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BLOG>08/01-31/05 HUMP DAY HUMOR (more on laughter) Google the terms laughter and health and you get over two million search items. There are numerous refereed studies of the relationship of laughter to health and wellness, and nearly every week a new article appears in the new about the efficacy of laughter to human health. Last week there was an article entitled: "Laughter is best medicine for job stress." This week a couple more articles appeared-- [ Laughter & Stress Management ] In this help column, someone asks: "Someone told me that laughter is a good form of stress management. Is this true?" The Stress Expert writes that these are some of the benefits of laughter:
[More Laughter and Stress Management] A quote from Dr. Less Berg: "Is laughter good for you? You're damn right it is. Laughter is hazardous to your illness." Based on a number of research findings, here are some of the technical reasons why laughter is "hazardous to your illness":
Laughter has an amazing effect on the body and its chemical process, take advantage of this natural healing property. (Be sure to read the list of suggestions of how to to incorporate laughter at the end of the article. The bottom line: There are physical and psychological benefits of laughter. There is much research to back it up. Have you laughed heartily today? WORK/LIFE BALANCE This past week, The Leisure Guy met up with a stream of people who are interested in similar issues. Thanks to Jeanette Watkins of People for a Shorter Work Week for introducing me to folks across the world who are concerned about issues of overwork. I enjoy sharing information and helping others to connect with people who are interested in similar things. Here are several resources that you may want to check out:
I will try to share more of these resources in coming weeks. Stay tuned. Find some balance in your life today. BURNOUT (Change is good) Ran across this article a long time ago, it was from South Africa and it just got lost in my files. Two observations: 1) Burnout is an issue across the world and it is not just the domain of the USA; 2) There are creative responses to job stress and overwork across the world that need to be evaluated. [Read Avoid that burnout slump - a change is good] This an interesting article with this premise: Making a change in your routine may be as good as a holiday.The author makes a couple of suggestions in the article: deep breathing and keeping a sense of humor. Here are suggestions from the sidebar:
Changes in your routine come in many forms...here are some suggestions:
SUNDAY FEATURE (Faith and Leisure Book List) What do you get with a Master's of Divinity and a Ph.D. in Recreation? A whole, heck of a lot of books in your library. It was sad when I moved to Japan and the moving company gave a break down of the weight and number of boxes of books that were shipped. It was sad. I am book poor. (Even sadder, it was only about half my library, the rest are sitting in a storage shed in North Carolina.) In Japan, I rely on Amazon.com for new acquisitions, but also as my wish list. I search it for books like it was a public library, and then find ways to come up with those books in the most economic manner. Last summer I picked up all kinds of classic books for less than $5 dollars and had them delivered to me on my home leave. If they are available in Japan, they can be shipped to my home in a matter of days and pay in Yen. Sometimes i bite the bullet and pay international shipping. Here are several books that I have read in the past, or are in my library, that are excellent reading in the study of leisure and deal with faith questions:
Reading...not a bad way to spend a Sunday afternoon. SATURDAY SPORTS This past week I completed my Certified Personal Trainer and Senior Fitness Instructor certifications. Something I have worked on for a hobby for about a year. I studied a little anatomy, some nutrition, kinesiology, and biology. I learned my way around a gym, and got in better shape. I am far from where I would like to be, but a lot further on the way. Here are some stats on the use of gyms, and the health and fitness industry:
Are you going to the gym today? Planning on some physical exercise? Today is a good day for it... 'For Your Health' Friday (Heavy news...) The big news (pun intended) yesterday was the latest study of obesity in the USA. There were numerous versions across the news media. Nearly every state had a major front page story about their own state of affairs. If you lived anywhere but Oregon, your state was getting heavier. Even the state that has the lowest obesity rate in the country (Colorado), waistlines still grew there. I chose to read The Montgomery Advertiser version since it was the newspaper of my youth, and college days. Let's just say it plainly: Like much of the South, Alabama is heavy. [Read the article: Alabama waistlines balloon] Forbes magazine had a more general article that gave a national view [Obesity in America Continues to Expand]. Here are some telling statistics:
