When overwhelmed with work, the risk of burnout looms, marked by early signs such as fatigue and a lack of engagement. Despite the importance of the work, recognising a dip in performance signals a need for rest. This blog advocates for courage in expressing personal needs, offering a five-step process to communicate effectively with leaders.
In the dynamic landscape of the modern world, our stress activation and restoration patterns are undergoing a shift. Factors like escalating work and life demands, heightened uncertainties, and blurred lines between professional and personal spheres contribute to this evolving scenario. In this latest article, we delve into the intricacies of our 'activation zones' and decipher the optimal time needed in the restoration zones to effectively counterbalance stress.
Guilt, a complex emotion, serves as both a moral compass and a motivator for personal growth. While it can nudge us to reflect and strive for improvement, there's a darker side to this emotion – false guilt. The relentless negative emotions stemming from false guilt can lead to compromised mental health, overwhelming workloads, and the looming threat of burnout. However, understanding and addressing false guilt can pave the way for a path to greater mental wellbeing and resilience.
Discover the power of Progressive Muscle Relaxation (PMR) as a stress-relief technique to complete the stress response cycle and activate your body's relaxation mode. Learn the benefits, guidelines, and tips for using PMR effectively in our comprehensive guide.
Amidst life's chaos, stress can be overwhelming. Dr Alia Crum's Stanford research highlights the transformative influence of mindset on stress. When we perceive stress negatively, we often struggle. But recognising its hidden potential unlocks its superpowers. Stress isn't an adversary; it's your body preparing for challenges, with remarkable resilience. By framing it as a 'challenge,' not a 'threat,' you harness its energy to succeed.
Given the challenging and turbulent times we have been experiencing, it has become increasingly important to regularly check in on how people are going. This means we must seek to understand the diverse experiences people are having. This is really important for creating a mindset of inclusion and respect for diversity. Leaders need the insight to open dialogue, extend guidance and support their teams’ individual needs.
I think a lot. I contemplate how I live. I look at the different tasks I engage in and consider what they require of me versus what I demonstrate. I think about my relationships and interactions. I think about my habits, routines, and tendencies. I reflect on what I believe I can do better in different parts of my life - i.e. the personal, professional, and social domains. Taking all this into account, I try to estimate the percentage of my day my behaviour fits in each of the quadrants. It's a rough assessment, but It shows me where I will benefit from mindfulness practice and mindful action. It allows me to monitor times of progress towards mastery, and times that I slip. I hope you find it useful.
There is often such a push to meet the demands of a 'busy' life and the challenges of a job or workplace that people neglect to invest sufficiently and consistently in their wellbeing.
Although people can know the importance of wellbeing, this knowledge just isn't enough. Their action drops. They form 'bad' habits. Routines that once built and sustained wellbeing get replaced as every spare moment is used to squeeze out some more performance or tick off more 'to-do list' items.
Most of us are coming out of what has hopefully been a restful and replenishing holiday season. But now it’s back to work and the resumption of the ‘norm’ where our modern lives and workplaces are busier than ever.
Before we know it demanding workloads and numerous responsibilities will be filling our calendars and to-do lists to the brink of bursting. The constant flow of information, email, and media competing for our attention at all hours of the day resumes. It’s not hard to see that we can become so busy being busy that we lose sight of what is most important to us, or even lose our sense of self and connection with others.
What are the implications if 20% of your key performers are burning out and becoming depleted and disengaged?
Do you think it is more valuable to develop your high-performers by 5-10%, or invest in the middle 60% of your workforce?
If employees with greater wellbeing are more productive, are wellbeing interventions and practices 'nice to have' or essential?
'The Crux of Human Resource Development' is linked with the above questions.
A portrait exhibited in the Archibald exhibition at the Art Gallery of NSW recently inspired me. The work is titled ‘The inner stillness of Eileen Kramer’ by Andrew Lloyd Greensmith.
Eileen Kramer is 102 years old and as the description of the painting pointed out, “she personifies the key to longevity and a full, rich life.” She is currently the worlds oldest working dancer/choreographer as well as a poet, artist and costume designer. She has been travelling the world living in places such as India, Paris, London and New York and recently returned to Australia, aged 99.
Does more practice thinking = better thinking? Or, is it not that simple. Does it depend on one thing or another? Is there a law of diminishing return? And, are there alternatives to 'more thinking' that can lead to great levels of insight, learning, understanding, growth, and progress? I think there are...
Whether it's overpowering the 3pm slump, or mixing with a few drinks to make the party last longer, energy drinks are bound to have been a feature for all of us at some point – whether occasionally or on a regular/daily basis. We all know there are many healthier options to improve our energy, but there are times when a quick fix seems the only answer. Hopefully, after you read on, you will think twice about your afternoon pick-me-up habit...
Two people with one purpose were magically brought together on a cold winter’s morning in Melbourne’s Flinders Lane. Benny Button’s co-founders, Dr Adrian Medhurst and Troy Mansell were in their own unique worlds' beginning another day exploring how they could have a positive impact on people’s lives. However one particular issue was bothering them...
