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Category: Resilience

  • The New Hybrid – 7 Tips to Make it Work

    Nothing to do with a car! This term “hybrid” is commonly brandished around to refer to combining working hours or days from home or some other remote location, as well as from an office. How this looks now or will look in the near future is quite clear for some companies, for others it is still in discussion. From talking with clients, it seems that the most common reasons for employees not wishing to return to working full time in the office are:

    • For the last 18 months, work has been from home. Therefore, why is it necessary to go back to working at the office?
    • Productivity has stayed the same or even increased when working from home.
    • In those 18 months when there was no choice, I was trusted to do my job.

    However, not all employees want to stay working from home and have some other points that offer a positive side for returning to the office:

    • When working from home, the lack of clarity around working hours and always expected to “be available” due to unclear work boundaries.
    • Lack of social contact with fellow team members and impromptu get-togethers.
    • Difficulty balancing limited space at home with family members and work demands.
    • Diminished team spirit.

    Arguments from employers, even though they understand the obvious benefits of paying less office rent and associated expenses, are similar in many ways, with a few additions:

    • Teamwork suffers when we are not in the same space.
    • Company culture is negatively affected when working remotely.
    • Communication is not as open as it was before.
    • Productivity is suffering when working remotely.
    • Quality offered to clients in terms of phone line, accessibility etc is variable.
    • Lack of ad hoc learning from peers and managers when working from home.

    This last point is supported by a recent survey and resulting report conducted by “Poly Evolution of the Workplace” which polled 2,003 UK hybrid workers and found that

    “Nearly half (46 per cent) said they were worried that working remotely could impact their career development and progression, while 54 per cent said they were concerned they would miss out on ad hoc learning and development opportunities, including learning from peers and seniors, while working from home.”

    The same report also found that “Almost half (48 per cent) said remote working had made them less confident in their ability to communicate effectively, and 45 per cent felt they had “lost the art of small talk” as part of their job, thus supporting the feeling and observation that communication is less open when working remotely.

    What is the Answer?

    Enter the new hybrid. Finding a balance that allows both employee and employer to meet their needs in terms of performance while feeling secure, trusted and appreciated, is the key. What it looks like is going to vary from one person to the next, depending on position and areas of responsibility. Points such as can there be different approaches for different people to meet individual needs, or will this be classed as discrimination if one appears to have more favourable working practices than another? In a five-day week what should the balance of hours be between home and office?

    Clearly hybrid working is not effective for all positions and in some cases not possible, for example a chef, waiter or carer, who are either in their work environment working or off work and therefore out of the “office” environment. Should these people be compensated in some way for travel costs which other team members do not have?

    The New Hybrid - 7 Tips to Make it WorkIf trust is the main issue that organisations are facing when wanting to change employees full time working at home to either a hybrid solution or complete reversal of the current situation to 100% office-based roles, perhaps open communication is the best way to address this question to explore the needs of all concerned and find the solution that works through a win-win approach. Consider some or all of the following tips to formulating an acceptable approach to a hybrid working style for those that wish to remain working from home:

    1) Empathetic Listening

    In such situations, effective listening plays a massive role.Truly hearing what the other party is saying and recognising and responding to the words as well as the underlying emotions demonstrates a willingness to listen and to hear before proposing a ready-prepared solution that might not meet the needs of your employee who has made massive changes to their life to accommodate the change in circumstances due to “force majeure.” This same force majeure on the employer’s side also needs recognising, because without rapid changes in response to the pandemic, may not have survived and still be doing business today.

    2) Explore Options

    Rather than arriving at a meeting with employees with a fait accompli, taking time to explore options that could and would work is far more motivating than presenting a ready-made solution. Giving the other person/s the feeling that you want to work with their needs to find a solution not only motivates, but builds openness and trust in you as well as in the solution moving forward. In order to explore options through negotiation, both parties to keep in mind what you would like to achieve as well as identifying a minimum to which you are prepared to go in terms of compromise.

    3) Make A Proposal

    The proposal does not have to come from the employer only, the employee can also put their proposal on the table for consideration. The outcome needs to suit the business and both parties within the business. Perhaps the employee has thought of something that the employer has not considered that is a fine working solution for both parties.

    4) Agree a Way Forward

    Keep the conversation focused to the goals of agreeing the way forward and achieving a hybrid working structure that meets the needs of both parties, assuming hybrid is what you want. Once all facts and details have been discussed guide the conversation appropriately to achieve an agreement which is then documented in line with HR procedures. If agreeing on a trial approach for a certain time period, document this as well as the date and time for any follow up discussion. Be sure to schedule that follow up and show commitment to having the discussion.

    5) Monitor Performance

    Going forward in the new regime, the direct manager to monitor performance of each employee following a format that has been agreed between parties. Be ready to help with any difficulties and challenges and show a willingness to make it work. Key to making it work is to provide training and development for managers and leaders in how to effectively manage and inspire remote teams.

    6) Help Employees Plan Personal and Working Time

    For team members who are struggling with the feeling or expectation that they should be available all the time need help in understanding how to plan, in order to integrate their personal and working lives. Ngozi Weller, co-founder of Aurora Wellness stressed that “Managers should give guidance to employees on blocking time in diaries for lunch and other personal time, focused time to get work done, their definite start and end times and more.”

    “Employees need to protect themselves from the risk of burnout by planning for their personal wellbeing as a regular part of the work-day,” said Weller. “This could look different for each of us, but the principle of good work hygiene is the same.”

    7) Train Managers to Manage Employee Wellbeing

    Managing a team that is working remotely requires development of communication skills, especially listening. Relying on technology such as Zoom and Teams to host meetings is part of our daily lives in the hybrid model.However, as these platforms are limited from the point of view of picking up on non-verbal signals, there is a necessity to heighten the ability to “see” and to notice when things might be going right for some team members, and to be confident to lead and hold conversations around wellbeing. Gary Cookson, director of Epic HR said that “Managers should be able to pick up on subtle signals around communication, working hours and outputs. Training should also equip them to have appropriate conversations around wellbeing.”

    “Success in a hybrid work environment requires employers to move beyond viewing remote or hybrid environments as a temporary or short-term strategy and to treat it as an opportunity.”

    – George Penn, VP at Gartner

    References

    HOWLETT, E (2021)  Half of workers concerned hybrid working could lead to discrimination, report finds [People management.co.uk]

    POLY (2021) Poly Evolution of the Workplace Report Highlights Need for Work Equity and Total Meeting Equality for Hybrid Workers [Poly.com]

     
    WANT TO MAXIMAISE THE POWER OF HYBRID WORKING? SEE OUR WELLBEING IN THE WORKPLACE E-LEARNING COURSES!

