The language of each bill varies somewhat but the core language is fairly consistent based on a model bill provided by healthyworkplacebill.org. Senate Bill 3863 in New York begins by stating some of the reasons the state feels the need to provide protection against workplace bullying to employees.
“The Legislature hereby finds that the social and economic well-being of the state is dependent upon healthy and productive employees. At least one-third of all employees directly experience health endangering workplace bullying, abuse, and harassment during their working lives. Such form of mistreatment is four times more prevalent than sexual harassment alone. Workplace bullying, mobbing, and harassment can inflict serious harm upon targeted employees including feelings of shame and humiliation, severe anxiety, depression, suicidal tendencies, impaired immune systems, hypertension, increased risk of cardiovascular disease, and symptoms consistent with post-traumatic stress disorder.”
After stating that existing laws do not provide adequate protection and recompense for individuals who cannot prove that the abuse falls under a protected class, the language goes on to explain:
“The purpose of this article shall be to provide legal redress for employees who have been harmed psychologically, physically, or economically by deliberate exposure to abusive work environments and to provide legal incentives for employers to prevent and respond to abusive mistreatment of employees at work.”
Q – What is “abusive conduct”?
A – Acts, omissions, or both, that a reasonable person would find abusive, based on the severity, nature, and frequency of the conduct, including but not limited to:
Repeated verbal abuse such as:
The use of derogatory remarks, insults, and epithets
Verbal, Non-verbal, or physical conduct of a threatening, intimidating, or humiliating nature
The sabotage or undermining of an employee’s work performance
If an employee’s known psychological or physical illness or disability is exploited, it shall be considered an aggravating factor (read: stiffer potential legal liability).
A single act will not normal constitute abusive conduct unless it is especially severe an egregious.
An “abusive work environment” is when an employer or one or more of its employees intends to cause pain or distress to an employee, and subjects that employee to workplace bullying that causes harm.
Bullied employees are granted protection against retaliation or “adverse employment action” under the proposed legislation in New York.
Employee’s whose request for assistance with bullying behaviors in the workplace are not addressed will be considered constructively discharged if they have reported the conduct and appropriate actions were not taken.
The potential penalties to an employer are significant and depending on the unique circumstances may include any relief the court deems appropriate including, but not limited to, reinstatement, removal of the offending party from the work environment, reimbursement for lost wages, front pay, medical expenses, compensation for pain and suffering. It concludes by stating that remedies under this law would not preclude remedies available under other laws. So, for example, if someone is a member of a protected class, he or she might be able to seek damages under existing legislation and this new legislation, if it passes.
Although the proposed legislation has not yet been made into law, I believe it is one egregious and well publicized bullying situation away from being passed in a similar form in many states. The bill is being pushed by a grassroots effort that could quickly grow as the result of social media.
The term, “going postal” originated when workplace bullying hit a crisis point. The documentary, Murder by Proxy, details what led to the Royal Oak Post Office murders in 1991. If a similar situation were to occur today, I believe the grassroots efforts would reach a crescendo and states would quickly pass legislation in response to the public outcries. If this were to occur when elections were on the horizon, employers could find themselves subject to anti-bullying legislation almost before they’ve had time to read the rules, much less take steps to ensure compliance and to mitigate their risks.
Murder is the number one cause of workplace deaths for women.
But workplace bullying does not have to near the level of murder before the employer is liable for significant damages.
Today, Google returns eleven million results for the search term workplace bullying. The Huffington Post has run multiple articles on workplace bullying during the past few years. As awareness grows, the likelihood that an employee will complain about mistreatment increases. That is a good thing because that mistreatment has numerous negative effects on the organization. Productivity, worker health, creativity, engagement, and turnover are all negatively effected when workplace bullying is occurring. Being aware of it is important to the health of the organization. But, you have to be prepared to act on what you know because the potential an employee will file suit and win increases with your awareness and with the employee awareness that the states are recognizing the negative impacts on the employee.
We have moved to a culture that values collaboration and does not tolerate the mistreatment of the employee in the ways that were once considered acceptable. If your organization’s culture is not keeping pace with cultural change it is only a matter of time before it pays a price. That price may be loss of your best talent to a more advanced organization or a lawsuit that could have devastating effects on your company’s future.
Harassed Employees Can Get Help Now
The US Department of Labor’s (DOL) Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) already provides a requirement that employers provide a safe work environment. OSHA provides a hotline and a form for employees to request assistance by calling 1-800-321-OSHA (6742) or by printing the complaint form and mailing or faxing it to your local OSHA area office. Complaints that are signed by an employee are more likely to result in an inspection.
OSHA provides additional information for both employers and employees.
Note: Employees who observe harassment (but are not victims) should not stand by and do nothing. Standing by and allowing bullying could lead to the loss of your job–either because you did not act or communicate what you observed or because your company has to let people go or close its doors when it is hit with a valid complaint and resultant penalties.
Follow me to see the update when I post the second and third posts in this series. I will provide steps the employer can take to reduce workplace bullyingin their organization and afford some protection against potential claims and the disruption that can occur when employees are harassed. I will also provide some background on how individuals (both bullies and the victim) may experience these situations and warning signs.
Contact us to learn about how we can help you reduce workplace bullying.
Recently someone told me I should not be happy because there are people in the world who are suffering.
I’d like to know your thoughts on this. Is happiness wrong?
Here are mine:
I have researched happiness for many years and understand that happiness is not the result of success or good health. Yes, those things help. But the research is exceedingly clear that individuals who are positively focused enjoy better health, better relationships, better mental health, and more career success. When you’re happy first, good health, great relationships, and success follow.
Happy people are literally smarter. The same person scores better on the SAT exam when he is happy than when he is not happy.
So, if we want to solve the world’s problems, it seems to me we want the happiest possible people working on the solutions because they are the ones who are more likely to find them.
Let’s take these one at a time.
The disease burden in the world creates a tremendous financial strain on every economy, it not only costs money to treat but also creates losses from lower productivity. Our immune system works better when we are happy. The Grant Study showed that a positive outlook delayed death by more than a decade and reduced the number of years with chronic and debilitating diseases by eighteen years because the dreaded end of life diseases came much closer to death.
That alone would be a tremendous boon to the economy. Diabetes, stroke, depression, heart disease, cancer, Alzheimer’s, and even the common cold and flu are less likely to happen to someone who has a positive mental focus.
So, from a health standpoint, I say the more happy people the better.From a health standpoint my happiness benefits a lot of people beyond myself because it lowers the risk of my adding to the disease burden.
As researched in the Harvard Men’s Study, whether the graduate was positively focused or not meant more to his eventual success than his Harvard education. The negatively focused Harvard graduates were much more likely to become alcoholics, to divorce, to commit suicide, to experience business failures, and more than their positively focused classmates.Even though we live in an era where prosperity is beginning to be viewed as somehow undesirable by some who believe that one person’s success lessens their chances of success, I think most would agree that a business failure hurts not only the business owner but also the employees who are left without jobs. I don’t see much argument from society that not being an alcoholic and a lower divorce rate are both beneficial to society.
For the good of society, the more success the better. One person’s success does not diminish your chances of success. Today the real root cause of wealth is a well executed good idea.
Happy people are more likely to marry and more likely to remain married. Happy people have better relationships of all types–at home, work, in the neighborhood. Extended outward this even plays out in research that demonstrated unhappy people are more likely to commit crimes–something that is very bad for relationships. Happy people are more likely to be kind to strangers, to help someone in need, and display better corporate citizenship. I don’t think anyone would dispute that these are all pro-social benefits.
Happy citizens are good for society.
Now, if you were taught the false premise that happiness is the result of circumstances or that it is something you must chase, you may feel that this is sort of like someone sticking their thumbs in their ears, wiggling their fingers and saying “Ha Ha, I’m happy–you’re not.”
But the truth is that it is not circumstances that determine happiness.You can be sick and poor and worried and find a perspective that makes you feel hopeful and in the moment you find that hopeful thought and believe in its possibility, you feel better. In that same moment, your immune, cognitive, digestive, and endocrine system functions begin improving.
As your cognitive function improves, solutions you could not think of just minutes before occur to you.
Your happiness is determined by the perspective you take about your current circumstances.
It is possible to feel positive emotion even in the midst of a bad situation by finding the silver lining.