Read the whole report: F as in Fat: How Obesity Policies are Failing in America, 2005 at the Trust for American Health web site. There is in depth research for each state (except Hawaii). Here are the general recommendations for battling the waistline bulge from TFAH:
Friday's question:What are you doing to improve your health this week? NO STRESS THURSDAY (Know thyself) Legend has it that Socrates, the great teacher of Plato the philosopher, was asked what was the most important concept about the universe to learn, and he replied: "Know thyself." I believe that one of the most important ways of dealing with stress in our lives is through self-awareness. Knowing what makes us tick, and what ticks us off is a powerful tool in preventing stress. Having awareness of our inner workings, our personality traits, our emotional make-up helps us cope with the stressors that come our way. I find that I am not taken by surprise by as many things in life because I have given some forethought to who I am and how I respond. For instance, I am usually a punctual person, and don't like to be late to anything, which means that I am often early. Rather than standing around anxious, I carry a book or magazine to entertain me. When it comes to being in situations that annoy me, knowing it before hand makes it easier to cope. So how do you become self-aware? How about some online quizzes that might help you understand yourself better. The stripped down results are free, and the questions are good think about: These were found on the Yahoo Stress Health Center and come from Psychology Today HUMP DAY HUMOR (Not really funny?) Combing
the business papers online and ran across an interesting article
that I thought was fitting for a Wednesday. Laughter and humor are prerequisites for surviving life,and especially our work and as pointed out they are under-utilized tools.It happens naturally among some people, and I have been thankful that most of my working life has been spent with people who have a sense of humor and sense of the ironic. The
article refers to the book: "Breakaway Laughter: How to Lighten
Up Despite it All" (VanderWyk & Burnham, $12.95) by Nan
Crockett Rutter. (BUY
NOW) I haven't read the book, but it sounds like a winner...She is quoted: "Learning to laugh at work is a win-win situation." No doubt about it. Laughter improves mental attitude, enhances morale, and helps people to work together closely. All of those things are certainly worth a chuckle. Ask yourself:
Laugh out loud...it might just make you feel better on a Wednesday. WEIGHT LOSS (What works?) The Leisure Guy addresses health issues on a regular basis because they are one of the leading causes of stress that the average worker faces. Weight loss is one of those themes that permeates western culture (and here in Japan based on the number of infomercials that show each week). The weight loss industry is huge, a multi-billion dollar industry. And based on statistics, Americans are spending more and more each year on weight loss products and programs, and the country as a whole is gaining more and more weight. If I were a crooked statistician, I might could make the case that there is a direct relationship between the use of weight loss programs/products and weight gain. [For instance, consumption of diet drinks often leads to weight gain in individuals because they make compensations in their diet for calories saved (I am one of those persons who for years drank Diet Coke while eating the giant Snickers bar)] There are no real secrets to weight loss. There is no miracle diet. There is no secret formula. It comes down to consuming fewer calories than are expended. It gets a little more complicated than this because of metabolism factors, health issues, and genetics, but on the whole--most people lose weight when they up their exercise and cut their calorie consumption. Nutritionists are usually first to say--diets don't work, but lifestyle changes do. [Read Weight: Nutritionist says diets don't work, lifestyle changes do] At the bottom of the article are numerous healthy hints. Keys pointed out in the article have to do with staying physically active and making smarter food choices. There are usually alternatives that save calories consistently (avoiding sweetened tea, cutting out high fat dressings on salad, cutting back portion size, and eating slower and more deliberately) and burn calories (taking the stairs instead of the elevator, walking frequently, doing chores manually). Lifestyle changes do not happen overnight, but take time and diligence. Lifestyle changes do not happen without intentionality and intrinsic motivation. Example: Who is more likely to lose the weight and keep it off? The person who is losing weight to get into a dress for the 25th High School reunion; or, the person who has discovered at mid-life that their health is deteriorating, and they desire to feel strong and energized again. If I were betting, I would go with Mr./Ms. Mid-Life.