  • Tips for coping with the heat in an office environment

    Back at work in the office, or even if you are still working from home, working in the current heat of 25-27 degrees C can be quite difficult, heat often causes difficulty concentrating and drains energy in simply trying to stay cool.  Here are a few tips on how you can stay cool in the summer heat:

    • Wear loose clothing, preferably clothing made from natural fabrics as these feel cooler on the skin while also absorbing any perspiration.
    • Drink plenty of fluids including water and herbal teas. Avoid caffeine-based drinks as they tend to make your heart beat faster which in turn increases the heat in the body. Ideally aim to drink a minimum of 2 litres of water daily.  Hot teas make the body perspire which in turn cools you down, whereas ice cold drinks have minimal effect on cooling you down, even though you feel good and refreshed at the time. Remember that too many ice-cold foods and drinks can cause an internal chill which might result in digestion issues, therefore minimise the intake of ice-cold foods and drinks.
    • Keep a bottle of water with you all the time so that you don’t get dehydrated. As the brain is approximately 70% water, dehydration makes it more difficult for the brain to function at optimal capacity. If you feel thirsty you are already dehydrated! Ideally start your day with a large glass of room temperature water with lemon and then take sips of water consistently throughout the day.
    • Hold meetings outside the office under some trees where you can pick up any breeze. Start the meeting with a little stretching and movement which is good for the mood also. Regular movement, even if only for a loo break or to make yourself a cuppa stops you from becoming drowsy at your desk particularly, in the post prandial time of day.
    • Travel in the cool of the day to avoid overpacked trains and buses. If you can start earlier and finish earlier this will minimise the amount of time you are spending in a small space with lots of body heat becoming hot and sweaty before you even start your working day.
    • Eat cooling, lighter foods such as salads and chilled soups, raw vegetables, grilled fish and Mediterranean style vegetables – aubergine, courgette and peppers for lunch rather than something heavy which requires lots of body heat to digest.
    • Eat outdoors in a green space if there is one conveniently located to enjoy nature’s calming and soothing effects.
    • Use aromatic waters, such as citrus, rose or chamomile to spray yourself, especially your face when feeling overwhelmed with heat. The cooling effect provides relief by taking out the heat.

    I hope you find these tips useful and for more useful information, visit our Health & Wellbeing website www.greenkeyhealth.co.uk

  • Is your job making you sick? The impact of fear on health

    In a recent blog I wrote about the impact of a toxic job. The blog covered typical symptoms that the body expresses when subjected to a constant level of “uncontrollable” stress. What I didn’t talk about is why these symptoms appear and the damage that might be occurring in the body as a result of constantly elevated stress levels, and the impact of fear on health. So is your job making you sick?

    Too many people are trapped in toxic jobs. Jeffrey Pfeffer, an organizational behaviour professor at Stanford wrote in his book  “Dying for a Paycheck,”  (March 2018). Research has found that poor management in U.S. companies accounted for up to 8 percent of annual health costs and was associated with 120,000 excess deaths every year. Are employers really asking employees to put up with poor management and a toxic work environment at the cost of their health?

    Comparing humans to a herd of wild zebra, when a lion or pack of lions appear they go on to high alert in response to the sensed and perceived danger. This means that the sympathetic nervous system prepares the body to run. Most zebras would not take on a fight with a lion! As the lion takes chase the zebra spring into action and literally run for their lives. One of two things will happen, either the lion gets tired and gives up or she grabs a zebra and the chase is over. The rest of the pack now return to grazing peacefully because the danger has gone. This is how the human sympathetic nervous system is designed – to switch on when there is perceived danger and off when the danger goes away.

    What happens when the perceived danger doesn’t go away?

    The stress response causes the body to release the main hormones adrenaline and cortisol which are the “fight or flight” hormones. Constantly being in the fight or flight mode creates excess cortisol circulating the body which can lead to a build-up of visceral fat especially in the mid-section around the vital organs. Visceral fat is different from sub-cutaneous fat that lies just below the skin. Visceral fat has been linked to several serious medical conditions such as high cholesterol, heart disease and type 2 diabetes. Researchers suspect that visceral fat causes inflammation in body tissues and organs potentially narrowing blood vessels, which in turn increases blood pressure. Visceral fat is much more difficult to reduce once in situ and may lead to insulin resistance which means that sugar cannot enter muscle or fat cells causing serious complications, type 2 diabetes being one.

    Stress triggers a process that involves three key glands – the hypothalamus, the pituitary gland and the adrenal glands. This system is known as the HPA axis. When the brain perceives stress it signals to the hypothalamus to release corticotrophin releasing factor (CRF) which in turn signals to the pituitary gland to release adenocorticotrophic hormone (ACTH), which in turn stimulates cortisol release from the adrenal glands to prepare the fight or flight reaction by sending blood to the muscles and heightening the senses to deal with the perceived danger.

    The fight and flight response is supposed to be a short term response and once the danger has passed the body goes back to “normal” mode, as with the herd of zebras. Let’s face it we all have times at work when we feel stressed, which in itself is not a problem as it stretches us to rise to a challenge. When you are stressed for too long or too often the body loses sensitivity to cortisol. In panic the hypothalamus and the pituitary keep telling the adrenals to release cortisol and adrenaline which they do until they are literally exhausted leaving you with a constant supply of cortisol floating around your blood stream that is dumped into visceral fat.  Your highly intelligent body tries to make the best of a bad situation by achieving a “sort of balance” to get by each day by altering brain chemistry and even behaviour. This process is called allostasis and can often lead to a pre-disease state.

    “So what?” A good question

    When in a heightened state all the time you are burning blood sugar which results in your body demanding energy to keep going. Enter some of the symptoms of stress-overload or chronic stress – poor focus, inability to think on your feet, lack of energy and moodiness. Typical things that you might crave are food and drinks that will give you a quick energy boost – caffeine-based drinks and coffee, all stimulants that increase heart rate and dump sugar straight into the blood stream. Chocolate and foods made with simple carbohydrates – wheat-based foods – doughnuts, cakes, pastries, pasta dishes etc. The sugar in these foods is very accessible and quickly absorbed by the system to provide that desperately needed energy boost. Which it does, but at what cost?

    Every time you go around this loop of seeking and eating sugary foods that provide the energy, the energy “high” gets lower and the energy “low” gets lower, ultimately needing more and more to receive less and less response. The slippery slope to burn out and chronic stress. This may in turn result in insulin resistance in the cells of your body, which means that sugar cannot enter muscle or fat cells causing serious complications.

    This is a double whammy that impacts the brain (depression, anxiety, brain fog, moodiness…..) as well as reducing the effectiveness of your immune health. Depending on where you dump stress in your body it might also cause respiration, gastrointestinal disorders (IBS, ulcers…) adverse skin conditions (eczema, random skin rashes) as well as general aches and pains.

