How to Remain Safe and Healthy at Work?

With people spending up to 9 hours at their workplaces, the office of today has become the new home while away from home. Hours of daily interaction, organizational stress, long shifts in front of computers, risking shortcuts to meet deadlines, consumption of junk food and handling of equipment or machinery without proper training are just a few pointers towards why workers are increasingly becoming unhealthy and unsafe at work. That is why occupational health & safety is a matter of great importance in the current job sector. Unhealthy and unsafe personnel are not only liabilities to themselves, but as well to their co-workers and their organizations.

Unfortunately, no statistics concerning occupational health and safety are currently accessible in Pakistan, because a greater part of accidents are not reported to the Labor Department. Diseases and accidents in the Pakistani work places are an appalling tragedy. The frequency of occupational diseases and injuries is very high because thousands of workers are regularly exposed to unsafe practices at work. However, remaining safe and healthy at work is an individual struggle. With some common sense and attentiveness, we cannot only care for ourselves, but also for our co-workers and our workplaces. Following are a few tips on how to remain safe and healthy at work.

Learn to Say “NO” to a Task that’s Unsafe

If you’re asked by your supervisor or the manager to perform a task; which you think is too risky or just unsafe, remember that you have the legal right to refuse. Saying “No” can at times save yourself and other people’s lives. However, the trick is to say it in a professional manner, so as not to offend the boss and potentially risk your career. Inform your supervisor why you think the job is too risky. Maybe it’s because there are too many potential hazards, or you might not have received proper training in performing the task. Ask the supervisor his/her viewpoints on why they consider the task safe? Are they able to show you how it can be done properly? Let them know of your doubts and request assistance or extra tools to help you, if necessary. Always remember that if you are going to put yourself in a tight spot, with prior knowledge, you are solely responsible for all the outcomes.

Learn to Identify & Report Workplace Hazards

In order to point out potential hazards at your workplace, get training on standard occupational health & safety and also learn basic First Aid. Furthermore, ask your company on their policies and procedures for identifying, reporting and eliminating internal risks and hazards. Sometimes, all it takes is good use and co-ordination of your senses to recognize vulnerability at your workplace. Make sure that all the electrical equipment that you handle has been checked and properly installed by a professional. Furthermore, enquire questions like, is their a fire extinguisher handy and does someone know how to use it? Does the office have a first aid kit? You may feel hesitant asking these questions at first, but remember they are your right to know, as they concern your own well-being and life.

Don’t let Stress take the Better of You

Corporate stress is something we all have to endure at sometime within our careers. However, job pressure regarding deadlines is one thing but mental stress leading to psycho-social problems is something completely different and alarming. Apart from making workers increasingly distressed, irritable, anxious, insomniac, depressed & tired, work stress can cause personality disorders, as it severely affects the immune system, leaving psychological impacts. Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, Narcissistic Personality Disorder, Histrionic Personality Disorder and Borderline Personality Disorder are a few examples of such psychological impacts caused by work stress. Proper stress management training and organizational management is needed to avoid the development of stress factors at the workplace. If you feel you’re stressed out or one of your co-workers is, immediately notify the supervisor with proper reasoning. Take work, duties and responsibilities with reasonable enough time-frame. Remember never to over-burden yourself or let your job take over your physical and mental well-being. A good tip to take your mind off the stress at work is to treat yourself with a bit of chocolate or anything sweet.

Enjoy Healthy Food Practices at Work

Instead of opting for coffee and smoke breaks, do yourself a favour by quitting both. Plus, smoking is just something you would really want to avoid, especially at work. Eat a wide selection of foods, including plenty of fresh and seasonal fruit, vegetables, nuts and seeds. Reduce junk food, takeaways, saturated fats and processed foods to the minimum. Make sure that you drink plenty of water and possibly try some herbal teas in its place of coffee and tea. Keeping a water bottle on the desk is a great and simple way to stay healthy. Plus, it helps in constantly reminding you that you need to drink plenty of water to keep yourself from dehydration. Another advantage is that water detoxifies our body systems, maintaining our health along the way. Furthermore, drinking water at regular intervals will help you fight fast food cravings.

