#like i just cannot consider this work environment or the supervisors to be any kind of intimidating

[eats-the-stars]

recently at work my coworkers have been complaining about one of our supervisors and I simply can't relate. sorry but i used to work in a family restaurant. this man is like a big puppy-dog to me. i've had supervisors that would eat him up, spit his bones on the floor, and then make me clean them up while apologizing profusely to any nearby customers for the bones being there.

[missmentelle]

How do I know if I'm burnt out and what are signs of being burnt out? In relation to both university and work?

Unfortunately, burnout is a very common problem among both university students and people in high-stress jobs. For those of you who are unfamiliar with the term, “burnout” is effectively where people reach a breaking point after being in a high-stress occupation (like a demanding academic program or a high-pressure career) for too long. Being “burnt out” is not an official diagnosis, and you won’t find it in the ICD-11 or the DSM-V. But it’s something that an increasing number of people are experiencing every year.

Not everyone is at equal risk of experiencing burnout - many students and workers never really deal with this. Factors that put you at high risk of burnout include:

Having poor work-life balance. If you spend huge portions of your time working - working through weekends, doing tons of overtime, working late, not taking vacation, working through lunch - you are at high risk of burnout. Humans need rest, relaxation, hobbies and time with friends, and when you sacrifice those things for work, it will eventually take a toll.

Having very little control over your day-to-day tasks. No one has perfect control over their daily work tasks - not even the self-employed - but having some element of control is important. If you have a say in things like when to schedule meetings, when to book client appointments and which task you are going to work on when, you have a lower risk of burnout than someone whose tasks tend to just be dictated to them. 

Having perfectionist traits or holding yourself to very high standards. People who experience burnout tend to be overachievers. They constantly try to go above and beyond because they put immense pressure on themselves to do their best work at all times. If you’re the kind of person who beats yourself up over getting an A- instead of an A and makes a point to be the last one out of the office every day, you are at risk of burnout. 

Having a dysfunctional work or school environment. Is your workplace plagued with bullies and office gossip? Do your lab members take pleasure in ripping each other’s research and writing to shreds, without really being constructive about it? Does your boss take their bad moods out on the rest of the office, even when you haven’t done anything wrong? A dysfunctional workplace creates burned-out employees.

Having unclear instructions or directions. It is extremely difficult to be in a work environment where you are expected to do be productive, but you aren’t given clear expectations, a clear list of tasks or instructions for how those tasks should actually be performed. It leaves you constantly feeling like your work isn’t good enough and isn’t done properly, without actually giving you a route to improve; you often end up working twice as hard to get half as much done, which is a recipe for burnout. 

Working in a helping profession. Nurses, social workers, therapists, paramedics, psychologists, caregivers and caseworkers have some of the highest burnout rates of any profession. These jobs often combine long hours and low pay with incredibly stressful work environments, and burnout is a huge problem. 

Burnout is more than just feeling tired or bored of what you do. It’s a state of complete and total exhaustion. Putting more energy into your job isn’t possible when you reach that point - you have nothing left to give. “Burnout” isn’t an official diagnosis, but it is a fitting description - trying to push through burnout is like trying to re-light a candle that has already burned all the way down to the bottom. It’s just not going to happen. 

Some signs that you’ve reached the point of burnout include:

Your performance is suffering. You can’t keep going full steam ahead when you’re running on fumes. When you’re burnt out, your work performance will one of the first things that starts to slip - you may find that you are missing deadlines, forgetting things, half-assing tasks and making careless mistakes.  

You constantly feel drained. Burnout is a perpetual state of exhaustion. You’ll start to feel like you just don’t have the energy to do everything that you’re supposed to do. You’ll find that you feel tired all the time, regardless of your sleeping habits, and that just forcing yourself to do the bare minimum leaves you feeling totally depleted and unable to do much else. 

You feel disconnected and cynical toward your work. Even if you once enjoyed your work or felt passionate about it, when you’re burnt out, you become disillusioned with what you do. You may find that you’re cynical about your work, or just so apathetic that you can’t bring yourself to care about it anymore, even when you accomplish things that once mattered to you. 

You can’t concentrate. Burnout can make it difficult - if not impossible - for even the most dedicated person to focus on their tasks. You might find that you spend a lot of time just sitting in front of your computer, unable to even start tasks because you can’t focus well enough to begin something. 

You have become irritable and short-tempered. People who are burnt out have a tendency to become impatient with the people around them. When you’re running on empty, you have no energy left for social interactions. You might find that you’re snapping at coworkers or getting visibly frustrated with clients if you work in a helping profession. 

You feel anxious. Burnout is often accompanied by feelings of indistinct dread that you just can’t seem to shake. The fear and anxiety is often tied to work, and can be completely overwhelming. 

You can’t sleep. Ironically, people with burnout often have a hard time sleeping. Their minds race all night, and they find that they cannot settle down or get comfortable enough to drift off. If you can sleep, you may find that you are only able to sleep in short bursts and cannot sleep through a full night. 

Your eating habits have changed. Some people experiencing burnout find that they lose their appetites. Others find that they begin to comfort themselves with food. Significant changes in appetite and food intake can signal a serious problem. 

You feel physically ill. Being under high amounts of stress for long periods of time can destroy your health - you might find that you have a lot of symptoms with no direct physical cause, like headaches, stomach pain, nausea and body aches. You might also find that you get sick more often and get more infections as the stress wears down your immune system. 

You feel like you have to drag yourself through the day. Even if you once enjoyed your job or your school, you might start to feel like even showing up is a huge chore, and dread having to go in. You might find that it takes all of your energy to even make it through the front door each day. 

The good news is that burnout is not a permanent state; there are things you can do to recover. However, recovering from burnout is not necessarily easy - this is not something you can quick-fix with a self-help book, and you may need to make significant lifestyle changes. Some things you can do to fix or prevent burnout include:

Set firm boundaries. If possible, stop taking work home. Stop signing up for extra shifts and overtime every time it’s available. Don’t volunteer to organize every single office party and baby shower. Stop answering work emails after 5pm. Don’t check your email on the weekends. Don’t respond to emails on vacation. Set firm boundaries between “work time” and “me time” - especially if you work from home, where it’s easier for work and life to bleed together. 

Use every minute of your paid time off. A lot of people just don’t use up all their PTO every year because they’re worried they’re letting the company down by taking vacation. Stop that. If you have vacation days, use them. Use your sick time too - if you don’t get sick that often, use them as mental health days. If you’re a student, ask professors for extensions when you’re sick - more and more professors are getting on board with cutting students some slack for life events. 

Unplug from productivity culture. Our culture has a pathological obsession with productivity, and it’s killing us. We consume books and blogs and podcasts about how to squeeze as much productivity out of ourselves as possible. It has to stop. Unsubscribe from this kind of content. You don’t need to put more pressure on yourself to optimize and monetize every second of your day - it’s not healthy. 

Seek support. Talk to a therapist, a doctor or a friend. Get professional help or just find people you can vent to. Try to form friendships with some of your coworkers or fellow students, especially if you work in the helping professions - they know better than anyone what you are going through. 

Prioritize your physical health. When you neglect your physical health, you are more likely to burn out - you run out of fuel faster when you have less in the tank to begin with. Prioritize eating healthy meals and getting all the nutrients you need. Make a habit of exercising. Practice good sleep hygiene and try to improve your sleep. 

Talk to your supervisor, advisor or boss. Are there things about your specific work or school environment that could be improved for you? Could you be transferred to a new team? Do your roles and responsibilities need to be clarified so you know exactly what is expected of you? Do you need additional training to do your job well? Are you dealing with harassment that could be reported to HR? See what can be fixed. 

Consider a change. Sometimes you just need a change of pace after a while. Many social workers, for instance, eventually leave the profession - a lot of people simply have a lifetime limit on how long they can do that kind of work before they need to switch to something that doesn’t involve human horror every day. If burnout is a consistent problem, it might be time to think about taking a leave of absence, changing to a different role, or switching careers altogether. 

Hope this answers your question! MM

[arraley]

Overhaul x fem!Reader Part One: Not only Heroes need attention

Welcome! Apparently you stumbled upon my very first FanFic EVER. Thank you very much for stopping by I appreciate it. As you can see, this is just Part One. This part ddoes not contain any smut... yet. In future parts there will defnitely hard smut going down but i got carried away with telling what´s going on. Please be easy on my language as english is not my mothertongue. Also for the convienience of my story Eri does basically NOT exist here. I know kinda shitty of me but I didn´t want to write strong Angst or about the child abuse. I love Overhaul though and think he is an incredible interesting villain and deserves more attention. I want to try to reflect him as good as I can and stay true to him but also be ablee to make him get a relationship with the reader at some point. So please enjoy this way too long introduction! Part Two will be started soon but will need time to come down. Constructive Criticsm would be amazing! 

Warnings: 

fem!Reader, Blood/gore, hospital themes, Bullying, sexual offence at work ( you have a disgusting coworker), sexist behaviour, villains and heroes, moral conflicts

Art: Fanart made by me

“It's just some smallfry villain, don´t worry about that and tend to my wounds first, I have to get back to my patrol soon, so hurry and get to your work.” the bearded man in front of you growled lowly and snapped his fingers right before your face loudly. His action made you wince for a mere second and your searching eyes found his intense stare. The heavy judgement in his dark blue eyes laid upon you, making you drop your chin, trying to avoid his gaze and rather looking at your comfy white sneakers as you started to gather the materials you needed for your work. Clamps, disinfectant spray, bandages, needle and thread, gloves for your and your patient's safety and so on. This was your everyday life and the thing you loved to do. Observing the human body and it's habits, treating sick and hurt people with everything you got no matter how desperate their situation is, tending to wounds, healing. Biology and chemistry, the way cells behave in a different environment and towards different substances, how they could change just by adding some other atoms. You chose this lifestyle early on in your life, loving to play nurse and doctor when you were a little kid. As a young child you had started reading medical texts already, looking at pictures of organs and the human body, it's in- and outside, that would disturb other children with the biggest interest, caring for other kids that hurt themselves on the playground when they fell during a play of catch without being afraid of blood. When you were a young teenager you practically devoured the knowledge in a rapid speed and soon the teachers couldn't answer your questions anymore. Skipping entire school years cause you were much more advanced than others you started asking well known Doctors difficult questions via EMail, writing to professors over the entire world just to quench your hunger for knowledge. In this period your brain might as well have been a sponge, soaking every bit of information up. Nothing could stop you from achieving your dream. And in a world filled to the brim with powers, a world ruled by villains and heroes, where everybody participated to the utmost and had their purpose, mostly well fitting to the Quirk they called their own it was not easy to stand out. 

Well, somehow you managed though and here you were. In this clean hospital room, smelling strongly like desinfectives, with a grumpy hero and a villain that was barely conscious, who had obvious bruises and bleedings, who moaned and winced in pain, leaned against a wall which would not be the same snowhite as before, now stained with red blood and dirt. Obviously the bad guy was much worse hurt, maybe even in a critical condition considering his chest was rising and lowering in an unstable pattern. Yet, your duty was to heal the hero first, who had just a small cut on his lower arm that was barely bleeding. The priority is to keep those healthy who protect lives. They come first, they are the pier that keep society stable. It was the first harsh rule that got drilled into your head when you had started out in a hospital that specialized on treating people that were involved in the mess between good and evil. Here only Heroes, Villains and civilians that were caught in those battles and got hurt in the process were treated. It was not only one of the biggest institutions of its kind, also it's reputation was the best. Actually you were honored to have a job in this hospital considering your current situation. 

Still, you could not just ignore the person in obvious pain behind you and you held back shortly before you started the first step of treatment on the hero's arm. The villain´s  labored breathing gave you a splitting headache and your fingers trembled as old memories creeped up in the back of your mind and a cold shiver ran down your spine. Slowly exhaling through your nose you locked your (E/C) eyes with the hero's eyes in front of you again. “Excuse me Sir.” you stated in a polite and soft tone, your voice sounding oddly echoey in the room “I think this person over there needs the first aid much more than you right now and I ask you to hold out a little longer, please.” With that you turned on your heel and immediately bent down to help the small man on the ground, checking his pulse and vitals. The villain had  small figure making his dirty and blood stained clothes seem slack on his body. His face being so contorted you were sure some bones were broken. Blood was running out of his nose constantly making the word concussion appear in your head right away. Though his entire body was shaking and his right arm looked awfully dislocated you carefully patted his shoulder trying to get his attention “Sir, it will be alright, I am gonna give you something against the pain and then check on your wounds, please tell me if you feel any deterioration of your current state. I need to check for internal bleeding and…” before you could continue the standard medical explanation to your patient a gigantic hand smashed brutally right next to your head against the wall. The force was so strong that the plaster fell partially off the wall and sank down like little snowflakes.

The vibration of the smash ran through all the walls of the room. In spite of the bad feeling that was rumbling in your stomach you turned your head carefully to the left, eyes travelling along the muscular arm until you could see the face of the furious hero. The dark blue eyes shined dangerously, the mustache of the man shaking along to the vibrations he had sent through the room. “A vibration quirk? Or just power enhancement?” it shot through your head before the hero opened his mouth: “How dare you little Missy? I am a hero and I just caught this villain as he tried to rob a general store. It's my right to get treated by you so I can continue saving people who obviously cannot help themselves. People that are weak… like you” he spat out the last words like venom and you could feel the heat radiating from him. Everything, his eyes, his pose, his tone was intimidating to your small figure.

