|
|
|
|
WorkLife Connections:
April News
|
|
|
|
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Inclusive Online Participation:
One Perspective
|
By Barbara Roberts, Executive Director, WorkLife
In my long career working with how people participate in higher education and professional settings, I have had the joy of being in meetings where information is shared in many ways simultaneously. I have attended conferences, run by students, where there is simultaneous French/English translation, American Sign Language interpretation, Braille and large print copies of slides and hand-outs, all happening seamlessly over the heads of service animals quietly lying beside their companions. I have presented to the United Nations where the headphones and microphones are filled with different languages and cultural nuances, and where the pace of the meeting is nonetheless productive, respectful, and creative.
|
Please Welcome Tiana Carter to the WorkLife Office
Tiana Carter began her career with Michigan State University at Infrastructure Planning and Facilities. Her diverse experience ranges from supporting the development of the Multicultural Center and helping develop the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion strategic plan to supporting more than 60 full time engineers and architects on various construction projects. She was responsible for overseeing the Facility Coordinators Workgroup for campus and played an integral role with the Faculty Readiness Program ensuring laboratories were up and running for newly hired research faculty. Over the past eight years, Tiana has worked hard to achieve a healthy work-life balance at MSU as she works full time and attends classes to obtain her bachelor's degree in Neuroscience. Tiana is a proud Spartan who is passionate about supporting others and illustrates the importance of always being your authentic self, both professionally and personally.
|
Flexibility at Work:
Working from Home for Novel Coronavirus
The WorkLife Office has compiled resources, information, trainings, and conversations to help you through the recent changes.
|
Join the Conversation - New Topics Daily
Coffee Conversations, 10 a.m. weekdays. Join the WorkLife team including Jaimie Hutchison, Barbara Roberts, Maranda Holtsclaw, John Girdwood, and your colleagues across the university as we connect with each other to offer support and guidance about WorkLife issues during this unique time. Open to all staff, faculty, and post-docs. Topics will focus on family care, working from home, remaining connected, staying healthy, and supporting you!
- Wednesday, April 1 - Supervisors and Flex Work
- Thursday, April 2 - Efficiency and Time Management
- Friday, April 3 - Coffee Conversations: Bring Your Kids to Remote Work Day
|
Tell Us How You Are and What You Want
We want to hear from you and those you work with. Please let us know how you are doing and what would help you regarding remote work during these challenging situations by taking this very brief survey.
We're especially interested in your comments in the comment box, so please speak up! You can also reach us at worklife@msu.edu or by phone at 353-1635. We look forward to hearing from you, and wish the best in these unusual times. We're here for you!
|
|
Remote Work Structures and Working Together With Your Supervisor
|
By Barbara Roberts
There is suddenly more discussion than ever about implementing remote work strategies, as we seek to reduce our in-person contact for a while, yet not fall out of touch or cease operations. The WorkLife Office has a great deal of experience addressing alternative work arrangements, including telecommuting, flexible scheduling, work-from-home, or teleworking.
|
Why We're Tired: Surviving Online Meetings
Working in this medium for hours on end is not good for the health we are trying so hard to preserve! Let's be intentional about how we pace ourselves, and we will last longer in the end. We are all learning to function in a new medium, which takes energy in terms of attention, concentration, learning in real-time while doing, and learning without hands-on, in-person support.
What's OK and What's Not When Meeting with People Online?
When we take our daily work into an online venue, whether Zoom, WebEx, Skype, or discussion spaces, we need to remember it's nonetheless a work setting. While we might still wear our fuzzy slippers no one can see, it's important to remember that we need to maintain business decorum in our dress, manners, and comments. Here are some pointers to keep in mind to make your new work setting as professional, productive, and personally respectable as possible.
Ergonomics of Working Remotely: Position in Life is Everything
A supervisor during my occupational therapy internship in spinal cord rehab taught me, with only a little tongue-in-cheek, that "Position in life is everything..."; that is, the physical position you are in to do any task affects your safety, comfort, endurance, and effectiveness for the task.
How Do You Structure Your Meetings?
By Anne M. Baker and Erica Tobe from MSU Extension
Online meetings should follow the same best practices as regular meetings. Have an agenda. Have desired outcomes. Have someone in charge of facilitation. Have someone taking notes. Set ground rules for the meetings for acceptable behavior. This last one is especially important so that those participating in online meetings are not multi-tasking when you want them paying attention. While that also happens in face-to-face meetings, it is even easier to get distracted by other work and email on your computer while in an online meeting.
