Tomorrow heralds the start of an international event - Turn Off TV week (http://www.tvturnoff.org).
A study in America revealed that:
On average, children spend more time in front of the television than they do at school.
40% of Americans frequently or always watch television during dinner.
How much TV do you watch?
How does this impact on your life?
What would it take for you to turn off or reduce your television watching over the next week?
If you watch 2 hours per day, just think, you have 14 extra hours in your week to do other things.
You could take up a new hobby, try a new sport, play games with your family, go out for invigorating walks, read a new book - how do these sound?
For just one week, why don't you change your habits and do something different? Let me know how you get on.
Sunday, 20 April 2008
Sunday, 6 April 2008
Changing weather, changing habits
A few days ago, I was walking around in jeans and a T-shirt. It felt like spring was finally around the corner - my washing was drying on the line and the back door of my house was letting in lovely fresh air. Yet today, I wake up to snow! Now this is a rare sight in Portsmouth - where I am just a few minutes away from the water, and where it snows about one day of the year!
It is a beautiful day today - and believe me, it will last for just a day - and it has made me think about how we can change things in our lives.
We all have habits, those things we do automatically. Whether that is having a glass of wine with a meal, or making the first coffee of the day. Many people do things on autopilot when they get up in the morning and rarely think about what they are doing or why.
We all have habits, some of which are acceptable, and some which can be detrimental to our life.
What habits would you like to change?
What new habits would you like to bring into your life?
Did you know that you can change a habit in three weeks?
You might want to give something up, like a food or drink, such as chocolate, tea or alcohol, stop procrastinating, or switch off the TV in the evening for some quiet time. Or you might want to start to do something different like find time to read for 30 minutes a day, go to the gym, or schedule some play time for you. Whatever you want to do, you can change this habit.
Just start today, do something different and in three weeks, and it will become part of your life.
Take my challenge today, and let me know how you get on. Now, I am going to play in the snow!
Tuesday, 25 March 2008
How productive are you at work?
According to recent research, British people only have the energy to work five hour days. The study, which was carried out by Boots, states that the average employee loses 151 minutes a day through tiredness, and in fact, many people only wake up fully 45 minutes into the day!
The research among 4,000 office workers in the UK indicates that many people fall into a lull at around 2pm after taking a 32 minute lunch break. The research shows that this slump can last an hour and 14 minutes. This means that employees are productive for just 5 hours of the working day.
So, why is this the case? The average worker survives on a diet of tea, coffee and snacks, and many people fail to take a proper lunch break away from their desk. So a simple diet and lifestyle change can help to reinvigorate workers. But increasing stress levels can make it difficult to maintain energy levels.
The are many other factors which influence productivity at work. If you are not happy at work, it can impact on your motivation and how much you enjoy your job.
So what could you do differently to enjoy your job and jump out of bed in the morning?
How would you like to be motivated all day in your job?
What three things could you do differently today to help you to be more productive at work?
The research among 4,000 office workers in the UK indicates that many people fall into a lull at around 2pm after taking a 32 minute lunch break. The research shows that this slump can last an hour and 14 minutes. This means that employees are productive for just 5 hours of the working day.
So, why is this the case? The average worker survives on a diet of tea, coffee and snacks, and many people fail to take a proper lunch break away from their desk. So a simple diet and lifestyle change can help to reinvigorate workers. But increasing stress levels can make it difficult to maintain energy levels.
The are many other factors which influence productivity at work. If you are not happy at work, it can impact on your motivation and how much you enjoy your job.
So what could you do differently to enjoy your job and jump out of bed in the morning?
How would you like to be motivated all day in your job?
What three things could you do differently today to help you to be more productive at work?
Saturday, 1 March 2008
Become a firewalker with Tony Robbins
What were you doing 8 days ago? Were you walking on hot coals like me?
Last weekend I attended the amazing Unleash the Power Within event run by Anthony Robbins at the ExCel centre in London. Like many other wonderful people, I spend most of my time working with others, helping them to identify and achieve their goals and last weekend was time for me!
Along with 8,000 other people, I learnt the power of getting into a peak physical state to allow me to achieve anything I want to do, such as walking barefoot over a bed of hot coals!
By using key coaching, neuro linguistic programming and neuro-associative conditioning techniques, Tony helps people to develop unstoppable beliefs in their abilities, understand what drives them and how to develop the techniques for peak performance.
So, what stops people achieving what they want in their life? You can start by following the following techniques:
1. Know what you want to achieve - be specific.
2. Know why this is a must in your life.
3. Get yourself in a peak psychological and physical state.
4. Decide what you are going to do and take action.
5. If it doesn't work, find another way of doing it!
6. Get a coach, mentor or expert to help you to achieve your goals.
See you there next year!
Last weekend I attended the amazing Unleash the Power Within event run by Anthony Robbins at the ExCel centre in London. Like many other wonderful people, I spend most of my time working with others, helping them to identify and achieve their goals and last weekend was time for me!
Along with 8,000 other people, I learnt the power of getting into a peak physical state to allow me to achieve anything I want to do, such as walking barefoot over a bed of hot coals!
