Boredom shortens your lifespan.

After studing 7000 British civil servants over 25 years, scientists concluded:

• people who complain of boredom were more likely to die young
• those with high levels of tedium were 2.5 times more likely to die from heart disease or stroke
• those in the study who said they were bored were 40% more likely to have died by the end of the study than those who were not bored.

There’s such a thing as “settling” for a job that pays pretty well but doesn’t really excite you that much. You might even be settling for a job that doesn’t pay that well because finding somethng better feels too difficult.

I know – I did it for years. There’s a high cost to pay on emotional and physical health which unfortunately, we don’t realise until we’re doing something that is a much better fit for us.

So whatever it takes for you to make yourself a priority when it comes to work – don’t waste time. If you are bored, marking time, or showing up to work without really showing up – commit this year to finding meaningful and inspiring work.

It took 4 weeks for me to get my head clear (the long holiday has a lot going for it). And here I am. From this year I am going to pursue one goal with enormous passion and energy.

I want to help people have a better time at work – whether that’s in business or coroprate life.  This is near and dear to my heart as I’ve been in a bad space at work several times throughout my working life. It took me way too long to make the changes I needed to. So maybe I can shortcut that process in some way for others.

I am going to focus my energy in 2 areas: I will take a macro view with organisations, and a micro view working with individuals. Let me explain….

Organisations can and are doing a lot to improve themselves. I want to help those companies work through their changes effectively, taking into account all the people and process implications. Changes that improve the culture, the work experience, the processes and the behaviours will bring improvements.

Improving leaderhsip capability – to lead people, to work in a aocnstantly changing environment, to have constructive conversations. This is a fundamental part of the equation.  How many of us have had managers with little or the wrong skills sets? And how much harder did that make our working lives? It doesn’t have to be that way.

At the individual level, I want to help people find more meaning from their choice of work. Perhaps they like where they work and their profession but need new skills or strategies for getting ahead. These things can be learned. And I   suspect there is a large number of people out there who know in their hearts they aren’t doing “the right job”  for them (is there such a  thing?) . All I can say is – been there myself – know how you feel

The answer for these people might be a transition to something completely different. Whichever – the time for doing nothing is well over! We won’t be here for ever so we might as well spend our time doing things that mean something to us.

So enough with the sharing. It feels good to be back.

How many people do you know who long for something more but haven’t taken any action? And what are you all being fierce about this year?

This was true even when I held a senior corporate job. My colleagues would look at me with envy (or was it anger….) when I left the building each day by 5pm. Many found it hard to understand why my in-tray wasn’t overflowing or how I managed competing demands and priorities from different people.

This was brought home to me a few weeks ago when several people in one of my workshops were complaining about having to respond to their managers’ emails on a weekend. It turns out that their manager regularly caught up on her emails over the weekend as she travelled a lot during the week.

OK sure – she could have held off sending them until Monday morning. And she had made a point of telling her team that she didn’t expect them to answer those emails on the weekend. But guess what – they did anyway.

Me being me, I asked them why they didn’t just leave the work crackberry switched off on the weekend. This was unimaginable to them. Even though they had permission not to address their emails, they did so anyway.

I understand the power of cultural drivers but for me, this is about setting personal boundaries. Many times, the choice about what and how much to do is ours to make. The longer we try to please everyone, or work too long because we are afraid to say no, the more we perpetuate that pattern. Sometimes things have to break in order to be fixed.

In these times when good people are hard to find, and companies are focused on retaining skills and knowledge, the chances of being sacked for taking some control are small. But we have to be willing to make the call.

If this feels like a position you are in, my suggestion would be to have a chat with your manager about the issues you have with your current way or working, and what adjustments you would like to make. Or just start saying no.

“long and pointless meetings are the main cause of office rage”

And if people look like they are paying attention in meetings, they are equally as likely to be writing a Xmas card list, setting goals for their new business or texting their friends under the table.

The volume of literature on making meetings more effective is astounding. And yet – the problem persists. Some companies like Walmart, only have stand up meetings – the theory being that you’ll wrap things up faster if you don’t get to sit down.

So a smart guy (Peter Murmann) from the Australian School of Business has developed the Meeting Meter – a tool that calculates the hourly cost of all participants in a meeting, while the meeting is occurring. In a true stroke of genius, the cost is shown on-screen, and as the meeting progresses, the dollars ratchet upwards.

It wouldn’t take long for people to finish up a meeting when they realise it’s costing thousands of dollars to have the people sitting around the table.

Smart idea….

Have you ever thought about reviewing your bosses performance?

“So Mandy – remember that we spoke about your continuing need to micro manage me, control every aspect of my day, and allow your frustration to boil over into regular verbal assaults and negative comments? Well I’m afraid I’ve seen no improvement over the last 3months, so I’m going to rate you as a “Needs Development”. If we can’t find a way to help you improve on these key issues, we’ll have to think about your long term suitability for management roles in general”.

Seriously – wouldn’t that be great? Finall an opportunity to provide feedback on the thigns that give you the shits and make your life more difficult, and the things they are doing well.

My question to you is – why aren’t you doing this already? there’s no law that states you can’t give upwards feedback – the same rules apply upwards as dpwnwards.

So next time you feel yourself inwardly rolling your eyes or sighing at the boss – actually say what’s on your mind (constructively, and with good humour, of course). They could totally ignore you, but maybe – just maybe – you’ve given them food for thought.

GuyKawaksaki wrote a great series of questions on evaluating your boss. Check them out here.