Anyone else would have ducked their head and mumbled an humble apology, as the impressive hero tried to talk down to you and your unthankfulness. But you were not anyone. The older man couldn´t know that those words started an old fire that burned in your veins and neither of you would have expected that you´d glare right back at him and stating in a low but sarcastic tone:”Well, I like heroes like everyone, but only if they don´t cry about a little cut like certain people in this room and are obviously having violent tendencies. A general store you say? For that you hurt a person that much? A hero should be able to contain safety without going totally overboard, beating a person so much up. Shouldn´t you try to save villains as well and if it's just from themselves? Aren't they humans either? People that just lost their way? What do you know about this person, why he robbed this store? Do you know any of his reasons? And don´t tell me you had to break nearly every single of his bones to get him cuffed up. You just enjoyed beating him up didn't you? I am sure you did go extra hard on him after the press showed up right? Isn't that so? What a nice hero you are!” you snapped, ending your monologue pretty loudly and standing your ground in front of the hero. Shoulders were rising and falling with every heavy breath you took, fists clenched tightly, fingernails pressing into your palm until it hurt. Your legs were trembling of pure anger you felt rushing through your veins but as reality slowly settled back in for you as you looked him yet again straight in the surprised eyes, it came to you how rude you just had been, your own eyes widened and gasping loudly you put your quivering hands in front of your mouth keeping it shut tightly. Somehow you knew that you just really screwed it up. 

Just one day later your worries became reality as your supervisor, nobody less than the boss of the clinic called you to his office. When you stepped in you could already feel the air being thick and heavy as the tall man with shiny grey hair, strict facial features and orange eyes fuming in anger. Sitting straight and neatly in his expensive leather chair and his hands laying next to each other on the table you felt like a lamb going willingly into the lion's cave signing it´s own fate. Gulping heavily you sat down on the small chair in front of his massive oak desk. Pressing your legs together and throwing your ankles over one another you pressed your palms together against your stomach looking at your hands. The knuckles slowly turning white from the pressure you put onto them. You hadn't looked him in the eyes once yet, since you had entered and screwed them shut now as he slapped his hand on the tabletop in front of him loudly making you shrink together on your chair like a schoolgirl about to get scolded. Well, the situation was very similar to be honest. 

The boss was not necessarily a bad man but he ran the clinic and there was a lot of competition in Musutafu. Still he had managed to make the clinic one of the biggest ones of its kind and the reputation was great among heroes. All the bigger names, even some from the Top Ten, came there for regular check ups or after longlasting fights to get their wounds treated. Regularly the media tried to get glimpse of a hero or villains coming into the hospital. How he achieved it was clear: marketing, discipline, hard work and most importantly leading all the other doctors, who all wanted a piece of his cake, with an iron fist. That were the ingredients to his recipe of pure success. But now you had strayed from the given path and he did not take that well. 

“I took you in cause I really thought you have potential Y/N.” he began with a low tone that was laced with his anger. “It's really rich of you that you apparently try to ruin the hard earned reputation of my clinic with your childish ideas and wishes. What is the first thing I had taught you myself? Care to repeat the very first thing I taught you after giving you the internship and possibility to work as a real doctor when nobody else was interested in a quirkless healer?” Because of his harsh words you couldn´t stop the tears that started building up. Yes, it was true you were quirkless. One of the rare 20% of the world population. But why was everyone just seeing that? You are only 19 and already finished your medical degree, an upcoming doctor. In fact you had the best grades of one of the best medical schools in Japan. You had been above those that had quirks that could close fleshwounds, stimulate nerves or excite the immune system of a person. But that had not stopped you from treating people and making great advances in biology coming up with great hypotheses that could change the view on the human body despite it having a quirk or not. Yet, barely anybody paid interest in you and your abilities and your behaviour was a problem too. Too nice, too empathic, too calm, not business enough. That was what the boss had tried to always get out of you since you started one and a half year ago and this was already the second time you slipped. The first time had been a similar inconvenience where you denied treatment to a proclaimed local hero you had judged as too harsh in their behaviour towards law breakers. If you couldn't convince your boss now he would get rid of you and then it was over for you. But that also meant to betray your ideals and hopes…

“We...I-i… Heroes come first.” you gulped out and saying this turned your stomach around and made you feel sick. He hummed in appreciation of you remembering his lectures and his fingers drummed on the table. Something he would do when he was nervous or in thought. “Very right little One. Listen Y/N. I like you and your abilities. For someone in your position you do a good job. I could start preaching now about how much nonsense your view on this matter is and what consequences your disobedient behaviour can have for you but I am sure you understand your place. This is the very last time I hear of any kind of incident like this. I will let every other doctor have an eye on you. One more slip of yours and you are out, understood?” he ended coldly and waited for your response. Standing up you bowed slightly and mumbled a ´Thank You Sir´ before leaving the room in a trancelike state. Outside of his room you steadied yourself against the wall and your breath came out in shaky bits. Just now you realized how much your body was truly trembling and the tears that stained your cheek. So close. You were so close to losing your job but some lucky star prevented it. No matter what would happen now, you could not allow your feelings to get the better of you anymore.  

 It was too dangerous for your future, the future you had tried to build up so desperately. You wanted to help people so badly, good or bad but if you would continue this you had no chance to make this a reality. Tightening your shoulders and standing up straight you breathed in and out several times and tried to slow down your fast beating heart by irrationally putting your hand on your sternum rubbing the skin slightly until it was a bit reddened. 

As you didn´t want to linger around in front of your boss's office longer than necessary you walked slowly away from it, stuffing your hands in the pockets of your white doctor coat, your white sneakers squeaking a little bit on the light grey linoleum floor, while passing some of the room high windows that showed the wonderful skyline of the big city on this warm summer day. As the boss´s office was high up in the skyscraper like clinic you had an iconic overview over the metropole. The sky was colored in a beautiful bright blue, some white fluffy clouds and the sunshine rays reflected on several roofs of the city blinding the eyes of the viewer. Musutafu was full of life with hundreds of cars dashing through the streets, pedestrians rushing on the sidewalks and in between some cyclists. High above the scenery you could see a plane or helicopters flying through the sky like a bird. If you were lucky you could even see some winged heroes dash through the air like the current number two. Your eyes travelled down and you were faced with your own reflection in the glossy window. Looking at your reflection you could not really decide if you hated what you saw or were happy with it. Under your doctor's coat you wore the typical white pants and a pink shirt, indicating you were allowed to practice and take shifts on your own but were also still in training. You definitely were on the smaller side and your normally shoulder long (H/C) hair was tied together in a rather messy ponytail swinging behind your head with every motion. The roundly shaped face and soft features gave you a young and fresh look, your (E/C) eyes making you look incredibly friendly and slightly innocent behind the thick glasses you had to wear as your eyesight was ridiculously bad. Honestly it was as if mother fate decided that it was not unfair enough already that you hadn't been born like 80% of humanity´s population. Without the extra strong glasses you could barely see the outline of people and were absolutely helpless. The world was an absolute blur for your bare eyes. The thought made you blow up your cheeks a little giving your expression a cute pout. Nobody close by had a quirk that could heal your bad eyesight so far or they weren´t specified for your case in general. But it didn't matter, you just put it as another point on your to-find-a-cure-list of diseases and sickness in the world. Probably the only selfish thing you wanted to do in your life. Sighing you looked yourself in the eyes and palmed your cheek with the warmed up hand from your pocket facing your fate.

Yes, you would be a good one now and do everything as your boss told you to do, so you could achieve your goals. 

Three weeks have passed since the “talk” you and your boss had and the situation had calmed down a bit but still wasn't necessarily pleasant for you. One of the doctor´s you really hated and couldn´t respect at all had his eyes on you like a hawk from now on. He never had taken you seriously anyway, making sexual advances towards you, telling you regularly to give up and just become a nice and passive little wife as that is all that you were good for. He made you sick to the core but you could do nothing to stop him as he was the shining star of the hospital and good friends with the boss. So you decided to just eat his unnecessary comments and silently compete with him. As your abilities were clearly superior and he knew it as well as you did, you assumed that this is where his insecure behaviour and belittling of you came from.

 Because of this it was no surprise that, as you came out of the restroom after a short break in your night shift, you saw him leaning against the wall close by leisurely. His blonde hair was slickly tamed with shiny gel, his teeth were blinding white, the jawline sharp, his face and toned body like one of a greek god´s depiction. Many females in the hospital were dreaming about the pretty and charming doctor from a foreign country but you only got the bad kind of goosebumps when his striking blue eyes ogled you as if you belonged to him. You ignored his gaze blankly and tried to pass him, your head held high, but before you could he grabbed your wrist firmly and made you stop in your track. The smell of expensive aftershave surrounded you and the thick scent made you feel dizzy. Although you were normally a lovely and nice person, trying to accept everyone as they are, you could barely stand Trevor. You knew how it was to not be accepted by society and looked down at and he didn't make that situation any better for you. Unwillingly you looked up at him and raised an eyebrow, tugging your wrist back as a silent request to leave you alone. His wolfish grin only grew wider and his grab on your wrist strengthened nearly painfully. You were pretty sure you´d find a bruise the next day on the same spot. 

“Well, hello there pretty child. Still pretending to be a doctor I see? When will you finally give this up and date me? You'd make a pretty pretty little maid for me (Y/N). Why don´t you finally realize submission is a release for someone like you?” he cooed into your ear leaning uncomfortably close into your private zone. The degradation coming with his words made your blood rush into your ears and you gritted your teeth violently. You could feel your own pulse fastening rapidly and the acid in your stomach rise up from poor anger. Yes, you really tried to be accepting and you had taken a lot of bullying in your life already, let alone for being quirkless. But his words stung worse than a hornet´s bite. And yet you couldn't fight him back as you feared the consequences. Being on thin ice already it was basically impossible to do anything against him as he could doom you easily. Also it was rough for you to blow a fuse. Being loud or putting people into their place was not necessarily your strongest trait. On rare occasions you suddenly had the courage to stand up, like two weeks ago. When a patient's life was on the line it came much more natural to you to get loud and fight for one's rights.  But normally you were too timid to act on your emotions as they came creeping up on you especially if it was about your own well being. And when it came to the old feeling of being bullied by someone in a stronger position you did tend to let them do with you as they pleased, functioning as a cheap punching bag.

“Please, let go I need to return to the emergency room” you mumbled trying to loosen his grip on you and rushed away. After long nights in the E.R. lately, the punishment for your slip up, you have had barely any sleep leaving you with barely any energy left and the situation was getting to you even more than it usually would have. You felt as if you were at the verge of tears and you felt your bottom lip trembling which made Trevor break out in a cruel laughter. 

“Naw, look at you all cute and calm. I like them like that.” he marked cockily and pushed you closer to his body but before panic could settle in both of your radio message receivers beeped obnoxiously loud leading to him finally letting you go. Giving his device a little side look he sighed and ran his fingers through his hair, showing his arm muscles off in the process. “See you later little birdie, duty calls!”. With that he confidently walked away leaving you behind, disgusted but also relieved nothing more happened. Supporting yourself on the wall you shook your head in disbelief of the scene that just had played out and with shaky hands you looked at your receiver. Apparently the emergency room needed you back at your spot so you breathed deeply in, stiffened your shoulders you jogged along the hallways to the emergency room. And that is when hell broke loose for you and your life. 

The E.R. consisted of a big room on the bottom floor of the building with a comfy waiting area for the patients that weren't as badly injured and close family members that had brought them there. As the sofas were made out of brown leather with big pillows to support ones back and smaller birchwood tables with the newest magazines about fashion, health and heroes in front of them it gave the room a kind of living room atmosphere with a speck of green in form of some plants in the corners of the room. There were several smaller examination rooms, all equipped with the highest quality and newest technological devices to guarantee the best care for patients. It didn't matter how severe the cases were, that were delivered by the ambulance into the emergency room, the quick and precise work everyone did here, nurses as well as doctors was evident due to  the high survival rate of critical conditions. Even on days with a high visitor frequency there was a certain organization and tidiness required and present in the ambulance. That's why the current state of the normally busy but organized area confused you even more. 

There was a gigantic mess in the emergency room which was quite fascinating for the fact that it was four a.m. in the early morning. Even in this big and lively city most people were asleep by now but apparently that hadn't stopped these people from making a chaos out of the clinic's E.R. in a short matter of time. Still standing in the entrance you looked with big eyes at the scenario that unfolded in front of you:

The five nurses were cowering in the back of the ambulance in a cluster of people with clear confusion and a hint of fear in their eyes. Two of them even supported each other, clearly unsure of what was happening or how to behave right now. In the middle of the E.R. Trevor was standing, his hands on his hips and a condescending look on his face. Everywhere around him and the nurses were papers flattering around or laying on the ground, most of them being sheets patients had to answer about personal data, allergies, insurances and so on. Your eyes followed the direction in which Trevor was looking at and the first thing you realized was the dark red color splattered across the mint green tile floor which reflected the blinding light of the ceiling, which led from the entrance area to the middle of the room. As you tilted your head the metallic smell of copper hit your sensitive nostrils and you realized with your tired brain that you were looking at blood. A lot of blood. Following the puddles of the red liquid with your eyes you saw three pairs of shoes standing in the biggest puddle yet and you raised your eyes up the legs of three men that dominated the ambulance with their presence. As you saw them your eyes widened even more than before. Calling their outfits and behaviour suspicious would have been an understatement. Normally you wouldn't easily judge people but everything about them screamed villain. 

