Reducing stress in the workplace

There isn’t a person alive who does not suffer from stress. Some people don’t even know they are suffering from stress because they don’t take the time to notice how they are feeling. Such people often feel overwhelmed, burned out, or stressed out much of the time, no matter whether they are at work or at home. But it doesn’t have to be that way. Only you can control how you feel, but you can’t do that unless you are aware of how you feel. Once you become aware, you can choose how to react to whatever is happening around you. But the key is that you have to be aware of what is going on in your body. This guide will help you learn to take a few moments out of your day and check in with yourself so you can go through your workday as smoothly and stress-free as possible.

1. Take a few moments in the morning to be silent, gaze out the window, take a slow walk, or meditate. Orient yourself to being awake and notice how that feels. It will help if you can start out your day with a feeling of inner peace.

2. Take a few minutes to do nothing but breathe while your car is warming up. Check in and see how you are feeling right now, knowing you are on your way to work.

3. Become aware of any tension within your body as you are driving to work. Consciously work at releasing that tension. Notice the difference in what it feels like to drive while tense and while relaxed.

4. Decide not to play the radio and just be with yourself instead.

5. Stay in the right lane and do not go above the speed limit. Do not succumb to societal pressure to rush everywhere. It’s ok to get where you are going in your own time.

6. Pay attention to your breathing when stopped at a red light. Don’t wait impatiently for the light to change to green—just sit.

7. Take a moment to orient yourself to your workday after you park your car. Allow yourself to transition from home mode to work mode.

8. When you are sitting at your desk, periodically monitor your body tensions. Consciously attempt to relax and let go of any excess tension you may have.

9. Use your breaks to truly relax, rather than grab a quick snack or smoke. Take a short walk or meditate.

10. Change your environment at lunch. Perhaps eat outside in nice weather. Or find somewhere quiet where you can talk to co-workers or eat alone.

11. Try closing your door if you have one for a few minutes for a time-out. You have to take care of yourself before you can take care of anyone or anything else.

12. Stop working for a few minutes every hour or so in order to become aware of your breathing and bodily sensations. Take time to get back in touch with your feelings.

13. Use everyday cues from your work environment, such as the phone ringing or the time on your computer terminal, as reminders to stop and take a moment to breathe.

14. Take time during your lunch break to talk with your coworkers about non-work-related topics.

15. Choose to one or two lunches in silence each week. Eat slowly and mindfully.

16. At the end of the day, make up a “Got Done” list and congratulate yourself on all you accomplished.

17. Pay attention to the walk to your car—how does the air feel? Is it cold or hot out? If it isn’t to your liking, try to accept it rather than resisting.

18. While the car is warming up, consciously transition yourself from work to home. Just sit and enjoy the moment.

19. While driving home, notice if you are rushing. How does that feel? What can you do to change it? Remember, only you can control how you feel.

20. When you park your car at home, take a minute to come back to the present. Orient yourself to being at home again.

21. Change out of your work clothes as soon as you can. It helps you make a smooth transition from work mode to home mode. Then, if possible, take 5-10 minutes to be alone and check in with yourtself.

Stress can kill, but you don’t have to be a victim if you make a conscious choice to focus on your feelings and choose what to do with those feelings. You don’t have to react to stress; you can choose how to respond to it.

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7 Quick Tips For Managing Your Friends At The Workplace

Managing employees at the workplace can be a challenging process in-and-of-itself. But what do you do when you're promoted and suddenly some of the employees you're managing are also your friends? Following are 7 quick tips that will help you maneuver your way around this potential minefield:

1. Lay down the ground rules right from the start. Speak to each one of your friends privately and inform them that friends or not, business is still business. Keep your tone pleasant but firm, and let them know in no uncertain terms that they're still required to follow the rules just like everybody else. Tell them know that you will not tolerate them taking advantage of your friendship in any way, shape, form or fashion.

2. Treat your friends the same as the other employees. No better, no worse. If you don't, the other employees will take notice that you're showing favoritism and you will quickly lose their respect.

3. Don't have lunch or take breaks with your friends, unless other employees are also included in the group. Remember, people are watching and appearances are everything.

4. When evaluating your friends for raises and/or promotions, make sure the aforementioned raises and promotions are warranted and based solely on job performance, not friendship.

5. Do not discuss other employees with your friends at any time.

6. Outside of the workplace do not discuss job-relatd issues with your friends.

7. At office parties, picnics, etc., be aware of seating assignments. Do not associate solely with your friends. Again, make sure other employees are included in the group.

