Is there an appropriate place to talk on your cell phone at work? I've made several calls today, from several different locations, and have come to the answer - a resounding 'NO.' AT YOUR DESK: Using the business phone for 'personal business' is frowned upon, but using your cell at your desk is a tell-tale sign that you are not working. Worse yet, you're inclined to distract others from their work. Way to go team player! IN THE BATHROOM: Just plain creepy. The concept of the work bathroom (which should be upgraded) is simple: do your business, wash your hands, and move on. I work with a guy who texts while peeing, and that's just plain wrong. I'm no scientist, but the likelihood for some nasty germ transfer must be paramount. IN THE BREAKROOM: Look around. There are people eating, sleeping, reading and writing. Do you really think they want to spend the lousy few minutes of "me" time they get listening to you blab? IN THE HALLWAY: The human race … [Read more...] about Office Cell Phone Ban Needed?
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HR4620: Will Bill Help Reduce Unemployment Rate?
Introduced into the House in early February, HR4620, aka, The Small Business Job Creation Act of 2010, will provide tax credits for small businesses who hire people who were previously unemployed. For a business to qualify, annual revenue must be less than $20 million and their staff must be under 200 full-time employees.The participating business benefits with a tax credit of 7.5 percent of wages earned by an employee in 2010, and 5 percent in 2011, applicable to the first $75,000 of an employee's salary. If the small business in in a county where the unemployment rate is higher than the national rate, a tax credit of 15 percent in 2010, and 10 percent in 2011, will be issued.The bill sounds like it could give small businesses the push they need to beef up staff. But don't celebrate yet. The bill still needs to pass a House and Senate vote, along with President Obama's signature to be signed into law. Do you think HR4620 will help reduce the unemployment … [Read more...] about HR4620: Will Bill Help Reduce Unemployment Rate?
Keeping Your Confidence Up While Job-Hunting
Find Ways to Bolster That Self-EsteemI can think of very few situations that can be as confidence-deflating as trying to find a job. It is particularly difficult to maintain a positive attitude in today’s especially tough, bleak employment market. Multiply by the number of months you’ve been looking for work or trying to move out of a bad job and your ego is taking a huge hit.Sales jobs aren’t my thing, but I have worked in that area and it is challenging work. You are selling a product - YOU, when applying and interviewing. And like a shark smelling blood, a skilled HR person can spot a candidate’s low self-confidence in the first few minutes of an interview. It’s almost impossible to stand out as a top contender when you obviously aren’t able to sell yourself.So how do you combat this eroding self-esteem and confidence? Here are a few things to try...* Too often we define ourselves only by what we do for a living. But you have many personas. Maybe … [Read more...] about Keeping Your Confidence Up While Job-Hunting
Share Anonymous Feedback With BetterMe: Q&A With CEO Sterling Mace
Biting my tongue. Walking on eggshells. Adjusting my filter. Whatever you call it, I'm constantly having to do it at work so I'm not telling people how I really feel. Cause if I did, I'd be living on $405 a week.Thankfully, there's a cure.Betterme.com, an online communication and self-improvement startup, allows you to solicit anonymous feedback on yourself. Or, scarier-yet, it allows people to send you unsolicited feedback.Send anonymous feedback by simply inputting the recipient's e-mail address, selecting a category (work, school, social, etc.) and letting the person know what's on your mind. All feedback you give is rated, resulting in a "My Usefulness Rating" (1 - 5).BetterMe Founder and CEO Sterling Mace gives Jobacle readers the skinny on anonymous feedback, and why it’s not as ‘ugly’ as you might think.Q: It doesn't take an MBA from Harvard Business School (and you have one!) to understand that open communication at work is a … [Read more...] about Share Anonymous Feedback With BetterMe: Q&A With CEO Sterling Mace
Reverse Bidding Resume Writing Idea
One of my favorite things about the Internet is how it allows shoppers to comparison shop before pulling the trigger on a purchase.For example, it worked like a charm when searching for New York movers. I came across Citymove, a free service that has moving companies compete for your business based on pre-selected criteria. As a consumer, I like choices. And that's why I dig the reverse-auction business model. So now foolishly, as I've done many times in the past, I'm going to share an idea. (If it already exists, let me know! And if it doesn't, don't steal it!) How about a Website where you can post your crappy old resume and have resume writers bid for the job. They can try to win you over with action verbs and templates before you hire them. You also can negotiate price and deadline.It seems like a no-brainer. Resume writers get increased exposure and new clients, while employees end up with more reputable options. … [Read more...] about Reverse Bidding Resume Writing Idea
Want to Add a Job Board to Your Website?
