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JOB BURNOUT

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JOB BURNOUT

Are you able to work well under extreme pressure? This is a question you will almost certainly be asked during an interview for a job you applied for. Workplace pressure varies depending on the job, but most workplace pressure can lead to stress and negatively impact workers’ health. However, in some cases, the source of the stress may not be within the organization where you work.

I once worked for years in a financial institution, primarily in the front office, and as customer service representatives, we were always reminded to leave any worries we were carrying from home at the office door before entering and then pick them up again on our way home.

I recall watching a documentary about a medical doctor who was summoned from his home to attend to an emergency involving a small child in desperate need of a major operation to save his life. The father of the sick child was enraged with the doctor because he was a few minutes late. Although the Doctor was eventually able to save the child’s life, the father of the sick child was unaware that the Doctor was at the burial ceremony of his own child when he was summoned. The Doctor later explained this to him, and he was amazed at the Doctor’s kindness, as well as his ability to perform his duty despite his loss.

 

The examples above demonstrate that everyone experiences stress at some point in their lives, whether it is external and unrelated to work or internal and related to work, but the combination of both is common.

Although employees face a variety of stressors, a good employer will be able to identify when an employee’s stress is internal (job-related). Workers should also be able to identify what the stressor is and where it is coming from in order to nip it in the bud before it gets out of hand.

 

Job burnout refers to job-related stress that has gone unaddressed for an extended period of time and has negatively impacted the worker’s physical and emotional state.

 

Because there will be a derailment in the worker’s behavior, the signs of job burnout are always visible for all to see. These signs are as follows:

 

–      Feeling fatigued frequently at work, even with the smallest effort or task.

–      Feeling tired may not always indicate burnout, but when a worker is constantly exhausted, it is time to investigate the source of the exhaustion

–      Becoming irritated and snapping at others at will. Being touchy and distancing yourself from tasks, looking for a shortcut to completing tasks at work, bending and breaking set rules and procedures at work, always results in costly mistakes

–      Difficulty concentrating.

–      Dissatisfied with your professional accomplishments.

–      Having trouble staying motivated at work.

–      Abusing food or drugs to alleviate exhaustion.

–      Constant headaches or other physical ailments at work, but feeling better when not at work.

–      Been preoccupied and worried about a task to the point where your sleep has been disrupted.

–      Feeling inadequate, having low morale, low self-esteem, and feeling inefficient and incapable of performing a task that was previously a piece of cake.

 

who is experiencing job burnout will exhibit two or more of the signs listed above, and if not addressed, the situation may deteriorate into a mental health problem.

Why do people get tired of their jobs? Some of the reasons are as follows:

  1. You are not given the opportunity to have a say in job-related decisions, which means you are only to be seen and not heard. You are only to do as you are told, regardless of the circumstances.
  2. Uncomfortable at work due to a lack of understanding of what your superiors expect of you.
  3. Feeling isolated at work due to a lack of social support. Feeling out of place, unnoticed, and isolated.
  4. Having bullies as superiors or coworkers and being the victim of bullying.
  5. When you are expected to perform multiple tasks at the same time, or when you are required to report to more superiors than necessary in order to complete your task, and these superiors have conflicting expectations.
  6. You struggle to balance your work and family life; you lack a social life because you are constantly working and never have time for anything or anyone else.

 

If you notice any of the signs of job burnout, it is best to address it as soon as possible because it can be very serious; the measures to consider are as follows:

 

The first step is to identify the burnout symptoms; this will allow you to give the problem a proper name. It’s like having a headache with malaria as the underlying cause, and the headache is just a sign that something is wrong with your system. Stress is a significant symptom.

Once you’ve identified the symptom, develop a plan for dealing with it. Begin by speaking with a colleague or your superior; unfortunately, most employers don’t recognize the signs of burnout and may dismiss the victims as lazy. In this case, you might want to talk to some of your coworkers who are going through the same thing so you can all come up with a plan or solution together. You may eventually need to speak with your employer so that this is handled together, as the issue will eventually affect the organization’s turnover.

If you work alone and do not report to anyone, you can easily evaluate the situation and come up with solutions. These solutions may not be instant, but they may be small changes over time that show that you are making progress.

