EQUIPOISE: for work and life

March: Spiritual Wellness Month

2009-03-15T07:50:00.000-07:00

“All that we are is the result of what we have thought.
The mind is everything. What we think, we become.”
- Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, founder of Transcendental Meditation

Overview

Spiritual Wellness is becoming increasingly more popular and mainstream. Even now, though, the concept of spirituality still seems a bit hokey to many people. The simplest way to describe spiritual wellness is that it is a realization that all of us are connected to a single source of creation. It involves seeking meaning and purpose in our human existence. One of the biggest questions on the topic is if spirituality and religion are the same thing. I found this distinction from Patrick Moore, Health Expert for Yahoo! that I thought was interesting:

"A fundamental difference between spirituality and religion is that spirituality is individual. 12-step programs operate by "attraction rather than promotion" whereas organized religions often promote their values with missionary zeal. In spiritual programs, my faith is exactly that - mine. It does little good for me to try and coerce you into my belief system."

And spirituality isn’t just something we keep at home anymore. Workplace spirituality is something more and more corporations are seeing the value in. Things such as helping employees assess their passions and values in pursuit of meaningful work are some of the ways companies are opening their business doors to spiritual wellness.

3/24: Three things you can do in the next 24 hours to get the ball rolling

Create a positive affirmation
I use affirmations with my coaching clients in their career impact process. An affirmation is a positive statement designed to counteract a negative belief that you possess. It is a powerful component in eliminating self-limiting thoughts and words, and can be used to apply to all your life goals. In his article, "A Time to Work and a Time to Play!" Ronnie Nijmeh highlights the differences in balance needs of single people, couples without children, and couples with children. He also offers the following list of possible affirmations you can use to help you achieve work-life balance:

I keep work and play in a healthy balance.
I deserve to spend time relaxing.
I deserve to spend time enjoying my family.
I have a balanced life.
I cherish the time I have to enjoy my spouse.
I enjoy my work and the excellent job that I do.
I enjoy my time to play with my children.

Don't limit yourself to these statements - use them as a guide and make them unique to your own personal goals. If you are new to using affirmations, at first it may seem a bit awkward, but this is a very normal reaction to something that is new and that requires a paradigm shift.

Meditate
Try this basic meditation session from Create-Health-and-Wellness.com

• Pick a Positive Affirmation or sound that you believe in 100%, such as, “one”, “Love”, “Good Health”, “AH” or “OM.”
• If you don’t feel comfortable with a word or sound, just concentrate on every breath you take, in & out.
• Sit quietly in a comfortable position. Avoid interruptions, like the telephone. Place both feet on the ground.
• Close your eyes or focus on a small object, like a flame, put your right hand over your left hand and place them gently in your lap.
• Breathe slowly and naturally, and as you breathe out, say your word or sound out loud or to yourself.
• Don't worry about your performance. When thoughts (or chatter) come to mind, simply say to yourself, "Oh well," and gently return to your repetition.
• Do this as long as you like.
• Do not stand immediately. Continue sitting quietly for a minute or so, allowing other thoughts to return. Then open your eyes and sit for another minute before rising.

Self-awareness in your career
A career that is fulfilling is usually one that provides us with more than just big bucks. After the novelty of money wears off, you’re left with, well, the job. And if the job isn’t satisfying, you need to dedicate time to really getting to know yourself. To begin, spend a few minutes thinking about and writing down your values. Then, pull out your resume or job description. How much of what you are doing or what you have done is a reflection of those values?

Tools & Resources

Spiritual Wellness Assessment
A New Earth online classes – based on Eckhart Tolles book, these online classes are featured on Oprah.com
Marianne Williamson’s Miracle Thought Podcasts

February: Relationship Wellness Month

2009-02-08T17:17:00.000-08:00

"However good or bad you feel about your relationship, the person you are with at this moment is the "right" person, because he or she is the mirror of who you are inside."

- Deepak Chopra

Overview:

Relationships take centre stage in the month of February. We don’t live and work in a vacuum, so it just makes sense that the quality of the relationships we maintain will affect our ability to achieve our goals in work and life. In fact, many experts have posited that healthy relationships may even be more important to our overall well-being than fitness and nutrition. But what are relationships, and how do we make them “well”? Relationships are the most common, universal experience that vary in degree of “closeness”. Family, friends, acquaintances, coworkers and even clients are some of the more important groups that we forge relationships with to meet several of our basic needs as humans. As they say, “It takes two to tango”, and there’s no denying the fundamental give-and-take nature of relationships. But why not focus this month on how you can be personally proactive in nurturing the relationships that are meaningful to you. Your personal health may thank you for it.

