'Tis the Season To Get Stressed Out!

I'm learning a little something about stress these days.  I recently got married, I  am in the process of building a new home,  I'm negotiating details to move my mother in with us, and we are starting a new family.  Not to mention I'm running a business,  managing real estate investments, teaching fitness classes and staying active with church ministries.  I've learned that busyness can mean stress, even when the busyness is beautiful.

What I've learned through this ever-changing journey could help you:

I don't perform or react ideally when I'm too_____________.
When I'm too tired, too frustrated, too sad etc I'm not at my best. When I feel myself becoming too (insert emotion here), I know its time for a chat with my bestie, a catnap, a walk or a quick game of candy crush saga to get me back on track.

I need to be heard.  
Sometimes I need to vent.   When I'm overwhelmed, I can't always see the forest for the trees. I might also need help talking through decisions and problem solving.

Encouragement drives me. 
I'm a self motivated person. I don't usual need help getting and staying motivated.   But there are days (like yesterday, for example) when I get locked out of my car, sprain my wrist, have a disagreement with my partner  and I'm running late to my meeting when I just need an extra push. ..or better yet a hug.  I need someone to remind me that I can do it and tell me everything will be OK.

The key is knowing myself.
It's imperatives that I successfully analyze and access what I need.  Then I have to know what source to seek out in order to get the appropriate direction and support.  It's no different than the principles I teach in leadership development workshops.   Know what you need;  know who can give it to you; and ask for it.

HAPPY HOLIDAYS
www.site.yourenhance.com

Stress Is Tearing Down Organizational Performance

I was recently introduced to The Chair.  It is no ordinary chair, of course. It has headphones that play relaxing sounds, dark glasses to bring the hemispheres of the brain into balance & numerous rotating and gyrating elements to provide a soothing massage. By reducing stress it is said to improve staff performance.  As a result, a growing numbers of organizations are investing in them and making them available for use on site.

This reminded me of a company where I used to work where there was a billiards table in the conference room. It also brings to mind a manufacturing client of mine where, every time I visit, I find a foursome is playing ping-pong in the gym.   Were the employees happier, more productive, more engaged?  Some research says yes.

It’s easy to discount and dismiss this topic or push it to back burner to address more pressing matters. But according to the American Institute of Stress at ‘Job Pressure’ is the biggest single cause of stress in the US. The annual cost to employers in stress-related health care and missed work, they suggest, is a massive $300 Billion – and it’s getting worse.   So if your company is looking for ways to reduce costs and increase profitability, stress reduction could be the way.

According to Towers Watson’s Global Benefits Attitudes survey, workplace disengagement increases significantly when stress is high, and so do levels of sick leave.  Also stress employees tend to ‘retire on the job’ – that’s the practice of showing up to work & consistently being under-productive.

Should HR and Talent Development professionals be paying more attention to finding solutions to stress? Or should they focus on areas that are easier to measure?

What works best to de-stress and motivate in your organization?

And what stressful issues are you dealing with presently?

So you think you can multitask? Not a chance!

If you're a parent,  a supervisor, a coach, or a grade school teacher, I bet you think you multitask all the time.  

Sure you can do multiple things simultaneously.  However, the idea of multitasking implies that you are successfully and effectively focusing on two (or more) different activities at the same time.  The operative word here in FOCUSING.  You might be able to effectively perform two tasks at once as long as only one of them requires your attention.  It's why you tell your teenagers not to text and drive.  It's why you don't let them watch TV while doing their homework.  

TASK SWITCHING
When we think we're multitasking, we are really task switching.  That's what author, Dave Crenshaw, calls it in his book The Myth of Multitasking.  We focus on one task for a few seconds, then switch our focus to the other task for a few seconds.  Both tasks don't have our full focus continuously.  For example:  You read your email during that conference call but you only tune into the call when you hear your name mentioned. You are talking to your sister on the phone while folding laundry. You're listening to her complain about her job until you find an busted ink pen in your jean's pocket. Then you're no longer listening to sis as you check all your clothes for ink spots. You park your car at the grocery store and don't remember where the car is because you were busy dealing with rambunctious kids while you were parking.  

Still not convinced?  Watch this video and see if you notice everything going on.

Distractions and Interruptions
Distractions and interruptions are the reason we cannot effectively multitask. A London based study revealed that when a person attempts to multitask, his concentration is diminished to the same degree as if that person were medically sedated.   Other things, people and priorities catch our attention and take us on a tangent.  And, we become "sedated" - unresponsive, lacking focused, not clear headed. 

Striving to be un-sedated
The next time you attempt to multitask, think about what you're focused on and what you should be focusing on.  Think about your top priority at that moment.  Be aware of your own reactions and interactions.  Notice how often you ask others to repeat themselves or don't remember the content of a conversation or communication.  In 2015, my goal is to be "unsedated" while I spend time with my family and friends, as well as my clients.  I don't want to miss any precious moments or important information. 

Let Them Learn Right Where They Are.

More and more often my clients are looking for ways to get just-in-time learning to new leaders regardless of location, job functions, and work hours.   They are facing the fact that everyone won’t and can’t physically gather in a room at headquarters for each training initiative.  So, I’ve been doing my research on leadership training and mobile learning.  Here are a few facts I uncovered recently.

·         The average age of managers when they get leadership training is 42. Yet the average age when they become managers is 33, according to an ATD study.

·         Less than 10 percent of employees under the age of 30 get the opportunity to participate in leadership development, according to a Ken Blanchard Companies study.

·         More people have mobile telephones around the world than have access to indoor plumbing, according to the United Nations.

Investing in current managers and future leaders today, rather than a decade too late might finally be a feasible possibility with mobile learning solutions.

