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Dear Friends and Clients,

My clients often come to me because they want to address career challenges. They may be looking for ways to make a change, or perhaps they have taken on new challenges and want to step up their game.

Even when clients are focused on professional issues, however, it often is effective to take an early look at other realms of their lives. For example, their success at work may be greatly affected by their fitness and stress levels, so we will touch upon topics like exercise and nutrition.

Over my years of coaching, I’ve noticed increasingly that one critical aspect of life that clients may not actively manage is the degree to which they belong to supportive communities. As I’ll discuss in this issue, your sense of being part of a community can impact your stress level, your resilience, your health and your performance at work.

When you think about ways to assure that 2009 is a rewarding year, I hope that you will devote some energy to your involvement in supportive communities.

-- Bev

Communities Help Us To
Reduce Stress, Stay Healthy
& Meet Challenges

January 20, 2009 * Number 96

Longevity expert Dan Buettner spent five years visiting areas of the world where people tend to live longer, healthier lives. He describes lifestyle trends in those healthy areas in his book, “Blue Zones – Lessons for Living Longer From the People Who’ve Lived the Longest.”

Buettner says that “Blue Zones” are places where an extraordinary number of people in their 80s, 90s and 100s are enjoying active, vital lives. In the book, he examines the daily lives, diets and outlooks of Blue Zone residents in Japan, Costa Rica, Italy and California. And from them he draws lessons about simple lifestyle adjustments that could help all of us live longer.

Not surprisingly, Buettner focuses much of his discussion on diet and exercise. But the buzz about his book is focused mostly on Buettner’s key conclusion. He says that the most powerful thing you can do to change your lifestyle for the better may be to develop rich social connections.

Buettner says that in each of the Blue Zones, nonagenarians and centenarians get more out of life because they are part of supportive communities. For example, in Okinawa, elderly Japanese citizens maintain strong social connections through regular gatherings of their “moais.”

The idea of the “moai” pre-dates the organized banking system. It began as a local group of friends where you could turn if you needed a loan. Today individual moais date back many decades and have evolved into small groups where members can turn, in good times and bad, for regular social and emotional support.

There is a growing body of research that links good health and social connection. Reasons for this might be that supportive communities can help us to manage stress, gain perspective and maintain healthy habits.

In the Blue Zones, where people tend to remain close to home, their communities include friends they have known all their lives. But a community no longer needs to be based on geography.

When psychologists talk about a “community” they mean some kind of group that has members, rather than a network of unconnected people. Members of a community have some feeling of belonging, as well as a sense of mattering, of making a difference to the group. Feeling connected to a community makes us feel that there’s somebody we can call on in case of need.

“Community” may be one realm of your life that you’d like to manage more effectively. Here are some ways to get started:

Consider your network. Start by looking over your address book and thinking about the people you know. Note the ones who share your values, and who offer you support. Recognize these and other friends who form your inner circle. Become more methodical about staying in touch with and nurturing your inner circle relationships.

Become active. List the organizations to which you belong, and think about other potential communities, like the neighborhood where you live. Identify communities where you might be able to make a bigger contribution, and perhaps get to know more members.

Join. Identify additional groups of people whose company you might enjoy. Think about pastimes you like or want to try, and look for groups with the same interests. For example, if you love walking, join a hiking club, and make friends at the same time you exercise.

Form a board of advisors. Convene a few folks with similar values or challenges, and start a group for mutual support. Professionals may benefit by creating an informal advisory council, in which the group acts as a career advisory board for each of the members.

Phase II: Start taking steps, and then keep taking steps.

There is much benefit to simply envisioning the life you want for the coming year. Having a clear picture in mind will help you spot opportunities and make good choices. But a way to really get things moving is to commit yourself to taking small daily steps toward the vision you created.

You don’t need to plan out the steps in advance. Part of the power of this system is that you’ll ultimately take steps that would never have occurred to you at the beginning of your path. But while you don’t have to start with a list of all the things that you mean to do, it is important that you do commit yourself to the pace of step taking.

Here is an illustration. Let’s assume that you pledge (1) to take three small steps each day, and (2) to each week take at least two steps in every realm of your vision. On the first day you focus all three steps on physical fitness: eating five fruits or vegetables; walking two miles; and doing a weights workout.

On the second day, however, your three steps are spread among three other realms. Your social step is to set up a lunch date; your spiritual step is to meditate; and your financial step is reducing your credit card debt instead of buying those shoes you want.

If you keep taking steps, and you allocate steps among all the major aspects of your life, you are sure to move toward your vision for 2009.

Want to Read More About Mapping?

Below is a brief description of a book, as well as links that will allow you to buy the book directly from Amazon.com. For reviews of other helpful books, along with Amazon links, go to: ClearWays Books and Services. If you buy a book this way it will contribute to the cost of distributing Bev’s Tips, and be much appreciated.

How to Mind Map: The Ultimate Thinking Tool That Will Change Your Life, by Tony Buzan (2002).

Tony Buzan copyrighted the term “mind maps” and claims that he invented the use of a colorful spider maps as a “thinking tool.” He also has written numerous books making expansive claims about the potential of mind maps to unlock creativity, stimulate both sides of the brain and “revolutionize” the way we think.

Critics have questioned the science behind Buzan’s claims. And some fans of mapping have argued that the technique has been used for centuries and certainly wasn’t invented by Buzan.

But even though Buzan’s claims are overstated, there is little doubt that his enthusiastic promotion of mapping has spread the word and inspired the use of maps in many contexts, from schools to government planning. He was one of the first writers to explore the benefits of using color and images to stimulate the right brain and inspire new connections among disparate thoughts.

Buzan’s many books are repetitive, so it doesn’t much matter which one you pick up. Consider this basic one, which will give you simple instructions for using a technique that can be immensely helpful, regardless of who invented it.

Want to hear more from Bev? In addition to providing executive coaching, Bev is available to speak about a broad range of issues related to your work life. Visit her website at www.ClearWaysConsulting.com or email to Bev directly. Bev is associated with Executive Coaching & Consulting Associates.

Bev’s Tips for a Better Work Life is published on the first and third Tuesday of each month by Beverly E. Jones of ClearWays Consulting, LLC. Bev is a lawyer and former executive who now coaches accomplished executives and other professionals to bring new direction, energy and enjoyment to their work lives.

All rights in all media reserved. However, the content of Bev’s Tips for a Better Work Life may be forwarded in full without special permission on the condition that (1) it is for non-profit use and (2) full attribution and copyright notice are given. For other uses please contact Bev Jones.

Our address is: 2925 43rd Street, NW, Washington, DC 20016.