BURNOUT (How do teachers/students deal with it?) Today is the first day of school for many of the children and youth in my community. Teachers and students began their official day at 8:30 AM. The summer is officially over for them. What does burnout look like among students and teachers? The first day of school is usually not when you would see it among students. Things are new, fresh and exciting for the vast majority of them. It is also true for the teachers. Most enter the new school year with great hopes for themselves and their students, but the signs will show when the new and exciting wear off. There is a normal hesitancy about school that students will portray, but this should not be considered a sign of burnout with school. Burnout is more extreme, and involves becoming emotionally exhausted, rejection of the social spheres of school, and the feeling that there is no accomplishment with school. Some signs to look for:
Teacher burnout involves similar symptoms of emotional exhaustion, depersonalization and lack of personal accomplishment. More specifically:
Be on the look out for changes in the coming weeks in your students/teachers. Take special care to see that they get proper rest and nutrition, and plenty of affirmation. Next week, a look at some ways to address burnout in the school setting. SUNDAY FEATURE (24/6 and other stuff) One of my alert readers passed along an anecdote to contemplate on a Sunday: Seems that a rabbi of a synagogue in busy Los Angeles tried to make an impact on his over-worked, over-stressed congregation. He prepared a banner that greeted everyone as they entered for several weeks saying: "24/6-Why work harder than God?" In the humor, there is biting truth. We all need a break, and need to take time off. The rabbi was suggesting that maybe 1/7 should be spent in worship, contemplation. Sabbath thinking right out of Genesis 1. How will you spend this Sunday? (How will you spend your week?) Even God rested. * * * This week I ran across a good read. I saw it on the shelves when it was first published in 1995, glanced through it, and never bought it. Was looking through a friend's shelves, and saw it 10 years later. Leland Ryken's Redeming the Time: A Christian Approach to Work & Leisure" is an excellent survey of the classic literature in leisure studies and theology related to work and leisure. It is well written, well organized, and could be used as textbook for a class on the theology of work and leisure, or as a lengthy study of the topic for an executive's group or Sunday School class. Find it online:
Saturday Sports (Japanese High School Baseball Tournament) The dog days of summer are in full swing in Japan. Usually around the first weekend of this month the national high school baseball tournament begin with fanfare at Koshien Stadium in Nishinomiya, Japan (about a 20 minute train ride from my home). Koshien has the same kind of national prestige as Wrigley Field or Yankee Stadium have in the USA, but with the added color of it being a place where high school baseball is played annually. Four years ago when I came to Japan to live, I was inspired by the tournament. I did not have cable television immediately, and of the four channels that I could get, two of them carried high school baseball for the first two weeks. Everywhere I went in Kobe had their television tuned to baseball. The newspapers were full of stories of high school baseball. I discovered that baseball was a universal language for me, and I could understand at least that part of this culture because of a game I had played and watched for decades. It is fascinating to me that high school baseball is on TV at all, coming from a country that if isn't one of the Major League teams, it is hard to find on the tube. Occasionally minor league ball and college baseball, certainly not high school ball, and certainly not national coverage. The dedication and spirit of these high school players is phenomenal. I have read about the hardships and spartan quality of training involved in getting to the national tournament, and it is mind numbing. I cannot say I ever experienced that kind of dedication as an athlete. I remember quitting my high school baseball team because I thought the practices were silly, and the coach (who was really a football coach) was basically uninformed about the game. His insistence that we should never be called out on strikes in a game or run two miles the next day was just plain stupid. It had the effect of giving the opposing pitcher the freedom to throw anything after two strikes knowing our team would swing wildly, avoiding the dreaded two mile run. So this weekend in Japan will be spent following the championship game. Read more about Japanese baseball:
'For Your Health' Friday (Work hazardous to health?) [Read: Long work days can be hazardous to worker's health] I have always believed it. I remember when I used to work 12 hour days on the farm during planting and harvest seasons, knowing that this was not good for my health (and I thanked God for the lull in winter). I remember one summer working for a road contractor for the State of Alabama who had this great plan--work 7 am to 6 pm, 4 days a week and 8 hours on Friday for a total of 12 hours overtime per week and some serious extra cash. But I knew that this kind of schedule could not be that good for me. Now I have seen a study that actually confirms what has been my belief for nearly 30 years...Over work is hazardous to your health (That is something of my slogan after all: "Don't work too hard!") A thorough study of the work records of 11,000 employees provided these findings:
