Your Monthly Check-Up: Work Out While You Work

Everyone knows that leading a sedentary lifestyle is bad for your health, but when you’re eyeballs-deep in the nine-to-five grind, it’s not so easy to take a break from the computer and get the blood flowing. Sure, you get up to refill your coffee and take the subsequent bathroom break – maybe you even stop and chat with a co-worker at a neighboring cubicle – but is there more you can be doing during your workday to stretch the ol’ limbs and prevent secretary spread?

In fact, there’s plenty you can be doing, and you can make it fun instead of turning it into a chore (that’s what your after-hours workouts are for). Fran Melmed highlights five great tips for getting some exercise at work in her recent TLNT.com blog post titled “5 Tools to Help Get Employees Up and Out of Their Desks.”  

In her article, Melmed shines the spotlight on five tools to help get you up and moving during your day. Hotseat, Fitbolt and Workpace are all computer-based platforms geared toward getting employees away from their computers and into solo or group fitness activities intermittently throughout the day. “Instant Recess” is a book and concept that focuses on this very topic. And tip #5 is to bring your dog to work as an excuse to get out for walks.

Why not start incorporating one or two of these tools into your workday? Try one out and see how it feels, or mix and match a few until you find a combination that lets you take a break here and there while still meeting your deadlines. What have you got to lose (besides that fast-food gut)?

Let us know how it goes – maybe we’ll test some of these out, too!

Merchandise Monday: Intriguing Audio

Yamaha RestioCan you hear that? Your favorite song just came on Internet radio while you work. Maybe you’re cranking some thumping beats to help energize your run. Or are you playing soft sounds to lull your babies to sleep? Whatever the case may be, music plays a huge role in everyday life, whether or not you’re even aware of it.

Today we’re highlighting several new audio items that have been added to Hinda’s assortment this month that have really caught our eye. What’s interesting about these items is that not only do they provide great sound for all your listening needs, but they have additional functionality and aesthetic appeal to boot.

Grace Digital’s Eco Terra Rugged and Waterproof Boom Box

Forget John Cusack in “Say Anything” – this is not your typical boom box. The Eco Terra Boom Box is a floating waterproof iPhone®/MP3 player case which is fully submersible in water. An internal waterproof storage compartment holds and protects your keys, MP3 player, credit cards, driver's license and cash, keeping it safe from sand, sun and water. A uniquely designed exterior pressure release valve ensures your case is closed airtight and easily opened at low and high altitudes. When thrown into the water, the Eco Terra case will rotate to float with the speakers pointed up so you can always enjoy your tunes. Enjoy the nostalgia of an old-school boom box without losing your street cred.

iPod® Nano with TikTok Multi-Touch Watch Band

You’ll have no excuses to skip your workouts when you’ve got this pair in your corner. The iPod Nano keeps you moving and grooving with your favorite songs at your fingertips. Shake to Shuffle lets you literally give Nano a shake and it skips to a different song in your music library. LunaTik®’s TikTok is a simple snap-in design that allows the user to quickly and securely snap the iPod Nano in and out of the wrist dock. It cleanly and simply integrates the Nano and transforms it into a modern, multi-function timepiece. With 18 different clock face designs to choose from, you can have a new watch style whenever the mood strikes you. Crank the tunes, strap on your Nano watch and get moving.

Yamaha® Restio™ Floor Standing Audio System

This is a speaker system like you’ve never seen before. The Restio is an elegant new floor-standing style desktop audio system that is entertaining, energizing, relaxing in the evening and invigorating in the morning, with sophisticated styling and superb sound. Featuring a built-in iPhone®/ iPod® dock, a CD player, a USB input, an FM/AM tuner and IntelliAlarm, it’s an endlessly enchanting companion. A thin body style and half-moon shaped stand allows you to position Restio right up against a wall. Restio also features a digital clock and looks more like a work of art than a speaker system. It’s sure to make a statement among your home décor and will be cause for conversation whenever guests come over.

Like what you hear? How do you prefer to listen to your tunes? Are you in the market for an upgrade of your personal or home audio? Talk to us in the “Comments” section below – we promise we’ll listen!

Aunt Martha’s Names Hinda Incentives as its 2012 Crystal Ball Business Honoree

Aunt Martha's volunteer Thaddeus Ridley presents award to Hinda CEO Michael ArkesHinda Incentives was named the 2012 Crystal Ball Business Honoree at the 40^th anniversary celebration of Aunt Martha’s Youth Service Center on Friday, April 20^th. The event, which took place at the Patrick C. Haley Mansion in Joliet, Ill., celebrated the organization’s past, present and future. Hinda Incentives was honored for its continued commitment to the Aunt Martha’s annual gift drive.

