Association Executive - September/October 2007 - (Page 19)

who made them and you cannot blame a person who does not exist. 4. Get an accountability partner to help you stay focused. Ask someone other than your spouse or romantic partner to fi ll this role. Make sure it is someone you trust and feel comfortable with to just be yourself. You should meet with this person at least once a week to talk about your goals, progress, setbacks, and thoughts on your personal and professional life. Your accountability partner keeps you on track and moving forward in all aspects of your development. The discussions you share with this person will help you to look at things objectively, understand yourself better, and be more wellrounded. 5. Use comic memos to ease anxiety at work. The comic memo technique involves attaching a funny cartoon to routine, boring paperwork that has to be distributed at the office. It is just one way you can use humor to ease stress and bring mountains back down to molehills where they belong. You might also consider put- whelmed, go out to lunch with friends or associates. Make it a point to not talk about business. Talk about your hobbies, sports, or whatever you enjoy. This gives you a release from the pressure cooker of stress. If you feel burned out on people, eat lunch by yourself a couple times a week. This gives you the chance to just enjoy quiet time and not have to talk if you do not feel like engaging in conversation. There can be tremendous power in silence. 7. Take a power nap. If you feel tired and unable to concentrate, a 15- or 20-minute nap will work wonders. First, elevate your feet. This will allow blood to more readily flow to your brain, increasing the oxygen levels you need to feel well rested and alert. Second, set a low-tech alarm clock: hold a pen or a set of keys in one hand, keeping the arm holding the object slightly raised (but obviously comfortable). When your body reaches a complete state of relaxation, your grip on the object will release, causing it to fall to the floor and startle you awake. These few minutes will give you almost the same benefit as a long, luxurious sleep. Amazing, but true. 8. Walk it off . . . exercise! Even if you do not have time to go to the gym, you can take a walk around the block a few times each evening or work out with a fitness video at home. Exercise makes you feel good about yourself, helps dissipate built-up stress, and allows for more refreshing sleep. It takes discipline to work out on a regular basis but the benefits far outweigh the little push it might take to get you ting a humor board in your office where people can post cartoons, jokes, or funny pictures—it’s a reminder to everyone that a good hearty laugh is the best stress releaser of all. 6. Take a non-working lunch now and then—with others or by yourself. When you feel over- going. (Consult your physician to fi nd out what kind of exercise would be best for you.) 9. Take a vacation. Even if you have to plan weeks or months ahead, make the effort to give yourself a break. Too many people believe that if they take a break from the rat race of life, their jobs will leave them behind. The opposite is true: If you don’t make time to relax away from work, you will become bitter and unproductive even when you are there. Ultimately, your job will overwhelm you, not because you took a few days off, but because you burned yourself out so badly that you experienced emotional meltdown. The most productive workers take time to relax—guilt-free. 10. Practice saying no. When you are already booked or have all the commitments you can handle, say no to anyone who asks you to take on even more work or social obligations. Spreading yourself too thin can lead to dangerous stress and anxiety. If you really think saying no could cost you your job or a friendship, it might be time to re-evaluate your career or your friends. Ultimately, goals should never be set in stone and neither should careers. Sometimes circumstances change in your life and they put you on a different road. If you find that something is not working for you, it is okay to change directions without feeling guilty or ashamed. Changing the path you are on is not failing. Rather, it is being mature about your future happiness and what you now know is right for you. To avoid bitterness and eventual burnout, understand that whatever you choose to do with your career and your life has to lead to your own well-being. No outside influence can tell you what is best for you—only you can decide that. Michael Staver is CEO of The Staver Group. He can be reached by phone at 904-321-0877 or through his website at www.thestavergroup.com. SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2007 AS SOC I A TI ON E X E C U TI V E 19 http://www.thestavergroup.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Association Executive - September/October 2007

Contents From the CEO The Executive's Role in Internship Programs 12 Weeks to Sink or Swim Book Beat Inside NYSAE Winning the War for Talent The Not-for-Profit Edge: Recruiting & Retaining Generation X Burnout Busters: 10 Ways to Cope When Work Gets Overwhelming Meeting in Atlantic City Save the Dates Index of Advertisers

Association Executive - September/October 2007

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