When "The Boss" calls in sick what do you do?

I was introduced to this great video clip today...

I haven't seen it happen as much where I work today but can guarantee you that over the years I have seen this, or something very similar, happen every time "The Boss" calls in sick and decides to work from home.

What do you do when "The Boss" calls in sick and decides to work from home?

Since "My Boss" might read this, I've never done this and am always in the office when he's out...

BlackBerry User = Lower IQ = Bad For My Career?

What?!

I thought that by having and using my BlackBerry I would become more productive, more innovative and especially smarter...never dumber.

I ran across this article in BusinessWeek by Sylvia Ann Hewlett titled, "Is Your Blackberry Lowering Your IQ?"

Check out this quote from the article...Researchers at Kings' College London University have found that, across the board, communication overload causes a professional's IQ to drop 10 percentage points. It damages a worker's performance by reducing mental sharpness. The drop in IQ is more significant among men than women.

So, what's your take on these numbers?

For those of you out there that are a BlackBerry user like myself would you agree that your IQ is dropping because you are overloaded by the amount of time you communicate on your BlackBerry?

Hmmm...I don't think that I'm convinced just yet...

Here's another quote that made me think a little more about the concept...IT consultant Linda Stone has shown how "continuous partial attention" can be seriously dysfunctional. When a professional is bombarded by multiple information streams it becomes hard to sustain focus. Innovation and creativity suffer—as does the quality of decision making. How good can your feedback be when your words of wisdom are sandwiched between intense backhand drills?

After that quote I can start to see where Linda Stone is coming from but if I had to choose between having a BlackBerry and not having a Blackberry I would choose having one every time. I'll definitely use my BlackBerry for sending and receiving e-mails when needed but one of the biggest ways I use it is to just keep up to date of what's going on in the office when I'm not physically there.

So, for you BlackBerry users out there, let me hear what you have to say...

Workaholic - It's not a laughing matter anymore...

If you're like me you've heard this issue joked about in basically every company where you have ever worked. It's workaholic. Most of us would never admit to being one and we probably wouldn't even own up to being described this way.

What's your take on this issue and trend?

This is my first post of more to come in a series addressing the topic and subject of work/life balance. We all know how important it is to balance work and life...but why is it?

Here is how Wikipedia defines a workaholic - a workaholic is a person who is addicted to work. This phrase does not always imply that the person actually enjoys their work, but rather simply feels compelled to do it. There is no generally accepted medical definition of such a condition, although some forms of stress, obsessive-compulsive personality disorder and obsessive-compulsive disorder can be work-related. Although the term "workaholic" usually has a negative connotation, it is sometimes used by people wishing to express their devotion to one's career in positive terms. The "work" in question is usually associated with a paying job, but it may also refer to independent pursuits such as sports, music, art, or blogging.

Next, I decided to go to the place where I could knew I could find this issue addressed, defined and solved, Workaholics Anonymous.

Here is how they define what it's all about - Workaholics Anonymous is a fellowship of individuals who share their experience, strength, and hope with each other that they may solve their common problems and help others to recover from workaholism.

Since I was quite unfamiliar with this program and issue I was surprised to see all the great resources that were included there.

Here are a few of the resources I found...
- How do I know if I am a workaholic?
- Characteristics of a workaholic
- The Twelve Steps
- FAQ's

Take a look at the above links and dig through the information provided. There are some great tools included that can really help you determine whether or not you might be a workaholic.

If you determine that you really might be one, how's your performance in your current position and what type of feedback do you receive from your manager? Do your current habits really help your performance or are you just guilty of bad time management or doing work just to stay busy?

How about your career? Are you where you thought you would be and is your current position contributing or hindering your progress?

If you really aren't sure then explore the links above and be on the lookout for more information to come from me on this very topic.