Sasha Grutzeck

About Sasha Grutzeck

Sasha Grutzeck is a Senior Instructional Designer at Johns Hopkins University. She’s a member of the Learning Solutions department, where she writes and designs e-courses (and other training materials) for Johns Hopkins University faculty and staff. She enjoys learning new things, collaborating with her coworkers, watching movies, taking ridiculously long walks, and eating the leftover baked goods that always seem to miraculously appear in the Learning Solutions kitchen.

Posts by Sasha Grutzeck:

What to Do When You Really Need a Vacation but You Don’t Have the Time to Take One

By in Living Well Tags: , , ,

Woman_Thinking

Work can be tough sometimes. Heavy workloads, tight deadlines, and interpersonal conflict can make you feel stressed out, exhausted, and in serious need of a vacation. But what if a vacation just isn’t possible? What should you do when you need to get away but you can’t? Author Kat Boogaard offers three suggestions:

  • Change the look of your office – If you’re feeling stressed and unhappy whenever you’re sitting in your office, just the sight of your regular office décor might be enough to trigger negative emotions. So Boogaard suggests that you change things up by adding a new plant or picture, shifting your desk, changing your desktop wallpaper, or even working outside, if possible. She claims that the new look will give you a more positive perspective on things.
  • Adopt a new routine – Do you have a daily routine? If so, you might want to consider switching it up. According to Boogaard, changing your routine can help you to feel more focused and creative. She claims that doing something new (or doing the same things in a different order) can appeal to your desire for novelty and help you to be more flexible in your thinking. So instead of exercising in the evening, try exercising in the morning instead. Or instead of eating your lunch at your desk, try eating it in the office kitchen. Even a small change could have a positive effect.
  • Take a break – When you’re at work, take occasional breaks. Go get a snack, chat with a coworker, or take a short walk. Research has shown that these breaks will help you to be more effective and productive. In addition, in the evenings and on weekends, try your best to unplug. If possible, don’t work after hours or check your work email. Do something enjoyable and relaxing, and separate yourself from your job.

So there you have it. If you feel like you need a vacation but you just can’t get away, give one or more of these techniques a try. And please feel free to share your results in the Comments section below!

 

Boogaard, K. (n.d.). 3 ways to recharge when you can’t just “take a vacation.” The Muse. Retrieved from https://www.themuse.com/advice/3-ways-to-recharge-when-you-cant-just-take-a-vacation

What Your Office Says About Your Personality

By in Learning Tags: ,

Office_Space

Take a minute to look around your office. Is it neat? Messy? Colorful? Bland? Do you have inspirational posters on your wall? A framed picture of your cat, maybe? Well according to author Lily Bernheimer, your office speaks volumes about who you are. She claims that the way people decorate and maintain their offices says a lot about their personalities.

Bernheimer believes that there are five types of offices (and five types of people who inhabit them):

Cluttered

  • What it looks like: An office filled with books, stacks of papers, pictures, knickknacks, coffee mugs, and colorful Post-it notes.
  • Who inhabits it: An extrovert who loves chatting with coworkers and lots of stimulation. These people tend to be cheerful, busy, and assertive.

Minimalist

  • What it looks like: Very sparse and neat without a lot of decoration.
  • Who inhabits it: A hard-working, disciplined, reliable individual. These people may not be as creative as their cluttered coworkers, but they are great at getting work done and doing it right.

Ever-Expanding

  • What it looks like: It keeps getting bigger and bigger. These individuals use their papers and personal items to keep claiming more space.
  • Who inhabits it: Dominant people who like to mark their territory. They tend to be assertive, ambitious, and not overly concerned about the needs of their coworkers.

Private

  • What it looks like: It’s tucked into a corner or surrounded by some sort of barrier.
  • Who inhabits it: An introvert who feels distracted and overwhelmed by too much noise or stimulation. These people tend to be creative and productive, but they need their own space in order to be effective.

Personalized

  • What it looks like: An orderly office that’s filled with personal photos, plants, artwork, and stylish accents.
  • Who inhabits it: An open, artistic, imaginative person. They like interacting with others, learning new things, and having the opportunity to be creative.

So what do you think? Does this seem accurate? Or is it completely off the mark? Feel free to share your thoughts in the Comments section below!

 

Boult, A. (2016, February 25). The state of your office desk can reveal a lot about your personality. The Telegraph. Retrieved from http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/howaboutthat/12173768/The-state-of-your-office-desk-can-reveal-lot-about-your-personality.html

Cope With Work Anxiety by Asking Yourself One Simple Question

By in Living Well Tags: ,

Anxious_Guy

We all occasionally feel stress at work. Sometimes stress can be helpful – it can motivate you to get things done. But sometimes stress really serves no purpose. If you’re in a situation that you have no control over and don’t have the power to change, worrying about it is only going to make you feel exhausted and unhappy.

