You’ve got an important job. You love what you do but the demands can become a little much at times. The pressure to perform and be everything to everyone, feels overwhelming. Whether it’s a deadline you have to meet, a superior’s expectations you have to live up to, or a team of people you can’t let down, there’s no room for failure.

After a while, you feel stressed. Your hair’s on fire at the office. You develop a mild case of road rage on your daily commute. You can’t sleep at night…

If any of this sounds familiar, there’s a good chance you’re suffering burnout. Burnout can have some serious implications for both your career, and your health. This kind of prolonged stress is closely linked to heart attacks, depression, and decreased productivity.

If you find yourself feeling burned out, it’s something you need to deal with right away. Next time you sense it coming on, try some of the strategies below.

Look Around

Before you do anything else, take a step back, and look at your surroundings. Are you getting the support you need from the higher-ups at work? Is there little or no value placed on culture? If so, it’s time to start seriously considering some other options.

However, if you like where you’re at, and feel you have the support you need, there are some steps you can take to combat that burned out feeling.

Own Your Schedule

The reality is that most people don’t have full control over how and where they spend their time in the workplace. With that being said, there are probably pockets of time throughout the day or week that you can block off for yourself. If a particular day is packed, give yourself a small buffer of time between activities or meetings. Even just five minutes goes a long way in helping stay composed mentally and emotionally.

Be Kind to Others

When you’re feeling low or burned out, one of the best remedies is helping others. Praise others for a job well done. Encourage them to take a break when they seem overwhelmed. Say something that makes another person laugh or smile. Hold the door for a coworker on the way to lunch.

When you practice even the smallest acts of kindness, it immediately makes you feel better.
Believe it or not, you actually have the power to impact your entire team or organization. It only takes a single person, to spread positive vibes and turn things around when they don’t seem to be going well. Be that person. When you are, the results can be astounding.

Be Kind to Yourself

After you start being kind to others, you’ll eventually be okay with being kind to yourself.
When you’re experiencing burnout, it’s all too easy to listen to your inner critic. Negative thoughts and self talk become your language.

The key is recognizing this behavior when it crops up and, having some strategies in place to reverse the trend. Positive affirmations are a great place to start. Write down some traits you’re proud of. Even sayings like “I am kind,” or “I am capable” will work. Put these notes some place where you’re going to see them on a regular basis. Your nightstand or bathroom mirror are good options.

Don’t Be Afraid to Ask for Help

Because you’re in a position of leadership, chances are others come to you for help a lot more often than you seek help yourself. You’re human, just like everyone else though. Eventually, there’s going to come a point when you just can’t handle the stress, depressive thoughts, and lack of sleep anymore.

When you get to this point, do yourself, and everyone else, a favor and ask for help. It might be in the form of a trusted colleague. Perhaps, it’s your spouse, or a close friend. Maybe you need the help of a counselor. Whoever you turn to, there’s no shame in asking for help. In fact, asking for help is a sign of strength.

Make Sleep a Priority

When you’re experiencing burnout, quality sleep can be hard to come by. From the moment you wake up, until you go to bed, your head is spinning with stressful thoughts about work.

There are a few small steps you can take to make getting to sleep easier. The first is going to bed earlier. If you normally go to bed at 10:00, make it a point to have a pillow under your head by 9:00.
Unplug well before you go to sleep. Turn off your computer, silence your phone, and allow yourself some time to be in the moment, and unwind. Meditate. Read a book. Listen to soothing music.
Once you find a routine that works, stick with it. Sleep is the most important ingredient to performing at your best.

The stresses of your job aren’t going away anytime soon. You’re going to feel stretched thin and overwhelmed to the point that you get burned out. The good news is, there are some simple steps you can take to get through these difficult episodes and come out stronger on the other side. The next time you sense burnout coming on, try some of the strategies above. You just might be surprised with how well you’re able cope and, move on to bigger and better things in the future.

Have you ever thought how nice it would be to work in Spain where your day starts mid-morning, you take lunch a couple hours later and then enjoy a siesta? Even though that leisurely Monday through Friday routine sounds wonderful, your workday reality is probably quite the opposite. If you’re like most Americans, your typical day at the office involves getting there early, eating at your desk, running from one meeting to another and working late. Maybe you’re even there on weekends. By the end of the week all the stress leaves you on empty mentally, physically and emotionally. While stress isn’t going away anytime soon, there are some simple measures you can take to manage it.