3/24: Three things you can do in the next 24 hours to get the ball rolling

Love yourself first
Before you can even begin to successfully nurture relationships with other people, you need to learn and take time to develop a strong relationship with yourself. By loving and respecting yourself, you engage in behaviour that communicates to others that you are deserving of respect. What can you do right now to demonstrate love to yourself? Hueina Su, MS, BSN, CEC , says that self-care is a form of self-love. Create non-negotiable self-care practices for yourself (for example, reading, tea time, yoga, exercise, meditation, monthly girls night out, yearly physical check-up, massage, pursuing a hobby, etc.). The next step would be to stay true to it.

Look for the good in others
Whenever I’m having a tense time with my husband, it is all too easy for me to conjure up all his negative traits (and I’m sure he could do the same for me!). I frequently notice how we get into a negative loop either through toxic talk or thoughts about each other. So here is an exercise that is very useful that you can do with just about anyone in your circle. Place that specific person in your mind, and then begin writing down all the qualities you admire in them. Yes, it seems as though actually writing it down is much more powerful than just thinking it in your head. Everyone possesses qualities that are redeeming and likable, and by writing them down you can get yourself out of that negative headspace that is a barrier to progress and well-being.

Do one thing for someone at work
The workplace is filled with people we interact with on a very regular basis. And considering most people - if working full-time - spend the vase majority of their working hours at the workplace, it’s only logical that the quality of those relationships will affect our mental, emotional and physical health. To get into the habit of creating some really good karma at work, find one person you work with and do one good thing for them: let them know you appreciate them, tell them what they’re doing well, pitch in and help them with a deadline. Start with just one person and one kind act, and do your share to fill your workplace with positive energy.

Tools
Discovery Health Relationships Tools

Web resources
Work With People: Interpersonal Relationships, Conflict Resolution (About.com)
Relationship Wellness

Family Health and Family Relationships

Reading
10 Tips for Building a Strong Relationship (eBook)

Healthy Relationships and Healthy You
Your Trump Card: Self-Love

Approval Addiction

January: Financial Wellness Month

2009-01-04T10:59:00.000-08:00

“We should love people and use money, not the other way around” – Bob Proctor, author of “You Were Born Rich”

Overview:
It seems very timely that January would be named Financial Wellness Month. Particularily in light of the current economy, this new year brings an opportunity to get our financial affairs in check. Townson University in Maryland provides the following description of what it means to be financially well, “People with high financial well-being may have a lot of money or a little, but either way they are able to live within their means, not spending more money than they have. They are aware of where their money goes, and they have a budget that they stick to, as well as a long-range financial plan. They are aware of and meet their financial obligations and generally have a comfortable relationship with money.”

Do it now:
Try these two tips from FinancialWellness.blogspot.com

Go on a Money Diet
You've heard of going on a diet to lose weight and get back in shape...Have you ever considered going on a money diet? Not spending any money so you can get back in financial shape?
Try this: make a deal with yourself that you will not spend a dollar for one week. No eating out, no buying stuff on ebay, no downloading music or MP3's, no filling up the car, no buying groceries, no shopping at all. What changes do you need to make? Take your lunch to work with you, carpool, listen to your existing music library, eat stuff you have in your cupboards or fridge. Try it and see how much you can save. It's the little things that add up.

Visualize Your Way to Success
In Bob Proctor's book, You Were Born Rich he suggests that the images we hold in our mind create our reality. "Your entire life is governed by images. It necessarily follows then, that you should be acutely aware of the images you are building in your mind."It is rare if ever, that you hear successful people amazed of their own success - they are not only aware of the steps they took to become successful, but they've spent countless hours visualizing the process, the people involved, and seeing themselves achieving the highest levels possible.Therefore, it stands to reason, that if successful people visualize success, and success involves visualization...that you should spend time each day in quiet solitude seeing and visualizing in your minds eye - all that you hope to be, do and achieve.

More tips...

Get paid what you're worth

Managing the money you have is an obvious part of financial wellness, but what about increasing the money you earn through work? Salary negotiation can seem daunting for anyone, but you'll have a far greater chance of succeding if you can demonstrate your business impact to your employer. Rick Smith of executive search firm Spencer Stuart states that in your career planning, "Above all, figure out how to improve your value to the people you'll be working for (and with) along the way. "If you expand your value," Smith says, "sooner or later, the market will pay for you." He further states that compensation is a trailing indicator of success: that you don't get paid for what you're doing, you get paid for what you've already done. As a quick exercise, begin writing down your accomplishments with your current employer. You'll begin to see if you have the leverage to get the compensation you deserve, or at the very least see what you'll need to start doing to get there.

