“If you don’t know where you are going you might wind up somewhere else”
 
Yogi Berra

I just finished two 3.5 day developmental assessment centers with a large University medical center and another with a state university system for high potential leaders.  At the end of the assessment center, it was surprising to note that 10 to 15 percent of those attending confessed they really preferred to remain in independent contributor roles and that they were negatively challenged to be dealing with what is expected of those supervising, managing and leading others.
 
A five year study conducted by ConceptReserve (Colorado based consulting and training company) revealed that 86 percent of 2,600 managers have trouble transitioning from specialist/independent contributor roles into leadership roles. While this finding may not be a surprise, what is how often organizations tend to “tease” their best performing specialists to take leadership roles that many talent find to be poor fits for their interests and skills.

There appears to be some evidence that personality and propensity to move within leadership roles may even have a genetic predisposition to it.

Avery and colleagues, based on twin studies, estimate that about 33% of the variance in holding leadership roles is due to genetic factors¹. Findings from numerous studies of personality show that genetic effects account for approximately 50% of the variance in five factor domains².

If leaders truly understood the pre-wiring of the interests, values and motives of talent and tried to use this information to lead them more effectively they would be able to unlock some of the mystery surrounding effective leadership.

Understanding the “Wiring” of Specialists versus Leadership Oriented Individuals

SPECIALIST/INDEPENDENT CONTRIBUTOR CAREER PATH — This career path preference is best characterized by those interested in remaining in one career field or profession for much of their working life. Along the way, these specialists are able to highly refine their technical knowledge, skills and abilities. These individuals are less interested in moving up as they are in becoming the expert and having autonomy to do things their way.

LEADERSHIP CAREER PATH — This career path preference is best characterized by those interested in continually moving vertically up the organizational ladder into traditional supervisory and managerial positions with increasing spans of control, responsibility, power, and authority.

Typical career anchors and motives of these individuals include power, influence, leadership, control, task accomplishment, status, managerial competence, and directing others. Appropriate organizational rewards for these individuals might include: upward mobility, promotion, special perks, titles, and organizational symbols of success (e.g., profit sharing incentive plans, company car, stock options, financial planning, expense account, club memberships, etc.).

How to Avoid the Mistake of Moving Specialists into Leadership Roles

1. Conduct a “stay interview” and identify the signature strengths and activities that provide engagement and passion for all your talent (yep, just flat out ask if “leading” is interesting and stimulating).

2. Provide realistic job previews (e.g., managerial Inbasket simuations) that help talent understand the skills required to perform supervisory and leadership roles and where they have strengths to build on and areas to sharpen should they decide to move into leadership roles.

3. Ask managers to become better performance coaches and take time each appraisal to provide feedback on leadership skills that they see their direct reports do well and areas they can improve–whether or not they are specialists or currently supervisiing others.

4. During talent management/succession planning differentitate those interested in line management, project management and specialist type of roles/activities.

5. Create multiple career and compensation paths so specialists aren’t motivated organically to tweak into leadership roles to obtain the most updated Blackberries, increase their salary and take advantage of the management perks within your culture.

6. Identify, using employee engagement surveys, pockets of leadership incompetence and analyze if those in place are truly a good “fit” for the leadership role they are in.

 Not all transitions for those who are specialists end up badly when they are moved into leadership roles but enough do to be a strong warning to most organizations who tend to repeat this mistake far too often.  Maybe I should ask our 10-month year old guide dog puppy Ajax what he wants to be when he grows up….Be well….

Technorati Tags: career paths, specialists, project managers, interests, specialists, career anchors, independent contributors, entrepreneurial behavior, coaching, leadership, talent management, kenneth nowack, ken nowack, nowack

1. Avery, R.D., Zhang, Z. Avolio, B. & Kreuger, R.F. (2007).  Developmental and gentic determinants of leadership role occupancy among women. Journal of Applied Psychology, 92, 693-706 [↩]
2. Bouchard, T.J. & Loehlin, J.C. (2001).  Genes, evolution and personality.  Behavior Genetics, 21, 243-273 [↩]

“Statistics are like bikinis.  What they reveal is suggestive, but what they conceal is vital.”

 

Aaron Levenstein

Another addition of leadership and talent management “facts” from all over the world. Some are very intuitive and some are not….what do you think?

1. A recent 2009 survey of 372 human resources professionals by industry publication Workforce Management were asked about their experiences in conducting layoffs.  Over 50% reported they have suffered from sleeplessness, 35% have considered changing their careers and 23% have occasionally used a “substance” to cope.  Only 9% reported using their own employee assistance program (EAP) services to deal with their own work and life stress.

2. A 2009 telephone survey of 1,000 senior executives conducted on behalf of staffing firm Accountemps revealed that just one typo in a resume can cost you a job.  40% reported they wouldn’t hire a candidate who had a typo at all. I’m glad I’m not out actively looking for a new job…..

