August 2019

Music To Your Ears

Now you can use music to
develop super powers (almost)

Difficult Bosses
Conflict with your boss can be a
major cause of stress at work but
there are ways to turn this around

JOHN
Do You Have
Aviophobia?

s
The compelling urge to avoid

n k i n
flying, that leads to intense

Ra
distress and avoidance.

Super Foods At
Work
We show you the
foods that prevent the
ips
3pm energy slump and h Let Downs and Hardsh
ug
boost mental focus Leading thro
 FROM
FROM THE CEO

W
Welcome to our August 2019 Issue

Mental Health is a tsunami that’s coming.

Life has acquired a unique complexity of late and this state of affairs is
sure to impact people’s mental health.

Workplaces must stay on top of this. If they don’t, they risk becoming
irrelevant to their workforce and to their market. There’s a high price to
be paid when people’s mental health is not cared for.

Is your organisation ready? What else could you be doing?

Here at the Workplace Mental Health Institute we continue to provide

workplaces around the world with the needed results-driven education
that helps keep good mental health.

In addition to the eMag you are holding, and by the way,

congratulations for reading this and doing something proactive for your
people’s mental health, we are also gearing up for the official release
of our latest future bestseller, Mental Wealth: An Essential Guide to
Workplace Mental Health and Wellbeing.

The book is a must for any manager wanting to positively influence the
mental health culture of their teams, to bring about both sustainable
changes and engage their individual employees.

It’s also the ultimate resource on mental health, and a practical guide
for anyone with reports.

I know you’ll enjoy reading it too, since we’ve kept from writing an
academic book on workplace mental health and we’ve written a book
which people want to read and will finish reading.
Peter D
ia
CEO - z If you want to pre order your copy, you can get it in Amazon, wherever
Wor
Mentakl place you are in the world. For now it’s only in English but a Spanish version is
H
Instituteealth being translated as we speak.

As you can see, we are gearing up for the mental health tsunami. If you
want help to get ready too, drop us a line and we’ll be glad to chat.

Have a mentally healthy month!

2 WORKLIFE | AUGUST 2019


T
There’s nothing more
upsetting and frustrating
than when you live years of
your life focussed on some
goal, just to have it swept
from under you at the last
minute, unfairly.
Even worse when it seems to
happen again and again, and
you start from scratch yet
again, each time.
Can you relate to that? It
would demoralise anyone.
Except a driven person. A
leader of people. And that’s
exactly what John Rankins
is, a leader of people. Over
4000 salespeople to be
precise. A veritable fleet of
high performers.
4 WORKLIFE | AUGUST 2019
JOHN
aR nkins
Leading through Let
Downs and Hardships
Peter Diaz, CEO of the Education – he had passed
Workplace Mental Health the test and got the license,
Institute, interviewed John but was failed because
Rankins to get inside his head of absenteeism. The next
and figure out what lead him year, same thing again – he
to such success as a Leader. had Straight A’s, but didn’t
take the finals. This time he
In the interview John shares made sure, the school said
how he was raised by a single it would be OK, because of
Mum, with so little money his straight A’s, but when he
that he and his brothers had moved to a new school they
to work at nights after school, refused to transfer the credit
sorting corporate trash, to so this time he had to repeat
make money to help keep the Year 10 as well!
household going. Because
of his work, despite having Faced with so many set
straight A’s at school, he was backs, and the unfair
failed for non attendance, situations, many people
and had to repeat Year 9. would give up. And in fact
the statistics show that
And the same thing many people, young men
happened with his Driver’s especially, in John’s situation
do go down a path of
hopelessness, addiction,
crime and so on.
But John turned it around. In
the interview he shares how
that happened, and how to
keep going when life keeps
knocking you down and you
feel like giving up.
He tells how he went
on to build companies
across the world, leading
teams of thousands, how
he gets buy in and keeps
teams motivated towards
common goals.
Specifically, he shares the
core values that he and
his team work and live
by, and more importantly,
how they are applied in
practice. Because values
aren’t just some nice
words to put up on the
office wall, they have to be
actually implemented, and
embedded into action at
the workplace.

