Dec. 30, 2016 "Take steps to halt 24-7 work life": Today I found this article by Michael Murphy in the Globe and Mail:
With the rise of remote work and mobile technologies like smartphones and tablets, there is no denying that more people are reaping the benefits of an evolved work environment.
Thanks to desktop virtualization in particular, employees are able to work with any device, at any given time, anywhere, leading to improved work-life balance and increased productivity.
Thanks to desktop virtualization in particular, employees are able to work with any device, at any given time, anywhere, leading to improved work-life balance and increased productivity.
But debating how to disconnect from work while on vacation will become a more common question, than how to best support the team while away from the office.
Technology has become something of a double-edged sword, with a 2015 Randstad Canada survey finding 65 per cent of men and 50 per cent of women say they respond immediately to work-related calls and e-mails outside office hours, and 40 per cent even do so while on holidays.
In fact, Arianna Huffington implemented a tool at Huffington Post that automatically deletes e-mails sent during vacation to remove temptation to respond.
In fact, Arianna Huffington implemented a tool at Huffington Post that automatically deletes e-mails sent during vacation to remove temptation to respond.
However, employees and business leaders don’t need to go to such lengths for a healthy work-life balance. The following tips can ensure that a personal life be preserved during any time off.
Set strict working hours
The inability to separate work hours from personal time is an easy trap to fall into. Whether it’s corporate expectations, trying to get ahead in your career or thinking that answering ‘just one more’ e-mail will help, employees can easily be trapped in never-ending work.
Separating personal and professional time is a two-pronged approach which includes both self discipline and clear communication with the team. On a personal front, clearly divide what time will be personal time (family dinner, playing with the kids, etc.) and what times you’re ‘on the clock’.
While this can’t always be set in stone, the more a routine is established, the easier it is to follow. Once this schedule has been determined, support these efforts by relaying your work hours to your team. Consider placing an ‘Out of Office’ notification so that your team is aware of when you’re unavailable.
While this can’t always be set in stone, the more a routine is established, the easier it is to follow. Once this schedule has been determined, support these efforts by relaying your work hours to your team. Consider placing an ‘Out of Office’ notification so that your team is aware of when you’re unavailable.
Know how to prioritize
Not all work needs immediate attention. Determining and managing priority items is not only useful when working remotely, but in all aspects of business. Not all e-mails need to be answered straight away, so it’s essential to clearly communicate to your team your hierarchy of importance so that you can successfully step away from the virtual office.
Establishing priorities should also be included in any kind of employee training. Your team should have the capability to properly identify what situations require urgent attention, and which e-mails are simply important or low priority.
Not only does this help the team keep on the same page on business deliverables, but it helps ensure stress arises only when it’s truly warranted.
Not only does this help the team keep on the same page on business deliverables, but it helps ensure stress arises only when it’s truly warranted.
Your device shouldn’t be attached to the hip
With an Intel study finding that 75 per cent of people believe it’s okay to bring phones and laptops into public restrooms, it’s clear the line is blurring between work and downtime – especially in the world of Bring Your Own Device (BYOD).
What was once a personal phone for connecting with friends, is now also your virtual office with access to your apps and data. Pair this with bad habits like sleeping next to phones, which negatively affects sleep quality, 24-7 connection has become our reality.
What was once a personal phone for connecting with friends, is now also your virtual office with access to your apps and data. Pair this with bad habits like sleeping next to phones, which negatively affects sleep quality, 24-7 connection has become our reality.
It’s crucial to spend time without physical contact from technology to fully disconnect. In cases where this is simply not feasible (or unthinkable), consider wearables like Apple Watch or Ringly which notify of important events or emails without the individual having to constantly check their phone.
Don’t be afraid to set the example
Employees naturally look to leadership to gauge what is expected of them. As a result, a leader unable to disconnect is likely going to find themselves leading a team who cannot either.
This can have negative repercussions on a company’s bottom line; research by John Pencavel of Stanford University in 2014 found that even if an employee works 70 hours, it’s the equivalent of 55 hours of productivity. Managers must be able to disconnect and communicate to their team that they can do so as well.
This can have negative repercussions on a company’s bottom line; research by John Pencavel of Stanford University in 2014 found that even if an employee works 70 hours, it’s the equivalent of 55 hours of productivity. Managers must be able to disconnect and communicate to their team that they can do so as well.
Of course, the nature of some businesses means being unable to afford a team that’s fully disconnected. But just like doctors, a team’s time can be scheduled into segments of being ‘on-call’ and completely off the clock.
