Keep on Scribbling!

I have long advocated doodling as an aid to creativity but some recent research suggests that it also improves your memory!

Although there is research to suggest that multitasking is not the best way to do a thorough job, it seems that doodling and listening is an exception. Research carried out by the University of Plymouth tells another story.

40 adult volunteers were asked to listen to a very dull fake telephone message about a party. Half the participants were told to doodle (filling in some random printed shapes) while listening to the message, and to write down the names of those attending and to ignore all the other information. The other half were told to do exactly the same, except they weren’t given the doodling option.

Later all the participants were asked what they remembered from the message on a surprise memory test. The results, published in Applied Cognitive Psychology, suggest that the doodlers actually were able to remember more and on average they could recall 29 percent more information, and they also wrote down more partygoers’ names accurately.

So, next time you find yourself having to remember something tedious break out those coloured pencils and doodle away!

Have an Empathy Day!

How About a Day Honing your Empathy Skills?

Empathy is easily confused with sympathy and their meanings are very similar. Indeed, some dictionaries will even give you almost identical meanings.

This is my understanding of the differences. When we are being sympathetic we are expressing our feelings of sorrow and pity for someone else’s misfortune. We are sorry for them.

When we are being empathetic we are trying to put ourselves in their shoes and understand the position they hold, or find themselves in. We don’t necessarily sympathise or agree with their view, but we will try to understand it.

An Example

For example, when I worked with young offenders it was helpful for me to try and empathise without condoning. I tried for a while to put myself in their shoes and understand why they behaved as they did. But I didn’t sympathise! Being empathetic did not mean that I was agreeing with what they did.

Difficult Work Colleague?

If you have a colleague that sometimes irks you or that you find difficult to deal with, try being empathetic for a day. Try to develop your skills and ‘read’ them emotionally by creatively imagining yourself in their shoes. Try to suspend your usual judgements about them and really listen to what they are saying.

Ask them questions about their position and try to get to the root of their concerns.  Keep your own feelings on hold for a day while you listen to what they have to say. This will help you lead discussions in a more positive manner and hopefully develop a better relationship for you both. It can also be really useful when you are ’stuck’ in a situation and need to move things forward.

How do you deal with fellow professionals when they are really getting on your wick? I’d love to hear!

Don’t Get Angry – Get Energised!

Anger Equals Energy

Anger is one of our strongest emotions; as women we are often taught to suppress it but channelled anger can be a great force for good. For example, where would we be in the world if a group of women hadn’t got angry about not having the right to vote? Talking about it and letting off steam is OK some of the time, (and can be very therapeutic), but unless we actually do something nothing changes.

What Makes YOU Angry?

Just think for a moment about the last time that you got angry. What provoked it? Sometimes our anger is intensified because of our feelings of helplessness about what is happening; we feel we have no control. Try writing a list of all the things that make you angry. How many of them might you use as a source of energy, to get you motivated to do something that helps you, rather than drains you?

Get Control

One technique for managing your anger is to take back some control and direct the energy it gives you toward a positive goal. For example, if you are incensed by global warming join an organisation that is actively working towards doing something about it.

Or, maybe there are issues in your workplace that regularly have you metaphorically tearing your hair out. Have you considered what you can actually do about it? Perhaps there is a specific training need, like an assertiveness course, which will help. Or maybe you need to get some likeminded people together and assertively ask for a meeting to discuss solutions to the problem.

Whatever makes you angry, step one is recognising it, and then you can make a choice about how to deal with it!

How do you make anger work for you? When was the last time you got really angry? What did you do with that feeling? I’d love to hear your thoughts!

The Mayonnaise Jar – and the Coffee!

 Is Your Jar Full?

When things in your life seem almost too much to handle, when 24 hours in a day are not enough, remember the mayonnaise jar – and the coffee.
 
A Professor stood before his philosophy class with some items in front of him.  When the class began, wordlessly, he picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it with golf balls.  He then asked the students if the jar was full.  They agreed that it was.

So the Professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar. He shook the jar lightly.  The pebbles rolled into the open areas between the golf balls.  He then asked the students again if the jar was full.  They agreed it was.

The Professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar.  Of course, the sand filled up everything else.  He asked once more if the jar was full.  The students responded with a unanimous “Yes.”

The Professor then produced two cups of coffee from under the table and poured the entire contents into the jar, effectively filling the empty space between the sand.  The students laughed.

“Now,” said the Professor, as the laughter subsided, “I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life.

The golf balls are the important things – your family, your children, your health, your friends, your favourite passions – things that if everything else was lost and only they remained, your life would still be full.

The pebbles are the other things that matter like your job, your house,your car. 

The sand is everything else – the small stuff.”

“If you put the sand into the jar first”, he continued, “there is no room for the pebbles or the golf balls.  The same goes for life. If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff, you will never have room for the things that are important to you.  Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness.  Play with your children.  Take time to look after your health. Take care of your partner.  There will always be time to clean the house, and fix the drains.  Take care of the golf balls first, the things that really matter.  Set your priorities.The rest is just sand.”

When he had finished, there was a profound silence.  Then one of the students raised her hand and with a puzzled expression, inquired what the coffee represented.

The Professor smiled. “I’m glad you asked.  It just goes to show you that no matter how full your life may seem, there’s always room for a cup of coffee with friends.”

I don’t know where this little story originated but it always raises a smile. If you know the author do please let me know.

Does Lack of Confidence Make You Fat?

Women and Exercise

Recent research from the Public Health Agency of Canada asked 5,176 people how confident they were that they could exercise for half a day three or four times a week, how often they actually did work out, and how they felt about physical activity.

What they found was that a person’s belief in their own sporting abilities was highly significant in how often they worked out. And that women’s lack of belief in their physical prowess was holding them back!

Men, the researchers found, were 10% more likely to think they were physically strong enough to exercise than women were.

Also men were 40% more likely than women to go out and do some form of physical activity.

Sai Yi Pan, from the Public Health Agency of Canada, who led the study, said: “Our findings highlight the need for health promotion programs to enhance people’s confidence and motivation, as well as providing education on the health benefits of physical activity”.

Once again, if you say you can ,you can. If you say you can’t, you can’t. Both are equally true!

The research, which began in 2002 ,has just been published in the journal BMC Public Health; this link will take you to the BMC web site.

Welcome!

Welcome to my Changing People Blog!

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Jane

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