Don’t Gossip

Every office has that person that makes it their duty to know about everyone else’s business. They know that Bob is going through a nasty divorce, Julie has her eyes on that promotion and Mike has been subject to disciplinary action. Even worse, they make it a habit of sharing all these tidbits with everyone around them. Even though you might be tempted to learn some juicy little nugget, nothing good ever comes of it. Before you know it, you’re embroiled in a nasty game of he said she said that can lead to damaged relationships and bring down the morale of everyone in the organization.

Start Your Day Fresh

This goes back to the night before and making sure you get enough sleep. Once you’re up and about, give yourself the time you need to properly start your day. Incorporating habits into your morning routine like meditation, journaling and getting some physical exercise help you arrive at the office with a clear head and positive attitude making it easier to handle stress the rest of the day.

Keep Your Desk Clean

How many times have you come into the office knowing where you left off the day before but unable to find the right report buried in the pile of papers on your desk? You go about frantically searching high and low trying to make sense of where everything is at and before you know it, you’re stressed out before you get anything done.

All it takes to avoid this type of chaos is a little tidying up when you’re done with your day. Not only will this habit reduce your level of stress in the morning, it will increase your productivity as well. It also helps you mentally to start “disconnecting” from work, which can also reduce work related stress.

Avoid Multitasking

The distractions you face at work are untold. Between notifications, email alerts, phone calls and interruptions from colleagues, it’s amazing we’re able to get anything done at all. And guess what all the constant stimulation does? Increases stress. If you want to maintain your focus throughout and reduce stress, focus on only one project at a time. Everything else will be there when you’re done and you’ll get a sense of accomplishment instead of feeling like you have several things hanging.

Know What’s Expected

One of the biggest contributors to stress in the workplace is not knowing what you’re expected to do. This can be as simple as a poorly written job description or inadequate communication from the top. Whatever the case, it’s almost impossible to do your job when you don’t know what you don’t know. If you find yourself in this position, be proactive and schedule a meeting with your supervisor to discuss what’s missing and the problems you’re having. If done in a respectful manner, this conversation often lowers stress for both parties and can also save you some time by focusing on what you know needs to be done.

Take Breaks

There’s someone you work with that spends the entire day in their office. They only times they get up from their desk are you use the restroom and microwave lunch. You know who this person is. They’re probably dead serious 100% of the time, seemed stressed and maybe even unhappy. Now think about the people that get out of the office at lunch and take short breaks throughout the day. It’s not that the latter doesn’t care about their job. Rather, they realize the importance of staying physically and mentally fresh. You might think that the desk jockey gets a lot more done each day but, it’s almost always the opposite.

So, whenever you feel stressed or overwhelmed, take a short break to stand up, leave your office and move around. Getting away from a problem or project for a little bit when you’re stressed will help give you a new perspective, which in many cases reduces the stress and may even allow more creativity to finding a solution to the problem. When you come back, you’ll find yourself ready to tackle whatever is in front of you with a clear mind.

As much as we’d all love it, stress in the workplace isn’t going away anytime soon. It’s how you manage and handle the stress that makes all the difference. If you’re not careful, stress can affect your productivity, relationships with everyone around you and even your health. But, if you take some actionable steps to manage and reduce stress, you’ll find yourself happy, healthy and maximizing your potential day in and day out.

As a Life Sciences recruiter for the pharmaceutical, biotech, and medical device industries, I can help optimize your work place by building an efficient team. A great team will work together well and decrease stress in the workplace. Contact me, Jeff King at jking@rqfocus.com or (541) 639-3501.

Some people are doing it. As crazy as it sounds, they’re videotaping themselves in the office for a day to see how much time they waste. And what those that have dared to take on this little experiment have found is pretty staggering. Between, Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, checking fantasy football scores, email and cell phones, there’s a lot of time that is just flat out wasted during the day. It shouldn’t come as much of a surprise either. But, in a time when demands in the workplace are at an all-time high, doesn’t it reason that you should be as productive as you can?

At the end of the day it all comes down to your ability to focus. So, how do you focus on demand? We’ve got a couple ideas.