3. A 2009 poll of 2,261 U.S. adults by Harris Interactive on behalf of employer information website Glassdoor.com found that unemployed husbands and wifes reported more stress than single job seekers (81% to 51%, respectively).  Two thirds of the respondents said that the stress affected other areas of their jobs and 40% said it hindered personal relationships with friends and family.

4. A recent 2009 Executive Quiz results released today by The Korn/Ferry Institute reveal that nearly half (47 percent) of employed executives are either somewhat or very dissatisfied with their current position.

5. In the same Kron Ferry International Executive Quiz a surprising 31 percent of executives stated they do not trust their boss. Despite this, however, three-quarters gave them favorable performance ratings: excellent (19

percent), above average (35 percent) or average (22 percent). Even worse, 36 percent of executives reported they do not trust their CEO. In fact, when asked if their current CEO is the best person for the job, only 38 percent said “absolutely,” while 34 percent responded “somewhat” and 28 percent said “not at all.”

6. Women control almost $12 trillion in consumer spending, 65% of the global total. By 2028, they will control 72% of worldwide consumer spending. But contrary to stereotype, a BCG survey of over 12,000 women in 22 countries found that only 5% of women say shopping makes them extremely happy, compared to pets (42%), sex (27%), and food (19%).

7. People who suffer from insomnia take sick days twice as often as those who do not, according to a report by The Center for Medicine in the Public Interest. The study found that over a six-month period, the condition cost employers an average of 4.4 days of wages for each untreated sufferer, plus indirect costs due to lower productivity and mistakes made because of lack of sleep.  Better get your zzzzzz tonight!

8. Both men and women put on weight in response to work-related stress and difficulty paying bills, according to a longitudinal study published this month in the American Journal of Epidemiology. Men also gained weight because they felt they lacked decision authority or skill discretion (the ability to learn new skills and to choose to do new or different tasks) at work. For women, weight gain was also likely to be associated with a feeling of constraint in their lives in general and having difficulty with family relationships. During the 9.2 years of the study, men added an average of 1.37 kg/m2 to their body mass indices, while women added an average of 1.57 kg/m2 (Note: kg = 2.204623 lb).

9. A 2009 survey by the Trust for America’s Health found that The rate of physical inactivity among adults increased in 9 percent in U.S. states last year. (Physical inactivity is defined as engaging in no exercise other than their regular jobs for 30 days.) Except for New Jersey, the states with the highest rates of physical inactivity also rank among the top 15 in obesity. The least inactive states included Minnesota (16.3% adults are inactive) and Oregon (17.6%) and the most inactive states included Mississippi (31.8% are inactive) and Kentucky (30.4%).

10. Workers who use the web for entertainment while at work — whether they’re tweeting, watching YouTube videos, shopping, or catching up with the news — are 9% more productive than those who don’t, according to a recent study by Professor Brent Coker at the University of Melbourne. (As long as they don’t spend more than 20% of their time in the office doing what Dr. Coker calls “workplace internet leisure browsing”.) Why? People need quick breaks in order to maintain a high level of concentration throughout the day.

11. In a 2009 survey by CareerBuilder, laid-off workers are finding ways to make the best of a difficult time, according to a recent CareerBuilder survey of 1,800 unemployed American adults. In addition to looking for work, 22% are spending more time with family and friends, 15% are fixing up their homes, 14% are exercising more, 11% are finally taking time to relax, 8% are volunteering, and 7% are going back to school.

12. Women are under-represented not only in the C-suite, but also in the high-potential leadership development programs that would help them get there, according to an analysis of 12,000 leaders in 76 countries by Development Dimensions International. Researchers found 28% more men than women in early-career high-potential programs and 50% more men in executive-level high-potential programs.

Back to research some new talent development facts….Be well….

Technorati Tags: talent management, succession planning, leadership development, succession planning, micromanage, performance review, performance appraisal, overweight, obesity, wellness, coaching, executive coaching, executive development, surveys, kenneth nowack, Envisia, Envisia Learning, leadership development, ken nowack, Nowack

HOT READS FOR THE PRACTITIONER

Title: Your Next Move: The Leader’s Guide to Successfully Navigating Major Career Transitions

Competencies: career development, self development

Who benefits: employees on a vertical climb

Consultant Usage: career counseling, executive coaching

What’s it about? This is a very narrowly written book, so this review is not for every reader.  If it is not for you, stop now and get on to something important!

The book is written for those who see themselves moving into the highest echelons of organizations…the real executive levels.  It is further specific in focusing on the critical transition stage in a new role.  In essence, you have a 90 day time limit to make an impact or crash.  Put that way, vertical climbers need to consider this book.

Before going further, let me add an additional cautionary note.  If you have not considered your career in an organized way before today, be advised that vertical climbing is not the only way to have a successful career.  Consider reading Beverly Kaye’s seminal book Up Is Not The Only Way or consider taking Ken Nowack’s brilliant Career Profile Inventory (Ken is one of my bosses.  If you are a regular reader of this column, you know I frequently suck up to the bosses.)

