Be More Productive #31 - Sick and Dirty

Thursday, October 28, 2010

Being sick is seriously inconvenient. It’s also stressful. Regardless of how you feel, you still have work to do, kids to get from school, dinner to make. So what’s the best alternative? To not have gotten sick in the first place, of course. Get proactive about avoiding the flu this season, starting with the place where you spend the majority of your time: The office.

Use these simple, “heard these before” reminders to keep yourself and your coworkers healthy this flu season:

#1 Defense: Washing Hands

The #1 way to stop spreading illness in the office is to wash your hands often and keep the things you touch often clean, too. Washing your hands isn’t just a trickle of water after using the restroom, though. To wash properly:

• Wet your hands with clean running water and apply soap. Use warm water if it is available.
• Rub hands together to make a lather and scrub all surfaces.
• Continue rubbing hands for 20 seconds. Need a timer? Hum the "Happy Birthday" song from beginning to end twice.
• Rinse hands well under running water.
• Dry your hands using a paper towel or air dryer. If possible, use your paper towel to turn off the faucet.

Post Signs Asking People to Wash Up
In businesses that post hand washing reminders, 72 percent of employees wash their hands five or more times a day. In fact, 38 percent wash their hands more than 10 times a day.

#2 Defense:  Stay Home if You’re Sick

In October 2004, the Harvard Business Review reported that being on the job sick can cut your productivity by a third or more -and can actually cost an employer much more than absenteeism.

Wondering When You Should Call in Sick vs. Stay Home?
You are most contagious in the beginning of your illness. If you notice a combination of symptoms such as sore throat, nasal congestion, or a bad headache, stay home. Here are some other occasions when staying home is non-negotiable:

1. When you have a full-on cold and you work closely with other people, children, or the elderly. You don't want to risk infecting them.
2. When you have a fever. Your body temperature rises to help kill off germs, so rest at home to let your body do its job.
3. When you have a productive cough, chest congestion, stuffed up sinuses, green mucus, a scratchy sore throat, aches, nausea, or are throwing up, definitely call in sick.

Need to Work Sick?
Sometimes not working is not an option. Thank goodness for today’s technology. You can stay home and connect to your work computer remotely using a service like LogMeIn (www.logmein.com), and you can even hold conference calls using GoToMeeting (www.gotomeeting.com). If you need a face-to-face, try Skype (www.skype.com). A word of advice however: If you have a nasty cough or look very sick, it may be best to keep verbal communication between you and your team, and not with clients.  

Our goal is to help you be as productive in the workplace as possible. Have your own thoughts on productivity? Drop us a line at moreproductive@myoffice.com. We’d love to hear what you have to say--and it just might become our next newsletter topic.