The man standing in their middle, who seemed heavily injured was very tall and had an immensely toned body. Everything about this male seemed to be hard muscles. He easily was several heads taller than you and his hands looked as if he could crush heads like juicy watermelons. Though his hands were covered by sturdy metallic gauntlets, held together by some thick leather stripes, his outfit itself was quite unspectacular besides that, the only thing that really was outstanding next to his black combat trousers, boots and the sky blue button-up shirt that was hanging loosely around his hips as it was tucked into his pants was his former white Polo Shirt which was drained in dark liquid, more blood, you assumed. There was barely a white speck left on the shirt and it seemed like there was still more blood flowing with each second that passed by. You frowned when you realized that his face was hidden behind a full-covering black mask, which kinda reminded you of a killer whale with a bird´s beak, that allowed his wild and messy orange-red hair to stick out in the back. His head was hanging low and his breathing labored but he still mumbled some incoherent words which you weren't able to understand from this distance. 

The wild looking man was being held upright by two other, smaller men flanking his left and right, each one having one of his arms around his shoulders to support him and his shaky legs. As the one to the left was quite smaller than him, his outfit seemed a bit more interesting. The traditional looking dark grey yukata which was held together by a white cloth that was functioning like a belt and his simple light brown leather boots seemed a bit outdated which was fitting though to his calm facial expression you could make out as he was wearing a mask as well, but in comparison to his other two companions did not cover up his eyes. Three dark brown stripes that were going around the sides of his head and were covering his ears as well as one that went in between his eyebrows into his spikey blonde hair held his bird beak like mask in place. The mask itself was a simple dark brown leather and the beak was bent towards the ground slightly. Sadly you couldn't make out his eyes as he seemingly kept them close giving him a look as if he was meditating.

To the injured man´s right stood a man or woman in a long white trench coat and sturdy black leather boots peeking out underneath it. The inside of the hood was a wine red which strangely complimented the full face covering mask the person was wearing. The mask itself consisted of a dark brown leather beak which was framed by a golden metal and where you assumed their eyes to be were some outstanding black goggles. 

The two supporters were panting heavily, most likely as they mostly had to carry their big friend as he was barely able to stand himself let alone walk. You shook your head in disbelief. If they really were villains they were the first ones that had the guts to actually enter this hospital. Normally villains that came here were accompanied by the heroes who beat them in a fight and let them patch up here before bringing them to the police or the prison. It was unheard of villains coming into the hospital and the rules said that villains coming in alone should be reported straight away for the safety of the personnel and heroes that were in treatment and not strong enough to do anything against a villain attack. But this hasn't occured in all the time you worked here nor in the history of the hospital. Taking some steps forward so you stood next to Trevor you asked:” What's going on in here?” your voice sounding much more curious than scared. One of the nurses took a step forward and exclaimed:” These people are here cause they want medical attention but they seemed sketchy so we asked Mr. Hendersson to help us” and gave your least favourite person in the room a shy smile, who didn't even give her any attention. Frowning you turned to her and let out an annoyed sigh. For these nights you were the executive doctor for the E.R. and not Trevor and the nurses knew this. Most of them worked with you and accepted you but they did not respect you so it was obvious why they had called your nemesis in though he shouldn't have a say in this. 

“And I just asked these thugs to leave our hospital. They are dirtying the floor and pollute the air with their villainous presence” Trevor spat out aggressively and crossing his arms in front of his chest staring at the three men with a raised eyebrow. The hooded figure raised his head:”This is a hospital isn't it? We aren´t belonging to some lowlife villains so don´t worry about that. Just start some treatment our friend here has taken some beating and requires medical help. We will reward you of course” a male voice which was calm but slightly laced with exhaustion probably due to carrying the bigger male. Looking at the three men you tried to assess the situation quickly. With how much and how rapidly the man was losing blood you were sure he wouldn't be able to walk out of here and get somewhere else to get a proper treatment. Even though he was constantly mumbling something and trying to move around and stand straight his head plopped down from time to time onto his chest. Following your instinct you licked your lips and approached the suspicious trio. “I will help your friend, just bring him to examination room two and put him on his back onto the examination table.” The hooded figure gave you a short and what you assumed to be thoughtful look before he nodded shortly and started dragging his friend along before Trevor stood in their way. 

“One moment! You won't do that (Y/N). Are you out of your mind? We aren't helping some rats from the street. Just look at them.” He turned swiftly towards you and glared at you but as soon as he saw your determined face a small smile played around his features. Like a predator he came towards you and leaned down to your ear so only you could hear him which made your entire body go stiff:”Don't tell me you plan to go against the hospital rules...again. Seriously you really are only a pretty face and no brain are you? You do realize that I will tell the boss everything about this right? As soon as you go in there with these guys I will give him a call and tell him how little quirkless you is willingly treating some thugs in his precious little hospital. How you went against my word…” His big hand came up and layed heavy on your shoulder gripping it tightly under your coat and shoving you forcefully even a bit closer to him. “You will be fired (Y/N) and then what? I will ruin your reputation. I will tell everyone how bad you are. Heh, though maybe thats only good for you and I can give you some money to finally get you into my bed cause that's the only thing you will be good for then.” His warm breath washed over your ear and you let his words sink in. If you were by any means selfish you would call the police right now, tell them to leave and let this guy bleed out. You would continue your career and then what? Live with the shame to not have done what you believe in. Just working for the fame of being a good little doctor in a well known clinic. Just for the price of blowing all your morals into the wind…

Snap. Like a red thread under too much tension

The next thing you knew was how Trevor stumbled backwards holding his face and yelling out in surprise. One of the nurses screamed in terror but was fastly shushed by one of her colleagues who feared that attention could be drawn to them but you barely paid them any mind. Blood was flooding out of the doctor´s nose like a cascade and you watched in awe how his normally beautiful shaped face was crunched together in pain and covered in red. You looked down at your fist which was now bruised and covered in red stains as well. You arm was trembling and your breathing was going uneven, your heartbeat going several miles per hour. The thoughts ran like a wildfire through your brain. Yes, you had just punched your superior. Closing your eyes you tried to steady yourself. Apparently you had chosen your morals over your job. Now you could go all the way till the bitter end. The trembling in your limbs stopped and you looked at Trevor with a stern face. Both of your eyes met and he halted in his movement just staring back and for the first time you felt something like an ascendent feeling towards the normally superior male. “I will go and treat my patients now” you exclaimed with a soft voice stepped forward to the examination room nodding to the hooded male, who had watched the scene unfold in front of him and his friends, motioning him to come along. You held the door open for him and the others and closed it behind them. While the two heaved the big one onto the examination table you washed Trevors blood of your hands, dried them and put on gloves. Taking a deep breath you put on a professional face and turned swiftly around to them, coming over to the table and start several electrical devices, like a heart rate monitor which you would need during the examination and connected your patient to them. His vital function were stable but barely so. His heart rate was a bit to high but all in all he wasn't in a as worrisome state as you originally thought. His body was tone, he was in a great shape so he could take the blood loss, it probably just had made him dizzy but if you treated the wound fast enough he wouldn't need a transfusion of blood. Carefully you lifted his shirt and frowned at the big wound obviously caused by a sharp object. Carefully cleaning around the wound you quickly observed that the wound would need several stitches which would definitely leave a scar. Speaking softly to your patient you explained the situation and what was about to happen to him but he seemed to struggle slipping in and out of consciousness trying to talk. Regarding your caring nature you didn't want to ignore him so you leaned closer to his ear:”Excuse me Sir what?”. Just in that moment he jerked up, snatching your arm. Eyes widening in shock you gasped in pain as his grip had a bone breaking energy behind it for a man that was barely conscious. “Fight Me!” he yelled out before coughing violently. His two friends said both clearly annoyed to let you go and stepped forward to help you loosen his death grip on you but you just motioned them with your other hand to stop and with apparent confusion in their face. Valuing his behaviour and statement real quick and considering his outfit, the gauntlets on his arm and his strong body you were sure you had it do do with a man that never goes down, fighting till the last, which was what you had to play against him. You faced your violent patient and leaned towards his gigantic masked figure:”If you don´t let go right now there will never be an opportunity to fight ever again. You want to go like this? A pathetic stab wound? Not going down in a literal fight but because of the aftermath? Let me help you fight again… please.” 

Even though you concentrated your eyes on the giant man in front of you, you could feel the gaze of the other men in the room upon you and the air felt heavy enough to make you lick your lips.Very slowly the warm and giant hand of the man slipped down your arm and he kept calm. If it was because he lost conscious again it wasn't being able to be seen in his body language or his vital signs. You swallowed down the saliva that had built up in your mouth, got the sterilized needle and threat as well as the disinfectant spray and started working on the wound. Except the moving of his abs nothing indicated the pain he must have felt while you were giving him his stitches. The examination room was quite while you worked quickly and in the end covering the freshly treated wound with big band aid that covered the entire thing. Exhaling the air out of your lungs shakily and got rid of your blood stained gloves, washing your fingers under the cold stream of water at the little sink. Behind you one of the men cleared his throat so you turned around to him looking at the hooded man. His mask did not allow you to see his eyes which highly started to get on your nerves a little bit and just started talking before he could say anything:” He is okay but will need rest. After that  little incident I assume you will have to bind him to his bed or something along those lines to make him rest. So do it. The band aid covering the wound needs to be changed daily, at least. Be careful or it will infect and that would be very dangerous, okay?” you explained in your most professional tone. The hooded man just cocked his head slightly and nodded:”We will be on our way now before things get ugly here.” and you nodded in agreement frantically. Dark thoughts washed over you though. You should probably pack your things as well. Turning the door handle of the examination room you swung it open just to be washed over by a smell of a strong, expensive smelling cologne and you were faced with something metallic appeared right in front of your face which made you stop in your motion immediately. Your widened eyes followed the metallic piece in front of you upwards until you looked at a pair of amber colored eyes paired with long lashes which stared right back at you in a hypnotic matter. Calling you startled at this point was a massive underestimation. Taking a sharp breath the smell washed even stronger over you and made you feel dizzy. It was different from Trevor´s disgusting odor. This was a masculine and strong smell with a dark note, which made you crave for more as it was dominating your senses. Flattering your lashes you shook your head to clear your thoughts and you swallowed heavily. This was paired with a heat that emanated from its source towards you. 

“Excuse me, Doctor.” Shaking your head slightly you pressed your eyelids together and looked down trying to collect your thoughts. This man's voice was deep and elegant coming over you like a relaxing wave shaking you up to your inner core. Carefully raising your head you allow yourself to take his look in. 

His short and umber colored hair looked thick and well taken care of, shining in the bright hospital lights. The skin of this man was light like ash wood and absolutely clean of any impurities. As you had discovered before his eyes were framed by beautiful long lashes, topped with sharply arched eyebrows and his iris was of a full golden color even though you realized that his eyes held something cold and calculating in them. Sadly you couldn't see the bottom of his face because it was covered by a deep black medical face mask fitting the black button up shirt paired up with the white tie and black slacks he wore which ended right above his ankles. The feet were covered by some simple white sneakers which were remarkably clean. You realized the gloves on his hands which were similar to the surgeon gloves you wore here all the time. 

Not sure how much time had passed since you had started taking his appearance in your cheeks flushed and you cleared your throat in embarrassment as you realized his raised eyebrow and the condescending look he gave you. “Yes, how can I help you?”. Was your voice always this raspy? Looking over your head he frowned for a short moment and it wasn't a look on his face you really would ever want on you. 

“I believe my men have lost themselves here. The nurses informed me that you took care of them Miss (Y/L/N). I am here to pick them up and excuse the inconveniences they may have caused you.” Again. This incredible soothing voice. Slowly you nodded your head just to then frantically shake it. “No. No they… it was just unexpected. Ehm, I mean my boss probably isn't happy but it's okay I will find a solution I wouldn't just let your men down because they are v-... They are… ehm… They came here under special circumstances.” You ended your sentence after a lot of stutters and shakiness. He hummed as a response and considered you with another intense stare. Both of your eyes locked and you didn't back down even though it was intimidating to you and you felt the blood rush into your cheeks rapidly as well as your heart beat faster. “Let's go then.” he declared darkly and turned around to leave the hospital, his men squeezing past you, both of the healthy men supporting the patient and about to leave as they came. Staring after them you meekly stumbled into the main hall of the emergency room close after them but before you could say anything two other persons blocked the path to the outside of the hospital. You passed the group of four men and stood in front of them. Your boss and Trevor stood there, Trevor with a smug grin plastered on his face and your boss with a facade of pure anger. They didn't say anything. There was nothing that was needed to be said except the one word your boss said with so much venom in his voice that your entire body tensed up. “Out!”. 

Even though you had expected this after making your choice you didn't expect it to hurt so much. Just nodding you took off the doctor's coat you wore which belonged to the hospital and laid it down on the register counter then hurrying out of the emergency room. 