Back to this book.  I love lists, so I liked this book because it has two lists.  A short one and a long one.  If you have not read the author’s previous book on this topic, he summarizes it in the first chapter: The Seven Elements of Successful Transition.  That’s the short list.  And now you don’t have to read his first book.

He really got me with the first item on the 7-point list: Organize To Learn.  Sounds simple but I doubt if any of us do that naturally…we are too tempted on the first day by what’s in the inbasket, and after that we a hooked on the short-term and have no time for what is really important.  His advice is to figure out what you most need to learn, from whom, and how you can best learn it.  He sees it as a mix of technical, cultural, and political learning. 

The long list is essentially what this book is about.  His list is what he calls “the eight types of career moves as representative types.”  I simply call them the eight career challenges.  Each one of the challenges is a separate chapter.

That’s probably what you need to know to decide if the book is right for you.  I mention at the top this book isn’t for everyone.  But no matter where you are on your career ladder today, if you see yourself climbing to the top, you need to read this book.

Catch you later.

Technorati Tags: careers, career ladder, promotions, vertical promotions, up is not the only way, career profile inventory, bill bradley, william bradley, bradley

“Just because you’re not sick doesn’t mean you’re healthy.” 

Author Unknown

Results of a new study from the University of Maryland confirm what working parents already know — the expanded work week is undermining family life. In a study of over 500 employees in a Fortune 500 company, researchers concluded that long hours at work increase work-family conflict and that this conflict is associated with increases stress and depression (regardless of how flexible an employee’s schedule was or how much help they had at home for child care).

In case anyone hasn’t noticed, some major career paradigm shifts continue to influence the value struggle between employers’ needs and employees’ wants.  Job security has been replaced by employability security, organizational loyalty has been replaced by job/task loyalty, and linear career paths have been replaced by alternative career paths. It is no coincidence that when reviewing characteristics of the “Best Companies” in America, we find a shift to those that are indeed “family friendly.”

In a poll by Reston, Virginia based TrueCareers, more than 70% of workers do not think there is a healthy balance between work and their personal lives. More than 50%of the 1,626 respondents reported they are exploring new career opportunities because of the inability to manage both work and family stressors. Not only that, a Monster.com survey in May 2009 found that 79% of all job holders said they had increased their search for new jobs since the recession began last year.

In a comparative survey by Atlanta-based staffing firm Randstad North America, in the year 2000, 54% rated family the most important priority compared to almost 70% in 2002.

For working professional women it is not unusual stop out of work (“off ramping”) to care for children, parents or other family demands. In fact, in a recent study by Sylvia Ann Hewlett and Carolyn Buck Luce published in Harvard Business Review on differences in “off ramping” found that 44%  of the women reported leaving the “fast lane” for “family time” compared with only 12% of men.

According to a Family and Work Institute study conducted in 2004, over 16% of employees bring work home at least once a week—up from 6% in 1977. 

What makes these work/family issues more striking is that working hours in other countries are flat or even declining. For example, France recently enacted a 35-hour work week and mandatory vacations for all employees. According to the International Labor Organization, as of 2000, Americans are working more hours than the Japanese (1,966 hours per year compared to 1,889) and to every European country surveyed.

Taken together, these survey findings seem to suggest that indeed organizations are expecting more from all talent with less resources and security on the horizon.

What Can Be Done: Health and Productivity Management

A focus on Health and Productivity Management (HPM) can become a competitive advantage to organizations with an emphasis on reducing employee stress and focusing on optimizing wellness in the workforce.  Successful lifestyle modification can be facilitated by coaches using structured engagements to assist employees to increase awareness, set behavioral goals and develop effective stress and health management coping skills. 

One of the biggest challenges is attempting to link an individual employee’s health goals to an organization’s profitability and productivity goals.  Despite the challenge, a growing body of evidence in the field of health and productivity management (HPM) suggests that investments in the overall health of an employee do contribute to the organization’s bottom line. For example, individuals on disability comprise about 10% of all employees but they account for over 50% of all employee health costs in most organizations. 

Published studies have consistently reported positive return on investment for worksite wellness/health promotion programs for employees.  For example, a recent comprehensive review of 56 worksite health promotion studies found that 28 showed an average reduction of 26% in health care costs and 25 measuring absenteeism showed an average of 27% reduction.

For one’s client, the HPM literature can help make a convincing case that productivity and health are not incompatible—they are supported by the same lifestyle behaviors.   Increasingly, companies seem to be coming around to the idea that lifestyle modification programs and coaching can have an impact on morale, productivity, employee well-being and health costs.  One approach companies are using today is to offer lifestyle or wellness coaching to their talent.

Lifestyle Modification Coaching

Consultation regarding lifestyle behaviors has seemed to be part of the domain of physicians, psychologists and other health professionals—not the arena for executive coaches.  It can be argued that coaching for lifestyle modification fits well into the concerns of coaches attempting to increase effectiveness and performance of clients within organizations. 