Frugal Friends

I have a few friends that have mastered the art of frugal living. They are my role models. Every time I get together with them, they indirectly help me resist the temptation of overconsumption. Surround yourself with people who will provide you with a positive influence to help you reach your goals, and redefine the meaning of “success”.

Tools
Financial Gadget
Worksheets for success
Spending plan
Financial Wellness Check-up
Spend Less Calculator

Web Resources
FinancialLiteracyMonth.com
Ontario Association of Credit Counselling Services
InChargeCanada.ca
SimpleDebtFreeLiving.com
FrugalLiving.about.com

Reading
“You Were Born Rich” – by Bob Proctor (free e-Book)
Are you suffering from “affluenza”?
Is your online spending out of control?
Broke vs. Poor – what is the difference?

Focus on Wellness: a New Year begins!

2009-01-04T08:41:00.001-08:00

A new year brings a fresh opportunity to become an active force in your own journey to wellness. This year, Equipoise: for work and life will spend each month in 2009 focusing on a different dimension of wellness. So what is "wellness" exactly? Although there isn't much agreement on the precise definition, what we can say is that it is more than simply the absense of disease. DefinitionOfWellness.com describes it as follows:

Wellness is an active process of becoming aware of and making choices toward a more successful existence.
Process means that improvement is always possible
Aware means that we are continuously seeking more information about how we can improve.
Choices means that we consider a variety of options and select those in our best
interest.
Success is determined by each individual to be their collection of life accomplishments.

Each month Equipoise: for work and life will highlight a different dimension, and you can use the information as an opportunity to plan your own wellness goals. Each blog entry will offer the following:

Overview: A description of the dimension of wellness for the month

Do It Now: The hardest part of reaching our goals is not neccessarily creating them, but actually carrying out the steps to see them through. Breaking down goals into manageable chunks is a classic way to see your plan come to life. This section will offer strategies that you can implement immediately to get the ball rolling.

Tools: Worksheets, gadgets and quizzes

Web Resources: Many organizations provide free online materials and can point you towards additional resources and information

Reading: A list of articles and even some free e-books for further reading in each dimension

If you are ready to begin working on creating greater wellness for yourself and for your family, subscribe to our blog posts(found in the right sidebar) and stay tuned each month. All the best for a happy, healthy and prosperous year!

16 Ways to Eat Healthy While Keeping it Cheap

2008-12-02T08:03:00.000-08:00

Written by Mehdi

Eating healthy is important. Eating healthy:
- Lowers disease risks
- Increases productivity
- Gives you more energy
- Makes you stronger

You probably think eating healthy is expensive. I’ll be honest - it is. But there are tricks to keep it low cost. Here are sixteen ways to eat more healthy while keeping it cheap.
What is Healthy Food? Before we start, let’s define healthy food. It consists of:
- Protein. The building blocks of muscles, needed for strength.
- Fat. A balanced intake of omega 3, 6 & 9.
- Veggies. All kinds, especially green fibrous veggies.
- Fruit. Full of vitamins.
- Water. 1 liter per 1000 calories you expend.
- Whole grain food. Oats, rice, pasta, breads, ?

On with the tips.

Switch to Water. I drank huge amounts of soda daily for more than 15 years. Then I started Strength Training and switched to water:
- It’s healthier
- It’s cheaper
Quit the soda & drink water. Take a bottle wherever you go.
Consume Tap Water. Check the price of water on your tap water bill. Now check the price of bottled water. Quit a difference, isn’t it? So why are you buying bottled water?
- Cleaner? Not necessarily.
- Better taste? No, simply a matter of Adaptation.
Bottled water companies get their supply from the same source you do: municipal water systems. It’s like selling ice to Eskimos. If you don’t trust the quality of tap water, filter it yourself. I use a Brita Pitcher. One $7 filter cleans 40 gallons water.

3. Eat Eggs. I always have eggs at breakfast:
- Full of vitamins
- High in proteins
- Low in price
Don’t believe the Eggs & Cholesterol myth. Dietary cholesterol is not bound to blood cholesterol. Want to make it cheaper? Buy a chicken.