When ATD published Mobile Learning: Learning in the Palm of Your Hand in 2011, the report mentioned a not-yet-common term called the app.  It also questioned whether recently introduced tablets would soon dominate the world of mobile devices. That year, 57 percent of surveyed learning and business leaders predicted that they would be using mobile learning in the next three years.  In 2013,  a similar study found that only 15% of the surveyed organizations were designing and/or utilizing mobile learning.  This year’s (2014) survey revealed a growth spurt: 28 percent of respondents confirmed that their organizations made internal learning content available via mobile devices.   Mobile learning adoption continues to be grow, albeit, slowly. 

What I learned from the ATD study is there are a couple of factors influencing organizations’ ability to adapt and adopt mobile learning applications. 

The decision to build it or buy it is one factor.   Organizations have four basic options: 1. 1. OEM learning apps  2. Enterprise wide solutions vendors   3.Outside consulting services; and/or   4. Internal development.  The ATD Study analysis shows better performance and learning effectiveness for those organizations that opted for internal development of their mobile programs.

The other factor compromises several element, all of which are obstacles to adopting mobile learning solutions.  The top drawbacks can be summarized succinctly as lack of money, fear of the unknown, and technology problems.  Organization leaders are asking whether or not they have the time, human capital and technical support to embark on such initiatives. 

If you’re organization has or will soon add mobile learning, share you thoughts, lessons learned, best practices and questions with us on social media.

What You Say Says Alot About You.

Noted author and human behavior specialist, Marshall Goldsmith, conducted a survey of 200 employees recently.  The results reveals one resounding truth:  We bash our bosses.

Many of us take jabs at our boss at work when we’re talking to co-workers. We bad-mouth our bosses after work to anyone who will listen.  And we even talk trash about our bosses on weekends when we’re with our most captive audience – our family. Astoundingly, workers spend about fifteen hours a month doing this.

A little bit of boss bashing is understandable. Its how many people vent their frustrations and release stress.  But, the potential therapeutic gains are often outweighed by the negative impacts.

What do you accomplish when you critique a person who isn't even in the room? They can’t respond to what you’re saying.  They can’t explain (or defend) themselves.  Certainly, no corrective action or improvements can be expected.  It’s a completely unproductive exercise.

In fact, the only thing you may succeed in changing is your reputation.  Your colleagues’ opinion of you could be tarnished when they discover you tend to gossip about and slander teammates.  Your remarks may come across as petty or even belittling.  Sound business teachings tell us to be respectful of people when they are absent; don’t talk about them behind their backs. In the book Speed of Trust, Stephen Covey calls it ‘showing loyalty’. 

The reality is this:  Boss bashing doesn't build better bosses. Imagine what you could accomplish if you dedicated fifteen hours to something substantive like going back to school or spending quality time with your spouse.  The next time you start to bash your boss, think about what you may be doing to yourself and those around you. If you have a legitimate issue that needs to be addressed, put on your brave face and talk to your boss about it.  The book, Crucial Conversations, gives some great pointers on this.  If you feel you can’t talk to leadership, consider whether or not you really have (or want) a future at that organization.  You have options; it’s up to you.

Focusing on Just One Thing

Picture this.  You just unloaded clothes from the dryer and you're heading down the hallway to your bedroom or living room to sort and fold.  If you're not transporting the clothes in a basket, inevitably you will drop something -- a sock or someone's unmentionables perhaps. So, what do you do? Even though you're already struggling to hold everything, you'll attempt to pick up that fallen article.  You don't fold the clothes and then go back for it;  you go get it right away.  Your focus becomes that ONE thing.  It's not that the other things aren't important; but that ONE occupies your mind.  

Over the last few weeks, I've been planning my wedding.  Most everything in my life is managed in terms of how it aligns, conflicts, or helps with that event.  Homecoming is post-wedding.  The yard sale is pre-wedding.   But, the impending marriage is the focus.  Everything else simply falls somewhere around it.   The other things are important and I can give them attention as needed, but they are not my main focus.

We as humans tend to focus on one thing; even though we attempt to multitask we tend to have one track minds.   Think about the last time you were doing more than one thing simultaneously.  You might be washing dishes while talking to a friend on the phone.  In that case your probably paying attention to the phone conversation and not focusing on the dishes.  Two things that require your full attention wont equitably coexist.  That's why we shouldn't text while driving.  We can't be attentive to both at the same time -- We have one track minds.  

Since we function best with one focus at a time, I challenge you to concentrate on just one thing.  What is the one thing you should  accomplish, improve or complete?  There may be several, but truthfully you can't focus on them all at once.  You need to achieve one thing, check it off the list, and move on to the next big thing.  Whether its procrastinating less, reading more, or working out more often, you need to focus on the one thing and make it your priority. Continually look for ways, moments, and resources to work at that one thing.  Don't forgot about those other important tasks, jobs, and roles, but keep your focus.  

And, give it your all!

What Entrepreneurs Have In Common

What does it take to be a successful entrepreneur and do you have what it takes?  Well, it depends on how you measure success first of all.  Nationwide, entrepreneurs earn about $44,000 in annual revenue. Business ownership is not a get-rich-quick career move.  In fact, most entrepreneurs never get rich. 

Nevertheless, entrepreneurial benefits are more than just financial. In surveys, many of them site a sense of accomplishment, fulfillment, and autonomy as rewards they enjoy as independents.  

Here are some other attributes they tend to have in common.

Entrepreneurs:

1.  Manage money wisely.

2. Do what they love.


3.  Take their work seriously.


4.  Plan ahead and stay organized.
5.  Ask for what they want.


If you are considering stepping out on your own, ask yourself if you have these competencies.  If not, are you willing to discipline yourself to improve your performance in these area?