How to Manage a Chronic Condition at Work
I'm going to leave disclosure to its own, future blog post but in the meantime, I thought I would share what has worked for me and helped me be effective at work.
I can't tell you how in control of my day I feel when I have just half an hour at the start of the day to plan my actions and prepare for meetings. I work between several buildings which can mean I to and fro, but I try to plan subsequent meetings in one building to avoid using up too much precious energy.
Time & Meetings
This applies to anyone who works part-time but is also relevant when you have cognitive challenges. I add 'Keep free' slots to my Outlook calendar and I'm pretty protective of these. They allow me to build in breaks or and to generally catch up. Where I can, I schedule meetings for the morning or straight after lunch. This means I am more able to contribute effectively, than be the one that slurs her words and cannot keep up. It means I can look like the professional I know I am.
Avoiding Pain
Ask for a workstation assessment from HR or Health & Safety. This will mean that you won't be hurting yourself in the short or long-terms - I've learned a lot about how my chair can support me (I know more than I'd like about bloody chairs!), and how I can stop my neck hurting from adjusting my monitor height. I also can't stand for long, but in my work I often do workshops that last 90 minutes. Seeing as I'm quite a kinaesthetic presenter (i.e. I can't stand still because of all the energy I have about my subject!), I tend to move around a lot, usually into the audience aisle so a long-range clicker is great for moving Power Point slides. I also build in group activity so can sit if I need to.
Socialising
I am pretty rubbish at night. I find word-finding very difficult and find myself the most sedentary I am all day. I often have to record TV programmes because this old lady is asleep by 9pm! Therefore, when there is a 'do' of some kind after work, I tend not to be able to say yes. I'd like to, but I know the consequences all too well. So I make an effort to have lunch or coffees with people. I personally think this makes a greater impact as it enriches the friendships.
Asking for help
I know, I know, when you want to be fully independent this is the hardest thing! However, I've found that if am more transparent with managers and colleagues, it strengthens our relationships, building trust and honesty. If you have an issue, it's might be good to be up front as it could be that this needs addressing through more training, workload reduction or looking at certain bits in a different way (e.g. could some bits be completed at a later date?).
Feel free to share anything you've learned helps you at work, in the comments below.
Working Pattern & Hours
I work on Monday, Wednesday and Friday, so there is always a day in between to allow me to live at my own pace. An unusual pattern, it also means the business doesn't have to wait for me for more than a day. I work more effectively in the mornings, so whilst I don't work reduced hours, I do move them up to start earlier than everyone else. This also means I miss rush hour - no pain, no stress.Memory
If, like me, you have the world's worst memory, you'll be the sort of person that makes notes. So it will come as no surprise to you that I use multiple media to support my memory:- Personal organiser - I'm fastidious about putting entries in one place, in one calendar and I feel it's important to separate work from home so this is just for home (might be different if I were self-employed)
- Project Notebook - This notebook is split into three tabs, one for 'to do' lists, one for meetings and another for everything else. It helps me find things more easily when I need to refer back.
- Outlook - I put flags on lots of emails to remind me in case I miss something - I hate dropping a ball! I put private reminders for things like taking meds at work.
- Phone reminder - if I think of any actions and I'm travelling, etc, I'll pop this in one place and schedule it to go off on the morning of the next day I'm at work.
I can't tell you how in control of my day I feel when I have just half an hour at the start of the day to plan my actions and prepare for meetings. I work between several buildings which can mean I to and fro, but I try to plan subsequent meetings in one building to avoid using up too much precious energy.
Time & Meetings
This applies to anyone who works part-time but is also relevant when you have cognitive challenges. I add 'Keep free' slots to my Outlook calendar and I'm pretty protective of these. They allow me to build in breaks or and to generally catch up. Where I can, I schedule meetings for the morning or straight after lunch. This means I am more able to contribute effectively, than be the one that slurs her words and cannot keep up. It means I can look like the professional I know I am.
Avoiding Pain
Ask for a workstation assessment from HR or Health & Safety. This will mean that you won't be hurting yourself in the short or long-terms - I've learned a lot about how my chair can support me (I know more than I'd like about bloody chairs!), and how I can stop my neck hurting from adjusting my monitor height. I also can't stand for long, but in my work I often do workshops that last 90 minutes. Seeing as I'm quite a kinaesthetic presenter (i.e. I can't stand still because of all the energy I have about my subject!), I tend to move around a lot, usually into the audience aisle so a long-range clicker is great for moving Power Point slides. I also build in group activity so can sit if I need to.
Socialising
I am pretty rubbish at night. I find word-finding very difficult and find myself the most sedentary I am all day. I often have to record TV programmes because this old lady is asleep by 9pm! Therefore, when there is a 'do' of some kind after work, I tend not to be able to say yes. I'd like to, but I know the consequences all too well. So I make an effort to have lunch or coffees with people. I personally think this makes a greater impact as it enriches the friendships.
Asking for help
I know, I know, when you want to be fully independent this is the hardest thing! However, I've found that if am more transparent with managers and colleagues, it strengthens our relationships, building trust and honesty. If you have an issue, it's might be good to be up front as it could be that this needs addressing through more training, workload reduction or looking at certain bits in a different way (e.g. could some bits be completed at a later date?).
Feel free to share anything you've learned helps you at work, in the comments below.