So what should you do if you find yourself stressing about a situation that you can’t control? Author Haley Goldberg suggests that you ask yourself this simple question – “Is this useful?” This question serves as a reminder that your anxiety is not benefiting you or the situation. And according to Goldberg, it can stop you from stressing and help you to redirect your energies elsewhere.

I’m pretty good at worrying about things. It’s a special skill of mine. But this technique seems simple and wouldn’t require a lot of effort on my part. So I might as well give it a try and see how it goes!

If you feel like trying it out too, please share your results in the Comments section below!

 

Goldberg, H. (n.d.). Here’s how I shut down my negative thoughts with just 3 words. The Muse. Retrieved from https://www.themuse.com/advice/heres-how-i-shut-down-my-negative-thoughts-with-just-3-words

Five Things That Managers Shouldn’t Say

By in Communication, Leadership Tags: , , ,

Bad_Manager

Managing other people can be a tough job. It’s not unusual to have to deal with difficult situations, and it can sometimes be hard to know what to say. So when you have to give negative feedback or deliver unhappy news, you might find yourself resorting to the use of old tried-and-true phrases like “It’s always darkest before the dawn.”

Now don’t get me wrong – some old sayings are helpful and even comforting. (I kind of like that “darkest before the dawn” one.) But others may be sending the wrong message. Instead of motivating your team or helping them to understand a difficult situation, you may unwittingly be making things worse.

Author Jeff Haden has compiled a list of phrases that managers should never say. Here are five to avoid:

  1. “This is probably not what you want to hear.” If you have bad news to deliver, just say it. Don’t start by telling your employees that it’s not what they want to hear. It doesn’t soften the blow. And it shifts the responsibility off of you and onto them. You’re telling them that it’s their problem – you won’t be tackling it together.
  2. “There is no ‘I’ in team.” The best teams are comprised of people with different backgrounds, ideas, and skill sets. So it’s not helpful or beneficial to suggest that your employees should abandon their unique viewpoints and fall into line with the rest of the group. Open communication and an appreciation for new ideas help to strengthen teams – not weaken them.
  3. “Work smarter, not harder.” This one is so mean. If you say this to your employees, you’re telling them that they’ve been going about their work in a stupid way. Insulting your employees won’t motivate them to try harder.
  4. “Failure is not an option.” This is a good one if you want to increase your employees’ level of stress and unhappiness. Failure is always possible, no matter how much you might work to avoid it. So telling your employees that it’s not an option is putting a huge burden on them. No pressure or anything.
  5. “It is what it is.” This phrase shuts people down. You’re basically saying that the situation is not going to change, so you don’t want to hear any feedback from your employees. If you say this, you’re preventing your employees from sharing their ideas and possibly making the situation better.

 

Haden, J. (2017, August 23). 19 things great bosses refuse to say (and terrible bosses say all the time). Inc. Retrieved from https://www.inc.com/jeff-haden/things-great-bosses-refuse-to-say-yet-terrible-bos.html?cid=hmmore

Here’s How Long It Takes Most People to Get Back to Work After Getting Distracted

By in Learning Tags: ,

Distractions

When you’re at work, it can sometimes be difficult to focus on one task for a long period of time. There are just so many distractions and interruptions! Your coworkers stop by to chat. You get an email that must be answered immediately. You need to run to a meeting. Or you just feel the sudden urge to reorganize the movies on your Netflix queue.

We all get distracted while we’re working. That’s not surprising. But what is surprising is how long it takes the average person to re-focus on work after being distracted.

A recent study conducted at the University of California, Irvine indicated that most people take 23 minutes and 15 seconds to recover from an interruption. That’s actually a pretty long time, and it can really add up over the course of a day.

There are a couple exceptions to this rule:

  • If the interruption has to do with the work that you’re doing (for instance, if a coworker stops by to ask a question about the project that you’re currently working on), it can actually be beneficial and help you to focus.
  • If the interruption only requires a very basic, automatic response (for instance, if someone asks you to sign a form), this generally won’t cause a significant break in your concentration.

But any sort of significant distraction (like chatting with a coworker about the most recent episode of your favorite TV show) can cause you to lose your train of thought. And you might need to take 23 minutes and 15 seconds to get back on track.

Now this doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t take breaks! Taking breaks during your workday is a healthy habit and will help you to be more productive in the long run. But if you’re really trying to get a project done or meet a tight deadline, do yourself a favor. Help yourself to focus by cutting out as many distractions as you can.