    Breaking the Cycle

    As a Leader:

    • Address potential insecurities – Sometimes insecurities are not coming from within the department or organisation, but are fueled by external sources – Covid, rising inflation, market changes, financial issues etc.  Take time to open up conversations for your employees who might be too fearful to ask the question or raise their worries and concerns.
    • Listen to your employees – If they are providing feedback about you or the way in which the department is functioning, whether positive or otherwise, listen. Take it as positive and constructive, understand what is relevant and address it. Ask for updates on the changes
    • Give regular positive feedback – Positive feedback is one of the most important tools you have in your management toolbox. Be sure to give to all your employees regular, positive feedback and make negative feedback constructive to motivate the person to change
    • Address conflict in the team – Avoid pushing conflict under the carpet. Bring it out into the open with relevant parties and get commitment to change. Conflict in the workplace causes those not involved to either discuss it in the corridor, thus becoming involved and adding fuel to the fire, or to withdraw. Both strategies are unhelpful in maintaining a productive environment and healthy teamwork
    • Dare to ask employees how they are doing – Asking this question will build trust and an open environment to discuss things that might be causing difficulty and therefore unnecessary stress. When asking this question listen to the answer! Not listening may make the matter worse
    • Follow up – Show your interest in your employees by following up on conversations and changes as a result of those conversations. This shows respect to your employees and shows that you really care.

    As an Employee:

    • Approach your boss – Go straight to the horse’s mouth and lead an open conversation about how you are feeling and why. Calling your boss “toxic” certainly will not win you any brownie points but, pointing out that his or her leadership approach is inappropriate (be constructive and specific). Encourage him or her to change so that you can be at your best and most productive. This might just help your boss change. If it doesn’t you know where you stand! If you have tried to solve the issue with your direct boss, perhaps HR as well, and nothing has changed you need to fix the underlying problem, not continue to deal with the symptoms in the hope that something will change.
    • Identify triggers – It is not always possible to avoid triggers of stress. However, taking note of specific triggers can help you develop coping and management strategies, which may involve reducing exposure
    • Reframe your negative thinking – One of the principles of cognitive behavioural therapy, is that how you think can change how you feel. Perhaps changing jobs is not an option for you. Therefore, reframing the situation might just work. Using mindfulness to manage unhelpful churning thoughts about how a recent conversation went, what you should have said in a particular situation, instead of what you did say, or what a colleague said to you, can be very useful in stopping these unhelpful thoughts that create dissatisfaction and drain energy
    • Create personal boundaries – Create boundaries for how many hours you work each day. Don’t be overly pedantic about this in being sure to observe the exact start and finish times, but generally stay within the parameters. Take breaks for lunch and get away from your work-station, computer or regular place of actual work, so that you can enjoy your break without interruption. Educate others around your boundaries so that they too can organise themselves
    • Be clear on goals – Clarify anything that is not clear before embarking on the task. Fumbling through tasks that are not clear in the hope that you might get it right uses up much unnecessary energy by generating feelings of lack of confidence and circulating self-talk.  Running round trying to find information from others who are themselves not clear on what they are responsible for and therefore don’t have what you need is both unproductive and stressful
    • Find another job – On recognising that you are in the “wrong” job for you, see these things as a warning that you need to find a new job that better suits your values and needs. Long hours, absence of autonomy, uncertain scheduling, poor management and economic insecurity of a job are all factors that contribute to a toxic workplace environment that needs leaving behind, not just coping with
    • Speak to friends and family – They can provide emotional support and the motivation to take action.

    In summary – a fearful work environment that is causing employees to be overly stressed can be caused by many factors. Living with it is not necessary and therefore can be addressed one way or another with relevant parties. If you are a manager and leader, have close contact with your employees to know what aspects of the job might be causing too much stress and loss of productivity and then proactively do something about it before complaining and unhappiness contribute to making a toxic work environment and ultimately a loss of well-trained and hard-working personnel.

     

    References:

    https://www.visiblebody.com/blog/the-endocrine-system-the-adrenal-glands-and-the-stress-response

    https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/323324#health-effects

    The Clinicians Handbook of Natural Medicine, Joseph E. Pizzorno ND, Michael T. Murray ND, Herb Joiner-Bey ND

     

     

  • Overindulgence, Christmas Cheer and Productivity

    ‘Tis the time of Christmas cheer for most of us in the Western World.  This usually translates into social engagements such as Christmas drinks, office parties, local get-togethers and family gatherings with the aftermath of uncomfortable symptoms from overeating and drinking including brain fog, wind and bloating, to name a few.  The weather doesn’t help either with cold, miserable, grey light-deficient days and long nights.

    With the festive season comes an overindulgence in foods that we don’t normally eat, but love including mince pies, Christmas pudding, and rich cheeses.   Apparently, each person in the UK consumes an average of 15 mince pies over the Christmas period.  As a nation, that is over 780 million mince pies!

    On top of overindulgence there is the frantic rush to complete last minute shopping for the turkey, rushing round to first buy and then wrap presents whilst also ensuring the fridge is stocked to feed everyone who is coming and be sure not to run out over the few days that the shops are closed!

    At the end of all this we turn to New Year resolutions to lose weight, drink less and exercise regularly.  Does anyone see the sense or is the yearly ritual simply madness?

    The holiday season is a time of family, laughter and giving. It’s also a time of increased mental and physical stress as we attempt to do, and eat, so much more. Here are my realistic tips for staying healthy and productive during this time.

    Overindulgence, christmas cheer and productivity

    THE RESULT OF OUR MADNESS

    The result of this madness is uncomfortable, stressed and frazzled individuals depleted of energy and sleep trying to get into the Christmas spirit, but silently wishing it would all end so that we can return to “normal”.

    TIPS FOR MANAGING SANITY AND SUSTAINING ENERGY

    It would be ridiculous for me to state the obvious to avoid over-eating and limiting alcohol intake.  In fact I can hear you all laughing now.  Let’s try a different tack:

    • Avoid the stress of last minute shopping.  Buy a card and explain the gift is “coming soon”.  Shop peacefully in the New Year for what you did not have time to get for Christmas, at half the price.
    • Drink long drinks, for example white wine spritzer instead of simply white wine or champagne with orange juice as opposed to straight champagne.  The addition of soda water or juice helps keep the body and mind hydrated and we tend to drink long drinks more slowly.
    • Keep mind and body hydrated by drinking one glass of water for every glass of alcohol.
    • Avoid bar snacks such as salted nuts and crisps that we all know encourages us to drink more, whilst also adding to the overload on the digestive system.
    • Choose the vegetarian option at the office party.  Vegetables are generally digested easier than meat, and do not lie heavily on the stomach, leading to a poor nights sleep. 
    • In your Christmas menu include a wide range of vegetables, cooked and raw of different colours to ensure everyone gets plenty of antioxidants for strengthening the immune, and fibre to aid effective digestion.
    • Eat slowly, chew well and enjoy your food whilst being fully present to all those sharing the table with you.  Observing this, usually means we eat less, feeling satiety before it becomes uncomfortable.
    • Your body and mind will thank you for leaving 12 hours, better 16 between the last meal of the day and the next meal on Boxing day. This gives the gut time to digest everything fully, providing mental and physical energy. 
    • Enjoy the benefits of the “great outdoors” with a good walk each day to increase oxygen in the blood to clear the head, increase energy, whilst also assisting the lymphatic system to do its job of clearing toxins and sustaining the effectiveness of your immune system. 

