BATTLING THE ROAD WARRIOR
By Mershon Bell

Are you (or someone you know) a ROAD Warrior? I recently heard this acronym used during the keynote at a conference I attended in San Diego. Curt Cuffman, author of First Break All the Rules, used it. ROAD stands for Retired On Active Duty. He followed it up with these Gallup Poll (that's where he works) statistics:

29 percent of workers are actively engaged at work

55 percent are not engaged

16 percent are disengaged (undoing what the 29 percent are doing)

It is also estimated that the cost of lost time (non-productive work, illness) to all industries is $319 billion (that's a B) a year. What a staggering figure!

I would guess that at times the ROAD Warrior shows up in all of us - those days when we are present but unproductive. Perhaps we cruise the Internet needlessly, have extended conversations on the phone, raid the refrigerator throughout the day, or spend valuable time looking for a misplaced document.

What causes us to "retire" before our time? Is it boredom, burnout, exhaustion, chaos? Are we so sick of tolerating toxic people, disorganized office, an unappreciative boss, or a going-nowhere job that we simply "check-out" from time to time just to get some relief?

Here are some tips for staying ACTIVE while on duty:

Take frequent breaks - don't wait until you're exhausted, take a break every hour. Get some exercise, drink some water, change your environment for a few minutes.

Clean it up - if you have mail, papers and folders sitting in piles, clean them up before the new year. Take a "vacation" from work, don't answer the phone or make appointments and spend a day (or how long it takes) in your office cleaning up and getting organized.

Eliminate the toxins - if your office is a "toxic dump", a place for gossip and negative conversations, set new boundaries around your conversation, internal dialogue, and your time. Don't hesitate to say things like, "I'd rather not talk about that" or "This isn't a good time for me to talk". Respect yourself and your time and you'll gain respect from others. Don't let others turn you into a ROAD Warrior.

Do something radical - when Thomas Leonard (father of coaching) gets stuck and becomes a ROAD Warrior, he takes a trip. He says traveling starts his creative juices flowing so he books a flight or takes a road trip to get back on track.

Ask for what you need - let your boss know you need more input or acknowledgment. Tell others you are looking for a new career. Start searching today for the career or job of your dreams so you can leave the one you hate. Begin networking, do some advice interviewing, hire a coach. Life is too short to waste another minute in a working environment from which you frequently "check out".

Get enough rest - turn off the tv at night, go to bed exceptionally early at least once a week, eliminate the caffeine and/or alcohol that may be sabotaging your sleep, don't take sleep and your health for granted.

Take time for yourself - many times our inner self causes us to become a ROAD Warrior simply because it is dying for some down time. Time to just think, read a novel, sit in a bubble bath. Take the time for yourself ON PURPOSE (it is critical to your well being and your productivity rather than waiting for the ROAD Warrior in you to take action without your permission.