Dedicated to sharing ideas, resources, and non-traditional thoughts given in the spirit of providing information to contribute to those seeking personal and professional transformation.
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Dedicated to sharing ideas, resources, and non-traditional thoughts given in the spirit of providing information to contribute to those seeking personal and professional transformation. |
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The Free Stuff
"Problems at work are more strongly
associated with health complaints than are any other life stressor-more
so than even financial problems or family problems."
-St. Paul Fire and Marine
Insurance Co. I love a good system crash, a
time when all the phone lines go down, or call volumes exceed
expectations far beyond the norm. I'm ready to rock and roll and jump
right in and get the adrenal rush the stress from this sort of event
generates. This is not a typical reaction for some people, but
those of us who have worked in service and support centers for ages (I'm
going on 30 years now - aka "old") get an adrenaline fix from these
events. Heck, I looked forward to a crisis - it broke up the daily
routine. I know some of you are reading this and shaking your head
in agreement with me. On the other hand too much
of a good thing is hard on people, even those of use who thrive on
the excitement of a major incident. The following are some
considerations and resources to help understand and manage down
stressors in the work place. Different behavioral
types respond to pressures and external stressors differently.
It is crucial to have the skills to understand who on the team can
handle different types of stressors and divide the workload relative
to their breaking point. Visit
www.healthyontario.com for a toolkit for managing stress.
The kit is full of informative resources. Stress in the contact
center and service desk can be one of the key factors that
contribute to poor customer service. "Stress management has become
an imperative for boosting contact center performance" -
click
for white paper. Many studies suggest
that psychologically demanding jobs that allow employees little
control over the work process increase the risk of cardiovascular
disease. (I love the article on this site:
www.athealth.com/Consumer/disorders/workstress.html) Stress is internal,
which explains why it can wreak havoc on your health. It feels awful
when you sense that you're not in control. The easiest way to
mitigate its effect is to take charge of the one and only thing you
have the power to control - YOU, and let go of what you can't
control. "Unclear policies and
no sense of direction" - Lack of focus causes uncertainty and
undermines confidence in management. You need more than a
well-written policy manual. Enforcement of policies and clear
communications are essential. The most significant
factors contributing to stress include demanding customers, time
pressures, monitoring, and pressure to complete calls. The article
on this page was written in 2002 but it reads like it was written
today -
Take a
look at "Stress in the Call Center". Visit this site for
101 Ways to Cope with Stress. Biodots and mood cards
are fun and low cost.
"Stress Dots are the most inexpensive biofeedback device available
anywhere." This is one of many places you can get them -
Conscious Living Foundation but look around because you may be
able to find them at lower costs. You can get mood rings, a hollow
glass shell filled with thermotropic liquid crystals, online or at the dollar
stores too. When your staff turn their dots, mood cards and
rings black, its time to do something and fast! Yes, I do get stressed too,
especially when my work load increases exponentially. My favorite
way to de-stress is to clean out my horse's stalls. The organic
scent of nature after it has taken its normal path through the horse is
something that will take your mind off of almost anything. All
kidding aside, the key to managing stress is to take control of your
life, know when to say no, and avoid procrastinating whenever possible. I use breathing techniques
and take five minute meditation breaks during the day when I feel I need
to regroup. There is an excellent breathing technique that gets
results almost every time. It is often referred to as the Belly,
Rib, Sternum (BRS) breathing technique or simply belly breathing. (* See
below how to use the technique.) Taking and having control
is the answer to managing the majority of issues that contribute to
stress in your personal and professional life. Is it time for you
to take control? If you need a gentle nudge to start taking
control, email me. We can talk about what will help you take that
first step to controlling your life. If you desire long term coaching in
making life changes, I offer individual coaching. The investment
is small considering the change in your life you will realize. All
of my work is 100 percent guaranteed.
I hope you
found this issue of eSharings useful.
Ivy Meadors Office: 425-398-9292
P.S. Did you get your reservations at The Pointe South Mountain resort yet? The resort is sold out except the room block reserved for attendees to our conference. Make your room reservations now to be guaranteed a room at the beautiful Pointe South Mountain Resort in Phoenix. Be sure to take the virtual tour of the resort to see what is awaiting you. The water park is amazing and the golf courses surround the spectacular property. Bring your family - while you experience a top-quality learning opportunity, they can go play.The 9th Annual Signature Customer Service and Support Professionals Conference aka Help Desk Professionals Conference and Expo is one of the nation's most exclusive service and support conferences with over 75,000 invited and only the first 350 to register can attend! The number of attendees is purposely limited to guarantee the most in-depth learning and the best networking experience where you will meet with industry professionals in a friendly and educational environment. * Belly breathing: When taking a deep breath to play, the main thing that should happen at first is that the belly should swell out to the front and sides (a little widening of the rib cage here is inevitable and should not be resisted). As the belly nears its maximum ballooning the rib cage should then become more involved by expanding outwards and upwards. During this the sternum should move forwards and up while the width of the rib cage, from one armpit to the other, increases. The shoulders will lift slightly, pushed up from underneath by the rib cage, not pulled up by the shoulder muscles above. Care must be taken not to raise them any more than the rib cage needs as this will cause chronic shoulder tension. At the start of playing, for example, a long phrase at a medium volume the belly should be remain ballooned out to the front and sides while the chest comes down, losing its expansion. The lowering of the chest should gradually hand over to a tightening and contracting of the belly until the end of the breath. This trick is to keep the belly ballooned for as long as is comfortable by means of some diaphragm opposition. Source: www.pyp.f2s.com/html/breath.htm
The 7th Annual Government Customer Support Conference and Expo
Mark Your Calendar Now for GCSC 2008! C all 425-398-9292 before and register early to get $400 off.
