Entrepreneur of Color

June 15, 2010 Volume 7-No 6 Issue

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I used to have a supervisor who used the term “piece of cake” to describe how easy it is to accomplish an assignment he expected me to complete. While my opinion may have different from his on a few of the assignments, the fact is he expected me to have no problem in “making it happen”.  That was another of his favorite sayings. Butch, my supervisor was a good all around guy. You may have guessed that, by my calling him Butch rather than Clearance or Mr.  ---.  Everybody called him Butch. Some called him more often than he wanted to be called but that’s another story.

Butch was not unlike other supervisors, employee and business peers or associates. People tend to judge the expertise required in a work process by how easy it would be for them to perform rather than the difficulty someone else might encounter. 

Another concern in this day and age is stress. We bring stress to work and in fact our business day brings about quite a bit of stress. In order for most people to perform at a very high level, their stress level should be as low as possible. Oh I know, some people say they work better in a stressful environment. When I hear that, I am reminded of the words of a very wise man. “He who performs better under stress will never know peace”

The bottom line…? It’s impossible to think “good business thoughts” if you are under stress. You could say there is a direct correlation between practicing good business sense and a stress free environment.

 Firms are looking for ways to attract competent employees and retain those they already have. They are offering more flexible hours and days of the week. They provide employees with day care services, gym memberships and allow them time to participate. Recently, we heard of one company who allowed their employees to take a short nap during the day. This is all geared toward keeping workers content with their current work environment.

There are other ways to relieve stress on a shoestring budget. These are tips one can use throughout their day and evening. Some are self-explanatory and simple others may require planning and organizing. But they are food for thought and are listed as follows:

1.        Leave the car at home and take public transportation 

2.        Take a brisk walk or swim

3.        Make time for playing a game or whatever you interpret as playtime for you.

4.        Make sure you take the time to enjoy a good movie or read a good book

5.        Make humor an everyday occurrence in your life-read a funny joke or laugh with friends.

6.        Go to the park, walk barefoot in the grass or just enjoy nature’s beauty once a month.

7.        Call or write an old friend and talk about the good times. Share your current experiences.

8.        Take time-outs to be with your mate and enjoy those activities you both like.

9.        End the day with a nice and slow love making session with your mate.

10.     Meditate and learn to calm down when you are angry

11.     Clasp your hands behind your head and stretch your shoulders.

12.     Learn to daydream, apologize, cry, and laugh out loud. In other words get in touch with your emotions.

13.     Hug someone you love and learn to be a touchy feeling kind of person.

14.     Pick a hobby or choose a task that you love to do and do it on a regular basis.

15.     Relax, relax, and relax whenever you can.

A lot of businessmen are insulted after receiving this type of advice.  Some often think these types of suggestions are trivial or juvenile. They read it and say…the ideas sound good for a woman. Once men let go of their macho image they realize how these simple little changes can make a difference. Just think how many “really nice days” you would have if you practiced everything on this list. Everything else would be truly be “a piece of cake”

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