4. Eat Fatty Meats. Fatty meats are cheaper & more tasty than lean meats. You think it’s not healthy? Check the Fat Myths:
- Fat doesn’t make you fat, excess calories do
- You need a balanced intake of fats: omega 3, 6 & 9
- I’m on the Anabolic Diet, I buy beef chuck instead of sirloin.

Feng Shui: bringing balance to your home

2008-10-28T10:10:00.001-07:00

I am attracted to alternative ways of achieving wellness and have become quite intrigued by the principles of Feng Shui. This ancient Chinese system of balancing the energy patterns of the physical environment is probably more mainstream now than "alternative" because more and more people are looking to nature to help them with their wellness goals.

I found an article called, "Feng Shui for a Healthy Home - How To Create a Happy Space with Feng Shui", by Rodika Tchi, About.com that outlines some really nice ways to create harmonious relationships by applying feng shui energy techniques to your home space. The tips include:

FOCUS on bringing fresh energy into your space - fresh flowers, fresh air, fresh fruits on the kitchen table, fresh (recent) photos, etc.

MOVE your furniture around, even if just a couple inches. Do not keep your bed in the same position year after year. Just moving your bed an inch or two will shift the flow of energy in the room.

KEEP the television out of the bedroom.

CLOSE the bathroom and closet doors in your bedrooms. Keep them clean and clutter free.

FILL your space with beautiful music according to mood - sounds, just like colors, are strong expressions of energy.

DISPLAY photos of you and your partner/family enjoying life.

RESPECT each others boundaries and create space and time where each partner/family member can be by him or herself.

This site is full of great feng shui information and tips well-suited for those of us wanting a good primer.

Creating good energy flow, whether through feng shui, yoga or through other means, is a critical component to bringing about harmony and attracting good things - and good people - to us. Try some of these techniques above to get the ball rolling.

Sick days

2008-08-25T09:33:00.000-07:00

Soon enough, now that summer is coming quickly to an end, the flu and other illnesses will resume their place on the hot topics list. As if being sick isn't enough, we frequently face the added dilemma of what constitutes being ill enough to stay home from work. So I came across an article in CanadianLiving.com entitled "Am I too sick to go to work?" that I thought might be useful to share.

I don't think my husband has taken a sick day in years simply because of the guilt-factor. I've witnessed him in conditions I know warrant a day off to rest and recuperate, but he is too worried about what needs to get done at work............and off he goes. But beyond a person's own health and well-being, illnesses that are contagious also become hazards to the work environment. Here is some interesting information from the article related to the unhealthy workplace:

"Dr. Richard Stanwick, an epidemiologist and chief medical health officer for the Vancouver Island Health Authority in Victoria, cautions that the day you're simply feeling bad – usually the day before symptoms start to show – is when you become infectious. Here's what could happen if you go to work anyway.
You could infect 10 to 15 per cent of the people you come into contact with during the day, if you're in a service industry (for instance, if you’re a bank teller).
A simple cold can turn into something more serious if you have an underlying chronic disease.
You may be ignoring your overall health in a significant way. Working when you should be at home could be a sign that your work-life balance is off-kilter.
Your illness could affect your company's bottom line. You won't be as productive as you normally are, and if you infect some coworkers, they might also have lower productivity"

And what if you have kids? The article also provides suggestions on how to read your child's symptoms when making a decision about whether they should stay at home or go to school. And if your child does need to stay at home, the dilemma of how and when to use your sick days becomes even more pronounced. An article in BlueSuitMom.com advocates creating a Sick Day Plan, In "Sick Day Savvy: How to Take Care of Your Child and Your Career", Dr. Jeanette LeBlanc states it is critical to create these emergency plans. It is better to evaluate your available options well ahead of time so that you are not scrambling at the last minute to figure out arrangements. Whether illnesses happen frequently or infrequently in your home, you can never choose when they may occur, and it may be at the most inopportune time.

Accepting and enjoying the moment

2008-07-09T04:04:00.000-07:00

Even though I left the world of full-time work outside the home, the level of busy-ness and chaos in my life really hasn't changed much. My days are still long and "tension" and "exhaustion" are still part of my vocabulary. Interestingly, even though my load for the day is large, my feelings of tension and fatigue have lessened considerably. It's lessened in frequency and in intensity. I am more excited about life now than I ever have been. I attribute this to the way I now view my life - a series of moments that exist in a point of time, each one of them being wonderful opportunities to grow and learn from. I listen for inspiration from every interaction and every circumstance.

