Oops, where are my manners?

Around the holiday season the stress starts to build. Ever feel overworked due to the end of the year crunch and dealing with the holidays both personally and professionally? Does your office seem to lose their manners? Does the team seem to fall apart during this time of the year? You are not alone. Many people start feeling stressed and depressed during this season. How can you cope then? According to the Mayo there are some common triggers include relationships, finances, and physical demands. They offer 10 tips for handling the triggers:
1. Acknowledge your feelings
2. Reach out to others
3. Be realistic
4. Set aside differences
5. Stick to a budget
6. Plan ahead
7. Learn to say no
8. Don’t abandon healthy habits
9. Take a breather
10. Seek professional help if you need it

The Mayo’s advice can also apply to the medical practice. Have the staff sit down and acknowledge the problems, set aside the differences to work out realistic, workable solutions. Review the practice fiances by conducting periodic audits throughout the year. Plan for the future and how the team can become stronger. Sometimes it is necessary to minimize the work and just say no to some projects. Consider hosting a company’s wide wellness program to encourage a health lifestyle. This time of year, many of the staff will develop a New Year’s resolution to become healthy-help, so why not help them? If they become healthier than the cots can decrease.

Why not take a breather? Have a fun, but low-key holiday party with the staff. You probably already have a party, but why not have a fun day? Plan a pot-luck or potato/salad/taco bar, the list of possibilities is endless. Throughout the day have fun games or activities that staff can do in-between the work. Have word games that they can play or trivia games on manners, healthcare or even the season. Then close a little early and announce the winners. By eating and having fun together it makes the team stronger and helps to reduce the stress. If these ideas do not work and there is still an issue with manners, consider bringing in a consultant to help with the team. There are many ways to approach the problem, but the key is to reduce the stress and start enjoying the team. By reducing the stress and making it an enjoyable place to work, you can often instantly turn around the mood and improve the manners. Have a great holiday season ad don’t forget your manners.


Source: http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/stress/MH00030