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Mental Health: What Leaders Can Do To Help Themselves and Others

On By Mindful Living AsiaLeave a comment

As much as 70% of people say that their managers have the greatest impact on their mental health, significantly more than their doctors or psychotherapist. Managers Have Major Impact On Mental Health: How To Lead For Wellbeing (forbes.com)

Wow, this is staggering. It makes you reflect on the significance of the role of a leader and the impact to the mental health of the people and to himself.

Leaders are already under a lot of pressure. They must add value to the impatient boards, demanding stakeholders, changing consumers while keeping ahead of the ever-aggressive competition. And, on top of that, keep the organization sane, happy and productive.

Here are some ways a leader can work better to improve the mental health of the people without forgetting his/her own:

1. Increase self-awareness – Understand your own strengths and weaknesses as a leader. Use tools to help you measure your impact and effectivity. Watch out against your own biases and defensiveness. Don’t be surprised if you find out that you are the problem. Self-awareness, owning and working on your gaps are the key steps towards personal mastery.

2. Communicate, communicate, communicate – Do not under-estimate the power of your presence as a leader and being accessible. Talk about the big picture – Vision, Mission, Purpose. Remind the people of the ‘Why’ you are all working together.

3. Listen deeply – Listen with genuine curiosity on what they have to say.  Create an environment where people can speak freely on how to improve productivity, effectiveness and results, without risk of judgement.

4. Take ‘the right’ action – People mistrust leaders who care only for their careers and take actions that only benefit themselves. Equally frustrating are leaders who take no responsibility for their actions, and those who are indecisive/does not take action despite having enough information.

5. Be clear, prioritize and stick to the plans – Once the plans are set, communicate and stick with them. Prioritize so people don’t get overwhelmed and confused. Don’t keep changing plans or priorities unless there are new and sufficient information. Clarify conflicting directions or priorities. Changing plans and unclear priorities waste a lot of efforts and a huge source of stress.

6. Celebrate – Take time to celebrate the results AND also the people. Recognize the people behind the result. Use this opportunity to connect people especially in a hybrid organization.

7. Work on your mental fitness – Sleep well. Eat well. Exercise. Re-charge alone and with your loved ones, whatever works for you. You cannot help others take care of their mental health if you are not mentally fit yourself. Seek help and support, if needed. It is not a sign of weakness. It is working smart.

What else would you add to this list?

❤️ Barbara

#leadership
#wellbeingintheworkplace
#mindfullivingasia

Mental Health: What Leaders Can Do To Help Themselves and Others

On By Mindful Living AsiaLeave a comment

As much as 70% of people say that their managers have the greatest impact on their mental health, significantly more than their doctors or psychotherapist. Managers Have Major Impact On Mental Health: How To Lead For Wellbeing (forbes.com)

Wow, this is staggering. It makes you reflect on the significance of the role of a leader and the impact to the mental health of the people and to himself.

Leaders are already under a lot of pressure. They must add value to the impatient boards, demanding stakeholders, changing consumers while keeping ahead of the ever-aggressive competition. And, on top of that, keep the organization sane, happy and productive.

Here are some ways a leader can work better to improve the mental health of the people without forgetting his/her own:

1. Increase self-awareness – Understand your own strengths and weaknesses as a leader. Use tools to help you measure your impact and effectivity. Watch out against your own biases and defensiveness. Don’t be surprised if you find out that you are the problem. Self-awareness, owning and working on your gaps are the key steps towards personal mastery.

2. Communicate, communicate, communicate – Do not under-estimate the power of your presence as a leader and being accessible. Talk about the big picture – Vision, Mission, Purpose. Remind the people of the ‘Why’ you are all working together.

3. Listen deeply – Listen with genuine curiosity on what they have to say.  Create an environment where people can speak freely on how to improve productivity, effectiveness and results, without risk of judgement.

4. Take ‘the right’ action – People mistrust leaders who care only for their careers and take actions that only benefit themselves. Equally frustrating are leaders who take no responsibility for their actions, and those who are indecisive/does not take action despite having enough information.

5. Be clear, prioritize and stick to the plans – Once the plans are set, communicate and stick with them. Prioritize so people don’t get overwhelmed and confused. Don’t keep changing plans or priorities unless there are new and sufficient information. Clarify conflicting directions or priorities. Changing plans and unclear priorities waste a lot of efforts and a huge source of stress.

