A Month Later

I can't believe it was a month ago today that we finally closed on our new house. The last month has really flown by. I still don't feel completely settled in, but we are making progress. Hopefully before long we can have everything put away, tax season will be over with, and the church construction project will be finished and we can simply start enjoying ourselves again. Brian and I are both really ready for a break. He has been putting in a lot of hours at church, on top of work. I have been working way more overtime than I really anticipated. We both are overwhelmed and exhausted. But this too shall pass, and before long we will be able to just have some down time with nothing planned. I can't wait!!!

Getting Through the Day

For any of you that know me personally, you probably know that we have been having a rough time at my workplace for a while now. There have been changes over the last few months. And even though most of the changes are for the good, any change can be difficult at times. With recent personnel changes, training, and attitudes on top of the regular everyday challenges of any job, it's enough to make me want to throw up my hands and just quit some days. However, if you can say anything about me, it's that I am not a quitter. Even if I was independently wealthy and didn't need this job, I would never just quit. So, what have I done to deal with all of this? Well I went to the only instruction manual any of us really need - the Bible.

Actually, God kind of just revealed some scripture to me. I was flipping through one Sunday evening at church, trying to find the scripture the pastor was referencing when one of the headings in my Bible just jumped off the page at me. It simply said "On the Job."

Servants, be obedient to them that are your masters according to the flesh, with fear and trembling, in singleness of your heart, as unto Christ; Not with eyeservice, as menpleasers; but as the servants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart; With good will doing service, as to the Lord, and not to men: Ephesians 6:5-7

As soon as I read those words, I realized that it is my duty to do my job to the best of my ability, to follow the instructions given to me, and to do my job as though I am working for Christ himself, and not just when the boss is looking. While that may seem elementary, how many of us actually treat our bosses as we would treat Christ if He was signing our paycheck?

So how has this changed anything? Well, that very night I committed that scripture to memory. When things get tough at work, I recall it and say it to myself. I have even used it as a prayer, inserting my name and asking God to help me be the employee he wishes me to be. Has it made everything smooth sailing? No, but I don't expect it to. But it does serve as a reminder of who I am really working for and that He will get me through it all.

And Now...

...back to your regular scheduled programming.

As promised, I am back. I have got to find my blogging groove, but tax season is over and I survived. All in all, it wasn't too bad. I worked a lot of hours, but was blessed not to have to work EVERY Saturday. I managed to make it through without killing anyone, or even biting off any heads. It was touch and go a few times but no one was seriously injured. We had some good part-time help this year and it made all the difference in the world.

I have had my patience tried on several occasions, and even now God is showing me that sometimes I have to wait for His timing. I know He has a plan all worked out, but as usual I want it now. And while I don't even know the detail of His plan, His word tells me in Jeremiah 29:11 -

"For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."

So it's got to be all good, right? He was even speaking to me through the Sunday School lesson I taught just last Sunday. Even when David knew he would be king, he had to wait for God's timing. On more than one occasion, he could have killed King Saul, but God had to prepare David first. David was patient and his patience was rewarded when God's plan was played out in His time. So for now I am trying to be patient and wait for God's plan to be played out before me, because He is God and He doesn't need my help...

A Little Complaining

Ok so I know I have neglected my blog...but only 20 more days till this madness ends. Hopefully before then I will at least get my Easter pictures off my camera so you can see how cute my kids looked.

Since there is little else on my mind these days other than work, I'll let you in on a few secrets of the accounting world:

• Your accountant/tax preparer loves it when you use little yellow sticky notes attached to each bit of information you bring in for your taxes. After all we are not aware of what a W-2 looks like.
• Please feel free to include vague and obscure information that may or may not be relevent to your taxes with no explanation whatsoever.
• Whatever you do - DO NOT leave a current phone number where you can be reached. We enjoy tracking clients down not only to explain the above mentioned vague information but it gives us great pleasure to spend half a day trying to get in touch with you to let you know your return is ready.
• Please use as many staples as you possibly can to attach each piece of paper together. We thoroughly enjoy pulling them each out one by one, and then stepping on them later because they flew across the room since no one has yet thought to make staple pullers magnetic.
• And last but not least - don't bother bringing everything in that is needed to prepare your taxes on your first visit. It is much more convenient to wait until you come in to pick up your tax return for you to tell us that you had thirty-seven pages of deductions that we didn't include. Because after all - we have nothing better to do than to do your tax return twice...

Enough complaining for now - however I do reserve the right to add to this list at any given time.

