In my house, which includes an 11-year-old, I am typically the first to get to bed. This naturally makes me the butt of many jokes and comments. (In my defense, I’m also the first to rise, sometime in the 5:00 am hour). My goal each night is to get 7 hours of sleep, as I find that on days when I sleep for a shorter duration, I am tired throughout the day. But getting adequate sleep isn’t just about being less tired. It’s one of the most important things we can do to preserve our health and improve our chances of longevity.

You celebrated. Now you need to recover. Here’s how.

Life's major events, such as weddings, holidays, and family celebrations, often bring joy and cherished memories. However, they can also disrupt our routines and leave us feeling a bit disoriented when we return to our regular schedules. As someone who recently experienced the whirlwind of a son's wedding followed by the festivities of the Jewish holiday of Purim, I understand firsthand the challenge of getting back on track.

In this blog post, we'll explore strategies to quickly regain momentum and find balance after significant life events.

Does work make you sad?

My friend, a recent immigrant to Israel who travels "home" to the US multiple times per year on business, told me that he feels sad every time he returns to the US. He would much rather be in Israel. This, despite having lived in the US for most of his life (he’s well into his 50s).

As he told me that, it struck me how many people must feel sadness different elements of their work.

Tips to Manage Workplace Stress

Building passion is also a great way to manage and reduce workplace stress. Stress is a serious drain on productivity and had a direct effect on worker health and absenteeism. Stress-related illnesses cost businesses an estimated $200 billion to $300 billion a year in lost productivity, as reported in Stress in the Workplace. A study by Health Advocate found that 1 million workers miss work each day due to stress. This absenteeism costs employers an estimated $600 per worker each year. Twelve percent of employees have called in sick because of job stress. This is not surprising because most people respond to increased stress with added caffeine and alcohol consumption, smoking, and prescription medications.

How to build workplace passion

Productivity begins with engagement and passion. Disengaged, dispassionate workplaces are much less productive.

It is well-documented that many folks are not passionate about their work. According to Deloitte research, “Up to 87.7 percent of America’s workforce is not able to contribute to their full potential because they don’t have passion for their work.”

Batching Work Saves Time

Time batching is a time management technique in which you group similar tasks together for focused work. During the allocated time, you work to complete all the tasks. If you want to get more done, with less distraction, consider batching your work.

How is this helpful?

For starters, by batching work you can do a lot of tasks that require similar processes all in one sequence. Things like responding to emails, completing forms, and doing research. The advantage is that you can get “in the zone,” build momentum, and knock off a bunch of things in short order.

If, on the other hand, you do a little of this and some of that, there is no flow, and each activity tends to take more time. This is, in part, because your brain needs to constantly reorient and focus on something new.

Why you should sharpen your saw

The next “self-care” step is to “sharpen your saw,” to quote the habit devised by Stephen Covey.

Like a dulled saw cutting through a thick tree log, we produce diminished results when our depleted self attempts to “cut through” the daily grind and challenging projects. Even when we are working, we’re just going to get the same amount done or at the same level of quality.

To succeed over the long haul, we need to take care of ourselves through what we eat, the exercise and sleep we get, and more.

6 R's of Summer School

While school administrators are typically not “off” from school to the same extent as teachers (there is still plenty of planning, ordering, interviewing and the like that occurs over the summer months,) the relaxed days of June, July and August present school leaders with a special opportunity that is unique to this time of year. I like to think of them as a principal’s own set of summertime “R’s.”

BLOG