As you can see, managing your friends can be quite a balancing act. But if you just remember to treat all employees equally, you should be able to manage it quite nicely.

Author Andrew Rondeau is an award-winning management specialist and the owner of the brand new management website http://GreatManagement.org

By Andrew Rondeau

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Workplace tips: understanding your rights in the work place

The United States, Europe, and most westernized countries have strong laws that guard the worker against all kinds of workplace hazard, discrimination, and unfair practices. In the USA, the basis of these rights as far as occupational hazards are concerned is The Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) Act of 1970 (OSHA). This comprehensive law encourages employers and employees to implement safety and health programs. In addition, Federal and State laws protect against discrimination and unfair practices. There is a great deal of free information, published by OSHA, and organizations like the American Civil Liberties Union that a worker can familiarize himself with in order to protect his/her rights in the workplace, whatever the individual workplace environment is.

It should be recognized that, along with these rights, there are responsibilities. Broadly speaking, if a worker performs his tasks to the best of his ability, and refrains from frivolous complaints, he or she is entitled to safe and secure working conditions, and freedom from retaliation should he or she voice a legitimate complaint.

In addition to the rights stated in OSHA, which are quite specific, there are legal rights that protect the worker from discrimination and unfair treatment such as being passed over for deserved promotion, unfair criticism, racial and religious intolerance, sexual harassment and other unfair practices. However, it is more difficult to prove unfair treatment than to point out defects in physical working conditions.

OSHA - Workers Rights

One of the most important worker rights is the right to be advised by his employer of the OSHA regulations that govern his workplace. The appropriate regulations, requirements, standards and rules should be available and easily accessible at the workplace. In addition, a worker should be able to request, and get from his employer, a description of safety and health hazards that he/she will encounter when employed, together with available safety procedures. If the worker is involved with hazardous materials, that worker has the right to observe, or see the records of the measurements and findings of the company, regarding these materials.

In addition, a worker has the right, either personally, or via an authorized representative, to review the record of occupational injuries at his workplace. If safety violations are discovered, these must be speedily corrected.

In addition to having the right to complain in writing about workplace dangers, anonymously if desired, an employee should not be punished or discriminated against for exercising his rights or for refusing to work in dangerous situations.

There are other rights, such as the right of access to any relevant medical records that the employer holds regarding the worker. Also, specialized workers, such as truckers and air-traffic controllers have special OSHA rights and responsibilities.

Workplace Rights

The National Labor Relations Board administers the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA), which oversees the relationship between employers, unions and employees, and the rights of workers to join a union or not. The NRLA procedures guide, which can be found on the Internet, covers the filing of charges against an employer or a union, types of charges and how to file, types of charges, how to file a petition, types of petition, and who may file, evidence required to file, and other types of information.

Certain employees are not within NLRB jurisdiction. These are agricultural workers, federal employees, state and local government workers, airline and railroad workers, domestic workers and supervisors. If you belong to any of these groups, you should approach your union or workplace representative to establish your rights. Some employee rights are legal in nature and some are given by companies. Among the legal rights are:

• Minimum wage.

• For certain employees, overtime pay under certain circumstances.

• A safe working environment.

• Freedom from workplace discrimination.

• Freedom from sexual harassment.

• Freedom to speak to a government agency about illegal conduct by the employer.

• Time off to tend to family and medical needs.

Some companies give employees rights to disagree with supervisors or to complain about things that they feel to be unfair. These rights are usually contained in the employee handbook. They include:

• Employee grievance rights and procedures against supervisors.

• Procedures for complaints for sexual harassment.

• Procedures for complaints against discrimination.

• Resolution processes for disagreements between supervisors and employees.

Situations where Employee Rights are not adequately covered by the employer.

There are, of course, some employers who are indifferent at best to the rights of their workers. There are non-union shops, and non-union and contract workers who choose to work in this type of situation, either because they have little choice, or because the job is convenient or well-paid. Generally, workers in these circumstances are resigned to a certain amount of frustration, but there are instances where action can and should be taken. A worker has full recourse to the law, and certain common actions will greatly aid in a speedy resolution of problems.

In case of any kind of discrimination or harassment, the first action should be to talk things over with the offending party. If your fellow employees are causing you problems, you should approach them calmly, with witnesses if possible and explain your concerns. Document the time and place of your discussions, and any results. If your business involves email, you might want to set up a meeting via that medium, and save copies of your messages. Don’t be confrontational.

