Weekly Highlights - 23 July 2021

Weekly Highlights 23 July 2021 - Issue No. 101 In this issue Dear Colleagues RAF ICARE VALUES CAMPAIGN REFRESHER — Nelson Mandela once said, “When people are determined, INTEGRITY they can overcome anything”. The past week’s events are testament of that. Following days of unrest in various parts 2021 ANNUAL PUBLIC SECTOR INNOVATION of South Africa, which caused extensive disruption and AWARDS destruction, citizens of Mzansi showed once more why this country is characterised with the spirit of resilience. Mandela REALISE YOU’RE BURNING OUT Day seemed to come at just the right time as people used the day to clean up, rebuild and show solidarity with others DEALING WITH VIOLENT ACTS IN THE NEWS following the unrest, using more than just their 67 minutes to serve communities and people in need.  LEXIS NEXIS TRAINING The news of the unrest last week also overshadowed SOUTH AFRICA’S TAX SEASON IS NOW OPEN – WHAT other encouraging matters pertaining to the country’s fight YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT FILING against COVID-19. One such positive is that one million people between the ages of 35 and 49 registered to receive TIPS FOR MIND-BODY BALANCE their jabs 24 hours after the government’s Electronic Vaccination Data System opened for their registration. COVID-19 STATISTICS This demonstrates that most South Africans want to get protection from this virus and get on with the business of THE FUN PAGE rebuilding our beautiful country. Letters to the Editor President Cyril Ramaphosa also lauded these developments in the COVID-19 vaccination roll-out saying it spoke to our We invite our readers to share their character as a nation. “It speaks to our enduring optimism comments, feedback and suggestions with that things will indeed get better, said the President. The us. Readers are encouraged to submit opening of vaccination for those aged from 35 years their letters, of no more than 200 words, to forms part of the second phase of South Africa’s national [email protected] and TholakeleR@raf. vaccination roll-out. co.za. We are looking forward to hearing from you. As the vaccination programme continues and as we work towards rebuilding and cleaning the country following past Editor: Thabang Mahlatsi ([email protected]) week’s events, we are urged to do so safely, exercising Sub-editor: Tholakele Radebe ([email protected]) constant vigilance against coronavirus. Please stay at home Reporter: Tintswalo Nkuna ([email protected]) and go out when it is absolutely necessary; wear masks Editor-In-Chief: Anton Janse van Rensburg ([email protected]) at all times in public spaces; avoid crowded places; and regularly wash or sanitise your hands. Enjoy this week’s Highlights! Kind regards Internal Communication

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REALISE YOU’RE BURNING OUT Researched by Nomkhosi Gumede When a fire has burnt out it is not of much use. We can’t What Is Burnout? use it for warmth, cooking or drying. We can’t use it to Burnout is a syndrome conceptualised as resulting from burn unwanted materials, warn off wild animals or signal chronic workplace stress that has not been successfully our location to potential rescuers. In short, a fire that has managed. It is characterised by three dimensions:  burnt out is useless. • Exhaustion – which refers to feelings of stress, In my practice as a psychologist and a coach, I am finding specifically chronic fatigue resulting from excessive that many of my clients who are working from home are work demands. presenting with symptoms of burnout. In the same way that a fire is no longer useful when it’s burnt out, these clients are • Depersonalisation or cynicism – which refers to an no longer able to function effectively either. Although they do apathetic or detached attitude toward work in general know that something is going wrong, they don’t realise that and the people with whom one works; leading to loss they are burning out. of interest in work, and feeling that work has lost its meaning. While burnout has always been something to watch out for when working from home, it is now, with full-time work from • Lack of professional efficacy – which refers to home so much more prevalent, that we need to be paying reduced feelings of efficiency, successful attainment, more attention to it than ever. and accomplishment both in one’s job and the organisation. But even paying attention to it has become harder. Before COVID-19, it was usually our managers and colleagues who Burnout refers specifically to phenomena in the occupational first noticed that something was wrong and brought it to our context and should not be applied to describe experiences in attention. Now, without our colleagues to give us feedback, other areas of life. In other words, burnout is an occupational symptoms of burnout can be harder to recognise. For people phenomenon. It is not classified as a medical condition. living alone, spotting the early signs of burnout has become especially difficult as there is no one to observe the changes What Are the Symptoms of Burnout? in our behaviour and emotions. Sadly, although burnout There are many symptoms. Some of them are: develops progressively over five stages, most people do not recognise the symptoms until they have already reached full- • Changed job performance – Increased absenteeism, blown burnout. tardiness, mistakes in routine tasks, inability to concentrate, difficulty in making and explaining So, what are the tell-tale signs that you might be headed decisions, use of sick leave and decreased efficiency towards burnout? Let’s first understand what burnout actually or productivity – working more but enjoying it less. is. CLICK HERE FOR NEXT PAGE Continues to the Next Page 4

