Being a travel manager isn’t for the faint-hearted. There’s conflicting agendas to think about, office fires to extinguish and fraught negotiating games to play. Sometimes all in a day’s work.
From travellers to senior management, and from suppliers, your TMC and through to your own team members, it takes an emotionally and socially capable person to walk that tightrope between cost and comfort that keeps everybody (mostly) happy.
But sometimes there’s a price to pay. Research shows that unexpressed resentment and conflict at work can have a serious impact on your mental well-being. So while conflict at work is unavoidable, you need to find ways of dealing with it that don’t come at the expense of your own health.
This is why we put together a handy eGuide that digs a little deeper into the causes of conflict at work. Why is it unavoidable and what are the needs someone is seeking to fulfil when they push your buttons? Is disagreement necessarily a bad thing and what are the best ways to respond?
From aggressive behaviour to passive and passive aggressive behaviour, we’ve taken a closer look at the three most natural responses to conflict and why they generally don’t work.
Instead we propose a fourth response, be assertive! Responding assertively helps you to be confident, positive and self-assured. It allows you to say what you want, feel or need in an open, honest and direct way. It also helps to remind you that you have the same rights as anyone else, to get what you want or need. No more than anyone else, but certainly also not less.
By using real life examples we give you 45 practical tips on how you can be more assertive as a travel manager. Although for most of us assertiveness doesn’t come quite that naturally, with a bit of practice it can become second nature for you too.
After all, being assertive sure is a lot more pleasant than arguing and it’s way nicer than always giving in. There’s really no point fighting us on that one.
Strength in Numbers
There are so many good reasons to live healthier. It’s not just a matter of feeling and looking good. Experts have also proven links between physical fitness and work productivity. Even simple improvements like drinking more water are good for your body and your brain.
Your workplace is actually an ideal situation for improving your health. Seek out colleagues who are also interested in living healthier and you immediately have a built-in support system. It’s much easier to stay motivated when you don’t have to go it alone.
Small Steps, Big Benefits
The new e-book from Booking.com for Business offers seven smart tips for improving your health – and performance – at work. You can use these tips for your own self-improvement, and share them with colleagues to start a health initiative at work.
The beauty of these tips is their practicality and low learning curve. Anyone who wants to master every yoga position or gear up for a marathon is more than welcome to do so. However, these tips focus on easy steps that we can all take in our everyday work lives to maintain and improve our health.
The tips include stress-relieving relaxation techniques, a word on healthier gift-giving, some office hygiene advice and more. Be sure to check out the new e-book from Booking.com for Business to learn more about boosting your health and productivity – without burning yourself out in the process.