    THE LAST WORDS FROM CHARLES DICKENS – A CHRISTMAS CAROL

    “I will honor Christmas in my heart and try to keep it all the year.”

    Wishing everyone a Christmas full of festive joy and fun, and a healthy, happy and productive New Year. 

     

    Rachel ShackletonRachel Shackleton is an entrepreneur who owns and manages Green Key Personal Development and Green Key Health. Working with local and multinational organisations, she is a public speaker and trainer in the spheres of leadership, communication and customer excellence. She ensures sustainable productivity and profitability through healthy self-management and leadership practices, ensuring a focused and successful workforce.

  • Post COVID 19: 5 Steps to Creating Strong Immune Health in the Workplace

    With the loosening of lockdown guidelines of the COVID-19 pandemic, HR directors, CEO’s and other organisation managers will be thinking hard and planning the return to work and how to protect themselves and their team members from this particular virus and any other seasonal bug that comes along.

    In many cases, due to the physical limitation of space it is not feasible to separate working places, meeting rooms, the use of toilets, the space for lunch and coffee breaks to observe the social distancing guidelines. Therefore, what steps can be taken to protect the environment and people within it?

    THE ECONOMIC IMPACT OF PHYSICAL AND MENTAL ILL HEALTH

    Physical and mental health is considered an individual matter.  However, the physical work environment, leadership and general work conditions all affect levels of mental and physical health, which in turn affects focus, drive productivity and overall performance.  Knowing how to look after yourself and being responsible to maximise health and energy is key to productivity and performance, both of yourself as a leader as well as those that you lead.  It could easily be considered and included as a part of any job description and job responsibilities, saving organisations thousands of pounds from lost work-days due to sickness.  Figures taken from the 2017 Britain’s Healthiest Workplace survey conducted by Vitality Health in partnership with Cambridge, RAND Europe and Mercer, with almost 32,000 employees within 167 companies, found that employees lose an average of 30.4 working days a year due to sickness, or illness-related underperformance, costing the UK economy a staggering £77.5 billion a year, an increase of 6.2% on the previous year.

    CAN WE LEARN ANYTHING FROM COVID-19 ABOUT IMMUNE HEALTH?

    The immune system is responsible for protecting our health through surveillance scanning for bacteria, toxins and viruses.  It is a network running throughout the body that includes lymph nodes and vessels, the skin as the first line of defence, as well as the thymus gland.   Immune defence is divided into two aspects and can be likened to an army – the first line of defence, known as the non-specific immune that is fast acting, and the specific immune which is slow to respond as it distinguishes between friend and foe.  Extensive research has identified that 70% of immune health is in gut-associated lymphoid tissue (GALT).  Therefore, an unhealthy gut weakens the immune as well as affecting mental health due to the gut-brain connection via the gut-brain axis. 

     

    WATCH MY VIDEO ON THIS HERE:

     

    WHAT COMPROMISES THE IMMUNE SYSTEM?

    In a regular day, our immune copes with the effects of household and industrial chemicals, food additives and preservatives, electromagnetic radiation also known as electro-smog from exposure to Wifi driven and other devices reliant on electricity and non-ionizing radiation, as well as environmental toxins, antibiotics, vaccines and stress we experience in our work and personal lives. As leaders, taking care of the immune system is critical if we want our bodies and minds and those of our employees, to deliver top performance through energy and mental focus. Building a healthy immune does not have to be difficult or time consuming. Just like brushing teeth, showering and eating, maintaining a healthy immune becomes an integral part of our way of life when we know what to do.

    WHAT ARE THE MARKERS OF A POORLY FUNCTIONING IMMUNE SYSTEM?

    The main markers of a poorly functioning immune are:

    • Feeling run down or under par for most of the time
    • Poor resistance – repeated colds, regularly contracting flu
    • Inability to shake off a cold or flu
    • Repeated bouts of urinary tract infection
    • Exhaustion and weariness
    • Low resilience to daily occurrences therefore irrational behaviour
    • Poor ability to focus and mental fog

    TIPS TO MAINTAIN A HEALTHY IMMUNE SYSTEM

    Maintaining a healthy immune assumes that it was formed correctly from birth by the baby passing through the birth canal, feeding on breast milk, nature’s protective mechanism to pass on antibodies to the newly born child and then as the baby grows to pick up pathogens through playing in the dirt.  In this case, it can probably be assumed, unless the child has had antibiotics for some reason, that the immune system is functioning effectively. In a post COVID world, there are steps we all need to take to create strong immune health in us all. Read here for more information.

    Tips to maintain a healthy immune system1. MANAGE STRESS IN YOUR STRIDE:

    • Identify what causes your stress and put steps in place to minimise it
    • Think positively replacing any negative thoughts with positive ones
    • Communicate assertively and positively.  Be ready to forgive
    • Walk in nature regularly.  Even if living and working in a city, getting outside into a local park is generally possible, and extremely beneficial to lowering levels of stress
    • Avoid procrastination
    • Deal with conflict openly and constructively.

    2. HYDRATE AND EAT HEALTHY FOODS:

    • As the body is made up of 85% water, it is essential for a healthy mind and body.  The immune is reliant on water for many functions.  Drink a minimum of 1.5 litres of plain water daily by keeping a glass on your desk all the time
    • Eat seasonal foods.  In each season, nature’s intelligence produces foods that we need to support strong immune health.  At this time of year there are lots of orange, yellow, red and blue vegetables and fruit, all of which are high in Vitamins A and C, rich in antioxidants and polyphenols, all essential for effective immune function
    • Eat a combination of raw and cooked foods.  Too much raw can make the body cold and vica-versa
    • Mushrooms – Lions Mane, Maitake, Reishi, Turkey tail and Shitake are natural immune modulators.  When added to cooking or taken as a supplement help strengthen and modulate the immune system
    • Ensure your gut has a well-balanced microbiome to avoid weakening gut integrity leading to a range of inflammatory digestive disorders and/or brain fog due to the link between the gut and the brain via the gut-brain axis
    • Add onion, garlic and leeks (Liliaceae), nature’s anti-virals to soups, stews and salads.   
    • Take vitamin D3.  The recommended daily allowance (RDA) is 400iu, well below the needed levels for countries in the Northern Hemisphere. A daily minimum of 2,500iu is necessary to protect immune function, and in some cases, it might be more as it is a recognised fact that dark skin does not manufacture Vitamin D as well as pale-coloured skin.