I’ve been studying what makes humans thrive for a very long time. I know how to help people thrive. I am best able to do that when my cognitive abilities and my health are in top form. My cognitive abilities and health are best when I am happy.
Therefore, I believe my happiness benefits me and all those (the world) that I am set on helping.
The old paradigm said, “You shouldn’t be happy until someone else/everyone else is happy.” But that paradigm did not have the benefit of the information researchers have published in the last few decades. The research leads us to a new paradigm, “If you want to help others, maintain your happiness as best you can because you will have greater clarity of thought and be in a better position to identify solutions.”
Thinking about the problems others are experiencing increases my stress level, which decreases my cognitive abilities, decreases my immune system function, my digestive system, endocrine system and mental health. I don’t think that serves anyone well.
What do you think? Is Happiness Wrong?
The research on happiness and health as well as techniques that help you develop the skills that allow you to be happy even when your circumstances are less than ideal are provided in True Prevention–Optimum Health: Remember Galileo. Right now I am working on an expanded follow-up to True Prevention (Stress Kills:Happiness Heals) that takes the conversation into uncharted territory applying the principles to eliminating disparate impact, creating peace, eliminating racism, education, and more. If you prefer classroom style learning, we provided classes in person and online.
When the research became so clear and compelling to me, I named my company Happiness 1st to remind myself and my clients that when you’re happy first, everything you want is easier to achieve.
Chronic stress can lead to debilitating diseases and shorten your life by a considerable number of years. In one large longitudinal study that followed the participants for life, the negatively focused participants had 18 fewer healthy years. They not only died about 10 years earlier, they also spent about 8 years being sick when the positively focused participants were able to enjoy 18 healthier years. In the positively focused group the debilitating end of life diseases came at much older ages and much closer to the time of death.
Sometimes people don’t want to live longer because they don’t want to linger in unhealthy bodies. If you tend to be negatively focused, stressed, and unhappy your chances of living more unhealthy years is much greater.
Every bit of that is a choice you make. Focusing on the negative is a habit of thought that can be changed. Stress is not a matter of the situation, but of how we respond to the situation. There are skills that can increase your resilience, emotional intelligence and decrease (literally) the amount of stress you feel without changing the circumstances.
The great news is that when you decrease stress, happiness shows up. In recent years there has been a great deal of research on the benefits of happiness. Guess what? They are the same as the benefits from reducing stress. Why? Because stress and happiness are two ends of the same stick, they are on the same continuum.
High stress decreases your brain function. You’re literally not as smart when you’re stressed as you are when you’re not stressed.
In other words, you’re smarter when you’re happy.
High stress diminishes your immune function.
In other words, when you’re happy your immune system is working well.
Your digestive function, endocrine system, and more have the same relationship with stress and happiness. When stressed they don’t work as well, and when happy they are at their optimum.
Even the decisions you make about risky behavior, exercise, food, and sleep are better when you’re happy and worse when you’re stressed.
Many undesirable behaviors are simply attempts to reduce stress by someone who does not know a healthier way.
If you have a discouraging voice in your head, it is not helping you achieve your full potential.
If the voice in your head bullies you, look for that inner part of you that knows how awesome you can be and ask it to help you defeat the bully living in your head.
Refute the message. Look at the evidence–you are always more and better than that disparaging voice. Just because you think it does not make it true. It is a habit of thought and a bad one at that.
Be aware of what you’re saying to yourself with the negative voice in your head. Compare the facts to the conclusions the voice reaches.
Is what the voice is harping on always true? Is there another way to perceive what the voice is saying?
If it thinks you failed, could you look at it as “I’ve learned.” Failure is just a stepping stone on your way to success. No one achieves success without some missteps along the way.
You have the ability to choose whether to listen to the negative voice or not. There is a simple trick you can use. If what the voice says makes you feel worse, there is a better way for you to look at the situation than the one the voice is coming from. If it feels good when the comment is made, go with it or look for one that is even better.
Feels bad = is bad. In other words, if it feels bad, it is not the absolute truth.
Do you leave one employer because you are dissatisfied only to find yourself just as unhappy at the new job after a short “honeymoon” period?
Do you leave one relationship in search of a better one only to find the next one just as dissatisfying?
Do you try a new vacation destination hoping to find one that gives you more of what you want only to find it to have as many shortcomings as the last one?
Do you move your home because you’re unhappy with something about the current one only to find the new one has as many problems as the one you left?
The common denominator is you.
Your Choice
Eventually you may realize that it is you that has to change before your life will be better.Einstein said, “Insanity is doing the same thing and expecting different results.”
You’ve heard this before, but did you understand what about you has to change so that your life gets better?
Did you think it was you had to look better, work harder, go back to school, or ?
Or did you understand that while dieting, increased persistence, and more education can change your life they do not change its foundation. What is the foundation of your life? Why do things turn out the way they do? Why does everyone seem to have more of the same even when they attempt to change?
It is because what needs to change is not the outer you. It is your inner landscape that must change before your world will change.
You do not perceive an actual reality. You perceive a filtered reality. Your brain does not receive all the information your senses receive in any given moment. Your brain is not designed to handle that much information consciously. Your brain does not receive all the potential accurate perceptions of any given circumstance. There aremillions of accurate ways to perceive most situations. It is not that there is one accurate way to perceive anything and the rest are wrong. There are many accurate ways to perceive everything. The one you perceive depends on the way yoursubconscious filters the information and determines what information will be passed to your conscious awareness.
The inner work that changes everything and can make your life infinitely better is focused on changing the filters your subconscious mind uses.
Researchers say most of our filters are established by around age 6. That means that if you have not deliberately adjusted your filters your life is being determined by decisions you made before 2nd grade. If every area of your life is fantastic, do not change a thing. If there are areas of your life that are not the way you would prefer them to be, changing the setting of your filters will improve that area of your life.
When you change your filters the person who shows up is literally different, a new, improved version–a version who is fulfilling more of the available potential.
Your Choice…
How many times are you willing to walk away from a job, a relationship, a home or enjoy a vacation less than you could before you will decide to change the thing that matters?
Four filters that make a tremendous difference are explained in along with techniques that you can use to adjust your filters to better settings. If you’re not into do-it-yourself, we provide classes that explain each step and help you adjust your filters so they will serve your highest good.
The end result? A less stressful life, increased happiness, better health and relationships and more success. Individuals and employers both benefit significantly from the outcome.
What are you waiting for? If not now, when?
You’re making a choice right now. Is it a good one?
According to a research brief completed by Rand Corporation, “Approximately 730,000 people have filed claims for asbestos injuries in the United States through 2002. At least 8,400 defendants and insurers have paid $70 billion to settle these claims.”
That is less than 1 million claims and a 70 billion price tag.
About 100 companies have filed for bankruptcy because of their asbestos exposure.(1)
Why were companies held liable for asbestos? They knew the risk to employees (or should have because the risk was known) and they did not provide adequate protection for their workers. Rand states it this way, “Asbestos litigation, the longest-running mass tort litigation in the United States, arose as a result of individuals’ exposure to asbestos and the failure of many product manufacturers to protect their workers.”(2)
The risk to your organization from not protecting your employees from workplace stress could bankrupt your company.
It does not matter who you are, or how big you are because the pool of potential litigants expands as your workforce expands. Some of the more conservative estimates I’ve seen estimate that 26% of the population has unhealthy stress levels and that 70% of that is due to workplace stress. Let’s do the math.
314,000,000 x .26 = 81,640,000 x .7 = 57,480,000
People in USA x low estimate of those with unhealthy stress levels = 81.6 million
70% attributed to workplace stress brings the number down to 57.4 million
That equates to more than 78 times the number of asbestos litigants.
And, unlike asbestos, risk cannot be stopped by no longer using the product.Workplace stress risk will continue as long as the business is in business. The best you can do it mitigate it. The good news is our program takes stress management a giant step forward.
Pay Attention: Think Long-Term
The research is compelling. TRUE Prevention–Optimum Health: Remember Galileo touches upon many of the stress related illnesses including heart disease which accounts for 1/3 of all deaths. In early 2015, Stress Kills:Happiness Heals will tell the full story–not just the health impacts, but the social problems exacerbated by stress, including divorces, depression, and suicides.
