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The phone on your desk is ringing. Your cell phone is vibrating. Someone is standing at your cubicle waiting to talk to you.
Rapid pinging sounds signal emails arriving in your inbox. It’s hard to prioritize when everything is important and everything needs to be done right away…or does it?
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Mindfulness is a mental state achieved by focusing awareness on the present moment while acknowledging and accepting thoughts and feelings.
The practice can relieve stress, improve focus, and improve emotional and physical health.
Here are 4 tips on how you can practice mindfulness at work:
1. Be consciously present
Pay attention to your surroundings. The biggest distraction for most people is their cell phone. According to a study by Nokia, the average cell phone user checks their phone about 250 times a day. Try not looking at your phone when you walk to lunch or down hallways and take notice of the details around you.
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Photo Credit: https://www.awarenessdays.com/awareness-days-calendar/national-pow-mia-recognition-day-2019/
Easy Ways to Show Appreciation of Veterans and Active Military in Your Workplace
Honoring veterans does not need to be time-intensive or expensive. These simple gestures will mean a lot to your employees who are active duty/ veterans as well as employees with loved ones serving/who have served.
1. Honor Significant Appreciation Days/Months – send a note from leadership or include in your newsletter http://www.operationwearehere.com/SignificantDaysObservances.html
Example: May is Military Appreciation Month
2. Set up MIA/ POW Table
The United States’ National POW/MIA Recognition Day is observed across the nation on the third Friday of September each year. Many Americans take the time to remember those who were prisoners of war (POW) and those who are missing in action (MIA), as well as their families. http://navylive.dodlive.mil/2014/10/06/the-powmia-table-a-place-setting-for-one-a-table-for-all/
A list of items is required to "save a place at the table " for a soldier that has not returned, which each item having a specific meaning. For example, the candle on the table represents "the light of hope which lives in our hearts to illuminate their way home".
In 2019 POW/MIA Day will be observed Friday, September 20. A table should be set in a lobby or public area . A note explaining the significance of the table and the items can be sent to employees or a sign placed on the table. If possible, put this at an entry-way as it is a very powerful visual that often makes people stop and take a moment to read about it's significance.
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Enabling The Disabled
Marisa Boasa is a Diversity & Inclusion Manager for the REDI Program at Randstad. She works with major corporations and creates best practices for those with disabilities.
In August 2018 Boasa, 42, was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis after five years of struggling with the effects of the disease with no clear answers. After her diagnosis Marisa decided it would not stop her from continuing to run half marathons. She and her coach, Dr. Kenneth Bruno, began a regimen of 90 minutes of single-leg drills on a stationary bike, an hour of aqua-jogging in a pool, and running as a means of sending triggers to Boasa’s brain, telling it that she still wants to run. While running, leg braces and trekking poles help if her legs start going numb.
Marisa is motivated to lace up her sneakers, even on days it is hard, because she knows she is fighting for her mobility. She is proud to be an advocate. Marisa believes the disability community needs to have more of a presence and a voice. “I want other people to feel empowered and know they are capable of more. If you have the will and desire to do something, you can.”
Marisa said, “Half to three-quarters of people with Multiple Sclerosis are unemployed within 10 years of diagnosis. This is something I and others battle, as we work hard to remain in the workforce. As a Diversity and Inclusion Manager for IWD (Individuals with Disabilities), my goal is to help those like myself remain employed and also partner with companies to hire qualified applicants and work to provide reasonable accommodations. “
How can employers help? By visiting https://askjan.org/, employers can select a disability type and view a list of accommodations they can make. Marisa said, “It is easy to take someone from disabled to enabled, by simply asking ‘What can we do to make your job environment better?’ ” JAN’s Workplace Accommodation Toolkit is a free, comprehensive online resource for employers seeking to move beyond basic compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) in order to create more disability-inclusive workplaces. The Department of Labor also offers many comprehensive guides to help employers become advocates. Marisa says that for smaller businesses, there is often a financial kick back.
