WorkLife - Sep 2019

September 2019

Yoga-na Love This At Work

The science is in and it’s conclusive - yoga enhances mental fitness

Self Care September

Essential self care things you must do to keep healthy

Steve in Distilling Amazon’s Wisdom The Bezos Letters

The Kindness Epidemic

Should you protect yourself from it or just give in?

You Must Talk to Strangers

New study shows talking to strangers is good for your wellbeing

FROM FROM THE CEO

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What are you doing for Mental Health Month? It’s almost here. Our preparations have started, and they are going to be great!

By now, you should have received an email with an invite for our Mental Health Week event. If you haven’t seen it in your inbox, it may have gone to your Spam folder. Check your Spam folder, please. It’s going to be very exciting.

We still have one month to go, and have we got an exciting issue of WorkLife for you this September!

This month we delve into the strategic, business mind of Jeff Bezos thanks to the highly brilliant and analytical mind of our cover person, Steve Anderson. You might not know Steve yet, but you will. Soon his book, The Bezos Letters, will be in every book stand in most countries. It’s even being translated into seven different languages. But, who is this ‘overnight success,’ Steve Anderson? Please, watch or listen to my interview with Steve, it’s brilliant, and packed with business knowledge and wisdom.

What about the rest of the Magazine? As always, the articles have useful tips on how to keep mentally healthy, both at work and home (everywhere, really) Have a look, enjoy this month’s edition, and let me know if you want us to delve deeper into any other topics.

Have a mentally healthy month.

Peter D ia CEO - z Wor Mentakl place H Instituteealth

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PS. Start preparing for Mental Health Month now. What will you do in your workplace?

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Ever looked at someone and had the feeling that they were lucky? You know, those people that success seems to favor. ‘Overnight success’ kind of people. The reason I’m talking to you about this is that Steve Anderson is one of those people. He’s already a best selling author, and his book hasn’t even been released in hard copy yet.

Anyone would be justified to think Steve was born with a silver spoon in his mouth.

A bona fide ‘overnight success’!

But that’s if you don’t know Steve Anderson as I do. I met Steve Anderson a few years ago now, in a classroom setting. We were both students. What immediately struck me about Steve is that despite being no spring chicken (which he won’t mind me saying!), he worked so hard on himself, and he was so hard with himself. I don’t mean he didn’t treat himself kindly, I mean he was ruthless and disciplined when it came to his learning new skills. So no, Steve Anderson is no overnight success, no. What he is, is a very decent, hardworking, disciplined human being with a brilliant mind and a heart of gold.

Who best to occupy our September cover then, than an accomplished best selling author like Steve?

By the way, we also have the honor of having had Steve write the preface of our book, Mental Wealth: An Essential Guide to Workplace Mental Health

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Steve in Distilling Amazon’s Wisdom The Bezos Letters and Wellbeing. We feel fortunate to have him.

To date, his book, The Bezos Letters: 14 Principles to Grow Your Business Like Amazon, occupies the Amazon bestseller list, the USA Today bestseller list and the Wall Street Journal bestseller list.

But before he became a bestselling author, Steve Anderson, MA, had already become a trusted authority on risk, technology, productivity, and innovation. He has over 35 years of experience in the insurance industry. He is a professional speaker, writer, and “futurist.” His speaking portfolio includes

presentations on the future of technology, the influence of social platforms, how businesses can leverage the internet, and how they can assess and use risk to their advantage.

He was chosen as one of the original 150 LinkedIn Influencers and has over 347,000 followers.

For the past two decades, he has served as the president of The Anderson Network.

Before that, he served eight years as Vice President of Cadenhead Shreffler Insurance, and 12 years at Gilbride Insurance Agency.

He is a Certified Insurance Counselor with numerous honors earned including #10 Influencer to Know in the World of Insurtech; Insurance’s Top 100 Individual Influencers on Twitter; and an Insurance

Automaton Award recipient.

What Steve has done in his book The Bezos Letters is to bring the mind of Jeff Bezos, of Amazon fame, into our office. So he, Jeff Bezos, can be our business coach. In The Bezos Letters, Steve gives us a deep insight into Bezos’ mind. It shines a light to how Bezos has built Amazon to be the business juggernaut it has become, making Bezos the richest man on Earth.

In my opinion, if you are a leader, there are two books you must read this year, The Bezos Letters and Mental Wealth (of course!)