Stay Fit not Fixed to the Computer

If you’re spending too much time sitting fixed to the computer, you’re possibly going to end up with muscle pain in the arms, stress and redness in the eyes and probably some weight gain. Turn off the monitor every couple of hours for five minutes. This will give your stressed eyes a much needed rest. Utilize these five minutes to loosen up, close your eyes or else direct your attention on other things. You could also take time off to get away from your desk and if possible go for a quick walk outside. Also consider stretching your arms and legs, while at break. Stretching helps by keeping your body loose and flexible; it increases suppleness and blood circulation; plus, it sets your metabolism in motion and keeps your body warm.

Most importantly, keep your family and loved ones in view at work. Remember, they are one of the reasons we are at work, and that someone is waiting for us at home to arrive safe and healthy back from work.

Reference: http:// blogs.rozee.pk

Creating the Perfect CV

Creating the perfect CV is the first step towards getting a good job. Your CV is the first thing that reaches the employer and it is vital in making the right impression on the prospective employer. Many people do not understand the importance of the CV and end up making casual mistakes on the resume which makes a poor impression on the employer and often he throws the CV into the waste basket rather than taking a second look.

There are many common mistakes which make a resume bad and ruin the first impression of the candidate. Some of these common mistakes are:

Lack of Focus:

Having a focus is very important element in any kind of resume. It is a commonly known fact that the employer scans an average resume for not more than 20 seconds, so it is important that a resume shows the main objective and the goal of the candidate at first glance. You need to highlight what you want from your professional career and what things are you good at. Most of the employers are looking for a match between the applicant’s capabilities and the specific job’s requirements for which they are going to hire the person. A vague resume that lacks all kinds of focus regarding the job requirements is not competitive and often fails to catch the employer’s eye.

A Duty Driven Resume:

When you create a resume that focuses on your duties and responsibilities at the last few jobs, you are not making a good impression on the employer. A good resumes or CV should consist of the accomplishments that you made at certain position in a company and it should sell the qualifications of the jobseeker putting him in the spotlight as the best candidate for a specific position. You should be careful not to use any phrases such as “duties included,” since this kind of language is used to give the job description rather than listing the accomplishments in the resume.

Neglecting To Mention Important Skills:

It is very important to make sure that you mention the important skills on a prominent place in the resume. The definition of important skills is also relevant to every job position and you need to know which skills are important for the current job opening. For instance, computer skills are very important in today’s world and age and hence no matter which job you are applying for, it is important that you mention all the skills that you have acquired. Similarly you should also mention the language and international personal skills that you possess as they are important in the type of job you are seeking. Make sure that you list these important skills in your Profile section, rather than adding a separate portion at the end of your CV.

Too Much Text:

It is very important that you use bulleted styles to create your resume as it will be easy to read and can catch the attention of the reader within a few seconds. However you have to remember to use the bullets very consistently in order to make sure that the overall format of the CV remains the same. You should use the same bullet style in the entire resume and make sure that you use it as often as you can to make your resume clear and concise.

Lack of Keywords:

The online job search process nowadays revolves around the keywords and the placement and usage of the keywords plays an important role in getting your resume all the way. More and more employers rely on keywords to find the best suited job candidates as they want to interview the person who is best suited for the job. When you write your resume, make sure that you include all the relevant keywords that the employer can use to search for a candidates. There are many examples on the internet on how to find the best suited keywords for your profession.

Listing Your References on the Resume:

Make sure that all the references are never listed directly on your resume. You should make the list on a separate sheet, and submit the references only when specifically asked to do so by the employer.

Using Untraditional Fonts:

Make sure that you stick to the normal and traditional fonts especially when you are applying online since the fonts can get mixed up and give errors when the employer opens your resume on his computer. If you use a different font and it gives an error on the employer’s computer, the CV will be immediately rejected as the employer is not going to spend time in trying to figure out what is wrong with the CV.

Lying on the CV:

Lying on the CV is obviously not a good idea, but still many people continue to lie on their resumes all the time. Admittedly, only a few companies do their homework and verify the candidates’ claims on their CVs, which is perhaps why most of the people keep trying to lie on the resume. However it is not a good idea to provide false information on the CV as you never know when the employer might check your credentials. If it is found out that you have been lying on your CV, you lose all your chances of getting a job at the company and you also earn a bad name. So avoid doing this at all costs.

A Never Ending CV:

Some people believe that the more they write the CV, the better impression they will make on the employer. However, this entirely wrong as the employers need to see what your qualifications and skills are, which can be easily mentioned within the span of a single page. If it is impossible to contain your CV on a single page, you can go use another one, but at no cost make your CV longer than 2 pages.

Reference: http:// blogs.rozee.pk