Authors: Talya Landau and Jessica Grossmeier, PhD, MPH
In today’s evolving world of work, the importance of wellbeing has taken center stage. It’s no longer just about reducing health risks, mitigating burnout, or offering perks. It’s about creating environments where people can truly thrive. To support this vision, the Workplace Wellbeing Initiative (WWI) of the Global Wellness Institute has curated a Recommended Reading List that brings together insights, inspiration, and evidence from a diverse range of voices dedicated to transforming how we experience work.
This Recommended Reading resource highlights ideas that span the many dimensions of wellbeing, from purpose and connection to leadership, resilience, and joy. Each featured title offers practical wisdom and evidence-based perspectives designed to help leaders, wellbeing advocates, and teams deepen their understanding of what it means to build a truly healthy workplace.
These recommendations were gathered through collaboration and ongoing dialogue within the global workforce wellbeing community including authors, Workplace Wellbeing Initiative members, and contributors to the Wellbeing at Work LinkedIn Live series hosted by Laura Putnam in partnership with the Workplace Wellbeing Initiative. Together, these thinkers represent a broad spectrum of expertise and lived experience, uniting science, strategy, and storytelling to inspire meaningful change at work.
The books featured in this collection offer something for everyone along the wellbeing journey:
- For a holistic foundation: Wellness 101 by Gloria Treister provides a framework for connecting physical, emotional, and spiritual health to personal and professional success.
- For leaders and culture-builders: Reimagining Workplace Well-Being by Jessica Grossmeier and Workplace Wellness That Works by Laura Putnam share practical models for embedding wellbeing into organizational DNA. Well at Work by Jessica Grossmeier and Rhea Fix complements these insights with an interactive guide to cultivating greater connection, alignment, and fulfillment in any kind of work, whether paid, caregiving, or volunteer.
- For teams seeking connection and belonging: Work Better Together by Jen Fisher and Anh Phillips and The Affinity Principle by Grant Gamble reveal how empathy and collaboration drive employee engagement and loyalty.
- For those exploring purpose and meaning: Books like Why Are We Here? by Jennifer Moss and The Power of Mattering by Zach Mercurio remind us that fulfillment stems from feeling valued and making a difference.
- For tackling burnout and finding balance: The Burnout Epidemic by Jennifer Moss offers strategies to reverse chronic stress, while The Good Enough Job by Simone Stolzoff reframes work as a meaningful part of life, not the whole of it.
- For sustaining joy and wellbeing beyond work: Joyspan by Kerry Burnight and How to Eat by Mark Bittman and David Katz connect everyday practices to long-term health and happiness.
What makes this collection special is not just the content of the books, but the community behind them. Each recommendation reflects the collective curiosity, compassion, and commitment of those who believe wellbeing at work is both possible and powerful.
We invite you to explore the list, learn from these featured thinkers, and discover new ways to advance wellbeing in your own sphere of influence. This is a living resource; one that will continue to grow as our understanding of workplace wellbeing deepens. We welcome your recommendations!
👉 Explore the full GWI Workplace Wellbeing Recommended Reading List here