If you continue to have problems, you should contact the next person in the chain of command, again with a witness if possible, and you should document all of your complaints, and the results of your meetings. Document any unfair practices, intimidation, or unfair actions against yourself. In extreme cases, you may have need recourse to the law, and here, documentation, and witnesses will prove very helpful.

Legal Action

Should you decide to sue your employer, supervisor, or fellow worker, you should hire a lawyer who specializes in this sort of legal action. You will probably want to talk to a public access legal assistant, or seek cheap or free advice before committing yourself to an expensive legal battle. You should also be aware that your situation at work, if you are still allowed to work, will almost certainly deteriorate. All in all, legal action should only be considered as a last resort.

Summary

A worker in the United States, Europe, and many other countries is usually well covered legally, especially as far as physical working-conditions are concerned. Arm yourself with enough knowledge to protect your rights, use common-sense, enlist the help of your union representative, an OSHA official, an official of the ACLU. With common-sense, and some willingness to compromise, you can almost always ensure a productive and satisfying work environment.

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tips for better work environment

These tips for creating a better environment at work will improve your relationships with your coworkers, increase your chances for a job promotion, and generally help you achieve your career goals!

Before the tips, a quip:

“The secret for joy in work is contained in one word: excellence. To know how to do something well is to enjoy it,” said Pearl Buck.

You can be excellent at what you do, but if you hate going to work, you’ll suffer in lots of ways – and so will your colleagues and family. These tips for a better work environment will help you professional and personally. And for more info on succeeding in the business world, click on The Power of Nice: How to Conquer the Business World With Kindness by Linda Kaplan Thaler and Robin Koval.

8 Tips for a Better Work Environment

1. Pull your own weight in the office. “Working well with others goes far beyond likeability,” writes Julie Morgenstern in Making Work Work. “It’s about creating a pleasant, cooperative, energetic environment that ensures everyone gets the work done.” Working well with others will improve your work environment, and help you achieve your career goals. Morgenstern says working well with coworkers means being available, reliable, adaptable, respectful, clear, and fair.

2. Write thank-you notes to your coworkers. When you receive a gift from a colleague – whether it’s a stock tip or a baby gift – write a little thank you note. It’s a classy touch that people remember. Even the smallest of positive exchanges makes your work environment better, which will help increase your job security.

3. Don’t have sex with your colleagues! Getting involved with a colleague is – usually – just setting yourself up for trouble. Of course, you won’t know what kind of trouble until you’re already drowning in it, such as stalking behavior (yours or theirs), sabotage at work (yours or theirs), or jealous partners (yours or theirs). Plus, it’s just not a professional way to make your work environment better…so to improve your work environment, go somewhere else for love!

4. Be flexible with change. One of the most noteworthy compliments I received from a boss is that I adapt well to change. She loved that. Change is difficult, but since it’s inevitable, your best bet is to roll with it. Plus, changing the way you do things is very healthy for your brain. If you can adapt easily to change, you’ll enjoy a better work environment, improve your relationship with your boss and coworkers, and be more likely to achieve your career goals.

5. Be sincere. You’re giving off positive energy when you sincerely thank an assistant, make eye contact with a bicycle messenger, and treat a stranger with respect. The more positive vibes you emit, the more positive ripples will return to you. Treating people with respect is an effective way to create a better work environment and achieve your career goals.

6. Treat everyone equally. Have you ever let a stranger take the taxi cab or held the door for an older person walking an inch a minute? You’re being nice. The power of nice erupts when that stranger is the president of a company you’re wooing or the elderly woman sits on the board of your organization. Getting along with people at work goes beyond your behavior in the office.

7. Remember that people get promoted. The bike messenger could be training to be an investment broker, the secretary studying law, or the assistant being groomed for a promotion. Being nice to a “nobody” could translate to winning a client’s account or getting a stock tip. When you treat everyone with respect and kindness you’re not creating a better work environment, you’re setting yourself up to achieve your career goals. Like any investment, getting along with people at work could pay off big-time in the long term – or within days.

8. Ditch the negativity. Negative vibes, complaints, gossip, and comments definitely don’t create a better work environment. Negativity spreads like wildfire, infecting not just your work life but your home life too. To achieve your career goals and improve workplace communication, get and stay positive. Be real, but make sure your positive comments outnumber your negative comments by 10:1.

The source of the last 4 tips is from Thaler and Koval’s book, The Power of Nice: How to Conquer the Business World With Kindness.

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Twelve Tips to Create a Happier (and More Productive) Workplace.

Every Wednesday is Tip Day.

This Wednesday: 12 tips to create a happier (and more productive) workplace.