    3. BODY CONDITIONING:

    • Exercise and movement improve lymph flow whilst conditioning the heart and lungs.  As the immune system does not have its own pump, it relies on movement to function effectively
    • Dry skin brush 4-5 times weekly before showering, to remove any dead skin to keep the first line of defence functioning correctly
    • Hot and cold hydrotherapy – invigorate yourself and your immune every day with a hot and cold shower or take a sauna once weekly. Hydrotherapy is very effective for stimulation of lymph flow and strengthening immunity. 

    4. KNOW YOUR LIMITS AND REST:

    • Recognise when you are tired and feeling fatigued to avoid “flogging a dead horse”
    • A good night’s sleep helps the body get adequate rest and time to repair
    • Avoid pushing yourself when you are suffering from a cold or flu to enable the body to recuperate quickly.  Take bed rest if needed
    • Switch off Wifi at night to limit exposure to electromagnetic radiation, especially when sleeping as this is when the immune is at its most vulnerable. 

    5. HAVE FUN!

    As leaders, when we create an environment that is fun to work in, employees want to come to work to get more of what they love.  The benefit to the employer is a productive, effective team of happy, healthy people who are focused, loving what they do and who they do it with.

    As managers and leaders how much would you save, and gain, if your main focus and goal was to create a work environment that is a happy, fun place to be? 

     

    To book Rachel to speak at your event, please contact Rachel directly at rachel@greenkeypersonaldevelopment.com 

     

    References:

    ABL

    Hifas da Terra Mycotherapy

    Mayo clinic

    NCBI

     

    Rachel ShackletonRachel Shackleton, Founder of Green Key Personal Development and Green Key Health is a leadership trainer, medical herbalist and naturopath specializing in corporate health through face-to-face, on-line and e-learning development solutions.

    For more information contact Rachel on rachel@greenkeypersonaldevelopment.com

  • In pursuit of perfectionism

    Perfect or perfection is often thrown about in the business world as a desired state.  This might be voiced as an exclamation – “Oh perfect!”, as a statement, related to a particular desired outcome – “That is almost perfect?”  Clearly from the last sentence we can see that something is missing, not aligned correctly, has a small flaw and therefore in some way it does not achieve the status of “perfect” or “perfection”.

    When looking into the dictionary at the definition of “perfect” and “perfection” we see:

    Perfect –  “Complete and correct in every way, of the best possible type or without fault”. (Cambridge English Dictionary).

    Perfection – “Quality of being, as good at it is possible for something of a particular kind to be”.  (Collins English Dictionary)

    How do we define if something is perfect or not?  Of course when talking about figures in terms of achieving targets and goals, it is clear, you either achieve that figure, therefore its perfect, or you do not – a state of not being perfect.  For other situations and for behaviour we create parameters for measuring the end result, which then matches or it does not match and therefore is perfect or not.  However, what about being a perfectionist?  Someone who strives for the perfect result, which they decide is the final result and whether in their own eyes is perfect.  “A person who wants everything to be perfect and demands the highest standards possible”. (Cambridge English Dictionary)

    When being a perfectionist or working for a boss who is a perfectionist, very often nothing is ever quite right, or good enough in some way, in other words it does not meet expectations.   Their expectations!  As a perfectionist how does this affect your life?  Very often you create your own stress around improving that result so that it becomes perfect.  The time “invested” in this last effort to create perfection, drains your resources through nervous energy, missing deadlines and being overly hard on yourself.  Not only do you suffer, but possibly so do those around you who have to wait while you achieve this perfection, have to deal with your emotional instability whilst you strive for that perfection and perhaps even try to negotiate you around to accepting what you have done is already “perfect” because it meets their expectations and the agreed parameters, or indeed the result is even better than they expected and they prefer the outcome, even though it is not exactly what was agreed according to those same parameters.

    On the other side is that fact that being a perfectionist means that you do not make mistakes, defined as “Atelophobia” (taken from Greek) or the fear (phobia) of being imperfect (atelo).  If you do not make mistakes, how and what can you learn because you are already perfect?

    Working for a boss who is a perfectionist can be demotivating, destabilising and frustrating, as nothing is ever good enough.  This means the feedback is always half-hearted at best, – “Well, I like what you have done so far.  If you just work on this bit in XYZ way, it will be perfect!” “You have produced something that is good, in order to improve on that, why don’t you change this and then it will be perfect?”, and so on.  I am sure these and other similar statements are familiar.  I am also sure that over time hearing such feedback undermines your confidence and motivation, because you realise that whatever you do, you will never get it quite right, and therefore why put in the effort?  Leaving you with a feeling of being undervalued.

    Performance, self assessment and stress are directly related.  Striving for perfection, does it change anything in the result and outcome, the investment of energy, analysis, action and so on?  How we assess ourselves is a reflection of self confidence, being a perfectionist is one of the quickest ways to undermine yourself and your self confidence.  Stress – pushing and pulling, putting in those extra hours to achieve that last tweak, that last re-model, re-work or other to achieve that level of perfection takes away from a balance of work to home life, sports, activities and friends, which can end up with self disappointment, beating yourself up for not being good enough, and potentially affecting your health through decreasing immunity to infections and viruses, stomach ulcers, and headaches, fatigue and perhaps in the worst case scenario even adrenal exhaustion.  Not to mention the fact that your family will suffer as will your friendships.  For what?  Knowing when you have achieved the goal and stopping there giving yourself the reward and satisfaction is key to self management and strong self confidence.

  • Is Technology Ruining your Life?

    Is technology ruining your life?Technology is a fine thing, and something that most of us cannot do without on one level or another. It keeps us connected to colleagues, partners, family. It even helps make our lives more tolerable, less intensive, more effective and overall easier.

    IS THAT REALLY THE CASE?

    Did I say, more tolerable, less intensive, effective and easier?  Information flies around at such speed that it is almost impossible sometimes to feel that it makes life less intensive. In some instances, it is even questionable whether it helps us to be more effective.

    SUPPORTIVE FACTS

    Here are just a few facts and figures to support my comment, from Bernard Marr of Enterprise in a Cloud, May, 2018:

    • 3.7 billion humans use the internet
    • 40,000 searches are conducted through Google every second.  That is equal to 3.5 billion searches per day on Google alone.
    • In the last two years 90% of data was created at the current pace.  That is 2.5 quintillion bytes of data being created every day.  If you don’t know what a quintillion is – check out Google!

