stress | local marketing center|Paul and Sarah Edwards |Working From Home |

Feeling more relaxed, eat a healthier diet, have more time off, exercise more, and have a better sex life are the top five positive effects of working from home were, according to a survey of 4,100 people.

In contrast, nearly half of American workers worry about their jobs and feel pressure. Almost one in three people say they are “always” or “often” under stress at work and 35 percent are thinking about quitting. Despite the generally improving economy, workers today worry more about money and feel more insecure than ever before—and with good reason: a recent poll conducted by The New York Times revealed that 56 percent of respondents had been laid off once in the last fifteen years, 25 percent had been laid off twice, and a startling 14 percent had been laid off three or more times.

Being laid off, fired or quitting a job results in an increased risk of having a heart attack after age 50, according to a study by Duke University of 13,451 men and women, ages 51 to 75 from 1992 to 2010. The risk is equivalent to smoking, hypertension and diabetes. The risk increases the more times a person loses a job.

Outside of job insecurity, what is the cause of this stress? One recent study found that people cite heavy traffic as the number-one cause of stress in their daily lives. Number two is frustration from interruptions at the office. Another survey indicated that the most frequent work-related stress for women is balancing work and family demands. Working from home reduces or eliminates all these major causes of stress.

Research also indicates that the more control we feel we have over our lives, the less stress we experience. Perhaps that’s the reason the one thing that people most want from a manager is autonomy. Being your own boss is the ultimate in terms of autonomy. Despite working harder and longer hours, most people report their stress level goes down once they are in charge.

Recent medical studies confirm these reports. Despite the hard work and increased productivity involved, working at home produces less stress than working at similar tasks in the office. For example, a woman told us that having the flexibility to adjust her hours and her work pace is relaxing. “It’s almost like magic. I can tailor my work to what I want to do. I can stop and take a TV break and still get more done. I feel great at the end of the day.”

Common office-related stress factors, like fluorescent lights, ringing telephones, clattering equipment, buzzing conversation, and cafeteria junk food are also avoided. A financial consultant explained how the difference has affected him: “When I was commuting to and from work, I had to have a glass of wine when I got home to unwind.” Now that he works from home he rarely has a drink outside social occasions.

Often small things make big differences in reducing stress. Open-collar workers can work in postures that are most comfortable to them. Negative attitudes of co-workers, the gossip, and the office politics that interfere with getting work done, not to mention the frequent meetings that consume a reported 45 percent of managerial and professional time, no longer need to be contended with.

A recent survey of home-business owners and telecommuters found, among other things, that telecommuters do not smoke, drink, or use drugs as much as people who do not work at home. Telecommuters also receive promotions at a greater rate than non-telecommuters.

It’s well established that lower stress means better health. Stress lowers the white blood cell count and the immune system’s resistance to disease. Heart disease and high blood pressure, which affect one in four Americans, are acknowledged to be stress-related diseases. Not only do people working from home experience fewer of the major causes of stress; they also have more time to exercise and more control over what they eat. Better health is one of the greatest benefits of working from home.

If you are seeking a change in your life and want some advice, for an initial free consultation to explore a sustainable livelihood that bests suits your personality and your community, contact us.
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Comments on the substance of the blogs are welcome. If you have other questions, please contact me directly for a consulting appointment.

It’s easy to confuse who we are with what we do. This confusion accounts for much of the stress we experience when faced with making big changes in our lives. But studies show that there is an intrinsic genetic element to who we are that can guide us toward the most rewarding paths for our lives. Some of us just seem to know where to go. What is this internal navigation system that guides these individuals from one direction to the next?

If we can connect with this inner compass, we need never feel lost.

Perhaps we can best understand our level of satisfaction or dissatisfaction with our circumstances in terms of how well our abilities, interests and aptitudes coincide with our opportunities to express them. The joy that comes from pursuing your innate desires, loves and passions can lead you precisely where you most want to.

The more our interests, abilities and creativity are recognized and encouraged, the better we feel and the clearer we become about who we are and what we want. Who is the you that never changes? Where is your joy? Where is your laughter? That is your inner compass. Trust it to steer you in the right direction.

The key to finding your way is to know who you are, what gives you joy and what you will and won’t do. If we listen, our inner compass will tell us when we’re on track and when we’re not, when to stick it out and when to head off in a new direction. In the crush of life’s changing demands, it’s easy to lose touch with our inner navigational system.

So how do you discover your inner compass? One way is to take the time to consider one of your favorite work experiences. What did you like about it? Now consider one of your favorite experiences unrelated to work. What did you like about it? Look for words patterns, feelings, and images that repeatedly suggest common themes. Consider your favorite childhood experiences too. Usually there is a thread of similarity that runs along all the favorite memories- work-related, personal and from childhood. That thread is known as the inner compass. These core themes are at the heart of who you are and are an expression of your inner compass. They are your personal essence in action.

Paying attention to the feelings you have identified will guide your life in a satisfying new direction. If these feeling are consistently absent from what you’re doing or considering, then you’re heading away from the direction your inner compass would guide you. HhWhenever you catch yourself saying or thinking any of the following statements you are not listening to your inner compass. You are instead sabotaging your efforts to fulfill your desires.

I’m bored.
I shouldn’t feel this way.
There’s nothing I’m really passionate about.
But this is what I have to do.
What’s the use? There’s nothing I can do about it.
Yes, but what if…?

If you know you need to change and you’re ready to make a change, but you’re not making any progress toward it, it’s a sure sign that you aren’t tuned in. Without an inner navigation system to guide us, we either reach a standstill or we move on aimlessly without sense of where we’re headed or why. If you haven’t discovered your inner compass, you have to make the effort to find it.

If you think we can help, we offer counseling.

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Comments and questions on the substance of this blogs are welcome. If you have other questions about this website, please contact me directly for a consulting appointment.