Once outside you breathed in the cold night air and let it fill your lungs. Your entire body was shaking and you didn't even realize that tears were slowly forming in your eyes. You had taken the risk and lost your job. It was a game over for you. Was it really worth it? Standing up for your morals to help some criminals? Wrapping your arms around your small figure you just stood there processing what had happened just now not hearing the footsteps closing up on you. “My men have told me what happened. Thanks for taking care of the situation. Can we help you out in any kind for the cooperation you helped us with?” The dark but stoic voice resonated behind you making you turn around on your heel with a small shriek looking at the tall man like a mouse looking at a cat. Your breast was heaving and your pulse was running several miles per hour. After recovering from your shock you took a step back from him, frowning:” Why would you give me anything? I am… I was a doctor. It is my job to help people.” you stated questioning. He blinked slowly while observing your face and he raising his hands with the palms to the heaven up in an opening and innocent motion. With a sigh he simply said:” In my business one hand washes the other. And I definitely don't like to owe someone anything. So I rather get this out of the way now than having to deal with it later.”. 

You nodded in agreement and looked down shyly. “I made it my job to help people whose life is on the line. Your friend was heavily injured and looked for help. My boss´ policy didn't go along with mine so this separation would have happened at some point anyway. I did not study medicine intensely to only care about the wellbeing of some heroes who think they can conquer the world.” Your last words came out much more bitter than you originally intended them to be and your eyes widened and you slapped your hands across your mouth. Not being able to help yourself you broke out in a nervous giggle and you looked at him in shock. “Just forget what I said. I am rambling. Just blurting out some things. I hope you have a good life and your friend will be well. Take good care.” you blurted out and turned around nearly running away through the dark city towards your apartment without looking back at the mysterious man. 

He just stood there for another moment looking after you with the same stoic expression. “Chrono.” he said with a stern tone feeling the presence of his right hand man right behind him. By now, him and Tengai should have loaded the hurt Rappa into the car he came with here. “Yes, Overhaul.” Chrono said calmly right next to him. The cold air of the upcoming colder season washed over the two men who were still standing on the sidewalk close to the hospital's emergency entrance. “First of all you will need to explain to me this disaster of tonight´s mission. Whoever is responsible for this better have a good excuse that I had to come through this pest filled town in the middle of the night. Second of all, you said this doctor is quirkless?” he asked his old childhood friend looking at him from the side. Chrono nodded:” Yes, I overheard it in that conversation she had with that other doctor who wanted to throw us out.”. 

Overhaul hummed and his golden eyes looked down the street where you had disappeared to. “Find out everything about her. She might be of use for our cause” he ordered Chrono who bowed slightly, following him into the car to drive back to the base. 

Your life would soon take a turn you had never expected.                

[digitalizedsociety06]

How to stay productive while working from home?

Working, while enjoying the weather and homemade tea without hesitating about the break timing, is awesome. Do all these things fascinate you too? I am sure they do. Working from home is overwhelming. No traffic hosh-posh and certainly no office formal wear. You don’t need to get up according to the alarm clock, rush to the transport or probably your car even if you do not need to remember about all the things you probably have forgotten to shut off while leaving your house in a hurry.

Hire Freelancers

Many organizations, big or small, and new start-ups offer their employees to work from home. It is a third way and probably one of the most convenient options an employer can give to their employees. By opting this, employers don’t need to be worried about hiring extra staff such as an office boy, a guard or other supporting staff (this is completely applicable to the people who hire all freelancers not regular employees). Considering all the benefits and employee’s interest, few of the world’s top companies offer their employees to work from home, permanently or partly. Few of the best US healthcare companies such as Aetna, Humana, UnitedHealthcare group and MNCs like Amazon and Convergys etc also allow their employees to work from home.

Get Freelancing Projects

I understand how comfortable and cool it sounds when you hear that somebody operates their work from home. It is luxuries but on the flip side working outside of a traditional office environment creates lots of challenges in front of the employee. We will discuss in details how to cope up with these situations, however, lets first discuss what kind of consequences we face while working from home and why?-

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Consequences of working from home –

Isolation- Working out of the office environment is one of the major issues even sometimes becomes a nightmare for people working from home and it is quite understandable. When we work from the office we follow a basic routine such as getting dressed, meeting new people (applies to some), greeting office members, and enjoying Fridays etc. Though it does not affect our lifestyle entirely but for some this routine is a part of their day which makes them feel alive. Many people fight this issue by staying connected with their colleagues.

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Bound to work even after working hours – Professionals working from home, often likely to exceed their work hours. There can be multiple reasons behind it but one which is considerable is we don’t have to hurry to get back to home and meet family as we are already around them so it doesn’t matter for us to exceed the working hours. However, it is only good when you are not making a habit of it. This way you will also exceed the false expectations of your office.  

Being overlooked for promotion – How many people we meet in a day and out of that number how many do we actually remember by face or personality? Executives, working from home, are often overlooked for promotions especially when only few are working from home in the office. This is not because you don’t work hard while working from home but when you start working from home gradually your PR skills go down. You are not around people, neither shake hands nor ask about their wellness or hangout in free/break time. We don’t consider this but these habits play a major role in your promotion.

Need to self discipline – One has to be highly self disciplined while working from home. Remember, you are surrounded by distractions or probably an environment where working from is not being considered as working for an office. There is only one thing which can keep you up and help to be consistent- Self Discipline. You need to motivate yourself to stay away from distraction and keep self control. Best way to do it, is to keep yourself connected with your colleagues and especially your boss/manager/supervisors. You will be under the impression that they are watching. It is the easiest motivation you can opt to keep yourself disciplined.

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Avoiding distractions – Whether you are an office worker or you work from home, distractions will always be there. However, office distractions often seemed easy to avoid. When you are home, you face distractions from unavoidable sources for example- children, parents, wife/husband, pets, neighbors, and friends etc. among which family is something you cannot ignore at any circumstances. Only way to avoid these is to make them believe that you are actually working. Take your break like you take in your office; let’s say for an hour exact. Be unavailable for interruption within work hours in spite of your physical presence at home and mainly avoid watching TV during your work hours.

Difficulty in separating work from home duties – The temptation of being engaged in households matters. You are in front of your family and you can’t avoid a few things such as responding to doors when the bell rings, answering the telephone, picking kids from the school, taking care of your pet for a while, cooking something instantly and all other necessary and urgent work you can think of. These come under responsibility and certainly you can’t avoid it simply. Also when you are working from home you start realizing to do household and socializing which is completely common. You must be thinking then what should we do to avoid these? It is not simple but you need to draw a line between your household and family time and work hours. Always remember both are important and both deserve your full attention.

Working from home is certainly not a piece of cake as it looks like. It is not for anyone. Unfortunately, you don’t understand this until you really start working from home. There is one more thing I have noticed in years. Once you have started working from home for a long time, you actually can’t just go back to an office environment and start working. You hate wearing formal clothes; you don’t like eating from the limited menu of your canteen, and you definitely start avoiding travelling. I must say working from home is not healthy for people who are single as it increases the introverted personality in you, and creates an isolated you. That is not bad but not best either.

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Tips to boost your productivity while working from home –

Get started early – Starting your work early is one of the best things you can use for self while working from home. If you are a morning person then this will certainly help you to boost your productivity. Start working as soon as you get up or just after your gym and take a break after a few hours to prepare breakfast for yourself. This way your mind will stay productive without interruption at least for these beginning hours and you will be able to finish your work early to enjoy some time with your family.

Pretend like you are going to the office – Our home is a place designed to provide all comfort to us which is great for breaks and to relax but not suitable for work. If you start your work in your pajamas then most likely you would feel sleepy or start having a feeling of weekend mornings. I am not saying here to get up strictly according to your alarm clock, go straight to the shower, wear formal shirt, pant-tie etc this way you will miss the advantage part but the best way to start your work hours is take a shower get into the semi-work dress code and flip your mind switch from home mode to work mode.

Organize your work space – Organizing your work space is one of the most important things when you even think about working from home. Remember, you are allowed to work from home that doesn’t mean you can work from your bed. Stay away from all possible furniture that makes you lazy. Design your work area with some manuals, pictures, memos etc whatever gives you a feeling of office. Keep essential items like a table and chair, table lamp, pin-board and a poster with full of motivation quotes if you like. It is necessary that you keep yourself out of your home’s comfort zone. One more thing, design your workplace a bit away from the living room and TV.

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Communication is essential – Your communication with your colleagues is very essential. Since you are not in your office and stopping by at your colleague’s desk to know about the new projects and updates about your office, you need to stay in touch with them for being updated about these. There are many professional and casual tools you can use such as email, messaging, calls, and video calls to give them a nudge to ask about latest updates about the office. Among these I find messaging and video call options best to discuss meetings and group conversations.

Stay focused – Minimize your all possible distractions. I understand you are home and you have all the liberties like creating a rock playlist to play or unlimited surfing at social media websites such as twitter, Facebook, and Instagram and to use all other restrictive websites but you do not want to become a Dj or a social media manager, would you? Make conscious efforts to limit the use of these tools during your work hours. Apart from that there are some uninvited distractions that you can’t possibly avoid at an early stage like pets, children and a visitor. A quick chat with children is always fine or pat but a dog in your lap or your family standing behind your desk and probably making plans for dinner or next weekend will surely impede your productivity. You need to make your family specially children understand the seriousness of your work and don’t be bound to attend every visitor you have.

Eat Healthy stay healthy – Your kitchen will be close at hand but obviously during work nobody gets time to cook lunch but that doesn’t mean you need to survive on chips. Also you won’t have your colleagues to remind you or take you out for lunch so it is your task now to remind yourself to drink water or have food. You can make a schedule and set a reminder for lunch. Eat healthy food. Enrich your lunch with salads and natural energy drinks instead of caffeine drinks. You can also divide your lunch in three sections and eat in short intervals.

Take necessary breaks – You are going to read a contradictory sentence with whatever I have talking above. It is very much important to take a break during your productivity time. This way you will increase your concentration on your work. Research has shown that the most productive workers focus for 52 minutes, and then disengage for at least 15-17 minutes. This works as mind refreshment and you start working with a less tired mind when you get back to work. By saying ‘take a break’, I mean leaving your chair, laptop/computer and your phone at your desk for 15 minutes. Stretch your body, drink plenty of water and walk around then come back and start working.

And, don’t forget to enjoy your liberty – Despite all consequences; there are also many advantages to working from home. One of the most interesting things about working from home is you do not need to limit yourself with office space. You can work at a café, beach, from somewhere in the mountains, from your terrace or from a friend’s home you did not visit for a long time. You need to be adaptable to the changes. You are working from home doesn’t mean you need to be a couch potato. Plan your office and work from there. Be happy about your surroundings and I am certain this will increase your work productivity.

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some Critical Best Practices for On the web Teaching: Be Prepared

Ustad Jee Online

We are in an unprecedented time using higher education being disrupted, while traditional classes are being transferred online, at least for the time being. Regardless of whether this will continue for any time period remains to be seen. This has taken place at an interesting time for area of distance learning as many from the for-profit schools have sealed, and the growth of new on the web schools has slowed. The volume of online schools growing is fixed, and competition comes from classic schools offering online classes.

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Which has a move of traditional instructional classes to an online platform, you will find a challenge for many educators for you to adapt to a virtual natural environment. Those educators who instruct in this environment already, for instance myself, are already accustomed to setting up a virtual presence. However , when online teaching can be gratifying for those who can adapt to this, there are many demands for education in this environment, and it can always be quite challenging at times. Whether new to online teaching and also have extensive experience, you will find just about the most important measurements is the end-of-course student evaluation. You will also seen by completion of the required facilitator obligations, which typically includes engagement in class discussions and comments for learning activities.

To assist you to prepare for the requirements of on the net teaching, there are critical guidelines you can implement to ensure you are generally effectively and substantively done your class. These are the merchandise of my work as a web educator, along with my job in faculty development, and have been reviewed by the strictest involving standards and applying these types of standards to faculty I've evaluated. You can use these best practices being a checklist for the development of your personal online teaching practice, it doesn't matter how long you've taught classes online.

Online Instructor Essentials

The method that you manage your time and the regular schedule you create can ultimately determine how successful you might be as an online educator. Both the tasks which are going to take those most amount of time are category discussions and feedback. If you don't allow enough time for these responsibilities, and you fall behind, you are going to experience rushed when trying to finish what is required of a person. The ultimate result is either getting minimal participation, minimal responses, or both. A feeling of currently being rushed may also show up in the disposition as well, if you turn out to be agitated when there is not enough the perfect time to complete the required tasks or even deadlines are nearing. Your own personal students will sense this kind of, even in an online environment, and there is subtle cues which display in the word choices used in on the internet posts and messages.

Something more important to consider is the contract an individual agree to when you become a school member and accept a category commitment. You need to take the time to assessment the faculty expectations, specifically if you are new to the school, to be certain you know all details about functionality requirements. Should you have any inquiries, it is best to contact your Department Lounge chair or supervisor. The most important timeline requirements involve giving an answer to learner questions, regardless of how shared or sent. You will likely get audits and/or performance opinions, and when you do, use this tool as a means of self-development to help you continue to learn and expand.

Making a Transition: From Classic to Online Teaching

For people who teach in a traditional school room and now must teach on-line, there will be a learning shape which will happen quickly. The initial adaptation is becoming used to the actual technology platform or LMS, and discovering the technical tools which can enhance the mastering experience. The most significant challenge intended for traditional educators, who are new to teaching online, is getting together with learners who are not noticeably present. The lack of visual tips can be overcome at times when a webinar is integrated into your classmates program. However , for most in the class, it is functioning without having a live class and aesthetic or verbal cues. At this point the words posted become the principal form of communication and this helps it be much more challenging to assess the particular intent or meaning connected with what is being stated, especially when a learner has difficulties with academic writing.

