May 5, 2010
The scientific studies and tech blogs are abuzz with the theory that standing is the new ergonomic chair. Apparently people who stand at work are healthier and burn more calories than those who sit. The benefits also extend to the creative mind, which seems to more freely produce ideas when the body escapes the confines of a chair
Many people, when caught up in
a conundrum, start tapping a foot or
fidgeting with something. Evidently
there are mental perks associated
with taking that nervous energy a bit
further while standing.
If you want to stand up, it’s going
to cost you. Motorized desks with
variable heights are expensive, and at
the top end of the phenomenon is a
desk treadmill that appeared on the
market a couple of years ago when
studies revealed that light exercise
increased productivity.
Fortunately, commercial AV is
a field where standing is part of the
job. Site visits, rack assembly, and
even trips to the warehouse offer a
chance to move around a bit. But during
those inevitable long stretches of
desk time, if budgets won’t allow for
a fancy motorized desk, you can benefit
from these notions. According to
standing research, many motorized
desk users elevate their work surfaces
when they are faced with a challenging
task. The next time that happens,
consider putting your laptop
on a bookshelf or on top of the fax
machine and stand up for a minute.
So now the question becomes,
what do you stand for? There are
certain tasks and concerns that
really matter to individuals within
your company, or your company as a
whole. Those are probably the values
listed in your company mission statement.
Now might be a good time to
take a look at that framed plaque on
the wall. Does it still make sense?
The fretfully verbose mission
statement is certainly commonplace,
and I’ve spoken to a number of people
in the industry who have revised
this piece of their business more than
once. Revision is necessary when the
words in the statement are empty,
or the statement merely presents a
dead end for personnel. These ideals
should express an open-ended and
active stance that encourages your
team to move forward.
Leading up to its show in Las
Vegas June 9-11, InfoComm has been
promoting its revised mission statement:
“To advance audiovisual communications
globally.” There aren’t a
lot of words there, but it’s easy to see
where the association stands.
A lot of companies in our industry
have been through a similar process
of revision in these trying years.
They’ve had to redefine who they are,
narrow their focus, and keep their
business going with a clear mission.
Now they can hopefully sit comfortably,
knowing where they stand.
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