Socratic Leadership
John Rankins mentions in
the interview that he uses
a Socratic Leadership style.
It’s a term you may have
heard before, but in practice,
many Leaders don’t really
understand or struggle to
implement, for one reason or
another.
Socratic Leadership is based
on questioning techniques
used by Socrates 2500 years
ago, which helped his students
to reflect on and examine their
own knowledge and beliefs.
A Socratic Leader therefore,
asks questions and encourages
discussion to help develop
their team member’s ability
to analyse problems and
determine their own solutions,
rather than simply issuing
orders and directions.
It’s been said that a great
Leader is one who creates
other leaders. And that’s what
this style of Leadership points
to. While it may take a greater
investment in time and effort
initially, ultimately it means
that your staff can operate
much more independently, and
rather than having to micro
manage each task or problem
that arises, you as a Leader
can have the confidence that
the individuals are able to fully
assess a situation and respond
appropriately, as empowered
individuals with the authority
to act within their delegation.
When you have a team of
capable and empowered
individuals, it allows you as the
Leader to go to the next level
yourself.

WORKLIFE | AUGUST 2019 5

 FLIGHT
FRIGHT
t rat e gies
S e a ling
r d
fo ith
w bia
ho
aviop
A
Aviophobia is the fear of flying in an
aeroplane or other aircraft, and can affect
people from a mild discomfort to a compelling
urge to avoid flying leading to intense distress
when avoidance isn’t possible. The statistics
vary wildly on the number of people affected
by aviophobia, from one in six people to fifty
percent of the population.
It is thought that aviophobia can stem from
an existing fear that extends to include
flying due to similarities in the features of
the phobia (such as fear of confined spaces,
or fear of heights). For others it may be
the result of a specific trauma experienced
during flight (severe turbulence is often
cited as the origin by sufferers, as well
as mechanical incidents), and it is also
suggested that aviophobia is experienced
by those unwilling to give up control (to
pilots, maintenance teams and air traffic
controllers).
6 WORKLIFE | JUNE
AUG 2019
OR
As an adolescent I had been so thrilled by
the experience of flying. Within a few short
years, however, the chore of flying had
become an exhausting experience due to
the anxiety I experienced both during the
flight and in the week leading up to one.
Looking back, I suspect some car accidents
in which I had been the passenger (without
control) had sparked my fear of relinquishing
control over my safety. My search for a
solution turned up some interesting, helpful,
and unusual approaches.
Objective safety data
Many courses to reduce the fear of flying
provide relevant and reassuring information
from authorities in the field of aviation safety,
regarding the engineering and manufacture
of aircraft, maintenance procedures,
aerodynamics, pilot training, weather
considerations, safety features of aircraft,
and the reason for those vibrations and noises that
whirr, clunk and whine during flight.
Reassurance
The feelings of panic can be equally as scary as
the flight itself. It can alleviate the fear of feeling
fearful to learn that those are normal physical
sensations that are amplified when we feel that
our safety is threatened, and that those feelings
are not harmful.
One step at a time
Graded exposure is a commonly used technique
for reducing phobias. Psychologists prepare
individuals with relaxation strategies and
learning to challenge uncomfortable thoughts,
before exposing them to air flight in a stepped
process. They may initially spend time in a
departure lounge, using the learned techniques
until their levels of distress are low. The next
step may be to sit on a plane whilst at the gate
until the anxiety returns to low levels (requiring
the collaboration of airlines, which may be one
reason why popular programs are those offered
It is thought that aviophobia can stem from an existing
fear that extends to include flying due to similarities
in the features of the phobia (such as fear of confined
spaces, or fear of heights).
by the airlines themselves, but are becoming
increasingly offered as virtual reality exposure
due to the flexibility and affordability it offers).
Using the techniques they have learned,
participants in these courses often graduate with
a completed flight.
Squeeze Please!
One unorthodox approach was shared by British
Airways pilot Andy Shaw during the company’s
fear of flying course at Heathrow Airport. Andy’s
guidance to participants was to “breathe and
squeeze”, a process of clenching the muscles in
one’s bottom. An apparent attempt at distraction,
perhaps the pilot had discovered a simple form of
mindfulness? With a similar focus on distraction
and focus, US pilot, Captain Ron Nielson, suggests
repeatedly writing your name on a piece of paper
with your non-dominant hand in the presence of
turbulence or anxiety.
Go low
Booking a seat at the front of the plane (where
the seat numbers are lower) will limit the
amount of movement caused by turbulence. The
tail experiences the least amount of stability, so
bumps are felt more at the back, but even this is
nothing to be concerned about. Turbulence is to
a plane like a dirt road is to a car – they are both
designed to manage these conditions, and the
pilot will adjust flight speed and altitude to make
the flight more comfortable.
Scrambled strategy
I had tried all of the above approaches, except
the butt-clenching thing – that’s new! The fear