Take a Break

Yep, that’s right. Countless studies have proven that taking frequent short breaks is essential for maximizing your productivity. In fact, people that take a five-minute break every hour to leave the office, take a short walk and get away from their desk entirely are much more productive than those that are seated behind a computer screen for hours on end. Try scheduling purposeful breaks throughout the day. You’ll find that your ability to focus on a singular task and get things done increases immediately.

No More Multitasking

It happens dozens of times per day. You’re working on something and the new email alert shows up in the bottom right corner of your computer screen. You see it, click on it, and before you know it, you’re embroiled in responding and have totally lost track of what you were working on before. When you finally return to the task at hand, that email is still on your mind and you have to backtrack to figure out where you left off. Talk about wasted time.

Try time blocking. If you purposefully set time aside for certain tasks each day and stick to it, you’ll be shocked at how well you’re able to maintain focus and get things done.

Music Anyone?

Maybe it’s not for everyone and we’re certainly not talking about having the latest Katy Perry single on repeat. But if you find yourself struggling to maintain your focus, you might want to experiment with have some soothing classical or piano music playing in the background while you work. Studies have shown this to be an effective strategy to stay on task.

Get Rid of Clutter

There’s nothing worse than coming into the office in the morning and not being able to see your desk. Quality reports on top of company memos buried under those thank you notes you forgot to send yesterday. By the time you’ve cleaned up the mess, 30 minutes have gone by and you’re still not sure where you left off.

If you make a point to stay organized and clean your desk off before you leave every day, you’ll be able to get off to a fast start the following morning and maintain that momentum throughout the day.

Breathe

Think about how your body reacts when you’re stressed or under the gun. Do you tense up? Does your breath become shallow? Of course, that’s the natural reaction when you’re uncomfortable. Your mind is racing with 1,000 different thoughts and your ability to focus becomes greatly diminished. Even though it seems counterintuitive, this is when you should actually slow things down and take some conscious deep breaths. Doing so helps you stay in the present and allows your mind to more clearly process everything that’s going on.

The Power of a Nap

It’s not likely that it will be possible every day, but if you can carve out 10-30 minutes for a power nap in the early afternoon, it can make all the difference between being worthless the rest of the day and feeling recharged. The body and mind have an amazing ability to bounce back quickly, they just need a little time.

Exercise

We’re not talking about doing an entire workout in the gym. But, if you’ve been sitting behind your desk all morning, your blood circulation slows and it’s easy to become tired. If you start feeling lethargic or your mind starts to wander, take a couple minutes to do jumping jacks, go on a walk or any other kind of quick physical activity. Before you know it, you’ll feel refreshed and awake.
Ok, you don’t have to go to the extreme of filming yourself in the office to conjure up some ways to boost your focus and see just how much time you’re wasting throughout the day. Instead, be conscious of distractions like email, your phone and social media. There’s nothing wrong with taking mental breaks to indulge these habits, you just don’t want to let them get in the way of your productivity. If you implement some of the strategies above when you’re feeling tired or distracted, you’ll be amazed by just how much more you can get done between 9:00 and 5:00.

As a Life Sciences recruiter in the Bay Area, I have worked with many types of professionals who have specific business processes. I can help you find a high-quality employee that fits in your company culture. Contact me, Jeff King, if you need an employee or are search for a new job in the pharmaceutical, biotech, or medical device industries.

There’s no denying that we all deal with stress throughout our day. Managing employees, meeting deadlines, getting the kids to school on time – our minds are constantly jumping from one worry to another in a constant juggling act takes its toll on your health, emotional well-being and relationships with others. While daily stresses and concerns aren’t going to disappear anytime soon, the good news is that if you start your day out in a healthy way, you can increase your productivity, have a clearer mind, better health and more meaningful relationships with everyone both inside and outside of the office.

Practice Gratitude

What do you do when you first wake up in the morning? Do you reach for the night stand and immediately check emails for the latest fires? Or do have conscious thoughts about being thankful for the roof over your head, your family and how lucky you are compared to those less fortunate?

Science has proven time and again that if you start your day by practicing gratitude in some way, you realize the day in front of you is a gift to do with as you please. One of the most effective ways to practice gratitude is to journal. By taking even just a few minutes to make a list of the things you’re thankful for you gain clear perspective and put your mind at ease.

