It’s October. We’re in the last quarter of the year and the holidays are coming up. A lot of us feel that the majority of the year has passed us by, and we have nothing to show for it. If you’re like me, most of your year has been spent in lockdown which kind of limits growth and experiences in a big way. We’ve all cycled through cabin fever and back again with the help of Netflix, sourdough starters, new plant acquisitions, and heavy podcast consumption.

At the rate we’re going, I think we could all agree that life isn’t going to go back to “normal” at the stroke of 12 MN on January 1, 2021. We’ve come to accept the reality that this is how “normal” is going to look like from here onward. But it’s not a bad thing to strive for a bit of order amidst this chaos, right? Besides, the year is almost up. And if 2021 is anything like 2020, we better be ready for the surprises in store for next year. It’s better to be prepared. So here are 2 good plans to have…you know, just in case.

Personal Growth Plan

Set goals for the next year and really think about what you want to achieve in life. What skills do you want to learn or improve? How can you make your life better? Once you have listed them down, assign time frames to them. For example, you can set monthly goals, with 1 to 2 goals per month. This works well for learning goals or health goals. If your goals are more long-term and would take more than a month to achieve, you can assign them as quarterly, 6 mos, 1 year, 5 years, or 10-year goals. After assigning time frames, you should list down your action plans. For example, if your goal is to gradually switch to a plant-based diet, your steps can be:

1. Make most meals meatless
2. Look for meat substitutes

Setting time frames and action plans to your goals is the power move that jumpstarts your dreams into action.

Emergency Plan

This year is proof that everyone should always have personal disaster management or risk reduction plan. In Japan (where they regularly experience earthquakes) all children have GO bags near the designated exits. We should all take stock of their example. At the very least, you should prepare a bag that has food, water, and supplies to last for several days. As per the recommendation of Red Cross, these are the 15 items to include in your basic emergency kit:

1. Water: one gallon per person, per day (3-day supply for evacuation, 2-week supply for home)
2. Food: non-perishable, easy-to-prepare items (3-day supply for evacuation, 2-week supply for home)
3. Flashlight 
4. Battery-powered or hand-crank radio (NOAA Weather Radio, if possible)
5. Extra batteries (Similar item available in the Red Cross Store)
6. Deluxe family first aid kit
7. Medications (7-day supply) and medical items
8. Multi-purpose tool
9. Sanitation and personal hygiene items
10. Copies of personal documents (medication list and pertinent medical information, proof of address, deed/lease to home, passports, birth certificates, insurance policies)
11. Cell phone with chargers (Similar item available in the Red Cross Store)
12. Family and emergency contact information
13. Extra cash
14. Emergency blanket
15. Map(s) of the area

How do you disaster-proof your life? Share your tips with us in the comments. Remember to work smart and be a blessing to someone today. Stay safe and healthy!

Written by Jaie O. TheHelp

It has not been a good year for anybody in terms of health, happiness, or just the general atmosphere in current events. A lot of businesses have experienced major challenges in the form of budget cutbacks, organization restructures, or business closures. Employee morale sure could use a boost as we enter the last quarter of the year and what could arguably be the busiest season for businesses, work-wise.

There is always room for improvement when it comes to creating a happier and healthier workplace. Businesses that promote health and well-being are reported to have more successful employees and have better employee retention in the long term. Improving the workplace can pose a challenge right now since there are still a good number of employees who are either working from home or working remotely. However, there are certain small changes that can be encouraged in order to create a healthier workplace be it at home or at the office.

Boost Team Health

A healthy team is a happy team. While it is not advisable for people to troop to the gym right now due to COVID-19 health advisories, we can still encourage employees to get fit. One good example is to subsidize or give corporate discounts for subscriptions to exercise apps or training apps. The DownDog app not only has yoga lessons but HIIT, Barre, 7 Minute Workout, and Prenatal Yoga as well. Other examples are Nike Training Club, Aaptiv, Lotus Yoga & Workout, Kettlebell Workouts by Fitify, and TRX. You can also hold your very own “Biggest Loser” competition as a (long-running) team building exercise. You can even create a virtual bulletin board for sharing healthy recipes.

Improve Efficiency

Check for areas where efficiency can be improved. You will find many but focus on those that have an impact on team morale. For example, are your Zoom meetings running too long? That would be a waste of resources (time, effort). Be sure to have an agenda before going into the meeting and stick to it. Don’t book it for longer than 45minutes and discuss only the essentials. Invite only the relevant stakeholders and then send copies of the summary to everyone else. Make small changes in the office, streamline your processes to avoid duplication of work or unnecessary costs. 

Recognize Your Team’s Achievements

You’ll find out more about that in this article.

Career Planning

Make sure that career pathways are clear and developed. Make sure that career opportunities are available for your team. Otherwise, they will look for it elsewhere. Your team should have goals and milestones to achieve in order to feel that they are working towards a greater good. If there are no opportunities to progress or get promoted, then employees will feel unmotivated. Give them a chance to develop new skills or take on additional responsibilities to improve their status at work.

