Don't Hate the Office, Work It!

There's so much more to be gained from going to the office everyday (salary aside). You can learn so much - and get paid for it. Confused? Okay, let me explain. When it comes to learning new skills at work, what do you think employees value the most? Mastering power point presentations or perhaps Leadership training? Well, a report published last week in the Human Resources Magazine listed the things at work that employees learned which they found most valuable. The list included:

• Communication Skills
• Interpersonal Skills
• Team Working
• IT Skills


It’s clear from the above list that what people most value from their time at work is their ability to develop life skills. There’s not much emphasis on learning specific tasks, systems and procedures, but there is great importance attached to learning skills that make you better able to work with or manage the people responsible for the tasks, systems and procedures.

This comes as no surprise to me.

It is consistent with the business people that we work with on our programmes. By teaching people how to look after their health and wellbeing, we provide them with all the resources they require to maximise their energy, increase their mental capacity and improve their focus and efficiency. These skills are invaluable in the workplace but also enable people to operate more effectively in every area of their lives. Learning these skills within the working environment means staff view their employer positively. Sometimes, people struggle to see how looking after staff wellness can transform the performance they get. To answer that, here’s a quick run down of the top three tips for keeping staff engaged and fully motivated.

1.Every day is learning at work day
Everyone needs to work but fewer and fewer people these days are motivated by just earning a living. They want to learn some thing new every day and always feel as though they are growing and developing. If you can ensure that your employees go home to their families feeling positive and saying, ‘guess what I learned today at work’, you’ll have a much more lively workplace than if employees simply report that work was 'Oh, you know, same old same old' or, worse than that, 'I don't want to talk about it.'

2. Keep it simple
Communication skills, interpersonal skills and team working are all things that you might think would come most naturally to anyone in the workplace but, as our list suggests they are areas that people most appreciate having the opportunity to work on.

The same goes for eating well, taking exercise and managing stress. You might think that handling these areas is easy or that they’ll take care of themselves but they are often the areas that are most overlooked. Offering staff simple, practical and consistent information and advice ensures they can make easy progress in these areas. It also sends a very strong message that being at work doesn’t mean putting the rest of your life on hold, rather you can learn new information at work that has positive implications for the rest of your life. Not so much work – life balance, more work as part of life balance.

3. Make it relevant
When it comes to health and wellbeing, the message you deliver to staff is all important. If staff think that all you’re interested in is keeping them healthy so you can drive them harder then you’ll have trouble motivating them towards even the most exciting initiatives.

If they understand that what you’re offering them is designed to help energize them and upgrade how they feel while they’re at work while also injecting them with energy and enthusiasm for what ever they choose to do outside of work, they’ll be much more likely to view your initiatives favourably.

Show this post to your boss, it may just get them thinking.
And if you are the Boss, what are you waiting for?

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Don't Let the Office Get You Down!

Office life can make you angry, frustrated, bored and this in itself can bring out your inner child. Like this guy.

But that's pretty subdued compared to this guy!!



Happy weekend!

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How To Stay Calm When Giving A Presentation

Giving a presentation at work can be the most daunting exercise. You feel sick, you know you'll go red and your hands will probably shake along with your voice. The days leading up to a presentation can be the worst with sleepless nights and utter fear. But it's a good skill to develop for your career and an important challenge to be able to face. Here are 7 tricks and relaxation tips that will make it so much easier for you and you never know, you may find yourself enjoying them.

1. Practice, practice, practice - do it in front of a mirror, in the bathroom or as you walk around the park. Do it 3/4 times but don't overdo it because then your talk will feel flat and robotic. Just get your self to the stage where you're familiar with how it will go from beginning, middle to the end. then, the likelihood of it going badly is massively reduced. Every great public speaker believes in this rule.

2. Be Positive - be aware of how you sound and try to add some levity and interest to the tone of your voice. Don't just drone because your audience will zone out. Try focusing on the positive energy that you want to project, it will take your mind off your nerves.

3. Stand still and don't over gesticulate. It's distracting for people trying to listen to you and you want their concentration to be on what you're saying not your nervous tics. Practicing in front of the mirror should help you spot you habits when you get nervous and once you are aware of them, you can stop yourself. If you feel nervous, no one will ever be able to tell.

4. Be inclusive - you want people to really get something out of the talk you are giving so remember to try and engage them with anecdotes that bring your subject to life or by speaking in a way that addresses what they will be thinking.

5. Breathe. In and out slowly. This will not only calm you before you start to speak but you should remember to breath deeply throughout. Know about the 3 P's? Pitch, Pause and Pace. This is your Pause.