6. Celebrate – Take time to celebrate the results AND also the people. Recognize the people behind the result. Use this opportunity to connect people especially in a hybrid organization.

7. Work on your mental fitness – Sleep well. Eat well. Exercise. Re-charge alone and with your loved ones, whatever works for you. You cannot help others take care of their mental health if you are not mentally fit yourself. Seek help and support, if needed. It is not a sign of weakness. It is working smart.

What else would you add to this list?

❤️ Barbara

#leadership
#wellbeingintheworkplace
#mindfullivingasia

Mastering Sleep – Part II

On By Mindful Living AsiaLeave a comment

😴 Mastering Sleep is probably your single biggest secret weapon to improve your personal productivity.

Sleep>energy>productivity.

We all know how it feels like when we don’t get to sleep well – feeling sluggish, groggy, brain is foggy, no energy, feeling drained even upon waking up.

🛌 Where do you begin to fix your sleep? Well, you have to wake up at the SAME TIME, EVERY DAY.

What does waking up at the same time have to do with sleeping well?

🌞 When you wake up, and the sun hits your face/skin. The melatonin production of your body shuts down. Melatonin is your sleep hormone.

Not only does the sun shuts down your production of Melatonin, it also resets when it will kick in again – 14 hours later.

🌛 So, assuming you wake up at 7am and exposed yourself to some early morning sun. Melatonin production shuts down and it kicks back again around 9pm. You can start winding down at around that time. And then, you can sleep an hour or two hours after.

💡 Why do you have to wake up at the same time everyday including weekends? Because the body wants regularity. That is how the circadian rhythm works (the waking/sleeping cycle of our body).

What do you do when you want to catch some sleep or feeling tired? Go and get some rest that the body wants for 10-20mins (not more). Sleep Doctor Dr. Michael Breus, PhD suggests avoiding sleeping too early or sleeping too long to “catch up”. It disrupts the normal circadian rhythm of the body.

#mindfullivingasia

#productivity

#sleep

#energy

#wellbeingattheworkplace

Getting Sunlight in the Morning Can Help You Sleep Better – Master Your Sleep (Part 1)

On By Mindful Living AsiaLeave a comment

Do you wake up in the morning feeling refreshed and ready to face the day? Or are you sluggish feeling you did not have enough rest?

Sleep affects our whole mind and body well-being not to mention our productivity and performance both at work and in other areas of life.

Lack of sleep can have a significant negative impact on productivity in a number of ways. Here are some ways how:

  1. Impaired cognitive function: Sleep is essential for optimal brain function, including cognitive functions such as memory, attention, and decision-making. Lack of sleep can impair these functions, making it more difficult to concentrate, remember important details, and make good decisions.
  2. Decreased motivation: When we are tired, we often feel less motivated to engage in activities and may have lower energy levels. This can lead to a decrease in productivity and work quality.
  3. Slower reaction time: Lack of sleep can also slow down our reaction time, making it more difficult to respond to unexpected events or emergencies.
  4. Increased mistakes and errors: Fatigue can cause us to make more mistakes and errors, which can be particularly problematic in work environments where accuracy is critical.
  5. Lowered creativity: Sleep deprivation can also lower our creativity levels, making it more difficult to come up with new and innovative ideas.

But what is the one thing that we can do to immediately help improve the quality of our sleep?

GET SOME SUN

Believe it or not, what you do in the first few hours of waking up affect the quality of our sleep.

HOW SUNLIGHT AFFECTS THE BODY

Sunlight in the morning can have a positive effect on sleep quality by regulating the body’s circadian rhythm, which is the internal biological clock that helps regulate sleep-wake cycles.

Exposure to natural light, particularly in the morning, can help reset the body’s internal clock and promote a more regular sleep-wake cycle. This is because exposure to light in the morning helps to suppress the production of melatonin, a hormone that promotes sleep and is typically higher in the evening and at night.

In addition to regulating the circadian rhythm, exposure to sunlight in the morning can also improve mood and energy levels, which can in turn improve sleep quality. Sunlight exposure helps to stimulate the production of serotonin, a neurotransmitter that is important for regulating mood and promoting feelings of well-being.

