When people want to complain about their jobs they seek me out. It's a curse, a blessing, and part of the reason I started Jobacle.com.Several recent vent sessions with different colleagues and friends revealed a compelling consistancy: people are willing to stay at jobs that make them unhappy when they "like" the people they work with. I think that's crazy.If your work relationships are fulfilling your need for personal relationships, you might want to take a look in the mirror and ask yourself why. I'm not calling you out for not having friends, I understand how difficult it is to meet new friends as an adult - and where better to make a connection than the place where you spend a third of your life. However, the more personal you get with people at work, the greater the odds that emotion - a major workplace enemy - will seep in. Oh, and the boss ain't your friend.If you're staying in a hapless job because you share some laughs with your cubemates, … [Read more...] about Work Friends Are Not a Reason to Stay at a Job
Try to Do the “Zen” Thing at Work
A Different Approach = Different Result Admittedly, I know very little about Buddhism from a scholarly perspective, but understand a bit about it. (To learn about the basics principles of Buddhism, download the Working Podcast #65.) You hear the words “zen” and “mindfulness” thrown around a lot. For me, those words relate strongly to finding my own inner peace and being aware of the moment.A recent, unexpected personal event has negatively impacted many aspects of my life. I try not to let it overwhelm me and some days I do better than others. But mostly I try to assess each moment and cut myself some slack if I’m worrying too much about not living up to my own or someone else’s expectations. My new meditative phrase is, “It is what it is.” Over-thinking and over-analyzing is not mindfulness.A very insightful patient in my private practice recently shared with me some of his thoughts in this area. He works in an über … [Read more...] about Try to Do the “Zen” Thing at Work
New Law – Stricter Guidelines for Unpaid Internships
As someone who benefited from two excellent internship programs, I’m a big proponent of the idea. What better way to get real-life, hands-on experience at a job site. Mine were through a social work Master’s program that carefully supervised interns and screened the workplaces.Despite the professional settings, I do remember being asked to do some questionable things. Being an older, returning student who had worked in professional settings for years, I wasn’t an easy mark. When a psych nurse told me to go to a patient’s home alone and pack a suitcase, I was skeptical (liability!) and declined. She struck me as someone who probably expected interns to fetch her coffee. Post-degree, I had the opportunity to supervise social work student interns. Remembering my experiences, I tried to provide a rich learning environment for my students. I felt that if they weren’t paid for their hard work, at least the training and exposure should be worthwhile.In April … [Read more...] about New Law – Stricter Guidelines for Unpaid Internships
Facing the Real World and Winning
The Real World. These seemingly innocuous words have somehow managed to strike fear into the hearts of college students everywhere for decades - nay, centuries - and it’s high time something was done about it! I propose that facing your fears head on is always the best plan of attack. Although it is never easy to make an important life change (and what could be bigger than embarking upon adulthood?), with the proper tools at your disposal, you can ease the transition considerably and make “the real world” just another place you’ll journey to.To begin, you should talk to your career counselor (well before graduation would be smart). Find out what jobs are available in your chosen field and if you can take advantage of internships to help you get a foot in the door (and possibly a job offer by the time you graduate). Unless you formulate Newton’s Fourth Law of Motion or design a game that’s better than Halo, chances of … [Read more...] about Facing the Real World and Winning
Fake Job Post of the Week
Please, pay attention to this letter.European escrow service company is looking for an individual for the courier clerk position. It is a remote/part-time/full-time position and it is home-based.Service of Easy Packages inc was based by several Polish businessmen and is on the international market over 5 years with its Warsaw head office .SEP inc provides the dispatching service of a middleman among sellers and customers from all over the World. You are required to have a PC with web access along with printer or scanner.Right now we are hiring employees for courier clerk position in the US. The duties include tracking and receiving packages and transferring them out using the materials that our company provides. The pay is $60 for each received and sent package (it is calculated in a total monthly pay and paid at the end of each working month, $1500 is a minimum guaranteed monthly amount and it does not depend on the amount of packages that you have handled)the … [Read more...] about Fake Job Post of the Week
