Tag Archives: wellbeing

Computer Ergonomics: How to Use Your Keyboard Properly

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shutterstock_23458258By Dr. Laura Hills, President, Blue Pencil Institute (www.bluepencilinstitute.com)

I spend a tremendous amount of time writing at my computer workstation and have learned that if I don’t use my keyboard properly that I will have quite a few aches and pains later. Here are some tips that have made a big difference for me and that I hope will help you, too.

Your computer keyboard should not be on your lap or on top of a traditional desk. Good computer ergonomics dictate that the keyboard be positioned below the desk on a keyboard pullout try. This helps ensure that your wrists and forearms stay in the neutral position roughly parallel to the floor and that your elbows stay close to the body and bent between 90 and 120 degrees. However, be sure that your keyboard tray provides leg clearance and has an adjustable height and tilt mechanism so you can position it properly. The keyboard tray also should not push you too far away from other work materials and equipment such as your phone.

Be sure that your keyboard tray allows adequate room both for the keyboard and the mouse and that the mouse can be kept close to the keyboard. Ideally, your keyboard tray should have space on either side to allow you to switch over and mouse with your other hand periodically.

Tilt the keyboard tray down and away from you so that you do not have to bend your wrists up to type. Sit with your elbows close to your body and place your hands on your keyboard with your forearms extended naturally. Make sure that your wrists are in a straight line with your forearms. Keep your shoulders relaxed and down. The space that you can move your hands over without moving your elbows away from your body is your keyboarding neutral reach zone. For good computer ergonomics, you shouldn’t have to reach out of that zone to use the mouse.

Pull your chair close to your keyboard and position it directly in front of your body. Determine which section of the keyboard you use most often (letters or numbers) and readjust the keyboard so that section is centered with your body. Wrist rests can help you maintain a neutral position and pad hard surfaces. However, the wrist rest should be used only to rest the palms of the hands between keystrokes. Resting on the wrist rest while typing is not recommended and has been linked to injuries. Avoid using excessively wide wrist rests or wrist rests that are higher than the space bar of your keyboard.

Finally, if you don’t have a fully adjustable keyboard tray, adjust your workstation height, the height of your chair, or use a seat cushion to get in a comfortable keyboarding position.

What’s Causing Your Stress? The Answer May Surprise You

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shutterstock_86394244(2)Certain working conditions are stressful to most people. For example, excessive workload demands and conflicting expectations are workplace situations that most everyone will find stressful. However, such situations are not the norm. Apart from universally stressful workplace situations such as these, differences in individual characteristics such as personality and coping style are the most important factors in predicting whether certain job conditions will results in stress. In other words, except for universally stressful workplace situations, what is stressful for one person may not be stressful for another.

There is no “one size fits all” solution to managing stress. Workplace stress management begins with identifying the sources of stress and your own particular hot buttons. This is not as easy as it sounds. Your true sources of stress may not be obvious to you. It’s very easy to discount your own stress-inducing thoughts and behaviors. For example, you may know that you’re constantly stressed about staying on a tight schedule or meeting ambitious deadlines. Clearly, a jam-packed appointment schedule or a project that has to be done triple-time is stressful. However, it may be possible that your own procrastination, fears, expectations, insecurities, or guilt (and not only the actual job demands) are contributing to your stress. That’s why it is so important to look closely and objectively at your habits, attitudes, and excuses.

Many people find it helpful to keep a stress journal to help them identify their true stressors and the ways they deal with them. Each time you feel stressed, keep track of your feelings in a journal. As you keep a daily log, look for patterns and common themes. Record what caused your stress (guess if you don’t know), how you felt (physically and emotionally — be specific), how you acted or didn’t act, and what you did, if anything, to make yourself feel better. Pay particular attention to journal entries that suggest that you explain away your stressors and don’t deal with them directly. Also, look for entries that suggest that you define stress as an integral and inevitable part of your job. (“Things are always crazy around here.”) Also note journal entries in which you blame others or outside events or when you view the stress as normal and unexceptional. Finally, use your journal to help you identify the techniques you use to cope with stress and evaluate whether they are healthy or unhealthy, productive or unproductive.

Are you looking for more ways to avoid and reduce work-induced stress? Or, would you like to use an interesting tool to help your employees to minimize and manage their workplace stress? If so, check out my Pinterest board, “Stress Management: 25 Tips” at http://pinterest.com/drlaurahills/stress-management-25-tips/. And the next time you feel yourself gritting your teeth, coping with a stress-induced headache, or otherwise feeling that your work stress is getting the better of you, try to step back from it and identify what’s really going on. Look for solutions externally that will help you avoid and minimize the stressors. Then, look for solutions inward that will help you cope better. – Dr. Laura Hills, Blue Pencil Institute, www.bluepencilinstitute.com