In a very real way, the financial health of a business is intrinsically linked with the mental health and wellbeing of the people in it. That’s why it pays to be literate in both business and

mental health, what we call ‘Mental Wealth’.

The interview with Steve Anderson this month was absolutely brilliant! Do you need to know more to watch it? Enjoy!

For more information or to get in touch with Steve, please consult: www.thebezosletters.com

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Self-Care September

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Author: Alison Skate

Self-care is the new sexy! Seriously, is anything likely to shut down sexy times faster than the unenthusiastic lethargy of someone who has become exhausted from meeting the needs of others without attending to their own health, wellness and wholeness?

The trouble with our attitudes towards self-care is that many tend to think of it as selfish, or self-indulgent, and so only give themselves permission to engage in practices of self-care once all other needs have been attended to.

On the contrary, self-care is essential to your ability to maintain your attentiveness to those needs – once you

have ensured your own wellness needs are met. It’s not selfish, it’s self-fresh!

It isn’t easy to begin the process of putting your self-care ahead of the needs of others, and some of you have never considered doing this! If I had a superpower, it would be the ability to convince the world that self-care is your first responsibility, that it doesn’t detract from your ability to support others, but that you are able to give even more with ease - once your needs are met.

So, for the self-care apprentices out there, here are six categories of selfcare to inspire ideas that suit your own wellness practice.

Physical

Serotonin is a neurotransmitter that moderates mood and sleep.

With low levels of serotonin we are more likely to experience depression and restless sleep. Whilst the majority of the body’s serotonin is manufactured in the gut, the process of physical exercise ensures that it passes the blood-brain barrier to be utilized in the brain where it is needed. Dopamine, norepinephrine and endorphins are also released by the body in response to physical exertion. These chemicals, depending on the intensity level of exercise, respond to ease pain and reduce stress. Regular exercise can also regulate the hormones that control appetite (double winning!). Aerobic exercise is considered the most effective for boosting mood, particularly in relation to depression.

Emotional

Respect your emotional freedom (it’s your party and you can cry if you want to!) as well as protecting your own emotional boundaries. Consider allowing yourself to express your thoughts, even if they differ with another person’s opinions. Aligning our behaviour with our emotions and beliefs is a strong human driver.

Allow yourself to vent your emotions when necessary to pre-vent further distress, but do not allow it to in-vent further distress. Set a time limit to vent, then change something or move on. Also, monitor your social media use.

Your emotions can take a toll there. Plan times without social media and take a rest.

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Nutritional

Can you recognise the food you eat? Or is there an ingredients list that includes things like maltodextrin, emulsifier, and partially inverted sugar syrup? Anyone able to show me a photo of a maltodextrin plant? Highly processed food is potentially harmful to our gut biome and is robbing your body of the nutrition required to maintain good physical and mental wellbeing. Professor Julia Ruckledge of the University of Canterbury (New Zealand) has studied optimal level nutrition for many years, and has found that research subjects on optimal doses of essential daily vitamins and minerals, which is the highest dose the cell can utilize, showed improvement in symptoms of anxiety, depression, ADHD and PTSD. Creative

We spend so much of our time working within the realm of the left-brain functions (analytical, problem solving, rationalising) often at the expense of our creative rightbrain. Studies have suggested that self-awareness originates in the right-brain, and having this ability is a key element of emotional intelligence. You don’t have to be artistic to engage in creative self-care. You may prefer other creative care such as playing music, dancing, gardening, building something, or sculpture. (I like to make pottery – it’s my muditation!)

Interpersonal

Is it time to KonMari your friends list? Think about each friend, hold them figuratively in your heart, and decide whether they ‘spark joy’. Mirror neurons are a part of our brain function that assist us to feel empathy – to feel what it might be like to experience what another person is feeling. Do you want to spend all of your time engaging and feeling with people who constantly criticise or point out the negative aspects of life? Consider how you might begin to expand your network to include others who match or slightly exceed your level of optimism. PS make sure you don’t throw away friends that give you good advice simply because it’s not pleasant. Be balanced and surround yourself of people good for your growth, not just pleasant and fun.

Environmental

There are up to 100 times more air pollutants indoors than there are outside, according to the World Health Organisation. Could it be that a change in your environment would boost your resilience? When we think of an environment conducive to self-care, we often think of being close to water, or trees. This may be because these environments tend to have higher concentrations of negative ions (created by constant lightning in the earth’s atmosphere), believed to reduce activity in the sympathetic nervous system and reducing stress. Remember to remove your shoes to achieve the full conductive benefit of the grounding practice.