Meditating

There are more types of meditation than you can count. Whether you take just a few minutes or set aside some significant time, practicing meditation every morning goes a long way in helping you feel content. If practiced on a regular basis, meditation’s benefits also include increased confidence, self-esteem and presence.

While meditation can be done any time of day, practicing it in the morning is highly effective. If meditation is new to you, start out by finding a quiet space where you can sit just for a couple minutes and close your eyes. From here your options are limitless. You can choose to focus on your breath, do a scan of your entire body to see how your feeling or repeat a simple mantra. Whatever method you choose, remember this is your time to acknowledge your thoughts and practice self-love.

Affirmations

While it’s easy to let the troubles of yesterday linger into the day ahead, happy and productive people see each new day as a fresh start. Affirmations are a great way to put yourself in a positive mindset. Examples of simple affirmations include:

• I am capable of making smart decisions for myself.
• I let go of negative thoughts and am grateful for everything that is good.
• I’m a loving, caring, kind, compassionate, grateful, happy, healthy human being.

These are just a few of an infinite number of positive affirmations that you can say out loud to yourself and even write on post-its and tape to your bathroom mirror so you’ll have no choice but to read them every morning.

Make Your Bed

Even though making your bed seems like a menial task that should have little to no affect on your day science says it’s quite the opposite.

Taking a couple of minutes to straighten the sheets and comforter each morning gives you an immediate sense of accomplishment that puts you in a positive frame of mind. In this mindset, you’re more apt to have the motivation to get the most out of your day and accomplish the things you need to in a timely manner.

Exercise

Physical activity is great way to begin your day. Whether it’s a trip to your personal trainer, a yoga session at home or a leisurely walk around the block, exercise gives your body and mind a chance to wake up and get ready for what lies ahead. By getting your blood flowing and allowing your body to release feel-good chemicals to your brain like serotonin and dopamine, you put yourself in a positive frame of mind that will carry over to the workplace and stay with you throughout the day.

Not everyone is a morning person. Maybe you’re a fan of hitting the snooze button a couple of times before you get out of bed. Even if that’s the case, when you finally decide to begin your day, incorporating some simple healthy routines can make a world of difference in how the rest of your day goes. If you take a little time to care for yourself in the morning before you jump on a conference call or start replying to emails, you’ll quickly find yourself much happier, healthier and experience more fruitful relationships with everyone around you.

Contact Jeff King, Regulatory and Quality Recruiter in the Bay Area, for more information.

You’ve heard the saying about living to work instead of working to live. Sadly, many of us can identify with the former and after a while we become so enslaved to our jobs that we neglect are our own well-being. When was the last time you went on vacation, left early on a Friday or refused to look at email for an entire weekend? What do you eat for lunch everyday? Is it something you grab at a convenience store and throw in a microwave? How many steps do you get a day? And maybe most importantly, when did you last devote some time to simply writing down your thoughts?

With the demands of the modern-day workplace, it’s all too easy to become lost in the rat race. Before you know it, years have flown by and you haven’t even blinked. If you’re determined to live a long and fruitful life, it’s vitally important to take some steps to care for yourself along the way.

Exercise

Maybe you just don’t have time to go for that five-mile run or to an hour-long yoga class. That’s ok, even short periods of exercise can benefit your physical and even mental health. Studies show that taking just a five-minute break every hour to get up from your desk and stretch your legs is beneficial for your mind and body.

How do you spend your lunch break? The answer for many people is working. Even if it’s only for half an hour, leaving your phone at your desk and going for a walk outside while you eat is proven to enhance blood circulation, build strength, improve your mood and make you more productive. If your employer has an onsite gym or fitness program, it’s in your best interest to take full advantage.

Being Sick

We all get sick at some point. When it happens, it’s important to make recovery your one and only priority. If you let an illness linger and continue to work at full capacity, your productivity decreases both in the short term and long term. Even though it’s difficult, taking the time to fully heal from an illness is key to not only to success at work but vitality outside the office as well.

Eating Healthy

Eating properly is something the majority of us overlook. It’s easy to grab something that’s quick and satisfies your hunger regardless if it’s good for you or not. Even though you probably skipped breakfast and that burrito or slice of pizza sounds great for lunch, they could likely do you more harm than good. Eating fatty or greasy food lowers your immune system and can put you in a food coma rendering you useless the rest of the afternoon.

