diary-of-an-undergrad-blog

[diary-of-an-undergrad-blog]

Work Hard, Play Hard: The Science Behind the Saying

When I got my first job I remember complaining to my mom that I didn’t really enjoy it much. I also remember her telling me “that’s why they call it work.” As I get closer to graduation I think more and more about work and what I see myself doing. The simple answer is that I see myself doing something that I enjoy in a fun environment. Some people struggle to accept that there can be a balance between having fun and working hard. In addition, many people assume that paying employees more will increase productivity. This is not always the case. In fact, research shows that companies with fun-orientated cultures have a variety of advantages. These include lower levels of absenteeism, greater job satisfaction and increased employee loyalty. Not only are employees happier, but also there is a correlation between fun at work and productivity. A study done at the University of Warwick found that unhappy workers were 10% less productive, while happiness led to a 12% spike in productivity. The idea that you can work hard and play hard becomes even more important as younger generations enter the workforce. According to Forrester Research, college graduates entering the labour market will work between 12 and 15 different jobs in their lifetime. For employers this may be a daunting statistic because a high turnover rate can be very costly. One thing they can do however, is encourage some fun around the office. If businesses allow for a fun work environment, people are more likely to stay longer and work harder.  So if you want to be successful, don’t forget to have fun!

Sources: Gotstick, A., & Christophe, S. (2017). Why Fun at Work Matters. Retrieved from Monster: https://www.monster.com/career-advice/article/fun-at-work-matters-levity-effectMarker, S. (2015). How Many Jobs Will the Average Person Have in his or her Lifetime? Retrieved from Linkdin: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/how-many-jobs-average-person-have-his-her-lifetime-scott-markerRevesencio, J. (2015). Why Happy Employees are 12% More Productive . Retrieved from Fast Company: https://www.fastcompany.com/3048751/happy-employees-are-12-more-productive-at-work 

[diary-of-an-undergrad-blog]

App-iphany

Move over Facebook! Twitter; watch your back because Instagram is taking over. As of late the trend in social media seems to be leaning in favour of Instagram. It has become such a popular social media platform, especially among the younger generation. My sister, who is six years younger than I, recently asked me what I use Facebook for. My answer was something along the lines of, “I don’t know, its Facebook! Everyone uses it.” Despite my deeply intriguing and thought provoking answer, my sister scoffed at my reply and simply said, “Yea, everyone old.” (According to my sister, 21 is now considered “old”). Either way, this served as a sort of epiphany that 1) I have now hit all the exciting age milestones until I turn 30, which doesn’t seem all that exciting, and 2) that social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter may be losing ground in comparison to Instagram. Upon further investigation, I actually discovered that from 2015 to 2016 there was a significant decline in usage of Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Snapchat. So despite the fact that when I look around the dinner table, everyone is glued to their phones, people are spending less time on these top four social media apps. Now I don’t see these apps disappearing any time soon, however, it is interesting all the same. What else could people possibly be doing?! All jokes aside, how will this decline in usage affect us? Today, there are so many organizations and brands that rely solely on social media to market their products and services. If this trend continues, what will that mean for their businesses? Many questions emerge about the current and future online climate and whether these apps will evolve with its users. While I ponder these questions I hear my phone buzzing off in the distance. Must. Go. Check. It. The only things I can do now are monitor the global social media usage and continue to develop my theories for the future of apps like Facebook and Instagram. Stay tuned for more ‘sort of’ epiphanies!

Source: Tuchinsky, P. (2016). Social Media App Usage Down Across the Globe. Retrieved from Digital Vision: https://www.similarweb.com/blog/social-media-usage