Establishing a schedule is not only beneficial for employees, but helps to ensure businesses are effectively able to provide support to their clients or customers. Scheduling time is far more effective than a drained team that is permanently connected.
Establishing a schedule is not only beneficial for employees, but helps to ensure businesses are effectively able to provide support to their clients or customers. Scheduling time is far more effective than a drained team that is permanently connected.
The upcoming holiday season is a great opportunity to begin implementing new processes and develop healthier habits to start the new year with a happy – and highly effective – workforce.
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Oct. 16, 2017 "Sink or swim": Today I found this article by Mark Kennedy in the Edmonton Journal:
A new documentary NEW YORK about anxiety argues that everyone to some extent suffers from stress, nerves and social fear. And, to make their point, the filmmakers have enlisted as Exhibit A the most decorated Olympian in history.
Michael Phelps appears in Angst to share his story of being bullied and depressed, which led to severe anxiety. The swimmer, winner of 28 Olympic medals, would look in the mirror and not like what he saw.
“Once I opened up about that and things that I had kept inside of me for so many years, I then found that life was a lot easier. I got to the point where I understood that it’s OK to not be OK,” he says in the film.
Angst, an IndieFlix film designed to be screened at schools and community centres, features candid interviews with children and young adults discussing their anxiety, along with advice from mental health experts, and resources and tools. Phelps is like an exclamation mark for what the filmmakers wanted to show — that even world champions can feel low.
“I’m grateful because my mission with this film is to help make the world a better place and I believe he is so additive on that level,” said Scilla Andreen, CEO of IndieFlix.
“If we can introduce prevention, self-care and well-being to our children — even in the pre-K and kindergarten years — they can have a completely different life.”
Andreen hopes the film will reach more than three million people around the world from 25,000 community and school screenings.
Angst was filmed in the U.S. and United Kingdom and is appropriate for children starting at age 10.
“Anxiety is totally treatable,” she said.
“It can be a precursor to so many things that can then lead to addiction, homelessness, dropping out of school and a host of other mental health challenges.”
Anxiety is the most common mental health issue in the U.S., impacting 54 per cent of females and 46 per cent of males, with age seven being the median age of onset, according to the World Health Organization. The American College Health Association has found that undergraduates reporting “overwhelming anxiety” jumped to 62 per cent in 2016 from 50 per cent in 2011.
“Talking about it is the most effective thing you can do and, of course, the last thing you want to do,” said Andreen. In addition to talking, writing about your feelings or connecting to music can help.
In addition to the documentary, IndieFlix is creating a web-based series on anxiety to dig deeper into the issue and has produced a virtual-reality component that allows users to experience a panic attack firsthand.
Andreen believes anxiety levels are so high in part because of the pace of modern life and the amount of time people spend with their electronic devices, which takes away from connecting in person and developing empathy.
“We need more face time with each other,” said Andreen, a former Emmy-nominated costume designer.
“We just stopped doing it. We’re out of practice, that’s all.”
"Turning stress around": Today I found this article by Linda Blair in the Edmonton Journal:
Despite numerous studies and speculations, scientists are still not clear exactly how stress affects us both physically and psychologically. Some stress is actually a good thing, creating a state of readiness and motivating us to act. But when levels are excessive and unpleasant, they inhibit our ability to perform well or think clearly.
Research by Gary Evans and colleagues at Cornell University has shown that when individuals are continually exposed to environmental stressors such as loud noises, overcrowding, air pollution and traffic congestion, they show increased levels of cortisol, increased blood pressure, elevated levels of anxiety and a greater vulnerability to depression.
Our reaction to negative stressors is even more magnified when we believe we can’t control their intensity or frequency. Studies on animals have shown that when exposed to unpredictable stressors, the animal will soon stop trying to escape, and will instead appear to “freeze” and give up.
However, there’s another source of negative stress that’s been largely overlooked. Every day we hear about terrible events happening not to us, but to others — terrorist attacks, car crashes, hurricanes, earthquakes. These events, even though they haven’t damaged us directly, make us feel anxious, distractible and most of all, helpless. We think about the individuals caught up in the tragedy, even though we don’t know them.
What can you do, for yourself and for others, in the face of so much distressing information? Here are some suggestions:
Take control of your exposure to negative information. Rather than turning on the news upon waking and staying tuned in all day, decide the night before when you’ll pay attention to broadcasts, and for how long. These decisions alone will help you feel less helpless.
Listen to the news when you’re likely to feel most rested and positive — and, paradoxically, when you can pay full attention. If you’re focused rather than distracted, you’re more likely to react calmly and logically.