This is not the first study of its kind. There are others that have found similar results.This just happens to be the most recent, and it looked at basically 11,000 cases, and over 100,000 work records. The findings are significant and should be of concern to workers and employers alike. The hazards of overwork are not just anecdotal. Executives may not have the same dangers as blue collar workers around machinery, but they take roughly the same amount of sick leave and make a similar numbers of medical claims. Want to do something about your health? Consider the number of hours you work. Worker medical insurance too high at your company? Could there be a correlation between average work hours and worker health? Good questions to ponder before the weekend. NO STRESS THURSDAY (Is your exercise stressing you out?) One of the things that is good for alleviating stress in your life is regular, vigorous exercise. Physical activity is not only good for dealing with the bodily symptoms of stress, but exercise contributes to improved thoughts and attitudes. However, exercise can stress you out too. I have a friend that religiously hits the gym four days a week, goes through extensive cardio programs at each visit, eats a spartan diet, does what would be considered all the right things--so why is he tired and feeling more and more stressed every day? I think his exercise is stressing him out. I think that he treats his gym time and his diet like he does his career and his other responsibilities, and they have become stressful. [Read Relax, it's exercise--The Los Angeles Times (August 15)] I rarely go to the gym after supper, but when I do, I run into people who are breaking heavy sweats, and who are pushing their bodies after a hard day at the office, and often what they need is a nap, or a chance to get relaxed before bed. My friend is constantly complaining of feeling on the edge of a cold or flu, and is constantly aware of major aches and joint pain, and he is one of those evening gym warriors. Sometimes I suggest that maybe he needs to take it easier in the gym. Do some stretching and deep breathing and try to relax a bit. That won't do, "Need to get my heart rate up," he says. Sometimes all that hard work in the gym leads to burnout and injuries. I have discovered that a nice overuse injury is an excellent excuse for not going the the gym. It ranks right up there with hating to walk through the door because you are worn out with exercise. Maybe a relaxing workout (like the one described in the article) would do you more good than you could imagine. Maybe an evening doing some stretches, followed by the sauna would provide the mental boost you need to get through the week, and would be just the incentive you need for a hard workout later in the week. Schedule a massage and see if that woman with the small hands doesn't make your body feel like it has been put through its paces. Life's hard enough, give yourself a break occasionally. HUMP DAY HUMOR True leisure: building a replica viking ship out of 15 million ice cream sticks. (see What else would you do with 15 million ice cream sticks?) This is an amazing feat for the project leader, Robert McDonald and two volunteers who glued sticks together for two years in a Dutch workshop. The ship is to be sent through its paces on Tuesday this week in Amsterdam. McDonald hopes to set the record for the largest sailing ship made of ice cream sticks, and later sail it across the Atlantic with a crew of 25. He is quoted:"It's a dream come true. It's truly worth all the hard work." The article points out that he is 45 years old. Can you say mid-life crisis? On a serious note, his project has helped raise money for leisure programs for children in hospitals across the world. More information at: Sea Heart Foundation WHAT MAKES YOU HAPPY? There has been an article that has been circulating the news wire for the past few days. It shows up in various forms in various newspapers, but all are based on research that was presented at the American Sociological Association centennial meeting on Sunday. Two versions of the article you might want to read: The basic findings of this research were these: Happiness is directly related to happiness according to a survey of over 20,000- 20 to 64 year-olds. But it is not just the amount of money that is significant, it is the amount of money relative to one's peers that determines happiness. Someone who makes $20,000 more than the peer group average is 10% more likely to be "very happy" than someone who earns $20,000 less than the average. The researchers suggested that this may foster a treadmill of consumption, so that the more wealthy you are, the more you have to obtain to keep up with your peers. So is this true? Money can buy you happiness? Don't believe every headline you read. It is the kind of story that brought more interest to the American Sociological Association meeting this year than any other PR attempt they have made in decades. Ask the other sociologists at the meeting, and they will tell you that this was not one of the best papers presented at the conference. Many would tell you that the methodology was suspect, and that the statistics used were not that robust or conclusive. Read most of the newspaper articles that reported the findings, they will tell you that the claim about money and happiness is actually not the most important factor in determining happiness according to this survey--it is physical health. You may have more money than all your peers, but if you are unhealthy, you will probably not be that happy. In their findings they point out an apparent phenomena--"the treadmill of consumption." This is another way of saying that there is a level of unhappiness or discomfort that cannot be explained by their theory. There is much anecdotal evidence that this cycle of consumption rarely brings more happiness to people. The bottom line from The Leisure Guy: I have met people all over the world, and some of the happiest folks I have ever met make less than $500 dollars in a year, and some of the unhappiest people charge $500 an hour for their services. Happiness must be more than what's in a bank book, otherwise, the ASA would have very little to study, and more of them would have left academia long ago. BURNOUT (Who is at risk?) This is a question that gets asked frequently in the business world. On August 2, I reviewed one article that noted that half of