6. If you have a tendency to go red when public speaking, the breathing will help but I also once heard of a great tip which is useful if you are giving a powerpoint presentation. Make sure your screen writing is in green and that works wonder with the red hue of your face and to the audience, there is no visible blush! Oh an wear a green top too or tie. All helps.

7. Last but not least, the most common advice given to combat public speaking nerves - focus on one person in the audience to the left and one to the right and when you speak, speak just to them so you have two positions and it looks like you are addressing the whole room and you can blank out the other 100 people.

P.S. - Giving presentations truly does get easier the more you do so see everyone you give as a step closer to being the type of person who says "oh, I enjoy public speaking' and mean it.



Photograph by hfb (Flickr)

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How to Deal With Low Self Esteem at Work

Having a negative self image is a really distressing state to be in. You feel isolated and insecure, paranoid and angry all at the same time. The worst place for low self esteem to rear its head can be in the office where you can feel most vulnerable and judged by those around you. It doesn't always have to be this way you should not accept living with it. It takes time to change your mind about yourself but once you do, your life will be so much easier.

Here are some tips to help you cope with your negative self image. Give them a go rather than dismiss them because you think you may have tried everything. Being open to a solution is the first step to getting past your self esteem problem.

1. Support Network - Think about all your friends and work colleagues. Write down a list of those who make you feel good about yourself and those who you're friendly with but they always make you feel bad about yourself. As difficult as this may be, try spending much less time with those people who bring you down. Toxic Friends or Toxic Work Colleagues are plentiful - most people have them and sometimes you just need a clean out. Spend time with people who are positive and you can start picking up their good habits.

2. Don't Overreact - you'll need strategies in place that will help you to put things into perspective. You can't crumble everytime a colleague is rude or the boss is dismissive. Try asking yourself questions about what's just happened so you don't automatically take it so personally and use it as an excuse to out yourself down. What's going on here? Why is this happening? What does this mean? If your boss has just snapped, it could be that they are under pressure themselves, they may be distracted by something in their personal lives, you may have interrupted them when they were trying to get some work done. Focus on the FACTS and not the FICTION in your head.

3. Pass the Buck Buck- Don't accept responsibility for everything. Feel free to pass it back to others when it needs to be. If you're having work dumped on you, say you're too busy, politely point out that it's theirs to do. Stop helping people out in the office all the time because you want them to like you. You have all the rights in the world to be there and you don't need to keep apologising for it. Look at how much work your colleagues (whom you respect anyway!) do and compare it to your load. Now feel confident getting on with what you need to.

4. Try Something New - Take on a new hobby or have something else in your life apart from work to keep you busy. Life is so much more than just work but most people fall into the trap of letting work consume their minds. Be different and take up kick boxing or dancing or commit to a 10k run. Do something that you can focus on and you'll fantastic once you finish it. You'll realise that you could do it and start to feel good about yourself.

5. Set New Rules - Smile instead of getting cross; Ask questions instead of storming off to moan about what's just happened; From this moment on, you are not allowed to say I Can't....it's a forbidden sentence starter; People judge you by the way you judge yourself so don't put yourself down and say how rubbish you would be at something because then they will think the same about you. Just as putting yourself down is a bad habit, 'bigging' yourself up is a good habit and one you need to get into.

These tips are straight forward but with practice and a little time, you can start to feel better about yourself. You are as good as everyone else, it's only you that doesn't think so. Remember that next time you lay into yourself.


Photograph by xoxoryan (Flickr)

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Why Your Boss Should Let You Work From Home

Today is National Work From Home Day and it’s estimated that 5 million British workers will be avoiding the commute and the constant interruptions in the office by sitting down to some power working from the comfort of their own home.

As we pointed out earlier this week, many people claim to be far more efficient when working from home despite the fact that the term ‘working from home’ is still often accompanied by a wry smile or a cheeky wink.

So why do so many people work more efficiently away from the office and how can some of that efficiency and positive energy come back back into the office with them? The answers aren't always as obvious as you'd think.

1) Working in your pyjamas
For some people simply getting dressed for work can be stressful. Putting on their ‘uniform’ means getting ready to brave the masses on the journey to work and then go into combat with a day of meetings and projects. The occasional break from getting ‘suited and booted’ can change your outlook completely, allowing you to tap into the creative side of your brain rather than the business-like logical side you use for following routine.

Try This:
Pyjamas don’t work very well in the office but Dress Down Fridays or Dress Up Fridays do make a difference to the atmosphere of many businesses. Allowing staff to dress appropriately for each day’s working requirements will change the way they view their working day and can improve their performance.

2) Being the Boss for the Day
Nobody likes being told what to do or when to do it and a rigid structure can stifle the performance of many workers.

