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Having trouble unplugging?

6/26/2013

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I was shopping the other day when the store clerk asked the woman in front of me for her home phone number. She paused and then took out her cell phone. At that point, she commented that her brain is stored in her phone, that if she lost it she wouldn’t be able to call a single person she knows for help because she doesn’t have anyone’s number committed to memory – not even her own home phone.

She is not alone. I too have limited numbers committed to memory. It’s amazing how much we rely on cell phones, tablets, and computers. One group of students I spoke with the other day said their smart phone is the last thing they see at night and the first thing they check in the morning. Without debate, we can safely say that technology has changed the landscape of our lives. Regardless of which generation you identify with, you fall somewhere on the spectrum of “yes, I enjoy the luxuries or technology from time to time” to “life would cease to exist without my smartphone”. Some feel that by being constantly plugged in to the world, we can be better parents, friends and employees. By responding to work emails immediately from our beach vacation and instantly answering a clients question at 11 pm, we show what team players we are and how great we are at communication and customer service. Right???

Studies have shown that being constantly connected has some side effects that might not be so beneficial to our career or our health. Here is a just a partial list of things to keep in mind when you reach for your phone:

Answer Anxiety
We can tend to be more anxious and stressed because of that urgent feeling like you need to respond to emails right away – anytime of the day or night.

Wait a Minute
By responding to emails immediately, especially those containing upsetting news or perceived “tone”, our hasty reply may be something better left unsaid had we given it a bit more thought.

Check Please
The address auto fill feature is great- as long as you double check it before hitting the send button. When we are in a hurry to respond, it can easily result in the wrong person being copied on the information. (I once had a friend who wrote an e-mail complaining about a co-worker and put the persons name in the address section rather than the person she intended it to go to. Ooops.)

Lights Out
Studies have shown that the blue light emitted from tablets and phones can actually interrupt your sleep pattern.

Be Social with your Network
The more time we spend checking on social media and interacting virtually, the less time we actually engage with the people around us. We’ve all seen a table of four in a restaurant typing on their phone and not saying a word to each other. Face to face interaction is a beneficial activity both personally and professionally.

So how do we unplug? Here are some tips I have heard that are useful.
  • Don’t even look at your phone for the first hour of every day. Use that time to energize yourself.
  • Think of three things you would like to do in a week and schedule the time to put your phone and computer away to get it done. It should be something fun like going for a walk, playing tennis, visiting a friend, or watching a movie.
  • Promise yourself to unplug at least a half hour before you go to bed. Take that time to wind down.
  • Unplug while driving. Turn the phone off completely. Put it in the truck if you think you won’t be able to resist checking it.
  • And here’s a real challenge – unplug from all technology for one day and see what the world looks like. You might be surprised at how you feel!

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Are you defined by your career?

6/20/2013

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A friend of mine is getting ready to leave a company they have been with for a long time. They held a position that came with a lot of perks, a very important title and a lot of stress. Watching this friend go through the transition from high-profile CEO to a position in a smaller company that does not have immediate name recognition by the general public has made me think about how much our jobs and our titles define us. Sometimes we give our jobs more importance than we even realize which can lead to that imbalance between life and work that is talked about so often.

If who we are in our job defines who we are in our lives are we giving equal weight to both roles? Do we give equal effort to our roles as parent, spouse, and friend? Who are we? What do we do for a living? Is there a difference between the two?

For some, their career is who they are. For others, it may be hard to know the difference between dedication and definition. Here are some ways you can use to determine if you might be defined by your job.

  • Your title is VERY important to you
  • You value people and activities based on how it effects/benefits your career
  • Your passions in life are all work related
  • You feel emotionally empty and/or restless when you’re not working
  • When things don’t go well on the job, you take it personally
  • Almost all conversations have references to work in them
  • You make yourself available all the time for work calls, emails, meetings, etc.
  • If you lost your job, you would feel completely worthless
If you find that you are defined by your job, you may choose to reorganize your priorities. It can be easy to fall into the trap of being defined by what you do rather than who you are. Think about how you spent your free time before you became so career-focused. What do you like to do outside of work? How can you redefine achievement and accomplishment in your life? When you describe yourself absent the work that you do, who are you? List the top ten things you would like to do if resources were not an issue to see your true personal passions revealed.

We play so many roles in our lives- CEO, parent, partner, child- and it is the incorporation of each of them that strikes that balance. Putting too much weight into any one of those roles causes a crisis of identity that will not help us in our career or our lives. Don’t forget you are more than your job and so much more than one title will allow.

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Can I wear this to work?

6/6/2013

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Many offices offer the benefit of summer dress codes to their employees but not everyone understands the appropriate transition between work attire and modified work attire. It can get really hot out there and even the most professional of us has from time to time made a not-so-professional clothing choice in the workplace. This can really effect how bosses, coworkers and clients view you. Like it or not, how we dress for work makes an impression that can enhance or diminish careers.
  • First things first - check your company’s dress code for the rules of what’s acceptable
  • When in doubt, dress on the conservative side. If you have to think twice, you probably shouldn’t wear it
  • Flip-flops and sandals are two different things. Flip-flops that you wear to the beach are usually not meant for the office
  • Never, ever under any circumstances, unless it’s a required uniform, wear a tube top to work
  • If your dress is shear, wear something under it
  • Even if shorts are ok, short shorts are never ok
  • If you do wear open toe shoes/sandals, make sure your feet are clean
  • It is unnatural to see the belly button of your coworker so save the half shirts for the beach
  • Similarly, anything backless should never be worn to the office or meetings
  • Tanks and sleeveless tops can easily go from work to play but pay attention to the fit - anything too tight, too baggy, or too revealing are not meant for work

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    Anne Saile

    Management Expert, Executive Coach, Columnist, Strategic Networker

    Tips from the Top i
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