Kathi and Katherine talk about crying at work on this week’s episode of the My Crazy Office podcast.
First we give advice to a new manager who is trying to handle a chronic crying employee.
Then we discuss what someone who cries easily can do to manage themselves in challenging work situations.
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Kathi and Katherine talk about keeping your spirits up on this week’s My Crazy Office Overtime show.
How do you keep your spirits lifted through the holidays?
Listen to this week’s podcast here.
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Kathi and Katherine talk about emotions in the workplace on this week’s episode of the My Crazy Office podcast.
First we give advice to someone who likes to process their emotions with others at work.
Then we discuss what to do if you’re someone who doesn’t want to deal with emotions in the workplace.
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You are probably facing some difficult conversations at work regarding Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI). If not, you should be. Now is the time.
Entering these uncomfortable discussions requires the first rule of executive presence, Know Your Audience. Knowing your audience means that you are able to communicate the necessary messages without ruffling feathers. You know the audience well enough that you can speak to their fears with compassion and speak into their biases with no judgment. Not knowing your audience brings the risk of not being heard, which results in not helping yourself or others.
Listen up – before you walk in or phone or zoom into any of these conversations consider the following:
1 – Think about the receptivity of those in attendance.
2 – Check in with yourself.
3 – Get to a higher place – above your initial feelings and into your wisdom.
4 – Communicate from a place of clear, refined messaging.
As you embark on difficult conversations about diversity, equity and inclusion, you may be experiencing all kinds of emotions like anger, fear, dread, and exhaustion. But, as long as you are willing to tackle these issues, you can bring about necessary, long-awaited change. Let us know how you are doing, and if we can help.
Kathi Elster – Executive Coach and co-owner of K Squared Enterprises.
Contact us at info@mycrazyoffice.co for any further help around this topic.
As some of the restrictions due to the COVID-19 pandemic begin to lift, and some people cautiously begin to return to their work environments, we are tasked with the job of managing yet another period of transition. It is the transition from the safety and predictability of our quarantined home environments to the uncertainty and potential risks of the outside world. It’s the transition from the daily routines and practices that we have established while sheltering in place, to the new routines and practices that involve people and things outside of the home.
Even if you are still working from home, you are probably in transition. You and members of your family may now be interacting more with the world at large by venturing out to see friends, visit stores, go to restaurants, travel short distances, or participate in outdoor events.
Transitions can be tricky. They can bring up a range of feelings – from fear and anxiety to impatience and irritability. Transitions heighten our emotional reactions; they put us a little more on edge.
If, for example, you are returning to your office after several months away, just the thought of returning to your former work setting may set off both excitement and anxiety. If you see that one of your coworkers is less cautious than you are regarding social distancing, you may feel a flash of anger or fear. As you head to the office, you may experience a sense of dread – even though you know that your company is putting all of the necessary safety precautions in place.
Are you in transition? Are aspects of your home life and work life changing? If so, here are a few suggestions for how to manage emotional ups and downs that may come with change:
As difficult as the past few months have been, you managed to carve out a routine and to establish new patterns of living. Now, you have to change the mix of activities again. It may be great to expand your world, but stressful at the same time.
Releasing pent up energy through exercise, walking, dancing, working out, biking, etc., remains one of the best self-care things you can do, but it’s especially valuable during times of transition. If you have an exercise routine, stick to it. If not, consider developing some kind of physical outlet to calm your nerves and lower your emotional temperature.
You may have developed some good habits over the past few months. Better eating, more family time, shorter workdays, time for hobbies. As you transition out of sheltering in place, retain the routines that you value. It will help you feel a greater sense of comfort and control.
As you consider re-entering your former work environment, your mind will be working double time preparing for and planning your next steps. Your body and brain will benefit if you commit to getting plenty of sleep (if possible), and finding time to unwind at the end of the day.
Managing transitions during normal times can be challenging. During these unpredictable times, changing your working and living patterns may be both welcome and stressful. Give yourself credit for being in transition, and take care of your mind and body as you move forward.
Katherine Crowley – Career Therapist and co-owner of K Squared Enterprises.
Contact us at info@mycrazyoffice.co for any further help around this topic.
In just a matter of days, the coronavirus pushed people inside their homes, accelerating a digital transformation around the world.
