B2b Illinois - October 26, 2008

The Weekly Business-to-Business Forum

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Proceed With Caution: High Stress Levels Ahead! ■

Julia M. Rahn, Ph.D. | B2B Illinois contributor

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Are you one of many individuals who have read good articles on how to manage stress? Do you say to yourself, “yes this makes sense and I should practice some of those techniques?” Somehow life keeps happening and your attempts at stress management fall to the end of the priority list. You say to yourself, “When I have time, I will try again”. This is a common experience for most professionals. Decreased productivity, poor co-worker relations, increased absenteeism due to needing a “mental health day” or to take care of a physical illness are just a few of the red flag consequences of unmanaged stress. All of these negative outcomes originate from individuals not taking care of themselves when stress levels begin to increase but wait until their stress is at Level Red to do something about it. Before anyone attempts to change behavior, however, they must know their own ‘Yellow Flags’ that indicate danger zone ahead. Here are some known and little known Yellow Flags indicating a crash is impending:

Early morning (3 or 4 a.m.) awakening Eating that “oh I shouldn’t” piece of candy found in your coworker’s candy dish Feeling on edge most of the day Feeling like you are walking through molasses on your way to work Hitting the snooze button 10-15 times each morning Procrastinating on important projects Drinking that “oh I shouldn’t” extra glass of wine at night

Once these signs are acknowledged there are many proven techniques to prevent Level Red breakdown. Here are five techniques you or your employees could actually do, starting today, often with immediately stress reducing results. Remember to Breathe. Breathe by directing air into your diaphragm and extending your belly, then hold it a second or two, and then slowly let all of the air out your mouth or nose. Repeat 35 times. Breathing in this way will help slow your thoughts down, clear your mind, and get more oxygen into your system to help you work more effectively. Say a simple mantra to yourself. No you don’t have OCD (Obsessive Compulsive Disorder), if you repeat over and over “yes I can”, “I can stay calm” or “stress is manageable”. You can also pick words that are meaningful just to you. This strategy really works to start changing negative self-talk into productive self-talk. Take a walk around the block. It will help your mind switch tracks from focusing on the problem to figuring out a solution. To stay in solution-focused mode, it is believed that exercising at least 20 minutes a day will keep those neurons firing productively. Complete a mini Progressive Muscle Relaxation protocol at your desk. Pick various muscle tensing activities, such as pointing your toes toward head, clenching your fists, and raising your shoulders to your ears. Separately, tighten each muscle grouping for 30 seconds and then release, feeling the difference between tensing and relaxing. Once you stop tensing, your body wants to relax and will assist you in helping these specific muscles to relax. Draw circles. One last resort before blowing your cool is to just take your pen to paper and draw circles. The process of actively doing something in your control plus the symbolic representation of the circle (i.e. wholeness and completeness) should be enough to get you through to the end of the meeting. Of course, after the meeting it is suggested you take a walk, remembering to breathe deeply in order to process out the built up stress effects from the meeting.

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As you can see, stress management can be simple. Now that you know these five helpful stress management techniques, you only have one decision to make. You have a choice to stay healthy and happy in the fast lane with green lights ahead or crash and burn from hitting stress alert. It is your choice.

Dr. Julia M. Rahn is a clinical psychologist and founder of Flourish Studios™ – a multi-faceted learning center. In addition to running Flourish Studios™ and working individually as a therapist with her clients, she is a speaker and consultant. To find out more about Dr. Julia and Flourish Studios™, please visit www.icanflourish.com or call 773-281-8130.

Around the County with the State of Illinois:

DCEO’s Bureau of Energy and Recycling Edward S. Piatt | B2B Illinois contributor

This month I would like to highlight the Department of Commerce & Economic Opportunity’s Bureau of Energy and Recycling which seeks to demonstrate the economic development benefits, including job creation, of energy efficiency, renewable energy, and recycling through a variety of programs and services. Further, Bureau programs will demonstrate that economic development, sustainable energy, and recycling practices and environmental protection go hand in hand. In addition, the Bureau continues to promote the leadership of the State of Illinois, through its own energy and recycling policies and practices, at state facilities. Individually tailored programs are available to assist Illinois citizens, communities, non-profit organizations, businesses, industry, and other government agencies in an effort to achieve the Bureau's mission. Program areas include the following: Illinois Energy Efficiency Portfolio Under Public Act 95-0481, DCEO Bureau of Energy and Recycling, Ameren Illinois and ComEd are required to develop a portfo-