Precisely what an online educator must sooner or later learn, often through some practice, is he or she is a single who must keep the class interested, not the course elements. If a learner is not make an effort to participating or is not found in class, it is the instructor who have must work to re-engage the learner, and do and so within a timely manner, for a disengaged learner may rapidly become dropped from the study course. This means learners are looking for, and sometimes expecting, their instructors being highly engaged and contained in the course, and conscious of their needs. An instructor cannot journal onto their class a couple of times a week and hope this really is sufficient. There must be ongoing as well as active involvement to retain an online class, and work towards the developmental of the requirements of all learners.

6 Important Best Practices for Online Instructing: Be Prepared

What follows are best routines you can implement now, regardless of length of time you've taught on the web. If you have implemented some or perhaps all of them already, you can use this a checklist to advise yourself of what's necessary for your work as an educator.

Ideal Practice #1. Become the Assist Your Learners Need

Any time learners enroll in a class, they can be likely aware of their failures already. When you begin the process of suggestions and note those inadequacies, it may only serve to further more confirm they are not capable of doing well in their academic studies. That is why you must take a supportive method to your feedback and the tutorial approach used as you connect to your learners. Consider at the same time the fact you and your students are separated by long distance, or as I call that, the distance factor. Your enrollees are going to read what you posting and share before you at any time have an opportunity to explain the idea, which means everything you write will need to have a supportive tone on it. How you write, along with that which you write, can and will identify the future of the learner, plus the effort he or she will keep in your class. Find whichever way you can to be the assist your learners need by using time to read what they write-up and write, and admit them as learners.

Finest Practice #2. Develop a Way of thinking Which Encourages Positivity

You could have likely read about nurturing a rise mindset in learners, and this also can occur even in your grown-up learners, provided the conditions in the online class are favorable to do so. This is not just a response to a beautiful LMS or scientific tools, it occurs any time an instructor has a disposition and also mindset which encourages positivity. This means you have become aimed at your learners and you carry out strategies to encourage and uplift them. In my post, Learn 5 Essential Learner-Centered Approaches for Online Instructors, I mentioned my use of videos to get feedback. I also use limited videos to encourage individuals as well, along with small paper prints I create to uplift them.

There will be times when you experience challenged, especially when a spanish student sends an email and visages their frustration in an annoying manner. The most effective strategy to acquire when you have a negative reaction is usually to write in a Word document, subsequently step away for a few short minutes to regain your balance. If you return, you will likely be able to target once again and better help the learner. When you make an environment which feels good, from the perspective of the pupil, you have managed to accomplish another goal: You have helped humanize the learning experience. This also helps take the distance factor outside of distance learning.

Best Practice #3. Be a Leader in Academics Writing

Many educators aren't hired because they are professional copy writers. Regardless of the academic writing ability you possess, consider this to be a constant area of development. I use anything document to develop my debate posts, to help ensure We've managed the mechanics. What you wish to remember is that your scholars are watching what you article in discussions and create as you provide feedback. When there are numerous academic writing issues, this may send a merged message if your feedback stresses academic writing errors typically the learner has made. If your institution offers resources within an on the net writing center, this may be of great benefit for you and any student who needs further advancement. If these resources are generally not immediately available for you, there are many online language resources you can find. You want to lead the way having academic writing and show your own personal learners you take it just like seriously as you enforce the item when feedback is presented to them.

Best Practice #4. Become a Master of Your Study course Materials

What I've mastered over time about course prep is the need to learn my training materials. When a course is usually pre-developed for you, it may seem most is needed is to join often the discussions and participate, then provide feedback based upon the actual written rubric. However , this is certainly far from what is required for training course preparation. Every instructor have to review the course resources thoroughly and completely, in the same way a starting point, in order to be able to engage in class discussions in a substantial manner and provide substantive opinions. More importantly, ongoing development signifies reading and finding solutions related to the course matters, as the use of supplemental solutions will help provide context on your discussion posts and the comments you develop. When you end up being the master of your course components, you are creating additional learning chances for your learners.

Best Process #5. Be Determined to Get a Lifelong Learner

As you are mingling with your learners, and you recall why you love to teach, you happen to be encouraging them to develop a enjoy of learning. If you want to come to be even more effective in this technique, you can continue to cultivate your own personal determination to become a lifelong novice. While you may not be a spanish student now, you can find professional improvement opportunities of your own. Many academics institutions encourage or call for educators to publish, and this offers a very good opportunity to conduct investigation into areas you are interested in mastering. There are many affiliations you can also enroll in and likely find webinars to go to. What I've done like a Modern Educator is to compose online articles and web sites, as a means of continuing my analysis and writing, even if I am just not publishing in an public academic capacity. It nonetheless allows me to share my expertise and expertise, while attaching with other educators, sharing tips, information, and strategies.

Greatest Practice #6. Establish a Normal of Excellence

Over time you may evaluate and refine your own instructional practice. It will be a result of what has been successful, the particular strategies which have not provided you well, lessons you could have learned (some the right way yet others by mistake), and most significant of all, feedback you have got from learners in many distinct forms. Typically the feedback My spouse and i learn most from arises within the classroom, as I consider new strategies and obtain replies in response. There is a excessive standard I have established with regard to myself. At the beginning of my find employment as an educator I was very hard about myself when I made errors. But now with time and process under my belt, I realize both successes and blunders have served me nicely. It is not possible to become a best online educator without having educated for some time and even then, you'll still must be open to learning along with development as learner requires evolve. I can state along with certainty the needs of students today are different than we were holding 15 years ago when I first acquired my start. But developing a standard of excellence presents me a sense of reputation to myself and makes selected I am working to the best associated with my abilities.

I properly understand there are many inherent problems associated with online teaching, and the most are related to time and less direct contact with learners. Still I've found it can be a very satisfying experience because I am capable of getting to know my learners superior to I ever could within a traditional classroom. This may seem unusual to someone who has by no means taught online, who perceives learners face-to-face, but this perspective comes from being able to control each and everyone of them inside a discussion, getting to know them by way of weekly learning activities, and interesting with them through direct interaction. While I am separated via my learners, I have found instruments to bridge this distance and replace the distance which has a virtual presence. Now with these kinds of six critical strategies, I am able to further assure learners Therefore i'm there to support them and the progress in a nurturing, optimistic, and supportive manner. When you can take this approach yourself, you could possibly and your learners will find on the internet learning to be a viable in addition to enjoyable form of education.

[yogaadvise]

30 Brilliant Insights from Mindfulness Trail Blazers

This weekend several of the brightest minds in meditation, neuroscience, modern technology, and well-being satisfied in San Francisco for Wisdom 2.0, a seminar committed to the intersection of mindfulness, company, and also personal development. Over the training course of the three-day gathering, pioneers of contemplative scientific research as well as philosophy such as Jon Kabat-Zinn, Roshi Joan Halifax, and Jack Kornfield shared their understandings about thoughtful, conscious living and the engaging scientific research showing the results of these methods. The thought leaders established the phase for discussion and also connection in between the 2,400 people in attendance, including area advocates, business leaders, and also individual experts making every effort to enact adjustment and also better the dialogue concerning conscious living in their very own rounds. Below is a collection of noteworthy and moving quotes from the event to motivate your very own self-exploration.

' If wakefulness is mosting likely to absolutely be transformative it is mosting likely to require everybody to fully blossom in this life time.' -Jon Kabat-Zinn, teacher of medicine emeritus as well as creator of mindfulness-based stress reduction program at University of Massachusetts Medical Center

' Human beings come into the world with innate basic benefits ... Babies as young as 6 months old have a solid choice to take a look at selfless and warmhearted experiences. There is evidence that other species demonstrate this also.' -Richard Davidson, Ph.D., teacher of psychology and also psychiatry at the College of Wisconsin-Madison and supervisor of the Waisman Laboratory for Brain Imaging and Behavior as well as the Lab for Affective Neuroscience

' I'm just attempting to be myself, whatever that implies, as well as recognize how fleeting everything is, as well as exactly what a romance it all is.' -Jon Kabat-Zinn

' Just what we're sharing [in mindfulness technique] is a capability to be aside, to identify the difference in between being alone as well as being lonely. When we go down in the moment it is profoundly recovery because silence as well as tranquility are recovery.' -Jon Kabat-Zinn

' It's what you are believing and also thinking that is the reason of suffering, not the individual, thing, outside item, or condition.' -Byron Katie, owner of The Work, a procedure of questions in order to help finish suffering

' Qualities like kindness as well as concern are like language, we need to be raised in a linguistic area in order for that organic tendency to create. It may be very similar for compassion, the seeds exist from the beginning ... we require a compassionate area for those seeds to flourish.' -Dr. Richard Davidson

' Some of the most vital conversations are the ones we have with ourselves.' -Sherry Turkle, professor of the social research studies of scientific research as well as innovation at Massachusetts Institute of Innovation, creator as well as supervisor of the MIT Campaign on Modern technology and also Self

' The poets are appointed the task of claiming something significant that words cannot possibly share. All this [self-inquiry] is poetry, and also you are verse.' -Jon Kabat-Zinn

' Become part of the intensity of this moment and also acknowledge suffering and see exactly how you could end suffering in your life and in this world.' -Roshi Joan Halifax

' Among traits that makes contemplative practice different from sporting activities, music, etc., in its effects on the brain is that when we muffle cushion or chair as well as engage in method we invoke the intention that we do this not mostly for me, yet instead, for advantage of others. Conjuring up that objective ... is a radical act of generosity that is so fundamental to the context with which these methods first developed. This is variably maintained. Researchers should study exactly what invoking that objective in and also of itself could do.' -Dr. Richard Davidson

' It starts with us. It's regarding existing every day. Do the deep personal job, it's enjoyable, it's effective, it's jazzing up, it's releasing. I'm 64 and also I have more power than when I was 24 as well as I know its since I'm shedding points that encumbered me. Practice on a daily basis. We matter and also our voices issue.' -Eileen Fisher, designer as well as owner of EILEEN FISHER

' Discomfort is where individuals take note. it's a blunder for us in order to help ease people's discomfort yet to recognize it, follow it, have some insight concerning where do we go next off, as well as have devices where we could be more existing. it's the sturdy atmospheres that permit us to check how well we are able to stand in the center of mayhem.' -Michael Gervais, Ph.D., psycho therapist specializing in high performance and also sports

' Travel is exactly how I make a living, yet tranquility is how I make a life. Traveling is how I enhance your house of my life, however stillness is exactly how I lay the structure.' -Pico Iyer, writer of numerous books consisting of The Art of Stillness

' I'm not worried regarding life after fatality, what i'm most curious about is life prior to death. That is the curriculum regarding i'm worried.' -Jon Kabat-Zinn

' Inspect your watch-it's simply outstanding! It's currently again! It's not also 10 to currently, it's now!' -Jon Kabat-Zinn

' Digital conversation has gotten us familiar with modified life. It may be that unedited life is the most worth living.' -Sherry Turkle

' Consider that is resting on the sidelines, since if we can include them, our conversations will be richer.' -Laura Powers, co-founder and Chief Executive Officer of CODE2040, a nonprofit that creates pathways to success in the technology economic situation for blacks and latino/as

' Vanity develops an actually large split, in which we orient ourselves towards feeding the photo of self as opposed to the actual self.' -Alanis Morissette, singer-songwriter

' I'm also lazy to meditate as well as I'm also unskillful to do yoga, tai chi, or qi gong. If my partner were right here she 'd claim all this individual ever does is meditate. As an author we are paid to rest still, look through the delusions as well as estimates of our thoughts and locate exactly what holds true.' -Pico Iyer

' For as lengthy as room remains, and also as lengthy as beings remain, might I too continue to be as well as resolve the suffering of this globe.' -Roshi Joan Halifax

' Humanity is inside about just how we deal with each other. It's regarding respect, openness, as well as being prone.' -Martin Tracey, vice president of international talent at Starbucks

' Anything that is less than kind [in us] is false recognition.' -Byron Katie

' Concern is not spiritual business, it is human company. It is not a high-end, it is necessary for our own tranquility as well as psychological security. It is essential for human survival.' -Dalai Lama

' Business can't buy interaction, yet they could develop the conditions for credibility in the work environment.' -Golbie Kamarei, worldwide program supervisor for BlackRock Resources's Worldwide Customer and Sales Quality Program

' Individuals don't last long at EILEEN FISHER if they're not kind.' -Eileen Fisher

' Take a breath as well as say this [racism] becomes part of humankind. We were born right into a racist culture and also everyone is touched by it. It remains in us and as a result we really have to recognize the manner in which it is as well as just after that when we've done that the injury whichever component of it you're in ... then you could obtain interested, then you can get quiet.' -Jack Kornfield, introducing meditation educator and also writer of multiple publications consisting of A Wise Heart: An Overview of the Universal Teachings of Buddhist Psychology

' I like treatment. I would certainly never have started my company without it.' -Eileen Fisher

' There are many kinds of jails, consisting of the ones we placed ourselves in.' -Roshi Joan Halifax

