HR Resolutions November 2018

HR Resolutions November 2018

NOVEMBER 2 0 1 8 #DramaFreeHR News

FROM THE DESK OF Karen

MAKE EVERY DAY A CELEBRATIONWITH THESE ODD NOVEMBER HOLIDAYS!

1. Men Make Dinner Day 2. Look for Circles Day 3. Sandwich Day 4. King Tut Day 5. Gunpowder Day 6. Saxophone Day 7. Bittersweet Chocolate With Almonds Day 8. Dunce Day 9. Chaos Never Dies Day 10. Forget-Me-Not Day 11. Veterans Day 12. Chicken Soup for the Soul Day 13. World Kindness Day 14. World Diabetes Day

15. National

Philanthropy Day 16. Have a Party With Your Bear Day 17. World Peace Day 18. Occult Day 19. Have a Bad Day Day 20. Absurdity Day 21. World Hello Day 22. Go for a Ride Day 23. Buy Nothing Day 24. All Our Uncles Are Monkeys Day 25. National Parfait Day 26. Shopping Reminder Day 27. Pins and Needles Day 28. French Toast Day 29. Square Dance Day 30. Stay at Home Because You Are Well Day

GRATITUDE IN THE WORKPLACE S hould B e a Y ear -R ound I nitiative

Odds are that your company hosts some type of Thanksgiving festivity. Office potlucks are delicious and great for camaraderie, but there’s one element of the holiday that should be part of your company culture year-round: gratitude. “If we think about gratitude only once a year,” notes author David Horsager, “we overlook the immense power of practicing it daily, especially in a business context.” A study from the University of Warwick found that happier employees are 12 percent more productive. One of the easiest ways to put a smile on the faces of your team is to express your gratitude for them. It sounds simple, but it’s something far too many entrepreneurs, executives, and managers overlook. The holiday season is the perfect time of year to reflect on whether or not you’re saying thanks enough. Over the course of his career as CEO of Campbell Soup Company, Scott R. Conant wrote more than 30,000 notes to employees expressing gratitude and appreciation to them. “On the face of it, writing handwritten notes may seem like a waste of time,” Conant told Harvard Business Review. “But in my experience, they build goodwill and lead to higher productivity.” The number of studies that confirm Conant’s assumption are too numerous to list here, but there are a few that should raise the eyebrows of any business owner. A study from the University of Pennsylvania, for example, found that grateful leaders motivate their employees to be up to 50 percent more productive. Gratitude and acknowledgment have also been linked to increased THE BENEFITS OF GRATITUDE

–Karen Young

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self-esteem, happiness, empathy, and a better response to stress and negative feedback. And the benefits affect both the person expressing their gratitude and the person receiving it.

on the team, which fosters an atmosphere of appreciation and teamwork.”

During the holidays, there’s so much you can do for those in need in your area. Simply raising money for a local food bank or donating turkeys will go a long way for a family during Thanksgiving. Holding a companywide fundraiser brings your team together and gives them a sense of purpose that’s much more powerful than a paycheck alone. Certainly, the power of donating to a worthy cause is reason enough to participate in some philanthropy this holiday season. As a bonus, companies that engage in outreach projects consistently demonstrate higher levels of employee engagement and retention, which goes to show what happens when you get the upward spiral of gratitude in motion.

Other companies have a thank-you wall or shoutout email chain where employees can share their kudos. The most important thing isn’t the method you use, but that you make it an important part of company culture. It starts with leadership. If you aren’t taking the time to recognize and appreciate people, how can you expect that anyone else will? Instilling a culture of gratitude within your company doesn’t require intensive training or extensive investment. All you need to do is encourage a certain perspective and approach.

