JJ's (May '05) Tips in this issue: 1. Coping With Overwork & Stress 2. JJ's Favorite Quotes 3. Tele-Coaching & Tele-Mentoring ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Use the following tips as training tools. Present this situation to your group and brainstorm solutions together, or submit your own situation question to be answered in an upcoming newsletter. ------------------------------------- SITUATION QUESTION: ------------------------------------- A reader wrote: Could you give us some tips on coping with overwork and stress, and staying healthy through the process? --------------------- SOLUTIONS: --------------------- Your workload and stress may be undercutting your health! An article written for the New York Times, by John Schwartz, stated this very situation. He wrote, "American workers are stressed out, and in an unforgiving economy, they are becoming more so every day. Sixty-two percent say their workload has increased over the past six months; 53 percent say work leaves them 'overworked tired and overwhelmed.' Even at home, in the soccer bleachers, or at the Labor Day picnic, workers are never really off the clock, bound to Black-Berrys, cell phones and laptops. Add iffy job security, rising health care costs, ailing pension plans and fear that a financial setback could put mortgage payments out of reach, and the office has become, for many, an echo chamber of angst. It's enough to make workers sick -- and it does." We also know that decades of research have linked stress to everything from heart attacks to weakening of the immune system. Some of the stress is the result of how they are managed or supervised at work too. According to The Business Research Lab, 42 percent have quit a job because they didn't like their supervisor. Supervisors can make a big difference! Workers are most willing to work hard and care about the success of their company when they have good relationships with their supervisors, do not have to choose between work and personal responsibilities, and feel they have an opportunity to advance. Only 29 percent of Americans feel their performance is rewarded when they do a good job, and only 29 percent say that poorly performing employees in their department are appropriately managed, according to Mercer Human Resource Consulting. Whether other people report to you or not, you are managing yourself and others at work and home all the time. Some of those work family interactions cause stress and others release stress to keep you healthy. Use all your allotted vacation time, take breaks, celebrate together, and surround yourself with positive people as often as possible. Become a positive influence, one who possesses possibility thinking and a "can do" attitude. A good support family and/or extended family of close friends will also give you the necessary balance to recharge yourself. Make the decision to remain or become healthy by adopting or adapting these stress reducers: * Exercise vigorously on a regular basis at least 3 times a week * Practice relaxation techniques: yoga, 5 minutes of quiet time, start your day by programming the type of day you want * Focus your attention, big picture to 1 thing at a time, multitasking causes more stress in the long run * Watch what you eat and drink, too much caffeine causes more stress signals * Play, laugh, go to movies and escape temporarily to recharge * Listen to your own self talk (inner dialogue), be a nurturing parent to yourself and not an angry one, this works wonders with children to cut down on their noise * Set personal and work goals that are within reach * Pamper yourself at least once a week * Give yourself and others a big HUG when it is appropriate. Any number of surveys on what makes people happy show this result: First, love. Second, work. These are the two most important aspects of life for most. Do you have a 50/50 marriage or relationship. A good marriage is 75/25 -- with both sides giving 75 percent as stated in the book, "Everlasting Matrimony: Pearls of Wisdom from Couples Married 50 Years or More," by Sheryl Kurland. Having a loving relationship with family and friends is rated high in health values. It improves your chances of disease prevention, recovery and improvement even with such conditions as arthritis, diabetes, heart disease and mental illness. Good hugs and nurturing lower blood pressure, improves emotional well-being and even saves people from lives of crime. Love makes you laugh. Doctors will tell you that laughter is good medicine and exercise. The heart, lungs and even the adrenal glands get a good workout. It is invigorating and stimulating. Nurturing makes people thrive in a positive environment, and it reduces workplace stress too. So reach out and improve someone's workday and you just might keep them and yourself healthier too. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ JJ's FAVORITE QUOTES: ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ If you don't have your health, not much else matters. - JJ Lauderbaugh, CMC "Attitude: Life is 10% what happens to you and 90% how you react to it. We are in charge of our attitudes." - Annie Hirsch The road to success is based on the choices you make. There will be many challenges. Face them one at a time, and you'll go further and farther than you ever dreamed. - Jeff Mayer, Improve Your Life Speaker ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Tele-COACHING & Tele-MENTORING ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ TRY our one-on-one Tele-Mentoring (phone coaching service) that is available to business owners, executives, managers, supervisors and staff members. Call for your FREE CONSULTATION now! 800 500-9656 or 408 445-1590 DO YOU WANT TO IMPROVE in an area? Customer service or sales? Inbound or outbound call center sales and service? Dealing with irate internal or external customers? Motivation and growth of your people? Leading and Coaching your staff? _________________________________ EVALUATION OF YOUR ENVIRONMENT: _________________________________ Have you had an Evaluation of Your Environment lately so you could receive suggestions on improving it? (It's like the doctor's check up, you often don't know you need it, until after you've had it.) http://www.jjlauderbaugh.com/about.html **************************************** ---------------------------------------------------------- email jj@jjlauderbaugh.com REFERRALS Requested: Please pass this newsletter on to friends and colleagues who would
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