SACRAO 2012 Barbara L. Rowe [email protected] Washington and Lee University.

REFRESH, REVITALIZE, RENEW

SACRAO 2012Barbara L. [email protected] and Lee University

THE PLAN FOR THIS SESSION

Evaluate the balance in your life and work

Consider your attitude towards work and challenges that arise

Adapt to your job with some creative new ideas

Take away methods to energize and de-stress yourself – even some instantaneous ones!

Learn to turn off the pressure and let go of the need for perfection

Everyone is a house with four rooms, a physical, a mental, an emotional

and a spiritual.

Most of us tend to live in one room most of the time, but unless we go into every room, every day, even if only to keep it aired, we are not a

complete person.

Indian Proverb

DO YOU FEEL STUCK IN ONE ROOM?

LOOK FOR BALANCE

Mental – attitude, brain power, thinking, work relationships

Emotional – happiness, laughter, anger, anxiety

Physical – healthy, energized, eat right, sleep

Spiritual – meditation/prayer, gratitude, kindness to others, a higher purpose

How to enter each of these rooms at work…

WE WORK HARD

A young executive is working late one evening. As he comes out of his office at about 8 pm he see the Big Boss standing by the shredder in the hallway, a piece of paper in his hand. “Do you know how to work this thing?” the older man asks. “My secretary’s gone home and I don’t know how to run it.” “Yes, sir” says the young executive, who turns on the machine, takes the paper from the other man, and feeds it in. “Now,” says the boss, “I just need one copy.”

WORK IS A MESS

Work, by its very nature, is unpredictable, messy, chaotic and surprising.

We can not control our jobs… why is this surprising, frustrating, disappointing….?

Treating work’s messiness as if it were a mistake or liability only creates distress and resentment

Learn to relax and be curious… have ingenuity, good humor, and curiosity to adapt and innovate – and be victorious – no matter what the circumstances

BALANCE THE TWO EFFORTS

Goals, projects, eye to the future, plans, where our day is taking us, where our life is taking us…

Right now. The present situation, what are we doing, keep the moment alive, let go of the goal, be available to the present, be mindful of the present…

Balance the two efforts of getting somewhere and being somewhere at the same time.

BE AWAKE AT WORK

Simply be ‘open’1. Notice, pause, and breath2. Acknowledge mutual openness3. Get back to work4. Stay open

Give it a try: stop your mind, notice the chair in front of you, take a long, unhurried breath, and simply acknowledge whatever happens next

BE A POSITIVE PERSON Present an attitude of positivity and

approachability Walk around with a smile, and make eye

contact. Be friendly, pleasant and nice Talk with kindness, encouragement, civility &

respect Listen to others with interest Don’t complain, whine or gossip

Check-in often: What is the dialogue in your head? Positive, negative, or neutral? You can change your own perspective

THE THREE P’S FOR STAYING POSITIVE

Is it personal? Is what happening really ‘about’ you?

Is it permanent? Remember ‘this too shall pass’

Does it matter in the big picture? Is this an

‘out of business’ situation? Most likely not….

“It is not how much we do, but how much love we put into the doing. Do small things with great love.”

Mother Teresa

LAUGH A LOT! Learn to laugh, smile and create fun for

yourself and others! Use (but don’t abuse) your sense of humor on the job.

Many health benefits of laughter Being able to laugh about yourself/or

situation helps to release tension, regain perspective, and accept that which we cannot change. It’s a way to cope.

Workplace laughter groups (google Laughter Yoga and Laughter Therapy websites)

Let’s Laugh!

ENERGIZE!

Quick methods to increase energy, sharpen your mind, and improve your mood

MOVE! (every 90 minutes) Even for one minute

Office yoga (google Yoga at your Desk) The Cross Crawl (balance your energy) Figure 8s (Walking on Sunshine)

BUILD YOUR EMOTIONAL STRENGTH

Emotional strength = the ability to process your emotions and then bring your mind back to balance

Give yourself permission to have emotional responses

Don’t get stuck in the emotion What are your emotional signals of high

stress?

QUICK STRESS REDUCERS

Techniques to manage your emotional reaction and your response to stress

Crown Pull Cooling breath (in mouth, out nose) 3-part breathe (example)

5 second inhale 3 second inhale 3 second pause or 1 second pause 5 second exhale 5 second exhale

PRACTICE MEDITATION

Consider the health benefits What is meditation? Types of contemplation Affirmations (e.g. “I deeply love &

appreciate myself”) How to incorporate meditation at work?

Breathing Mindfulness Kindness

THE MULTI-TASKING MYTH

Multi-tasking is not all it is talked up to be

Learn to finish one item before starting the next

Opening too many items at once, will not get them done

Try not to handle papers/emails more than once

Clear your mind, then give your focus to each phone call

LET GO OF THE NEED TO BE PERFECT!

“Don’t try to be perfect; just be an excellent example of being human.”

Anthony Robbins (American adviser to leaders)

Is trying to be perfect the easy way out? Easy to imitate what we ‘should’ be…. Easy to never take a risks…

Embrace your genuine self. Live life fully, make mistakes and learn from them

ROUTINES

Morning routine… evening routine Same at work – beginning of day

routine, end of day routine Have a ‘tea’ break (replenish your

mind/body) Have a healthy detachment from work

when you need to Schedule time to do the things that

revitalize yourself Remember 3 Good Things (new

practice)

STAY JOYFUL AND MOTIVATED

People often say that motivation doesn’t last. Well, neither does bathing… that is why we recommend it daily.” Zig Ziglar (motivational speaker)

Keep encouraging yourself Energize yourself when needed. Take good care of your body and spirit Return to positive mental habits.

HAVE FUN AT WORK!

Create excitement about your future and what is happening in the office

Help someone else to become happy Enjoy your coworkers… look for the

best Find reasons to celebrate Try to do something different everyday Wyoming registrar Tammy Aagard &

staff: creativity to get the grades in on time

YOUR WORK SPACE

Keep it clean and organized Minimize clutter Personalize it – make it you! What can you change? color of walls,

window treatments, artwork, lighting, rugs, good chair

Play music or ocean, nature background noise

Calming wall paper & screen saver on monitor

Fresh flowers and green plants

REFERENCESCarroll, Michael. 2004. Awake at Work. Shambhala PublicationsEden, Donna. 2008. Energy Medicine for Women. Tarcher/PenquinNature sounds: http://sensiri.hyperspatial.com/Whitenoise: http://simplynoise.com/Life Optimizer website www.lifeoptimizer.org/Maybin, Sarita. 2009. How to Stay Positive in a Negative Workplace

www.womensmedia.com/work/151-how-to-stay-positive-in-a-negative-workplace.htm

Quindlen, Anna. 2005. Being Perfect. Random HouseMelnick, Sharon. 2011. From Chaos to Control: How to Be Resilient to

Workplace Stress webinar. American Management AssociationGranirer, David. 2011.Laughing Your Way to Organizational Health: A

Lighter Approach to Workplace Wellness. http;//humanresources.about.com/od/stressandtimemanagement/

9 Bold Tips to Work Place Happiness and What to do if I’m Unhappy at Work: www.workhappynow.com/

The Positive Workplace: www.positive workplace.com Online mindfulness bell www.mindfulnessdc.org/bell/index.html

HAVE A GREAT DAY!