IN THIS ISSUE:

News You Can Use: Secrets to happiness

Communication Corner: Dealing with distractions

Employees Matter: Staff development professionals

Just for Fun: Things to do when you’re bored

The Real Secrets to Happiness

Despite what you may think, attaining popularity or influence and money or luxury is not what really makes people the happiest and is at the bottom of the list of psychological needs. According to numerous studies published by the American Psychological Association, the following items appear to bring people the most happiness: autonomy (feeling that your activities are self-chosen and self-endorsed), competence (feeling that you are effective in your activities), relatedness (feeling a sense of closeness with others) and self-esteem.

These findings are key, as they essentially provide a roadmap to enhancing your life and your own personal happiness. These psychological needs (autonomy, competence, relatedness, and self-esteem) can be targeted to enhance personal thriving, growth, and happiness.

Below is a more detailed look at these four needs, and some ideas as to how you can fulfill them.

Autonomy

People feel best when doing what they do best. You’re likely to feel very satisfied and content when you’re engaged in activities that cause you to lose track of time and stop worrying. These activities can include anything—sewing, running, playing a musical instrument, completing a challenging task, playing your child(ren) etc. The impact is the same: A life of many activities is likely to be a life of great satisfaction. The key is to identify what you (not your spouse, children, friends, etc.) enjoy the most, and make time to enjoy those activities.

Competence

Knowing that you do good work, and that your work makes a difference is a big factor when it comes to personal happiness. Fortunately, in healthcare, you can often see the immediate, positive outcomes of your work. Helping people stay healthy and happy is a role that should provide you with much competence and happiness. If not, you need to find work that better engages your passions. Life is too short for doing work you don't enjoy.

Relatedness
Oftentimes, the happiest people spend the least time alone. To fulfill this need, it’s critical to surround yourself with good people: People who lift your spirits, make you laugh, and support your goals. Conversely, spending time with people who consistently complain and criticize others will only drain you of your energy.

Self-Esteem
Truly feeling good about yourself involves deep introspection. "I'll be happy when...." is the way many people think. Yet, happiness is not something that happens to you. You must pursue personal happiness, growth, and intimacy. You can begin this pursuit by taking stock of what is important to you and what is holding you back from achieving your goals and desires. When it comes to self-esteem, remember to always judge yourself by your own yardsticks, never against what others do or have. Only when you know who you are (your signature talents, your values, assumptions/beliefs, guiding principles, vision and passions) are you able to truly enhance your professional and personal life.

The “roadmap” above essentially allows you to discover your true nature and purpose. By carefully encouraging and nourishing these items, you will ultimately foster the development of an exceptional and happy life.

“Most folks are about as happy as they make up their minds to be.”

—Abraham Lincoln

Dealing with Distractions:

Five Fabulous Tips

The phone never stops ringing, friends and family are constantly e-mailing you, your co-workers never stop talking, and the boss is always stopping by to check up on you. If any of this sounds familiar, you may have a problem with distractions at work. Indeed, too many distractions can lead to a loss of productivity and an increasing sense of frustration. Fortunately, there are ways to avoid distractions, so you can get back to working at your best.

Take note of the following tips:

1. Take stock. Take a personal inventory of all the existing traps and distractions you encounter on an average day. Begin with your commute to work. Are you arriving on time, or are you chronically late? To avoid distractions that arise before you even begin work, you may have to readjust your morning schedule. Perhaps you need to get tomorrow’s things ready the night before work. Or, if a carpool arrangement becomes unreliable, find another way to commute to work. Arriving on time can cut down on the distraction of rushing through your day to catch up.

2. Let people know you mean business. Once you've arrived at work, keep moving deliberately to your work station. If people want to have a conversation, ask them to walk with you. Avoid making eye contact with especially chatty co-workers. Be polite, but also be firm.

3. Set limits. Personal phone calls and e-mails can become very distracting as the workday progresses. So, set boundaries with family and friends. Whenever possible, inform your spouse, children, parents and best friends that you need to limit personal calls and communication. They will respect this if they know that your job depends on it. Obviously, your family and friends may need to contact you for emergency reasons, but their definition of an emergency may not necessarily meet your criteria. Tell your friends and family what constitutes an emergency in your mind.