The increasing prevalence of work stress, job/family imbalance and chronic health problems related to lifestyle have a direct adverse affect on individuals and organizations. Helping employees initiate and maintain healthy behavior changes is of increasing importance for the prevention and management of these problems.

In two recent prospective studies of ours, employees in a large aerospace and public utility organization who exercised more regularly, practiced positive overall health habits, had higher scores on resilience/hardiness and utilized appropriate emotion based coping reported significantly less absenteeism due to physical illness, less reported job burnout and greater job satisfaction at the end of a one-year period. 

Improving the total health of the workforce (physical and psychological) through formal programs as well as executive lifestyle coaching would appear to be important strategies for increasing productivity and competitive advantage.

It’s time to get my guide dog puppy Ajax out for his dailywalk to promote health and well-being before he goes back to work….Be well….

Technorati Tags: obesity, physical activity, work life balance, wellness, depression, sleep disorders, exercise,  health and productivity management, lifestyle coaching,  wellness coaching,  stress management,  stress, health, job burnout, envisia learning, kenneth nowack, ken nowack, nowack

“I couldn’t wait for success, so I went ahead without it.”

Jonathan Winters

In a lot of my executive coaching we discuss performance, effectiveness and success.  Some executives perceive they are wildly successful using only a narrow way of defining their life–with work being the most important factor despite having poor health, broken family relationships and a sense of not really knowing if they are making a real contribution to anything meaningful.

Merriam-Webster defiines “success” as one that succeeds, the attainment of wealth, favor or eminence or outcome/result.

How successful are you?  How do you define success in your own life?

Personal Success Scorecard

In working with so many senior executives that might be described as “successful” in their chosen careers, it became pretty obvious that they were a success but in a very narrow way.  It would appear to be much more valuable to have a “scorecard” that could describe domains outside of work and career as a way to define, measure and strive for personal definitions of success.  I conceptualize “success” as having at least four overlapping pillars or domains that include:

1. Achievement: What have I done that I am most proud of?

2. Relationships: What Impact have I had with those who mean the most to me? What are my core values and reasons for living?

3. Happiness: What brings me the most pleasure and contentment?

4. Legacy: What are my core values and reasons for living?

Each of these have specific definitions and metrics that help us to define just how “successful” we might be from our own perspective and as experienced or seen by others.

In fact, we can create a set of objectives and “metrics” for each of these domains that give you an idea of how to maximize your overall success both personally and in the eyes of others you interact with.

I’ve discovered that introducing this personal success scorcard early in my executive coaching intervention provides an interesting model for my clients to think about even if our primary contract is around cultivating their “leadership effectiveness” directly leading to enhanced individual, team and organizational effectiveness.  This scorecard also allows me to openly discuss “balance” and what it means to be at least actively cognizant and aware of how we are spending our time and energy.

If a client is completely unbalanced (e.g., a Type A workaholic with total focus essentially on the career domain) but isn’t dissatisfied, are they unsuccessful?  Perhaps the answer lies in what is valued by the client but I’ve yet to see senior level executives that can sustain a high degree of effectiveness and performance in their chosen occupational field without some time and attention in the other three success domains.

And just how happy should we be?  Does it really matter?  In fact, recent research suggests that if career success is an important goal, that being moderate or moderately high in self-reported happiness appears to be the most desirable level.  However, if we are looking at relationships, being as happy as possible is indeed the goal.  Even with a large genetic “set point” we now know that approximately 10% of our happiness level is situationally determined (e.g., we get a speeding ticket or we receive wonderful unexpected feedback from someone we value) and 40% is based on the behaviors, thoughts and feelings we can actively control each day.

Perhaps it isn’t possible to be totally balanced in each of these success scorecard domains but it’s something we should at least be actively reflective and conscious about each day. At least with the few executives I’ve worked with that have made the most progress in their careers, they have also attempted to focus some time and attention to one of the other domains.  I don’t have any research data to support this hypothesis but it seems that attention to the three domains other than work/career might actually have an unintended side effect of facilitating success in that one as well.

Maybe the lesson for leaders can be summed up by Sloan Wilson who said, “Success in almost any field depends more on energy and drive than it does on intelligence. This explains why we have so many stupid leaders.”…Be well…..

Technorati Tags: success, balanced scorecard, resilience, signature strengths, volunteering, positive psychology, pay it forward, success, resilience, positive affect, positive emotions, envisia, envisia learning, kenneth nowack, ken nowack, nowack

“Yesterday is history.  Tomorrow is a mystery.  And today?  Today is a gift.  That’s why we call it the present.”

Babatunde Olatunji

I’ve often been criticized as “speaking” to our seeing eye dog puppy in training as if he truly understands what I am telling him (I guess it is the psychologist in me).  I’ve learned that what works best is the combination of his name (Ajax)  and single command (e.g., “sit”, “down” etc.). 

I’ve often wondered if Ajax “lives” in the past (avoiding the things that have caused reprimands or scolding), in the future (he sure seems to get excited about dinner time and almost appears to have a secret biological clock anticipating his meal) or in the moment—focusing on what is just happening in front of him.