 “Burnout is nature’s way of telling you you’ve been going through the motions your soul has departed.” — Sam Keen

 

 

 

Sources 

https://www.wsj.com/articles/how-to-prevent-and-cope-with-job-burnout-11611696061

https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/adult-health/in-depth/burnout/art-20046642

MONDAY BLUES

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MONDAY BLUES

Aloha, Friday! Thanks God its Friday (TGIF)! These are common greetings on the last day of the workweek. More of this is because, after putting in long hours of work during the week, most people look forward to the weekend to relax, some to rest, and others to spend time with families and engage in activities other than work.

Depending on how you spent the weekend, Monday is either a day to return to work strong after resting all weekend or a day to return to work dragging and feeling like the weekend was too short if you still have some hangover from the weekend.

Whatever the case, it has been discovered that Mondays are the most dreaded days of the week for workers all over the world. Monday is said to be derived from the Latin word Mondalious, which translates to “return to bed.” Could this be why Mondays are so dreaded?

Monday blues is a dreadful feeling that occurs at the start of a workweek; it is more similar to lamenting the passing of the weekend.

Every worker experiences Monday blues; even the best and most motivated employees experience them at times.

 

Some of the reasons listed below explain why Mondays are regarded as the most difficult workday of the week.

  1. You have two days to do whatever you want, including the freedom to get up whenever you want, move around, visit friends, and so on. You discovered on Monday morning that you no longer had that freedom.
  2. The transition from the weekend to the workweek appears to be very short, which could be due to a very busy weekend that leaves you feeling as if you haven’t rested at all. What happened to the weekend?
  3. For some people, transitioning is a difficult task; this makes Mondays difficult because they have to transition from the weekend to the workweek while also being anxious about what the week holds, which is usually unknown. Some people might eventually blend in, but not on Mondays.
  4. Some people suffer from Monday blues as a result of a poor work-life balance. This is especially true for workaholics who spend their entire week working without breaks and with nothing to look forward to over the weekend, no plans for the weekend, which has a negative impact on their bodies and minds.
  5. Monday blues can also be caused by a lack of emotional and physical preparation for the workweek.
  6. Another cause of Monday blues could be a dislike for the job you do. Some people do not enjoy their jobs; they only work to get the resources they need to pay their bills, so they look forward to the weekend when they can relax and breathe.

 

Some people’s Monday blues fade as the day progresses, whereas for others, the blues last until the next day before they can get a grip on themselves and get to work.

 

Here are some ideas to help you deal with Monday blues:

– Every person experiences Monday blues for different reasons; find out what yours is; after all, once the cause is identified, the solution is closer. This way, you’ll be able to quickly get to the solution and feel better about Mondays.

 

– When making plans for the weekend, make sure one of them is how to start the next week. Planning your workweek ahead of time will help you start strong on Mondays. Workweek planning is best done on Sundays because it is the day before Monday and gives the impression that Monday is a continuation of Sunday.

 

– Start reducing weekend parties and get more rest, especially on Sunday. Lack of rest and fewer sleep hours can lead to anxiety, so it is recommended to get more sleep, especially on Sunday, so you wake up relaxed and refreshed on Monday.

 

– Having a morning routine that you look forward to allows you to start each day with excitement, so go ahead and plan an exciting start for each day, including Monday. Your plan could be to drink a cup of coffee or tea every morning before work, to meditate every morning, and so on. The plan should be something you enjoy doing and look forward to doing each morning.

 

– Put on your best outfit on Mondays; it will not only hide your blues, but it will also attract compliments from your coworkers, and compliments can make you feel better.

 

– Make it a habit to smile every day, whether it’s Monday or not; a smile is free therapy and contagious. Imagine arriving at work feeling down and being greeted with a smile from your coworkers. It makes you feel welcomed. Give a smile to get a smile in return.

 

– Change your way of thinking about Mondays. Remember that each day has twenty-four hours, and Mondays are no exception. If you can think in this way, you will be able to see Mondays as just another day of the week, not as a special occasion.