If you’re short on time, it might be worth considering a meal delivery service like Door Dash or Uber Eats. The delivery fee is most often minimal and you have plenty of options to choose from. Most delivery menus have vegan and gluten free choices that come in reasonable portions so that you won’t eat yourself silly but won’t starve either.

Snacking throughout the day is crucial. If you’re busy running from one meeting to another, you likely don’t realize you’re hungry until your blood sugar has reached low levels. If you take the time to cut up fruit and veggies that you can store at work, you’ll have healthy snack options at the ready and be able to maintain your energy level throughout the day.

Caring for Your Mind

Being in a positive state of mind is just as important as taking care of your physical well-being. If you aren’t in the right mindset, not only is your work in trouble but everything around you might be as well.

One of the ways to get your day off to a positive start is to meditate when you wake up in the morning. Even if it’s just for a couple of minutes, practicing a simple meditation on a regular basis allows you stay centered and in the moment even when everything else around you is chaotic.

Starting a gratitude journal is another option to help put your mind at ease and relieve stress. This can be done in the morning or before you go to bed by simply putting a pen to paper and making a short list of everything you’re thankful for brings you back to the present and allows you to see the bigger picture. Practicing gratitude in any form helps you put things in perspective and realize that there are other things in life besides work.

No one doubts you want to be successful and make an impact in your job. If you don’t take some small steps to take care of yourself along the way however, you not only risk your job performance, but living a long and fulfilled life as well. If you find yourself physically ill, stressed or depressed because of work, implement some of the small routines above into your life and you’ll be back on top of your game in no time.

The demands of the job in the American workforce are unlike any other in the world. For salaried employees this is especially true. Long hours, weekends and constantly being available are the norm. The truth is that most of us are “at work” even when we’re not at work. In order to function at full capacity, it’s vitally important that you are healthy not just physically but mentally as well. While employers have increasingly made physical well-being a top priority through initiatives like step programs and on-site gyms, not enough is being done to ensure mental and emotional well-being for employees. In order to reach your maximum potential, it’s paramount that mental and emotional well-being are a top priority. Identifying needs and having the appropriate resources available is crucial to the success of you, your team and the entire organization.

Recognizing and Identifying a Problem

Some 44 million Americans suffer from a mental health condition. Though sometimes tricky, identifying mental health concerns upfront is integral for not only your ability to do your job, but your overall well-being. Symptoms of poor mental health can be subtle, but knowing what to look for upfront goes a long way. If you notice yourself being withdrawn, complacent, having an inability to focus or seem unmotivated, there is a good chance that something extraneous is affecting your performance.

Addressing Mental and Emotional Health

If you’ve identified symptoms and suspect that you might not be in a healthy mental or emotional state, it’s something that certainly needs to be addressed. Finding a safe and confidential space to have a one-on-one conversation with someone you trust is the first step. When the time is right, schedule a meeting with your manager or supervisor to have a conversation. Communicating your concerns will not only lift a weight off your shoulders, but allow you to collaborate and plan a healthy course of action.

Caring for Mental and Emotional Health

In order to lead a productive and fruitful existence both at and away from the workplace, it’s imperative that you take care of yourself.

1. Journaling

We all have days that are better than others. Sometimes the roller coaster of work and life can seem overwhelming. Setting aside a few minutes each day to simply write your thoughts down can go a long way in putting your mind at ease. Even if it is for five or 10 minutes before bed, putting your thoughts on paper not only provides an immediate outlet, but creates room for reflection down the road when times are difficult. It can provide a window into how far you’ve come in recent months, or highlight an area that maybe you haven’t fully addressed and remind you there may still be some work to do.

2. Practice Gratitude

It’s all too easy for us to focus on everything we don’t have. Maybe your colleague got the promotion, was awarded that dream trip for sales performance or bought a new car. We find ourselves feeling jealous, inadequate and wondering why it wasn’t us that was rewarded for our hard work. Comparing ourselves to others does little good. Instead, make it a point to recognize all that you have to be thankful for and write it down. Much like journaling, making a short list of people and things you are thankful for helps you focus and stay centered.