Your Self Care September Action Plan Write down one change you can make associated with each of these areas, and commit to your self-fresh activities today.

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Yoga-na love this!

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Many people who have never tried yoga may think of it as a stretching class, but the benefits of yoga flow well beyond maintaining flexibility.

Here we look at 14 reasons to incorporate yoga into your workplace resilience program.

to enhance the function of the pre-frontal cortex. This is the area of the brain that is responsible for higher functions of discriminative analysis and problem solving.

Studies show a positive correlation between the asana practice in yoga and increased levels of the neurotransmitter GABA.

1. Yoga improves planning and analysis

2. Reduced anxiety and depression Low levels of the neurotransmitter GABA are linked to increases in depression and anxiety.

Meditation is an integrated benefit of yoga. A 2010 study found that subjects who meditated 30 minutes a day for eight weeks had an increase of grey matter in the

The breathing used in yoga has been shown in brain scans

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3. Remember this?

hippocampus, which plays a vital role in memory formation.

4. Nothing to fear

The same study found a reduction of grey matter in the amygdala through daily meditation. The amygdala is one of the systems that makes up the limbic system, and is linked to fear and anxiety.

5. Less pain, more gain

The parietal lobe is associated with limb movement, understanding speech, and sensing pain. Numerous studies, including one published in the Journal of Neuroscience in April 2011, show via brain scans of this region that mindfulness meditation can dramatically reduce sensitivity to pain—with effectiveness ratings equal to or higher than morphine.

6. It’s cost-effective

Yoga is a group activity that requires very little equipment; just a suitable space and a qualified, insured instructor.

The activity has a low risk of injury, particularly when compared to social team sporting activities or park runs conducted in lunch-breaks.

7. Slows down mental decline with aging

Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) scans have demonstrated a significantly slower rate of reduction in brain size and grey matter for participants who engaged in daily yoga practices compared to control participants. The amount of grey matter in the brain positively correlated with the number of years a participant had been practicing yoga.

8. Enhanced mental wellness and mental flexibility

Gard et al recognised significantly greater functional connectivity between a part of the brain called the caudate nucleus and other regions responsible for effective cognitive functioning and flexibility. This suggests they may have better overall mental health and behavioural flexibility—a key resiliency factor for managing stress.

9. Fewer workplace accidents

Results showed that yoga practitioners possess a higher degree of body awareness (as indicated by greater reliance on bodily signals and less reliance on visual cues when regulating their physical movement), compared to those who do not practice yoga.

This could lead to a reduction in falls, trips, and other bodycoordination related injuries in the workplace. In addition, the increase in flexibility attained through yoga improves muscle and joint function.

10. Alert and refreshed

Yoga is not necessarily the low-effort workout that many may think it is. A yoga session can involve intense muscle control and bodyweight resistance, leading to increased strength, flexibility, respiratory health and mental focus – as well as helping those who practice to achieve a restful night of sleep.

11. Improves posture

Whether seated or standing, posture can contribute to or alleviate muscular-skeletal pain. Yoga teaches participants

to correctly align their spine and improve posture, which can be valuable for reducing absenteeism, presenteeism and increasing focused productivity.

12. Boosts the immune system and digestion

The twisting poses in yoga compress and massage the digestive organs, improving the function of the digestive system, whilst the focused breath component of yoga has been found to lower stress hormones such as cortisol and adrenaline that wreak havoc on the immune system.

13. Mindful consideration

Want to develop laser-like focus in your team? The element of mindfulness permeates the practice of yoga entirely, leading to an increase in the ability to focus attention for longer periods and access areas of the brain that process options in a more rational, less emotive manner. Regular yoga or meditation practice leads to enhanced function in this area of the brain during stressful periods compared to those who do not practice mindfulness.

14. It enhances team connectivity

Unlike some resilience practices that require individual practice – such as sleep-pods, meditation, massages at the desk, or vouchers for sessions of stimulus reduction in floatation tanks – yoga is an activity that the entire team can engage in together. It fosters recognition of the importance of self-care and resilience at the organizational level as it encourages all team members to participate.

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THE KINDNESS

EPIDEMIC Reduced Anxiety: In a study by the University of British Columbia, a group of highly anxious individuals were instructed to perform at least six acts of kindness a week.