of flying for me hadn’t improved markedly or
over the long term with any therapy, until I
experienced relief from an unexpected source.
A process used in neuro-linguistics designed to
playfully confuse the strategy for fearfulness
in particular settings was used with my fear of
flying, specifically addressing the visual, audio
and kinaesthetic cues I experienced in order
to feel fear. The process itself took around
25 minutes, did not involve hypnosis, and
effectively obliterated my fear of flying. That
was in 2010, and the fear has not returned,
despite experiencing a number of moderate
to severely turbulent flights since. Turbulence
nowadays feels like a disappointing roller-
coaster, or a hammock that is rocking me into
deep relaxation.
Studies have shown numerous other approaches
to be effective in reducing aviophobia1. There isn’t
one approach that is universally recommended, but
one thing is undoubted – the fear of flying won’t
get better on its own. Good luck!
WORKLIFE | JUNE
AUG 2019 7
 Taking it to the top
I
What to do about conflict with the boss
Interpersonal conflict is a familiar issue in
many workplaces. A misunderstanding that
never gets resolved, passive-aggressive
exclusion leaving one feeling isolated, or
even loud verbal disagreements fall into
the varied descriptions of this problem.
Each of these is challenging for those
involved, but the stakes are even
higher when there seems to be conflict
with the boss. The presence of the
corporate psychopath is well discussed in
psychological literature; they do exist and
can take a huge personal toll on others.
8 WORKLIFE | AUGUST 2019
Most conflict with managers is based
on a lack of awareness of expectations,
miscommunication or misinterpretation.
How do you go about addressing this
concern, without jeopardising your job?
Consider the following approaches.
1.  Don’t wait too long
If it is the first sign of conflict and you’ve
only been with the team for a short while,
it may be that there are communication
nuances you have not yet identified
– this may not be conflict at all but a
misunderstanding. Addressing
your concerns without
too much procrastination
will help to prevent one
experience leading to similar
misinterpretations. Regardless
of tenure or if the hostility
was accurately perceived, the
delay in responding could cost
you more pain in the interim.
Request a meeting and prepare
an agenda to ensure all parties
remain focused on a solution.
2.  Focus on the events
This is not a time for
defensiveness or emotional
accusations. Describe the
events that need to be
addressed, rather than labeling
the individual. Instead of saying,
“You were really dismissive of
my ideas in the meeting” try to
identify actions or events, such
as “The ideas I presented in the
meeting were not explored in as
much depth as I had prepared
for”. Show curiosity, this is an
opportunity to understand what
is important to your supervisor,
“I am interested to understand
the reasons for that.”
3.  Listen to the feedback
/ understand supervisors
expectations
Avoid entering the meeting
looking to confirm your belief
that your boss is a jerk. By this
stage you have probably asked
a question about the events
you’ve raised, so be open to
hearing and understanding
your supervisor’s expectations.
Assess the answer – is the
response reasonable and clear?
You do not have to agree with
the perspective shared with
you, but it is important to try
to view the situation through
their lens, at least temporarily.
4.  Summarise and
prioritise disagreements
Acknowledge the areas that
you agree with your supervisor,
and summarise the points of
differing perspective. It can be
helpful to identify the concerns
that have the highest priority
for your supervisor. This will
help you meet their reasonable
expectations in the future
and avoid further conflict
through miscommunication
or misinterpretation. “Could
we discuss the issues that
concern you the most so that
we can develop a strategy for
improvement straight away?”
5.  Agree on a strategy to
address problems
Be clear on what ‘better’ looks
like to your supervisor. If
they are not specific in their
guidance, or do not provide
examples of the concerns they
have had in the past, approach
with curiosity to get clarity
on the end result. “You’ve
said you’d like me to be more
assertive; could you give me
an example of what would you
have to see, hear or experience
that would let you know I had
met that standard?” Clarify
your understanding with
conditional questions such as,
“If I was to be address these
concerns by doing XYZ, would
that be a step in the right
direction?”
6.  Follow up the meeting
with a summary in writing
If your supervisor’s requests
have been reasonable and
aligned with your role, send a
brief summary of the outcomes
in an email to your supervisor,
taking the opportunity to
thank them for the time they
took to help you understand
their expectations. Outline
the agreements and actions
identified. This serves as an
additional form of clarification,
as well as accountability. It will
also be useful to have a record
of this communication in case
the conflict worsens.
7.  Keep your end of the deal
Don’t agree to anything in the
meeting that you do not intend
to honour in your actions.
Ensure that you keep up your
end of the agreed outcomes.
Look for examples of the same
respect from your supervisor,
and record agregious acts of
conflict should they arise.
8.  Maintain safe
boundaries
Approaching your
supervisor in response to
perceived conflict is the
most appropriate first step
in developing a mutually
respectful dialogue. Should
you notice additional acts of
