Week 6? 7?

Whichever week it was, last week was a full one and our interns were really hopping.  With Teresa out of the office, there was an extra set of "things" to get done along with a much-anticipated Twirlies event to arrange.  The girls pulled everything together with great aplomb (and more than a little stress-management).  It should be noted that, though they arranged the entire 'Tinis and Toes event, none of the Sisarina girls actually received a pedicure or massage.  They were working too hard!

When it all hits the fan…

~by Liz Glomb (@eglomb)

This week brought on lots of stress for me. It wasn’t any one particular thing, it was a bunch of small and large things that decided to all pour down on my head during the same 5 day period. You know that feeling you get when you feel like there aren’t enough hours in the day to get any of your work done? Yeah, that was me. It didn’t help that stress makes it hard for me to concentrate, which results in me being more stressed, etc etc etc.   So my question to you readers is:

How do you deal with work-related stress?

If work, life, or a combination of both, have ever made you so stressed out you have a hard time operating, than you know what I’m talking about. I’ve come up with a short list of things that have worked for me in the past to help alleviate stress. Some of these things work all the time, and some work every now and then, but at some point they have all worked for me. 

1. Listen to relaxing music. Now when I say “relaxing”, that really could be anything, because everyone has different musical tastes. I tend to listen to stuff in the “Jack Johnson” or “Guster” type genre for these moments. The other key to this is to have the music playing from something other than your own computer. I find that if I have my iTunes open on my laptop I spend more time being picky then I do listening to the music. The goal is to put on some music that you find relaxing and that will essentially fill in the background.
2. Take a break every hour. When I’m stressed, and trying to work on something and I’m having a major case of writer’s block, I will get up and walk around outside for about 5 minutes. Just getting a breath of fresh air or stretching my legs helps me not feel like I’m trapped at my desk.
3. Try to go to bed an hour early. If at all possible, try to go to bed an hour earlier than you normally do. Don’t stress yourself out even more by getting less sleep. I’m a firm believer in the notion that “sleep will solve anything”. If sleep can’t solve it, than at least it will make you feel a bit more rested and clear headed than before.
4. Exercise. Go to the gym. Go on a long run. Whatever you like to do for exercise, go out and DO IT. Even if I feel like I have no time for a run, I do it, even if it’s only for 30 minutes. It doesn’t have to be a full blown gym session, but getting the endorphins pumping will help with almost anything.

College Grad: Great communication skills, event coordinating & bartending…

~by Nicole Mott (@nicolemott)

‘Tinis and Toes was my first event that I have planned from the beginning to the end and it felt great! I have come to realize that planning a full event involves taking every detail in mind. It started as just a fun name and idea that Melanie had started with but then as we brainstormed more and talked to more people it really developed into a much anticipated “girlie” event.

What exactly goes into the planning a Sisarina event?
We started by mentioning the idea at our June Twirlie event. This small group of women loved the idea of networking over martinis and pedicures, so we were sure we could convince a few more… (What we didn’t know was that all 30 spots would fill and that more than half of the ladies would come from the start to end of the event). Then the next step was to work out the details. Originally our idea was to have the event at a local bar in a back porch area, but as more details panned out, such as a masseuse and pedicures while drinking martinis—we realized it would work better to be in our own space… Well this and I knew I could put my bartending skills to the test!

Ahh, the power of Twitter…
So we had the location, date and time set while we reached out to local female businesses for sponsorship. Most of these interactions were via email with local companies, but while searching for a dessert sponsor, Lori from Zen Rabbit responded instantly to a tweet of Melanie’s offering to provide “Gratitude Cookies.” This connection via Twitter developed into an email conversation and then, sure enough Lori mailed us the Gratitude Cookies and attended our event last Wednesday, while in town for a few days.

Last minute preparations…
The week of ‘Tinis and Toes entailed finalizing martini menu and food menu as well as preparing the office and last minute details with our sponsors. We picked up food, drinks, supplies and borrowed Sex and the City to be playing in the background. There is a lot of work that goes into the events that are at Sisarina’s headquarters because we are actually the ones making the food and drinks, but it’s worth it. The office is more of an intimate and relaxed setting compared to a bar, so it creates a different socializing atmosphere.

I learned a lot of things from planning the event, ‘Tinis and Toes, from the beginning to the end—many things worked out well but there were also a fair share of aspects that I know no could have run smoother, but that’s how it goes. You live and learn. But why not live and learn while getting a pedicure and drinking a martini?