Psalm 23 - For Work

Psalm 23
(For the Work Place)

The Lord is my real boss, and I shall not want.
He gives me peace, when chaos is all around me.
He gently reminds me to pray and do all things without
murmuring and complaining.

He reminds me that He is my source and not my job.
He restores my sanity every day and guides my decisions
that I might honor Him in all that I do.

Even though I face absurd amounts of e-mails, system
crashes, unrealistic deadlines, budget cutbacks, gossiping
co-workers , discriminating supervisors and an aging body
that doesn't cooperate every morning, I still will not stop---
for He is with me! His presence, His peace, and His power
will see me through.

He raises me up, even when they fail to promote me.
He claims me as His own, even when the company threatens
to let me go. His Faithfulness and love is better than any bonus check.

His retirement plan beats any 401k there is!
When it's all said and done, I'll be working for Him a whole lot longer
and for that, I BLESS HIS NAME!!!!!!

It's That Time of Year - Tax Season

I know what you are thinking...I haven't even got my W-2 yet, how can it be tax season. But did you ever consider that there is some poor soul slaving away out there just so that you and the other 12 zillion employees in the good ole US of A have their W-2 by the end of January. I bet you also didn't realize that it's not just a matter of hitting a button on the computer and suddenly the W-2's are flying off the printer. Oh, don't get me wrong, we COULD do it that way, but like many other things in life there is an easy way to do them and a correct way. And as most of you probably know, the way that seems easiest now usually always just causes more work down the road, and so it is with W-2's. So, for those of you patiently waiting for the end of January to arrive so that you can file for your refund - Thank You for being patient. For those of you that started calling in December to see when your W-2 would be ready - you just got moved to the bottom of the to do list...

Happy New Year

So I am a couple of days late, but happy new year anyway. I have no resolutions to share with you like I have seen on many blogs. I stopped making them a long time ago, because they are a joke anyway right. And why wait until the new year to resolve to do something good, productive, or fun with your life. Each and every morning that God allows us to wake up and get out of bed is a new day full of potential...a fresh start each and every day.

That's how I am approaching the dreaded "tax season" here at work too. One day at a time. Otherwise, I will just be overwhelmed. I started stressing yesterday and it was the first official day. There is so much to do and only so many hours in the day, but I know we will make it through. We always do. It won't be easy. It won't be stress free. But we will make it - on day at a time.

How Rude

The rudeness of people will never cease to amaze me. Last night, we attended Stephen's school Christmas concert. While I understand that listening to a couple of hundred second and third graders sing Christmas carols hardly qualifies as a upscale social event, I was amazed by the amount of talking and chatting that went on among not only the kids (mostly bored teenagers drug there to see their pesky younger siblings) but the adults that were supposedly there to support their children. While I sat an listened to the singing - which was pretty good by the way - there were numerous conversations going on around me that were very distracting.

I don't know if I am just more aware of this or if it is actually becoming more prevalent, but I notice this kind of thing happening at all kinds of events where it shouldn't be the norm. I even notice it at church a lot. While someone is singing to the Lord, there are usually several conversations going on in the congregation. It was very obvious to me over the last few weeks when I left my usual seat on the front pew and sat in the back. Throughout the congregational singing, special and even preaching there were people of all ages - yes, even the "elders" of the church chatting it up. All I can say is - can't it wait until later?

While I am ranting...There are three of us here at work that profess to be on weight watchers. It has been an especially hard month since several clients have brought in goodies ranging from cookies to apple fritters, but alas the clients don't realize the temptation they put before us. However, this morning one of my fellow "weight watching" employees brought in a plate full of sweets. Have you ever felt completely sabotaged? I told her she should know better than to bring that down here. Her reply - "I had to bring some of it down here so there wouldn't be so much left at home to tempt me there." I have taken a stand - I refuse to eat it - not one bite - and I told her so. In fact, I told her that it would be even worse on her because now she had the temptation in both places. Anyway - how rude!!!!!

Tales from the Scales Update

And I am happy to say even with all the temptation of the various treats of the season, I am still maintaining. I know I didn't post last week - don't really remember why - but since my post two weeks ago, I am down one pound. Which means I am 1.5 pounds above my "comfort zone." Not to shabby. Check out the progress of others at Tales from the Scales.

