Warning: Tobacco may seriously damage your career...

While most of us stayed safely indoors this winter out of the driving snow and sleet, some hardy employees ventured out to stand in the freezing conditions in search of... Nicotine.

While everyone knows that smoking harms your health and the health of those around you, did you know that it could soon damage your career too? 

Two Florida hospitals have joined a growing number of employers in the US who have implemented a ban on hiring smokers.  Part of the hiring process is a nicotine test and continual testing throughout their employment.  In the UK things are changing too.  County councils are insisting that smokers clock in and out as they will no longer be paid for smoke breaks.

According to the Irish Small Firms Association, this anti smoking sentiment has not been driven by the employers but by the non smoking employees.  In some cases there is all out war between smokers and non smokers in the workplace with disagreements about smoke breaks being one of the most common employee complaints reported.

It’s not surprising when - the average smoker spends more than a year of their working life at smoke breaks while also working on average one hour less a day than their non smoking co workers.

Most smokers in Ireland take 4 x 15 minute breaks a day which from the management’s point of view means losing 240 working hours a year per employee.

The associated health implications also cause smokers to take more sick days. Male smokers are a staggering 66% more likely to be absent from work than non smoking colleagues, female smokers are 23% more likely to be absent than their non smoking counterparts.

With this in mind it’s surprising that employers who have cut costs wherever possible have been slow to act and take measures to halt this loss of productivity.

So if you need another reason to quit smoking in 2011 – here you have it. Tobacco may seriously damage your career.

Visit your doctor for a full range of nicotine replacement products available. Some are prescription, some over the counter so go and discuss what option is best for you. Those who discuss a plan fully with their GP are twice as likely to successfully quit smoking.  It’s tough but the benefits of improved health, improved appearance, cash saving and protecting your family’s health make it worth it.

Simple steps towards healthy eating

With weight loss and healthy eating at the top of the New Year’s resolution list - here’s some ideas to get you started.

The key to healthy eating is essentially – everything in moderation. Diets that completely cut out a food group and require drastic changes to your daily rituals are hard to follow and often have varying results.

If you feel that you need some support then groups like weight watchers or the support of a friend can be helpful. If you feel however that you can go it alone then read on and start today – not tomorrow!

·         Use the food pyramid

o   Use a carbohydrate base for your meal (pasta, potato, rice – the brown varieties are especially good) and bulk it out with vegetables.  If you have a big appetite then bulking your meals up with vegetables will help you stay fuller for longer. You will also be benefitting from the array of vitamins and minerals in fresh veg. Try not to overcook veg however as you can destroy the goodness in them by doing so.

o   Snack on fresh fruit during the day. There is a massive range of fruits available – try to get fresh, ripe fruit from a good supplier and you’ll notice the difference in quality immediately.

o   Enjoy good quality meat, fish or eggs with your main meal during the day and include dairy (when possible) to ensure your calcium intake is sufficient.

o   Finally top it off with a little (a little) sweet thing. Having a weekly treat can be very rewarding. If however you find yourself on a mars bar a day then it’s time to cut back. Putting that in Irish terms a single mars bar has the equivalent calorific value of 3.5 glasses of wine... Snacks like curly whirlys and dark chocolate can still give you the sugar hit without the massive amount of calories to boot.

·    Try to cut back on white bread and very starchy foods

o   White bread causes a rapid spike in the body’s blood sugar levels as it’s digested, once that peak has subsided the blood sugar levels fall rapidly creating that sluggish feeling (3pm slump...) and often is the reason behind the craving for sweet/sugary foods.

·         Make sure you are properly hydrated

o   Drinking enough water is one of the best pieces of advice that I can give you.  A loss in hydration can account for loss of concentration, headaches and fatigue.  The recommendations vary depending on weight, activity and health but usually for women the recommendation is approx 2 Litres and for men 3 Litres per day.  If you aren’t used to drinking this amount build it up gradually. You may be irritated by the increased urination but as your body adjusts to the fluid intake this will pass.