Getting workers out of their homes and back into offices is going to prove harder. According to a new survey by researchers at India-based workplace services firm Ionotrics and San Diego–based Global Workplace Analytics:
77 percent of the workforce wants to continue to work from home at least part of the time once the pandemic is over. That’s up from 60 percent one month ago. That’s a 132 percent increase from before the coronavirus crisis, according to the Work-from-Home Experience Survey in which more than 2,600 employees from around the world participated.
As the country is opening up, employees are faced with a decision – do they go back to the office or not? Many of my clients are telling me that members of their staff are fearful about returning. Compassion still reigns. You may have to consider each person, and the factors that they are grappling with. If you have a staff member who fits into any of the following categories, their return will most likely be delayed:
In some states, employees who fit into one of these categories may qualify for unemployment – if they must return to the office and are not able to. Other employees most likely need reassurance and to be listened to. It’s important to calm nerves and listen to staff concerns. Here are some guiding principles:
Coming out of the cave after a long winter, a bear needs time to acclimate. You may want to start with visiting the office ahead of opening, and encouraging your staff to do the same. Then try two days the first week and see how it goes.
Professional coaches, therapists and clergy can talk to your staff about their mental health. It will pay off in the long run.
Create guidelines for behavior in these conversations, and have a moderator who keeps the conversation constructive. Offer books and movies as resources. Have conversations that allow staff to express their fear, pain, and anger. This kind of sharing can be extremely emotional, so make sure you to have professional support around it.
Sure, we are working to earn money, and companies must be profitable to hire people, and I know that in some industries robots will replace people. Given this reality, how can you make the workplace a desirable and safe place so that people want to work for you?
Please let us know how the transition back to the office works for you and your company.
Kathi Elster – Executive Coach and co-owner of K Squared Enterprises.
Contact us at info@mycrazyoffice.co for any further help around this topic.
Re-entry anxiety, it’s a real phenomenon. While one part of you may be eager to get back into the world to experience a semi-normal life, another part of you may be petrified. Going back to the office, venturing outdoors, visiting with friends – all of these activities that used to be automatic can now spark waves of fear and anxiety.
Why? Because your mind has gotten used to a certain way of living during the pandemic that feels safe and under your control. Sheltering in place may be confining, but it is predictable. You know exactly what is coming into and what is going out of your environment. You know how to safely manage your life.
Re-entry adds a range of new ingredients – especially other people – that can literally feel hazardous to your health.
So how do we handle our fear of re-entering?
One more thing, if part of what you fear involves returning to a competitive workplace or working endless hours, you may want to consider some longer-range changes. Do you need to re-design your job? Do you need to look for a different work situation altogether? You may not be ready to make any immediate changes, but you can begin to contemplate the kind of work life and home life that will ultimately work for you.
Katherine Crowley – Career Therapist and co-owner of K Squared Enterprises.
Contact us at info@mycrazyoffice.co for any further help around this topic.
As many of us move through week nine of sheltering in place, it becomes more and more difficult to simply “keep calm and carry on.”
Some of us may have started the quarantine with high hopes of a brief but successful period of isolation. Some of us may have used this time to launch creative projects, institute family activities, or get busy with different forms of home improvement. And some of us may have been contending with the actual virus – either because we contracted the illness ourselves or because a family member contracted it.
Whatever your experience has been during this time, I can guarantee that it hasn’t been easy. It’s likely that you’ve had days of great productivity, and days of no productivity. You’ve felt good at times, and lousy at other times. You’ve probably encountered moments of hope and clarity followed by moments of hopelessness and confusion.
Why does this matter? It matters because as we continue to cope with COVID-19, it’s important to also practice patience with our own process. Being patient with your process means you make room for your feelings, forgive your mistakes, and allow yourself to start again.
Being patient with yourself may seem anti-intuitive during a pandemic. You may think that you should to be alert and on-the-ball at all times. But practicing patience with yourself will actually help you feel better, perform better and be more patient with others during this incredibly stressful time.
Katherine Crowley – Career Therapist and co-owner of K Squared Enterprises.
Contact us at info@mycrazyoffice.co for any further help around this topic.
Join Kathi and Katherine as they answer real workplace questions with solid advice, and a great sense of humor.
Bestselling authors Katherine and Kathi use humor and a slue of engaging techniques to mediate solutions for individuals at every level of employment — from executives to managers to frontline employees.
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