Moods - Good and Bad - Are Contagious

Have you ever notices how moods are contagious? How you can start the day in a good mood, and it can be turned around by the moods of those around you? I notice this all the time and have tried to keep others from getting me down, but it is not always easy. Sometimes before I know it, negative comments from others have "infected" me, and I have a big old case of the bad mood. I have also noticed that bad moods are way more contagious than good moods. Maybe its because I see fewer cases of good moods, but they do seem harder to catch. Anyway... what to do about it? I read the following article at http://www.ceridian.com/ and it seemed to have some good tips...we will see if any of them work.

Working productively: Managing your moods at work
Most of us have emotional ups and downs at work. Some days we can't wait to get to work and other days we can't wait to go home. Our moods may be affected by a great variety of factors -- from the weather to a long commute to a personal issue or a conversation with a customer.
It's normal to experience different moods during the workday, but it's also important to know how to manage them. Recent studies have found that moods can have a strong effect on performance. Research has also shown that moods are contagious -- people can "catch" moods from each other. It will be easier to do your best at work if you are aware of your moods and know how to control them.

How moods affect your work Your moods may affect your work in many ways. Some of these may be obvious. If you're feeling low because of a problem at home, you may find it harder to get started on a challenging project. If you're overjoyed by a great performance evaluation, you may be able to accomplish even more than usual.

Your moods can also affect your work in more subtle ways, according to a recent study by Nancy Rothbard at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and Steffanie Wilk at the Fisher College of Business at Ohio State University. They found that:
The mood we bring to work has more effect on our performance than on mood changes caused by events in the workplace.

Both positive and negative moods can affect your performance, but positive moods are more powerful.

If you deal with customers or clients, their moods may affect your moods. All of this means that while you need to be aware of your moods all day long, it's especially important to start work in a good mood or a positive frame of mind. Why does this matter so much? A possible explanation is that your mood at the beginning of the day carries over into events that occur later and affects how you cope with them.

Managing your moods during the day The key to managing your moods during the day is to balance the "up" and "down" times. Your overall sense of well-being is determined partly by factors you can't control, including your genes and family background. So it's unrealistic to try never to have a bad mood or to stay in an upbeat mood every minute of the day. You don't have to avoid all unpleasant feelings to be happy. Just don't allow them to crowd out all the good feelings.

Be aware of and keep track of your moods. Pay attention to your moods at different times of the day and in different situations and how, if at all, they affect your work. Get feedback if you aren't sure about this. Ask a coworker you trust how your moods come across. You might also keep a notebook of your moods. Write down your four or five most noticeable mood changes during the day. This can help you identify the situations or times of day that are most challenging for you, so you can figure out how to control them.

Acknowledge your bad moods and don't allow them to affect others. Avoid blaming others for your moods. Even if you're in a bad mood, be courteous and businesslike with coworkers and customers.

Set boundaries. Take steps to avoid "catching" the bad moods of chronic complainers. Have a polite exit strategy you can use when someone starts to gripe.

Make the most of your lunch break. Whenever possible, take your lunch break. Try to make time to eat away from your work area, in a lunch area with coworkers you enjoy. Try to keep lunch time topics light and upbeat.

Connect with positive people throughout the day. Being around upbeat people makes us feel good. When we're with upbeat, optimistic people, we don't just relax mentally -- we relax physically, too.

Limit how long you hold on to a negative emotion. Daniel Goleman writes in "Emotional Intelligence" that we may not have control over when we're swept by an emotion, nor what the emotion will be. But we can control how long an emotion will last. Sometimes we need to take an active role to send the emotion away. Consider giving yourself a "two-minute warning" when a mood has gone on for too long. Give yourself two minutes more to think about the subject, then move on to something else.

Learn relaxation techniques you can do at work. Physical tension can prolong a bad mood. Keep your posture and gestures relaxed. Avoid crossing your arms or legs or clenching your fists. Try deep breathing or muscle-relaxation techniques. If your moods are caused by mental stress, you may benefit from visualization techniques, such as looking at a pleasant picture or envisioning yourself in a setting that makes you feel good.

Talk with a doctor if your moods are severe or frequent enough to affect your work. Mood swings can result from some illnesses, medications and normal biological changes. You may have a health concern that needs attention if your moods seem to be worse or last longer than other people's. If your doctor can't find a medical reason for your mood swings, you may be experiencing depression and could benefit from talking with a professional.

Most of us can't avoid occasional bad moods. You may not always be able to prevent them from occurring, but you can control how you respond to them. You can keep your moods from affecting your performance, and your overall sense of well-being, by being aware of your moods and how to manage them.