EVERYDAY APPRECIATION

During the holidays, it’s easy to take a moment to say thank you to the people who’ve made a difference in our lives over the past year. Sharing your appreciation, however, is just as important in March or August as it is in November. Gratitude begets more gratitude, creating what researchers Robert Emmons and Michael McCullough call an “upward spiral.” Once you set the spiral in motion at your workplace, you’ll see an attitude of gratitude multiply and spread. The easiest way to start is to create a public forum where employees can acknowledge one another. “We have an all-hands meeting once a week, and we finish the meeting by ‘giving props,’ which is recognizing people on the team for their accomplishments that week,” says Badger Maps CEO Steven Benson. “Anyone on the team can give props to anyone else

OUTSIDE THE OFFICE

GO FORTH GRATEFULLY

Businesses don’t operate in a vacuum. They’re all part of the communities they inhabit, and your company’s sense of gratitude should reach beyond your staff and customers. Community

Creating a culture of gratitude and appreciation will benefit your company long after the last piece of pumpkin pie has been eaten. So take a moment this year to say thanks and show love to your team. And don’t stop doing it, even after the holidays have passed.

outreach is the best way to show your neighbors that you care about them.

3 True Crime Shows You Have to See Move Over, Sitcoms, There’s a New Trend in Town

‘THE STAIRCASE’ Did Michael Peterson kill his wife? Did the American justice system tear apart the dream it so righteously attempts to protect? What is considered fact in a murder trial? These are just a few of the questions you’ll contemplate as you go on a 16-year journey told over 13 gripping episodes. Questionable expert testimony and crime scene evidence are juxtaposed with a competent defense team and a convincing defendant, making for a story that begs viewers to take sides. In the end, the only fact you’ll know to be true is that you can’t trust your intuition.

There’s a genre of entertainment that many Americans are afraid to admit is their secret obsession. It’s as if you’re hiding a secret that you desperately want to confess, but you’re afraid of the judgment and concerned looks from your friends. Then one day, you muster the courage to casually mention a docu-series you watched — hoping for absolution but concerned the jury won’t understand — and the floodgates open. Suddenly your closest friends and family have passionate opinions on the justice system and can tell you they know exactly who murdered who and how. Deep down inside, everyone loves a good mystery. Here are three of the best. ‘MAKING A MURDERER’ Directors Laura Ricciardi and Moira Demos take viewers through an experience that feels like the most maddening game of ping pong

ever played — in any given episode, your view may bounce from one polarizing opinion to another. After watching 10 mind-bending episodes of Steven Avery and his attorneys going back and forth during the trial, you’ll have questions that demand answers. So many, in fact, that Netflix has confirmed the production of a second season and a spin-off series titled “Convicting a Murderer.” murders make for one compelling HBO series. Robert Durst goes under the spotlight after speaking for the first time about the death of three people connected to him. A web of lies, convolution, and gritty storytelling comes to one bone-chilling conclusion that will make your jaw drop. ‘THE JINX’ Forty years of conflicting reports on three

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A Historic Veterans Day Commemorating the 100 th Anniversary of the End of WorldWar I

This year, Veterans Day takes on particular historic significance: Nov. 11, 2018, marks the 100th anniversary of the armistice that ended the First WorldWar. Countries around the world will commemorate the signing of this peace agreement with moments of silence, centennial ceremonies, and historical exhibits. Unlike Memorial Day, Veterans Day is a celebration of life. It’s a day to honor the power of peace and the living veterans across the globe who have served their countries. This November, take a moment to remember the war that helped shape the international community’s dedication to peace and thank the individuals who served to defend it. THE GREAT WAR By 1914, a world war had been years in the making, but the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of the Austro-Hungarian Empire by a Serbian nationalist provided the spark that would eventually burn down much of Europe. A chain reaction of land disputes, pre-emptive attacks, and strategic alliances brought over 30 countries into WorldWar I.