Resources
(top)
What is
Cyrillic
SPAM?
Do you get S * * * * * * * * * * * * * View an Inspirational Video that Shows How Never Giving up on Your Dreams is Worth the Commitment The following was pulled from, professional speaker and author, Cheryl Richardson's newsletter. You can visit her website at www.cherylrichardson.com/store/index.htm. I agree with Cheryl's remark about the video being worth watching and wanted to share it with you too. Don't ever give up on your dreams. Anything is possible if you want it bad enough and are willing to work hard for it. Paul Potts certainly never gave up on his dream. "To me, this clip is such a beautiful example of what a soul looks and feels like when it's expressing its full creative potential. I just had to share it with you (if you've already seen it, trust me, it's worth watching again)."
"It's not everyday that we have a chance to
witness someone's raw authenticity. This clip
gives you that opportunity. It's a powerful
example of grace in action -- the kind of
experience that ripples out across time and
space to deeply touch everyone it encounters.
You'll see what I mean when you watch the clip.
So, rather than give anything more away, do
yourself a favor and sit back, relax and
experience the power of a sweet soul in action.
It's my gift to you this week." ***** After I watched the video above I found this one. View this one second clip: www.youtube.com/watch?v=8CDQ2BUsZcU&NR=1. Listen to his words about what working to reach his goal did for him and how it raised his self-confidence.* * * * * * * * * * * * * Family Health History OK, so this topic has nothing to do with our industry but I thought you might find it useful anyway. The notice about this program was on the Seattle local news this week. I just knew many of you would find it a useful tool. There is no investment needed to use it either. **** Americans know that family history is important to health. A recent survey found that 96 percent of Americans believe that knowing their family history is important. Yet, the same survey found that only one-third of Americans have ever tried to gather and write down their family's health history. Because family health history is such a powerful screening tool, the Surgeon General has created a new computerized tool to help make it fun and easy for anyone to create a sophisticated portrait of their family's health. www.hhs.gov/familyhistory **** My Family Health Portrait allows you to create a personalized family health history report from any computer with an Internet connection and an up-to-date Web browser. Information you provide creates a drawing of your family tree and a chart of your family health history. Both the chart and the drawing can be printed and shared with your family members or your healthcare professional. Used in consultation with your healthcare professional, your family health history can help you review your family's health history and develop disease prevention strategies that are right for you. Click here: familyhistory.hhs.govWill you forward this newsletter to someone else and encourage them to subscribe to our secure, never sold or shared readership? We really appreciate your help to grow our community.
Changes to processes, systems and tools ultimately require people to change how they do their jobs. Yet, employee resistance to change remains the number one obstacle to successful transformations. Change management is the key to minimizing resistance, gaining buy-in from executives and reducing any impact on your customers. This keynote session will provide a change management foundation and share lessons and best practices from Prosci’s new 2007 change management research study with hundreds of companies all over the world. Meet the speaker: Phil is a master instructor with Prosci Research. Phil was previously the CEO and president of Key Bank of Idaho, and Chairman of the Board for the United Way of Idaho’s Treasure Valley region. Phil combines more than 25 years of leadership experience with his passion for coaching, working with executives and building teams to improve performance. ***** Improve project performance using the Prosci PCT Tool (Project Change Triangle). The Prosci (pronounced PrO - Cy) PCT Tool is a simple yet powerful framework to show the different elements necessary for projects to succeed - Leadership/Sponsorship, Project Management and Change Management. This year, Prosci created an online version of the Prosci PCT Tool for applying the model on your projects - you can gain immediate fr/ ee access to the new tool during the beta period by simply completing the Prosci PCT Tool fr/ ee access registration form to start assessing your projects now. Access Prosci's website for numerous valuable resources on Change Management.
The 9th Annual Signature Customer Service and Support Professionals Conference a.k.a. Help Desk Professionals Conference and Expo ATTENTION: Contact center, customer service, call center, service desk and help desk professionals – do you want to be part of a professional community that receives outstanding educational opportunities year after year, advances your leadership skills and provides tons of opportunities to network with your peers in a small and intimate setting? Then you cannot afford to miss this conference.
Where: Speakers: Look who's speaking at the event this year:
It's necessary to register before July 15th to save $200 and have this extraordinary opportunity to learn from the incredible line-up of expert speakers .Join us at the event that keeps on delivering even after it's over. Sharing Solutions and Ideas If you have solutions or non-traditional ideas you would like to share with our readers, please email us so we can share it with the thousands of readers from all over the world who subscribe to eSharings. Feel free to reprint this newsletter, eSharings, in its entirety with our copyright information intact. To subscribe visit our website at www.hthts.com or reply to this copy with subscribe in the subject line. To unsubscribe click the link at the bottom of this email that says unsubscribe. Note: eSharings will contain links to sites on the Internet, which are owned and operated by third parties. High Tech High Touch Solutions, Inc. is not responsible for the content of any such third-party site. |
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April
28-30, 2008 in Alexandria, Virginia
