Happy & Healthy U: The Monthly Message

  Go Forward to Work! How to Use Your SPIES to Get Your Right Fit Job During a Pandemic This is the title of my e-book, to be available very soon. If you:  need a job (recent graduate; returning to workforce after a period; seeking part-time work) are unhappy and want a new job or career lost your job due to the pandemic feel lost (your entire industry disappeared; did work that you hated) your family situation and needs require you to change jobs ready to become self-employed (your own boss) This personalized guide can help you.  Work is an important and involves much of your waking hours. Therefore, doing work that you enjoy is critical to reducing stress and enhancing your wellbeing. Here's how the S.P.I.E.S. model in this career guide can help you: S.P.I.E.S. is a model created to help you access and see clearly the different parts of yourself as they pertain to your strengths, interests and preferences related to work.  This valuable information enables you to ...

Re-Connecting with Life: Creating a New Normal Beyond the Pandemic Lockdown It's Not Over Yet! However, We Can Increase Our Calm and Coping Skills.  It is summer, many of us are vaccinated and the world is re-opening. So, it feels like the world has conquered the pandemic and we are getting back to the normal we knew.  Not just yet!  Currently, we are seeing a surge of the Delta variant of Covid-19, clearly reminding us that there is still a real threat to our health and safety.   This continued threat is wearing on our patience and making us fatigued.  It is very easy to delude ourselves; bury our heads in the sand; and simply ignore the troubling reality.  This situation also saddens and angers many of us. So, out of defiance, some of us have chosen to ignore the ongoing threat.  As re-opening is occurring, many of us are also struggling with anxiety about whether we will be safe and healthy. It is important that we recognize and manage our emot...

  Go Forward to Work: Returning to Work as the Pandemic Declines "Go Forward to Work" is the beginning of the title of my upcoming book Go Forward to Work: How to Use Your SPIES to Get Your Right Fit Job During a Pandemic.  This blog post will focus on effectively adjusting to work as the pandemic winds down. As we are in the midst of recovering from the pandemic quarantine and lockdown, returning or resuming work may not be the same as going back to work.  to "Go Forward to Work" challenges us to think about the reality of how the pandemic impacted our lives.   For many of us, work will never be the same. Even if your employment is now requiring you to shift from virtual work and return to the physical work space on a full time basis, it will not be the same.  How are you processing this experience?  How secure or comfortable do you feel being in an environment in close proximity to others? How happy are you to resume seeing and  interacting with...

Experiencing a Covid-19 Career Crisis? Are you a recent college graduate or about to graduate and your career opportunities have decreased or disappeared? Have you lost a job you have held for some time, due to the impact of Covid-19? As disappointing as this may feel, it is important to stay encouraged, focused and determined to achieve your employment and career goals.   Below are some strategies that may help you get back on track with pursuing career related happiness and succes: ACKNOWLEDGE: The negative impact of Covid-19 on your employment and your feelings about it.  Remember that this was not your fault. What happened was beyond your control. The current reality of the job market and your industry of interest, due to the impact of Covid-19. What are the projections about the recovery of your industry?  Or, is it likely that you will need to take a new direction or change your expectations? Who you are (your sense of purpose; the meaning you assign to work; w...

 From the Inside Out: Empower Yourself to Feel Happy and in Control in Your Life It is important to recognize the importance of seeing yourself  as having power in your life or within any circumstance.  While you may not be able to control a circumstance, you always have control over your feelings and decisions and responses.  Starting with yourself with place you in the driver's seat of your life. Acknowledge: Who you genuinely are What your strengths and talents are What you want and desire; what matters to you Assess: Whether you  are being your true self The degree to which you demonstrate your strengths and talents The level of your overall life happiness   Address: Ways you can increase your authenticity Be yourself Respect who you are Recognize and reinforce your value Make yourself a priority Practice self-compassion Listen to and honor your inner voice Ways you can express and explore your strengths and talents Celebrate your best self Give self pe...

  The Importance of:   Who You Know and Who Knows You  to Reducing Isolation During the Pandemic by Diane Kern, Ph.D. of Happy and Healthy U, LLC  Acknowledge: Interpersonal connection is essential to our well-being. The social isolation that many are feeling because of the pandemic related social distancing and physical restrictions is causing significant emotional distress.    It is natural to feel down due to prolonged periods of  not seeing others not being in close proximity to others not being touched by others   Assess: Determine how not being in physical contact with others has impacted your mood. Determine how social isolation has affected the well being of your loved ones, especially the elderly. Are they (or you) demonstrating signs of depression?  Is their (or your) mental and physical functioning declining? Have they (or you) lost the will to live? Address: Reach out and connect with others; Make phone calls; Do virtual visi...