3. Exercise

Too many of us find ourselves stuck at our desk staring at a computer screen for countless hours every day. This is not only detrimental to our physical well-being, but our mental and emotional well-being as well. When we are physically active, our brain releases endorphins which improve our mood and increase our productivity. Even if it’s simply going for a short walk at lunch, making exercise a part of your routine is essential for maintaining a positive frame of mind.

4. Get Enough Sleep

Getting enough sleep is important for your overall health. Continual sleep deprivation is proven to cause anxiety, depression and a host of other problems. Making sure that you get to bed on time and sleep soundly for seven to nine hours is directly linked to happiness and productivity. If you have problems sleeping, consult with your doctor to see what options you might have, and check with your employer to see what health resources are available to address the problem.

5. Be in Nature

We all long to be outside as much as possible. Wouldn’t it be great to take that two week-long camping trip at a moment’s notice? Unfortunately, for most of us that is simply not realistic. However, finding ways to spend even a little time outside on a regular basis is proven to increase self-esteem, stave off depression and increase creativity. Even if it’s going for a short walk or making time to work in your yard or garden, being in nature can go a long way in caring for your mental health.

Meditation

Even though it sounds a bit goofy, the benefits of meditation are countless. From promoting sleep to improving memory, meditation plays a key part in helping you be at our best. Though it can be done at any time, setting aside just ten minutes to meditate in the morning or evening is enough to improve your state of mind. With so many types of meditation available, there is sure to be one that works for you.

The fact remains that most of us are going to spend a large part of our lives working. In order to be at your best, self-care is essential to the process. While physical health is highly important for us to do our jobs, mental and emotional well-being must be looked after as well. By taking even a few small measures to look after yourself in this regard, you’re sure to perform at your potential and further enjoy the process.

When the days get shorter, it can be more difficult to find motivation to get our work done. Without the sun, we easily fatigue. This is a problem when you have work to accomplish! An experienced professional knows that business never pauses. Since we can’t wait until next summer to get our work done, it’s important to build healthy habits that keep us productive in the colder months. The following are tips to feel energized, productive, and happy in fall.

Get Your Vitamin D

Vitamin D is the essential vitamin in the sun that boosts your mood and energy. During the summer, obtaining enough vitamin D is usually not a problem. It can be more difficult as the days get shorter and colder.

There are two easy ways to obtain vitamin D. The first is light therapy boxes or sun lamps. This works particularly well for people with office jobs that do not experience natural light during the cold winter days. According to BerkleyWellness, fluorescent sunlamp produces high-intensity ultraviolet-B (UVB) rays that trigger vitamin D production in the skin.

Secondly, you can consume vitamin D through a capsule. This can be cheaper than the initial investment for a good sun lamp.

Exercise During Lunch

With cold weather, often comes the lack of motivation to workout. Our morning run is more difficult when it is 35 degrees F outside! However, exercise is necessary for your body to receive year-round.

Many gyms offer 30-minute classes at noon. Try to fit the class into your lunch break. HIIT classes are very popular for full body interval training. You could also dress warm and go on a walk during lunch.

Get up and move. Your mind and body will thank you.

Eat Healthy Foods

Just because summer is over, does not mean your diet should suffer the consequences!

Sure, peaches are non-existent and avocados are a dollar more expensive. However, there are seasonal vegetables that can still give you the nutrients that you need to stay energized through your work day.

The Produce for Better Health Foundation released a seasonal produce list for September, October, and November. The following are some of the most common items. Learn more on their website.

Fall Produce

• Acorn Squash
• Asian Pear
• Broccoli
• Butter Lettuce
• Brussel Sprouts
• Cauliflower
• Endive
• Garlic
• Ginger
• Grapes
• Guava
• Pumpkin
• Pomegranate
• Sweet Potato
• Swiss Chard
• Turnips

Ergonomic Furniture

When we are sitting at a desk for hours, maintaining good posture can be difficult to accomplish. We might not even notice that we are hunched over our computers. That’s when ergonomic furniture comes in handy.

What is ergonomic furniture?

We most commonly recognize ergonomic furniture as stand up desks. The furniture allows us to stand comfortably as we work at our computers. In doing so, we are able to obtain 30% more oxygen that energizes our body.

Now, ergonomic furniture has become more advanced. Relax the Back has a number of ergonomic office products to help you keep a healthy body, including;

• Footrests
• Stand up desks
• Lumbar support

Motivation and productivity is a challenge for many workers in the winter. It is important to be prepared this fall. Keep your body active and healthy to accomplish your goals throughout the winter. Your business will not pause until next summer!

