Destress and Focus with Jazz

Work is fulfilling for a lot of us, however with it comes the stress and the burn out.

Consider this: Jazz music can lower blood pressure by causing blood vessels to expand by 30% (This change in blood pressure is like loosing 30 lbs).

It incidentally helps you to get better sleep.  Studies shows that just 45 min of soft, slow music (60-80 BPM) like jazz, before bedtime results in better and longer night-time sleep as well as less dysfunction during the day:
• After 1 week, 26% were sleeping better.
• After 3 weeks, 35% were sleeping better.

After finding out about Jazz, I decided to implement it in my own life and see the results. My work is sometimes stressful and while I enjoy it... working parallel in a lot of things sometimes leaves me burned out. I realize that I am not being as effective in getting things done, because I am worried about how much is left to be done.

So, I tried 2 things at work:

1. When I start to worry/stress/get irritated I immediately walk out to refill my water bottle, or get a coffee. read the newspaper or sometimes just walk around. That momentarily relief and taking me out of that zone seems to work positively on the mind. 
2. I also played jazz over the web via ear phones and I did work better partially because I felt more relaxed. It helped me to the extent that I now use it almost regularly specially when I have things to deliver in a tight timeline. 

You wont know what works for you, till you try it out yourself. So, my suggestion is to give it a go and see whether this is something that will work for you.

All I can say is, its definitely worth a try.

(pic courtesy: Google Images)

Tools- aren’t the answer to your Agile Transformation

The most hyped up idea during an Agile Transformation is the search for tool that would best suit your organizational needs. Tools is necessary, however isn’t the priority in your Agile journey.

In the process the focus shifts to the tool and then purpose of the transformation is lost. It reaches a point where transformation is equated with tool.

You don’t need fancy tools and a huge budget to start something small. Start your journey with a whiteboard, something that the team has to work on and can play around with it, changing and adding metrics or creating their own customized dashboard.

You can even try a team cork board, or use simple sticky notes or free software to try out the teams comfort level. Tool should be part of the process, not the process.

There are lots of reasons, why you fail in agile and tool shouldn’t be one of them. 

So, find ways to ensure you are Agile in reality. 

To know more about Agile tools, try the links here and here.

(Pic courtesy: Pinterest)

Happy Weekend

(Pic courtesy: Pinterest)

Feb- Quick Reads

Grab a coffee and get reading :)

Here are some random reads for Feb:

• How to get a better paying job in IT industry
• Looking into productivity patterns
• Project management online courses
• Rapidstart PMO review
• Building an Agile Enterprise Change plan Visually
• Changing role of product management 
• Day in the life of a product manager
• Moving from project management to product management 

Just in case you want to read more, try the 20 books for project managers. 

(Pic courtesy: Pinterest)

Change your life: Rewire your brain

Success could be about innovation, about practice, about determination. One thing that will be the common denominator is how you wire your brain to get to your desired state of mind.

Good news is your brain changes with you or may be you change because your brain is constantly changing.

There’s a traditional saying that the mind takes the shape it rests upon; the modern update is that the brain takes the shape the mind rests upon.  For instance, if you regularly rest your mind upon worries, self criticism, and anger, then your brain will gradually take that shape – will develop neural structures and dynamics of anxiety, low sense of worth, and prickly reactivity to others.  On the other hand, if you regularly rest  your mind upon, for example noticing you’re all right right now, seeing the good in yourself and letting go…then your brain will gradually take the shape of calm strength, self confidence, and inner peace. (Source) 

“As your mind changes, your brain changes; and as your brain changes, your mind changes.” Hanson explains how neuroplasticity is accomplished:

• Busy regions get more blood flow, since they need more oxygen and glucose.
• The genes inside neurons get more or less active; for example, people who routinely relax have improved expression of genes that calm down stress reactions, making them more resilient.
• Neural Connections that are relatively inactive wither away; its a kind of neural Darwanism, the survival of the busiest, use it or lose it.

“Neurons that fire together, wire together.”  This saying from the work of Donald Hebb means that synapses – the connections between neurons – get more sensitive, plus new neurons grow, producing thicker neural layers.

It’s said that practice makes it easier for brain to highlight on the same function over and over again, making that part of the brain easier to access. That’s why it’s said cab drivers who need to memorize the city maps to get their license, have that part of their brain bigger than the rest.

