Blog
Great article in the Huffington Post about stress and what we need to know to improve our quality of life. According to the American Psychological Association, 73% of workers experience stress-induced psychological problems, such as depression. Even more (77%) experience physical symptoms, such as headaches. The article has some interesting tips on what to do to keep stress under control.
Soaring stress levels can have a terrible impact on our digestive system. Our emotions and our digestive functions are tightly interwoven because when we are anxious our body releases adrenaline. This is the 'fight or flight' hormone that prepares us for action. But it also diverts the blood supply away from our stomach and towards the heart and lungs, which means we effectively shut down our digestive system. This is helpful when our body wants to divert all energy to dealing with the crisis. But, it also means we do not produce enough digestive enzymes to help our food travel through the digestive tract. We end up feeling bloated, often with painful cramps and inflammation of the gut wall. For women, this can be exacerbated by changes in female hormone levels. And, of course, lifestyle and diet can play a big part. Lack of sleep or too much sugar, caffeine, and alcohol can play havoc. So, if you find yourself with stomach aches, bloating or cramping, check your stress levels. Finding healthy, effective ways to deal with stress can help reduce and possibly even eliminate tummy trouble.
Thanks to everyone who came to my workshop on interviewing skills at the San Francisco Main Library yesterday and for the positive comments on meet up.com. It was great to see so many people motivated to learn and to nail that next interview! Good luck everyone!
Waiting in line at a store recently, I couldn't help but notice a young couple with a toddler. The 2 or 3-year-old was trying avidly to get the attention of her parents by waving various toys and holding up her arms. Unfortunately, mom and dad were so engrossed in their smart phones that they failed to notice. Interestingly, a study published in Current Biology in May suggested that caregivers whose eyes wander due to distractions, such as smartphones, may raise children with shorter attention spans. The study, by researchers at Indiana University, found that babies whose parents followed their lead during play focused on objects about four times longer than toddlers whose caregivers were distracted. And when parents made little effort to focus on the object of their child's attention, the kids had even shorter attention spans than the children whose parents focused briefly before looking away. Obviously, this is just one study but but it's fascinating to think about the way technology may be impacting us in a host of different ways - good and bad.
On a recent trip to the UK, I heard the term "emotional agoraphobia.' It was used by the headteacher of one of England's leading schools and she was referring to the tendency of children to use the Internet to make and sustain friendships. Her point was that children seem to favor digital relationships over full-blooded ones, finding screens more alluring than human connection. This in turn could lead to less nourishing relationships, and anxiety when it comes to actually meeting and developing friendships in the real world rather than in cyberspace. Could this explain in part the significant increase in anxiety and depression among teenagers in the UK over the past decade? The head of a charity dealing with mental illness among the young in Britain recently told the London Times that young people are always in touch with their friends through social media and texting, but still feel lonely. The question is: are on-line relationships as nourishing as real world relationships, or are they leading to a growing 'emotional agoraphobia' among the young?
How do you prepare for, and communicate successfully, during that all important job interview? I'll be talking on this very topic at the San Francisco Main Public Library on Sunday November 6. The talk is open to the public and will be from 2pm to 4pm.
Interviewing is a piece of skilled behavior that is quite separate from how well qualified you are for the job itself. And all too often people work hard at producing a great curriculum vitae and cover letter but then fall short when it comes to nailing the interview. Psychology teaches us a lot about effective communication, which is crucial when interviewing. Informed by my own experience of working in communications for over 20 years as well as by psychological research, my talk will cover the basics of successful interviewing. Areas covered will include:
Details:
Talk: Win That Interview!
Time: 2pm - 4pm
Date: Sunday Nov 6, 2016
Place: San Francisco Main Library, 100 Larkin St, San Francisco, CA 94102
Cost: Free
A UN survey that measures the mean happiness level of people around the world has placed the U.S. in 13th position out of 156 countries. The U.S. scored 7.10 out of 10. The happiest place in the world tuns out to be Denmark (7.52) and the least happiest is the African nation of Burundi (2.91). Seven European nations are in the top 10 joined by Canada, Australia, and New Zealand while Syria, Togo, and Afghanistan join Burundi in the bottom four. What's interesting to me about the survey is that it focuses attention on happiness and subjective wellbeing as key measures of human development rather than just economic growth. In fact, when you look at the variables that explain the differences between the happiest and the least happy nations, it turns out to be things like social support, healthy life expectancy, freedom to make life choices, generosity, and perceptions of corruption. I wonder how government policies might change if we adopted gross national happiness instead of gross domestic product as our main development indicator?