The Great War that ravaged Europe resulted in a devastating loss of life, but from those ashes rose a renewed appreciation for the importance of peace and a global effort to ensure its place in the future. THE RESTORATION OF PEACE In 1918, Germany surrendered unconditionally, and the armistice ended the fighting at the 11th hour on the 11th day of the 11th month in 1918, though the war did not officially end until the signing of the Treaty of Versailles the following July. An estimated 16 million soldiers and civilians died in just four years, making it one of the deadliest conflicts in modern history. VETERANS DAY Originally called Armistice Day, Veterans Day was first observed on Nov. 11, 1919, to honor the one-year anniversary of the armistice, and it became a U.S. holiday in 1938. Today, Veterans Day celebrates veterans who served their country honorably. The U.K., France, Australia, and Canada also commemorate their veterans in November. If you know a veteran, thank them for their service this month.

Take a Break!

Spicy, Creamy

SWEET POTATOES

Ingredients

•

5 pounds sweet potatoes

•

1/2 cup dark brown sugar

•

1 cup canned coconut milk

•

4 tablespoons unsalted butter

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1 tablespoon Thai red curry paste

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1 tablespoon kosher salt

Directions

1. Heat oven to 375 F. On a large sheet pan, bake potatoes until very soft, approximately 75 minutes. 2. Let potatoes cool until they are safe to handle, then peel and mash. 3. In a small saucepan over low

4. 30 minutes before serving, heat oven to 425 F. Spread potatoes in a baking dish, cover with foil, and bake for 20 minutes. 5. Uncover potatoes and dot with remaining butter and sugar. Broil until brown, crusty, and delicious. Serve hot.

heat, combine coconut milk and curry paste. Once mixed, add the mixture, salt, half the sugar, and half the butter to potatoes.

Inspired by The New York Times

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INSIDE THIS ISSUE From the Desk of Karen PAGE 1 The Importance of Gratitude at Work PAGE 1 True Crime Makes for Gripping TV PAGE 2 A Historic Veterans Day PAGE 3 Take a Break PAGE 3 Spicy, Creamy Sweet Potatoes PAGE 3 Are You Scheduling Active Recovery Days? PAGE 4

MORE ISN’T ALWAYS MORE Use Active Recovery Days to Boost Your Results Taking a day off from your workout routine might feel like slacking, but scheduling recovery days into your regimen will actually make the time you spend in the gym more effective. Active recovery days aren’t really days off; you just do less physical work and focus more on the other tasks necessary for reaching your goals.

With the holiday craziness kicking into full swing, now is the perfect opportunity to make sure you’re scheduling those active recovery days. You’ll have more time to focus on everything else you love and give your body what it needs to work off those extra Thanksgiving treats! WHY SHOULD I BOTHER WITH ACTIVE RECOVERY? Heavy exercise“damages”your muscles, and they use this downtime to repair that damage, which causes the cells to enlarge and ultimately results in muscle growth and increased strength. This hypertrophy process can’t happen—at least, not very successfully—unless your muscles have a chance to rest and recover.

Reducing your workout intensity also allows you to focus on proper form, whether that’s for lifting, running, CrossFit, or other athletic pursuits. Perfecting your form will help you avoid injury, target the correct muscle groups, and work more efficiently. SO …WHAT SHOULD I DO ALL DAY? You won’t be going full-bore at the gym, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t keep your body moving. If you’re a CrossFitter, take a yoga class to maintain flexibility. Weightlifters can swap out the heavy weights for bodyweight moves and light cardio. If you’re a runner, reduce your distance and speed by jogging a shorter route at a lower target heart rate. Whatever your typical activity, shoot for about 50 percent effort or less on these days.

Active recovery days are also the perfect opportunity to prep food! Spend the afternoon cooking chicken breasts, boiling rice, soaking oats, and chopping veggies, then divide them into enough single-serving containers to last the rest of the week. Most importantly, take advantage of this time to catch up with the important people in your life and the hobbies you love. You can even kill two birds with one stone by playing basketball with friends or going for a walk with the kids. When done properly, active recovery days can recharge your body, your mind, and your life.

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