Avoid personalizing. Imagining the pain others are feeling won’t help them. Instead, think about what you might do to alleviate their suffering, however small — by making a donation to a relevant charity, for example.
Resolve to make a positive difference to something or someone every day. Small kindnesses such as taking time to talk to a lonely neighbour or thanking someone who has helped you guarantees you’ll make the world a better place, for at least one other person.
My week:
Dec. 30, 2018 Work: It was steady.
Dec. 31, 2018 Holiday season complaints: I can write about it now and publish it after the holiday season is over.
1. The Christmas tree- it was way back in gr. 6 where the teacher Mrs. Burnett was talking about holiday traditions and how it's weird. This isn't her opinions, but someone that she knows. There is Halloween where kids go and beg for candy.
For Christmas, you get a tree either real or fake and decorate it and put it in your home.
2. Consumerism- I have mentioned this before, but there is lots of shopping and spending time, effort, and money on buying things you don't really want or need.
3. Waste- I was reading in the Edmonton Journal about waste management. In the holiday season, there is an increase in recycling and garbage.
Yesterday at work, there was a reservation of 9 people and there was a lot of wrapping paper I had to recycle. It fit a big shopping bag.
It reminds me of The Simpsons where they were celebrating "Love Day" and there was a lot of waste like wrapping paper. (It then lead to Homer getting into a fight with the garbage man and Homer getting a job to be in charge of waste management for the city.)
It then brings back to the Christmas tree because if it's real, then you throw it out after a couple of months.
New Year's Eve: I have been sleeping every New Year's Eve since Dec. 2010. I was working at my 1st restaurant job and I had to work the next day so I always sleep.
I then thought about all the other times and was it really memorable?
When I was a kid or teen, staying up late was fun. It's like: "I'm supposed to be in bed, but I'm not."
I don't like to stay up late even if I don't have to work the next day.
I remember in 2003, I was in Calgary with my brother P and dad. Maybe my mom was there. We stayed at our grandparent's place. P and I stayed up and watched it count down on Much Music. Much Music was counting down every hour for every province.
I remember probably in 2005 or 2006: P and I stayed up until midnight. We were watching a Cheaters rerun. It's that reality show where they catch people cheating on each other.
I remember the episode about a young woman in her 20s.
Woman: I work and I go to school. I can't drive 2 hrs every weekend to see you.
The woman had mid-length blond hair and her boyfriend had dark hair. They yelled at each other, but they made up then and there.
I found my Jan. 2010 blog post:
Happy New Year!: I celebrated it by staying at home, as usual. I was listening to the Bounce radio station and dancing to it. Then I got a phone call from my friend Sonia wishing me a happy new year. I had called her earlier and she was returning my call. I never got a phone call on New Year's before, so that's a first.
Dec. 30, 2018 Work: It was steady.
Dec. 31, 2018 Holiday season complaints: I can write about it now and publish it after the holiday season is over.
1. The Christmas tree- it was way back in gr. 6 where the teacher Mrs. Burnett was talking about holiday traditions and how it's weird. This isn't her opinions, but someone that she knows. There is Halloween where kids go and beg for candy.
For Christmas, you get a tree either real or fake and decorate it and put it in your home.
2. Consumerism- I have mentioned this before, but there is lots of shopping and spending time, effort, and money on buying things you don't really want or need.
3. Waste- I was reading in the Edmonton Journal about waste management. In the holiday season, there is an increase in recycling and garbage.
Yesterday at work, there was a reservation of 9 people and there was a lot of wrapping paper I had to recycle. It fit a big shopping bag.
It reminds me of The Simpsons where they were celebrating "Love Day" and there was a lot of waste like wrapping paper. (It then lead to Homer getting into a fight with the garbage man and Homer getting a job to be in charge of waste management for the city.)
It then brings back to the Christmas tree because if it's real, then you throw it out after a couple of months.
New Year's Eve: I have been sleeping every New Year's Eve since Dec. 2010. I was working at my 1st restaurant job and I had to work the next day so I always sleep.
I then thought about all the other times and was it really memorable?
When I was a kid or teen, staying up late was fun. It's like: "I'm supposed to be in bed, but I'm not."
I don't like to stay up late even if I don't have to work the next day.
I remember in 2003, I was in Calgary with my brother P and dad. Maybe my mom was there. We stayed at our grandparent's place. P and I stayed up and watched it count down on Much Music. Much Music was counting down every hour for every province.