If the potential of corporate liability due to workplace stress that employers know, or should know, are harmful to their employees mental and physical well-being does not make you afraid you need to talk to a risk manager. The potential threat is real. Once the research is clear and compelling, businesses are held to a standard that they should know the risks of placing demands on their employees that lead to chronic stress.
Putting your head in the sand and ignoring the issue will not make it go away. But there are ways to manage the risk without doubling your workforce.
Stress management skills are not taught in school. The vast majority of your employees have no idea how to lower the stress they feel in any given situation. You already know some of them handle stress better than others, but not why.
The stress reduction techniques touted by most of the books and stress management teachers are dose dependent and stressed people are less likely to actually do them. It is not the reason they are stressed, stress decreases motivation. It is part of the problem. It is also part of your engagement problem. Employees who understood how to manage stress might find their environment challenging instead of stressful.
Face it, we cannot eliminate the stress from every job. Performing surgery is stressful, caring for a preterm infant with serious complications is stressful, regulations that increase and change frequently is stressful, taking up the slack from disengaged co-workers is stressful. Eliminating stress is not an option.
The connection between workplace stress and health is irrefutable. Already, in some large cities like New York and Los Angeles, police officers who die from heart disease–even if they are on vacation when they die–are considered work-related deaths. But stress does not have to involve real life or death situations for the human body to experience the negative health effects.
Long-Term May Mean… Tomorrow
The number of asbestos claims is a drop of water in the ocean compared to the potential stress claims from employees. The future that I’m talking about is not that far in the future. To those who are familiar with the state of the research connecting stress to mental and physical illnesses, it is already clearly visible. When will the first case be filed? It could be tomorrow. The evidence is compelling enough and accumulating on an almost daily basis.
What can you do to manage this risk?
The economics will not allow you to double your workforce to reduce the workload, so that is not an option.
Dose dependent stress management techniques like exercise, helping others, going outside,meditation, massage, yoga, and tai chi are dose dependent and the evidence that those suffering from the highest levels of stress are least likely to do them. The fact that they are not doing them is not a defense because evidence demonstrating that it is the high stress that makes it less likely just points the finger back at the cause of the stress.
There is a way to teach employees to manage the stress at the root cause that empowers them to perceive the stressful situation in less stressful ways. Why is this the best method? Because it addresses the issue at the root cause, it affects the entire experience. It shows the employee they have more control over their stress than they know. Increasing employee’s locus of control in this way has multiple benefits including improved health and engagement. That’s three boxes checked in one program.
Reduce risk of stress-related litigation
Improve Employee Wellness Efforts
Increase Employee Engagement
But the benefits do not end there. The program delivers considerably more. Relationships between co-workers (and their relationships outside work) improve because of what they learn in the program. This not only makes the workplace more harmonious, it lessens the amount of outside relationship stress that is adversely affecting the work day. This is not just romantic relationships, but also relationships with children, parents, and friends.
How much does relationship drama impact your organization’s productivity? How much of management’s time is spent dealing with personality conflict type issues?
There is another benefit. From years in risk management, I am well aware that some lawsuits employers have to defend against are for things that one employee interprets as threatening but another one would not even remember a few days later. It is the perception of the event, rather than the actual event, that creates the problem. Our programs provides employees with skills that enable them to perceive situations from perspectives that feel better to them. While it is never possible to quantify lawsuits avoided (a bane of compliance officers and risk managers everywhere), the dots can be connected and the relationship can be clear enough that the CFO will understand the benefits.
Let’s return to the wellness program for a minute. All those healthy habits you’re attempting to get your employees to do are hindered by high stress. In fact, the link between high stress and obesity has changed the paradigm of calories in – calories out = BMI. Stress affects how the body processes the food a person eats and increases the risk of obesity, which increases the risk of diabetes, which increases the risk of heart disease. Stress also increases the risk of high blood pressure which increases the risk of heart disease and stroke. Chronic stress also diminishes the effectiveness of the immune function, increasing the risk of colds, flu, and even cancer. All of this is already scientifically documented. Many of the citations are in TRUE Prevention–Optimum Health, but Stress Kills:Happiness Heals, which is in the editing stage expands the picture further.
Other Benefits
The benefits of our program seem too good to be true but the reason they are so expansive is because they address the root cause. Almost everything else that is done to improve health and stress today addresses symptoms, not the root cause. Now is the time to take action. There are other benefits from our program detailed throughout our website.
Take Action…Today
If this sounds frightening, it is. What can you control? Can you control the job responsibilities in a way that makes them not stressful? Can you control the work loads employees are tackling?
What you can do is empower them with skill based training that insulates them from much of the stress in their lives–both work-related and personal. This training would go a long way toward demonstrating that you took every possible precaution to help your employees. Of course, it should be combined with other things you’re probably already doing, such as an EAP program. But when you wait for the situation to be at the point where most employees will reach out to an EAP, the stress has already caused damage.
We measure a variety of things in a host of different ways before and after the training, including stress, depression (expect about 10% of your employees to be suffering from depression in the pre-training testing), resilience, and emotional intelligence. You can choose to add other measures. The program is provided in large groups so the cost is surprisingly affordable. Smaller employers can combine to form a larger group to keep their costs reasonable. In large organizations, we have train the trainor programs.
Last night’s episode of Blue Bloods on CBS (8/29/2014) The Truth About Lying, has some lessons that can make your own life better. There were two scenario’s that demonstrated how our brains do not show us an actual fixed reality and one that highlighted that the more stressed we are, the less accurate the reality we perceive becomes.
SPOILER ALERT:
In one case, a mentally challenged man unsuccessfully tried to stop a teenage girl from committing suicide and was caught on video, where his actions were initially perceived as pushing her to her death. It would have been so easy for him to be convicted of murder for his attempted good deed because the viewers of the video initially perceived him as a killer. Their brains interpreted the video in line with their expectations, even after being told he was not the type of person to ever do that sort of thing.
The second scenario involved a young cop whose report of her first felony arrest differed slightly from a video a citizen sent in. There was nothing wrong with the arrest, no excessive force, etc. But when she filed her report there was a factual error about where stolen property was recovered from that differed from the video. I won’t tell you how Frank (Tom Selleck) got the DA’s office to agree not to fire her and come over to his viewpoint by demonstrating that the brain’s recollection of events may not be 100% accurate, especially when a life or death situation is involved, but I thought it was brilliant.
I loved that the show brought this aspect of our brain’s into the show–the inaccurate ways we perceive reality. Researchers have long shown that eyewitness reports are the least reliable type of evidence but most people assume this is because of dishonesty on the part of witnesses with ulterior motives, but the truth is that our brains are not designed to show us “reality.” They show us a filtered reality and the filters determine how we perceive every given situation. It is not just tense moments when our brains filter reality. Our perception is filtered in every moment. The filters can be adjusted and how they are set can make the difference between a good life and a crummy life.
I teach people about these filters and how to adjust them so they can thrive more but the biggest hurdle most people face is they believe their brains show them reality so I am delighted to see the fallacy of this demonstrated so well on Blue Bloods.
I also love this show. I turned my TV off in 1995 and did not watch TV again until 2013. I still watch very little but this show draws me back again and again. I love how strong the family is even when they disagree with one another. I love Tom Selleck in this roll. I wish I could talk to the detective because I know I could help him (I realize he is just a character, but his war wounds represent a lot who are suffering today.) I also love that they show the Sunday dinners every week because that is one of the things that makes the family so strong and connected with one another.
I also like that it looks like there is romance in the air for Frank.
What can you do to make your life better?
The next time you’re disagreeing with someone consider whether you are each standing your ground based on your perceived reality (you are). Then consider whether the conversation can be taken to a deeper level where those perceptions can be less important. Look to your goals–not to “be right” because you’re both right based on your own perceptions, but to why you care about the topic and what you want. You can also check out our classes or my books and learn more about the filters that distort your reality and how to make them serve your highest good. Unless your life is the best you can imagine it being in every area, there are settings that are not serving you well in your filters. Everyone’s filters are set by default around age 6 and then they live life based on those unexamined settings. There is a much better way to live.
Workplace wellness programs are missing the key ingredient to true prevention. They focus on early diagnosis, symptom and lifestyle management while ignoring the elephant in the room–the one common factor at the root of everything.