Maybe we all can be characterized as living in the past, present and future.

Stanford University emeritus Professor Philip Zimbardo and co-author John Boyd even wrote a book about how our orientation to “time” can influence how we live and what we focus on each day.  Coaching, counseling and therapy often comes down to addressing the time orientation one has over an issue or problem and moving the client towards either closure (e.g., forgiveness), increased control of options for the present (e.g., new coping skills like mindfulness) or hope/meaning for a better future (e.g., giving gratitude).

Do you live more in the Past, Present or Future?

Living in the Past

I often see myself at times intensely analyzing things I have done in the past (often when I misplace things!) but since this time has long gone it rarely is productive to spend much time dwelling on what has occurred.  It is normal and healthy to reflect on what we thought, how we felt and what we did about things in the past so we can learn to develop better and more productive ways to cope in the future.  However, some of us seem to focus too much energy on what has occurred in the past and appear to be unable to let go of the “past” at the expense of the present or future.

Many clients I coach are literally “stuck” in the past and emotionally “handcuffed” with strong emotions of loss, anger, frustration or guilt about something that has already happened.  Some things you can do to create greater “closure” for past situations  and events include:

• Writing a letter of apology and forgive the behavior of others that have caused you pain
• Using “thought stopping” to force yourself to change your perspective about dwelling too much on what has already occurred
• Ask what can be learned from the past situation or event in an attempt to grow from it
• Using emotional expressive writing to get out our inner most feelings about the past out
• Finding a trusted advisor to reveal your thoughts and feelings about the situation

Living in the Future

It sure seems that my entire family focuses too much on tomorrow at time–what will be our agenda, plan and what activities that will take place?  There is certainly nothing wrong with being organized and having a vision for the future—in fact, all great leaders do this everyday.  However, to be too focused on what might be or what could occur in the future sure takes some of the fun out of living in the present.

The clients that I coach that are “stuck” in this future time orientation tend to almost always be those “Type A” achievers who seem to focused on the “next thing” whether it is accomplishments at work, success in their careers or activities that will be new and different for the future.  These clients seem to be overly immersed in tomorrow, rather than, the “here and now” and rarely seem to notice the joys of a beautiful sunset, the tastes that accompany their meals or to really hear the people they are interacting with. They often are worried, concerned or preoccupied with what has not yet occurred. Some things you can do to become less focused on exclusively living in the future and being more present centered  as well as making sure you have put closure to unfinished business in the past include:

• Carve out a small amount of  time each day to plan on what is the best use of your time for tomorrow
• Take time each week to rejoice in what you have accomplished and celebrate successes in the past
• Manage your energy and not your time—identify the things that are “energy zappers” to ensure you don’t resent where you are going
• Define the gap between your “ideal self” and your “present self” to clarify your personal and professional mission statement and goals
• Define and use your personal and professional “board of directors” to help you maintain your “balance” when you appear to be too future oriented
• Ask yourself, how likely is it that the “worst case scenario” will actually occur to minimize energy used in non-productive worry
• Analyze your “signature strengths” (things you are good at and also enjoy) to capture some of the joys of what you have done in the past

Living in the Present

It is neither desirable to always be in the moment or be entirely rooted in the past or future.  I have many coaching clients that almost seem disconnected from the past (they have avoided spending any time moving through their life challenges, acknowledging them or putting closure to things that have been stressful or painful) or appear to be concerned at all about their future (these are those risk takers that can appear to others to be irresponsible).  For these clients, it is about giving them a sense of micro-skills and techniques to increase their concentration, focus and awareness of their current thoughts, affect and behavior.

Being “mindful” is in vogue today and certainly something all of us could evaluate and consider doing more if we find out time orientation to be stuck more in the past or too much in the future.  Here are some things you can do to practice and increase your mindfulness:

• Focus on your breathing and truly tune in to how you are feeling at the moment
• Practice the “relaxation response” each day to slow your thoughts and try to clear your mind of things past and future
• Practice behaviors of compassion and giving towards others
• Give gratitude for what you currently have in your life
• Deploy your “signature strengths” to become more energized
• Focus on only one task at a time to quiet the brain
• Eat and chew slowly during meals and experience the food and flavors
• Take a “mindfulness” walk and tune into the sights, sounds and feelings around you
• Smile when you see and engage with others (it changes your brain chemistry, moves you away from your own presence and invites a supportive interaction).
• Engage in repetitive physical actions to sharpen your attention and mental focus (e.g., drumming, dancing, walking, running, etc.)

It’s time to get Ajax out for another guide dog lesson.  He’s currently a bit obsessed with distractions (e.g., other dogs he meets and food laying around on the floor when he goes into a restaurant) so I have to work on getting him to move a bit “out of the moment” when he becomes to mindful of his present situation….Be well….

