Five to Thrive 10/28/2019

UMD’s Thriving Workplace Initiative is making the University of Maryland a great place to work by providing tools and support to foster engaged, inclusive and empowered faculty and staff across campus. 

Each Monday, its Five to Thrive list offers five strategies crowdsourced from research, experts and our own UMD community to help your workplace thrive. 

Want to build a Thriving Workplace? Here are this week’s tips: 

• Eat lunch unencumbered. Instead of working through your lunch (again), take 30 minutes and get a change of scene. Sit with a colleague, take a walk, or take your sandwich outside and people-watch. Leave your phone behind. Breaking from work will mentally energize you for the afternoon ahead. 
• After a meeting, don’t forget the follow-through. Spend five minutes to spell out what was discussed, where things stand and next steps (including assignments) in an email to all of the participants. Summarizing the who, what and when creates a road map and forward momentum. 
• If worries are keeping you up at night, write them down. Make a list of every stress, deadline or worry; next to each one, write down whether it’s in your control. If there’s something you can do about it, jot down one thing you’ll do the next day to address it. Then make a pledge to let it go for the night. Try it for a week and see if you’re sleeping better. 
• Instead of mispronouncing a new colleague’s name, ask, “How do pronounce your name?” Don’t be afraid to repeat it slowly and ask if you’ve said it right. This can flip an otherwise awkward introduction and shows courtesy. 
• Say thanks. Acknowledge someone for a courtesy, a favor, extra work or expertise that made your week easier. Be specific on why you’re thanking them and what it meant to you. 

Want more tips? Visit the Thriving Workplace Resource Library here or sign up for Food for Thought Friday, which delivers strategies to your inbox each week. Send an email to thrivingworkplace@umd.edu with the subject listserv to subscribe.