Getting exposure to sunlight in the morning can help you sleep at night because it helps reset your body’s inner “sleep clock.” Light is an important cue for your body’s sleep cycle. The light you are exposed to during the day helps your body figure out when it’s time to go to bed (and when it’s time to wake up).

Research suggests that direct exposure to bright natural light in the morning for as little as 10-15 minutes can help to reset the circadian rhythm and promote better sleep-wake cycles.

Sunlight is less intense first thing in the morning. It can still damage the skin, but not as much as it would later in the day. Wearing sunscreen can help keep your skin safe.

WHEN IS THE BEST TIME TO GET SUNSHINE?

Try to get out in the sun within the first hour after you wake up. The timing of sunrise can vary depending on your location and the time of year, so it is important to be aware of when the sun is rising in your area and aim to get outside during this time.

When you are travelling, follow the time of your new location. Morning sunlight is the best ‘fix’ for jetlag. Do the same thing, get out in the sun within the first hour after you wake up and get as much sun as you can during day time a few hours before retiring to sleeping.

If you are feeling sleepy after lunch or mid-afternoon, hold off reaching to a cup of coffee. Sunshine can have as much impact to waking up your senses and jumpstarting your energy as much as coffee.

HOW TO GET MORE EARLY LIGHT

Taking a walk first thing in the morning gets you sunlight and exercise at the same time. If you have a porch or patio, you could have your breakfast outside.  If the day is overcast and cloudy, you can still get sunshine. Light from the sun that is filtered through clouds or rain can still have positive effects.

Once you figure out what works, stick to a regular schedule. Waking up at the same time every day and getting morning sunlight is a good combination.

IN SUMMARY, getting sunlight when you first wake up in the morning can help you sleep better at night. If you are not sleeping well at night, look for ways to get more sunshine right after you wake up in the morning. When you sleep well, it has positive effects on other areas of your life. 

How to stop procrastination NOW!

On By Mindful Living AsiaLeave a comment

How many times have you found yourself staring at the same to do list? What is the cost of missing out deadlines for you? Are you disappointed with yourself for not acting fast enough?

Well, you are not alone in trying to wrestle with procrastination. It is a common problem that can lead to stress, missed deadlines, and reduced productivity. So, what can you do to stop procrastination? Here are some tips for you:

  1. First, IDENTIFY THE ROOT CAuSE: Understanding why you procrastinate can help you develop strategies to address the problem. Do you have a fear of failure, are you lacking motivation, you don’t know why you have to do what you have to do or feeling overwhelmed? By identifying the underlying cause, you can develop targeted strategies to address it.
  2. If you are feeling overwhelmed and do not know where to start, BREAK THE TASKS INTO SMALLER STEPS. Large tasks can be daunting, which can lead to procrastination. Breaking tasks into smaller, more manageable steps can make them less intimidating and easier to start.
  3. Set specific goals and deadlines: Setting specific goals and deadlines can help you stay focused and motivated. Once you start accomplishing smaller tasks, you would feel good and motivated to do the next big chunk of tasks. Break down larger goals into smaller milestones with clear deadlines to help you stay on track.
  4. USE TIME MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES: Effective time management is critical to avoiding procrastination. Strategies such as prioritization, scheduling, and time blocking can help you stay focused and make the most of your time. Your calendar can be your best tool so know exactly when and what time you need to do what. Or even a simple to-do list can work. It feels good to strike off to-do items from your list and seeing accomplishments per day.
  5. MINIMIZE DISTRACTIONS: Distractions such as social media, email, and other interruptions can be a significant source of procrastination. It is easy to drift into social media and before you know it, time passed without you accomplishing anything. Minimize distractions by turning off notifications, blocking social media sites, and creating a distraction-free work environment. Block off the time to work on the hardest things without distractions.
  6. PRACTICE SELF COMPASSION: Be kind to yourself and avoid self-criticism when you do procrastinate. Avoid telling yourself ‘You are lazy’, good for nothing or incapable’. Remind yourself ‘you can do this’. Focus on taking action to address the problem and developing strategies to prevent it from happening in the future. Take micro breaks if you need but be mindful of time and get things going.
  7. Finally, SEEK SUPPORT. Don’t be afraid to seek support from friends, family, coworkers, or professionals like coaches and psychotherapists. Talking about the problem and getting feedback and support can help you stay motivated and on track. But own your progress. Keep pushing until you have a more productive habit.