' What happens if we might live life as if no person minute is a lot more important than an additional, that's how i see it at the very least.' -Soren Gordhamer, founder of Wisdom 2.0

' Health is not any various from learning to play the violin. If you practice you will certainly obtain much better.' -Dr. Richard Davidson

[leyahroehl]

does my health insurance cover abortion

BEST ANSWER: Try this site where you can compare quotes from different companies :coverage-finder.net

does my health insurance cover abortion

does my health insurance cover abortion? My insurance and the abortion provider are covered in this scenario (we just paid on the first day). My insurance is paying the same as my husband (at $500/month) and I get the abortion. He will have $1,000 in deductible but I got her $1,100 covered by his insurance! My husband has been in a vegetative state for over 10 years now and is now 64. Have I not found any reason to cancel? . does my health insurance cover abortion,   I pay on my own through insurance. But, i work as a supervisor and can tell you. She is the kind of person who is willing to listen to me on things like health care, birth control, reproductive care. That is also her knowledge of the business, she understands me and knows so easy to give advice. My husband works at the factory, so there is no labor law insurance that will pay for abortion, there’s an insurance plan that will pay for the doctor visit. She wants to know how you paid for insurance to the medical center. Does she know which the insurance I’m looking for will pay for the abortion. But then for the same insurance plan there also is no labor law insurance coverage. Is there insurance coverage for abortion? That’s the best insurance plan I ever had? I want to be very careful of people who are trying to take advantage of me on their behalf, if they get their insurance through me, I am. does my health insurance cover abortion? Does my health insurance cover abortion? The answer is yes. Your health insurance will cover your medical care as an outpatient procedure. You do not have to pay an individual out of your own pocket – it covers medical bills. However, in most cases, an emergency exists and a hospital emergency doctor’s bill should be paid in full in the case of emergency, which may not be the case with the health insurance. There is no set time limit for abortion. When your life insurance cover abortion, the doctor will perform the exam during the waiting period (see . ) which will not extend to another date. The process is then completely confidential, except in some cases where doctors are required to disclose the date in their contracts. Some companies may allow the waiting period to extend their insurance policy, but it will depend on the insurance company. In this case, you should discuss your personal situation with the specialist doctor before applying for a policy. The policy will cover the procedure.

Uninsured Women

Uninsured Women,  includes the following: The coverage varies by state of residence, but it is usually included in rates.   is an optional form of insurance coverage that covers property damage to car or personal property. If you have a mortgage and own a home, this coverage might be cheaper.  includes personal property damage such as appliances, appliances that have a small electrical current and equipment that cannot be handled while they are stored or transported, damage to vehicles that are not parked or used. It is also useful for vehicles that aren’t in use, so they don’t need to be used. This option would cover non-owner car insurance (but not a party to a accident) so you won’t have to pay them for repairs to another person s car. The most common type of home insurance is called . This insurance provides coverage for any damage you cause to any property that’s damaged while driving.  also covers repairs due.

What happens if I’m on my parent’s health insurance?

What happens if I’m on my parent’s health insurance? Is that okay? Is it illegal? When I purchase my child’s health insurance, does it include my wife and I in the same family? Does it cover everything on my parents’ health insurance? If yes, why does my name still come up on the birth date or the pregnancy? Is this normal? Thanks I’d like to need a copy of my medical insurance. My parents were both in the US Children’s Hospital but my husband lost his job and he lost his health insurance even though he just got a new one. He was so sick that he didn’t feel he could go to the doctor. Then his insurance stopped because he couldn’t get his check. Luckily his insurance was still in place and he was able to get his check today. Thanks in advance for the great information. I’ve been thinking about this which I just received a letter from HealthUnderwriters, a licensed insurance adviser for United HealthCare.

Will private insurance cover an abortion in Florida?

Will private insurance cover an abortion in Florida? That’s right. That means you’ll need state-subsidized insurance (no health insurance in Florida in the case of Florida). If you’re thinking about finding an affordable insurance plan, you should consider purchasing health insurance (in Florida there’s a subsidy as well). What about dental insurance? There are several dentists in Florida. How much dental coverage you require may depend on your health coverage plan. And, if you need dental insurance with a high deductible, call the number on your insurance’s number. The majority of Florida residents must have comprehensive dental coverage. That means you do not have to use your own dental care in order to receive medical care. Florida is considered an at-fault state, which means if you’re arrested for a DUI, you can provide evidence of insurance coverage directly to U.S. marshals. Florida allows these to be issued on a claim-filing basis, meaning it’.

Will Medicaid health insurance cover an abortion in Florida?

Will Medicaid health insurance cover an abortion in Florida?  No, Medicaid health insurance covers an abortion in Florida, as long as you get Medicaid. The most important to note is that this is not a coverage of a particular provider. It is not a single provider or health plan so there is no one-size-fits-all form. As such, one of the greatest advantages of having Medicaid health insurance as a provider of health care services is that one provider may not be in all of the major states and may have lower insurance coverage on what the state considers a pre-existing condition basis, which is the “prostitute”. Medicaid is one of the most innovative means of providing more comprehensive health coverage to low-income Americans. In fact, nearly all states have a Medicaid health insurance coverage program, and it is important to note that the program does not exist for low-income individuals. That being said, it may still be important to protect your health and the environment in a critical situation. A Medicaid health insurance plan is a.

[gfiedlerbi214]

Unit 5

Mental Health and Basic Needs, What is Stress?, Stress Management Techniques

Browse the Overview and Lecture pages.  How much/what do you already know about this topic?  What are you interested in learning about/initial questions.

This topic hits close to home with me. I struggle with my stress and how to manage it on a daily basis. I have anxiety and have a history of practicing different techniques to manage both my stress and anxiety. A lot of what is being discussed in this unit is going to be more like a review for me. Any new information that I may use to improve my mental health will be extremely beneficial!

Go through the lecture.  For each item, take general notes.  What facts seem important to know?

Maslow’s Hierarchy: The bottom two tiers--Physiological and Safety--are considered maintenance needs.  These are the basic things everyone needs to live in this world.  The top three tiers--Love & belonging, Esteem, and Self-Actualization--are considered growth needs, which help us have a better life experience, but are not necessary to keep our bodies alive.  

Types of Stress:

Acute stress. Those quick triggers that raise our blood pressure, get our heart to race, and instantly affect our mood.  These generally resolve quickly, even if you continue thinking about them for a few days.

Episodic Acute stress. Frequent mini-crises cause us to live in a state of tension.  These usually can't be solved quickly, and often make us worry a lot.  People talk about this as "going through a rough patch".

Chronic stress. Grinding stress that wears us down over the years and never really goes away.  Often caused by big picture problems with no resolution possible.  Trauma and adverse childhood experiences, as well as chronic illness can also be at the root, as well as world issues like poverty, war or racism.

Some links to pages with examples of stress management techniques:

https://www.health.harvard.edu/mind-and-mood/six-relaxation-techniques-to-reduce-stress

https://medlineplus.gov/ency/patientinstructions/000874.htm

https://blogs.psychcentral.com/always-learning/2010/01/three-kinds-of-knowledge/

What was the point of the videos? What are a few things I learned on the websites, and might the site be useful in the future? What questions do these resources bring up?  If you were telling someone else about this class, what would you share from this unit.

These videos were helpful in highlighting some important issues many of us struggle with. Many of us are struggling in silence even. I personally am always looking for different outlets to battle my own personal stress. If there could be only one unit I was able to share with a peer regarding this class it would be this unit. I believe everyone benefits from learning about ways to keep their stress at bay.

As/after you engage in the Discussion: Can you summarize the question and the conclusions you and your classmates found? How do you feel about the issue now?

Discussion:

The United States fall behind most other countries when it comes to paid leave from work.  Many countries have standardized paid vacation, or paid national holidays.  Some have guaranteed paid maternal (and paternal!) leave when a new child comes into a home.  Americans can benefit from the Family and Medical Leave act of 1993 (FMLA), but it is unpaid, and only guarantees someone cannot be fired due to taking qualified leave.   Further, think of breaks throughout the day.  Some companies are good at allowing breaks, but others are not.  Some people only get breaks if they smoke.  How can employers (or companies!) use leave or breaks to improve the mental health of their employees? Can you find information on specific countries' leave policies to share with your classmates? Can you find any interesting things  companies are doing to improve the health of their employees? What would be an ideal work environment for your mental health?  Cite any information you get from any source outside your own head.  In your classmate's responses, you might want to look at some countries' health outcomes/happiness indicators to see if there might be a connection.  You may want to (kindly) play devil's advocate for someone's idea. What obstacles would make it hard for a company to implement that?

My response:

Companies that ensure employees are taking advantage of the leave/ breaks policies ensures that they care about their employees. It fosters a culture of caring. I believe that the ideal work environment can respect personal time and empathize with employees regarding life outside the workplace. Doing so, ensures a positive retention rate amongst employee hires and a positive reputation for that company! I personally have experience working in management positions and understand the importance respecting this employee-benefit. Allowing employees their entitled time to themselves to mentally relieve themselves momentarily from their day’s work can have benefits for everyone and not just the employee. According to the Center for Workplace Mental Health, “With consideration [of the] employee's needs, breaks can boost attention span and increase mental ability” (Reasonable Job Accommodations). This means the company receives a happy and productive employee! I’m positive the majority of the working population feel happiest when they can take breaks and schedule leave when they need them.

         Thanks to technology, new ways have been created to increase productivity through technology. Companies have been searching for new innovative ways to adjust an employee’s work-life balance. There is an idea being researched and tested in numerous countries like New Zealand, Norway, and Germany known as The Four-Day Work Week. A company in New Zealand ran an experiment that reduced their work week from 40 hours to 32 hours for all employees while paying the same salary. Researchers were brought in to observe and record their findings and were able to discover, “24% more employees felt they could successfully balance their work and personal lives, stress decreased by 7% among everyone involved, and overall work satisfaction increased by 5%” (Ellis, 2020). Jarrod Harr, human resources professor from Auckland University of Technology who jointly oversaw the experiment, said the biggest takeaway from the experiment was that the employee job performance did not improve nor worsen. Meaning job performance did not change when working four days instead of five. The studies completed in these foreign countries have resulted in promising ideas. “Supervisors [from these studies] said staff were more creative, their attendance was better, they were on time, and they didn't leave early or take long breaks” (Ellis, 2020). Do you think that if companies followed concepts like The Four Day Work Week along with respecting entitled breaks and time-off like sick leave, would they produce the same amount of work?

Citations:

Ellis, M. (2020, March 25). The Four-Day Work Week: Why It Works.  Retrieved April 15, 2020, from https://zapier.com/blog/four-day-work-week/

Reasonable Job Accommodations. (n.d.). Retrieved April 15, 2020, from http://workplacementalhealth.org/Mental-Health-Topics/Reasonable-Job-Accommodations

I thought this discussion was interesting because I was able to read everyones perspective about the rights of the employee to breaks and leave in the workplace. New employees spend so much time in HR periods of their employment, it’s commonly highlighted as a topic for discussion. 

After you complete the Homework: What did you learn? What do you want to know more about?

Assignment Directions:

Time Management Activity : One way many people deal with stress is by gaining a better understanding of how they spend their time. Write a couple of paragraphs:

Nature Activity: Much research has validated the connection between spending time in nature and an improved stress response in the body.  Read the article 10 Ways to Relax in Nature and Stress Less (Links to an external site.).

Assess your current time management.  How well do you think you spend your time? How much of it is in your control?  Does this lead to any stresses in your life?

Choose one of the Strategies listed in this brochure.  How could you use one strategy to improve your time management.  Write a SMART goal that you could implement.

Spend 20-30 minutes (minimum) engaging with nature, however you choose.  Write a reflection paragraph about what you expected the experience to be like, what you did, and how it made you feel.  Would you want to try it again?  [If you have severely inclement weather during this assignment, you may choose to watch a nature video or do some guided imagery.  But understand, there is no substitute for actually being in nature!]

This homework was an excellent practice for myself to implement healthy strategies towards time management. As a mother I feel that it’s very important that I am familiar with as many ways to manage my time. I would like to learn more techniques and possibly look into different literature regarding different methods. I believe giving myself options and ideas to manage my time against uncertain circumstance is an important ability as a mother. Especially a mother trying to manage her household during this quarantine.

After you complete the Project: How was the experience? Any take-aways?

Project directions:

List the name of stress management technique you wish to practice.  Why did you choose this one?  What do you expect the experience to be like?  Have you tried this before?  What do you usually do to manage stress?

Find three (3) resources like websites or media that instruct you on how to use this technique.  Cite the URLs or book/authors.

Optional: Take the technique for a test run to see if there's anything you'll need to change before your "practice" next week.

Similarly to my takeaway from the homework, I found the experience working on this stress management project helpful. I would like to learn more techniques and possibly look into different literature regarding different methods. I believe giving myself options and ideas to manage my time against uncertain circumstance is an important ability as a mother. The resources I found were very insightful and had actually led me down various other rabbit-holes of sources of information.

General reflection on the unit--is there anything that feels important that you didn't mention above?  If you had free time, what topics might you want to look into further?

If i had free time I would continue my research on beneficial strategies towards managing both my time and my stress. This will be a battle with no end unfortunately. But I believe going into this unit, I was prepared to finish the assignments with better confidence going into channeling through my day-to-day.