·         If you don’t eat a particular food/food group make sure you replace the lost nutrients

o   If you are a vegetarian or vegan then you are probably aware of getting nutrients such as iron and calcium elsewhere in your diet, however for those of us who don’t eat fish, veg, carbohydrates or pulses then you need to think about replacing the missing pieces with other foods.  More info on this to follow.

Try to vary your diet to incorporate new foods, new vegetables, fruit and different herbs and spices. Cooking with fatty foods can make food flavoursome but using interesting herbs and spices to add flavour is a great way to keep food tasting great but without all the added calories.

Overall try to enjoy your food. Healthy eating isn’t a chore – fresh fruit, vegetables, meats, fish and dairy are available in varying levels of quality from the newsagents, to the supermarket, the green grocer and the country markets. Eat the best food that you can afford and you won’t regret it. The quality of the ingredients is so important when it comes to enjoying the end result – your health.

New year - new year's resolutions!

I hope you all enjoyed the festive season and are ready for a great new year.

If like me you ate too much, drank too much and didn’t get out of the house enough then I’m sure you’ll be glad to get back in to normality again (snow clouds permitting...)

Everyone is chatting about New Year’s resolutions - a way to try to better ourselves in the coming year or as Oscar Wilde put it – men simply drawing checks on a bank where they have no account.

Every year millions of people resolve to (in order of popularity) lose weight, get fit, drink less, quit smoking, get out of debt and change job.

Figures vary as to how many succeed but general belief is that if you can make it through the first 21 days you’re home free.  One of the most common traits of those who succeed is realistic goal setting and monitoring.  How can you succeed if the goal posts keep changing?

·         This is one of the few times where corporate lingo might actually help you in your private life – Make your goals SMART (specific, measurable, attainable, relevant and time bound – yep you’ve heard that one!)

By setting yourself achievable targets with your weight loss, exercise regime or finances, achievable over a realistic period of time you may actually get somewhere. There’s also a huge sense of satisfaction monitoring your progress along the way and knowing how much you’ve achieved as you work towards your end goal.

·         Another way to keep yourself motivated is to buddy up with a friend. Your goals can be totally different but you should agree them with yourselves and each other and keep checking along the way.  This is great if you’re in any way competitive J

·         If you’re a little disillusioned with resolutions then a nice alternative is to make note of the kind of things that you want out of 2011 and review every few months, make changes if necessary. It’s not exactly the same as making time bound promises to yourself and the world but merely reminds you want direction you’d like your life to go in this year.

Wishing you a happy and healthy 2011!

Deirdre

Work Life Balance

Stress and Exercise

One of the most important things when coping with stress is exercise.

Exercise helps relieve the symptoms of stress greatly and usually leaves you feeling a million times better. It can be hard to get motivated but once you get in to the routine of exercising regularly you will notice a difference in both your physical and mental state.

The reason for this is very simple. Exercise in its various forms releases endorphins in the brain essentially making you happier. Endorphins also help when coping with pain as they have analgesic properties.

Exercising also improves blood flow to your brain making sure that the correct amount of oxygen and nutrients are delivered in a timely fashion.

When working the brain hard the neurons in your brain function more intensely. As they do they produce a waste product that can build up leaving your thinking unclear and 'foggy'. Exercise helps the body rid itself of waste products and thus improving brain function.

So if you're not already convinced - exercise will also improve the condition of your heart, lungs, circulatory and vascular systems and aside from making you feel great, exercise will assist with weight loss in conjunction with a proper diet.

So get going. Don't join a gym unless you are 100% sure that you will use it enough to justify the pricing. Start simply by going for a short walk or swim once a week, then twice a week and increasing frequency and duration as your fitness levels adjust. 

For those who seek more of a challenge try something new and exciting like street dancing or pole fitness (www.twirl.ie), ballet, tap or salsa!

If that's not your cup of tea there are plenty of group activities available like Tag rugby, football, basketball, or athletics (often available through your company - see www.bhaa.ie).