    EVERY MINUTE:

    • 156,000 emails are sent
    • 103,447,520 SPAM emails are sent
    • 4,146,600 users watch Youtube
    • 45,788 Uber rides
    • and the list of technology related statistics goes on……

    THE RESULT

    It is no wonder that some days, I feel like I am in a washing machine that just keeps going and never reaches the end of its cycle. I’m constantly bombarded with information coming in via WhatsApp, Linked In, Facebook, including Messenger, Twitter, SMS messaging, email and finally the odd telephone call.

    The feeling of having to be constantly connected and available can be very stressful. Not to mention the other side of the coin, of keeping in touch with the latest information, just to keep your head above the parapet.  This list of possible ways to contact is not complete by any means when considering all other in possibilities.

    IMPACT ON BUSINESS

    Is present day business expecting all leaders to have the same digital availability, whilst also managing team members on a face-to-face basis.  Or have leaders become digital, thus leading without face-to-face exposure?

    Impact on the brainIMPACT ON THE BRAIN

    With so much focus on technology in today’s society, we find ourselves paying a price. Sleeping problems, anxiety, stress management and work stress are just a few. This blog offers a solution. Are you prepared to hear it? #sleep #stress #technology

    What impact is this having on the brain?  Research is already showing that brain function due to neuronal re-programming is changing and becoming wired differently.  Whether this is evolution or not, time will tell.

    Ill health such as anxiety, depression, attention deficit disorder and other brain related diseases are increasing in number and hit the headlines more often.

    POSSIBLE SOLUTIONS

    Is it time to think about using digital technology for the purposes that it was designed for – to assist and make life easier by transferring information instantly, to conduct meetings virtually, to send the same information to a group of people at the click of a button and to access news as and when time is appropriate?

    Would this allow “unconnected” down-time to enable enjoyment from leading people, and to be able to appreciate what they do and say in a fully focused manner?  Interacting with others on a face-to-face, person-to-person basis brings what technology is unable to do, fully engaged communication, that human touch which we all need at times, and a normal conversation with facial expressions, shared joy, disappointment, laughter and interest.   Is this approach, old hat, or simply lost under the demand of our digital world?

    Do you really need technology to tell you how you slept?DO YOU REALLY NEED TECHNOLOGY TO TELL YOU HOW YOU SLEPT?

    With so much focus on technology in today’s society, we find ourselves paying a price. Sleeping problems, anxiety, stress management and work stress are just a few. This blog offers a solution. Are you prepared to hear it? #sleep #stress #technologyThis blog came about because of one of those all too rare face-to-face conversations with a friend and business colleague as I noticed that she was not wearing her Fitbit activity tracker.  On asking where was her Fitbit she answered, I used it for 2 things:

    • To tell me how far I have walked
    • To tell me if I am sleeping

    With that last comment she added: “When I wake in the morning, I know whether I have slept well or not. Why do I need a Fit bit to tell me this?”

    Is this yet another aspect of giving up brain capacity to a piece of digital technology, which at the end of the day tells me what I already know?

     

    References:

    Bernard Marr (May 2018)

    Baroness Susan Greenfield, Mind Change (2014)

     

    Rachel ShackletonRachel Shackleton is an entrepreneur who owns and manages Green Key Personal Development and Green Key Health. Working with local and multinational organisations, she is a public speaker and trainer in the spheres of leadership, communication and customer excellence. She ensures sustainable productivity and profitability through healthy self-management and leadership practices, ensuring a focused and successful workforce.

  • How Can You Lead Others If You Are Running On Empty?

    How many business leaders do you know who miss lunch breaks, work at the weekends, work well into the evenings and have vacation days stacking up? Or is this you?

    If it is you, you are probably well aware of what you are doing, and have perhaps made some New Year resolutions for yourself to address the number of hours you work, the extra pounds you have put on or the lack of time you are spending with family and or friends.

    How can you lead others if you are running on empty?As leaders we have an obligation and responsibility to our team members and to ourselves to ensure both you and they are fully charged, leading a balanced life that in turn quickly translates to productivity and ultimately profitability for the company and its many stakeholders.  Why is it that leaders so often miss applying these guidelines to themselves, to their health and wellbeing and to achieving a healthy balance in life between work, career and personal lives?

    It is understandable to feel overloaded when there are meetings to attend, reports to write, customers to call and teams to look after, but when we try to carry an unsustainable workload two things happen.

    Firstly, we are denying the fact that the system is flawed if it requires a ridiculously large workload.

    Secondly, we are giving our team members a message, loud and clear that it’s OK to neglect ourselves, our physical and mental health as well as our family and friends under the umbrella of work expectations.

    Unless we lead by example, we are serving no one.

    As with every other aspect of leadership, wellbeing, organisation values and culture must start from the top of an organisation. If this is not demonstrated by the leaders it becomes harder for personnel to believe it’s the right thing to do.

    FILL YOURSELF UP FIRST

    One of Fresh Air Fridays core wellbeing principles is to “fill yourself up first”.

    Two simple metaphors describe this well:

    1. On a plane, in case of an emergency, the crew always tell you to put your own oxygen mask on first, making sure you take care of yourself before you try to help others.
    2. The common saying, “you can’t pour from an empty pot” describes the same idea that you need to see to your own needs to enable you to care for others.

    Both things are proved true when it comes to wellbeing. If we believe that we must consistently and continuously do for others without resourcing ourselves, the likelihood is that at some point something will give. Whether the result is mental burnout, physical ill health or some other crisis.

    AS LEADERS WHAT CAN WE DO?

    The first step is awareness, and this needs some consideration. Regularly taking time to listen to and understand what your needs are, is important. This can become more difficult when it gets hidden in the morass of work, that we end up feeling overwhelmed and therefore don’t hear the messages.  Taking a moment, to have a short walk to clear the head, is something that Fresh Air Fridays would recommend.   However, short bursts of time can also be found in those forced moments, which invariably find us being irritated and frustrated, such as sitting in a traffic jam, waiting for the traffic lights to change or any other situation that’s presents a few minutes to ask yourself: “What would looking after me look like?  What would filling me up involve?”

    If you have no idea, just notice you have no idea. If something unexpected comes up, don’t react, just take a minute to consider it. Over the course of a few days or weeks keep gently asking yourself this question – your subconscious will be working on it anyway without much conscious effort from you. When you come up with some ideas, make it a priority to try some out. Schedule time in your calendar to make sure it happens.

    With all leadership skills and practices, this is not a one hit wonder.  You have to keep making time to listen and to feel at what level your petrol gauge is at and to avert circumstances when you are running on reserve tank.

