Randomness — Leave a comment
17
Apr 13

Fun at Work

workfunLet’s face it, the office isn’t always Disneyland. It’s not the happiest place on earth. But, it shouldn’t be so bad either. The key to being happy at work is to not be sad… But it’s not like there’s a happy-sad switch on our foreheads. We have to actively seek to find the happiness. So, I’ve come up with a few ideas for those looking to brighten their days.

First, it’s always nice to smile a lot and be cheerful. Greet everyone with a smile. A nice and cheery “Hello!” is always a good pick-me-up for someone else and when you cheer someone up, you usually end up cheering yourself up, too.

Next thing you can consider is entertainment. A 15-minute entertainment break twice in a workday can work wonders for you. To take your mind off things, watch some funnies on YouTube, play a quick game of cheekbingo or take a break with friends and talk about stuff – no gossip, though, that’s a big no-no. Whatever you do, it has to be relaxing and something fun.

Talking about talk, small talk can do wonders around the office. Go beyond your office buddies and have a quick chat with anyone who’s free. A quick chat about what your the latest movies or your colleague’s hobbies can liven a boring day. Plus, it makes your colleagues feel more comfortable with you.

Breaks are one thing but what do you do through the grind? Well, if your office allows it, playing music is always nice. We all like moving do a beat, don’t we? Why not work to a beat! Just pick a tune that isn’t too distracting and keep the volume at a relatively low level.

Take quick breaks after you hit big goals. Just finished that 22-page report? Well, don’t rush to the next report. Stand up and stretch a bit. Smile, you’ve just accomplished something big. Compliment yourself. Yup, that works!

Most important thing though, as far as I see it, is learning to keep calm. Nothing sucks the fun out of the air than overly worrying about something or being too anxious. Keep calm and just focus. You’ve got a great day ahead.

Self Improvement — Leave a comment
16
Apr 13

The Deal With Empathy

empathy

Empathy is defined as one’s ability to understand and share the feelings of another person. Working in a very people-involved and oriented company, empathy is even part of our professional training. But let’s look at it a bit deeper than “understanding the customer.”

Empathy is something that is very important in friendship. It can start a friendship, deepen a bond between friends and the lack of it can totally cut someone out of the loop. Imagine having a friend who could not empathize with you when you’re going through something incredibly difficult in your lift. To some people that friend might even come off as even being quite mean even when that isn’t the case.

There are some people who have a hard time empathizing with others and this does not mean there’s something wrong with them or you. I think the key to these situations is being there and just listening more than anything. You don’t have to say “I know how you feel” when you don’t. But, you can always say “don’t worry, I’ve got your back” or something.

If you or someone you know can’t empathize, maybe it’s also because a certain closeness between friends isn’t there yet. What do you do? Build that bridge, be a better friend. What does my training manual say? Be creative and inventive. If they have a sad situation you can’t relate to, imagine the situation and put yourself in it. If there’s a story you can’t understand, make a story you can and relate it. While that might sound wrong on so many levels and was written to “make the sale” more than anything, there are time that I actually think there’s something there. I’d rather have my friend share my pain through imagination than stare blankly at me while I wither away into nothingness.

Empathy… you can learn it. LOL :)

Randomness — Leave a comment
22
Mar 13

Just an Awesome Friday

fridayI’ve been incredibly stressed this week. Work has been heavier than usual, bills notifications have started to pop-up in my inbox and I just got over a few days of headaches, dizziness and fever. Crappy week. Crappy, crappy week. But all crappy things come to an end.

Today, I woke up after a good, long night’s sleep. I’m no longer sick and I’m feel like I’m fully charged. I had a good breakfast and got ready for work. I left the house a bit late but, for some amazing reason, there was no traffic on the way to work. I got to work and immediately checked my email to check what how much work I had ahead of me. So, how much? Pretty much nothing. I had my day’s work completed before lunch. I was relaxing all through the afternoon when I decided to check my bills. Now, I had been dreading checking my bills but decided to check them at work since I was having a good day… I figured a little annoyance won’t be so bad. Surprisingly, my bills aren’t as high as I expected so I’m happy. Oh, Sarah left a cupcake on my desk right around 4. Coffee and a cupcake is just an incredibly awesome way to end a work week.

If only today was pay day, it would have been perfect.

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