By now job searchers have realized that anyone can have a job board. And that's scary. But also kinda cool. Finding a new job on the Web via a board comes down to quality not quantity. Actaully, it also comes down to luck. So while those SimplyHotMonsterBuilder sites boast millions of postings, you know that very few of the jobs are the real deal. SmartJobBoard, a job board software company has just released version 3.0 of their turnkey solution. For about $50 a month, any company can add a fully customizable job board to their Website. There is even Wordpress and PhpBB forum integration.According to SmartJobBoard CEO Rodion Telpizov, “This new version of our job board script is aimed to make the configuration process more clearly to users. Using permission management system, we’ve added to the new release, software administrator can easily set needed permission to site users with a few clicks...We’ve also optimized the … [Read more...] about Want to Add a Job Board to Your Website?
Do You Respect Your Coworkers on a Professional Level?
Think before you answer: Do you respect any of your co-workers on a professional level? Do any of them make you want to strive to be a better worker> … [Read more...] about Do You Respect Your Coworkers on a Professional Level?
Using Attitude Adjustment in the Workplace
I’m Not Talking about Lacing the DecafI’ll be honest. As a therapist, I’m not a huge fan of what some aspects of the “positive psychology” movement have become - more on that in a bit. Martin Seligman, a psychologist who teaches at the University of Pennsylvania, is considered to be positive psychology’s founder. A Web site, Authentic Happiness, describes it as “a new branch of psychology which focuses on the empirical study of such things as positive emotions, strengths-based character, and healthy institutions.”I love his ideas and have used them with patients long before it had a name. It always seemed healthier to focus on people’s strengths and positive qualities than get stuck in pathology mode. My concern is that the idea is often distorted and very far removed from its original focus and intent. (I also believe it can be dangerous for clinicians to ignore patients' serious, underlying issues while applying these … [Read more...] about Using Attitude Adjustment in the Workplace
Options Are a Job Seeker's Best Friend
Image this...It's your final two weeks at a job. After years of searching, you're finally moving from that drab cubicle in the suburbs to a corner office downtown. The pay is twice as much as you earned before and the decision-making power is exponentially higher. All in all, it's a HUGE career upgrade. Without even realizing it, your mind is fast at work on a list of 'nevers.'"I'LL NEVER WORK IN THIS INDUSTRY AGAIN""I'LL NEVER WORK FOR THIS COMPANY AGAIN""I'LL NEVER SEE THESE ANNOYING PEOPLE AGAIN"Your final two weeks starts to feel like it will never end. You find yourself restless. This leads you to act slightly combative, almost arrogant. After all, you have a new job, perhaps it's time to let people see how you "really" feel.When you're not busy muttering about work disdain under your breath, you are turning to isolationism. The hope is that you can slip out like a ghost. Come Monday morning, people will wonder where you … [Read more...] about Options Are a Job Seeker's Best Friend
Does Work Suck? 9 Tips to Break Out of the Funk
We all suffer through bouts of work fatigue. These periods vary in intensity and length. It can range from "work sucks" to "how the hell did I get trapped in this suffocating job?!" I have several "tools" in my "box" that I go to when I experience work frustration. Here are a few actionable items that help me break out of a work rut. I REMIND MYSELF TO BE THANKFULI look at the nice things I have and remind myself that they would not be possible without my job. The house, the car, the phone, the food and the relative comfort would disappear if I told my boss to shove it.I think about the 10% of Americans who would kill for my job.I write a list of things I like about my job, because no matter how much you dislike a gig, every job has redeeming qualities.I TAKE EXRTA GOOD CARE OF MY HEALTHRegular exercise, a well-balanced diet and enough sleep should help ward off any of the medical fallout that work aggravation can bring about. I incorporate … [Read more...] about Does Work Suck? 9 Tips to Break Out of the Funk