REALISE YOU’RE BURNING OUT (CONT) • Increased overtime and no holiday leave – Feeling for a period of time. indispensable to the organisation and reluctant to say no to working on scheduled off-days. What Do I Do if I Realise that I Am Burning Out? • Skipping rest and food breaks – Continually having If you realise that you are burning out, then it’s important to no time for coffee or lunch breaks to restore stamina. act straight away. Burnout doesn’t go away on its own, rather, it will get worse unless you address the underlying issues • Increased physical complaints – Fatigue, irritability, causing it. If you ignore burnout, it will only cause you further muscle tension, frequent headaches, stomach upsets, harm down the line. Recovery can take weeks, months, or susceptibility to illness, loss of pleasure in sex and even years, so it’s important that you make changes in your insomnia. lifestyle to begin recovery as soon as possible. • Emotional changes – Emotional exhaustion, loss There are three things you can do right now: of self-esteem, depression, frustration, a ‘trapped’ feeling, pessimism, paranoia, rigidity, callousness, • Talk to others involved and let them know what’s increased interpersonal conflict and irritability, feelings happening.  of loneliness, guilt, isolation and hopelessness. • Seek professional help.  • Read my article Spurn the Burn for suggestions on what to do if you have burnout. Be aware that many of the symptoms of burnout are the Shsretootapuul:rri/ccs/weee:=-wynwoeu.wc-lrsaelie-rbettunerern_wi2nt6og4n-o&.cuuott&.mzaa_c/mmme=yd-1ai4ur4tmic3=l_ee2sm6/s4apiul&rnu-tmth_ec-baumrnp.ahitgmnl=?eu-tqmu_ipped-to- same as the symptoms of depression and anxiety. For example, depression and burnout share the common Nomkhosi GumbaesdeedisinaDMuarbrkaenting Manager, 5 features of loss of interest and impaired concentration. Depression, anxiety and burnout share many of the same symptoms including memory and concentration problems, sleeplessness, diffuse aches, profound fatigue, irritability and a feeling of being emotionally drained. If you are not sure if you are suffering from burnout, depression or anxiety – and it could easily be all three – seek professional help from a psychologist or other mental health professional. How Do I Know if I Am Burning Out? If you recognise that you have many of the symptoms mentioned above, then burnout has already been developing CLICK HERE FOR NEXT PAGE