 

– You don’t have to wait until the end of the week to enjoy your work week. You can create a better way to enjoy your job, to enjoy what you are doing at any given time, to make every day count, and to take things one day at a time. Every day, add some fun to your work, create a beautiful work environment for yourself, get some flowers for your table, and organize your work tools in beautiful packages.

 

“Honestly, I never really understood the glorification of Fridays and weekends. I don’t want to build a life and career where I spent five days a week waiting for the weekend. No! I want to enjoy my life and don’t wish any weekday away. I want each day to matter to me, in some way, even if it’s a small tiny way. I love my life. Everyday. That’s the spirit we should convey all around us.”- Akilnathan Logeswaran

 

 

 

Sources 

https://www.glamour.com/story/youll-never-get-the-monday-blues-again-after-you-read-this

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/why-mondays-hard-psychologically_l_5fb0375ac5b68baab0fcbf8c

 

STEREOTYPES

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STEREOTYPES

“A woman’s place is in the kitchen”. This is one gender stereotype that is still prevalent in most parts of Africa, and it has been used to justify various forms of stigmatization and injustice against the feminine gender, but thanks to civilization, women have proven time and again that everyone can be what they want to be, that there is greatness in everyone, regardless of gender, and that being a woman does not mean being less capable of achieving greatness.

That phrase about women is just one example of a stereotype; there are many others, ranging from individuals to nationalities. ‘Americans are loud,’ for example, is an example of a National Stereotype.

 

“Social psychology defines a stereotype as a generalized belief about a particular category of people. It is an expectation that people might have about every person of a particular group. The type of expectation can vary; it can be, for example, an expectation about the group’s personality, preferences, appearance or ability. Stereotypes are sometimes overgeneralized, inaccurate, and resistant to new information, but can sometimes be accurate. While such generalizations about groups of people may be useful when making quick decisions, they may be erroneous when applied to particular individuals and are among the reasons for prejudicial attitudes.”– Wikipedia.

 

Regardless of how hard we try Stereotypes are usually difficult to ignore, especially if they are false, because they are widely accepted, lowering the victim’s self-esteem over time, especially if they are related to one’s ability.

When a stereotype persists for a long period of time, the victims eventually accept the saying, begin to have self-doubts, and tend to do anything to comply in order not to act against the negative perception. Psychologists call this stage a “stereotype threat.”

 

“Stereotype threat is a situational predicament in which people are or feel themselves to be at risk of conforming to stereotypes about their social group. It is theorized to be a contributing factor to long-standing racial and gender gaps in academic performance.”      – Wikipedia

 

There are various types of stereotypes, which include:

 

Cultural Stereotype – Each culture has distinguishing characteristics that set it apart from other cultures. This uniqueness is likely to be subjected to positive or negative stereotypes, which are typically directed at either the individual from such cultural background or the entire culture as a whole. The phrase “Jamaicans like to smoke pot” is an example of a cultural stereotype.

Social Stereotype – This is a type of stereotype that is directed at people’s socioeconomic status, skill, age, and so on. One such example is the adage “Smart Girls Aren’t Pretty.”

Racial Stereotype – This type of stereotype usually results in racial discrimination against a group of people by focusing on their race, color, ethnicity, and so on. One example is the proverbial ‘black athletes in the NBA are thugs.’

Gender Stereotype – This is typically a comparison and contrast of different genders. “A woman’s place is in the kitchen,” for example, is a stereotype.

Religious Stereotype – This is a serious form of a stereotype because it is directed at a person’s faith and belief. If it is negative, it will have serious consequences.

 

If stereotyping is an evil act, we are all guilty at some point; we all stereotype, some good and some bad, and we generalize on numerous occasions. To deal with stereotyping, you might want to consider the following:

  1. Stop assuming and passing judgment on people from afar. At times, we have a tendency to judge what we do not know or understand. If you notice that someone looks different, the best way to find out why is to ask. So get close and investigate for yourself; what you are witnessing may simply be a reflection of the person’s current state, and you may eventually be of assistance.
  2. Everyone has a good side and a bad side; look for people’s good side. We sometimes see only what we want to see; it pays to see the positive aspects, so concentrate on them.
  3. Look inwards; there is always a reason for doing something, so always ask yourself why you do what you do.
  4. We may not always see the problem from the same perspective, but it is useful to put yourself in the shoes of the other person before passing judgment.
  5. When asking clarifying questions, make sure to call a spade a spade. Be genuine while remaining open without generalizing.
  6. We stereotype when we don’t understand what stereotyping does to the person or people to whom the act is directed. More specifically, when the purpose of something is unknown, abuse is unavoidable, so educate yourself, read about other people’s cultures and traditions, and learn why a certain trait is prevalent in one tribe.
  7. Devote more of your energy to something that will benefit both you and the world. Change your attention to something else.
  8. If you are the one who has been stigmatized, get help, seek advice, and refuse to doubt yourself.

 

Because there are more negative stereotypes than positive stereotypes, stereotyping has done more harm than good to individuals and groups of people. Every individual is unique, regardless of tribe; a tribe should not be painted with the same brush simply because a few individuals acted in a certain way.

 

“If you want to uplift and change your community.

f you want to uplift and change your hood, projects , ghetto or township.

Change the stereotype believes.

Our society is held back, not to progress or develop, because of the type of stereotypes we have within our community. If we break those stereotypes. We would find our freedom, happiness, progress and success.” ? De philosopher DJ Kyos

 

 

 

Sources 

https://examples.yourdictionary.com/stereotype-examples.html

https://www.militaryspouse.com/spouse-101/stereotyping/10-ways-to-stop-the-stereotyping/

 

THE FAINTEST INK

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THE FAINTEST INK

I’ve always wondered how records were kept and how effective communications were made before the invention of the printing press. I once asked my mother-in-law about her birth certificate, and her response was shocking at the time, despite the fact that she is now nearly a century old but still strong and mentally sharp. She told me she can only calculate her age by recalling a significant event that occurred around the time she was born. People in the past were able to keep their history and culture alive by passing down stories from generation to generation while taking notes on events that occurred during the time period. They must have sharp memories, and they make certain that they do not die with their memories, ensuring that they are always passed on to the next generation, what a marvel!

 

Now, fast forward to this era, and everything you knew and intend to know has been and will continue to be written. Do you want to learn more about World War I and World War II? You can learn more about it by reading about it! Do you have an idea? Simply try and write it down. Do you want to send an important message to someone who lives a long distance away? You can simply use your phone to write a letter or send a text message. You no longer need to be concerned about how to communicate effectively.

 

“Writing is a medium of human communication that involves the representation of a language through a system of physically inscribed, mechanically transferred, or digitally represented symbols. Writing systems are not themselves human languages (with the debatable exception of computer languages); they are means of rendering a language into a form that can be reconstructed by other humans separated by time and/or space.”–Wikipedia

The history of writing spans several decades, and there have been many changes and adjustments made along the way to get us to where we are now, and there are still many improvements to be made.

Writing has evolved into a critical aspect of human life, as it is required in all fields, including farmers, lawyers, architects, and managers. Writing cannot be excluded from any field or work of life, and it can take many forms, including emails, text messaging, social media, and so on.

Writing is the most important form of communication in comparison to other forms of communication because it is the only one that cannot be easily misinterpreted.

 

I once saw a program in which the participants were lined up in a queue, and the first person in the queue was told a phrase and asked to tell the next person, and so on until the last person in the queue. Finally, the first and last people were asked to say what they were told, and surprisingly, there was a huge disparity between what they both heard. Sign language was also used, with disastrous results. This scenario demonstrates how information passed from person to person using sign language and mouth-to-mouth communication can change over time; it also implies that we may have had significant deviations in our original culture and history as a result of the form of communication used in the past. We may not have anything left of our history and culture by now, thanks to the era of writing.

 

Back in high school, I preferred subjects that required more calculations to those that required a lot of reading; I would rather read a novel or other story books than academic books. As a result, I set out to solve the problem I had identified as a student. How did I accomplish this? I examined my areas of strength, writing, and weakness, reading. I enjoyed writing and discovered that I could recall what I wrote on my own, so I developed the habit of taking notes during lectures and then compiling the notes into a complete write up once the lecture was over. I even went so far as to assist my classmates in copying their notes, forcing myself to write and read, especially on subjects I find difficult to read. If I read courses with lengthy write-ups, I might fall asleep from boredom, so I write while reading. I simply read my write-ups for some subjects.