I am a life sciences recruiter in the Bay Area. I help employers and job seekers in the pharmaceutical, biotech, and medical device industries. Contact me, Jeff King, for more information

Sleep – we know that we need it but between work and life, getting enough hours can seem impossible. However, it’s essential to make time for seven to eight hours of sleep per night. Sleep deprivation can lead to serious mental and physical health problems that impacts your work performance.

If you are a business leader, you may find that you need to hire another employee to get the sleep that you need (that’s where a specialist like me can help you find someone to help you sleep better and not lose even more sleep).

Not convinced? Learn how sleep deprivation could impact your mental and physical health:

Memory

Without adequate sleep, your body has trouble absorbing information. If you are sleep deprived at work, you could forget to complete daily tasks, phone calls, or even show up to meetings. Forgetting can severely hurt your job performance. In the worse scenarios, forgetfulness leads to losing your job.

According to WebMD, there are three stages of memory:

• Acquisition — learning or experiencing something new
• Consolidation — the memory becomes stable in the brain
• Recall — having the ability to access the memory in the future

Acquisition and recall occur while you are awake. However, consolidation requires sleep. If you do not get the sleep you need, your brain will have a hard time absorbing new information. That means, double the work or training time.

Moodiness

After a sleepless night, you may notice yourself irritable and moody. Not only does this create a bad day but can be annoying for everyone around you.

University of Pennsylvania researchers found that subjects who were limited to only 4.5 hours of sleep a night for one week reported feeling more stressed, angry, sad, and mentally exhausted. When the subjects resumed normal sleep, they reported a dramatic improvement in mood.

High Blood Pressure

Sleeping seven to eight hours a week may treat high blood pressure.

Sound too good to be true?

It’s actually pretty simple.

Sleep helps regulate your stress hormones. Lack of sleep could decrease your body’s ability to regulate stress hormones which leads to high blood pressure.

Make sure you receive adequate sleep if you experience high blood pressure. Missing sleep could make your blood pressure difficult to manage.

Weight Gain

Do you ever notice that you want to snack when you are tired? Your brain is looking for food for energy. Unfortunately, no almonds, chips, or vanilla latte will make up for a bad night’s sleep.

Sleep deprivation can cause increased levels of a hunger hormone called ghrelin and decreased levels of the satiety/fullness hormone called leptin, which could lead to overeating and weight gain.

Poor Balance

Lack of sleep can impact your coordination. This can lead to workplace trips and falls. It’s important to get enough sleep for any office setting.

Taking care of yourself is important to all aspects of your life. Make time for sleep and, at work, make sure you have a team you can rely on to meet your goals to reduce your stress. I can’t do much to help you with your sleep, but I can do a lot to help you build a great team.

The mid-day slump is a problem for thousands of office workers. You can treat your fatigue with energy drinks. However, energy drinks are only a temporary fix.

This article will address common reasons that you could be fatigued. Reflect on whether these habits have become part of your lifestyle. If you have high energy, you will be able to perform better, deal with stress better, and be happier at work.

Smoking

Thousands of warnings alert us that smoking causes cancer. We often miss how smoking impacts our daily lifestyle.

According to Dr. Michael Roizen MD, smoking causes our arteries to dilate to only 50% of people of those who were never exposed to tobacco smoke. When the arteries to your muscles can’t dilate, the muscles feel acutely tired and sore. Therefore, you cannot do as much.

If you are taking a mid-day smoke break, stop! While smoking creates an immediate energy boost, it does not create sustainable energy that gets you through the work day.

Over Stressed

Have you ever had a difficult problem that you poured all your energy into solving?

Managing stress can be draining. WebMD claims that stress activates your sympathetic nervous system. The sympathetic nervous system creates a high energy boost to deal with the problem. The body quickly crashes preventing sustainable energy.

How to Control Your Stress Levels

• Improve Time Management Skills
• Seek Counseling
• Say “No” When Possible
• Take Personal Time
• Plan Tasks Ahead

Excessive Coffee Intake

Do you drink coffee throughout the day for energy? The habit could be making you more tired. Excessive coffee makes you dehydrated, which causes fatigue.