Technorati Tags: guide dogs, seeing eye dogs, Guide Dogs of America, leadership, executive coaching, performance, layoff, social support, mastery, expertise, kenneth nowack, ken nowack, nowack, Envisia Learning, deliberate practice

“The leaders I met, whatever walk of life they were from, whatever institutions they were presiding over, always referred back to the same failure something that happened to them that was personally difficult, even traumatic, something that made them feel that desperate sense of hitting bottom–as something they thought was almost a necessity. It’s as if at that moment the iron entered their soul; that moment created the resilience that leaders need.”

Warren Bennis

Our second guide dog puppy that we raised named Elmo made a transition in his education from “special education” to “recreation” after he didn’t pass the challenging formal training program.  In learning the reason why we found out that he didn’t recover from “stress” and although the most loving, smart and well-behaved puppy he wasn’t cut out to be a guide dog for someone who was sight impaired.

Each of us in our lives have experienced “challenge” whether it is with our family, finances, health, work, children or other stressors.  Each of us moves through these life situations in three stages and sometimes we tend to get “stuck” on one of these for a very long time.

RESILENCY STAGES

Understanding Stage
The Understanding stage is characterized as spending time, energy and tasks on gathering information, researching and learning more about the situation you are facing and taking time to truly understand more about your experience.  It might include researching on the Internet, consulting with others facing similar, if not, identical situations and consulting with experts who  are involved in the area.

This is an important stage that many individuals spend a great deal of energy and time to help get a more accurate perspective of what is affecting them or their loved ones.  Although one may continue to expend additional energy to gather more information over time, most individuals acquire enough at some point n their research to satisfy their “need to know more” and move on to the next resilience stage.

Managing Stage
The Managing stage is characterized as spending time, energy and tasks on learning new techniques, initiating and practicing new behaviors and trying new coping approaches to manage the specific situation facing you.  During this stage, individuals might employ a wide variety of cognitive, emotional and behavioral coping techniques to “get a handle” on managing the stress and unpredictability of their situation.

This is an important stage that many individuals will find helps them “rebound” and cope more effectively with the unqiue stressors of the situation they are facing.  Individuals in this stage may feel more confident, empowered and optimistic that they can handle more effectivley handle and manage their day-to-day challenges.

Growth Stage
The Growth  stage is characterized as spending time, energy and tasks on redefing what is important in life, identifying the benefits from coping with the difficult situation you are facing and giving gratitude for the positive aspects of your life. 

Individuals in this stage typically redefine their relationships and put more energey into those that are the most satisfying and enriching.  Individuals in this stage spend more time doing things that they are most passionate about and begin to explore and act on their “signature” strengths and interests as well as have an enhanced sense of self-efficacy (i.e., believing that they can deal with just about anything).  It is also a stage where individuals begin to reflect on the meaning of their lives and what is important to them (i.e., more spiritual).

How resilient are you?

If you want to find out how you handle life stress and challenge, we have a new assessment called the Resilency Stage Inventory.  Just contact me and I will be happy to send you a copy–it’s brief (10 questions) and self-scored!  Be well….

Technorati Tags: guide dogs, seeing eye dogs, Guide Dogs of America, leadership, executive coaching, performance, layoff, social support, mastery, expertise, kenneth nowack, ken nowack, nowack, Envisia Learning, deliberate practice

“I’m not asleep… but that doesn’t mean I’m awake”

Unknown

We know that sleep problems create problems for both employees and organizations.  For individuals even a few hours less sleep than you normally require will contribute to impairment in memory, psychomotor functioning, mood and susceptibility to getting a cold.  For organizations, it affects the bottom line in terms of accidents, absenteeism, presenteeism (being there in body only) and health care costs.

Are you a “night owl” with your greatest alertness, ability to concentrate and performance late at night or a “lark” that has a preference for getting up early to accomplish as much as possible?

You should know that sleep-wake cycles are guided by two basic principles: They are linked to the light-dark cycle of the 24-day (circadian rhythms) and are aimed at helping us get an average number of hours of sleep each night (sleep homeostasis). Early and late risers have different patterns of hormone production at different times of the day and even body temperature (also a circadian rhythm which peaks in morning people early than night people corresponding to performance). 

We also know that being a “night owl” or “lark” is genetically determined with early risers inheriting two long versions of a particular gene known as PER3.  Could this innocuous DNA sequence be associated with “the early bird getting the worm” more frequently?

A  survey by Gallup suggests that 55% of employees report they are at their personal best of performing in the morning, 15% in the afternoon, 20% in the evening (up until 11pm) and 5% very late at night.  In their survey, 70% of employees who earn at least $75,000 reported they do their best work in the morning compared to 40% who make under $30,000 (Results were based on telephone interviews with 1,019 adults in October 2007).

However, other research is a bit less convincing.  In one study, 356 people (29%) were defined as larks (to bed before 11pm and up before 8 am) and 318 (26%) were defined as owls (to bed at or after 11pm and up at or after 8 am). There was no indication that larks were richer than those with other sleeping patterns. On the contrary, owls had the largest mean income. There was also no evidence that larks were superior to those with other sleeping patterns with regard to their cognitive performance or their state of health¹.