By using key coaching, neuro linguistic programming and neuro-associative conditioning techniques, Tony helps people to develop unstoppable beliefs in their abilities, understand what drives them and how to develop the techniques for peak performance.
So, what stops people achieving what they want in their life? You can start by following the following techniques:
1. Know what you want to achieve - be specific.
2. Know why this is a must in your life.
3. Get yourself in a peak psychological and physical state.
4. Decide what you are going to do and take action.
5. If it doesn't work, find another way of doing it!
6. Get a coach, mentor or expert to help you to achieve your goals.
See you there next year!
Saturday, 16 February 2008
Valentine's day
Just in case you missed it, it was Valentine's day last Thursday!
According to a survey in 2002, a quarter of all long term relationships start at work. Many people spend so much time at work, so it is not surprising that love blossoms over the photocopier and relationships start. I actually met my husband when we were students working in Sainsbury's!
However, many organisations are banning people from having relationships with their colleagues, enforcing rules, or policing love in the workplace. On the most part, an office romance should not impact on work as long as the couple keep their love life separate from work and ensure that it does not cause a conflict of interest. Or if the worst happens, that a lover's tiff or breakup does not impact on their work or their colleagues.
You might be interested in looking at the following website for more tips on how to manage a relationship at work - http://www.worksmart.org.uk/rights/viewsubsection.php?sun=85.
What do you think about relationships at work?
According to a survey in 2002, a quarter of all long term relationships start at work. Many people spend so much time at work, so it is not surprising that love blossoms over the photocopier and relationships start. I actually met my husband when we were students working in Sainsbury's!
However, many organisations are banning people from having relationships with their colleagues, enforcing rules, or policing love in the workplace. On the most part, an office romance should not impact on work as long as the couple keep their love life separate from work and ensure that it does not cause a conflict of interest. Or if the worst happens, that a lover's tiff or breakup does not impact on their work or their colleagues.
You might be interested in looking at the following website for more tips on how to manage a relationship at work - http://www.worksmart.org.uk/rights/viewsubsection.php?sun=85.
What do you think about relationships at work?
Monday, 4 February 2008
How often do you change your job?
In a career coaching workshop I was running last week, we were discussing the changes in the way people work. When my father was in employment, it was generally the norm to stay in the same organisation for a long time. In fact he remained working for a well known bank for 32 years before taking early retirement.
Statistics show that people now change their careers around 7 times during their lifetime. But changes happen many times in a person's life which influences their choice of career at that time. This can be an enforced changes such as redundancy or relocation of a partner's role, or can be due to a lifestyle change, such as having a family, children leaving home or divorce.
According an article in HR Look today, an increasing number of UK employees plan to stay in their jobs for a longer period of time as a result of improved workplace quality, according to the Great Place to Work Institute. This is attributed to uncertainly in economic markets, but also due to workplaces investing more time and money to create a positive working environment. The research is showing that more and more people tend to stay for three years in a company rather than just switching and going to another organisation. This is positive news, and according to the Great Place to Work Institute's 100 Best Workplaces in Europe survey, 76% of employees believe their managers show genuine interest in them as a person and not just as a worker.
This is great news, how do you feel about this?
Statistics show that people now change their careers around 7 times during their lifetime. But changes happen many times in a person's life which influences their choice of career at that time. This can be an enforced changes such as redundancy or relocation of a partner's role, or can be due to a lifestyle change, such as having a family, children leaving home or divorce.
According an article in HR Look today, an increasing number of UK employees plan to stay in their jobs for a longer period of time as a result of improved workplace quality, according to the Great Place to Work Institute. This is attributed to uncertainly in economic markets, but also due to workplaces investing more time and money to create a positive working environment. The research is showing that more and more people tend to stay for three years in a company rather than just switching and going to another organisation. This is positive news, and according to the Great Place to Work Institute's 100 Best Workplaces in Europe survey, 76% of employees believe their managers show genuine interest in them as a person and not just as a worker.
This is great news, how do you feel about this?
Thursday, 31 January 2008
Stress down day
Tomorrow, 1st February 2008, it is Stress Down Day in the UK.
In conjuction with The Samaritans, the day aims to stamp out stress and asks eveyone to wear their slippers and take part in stress reducing activities.
Each of us cope with stress in different ways. Ask yourself the following questions:
On a scale of 1-10, how much stress do you have in your life at the moment?
How do you cope with stress?
What three things could you do differently to cope with stress better?
If you would like some hints and tips to manage stress in your life, visit the site for more information. Go to http://www.stressdownday.org/.
In conjuction with The Samaritans, the day aims to stamp out stress and asks eveyone to wear their slippers and take part in stress reducing activities.
Each of us cope with stress in different ways. Ask yourself the following questions:
On a scale of 1-10, how much stress do you have in your life at the moment?
How do you cope with stress?
What three things could you do differently to cope with stress better?
If you would like some hints and tips to manage stress in your life, visit the site for more information. Go to http://www.stressdownday.org/.
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