Hi, I'm Bruce Daisley. I work at Twitter but in my spare time I've been studying work culture and how we can be happier at work. Work has become this sort of colossal game of Jenga where we're trying to add things on top or still keep everything standing up and stable. I've put together some thoughts on ways that we can make our lives a lot less stressful. Half of all people who have checked their emails outside of work hours show signs of high levels of stress. The very easiest thing you can do to reduce your stress levels from work is take the number off your email app, that single act is the simplest thing we can do to reduce our stress levels. The second-best change that anyone can make is to take a lunch break. The habit of eating 'al desco' has become so common now it's contributing to an increase in our stress levels and I understand when you're sitting at your desk, you're thinking you've got a hundred emails left walking away and taking a break can feel really counter-intuitive but scientists have found the best way to ensure that you feel energized is to take that pause. You might want to try a monk mode morning. More and more of us are finally get hard to get things done because of all the interruptions. A guy called Cal Newport who's a professor at Georgetown University in Washington, he wrote a book called Deep Work and one of the ideas he gave was that we should think about having a monk mode morning. Well monk mode is where we go somewhere that is silent, there's no interruptions, we maybe get a block of ninety minutes work done, maybe twice a week, then we go to the office as normal, added advantages we've missed the commute, and got our emails and our meetings done.
Some interesting research from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology shows that one of the best ways to increase workplace creativity is to increase the amount of chat, and actually, that can be a chat about last night's TV, that can be a chat about what's happening in sports games, because normally those conversations then lead to work discussions. It's a strange thing that by encouraging people to have more chats we're actually going to be achieving more at work. But the research seems to suggest that the most creative offices are the ones that chat the most. Ben Waber, one of the researchers, said that one of the best ways to increase creativity in your office is to move the location of the coffee machine. By having the coffee machine, the kettle, the water cooler, in a different place you'll actually lead to more people having discussions, conversations.
“maybe that's not the best idea”
Scientists have found that one of the biggest barriers to being creative in our jobs is stress, and all of us with our phones feel more stressed than ever before. You need to give yourself permission to have a digital Sabbath, to take time away from your work at the weekend, for a bit of refreshment, a bit of renewal. Discourage your boss from emailing at the weekend because it leads to people feeling anxious when they come back to work on Monday. Anxious people can't be creative. I think in the current world we often celebrate overwork and people working long hours. The magazine profiles we read, the TV profiles we see are about people who work these enormous long working weeks. And in fact, all of the evidence is starting to point to the fact that maybe that's not the best idea. Maybe 40 hours of work a week is the right amount. Use our breaks and our evenings as times to re-energize ourselves so when we come back to our desks, we're full of life. Doing 40 hours of work is probably enough.
Questions:
Part 1: Comprehension
Watch and summarize the video thinking of who, what, when, where & why.
Part 2: True or False Questions
a) True or false – We should delete all social media from our phones. T/F
b) True or False – We should tell our boss not to email on weekends. T/F
c) True or False – We should talk more to our colleagues even if it’s not work-related. T/F
d) True or False – Stress helps motivate employees to work faster. T/F
Part 3: Guess the meaning of unknown vocabulary.
a) "Colossal" (0:11 min)
b) "Counter-intuitive" (1:01 min)
c) "Sabbath" (2:41 min)
d) "Full of life" (3:23 min)
Part 4: Dictation
a) Fill in the blanks (0:33 - 0:43 minutes) The very _________________________________________________________________ stress levels.
b) Fill in the blanks (2:01- 2:07 minutes) It's a _______________________________________________________________________at work.
c) Fill in the blanks (2:57 - 3:02 minutes) I think ____________________________________________________________________ hours.
Part 5: Talking Points
Part 6: Role play Scenarios
Scenario 1: Email Boundaries
Two colleagues are discussing their work-life balance and the stress of constantly checking emails. One colleague suggests taking the number off their email app to reduce stress, while the other is hesitant. They discuss the pros and cons and come to a decision together.
Scenario 2: The Importance of Lunch Breaks
Two coworkers are chatting during their lunch break. One of them always eats at their desk while the other takes a break outside of the office. They discuss the benefits of taking a proper lunch break, including increased energy and productivity, and the downsides of constantly working through lunch.
Scenario 3: Monk Mode Morning
Two coworkers are discussing a recent book they read about work productivity. One coworker suggests trying out "monk mode morning" and the other is curious. They discuss the benefits of working in a quiet, distraction-free environment and plan out when they could implement this idea.
Part 7: Writing Activity
Describe your daily routine in a much detail as possible?
Part 8: Critical Thinking - Workplace Stress Reduction Plan
Objective: To develop a workplace stress reduction plan that is agreeable to all team members.
Instructions:
- Work in groups.
- Each group should read the article and discuss the key points related to workplace stress reduction.
- In each group, assign one member to take notes on the group discussion and write down the group's stress reduction plan.
- Each group should present their stress reduction plan to the class.
- After all the groups have presented their plans, the class should discuss and come to a consensus on a final stress reduction plan that incorporates the best ideas from all the groups.
Answers:
Part 1: Comprehension
This video was created by the BBC, a UK broadcasting service. They have asked Twitter Vice-President, Bruce Daisley to give his thoughts on the hot topic of work-life balance. I think they have asked for his opinion on this matter because we can imagine that he has a pretty busy schedule and would know how to create an effective work/life balance strategy. In the video, Mr. Daisley recommends 6 tips for a good work-life balance, and these include; turning off the number on the email application, taking a lunch break, talking more, having a monk morning, and having a digital sabbath. He proposes that if we follow these tips, we will have less stress and be able to function better at work, and have a better life outside of work.
Part 2: True or False
A: False B: True C: True D: False
Part 3: Guess the meaning of unknown vocabulary or phrases.
a) "Colossal" Answer: I think in this situation colossal means extremely large because in the listening the speaker is talking about adding so much additional work and tasks to our lives meaning that work is like a huge/colossal game of Jenga.
b) "Counter-intuitive" Answer: I think it means contrary to expectation because in the listening the speaker states that we may think taking a break from work would mean that we would get less done but actually, we would get more done because we would feel refreshed.
c) "Sabbath" Answer: I think that sabbath means to take a break or undergo a period of abstinence from something because the speaker talks about not using our mobile phones during our free time.
d) "Full of life" Answer: From the listening, I think being full of life means having lots of energy because in the listening the speaker talks about working fewer hours (under 40) and not working longer hours as this will make us tired. If we work under 40 hours, we will have more energy and be full of life.
Part 4: Dictation
a) Fill in the blanks (0:33 - 0:43 minutes) The very easiest thing you can do to reduce your stress levels from work is take the number off your email app, that single act is the simplest thing we can do to reduce our stress levels.
b) Fill in the blanks (2:01- 2:07 minutes) It's a strange thing that by encouraging people to have more chats we're actually going to be achieving more at work.
c) Fill in the blanks (2:57 - 3:02 minutes) I think in the current world we often celebrate overwork and people working long hours.
Part 7: Writing (example)
As a software engineer at LG, my daily routine involves writing and fixing computer programs for LG's products like smartphones, smart TVs, and more. I begin my day by checking emails and planning my tasks. Then, I spend a lot of time writing code and making sure it works well. I also look at my colleagues' code and tell them what's good or what needs improvement. Sometimes, I have to find and fix problems in the software. I have meetings with my team to discuss our progress and challenges. I also take time to learn new things about programming. Overall, I work hard to create good software and make LG's products better.