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SOUTH AFRICA’S TAX SEASON IS NOW OPEN – WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT FILING Researched by Thabang Mahlatsi Starting July, SARS will be assessing a significant number of taxpayers automatically.  “If you accept the outcome, you do not have to file a tax return at all,” stated SARS. The auto-assessments made are based on the data the rev- enue service receives from employers, financial institutions, medical schemes, retirement annuity fund administrators and other third-party data providers.” The South African Revenue Service (SARS) has an- “If you have not yet received your IRP5/IT3 (a) s and oth- nounced that taxpayers will be able to file their tax er tax certificates, you should immediately approach your returns from 1 July 2021. employer or medical scheme or retirement annuity fund or other third-party data providers to make sure that they have The revenue collector added that a significant number of indi- complied with their submission requirements.” vidual taxpayers will be auto-assessed once again this year, and that this process will also start around the same period. If you accept the results of your auto-assessment and there SARS stated that the other important dates that taxpayers is a refund due to you, it will be paid by SARS. should be aware of are: If you owe some money to SARS, you can make a payment • 1 July to 23 November 2021 – This is the period for on eFiling, via EFT or the SARS MobiApp by the specified taxpayers who file online. Taxpayers who cannot file due date on your notice of assessment. online can do so at a SARS branch by appointment only. • 1 July to 28 January 2022 – This is the period for provisional taxpayers including trusts. They may file via eFiling or the SARS MobiApp. Shsretootapuul:rri/csc/weee=-:wynoweu.wc-rlsaelie-rbettunerern_wi2nt6go4-no&.cuuot&t.mzaa_c/mmme=yd1-ai4ur4tmi3c=_lee2sm6/s4apiul&rnu-tmth_ec-baumrnp.ahitgmnl=?eu-tqmu_ipped-to- CLICK HERE FOR NEXT PAGE ThCaobmanmguMniacahtlaiotnsi, ibsaaseSdpeinciEacliost:GIlnatdeernsal 8

TIPS FOR MIND-BODY BALANCE Researched by Celimpilo Dladla urally tend to listen to our body with love and reverence and make choices that support balance, happiness, and well-be- ing. The following seven mind-body prescriptions will help you create this positive feedback loop: 1. Take time each day to quiet your mind and meditate. 2. Each day eat a healthy diet that includes the six tastes (sweet, sour, salty, bitter, pungent, and astringent) and a wide variety of colourful fruits and vegetables. 3.Move your body: engage in daily exercise. 4. Take time for restful sleep. One of the guiding principles of mind-body medicine is 5. Release emotional toxins. the interconnection of all things, including the mind, the 6. Cultivate loving relationships. body, and the environment in which we live. Each of us 7. Enjoy a good belly-laugh at least once a day. is an inseparable part of an infinite field of intelligence, and in this very moment, with every breath, we are ex- changing millions of atoms with the universe. From this holistic perspective, health isn’t merely the absence of disease or symptoms; it is a state of optimal well-being, vi- tality, and wholeness. We are healthy when we’re able to fully digest everything we take in, extracting what is nourishing and eliminating whatever doesn’t serve us. This includes our food, our relationships, our jobs, and all our life experiences. Illness, in contrast, develops when there is a disruption ― a blockage in the flow of energy and information in our body- mind. Symptoms and sickness are the body’s signal that we need to restore balance, eliminate whatever is causing the blockages, and re-establish the healthy flow of intelligence. The Mind-Body Connection Since the body and mind are inextricably connected, every time we have a thought, we set off a cascade of cellular reac- tions in our nervous system that influences all the molecules in our body. Our cells are constantly observing our thoughts and being changed by them. The relationship between the mind and body is complex, and sometimes things happen at a physical level for which we don’t have a plausible explana- tion. We have to acknowledge that we may have an inherent tendency for health or imbalance, and in some cases, genetic inheritance is the major factor underlying an illness. At the same time, we have amazing potential to heal and transform ourselves through our thoughts, perceptions, and choices. The body is a magnificent network of intelligence, capable of far more than current medical science can explain. Cultivating Balance Source: 9 Establishing a healthy dialogue between our thoughts and https://chopra.com/articles/7-tips-for-mind-body-balance our molecules helps us shift from imbalance to balance. And when we’re in an optimal state of dynamic balance, we nat- CeLlimanpgiluoaDgelasd,labaisseadSinpeEcciaoliGstl:aNdegsuni CLICK HERE FOR NEXT PAGE

COVID-19 STATISTICS IN SOUTH AFRICA

THE FUN PAGE Winter seems to have made a U-turn. We decided to take a humorous look at this past few days freezing weather. NOTE TO READERS: What kind of content would you like to see on this page in future editions? We would love to hear from you! Kindly send your suggestions to: [email protected]