marketing staff risked burnout, and another article that stated one of ten Dutch citizens show signs of burnout. This past week, I discovered another article that noted IT (information technology) staff were at a higher risk than other careers. (see ITstaff at higher risk of burnout than other workers, says survey) The survey found that 59% of IT workers showed at least one symptom of burnout in the past six months (bet that nearly everybody reading this entry could say the same thing). Workers cited increased competition and the creep of job hours due to technology (cell phone, email, etc.) as being leading factors in the increased signs of burnout. Ninety-three percent of the employers noted that burnout was a serious issue in their companies (only 59% of workers saw this as so). More telling, though 93% saw burnout as a problem in their company, only 24% were actually doing anything about it. Another interesting statistic, IT workers were very unlikely to lose their jobs to burnout than other fields (7% vs. 15% in the retail sector, 22% in financial/public sectors). Comments:
SUNDAY FEATURE ("Leisure Church" 3) [see entries from August 7th, July 24th and July 31st to see the rest of the series] I received feedback this past week on my concept of Leisure Church. One young adult resonated with the ideas and offered some of her own. Her quote:
Read the blogs/articles at The Ooze and The Next-Wave, and this is being repeated over and over again. The next generation that is coming along does not want a church to market to them, they want a church where they can be welcomed and given an opportunity to think and share and be in fellowship. The same reader commented that her preference for worship styles is more traditional and quieter that what is usually being offered for the young adult crowd, and she whole-heartedly agrees that food and hospitality issues are things that need to be considered. Let's just say that there are many others talking about what I am calling "Leisure Church" but it goes by many different names. Here are a few of my favorite links to resources related to this "emerging" church: Thoughts for this week: Whatever is emerging as "church" for the next generation, it needs to find a firm basis in the basics of sabbath, rest and re-creation. That seems to be the thing that is missing in most expressions of church today- quality time with God. "Leisure Church" is all about bringing balance and wholeness to the lives of others. It challenges the busy, the overworked, and the stressed out, to lives of reflection,stillness, healing. How will you find the balance in your life this week? This Sunday? SATURDAY SPORTS (Kiddie Sports) I ran across this article in the opinion section of The Los Angeles Times this week, thought it was appropriate for anyone trying to simplify their family life, and who honestly are looking at the well-being of their kids. (Read Blowing the Whistle on Kiddie Sports by Rosa Brooks) She writes with tongue in cheek and with some biting humor, but behind her opinion piece is a great deal of truth. She wonders if participation in youth sports should be considered a national epidemic, citing statistics that participation in youth sports has increased by 225% over the past two decades, with 85-90% of suburban youth ages 3-12 participating in organized youth sports. This kind of participation does not include other members of the family and especially "soccer Mom" who must chauffeur the participants. I will be the first to note, that I grew up in youth sports before there ever was an epidemic. I grew up on military bases across the world where every boy was expected to play something each year, if not ever season. The year I turned 11, I played football in the fall, bowled in a league and played basketball each winter, baseball in the spring and summer, and during the lull in summer played tennis. My family believed that sports kept me out of trouble, and i suspect they were right. We were all cooped up on a small base in Germany, if we didn't have structure, something would have blown. But I suspect that my mother would have felt different if she had to commute 30 minutes each way to a soccer field every day (we walked to everything back then). Brooks cited other data that were telling:
Brooks solution: Allow kids to have more time to enjoy free play and childhood pursuits. The Leisure Guy weighs in: I will be the first applaud a family that takes control of its schedule and says no to over scheduling sports and afternoon activities. I will be the first to encourage free play and letting children be children. I will also be the first to point out that children need active pursuits, and need to participate in healthy activities, and need to do it for a lifetime. The question: Are youth sports effective at promoting a lifetime of physical activity for children and youth? Secondly: Are youth sports organized for maximum participation and fitness related goals? If not, why not? 'For Your Health' Friday (Average Joe's Gym) This article came my way through the British press: It's the latest leisure gimmick: gyms for people who don't like gyms. Seems there is a growing trend in England where people are looking for a gym for average people. One gym mentioned in the article had mostly women and their average age was 42 and average weight was 13 stone (182 pounds). The new style gym is a little more low key, has lower lighting, fewer mirrors, easy to use equipment, shorter workouts, and is just more comfortable for that middle-aged crowd that doesn't have bodies fashioned for lycra. These "gyms" are called "lifestyle and well being centers" and generally attract an older crowd than you might find at the more popular gyms. A very interesting quote in the article:
Indeed, at how many gyms do you find the average population? (I must say that my local gym in Japan seems very average, but the fitness centers near the train stations rarely have the balding, overweight, old folks like the family oriented gym where I belong) What is the commercial potential of recruiting this group? (Based on everything The Leisure Guy is reading, I would say that there is a growing potential throughout the western world. Exercise and fitness periodicals are almost totally focused on young adults and the better than average population.) I think that the future of the health and fitness industry is wide open for a more realistic view of the fit body. It is ready for honesty about long-term sustainable diet and exercise programs; and there needs to be a greater focus on the aging baby boomer and the growing numbers of overweight and obese who feel out of place in much of the fitness world. NO STRESS THURSDAY You can find a list of activities just about anywhere with suggestions for releasing stress. Here are some suggestions from The Leisure Guy for today:
HUMP DAY HUMOR (The universal joke) Comedians from all over the world gathered in Scotland at Edinburgh's Fringe Festival to share international humor. Read about it at: Comics Seek Universal Joke. The comics interviewed in this article say that humor is universal and knows no boundaries. The secret for many of these comics is to hold nothing back about any country. Every country can be the butt of a joke. I realize that I am no stand-up comedian, but I would say that as I have traveled the world, funny is contextual, and so some things do not work in some places. Rural, barnyard humor does not work in a place where nobody has seen a cow. Trust me. Word plays and puns in one language do not usually translate in another language. Believe me, I know this all too well, since I make my living speaking English before Japanese natives week after week. The Japanese have their own versions of puns and they have their own funny words. They don't translate into English very well. I discovered that jokes about animals, pets and the like are not funny in many cultures, because they don't have a concept of pets like western cultures. Don't tell that funny dog story in a Muslim country, the funny cow story in a Hindu country, and the meat eating stories in vegetarian regions. What appears to work universally is mocking another country and catching people by surprise. I would add that mocking your own people does not necessarily translate into humor. As a young man in Alabama trying my humor in comedy setting, I learned that making fun of say football, religion and the education system of my own state and region were not funny, but I could get howls of laughter when I talked about Canadians, Mexicans or even Californians. I remember one very tough set when I dealt with the bizarre world of televangelist's, I was met with stares and jeers and one young woman followed me out the door wanting me to know that there was a special place in hell saved for me for mocking God in public. I asked her if she didn't find Jim and Tammy Faye Bakker the least bit humorous, and she replied: "They are faithful servants of God you dirty son of a %$#@." I decided then was not a good time to tell her what I was going to school to do. I wonder if she might have felt a bit sheepish when it turned out that nearly everything in my little routine about them was quite true? I doubt it. My take on humor that's universal: Tell the truth, it is stranger than fiction most every time, and is always more funny. LEISURE, TRAVEL AND THE LIKE I ran across an interesting article in Psychology Today Online that summarized some studies that are of interest to readers of "The Leisure Guy." Joining the Leisure Class lists some of the facts from research related to leisure travel in 2004. How do some of these resonate with you? Vacation relief is short lived- One study found that a mere three days post-vacation, workers were already showing signs of stress; three weeks after returning to the job, burnout levels were the same as they were before the trip. Stress and burnout decline during travel- though travel brings its own stress, it still makes a difference in burnout and stress levels Men want to be younger- older women choose vacations appropriate to their age, older men choose vacations that make them feel younger Time flies when you get in a rut- seems the first few days of vacation seem longer to people, but after a pattern is established, the days feel shorter. Escape does not make you young- planning a vacation around having fun keeps persons feeling younger than those who plan vacations in order to escape day to day life. Memory is a good thing- College students on Spring Break has better memories of their trip four weeks after the trip than they did immediately following the trip. BURNOUT (Warning Signs 4) (see earlier entries July 12, July 5, and June 28) Signs of burnout that are usually easy to spot are sleeplessness and depression. There are certainly other causes of sleeplessness and depression, so job burnout symptoms tend to be more specific. For instance, waking in the middle of the night worrying about your job with feelings of dread would be different than waking, excited about a project or task that is coming up. Losing sleep worrying about clients and hoping that they don't show for a meeting would be different than being awake and considering various options for your client. The sleeplessness of one who is experiencing burnout is usually related to negative feelings, and results in more difficulty returning to sleep. Depression can have different causes as well, but when it is related to job burnout, it has a specific look. Job related depression exhibits signs of work avoidance, lateness, and apathy. So how do you deal with sleeplessness and depression that you know are burnout related? Develop
stricter boundaries between home and work
Set
a time in the evening 60-90 minutes before bed time when no work related
thoughts or conversations are considered
Create
an atmosphere of relaxation and calm before bed time
Take
a few minutes before bed to recall all the good things of the day
Keep
a list of positives about your work that you can refer to on a regular
basis
Have