Turns out more struggles and obstacles you have in learning, better your brain learns.

And if you are looking for inspiration to keep your new year’s resolution going, here’s a tip- physical exercise is good for the brain because it helps create new neurons.



To read similar articles- read Finding your Zone and How to Keep your Life in Control .

If you like visual representations, click here

(Pic courtesy: Pinterest) 

Free Flow Sunday

When routine gets hectic, try this out.

It gets it’s name from what I thought would be a good way to spend my Sunday. No rules, no commitments, no alarm- its free flow. I do what I want to do.

I noticed in trying to chase the next thing to get done throughout the week, I was simply exhausted, to the point I would get irritated very easily. My weekends as a busy working mom would mean endless things and errands to take care of. I never made the list, it simply got lost in more things to get done.

So I stopped. I started this as an experiment on myself to see if it could actually work. So, there’s no schedule for my Sundays which also means I mostly say to all invitations and meetings and brunches on Sunday. I want to keep the time open and available for me.

The way it works- I wake up without alarm and get up and so whatever I want to do. Sometimes I just spend drinking coffee in the balcony and water the plants. Some Sundays, I play with my son, sometimes it’s the gratitude journal followed by all morning being in bed and reading. I keep my whole week scheduled to perfection and this one day I just let it all go. The bed stays messy, the house not quite perfect, the lunch unplanned. Some days we will drive for a bite, some days I will whip up a fancy mean or just order in.

This also works because it’s Sunday and everyone’s available. Sometimes I will delegate work; sometimes I let everyone do what they want. It helps that my parents help as well with my son. So, anyone is free to get their own breakfast done, some days, someone will take the responsibility to make it- it's never me :) 

You get the idea... so how does it help?

• Decompress- after a hectic week and stressing out, this day resets my system for Monday
• Unschedule to schedule better- This allows me to just let everything go. The feeling of letting go is so powerful in not having hundred more things to do that Mondays are always better. That one day break is a real Sunday for me.
• Me time- it allows me to live one day the way i want. Yes there are still certain things I will do, but mostly and as much as possible what I want to do.
• Solitude helps- I am an introvert and yes i always need my me time. Its a must and when I loose it, it always creates more problems than solutions. I gather my thoughts on life, my career, things I want to do, places I want to travel and catch up with friends.
• Asses life- I remember a friend who once told me, we are so focussed on running after the next hike, we forget what we have now and we never enjoy that. It stuck with me. I am not part of any race that day, I try to forgive and forget all wrong doings and try to breathe in more peace within myself.

So far, it has been working, I really look forward to Sundays. 

(Pic courtesy: Pinterest)

Why is creativity good for you?

Experts argue that getting into a state of flow can produce substantial happiness, the kind that lasts longer than the pleasure we get from eating a good cookie.    

According to Matthew Swan, MA, Registered Art Therapist, “Through creativity, we often find answers to our problems.” He says when we’re stuck, it helps if we can step outside the box and find another way of doing something. To be successful at this, we need to do things outside of our normal, everyday routine and to make connections between things that we had not thought about before. In fact, the creative process is the act of making these new connections.  

The link between creativity and better mental and physical health is well established by research. So, while if you consider yourself someone who is creative naturally, chances are you are happier and that means better at work.  

Robert Epstein explained in a Psychology Today article how challenging situations can bring out our creativity. Even if you don’t succeed at whatever you’re doing, you’ll wake up the creative areas of your brain and they’ll perform better after the failed task, to compensate. 

In 1954 the first flotation method was created by John C. Lilly, a neuro-psychiatrist, as a way to create sensory-deprived control groups for his experiments. Being inside the flotation tank takes your brain from highly conscious alpha and beta waves to solid theta waves—the kind you would normally have right before falling asleep and just after waking up. Normally we only experience these theta waves for a few minutes, but having extended theta periods helps us to visualize better, often giving us vivid mental images. Sensory deprivation helps in reducing anxiety, stress and even chronic pain.  

So, like everything else, creativity can bring you happiness and in return give you the much soughted after peace or grounding of you self that can actually help you catapult your career forward. 