 

Wong, K. (2015, July 29). How long it takes to get back on track after a distraction. LifeHacker. Retrieved from https://lifehacker.com/how-long-it-takes-to-get-back-on-track-after-a-distract-1720708353

How to Interrupt a Coworker in a Nice Way

By in Communication Tags: ,

Talkative

We all know it’s not nice to interrupt when other people are speaking. But what if you have a coworker who likes to talk a lot? And what if that coworker dominates every meeting and prevents you from speaking or sharing your ideas? It can get really frustrating, really fast.

So occasionally, you do need to interrupt. But how can you do it without making other people think you’re a loud jerk? Author Kat Boogaard suggests that you use one of the following phrases:

  • “I have something to add” – Boogaard doesn’t think you should ask for permission to speak. (So saying something like “Is it OK for me to share a few ideas?” is a no-no.) Instead, she believes that you should confidently and clearly indicate that you have something important to say. Other people will hear the authority in your voice and give you their attention.
  • “Let’s stop for a minute” – Your talkative coworker may not be a bad person. He or she may simply be extremely chatty and enthusiastic about the topic under discussion. The person may be talking so much that he or she doesn’t even realize that others aren’t getting the chance to process the information or participate in the conversation. So saying “let’s stop for a minute” gives everyone the opportunity to pause and collect their thoughts. (In my opinion, though, this phrase seems a little harsh. I’d probably only use it if my level of frustration were extremely high.)
  • “I’m curious to know what [Other Coworker] thinks about this” – Pulling another person into the conversation will hopefully break your chatty coworker’s momentum and allow other people to speak. You’re probably not the only person who wants to share some ideas. So your comment is sure to be appreciated.

 

Boogaard, K. (n.d.). 3 phrases that’ll stop a conversation hog from talking (and talking and talking). The Muse. Retrieved from https://www.themuse.com/advice/3-phrases-thatll-stop-a-conversation-hog-from-talking-and-talking-and-talking?ref=recently-published-0

How to Avoid Being a Horrible Boss

By in Leadership Tags: , , ,

Horrible_Boss

There are a lot of unpopular managers out there. In a recent Monster.com survey, more than 50% of respondents rated their boss as a “one” or a “two” on a five-point scale. And 32% of respondents indicated that their boss is “horrible.” Now this doesn’t mean that these managers are all bad people. Sure, there might be a few truly terrible bosses out there, but most of them are probably just a little lost and misguided.

A lot of people aspire to be managers. It’s viewed as a promotion. But it’s not an easy job. New managers need to adopt new ways of working and interacting with people. It can be a very tough transition.

But everyone has the ability and capacity to lead. You just need to learn how to do it properly! Listed below are five basic steps that you should take:

  1. Make sure you’re all on the same page – Talk to your employees about what you see as your common purpose. Why are you all doing the work that you do? Make sure that you all share the same vision. If everyone is in agreement, it will make it so much easier to prioritize tasks, solve problems, and work as a cohesive team.
  2. Realize that you don’t know everything – It isn’t your job to know everything. And if you act like you know everything, you’re going to annoy everyone. Trust your employees to do their jobs and recognize that they’re experts in their areas. Don’t micromanage.
  3. Focus on the right goals – Before you start setting goals for your team and tracking everyone’s progress, make sure you choose the right goals. Don’t choose goals just because progress will be easy to track and will look good on a pie chart. Make sure that the goals are actually meaningful and not just a lot of busywork.
  4. Don’t beat yourself up if you make a mistake – You are going to make mistakes. That’s guaranteed. But don’t be too hard on yourself. Try to take it in stride and learn from your missteps. And accept the fact that your team members will make mistakes too. You’re not perfect and you can’t expect them to be either.
  5. Build trust – In order to be a good manager, you need to be someone your employees can trust. Your employees need to know that you support them, that you’ll defend them (when necessary), that you’ll tell them the truth, and that you’ll do what you say you’re going to do. Be consistent. Be compassionate. And help out whenever you can. Your team members will appreciate your efforts and work harder because of it.

 

Tynan, K. (2017). The truth about management. Talent Development, 71(6), 48-51.

 

When Using a PowerPoint Isn’t a Good Idea

By in Communication, Technology Tags: , ,

Bored_by_PowerPoint

PowerPoint is a useful tool. It’s easy to master. It’s a good way to give your presentations structure. And it’s an effective way to present your audience with informative visuals, like photographs, tables, and charts.

But be honest – how do you really feel when you arrive at a presentation and the speaker starts playing a PowerPoint? (Especially a PowerPoint that’s packed with bullets and paragraphs of text?) Are you excited and pleased? Or do you feel a sense of tired resignation and immediately start to tune out?

“PowerPoint fatigue” (a condition that often exists in people who have been subjected to too many PowerPoints) is just one reason why using a PowerPoint in your presentation may not be the best idea. If you get the sense that your audience is suffering from PowerPoint fatigue, you might want to give them a break and use a different tool or technique.

