Ms. Segerberg

Spas, Health & Fitness

Hoteliers: Reduce Your Stress, Gain Resilience

By Jane Segerberg, Founder & President, Segerberg Spa Consulting, LLC

If it weren’t for stress, life would be a breeze – right? Stress zaps energy and clouds thinking ability. It would be a wonderful gift to have no stress or be naturally stress resistant. There are positive stressors that energize and create passion and then there are the negative stressors that cause ill effects. But, as someone once said, “Stress is like Blood Pressure, it is either high or low but we don’t want it to go away completely.” By tapping into the habits of stress resilient people we can find the techniques and habits that feel natural and comfortable for breaking the automatic tie with emotions that send our bodies into a crisis.

Negative stress (or dis-ease) reduces our ability to have the endurance and robustness needed to face the everyday challenges in our workplace and lives. It goes without saying that hospitality managers manage a multitude of challenges and hurdles at any one time. In addition; downsizing, layoffs and mergers can cause a shift to less familiar management tasks or an increase in overall responsibility. The old saying “find a job you love and you’ll never work another day in your life”, is why you choose to do what you do. As jobs change, you may no longer be in that state of job nirvana. For hotel executives, managing stress levels is just as important as managing the hotel’s business.

Learning how to unwind on the job or at the end of the day and stay unwound helps us become more efficient and better equipped to handle the next onslaught of stresses and challenges with clarity and optimism. And at hospitality’s fingertips is one of the best resources for stress reduction. The most important mission of our spas is to help guests relax and ease stress. Our spas realize that there are as many stress-reducing techniques as there are individuals and have built up a cadre of techniques, therapies and activities. Hospitality managers have a great resource in their own back yards.

Judith Lazarus, spa authority and author of Stress Relief & Relaxation Techniques (a very profound, yet simple stress reductions book), sums it up beautifully: "Wondrous technology has advanced us for good and bad. We can multitask and accomplish so much, but unfortunately we are not techno-beings. Stress is harder than ever to overcome, because we are expected to be available 24/7 via phone, text and social media. At the same time, decades of scientific research have proven that stress management techniques have demonstrably positive counter-effects if practiced regularly. They don't have to take a long time; the trick is finding something that resonates with each person. [That's what Stress Relief & Relaxation Techniques is all about - trying different tools on for size to find what fits each individual.] We schedule everything into our PDAs but time for ourselves."

Savvy hotel guests have already incorporated some kind of stress relief into their harried lives, and know that the spa is ideal for scheduling an appointment for relaxation. For hospitality personnel too, a spa is perfect for providing the environment, tools, space and permission to let go for a while. Time and trouble are suspended while we let ourselves be nurtured. It's a short physical and mental vacation from noise and worry that is healing beyond its time frame if we can prolong the effects with consciousness. And that is what stress management is all about: Conscious letting go of the bombarding mind messages that don't allow our bodies to relax, refresh and rejuvenate.

When we take time out, our breathing becomes more deep and even, pulse slows, muscles relax, hormonal and digestive systems proceed with maximum efficiency. With rest and stress management, we can come back strong. Hospitality people have a tough job because no matter what is happening in their personal lives, they have to show nothing but a calm and positive attitude to their staff and guests when dealing with the gazillion inevitable problems that arise. Regular stress relief time allows us to keep returning to our best selves, enabling the resilience needed to rise to the occasion again every day and still feel good.

When stress-reducing techniques are put into practice, UPMC in Pittsburg has 3 important pieces of advice:

1. There is no one RIGHT way to practice – the way that will work for you becomes your right way. Explore the many approaches and choose what works best.
2. The techniques are not external – they are always within you when you need them.
3. Have no fixed expectations or goals – (this is a difficult thought for executives!) otherwise the cure becomes the stressor. Allow techniques to just happen and enjoy the results.

From spa experts, spa leaders and spas large and small, there are a variety of techniques to try on for size. We can refresh our minds and think more clearly, plan more strategically and enjoy an enhanced sense of well being with any of the following:

• Take a “breathe break” - (takes 1 minute to repeat 4 times) – Take a deep breath in for 4 counts. Hold it for 7 counts. Exhale completely for 8 counts.
• Mindful Walks - Go for a mindful walk by yourself or with a friend/spouse (absolutely no cell phones allowed!) notice the sensation of your feet touching the ground, the rhythm of your breathing and feel the wind on your face as you move.
• Guided Imagery – Find the guided imageries that fit your thinking and load them in your iPod – a great break at your desk.
• Consistent Exercise - Exercise for at least 30 minutes every day or almost every day.
• Practice Mindfulness – Pay attention to your surroundings; take in the shapes, colors, sounds. Pay attention to what you are doing when you are doing it.
• Progressive Muscle Relaxation – Sitting or lying quietly with eyes closed, start at the feet and imagine them warm and buttery soft. Stop and enjoy the sensation. Continue on up the body through the legs, abdomen, arms, shoulders, neck and forehead.
• Laugh a Lot – Spend time with friends who make you laugh, watch funny movies, go to a “laugh class” – it is hilarious and spas even have laughing classes – a good belly laugh is refreshing for everyone.
• Take a Silence Break – For 20 minutes – no cell phone, no computer, no television – just you and your thoughts.
• Time out with Nature – Whether it is our roots or carefree childhood memories from the park – nature makes us feel good. Can’t get to a park or the woods? Close your eyes and imagine your restful place and incorporate the senses. For example, if you are thinking of a lake in the woods: See the sun setting on the water, Hear the birds, Smell the earth and fallen leaves, Feel the cool ground on your feet, Taste the fresh air.
• Learn to Deep Breathe – Put a hand on your lower abdomen and a hand on your chest. When you inhale and exhale the hand on your abdomen should move out and in considerably. The hand on your chest should move little. Problems getting it? Lie on the floor with a book on your lower abdomen and as you breathe, make the book rise and fall.
• Stress-reducing Exercise/Movement - Check into the various activities that reduce stress. Our spa schedules have an abundance of stress-reducing practices: Tai Chi, Yoga, Meditation, Journaling, Mindful movement and more.
• Touch Therapy – Although self massage is good for stress relief, getting massage from a professional therapist is tremendously more relaxing and more thorough than what you can do yourself. When muscles relax so does the overstressed mind. Try Swedish massage which promotes overall relaxation.

There are many techniques available to break stress cycles, but they only work when you use them. The techniques quiet the mind, reduce the concentration of stress hormones in the blood and enhance the overall sense of well being. Some techniques have an immediate onset and are useful for a quick readjustment of the mind. Others help train the mind to keep the baseline level of stress hormones lower and counteract the harmful effects of stress throughout the day. For more information on coping with stress check with your spa...

Jane Segerberg is founder and president of Segerberg Spa Consulting, LLC., a multi-faceted spa consulting and management company with an industry reputation for creating spas that work –they are compelling for the property’s market, attain recognition, engage guests in memorable experiences and achieve bottom line success. Over Jane’s thirty-year history in the wellness, hospitality and spa industry, she has become recognized for providing outstanding service and keen attention to detail. For company information please view http://www.segerbergspa.com. Ms. Segerberg can be contacted at 912-222-1518 or janesegerberg@yahoo.com Extended Bio...

HotelExecutive.com retains the copyright to the articles published in the Hotel Business Review. Articles cannot be republished without prior written consent by HotelExecutive.com.