Aunt Martha’s, which opened its doors in 1972, started when troubled youth began gathering at a local drop-in center in south suburban Park Forest, Ill. It was run by a few volunteers and a village youth worker, C. Gary Leofanti, now Aunt Martha’s president.

Aunt Martha’s Chief Executive Officer, Raul Garza, praised Hinda by saying, “Hinda Incentives and its employees have been the most consistent, significant contributor to Aunt Martha’s annual Holiday Gift Express campaign. They ensure that each and every one of the children and youth has a special holiday experience. The Arkes family and their team at Hinda Incentives have come to represent the true spirit of the holidays around Aunt Martha’s group homes.”

Michael Arkes, CEO of Hinda Incentives and his wife, Helen Arkes, have been working with Aunt Martha’s for more than 20 years and, in fact, Helen is a former member of Aunt Martha’s board of directors.

The annual gift campaign started at Hinda when a group of employees sought an alternative to exchanging small holiday gifts with one another. Andrew Christmas, CFO of Hinda Incentives, helps organize the annual effort, noting, “Our employees really enjoy helping the youth of Aunt Martha’s through this program. Interested employees participate by making donations, as well as helping shop, wrap and deliver the gifts. The gratitude shown by the recipients of the gifts is incredibly heart-warming.” 

Today, Aunt Martha’s Youth Service Center is a health care and social service agency which has earned a national reputation for meeting the needs of children, youth and families. The organization offers primary health and dental care, mental health counseling, child welfare, juvenile justice, prevention and youth development services. Aunt Martha’s now reaches more than 80,000 individual clients each year.

To Redeem, or Not to Redeem…

Depending on how you look at it, 2012 is either one-third empty or two-thirds full. We don’t know where the time goes, either, but what we do know is that a lot has happened in the first quarter – specifically in the area of award redemption and fulfillment. Recently, Hinda had a meeting to discuss redemptions so far this year, and it’s interesting to see what people have been redeeming for since January.

As expected, many of these redemptions fall into the “Electronics” category. This shows no sign of slowing down. People love their gadgets, and with new versions and varieties coming out all the time, people like to stay up to date. Another popular redemption category is “Home,” with many people redeeming for items such as coffeemakers and cookware. As we’ve mentioned in previous posts, this is a trend we see in this particular economy, as people cut back on dining out and trips to trendy coffee bars.

Here we present the top ten redemptions according to dollar value. This is where most of the gadgety stuff comes in to play:

Apple® iPad® 2 Apple iPod® Touch Amazon Kindle Fire 7" Multi-Touch Wi-Fi Keurig® Special Edition B60 Single-Cup Home Brewing System HP® 15.6" Notebook Computer Coby® 19" Wide Screen LCD HDTV Nikon Coolpix® S6100 16MP Digital Camera with 7x Zoom Coby 32" HDTV LCD 1080p 120Hz Microsoft Xbox 360® 250GB Bundle Bose® QuietComfort® 15 Acoustic Noise Cancelling® Headphones

This list outlines Hinda’s top redeemers according to units fulfilled. Much of this list contains the home and housewares redemptions:

World Kitchen® 18-Piece Glass Storage Set with Lids Wagan® Battery Jumper With Air Compressor Royal Consumer 10-Sheet Crosscut Paper Shredder Titleist® Pro VI Golf Ball Dozen Apple iPod Touch® 8GB with FaceTime (Black) Lipper Bamboo Thin Cutting Boards Conair® Weight Watchers® Body Analysis Scale Dirt Devil®  Swift Stick Vacuum Coby Dual USB Car Charger for iPod® And Other USB Powered Devices Black and Decker® Six-Cup Rice Cooker and Steamer

It’s kind of cool to see what people have been saving up their points for, and it will be interesting to see how these lists change – or if they change – as we move into the rest of 2012. Keep your radar tuned to Hinda Blog for more updates in the future!

IMA Responds to GSA's "Hats Off" Program

This week, the Incentive Marketing Association (IMA) released a video in response to the negative press surrounding the General Services Administrations' "Hats Off" incentive program scandal. In the video, Hinda Incentives and IMA president Dave Peer explains that the actions of the GSA are not representative of the incentive industry as a whole, and this was an isolated incident that is being handled accordingly.

In the video, Peer explains that IMA-supported incentive programs have clear goals and measures and when run properly, can boost employee engagement by as much as 27 percent. In addition, companies that offer incentive programs report higher productivity, better sales and higher profits.

View the video and read the corresponding article by Incentive Magazine writer Alex Palmer here.