While meeting with a representative of a large regional health system’s workplace wellness division, I asked him what their solution was for addressing stress. He mentioned their EAP (employee assistance program) offered counseling but said that was all they had. He also said many employers recognize that stress has both a negative effect on worker’s health and on their contributions at work. He was excited by our program but when he took the information back to his employer they said they had all the knowledge they needed in-house. If that is true, why are they excluding stress management skills training from their workplace wellness program?
The research about stress is clear. Workplace wellness programs tend to focus on the same areas and stress management skills would help improve the results in every one of them.
Smoking cessation.
Stress plays a role in the ability of individuals to quit smoking and maintain their status as non-smokers. Anxious individuals find it the most difficult to quit. Anxiety and smoking behavior are highly correlated.
Weight Management/Obesity/Anorexia/Bulimia
Researchers have demonstrated that the old paradigm of weight management is too simplistic because it ignores the impact of stress on the digestive system. The digestive system does not function as well when an individual is stressed and chronic stress contributes significantly to the development of diabetes. Stress also results in unhealthy food choices. Food is the number one anxiety drug.
Eating disorders often have their roots in low self-esteem. The design of our program leads to increases in self-esteem, which could provide relief for those who have eating disorders and prevent their development by those who are at risk of developing an eating disorder.
Diabetes Disease Management
The impact of stress on the digestive function has been linked to the development of diabetes. In 2007, the direct cost of diabetes in the United States was 174 billion. Indirect costs included 2.6 billion for absenteeism, 20 billion reduced productivity during work for the employed population, 7.9 billion unemployment from disease-related disability, and 26.9 billion lost productive capacity because of early mortality. Stress also has a direct impact on adherence to recommended treatments.
Physical Inactivity
Stress levels affect whether or not an individual will be active and choose to engage in physical activities. Highly stressed individuals who do not have an ingrained habit of physical activity are unlikely to develop the habit while they are stressed. Despite the fact that physical activity/exercise is often recommended as a dose dependent stress reduction method, such increases in physical activity do not consistently help stressed individuals because they do not feel sufficiently motivated.
Depression
By the time depression has developed, the individuals has typically been suffering from chronic stress for a sustained period of time. We need to educate employees (and the entire population) that tolerating stress is not the appropriate response. Coping until we’re depressed is a strategy that has made depression an epidemic with 10% of the US population suffering from it, according to the CDC.
Why are they not recommending early intervention to address stress? Because they think it requires expensive one-on-one treatment and because of the ridiculous stigma’s associated with mental health. Stress Management skills are simple to understand and implement. They are simple enough that kindergartners can understand the basics. Adults are a little more difficult and take a little longer to teach because they have developed a lot of false premises throughout their life that hinder their ability to adopt strategies that come quickly and easily to younger children. But it is still far from something that requires expensive one-on-one treatment. I can teach auditoriums full of people how to manage stress in meaningful ways that have a positive impact on their work and home lives right away and continue to increase as the techniques are applied.
Even individuals who suffered from repeated bouts of depression have now reported that they have been free of depressive episodes since learning these skills.
Poor Diet/Nutrition
Stress and happiness are opposite ends of the same continuum. Researchers have linked happiness with better food choices. Individuals in the top 25% of optimism scores ate more fresh vegetables, salads, berries, fruit and low fat cheese that other subjects in a research report comparing optimism to dietary habits. A meta-analysis done by researchers at Harvard and published in 2012 concluded that positivity and optimism led to better food choices and better choices about risky behaviors. Our stress management program increases happiness, positivity, and optimism.
Chronic Stress
The common recommendations for managing stress are all dose dependent. That would be fine if there wasn’t a better way, but there is. Dose dependent stress management is the same as taking a prescription pill to manage the symptoms–it does nothing to affect the underlying cause. Dose dependent means you have to do it in order to receive the positive results and if you don’t do it, you don’t get any results.
Because our program helps individuals change the root cause of the stress, it functions more like a cure. It does not prevent bad things from happening, but the response is more resilient, emotional intelligent, and less stressful than it would have been before they learned to use the skills we teach. The way the individual responds to the same stimulus that may have once made him or her highly stressed may not be at all stressful once the techniques have been applied for a while.
We all know that everyone reacts differently to circumstances. What stresses one person out may be fun to another person. I’ve studied what makes humans thrive for two decades and then developed programs that teach individuals how to develop the habits of thought that help them thrive.
The frequently recommended dose dependent stress reduction methods include exercise, going out in nature, helping someone else, petting your cat or dog, meditation, yoga, tai chi, and massage. While these methods are a good “pill,” they do not provide long-term benefits with the exception of a consistent meditation practice. But even consistent meditation does not address stress at the root cause.
Some recommendations can be counter-productive. One commonly recommended stress reduction method is to discuss the problem with a friend. The outcome of that discussion can go either way. I definitely have friends who would make it worse by focusing on the worse aspects of the situation and reminding me of other bad situations like the current one. I also have friends who would be beneficial to talk to but I’ve never seen this type of recommendation come with recommended parameters for the discussion.
Employee Engagement
This is not a typical focus of Corporate Wellness Programs although the hope is that the program will be perceived in a positive light. Our program also helps engagement in a variety of ways. The first is that it helps create a more inclusive and positively focused employee base. Working with people who are energetic, focused, and optimistic creates synergy and an environment that makes being at work enjoyable. The way any individual views his employer or any other aspect of his life reflects how he views everything in life. Someone who is generally dissatisfied with life is generally dissatisfied with her work. The reason for this is because our habits of thought play a tremendous role in the aspects we focus on in every area of our lives. If we focus on the aspects that we don’t like, we’re not engaged. If we focus on aspects that we find exciting, our engagement increases.
The inherent nature of our program increases the likelihood that employees will focus on aspects of their jobs and the company that they like.
Turnover/Retention
One of the most frequently cited reasons for turnover is not liking the people. A working environment where relationships are harmonious, where workplace conflict is unusual, where conversations are fruitful, and others are supportive would be very difficult to leave. The techniques I teach can accomplish this type of shift in corporate culture. Individuals who understand how to use the skills can even ignore outright attempts to upset their equilibrium without feeling stressed or a need to retaliate. The techniques provide individuals with tremendous stability and equilibrium in their chosen emotional stance.
There is a song by Pharrell Williams that describes the steady emotional state:
“Here come bad news talking this and that, yeah,
Well, give me all you got, and don’t hold it back, yeah,
Well, I should probably warn you I’ll be just fine, yeah,
No offense to you, don’t waste your time
Here’s why
Because I’m Happy”
I know, that to someone who is not generally happy the thought of being around a bunch of happy people is not very appealing but when everyone understands they can be happy and most are, the whole dynamic changes. Those who need a bit of help find it everywhere they look because one of the most natural and frequent behaviors those who learn to be happier demonstrate is a desire to help others do the same.
Research shows that positively focused people are kinder and demonstrate better corporate citizenship.
Cognitive Ability
Stress diminishes our cognitive abilities. The same person is smarter when happy than he is when stresssed. Do you want your employees to make better decisions? Teach them how to reduce the stress in their lives. You can keep the same employees and gain a smarter workforce.
Absenteeism
Immune function decreases as stress increases. Research has shown that the severity of colds and flu are directly tied to positivity, wth the most positively focused experiencing the fewest symptoms and duration of illness. The most positively focused have sometimes not developed an illness at all, even after being deliberately exposed to the virus. The symptoms are not just self-reports. One study in particular actually measured symptoms, going as far as to weigh used tissues so that the results would not be slanted by the more pessimistic attitude. The pessimists reported more symptoms but they also had more symptoms.
Productivity/Presenteeism
The level of productivity is important to employers. In all except the most mindless, repetitive occupations repeated research has shown that optimists produce more than pessimists.
Although you may believe optimism and pessimism are inborn traits, they aren’t. They are habits of thought and individuals can change their habits of thought to make their life feel better.
Optimists are more successful than pessimists in study after study.
Sales
There is very solid evidence that even less qualified optimists outperform more qualified pessimists based on traditional measures of qualification. If optimism is not one of the considerations for hiring your sales staff you are leaving a lot of untapped potential on the table. Teaching your sales staff our stress management techniques would improve sales.