One company director I spoke with told the story of how his staff were complaining that their working hours were too long. He listened to their observations and implemented a new strategy whereby those who worked longer hours from Monday to Thursday could take Friday off or, if they chose to work on Friday, would be paid for it as an extra day. The result of the scheme was that most of the staff chose to work on Fridays and actually ended up working more hours in a week than previously. Clearly their original issue was nothing to do with the number of hours they worked and more to do with it being their choice to work these hours.

Try This:
Working from home provides more freedom for workers to plan what they do and when they do it. This is a strategy that bears fruit in the workplace too. Just because someone can be seen in the office doesn’t mean they need to be managed too closely. Allow people to take responsibility for their own workload and you may be pleasantly surprised at how they perform.

3) Taking regular breaks
People in offices are wary of being seen to be taking breaks but the natural daily rhythms of your body mean there are times for performing with maximum efficiency and times for slowing down a bit. When working from home people are much more comfortable with taking a stroll, flicking through a magazine, watching TV News, taking time out to exercise or prepare a healthy snack, running an errand, or even taking a short nap. These short bursts of different activities keep your brain fresh throughout the day.

Try This:
Allowing people to take catnaps in the office may seem like a step too far – though it does exist in some offices – but being creative about how workers can divide their day up leads to better time management and increased productivity. Establish the rules of give and take and everyone knows what's expected of them.

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How to Deal With Your Annoying Co-Worker

Hell is other people. Or the person in the next cubicle who talks so LOUDLY on the phone!

One of the most common issues for employees around the world is dealing with office politics. At some point in their career, most people find themselves spending more time and energy working the system in their office than working at their job. Every office has one, the annoying co-worker who can get under your skin and adversely effect the atmosphere of an office. These problems in an office are not only stressful but they are costly. For those who get to work from home occasionally or from a different site report getting twice as much work done with half the stress when they are away from their usual environment. But what if you can't escape the office?

There are a few jobs that are totally self-sufficient and allow complete autonomy and responsibility. Most people need to be able to work as a team player. The majority of workers want to do their best and feel they are making a valuable contribution when they are at work so if other people are getting in your way and preventing you from achieving this, each day can be very frustrating.

Even the most efficient businesses and people can have periods where office politics take their toll. Here are 4 examples of how we work with our clients to minimise the possible impact of tension between people.

1. Get Active
If people are regularly frustrated at work their stress levels will rise. Feeling stressed releases adrenalin into the system and if this happens repeatedly, they run the risk of high blood pressure and heart disease. Employees who have the opportunity to regularly take walk breaks, attend lunchtime exercise sessions, or head to gym after work are able to use the adrenalin in their system to fuel their activity which prevents their stress levels building over time and helps them maintain their calm in awkward situations.

2. Eat Right
What you eat really does impact on how you cope with stress inducing people. Too much caffeine and sugary snacks create energy peaks and troughs and low energy troughs can make it difficult to deal with other people. If you’re feeling tired and sluggish in the office, it’s because your blood sugar is low. If someone does something to upset you at this point, chances are it may tip you over the edge. To stabilise energy levels, limit caffeine to two drinks per day and snack on nuts, seeds, dried fruit or chopped vegetables. You will be able to cope with so much more if you're in control rather than wired.

3. Breathe
Learning to master your mind and manage your mental state is a valuable workplace skill. You need to be able to stay focused and effective no matter what’s going on around you. Workers who have access to techniques such as yoga and meditation have consistently lower levels of stress and better coping strategies than those around them. Have you ever noticed how some of your colleagues just let annoying things in the office wash over them? They very likely have their own coping mechanism - it's time you got yours.

4. Get Busy
If work is all you do with your life, then when things aren’t going your way in the office, you’ll feel that your whole life is out of control. Make sure you have plenty of things on your schedule that aren’t work related. If work is just one part of a varied lifestyle, you’ll be better positioned to deal with office based challenges. Make time for family and friends, hobbies, gym going, quiet time and have plenty of things in your weekly schedule that you really enjoy.

Take a look around your workplace and look at the fittest, healthiest person you know. Chances are they’ll be taking these measures and as a result they’ll have fewer bad days at the office than anyone else.

Stress is caused by feeling out of control but with tried and tested plans for exercising, eating well, managing your mind and living a varied lifestyle you will always feel in control of your situation and will be able to deal with anyone no matter how awkward and frustrating their character or personality.



Photograph by passiveaggressivenotes (Flickr)

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Avoid Office Burnout

Blogging yesterday about the benefits of making workplaces healthier and the impact that has on the corporate bottom line as well as the...erm, employee bottom line is nothing new to me. It's what I do in my day job but it's always great to see the message being spread elsewhere too. I read this article last night and it completely backs up everything I wrote in my post.

