and online classes that can be accessed at home. Bringing a class right into the workspace during paid time can encourage participation. 

Time Outdoors

People who unplug and get outside are more productive, more creative, and more relaxed. This is especially important for creators who spend most of their time on computers. Encourage your employees and contractors to get outside by providing resources like national and state park passes. Some companies are staging contests and challenges for outdoor activities with cash prizes for winners.

Breaks

Make sure your employees are encouraged to take frequent breaks to stretch, walk around the building, or stare out the window. Creators who take breaks from their computers or canvases are more creative and get more done in the long run. They are also healthier and have fewer cases of medical problems due to sitting for long spaces of time.

Brainstorming

Having the space and time to brainstorm can be vital to creative work. When ideas flow freely without fear of criticism, the best ideas come to the surface like cream. Brainstorming is one of the best ways to get the best out of your workers, both in quality and quantity. 

When you are working on a new project or problem, encourage your workers to brainstorm and brain dump in private. Later, have a meeting and continue brainstorming together, collaborating to sift out the best ideas. Time to brainstorm is as important as time focused on production, and often makes the creative process go faster and easier.