Week 4 ~ November 2010, By Rebecca Harris, MS, LPC, CEAP, Solutions’ Program Coordinator

Last week I posed the question of how we celebrate our National Holiday of Thanksgiving, and asked what you may be thankful for in your life.

Most of you will read this at work because it's through your Employee Assistance Program. Perhaps you are thankful for your job, and recognize all the advantages and benefits having a job provides. Maybe you are grateful for friends you have made throughout the years at jobs you once shared. I’m particularly thankful for the many co-workers both present and in the past that have shared their knowledge, offered their support, encouraged me to try new things, and are unconditionally accepting and gracious when I've needed help. I know that not everyone shares my experiences in the workplace. I'm very fortunate to have awesome people to work with, but I also do better when I focus on the good things that are happening. It's always easy to pass the buck, or look the other way. The action of doing the right thing by your co-worker is not always without consequences. Sometimes we do get involved in things we never intended, but maybe we sleep better at night. Are you a good co-worker, employee, supervisor, manager, director, CEO?

Sometimes when we think of our jobs, it’s easy to feel discouraged, focus on issues that upset us, but are we willing to work to change things, or just complain. It can be hard to try to find good things about situations in which we are not happy. The idea is that we can still choose our attitude. We can be miserable and negative, or we can do right by others and focus on the good in them. We can learn to CHOOSE to be grateful. Author George Eliot wrote that "Our deeds determine us as much as we determine our deeds".

Even though we may be grateful for our jobs, and we can choose to ignore negativity when we encounter it, there are still some issues where it hard to see anything to be grateful about. Perhaps it has been on-going, or has had emotional impact that has affected you. Talking to an EAP counselor is a good way to be able to talk about issues when you feel anything but grateful! Learning to let go of anger, resentments, frustration, and old rifts is something to be thankful for. Think of all the energy you can reinvest in yourself when you're not focused on "the injustices" of the world.

I mentioned at the beginning of this series that I am a news junkie, and that the negativity of the elections drove me nuts. I also mentioned that the show undercover boss provided me with an unexpected find- a show portraying bosses who wanted to do better for their employees. It's good to see there are still good guys out there. Are you one of them?

"Action Speaks louder than words-but not nearly as often." Mark Twain

Call Solutions EAP at 1-800-526-3485 for assistance for all of life's challenges.
It’s free, confidential and open to your family members.

George "Bud" Wassell, MS, LPC, CEAP
Director, Solutions EAP
213 Court Street
Middletown, CT 06457
800-526-3485
fax: 860-704-6221
www.solutions-eap.com