After one month, there was a significant increase in positive moods, relationship satisfaction and a decrease in social avoidance in socially anxious individuals.

Boosted immunity and mood: Like most medical antidepressants, kindness stimulates the production of serotonin. This feel-good chemical heals your wounds, calms you down, makes you happy and improves the quality of your sleep.

Improved heart health: Committing acts of kindness lowers blood pressure. Researchers have found that performing acts of kindness releases a hormone known as oxytocin.

Oxytocin is known as the love hormone, and is also a cardioprotective hormone. It causes the release of a chemical called nitric oxide, which dilates the blood vessels and reduces

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What if we told you that being kind is not the same as being selfless? The many and varied benefits of random acts of kindness (kind acts without expectation of anything in return) are felt equally by the giver as they are by the receiver, and even more so by observers of the act. So, what are the benefits?

blood pressure. Even witnessing acts of kindness have been found to boost the oxytocin levels of observers – that’s really spreading the love!

Longevity: People aged 55 years and older who volunteer for two or more organizations are 44% less likely of dying before they reach the average lifespan for their gender.

Generosity: A survey conducted by the Harvard Business School across 136 countries found that being generous with financial donations was the strongest predictor of overall happiness in participants.

Improved self-worth and energy: About half of participants in one study reported that they felt stronger and more energetic after helping others; many also reported feeling calmer, less depressed, and had increases in feelings of self-worth.

Try this little challenge with a work colleague to gain all the benefits of random kindness. Each person takes a different coloured marker and circles the acts of kindness they complete in the following grid square over the course of a week. The first person to complete a line of four acts (vertically, horizontally or diagonally) wins in more ways than one!

Leave a positive note for others to find.

Express gratitude for something that you normally take for granted.

Take a friend or parent out to lunch for no reason but to catch up.

Pay a sincere compliment to a stranger

When your coffee loyalty card is full, give it to someone else to receive the free coffee.

Give someone a book that you loved reading, and tell them why you think they’d enjoy it.

Make extra for dinner and take the extra portions to someone who lives alone or is ill.

Message a friend to let them know you were thinking about them.

Be the most considerate driver on the road.

Purchase a hot drink or breakfast roll in the morning, and give it to someone sleeping rough

Take excess fruit or flowers from your garden and donate them to your work kitchen for all.

Smile at people you don’t know

Feed money into an expired parking meter.

Place a handmade gift in public with a note to the finder.

Make a cash or product donation to a worthy charity or shelter.

Volunteer to deliver care packages to families in need at Christmas time.

Life Vest Inside is a 5013 nonprofit grassroots organization based in New York City whose mission is to inspire, empower and educate people to lead a life of kindness.

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ONE ‘FLU’ OVER THE CUBICLE

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Take a deep breath. We’re constantly being told of the benefits of breathing deeply, but what did you just inhale? You might be surprised about the hidden dangers in the air.

mould attach to receptors in the brain’s neurons impacting mental functions. The reaction to black mould can be tremors, mood swings, and other neurological shifts.

Air pollution. The CSIRO estimates that the cost of poor indoor air quality in Australia may be as high as $12 billion per year. The World Health Organisation estimates that 7 million people die each year from airborne pollutants. So what is hazardous in the air we breathe?

Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs): VOCs are a group of carbon-based chemicals that easily evaporate at room temperature. Many common household materials and products, such as paints and cleaning products, give off VOCs. Carpets, soft furnishings, fragrances, cleaning products,

“Air pollution is the new tobacco” Dr Tedros Adhanm Ghebreyesus, World Health Organisation

Indoor pollution Bioaerosols: These are microscopic living airborne particles, such as viruses, fungus, bacteria and mould. Black mould, in around homes and businesses affected by dampness and flooding, is particularly hazardous and classified as a neurotoxin. The spores released by black

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pesticides, toxic gases such as formaldehyde and toluene, paint fumes and off-gassing from manufacturing processes are all sources of VOCs. Several studies suggest that exposure to VOCs may make symptoms worse in people who have asthma or who are particularly sensitive to chemicals, and sufferers may not be safer inside.

VOCs particularly affect indoor air quality, with concentrations of many VOCs being measured consistently higher indoors (up to 10 times higher) than outdoors, according to the Australian State of the Environment Report, 2016.