Ethics/Morality
The research is very clear that ethical behavior improves as positivity increases. Think about it. When the economy dips, white collar crime increases. The same stress that reduces cognitive ability leads individuals to faulty conclusions that result in them deciding to commit a crime.
Education Components
There are a number of false premises that hinder individuals from becoming happier and less stressed. One of them is that they should just be strong when they are faced with stressful situations. But the advice, such as think positive and decrease the stress in your life, is worthless without teaching them how.
Stress adversely affects every system in the body fairly quickly. It is something that should be dealt with as soon after it is experienced as possible. I’ll give you an example. Jealousy creates stress in the body. I am almost never jealous of anyone about anything. I recognize that feeling jealous is my seeing someone else experience something that I want but am perceiving I can’t be, do, or have. Earlier today I learned a friend was at a lecture at Harvard on psychoneuroimmunology and I felt jealous. I told my partner to tell our friend I was jealous (he was going to see him before I did). But I manage my emotional state to a really good place. I had not felt jealousy in a very long time. It did not feel good. Within less than five minutes I realized what I was doing and said, “Why am I feeling jealous? Why do I think that is something I can’t do?” Very quickly my jealous was gone, replaced by an attitude of being delighted that I have friends who attend those types of lectures and can intelligently discuss such subjects. I also affirmed that there was no reason I could not also attend a lecture like that. My jealousy is completely gone and I am now excited about the next time I’ll see my friend. I’m looking forward to hearing what he learned and comparing ideas. I can even ramp my emotional state up even higher. I know this man’s heart wants to help a lot of people, especially those who are the last to receive help, whether here in the USA or abroad. I can think about what he might have learned that will help him do that and feel even more positive emotions. I’ll stop there but the process could keep going. I’ve already shifted from jealousy to a bit of a natural high just by changing my perception but I have not begun to tap the potential positive emotions I could milk from this situation.
Do, however, notice that the circumstances did not change. He is still the one who attended the lecture. The only thing that changed was the only thing I could change, my perspective about it. My emotions improved as I assumed a more empowered perspective. My body no longer feels stress from assuming an unhealthy perspective.
I’ve been using these methods for years but it is not much more difficult for a novice to shift perspective and gain similar advantages.
We need to change our tolerance of stress. We need to help everyone understand that they should do what they can as soon as they can. It makes all the difference.
There are other false premises that interfere with optimal health that our program identifies and changes.
Attracting Quality
Attracting quality employees is critical to the success of your business. The iconic work cultures of our era will not have anything on a company that has incorporated the techniques in our program. You’ll have your pick of the best of the best–provided you provide a healthy work environment with opportunities to advance. Our program won’t change what your company does, only how it does it. There is another benefit I have not yet mentioned, that can help create an irresistible work environment.
Creativity
Creativity is just like cognitive ability as it related to stress. Creativity increases as happiness increases and decreases as stress increases. Ideas flow more readily to individuals who are positively focused. There is a second advantage that comes from our program that relates to this area. Many good ideas are wasted because the person who thinks them is afraid of how others will perceive the idea. Our program increases self-confidence and also the ability to feel good even if someone does not agree with us. The impediments that cause many good ideas to die before they are born is eliminated.
Diversity
Even diversity is positively impacted by our program. Research shows that positively focused individuals are naturally more inclusive. We have the ability to take your diversity initiatives to a higher level.
Resilience
We spend a lot of time planning for business continuity in the event of problems from busted water lines to epidemics and wars. But we tend to ignore the fact that people are required to execute those plans. In the disaster planning milieu, we assume people who are not directly taken out by the disaster will be functioning in their assigned roles. We forget that different people respond to stress in different ways and that the stress of a disaster could take out people who are not affected by the direct cause.
The best disaster plan you can create is worthless if your employees lack the resilience to persist during a disaster. Can they fulfill their duties in the midst of so much uncertainty?
I would far rather have resilient people and a mediocre plan than a great plan and staff with mediocre resilience levels. The resilient individual will retain the ability to think in dire circumstances that will be lost to someone who is less resilient. The best planning cannot predict all the variables. The resilient individual will be able to respond in the moment–when it counts. Those hero’s we love to watch on TV, who come through when bullets and bombs are all around? They’re resilient. Whether you adore MacGyver or Jack, it is their resilience that makes them able to persevere. My Dad tells me, Jeanine you could fall into an outhouse and you’d come out with a diamond ring. He has seen me repeatedly respond to circumstances that would devastate less resilient individuals in ways that make the outcome better than if the adversity had never happened.
Our program increases individual resilience, the ability to bounce back will be improved. It won’t matter if the strife is at work or personal, it will not drag them down as long as it would have without our training.
Sleep
Stress can adversely affect the ability to get a good night’s sleep in a number of ways. Stress can cause individuals to stay awake worrying about problems and it can cause them to wake up too early and be unable to go back to sleep. The stress of too many competing priorities can result in individuals simply not giving themselves enough time for adequate rest.
This is a significant concern to employers. Sleep deprivation can lead to more mistakes, including accidents. Inadequate sleep increases the risk of an automobile accident by three times.
Stress management skills reduce stress, allowing individuals to benefit from a better night’s sleep.
Emotional Intelligence (EQ)
Our program increases EQ in three of the four key areas because of the way the program is designed.
Final Question
Does your corporate wellness program offer a stress management solution that satisfies your needs? Does it address stress at the root cause? Why not?
Contact us today to learn more about how Happiness 1st Institute can help your company achieve a lot more of its potential.
The Best Solution for HR’s Biggest Problem: Employee Engagement
Or, more specifically, how to increase employee engagement and retention.
Low engagement can act like a virus, spreading discontent throughout your organization, reducing productivity and increasing undesired turnover. The success of an organization can be tied directly to the level of employee engagement–it affects every area of the business.
The number of employees who would like to leave their current employer was more than 1 in 5 according to a Career Builder survey earlier this year. With turnover costs for lower level employees over $5,000 and many times that for higher level employees, retention is of tremendous importance to the ability of an organization to succeed.
What leads to engagement?
Workers who are dissatisfied with their jobs. Let’s chat about that for a moment. Presumably, at one point the employee was satisfied unless they were desperate for a job, any job, when they accepted the one they have. What changed? Often the employee became dissatisfied with one or more aspects of the role or the company and focused on the negative aspects until the perception of the job matched the perspective about a few undesired areas.
In many cases, this is changeable. It’s a matter of tipping the scale back in your favor and we know how to do that.
Dissatisfaction with advancement opportunities is another reason good talent leaves. It depends on the business model, but this is something that increased creativity can sometimes solve. The techniques we teach facilitate changes that increase creativity. That’s worth talking about.
Being highly stressed is another reason employees look for greener pastures. The skills we teach address the root cause of stress, easing that burden without requiring a change in circumstances. That’s powerful.
54% of the employees who have no intention of leaving their current employer cite liking the people they work with as the number one reason they won’t leave. That’s huge.
What makes co-workers enjoyable to work with? Kindness, collaboration, inclusion are a few of the words that come to mind and our techniques increase everyone of them. Research shows that happier, less stressed people are kinder to one another–even to strangers. They also demonstrate better corporate citizenship. The techniques we teach hit interpersonal conflict head-on and create employees who are able to get along with a wide variety of people and enjoy one another more. That’s gold.
Because our strategy addresses the root cause of so many problems, it improves the entire system.
Until now, self-help and corporate environments have not been good friends. Happiness 1st Institute bridges the gap with scientifically supported stress reduction, optimism increasing skills that are both practical and effective.
The programs we offer are groundbreaking in numerous ways.
The tremendous benefits of decreasing stress and increasing optimism are great for employees, employers, and even customers. Employers benefit from increased engagement, reduced conflict, increased cognitive abilities, and increased emotional intelligence. Employees gain practical skills that make life feel more enjoyable without requiring circumstances to change. The skills improve their relationships at work and in their private lives. They also gain health benefits because stress decreases immune function which helps their bodies natural defenses keep them healthier. Customers prefer to deal with happy and positive employees so their level of satisfaction increases.
If you have salespeople, you may already know that optimistic sales people outsell even better qualified pessimists.
Our program checks all the boxes because the root cause of so many undesired things is the same — chronic stress.
