Wilma Jones – Page 13

Why You Need to Move Your Body at Work

February 8, 2016 by Wilma Jones

Why You Need to Move Your Body at Work

Just because you workout 3 times a week, you’re not exempt from the need to move your body more while you’re working. Practicing yoga, spin classes or Zumba before or after work can’t save you. Because whether you work in a corner office or in the rows of cubicles, if you sit for 8+ hours each day, you’re in danger.

The phrase, ‘Sitting is the new smoking,’ has been in the news quite a bit in the past 2 years. The man who is credited with coining the phrase is Dr. James Levine, director of the Mayo Clinic- Arizona State University Obesity Solutions Initiative. What he actually said is, “Sitting is more dangerous than smoking, kills more people than HIV and is more treacherous than parachuting.” Well, I would characterize that as dangerous, wouldn’t you?

If you think he’s exaggerating, check this out —>>> Ways Sitting is Killing You

Americans spend half their waking hours at work. And many of us are sitting during the majority of that time. Lots of us sit during our commutes to work, on the subway, bus or sitting in a car. And after work, even more of us sit in front of the television evening after evening.

In my new workshop, ‘Living Happier @ Work,’ one of the exercises helps participants explore how much time they spend sitting throughout the day. Discussion and strategies to move more and sit less focus on simple behavior shifts that can produce major changes in the work place environment.

Some of the strategies employees have implemented as a result of the workshops include:

Having a ‘walking meeting’ when there are only 2 people who need to meet. To add a bonus, they hold that walking meeting outside, even for as little as 10 minutes because it helps you think more creatively.
For larger meetings of 4 or even up to 6 or 8 people, everyone stands during at least a portion of the meeting. Or the meeting leader encourages people to stand as they’d like during the meeting, especially if the duration will exceed 30 minutes.
While on a conference call or web conference at your desk when you are primarily in “listening mode,” some staff members have begun standing at their desk.
One organization is planning to purchase ‘standing desks’ for team members. These devices come in a variety of styles and corresponding price ranges. Check out options HERE and HERE There is even a treadmill standing desk.
None of those sound attractive to you? Well, get up from your chair once per hour and walk for 2-3 minutes. Just get up and move. A little bit of moving will make a difference.

Many companies are implementing wellness programs to help employees improve their health. Maybe they should also think about how they can support their employees by helping them move more and sit less. What do you think?

2 Fantastic Tools Used By the Best Bosses

February 1, 2016 by Wilma Jones

2 Fantastic Tools Used By the Best Bosses

I returned to book club yesterday after a two year hiatus. A new book lover joined the group since I left, and I ended up sitting next to her. We enjoyed a great meal at Hill Country Barbecue and spirited discussion about this month’s book selection. And of course, current events like our opinion of the latest Republican debate and #OscarsSoWhite.

As the discussion continued, the subject of work and bosses was raised and our newest member told a story about a recent experience in her workplace. She works at a state government agency and a number of temporary employees were being notified that their employment was ending just a few days before Christmas. The manager informing the employees of their fate was quite happy to be handling this duty, in the most Cruella De Vil kind of way.

Our book club friend explained that there is a group of managers at the job who have moved up the ranks in the organization. This particular manager is a part of that group. These supervisors feel that because the people who used to manage them were not very nice to them, that they have the same right to be mean to people below them on the org chart now that they are leaders.

I know these were temporary employees, but it is still important to treat people kindly. The most important relationship we have at work is with our boss. The employees who watched this behavior had been impacted by observing their management behave in this manner. No one wants to be managed by people who don’t care about other people’s feelings.

Really good bosses know there are two tools that should be relied upon when working with their team, whether they are permanent or temporary staff. The first is gratitude. Showing appreciation to your team, especially if you have to perform a tough task, is important.

The second tool is that of kindness. Managers often have to tackle an unpleasant duty when providing corrective action or termination of an employee. The tone and choice of words can make all the difference when you have to give someone really bad information. Appearing to relish the duty is just bad business.

Having been on the giving and receiving end of this unfortunate responsibility, I can tell you from personal experience that if someone finds firing a person easy, they probably aren’t the most caring boss on the planet. But sometimes in a business it’s inevitable. Using gratitude for the contribution that’s been made and kindness in the manner in which you handle the separation can make a big difference in how the employees left behind perceive you as a boss.

10 Easy Exercises to Do at Your Desk

January 25, 2016 by Wilma Jones

10 Easy Exercises to Do at Your Desk

The news about the dangers of being sedentary throughout the day are somewhat alarming. Sitting is the new smoking, they say. Even if you work out 30 minutes daily, it doesn’t reduce the risk of sitting in a chair at a desk for 8+ hours each day.

The only way to reduce your risk is to sit less and move more every day. Even if the movement is simply to stand a few more minutes every day. OK, that’s one suggestion. Now here are 10 more exercise ideas to help you get a little workout at the job.

1. Take the stairs up to the office whenever you can.
2. Take a walk around your floor every hour or so. (If you can’t walk the floor, how about the lobby? Or maybe you can grab your coat and walk once around the building for some fresh air.)
3. Wall sit. Stand with your back against the wall. Then lower yourself and push your knees out like you’re sitting in an imaginary chair. Hold for at least 30 seconds. (If that’s easy, bend one leg, ankle to knee and hold.)
4. Hold the yoga Prayer Pose while seated in your chair. Push your palms together and exercise your arms.
5. Stand at your desk. (Especially nice when you’re listening to a conference call.)
6. If that is too easy, do squats while standing at your desk.
7. Hamstring curls. Stand behind your desk chair. Use one hand to hold the chair. Lift one leg at a time and try to push your heel toward your bottom.
8. Do alternate leg raises while waiting for a document to print.
9. Glute squeezes while sitting in your chair. This one is easy – squeeze your butt. Hold for a least 15 seconds. Repeat.
10. Do the desk chair swivel and work your abs. Swivel your butt to the left and your chest to the right. Work those obliques. Now twist in the opposite direction.

