Work, Play, Live. Need experienced advice? Get a mentor! e-thoughts. Is worklife balance a myth? Working out at work

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1 April 2012 Monthly Bulletin Work, Play, Live Need experienced advice? Get a mentor! Learning from a mentor can help you succeed Everyone needs help from time to time. If you have a mentor, you may increase your chances of success. More... Is worklife balance a myth? Balancing work and life for a happier you Is balance really possible in our hectic times? Find out here Working out at work e-thoughts Enhancing focus at work Do you ever find it hard to focus on a task at work? Try these simple ideas when you notice your attention waning.. More... Making work a workout Are you using the no time to exercise excuse because of your hectic work day? Read here for some ideas for workouts you can do on the job! More ARFLH

2 April 2012 Monthly Bulletin Need experienced advice? Get a mentor! Learning from a mentor can help you succeed We all need help from time to time. Many of us get support from coworkers, family and friends. But we often overlook the option of having a mentor. What is a mentor? A mentor is person who guides a less experienced person ( mentee ). He or she is a trusted advisor who helps nurture the mentee s career and personal development.¹ Some organizations offer mentoring programs to employees. In other situations, workers can seek out a mentor informally by asking someone they respect to take on that role. How can a mentor help you? Mentoring is a low-cost or even no cost way to get help from an experienced person. A mentor may help you: Find new directions Grow Get objective advice Identify skills you may not even realize you have! For help with personal or workplace issues, contact Aetna Resources For Living. These confidential services are available 24/7 to employees, their eligible household members and adult children under age 26, whether they live at home or not. Finding and benefiting from a mentor Here are some simple guidelines to follow if you are interested in finding a mentor: Don t wait for a mentor to come to you. Instead, look for one and be choosy. If your first pick doesn t work out, move on and find another. Learn to listen. Ask questions. Then really listen to your mentor s answers. Ask for clarification if needed. You don t have to limit yourself to one mentor. You can have a few and learn different things from each. You might look to one for customer experiences, to another for industry insight and yet another for personal issues. Look outside your organization too. Good mentors may include local business people, retirees, clergy and others in your non-work world. If you want a mentor, be ready to participate in a relationship. Effective mentoring depends on mutual trust and respect. These require commitment. Get the most out of having a mentor by spending time together so you can really get to know and understand each other well. And remember: You might also consider becoming a mentor for someone less experienced than you. A mentor-mentee relationship can be invaluable to both parties! ¹

3 Is worklife balance a myth? April 2012 Monthly Bulletin Balancing work and life for a happier you Can anyone hope to meet the demands of home, work, family and personal needs? Is it really possible to succeed at work and live a satisfying out-of-work lifestyle today? Finding worklife balance The answer is yes : Work and life can be balanced. But here are some important basics to understand: Worklife balance is just what it says: a balance. One definition of worklife balance is that it s a combination of achieving something and enjoying something each day.¹ The two may not be in exactly equal parts each day. But, overall, they should balance out to create satisfaction. Worklife balance changes. Some days, weeks or months, work may require more of you. At those times the scales may tip and more of your energies may go toward your job. At other times, the scales will tip back to personal needs and satisfactions. Worklife balance differs for everyone. The balance that works for one person has no bearing on what works for you. You need to discover and create your own sense of balance. Worklife balance is about flexibility. It s not an all or nothing state of being. Sometimes we feel our lives are more in balance and sometimes less so. For help with personal or workplace issues, contact Aetna Resources For Living. These confidential services are available 24/7 to employees, their eligible household members and adult children under age 26, whether they live at home or not. Balance is your call Consider trying these steps to get started on improving your worklife balance: 1. Spend your time wisely. When you re at work, focus on work. When you re home or relaxing, focus on that. 2. Schedule one thing you like to do every day. It doesn t need to take long or cost money. Exercise, read a book or just do nothing for a while! 3. Set boundaries. Turn off your cell phone when you re out to dinner or at your child s soccer game. Likewise, ask friends and family not to interrupt your workday except for emergencies. These steps help keep your work and non-work time separate and special. 4. Hang on! Achieving worklife balance is a never-ending journey, and your needs will be different at different times in your life. Be patient and readjust when needed! ¹worklifebalance.com

4 Working out at work April 2012 Monthly Bulletin Making work a workout Many people are frustrated that they don t have the opportunity to work out because of sedentary jobs, long commutes or just plain lack of time. But there are many ways to add exercise and movement to an average work day. Ready, set, move! Feeling like your work day doesn t give you a chance to work on your fitness? Here are some tips to help you make work a moving experience! Park at the furthest point in your parking lot instead of the nearest. Use the restroom on another floor and take the stairs. Give up your desk chair and sit on an exercise ball to strengthen abs without much effort at all. Set a soft alarm to go off every hour. When it goes off, stand up and stretch, walk around, touch your toes or do any other kind of movement. Get a headset for your telephone so you can take calls and meetings while standing up or strolling. Start a walking club with coworkers. Once or twice around the parking lot each day will add to your fitness and your friendships. Do isometrics and stretching exercises while at your desk. Make the most of commuting by biking or walking. If it s too far to walk or bike to work, get off the bus or train one stop early and walk the rest of the way. Keep resistance bands (tubes or elastic stretch bands) and small weights in your desk drawer. You can do curls and resistance exercises without even leaving your desk. Get your meetings moving. When the weather permits, suggest having some of your meetings on the go. A small group can walk laps around the floor or building. For help with personal or workplace issues, contact Aetna Resources For Living. These confidential services are available 24/7 to employees, their eligible household members and adult children under age 26, whether they live at home or not. Will these solutions solve your entire fitness dilemma? Probably not. But they are practical answers to exercising while working. Try a few: You may find you have more energy and are happier at work!

5 e-thoughts Our e-thoughts feature provides close-up views on topics and areas of interest from everyday life. Enhancing focus at work Do you ever find it hard to focus on a task at work? It may be due to something as simple as hunger or thirst. Or, you might lack the information to do the task or simply have too much to do. Try these simple ideas when you notice your attention lagging: Stop for a few moments, stretch, get a drink of water and/or have an energy snack such as a handful of almonds. Use a task list to track what you must do. Rank these from most to least important or from most to least time consuming, whichever works best for you. In addition, break down the most time consuming tasks into smaller, more manageable chunks. Start tackling one task at a time. If the task takes longer than 40 to 50 minutes to complete, take a stretch break. This momentary shift in attention can help you feel refreshed and ready to get back to work. If you notice your energy waning for one project, switch your attention to another project for a while. You might have unexpected insights when you return to the first task. Proactively address the need for more information or training by going to the right source. Make sure to cross off each task once it s completed. This is a reward in itself as you note your accomplishments. For help with personal or workplace issues, contact Aetna Resources For Living. These confidential services are available 24/7 to employees, their eligible household members and adult children under age 26, whether they live at home or not.

6 Real SOLUTIONS for Real LIFE January 2011 Monthly Bulletin Work, Play, Live April 2012 Monthly Bulletin Aetna Resources for Living SM is the brand name used for products and services offered through the Aetna group of subsidiary companies. The EAP is administered by Aetna Behavioral Health, LLC and Aetna Life Insurance Company (Aetna) All calls are confidential, except as required by law (i.e., when a person s emotional condition is a threat to himself/herself or others, or there is suspected abuse of a minor child, and in some areas, spousal or elder abuse). Information is believed to be accurate as of the production date; however, it is subject to change. For more information about Aetna plans, refer to Aetna Inc.