Planners’ Picks — November 22, 2022

Planners’ Picks

A collection of resources from CSN planning committee members worth mentioning

We have our sights on the holidays and offer more gratitude for YESvember and preparation for gatherings with loved ones and friends. We also stick a fork in anxiety at work, breaking out of your shell, and letting go of stories are you telling yourself that are no longer serving you.

 

:: Image of the Week

Comparison kills creativity.

Comparison kills creativity. Stay in your lane. We each bring unique gifts to the party.

 

:: Resources on Mental Health and Self-Care

Here’s How to Mentally Recharge When You’re Feeling Drained

It’s only natural for our energy levels to dip during the day. But if you constantly find yourself feeling drained, you can take small steps to recharge. As thescience shows, small steps can be incredibly effective at helping us course-correct and approach our day — and our work — with more energy and passion. Here are four simple Microsteps to help you mentally recharge when you feel drained:

https://thriveglobal.com/stories/heres-how-to-mentally-recharge-when-youre-feeling-drained

How Gratitude Works

Gratitude takes us by surprise. It overwhelms us and fills us with wonder. In its truest form, gratitude can’t be captured on a list or strategically felt in less than a minute. Sometimes you have to write down more! Read this short story on seeing gratitude through the eyes of a child.

https://www.success.com/how-gratitude-works/

“If you want to lift yourself up, lift up someone else.” —Booker T. Washington

10 Critical Rules for Living a Happy Life

“Value memories rather than things. Some people assume that accumulating material wealth automatically leads to happiness, but nothing can be further from the truth. Keeping up with the Joneses places artificial demands on you that undermine your happiness. These demands force you to work harder and harder to cross a finish line that keeps moving. Remember, material possessions get old and wear out. Memories last forever.”

Some people spend their whole life searching for happiness. While you may think wealth, power, and fame will make you happy, you may be looking in the wrong place. In fact, all the riches in the world won’t guarantee a happy and fulfilling life. You don’t have to search the globe for happiness because it already exists within you. As Glinda, the Good Witch in The Wizard of Oz, said, “You’ve always had the power, my dear. You just had to learn it for yourself.” Here are 10 critical rules for living a happy life.

https://www.franksonnenbergonline.com/blog/10-critical-rules-for-living-a-happy-life/

 

:: Resources on Work Culture & Team Development

How to give middle managers the support they need

Middle managers are exhausted. They’ve lately been tasked with enforcing return-to-office plans, ramping up productivity in the face of a faltering economy, responding to layoff anxiety among their teams, communicating company stances on social and political issues, shouldering greater responsibility for the wellbeing of their teams, and fielding numerous other complexities. In Future Forum’s latest pulse report, some 43% of managers described themselves as burned out, more than both individual contributors and more senior leaders.

To understand the evolving pressures on middle managers and how workplaces can mitigate them, Charter staff reached out to Cara Allamano, chief people officer at the people-management software company Lattice. Here is a transcript of our conversation, lightly edited for space and clarity. There are a lot of hidden gems within this interview!

https://www.charterworks.com/middle-managers-cara-allamano-lattice

“Remember no one can make you feel inferior without your consent.” —Eleanor Roosevelt

8 Myths About Anxiety At Work

Join Chester Elton and Adrian Gostick for The Culture Works Livestream! In this pre-recorded session, They share eight myths about anxiety at work in this short recording. You can also listen to their Anxiety at Work Podcast, where they offer insights and advice to reduce anxiety at work and in your personal life. In this practical podcast, some of the world’s leading authorities on mental health explore the causes of workplace stress and anxiety and the practices that have be proven to reduce tension and cultivate calm.

https://www.linkedin.com/video/event/urn:li:ugcPost:6985294836140572672/

Supporting Forbes Article: https://bit.ly/3UZO4yX

 

:: Resources on Self-Leadership Development

Shifting from Star Performer to Star Manager

You’ve always been a high achiever—top of your class, captain of your sports teams, star performer at work. Now, you’re going to be managing a team of high-performers in a division of your company that everyone’s buzzing about. You’re confident that you can navigate this new challenge with characteristic success. What could go wrong?

https://hbr.org/2015/10/shifting-from-star-performer-to-star-manager

“Perfection is not attainable, but if we chase perfection we can catch excellence.” —Vince Lombardi

9 Ways to Break Out of Your Shell and Become the Leader You Were Meant to Be

Think about a past or present leader who is dominating the industry you’re in. If you didn’t think about yourself, you have some work to do. The great news is that you don’t have to be an extrovert to lead from the front. In fact, many of the most successful and influential leaders are introverts at heart. But does that stop them from making moves and making money? Absolutely not.

Leading from the front is about so much more than being the loudest person in the room. It’s about having the courage to stand up for what you believe in, even when it’s unpopular. It’s about inspiring others to be their best selves. And it’s about making a positive impact on the world around you.

https://www.entrepreneur.com/leadership/9-ways-for-introverted-leaders-to-dominate-their-industries

Stephen Covey’s Big Rocks Concept

You may or may not have heard about the Big Rocks theory of managing your life.

Big Rocks are things like your bucket list items, non-negotiable goals, your dreams, your true + authentic desires, things you can do to make your business more successful, things that fulfill you, things you can do to make this a healthier and happier world for yourself and others, etc. (Healthy lifestyle, travel, quality time with loved ones, launch or grow a business, your faith or spirituality, etc.)

Pebbles are the things you love to do or need to do but they aren’t crucial to your happiness, success, or fulfillment. (House projects, watching your favorite TV show, book club, piano lessons, etc.)

Sand is your mundane day to day tasks. (Checking emails, laundry, walking the dog, paying bills, grocery shopping, etc.

The jar is your life, your time, your energy, your budget, your resources, etc. You only get one jar. These are all different for everyone. One person’s big rock may be another person’s sand.

Here’s a clever video showing this concept in action.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SqGRnlXplx0

“I am not a product of my circumstances. I am a product of my decisions.” —Stephen Covey

 

:: Resources on Communication

Your Story Matters

Join bestselling author Kindra Hall as she illustrates how compelling storytelling can create change, expand influence, and inspire growth in business and life on the On Leadership Podcast with Scott Miller. Kindra shares tactical tips for writing the story of your life, both in how you tell stories to yourself and how to tell them to others. What stories are you telling yourself that are no longer serving you?

https://resources.franklincovey.com/on-leadership-with-scott-miller/210-kindra-hall

The Lost Art of Hand-Written Notes

Receiving a “thank you” card is more meaningful than ever, given how unlikely it’s become. Gratitude is such a light-sounding word for an emotion that’s so powerful. But there’s a reason why it shares the same Latin root — gratus — as the word grace. Living in a state of gratitude is our gateway to grace — and a vital part of our well-being.

When was the last time you wrote a “thank you” card by hand? “Getting an unexpected handwritten note waiting for you at your desk for no reason at all just meant a lot to me,” Groner says. “These are the things that stay with you.”

https://www.axios.com/2022/10/30/thank-you-cards-greeting-cards

 

:: Upcoming Events

Psychological Safety in the Workplace Discussion

Monday, November 28
9:00-10:00 am CST

Harkn’s “Hot topics with Harkn event” is November 28. In this session they will be focusing on Psychological Safety, a crucial component of team performance. Fennande van der Meulen from Happy Office will be leading the discussions on:

– What is psychological safety?
– The 4 stages of psychological safety
– How to create a truly safe workplace

Add this event to your calendar at https://lnkd.in/e5GB_9QU