How to avoid unhealthy habits while you’re at the office

According to various labour statistics, working professionals spend an average of 8.5 hours per day at work. Many professionals spend much of their time at work sitting down in front of a computer, which can be detrimental to long-term health.

Staying sedentary for long periods of time can contribute to a host of health ailments, including being overweight and obese. But professionals who work in offices can take various steps to ensure all that time at work is not having an adverse affect on their overall health.

• Modern workplaces are built around sitting, so workers must find some time to stand up and stretch. Sitting too long can compromise posture and lead to craning of the neck for looking at the computer screen. Get out of your chair, walk around the office and get the blood moving in your body.

• Bringing lunch to work puts you in greater control over the foods you are eating.You can pack a healthy and diverse selection of foods. Don’t forget to also bring some snacks that offer a healthy mix of protein and carbohydrates to keep your energy levels up. Otherwise, you may succumb to the temptation of the lunchroom snack machine.

• Stale air inside an office environment can make you feel fatigued and less productive. Also, spending too much time behind your desk may contribute to feelings of stress and tension. Use every opportunity possible to get up and leave your office. Instead of sending an instant message or making a phone call to a coworker, visit him or her in person. Use your lunch hour to get outside instead of eating at your desk. Plan a brief, mid-afternoon walk outside of your office to clear your mind and get some fresh air.

• Oftentimes, when one person at the office gets sick, many others soon follow. Colds and the flu can spread rapidly in close quarters. Keep your desk drawer stocked with some alcohol swabs or disinfecting spray and routinely clean your keyboard, mouse, touchscreen, and desk surfaces.You also can wipe off door handles and knobs around the office if you want to be proactive.

• Close your eyes and look away from the computer monitor every 20 minutes. Focusing on objects of varying distances can help keep the eyes strong and reduce fatigue.

It’s not difficult to remain healthy at work. Breaks, exercise and watching what you eat can help.

Get out of your seat. Pack your lunch. Take frequent breaks. Disinfect surfaces often. Rest your eyes.

Businesses, particularly small businesses, understand the importance of establishing an online presence. Identifying new content strategies can help keep a company’s name and business motto fresh in the minds of consumers. Search engine optimization, or SEO, and social media use can greatly improve a business’ online visibility.

Podcasting is another tool small businesses have at their disposal. Podcasts, often referred to as on-demand audio content or audiocasts, are usually short audio or video clips. Typically they’re episodic and are released at key intervals. Podcasting enables listeners to determine when and where they would like to receive content. Podcasts can be informative, entertaining or a combination of both. All that’s needed to tune in is a mobile device or Internet access.

Although podcasting was once a way to present on-demand radio and other audio programming, businesses have redesigned podcasting to use them for training and marketing and as another avenue to disseminate marketing materials to the public and a target market. As opposed to visiting a website or reading newsletters and emails, podcasts are often described as more customer-friendly and accessible.

There are several ways businesses can benefit from podcasting, including:

• Businesses can distribute valuable content to increase customer loyalty.

• Podcasts enable you to be an industry and news trend provider, which can set you apart from the competition.

• Audio and video are very engaging media and can keep customers engaged for longer periods of time.

• Podcasts increase marketing reach and online visibility and can strengthen SEO.

• Syndication and repeat scheduling gives listeners a reason to keep coming back for more content.

• Podcasts can be promoted through social media channels to make online marketing efforts even more cohesive.

• Downloads of podcasts and transcripts can be offered directly from your company’s website to drive even more traffic to the location.

• It’s possible to measure the success of digital audio because it can be tracked by the number of downloads and the number of social interactions with the content.

• Podcasts work with the consumer’s schedule. If they are unable to listen to a podcast immediately, they can download content and enjoy it on their own time.

• Podcasts reach anyone around the world with an Internet connection, dramatically increasing your potential customer base.

• Content that is creative and fun shows an entirely new side of your business.

Consistent podcasts can be a great way to share information about your business and improve your online presence. A 20- or 30-minute podcast may be better received than a barrage of marketing emails or a monthly newsletter.

There are no guarantees that small businesses are going to thrive. For example, the Small Business Association states that 30 per cent of new businesses fail during the first two years of opening, while 50 per cent fail during the first five years in operation. A whopping 66 per cent go out of business within 10 years of opening.

Despite those odds, plenty of entrepreneurs still pursue their dreams. Investing in businesses that are trending upward is one way to avoid falling victim to small business trends. The following are some business opportunities that figure to thrive in the years ahead.

• The medical technology market is thriving, and businesses designed to provide medical resources or make treatments easier and more effective are in high demand.

• The “cloud” remains an evolving part of both personal and business computing. Each day, new methods of harnessing this relatively underfulfilled service are created, and new businesses can be built entirely on cloud interaction.

Medical: Cloud businesses: Senior care:

• Seniors are living longer, and a great deal of Baby Boomers have passed retirement age. Opportunities for senior-related services continue to grow. These can include everything from housing options to delivery and catering services.

• People spend billions of dollars on yoga classes, supplies and attire, as The Economist predicts the yoga industry will exceed $8 billion this year.

Yoga and fitness:

Changing jobs can be a difficult decision to make, especially later in one’s career. In many ways, landing a new job is more challenging than ever thanks to the technology-driven society in which people live. Information is shared faster than ever, and applying for jobs isn’t the same as it might have been as recently as a decade ago. But one thing that has evolved is the résumé. Although creating a powerful résumé has always been a challenge, writing — or modifying one — for today’s digital world requires some insider tips. Adapting a résumé as one ages and has gained experience can be advantageous.

A well-crafted résumé is one way for professionals to demonstrate how their skill set is current and adaptable to today’s business climate.The following tips can help improve a résumé when the time comes to move on to a new job.

Rather than focusing on job responsibilities at each job you held, gear the résumé around what you achieved in each position. This will help identify how you performed in the position, instead of just a general retelling of what you did.

It can be challenging to achieve this for jobs that don’t naturally lend themselves to numerically quantitative results (i.e., increased department sales by 15 percent), but it’s still possible to use a résumé to illustrate your achievements.

Rather than state that you were responsible for providing customer service, explain that you built your reputation on conveying difficult technical terms to the layperson, serving as the go-to employee for translating job jargon for outside correspondence. If you have quantitative proof of how you accomplished something, certainly add it.This can include measures of profit growth, reduction of debt or increase in customer base.

Rather than emphasize what you did, highlight what you plan to do. This means giving greater weight to the expertise that will translate into your new position. Chances are you can find skills that you honed in one or more jobs that translate into credentials that can be used on another. All of the skills mentioned should be relevant to your career objective and not just added to pad the résumé. Therefore, unless your brief stint waiting tables exemplifies how you developed customer service skills, eliminate it.

It’s important to optimize a résumé for digital scanning, which has become a major component of the employment sector. This includes using the correct keywords and phrasing so that your résumé will get “flagged.” Take your cue from the job advertisements themselves and mimic the verbiage used. Replace the lingo accordingly, tailoring it to each job you apply for. Also, consult the “about us” area of a prospective employer’s website. This area may offer clues about buzz words for the industry.

Engage in activities that can improve your marketability. Be sure to list training, coursework, degree, or volunteer efforts that pertain directly to the skills needed for the job to which you’re applying. These additions can tip the scales in your favor over another applicant.

Résumés continue to evolve, and it is crucial for applicants — especially established workers — to familiarize themselves with the changes and market themselves accordingly.