In her blog, Ellen Miller, a technology marketing firm executive who is passionate about work-life balance, talks about her life as a professional and a parent as a three-ringed circus of sorts. She writes, "I write to you this morning completely overwhelmed. Standing in the middle of my three-ring circus of family, work, and personal pursuits, I have moved from my favorite role of ringmaster (I love being in charge) to the lady riding bareback on the white pony (preparing for a huge client presentation). . .while performing a courageous act with the tigers (completing the manuscript for my book). . . in my clown suit (while babysitting Ava). Before noon today I will have performed every role in my personal crazy circus. And I love it." She attributes her ability to love all she does to changing the way she views her multiple roles. She says, "Work/life balance is not something you do or don't do; it's about the enthusiasm with which you greet your roles." She goes on to talk about her hectic earlier years as a working mother and how enthusiasm kept her relatively sane, "I spent more time celebrating my life at that moment than I did lamenting how hard tomorrow would be."

After reading her post I realized that this is the very shift in thinking that I have been working hard to make. Now, I'll be the first to admit that I am still in transition and have moments when I'd like to just run away! But rather than letting those feelings get the best of me and set the tone for my day (and ultimately my life), I become aware of how I feel, name it, and move on. I have come to realize that living in the moment allows me to get nuggets of inspiration that I might otherwise overlook, and out from this my enthusiasm is born.

Using affirmations to achieve work-life balance

2008-07-02T09:34:00.000-07:00

I use affirmations with my coaching clients in their career impact process. An affirmation is a positive statement designed to counteract a negative belief that you possess. It is a powerful component in eliminating self-limiting thoughts and words, and can be used to apply to all your life goals. In his article, "A Time to Work and a Time to Play!" Ronnie Nijmeh highlights the differences in balance needs of single people, couples without children, and couples with children. He also offers the following list of possible affirmations you can use to help you achieve work-life balance:

I keep work and play in a healthy balance.
I deserve to spend time relaxing.
I deserve to spend time enjoying my family.
I have a balanced life.
I cherish the time I have to enjoy my spouse.
I enjoy my work and the excellent job that I do.
I enjoy my time to play with my children.

Don't limit yourself to these statements - use them as a guide and make them unique to your own personal goals. If you are new to using affirmations, at first it may seem a bit awkward, but this is a very normal reaction to something that is new and that requires a paradigm shift.

Clutter and stress

2008-05-21T07:58:00.000-07:00

Okay, I am guilty as charged! Clutter is just one of those things that I have had to work at super-extra hard at controlling. I came to realize (probably after we had the kids) that clutter has only further compounded any stress I may have already had. And according to Feng Shui principles, clutter can drain you of your positive energy. I'm getting MUCH better at it and I can feel the positive effects of it. I came across these 7 Home Organizing Essentials and thought I would share with anyone who struggles with this beast!

I was happy to read in the article The Cost of Clutter that there is a healthy level of clutter, and if I were spending time nagging my family over little bits of mess here and there (come on, we don't live in a model home, nor should we think our home needs to look that way!) then I would be equally stressing myself out. Finding that balance has been very important for me and my sanity.

Technology: friend or foe?

2008-05-07T06:58:00.000-07:00

I've managed to keep a fair distance from many of the high tech gadgets used in business today - so far. Even my cell phone is for "emergency purposes" only. This will probably change in the very near future for me, but I often wonder how I would keep myself from falling into the "available 24/7" scenario that so many people are a part of? It's pretty clear that unless you make a conscious effort to draw some lines, your WLB can go awry. According to an article by the Press Association, Technology 'creating extra work', employees who use remote technology work an extra 20 days per year. That's almost a whole month extra, on your time. I can't imagine how you can give undivided attention to your loved ones (when it should be their time) when you're constantly texting from your Blackberry. I'm not saying technology is a bad thing, and quite honestly I would not be able to run a home-based business without it! But I do think I'll need make some clear boundaries down the road. Tom Musbach from Yahoo! Hot Jobs came up with some nice tips for professional gadget use in his article, Wireless Working: Rudeness Made Easy?. So I'm preparing myself!

Welcome!

2008-05-05T16:42:00.000-07:00

One of the things I love to talk about and get better at is work-life balance. As an entrepreneur and mother of three, I definitely feel the challenges of it first hand! I also know that in an age of boundaryless careers, high tech gadgets and a sandwich generation, it's a real issue for most people. Creating this blog is part of my own "therapy" because as I read and write about it, I make it a priority for my life. I think the information I come across would be useful for anyone, and I invite dialogue from anyone who is interested. If you just want to peruse and learn, that is perfectly fine too!