April 2006

Lets face it, if you work in an office there are people who you’d love to shove out of the 7th story window. They come in all shapes and sizes, from the suck up, the tattler, the chatty Cathy, overly annoying boss and many more. They can make going to work and absolute nightmare. You get to work and things are clipping along, work is getting done and the blam! Someone sidles up to you in your cube and chats your ear off for half the day. I’ve seriously almost quit my last two jobs and the main reason was annoying co-workers.

But don’t let these people ruin your dream job. Don’t let them stress you out to the point where you can’t get to sleep at night and you don’t want to wake up in the morning making you late over and over. Learn how to deal with these trouble makers by reading “Working With You is Killing Me : Freeing Yourself from Emotional Traps at Work“, by Katherine Crowley, a Harvard-trained psychotherapist, and Kathi Elster, an entrepreneurial consultant. Their book is so dead on that I thought they had been observing my office for the last few years. They nail the situations with uncanny ability and they offer practical solutions that help avoid tension that could just lead to more problems in the office. Their solutions often lead you to take the high road, which I admire. Sometimes it’s so hard to bite your tongue and do the right thing after someone has hounded you for so long. They teach you to establish boundaries and curtail the behavior in others that is causing so much stress in your work day.

Pick up Working With You is Killing Me : Freeing Yourself from Emotional Traps at Work from Amazon.com for $14.92. You’ll be glad you did.

We’re needing to replace one of the phones in our home and I’m thinking that this sleek ‘n sexy AT&T cordless speakerphone would make a nice choice. We already have one cordless phone that I’ve become pretty addicted to. It’s awkward now to talk on a phone with a cord, it takes away my roaming rights. I’m one of those people who likes to case the house while on the phone - I freshen my coffee, pet the cats, stroll onto the patio, water flowers, lie across the bed, look out the window, check up on the refrigerator (after all, someone could’ve slid a cheesecake in there while I wasn’t looking)…. If I had a treadmill, I’d even get a little healthy, life-extending exercise. That would be a hint to the husband. Admittedly, “healthy” and “life-extending” were cheap shots, but I’m nearing the desperation stage.

Here’s what I love about the AT&T E2520 2.4GHz Expandable Cordless Speakerphone:

• As we already determined, it’s cordless - allowing Joi the mobility she craves.
• You could easily add up to 8 handsets. Not sure why this impresses me, but it does.
• 2.4GHz FHDSS means all my conversations would be crisp and clear.
• Battery-powered handsets allow an average of 7 hours of continuous talk time and 40 hours of power when the phone’s in standby mode. Standby mode? What’s that like? We have three daughters, so that’s a new one on me.
• You can use the speakerphone and dial-in base to make phone calls while you’re busy at the computer or with other tasks (cooking, writing, etc…). Being a being that works at the computer all day, I like the thought of freeing my hands up while talking and gesturing.
• Call waiting and Caller ID. I’d never, ever want a phone without Caller ID. I just don’t need the drama of wondering who’s on the other side of my “Hello.”
• The handsets lighted LCD tells time in a large graphical display.
• The intercom can be used to communicate between handsets, or between the handset and base. You can tell your coworkers or family members when they have calls. The paging locator helps you find misplaced handsets. If it rounded up lost remote controls, I’d order one today. Why must those things always disappear, and usually just when you need them the most?!?!

For more info, clicketh the link ——->>>> AT&T E2520 2.4GHz Expandable Cordless Speakerphone with Caller ID/Call Waiting.

Have an amazing Sunday!

The first baseball game I remember watching was between the Cardinals and Brewers. I don’t really remember much about the game or even the players - I just remember my parents squabbling. Mom was a St. Louis fan and dad (God love his heart) was a Milwaukee fan. It was back when the Brew Crew actually won games, so the two teams were competitive. But not nearly as competitive as the ‘rents were. They argued over balls, strikes, outs, announcers - once even over the number of replays each team got.

I came by it honest, I guess. I’m a baseball junkie. St. Louis is my A #1 baseball love, but the Brewers are right behind them - in my heart, if not in the standings. I absolutely love baseball - I could watch any game at any time and love every inning. At times, our family can get as competitive as my mom and dad did. We all love the Cardinals (Who’ll be going all the way this year, providing that a certain 3rd baseman stays whole…), but we all have second fave teams, as well. Our oldest daughter loves the Red Sox, the middle one is all about the Yankees, and our youngest is a Cubbie. Can you imagine our living room when the Yankees and Sox are playing?! When there’s a brawl on the field - things get pretty intense, and Damon jumping ship just about brought them to blows! Daughter #2 would go 10 kinds of crazy for the Clock pictured here. It is pretty hot, at that.

All Pro Teams.com has lots of hot MLB products, as well as NBA, NFL, and NHL. There are Mouse Pads, bumper stickers, night lights, clocks, t-shirts, caps, etc. I saw 10 things on the Cardinal’s page alone that’d add to the quality of my life, and I haven’t even checked out the Denver Bronco merchandise. Yet.