If there’s one thing you should focus on this year, it definitely has to be making yourself happier and the rest will happen automatically. If you are looking for more ways to make your brain happier, read this.  

(pic courtesy: Pinterest)

3 Things To Do This Year

What's yours? 

This year let the year not be in wishing, lets back it up with some concrete plans. So what would you do, if you weren't afraid? 

Can you still try to make it work? Is there an alternative? Don't let the lizard brain rule you this year... take the plunge and let's try it together.

(Pic courtesy: Soma Bhattacharya)

3 New PM Blogs to Follow This year

If you are looking forward to refresh your reading list this year, look no further here are 3 new one's to choose from:

• Rajiv Poppat's Thousandyone
• Bruce Harpham's Project Management Hacks
• Ben Aston's The Digital Project Manager 

What's new on your reading list? 

(Pic courtesy: Canva)

Best of 2016: Moving Foward

2016 has been a tough year for me, it has tested me in every possible way and yet I am thankful that I have survived. The  journey taught me a lot and I thought I will share with you some of my favorite things I have discovered last year that I intend to carry forward with me to 2017.

I have realized being organized helps me declutter and empty up my head space and it's a big relief. So, I have spent the last 2 months doing exactly that- sorting out my brain.

Here are some of the things I have enjoyed, I hope you like them and let me know what was yours.

Best Apps

• Evernote (productivity and organization)- I use this to bookmark links or upload documents primarily for work or blog.
• Big Basket (online grocery- India)- saves me from the traffic in Indian roads. 
• Canva (design and content creation)- I use this for creating posters and banners that I use in the blog or in my social media channels.
• Pinterest (visual board)- its the last thing I browse before bed, I love beautiful things (or pictures)
• Omvana (meditation) - I discovered it very recently after reading the Code of the Extraordinary Mind. 
• Noteboard- chrome extension (efficiency and productivity)- good place to jot down my lists and goals plus I like the feel of a cork board.

Best Gadgets

• Garmin Activity Tracker (physical fitness)- if you have read my post on 5 Years- Thats how long it took you know what I am talking about. This helps plus I love the reminder to Move!
• Wireless speaker/headphone  (music, phone calls)- I have carried it with me when travelling to cient sites. When you are contantly living out of a suitcase it helps to have a familiar routine, even if that means listening to a familiar soundtrack. 

Best  Blogs

• Girls Guide to PM (project management)
• Chalkboard Magazine (lifestyle)
• Every Girl (lifestyle)
• IT Risk Manager (organizational change and process implementation)

Best of SIPM Posts

• Finding your zone
• Getting Off the Grid 
• This is how I work series 
• 10 ways to bring back productivity 

Pic Courtesy: pinterest

Some of the links used are Amazon affiliate links, it helps me keep this site running if you happen to buy the products using the link. Thank you.

Happy New Year 2017

Merry Christmas

Wishing you Merry Christmas. I hope you have peace, happiness and abundance in your life and spread the cheer around. 

I will be spending time with family, cooking up lunch and just lounging and you can find behind the scenes here

(Pic courtesy: Soma Bhattacharya via Canva)

Top 3 Books for 2016

If you have been with me reading the blog or checking tweets and watching the occasional pop ups in Instagram, you will know that I read for work and pleasure. This year has seen me get back to it more than the last two years. 

So, if you like to red or looking for a last minute gift idea, you can check out these 3 books which I think have had the most impact on me. 

The Checklist Manifesto (by Atul Gawande)

·    The 193 pg book focuses on the benefits of maintaining a checklist through various industries. 

·      A surgeon from NY, the book The Checklist is not about just to do lists. It’s a brief list that helps critical decision making in sensitive situations like the operating room by saving lives or during investment decisions or in aeronautical situation (mid air crisis).

·        

The reason I liked the book is because:

§  It’s a simple idea that’s so well researched that it makes you think that we should all implement more checklists in our work places and homes to save ourselves from complications.

§  He talks about how the checklist that was created in John Hopkins hospital that raised a possibility that people talking to each other  a minute before starting the operation was a strategy to foster team work which lead to higher success rates. 

§  It made me think that the basics of any project management should be about certain checklist like its focused a lot in Agile with the ceremonies and DOD (definition of done) and exit criteria’s all set to actually ensure that everything is in its place and chances to miss it is reduced thereby ensuring the quality of the potentially shippable product.