 

Other advantages of writing are as follows:

 

Writing improves your creative, logical, and analytical skills because it requires you to use both sides of your brain. The right side of the brain is the creative side that handles what you intend to write, whereas the left side of the brain is the logical and analytical side that tells you how to organize your thoughts in a logical manner.

 

Everyone has a past, which means everyone has a story to tell, and lessons can be learned from each story; however, if these stories are not written down, no one will ever know them. As a result, writing is an extremely important tool for expression and development.

 

If you’ve ever been to an anger management section, you’ll know that one of the pieces of advice given to the person in question is to always write down how they feel at any given time. Writing down your thoughts and feelings has been shown to improve your mental health by reducing anxiety, depression, and other mental health issues. The negative energy created during the occurrence is directed to writing rather than a person or an object, bringing relief.

 

Planning is aided by writing. Do you have any goals in mind and plans for how you intend to achieve them? Then, write down your objectives and plans. You are more likely to achieve a good percentage of a written goal than an unwritten goal because you can review your write-up in case of distraction and get back on track.

 

Even if you have a photographic memory, your memory may fail you. We have several authors who are no longer alive, but because they were able to put their thoughts and ideas into writing, these ideas continue to be used to make life better and the world a better place even after their deaths.

 

The old Chinese saying is correct indeed, the faintest ink is more powerful than the strongest memory.

 

Sources 

https://www.inspiredforward.com/30-reasons-why-writing-is-important/

 

Why Change Matters: A Fireside Chat with Simon Sinek

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Why Change Matters: A Fireside Chat with Simon Sinek

By Shareka Nelson

In my role as Coursera’s Culture and Development Leader, I’ve recently had the pleasure to welcome author, visionary, and thought leader Simon Sinek to the 10th annual Coursera Conference. In an exclusive 1:1 fireside chat, we discussed driving workplace change, learning as a vehicle for progress, and the role that diversity and inclusion play in enabling meaningful change for organizations.

Simon Sinek is the best-selling author of Start With Why, which started a movement to help people become more inspired at work, and in turn inspire their colleagues and customers. His TED talk on the topic has been watched by more than 28 million people, which makes it the third most popular TED video of all time. 

If you missed the fireside chat, watch our fascinating conversation on-demand (but hurry, it’s only available until May 16), and read the main takeaways below.

Building a culture of learning

Why is proactively fostering change a safe business decision?

A lot of industries still haven’t quite figured out how to adapt their business model to the internet, even now. As a result, companies from the outside have come in and disrupted entire industries. 

Take the movie industry, for example. Every single incumbent movie or television studio could have redefined the future of television with the rise of the internet. But they didn’t, they clung to their old business model. 

Netflix tried to get Blockbuster to buy them, and Blockbuster’s CEO at the time wanted to experiment with streaming. The board, however, wouldn’t allow him to change the business model, because the company made 12 percent of its revenues from the fees it charged when customers returned their DVDs late. And now Blockbuster doesn’t exist. Just because you got away with something in the past doesn’t mean it’s going to work in the future.

What are the main barriers to building a culture of learning?

The world has changed, and if you don’t have a robust learning program to invest in, you’re setting yourself up for a catastrophe later when you realize you have no competitive advantage for why people will want to work for you. 

Companies often don’t know where to start and say they don’t have the budget. But you can start anywhere. You can start with what you understand, and it doesn’t always have to cost a lot. Can you do a book club, for example? Make it voluntary, and every week or couple of weeks people get together and talk about the chapters of the book they have read. 

The learning program can be homegrown. It doesn’t have to be complete straight away. Just ask who’s interested in the subject matter at hand, and you’ll be amazed at how many of your team members already study it. Invite them to share what they’re learning. Start with a little course to get an appetite for it and see how addictive it becomes once you start learning.  

The more we learn, the more it benefits not just ourselves but the people around us – our colleagues and co-workers, our families, and all the people we love and care about. Fundamentally, to embrace a culture of learning is to embrace a life of service. 

