at large ( 59 percent), organize activities
( 59 percent), raise money ( 52 percent),
recruit new members ( 51 percent), impact
local communities ( 49 percent) and find
group leaders ( 35 percent).
At the same time, Americans say the
Internet has had a significant effect
on the way they personally connect
with groups to which they belong. For
instance, many Americans say the Internet has had a major impact on their
ability to keep up with group news and
information ( 53 percent), organize group
activities ( 41 percent), invite friends to
join their group ( 35 percent), find groups
that match their interests ( 33 percent),
create their own groups ( 28 percent), volunteer their time to groups ( 24 percent)
and contribute money to groups ( 24 percent). What’s more, 46 percent of Internet
users who are active in groups indicate
that the Internet has helped them be
active in more groups than they otherwise would be.
“One of the striking things in these
data is how purposeful people are as they
become active with groups,” says Pew
Internet Research Director Kristen Pur-
cell. “Many enjoy the social dimensions
of involvement, but what they really want
is to have impact. Most have felt proud
of a group they belong to in the past
year and just under half say they accom-
plished something they couldn’t have
accomplished on their own.”
The Internet’s power isn’t lost on the
groups themselves, either, according to
Pew, which suggests 48 percent of groups
use social networking, 42 percent text
messaging, 30 percent a blog and 16 per-
cent Twitter.
“It is important to note that 25 percent
of American adults are not active in any
of the groups we addressed,” says Pew
Internet Senior Research Specialist Aaron
Smith. “They often report they are time-stressed or have health or other issues
that limit their ability to be involved.
And about a fifth of them say that lack
of access to the Internet is a hindrance.
for being happier and healthier at work:
1. Stand up to your office chair: It’s
great that you have the newest ergonomic chair, but if you sit in it all
day, you’ll reduce the amount of fat-burning enzyme called lipoprotein
lipase by a whopping 94 percent. To
keep this enzyme active and burning
fat requires only 30 minutes a day
of standing up to read, talk on the
phone or consult with a co-worker.
Embrace the power of repetition:
If you struggle with boredom from
doing the same activities over and
over at work, here’s a trick that helps
top athletes train every day for hours
at a time: Embrace the repetition.
Start to see chipping away at the
same tasks day after day as powerful
ways to reach your financial and professional goals.
3. Brush away impatience and frustration: When you’re impatient with
a task that’s taking too long, or frustrated with a complication such as
a technology glitch, here’s a simple
way to quickly reset your workplace
mood: Think of whatever you’re
doing — say, consulting the user’s
guide for your computer — as your
top priority instead of the means to
an end.
4. Change your routine to prevent
monotony: It’s like the idea of cross
training for athletes: Workers can
stay mentally fit by mixing up the
routine. If you work 9 to 5, try working 8 to 4. If you always check your
email first thing, do something else
for the first hour. Rearrange your
office. Try making calls instead of
emailing.
5. Stop procrastinating for five minutes: If you put off working on large
projects or tasks as the deadline gets
closer, and then eat yourself up with
worry at night obsessing about them,
try this: Commit to working on the
important task for just five minutes.
That’s it. Once you start, you might
Even in its absence, the Internet seems
to be a factor in the reality of how groups
perform in the digital age.”
Blocking the
Blahs
Fifty-two percent of Americans are dissatisfied with their jobs, according to a
recent Conference Board job satisfaction
survey. It’s not always people’s jobs that
are bringing them down, however; often,
it’s their attitudes.
“Boredom, perfectionism, anxiety and
impatience make us hate what we do,”
argue fitness gurus Brant Secunda and
Mark Allen, authors of Fit Soul, Fit Body: 9
Keys to a Healthier, Happier You. “And feeling
physically bad — from sitting too long,
caving in to stress and eating poorly on
the job — just makes things worse.”
If you’re among the scores of Ameri-
can workers who hate going to work,
you might want to try changing yourself
before you change your job, say Secunda
and Allen, who offer the following 10 tips
