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I’ll admit, when I started on this holiday puzzle, I contemplated just doing the ‘key features’ and skipping the extremely nondescript background. This is the result.

Soon after, I decided I was up for the challenge and ventured into the seemingly boring background. At first glance, this aspect of the puzzle seemed unimportant and not very interesting. There were slight variations in the blue tones but that was about it. Even the stars looked alike. Why was this part of the puzzle the least interesting? It wasn’t just that it was harder. It was because it was more satisfying to place finishing pieces for a more distinct feature such as wreaths on the double door entrance or a boughs on a glistening tree. On the surface, it feels more satisfying to directly help complete an interesting or “more important” feature.

Isn’t this how our lives can be viewed – by ourselves and others? Social media and our over-exposed world is full of people who tend to show their shiny side. Their glistening tree side, not the indistinguishable background of life. We are encouraged to stand up, use our voice, take the center stage and shine. Great words of encouragement indeed!

But when I completed the background, I saw how much more beautiful the snow globe became. I noticed more features and the interplay of them as part of the scene. It was an essential part of the whole picture. Isn’t this how life is? How it should be? For each of us to recognize our value when we are the background and how we are part of the full and beautiful picture? How that also allows others to have their moments to shine? Communities and organizations and families work most successfully and beautifully when this combination of glistening and background coexist.

As we enter the holiday season and all that vies for our attention, remember how valuable and essential it is for us, and others, to sometimes be the background.

I’ve been frequenting my local Starbucks in Cary, NC lately for a change of pace since I mostly work from home. As an introvert, I really enjoy sticking close to home. But I still crave the occasional burst of interactions with other humans. And the Starbucks Drive Thru has been surprisingly uplifting.

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For months now, literally every Starbucks team member speaks to me with a bolt of energy that says, “I’m so glad you’re here!” You can hear the smile in their voice through the intercom and from behind their mask. The also use my name, make eye contact, and have a little conversation like, “Oh, that’s a cute scarf you have”. I leave feeling a bit ‘brighter’ about facing the day and look forward to going back.

From a customer service and engagement perspective, it is easy to see core principles and strategies at play. At the same time, I am simply enjoying the experience. And it has been happening in so many other places – the grocery store, hardware center, gift shop, and neighborhood sidewalks. It’s like saying, hey, we’re all struggling in the pandemic AND we are doing our part to make it a bit better. (Thankfully, we are seeing the light at the end of that tunnel!)

So hit up your local Starbucks and other local businesses and be open to how the crews there are brightening your day. Then, share that brightness by taking a minute to create a moment for people who cross your path throughout the day.

Have a bright day!

Labor Day is synonymous with three – day weekends, cook outs, and Labor Day sales. The end of one season and the start of the next. Enter a pandemic, where seasons seem to run together, gatherings to cook or shop have limitations, and the world of work is completely different. According to the US Department of Labor, Labor Day is intended to “celebrate the contributions workers have made to the strength, prosperity, and well-being of our country.” Take the day off for rest and relaxation! Sadly, this sentiment may feel lost for far too many Americans who are unemployed. Or on others who are working longer hours, in new roles, or as volunteers to help countless people in need of food, shelter, health care, or social and emotional support.

Taking a day off is also an important part of achieving optimal work- life balance. This balance is vital to be energized, fully present, and innovative, both at work and at home. So imagine the “hypocrisy”, if you will, when I spent the first few hours of this Labor Day catching up on work. I’m embarrassed to admit this! How am I to rejuvenate if I have work- life blur instead of balance? Fortunately, I had plans for an energizing hike with my husband. (More on achieving work-life balance coming to another blog post soon).

So in the spirit of the Labor Day intention, whether you are currently employed or not yet, working today because you must or because you choose to, please take time off this week to rest and rejuvenate. Because in order for your contributions of work to promote the “strength, prosperity, and well-being” of our country, your celebrations must do the same for you.

Interestingly, I walk by this bench on my neighborhood Greenway almost daily – especially these days. But today was the first day I noticed the bench reads, “welcome”.

While we navigate through a new and necessary world of “sheltering in place” and “closed for business” signs, I’m aiming to look for ways the world is “open”.

May we all continue to find and share those “open” signs.

Savasana is known in yoga as complete relaxation, a way to calm the mind and body. In this last year of regular yoga practice, however, I have been skipping this part when it appears at the end of a routine. Just lay there and do nothing while the clock keeps ticking and my to-do list keeps growing? Dare I say I considered it a waste of time. Never mind that research and experts have shown its power for improving physical and mental health. Never mind that my personal stress had been leaving me with insomnia and other ailments. If I didn’t feel a “good stretch” or burn some calories, I didn’t see the point.

I’m not sure why I started to continue my SaraBeth yoga routines through to the end. Maybe I just didn’t want to get up and start the day. My stress and exhaustion literally pinning me to the mat.