You can also avoid distractions by setting up similar boundaries among co-workers. You may need to tell your work friends not to interrupt you between the hours of 9 a.m. and 11 a.m., for example, because that’s the busiest time of your day. If you remain polite but consistent, most co-workers should eventually get the idea.

4. Use technology to your advantage. In a modern work environment, you can use technology to help avoid distractions. If you have voice mail capability, let the phone ring during busy times. For non-vital communications, provide a fax number or e-mail address. This should cut down on the number of distracting phone calls you receive throughout the day. You'll still have to deal with these messages, but at least you can respond at your own pace.

5. Focus. Many times, the best way to avoid distractions at work is to change your focus. Try to tune out any distracting background noises, such as a blaring public address system or the noise of machinery. Eventually, you can train your mind to ignore most extraneous sounds. Work on developing a type of “mental tunnel vision.” Some work distractions are based on your own curiosity, so try to adapt a “been there, seen that” attitude to remain on task.

“Few things are impossible to diligence and skill. Great works are performed not by strength, but perseverance.”

—Samuel Johnson

What to Look for in Staff Development Professionals

In the healthcare profession, continuous staff education and development is paramount. By investing in staff education, you’re not only showing your staff that you’re committed to their professional growth, but you’re also showing patients/customers that you are committed to providing the highest quality of care possible.

Staff development includes various formal and informal educational activities, such as certification classes, mentoring, and coaching. When it comes to staff development, your organization should support all levels of employees. Of course, this task is no small undertaking. In many cases, it’s necessary to hire an individual whose sole responsibility revolves around staff development and education.

It’s up to managers and administrators to determine the importance and priority of this role. Take note of the following tips if this position is something your organization would like to fill.

Don’t bet the farm on qualifications alone. Some administrators contend that a graduate degree is a necessary prerequisite for the staff development position. However, one should never depend on credentials alone to determine the worthiness of a would-be staff development professional in any setting. Although a master’s-prepared nurse or healthcare professional would be beneficial in many respects, a graduate degree should not be the sole determining factor.

Look for those who have expertise in your organization’s area of specialty. Place emphasis on recruiting an individual who has knowledge of the specific rules and regulations pertaining to your organization. Keep an eye out for someone who has demonstrated some degree of clinical competence and successful experience specific to your organization’s niche market of care.

Ask for a blueprint. A candidate’s own plan for development will tell you a lot about how he/she would plan/develop your own employees. Ask the candidate about his or her experience in providing educational offerings in the past. Ask candidates about their plans for their own professional development as they look toward the future. Explore each candidate’s sense of initiative. What has the individual done to demonstrate that he or she is a self-starter? The staff development professional that you select should demonstrate initiative in researching and developing courses, as he or she will be working independently much of the time.

Gauge their organizational skills. The staff development role often involves juggling multiple responsibilities, including new employee orientation, annual competency testing (which should be done on all high-risk procedures), annual in-services, remedial education programs, nurse aide training programs, and individual mentoring and coaching for employees who have performance difficulties. Be sure to ask candidates how they plan to organize and maintain such a hectic schedule.

The guidelines above should help your organization select the right professional to assume the essential duties of staff development and continuing education. Additionally, staff development is a nursing specialty recognized by the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC), which offers certification in nursing professional development. You can visit their website at http://www.nursingworld.org/ancc/. Good luck with your search!

Things to do If You Are Bored

• Apply for a Unicorn Hunting License.
• Boil ice cream.
• Build a pyramid.
• Bury your father's Nissan.
• Call strangers and ask for advice.
• Call strangers and give advice.
• Carve your initials in a marshmallow.
• Change your name...daily.
• Collect dust.
• Count ants.
• Give your cat a mohawk.
• Have your car painted plaid.
• Learn to type...with your toes.
• Mow your carpet.
• Pay off the national debt...with a bad check.
• Pinstripe your driveway.
• Put legwarmers on all your furniture.
• Rearrange all the produce at the salad bar.
• Take your sofa for a walk.

OK, so maybe you shouldn’t really do the items above if you’re bored. However, just thinking about them should give you a good laugh—and that’s the best medicine when you’re bored, right?!