Love in the Workplace in 2010 Style
With today’s stressful times and a tough economy, many single women are in search of a soul-mate and a support system to help cushion the blows.Like the military, they too are “looking for a few good men.” Sometimes this strategic search is conducted on line via the popular dating websites, while others are pursued in church pews, and after-five singles’ mingles. And even for the reluctant, sometimes the potential hook-up happens at work. And when you think about it, theoretically it makes sense.Oftentimes relationships are built upon common interests or experiences. Is it more than an office crush?With this being the case, who else would understand your work woes or departmental dynamics like a co-worker? In fact, this occurrence is so common that many TV shows address it in their weekly story lines. Look at Pam and Jim at Dunder Mifflin. And what about the doctors of E.R.? …And so the story begins. But whether or not these … [Read more...] about Love in the Workplace in 2010 Style
An “Alternative” Hot Jobs Forecast
Nanotechnology? Huh?Have you grown weary of reading all those “hot jobs for 2012 (or whatever)” lists? Is it me or do they always have careers in which I wouldn’t be remotely interested or others I’m convinced someone is making up? A recent Wall Street Journal article, “What Will Be the Hot Jobs of 2018?”by Sue Shellenbarger, discusses some of the hottest careers coming up. Don’t get me wrong, I do think these articles are extremely helpful for young people who are poised to choose a career. They can inform and help students gear their curriculum towards jobs that might actually hire and pay decently in the future. But for an aging worker/sometime job-seeker like me, even the idea of “nanotechnology” as a career makes me cranky. In past posts, I’ve written about some dream jobs, “I Want a TV Job” and careers that might be appealing if I ever decide what I want to do next, “What Do You Want to Be When You Grow … [Read more...] about An “Alternative” Hot Jobs Forecast
A Serious Talk About Workplace Casual Days
Okay, I admit it.Back in the day, when I was a worker bee in the corporate arena, one of my favorite days, (other than pay day) was casual dress day.Probably because most of my work experience was in very “professional” type environments, these days were as rare as steak. In fact, if I can recall correctly, the only time we got them was if we had filing and purging projects around the office, or weekend work, or were being rewarded for reaching a departmental goal. Casual attire usually accompanied a more lax, laid back attitude, and less formality in terms of interaction. We felt less inhibited, freer to express our personalities through our attire, and just down-right groovy.Who wouldn’t love it? Now, don’t get me wrong; I dig dressing up in sexy stilettos and nylons, and wearing tailored suits, (that show off my curvaceous legs), but every now in then, jeans can bring real joy too.Not to mention, casual days have also been said to improve overall office … [Read more...] about A Serious Talk About Workplace Casual Days
Big Benefit for Small Company Employees
New Provision Incentivizes Wellness Offering employees incentives for improving their health isn’t a new concept. Many larger companies providing employee health insurance give discounts or cash incentives for smoking cessation, nutrition awareness and other wellness initiatives.Smaller companies have historically faced a big financial hurdle when trying to offer similar benefits to their employees. But that’s about to change. In an article at CNN Money, “Bribe Your Workers to be Healthy,” Sonya Stinson outlines a new provision in the health reform law that will aid small companies. And they will compare insurance rates so that they get the best deal on the coverage.“Starting next year, the law authorizes grants totaling $200 million over five years for small companies that start wellness programs focused on efforts such as nutrition, smoking cessation, physical fitness and stress management. Companies with fewer than 100 employees qualify for … [Read more...] about Big Benefit for Small Company Employees
Join the "I Need a Freakin' Job" Movement
I Need a Freakin' Job is a grassroots movement designed to build a community of like-minded people to express frustration about being jobless and to keep job recovery at the forefront of political conversation.Learn more on their Website and find them on Facebook. … [Read more...] about Join the "I Need a Freakin' Job" Movement