Why Companies Should Allow Their Employees to Work from Home
Editor’s note: This is a guest post from Evita of Evolving Beings
It seems that as technology expands forward, it is allowing more and more people the freedom to not be tied to a desk at their office any longer.
More and more people are either being approached by their company with an option to work remotely, such as from home, or are themselves suggesting the option to their company.
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What I Learned from Working on My Habits
As I’m looking over January’s theme “Relaxing with my work”, I’m beginning to really see how hard I am on myself. I expect myself to master concepts that only great writers, CEO’s, and Zen masters fully understand.
Just because I tell myself to breathe all nice and deep and relaxed over the next week when I’m feeling stressed out doesn’t mean it will happen right away.
Maybe that should be a theme of the month. Stop being a big bully to myself.
I wanted to publish this review of my theme two weeks ago, but I felt like I was still processing my information. Now that I’m ready, let’s begin the review…
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The One Thing More Important Than Your Career
Every now and again, I like to bring you short interviews to give you a new perspective on work happiness. During my study of work happiness I have found that there are many paths to the same goal. Some people believe that loving what you do is a must, while other people believe that relationships are vital to enjoying the work that we do. Interviews are a great way to get out of your own perspective and see what other people are doing to be happy at work.
On this blog I try to push myself outside of my comfort zone to a place where I’m a little afraid. I have to admit that I was a little afraid of interviewing Penelope Trunk. Not because her blog is űber popular or because she was the CEO of Brazeen Careerist a popular career networking site.
I was afraid because of how honest she is. She wouldn’t be afraid to call me out.
She wasn’t afraid to tell me that career happiness really is a crock of shit. Her words. She actually said it a few times. She explains how we overcomplicate life in the audio interview that I posted below. You’ll just have to listen to the audio to find out why she believes so strongly in her ideals.
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How to Use the 5 Whys to Discover Your True Needs
There are many great business processes that the rest of the world doesn’t know about. One of my favorites is Toyota’s “5 Whys.”
The idea is to ask yourself “why” 5 times in order to get to the root of the problem.
For example, a couple of years ago I didn’t want to go to a meeting.
I was having trouble figuring out why, so I used the “5 Whys” method.
1. Why don’t I want to go to this meeting? – Because it’s going to be worthless.
2. Why: Because everyone always talks about the same problems.
3. Why: Because I want to lead the meeting to be more productive, but I’m scared.
4. Why: Because I don’t want to get laughed at.
5. Why: Because my speaking confidence isn’t as strong as it should be.
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How to Use Your Skills and Passion to Create Success
Editor’s note: This is a guest post from Sara Lopez
You never quite realize how much your job affects your happiness until you have had a truly terrible job, or a truly phenomenal job. Just think about it, you spend 2/3 of your awake time at a place, surrounded by certain people, working for a specific cause– this is called your career.
My name is Sara Lopez and I am the Brand Ambassador and Social Media Strategist for 8th Continent Soymilk. I quite possibly have the best job in the world, however it was not always this way.
At one point I worked for a consulting firm in San Francisco that was so unappreciative I would trudge home considering where I went wrong on my career path and how I would ever fix it. I dreaded going in to work in the morning because I knew my skills were not utilized, nor did my employer notice them.
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Hard, Fun and Beautiful – Wrist Guard Edition
* Quick note: I’ve decided not to do a video this week. I want to create more value with my videos and that means figuring out how to make the videos more dynamic and interesting.
Where we are free to talk about the hard, the fun, and the beautiful of our work week.
My desk is a mess. I’ve been putting off my organization until tomorrow too many times. I’m not proud of this, but there always seems to be something else better to do.
My systems are breaking down.
Instead of doing what I know is right I’ve been choosing the easier route. This route is easy in the present moment, but harder in the long term.
I have to be more diligent about putting away that piece of paper instead of just throwing it on my desk. The hard part is figuring out how to stay motivated to do the little things.
You probably struggle with this too in some area of your life. Maybe you have trouble with exercising on a regular basis or getting up on time to get to work. Whatever your struggle with, it all comes down to connecting with what is right.
I’m creating next week’s theme from this week’s challenges. I want to simplify how I handle the information in my life, so that it’s easier to make the right choice. When I have a piece of paper in my hand, instead of just placing it on my desk, I will connect with the pain that lies ahead (what happens if I don’t do the simple task of organizing now), so it motivates me to be more organized.
You should also think about how you can adjust to a daily challenge in your life. How can you find a way to connect with what is right instead of choosing the easy way out?
Alright let’s begin…
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Work Happy Tip – Go Hug a Tree
You don’t literally need to hug a tree, but…I mean if you really want to, go right ahead.
I just want you to get in tune with your senses. When was the last time you smelled a flower?
Been a while?
When you step outside of your comfort zone and do something like hug a tree, you’ll be surprised by the reactions you feel.
I literally went and hugged a tree. I pressed my cheek to the tree, wrapped my arms around it and squeezed. I felt this warm feeling come over me, like somehow the tree understood my appreciation for all the good that it does filtering the air for us.
I know this idea will feel weird, maybe a little too uncomfortable, so it’s time to use your imagination. Take two minutes to imagine yourself hugging a tree.
Feel the bark on your skin.
The smell of the bark.
What feelings rise up?
The strength of the tree.
The strengths within you.
I guarantee your stress will lower and you’ll feel more appreciation for the next tree you touch.
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Hard, Fun and Beautiful – Little Trooper Edition
(Can’t see the video? Then try watching it at Work Happy Now – Hard, Fun and Beautiful – Little Trooper Edition)
Where we are free to talk about the hard, the fun, and the beautiful of our work week.
The week of cold, colds, and arriving back home.
I got so sick this past week and at times it was hard to deal with, but the more work I put into my own happiness (work or personal life), the more I just roll with whatever the universe throws at me. It has become beautiful to watch my own growth.
The pain doesn’t reach as deep as it once did. It’s because the core me has become happier and even the most painful things can be spun into a positive.
I’m a positive weaver and I’m not turning back.
That’s why I started this work happiness journey: to improve my happiness as well as the happiness of the people in my life. Yes, I’m talking about you. Hopefully you are a little happier, armed with fresh ideas about making your work happiness a reality. And when you improve your work happiness, you improve your whole life.
Alright enough of me patting my own back.
Let’s begin…
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Hard, Fun and Beautiful – Backyard Sledding Edition
(Can’t see the video? Then try watching it at Work Happy Now – Hard, Fun and Beautiful – Backyard Sledding Edition)
Where we are free to talk about the hard, the fun, and the beautiful of our work week.
If life was just about dealing with our own pain, then life wouldn’t really be that hard. When we open up to other people’s pain then it can get tricky.
A good manager is able to open up to his/her staff’s problems because they affect work. By listening and empathizing, a manager can make better judgments. A manager might want to encourage an employee to go home and be with his/her family during tough times.
Which brings me to my situation…
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Hard, Fun and Beautiful – Holiday Hangover Edition
(Can’t see the video? Then try watching it at Work Happy Now – The Hard, The Fun and The Beautiful – Holiday Hangover Edition)
Last week Thanksgiving came and went. There was family, almost half a work week and now I’m back to a grueling full week.
It’s not easy to transition from so much fun back to full steam ahead.
Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy challenging myself. It’s fun to reflect on my accomplishments, but it’s also fun to do nothing for a whole day except for eating, napping and hanging out with family.
Let’s begin:
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