Dear SafetyXChange Members,

Yesterday, a colleague e-mailed me something interesting. It was an article basically reminding the reader of the need to carefully manage our work relationships so that others don't take advantage of us. My first reaction: "Why in the world is she sending me an article like this?"

Confessions of a Deadline Dreader

Upon reflection, I think I know what she was trying to tell me. You see, I'm one of those people who take deadlines seriously. Very seriously. So seriously, in fact, that if I see one of the members of my team falling behind, I'll take over the work to ensure that it gets done. There are, of course, repercussions to doing this, not the least of which is the extra work I create for myself.

Coping with Deadline Dread

Published by Chief Learning Officer, Keeping Vacation Time Stress-Free: The Art of Crucial Conversations recommends tips for communicating with members of your team and even your boss when their behavior could foist work they are responsible for into your own lap when you least expect it.

It is possible to eliminate this deadline-driven stress. But it takes advance planning. You need to be aware of how your colleagues "dump" or "dawdle" and take steps to prevent it early, before the deadline starts to loom. Otherwise, you'll find yourself simply giving in to the pressure when the deadline approaches and it becomes clear that a colleague isn't going to do his or her part to ensure that the deadline is met.

This article sets out a proactive strategy you can use to avoid having this happen to you. More specifically, it tells those who manage a team how to communicate to ensure that the dawdlers and the dumpers pull their weight and do their fair share of the work - and do it on time. And if you happen to be one of the dawdlers and dumpers, you should read this article because it might make you feel guilty enough to change your ways!

You can get the article here .

Parting Thought

"You need to overcome the tug of people against you as you reach for high goals."

George S. Patton

Wishing you career success!

Lauryn Franzoni
www.ExecuNet.Com

POINT OF CLARIFICATION

Are ANSI and CSA Standards Voluntary?

Some of you have questioned the part of yesterday's article about teaching fall protection that characterized ANSI and CSA fall protection standards as "voluntary." Let me take a moment to clarify.

Technically, the standards published by ANSI, CSA and similar organizations are in fact voluntary. That's because these standards organizations aren't governmental bodies and don't have authority to enact laws and regulations.

However, the legislature can put something in their occupational health and safety laws that requires a company to follow ANSI or CSA standards. This is called "incorporation by reference." In essence, the CSA standard becomes part of the law. Occupational health and safety laws of federal, state and provincial governments have done this with fall protection standards.

The SafetyXChange compliance newsletter will do a series about the differences between OSHA and OHS laws and ANSI standards in a future issue. In the meantime, we apologize for any confusion caused by yesterday's story.

Glenn Demby
SafetyXChange
Editor-in-Chief

PROFESSIONAL BURNOUT

Work & Life Not Balancing

Are you putting in longer hours at work?

Are you spending a lot of your free time worrying about your job?

Do you feel guilty when you take a day off?

If you answered "yes" to these questions, you're not alone. In a recent survey of 600 employees, more than 60 percent said they feel the same way and that they are doing a lousy job of balancing their work and personal lives.

But don't blame the employers. Fifty-four percent said that their companies encourage them to have a life outside their work. But almost 80 percent said their companies don't match the rhetoric with sponsored activities such as intramural sports.

Source: www.TrueCareers.com

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