Empowering employees with practical skills that enable them to reduce stress in every area of life, they become happier, more satisfied, healthier and smarter. Yes, smarter. Research is very clear that stress reduces cognitive function and optimism increases it.
Reducing stress has benefits that make many other things easier. Stressed bodies do not process food as well as bodies that are not stressed. Weight management is no longer defined as calories in–calories out. The new definition considers stress and mood, both of which impact how the body processes food and the food choices a person will make, with improved mood associated with healthier food choices.
Chronic stress is often the factor that leads to unhealthy behaviors such as alcohol and drug abuse, risky lifestyle behaviors, and even makes quitting smoking more difficult.
Ignoring chronic stress, or wearing it as a badge of honor–a common unhealthy habit–can lead to depression and other negative health outcomes. It increases the risk of heart disease, obesity, and diabetes among other things. TRUE Prevention–Optimum Health: Remember Galileo. Wellness from the Root Cause for the 21st Century provides citations that support the statements in this post.
Our society is operating with inaccurate information about the effect of stress and about how much stress is healthy (or not terribly unhealthy, to be more accurate). The decrease in immune function happens quickly enough that researchers have been able to measure changes in very quickly after a stressor is introduced to research subjects. We now know that the negative impact to the immune function, cognitive function, and endocrine systems happen quickly. Stress is not something to “let go” for a while and deal with later. Good stress management requires us to be aware of the increase in stress level when it happens and make smart decisions to proactively apply the stress management skills.
The skills we teach are not the dose dependent techniques commonly recommended. While those do help stress levels, their dose dependent nature has a few pitfalls. The first is that they do not provide long-term benefits. The second is that those who need them the most are least likely to do them. The third is that they treat the symptom, not the root cause of stress. Exercise, helping other people, going outside, petting your cat or dog, and the other most frequently recommended methods are best for short-term relief. For long-term benefits, a skill based approach is best. Even meditation, which varies between dose dependent for those who do not have a consistent practice to providing some long term benefits to those who use it consistently, does not address the root cause of stress.
That is actually good news because that means the best we knew to do in the past has been improved upon, making the potential for good outcomes better than it’s ever been. We refer to our program as self-help with a scientific foundation because each individual is responsible for applying the skills to their own life. But the greatest thing about our program is that applying the skills provides positive emotional feedback each step of the way–creating intrinsic motivation that results in priceless benefits for everyone.
Ask us how we can address your businesses pressing concerns. We’re glad to help.
In TRUE Prevention–Optimum Health: Remember Galileo I describe The Galileo Effect as the tendency to cling to old ideas until the overwhelming weight of evidence pointing to the inability of old assumptions to provide adequate support in light of new information finally makes us change our prior assumptions.
A great deal of what most of us believe is based on assumptions. In school we are often taught that information based on assumptions is factual. The “factual” information I was taught in school that is now known to be wrong would fill several dictionary size books. Yet, we continue to cling to and argue for the truth of what we were taught without questioning the assumptions the “facts” were built upon.
Although this video is far more scientific and cerebral than I try to be in my classes and books, I love the way he explains how our perceptions and assumptions about the world change when we expand our concepts. Some of you may find the entire video interesting or even fascinating and exciting but I encourage everyone to watch the early part through where Thad describes changing how many dimensions we use to view the world. It is the best description I’ve seen of overcoming The Galileo Effect in a contemporary discussion.
It is the same type of shift that I encourage, in another arena, a shift that expands our perception of the root of things that make humans thrive. If you watch Thad’s TED-X talk through to the end where he describes all the mysteries the shift in perspective solves, that is the same type of clarity that is gained when we change our perceptions about the root cause of human thriving.
We live in such a magnificent time–a time when the body of knowledge that contributes to human thriving is increasing at an amazing rate of speed and the potential for greater thriving around the world has never been as great, yet tomorrow it will be even more.
We do not see reality. We see a filtered reality. Until this is understood, the rest of what we teach to help you thrive will not be accepted. We are taught that we see reality. We are taught that what we see is the same as what others see. Both of these are wrong. We each see our own unique reality. We merely assume others see the same reality we do.
If your response to this statement is disbelief, it would serve you well to loosen your belief that you perceive reality. This video will help you see that there are instances when you know your perception is not revealing the actual reality to you. The key is to realize that this is always true–it just is not usually as obvious.
Note: Despite the cover picture, this video is suitable for all audiences
After watching the video, ask yourself what other aspects of reality might not be as they seem. Ask yourself if you know the answer. Ask yourself if knowing the truth might help your life be more as you would like it to be.
There are filters that act below the level of conscious thought that greatly effect how your life plays out. They have immediate impacts on your health, relationships, success, and overall well-being. Your life can easily be much better than it is. Improvements come quickly when you learn how to adjust your filters, but they also build over time and continue even after your life is exceeding your current beliefs about what is possible for you. The better it gets, the better it gets.
If you would like information on our programs, please contact us for a list of upcoming programs or checkout the offerings or one of our founders books.
At Happiness 1st Institute, the power of our programs comes from focusing on the root causes underlying the problems we solve. We give participants the skills and knowledge needed to make changes at the root rather than treating symptoms. By addressing systemic hindrances to thriving personally and professionally, we empower participants with everything needed to thrive more than they ever have.
We achieve maximum program effectiveness for participants by addressing prevalent obstacles to acceptance of new information before we make any attempt to obtain buy-in on new concepts and ideas. We have developed practical approaches to explain common barriers to acceptance of new perspectives that are not threatening. Our approach is more likely to generate responses that ask the question, “Why didn’t anyone ever explain this to me before?” The result is the opportunity to present life enhancing information while participants are in an open state of mind; sometimes more open than they have been in decades.
We vary delivery of our programs between instructor led in person, live and recorded online sessions, MP3’s, and practice assignments to suit the needs of our clients.
Some of the key objectives we help employers achieve:
Strategic Organization Management
Greater acceptance and buy-in for strategic changes
More effective cultural integration and/or modification
Improve trust in trustworthy people and organizations
Appreciative Inquiry (AI) synergy
High-level Strategic Workforce Management
Increase ability to think strategically
Increase potential of employees and managers
Increase Emotional Intelligence (EQ)
Develop self-mastery
Improve loyalty and retention; reduce turnover costs
Improve employee engagement
Increase focus on accomplishment goals not protectionist goals
Everyday Workforce Management
Tools to improve hiring decisions
Improve employee productivity
Improve citizenship and altruism
Cultivating pro-active mindsets
Increase receptivity to feedback
Increase employee optimism and positivity
Increase team cohesion
Increase employee resilience, success and creativity
Increase willingness to offer suggestions and ideas
Increase willingness to take appropriate risks
Reduce complaints to HR and regulators from dissatisfied employees
Provide a unique recruiting advantage
Diversity Initiatives
Develop appreciation for diversity
Reduce racism
Reduce disparate outcomes
Customer-facing Workforce Management and Sales
Friendlier interactions with customers
Improve sales performance and results
Improve negotiation results
Improve patient centered care
Relationship Harmony
Improved relationships of all types—internal and external
Reducing conflict between co-workers
Reduce distractions from relationship discord
Wellness Programs
Amplify success of existing programs
Address root causes of many risk factors to improve results
Reduce absenteeism and health care expenses
Reduce employee fear, anger, depression, and stress
Improve immune function
Enhance motivation and energy to achieve professional goals
Social Programs
Share a path to inner and outer peace
Reduce stigma associated with mental/emotional health
Decrease bullying for schools and workplace
Decrease recidivism
Reduce relapse after rehabilitation for addictions
Address root cause of many dropouts, crime, and teen pregnancy
We look forward to answering any questions you may have and helping you and your organization thrive in exciting new ways.
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“Robin Williams was an airman, a doctor, a genie, a nanny, a president, a professor, a bangarang Peter Pan, and everything in between. But, he was one of a kind. He arrived in our lives as an alien – but he ended up touching every element of the human spirit. He made us laugh. He made us cry. He gave his immeasurable talent freely and generously to those who needed it most – from our troops stationed abroad to the marginalized on our own streets. The Obama family offers our condolences to Robin’s family, his friends, and everyone who found their voice and their verse thanks to Robin Williams.”