Read about meeting structures
|
|
Children and Teen Mental Health -
Your Family is Not Alone
|
By Jaimie Hutchison
As a licensed therapist in Michigan, I have held several positions working with youth and families. As a former clinician and school counselor, I worked with families struggling with everything from divorce to grief, financial strains, housing issues, substance abuse, family violence, blended families, single parenthood, trauma, toxic friendships, identity issues, academic struggles, and a lot of ADHD, anxiety, and depression. Millions of children and teens in America face mental health challenges. There is a good chance your child may be too.
|
Best Practices for Working at Home with Children
These suggestions and guidelines offer you some direction on where to start. We are all in this together and every situation at work and at home is different. These are not suggestions to do all of these things, but rather to consider what may work for you. We need to work together with compassion to decide which priorities are valued. It is time for us all to dig deep and practice a level of flexibly that we have never had to exercise before.
Things to Do to Keep Kids Active, Engaged & Learning While Home
In these challenging times, it is important to acknowledge that each family will have their own work and home situation that will be unique. Some people may have more flexibility, more caregivers in the home, or older children who are more independent. Others may have less flexibility, younger children and may be the sole caretaker of those children. We honor all of you and know that you are doing the best you can.
|
Importance of Social Distancing, not Isolation
|
By Jaimie Hutchison
Social isolation and loneliness are linked to deteriorating physical, emotional, and mental health. Some of the effects of social isolation include higher stress levels, increased vulnerability to chronic illnesses, increased risk factors for those with heart disease, diabetes, high blood pressure, and an increased likelihood of experiencing depression and anxiety.
|
Your Mental Health Matters
Your mental health is very important. The current circumstances have added extra stress and pressure to many. These are unusual times where many things are unknown. Please know that you are not alone, and that you are valued.
Take Care in Times of Uncertainty
We are all in this together, let's work to keep ourselves and those around us safe, healthy, and supported. If you are in need of resources or information on work-life fit, workplace wellness, remote work, or anything else that comes up, the MSU WorkLife Office is a great place to start. We will all be available as we continue to work to support you and your families during this uncertain time.
Mindfulness Techniques for Stress Management
Grounding Strategies: Tools for Coping with Stress Grounding strategies help you cope with stressful situations and help you strengthen your resilience. The strategies that will be covered in this session include: Gratitude, progressive muscle relaxation, optimism, visualization, guided imagery, mindfulness, focused breathing, meditation, and affirmations, mantras, and mottos. Grounding strategies are things you can do to bring yourself into contact with the present moment. They can be quick strategies or longer more formal exercises. Different strategies work for different people. By learning about them, you can find one that works for you!
Essential Skills for Navigating Difficult Times - EAP webinar
This webinar is designed to teach emotional resilience and psychological flexibility skills to help folks navigate whatever they are facing in their work and personal lives at this time. The course begins this Friday and will unfold over the next 6 weeks. It is designed to both teach resilience skills to members of the MSU community and also provide a bit of a support scaffolding over the next few weeks.
|
Stress, Time & Efficiency
|
|
Not Another "How to be More Efficient Story"
|
By Erica Venton
Let me guess, you've already taken three classes and an online quiz to help you become more efficient and you still feel buried in work and in life responsibilities. You haven't seen the bottom of your inbox since the week you started. Busy isn't a season - it's every day and you can't remember the last time you weren't exhausted.
|
APPS Leaders Learn
to Manage Stress at Work
|
|
By MSU IT Staff
Stress in the workplace is unavoidable, but that doesn't mean you can't manage its impact on your life. Recognizing the stressful nature of their work, organizers of the quarterly APPS Leadership Retreat enlisted the help of the MSU Worklife Office to provide helpful tips on "Managing Stress at Work."
|
Join WorkLife Listservs
The WorkLife Office manages several popular listservs. These email lists are an effective way for MSU faculty and staff to communicate directly with a group of people just like you!
Join a Listserv
|
Request a Workshop for Your Team
Do you have a request for a workshop not already on the calendar? Is there something specific you'd like to have presented or discussed with your team? We've now made it even easier to connect with us for those requests.
|
|
Care.com has More Than Babysitters for You
|
Whether you need ongoing help taking care of your kids or parents, a back-up pet sitter, or even someone to help you set up a party or organize your garage, you can depend on Care.com!
Check out Care.com/msu
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
479 West Circle Drive, Linton Hall, Suite 116
Forward to your friends and co-workers to
SUBSCRIBE
UNSUBSCRIBE to no longer get the WorkLife Connection.
|
|
|
|