Developing diverse and inclusive talent 

What role does diversity and inclusion play in enacting change?

Frankly, we can’t have effective change without diversity. How do we solve difficult problems if we surround ourselves with people who grew up like us, look like us, and sound like us? We’d end up with one or two points of view, which is only going to work for a short time. 

Diverse points of view, on the other hand, lead to innovation and ultimately more profits. The amalgamation of ideas makes for much better solutions than the one-size-fits-all approach. It benefits organizations and also has cultural implications. The teams in these companies probably demonstrate better teamwork and more curiosity about each other’s ideas than judgment. 

Where do companies typically get tripped up when it comes to implementing a DE&I strategy?

They trip up when they don’t ask for help and are just doing it to checkboxes. To enact systemic change, you need to recognize that it’s never going to be perfect. Don’t just hire a person to run a workshop, and that’s it. If you set it up as an event, we’re going to be judging you based on how successful that event was. 

You need to be open about the fact that it’s a journey instead, which means you’re in a state of constant improvement, which is how all business cultures should be run anyway. It’s also important to be honest with yourself about the state of the company and how you got there to make sure you don’t repeat mistakes. 

Future-proofing your team’s skillset

How can businesses understand what skills their workforce will need to thrive in the future?

You can’t predict the hard skills but there are some enduring human skills that will be necessary permanently. I hate the term soft skills. Hard and soft are opposites but these skills go together. If you get good at both, you become one of the most valuable members of the team. It’s a massive opportunity. Where most learning inside organizations is lacking is in human skills. They’ve doubled down on the hard skills but they’ve all but forgotten the human skills or think of them as soft, mushy, and disposable. 

When technological changes upset the skill sets, we may have to even abandon one skill set and embrace a new one. Which team do you think will be more capable of adapting? It’s not the one without human skills where everyone fends for themselves. It’s the team that’s so skilled that they know how to come together, weather difficulty, and go through the change together.

Coursera Conference 2022 featured more than 40 sessions. You can catch on-demand sessions that you may have missed on the Coursera Conference website. 

What’s Going On in This Picture? | May 9, 2022

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What’s Going On in This Picture? | May 9, 2022

1. After looking closely at the image above (or at the full-size image), think about these three questions:

2. Next, join the conversation by clicking on the comment button and posting in the box that opens on the right. (Students 13 and older are invited to comment, although teachers of younger students are welcome to post what their students have to say.)

3. After you have posted, try reading back to see what others have said, then respond to someone else by posting another comment. Use the “Reply” button or the @ symbol to address that student directly.

Each Monday, our collaborator, Visual Thinking Strategies, will facilitate a discussion from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Eastern time by paraphrasing comments and linking to responses to help students’ understanding go deeper. You might use their responses as models for your own.

4. On Thursday afternoons, we will reveal at the bottom of this post more information about the photo. How does reading the caption and learning its back story help you see the image differently?

We’ll post more information here on Thursday afternoon. Stay tuned!

More?

• See all images in this series or slide shows of 40 of our favorite images — or 40 more.

• Learn more about this feature in this video, and discover how and why other teachers are using it in their classrooms in our on-demand webinar.

• Find out how teachers can be trained in the Visual Thinking Strategies facilitation method.

Students 13 and older in the United States and the Britain, and 16 and older elsewhere, are invited to comment. All comments are moderated by the Learning Network staff, but please keep in mind that once your comment is accepted, it will be made public.

Lesson of the Day: ‘What Would the End of Roe Mean? Key Questions and Answers.’

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Lesson of the Day: ‘What Would the End of Roe Mean? Key Questions and Answers.’

Return to your journal and write down your first thoughts and reflections after reading the article. Then, make a list of the questions you still have, perhaps sharing your list with others in your class. Finally, choose a question and try to answer it with one of the pieces from the list below, which includes both news reporting and analysis and data visualizations from the Times section The Upshot. (Please note that this is just a starting point. As news about this issue continues to break, you can follow live updates here.)

When you’ve found answers to your questions, you might share the information with others in your class. Then, return to your journal to answer this question: Did the facts or information you just learned help you understand the issue differently? Why or why not?