several stories that you enjoy telling and remembering about positive
aspects of your job
SUNDAY FEATURE ("Leisure Church" 2) [See Blogs from July 24th and July 31st as this continues in that theme] Some of the important themes of "Leisure Church" (beyond worship and belonging mentioned last week) that I think would engage young adults where they live are health and wholeness and life management skills. The traditional church with which I am most familiar, is tough for the younger generation to swallow. The chicken suppers and covered dish dinners don't meet the needs of the vegetarians and alternative diet folks I meet in the coffee houses and in the pews. One young adult that stayed very active in my congregation was good about bringing his lentils and rice for covered dish, but he tired of seeing the same old high fat, and meat based fare that filled the tables at the church. He mentioned that he could never bring most of his friends to church for a meal because they would be offended. I am no vegetarian, but when they come to my house to eat, I try to accommodate. The churches I have served have never been that endearing to our house guests. Many of the young adults I meet struggle with exercise and fitness in their lives. They are often very busy with work, with relationships, and entertainment. If they are involved in church, it is another item on their list of things to do for the week. I see them needing encouragement to take care of themselves (I find myself having fewer ailments and aches than folks 15-20 years younger). If we offer a hike or a recreational activity for young adults at my current church, they will often sign up enthusiastically, and then drop out for various reasons reluctantly saying: "I really needed the exercise...but xxx came up." "Leisure Church" would find a way to embrace these lifestyle issues, and help persons to develop lives of balance and health. i can imagine a church that would offer healthy and vegetarian options with every meal offering. I can foresee a church that regularly offers opportunities for persons to recreate and encourages balanced and fit lives. The pastors and leaders of these churches would exhibit lives that reflect health and wholeness. They would exercise regularly and pursue a healthy work schedule with time for family, friends and relaxation. In much of the traditional church, stressed and busy leaders are encouraged to pursue a more hectic lifestyle. "Leisure Church" would have fewer meetings at night and fewer times where people are gathered for "business" which would probably lead to less animosity and conflict within the church. (True story: My current church is the most diverse church I have ever served--denominationally, nationally, culturally, economically, theologically--and they have chosen to minimize business meetings and committee meetings to no more than a couple per month. We have experienced the least amount of conflict that i have ever experienced as a pastor.) So, think about your own situation: What would happen if meetings were minimized to the bare minimum? What would a church meal look like with healthy offerings? Name the last recreational event you attended at the church--did it help you relax or contribute to your fitness? More next week... SATURDAY SPORTS An article passed by my desk this week from England. Seems in the UK, sport participation is one of the most popular uses of leisure time. There has been a major shift in the past 10 years toward healthy living among UK residents and staying healthy and fit is moving up as a priority among UK residents which explains the increase in sport participation. (see Sporty Dundonians Reflect Growing Trend). Some facts: 63%
of adults in UK participate in sport on regular basis
Losing
weight was one of the biggest reasons cited for sport participation
Largest
market segment for fitness activities is among women ages 25-44
I tried to locate similar information about USA and ran across a press release for a survey that can be obtained for fees (see Sports Participation in America-A National Attraction). One of the facts from this 2003 survey that was revealed for free: Sports participation in the USA is up in the past decade, but it is mainly a factor of population growth. Other facts revealed: Bowling
is the number one participatory sport (love bowling, not sure it addresses
issues of health and fitness)
Paintball
is up 47% in participation (Now that is a fascinating sport)
Fishing
is second only to bowling in participation (the cardio benefits of reeling
in a fish is huge I am told)
Increase
in health club memberships nearly doubled from 1990 (what does membership
mean?)
Low
impact fitness activities have soared in popularity (Good thing)
The survey was intended for the sports marketing and retail industry. What the report basically says is that there are many areas of growth and opportunity in the USA. There are indeed many opportunities for those interested in health and fitness, leisure education and burnout and stress prevention. 'For Your Health' Friday Here is a health tip that I ran across this morning as I was reading the news. It is good advice from Health Day, which is a content provider for Yahoo! It is good advice for all of us who are in the midst of exercise, and are not young anymore:Health Tip: Don't Overdo Exercise Nothing you haven't read before--30-45 minutes of cardiovascular exercise 3-5 days per week is good for you. Try 5 days a week at least 30 minutes to aid in weight loss. Warm-up for 5-10 minutes, maintain intensity for 30-45 minutes, decrease intensity for cool down the last 5-10 minutes. Longer workouts might lead to injuries, and injuries get in the way of consistent workout patterns. Combine this with an article from Real Simple :Everyday Health Dilemmas Solved you will have some more tips that will assist you in planning for your exercise. Have you gotten your exercise in this week? Don't overdo it this weekend! NO STRESS THURSDAY Made this entry as non-stressful as possible, since I am just getting back into my