Savasana is also called “corpse pose”. What irony! I feel more “alive” since I’ve been regularly posing as a corpse! I don’t just read about the importance of complete relaxation, I’m experiencing it. Calm in the midst of chaos. Deep sleep. Strength.

So don’t wait until your stress “pins” you to the mat. Give the SaraBeth Savasana relaxation video a try to get started. I hope you too can find a new way to live.

My cat Zoe loves yoga too!

Vacations are vital for promoting work-life balance, successful careers, and positive engagement with our work life. I was surprised to hear recently that many U.S. workers dread taking vacations, expecting to face a huge workload when they return. Let’s reduce the “dread” for both those taking the vacation as well as those who remain. I’ve discovered 5 ways you can help your colleagues – and yourself – enjoy a Vital Vacation this summer.

Five ways to help all in the office enjoy a Vital Vacation:

1. Choose to be happy to help. Not only does helping your colleague reduce their ‘dread’ of returning to work, it helps you be healthy as well. In 2016, researchers published The Neurobiology of Giving Versus Receiving, revealing the psychological and neurological benefits of helping others. So, try and be enthusiastically willing to help complete some tasks while your colleague is out. Unsure how? Ask them for a quick tutorial or a re-train. And be sure to add the new or newly honed skills to your resume!

2. Avoid emailing and remove them from the “cc” on a group reply. Instead, schedule time on their return to review key items and decisions. Create a folder of documents to share with them. If you must email, provide a dated action to help them prioritize tasks when they return. My director recently provided this respectful and practical support. It helped me return from vacation with less stress and greater productivity.

3. Create a coverage plan. Create dated task lists, identify locations of file paths and folders, and list contact people who can help solve unanticipated problems. Leaders, pair team members to cover for each other in advance. Specify the tasks and plan vacations when the coverage partner is available.

4. Decide to decide. Discuss with your colleague what types of decisions can be made in their absence and which ones they prefer to hold until their return.

5. Be authentic. Sometimes help that is offered isn’t the help we need. So, think about how you would like your return to the office after vacation to be this summer. How would you like others to help you when you go on vacation? This type of thinking may lead to creative strategies that provide helpful help.

Vacations are essential for personal and organizational health. Give these 5 ways to a Vital Vacation a try – and give your entire team a new way to be healthy and rejuvenated.

How will you help your colleague enjoy a Vital Vacation this year? Please share your ideas in the comment box below!

We send Valentines Day cards to people to express our love and appreciation – but send one to our work? Seems odd, yet we use phrases such as “love your work”, do what you love”, or “I love my job”, so why not? Now granted, our work is an inanimate object so typical Valentines Day messages don’t exactly fit. So, I propose we write our own!

Wait a minute, you might say…I don’t exactly love my job. Well, let’s go back to people. There are some people that could be described as “easier” to love than others – they may have more likable attributes or similar interests or values. We may prefer to spend less time with them. But can we still love them? Appreciate their positive qualities and contributions? Care for them? Absolutely!

And so it is with work. Learn to love your work – no matter what kind of work you do! Do you know who presumably said, “Mr. President (Kennedy), I help put people on the moon”? The janitor at NASA! Clearly, all types of work are necessary to make an organization be successful. There are so many opportunities for us to share our gifts and talents! So how can you learn to love your work?

• For starters, decide to find aspects of your work that you enjoy or appreciate. For the next several days, write down 3 tasks or interactions with colleagues you enjoyed or are grateful for.
• Next, recognize and value your work’s contribution to a larger goal or service. The janitor at NASA is someone who appreciated their contribution to an organization, and a society, in achieving a valuable goal.

I have spent some time clarifying how I love my work – especially on those days when it’s not so easy to love. It has helped me craft my Valentines Day message for work and I encourage you to give it a try. Here’s mine – I hope it helps you write your own::

Dear Work,

I am so grateful that I can freely use my skills and passion for helping people when I am with you! I love how you help me learn and grow personally and professionally. I enjoy being a part of a solution for high quality, affordable health care. And I love how you have brought wonderful new people into my world.

I’ll admit, I struggled with the execution of this idea. It feels awkward! But I urge you to move beyond the awkwardness because doing so can help you see all the reasons how you can love your work even when it isn’t always lovely.

I’ve been aiming to do Sara Beth Yoga each morning and admittedly, I almost skipped it today. But I am so glad I didn’t because instructor Sara Beth used this phrase that struck me as a valuable component of work: “Don’t strain, strengthen”. What comes to mind when you hear this?

For me: ‘straining’ at work happens when I skip breaks, don’t ask for help, focus more on the to-do list than the “to-want” list, or spend too much time trying to find information to solve a problem.

‘Strengthening’ happens when I bundle my work tasks, ask for help, learn what works and what doesn’t to make improvements to my workflow, have solution-focused conversations, and carve out time to think of the big picture.

