I thought the great thing about workshifting is that you don't have to sit in an office all day. You can grab your computer-tablet-Smartphone and get to work at your favorite coffee shop, or in the park, on an airplane, or even in a tree house (well, if you have a tree house).

Turns out workshifting might not be so awesome after all.

Have you seen the Work is Murder infographic? Mashable compiled a whole bunch of nasty statistics that show that sitting around all day is bad for your health. Wherever it is you happen to be sitting around. As in 14.6 pounds worth of calories we're no longer burning each year in our jobs compared to our parents and grandparents.

So what's a workshifter to do?

I've taken up workstepping part time, and here's what I've found out: it's easier than you might think to add a little movement into your day.

Here are some tips to get started:

1. Put on your walking shoes.

As in, wear them so you have no excuses.

2. Schedule breaks.

Think of it as a Pomodoro break for your body. When I'm sitting around most of the day, I try to take a walk break every hour or two. In my case, I walk a half mile on the treadmill--part of my quest to add 3+ miles of walking daily on top of my workout routine. But you can walk the halls if you live in a big high-rise building, go up and down the stairs in your house, or get outside and walk around the block for 5-15 minutes. The key: movement.

3. Walk while you talk.

Maybe it's because I've gotten used to moving more at work, but I've started pacing while I'm on the phone. Not every phone call, of course. But if you're on a conference call on mute and find yourself surfing the Web, can you stand up and stretch (or walk around) instead?

4. Dive into your RSS feed, check your e-mail, watch a video--and walk.

We're all taking in a lot of information every day. And we're mostly sitting down while we do it. TED talks, a friend pointed out, are great for walk breaks.

Bonus Tip:
Edit while you walk (and I don't mean a manuscript). This one is, admittedly, rather tricky as I've found that it's not so easy to walk and write at the same time. But it can be a good way to add a little exercise when you're editing through a white paper, back blog posts, or a client report.

Have you tried workstepping? What tips would you add?

Here at Workshifting, we've talked many times about the benefits of telework and shared numerous reports about its value to your company. Today, we're offering a visual approach because sometimes pictures and images are just quicker than words alone are.

Compliments of Splashtop and Column Five, this infographic tells us all about the new push to work from home on Fridays.  

Has your company joined the movement? Leave us a comment!

First question: Did you get up this morning and say, "Yes, world, I'm so excited to check my inbox! Bring it on"?

Trick question! No one says this--no one sane anyway. Being a happy worker doesn't mean you love your job every second of the day; it doesn't mean you enjoy every task you're given. It simply means you're satisfied with your work and life balance, you are more productive than others, and you find fulfillment in your work.

QUIZ TIME! Are You a Happy Worker or a Sad (Disengaged) Worker?

Do you have enough time in the day to complete your "to-do" list?

• A) I have time to accomplish the main priorities because I have workplace flexibility and can leave the office setting to avoid distractions
• B) I don't even have time to write a "to-do" list

Work gets in the way of my personal life and home responsibilities?

• A) Never to sometimes
• B) Often to Always

Are you thinking about other job opportunities outside of your company?

• A) I'm content with my work and there are unique benefits of working for my company
• B) I want outta here.

RESULTS

Mostly A's - You are a happy worker (yay, you!). Please refer to the left column of the infographic to find out why you are engaged and more satisfied with your work than others. Then refer to the right column to see why you have it better ;)

Mostly B's - You are disengaged and need the solution of workshifting to pump you up. Please refer to the right column of the infographic to see why you're disengaged and how you relate to your peers. Then refer to the left column where you'll learn what you need to do in order to make your professional happiness soar. And finally, submit a 30- second video to win the chance to workshift for free! We will give you 10K, an iPad and a year of GoToMyPC so you can work on the move.

What's your verdict - happy or disengaged??

Today we are releasing the results of a study that was conducted by Forrester with Citrix Online (you know, the GoToMeeting folks who help us keep the lights on around here) that looks at how business people communicate and collaborate across the globe.

As workshifters, we all know how liberating it is to work when, how and where you want, and that technology helps us do that without comprising quality of work or efficiency. But does the rest of the world get it? Forrester conducted a study with Citrix Online that looks at how business people communicate and collaborate across the globe, and it turns out that the in-person meeting is alive and well with 84% of respondents still having them. However, these in-person meetings often are inconvenient to coordinate and don't achieve the agenda's goals. In fact, only 45% are very satisfied that planning meetings achieve the task in hand and less than half believe any type of meeting to be very efficient! What is it then, fellow workshifters? Are people just in plain denial about the effectiveness of in-person meetings?

Communication isn't simple as people deal with complex and challenging work environments. From dispersed workforces, an accelerated pace of business and changing attitudes and work styles, it's important for companies to look at such snapshots of current trends and practices. It provides the opportunity to think about the implications for how to build the right organizational meeting/communication structure.

The study includes interesting findings that shed light on similarities and differences across generations and countries with how people like to interact with coworkers and what they need to be productive. For instance, contrary to what people probably assume, Gen Y does not have the monopoly on tech use and social tools in the office. They're actually least likely to share information via text messages and use social networking the least frequently!

And how do the different surveyed countries compare in their individual business languages? Check out the infographic below: