Work-Life Balance: Pulling Your Own Strings

Presentation to

Ruby Tuesdays

October 17, 2006

Bryan Hiebert

Faculty of EducationDivision of Applied Psychology

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Overview

• Stress revisited• What is resilience?

Resilience comes in people

• Some environments are more easy to be resilient in than others

• Leaders are responsibility for creating an environment conducive to resilience and balance

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Demands ≠ Stress

Intensity- DemandNature

- Coping Resources- Coping Resources

- Consequences

Appraisal

DEMAND

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What is stress? – Revisited

Intensity- DemandNature

- Coping Resources- Coping Resources- Consequences

Appraisal

DEMAND

Demand Coping

Demand

Coping

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Avoid self-blame

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What is resilience?

The ability to bounce back (recover) when hit with unexpected demands out of out of the blue

Take things in stride

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Resilience Model

• Stressors• Environmental contexts• Person-environment transactional process• Internal resiliency factors

Personal agencyPeoples’ beliefs in their ability to control their

own functioning + control what occurs in the environment

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Creating Resilience: Who’s job is it?

• It’s a leadership job BUT don’t wait for your boss

• Learn how to train your bossApproach your boss with solutions,

not problemsStroke your boss,

what goes around comes aroundYou can make a difference in YOUR

emotional climate

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Who is in charge of your life anyway?

• It depends on how you look at it

• Can you count on others to look out for your best interest?Usually not

The answer needs to be MEI’m in control

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Work – Life Balance:Who’s in charge?

The answer needs to be ME

I’m in charge

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Watch your perspective

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Creating a Sense of Control

• Start smallWhat you eat affects how you feelBe hydrated

• Give yourself permission to negotiate demands

• Be self-directed

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Perspective is Important

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Giving yourself voice

If you ask me and nobody has…

Don’t wait to be asked

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Creating Resilient Communities

• 3 factors are predictably difficult to deal withIntense and unpleasant demandsUncertainty (about outcomes)Ambiguity (regarding expectations)

• Not all demands are reasonable

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A Starting Point

All things To all peopleAll the time

is

All over

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Plan for Balance

• If you are a schedule personSchedule your leisure time

• Start with the small stuff

• Create non-work-like balance points

• Listen to your bodyBefore it sends you a message you

can’t ignore

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Keep your priorities on track

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Plan for Balance

It’s fun to have funbut you have to know how

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Creating A Positive Climate

• Say something nice to colleaguesEvery day

• Message seen is stronger than message spoken

• Need to model what we are trying to accomplish

• Walk the Talk• Create slogans to keep a positive focus

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Slogans to sustain a positive focus

• No one can insult you

Without your permission

• Stop Psychosclerosis

(hardening of the attitudes)

• I will not should on my self today

• Change is inevitable

Growth is optional

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Say NO! to zero tolerance

Zero

A little tolerance is a good thing

Tolerance

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Creating a Resilient Workplace:

Who’s job is it?• It’s a leadership job to create a

healthy work environment

• Model the goal – set a good example

• Jump on mistakes OR jump on successes

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Bosses want motivated employees

2 key factors for motivation• The goals must be valued

(valuable)

• The goal must be perceived as achievable (achievable)

• Create a motivation-oriented environment

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A New Approach to Leadership

• If it goes wrong,say “I did it.”

• If it goes sort of OK,say “we did it.”

• If it goes really wellsay “you did it.”

• Reduce “Look at me, look at me.”And replace it with “Look at us” or better yet, “Look at them.”

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Control and Choice

• Lobby for structural changes• Some people always will feel they

have no control• Many workers feel that the clocks are

controlled in head officeConsider ditching the clock?

• Demands gravitate towards competence(so be prepared or be less competent)

• Basic assertiveness helps keep balance• Bottom line …

I need to be pulling my own strings

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Summary: Tell them what you told them

• What is stress?Stress comes in people

• What is resilience?Resiliency comes in people

• Work-life balance I’m an active player in managing my lifeHow do you contribute to your own balance?How do you interfere with it?

• Some environments are more conducive to being resilient and balancedWhat have you done to

make your life more balanced?

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High above the hushed crowd, Rex tried to remain focused. Still he couldn’t shack one nagging thought, he was an old dog and this was a new trick.

Work-Life Balance: Pulling Your Own Strings

Presentation to

Ruby Tuesdays

October 17, 2006

Bryan Hiebert

Faculty of EducationDivision of Applied Psychology