There are also other situations in which a PowerPoint presentation should probably NOT be used. Here are a few of them:

  1. You want to emphasize your leadership qualities – Do you remember that scene in the movie “Independence Day” when President Bill Pullman delivers an inspirational speech to the weary populace? That moment would have been a lot weaker if he had been clicking through a PowerPoint. If you use a PowerPoint, your audience is going to view you as someone who is delivering information rather than as an inspirational leader. Plus, if a PowerPoint is being shown, audiences will spend much of their time looking at it rather than focusing on you. So if you want to be seen as a powerful leader like Bill Pullman, skip the PowerPoint and maybe just use a couple notecards.
  2. You want to stir up your audiences’ emotions and imagination – You have a greater chance of engaging with your audience, connecting with them, and inspiring them if you skip the PowerPoint. Without the visual aid, they’ll focus on you and your words. Inspiration will follow!
  3. You want your audience to participate – PowerPoints encourage people to sit back and zone out. They usually don’t even take notes. They’ll just ask for a copy of the PowerPoint presentation (which they’ll probably never look at). So if you want your audience to take an active role during your presentation and actually do something or produce something, you might want to avoid using a PowerPoint (or use it very sparingly).
  4. You don’t have a lot of time – Creating a good PowerPoint presentation takes time. If you don’t have that time, do without it. Similarly, delivering a PowerPoint presentation also takes time. You need to turn on the computer, make sure to projector is working, and troubleshoot the inevitable problems that occur. And you don’t want to rush through the slides. If you do, your audience won’t be able to follow what you’re saying and will probably overlook key information. So if you only have a limited amount of time to present, forego the PowerPoint.

Remember, a PowerPoint isn’t always necessary. Be like President Bill Pullman, and only use it when you know it’ll really add to the power and substance of your presentation.

 

Witt, C. (n.d.). When not to use PowerPoint. Witt Communications. Retrieved from http://wittcom.com/when-not-to-use-powerpoint/

 

 

Why It’s Good to Be Socially Awkward

By in Learning Tags: ,

Awkward

Do you tend to be a little socially awkward at work? Do you sometimes have trouble networking, making small-talk, or interacting with clients and colleagues? If so, you’re certainly not alone. A lot of people feel shy and clumsy in social situations.

But according to psychologist Ty Tashiro, this isn’t a bad thing. He’s found that it’s actually a positive quality. He believes that socially awkward people are often the most successful people because of their drive and focus.

Watch this short video to learn more about his theory, and start feeling good about your socially awkward tendencies!

Did a Coworker Insult You? Here’s What You Should Do.

By in Learning, Living Well Tags: ,

Insulted_Employee

Have you ever been insulted by a coworker? It’s not uncommon – even in the nicest, most harmonious workplace. For instance, you may have experienced one or more of the following:

  • You’re leading a meeting and one of the attendees won’t stop messing with her phone.
  • You’re making an important point when your coworker interrupts you and then dominates the conversation.
  • Your coworker keeps cancelling and rescheduling a meeting without giving a lot of thought to your schedule or time.
  • One of your coworkers arranges a get-together but forgets to invite you. (Or maybe he purposely didn’t invite you? Even worse!)

These slights and snubs can be really hurtful, and you might not know how to react. So what should you do if you’re insulted at work? Here are a few good options.

If the insult was fairly minor and it’s not a common occurrence:

  • Do nothing – If your coworker doesn’t usually insult you, or if the insult was pretty innocuous, it’s probably best to just let it go.
  • Try to view the event from the other person’s perspective – Maybe your insulting coworker was having a bad day or is really stressed out? It’s not really an excuse for bad behavior, but it might help to explain it. And it’s even more reason why you shouldn’t take it personally.
  • Talk to a friend – If you’re still feeling upset, talk to a friend about it and ask for feedback. Getting a friend’s perspective might help you to view the event in a new way. At the very least, it will probably help to alleviate your stress.

If the insult was significant and very upsetting:

  • Talk to the person CALMLY – Have a one-on-one conversation with the person who insulted you, but don’t get angry. Be calm and reasonable. Talk to the person about what happened and how you felt about it.
  • Listen – Allow the other person to respond and listen to what he or she has to say. There are two sides to every story. So try to be open to the other person’s perspective.
  • Talk, don’t type – Have this conversation face-to-face or over the phone. Don’t do it over email or via texts. With emails and texts, the risk of miscommunication is too great.

 

Malugani, M. (n.d.). Seven tips for dealing with office insults. Monster. Retrieved from https://www.monster.com/career-advice/article/workplace-behavior-snubs-insults

 

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