conflict however, consider
your options. It may be
necessary to speak to
Human Resources to assist
in resolving the concerns, or
to an Employee Assistance
Program provider who could
help you consider your next
actions. Your employer has a
legal responsibility to provide
a safe workplace, and that
includes psychological safety.
Do not tolerate inappropriate
behaviour, including but not
limited to acts of violence,
behaviour that humiliates or
denigrates you, or criticism
of you as a person rather
than discussions about work-
specific behaviour.
WORKLIFE | AUGUST 2019 9
 FOOD FOR
THOUGHT al clarity and focus
ds that boost ment
Foo
S
Stress does a lot of things to our physical
body, behaviour, emotions and our
cognitive capacity. Whilst it is true that
some stress is necessary for optimal
functioning in each of these areas, it is also
true that an excess of stress is responsible
for a range of undesireable outcomes,
including poor food choices.
Chronic stress can result in feelings of
fatigue and low energy, leading to food
choices that are easily converted to sugar
(energy) by the body. These processed
starches and other high glycemic index
foods are chosen because they help us feel
more energised, and alert very quickly.
This might be helpful for a short period of
time, however the resulting insulin response
leads to a rapid decrease of glucose in the
system, which triggers another cortisol
release! This in turn impacts mental focus
and clarity once more.
So, to prevent or respond to that 3pm
energy slump and sugar cravings, here are
some foods that are helpful in boosting
mental focus without spiking insulin.
10 WORKLIFE | AUGUST 2019
Blueberries
It might seem
incredulous, but
these small, dark
blue bubbles of
goodness have
been
demonstrated to
improved concentration and memory for
several hours after consumption. Studies
have shown that the antioxidants present
mainly in the skin of blueberries
(anthocyanins, resveratrol and
pranthocyanidins) boost mental focus.
British scientist, Dr Jeremy Spencer of
Reading University, found that flavonoids
in blueberries boosted mental clarity and
focus at minimal levels within an hour of
consumption, but a considerable
advantage was observed in tests
conducted five hours after the
blueberries were eaten1. Spencer points
out that this benefit is not unique to
blueberries, referring to studies that
indicate other foods containing
flavonoids are effective at boosting
cognitive focus, too.
Green tea
Want an energy drink
that gives you more
than heart
palpitations? Green
tea is the answer to
mental clarity without
the caffeine and sugar
jitters. Green tea contains a compound called
L-theanine, as well as a dose of caffeine. The
L-theanine assists to slow down the
absorption of the caffeine in the body,
avoiding a caffeine spike (with increased
sympathetic nervous system activity) and the
subsequent energy crash. L-theanine has also
been shown to increase the activity of alpha-
wave frequency in the brain, leading to
feelings of tranquillity that counter the effects
of the caffeine. Together, caffeine and
L-theanine increase focused attention, and
lead to improvements in speed and accuracy2.
Leafy green vegetables
When it comes to
leafy green
vegetables, the darker
the green the more
enriched the benefits.
Leafy green
vegetables and herbs
are rich sources of antioxidants and
carotenoids, providing a boost to your brain
power, and helping to protect your
brain3. Leafy green vegetables are sources of
B-vitamins and folic acid, which are proven to
help your memory, focus, mental clarity and
brain health”. They also contain folic acid,
which improves your mental clarity4.
Tuna and Salmon
OK, we understand
the desire for all
tuna-fish lunch eaters
to enjoy their meal in
a well-ventilated area
(preferably in the
courtyard), but oily
fish is a productivity hack that could well be
encouraged! These fish contains omega-3
fatty acids, essential for good health, which
also improve memory and mental
performance. A deficiency of omega-3 has
been linked to poor memory, depression,
mood swings and low energy5, whilst those
enjoying oily fish such as salmon, trout,
mackerel, sardines, herring or kippers are
likely to experience improvements in mood
and concentration6.
Water
Getting your eight
glasses a day? If not,
your work may be
suffering. Not a food
per se, however if you
want to improve your
focus, you need to
drink enough water. Water has been proven
to help you think faster, be more focused, and
experience greater clarity and creativity7. The
average person in the US drinks less than one
litre of water per day, yet the average adult
will lose more than twice that amount
through talking, breathing, sweating and
nocturnal trans-dermal moisture loss. Studies
have shown that if you are only 1 percent
dehydrated, you will likely have a 5 percent
decrease in cognitive function. At brain
dehydration levels of 2 percent, brain fog,
short-term memory problems, trouble
focusing and impacted numerical reasoning is
observed in trials7.
Dark chocolate
No need to thank us,
this is science. Dark
chocolate can help
you focus for a
number of reasons.
Cacao contains a
small amount of
caffeine, which heightens mental alertness,
and also contains magnesium, which reduces
stress. Dark chocolate also stimulates the
release of endorphins and serotonin, both of
which are feel-good, mood-enhancing
substances. One study has shown that
consuming between 520mg and 990mg of
cocoa flavonols per day for sixty days (hot
cocoa was used for the study) improved
cognitive performance in research subjects8.
WORKLIFE | AUGUST 2019 11
 3 WAYS
MUSIC
Can Transform Your Life