If you’ve been reading here long you’ll notice I mention “Getting Things Done” by David Allen. The book has become one of those cult type smash hits with the geek / office crowd and is quickly becoming a way of life, a philosophy.

“Getting Things Done” is a short and easy to read book and doesn’t try to lock you into doing things their way. You want to use index cards and paper clips, fine. You want to use manilla folders and a filing cabinet, knock yourself silly, big guy. But the idea of “Getting Things Done” is to develop a system that you trust to capture all the information you’ve got cluttering up your mind adding stress to your life. The goal is a stress free productivity that will help you get a handle on your life and reduce stress. The subtitle for the book says it all “The Art of Stress-Free Productivity”.

The book focuses on how to capture input and sort it into “contexts” that make sense and then keep tabs on these items with the all important weekly review. I started reading GTD when my wife got sick. I was already a bit of a productivity geek and some of the things David Allen teaches (preaches?) in his book I was already doing, but David put it all together in a way that appeals to my need for reducing stress and keeping things organized and easy to deal with.

Don’t just take my word for it, Getting Things Done is huge. Check out these resources:

* 43 Folders Getting Started with Getting Things Done
* 43 Folders Wiki on Getting Things Done, probably one of my favorite GTD links!
* Office Zealot’s GTD page
* Wikipedia’s Getting Things Done page
* MineZone’s Wiki Notes from Getting Things Done

This week also happens to be Buy a Friend A Book Week so use this as an excuse to get your own copy and buy one for a friend in the office or within your group of friends and colleagues. If you only get one book on productivity and organization, make it his one.

Stress is one of the leading causes of illness facing the work place. It doesn’t matter if you work from home or in a corporate sweat shop, stress still gets to us all. Stress can cause or contribute to things like high blood pressure, migraines, back pain, neck pain, fatigue, insomnia, depression and obesity, among others. We work longer hours than those who came before us and the information age has removed all but the most trivial physical activity from our lives. It’s a recipe for disaster, but there are things we can all do to improve the situation.

I know from personal experience that stress can manifest in very physical ways. I just got home from physical therapy about an hour ago, so this is something I’m fighting through personally. Medicine and Physical Therapy will get me out of the immediate danger to my health but only changing my life style will give me a much better outlook on a long, healthy life. Both my doctor and my physical therapist drilled into me how much stress plays in my health. I’m suffering from rather extreme lower back pain and from neck pain. It’s over 8 months going now and falls into the chronic category and is a combination of a minor injury and stress. Most people don’t even think about stress. I don’t, I don’t stress out. Almost ever! I’m one of the most laid back people you’ll ever meet. But, we all deal with stress. In sleep, in our subconscious and with our bodies. For me, it’s shoulders and back that get affected. So, what can we do to reduce stress? Here are some things that seem to work for me. As always, you should consult your family doctor for what’s best for you, and always do your own research.

1. Take a day off - The information age has us tethered to our jobs, bosses and work like never before. It’s hard to feel like we are ever actually off work. Pick a day that works best for you and unplug. Put the cell phone down, stay off the computer and get some fresh air, read a book and just enjoy the day. You need to have some downtime to unwind and get back to zero. Not only does this help reduce stress but it also helps those creative juices flow again.

2. Master your email - Don’t let it master you. I’ve preached about this quite a bit. Email is a Godsend, but don’t let it control you. Turn off automatic checking. Email isn’t a “chat” program. Check it on your time, between working on projects and at scheduled times. Make time for email, but don’t let it control you.

3. Reduce clutter - I love to have things that inspire creativity around me: pictures, toys, gadget, music and just about anything that I think helps me be creative. This, plus the mess we build up during our work day actually creates stress. Clear off everything you don’t need to do your job. If you need a creative space, make a space just for that but keep your work area clean and free of distractions. You’ll be more productive and less stressed.

4. Get it off your mind - Stress can build up as the amount of things you have to do continues to grow into an ever expanding to do list that you try to juggle. Storing it in your mind is the wrong place for it. Instead, develop a system you trust to organize all those to do lists, chores, ideas and other bits of information. I suggest the wonderful Getting Things Done : The Art of Stress-Free Productivity by David Allen. His methods for clearing out the junk in our heads and capturing it in a meaningful way have become something of a cult for many. It’s often called “GTD”. You’ll see me preaching it again, trust me.

5. Get some sleep - Stress can cause sleep problems and sleep is often one of the best remedies for stress. Everyone sleep differently and you’ll need to find your best sleep pattern. Personally, I’m a night person, but my job requires me to work during the day. After months of trying I found that I need around 7 hours of sleep, more and I’m useless and less and I’m just too tired. The best tip I can give you for getting into a proper sleep routine is to get up and the same time every day, 7 days a week and only go to sleep when your tired. Don’t flop around for more than 20 minutes. If you aren’t sleepy, get up. I usually get up at 6:45 and go to sleep around 11:45 to midnight. I usually stop doing anything that requires a lot of deep thought around 11 giving me time to wind down. I also usually do a review of the days projects and jot down anything I want to get done the next day. This gets it out of my head and clears my head so I can float of to sleep restfully.