lio of electric efficiency programs to achieve targeted annual energy savings goals. Over $50 million will be utilized for the Portfolio programs during the first year, which began June 1, 2008. The portfolio program funding will double during the second year and triple in the third year. DCEO will work with Public Sector entities whereas Ameren Illinois and ComEd programs are focused on residential, commercial and industrial sectors. For further information on the legislation, background and history, Energy Efficiency Portfolio Standards go to www.ileeps.org. Incentives for measures to reduce electricity available now!!! Sources of Energy Professionals, Vendors, Contractors For help finding energy professionals and vendors there are three sources for you to utilize: 1) SEDAC (Smart Energy Design Assistance Center) Energy Services Providers: http://smartenergy.arch.uiuc.edu/html/ search_serviceprovider.html 2) Ameren Illinois Provider Trade Allies: http://www.actonenergy.net/program-allies-business.asp

3) ComEd Trade Allies: http://www.exeloncorp.com/ourcompanies/comed/comedbiz/ energy_savings_products_and_services/tradeally/ participatingallies.htm For further information regarding these programs, please contact: Bureau of Energy & Recycling 620 East Adams Street Springfield, Illinois 62701 Phone: 217.785.3416 I would also like to take this opportunity for anyone interested in the Opportunity Returns program or seeking business assistance to contact me at 312.636.0739 or email me directly at [email protected]. Until next month, see you around the county…

Edward S. Piatt is the northeast senior account manager for the Illinois Department of Commerce & Economic Opportunity.

How to “Green” Your Business Susan Meredith | B2B Illinois contributor

Converting to “green” is a lot like learning to ride a bicycle. When our son Ian first started riding a bike, he was a bit reluctant. He watched other people do it, talked about it, was interested in how the equipment worked, but wasn’t so sure he was ready. Ian was just starting to feel comfortable when he sailed down a hill. He didn’t know how to use his brakes and eventually toppled. With only his confidence shaken, Ian figured he would leave bikes alone and let other people ride them. Ian’s experience is a lot like how many of us approach green. We’re watching, listening, talking, and interested, but not really pushing off into it yet. Hearing about mercury in compact fluorescent lightbulbs leaves our confidence shaken. Is it going to do us harm? Maybe we’ll leave it alone and let someone else do it. If you reduce the amount of paper you use, you reduce the amount you have to buy. If you reduce the amount of travel and transportation, you reduce the travel costs. If you improve the efficiency of your light bulbs or turn them off when not in use, you reduce the amount of electricity you have to buy. If you’re hesitant about becoming a green business, find someone to give you a push. You’ll find it’s fun to play the game of energy efficiency. “What if we kept the temperature one degree different – would we notice the difference and how much energy would it save?

I wonder how few lights we can use? How about if we stagger work hours so employees could avoid rush hour traffic and use less gas on their commute? What if we allowed more telecommuting? How about if we used teleconferencing in place of some of our business travel? How can we reduce paper waste and other waste? I wonder how much energy we’d save if we installed motion sensors in the bathrooms?” To really understand the impact, you should track the changes as business process improvement projects. No matter what size your business is, everyone can contribute to making a greener office environment by simply starting small. Each small movement will make everyone more comfortable with bigger steps. For instance, changing out lightbulbs, in the office or at home, is relatively simple and inexpensive to do. It’s like taking that first push on the bike – you’re on your way. Computers generate lots of heat and provide lots of opportunities for energy savings. Make sure defaults are set to standby or hibernate when idle; screensavers still use energy! Encourage staff members to start the habit of turning computers off when going home or leaving the office for an extended period. Consider using power strips to shut down all electronics completely. When you’re ready to move onto bigger projects, your computer networks are a good place to look. Get more efficient equipment, energy efficient chillers for data centers and check into computer

power management for large-scale networks. In other areas, think about using solar water heaters, acquiring your own energy storage to take advantage of off-peak electricity prices, and xeriscaping the grounds to reduce the water usage. Use alternative fuels and alternative vehicles for company vehicles. For those with dedicated routes, see if fully electric vehicles will do the job. Share your research with other companies so they can benefit, too. Knowledge dissipates fear, so continually educate yourself and your employees. Knowing you’re contributing to the solution just feels good! Like riding a bicycle.

Susan Meredith is an engineer, MBA graduate and founder of HumanExcel, a corporate educational firm that helps organizations improve efficiency, reduce wastes and save energy. Her forthcoming book, “Beyond Lightbulbs: Lighting the Way to Smarter Energy Management,” provides insights based on years of research on the innovative ways consumers, companies and government organizations can reduce energy consumption and dependence on oil, and curb global warming. Susan's expertise includes global, personal and organizational energy management. For more information visit: www.HumanExcel.com or call: 512.326.9300.

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