I just finished First, Break All the Rules by Marcus Buckingham and Curt Coffman. I’d heard about it for years, but I didn’t actually pick up a copy until a smart friend told me to read it.

The authors did a study with the Gallup Organization to find a way, among other things, to measure strong workplaces, ones that would attract and retain the most productive employees.

They came up with a list of twelve questions, where, if employees answered “yes” and were happier in their workplaces, they tended to work in business units with higher levels of productivity, profit, retention, and customer satisfaction – which shows that there is a link between how employees feel and how they perform.

This is a good list to use if you’re a manager who wants to create a happier and more productive work environment, or if you’re a job seeker/holder who wants criteria by which to judge a workplace.

Also, if you’re not happy at work, and you’re trying to Identify the problem, take a look at this list. It suggests strategies for improving your situation. Not everything is within your control, of course, but perhaps you could identify for your boss what you need to change #2 from “no” to “yes” or to shift responsibilities so you get #3. Or can you make an effort to gain #10?

1. Do I know what is expected of me at work?
2. Do I have the materials and equipment I need to do my work right?
3. At work, do I have the opportunity to do what I do best every day?
4. In the last seven days, have I received recognition or praise for doing good work?
5. Does my supervisor, or someone at work, seem to care about me as a person?
6. Is there someone at work who encourages my development?
7. At work, do my opinions seem to count?
8. Does the mission/purpose of my company make me feel like my work is important?
9. Are my co-workers committed to doing quality work?
10. Do I have a best friend at work? [But don’t have an office affair!]
11. In the last six months, have I talked with someone about my progress?
12. This last year, have I had opportunities at work to learn and grow?

The first six questions have the strongest links to business outcomes (productivity, profitability, retention, and customer satisfaction).

I was also interested to see that the study suggested that people’s opinions of their workplaces are more determined by their immediate manager than by the overall company. It was their direct manager – not money, benefits, perks, or a charismatic leader at the top – that was the critical element for people.

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Ten Tips for Negotiating Workplace Conflicts

1. Let people tell their story. Allowing people to speak their minds may increase the level of conflict, but that’s okay, says Krivis, because feeling heard can dramatically change an angry person’s outlook. And in the process, new information may surface that allows a solution to naturally emerge.

2. If someone refuses to budge, take the spotlight off them. When there is one hardliner refusing to budge during a multiparty conflict, suggests Krivis, just begin “settling around” them and work with the other parties. The holdout quickly sees the value of compromise when his or her perceived power is neutralized.

3. When someone seems “locked up,” dig for the emotion behind the stone face. Krivis recommends asking, “What is it you really want to achieve here?” Tapping into the person’s repressed emotion may provide the key to a solution.

4. When people are “picking flyspecks out of pepper,” come in with a reality check. It’s the mediator’s role to bring people back to reality by “wrenching their attention away from the grain of sand and having them focus on the whole beach.”

5. Identify the true impediment. In every conflict, says Krivis, ask yourself, “What is the true motivating factor here? What is really keeping this person from agreeing to a solution?”

6. Learn to “read minds.” Krivis suggests paying attention to body language and emotional tone as well as a person’s words. If you give people an opportunity, he says, most people involved in a dispute will gladly talk about themselves, which gives you a chance to ask more questions and gain more information about their perspective. That helps you anticipate how they might react, and manage the negotiation accordingly.

7. Think creatively about ways people can cooperate rather than clash. Spend your time building up the relationship, Krivis suggests, rather than just divvying up the matter in dispute.

8. “Edit the script” to help people see their situation in a different light. Retell their story in positive, forward-looking terms, says Krivis, and you can “give them the words to see their options in a new light.”

9. Avoid the “winner’s curse” by carefully pacing negotiation. When a solution seems too easy, people may experience second thoughts about whether they could have cut a better deal. Don’t rush to a conclusion even when you know you can wrap things up quickly, says Krivis. Keep the negotiation proceeding normally, for a reasonable amount of time, before the inevitable settlement.

10. Finally, realize that not every conflict can be solved. “Not every negotiation is going to have a win-win outcome. Not everyone can live together in harmony. ... There are times you just have to accept that both parties are going to leave the table equally unhappy.” When that happens, Krivis recommends, “Isolate the participants if possible and just move on.”

Improvisational negotiation, says Krivis, is “kind of like jazz. ... The chords you use depend on the chords you hear from the other participants, and vice versa. It’s a conversation. It’s organic. There are no limits on what can come out of mediation, and that’s what makes it such a powerful skill.”

www.workfamily.com

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