§  It’s a book that will make you think and has take away's that you can actually implement in your work. It also provides you with enough case studies that will allow you to make a strong case with the right set of data that you will need to get buy in from your team or management to get the checklists implemented. 

The Code of the Extraordinary Mind (by Vishen Lakhiani)

If you need an awakening of your mind and soul, if you want to grow more, need a way to organize your thoughts and dreams, want to be happier....this is what you should be reading. It shook me up literally. ·It’s a must read and will be my staple on the bedside table for the next few month definitely.          

• 223 pages excluding the glossary and others, this book will help you understand your expectation from life and how to get them. Book talks a lot about the realities that the author faced as he tried to build his own business that thrives successfully now.
• He gives example from his own life and multitude of other people like Dalai Lama, Richard Branson, Arianna Huffington and Tony Robbins on how they look at success.
• My favorite in the book is chapter 5- where he talks about the structure that’s split into 8 sets of qualities that we need from life and for me thinking the way he has laid it down was life changing. I really knew the actions I had to take to grow more personally and professionally.
• This is a book that helps you look inside you, fix it... so you can fulfill your dreams outside.

The Sleep Revolution (by Arianna Huffington) 

·         This was an impulsive buy in airport because I was looking to read something while I was on vacation for my son’s 2 birthday this August. I don’t think I have ever thought of sleep so much in my life till I started reading this book. I will be honest, I am not much of a sleeper, I like to stay awake more than I like sleeping. I have in the recent years also been very sleep deprived; I call it the Rio Effect. The book surprised me with the health benefits and the link to better decision making and yes now that I try to sleep more I do see the payback myself.  

• ·We all know sleeps important, but the author breaks the modern myth of going sleepless and how cool it is especially for youngsters and showing why and how it’s important to achieve our goals.
• It talks about medications, health issues, and extra cost to government dealing with health crisis that can all be reduced just by sleeping.
•  It also talks about how from Warren Buffet to Satya Nadella all emphasize about sleeping and its bond to good decision making and the effectiveness and efficiency.
• If you like informative and well researched book like I do and the topic is something you can relate to- it’s a good read.

For me I can connect the dots of the take away of the 3 books- I think resting the mind to work and function better in a structured way through checklists will make me happier and give me better value for the time invested in doing it. And happiness will ensure I work through my challenges better and have the capacity to fulfill the dreams.

Pic courtesy: Google and Soma Bhattacharya
Some of the links are Amazon affiliate links, you don't pay extra for it but it helps this site run. Thank you.

The Art of Failing

I have failed a lot. That made me afraid of being a failure

.

And there have been quite a few times when I have been called one. I have recently realized that my journey in life have been paved through my failures and because I have failed I am doing what I do now.

 Suddenly I have realized that failure shouldn’t be negative and depressing. It’s part of rethinking and making better decision. 

Like I started this blog when I wasn’t sure what to do career wise, I had a difficult time finding a job and I just wanted a space where I could journal all my learning’s. I honestly never thought anyone other than me would be reading it. I turned the blog into a routine which means I was writing even during my worst of struggles and that kept me sane. It was a positive energy for me when a lot of things weren’t.

If you have read about the Lizard brain, you will know we refrain ourselves from doing things that make us a success. I am not a psychologist, however I can tell you that for me sometimes it’s true. I feel the things I should be doing and then I don’t. I don’t know why. For example, I have been thinking of writing about this for more than a week and I haven’t written. I am not sure why.

 I have been trying to get back to reading and the last few purchases (of books) have been really life changing and I wanted to share it with you. But then I thought, hey why not be more satisfied with my work and try out another medium- vlogs. I would love to bring you in my life and have a face to face conversation once in a while and do I did vlog. It was an epic failure, the video was too long (around 15 minutes) and I wasn’t sure how to edit. By the way if you are curious I vlogged about my 3 top favourite books in 2016.  Anyways, I don’t think I will be putting up that video which means I will have to re-record it.

So, why this post? Its almost end of the year and I wanted to check in with you and tell you that its okay to be where you are. I hope you are happy with life, however just in case if you are struggling think what you can do to get off the struggle. What will help you get there? Don’t get too bogged down with bad days or failures. And always help someone whenever you can. 