I remember probably in 2005 or 2006: P and I stayed up until midnight. We were watching a Cheaters rerun. It's that reality show where they catch people cheating on each other.
I remember the episode about a young woman in her 20s.
Woman: I work and I go to school. I can't drive 2 hrs every weekend to see you.
The woman had mid-length blond hair and her boyfriend had dark hair. They yelled at each other, but they made up then and there.
I found my Jan. 2010 blog post:
Happy New Year!: I celebrated it by staying at home, as usual. I was listening to the Bounce radio station and dancing to it. Then I got a phone call from my friend Sonia wishing me a happy new year. I had called her earlier and she was returning my call. I never got a phone call on New Year's before, so that's a first.
I checked my email today and my friend Jessica emailed me. I called and left a message yesterday too. She said she was out of town in the email. That's a coincidence because the last time I called her was Jul.1, and she said the same thing. I seem to get her when she's out of town.
https://badcb.blogspot.com/2010/01/changes-funny-happy-new-year.html
The Simpsons Circus de soleil parody:
In the start of the show, a clown is looking for someone to open a jar.
Clown: You can do it, if your heart is pure.
Roboglenn387 3 months ago : You can do it if your heart is pure huh? If you can't open it what's that say about you clown?
My opinion: I never thought of it that way. Then again, it was a fictional TV show and it's a comedy. You don't really put that much thought in it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oi53w-OddIA
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skinner%27s_Sense_of_Snow
Jan. 1, 2019 West Edmonton mall:
Vitaly- this store closed down. It sold men's clothing. There was a note at the store that said it's closed and go to the website to shop.
Geox- this store closed down. You can go to Southgate because there's a store there.
Bite Me meals: I found this company where they will deliver healthy food to you:
https://www.justbitememeals.com/
Jan. 2, 2019 A man attacked a McDonald’s employee. Video of her fighting back went viral: If you watch the video, there is profanity. I watched this twice and I got really angry watching it so I forewarn you:
Brenda Biandudi doesn’t normally go to fast food chains, but it was New Year’s Eve and she needed somewhere to use the restroom and buy a drink.
So Biandudi stopped at a McDonald’s in St. Petersburg, Fla., on Monday afternoon. She noticed it was nearly empty inside, save for a middle-aged man who had just gotten his order and was walking over to the condiments.
When the man saw there were no plastic straws, however, he got upset — and began walking back to the counter to berate a cashier, according to Biandudi.
“She told him that it’s the law now that they’re not supposed to have the straws in the lobby,” Biandudi told The Washington Post in a phone interview Wednesday. “He said there’s no such law.”
(The St. Petersburg City Council voted last month to ban plastic straws by 2020, beginning with a grace period in 2019 in which customers must specifically request plastic straws at city businesses.)
Biandudi watched as an insult-ridden, profanity-laced argument about straws escalated between the customer, a tall white man, and the employee, a young black woman. That’s when she pulled out her phone.
“I said, this is getting a little heated here,” Biandudi told The Post. “I better get my camera ready in case somebody needs to know what happened.”
As soon as Biandudi began recording, the argument turned physical.
Later Sunday evening, police arrested Daniel Willis Taylor, a transient man who had just turned 40 the day before the incident, according to an arrest affidavit from the St. Petersburg Police Department. There were no weapons found on him and there were indications he was under the influence of alcohol, police said.
My opinion: At least the police came and arrested the guy. Daniel Willis Taylor should not have grabbed at the woman at all. He could have yelled at her, but he shouldn't touch her. It's also a bigger deal because she was a woman. It's bad if a male customer attacks a man or woman worker, but more so if it's a woman. At least to me. Fortunately, there are other workers there to pull Taylor away from her.
The highlight of the week:
Jan. 4, 2019 Reporting a scam: Today I called in the Canadian Anti-fraud hotline to report a job scam. It was about a guy sending me a check and I had to deposit the check. I gathered all the info and reported it.
Jan. 5, 2019 Perspective:
"A Venezuelen doctor rebuilds his life from the bottom up": Today I found this article by Anthony Failo in the Edmonton Journal. They profile Dr. Jose Perdomo who was a successful doctor in Venezuala and now he had to immigrate. Now he is a waiter and he is struggling by working long hours as a waiter.
My opinion: I know about well- educated immigrants moving to Canada and they get low- paying jobs because their education from another country isn't recognized in Canada. I saw it on a W-Five episode around like 2007.
I feel sorry for Jose, but also grateful for my work situation. It gave me perspective.
"Man who lived like pauper donates $11 million to charity": Today I found this article by Sally Ho in the Edmonton Journal:
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