I would add to this that Robin Williams will be an instrumental part of removing much of the stigma associated with mental health issues–opening the way for more to achieve greater mental and emotional health.
People will ridicule and stigmatize strangers but there are so many who love Robin Williams whose attitude about seeking help will change because they will understand that if society had been different, if we had deeper conversations with one another, if we understood more, Robin Williams might have received the right help at the right time.
This shift in the stigma associated with mental/emotional health may become Robin Williams’s greatest legacy. Let’s make it so.
He can’t do it alone but with the help of those who love him there has never been a better time.
We live in a world where people in emotional pain suffer in silence. Their pain affects everyone. Mental health affects physical health, behavior, relationships, and cognitive abilities.
The origin of the stigma came from fear about the cause of mental illness and the inability of healers to cure it. Today we know more and can do more. It is time for everyone to understand the mind-body connection and how to attain and sustain better emotional and mental health. We have the tools to accomplish this—now it is time to educate, to help everyone understand how much difference it makes and how simple it can be to feel better.
Think about what you would have wanted for Robin Williams if you had known the pain he was in. Make a decision that you’ll be supportive of eliminating any negative bias you may have toward mental and emotional health issues.
Make a decision to give a smile to those who have none and a hug to those who need one. Compliment more, criticize less. Be open to deeper conversations. Learn more about how to decrease stress and increase happiness–they are opposite ends of the same stick.
This great man, with a great legacy, has the potential to become even greater.
A recent Gallup survey showed that students who had high student debt are not doing as well as their peers with lower debt based on findings from the Gallup-Healthways Well-being Index. The Gallup-Healthways Well-being Index is designed to measure well-being in five areas(1), including:
Purpose: liking what you do each day and being motivated to achieve your goals
Social: having supportive relationships and love in your life
Financial: managing your economic life to reduce stress and increase security
Community: liking where you live, feeling safe, and having pride in your community
Physical: having good health and enough energy to get things done daily
At Happiness 1st Institute, we have studied what makes humans thrive for over two decades. What we know is that the debt is not what lowers the ability of individuals who have high student (or other) debt to thrive.
It is the way the individual thinks about their situation and prospects
that determines how well they do and how happy they can be.
While they may not be able to change their debt substantially in the next three months, they can change how they think about it. The reason we exist is that we love to help and this survey by Gallup, released today, has our wheels spinning. We want to put hope out there right now because news like this can lower thriving even more–because when a trusted organization like Gallup tells people that high debt makes them less likely to thrive they tend to believe it. Believing you won’t thrive makes it far more likely that you won’t thrive. As Henry Ford said so long ago, “Whether you believe you can or you believe you can’t, either way you’re right.” He understood the power of belief.
Change your dynamic – help is here
Our first thoughts are to help with our programs but our usual programs are not inexpensive and we don’t want to add to the debt burden. Off the cuff, we’re thinking we could provide a 40-hour course over 12 weeks for $39.99 per customer. That should cover our costs while remaining affordable. By providing the course online we will avoid travel costs for the participants and the cost of renting a large hotel room and be able to provide flexibility in when the student watches by recording the live classes.
The earliest we can begin class, based on our current schedule, is October 15th.
Stress, specifically unmanaged stress, is at the root of almost all physical, emotional, mental, and social problems. All of our programs address the root cause of stress, which is mindset. We understand and explain in easy to understand language things about the way our brains work that everyone should know but that are not taught in school. Those things are critical because they have a direct impact on whether or not an individual thrives in every area of life: their health, relationships, success, and more.
Essentially, we teach individuals how to reprogram their neural pathways so that their thought processes help them thrive instead of hindering their ability to thrive. We teach mental strength and resilience, enabling anyone to develop the type of mind all the great minds of the past used to create their achievements. Because this involves learning new habits–habits of thought–it takes time to make them automatic. Although we can and do help individuals make positive changes in their lives with 1-hour presentations, we believe that the best approach, whenever possible, is a 40-hour program over a minimum of a 12-week period. That is what we’re going to do with this course.
We’ll come up with an exact schedule and post it soon but for now know we’ll avoid scheduling class on major holidays so with a start date of October 15th, the program will run until about the end of January 2015. Forty hours of class time for $39.99 is less than $1.00 an hour.
We change lives for the better. We do it because we love it. We do it because it matters. We do it because we’ve developed leading edge techniques that work. Most stress reduction programs are dose dependent and do not address the root cause. The next best solution to what we have developed is individual one-on-one therapy where one hour can cost five times what we are offering our 40-hour program for.
You deserve to have the best possible life.
We want to help you do that. Now. You used student loans so you could have a better life. Our program helps you achieve that goal better and faster.
Send us a note if you want to register. We will let you know as soon as we have the registration process set-up.
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There is nothing as powerful as a made up mind. Do not give yourself another excuse to put off making up your mind. You know in your heart of hearts that once you do that you have got to act. You owe it to the world, your family, and most importantly, to yourself to live a life of no regrets. Stop worrying about what other people will think, say, or do. You only have one life to live…LIVE IT now! You deserve! – Les Brown
“A mind that is programmed to highlight flaws typically has a lot less fun and a more difficult time. The programming makes relationships of all types more difficult, it makes the world a less beautiful place, it makes problems bigger than they are and hides beneficial things. Science says a lot of our programming is done by age 6. It is not hard to
re-program ones own mind and make your own decisions about what to focus upon.” ~ Jeanine Joy
Decisions have power. If you have not made deliberate decisions your life is running based on default settings established by circumstances you’ve lived.
If your life is awesome, do nothing but appreciate your awesome life.
If your life is less than awesome, you may wish to consider some reprogramming.
My fiction will provide techniques that will help. My novels demonstrate scientifically proven techniques that help us thrive without the boredom of a textbook. The story is the creation that keeps it interesting but it also helps us see how the processes work in real situations.
The nonfiction books provide a more direct route to the information that will help you thrive more in any area of your life you wish to improve.
If classes are more helpful to you, Happiness 1st Institute may have some that will help you achieve your dreams. http://www.Happiness1st.com
In the future, humans will view modern medicine as little better than we view the healing practices of the middle ages. Science evincing that we currently treat symptoms, not the root causes of illnesses, exists. True Prevention: Remember Galileo takes up the challenge of building a bridge to the future where prevention is done at the root cause. In layman’s terms, practical solutions are provided to improve human thriving now. We remind readers to remember Galileo because the tendency to resist information that conflicts with what we believe we know persists. History reveals humanity repeatedly delays the benefits of many significant advances due to this resistance to new ideas. The life enhancing benefits revealed in this book are too great to ignore.
Step-by-step, Ms. Joy guides us through information supporting a new approach to health and wellness with far reaching implications. Pulling information from a vast array of scientific fields including biology, chemistry, neuroscience, quantum physics, sociology, cultural anthropology to positive psychology, criminology, and more, the pieces of the puzzle snap into place revealing the potential for a far better world than most of us can imagine.
In science, the Parsimony Principle requires us to choose the simplest scientific explanation that fits the evidence. When an incorrect or incomplete theory has become accepted as truth, its complexity increases over time as exceptions and modifications are made to make new information fit the existing theory. Current explanations for illness and disease are rife with exceptions because they address symptoms instead of the root cause. The solutions put forth herein are the opposite, beautiful in their simplicity and ability to explain the myriad exceptions that plague other perspectives.
True Prevention is filled with clarifying concepts and practical steps that will help corporate wellness programs, physicians, and individuals achieve a clear understanding of where to focus their energy for optimum health.
It is interesting to note the arguments back and forth about why some students do not thrive.
Some stating it is the teachers fault if a student does not thrive.
Some stating it is the lack of an interested adult in the home.
Let’s get to the root of it. Either could make a huge beneficial difference.
The true reason many students do not thrive is that they have developed beliefs that they cannot, or that their actions do not matter “Learned Helplessness”, or they have been told often enough that they are ‘dumb’ or ‘stupid’ or other lies. They have been labeled and are living up to the expectations put upon them. They have been judged as lacking and are living up to those expectations.
Going backwards and trying to uncover where it originated is a waste of time and effort.
Where time and effort belongs is in helping students understand that their actions do matter – that their life is not determined by their current circumstances.
That others opinions do not have to be their own opinion. Henry Ford said “Whether you think you can or you think you can’t, either way you are right”. Unfortunately we have ill informed parents and others who will label children and then the child begins to believe the label and perform to that standard.