And don’t get scared even when you fail, try to keep up with your plan and keep at it! Everyone fails.

Here’s how Mary Higgin’s turned hers and what Macolm Gladwell thinks of the art of failure 

(Pic courtesy: Pinterest)

December without Snow

I am in the mood to celebrate life and December is my favorite month.

So, I have ordered a few more books and my Sundays are mostly about trying to cut down the clutter and soaking up the sun. 

 I am trying to get back to my original self, being more grateful, trying out new hobbies and hoping that this month is where I get to be creative again.

Last month I traveled, planted some more plants in my tiny balcony and started posting in Instagram. I also sprained my left ankle.

I have so much stuff coming for the blog and I am positive that my new change of routines and way of working will ensure I actually can get them done. So, it’s just not a concept running around wild in my head!

For some random links that I have been browsing recently:

• Let’s start with the gifts: click here 
• How about unwinding for the year by doodling and learning about its benefits: click here
• Thinking about starting your own and finding out the latest in the tech world journalism: Click here
• If you follow a end of day or beauty routine, ever heard of the capsule format: click here
• Why Scrum is a scale free architecture: Click here
• How about some serious reading on how social media and mental health are connected: click here

Anyone interested in browsing through the top 50 project management blogs (By Feedspot). can look up here.

(Pic Courtesy: Pinterest)

Where is Project Management?

If that’s what you are wondering, you are not alone.

If you look at my last 3 posts, there’s nothing about project management really. However, all of them will hopefully make you think about being a better professional and a project manager and sustain it over period of time.

Because being a project manager is not a onetime thing, you have to maintain your title, the success of your project and your reputation.

Anyways, this space for me has always been very personal. I have mostly written things that I have been going through in real life. See my first blog post from eight years ago here . That’s what I read/research on and that’s what I mostly write about.

So, hopefully this change of track seems interesting for you. What are you thinking?

(Pic courtesy: pinterest)

Finding your Zone: What you Need to Learn from Winners

I have always wondered what it takes to sustain the intensity of the work required to be successful. It can be easy to be in a positive mind frame every day when you are living life. 

In my search for finding successful people I turned towards athletes. It must be a huge pressure to perform and ensure failures and get back at it again. I learned that some athletes can learn to trigger a feeling of success through smell and sound alone -- outside of competitions. For example, when some athletes are feeling in a really strong, powerful state during training, they smell lavender oil and listen to a certain song. They then repeat these steps before competitions to bring back those powerful feelings. "It can actually elicit quite strong emotions," said Fletcher, explaining how connecting to these neural pathways can help trigger the unconscious brain, pushing the athlete into a really positive state of mind. 

Conditioning your brain is the secret to not only win Olympic medals but also win in the race called Life. Top tennis player Andy Murray often leafs through a notebook during his tennis matches to remind him that he's prepared, capable and ready to win. 

Getting into the zone – also known as “being in a state of flow” – usually happens when we are energized, in a good mood and doing things we enjoy and have some level of skill that meets the demands of the task.

Will a checklist help? Perhaps.  If routine that is continually done and adapted with years and comfort level- you might be able to recreate your zone over and over again. Sometimes it can just be music or a song, sometimes the same setting/place, a perfume.

No matter what it takes, its something essential to continue doing the good work and being you. And its’ not easy. So make the changes and see what gets you in the zone and keep doing it. I don’t think I get into the zone on a regular basis but it helps a lot when I do.

Few things I have been trying to do:

• Have a routine
• Repeat the routine during the same time everyday (till it becomes natural and just repeating it puts me in the mood- to relax or write or feel positive)
• For me sound, visuals and smell work great- I use songs, sometimes visual boards (my office has one) and perfume (I have set perfumes for days when I am not quite myself to make me be myself)

We are all humans and getting into the zone might end up being challenging but that’s what we should look at it- a challenge that needs constant work and adaption.

(Pic courtesy: Pinterest)

Whats in my Bedside Table- The Reading List

This is whats going on right now.

The last book I read was The Sleep Revolution.

Current Read- The Checklist Manifesto.

To read- The Talent Code.

To see why you should be reading these as well, check this space next week.

Whats in your bag?