M
By Emi Golding

Music has been an important time at a party, we need to very complex, and partially
part of human societies select the right tone of music. subjective experience. Music
since the beginning of time. modulates the brain’s limbic
Ancient artworks from all So as an individual on a day system, triggering numerous
cultures show music of to day basis, you too can use neurochemical effects which
one form or another being music to get you into the interrupt the pain-stress-pain
played as an integral part of state you want to be in. Need loop, and therefore alters the
celebrations and other rituals.some confidence before experience of pain. It can also
that important presentation inhibit the release of stress
Neuroscientific studies are or meeting? Put on your hormones, and may affect
now showing that humans ‘confidence booster’ songs. the brain’s opioid system.
are hard wired to respond to Want to get into a state of
music. Hearing is developed relaxation and unwinding? Music may help
in the womb long before Put on some relaxed tunes. Memory and Cognition
sight, and music stimulates Want to cheer yourself up? In Dementia and
more parts of the brain than Play some of your favourite Alzheimer’s
any other human function. happy songs and sing along
to get yourself into a better There is emerging evidence
And yet, so often we forget mood. It’s been shown that that music interventions,
about the potential power of listening to music actually may help not just the
music to help us in our daily increases the amount of wellbeing and behaviour
lives. Here are 3 ways that dopamine produced in the of people with various
music can transform your life. brain. type so dementia, but it
may also have cognitive
You can use Music to You can use Music to benefits. A recent study
Change Your Emotional Manage Pain showed that in people with
State Subjective Cognitive Decline
A study of more than 7000 (a precursor to Alzheimer’s
We all know that music has people who underwent Disease), listening to
a huge impact on mood. surgery, found that those music for 12 minutes a day
When you watch a movie, who played music after their for 3 months resulted in
music is used to create fear procedure reported less pain significant improvements in
in a scary movie, or pull on and anxiety than those who subjective memory function
our heartstrings in sad story, didn’t, and were less likely to and objective cognitive
or inspire us with hope in need pain medication. performance on functions
a drama, and so on. We including attention, executive
instinctively know that if we This is thought to be because functioning, processing
want people to have a good the experience of pain is a speed, and memory.

12 WORKLIFE | JUNE
AUG 2019
WORKLIFE | AUGUST 2019 13