Studies by MayoClinic show that four cups of coffee per day is safe for adults. If you are chronically tired, stick to one cup of coffee in the morning. Keep a water bottle next to you filled with water. Make it a goal to finish the water by the end of the day.

Poor Diet

When we get busy, we often eat the fastest thing that we can find. That meal is usually unhealthy. Unfortunately, if you are eating foods that are high in sugar and simple carbs, you will probably crash after an hour. Snack on nutrient dense foods to help you maintain energy throughout the day.

Follow these healthy eating tips to provide you with sustained energy;

• Snack on protein and fiber rich foods
• Remove the energy drinks and replace them with water
• Balance your plate with protein, complex carbohydrates, and fruits and vegetables.
• Eat small meals with nutrient dense snacks

Never Saying “No”

Do you ever feel mentally drained when you are overwhelmed with responsibilities? If you feel yourself hitting a wall then start saying “no”.

“No” if you are too busy. “No” if the project will keep you in the office until late at night. There will be times when your job position requires you to say “yes” to overwhelming projects. However, recognize when you can say “no”. This will help you decrease stress that causes fatigue.

Glued to the Computer

Sitting long hours at the computer is not just bad for your back and waist line. Staring at a computer screen can cause mental fatigue that leaves us unmotivated at the end of the day.

Excessive computer work can cause Chronic Fatigue, a disease where you suffer from tiredness for over six months. More than 500,000 people in the United States have been diagnosed with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. Computers and smartphones are linked to eye fatigue because you blink less when using a digital device. Blinking naturally refreshes the eyes. Electronic device users blink half as often as normal.

Step away from your computer every hour to avoid Chronic Fatigue. Standing can also reenergize you to get your job done.

Happiness is a choice. However, as deadline approach we can feel pressure and stress that makes happiness feel like a pipedream. Under busy conditions, it’s important to focus on achieving greater mental health. The following tips can help you stay happy at work:

Do Something You Love Every Day

Sure, you might love your job. However, work does not replace a hobby or family time.

Americans employed full time work an average of 47 hours per week which equates to 6 days per week. They also do not take all of their mandated time off. The average American receives 15 days off per year but only uses 14.

You need to make time for the things that you love to stay happy at work. This could be yoga, mountain biking, golf, knitting, or taking your kids to the park.

Stay Out of Work Place Drama

Nothing like a little “he said, she said” to bring you down at work! Gossiping is high school and should stop when you are fifteen.

Work place drama is also destructive to your professional reputation. Your coworkers might start to recruit you to take sides or talk badly behind your back. Gossip is a recipe for unhappiness at work.

How to Avoid Work Place Drama

• Save the venting for outside of the office
• Wait to reply to emails that feel like attacks to avoid scorching replies
• Never assume negative intent

Have a Clear Idea of Expectations

Employers hire employees that help their company make money. Clarify what your employer expects from you to achieve what they need. This reduces stress from unclear end goals.

Don’t Overcommit

Have you ever felt pressure from not meeting job expectations? Avoid this by not overcommitting.

For example, your boss might be looking for someone to lead a project. This position could help you get a promotion. However, you are already loaded with tasks and working 50 hours per week. This is not the time to accept the position! Wait until you can perform to the best of your abilities.

Help a Co-Worker

Have you ever felt happier after helping another person? Altruists are more likely to be committed to their work and not quit their job.

“Being motivated to help and believing your work makes a difference is associated with greater happiness in our analysis,” claims Donald Moynihan, professor in the La Follette School of Public Affairs. Moynihan found a link between happiness and altruism in the workplace between 49 countries.

Take 10 minutes to help with a difficult project to increase your happiness levels for the entire week.

Think of 3 Good Things that Happened

When we focus on the negative, we will find the negative. Negativity can be a difficult pattern to break. Instead of focusing on your coworker’s rude comment or pile of work, reflect on three things that you are thankful for. Doing so, can improve your mood and make work more enjoyable.

Sleep More

Have you ever gotten a poor night’s sleep and woken up cranky and anxious? Your body needs sleep, just like air and water.

Signs that you aren’t sleeping enough:

• Yawning
• Irritability
• Daytime fatigue

Increase your amount of sleep to 7-9 hours per night if you are suffering with these symptoms. A well-rested brain is a happier brain.