Bridges Edition of 3/7/2006

Welcome to Bridges, a monthly newsletter published by Robin Fogel, Executive and Career Coach. My goal is that these newsletters include practical information that you can use in your work and in your life. If you enjoyed the newsletter please forward it to your
colleagues, friends and family.

If you would like to take advantage of an executive coach, please
email me at robin@coachrobinfogel.com for a complimentary coaching
session or visit my website - www.coachrobinfogel.com

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Happy March. Spring is coming soon. Don't you love the longer hours of daylight? Those of us that crave sunlight are thrilled.

TRENDS FROM THE WORKPLACE
Two recent articles this past month about what's happening in today's workplace captured my attention. The first was an article in the March 2006 issue of Harvard Business Review. "Managing Middlescence" looks at what the authors describe as a hidden epidemic of unhappy and burned out mid-career employees and managers, folks who should be at the peak of their productivity, but are seriously frustrated. They identify seven sources of frustration for this huge pool of workers: career bottleneck, work/life tension, lengthening horizons til retirement, skills obsolescence, disillusionment with their employer, burnout and career disappointment. While some of these factors have long existed, it's the sheer numbers of employees and the lack of understanding of the problem by the employers that the authors say is cause for concern.

So what does all this mean for employees and employers? Much has been written about businesses and corporate America's focus on developing the 20-35 year old worker and retaining their top performers, but the middle age workforce has garnered much less attention. The authors have a number of suggestions for "rejuvenating your organization's mid-career workers." They include some of the same efforts companies put forth for their younger and high potential employees - fresh assignments, career changes, mentoring, training, sabbaticals and expanding leadership development.

This past month the airwaves and the internet carried another story about the modern work world -the results of a study conducted by Day-Timers Inc., a company that makes organizational products. The study found that Americans are working more and accomplishing less - are you surprised? Most workers complained about receiving so many emails, computer messages, and voice mails that they felt "bombarded". They said they are working longer, that technology has sped everything up and yet they feel like they are getting less done. Responders to the study complained that they never get to concentrate on one task and they felt that no matter what they accomplished it was never enough.

Whatever your work environment, corporate or business owner, the number of stimuli we respond to every day has been growing geometrically. Couple that with workers absorbing more and more complex tasks, it's no wonder there is growing frustration, a sense of disconnect and the feeling there is not enough time. So, on a personal level, what can you do? If you are feeling overwhelmed a good place to start is to develop a clear understanding of where your time goes. Before instituting change, you need some hard data. I sometimes recommend that clients keep a time log for a week to help them understand where the day has gone. Record time spend on email, in meetings, work travel, chatting with co-worker, everything. Be honest.

At the end of the week you will have information to help you analyze where you spent your time. Were you productive? Were you working on an important priority or the endless to-do list of small tasks? How much time was spent surfing the net or reading and responding to unsolicited emails? How much time could be saved by eliminating a task? The ability to control our work environments may be becoming increasingly more difficult. So this month find one small way you can recapture a little time and regain some control.

GOOD READ
A long time best seller, "The Tipping Point" by Malcolm Gladwell is a fascinating book that looks at how ideas, trends, even behavior "tip" and spread like wildfire. I especially enjoyed reading about the ultimate connector, Paul Revere. Gladwell describes Revere as both a people specialist and an information specialist. He describes the connections that Revere made, as he first gathered information, that the British were coming, and then shared it with others. What I didn't know was that a fellow revolutionary set out in a different direction with the same information but his ride didn't set the countryside afire. To use Gladwell's words, "Revere's news tipped and Dawes's didn't". Who would have guessed that Paul Revere turns out to be a great example of an effective networker?
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EXECUTIVE COACHING
Your business or company's most valued resource is its employees. Executive coaching is designed to support and develop high potential employees. Please call or email me to learn how this service may have application for your business.

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I appreciate your comments and feedback on this newsletter, please keep them coming. If there is a topic you would like to hear more about let me know.

A FINAL THOUGHT
"You will never find time for anything. If you want time you must make it." - Charles Buxton

COPYRIGHT: 2006, Robin Fogel & Assoc., LLC. All Rights Reserved. May be distributed and reprinted in its entirety with copyright, subscription instructions, and contact information intact. However, you may not copy it to a website.