Society also does not understand that the happier you are the more intelligent you are. I know many are going to scoff at this statement but read further. Have you, or someone you know, ever been so stressed that you literally could not think? Perhaps you put your head in your hands and said “Give me a moment, I can’t think”? There is an example of an individual at a low emotional place not being as intelligent. Intelligence, creativity, and resilience exist along a continuum and increase in step with increases in happiness, positive emotions, optimism and positive expectation. There is a great deal of science behind this statement. Barbara L. Fredrickson, Ph.D.’s (UNC – Chapel Hill) book, Positivity, is probably the easiest read on the topic.
Much of the world views happiness as a fluffy topic and as something that will come after a goal is achieved or as a transitory thing that feels good for a day.
The happiness I am describing is defined as that deep sense of inner stability, peace, well-being, and vitality that is consistent and sustainable. It is not dependent upon circumstances but upon beliefs, expectations, emotions, and focus. Mindset is powerful.
Not only does happiness contribute beneficially to the ability to learn but to health, relationships, and success. There are even studies showing that it has a positive impact on reducing crime, alcohol and drug abuse and even teen pregnancy.
Right now the research on this topic is scattered across many silo’d fields including positive psychology, neuroscience, behavioral theory, sociology, quantum physics, resilience, emotional intelligence and more.
I have a passion for the topic and have been researching it for years. I have never cared which field had relevant research which has resulted in a connection of the dots in a way that brings the knowledge being gained in many fields together.
Using techniques to empower students, to help them achieve a positive expectation and focus and ensuring they have skills to bring themselves back to that point if they get a bit off path would make such a tremendous positive impact on their lives and future potential.
The absence of negative emotions ≠ presence of positive emotions.
“The absence of the negative is not the same thing as the presence of positive emotions.
“The absence of the negative is not the same thing as the presence of the positive. We found that factors such as optimism, life satisfaction, and happiness are associated with reduced risk of cardiovascular disease regardless of such factors as a person’s age, socioeconomic status, smoking status, or body weight,” said lead author Julia Boehm, research fellow in the Department of Society, Human Development, and Health at Harvard School of Public Health.
Chronic positive emotions, optimism, and happiness provide benefits that increase vitality and longevity but also benefits that improve relationships and even success.
Over the years I have found that many individuals accept their current emotional state and have no idea how to change it.
They attempt to be stoic and insist they are “OK” but being OK does not afford the health benefits that happiness does. Nor is it healthy for relationships and it does not contribute to the level of success you experience. We are not in a contest to see who can suffer or endure the longest. In the long run there are not prizes for ignoring your emotional state and toughing it out.
Many see weakness in asking for help yet the path to happiness is often not clear and quick fixes seldom work.
It is possible for anyone to enjoy more positive emotions, optimism and happiness if they know the skills and knowledge that helps them. Often skills are given without the knowledge so people give up because of the lack of knowledge. Sometimes the knowledge is given without the requisite skills.
When you have the whole puzzle the path to happiness is easy to navigate and there is truly no end to how happy an individual can become.
Once you are on the right path it becomes easier and easier as if circumstances are bending over backwards to help you. Those days when things are easy and things seem to fall into place easier than they used to is one of the symptoms you will experience continually as you move toward greater happiness. There are scientifically proven reasons for this and if you take the class you will understand those reasons.
The best health benefits are derived from the higher emotional levels which you would experience as things like love, appreciation, joy, enthusiasm, eagerness, interest, passion, awe, inspiration and so forth. If you are in a low emotional place you won’t get there overnight but you can get there and there are health benefits every step along the path. There are also benefits to your relationships and other activities as well.
Contented is not at the highest levels. It can make a good emotional resting place for a while but many people stop there, because feeling content is not a bad feeling, they stop moving toward the better feeling emotions. The trip is so worth while.
Many people have been taught to put others needs before their own and use that as their excuse to ignore their own emotional needs. Yes, you do need to be happy. Why do you think bodies function better when the person living in it is happy? That evidence is clear and compelling.
So, let’s look at it from the perspective of helping others. The following is based upon scientifically proven benefits of increased positivity.
“When you are happy you are at your best. You are in the best health. You are in the best mood. You are able to think with greater clarity. You are able to see solutions to problems far more readily. You need less from others (pumping up, assistance of all types, etc.). You contribute more by being happy so being happy is a priority for you. When you are happy you contribute to others by inspiring them to happiness. You contribute to others because when you feel great you want to help others feel just as wonderful. Sometimes, when someone feels rotten it makes them feel better to see someone else feel rotten too or see someone who is even worse off then they are. When you are happy it lifts you even higher to help others up and you gain no happiness or relief from their not being in a good place. Minding your happiness is minding your health because when you are happy you will be inclined to make good decisions about your diet and exercise and other habits. Happiness reduces the stress on your body and enables it to more easily maintain or regain its health. Your happiness is good for you and good for the world. Happiness is the path to peace.”
Studies have shown that increased happiness actually reduces racism and increases corporate citizenship.
Aren’t the benefits of happiness the things you want to see in the world? Healthier people being nicer to one another, family and strangers alike? Children confident in themselves – not fake pumped up self esteem – but real, they understand to the core of their being that they can be successful, that they can find solutions to problems, that they can decide to pursue their dreams? Better relationships among people and even peace. In our class you will understand the relationship between peace and happiness.
Interested in our classes? We are accepting enrollments for new classes now.
Think you have better things to do with your time than be happy or think about happiness or learn how to be happy?
Wondering why Harvard Business Review devoted a cover and many pages to the topic of happiness in January? Do you think they are losing it?
They have a clue.
If you don’t have one yet you are missing out.
You’re missing out on being your best. You’re missing out on being in the best health you can be in. You’re missing out on having getting and giving the best you can from your current relationships. Your missing out on a lot of success. You’re missing out on more healthy years at the end of your life and it is likely you are missing out on some years, too. You’re not making the best decisions you could make. You are not living up to your potential; not even close.
Scientists across many disciplines have been very busy conducting exacting research into happiness over the last two decades. For most of that time the results were tucked away in obscure and expensive scientific journals but the lid has blown off now.
Happiness, defined as a deep sense of inner stability, peace, well-being, and vitality that is consistent and sustainable, provides seemingly infinite benefits.
Just a few highlights are listed below.
Health Benefits
50% reduction in risk of cardiovascular disease
Protective against some cancers
Slows progress of disease
Improves immune system function
There is lots more ~ everything from colds & flu to diabetes, HBP and Alzheimers
Greater increase in longevity than from quitting smoking
Relationship Benefits
Relationships are more loving, deeper, less drama and turmoil, warmer, more supportive
Behavioral Benefits
More likely to make good decisions
Crimes, substance abuse and even teen pregnancy decline with increased happiness
Exercise, adequate sleep and good nutrition choices are more likely to be made
Intelligence and Creativity
Actually increase as happiness increases
Employer Benefits
Lower Absenteeism
Lower turnover
Increased productivity
Improved corporate citizenship
Lower health care costs
Now that you understand that happiness is not a fluffy, nice to have what are you going to do about it?
Let’s be clear. The absence of negative emotions is not happiness. The presence of somewhat chronic positive emotions is necessary to reap the benfits.
Are you there yet?
We know that just telling you to be positive is a waste of words. It takes a combination of knowledge and skills to get on the path and follow it.
Want to know the path?
Our classes are the best available to increase happiness, optimism, emotional intelligence, resilience, self mastery, well-being and improve relationships. A masterful combination of information that helps students have a clearer perspective about topics such as their own beliefs and the impact of current emotional state on behavior is utilized. The course includes more than 50 processes, many evidence based skills, to help students deliberately impact their emotional state and develop new habits of thought that are more beneficial to thriving.
We have continuously searched for new information across many disciplines including positive psychology, neuroscience, resilience, sociology, emotional intelligence, quantum physics, psychoneuroimmunology, and behavioral science over many years.
Are you ready to give up being right (about happiness being a fluffy topic) and reap the benefits of new knowledge? Give yourself credit for your ability to learn something new. Celebrate that you now know something you did not know before. Revel in the fact that you live now when the benefits of happiness are becoming known.
