Happy New Year

It’s hard to believe that it was really 30 years ago that ABBA sang “Happy New Year” with the following lyrics:

It’s the end of the decade

In another 10 years time

Who can say what we’ll find

What lies waiting down the line

In the end of ’89….

As we approach the end of 2009, let’s think about those words. In another ten years time, who can say what we’ll find?

You can. It’s the end of the decade, the first decade of the new millennium. And it’s up to you what lies waiting down the line at the end of 2019.

Happy new year!!!

(Start the new year with a bang: give yourself a Working Style Analysis today and find out how to make 2010 the best year of your life.)

Happy Holidays from Creative Learning

Whatever your latitude and longitude, whatever your culture and traditions, here at Creative Learning we wish you a joyful, peaceful and rewarding holiday season. We look forward to seeing you back in 2010... oh, and incidentally, although our offices will be closed between 24 December 2009 and 11 January 2010, we will still be reading your emails, so keep in touch.

(the photos are of celebrating Christmas New-Zealand style)

The Best Christmas Gift

With Christmas approaching fast, and your bank account emptying even faster, do you ever pause to bemoan the consumer culture we live in? Do you ever wonder what happens to your gift after Christmas and whether it’s used or stored in the cupboard? Do you sometimes think that the best things in life aren’t things?

This season, we have a perfect gift for your friends and family: their individual Working Style. Just think about it: would you rather give someone a plastic gadget or the gift of health and de-stressing?

The elements that may contribute to tension levels include:

· the amount of light in the workplace

· room temperature,

· time of day,

· change

· chaos or excessive neatness

· others.

If your loved ones work in circumstances that are mismatched with their Working Style, they can seriously harm their health. Stress is the silent killer of the 21^st century - don’t let it happen!

Give them a gift of a good life.

Give them a Working Style Analysis today for a full report of things they should avoid.

Survive Christmas with Working Styles

Does the thought of the Festive Season stir up mixed emotions in you? Are you dreading the onslaught of business, chaos and the relatives?

You’re not alone. For many people Christmas is not the joyful holiday it’s portrayed to be by the media. While we’re not exactly “The Grinch Who Stole Christmas”, nor Ebenezer Scrooge in “A Christmas Carol”, most of us probably wonder from time to time where all the magic has gone.

But did you know that your individual Working Style can be to blame for your attitude towards the season’s celebrations?

Have a look at your Working Style report in your Creative Learning account (or complete your Working Style Analysis if you don’t have one). If your report shows a non-preference in one or more of the following aspects, Christmas festivities are probably more of a trial than a joy to you:

· a non-preference for working in groups,

· a non-preference for a noisy environment,

· a non-preference for change,

· a non-preference for external motivation…

… just to name a few (click here to see the others).

Also, depending on your Working Style, you might find yourself over-stimulated by the many Christmas decorations in the shops and at home, or overwhelmed by the auditory input of all the carollers singing off-key.

Are you ready for Christmas? Find out today.

Summer, Winter and Job Satisfaction

Are you happy in your job right now? Close your eyes and think about it for a moment. Got it? Good. Now look back six months - did you, in general, feel differently about your office, your boss, your work?

We live in a dynamic world, where many factors influence our lives and jobs. That’s why you may not even realise that some of your attitudes, stress levels and the degree of your job satisfaction may lie in something as simple and as natural as the seasons.

Yes, the seasons. As in, Summer and Winter. While the Northern Hemisphere is bracing for the cold and the dark, the Southern Hemisphere is bathing in bright hot sunshine. As the result, some people will become more lethargic or more agitated. Some people’s work performance will plummet, while others will feel renewed energy - all because of their Working Styles and their preference for light versus darkness or heat versus the cold.

Of course, light and temperature are not the only factors contributing to your work productivity. Other elements include:

· formal / informal work environment

· noise levels,

· time of day,

· your optimal team,

· and many others.

Complete your Working Style Analysis today for a full report of factors that may influence your job satisfaction.