Part 2: Reflect

In the fall, in the wake of judicial decisions that restricted abortion rights in Texas and expanded access to abortion in Mexico, we asked students how they felt about the status of abortion rights. Scroll through some of their answers. Can you find some statements you agree with? Are there some that you take issue with?

In Part 1 of this exercise you learned more facts and context about the issue of abortion in the United States. Now we invite you to further develop your opinions about the issue. To do that, you might read a range of pieces from the Times Opinion section, as well as from other sources. Or, consult a site like ProCon.org, the mission of which is to “promote civility, critical thinking, education and informed citizenship by presenting the pro and con arguments to debatable issues in a straightforward, nonpartisan, freely accessible way.” Here are the site’s resources on abortion, and here are some essays from the Times Opinion section to get you started:

Opinion | Roe Is as Good as Gone. It’s Time for a New Strategy.

Opinion | I Am Pro-Life. Don’t Call Me Anti-Abortion.

Opinion | Texas Is the Future of Abortion in America

Finally, share your reflections to the following questions in your journal or in a class discussion. If you choose to discuss this in class, ensure that you have a classroom contract, and experiment with a discussion strategy like a silent Big Paper conversation or a Fishbowl discussion.

Here are some questions that might help:

  • What is your reaction to the draft opinion to overturn Roe v. Wade? Why?

  • How do you think that governments should address abortion, if at all? How do your personal feelings about abortion inform — or not inform — your political beliefs?

  • What arguments have you heard in favor of abortion rights? Are any of them compelling to you? Why or why not?

  • What arguments have you heard against abortion rights? Are any of them compelling to you? Why or why not?

  • After all the reading and thinking you have done on this issue, are there any conclusions you can draw? What questions do you still have?

Want more Lessons of the Day? You can find them all here.

Here’s What Flow State Is & How To Achieve It While Coding

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Here’s What Flow State Is & How To Achieve It While Coding
How to achieve flow state

Ever get so completely immersed in writing code that time slows down and you really find a groove? It’s invigorating, and can enable you to produce your best work or reach peak productivity. Turns out, this common feeling is a psychological concept called “flow.”

Positive psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi was the first researcher to identify the concept of “flow state,” and he described it as “those times when things seem to go just right, when you feel alive and fully attentive to what you are doing.”

Maybe you’ve experienced this sensation in non-work scenarios, like playing a video game, designing a web page, or trying to master a guitar lick. Flow state even shows up in an educational context, like when you’re learning a new programming language and reach an “aha moment” where things start to click.

Flow state doesn’t just happen randomly. In fact, Dr. Csikszentmihalyi’s research has shown that there are several conditions that line up and elicit flow. Here are the factors that, taken together, can lead to flow — you might already have many of them in place without realizing:

1. You’re completely concentrated on the task

Might sound like a no-brainer, but you need to be totally immersed in a task in order to reach flow. Getting rid of distractions — from Slack notifications to a messy desk — is one way to set yourself up for uninterrupted focus.

2. Your goals and rewards are clear, and you receive feedback

Focusing intensely on one thing “leads to a sense of ecstasy, a sense of clarity,” Dr. Csikszentmihalyi said in a 2004 TED Talk. When you’re in flow, it’s super clear what you want and need to do — almost like having an internal to-do list that just automatically keeps you going.

Having a consistent source of feedback is another factor that keeps you in flow. According to Dr. Csikszentmihalyi, getting feedback compels people to continue on with a task while in flow. It’s easy to see how this applies to coding: You’re constantly presented with feedback any time you run code, since it either works or it doesn’t.

3. Time distorts

Losing track of time is a key feature of flow. For example, time might feel like it slows down or flies by because you’re solely thinking about what you’re working on. Of course, this can be a double-edged sword; if you’re in flow you might need to actively set time boundaries so you don’t overwork yourself.

4. You’re doing something for the sake of doing it

There might be an external reason why you’re working on something, for example, your manager gave you an assignment or you need to meet a deadline for a freelance project. The distinct thing about flow is that you can also develop intrinsic motivation for that very same task — meaning, you’re just doing it because it’s rewarding to you personally.

