What I teach mum about working

This is a bit heavier from a 1st World Dog perspective but appropriate in my 1st World Dog life. Mum runs her own business and works from home most days. That means I get to sit at her feet while she works…. or rip up paper from the paper bin if she leaves it on the floor.

Unknown to me (or mum) the other day (21st June to be exact) was International Take Your Dog To Work Day. OK I get that humans seem to have a day for everything these days but this one I like. While sometime I can be a distraction there us also a lot of good stuff that I bring to mum’s office. We happened across a review of this book “Secrets of a Working Dog” and I thought Bella had some good stuff….

Here are four lessons Bella thinks humans at work can learn from dogs.

1. Keep your eyes on the ball.
I like balls. In fact I am working on my Yoda-style skills when it comes to the balls.  Mum can do the same thing in her work. When she is trying to do something specific she needs to focus. Turn off the distractions (yes I know helping me with 1st World Dog is fun mum… but focus) and break them into manageable chunks, completing each one before taking a break or moving onto the next. And then she gets stuff done and can move onto the next thing….

 

2. Play should be a part of every day.
When mum is working I like to check on her between each nap cycle. Often this means having a bit of playtime. It helps give her brain a rest and also helps her tap into her creative side. Playing like a dog means taking frequent breaks throughout each workday. If you are not lucky enough to share your office with a dog you can still take regular break and go for a walk, do some desk stretches or listen to music in between tasks.

 

 

3. Show appreciation.
I am good at showing appreciation. When my tail wags my whole body moves. Mum loves it when she comes home and I greet her at the door with my tail going. Humans unfortunately don’t have tails (design fault) but a simple Thank-You or even a simple gesture like a hand written note can really make a difference to other human’s perceptions.

 

4. Live in the present.
Even being a 1st World Dog with all the dilemmas that it brings I really just think about now. And often now consists of food, ball, scratches and sleep. OK so mum has to think of a few more things to ensure there are bones in the fridge and kibble in the container but still. Focusing on the now is how stuff happens. I think that is why mum enjoys that agility jumping stuff we do so well. Unless she is thinking only about the course we are doing it is a nightmare. Seriously if mum isn’t concentrating on just the agility course her arms can be pointing me anywhere… and don’t even start on where her feet and shoulders are sending me off to.

 

So a bit deep for 1st World Dog but hopefully helpful for all the humans reading it.