    Wherever this exploration takes you, remember that the people around you, your teams, your colleagues, your family, and friends, are much more likely to take notice of what you do, rather than what you say. Therefore, if you want to create wellbeing in your workplace, you need to start with you.  With the start of 2020, a new year and a new decade, now is the time to make a fresh start in a manner that you mean to go on.

    Wishing you a healthy and prosperous New Year. 

     

    To learn how we can help you and your organisation, email Rachel directly at rachel@greenkeypersonaldevelopment.com

     

    References:

    Fresh Air Fridays www.freshairfridays.co.uk (Saranne Postans) 

     

    Rachel ShackletonRachel Shackleton is an entrepreneur who owns and manages Green Key Personal Development and Green Key Health. Working with local and multinational organisations, she is a public speaker and trainer in the spheres of leadership, communication and customer excellence. She ensures sustainable productivity and profitability through healthy self-management and leadership practices, ensuring a focused and successful workforce.

  • Does your working day eat into your lunch break?

    As with most things in the UK around working hours and conditions there is legislation that dictates the amount of hours worked in relation to the time allocated and legally allowed for a break.  I would suggest that most companies are not only aware of this, but also follow the legislation, explaining to employees the amount of time they are entitled to for a break and in some situations, such as restaurants, and other service institutions, when that break can be taken.   On the other hand there are jobs such as couriers who are paid by the number of deliveries and not by the hour who probably focus more on earning capacity, rather than taking a break to eat something.  Despite all the legislation, lunch breaks are being swallowed up as we resign to eating lunch at our desk, opting to earn more, or to go home early.  Not exactly “al fresco”, but “al desko” dining, or quickly popping out for a take-away of some kind, which is eaten on the hoof before returning to the desk.

    Is the lack of respect for the lunch break self-imposed or a reflection of the ever-increasing pressure and changing work culture?  Does the employee feel comfortable in taking a full lunch break, or is there an unspoken rule that this is not acceptable and therefore, frowned upon?

     

     

    What are the benefits of taking time for lunch?

    Effective digestion – There are the obvious benefits of getting away from the desk to stretch a little, exercise, get out into some fresh air, and if going with someone, talk about something else, socialise and unwind. Furthermore, from a digestion point of view, focusing on what we eat helps to begin the process of digestion, therefore starting natural salivation in the mouth in readiness for the arrival of food, which in turn stimulates the release of stomach acid.  Proper digestion, means avoiding that uncomfortable feeling of bloating and heaviness associated with indigestion or having that “sugar high” and then a major energy slump an hour later.

    Mental and Physical Performance – Proper digestion is connected directly to physical and mental wellbeing. Ensuring the body is able to absorb  nutrients, vitamins and minerals needed for work performance, needs time to begin the process of digestion.  Working through a break, or eating at the desk, when a regular practice, is false economy because the digestive system is compromised, thus affecting nutrient absorption that ultimately takes its toll on performance with the inevitable slump in energy.   Whereas taking time to leave the desk to “switch off” and enjoy what you are eating, helps in creating the right environment for digestion as well as alleviating work pressures and stress, thus leading to enhanced performance.

    Mental performance is also lowered due to increased screen time.  Our mental performance is directly linked to the ability to make decisions.  It is the pre-frontal cortex that is involved in making decisions and in executive function.  This connects to other brain networks in order to regulate behaviour, mood, thought and emotion. The pre-frontal cortex is highly susceptible to stress, which when overloaded can result in poor decision-making, inability to focus effectively and over time lead to tension headaches, mood swings and depression.

    Better Weight Management – It is common knowledge that weight management is important. Overweight means we put stress on our body functions and all the organs in the body.  Besides this obvious point, being overweight you often feel uncomfortable and lack energy, as well as self-confidence.  Taking time to eat slowly and mindfully and getting some movement or exercise during a break are both important to managing weight.  The World Health Organisation has identified physical inactivity as the fourth leading risk factor in global mortality.  Being overweight and leading a sedentary lifestyle can lead to such diseases as hypertension, diabetes and coronary heart disease.  Lack of movement through sedentary behaviour lowers energy required to perform well.  “Moreover, physical inactivity is estimated to be the main cause for approximately 21–25% of breast and colon cancers, 27% of diabetes and approximately 30% of the ischemic heart disease burden.” (World Health Organisation)

    Tips for Improving Digestion

    1. Eat when relaxed.  Avoid eating when stressed as energy is diverted and digestion is compromised.
    2. Be mindful about what you are going to eat, stimulating saliva and gastric juices prior to putting food in your mouth.
    3. Sit comfortably, and upright when eating, avoiding slumping as this means food cannot travel easily to the stomach and intestines.
    4. Be relaxed and breathe, thus relaxing the brain and helping the body to switch on the digestive process.
    5. Eat slowly so as not to dump large chunks of food into the digestive tract.  Well-chewed food is more easily broken down and nutrients absorbed to provide not only the feeling of satiety, but also the energy needed to continue with your day.
    6. The body needs time to register when it is full, therefore avoid eating quickly to allow the system time to register and feel satiated.
    7. Enjoy the process of eating, take time to notice the smells, flavours and textures of your food.
    8. Eat until you feel comfortable.  Avoid overeating as this stresses the digestive system, and leaves you feeling tired with the inevitable afternoon slump in energy.
    9. Try to get at least 15 minutes exercise during your break especially if you have a sedentary job as movement helps to oxygenate the blood, increase blood flow to the brain, and alleviates any feelings of being stressed.
    10. Preferably walk or exercise outside as fresh air boosts the levels of oxygen in the blood, and through exposure to the sun also helps the body to create vitamin D needed for many functions in the body, including mood regulation. 

    With the increase in mental ill health in the workplace, encouraging employees to go out for lunch is a one step towards helping decrease stress and increase work performance through greater focus and attention, increased energy and a positive, constructive mood.

     

    References:

    https://www.who.int/dietphysicalactivity/pa/en/

    https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28358570

    Optimum Nutrition www.ion.ac.uk

  • Fears and Phobias – 7 Tips to Overcome them

    The NHS defines a phobia “as an overwhelming and debilitating fear of an object, place, situation, feeling or animal. Phobias are more pronounced than fears.” On the other hand, the Merriam Webster dictionary defines fear as “an unpleasant often strong emotion caused by anticipation or awareness of danger.” From these two definitions we can see some parallel and cross over in understanding that both phobias and fears are slightly different, but never-the-less linked with the underlying factor of fear. In my own words, phobia is something that is overwhelming and debilitating deeply affecting our lives in some way, whilst fear is something that can cause us to behave differently to our so-called normal behaviour.