(Pic Courtesy: Soma Bhattacharya)

This is How I work- Laurens Bonnema

Laurens Bonnema is an Agile Management Consultant with Xebia and an expert in sustainably aligning business and IT to improve the results of IT projects. He also helps people (re)learn how to visualize their ideas through sketchnoting, graphic recording, and videoscribing so they can communicate those ideas more effectively, help each other to solve problems, and have lots of fun.

For the past 17 years, Laurens has served in almost every role in IT. Even Project Manager! More about Laurens’ work at Xebia can be found here. Want to know more about sketch-noting, graphic recording, and videoscribing? Hop on over to www.bonnema.ink.

When do you wake up every day? What’s your alarm set to? 

 My alarm is set to 5:55. Most of the time, that’s also when I wake up.

Tea or Coffee? 

Coffee in the morning, tea in the afternoon.

Any rituals to set the tone for the day in the morning? 

After I wake up, I drink a glass of water and meditate for 10 minutes. When time permits, I read a few newspapers on my iPhone before getting out of bed. If not, I hit the shower, get dressed and go downstairs to grab some breakfast. Over breakfast, I look at my calendar to get a feel for the day, and check my Sprint Backlog to select the three most important things I want to get done today.

When do you feel most productive?

I feel most productive in the morning. That’s when I get most of my work done. After 12:00, my energy tapers off. I usually experience a small burst of residual productivity around 21:00. But between 12:00 and 21:00, I’m mostly on autopilot.

Where do you work?

Work is where the client is. For me, that’s usually in or near one of the main cities in The Netherlands: Rotterdam, Amsterdam, and Utrecht. But I’ve done assignments in Spain, France, Italy, Turkey, and India as well.

Three must have items on your desk

 If I could pick only three items to have on my desk, it would be my Leuchtturm1917 Whitelines Link notebook, Montblanc Meisterstück LeGrand fountain pen, and Apple Macbook Pro.

What do you listen to while working?

To concentrate on work, I listen to classical music. Mostly Mozart. When I need less focus, I switch to podcasts. At the moment, the Tough Girl Podcast by Sarah Williams is my favorite.

What are you reading currently?

I’ve just finished “Your Press Release is Breaking my Heart” by Janet Murray and am currently reading “Verbaal Meesterschap (Verbal Mastery)” by Remco Claassen. Remco is one of the most celebrated public speakers in The Netherlands. Next up is “Ego is the Enemy” by Ryan Holiday.

How do you organize?

I use Scrum to stay organized and productive. I have a Product Backlog spread out over several Trello boards. Every two weeks, I select items from those boards and put them in Todoist. That’s my Sprint Backlog. Every day, I select the three most important items to get done from Todoist. Some days I do more, almost never less. I don’t distinguish between personal and client items. When I did, the personal items never seemed to get done. Now, I have a nice work-life-swirl going that suits me much better than work-life-balance.

Any hacks you prefer for work?

 Learn something new! And start teaching it to others as soon as you’re somewhat competent. It will keep you engaged, fresh, and enthusiastic. That translates to all the other stuff you do. Even the stuff you don’t like as much.

What are your favorite gadgets?

At the moment, my favorite gadget is my iPad Pro. I love it! It’s a wonderful drawing tool that also functions as a powerful tablet. Highly recommended for anyone getting into digital drawing!

What apps can you not live without?

 It’s a bit of a list I’m afraid, but I’ll try to keep it brief and limit myself to the eleven iPhone/iPad apps I rely on the most that aren’t time-wasters: Mail, Trello, Todoist, Calendar, Fantastical, Buffer, Overcast, OPTIMIZE, Headspace, Adobe Draw, and Concepts.

Any new addition to your routines?

The newest addition to my routine is guided meditation with Headspace. I’ve been meditating for years without guidance, and I love the way Headspace makes it easy to stay focussed. I’m still a bit on the fence about it though. Maybe in a few weeks I’ll discover I prefer unguided meditation after all.

Also, I’m trying to make habits of exercise and writing. Mostly failing at that so far. So tomorrow I’ll try again!

How do you recharge?

Reading. Nothing gets me relaxed faster than reading a great novel. That, and sleep of course.

(Pic courtesy: Laurens Bonnema)

Happy Weekend

(Pic courtesy: Pinterest)

Getting off the Grid- You can save yourself

When the sun shines on you, you have a got a good day.