Whether you work in a corporation sitting at a desk or from home on at your own business, or something in between, the less time you spend sitting on your bottom everyday, the happier and healthier you will be. [LINK] Keeping your body moving is good for your body and your brain, so these things can also help you be more successful at the job.

Do you have other ideas for ways to add a little exercise while at the job?

For People Who Are Sick of Attending Boring, Unproductive Meetings

January 18, 2016 by Wilma Jones

For People Who Are Sick of Attending Boring, Unproductive Meetings

It’s difficult to be happy at work if you’re bored. And one of the most frequent complaints about boredom in office etiquette is the meeting. Whether in-person, on the phone or via the web most people think there are too many boring meetings. A large portion of those meetings are not very productive, as the results of this study and this one contest.

So what makes most meetings so unproductive? I think it’s because people forget that you only need to have a meeting for one reason: Some type of ACTION is required to solve a business problem or issue.

If there is no action needed then there shouldn’t be a meeting.

An agenda helps to create a more productive meeting, especially if it’s distributed prior to the meeting. Bonus points for including the agenda as a part of the meeting invitation.

Note taking is important to ensure things move forward after the meeting concludes. How many of us have been to a meeting where we simply re-hashed what was discussed at the previous meeting?!

Your notes should be simple. Action items listing the person responsible, what the action is and when it should be concluded – or if longer term, when the person will update the group. This list is incorporated into the agenda, if a follow up meeting is necessary.

The third and final tip for managing a successful meeting is to have a hard stop time. Wasting time at work is irritating to most people. If someone wants to waste time at the office, trust that it’s not at your meeting. So be respectful of people’s time. State the amount of time scheduled and alert all participants that you’re going to do your best to run the meeting on time.

A couple of hints for you to think about regarding meetings. The first is for one-on-one meetings. If it’s just two people consider having a ‘walking meeting.’ Print your agenda, grab a pen and especially if it’s a nice day, grab your coworker and take a walk outside to work through the items. Note the actions to each agenda item so you can follow up with notes after your walk. Research shows this type of meeting can spark creativity. Try it and see.

Final hint for those meetings with more than two people in a conference room or office. If the meeting is expected to be short, like 20 minutes or less, consider a standing meeting. That’s right, everyone stands up rather than sitting around a table. It’s healthier and the meeting will probably be shorter because people will engage in fewer sidebar conversations and thereby stay more focused.

Try these ideas for a meeting folks will look forward to attending. Or print this blog post and discreetly place it on the chair of the person in your office who most needs to implement these tools. All your colleagues will thank you.

The Best Way to Build Your Happiness

January 4, 2016 by Wilma Jones

The Best Way to Build Your Happiness

It’s the first Monday of a new year and most of us are at work hoping to start the year off on the right note. At least I know I am. Recently I read a blog post on the Business 2 Community website that totally reinforced the perspective of happiness at work that I so wholeheartedly believe in.

I know from personal experience that your outlook and perspective drive your success on the job. Hundreds of research studies have been completed that prove that happiness leads to success, not the other way around. So the natural question folks ask is, what can I do to increase my happiness? Well we know from research and experience that the tools of gratitude, kindness, exercise and mindfulness are critically important. Incorporating these into your life create a regimen that leads to a happier life, both a professionally and personally. The article, “The Importance of Happiness at Work,” took a little different perspective and it was a view I found quite interesting.

It advised that “Happiness is not an end goal, but rather the actual joy we feel while striving towards our potential.” So basically, the premise is that happiness isn’t something to be achieved but rather the feeling we have when we’re pushing ourselves to do something a little further than what we’ve done before.

I had to think about that in perspective to working a day job. Sometimes we’re not the one who determines what the most important objective is at the job. Even still, we can set a goal regarding our potential at the job that is something important to us personally. For example, in a sales position achieving (or overachieving) quota is the ultimate mark of success. But in looking at that goal you know one of the benchmarks is getting enough opportunity in the funnel to actually have some business to close. That means you need to find more people who want to buy what you sell. So having a benchmark about meeting a specific number of new contacts every week and meeting that goal is something that will give me immediate happiness and pride in the short term. However, it should also lead to achieving that ultimate goal of quota attainment and the accompanying dollars earned.

Sometimes when you aren’t the master of your fate for those 8+ hours a day you need to break things down to a level that gives you a little sense of accomplishment on the regular. There are up days and down days. And after being away from the office for a week, or two – or even more for the holiday season maybe your goal is going to be to clean your email by Tuesday afternoon. Whatever you need to set as a goal and then achieve in the short term is something that can actually make you happier, believe it or not. As that article also makes pretty clear, managing your thoughts, basically your outlook and perspective is critical to happiness at work. So on this first workday of the new year, maybe we should start right here.

Why You Need to Move Your Body at Work

Why You Need to Move Your Body at Work

2 Fantastic Tools Used By the Best Bosses

2 Fantastic Tools Used By the Best Bosses

10 Easy Exercises to Do at Your Desk

10 Easy Exercises to Do at Your Desk

For People Who Are Sick of Attending Boring, Unproductive Meetings

The Best Way to Build Your Happiness

The Best Way to Build Your Happiness

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