These are just some of my favorite tips. What works for you?

Clutter is a stifling, suffocating, choky, stagnant inhibitor of life. It mucks up work, slows progress, and asphyxiates your world. Besides, it just looks bad.

In “Get a Life Without Sacrificing Your Career,” Dianna Booher gives the following blueprint for clutter’s demise.

BUILD WHITE SPACEINTO YOUR CALENDAR
Don’t schedule tasks to consume every working and waking moment. Plan for about 80-percent capacity. That means for a forty-hour workweek, schedule about thirty hours of work and know that another ten hours of “stuff” will appear unexpectedly.

CLUTTER YOUR TO-DO LIST, NOT YOUR MIND
Your mind can hold only about seven chunks of information at once, so why push your luck? If you have flashes of brilliance when you’re in the shower, ourt for a walk, or driving on the freeway, write them down immediately rather than trying to juggle them in your mind.

WORK IN MARATHONS
Marathons serve two purposes: to catch up or to get ahead. When you feel as if you’re slipping farther and farther behind, do a work marathon to catch up. Arrive early. Work late. Don’t allow interruptions, and don’t repeat anything. Work fast, and don’t look up between tasks. Put in three or four days like that, and you’ll feel caught up enough to face the world again.

COMPLETE THINGS
Bonuses come upon the completion of projects. Signed contracts come at the end of negotiations. Points go on the scoreboard only when the runner crosses the goal line. One thing completed is worth ten things on hold. Incomplete tasks can make you feel depressed and wasted; you will feel energized after completing them.

Great stuff!
Joi

I’ve been working with or on computers since 1992. Not only have I been staring at a computer 8 hours a day at work, it’s also my hobby. I remember my parents, before they got sucked in, asking my how I could stay on the computer so much. They thought the computer was all there was to it. I had to explain that it’s like the ultimate tool, a doorway to all my interested. I write, draw, design, program, play games, read, talk to friends and so much more. The tool that’s changed our way of life is also threatening our health. Not just from inactivity (obesity is an all time high in the U.S.) but also from work related injuries like carpel tunnel syndrome, neck pain and, my personal demon, lower back pain.

I currently suffer from chronic lower back pain. It’s been going on 8 months and I’m having to makes some changes in my lifestyle and in the tools I use to get my work done. In my research to try and figure out what’s causing my pain along with a lot of talks with my doctors I’ve started looking into replacing a lot of my office furniture and equipment with stuff designed to promote good health. Along with exercise, stretching and healthy living I hope to one again be pain free.

You can correct and prevent a lot of work related injuries by making some small adjustments to your environment and daily routine. Here is what I’m doing:

1. Posture. Most people lean back, slouch down or otherwise contort themselves for hours at a time. These is the road to pain. You need to make sure your chair has excellent support for your back and neck and that your feet touch the floor at 90 degree angles. Your feet should rest flat on the floor most of the time, but there are some foot rests that will take some of the pressure off your lower back. Sit up straight to keep the pressure evenly distributed. Adjust your monitor so you don’t have to look up or down or to far left or right. Your monitor should be centered in front of and the top of the monitor should be at eye level.

2. Keyboard and Desk. What kind of keyboard you have and where it’s located can play major roles in staying healthy. Find an ergonomic keyboard that feels comfortable to you. I do a lot of typing, I mean a lot and switching to an ergonomic keyboard has made miles of difference. Even more important is where your keyboard is located. Your keyboard should be a bit lower than your desk (usually) allowing your wrists to find a natural position. Having your keyboard too high or too low puts stress on your writs, neck and shoulders. Over time you’ll find out why this is bad. Take the time to get setup right from the very start. You’ll be glad you did.

3. Move around and stretch. I’ve started doing some simple stretches at my desk when I know I’m going to be there a long period of time, which is pretty much every day for me. You can find easy to do stretches for your neck, back, wrists and legs online. You should do these several times a day. It’s also very important to get up and move around. I get up and pace around ever 2 hours. It helps me clear my head and I feel much better at the end of the day.

These are just 3 simple tips to help with the physical aspects of living most of our days behind a computer. Stress also plays a large role in our overall well being and especially in neck and back pain. I’ll talk more about office stress and tips to reduce it in my next post.

If you have any tips that work well for you, please feel free to post them in the comments below so we can all share in them and feel better!

Disclaimer - This is my personal experience with back and neck pain and should not be taken as medical advice. I’m simply sharing my experience and you should seek the advice of a doctor if you are experiencing any kind of pain.