Just Keep Paddling : An Epic Quest on the Crossing for Cystic Fibrosis
On Sunday, June 16, 2019, 220 paddlers left the Bahamas and paddled to Lake Worth, FL (80 miles!) on the 4th Crossing for Cystic Fibrosis—an event founded to raise awareness, develop life-enhancing programs for, and provide financial assistance to cystic fibrosis families. In 2019 this event raised $670,000.
The Crossing is put on by Piper’s Angels Foundation, created by Travis Suit in 2011 when his 4-year-old daughter, Piper, was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis, a progressive and fatal disease that affects lung and digestive functions. In 2013, Suit made the trek with four friends to raise awareness and funds for research. He also made the connection with his research that the salt air Piper inhaled while on the water really was helping her condition by rehydrating the lining of the lungs and helping loosen the mucus buildup.
“Run as hard as you can…
you can rest tomorrow.”
People with CF don’t have that luxury.
Our team of paddlers included Ben Vonderharr, Drew Memtsas and Leonardo Betancourt. They were accompanied their captain and crew, John Komaromi, Adrian Komaromi and Cody Wagner. They paddled 14 hours straight to reach their destination. The team raised $5,305. I joined the crew on the boat to re-live their experience with them.
I asked what made them sign up for this challenge. Drew said, “We had unfinished business. Ben and I had signed up for the paddle last year and did not complete it successfully. We wanted to finish, paddling shore-to-shore.” Leo knew someone with CF and had seen how difficult it was to live with the disease. Everyone agreed that it was a once in a lifetime opportunity for a physical and mental challenge while supporting an amazing cause. No one tried to talk them out of the opportunity but many people said,“Good for you. I would never be able to do that.”
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Read More on The Pipers Angels Blog
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The Secret Healing Power of Vibration
Kathleen Haden greets me with a hug before guiding me into her retreat center. Kathleen and her husband John Anthony run Good Vibrations Music Co. They are a non-profit frequency –infused music and vibrational therapy company that designs, creates, and markets frequency infused music and vibrational products that promote health and wellness.
Sound therapy is founded on the premise that all matter is vibrating at specific frequencies and that sound can be used to heal and access higher levels of consciousness. Every sound is vibration that touches each cell of our body. Users of the music have improved their sleep, decreased their pain, and recovered faster from injuries and illness.
They have donated their music to help causes including Autism, Alzheimer’s, PTSD, Parkinson’s, trauma and abuse. They have 75 original albums that help treat 1,000 conditions. Their most popular albums are for stress relief, increased energy, sleep, and pain relief. There is a set of albums just for pets that help conditions such as separation anxiety and fear of thunder and lightning.
Kathleen encourages skeptics to give the music a chance ; “Change Your Music, Change your Health. If you will just try it, it will work.”
The company records all of their own albums, most in the ancient tonal scale known as Solfeggio frequencies of 432 hz. It is believed that this frequency is tuned to the vibrations of nature itself. (Most music is tuned to 440 hz.)
The low frequencies are able to be felt but not heard, unless you are using a delivery center such as one of the company’s patented tables. The “delivery systems” allow the user to feel vibrations of frequencies. These include a yoga acoustics platform, and Vibrational Frequency Technology (VTF) sound table. They also sell small handheld sound speakers that play their music.
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Read more on Page 78 of This Is..Magazine
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How to Stress Less About Taking a Vacation
Do you feel drained ,burnt out , less energized about going to work than usual, or as if you are lacking creative ideas and solutions ? Only half of all Americans use all their vacation time according to a recent survey by job site Glassdoor.
Have you been thinking about going on a vacation but worry about getting behind or important tasks not getting done? I used to feel like I would never be able to take a vacation time until I learned how to properly manage my time off . Here are some tips to take a break from your stressful job and have a stress-free vacation instead:
1.Decide on Vacation Time at the Beginning of the Year
While there may never be a perfect or even great time to take off work, there are usually times of the year better than others. As an HR Generalist I never schedule vacation during annual enrollment because I know my workload will be much heavier than normal and I will need to be present for many meetings .
2.Give your Co-workers and Customers Advanced Notice
Put a calendar notice on the calendars of those you work closely with . It will give them advanced notice as well as remind them when the time comes that you are going out on vacation and to get with you for any last minute questions.
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