routines at the office, getting re-acquainted with my home surroundings, getting over jet-lag, and the like. Thought I'd share with yo one of my favorite websites related to stress prevention and dealing with a variety of life's problems: Awakenings: "Simple Solutions for Life's Problems" There is a whole section related to managing stress that I have found to be good reading and helpful. For instance the brief article entitled "Stress and You" is quick reading and immediately helpful. With good resources out there like this, might make you wonder why I go to the trouble myself. My answer: The Leisure Guy believes that he is uniquely gifted to sort through all the stuff that is out there on the WWW (and elsewhere) to provide you with the most helpful information on a variety of themes related to stress and burnout. And, he believes that the need for coaching and help in these is much greater than the resources available. (Just not enough Leisure Guys to go around). HUMP DAY HUMOR (No habla espanol) This belongs in the "so sad it is funny" category: Caught an article about the Little League umpire who banned the speaking of Spanish during a championship game. Seems there were Dominican Republic immigrants who were pitching and catching for a Massachusetts based team who were yelled some instructions in Spanish in the middle of the game. The umpire ordered the team to only speak in English, and consequently the team was demoralized and lost its game in the state tournament. The umpire was reprimanded and will not officiate in Little League sanctioned events the rest of the year. (see Umpire reprimanded by Little League) Well, good thing he didn't try that in the Major Leagues where Spanish is the first language among many of the players. Good thing it was in Massachusetts and not some place like California or Texas where he would not have made it out of the park unscathed. Just this past week I was talking with a guy who umpired high scholl baseball in Arizona on Indian Reservations, and he continually banned the use of native languages on the diamond because he was pretty sure they were cursing and mocking him. I once had a student who was a top notch collegiate umpire who had to ban both coaches in the game from talking because of their frequent outbursts of profanity. He threw them both out of the game before the 5th inning. Seems in the USA, umpires have a bit more power and authority that they would even consider a language ban or throwing a coach out of the game. Here in Japan, an umpire can get yelled at, kicked, pushed around and abused royally...at least I see it on TV and have read about it in the papers. Can't imagine them taking it upon themselves to make an autocratic ruling that would ban the use of a foreign language, etc. It is August in Japan, that means the national high school baseball tournament begins soon and will be the only thing on TV for about two weeks straight. A heck of a country. BURNOUT PREVENTION (two new articles) I'll take a break from the past few weeks posts related to warning signs to comment on a couple of new articles that have surfaced online: One in 10 Dutch Suffers Burnout- the research methods of this study were not the greatest, and did not quite get to the core of burnout (in my opinion), but the fact that they are asking questions that matter. The statistical bureau of The Netherlands asked 4,000 workers a year, from 2001-2004, questions related to job burnout and they were finding trends among service oriented workers. Is your country concerned about you in this way? Is your business or industry concerned enough to ask the questions? Half of marketing and communications staff face burnout- This particular study had just 107 subjects, and there were not enough data in the article to determine the research questions, but it is significant that 44% of the sample had one or more symptoms of burnout (It is possible that this would be true of much of the population in general). One in seven firms admitted that they had lost staff to burnout, 65 percent of the firms had no formal means of dealing with burnout among their staff. From
my research, this is the case in many work environments and is a fact
of the modern business climate. The Leisure Guy would like to offer
his skills and expertise to your workplace and make a difference in
this growing culture of burnout.
Email
the Leisure Guy ROAD WARRIOR The last of my notes from vacation travel. Arrived safely in Japan this evening, getting back to the house, anticipating work in the AM. Twenty-four days went by quickly. So what can a road warrior learn? Keep up with your email- One thing that will not be waiting for me in the morning is a bunch of email. Throughout my holidays, I downloaded bunches of email (over 1000 pieces between 0707 and 0731). 75% is junk and goes very quickly. 5% was dealt with on the spot, 10% has been saved for work tomorrow, and another 10% does not have to be dealt with but is information I will use later. On the bus back from the airport, I met one of the regular road warriors returning from the USA. He said he had dealt with 200 emails on the plane, having downloaded in the hotel just before getting on the plane. He'll get home and send out reply's, etc. Sort that mail- we had a box full of mail and bills. My desk will have its share as well. i sorted it into three piles: trash immediately, deal with later, deal now. Thankfully, very few pieces had to be dealt with now. The later stuff might get thrown out soon without even a glance. All important mail will be cleared off the desk by noon tomorrow. Deal with jet lag- We began traveling at 5:30 AM on a Sunday morning in North carolina, and showed up at the house in Japan some 25.5 hours later--it was then 8 PM on Monday evening. having slept about 6 hours in the plane, I am not totally wasted, but my body still thinks it is AM, and my mind says it is PM. Here are some things I try to do:
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© 2005, Michael Rich and Seatomypants Productions