More and more companies, both large and small are finally realising that they need to address the problem of their staff health. Its fine to expect staff to work hard and deliver for you but that can come at some cost if they feel burnt out and stressed. So much absenteeism is as the result of musculo-skeletal damage and stress from working in highly pressured environments and sometimes dysfunctional atmospheres. This can be addressed in different ways depending on the exact needs of that company.  For example, some of the clients we work with in highly pressurised industries have wanted us to teach their employees how to relax & focus their minds during the day and unwind after work (yoga/relaxation sessions).  Others have opted for a broader approach to health and wellbeing in their workplace and we've run nutrition workshops and food diary analysis alongside group fitness courses which help their staff eat and feel better.   This always raises energy levels and morale but staff loyalty increases too and so staff turnover drops.  

Read the article if you get a moment but this particular comment I felt was worth mentioning.
Ben Wilmott from Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) says

"Employers shouldn't try to get into the leisure industry, it is about communicating the message and providing opportunities."

This is absolutely right - workplaces are for working but without offering an opportunity for staff to recharge and unwind, productivity will only ever decline. 

It depends whether businesses want to have it all or if they want to keep pushing and pushing and dealing with large employee turnover.


Photograph by meyshanworld (Flickr)

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How Fit is Your Office?

Look around your office right now. How do your colleagues look? Fit, toned, energized, 'match ready'? And what about you? You feeling fit and healthy at the moment and on top of your game?

Chances are that the answer to these questions is no. But it's not a gym so what does it matter what shape your office in.?

Well, that's where you're wrong.

Businesses lose billions each year because of poor health amongst their employees either because of rising absenteeism or because of the increased cost of providing health care. In short, the less healthy your employees, the more likely they are to away from the office (costing businesses money). But people get sick sometimes, that can't be helped. What can be helped is making changes in offices to help people deal with stress and other ailments that lead to absenteeism and bring those numbers right down. Not wishing to simplify this complex issue too much, small changes can make a huge impact to businesses if employers engaged a little more with their staff.

Try these suggestions out on your employees:

1.Introduce sporting events that are inclusive and not just 'all about the boys'. Think beyond soccer tournaments and get mixed teams together. This really brings out the healthy competitive spirit amongst staff, promotes loyalty to the company and energises the workforce. Try buying a company Wii Fit and start a tournament and see how quickly people get into the spirit.
2. Supplying a daily fruit bowl in the office - small thing but it sends out the message that your employees health is your concern and you want them to eat well and be well and you're paying for it.
3. Reconsider some of your current employee benefits and perhaps shift the budget into more useful areas. Subsidised on-site back massage; personal training sessions for groups; installing a bike rack and showers to encourage staff to get out of their cars.
4. When working with our clients, we always try to do one-to-one consultations to get to the root of what each employees life is like beyond the office. Then we can suggest quick fitness and relaxation tips that fit around their busy lives rather than dump them with an unrealistic plan that will never work in the long term. Listening to employees is key to making the changes stick.
5. Offer yoga or relaxation classes - these have a HUGE effect on eliminating staff stress and sends the message that you take some of the responsibility of helping your staff unwind after work.
6. Be authentic. Gimmicks always sounds like gimmicks and employees see right through them. The company should embrace and support healthy changes they introduce and managers should drive these forward. Be flexible with employees so they can take part in the schemes you set up. Perhaps reward a day off for winners of a tournament.

These changes may not sounds revolutionary but they will have a positive effect on staff attitudes, attendance and productivity. Your company is only as fit as your workforce after all.


Photograph by Joe Hoover (Flickr)

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Hunchbacked at your computer? Try this.

When I saw my client Simon last week and he told me he was becoming increasingly worried that he was getting stuck in what he called 'the hunchback' position at his desk simply because he spent so much time working at his computer. He felt he never quite got properly straightened up, felt lethargic as a result of this and often suffered back pain.

As part of his programme I showed him a quick chest stretch that he could do throughout the day that would fix this.


Simply stand upright, wedge one arm against a wall or a doorframe and twist your body away in the opposite direction. Then repeat on the other side. The stretch opens up the chest and the front of the shoulders, both areas that get tight when we work at a desk or spend a lot of time driving.

When we met up again this week, Simon was full of praise for the stretch (well as much as you can be for a stretch!). He claimed that of all the exercises in his routine, this one makes the biggest difference. By practicing the stretch throughout the day he feels taller, energised, more focused and much more comfortable.

Try it for yourself and see how it feels.




Posted originally at instantfeelgood

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