Overall, addressing procrastination requires a combination of self-awareness, goal setting, time management strategies, and support from others. By taking steps to address the problem, you can improve your productivity and achieve better results.

When Anxiety becomes an Anxiety Disorder

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ANXIETY IS A NORMAL EMOTION.

It is a feeling of worry, nervousness, or unease, typically about an event that is about to happen or something with an uncertain outcome. In fact, it is considered a beneficial response in certain dangerous situations that trigger the fight-or-flight stress response like when walking through a dark and deserted parking lot to your car will cause you to be alert and cautious of your surroundings and the physical symptoms (e.g. palpitation, sweating) are coming from your autonomic nervous system response.

It is a normal human experience, something everyone has experienced at some points in time. As we journey through life, we experience good or bad things that may cause varying levels of anxiety. Examples may include the many “first experiences,” such as a first date, the first day of school, the first time away from home, and other events such as, taking a school exam, getting married, becoming a parent, getting separated, changing jobs, coping with illness and many others.

However, when a person regularly feels disproportionate levels of anxiety, it might become a medical disorder and no longer becomes beneficial.

So when does anxiety become a problem or a disorder?

The main difference between normal level of anxiety and an anxiety disorder is between the source, the frequency and the intensity of the experience.

Normal anxiety is intermittent and is expected based on certain events or situations. Anxiety disorder, on the other hand, tends to be chronic, irrational and interferes with many life functions. Avoidance behaviour including procrastination, incessant worry, restlessness, agitation, mental focus, and memory problems may stem from an anxiety disorder. There are also differences in the intensity or frequency of physical responses to the anxiety (such as feeling nervous, palpitations, headache, sweating, trembling, chest tightness, panic, and upset stomach). Distorted thoughts become a source of excessive worry and behavioural changes that affect one’s normal life and interaction with others.

These symptoms may be so intense that they cause family, work, and social difficulties.

So what can you do to support someone who has an anxiety disorder? Whatever you do, just don’t ask them to explain why they feel anxious because they can’t. They just feel it. Anxiety becomes a controlling emotion that whatever they say may become irrational to us. To deal with anxiety disorders, normally medical treatments may involve anti-depressant medications, lifestyle modifications and psychotherapy. Another viable therapeutic approach you may try is Hypnotherapy.

Hypnotherapy is a safe and effective therapeutic tool that can help create a sense of peace and harmony within the individual which involves an education-communication process to a person’s mind particularly the subconscious. The American Psychiatric Association and the British Medical Association approved hypnosis as a viable therapeutic tool.

Read more about Hypnotheraphy or know more about Barbara Young.

Nobody Likes The Feeling of Losing Control

On By Mindful Living AsiaLeave a comment

Some people think that hypnosis is about mind control of the hypnotist or hypnotherapist. Nothing is farther from the truth.

On the contrary, the intent of a well trained and ethical hypnotherapist is to give back the power for YOU TO CONTROL YOUR LIFE – perhaps, a part of your life that you are not happy with (weight issues, phobia, smoking, nail-biting, addiction,obsessive-compulsive behaviours), a desire to improve an area in your life (peak performance in sports, public speaking, creativity, mental focus) or simply to improve your overall well-being by being more in control of negative emotions like anger, guilt, trauma, stress and anxiety which are affecting your health.

There are no magic tricks with hypnotherapy. The truth is, the ability to control our minds is inside all of us and will always be with us. Somehow along the way though, a part of our mind takes over and we ‘lose it’. And sometimes, no amount of positive thinking and will power seem able to overcome the undesirable thought, feeling or behaviour that is cotrolling you.

There is one thing though that you need to lose control of in order for hypnotherapy to work, and that is, to let go of any negative thoughts and feelings that are getting in the way of whatever you want more in your life. Certainly, this is something we would be happy to let go, would you agree?

The most important thing is for you to GENUINELY DESIRE TO CHANGE and your trusted hypnotherapist will know exactly what needs to be done to help you GET BACK YOUR POWER to control your mind. And once you are in control of your mind again, that is when ‘miracles and magic’ will begin to happen in your life.