We are so busy and overwhelmed with work and life that we are always running around trying to sort out our to-do's. We have stopped smelling the roses.

And we pay the price for it.

Coping up to keep ourselves in the current workforce leads to around 56% with musculoskeletal symptoms. 22% newly diagnosed hypertension,10% had diabetes, 36% had dyslipidemia, 54% had depression, anxiety and insomnia, 40% had obesity. The stress score was higher in employees who developed diabetes, hypertension and depression. (Source)

Did you know that work stress has been categorized through a series of  stages.

1. The honeymoon stage: Euphoric feeling if excitement, enthusiasm, challenges and pride on getting a new job. Dysfunctional processes include the depletion of energy reserves in coping and adapting to the new environment.
2. The full throttle stage: Going full swing leads to a depletion of resources. Other symptoms include dissatisfaction, sleep disturbances, overeating, drinking or smoking.
3. The chronic symptom stage: Development of chronic symptoms like physical illness, anger and depression.
4. The crisis stage: Persistence of symptoms leads to disease, chronic backache, headache, high BP, insomnia, etc., would develop.
5. Hitting the wall stage: No person can continue under strain for too long and one may reach the end of one's professional career. Burnout stress syndrome takes over.
6. The opposite: Rust our stress syndrome occurs under extreme hypo stress. This is likely to occur when the gap between one’ capabilities and environmental demands becomes too wide.

We don’t realize the stress we are putting our bodies through until something goes wrong and we are spending our time more at the doctor’s lobby than in office or home.

According to the American Optometric Association, people who use computers daily at work or at home could suffer from computer vision syndrome  , which leaves them vulnerable to problems like dry eye, eyestrain, neck and backaches, light sensitivity and fatigue.

We are all aware of what happens. Rarely do we take the time to sit down and plan to change our lifestyle. I know it firsthand. I have moved between countries, thought myself as a go-getter, done well for myself with a full time job and a blog and hosting meet up group because networking is a good, right? I ate mostly healthy, exercised rarely and wondered if I would ever have the time to sit down with a cup of tea and read a novel? I didn’t and with motherhood, my workload went crazy. I had the help, however no one can take the stress of the mind to trying to juggling so many things. I felt guilty that I couldn’t write the blog, I was so exhausted by the end of the day. Small things piled up over the years till I was sitting in a doctors lobby recently did I realize there’s no meaning for all the ambition if I can’t balance my health along with it.

So, here are 5 steps you can consider:

1. Move- there’s no alternative to moving your body and keeping it healthy. Don’t worry if you don’t have  a gym or a park nearby- just walk during lunch. If you can’t take longer breaks form life or work, try in small increments. I started using my office gym because once I landed home, I never had the time. I try walking around in office, taking stairs and a quick walk during lunch for like 10 minutes. They all add up and it helps- your mood and health 
   
2. Meals- Try limiting takeout food, eating cookies or chips for lunch isn’t a good idea. Plan ahead, make a salad or a stir fry and just take it with you. Try a smoothie. What you put in your body matters, instead of a fizzy drink try coconut water. And this isn’t some words just typed in because I liked my burgers and fizzy drinks- it de-stressed me... till I figured out how much sugar I was putting in my body and zero nutrition for nothing. Eat healthy and once in a while indulge in your fav food.
3. Take Breaks- don’t sit at a stretch for hours at work, I am guilty of it too, I am trying to change. Use a reminder, apps, alarm- anything that works for you, but take a break. Your eyes and body will thank you for it. Take breaks as in vacation, even if it means you are just sitting at home reading a good book.
4. Stop Being Guilty- prioritize yourself. It’s okay to not finish that painting by the weekend, your well being matters the most. Instead just go out and play, the weathers on your side now.
5. Create a Routine to Relax- unwind every day, end of day. When you work around the same routine every day, it gives the cue to your brain, it’s time to get to bed now or sleep. So, the first step of your routine will often get you relaxed like getting in your pj’s.

The most important of all, stop saying I don’t have time. It’s not about time it’s about priority. Nothing beats your health because if that’s not on your side, your career and ambition is in for a steep fall.