5. It’s a challenging task…

Flow-inducing tasks are typically challenging enough that they require your full attention. Dr. Csikszentmihalyi wrote that flow state “acts as a magnet for learning new skills and increasing challenges.” In other words, if something is too easy, the way to get back to flow is by challenging yourself. And if something seems too difficult, you can learn something new that will help you overcome it.

6. …but can’t be too challenging

Flow involves self-esteem and self-efficacy, which is the belief that you’re capable of executing a task. Whereas an overly complicated task might feel overwhelming or frustrating, in flow, you’re confident you can accomplish what’s being asked of you. The result can be relaxing: “Flow occurs in that delicate zone between boredom and anxiety,” Dr. Csikszentmihalyi told the New York Times.

7. You stop ruminating

Though it sounds trippy or esoteric, a characteristic of flow state is feeling like your “existence is temporarily suspended,” Dr. Csikszentmihalyi said in the TED Talk. In other words, you forget yourself. With all of your attention devoted to one task, your brain tunes out other problems, worries, or even bodily sensations (like hunger, fatigue, or muscular pain).

8. You’re in control

While in flow, you’re in control of whatever outcomes happen, rather than feeling carried away or impatient.

Flow clearly can boost your productivity and performance, but there are deeper mental health benefits to the practice. There’s research that experiencing flow can make people happier and more fulfilled.

If you’re able to find flow in your professional life, that’s an added bonus. But some people might tap into flow during activities outside of work, like artistic pursuits or sports. According to Dr. Csikszentmihalyi, it’s important to keep pushing yourself by learning new skills at work. “Most jobs have a ceiling built in — you can learn them in a few days,” he told the New York Times. “Your skills for it increase rapidly, but the challenge doesn’t change, so you get bored.”

As a developer, there are always ways that you can level-up your skills and learn something new. You might want to learn a programming language, or start a code challenge based on real-world technical exams. Or, dive into a project that you can use in your professional portfolio. Not sure where to start? Take our programming personality quiz and see which languages might get you into flow state.

Catalog Home | Codecademy

If you’re not sure where to begin or what to learn next, this is a great place to start. Check out our top coding courses, Skill Paths, and Career Paths.

Storm

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Storm

Imagine an idyllic coastal town. What could go wrong? Use your imagination to write the opening of a short story or poem inspired by this illustration or, tell us about a memory from your own life that this image makes you think of.

Post it in the comments, then read the related book review to learn more.

Want more Picture Prompts? Find them all in this column.

Students 13 and older in the United States and Britain, and 16 and older elsewhere, are invited to comment. All comments are moderated by the Learning Network staff, but please keep in mind that once your comment is accepted, it will be made public.

Word of the Day: peculiar

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Word of the Day: peculiar

The word peculiar has appeared in 307 articles on NYTimes.com in the past year, including on April 1 in “Remembrance of Bookstores Past” by Tina Jordan and Erica Ackerberg:

Dozens of bookstores once lined Fourth Avenue — so many that, in 1969, a Times article about the area noted, “What Lincoln Center is to music, what Broadway is to theater,” Fourth Avenue “is to rare, used and antiquarian books.” Jack Biblo, a co-owner of Biblo & Tannen’s — shown here in about 1940 — reminisced about the street in 1981, telling The Times: “We were all a little peculiar. When I started, you had an old Russian revolutionary down the street who kept a wood-burning stove in the middle of his store. If he liked you, he gave you a cup of tea. If he didn’t like you, he threw you out. If he told you a price and you said you’d think about it, he’d double the price.”

Can you correctly use the word peculiar in a sentence?

Based on the definition and example provided, write a sentence using today’s Word of the Day and share it as a comment on this article. It is most important that your sentence makes sense and demonstrates that you understand the word’s definition, but we also encourage you to be creative and have fun.

Then, read some of the other sentences students have submitted and use the “Recommend” button to vote for two original sentences that stand out to you.

If you want a better idea of how peculiar can be used in a sentence, read these usage examples on Vocabulary.com.

If you enjoy this daily challenge, try one of our monthly vocabulary challenges.

Students ages 13 and older in the United States and the United Kingdom, and 16 and older elsewhere, can comment. All comments are moderated by the Learning Network staff.

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