Whether you are a “night owl” or “lark” new evidence is mounting that it is best to do your best to leverage your genetic strengths and try to avoid too much shifting of our sleep clock.

All of this research also assumes employees can choose to sleep in and get up as late as their body clocks let them each day.  In reality, we all affected by our work schedule and family situations that can create havoc with our biological sleep rhythms. In some industries, having three shifts are essential to providing basic services such as health care, transportation, and hospitality to name just a few. 

In an announcement published in the journal Lancet Oncology, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (part of the World Health Organization) will label shift work as a “probable cause” of cancer.  Shiftwork directly affects the production of hormones such as melatonin, which in turn plays an important role in our immune system making us more vulnerable to cancers.

Raising a new guide dog puppy has really shifted my own sleep clock.  I’m in need of another nap….Be well….

Technorati Tags: insomnia, sleep, fatigue, depression, sleep disorders, fatigue countermeasures, REM, NREM, circadian rhythms, stress, health, job burnout, kenneth nowack, ken nowack, nowack

1. Gale, C. & Martyn, C. (1998).  Larks and owls and health, wealth and wisdom.  British Medical Journal. December 19, 317, 1675-1677 [↩]

“Take care of your body. It’s the only place you have to live.
Jim Rohn

OK, in the interest of full disclosure I’ve added a few pounds in the last few years around the middle like many Americans.  So I’m entitled a bit to comment on the growing issue of the cost to organizations of leaders and employees who are overweight.

I also have to disclose that I’m married to a registered dietician who tells me everyday that are really are no bad foods–only poor diets. At least I still maintain my morning ritual of taking all my inflammatory protective vitamins with Yoohoo and heading out for my morning run at the beach.  Finally, Chief Financial Officers are now my friend when I talk about the cost of poor health habits to the corporate financial waist line.

Here are some things we know about the cost of overweight leaders and talent on absenteeism, presenteeism (being at work but not really being there mentally or physically), disability claims, and health costs:

1. Approximately 44 million American adults (20%) were considered obese in 2001, defined as having a body-mass index (BMI) of 30 or more, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention¹.

2. The average talent only stays at a job for about 4.5 years, and it actually takes quite a bit longer for health problems due to being overweight to really emerge.

3.  Obesity costs U.S. companies more than $13 billion annually in health care costs and is associated with 39 million days lost due to absenteeism, according to the National Business Group on Health.

4. Obesity-related claims for short-term disability (STD) and long-term disability (LTD) indicates a growing health cost to employers. For example, most of the STD and LTD claims submitted to insurance companies in 2005 were directly due to obesity (e.g., gastric bypass procedures) and they were more than double those submitted in 2003.

5. Individuals who are overweight and obese are at much higher risk of chronic health conditions such as cardiovascular disease and diabetes. Annual medical expenditures are $732 higher,, on average for overweight adults than for those with average or below average BMI, according to a recent study published in Health Affairs.

6. Obesity is estimated to account for 43% of all healthcare spending by US businesses on employees with coronary heart disease, type 2 diabetes and a range of other fat-related diseases, according to health coaching consultancy Leade Health.

7.  Obesity is a greater contributor to chronic health problems and medical spending spending (30% to 50% higher) compared to either smoking or drinking².

8.  A recent Duke University study analyzing 11,728 employees over eight years found that overweight workers had 2 times the rate of workers’ compensation claims as their more fit co-workers.  The most overweight workers had 13 times more sick days and work-related inuries³.

9.  The U. S. 6th District Court determined recently that morbid obesity is generally not a disability for employees and can’t be used as a claim for “reasonable accommodation” under the Americans with Disability act (ADA). This judgment came from a suit from 400-pound Stephen Grindle who claimed he was fired as a driver for Watkins Motor Lines because of his weight.

10. A recent meta-analysis by a group of researchers at John Hopkins University suggest that if the rate of obesity and overweight continues at the current pace, by 2015, 75 percent of adults and nearly 24 percent of U.S. children and adolescents will be overweight or obese.

It seems as if “shrinkage” is only something that really occurs consistently in the retail industry….Be well….

Technorati Tags: Obesity, wellness, health promotion, physical activity, disability, worker compensation claims, health claims, employee wellness, kenneth nowack, ken nowack, nowack

1. 1991-2002 Prevalence of Obesity Among U.S. Adults, by Characteristics, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention [↩]
2. Roland Sturm, UCLA/RAND Managed Care Center for Psychiatric Disorders, The Effects of Obesity, Smoking and Drinking on Medical Problems and Costs, Health Affairs, March/April 2002 [↩]
3. Østbye, T, Dement, J. & Krause, K. (2007). Obesity and Workers’ Compensation: Results From the Duke Health and Safety Surveillance System .  Archives oof Internal Medicine. 167:766-773 [↩]

“I feel my best when I’m happy.”