So, when overwhelmed GET OFF THE GRID. It's okay to postpone sometimes, its allright to say I will take care of myself first, it better to prevent, it's logical to switch of your digital belongings and accounts couple of times a week, try being a minimal and natural as possible and then go out and conquer the world. 

(Pic courtesy: Image 1, Image 2)

What I have been reading and why it matters to you

I wanted to share with you some random links that makes sense when you look at it from your personal development point of view.

For success, life not only has to be organized, you have to be in a very stable mental space and none of them just happen to happen. I hope you find something in these stories that helps you find that zone. 

• Does it matter where you sit in office, find out here.   
• Being comfortable and confident is important, find out why 
• Books on Behavioral changes 
• Ways to style your work desk as you progress through the years.
• Minimal distraction writing tool 
• Ways to declutter, here's how 

And looking for a real pick me up, don't miss this. Malcolm Gladwell being interviewed by Tim Ferris.

"For one hour of writing, there's three hours of thinking". 

This is How I Work- Peter Taylor

Peter Taylor is a PMO expert currently leading a Global PMO, with 200 project managers acting as custodians for nearly 5,000 projects around the world, for Kronos Inc. - a billion-dollar software organisation delivering Workforce Management Solutions.  He is also the author of the number 1 bestselling project management book ‘The Lazy Project Manager’.

In the last 4 years Peter has delivered over 200 lectures around the world in over 25 countries and has been described as ‘perhaps the most entertaining and inspiring speaker in the project management world today’. More information can be found at www.thelazyprojectmanager.com  – and through his free podcasts in iTunes.

When do you wake up every day? What’s your alarm set to? 
I don’t have a pattern since I am moving regularly between the UK and the US, plus a few other countries in between just to make it interesting, but I am a morning person so wake up easily and can adapt to whatever time zone I am in.

Tea or Coffee? 
Coffee, most definitely coffee.

Any rituals to set the tone for the day in the morning? 
I like to get ready for the day, then check emails, deal with anything urgent and then take some time to go out for, and enjoy, a coffee, before returning for the working day.

When do you feel most productive? 
Well I said I was a morning person, which I am, but creatively I develop a lot of ideas on flights and also at night so productivity happens at various times.

Where do you work? 

I am based at home and have a pleasant first floor office in my house, but I also work out of various offices and customer locations as needed – as long as I have my phone and laptop work can happen.

Three must have items in your desk 
A clean writing pad, pens and laptop – phones come next on the list – oh and a webcam (visual engagement is so much better than just audio) – I know that is more than three items but I do need them all.

What do you listen to while working? 
A wide variety of music, in fact when writing one of my books you will often find a credit to a band or singer who ‘helped’ me on the journey to completing a manuscript. I find that if I ever get stuck on a problem or in the middle of writing them something ‘heavy’ (Metallica for example) somehow frees my mind and gets me going again. That said my music library is extensive and varied so there is always something good to listen to (well I think it is good but we all have different musical tastes).

What are you reading currently?
I usually have three or more books on the go at any time, something on my Kindle, and an audio book for when I travel, and a business book (printed) for education. Right now I am about to start ‘How to Lead a Quest: a handbook for pioneering executives’ by Dr Jason Fox.

How do you organize? 
‘Productively Lazily’ since it is the mantra in my bestselling book ‘The Lazy Project Manager’. I apply the 80/20 as much as I can, focusing on what really matters, daily sorting through what is most important and most impactful and working on that first of all – it works, well it works for me. Just remember the great quote ‘Progress isn't made by early risers. It's made by lazy men trying to find easier ways to do something’ Robert Heinlein

Any hacks you prefer for work?
It is not really a hack but I do inject fun as much as possible in my work, surprising my team sometimes with some unusual activities or ideas – the ‘hack’ is to throw people off path to think more creatively and be more productive

What are your favorite gadgets?
I guess it has to be my iPhone for various business and personal uses but generally I am not a gadget person – just give me the laptop and phone and I can work

What apps can you not live without?
Because of my travel activity I use the various airline apps a lot along with my travel company app, but I do love Audible for audio books so that is probably my number one

Any new addition to your routines? 
Always open to changes, apart from the coffee part, but nothing recent

How do you recharge? 
Writing. I always find that being a little creative allows me to relax and recharge.

(Pic courtesy: Peter Taylor)