[siva3155]

300+ TOP HELP DESK Interview Questions and Answers

HELP DESK Interview Questions for freshers and experienced :-

1. How Important Is Customer Service For You? The whole business depends on the customer service, and if you are at the help desk you are holding an important position to help the customer in best possible way. 2. Do You Really Think That Company Or Organization Really Needs A Helpdesk? The key to run company effectively is that the resources are available and operational all the time, especially if it is an IT company. Helpdesk is necessary as it makes sure that resources are available for customer and also operational reasons. 3. How Important It Skills Are In Help Desk Service And How You Keep Yourself Updated With Those Skills? To process your work quickly computer skills are very important these days. Computers not only make your work easy but also save your time and energy. I use internet, online books and other educational resource to upgrade my IT skills. 4. How You Deal With The Frustrated Customer? The first thing a help desk person must do is to try understanding the customer, also try to avoid the conflicts or any such things that disturbs the customer. Then you can confront with each other and try to solve the problem. 5. What Are The Three Abilities Of An Ideal Help Desk Person? Ability to listen others Ability to present your thoughts clearly To be patient especially in a tense situation 6. What Motivates You For The Help Desk Assistant Job? I like to communicate with people. Help desk assistant job is a type of job where you continuously interact with people and help them to solve their problems. 7. Imagine If There Is A Customer Who Does Not Understand Your Language Then How Will You Help Him/her? I personally think that to help someone, language should not be barrier. Anyhow if you cannot help him out then the best thing would be to make him understand with the sign language (obviously when seeing the customer physically). Over a call, you can use google translate or similar tools to communicate with customer. 8. What Is Your Worst Experience So Far As A Help Desk Assistant? Try to give answer where you had a minimum conflict or misunderstanding with the customer, and then explain how you had solved the problem. 9. How Do You Respond When You Do Not Know The Answer? When you do not know the answer, tell the customer straightway that you don’t know the answer instead of hitting around the bush. And ask them to wait till further assistance provided by your colleague or supervisor. 10. How Good Are You At Solving Problem On Phone? Solving problem face to face is different than handling them on phone. To convince your interviewer that you have an ability to solve the problem you can put an example of any previous incident where you have solved the customer problem on phone easily.

HELP DESK Interview Questions 11. How You Will Organize Your Work Schedule? Based on the priority, I will schedule my work and assignment accordingly. 12. If The Customer Is Not Satisfied With Your Service Do You Analyze Your Mistake Or Just Move On To Another Customer? Help desk associate responsibility is to give a satisfactory solution to their customer, and if the customer’s problem is not solved then a follow up needs to be taken till the problem is not solved. 13. What Is The Difference Between Helpdesk And Service Desk? A helpdesk ensures that the customer’s problems are resolved in a timely fashion. The service desk is a single point of contact between customer and company, where all the information regarding the company’s service are delivered. 14. What Experience Do You Have As A Help-desk Associate? Speak about the experience that is related to your position, tell them what are the responsibilities that were involved and also explain what additional thing you were doing like managing call or using any software. If you don’t have experience, you don’t have to worry, you can tell them you are a fresher. 15. What Are The New Help Desk Techniques You Think Would Be Helpful To Improve The Service? IT and computer knowledge would be an additional assets for an helpdesk associate, and evencompany can take a help of computer software to minimize the workload and to communicate with the customer effectively. 16. What Is The Recent Skill You Have Learned That Can Be Helpful For Help Desk Position? If you have done anything then you can mention to the interviewer like attending a seminar on mass communication, or any computer course. But it is still ok if you haven’t done related to position. 17. What Does Excellence In Customer Service Mean To You? Customers are a company’s assets and they need to be looked after in a manner not less than perfect. The best type of customer service comes about when you have been able to help the customer and he puts the phone down happily! 18. Since This Is An Extremely Technical Work And Some Customers May Have Trouble Understanding What You Are Trying To Tell Them, How Do You Make Sure That You Are Able To Communicate What You Want To Say To The Customer? It is true that many customers have trouble understanding what we at the helpdesk are trying to tell them especially through technical walkthroughs. Since we are not supposed to spend too much time on a call, should a situation like this arise, I usually take the customer’s email address and tell him I will write the walkthrough for him and email it so he can follow the steps. This way he can read and re-read the instructions and understand and follow them at his own pace. 19. What Is The First Thing That Comes To Your Mind When A Caller Says That He Cannot Log-in To His Account? The caps lock! Many customers make this mistake even though most modern operating environments prompt them when a caps lock is on. However, there are times when the customer has forgotten his password and we have to reset it and other technical problems associated with logging in. 20. How Well-versed Are You With Troubleshooting Hardware Problems? How Does This Knowledge Help You In Your Work At The Help Desk? Since I am A+ certified professional and also possess MCSE, I am quite familiar with hardware issues. From common hardware issues like a keyboard malfunctioning to more complex TCP/IP settings, I have skills in managing it all. Since I have working knowledge of networks and stand-alone personal computers, it is not too difficult to walk customers through troubleshooting procedures. 21. In Which Areas Do You Consider Yourself To Be A Specialist? I am extremely expert in Hardware and Network troubleshooting. Besides, I am also skilled in installing operations systems, patches, antivirus, and other applications as required. 22. What Is Itil? ITIL stands for Information Technology Infrastructure Library. It is basically a predefined set of practices for IT service management (ITSM) that focuses on aligning IT services with the needs of business. 23. If A User Calls With A Technical Issue With Which You Are Completely Unfamiliar. How Would You Handle The Circumstances? I will call my supervisor or coworker right away to discuss the problem to find out a solution. 24. If A User Is Unable To Boot Windows, How Will You Troubleshoot It? I will use emergency repair disk and try to fix the problem. If problem still arise, I will re-install windows. 25. If Someone Finds That Their Internet Connectivity Is Down, How Would You Fix The Problem? First of all, I would check the hardware. If modem or LAN port is OK than I will check the TCP/IP configuration and network settings. 26. How Do You Deal With A Frustrated Customer? this tests you for your ability to work with people without getting frustrated yourself. Most customers get frustrated when working with a PC and need to call the help desk. Answer the with how you would work with a person who is not abusive but needs some kind of reassurance that the issue will be resolved. 27. What Are Some Important Abilities Of An It Help Desk Support Person? patience to deal with issues over the phone. The ability to listen to customers and understand their problems quickly. Respond to customers in a thoughtful, clear manner to help them resolve the issue. Instruct customers clearly when troubleshooting computer issues. 28. How Do You Deal With Issues You Don’t Know Or Can’t Understand? ask for help from a lead or work with the customer and get a more experienced help desk person involved. Your supervisor should have a way for you to ask questions and help handle a customer issue. 29. What Is It About The Help Desk That You Like? you should be honest in your answer, but usually help desk people like helping others and troubleshooting issues, even the more difficult issues. 30. What Do You Consider Good Customer Service? good customer service representatives are patient with customers but understand their problems to resolve issues quickly. They should also identify when standard procedures aren’t working and a supervisor needs to get involved. 31. What Would You Do Under A Certain Circumstance? This is an open ended that depends on the support you’re giving. For instance, if you support a specific software product, you’ll be asked to respond with how you handle a certain issue. For instance, if it’s a Windows server product, you would look in Event Viewer for the error to help troubleshoot. 32. Are You A Team Player? if you work in a team environment, respond with what you like about working in a team. 33. What Do You Do If The Customer Doesn’t Understand Instructions? provide more details with the resolution and step the customer through the process again. 34. How Do You Organize Your Schedule? make sure you answer this with specific ways you prioritize your tasks and understand how some issues are higher priority than others. 35. What Has Been The Worst Ever Experience For You As A Help Desk Assistant? This is really a tough question. Prefer to not say that some customer was rude to you, or that he touched you personally and you had serious troubles to deal with that. Good help desk assistant should be able to resolve such situations. Simply try to remember on a concrete situation that left both you and the customer unhappy or strongly unsatisfied, and describe them the situation. To be specific is a the most important factor here. 36. What Do You Consider As Three Key Abilities Of An Ideal Help Desk Assistant.? When answering these sort of questions, we subconsciously tend to mention our own abilities. That’s why recruiters love to ask it. Anyway, to mention the ability to listen to the others, the ability to clearly and simply present your thoughts and the ability to be patient would be good. 37. How Would You Solve A Conflict With The Customer? Well, people are people, and sometimes just have a bad mood. As an ideal help desk assistant, you should mention in the first place that you always do your best to avoid conflicts. Secondly, if a conflict occurs, you try to understand the customer and think on the same wavelength as he thinks. After, you are able to solve most of the conflicts. We speak more about similar questions in customer service interview questions article. 38. What Motivates You On A Job Of Help Desk Assistant? Honestly, this job can be quite repetitive. That’s why help desk interview questions about motivation are not easy to answer… But if you really want this job, you should simply respond to it saying that you love to help other people to solve problems and simply make them feel better. Or you can say that you simply prefer routine jobs in general. 39. Imagine A Very Stupid Customer, That Struggles To Understand A Word You Are Telling Him. What Would You Do In Such A Case? This is a hard situation that is just rarely resolve in a real help desk support job. But to say that you will try to design a list of simple steps and then go with the customer through every single step until he gets the point, is a advisable answer. 40. How Do You Keep Your It Knowledge And Skills Up To Date? I remain up-to-date regarding current trends and developments in the IT industry through internet, journals, books and acquaintances. HELP DESK Questions with Answers Pdf Download Read the full article

[jasonwentcrazy]

Belief Ain’t Enough

Just because it’s true doesn’t ever mean it’s the truth.

One of the choices you have when faced with a problem is to change your perception of the problem. People sometimes resist altering their perceptions, believing they are right in what they see, hear, and remember. The truth is that your perceptions are often inaccurate, particularly in emotionally charged situations. So one way of being more open to  changing your perceptions is to consider the ways your perceptions may be inaccurate.

How you focus your attention affects your perceptions.  

When you have an idea in your mind you tend to look for evidence that supports that idea and not pay attention to evidence that says the idea isn’t accurate. This is called confirmation bias. If you believe you are lucky whenever you wear your red sweatshirt, you are likely to focus on the times that is true and discount the times you were lucky when you weren’t wearing the shirt and when you weren’t lucky when wearing the shirt.  Democrats will look for evidence they are right and Republicans are wrong and vice versa. You tend to look for and pay attention to evidence that supports your beliefs.

So one way of changing your perception is to check the evidence.  Is the way you see the situation factual?  Find a way to count or otherwise test out your thoughts in a more objective way.  Maybe your brother actually spends as much time talking with you as he does your older sister. Maybe your husband puts his clothes away one out of three times instead of never.

Most people don’t like uncertainty so they classify people and experiences into categories. People also learn to associate outcomes with cues when they may not be related.

If a sexy redhead wearing tight pants and stilettos flirts with your husband and ignores you, you may tend to be suspicious of the next woman you meet who wears high heels.  People tend to believe that when people are similar in one way, they are likely to be similar in other ways and this is often not the case.

Not only that, but because you have the idea that she is going to behave a certain way, you may be overly sensitive to any actions on her part that support that view (confirmation bias).

In addition, you may have learned to associate attractive redheads with being abandoned or teased. You may or may not be aware of the reason for your immediate fear, dislike and distrust of redheads wearing heels. Either way it will influence your perception of the person.

Be aware that humans tend to group and classify people and interactions in ways that aren’t correct. People can respond emotionally to subtle cues such as the sounds or lights or smells without any awareness of their emotions coloring their thoughts. Mindfulness can help you be aware of your reactions and pause to consider all factors before responding.

Your first perception affects your later perceptions and decisions.  

In some cases, buying a car is a good example of how this works. The sticker price for the car is $25,000 but the salesman gets you a special deal. You can drive off the lot for $20,000.  At this point, $20,000 looks great. What a bargain. This is called the anchoring effect.  Your belief in the car’s value is anchored at $25,000.

If you “anchored” at a reasonable cost that would be okay. But you don’t. A couple of researchers (Ariely) looked at the anchoring effect by having students bid for items in an auction. They held up a bottle of wine, a textbook or a cordless trackball and described how wonderful the item was. Then each student wrote down the last two digits of their social security number. The digits represented the price of the auction items. If the last two digits were 33, then the textbook was $33.  If the last two digits were 15, then the wine was $15.  After writing down the pretend price, the students bid for the items.

The students who had high social security numbers paid up to 346% more than those with low numbers.

When you have negative reactions to situations or to yourself, how much is an anchoring effect influencing your view?  For example, if your first experience with learning or going to therapy was negative, think how that might influence your later experiences. If your first experience with your neighbor was negative, then maybe that has colored your later interactions.  That saying about the power of first impressions seems to have some truth.

If you imagine an event occurring, your view of the likelihood of that event actually occurring increases. 

If you worry and ruminate about awful events, such as your spouse cheating on you, you are also increasing your sense of how likely it is that the awful event will occur. That of course will add to your misery, though it’s only a change in your perception.

Stopping rumination is difficult. If you ruminate, consider that your perception of the likelihood of the dreaded event actually occurring is skewed. Consider letting the ruminating thought pass through.  Perhaps replace it with visualizing yourself behaving effectively with problems that come your way.

You don’t see all that happens right in front of your eyes.  