How do you improve the employee wellbeing while working from home? Share your tips with us in the comments. Remember to work smart and be a blessing to someone today. Stay safe and healthy!

Written by Jaie O. TheHelp

A small business owner wears many hats. That is why it is important to learn to delegate and automate, otherwise, the small business owner will be at risk of burnout. As a small business owner, you might have to redirect your focus on tasks that produce results that are directly related to the growth of your business. Having tools and business software at your disposal can be compared to delegating the repetitive tasks that are also essential to the business but can be delegated to someone else. For example, if you would rather focus on creating quality content, then you can delegate the task of email marketing.

Like having a reliable team, having reliable software and tools can help make you and your team more productive and more organized. 

Here are a few areas you should look at when thinking about purchasing business software and tools for your small business:

Communication:

All teams rely on good communication in order to thrive. This is especially important now that teams are working remotely while on lockdown. Instant messaging apps and video conferencing tools are now considered essential. Some of the most powerful tools have team messaging and private messaging, video conferencing, screen sharing, email, and file sharing features built into one app. Zoom, GoogleMeet, Slack, and Skype are good examples of communication tools.

Productivity:

These are the apps that help your team work smarter, not harder. It helps you focus your efforts on the most important tasks and has project management capabilities that help give direction to your team. These tools help you design workflows and automate recurring processes to save time and effort and keep your team focused on doing essential tasks. Some excellent productivity and project management tools are Trello, Wrike, Asana, and Zoho.

Collaboration:

A team is only as successful as its collaboration efforts. So, in order to create successful teams, you must encourage collaboration. Collaboration software is another essential tool since the lockdown has forced teams to work remotely and/or work from home. These tools allow your team to share knowledge and exchange ideas. It also creates a knowledge bank of quick answers and shared resources. Some of the best collaboration tools have built-in communication features as well. This way, people can share ideas and talk about them in real-time. Notable collaboration tools include: GoogleDrive and DropBox.

When planning to purchase business software, consider the number of current users and if you eventually plan to scale (which means adding more users). For small business start-ups, you can check out the free plans, from which you can upgrade when your business outgrows the free plans (which will happen inevitably). 

Do you remember the first small business tool you’ve tried? What has improved since you first started using it? Is it still your favorite small business tool? Share your story and let us know in the comments. Remember to work smart and be a blessing to someone today. Stay safe and healthy!

Written by Jaie O. TheHelp

We’re all guilty of trying a new quarantine fad or two in order to stay sane during this pandemic. With social gatherings being frowned upon or outright outlawed, a lot of us have turned to hobbies in order to stay healthy and well-adjusted. In a “survey by The Healthy Work Company, a workplace mental health consultancy, 22 percent of respondents had taken up a new pastime in lockdown, while 35 percent had rediscovered an old one.” Not surprisingly, trying out new things have a beneficial effect on mental health, with 41% of those who take up a new hobby reporting a positive impact on their mental health, compared to 30 percent for those focusing on old hobbies^[1].

Learning a new hobby refocused our attention on being curious and creative and away from feeling stressed and anxious. Yes, it is a distraction – but a very welcome one. It helps people regain perspective and trying to master an activity gives us a boost of confidence and self-esteem. You might think you have limited options with everyone being under some form of lockdown, but this is the time to get creative. Here are a few hobbies to try while from home. The best thing is, all of them are free!

• Calligraphy – is the art of beautiful handwriting. You can practice using existing templates or create your own designs. All you need are pens with different sized tips. If you have broad markers and fine-tipped pens, then you’re good to go.
• Yoga and Meditation – there are several free apps like Downdog, Calm, and Headspace that can take you through guided meditation and yoga.
• Foreign Language Film Buff – Netflix has a good curation of foreign films that come highly recommended. You might discover exciting things about other cultures and also get inspiration for your next travel destination.
• Baking – who doesn’t love baked goods? It doesn’t even have to be cookies, you can make pies or bread or even just start out with baking that leftover spaghetti and turning it into something new.
• Cocktail Mixing – you can impress your friends with your knowledge of cocktail mixing. Start with the classics: long island, gin + tonic, or an “old fashioned”.
• Needlework – explore cross-stitching, knitting, embroidery, or crochet
• Drawing or Painting – there are lots of YouTube videos to guide you through drawing or painting. You can even start with crayons or oil pastels, or whatever is available at home.
• Gardening – get a few hanging pots and soil, then clear out space near a sunny window. You can start with cuttings because those are easy to grow. Pothos plants can be rooted in water and require minimal care. Other plants that are low maintenance are aloe vera, peace lilies, ZZ plants, and jade plants. You can ask your #plantparent friends for cuttings of these plants.

These hobbies are free or are very inexpensive to take up. Yet, they have huge benefits for your mental health. What hobbies have you taken up during the pandemic? Share them with us in the comments. Remember to work smart and be a blessing to someone today. Stay safe and healthy!

Written by Jaie O. TheHelp

^[1] https://www.positive.news/society/how-hobbies-helped-people-stay-positive-during-lockdown/