Human bodies need activity and exercise almost as much as we need food and water. If your job is sedentary then you particularly need to take the initiative and get moving.

NB: If you are not used to taking exercise regularly, then it may be appropriate to take medical advice before starting an exercise program.

What is stress?

What is Stress? How Does It Impact?

Stress is a term that is bandied about a lot. What is certain, however, is that everyone will experience stress at some point in their life. How it is experienced and how it is coped with will vary from person to person.
Hans Sayle (1907—1982) - the 'father of stress research’ - is largely responsible for what we know about the human body and stress. He researched the general adaptation syndrome — more commonly known as ‘fight or flight’.
There are three distinct stages to the stress response.

• Stage 1 - Alarm When your body perceives a threat (real or imagined) adrenaline is released. This causes your body to react by cutting off circulation to less immediately important systems (digestion and reproduction) and sends the blood to areas of the body that are responsible for physically carrying you away from the threat. You'll have experienced this at some point in your life — your pupils dilate, your heart rate and breathing accelerates, adrenaline frees energy stores in your liver and blood from your spleen, sending it coursing through your veins.
  A certain amount of stress is healthy and can give you the little push you need to perform whether it be during a race or in the board room. However, if the perceived threat does not disappear, the body enters a second phase
• Stage 2 - Resistance The body cannot sustain the initial phase for more than a short period of time and so tries to adapt and meet the demands of the situation. If sufficient rest from the stressor is not received, the body depletes itself which eventually leads to stage three…
• Stage 3 - Exhaustion By this third stage, your body is at its limit. Long term damage is under way and the body is no longer able to repair itself. The initial response symptoms may appear: raised heart rate, sweating and so on, and the body’s immune and endocrine glands are damaged. With reduced immune function your body is much more open to illness and infection.

The Results of Stress

For the individual, ulcers, diabetes, cancer, stroke as well as other cardiovascular problems can manifest. Depression, anxiety, insomnia, nervous exhaustion and mental breakdown are also common.
For the organisation, issues of contagious low morale, and reduced productivity can results, with increased absenteeism commonplace.

For more information on coping with stress please visit http://www.myworklifebalance.ie/ or email info@myworklifebalance.ie

Other people...

Once you have worked out how your time is split during the day it's easier to say where the wastage is. (Time management 1 and 2)

Often times you can be distracted by other people who you do not report to. Your colleagues nice as they are can sometimes drain your time and eventually your energy as you struggle to cope with the amount of work you  have.

Learning to push back on people is one of the best skills you will develop when trying to reclaim your working day. If the perpetrators are the same people day in and day out then perhaps it's time for a conversation with them discussing what your role is and your expectations of them. This doesn't have to be confrontational and often times your colleagues have no idea that you are already under time pressures without additional work.

Time Management exercise two

Here's another really easy way to get more out of your day. Simply use a schedule broken down in to half hour slots from the time you come in and fill it in. It should look something like this.

9.00-9.30          Voicemails/Emails
9:30-10.00        Morning meeting preparation
10.00-10.30      Morning meeting
10.30-11.00      Coffee break/Begin XYZ project
11.00-11.30       XYZ project

Don't spend more than 10 minutes completing your schedule and do it the night before the day in question. When it's done print it out or hand write it and leave it on your desk to refer to for the morning time.  This can be done in conjunction with exercise one.

Try to be realistic about how long a task is going to take you. Don't schedule a half an hour for a task that always takes over an hour because you want it take a shorter amount of time! You can allow for multi tasking items also.
It will take about a week to get the schedule right as often you can underestimate the amount of time spent on particular tasks but thats really the point of this exercise.

Once you have isolated the parts of your day that take up the most amount of time you can then look at ways to reduce time wasted for one reason or another.
This exercise also helps to help you work out if your work load is too heavy or if it's not being managed correctly.  If it's the case that your work load is too heavy - having several days schedules is helpful to produce to your manager if you need to demonstrate how your time has been spent.

Best of luck!