Archive | Mental Health

Refocusing “on the Fly”

As the saying goes, the best laid plans… Change is part of our everyday existence as litigation consultants, especially in our world of keeping up with lawyers. We’re down in the chain of command, thus, when things change for our clients, they change for us. Just today, a lawyer calles about a change in his […]

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David and I have written about the need for flexibility in our world of work in prior posts.  Flexibility, and along with it, the willingness to change plans on a moment’s notice, are job requirements for everyone who works at Magnus.  I often find it difficult to explain to the “uninitiated” about why I never […]

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Technology and Workplace Violence

In this, final, post about workplace violence that was inspired by my recent mediator re-certification training, I will discuss another reality of life in the modern world, workplace violence involving employees who work remotely. Workplace violence is not limited to in person interactions; in fact, cyber violence is commonplace. The pandemic that began in early […]

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It is somewhat overwhelming to consider the lengths to which “bad actors,” a/k/a criminals, in some situations, will go to in order to attempt to bully, harass, or perpetrate violence.  We at Magnus, are somewhat sheltered in our work environment.  But, to consider the ramifications of remote working, telecommuting, etc. and how that pandemic forced […]

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Employers’ Duty of Care of Employees

The lecture I recently attended on workplace violence included information regarding employers’ duty of care of their employees, with the goal being to foster an environment of zero tolerance for violence. The first component of every employers’ duty in this regard is, of course, to have a written policy that prohibits all forms of on […]

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Employers’ responses to harassment or violence send strong messages as to whether behaviors are tolerated.  In the instance Melissa mentioned about being grabbed from behind, that was an act committed by the attorney/client when she worked in her first trial consulting job.  Because he was a client, she didn’t respond with violence and hit him, […]

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Workplace Violence

This is the first of a series of 3 posts concerning workplace violence. As part of my Continuing Mediator Education required to maintain my certification as a Civil Court Mediator in Florida, I attended a lecture on workplace violence that was taught by an employee of the Fort Lauderdale Police Department. Unfortunately, most of us […]

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It is disturbing that workplace violence, in any form, is enough of a problem that it was included on the agenda for Melissa’s mediator continuing education. This fact is enough to give one pause, and it makes me think how different things are in the world at large than in our small business.  I certainly […]

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Those little annoyances

Someone told me long ago that he lacked the personality characteristic to be able to tolerate performing mundane tasks, including dealing with automated telephone systems; working out problems with a bank; balancing a checkbook; etc. I share this absence of the personality trait that obviously includes having patience to handle being placed on hold for […]

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It’s not easy being OK to Handle.  I think we’ve written about that story before.  But, in the recent example, I was dealing with one of our banks.  I don’t enjoy that kind of experience, but I know I can get through it; I have to.  Melissa could not.  I just have to persevere.  This […]

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Helping People Who Don’t Believe They Need Help

Sometimes, the people who need our help the most do not think they need any help, from anyone. These individuals may thwart our efforts to help them in various ways: (1) they try to cover up their problem(s); (2) they deny a problem exists; (3) they cancel appointments we make with medical providers or providers […]

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Helping those needing help is especially challenging when that person is an adult, a parent perhaps, as Melissa noted.  Our experience with my parents was certainly difficult because, for a long time, neither of them realized what the rest of us did – they needed help.  They needed help to move, while they were still […]

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Reducing the Stigma of Mental Illness

I’m not certain why there is a stigma surrounding mental illness and those who suffer from it. Perhaps the stigma originates from social pressures to conform, that is, to act like “everyone else.” Obviously, when someone is mentally ill, he/she cannot act like everyone else, even if we wish this could happen; even if we […]

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It seems strange to me that some things have stigmas when they should not.  Mental illness is one of those things families like to hide in a closet.  A few years ago, when Melissa and I lived in a small city in Broward County, we had occasion to interact with our little police department.  We […]

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Mental Illness is in Every Family

This topic has been on my list of things to write about since 2015, but today is the day I will discuss this serious issue. The issue is mental illness. As much as many people would prefer not to talk about mental illness, it is a pervasive part of almost every family, such that we […]

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What does it mean to be normal versus mentally ill?  I’m not a psychologist, so I don’t know.  But, as an observer of human behavior, I believe “normal” is a pretty broad description that probably includes many people who function pretty well despite some degree of mental abnormality.  Thus, the question becomes, where is the […]

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You Will Get Fired if: You Can’t do the Job!

This will be the first post in a series about being fired. I can’t believe I didn’t write these sooner, but it is not a happy topic. I put it on the list of things to write about many years ago, just never bothered until I, once again, had to terminate someone. For some people, […]

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Here we go again.  I frequently quote the psychological phenomenon regarding the requirement of both ability and effort to achieve successful task completion.  If one or both components are lacking, a task will not be completed successfully.  That is, if one has the ability to perform a given task, but one puts forth no effort […]

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Varying Types of Concert Fans

A Point of View

Melissa Pigott, Ph.D.

On November 16, 2021

Category: Common Courtesy, Getting Through Life and Work, Life Outside of Work, Magnus, Magnus Insights, Mental Health, Psychology

I have attended concerts since 1972. Going to concerts is something I really enjoy! I gone to hundreds of concerts over the years. (Although I have a list, I have never taken the time to count the number of concerts I have attended or the number of performers I have had the pleasure of seeing […]

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Another View

David H. Fauss, M.S.M.

On November 16, 2021

Category: Common Courtesy, Getting Through Life and Work, Life Outside of Work, Magnus, Magnus Insights, Mental Health, Psychology

Yes, RUSH shows are unique.  Head bobbing to their irregular time signatures is much more common than dancing to RUSH music.  But, that is probably true of most prog-rock bands.  Still, there are variations – some people “dance” by thrusting their fists or arms in the air like they are cheering.  Others stand on the […]

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