Winona Ryder

Emotions do indeed play a role in productivity, morale of talent and customer service.

Any guess what medical condition or health risk is the most costly to employers? 

If you guessed stress, smoking, obesity, inactivity or diabetes you are way off the mark.  In fact, the most costly is depression¹.

Depression takes a pretty heavy toll on the U.S. workplace, affecting about 6 percent of employees each year and costing over $30 billion annually in lost productivity and absenteeism.

In a recent study in the Journal of American Medical Association, researchers reported on how a telephone treatment program had a substantial impact on cost savings, return to work and minimizing the length of the depressive symptoms compared to a  control group².

The study involved 604  workers at 16 large U.S. companies and included included pilots, lawyers, bankers, truckers and janitors.  The study participants completed an online questionnaire that measured health risk factors including depression. Half of those identified were encouraged to seek a mental health specialist or contact their doctor.  The other group received cognitive behavioral therapy over the phone.

Employees who received the telephone intervention worked, on average, about two weeks more during the yearlong study than those in the control group and more workers in the intervention group were still employed at the end of the study. Finally, the intervention employees were almost 40 percent more likely to recover from depression during the yearlong study.

Preliminary cost savings from more hours worked averaged about $1,800 per employee compared to the program’s initial $100 to $400 per worker cost.

It would appear that work/life balance benefits, including mental health insurance, would be something that employers would see value given just how prevalent and devastating depression can be in the workplace (Clinical depression affects about 7% – 18% of the population on at least one occasion in their lives, before the age of 40).

Furthermore, recent research with 24,324 employed workers, suggests that increased levels of job strain and a lack of social support at work are associated with higher risk of depression³. 

In our own research using our stress and health risk appraisal called StressScan we have found that a pattern of three scales are particularly sensitive to predicting depression: 1) Low Psychological Well-Being; 2) Low Eating/Nutrition habits; and 3)  High Negative Appraisal coping⁴.  These scales are also related to clinical condidtions present in diagnosing depression in all of us.

Here are some keys to identifying depression in bosses and co-workers:

SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS OF DEPRESSION OF EMPLOYEES

One of the following major elements are typically observed for at least 2 weeks to suggest that an employee is experiencing depression.  These include:

1. Depressed mood (feeling sad, helpless or hopeless etc.)

or

2. Loss of interest in normal daily activities (e.g., having little interest in activities you typically enjoy).

It is sufficient to have either of these symptoms in conjunction with five of a list of other symptoms over a two-week period. These include:

• Feelings of overwhelming sadness or inabilty to feel emotions.
• A decrease in amount of pleasure or interest in almost all daily activities.
• Intense feelings of guilt, nervousness, helplessness, hopelessness, worthlessness, loneliness and/or anxiety
• Disturbed sleep. Sleeping too much or having problems sleeping can be a sign you’re depressed. Waking in the middle of the night or early in the morning and not being able to get back to sleep are typical.
• Trouble concentrating, maintaining focus or making decisions and have problems with memory.
• Changes in appetite with weight loss or gain.
• Agitation. You may seem restless, agitated, irritable and easily annoyed.
• Fatigue (mental or physical) and loss of energy.
• Low self-esteem. You feel worthless and have excessive guilt.
• Less interest in sex. If you were sexually active before developing depression, you may notice a dramatic decrease in your level of interest in having sexual relations.
• Recurrent thoughts of death, dying or suicide.
• Feeling and/or fear of being abandoned by those close to you.

The good news is that depression is typically treatable and for employees, getting some help would appear to be a direct cost savings for employers…..Be well….

Technorati Tags: mental health, depression, worksite wellness, health promotion, leadership, engagement, productivity, kenneth nowack, ken nowack, nowack

1. Goetzl, R. et al. (1988).  The relationship between modifiable health risk and health care expenditures: An analysis of the multi-employer HERO health risk and cost data base. JOEM, 40, 843-854 [↩]
2. Philip S. Wang, MD, DrPH, et al.  Telephone Screening, Outreach, and Care Management for Depressed Workers and Impact on Clinical and Work Productivity Outcomes: A Randomized Controlled Trial.  JAMA, 2007, 298(12), p. 1401-1411 [↩]
3. Emma K. Robertson Blackmore, Stephen A. Stansfeld, Iris Weller, Sarah Munce, Brandon M. Zagorski, and Donna E. Stewart (2007). Major Depressive Episodes and Work Stress: Results From a National Population Survey. American Journal of Public Health, Sep 2007; doi:10.2105/AJPH.2006.104406 [↩]
4. Giesser, B., Coleman, L., Fisher, S., Guttry, M., Herlihy, E., Nonoguch, S., Nowack, D., Roberts, C. & Nowack, K. (2007). Living Well with Multiple Sclerosis: Lessons Learned from a 12-Week Community Based Quality of Life Program. Paper presented at 17th Annual Art & Science of Health Promotion Conference, March, 2007, San Francisco, CA [↩]