SMART Goals

Good morning blog readers! In my first post a few weeks ago I laid out my SMART (specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, timely) goals for sabbatical. As a reminder here is my plan:

• Weekly or bi-weekly blog posts on academically-adjacent ideas about the invisible burdens on women @ work and tightroping

  • I am consistently posting Tuesday and Thursday @ 11am

• Monthly blog posts where I rant about how Sheryl Sandberg sold us all a lie and that leaning in is a bunch of bullshit and/or stories about my son

  • Son stories ✔️

  • Sheryl Sandberg post coming next week ✔️

• Six or seven completed book chapters

• An additional dog

• A book contract with an actual company so that I don’t have to make hard copies of what I write to give as gifts

It’s been less than a month but I am feeling good and that’s probably because making progress on your goals is shown to make us happier. It feels great to write and, weirdly, science also shows that it also makes us happier. You know what else makes us happier? DOGS!!!

Please meet our newest family member: Mango San Carlos 🥭

His brother, Mr. Crenshaw Sniffers (L) wavers between indifference and slight jealousy. Human son is very happy with this development. A New Life Rescue was wonderful if you are looking for a dog-faced friend. I can officially cross this (measurable) goal off my list!

I already knew how much I love having a dog but the actual research on what they bring to our lives is so interesting! Dogs are shown to increase our levels of oxytocin thus literally making us feel better. They also decrease stress levels in us and our kids and can make us healthier. This begs* the question: do these benefits carry over to work? It looks like they do! Workplaces that allow (well-trained) dogs in the office decrease absences and increase employee retention. They also increase productivity and communication between employees and it’s a great way to attract younger employees. There are clearly people who do not appreciate doggie licks or barks during meetings so having dogs in the workplace can be a tricky thing to establish. Understanding your employees is crucial to making this work and there are some great suggestions if this is something you want to implement or pitch at your office. If just thinking about having your furry friend with you all day sounds like a dream here is a list of companies that will let you.

Now if you will excuse me, I have a baby dog belly to rub!

*unintentional dog pun