Particulate Matter: Tiny particles of matter that are less than 2% of the width of a human hair (PM2.5) are easily deposited into the lungs as we breath. Even smaller particles (PM1) are the size of a cell or molecule, and are absorbed directly into the blood stream. This particulate matter can be comprised of smoke from exhaust or cigarettes, plant pollen, dust and human skin cells. The average human sheds around five cups of skin cells per year, which become food for dust mites. The presence of PM2.5 of greater than 20 micrograms per cubic meter exceeds the current European exposure threshold, yet this is not uncommon in offices, especially those with carpet and soft furnishings.

Influenza and Other Viruses Australia has been gripped by very high and unusually early onset of influenza, which has only begun to return to typical levels in the past couple of weeks. At the time of writing, 383 deaths from influenza had occurred in Australia so far this year.

Thousands more are or have been hospitalised with the virus, with more than 180,000 confirmed diagnoses this year, despite record numbers of the population receiving the flu vaccination.

Seems incredible, but only two years ago Australia experienced its worst influenza crisis with over 250,000 confirmed cases and more than 1100 deaths. Children aged under five, those over 65, people with chronic medical conditions and Indigenous people are known to be particularly at risk of contracting the flu.

This has not prevented the deaths of young and strong people.

where each employee is crucial to maintaining operations, are often hit hardest by the absences.

Yet, the cost of presenteeism – the impact of employees coming to work when they are ill or not working at full capacity – costs even more.

Five times more. A hefty $35billion per year. A recent survey has shown that around 54% of employees have turned up to work when sick.

Absenteeism Direct Costs • $578 per worker, per sick leave day • $3608 per worker per year Absenteeism Indirect Costs • 8% of payroll for • Replacement labour • Low morale from doing colleague’s work • Lost productivity • Increased risks Source: hradvance.com.au

What can be done to minimise the risks?

Encourage unwell workers to remain at home and send employees home when they present to work with fever and flu symptoms.

Engage professionals to conduct regular air quality testing, and cleaning of air-conditioning systems.

Obtain a PM2.5 (minimum) air filtration system suitable for the size of the office to effectively remove particulate matter. It is even better if it is The pain and suffering isn’t limited to the infected able to remove volatile organic compounds and individual. This highly contagious virus and other bioaerosols. air pollutants also impact the health of Australian businesses. And the same can be said for Turn the office into a green space with plants that businesses globally. are known to be air purifiers. The NASA Clean Air Study recently identified the Peace Lily as one of In 2015 (a less severe flu season) absenteeism the most effective plants for removing harmful due to sick days amount to $7billion, according VOCs from the atmosphere at the rate of one to a report by AIG. Small to medium businesses, plant per 9.3m2 in sealed conditions.

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Talking to Strangers

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You enter the elevator, and press the button for the 29th floor. The only other person in the elevator with you presses the 31st floor button. You look at the doors as they slide closed. You watch the panel to double check that the lift is headed in the right direction. Something on your phone seems suddenly very interesting. You examine the time on your watch intently, as if the elevator is somehow slower than usual. The ascension of the elevator slows and you smile awkwardly as your eyes dart quickly to your fellow commuter. “Enjoy your day,” indicating that even brief eye contact (with you say, not waiting for a response as you or without a smile) increased people’s quickly take advantage of the opening feeling of inclusion and belonging. doors to escape the discomfort of silence.

The daily train commute could even become Our desire to avoid conversations with pleasant, simply by engaging in brief people we don’t recognise may originate interactions with others. Nicholas Epley in our need for safety – both physical and from the University of Chicago conducted a emotional. Programing from a young age series of experiments with train commuters about stranger danger and minding our and found that those who reciprocated a own business may also be contributors. But smile, eye contact, or spoke with another as a social species, is that disconnection commuter reported that they enjoyed the a greater danger to our physical and ride more than usual, even if their original emotional wellbeing? intention had been to read a book or listen to something on their phone.

Scientists at the University of British Columbia have found that short Epley says that research on wellbeing conversations with strangers could boost suggests that a high frequency of positive our emotional and physical wellbeing. events and interactions, even small ones, The interactions were both brief and make a difference. safe, and in the course of a day’s normal activities – such as ordering a coffee.

Try this for yourself. Identify three situations Participants who were asked to engage today where you typically transact with in polite conversation and eye contact another person instead of interact with with the cashier reported more positive them, and start with eye contact and a moods and societal belonging than those smile. A word of two such as “thank you”, who did not interact. Kipling Williams of “good morning” or ”great tie!” could make a Purdue University found similar outcomes, difference to your wellbeing, and theirs.

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