Jake Knapp and John Zeratsky, authors of Make Time and the Time Dorks blog, advise to begin your day thinking of your expected “highlight”. In other words, instead of only asking at the end of the day “What went really well?”, start the day asking, “What highlight or accomplishment would I like to achieve that will leave me feeling like something went really well today?” Then, decide to spend more time on processes and people that will get you there. Evaluate this approach at the end of the day and list a few options for improvement the next day. This is one way to strengthen, instead of just strain through the day.

I wish you a strength – filled day!

While getting ready for a “Pints & Paint” event with artist Patrick Hitesman at the local brewery Bond Brothers in Cary, NC, I assured my husband, as well as myself, not to worry – “it’s like paint by number”. Wrong! Admittedly, I had a moment of panic when I saw the BLANK CANVAS as we entered the studio. How on earth will we ever be able to paint the boat scene depicted in the sample?

One word: Teamwork. What I learned in that studio was that my husband can draw straight lines and I can blend. He’s more willing to experiment: “Let’s add some waves”, says my husband – not shown in the sample – but everyone loved the idea! Of course there were stray marks and easels toppling over but as the infamous painter, Bob Ross, said: “we don’t make mistakes, just happy little accidents”. What a great reminder to ease up and be open to learning from mistakes!

I thought the trickiest part was going to be the boat – until I learned that there was a stencil to make it easy. Artist and instructor Patrick provided step by step instructions, posed questions, and shared words of encouragement. Patrick taught us to look away from the painting, walk several steps, then look again. This tip transformed our work from microscopic criticism to a real confidence boost.

In the end, we were able to produce quite a praise-worthy painting. And while it was intended to be just a fun evening out, I learned a bit about success from the canvas.

1. I can still “paint” even if I initially feel panicked.

2. Listen to the instructor: load the brush, dab here, blend there. Be open to adjusting the work to achieve the goal.

3. Use the tools at hand. At first I thought using a stencil to paint the boat was cheating but in reality, it was necessary to achieve the goal.

4. I am not alone. My husband, Patrick, and other class members helped contribute to the final product.

5. Ease up and enjoy the process instead of focusing solely on a final, perfect product.

What blank canvas are you facing? Who are your instructors and how can your team help you? Are you using tools to achieve your goal? How are you maintaining calm?

As we face the blank canvas of the new year, I encourage you to spend time answering these questions. Be willing to “paint alongside the panic” and team up with others. And then, enjoy the beauty of your journey and confidence on canvas.

Here’s a question you might be hearing in the office today, “Got any plans for the weekend?” While answers will obviously vary, the idea of living life on a looser schedule is usually quite appealing. Like the railing pictured here, the structured work week leads into the wide open waters of the weekend. Ahh…just float and relax, right?

But come Monday morning, how many of us have felt as though we were jerked back onto the shore too soon -feeling a sense of dread Sunday evening, fatigue when the alarm goes off, or wishing you had more weekend? Sadly, too many. So if you are ready to experience more joy than dread come Monday, then let’s change that!

Creating a weekend that leaves you relaxed and refreshed won’t happen by accident. If you want it to happen then you need to make space for it. The concept of creating a more structured weekend is not new. Author Laura Vanderkam promotes it in her book, What Most Successful People Do on the Weekend. The idea naturally sparks some debate, fueled by the desire for freedom from a schedule, so often equated with work. However, Erica Brown, writes in Take your Soul to Work,

In some languages, the word for rest is related to soul. A true rest reconnects us with our true selves, needs and desires. It gives expression to our sense of wonder.

Wow, express our sense of wonder. To me that says let the world see the wonder of who we are come Monday, instead of being tired, stressed, and wishing we were somewhere else. So get your calendar and schedule these energizing essentials into your weekend:

Move your body Exercise helps create a powerful and efficient body and mind. Try and avoid going from couch potato to weekend warrior in one weekend. Instead, boost your work week routine by adding time or intensity, joining a group, finding a new location, such as a nearby park, or learning a new activity.

Keep the same sleep-wake cycle that you have during the week, or at the very least, don’t sleep in! This resets your internal clock, which takes up to 2 days to reset, leaving you feeling tired until then.

Nurture you Your purpose, who you were created to be. It may be by connecting with people or by finding solitude, learning something new or honing an existing skill. Not sure about your purpose? Dedicate time to find it and define it. Personally, I enjoy time alone in a coffee shop learning about blogging, photography, healthcare, or being a better me.

Use the non-dominant side of your brain This activates pathways that can help you find creative solutions for complex problems. Try learning a craft, enjoying a hobby, viewing art…or for the left brains: doing some algebra.

Help someone How about a charity walk, a clean up day, or a friendly, uplifting conversation with your barista or bestie?

Be grateful Gratitude reroutes energy away from unproductive worry and towards joy; putting life into perspective. This helps me prioritize tasks and be calm in stressful times. What are you grateful for? To make it impactful, be specific, write it down, and tell a friend.

So there you have it. My recipe for an energizing weekend. And I encourage you, as you walk alongside the structured railing of the work week, to ask yourself, how will I give myself time this weekend to help me be Monday Ready?