Christmas brings with it much fun and frivolity, celebration and festivities. While the office Xmas party is a time to let your hair down and have a few drinks with your colleagues, you must remember that you still have to work there in the morning, so you don’t want to behave in a way that could embarrass you later. Dancing on the tables may seem like a great idea at the time, but you could end up shamefaced the next day, especially in this whole new world of social networking sites. Within hours your antics could be uploaded to Facebook and spread far and wide. Be sure to take time to talk to everyone, be cheerful and steer clear of office gossip, next time it could be you that is the subject of discussion. Enjoy yourself, but don’t drink to excess, and be sure to eat something during the course of the evening as well. Dress nicely, but not too provocatively, you still need to keep some of your professional image. Last word of advice: Stay away from the photocopier!

The study also showed that people who work in training, education and library fields smoke the least, with only 12.3% having lit up in the previous month.

There is also a higher rate of younger workers smoking in relation to older workers. 40.1% of full time employees in the 18 – 24 age bracket have are reported to have smoked in the previous month compared to 33.9% of workers ages 26-34; 26.7% of workers ages 35-49; and 20.7% of workers ages 50-64.

1. Eating breakfast before you go to work.

Although you may think that by skipping a meal you will lose weight, this is counter productive. Eating healthily first thing sets your metabolism for the day, and helps you to steer clear unhealthy snacks mid morning when your body craves sustenance.

2. Stay away from the doughnuts, muffin baskets and candy dishes.

Some workplaces have snacks and treats on hand, which although this sounds nice, doesn’t help in the battle of the bulge. You could ask for a fresh fruit basket to be delivered instead of the usual cookies.

3. Walk up the stairs instead of using the lift.

This will help burn calories and tone your body.

4. Drink plenty of water throughout your day.

Not only is drinking 8 glasses of water good for you, you may find that you replace some of your coffee, which can really add the calories once loaded with cream and sugar.  Keep a refillable bottle on your desk.

5. Bring a packed lunch.

You will know exactly what is in your sandwich or salad, so no hidden calories. You will also save yourself $$ by doing this. If you just don’t have the time to make a lunch at home, find out where the closest healthy eatery is located. Pizza and hotdogs are a recipe for diet disaster.

6. Healthy snacks.

Keep a small supply of healthy snack foods in your desk drawer for ‘emergencies’. Dried fruit, nuts etc.

7. Go for a walk at lunchtime or coffee breaks.

You will feel much better for it, even a short walk is better than sitting at your desk.

8. Keep away from the vending machine.

They usually only stock candy bars and other unhealthy items laden with empty calories.

Energy Star is a joint program of the U.S. Department of Energy and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and promotes energy efficient products and practices, offering advice and guidelines to help reduce energy wastage.

• When leaving the office be sure to turn off your computers, monitors, photocopiers and printers.

• Using a laptop computer uses ninety percent less energy than a desktop computer, the same is true for using an ink jet printer rather than a laser printer.

• Don’t use screen savers.

• Use products that have earned the Energy Star rating including monitors, computers, fax machines etc where possible.

• Turn out the lights when leaving the office.

• Be sure to switch off the lights in conference rooms when not in use.

• Use dimmer switches and energy efficient light bulbs.

• Use natural light where possible.

• Only print memos when necessary, emails are often sufficient. If you must print use both sides of the paper.

For women, when choosing the right work handbag you need to ensure that you can fit what you need into it, but don’t buy a large bag or overfill it. Carrying a heavy bag can cause back problems, joint pain, strains and even headaches. To prevent this make sure you have correct posture and evenly distribute the items in your bag, you should also move your bag from shoulder to shoulder to give each side a break. Investing in a good quality work bag or briefcase will pay dividends in the end, you will portray the right image along with protecting your shoulders and back as much as possible.

We all need to be aware of the symptoms so that we can recognize if someone has the virus and what to do next. The symptoms of Swine Flu are very similar to seasonal flu and include:

• Cough
• Sore Throat
• Fever
• Runny or stuffy nose
• Body aches
• Chills
• Fatigue
• Headache
• Vomiting and diarrhoea

If you do have these symptoms you should avoid contact with other people and not go into work for seven days after these symptoms begin, unless you need medical care. If you are at high risk for complications or severe illness, such as over the age of 65 or have a chronic medical condition such as diabetes, asthma, heart disease or are immunosuppressed be sure to contact your doctor immediately. Everyone should also be using the same precautions as you would with seasonal flu, washing hands regularly, covering your mouth when you cough or sneeze etc.

There are many ways to improve teamwork within your company, to increase communication, collaboration and develop creative ideas. Team members should be excited by challenges and opportunities and should also have their contributions recognized. Working together helps each person to see things differently and develop different thinking styles.

Some motivational team building ideas include company sports, games such as treasure hunts, training sessions and group activities. A charity run or bike ride, or perhaps an office Olympics day? There are many companies out there that can help with organizing team events and activities, workshops and lectures, no matter how big or large your company is.

Team building helps foster a good work environment, this in turn will improve results for customers.

Office Recycling

Every office should have a recycling scheme in place, our planet is our responsibility and the waste recycling habits you keep at home should be continued in the workplace. There are many types of waste products that can be recycled in the office, from paper to computers.

Minimising the waste is the best place to start, for instance before printing off something, decide if you really need to. Use double sided photocopying where possible. Putting up posters reminding employees to recycle, internal newsletters and meetings are good ways to bring home the importance of recycling in the office. You should also purchase recycled products where possible.

Paper Recycling:

You should have separate waste baskets for paper, white paper and colored or glossy magazines and newspapers.
Plastic, Tin, and Glass Recycling:

Plastic cups and plastic packaging materials should be recycled along with glass bottles, jars and tin cans.

Card and Cardboard:

Have a box or bin for cardboard

Ink cartridges:

Many used ink cartridges can be sent back to the supplier for recycling

Computers and Hardware:

Find out if there is a computer recycling company in your area, the same goes for CDRoms, printers and photocopiers

By purchasing recycled products, minimising waste and recycling as much as you can in the office, you will be doing your part to keep your office green.

Here are some tips to help you manage your time effectively:

1. Schedule

Organize your schedule for tomorrow, today! Time blocks could be the best way to do this, although of course you need to be flexible if something important comes up.

2. Plan Ahead

Plan your meetings, write a list and decide beforehand what the main prioritise are, you don’t want to waste your valuable time, or the other persons.

3. To Do Lists

Have a checklist, so you can tick of tasks as they are completed, this way you won’t miss anything out. Its also a great way to see how much you’ve accomplished in your day.

4. Designating

Can you designate any of the tasks on your list to someone else? No man/woman is an Island, and if there is someone who is able and capable of sharing some of the workload you should collaborate with them to get the job done.

5. Set Objectives

Set weekly, monthly or quarterly objectives and goals. These should be realistic but also give you something to work towards.

Stone House (Guimaraes, Portugal)

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Ripley

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To view more strange and wonderful buildings please visit 50 Strange Buildings of the World