    When considering animals in the wild, such as a herd of zebra. Zebras will be grazing quite peacefully when all of a sudden, they intuitively know that there is some kind of threat or danger lurking close by. The natural response is to go into alert mode, which drives the fight or flight reaction. There is no worry, circulating thoughts, deliberation or similar, they simply look around for the threat and take the necessary action to either run (flight) or stay and fight for survival. Once the perceived threat has gone, the herd go back to grazing peacefully, as if nothing had happened a few minutes earlier. The threat of being eaten is an accepted part of being a zebra. Perhaps not a pleasant part if you are the chosen one!

    In our human world, we tend to intensify our fears through an unhealthy rumination of negative thoughts that often distort the real picture, leading to poor decision-making, lack of sleep and other bodily symptoms that often cannot be identified medically. This does not mean to say that fear does not exist and that we do not feel it, infact the opposite. It is real, and our mind and body do feel it. With a phobia the degree of fear is intensified to the point where it becomes and is debilitating.

    In the face of danger, what stops us from making that decision and just doing it anyway? To leap over the perceived barrier and to take that first step, only to find when we have done it that we are fine and the world around us is fine. There is no right answer to this question, as each one of us is different. We each have our own myriad of reasons that we explain to ourselves and those around us, rationalising the reasons why we are not taking steps to overcoming the fear. With a phobia there is no rationalisation, as the level of fear at whatever is causing the phobia or extreme fear has gone beyond that possibility until such time as the object, situation or feeling has been removed or we have been removed from it.

    However, that object, situation or feeling will always be a trigger unless a professional is recruited to help re-wire our brain to think differently about whatever it is that might be causing the phobia or overwhelming fear.

    What happens when we live in extreme fear of something, for example the fear of flying, not being able to feed your family, or the fear of going out and leaving your house for work, shopping or other reason?

    The fight or flight response becomes elevated causing a vortex of overthinking negative thoughts. Neurological sciences agree that as we think something and re-think something repeatedly, our neurological pathways become channelled and locked and we can, in some ways become what we contemplate.

    Our heart rate quickens, driving the release of perspiration in response to the sympathetic nervous system kicking into full alert. A mix of hormones, especially adrenaline and cortisol are released into the bloodstream and the heart sends messages to the brain via the Vagus nerve supported by an increase in neurotransmitters. All this before the largest part of the brain, the neocortex has had a chance to identify the nature of the emergency, whether life-threatening, shocking or something in between.

    The second phase, for want of a better description that occurs within milliseconds, is the receipt of information through the senses to the neocortex. As a result, an understanding forms about the situation and the fight or flight impetus is either modified or countermanded. With a phobia countermanding very seldom occurs as you can’t “see” and the neocortex becomes incapable of rationally judging the level of danger. It is the same fear that becomes abject fear resulting in control of bodily movements and behaviour.

    Once the trigger to the fear and in some cases, the phobia, has been removed, consciousness begins to take control of fight and flight reactions bringing about the slow return to normal through reversal of the extreme arousal process. This might result in expressing excess energy and emotion amassed seconds earlier through nervous laughter, tears, or even shouting, supported by relevant body language. All these responses are the body’s outlet for the release of pent-up emotions, ultimately resetting the amygdala’s warning light and as zebras do, returning to “grazing.”

    Unlike animals, what might not be reset is the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal axis (HPA), stress system. Actions of this system, especially the release and reabsorption of cortisol take considerably longer to reset, particularly when the threat is perceived to be overwhelming and/or chronic in the case of a phobia. Instead of the feeling of fear being overridden, modified or followed through, it becomes suppressed inside the body, leading to phantom pain and/or post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

    If you believe that disease has an emotional foundation, which I do, fear is one of the cardinal emotions and when suppressed as with other cardinal emotions; guilt, anger and shame, it starts to lay the foundation for dis-ease. If an individual is already suffering from some form of disease or health condition, it will further compound the body’s stress reaction and need to re-balance through mobilisation of the immune system. In other words, draining resources to fight a condition that is emotionally draining vitality from the system.

    In the last couple of years with many incidences to be fearful of – Covid-19 and the messages used during lockdowns – “stay home – protect the NHS- save lives”, “stay alert-control the virus-save lives”, now rising energy costs and the fear of how to stay warm and pay the bills, rising petrol costs and the implications that this has on all aspects of modern-day living, continued threats of more dangerous Covid variants etc and the 24/7 news, social media messaging that is ever-present and hammering away at all these topics and many more not mentioned that keeps the fight and flight response switched on. This only serves to keep the HPA axis in heightened response while draining and weakening the immune system which in turn drains vitality and leads to sickness and the possible realisation of the fears that is driving it all.

    How do you stop the fear cycle?

    Love is the opposite of fear, which is the most important law of the universe. First love of oneself and second love of others. Love is all there is. The King James version of the Bible tells us: “There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear; because fear hath no torment”. While I would never describe myself as religious and with no dis-respect to those that are, these words make a great deal of sense to me.

    Is it now time to come together and focus on building communities through neighbourly support and help? To focus on the abundance that surrounds each one of us, even though some days it might not feel that way, celebrate lives within our communities and care for those that feel vulnerable and fearful and those who are suffering extreme fear or even phobia to go out and about in the world in which we live. To fully embrace the community spirit and to give and share joy to overcome the fear?

    Leadership, also plays an important role in building community, trust and openness to inspire and lead others, to build performing teams that exude joy, the sharing of wins and successes and the openness to challenge and discuss when not succeeding in a constructive, positive and decisive manner. In my opinion the foundation to effective and inspirational leadership is above all else to listen to one another with respect, presence and deep interest while nurturing and growing talent.

    Put your oxygen mask on first by doing some simple things that each one of us can do for ourselves which when we are all doing them make the pool of support, unconditional love, community spirit and joy ever-grow in size until it embraces all:

    1. Make time to be kind to yourself and those around you.
    2. Go inward to hear how your mind and body feel.
    3. Release pent-up emotions through forgiveness of those that might have hurt you.
    4. Share positivity, joy and humour.
    5. Give gratitude for the small things that bring joy, fun and appreciation each day.
    6. Be present to nature’s abundance and calming influence and as with every river, flow with ease allowing the undulating current to navigate the route smoothly, rather than trying to dam the natural flow or wade upstream against the current.
    7. Keep head and heart in balance and don’t be afraid to follow your heart as it is this that connects you to your soul path – your love and passion for life.

    “Love makes the world look beautiful. When there is love, there is beauty’. Haemin Sunim

    References

    The Spiritual Anatomy of Emotion, Michael A. Jawer, Marc S. Micozzi, MD, Ph.D
    Feelings Buried Alive Never Die, Karol K. Truman
    The Power of the Herd, Linda Kohanov

    Written by Rachel Shackleton – Green Key Personal Development