May you all be blessed with everything your heart desires.

– Barbara Young

Choose To Be Happy

On By Mindful Living AsiaLeave a comment

Smiling_CloseupLesly Juarez

Every experience we go through in life is meant for us to experience to strengthen our spirits. Embrace everything that gives us joy, sadness, disappointments and sorrow as blessings to grow emotionally, mentally and in spirit.

Do everything you can do within your human power and the rest you lift to God who can create miracles in your life.

Whatever you are going through right now, they will all come to pass.

Today, just choose to be HAPPY. And may your week be filled with everything that gives joy to your heart.

Why Do Some People Hurt Themselves?

On By Mindful Living AsiaLeave a comment

Pain.jpgRaj Eiamworakul

How does one explain or begin to understand when a pre-teenager who comes from a loving and well off family, doing well in school and has no history of being violent starts hurting herself with just about anything she can get hold on to, including a pen? She could not explain why and she understands it is wrong, but she is suffering from a very deep sense of unexplainable sadness that was so overwhelming. Hurting herself or even taking her own life were the only things she could think of to cope.

It is not human nature to hurt oneself. We are born to survive and to preserve ourselves that we fight or flight for our lives. When a person starts cutting himself or even tries to kill himself, the negative emotion such as deep sadness, anger, guilt, fear, hatred or lack of self-worth must be already unbearable that hurting oneself is the only way to cope. Physical wounds can be cleaned, bandaged and even heal, and it temporarily distracts the mind from the agonizing emotional pain. However, when the root cause is not addressed, the emotional/mental agony comes back and the vicious cycle of hurting oneself continues.

Under hypnotherapy, we were able to trace her deep sense of sadness from the loss of a dear family member some time ago. She was actually grieving, something she has not been able to do as much as she wanted or needed to at that time.

In this day and age, we seem to be living in a world where we think we are always being judged. Showing emotion could be seen as a sign of weakness. When we feel pain or sadness, we are asked to “suck it up and move on.” When we watch a sad movie, we do not want to show others that we are crying. We get laughed out for being emotional. We want to look strong even when we are hurting inside. We teach boys to ‘tough it out’, to refrain from expressing their feelings – except perhaps for anger – and, above all, not to appear to be vulnerable. We end up bottling negative emotions but over time, these emotions will create cracks and will come out like lava from a dormant volcano usually in the form of ‘unexplainable or uncontrollable emotion or behaviour’.

Encourage your children to fully express themselves. We are humans and emotion is perhaps the biggest thing that differentiates us from robots. We are meant to experience the full range of emotions. Suppressing emotions do not serve long term as it will resurface later on in their lives. Ask them to cry if that makes them feel good. Once they have emptied themselves then they can move on and fill up themselves with positive emotions.

When Was The Last Time You Had A Good Cry?

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Crying_Rain

 

Crying is cathartic. A good cry can make us feel somewhat rejuvenated and emotionally cleansed.

Having a good cry can sometimes be just what we need. In fact, you may be doing yourself a disservice by not crying when needed. Repressing emotions may come back in the form of uncontrolled or unexplained behaviour later on

Letting down one’s guard and crying activates the body in a healthy way.  Researches of various kinds of tears have found that emotional tears contain higher levels of stress hormones than do than the lubricating or reflex tears (when something gets on to your eye). Stress somehow gets released when you cry and restores the body to a state of balance.

“The Japanese are such strong believers in the health benefits of crying that they’ve taken that wisdom to the next level. Some cities in Japan now have “crying clubs” called rui-katsu (meaning, literally, “tear-seeking”), where people come together to indulge in good old-fashioned sobfests. (To help the tears flow, participants watch tearjerkers.) The premise? Crying releases stress, and is a great practice when it comes to staying mentally healthy.” – https://www.webmd.com/balance/features/is-crying-good-for-you#2

When you watch a movie and it touches you, go ahead and cry. Or, find a place where you can cry in privacy in your day-to-day environment, such as an empty office or a toilet cubicle. The more you allow yourself to open up and embracing your emotions, it will become easier for you to gain the physical and emotional rewards of crying — without fear of judgment.