Would you believe that you could be talking with someone about checking out a video and not notice that a different person brings you the video?  (e.g. http://www.theinvisiblegorilla.com) You often don’t notice major details in your environment.  You miss information.  So when you are upset about an interaction or a situation, consider that maybe you don’t have all the facts. It’s at least a possibility.

Sometimes making a decision that you aren’t the kind of person who does something helps you stop doing that behavior. 

Deciding that you aren’t the kind of person who eats sweets or who smokes will help you change your behavior. It’s like changing your perception of who you are helps you make different decisions.

Consider how your view of yourself could affect your perceptions. If you perceive yourself as a caring person, you might discount others’ complaints about you being selfish because that’s not who you are. If you view yourself as an angry person then you may respond with anger in an automatic way without checking to see if that is what you are actually feeling.

Being mindful of your emotions and actions and the effect of your actions on others can be helpful to increasing the accuracy of your perceptions.

When you’re in a negative mood you tend to expect more negative outcomes and see yourself and others more negatively.  

When you are sad or depressed, you are likely to see yourself as having little to be happy about or that you have little to look forward to. You are more attuned to painful events. When your mood changes your view of your future is more optimistic and your see the many reasons you have to be grateful though nothing changed other than your mood.

Keep in mind your perceptions may be mood dependent. Remind yourself that when you are in a different mood your views change.

Sometimes you let myths govern your responses.  

Imagine you’re at work. You see a man with a few tears running down his cheeks. If you believe that tears are a sign of weakness, you’ll perceive the gentleman differently than if you believe that expression of feelings is healthy or a sign of sensitivity. You may have the judgment without even thinking of the reason you are making it.

Consider writing down your beliefs about friendships, the opposite sex, relationships or any area of conflict you might have.  Then consider whether you are behaving according to rules and expectations that are actually myths.

It’s really difficult to have the whole truth. 

The man who cut you off in traffic may be trying to get to the hospital for the birth of a child.  The supervisor who didn’t give raises may have saved the department from layoffs and the friend you believe ignored you may not have seen you.

Sometimes you are upset because you interpret or give assumed meanings to events rather than staying with what you can actually observe to be true.  Sometimes your perceptions, and thus your reactions, are based on assumptions. You can observe that the man cut you off in traffic and you know that you were scared of an accident. You cannot observe that he did so because he is rude or has some other negative personality characteristic.

You reconstruct your memories. 

Your memories of the past can be influenced by interactions and situations that occur after the original event. The language that someone uses to ask you questions about the event can influence your memory. If you have gaps in what you remember, you tend to them in to make the memory “whole.”  And circumstances that occur after the original event affect your memory. For example, if you were best friends with someone at the time of the original event but have an argument that severed your relationship in the years after, then you will not remember being as close as you actually were.

Thus your memory/perception of what happened five years ago might not be as accurate as you think. Consider that others’ memories may have some validity even though their memories are likely flawed as well.

There are many ways our perceptions are actually inaccurate representations of reality. Keeping in mind that your perceptions may be faulty or incomplete may help you be more flexible in your views, giving you more peace and contentment.

[This is from some pasted text I had saved in my documents and I figured I’d post it here to remind me of it. Since it’s important.]

[jadedamber]

So you’re slugging it as a temp...

I’ve debated whether it would help anyone if I posted my thoughts on temp workers in office situations in general and in creative fields in particular, and decided, heck, yes, maybe. So here goes.

I’ve been a creative supervisor in corporate field long enough to have gone through managing a number of temps, and while some (two, let’s be real) managed to stay on to become permanent additions to our department, we parted ways with a much greater number of temps who did not work out for various reasons.  

If anyone reading wants to break into a design job, and is roughing it as a freelancer/temp for now, hopefully this will help you up your game.

Things to remember right off the bat:

I. If you’re getting hired as a temp, it probably means one of two things:

1. The company is cheap as hell and doesn’t want to pay for full time workers, and/or 2. It’s a temporary and sudden crunch time, and they need bodies to throw at the crisis.

Both of these things mean that the poor shmuck who will be supervising you is overworked, overstressed, and does not have enough time and resources to train you. It’s not their fault. Most of them would train/hire you in a heartbeat if they had that power. Most of them are happy you’re there, and are dearly invested in you picking up the necessary skills to succeed (because your failure will be on that supervisor’s head).

That means:

II. Attitude is everything. I mean, I’ve had workers who came in with false information about what the job would be (for various reasons) and panicked/resented the fact that they did not know the things we needed from them, but because some of them were open to learning, I had no problem teaching them on the fly, and one such former temp just had their second annual review, if you catch my meaning. It was a good review, too. The other ones used their time with my team as a learning experience and a resume fodder. Still others were gone after a couple of miserable days.

Plus, a good reference from your direct supervisor is a commodity (as I’m learning), and when you’re a temp, your supervisor knows you’re most likely looking around, so most of them are less twitchy about being asked for those.

III. If the supervisor tells you to please ask questions if you don’t understand something - TAKE THEM UP ON IT!  I cannot stress it enough. My teammates and I would much rather be interrupted in our work than have to redo something that was done incorrectly due to assumptions or lack of knowledge - or worse, be confronted with the mistake with 15 minutes to hand-off time. If something does not feel right, say something. If something doesn’t add up - speak up. It won’t make you look incompetent, I swear. No one expects a temp to know all the ins and outs of a particular company.

That brings me to next point:

IV. No one cares if you project-managed elsewhere. I don’t care if you delegated tasks to others before. Here and now, I am your boss and if I say we have to do it a certain way, don’t fucking cowboy it out. If you think there’s a better way, and your supe seems cool, by all means, voice it (in a concise way, please) but don’t salute ok and then do it your way because it’s better in your opinion. You may not know something. There might be reasons that are beyond your scope of knowledge. If your boss seems too busy/assholish, ask your teammates. 

V. Ask your teammates about your supervisor. If they seem reluctant to answer, that should be as clear a signal as if they complained to you for an hour. On the other hand, in my experience, if the boss is cool, people will be pretty happy to tell you. Take them seriously, but watch non-verbal cues, of course, as those are more accurate, usually.

VI. If your goal is to learn as much as possible and move on - GO ALL IN. Ask your teammates questions, watch how they do things, pick up the lingo, volunteer for difficult tasks. And most of all, shut up and listen.  I mean it kindly. If your goal is to learn, then don’t waste your time teaching (or explaining how wonderful you are). You’re there for knowledge, not an ad campaign (unless you’re temping at an ad agency (I’m hilarious, I know, shut up)).

VII. Remember, you’re “just a temp”. I don’t mean it in a derogatory way, but as a reality check. So you think you’re more talented/better worker/whatever than this full-timer over here? Watch and learn what it is that made the company hire that person. You might not want to copy them, but you should at least know what the rules of the game are.  Until you find your stride/voice/strengths, it helps to absorb whatever you can.

VIII. Remember, you’re “just a temp”. This also means that your career is not hinged on this job, so if you keep being treated like crap, pick up the subtle (or not so subtle) cues, and talk to your agency about finding another gig. It’s not worth getting shat on if there are other projects out there, and you won’t know until you ask your rep. 

IX. Make yourself useful. Literally if you’re a temp and you become hella helpful to your supervisor, most of them will fight for you to become full time, if that’s at all a possibility. It doesn’t mean you have to be Gal Friday (or Guy Friday) and be a perfect employee. For example, one of my teammates freaks out every time I split her project with another person, but in a crisis situation she’s the one most likely to stay late and get it done, and I value the shit out of her for that. Another one is kind of slow and I don’t give her any of the most urgent projects, but trust me, if there’s anything that takes finesse and painstaking labor, she’s my go-to person. So, if you act like your boss has to, like, deserve your best effort - nobody cares. No one owes you to “get to know you” or discover you. You might be a fabulous painter, but if you can’t cut a straight line (literally a recent problem we had), I’m sorry, but I can’t use you. Go find a job painting, not working in a fast-paced corporate environment.

X. Take them seriously. This should be a no-brainer, but somehow, it’s something that keeps coming up. I respect your right for self expression, but if the company policy states that you can’t wear graphic t shirts, please fucking listen. If you’re supposed to come in at a certain time, please listen. If you’re told that you’re supposed to check in after a certain task, even though you’ve been doing that task since before you were born and can perform it asleep, drunk, in negative degree weather, on your head - please. please. fucking. listen. 

I just had to let someone go who was very surprised at the news, despite having had several private conversations/warnings regarding following instructions, and it was frustrating for both of us. They thought they were being very productive, because they were doing so much. I thought they were a waste of everyone’s time and resources, because they kept screwing up - not for lack of knowledge, but because oh... they really meant it not to do THAT to a cricut machine... huh. And oh, I guess THAT’s why you save this file a certain way. Like, I don’t got time to deal with that, bye. 

BONUS: If you’re let go, very good chances are, no one will tell you the reason. Your now former supervisor is still overworked and overstressed, It’s an unpleasant conversation no one wants to have, and - since you clearly haven’t made good enough impression - nobody cares about you to give you some tips for the future. 

That’s ok - take the silence as your one huge cue, try to remember all the times things went wrong and what, in retrospect, you should have done differently. Again, you were just a temp, it’s not like you messed up your chances at the Project Runway or American Idol or whatever. 

Just learn. 

It’s not fun, and it’s tough, but hey, you’re the one who wanted a creative job.

Plus it could be that it’s not even you - the agency’s fee might’ve gone up, the big boss has deemed that the crisis has passed (whether it’s true or not), or the budget for a temp has dried up. Most big bosses I’ve dealt with really seem to not consider the fact that temp workers have lives and budgets like the rest of us, and it’s ok to just tell the agency we don’t need them to come in anymore. If your supe is cool, and they have insider knowledge, they WILL warn you if they at all can and they feel like they can trust you not to throw them under the bus.

Use this also to figure out if that is the field you want to be in. One of my best teammates had no clue what they wanted to do after college, temped for my team, and realized they were really into consumer goods (vs. say, web or ad jobs). Another temp knew she wanted to do publishing, worked with us anyway, confirmed it for herself, and left to follow her dream. You just don’t always know right from the start, and it’s ok.

All of the above used to seem very common sense to me, but life disabused me of that notion. And because I realize not everyone is on the same level in life, I hope me sharing these tips will help someone to succeed in this field that increasingly wants more and more experience for entry level positions. Because sometimes temp work is how you get there. 

Go get ‘em, tiger!

[margdarsanme]

NCERT Class 12 Business Studies Chapter 4 Planning

NCERT Class 12 Business Studies Part - I : Chapter 4 Planning

Short Answer Type Questions

1. What are the main points in the definition of planning?Ans: The main points in the definition of planning are as follows(i) Planning is deciding in advance what to do and how to do.(ii) It is one of the basic managerial function.(iii) Planning involves setting objectives and developing an appropriate course of action to achieve these objectives.(iv) It bridges the gap between where we are and where we want to reach.

2. How does planning provide direction?Ans: Planning provides direction for action by deciding in advance what has to be done, how to do, when to do and who will do. When we try to seek answers to the above questions, which are well planned then directions are automatically highlighted.

3. Do you think planning can work in a changing environment?Ans: Planning may not work in a changing environment. The environment consists of a number of dimensions, economic, political, social, legal and technological dimensions. The organisation has to constantly adapt itself to changes. It becomes difficult to accurately assess future trends in the environment. Planning cannot foresee everything and thus, there may be obstacles to effective planning.

4. If planning involves working out details for the future, why does it not ensure success?Ans: Planning does not guarantee success. The success of an enterprise is possible only when plans are properly drawn up and implemented. Any plan needs to be translated into action or it becomes meaningless. Managers have a tendency to rely on previously tried and tested successful plans. It is not always true that just because a plan has worked before it will work again. This kind of false sense of security may actually lead to failure instead of success.

5. Why are rules considered to be plans?Ans: Rules are specific statements that inform what is to be done. They do not allow for any flexibility or discretion. It reflects a managerial decision that a certain action must or must not be taken. They are usually the simplest type of plans because there is no compromise or change unless a policy decision is taken.

6. What kind of strategic decisions are taken by business organisations?Ans: Major strategic decisions include whether the organisation will continue to be in the same line of business or combine new lines of activity with the existing business or seek to acquire a dominant position in the same market.

Long Answer Type Questions

1. Why is it that organisations are not always able to accomplish all their objectives?Ans: Organisations are not always able to accomplish all their objectives due to the following reasons(i) Planning Leads to Rigidity In an organisation a well defined plan is drawn up with specific goals to be achieved, with in a specific time frame. These plans then decide how the work will progress in the future and managers may not be in a position to change it. This creates a problem as flexibility is very important. Always adhering to the plan may not give us the desired results always.(ii)Planning May not Work in a Dynamic Environment The business environment is dynamic, nothing is constant. The business environment is a totality of external forces, where in some changes or the other keep on taking place. Plans decide in advance what has to be done in future. Planning cannot foresee everything and thus there may be obstacles to effective planning.(iii) Planning Reduces Creativity Planning is generally done by the top management. Usually the rest of the members just implements these plans. As a consequence, middle management and other decisions makers are neither allowed to deviate from plans nor are they permitted to act on their own, thus planning in a way reduces creativity since people tend to think along the same lines as others, there is nothing new or innovative.(iv) Planning Involves Huge Cost Planning involves huge cost in their formulation. These may be in terms of time and money. The costs incurred sometimes may not justify the benefits derived from the plans.(v) Planning is a Time Consuming Process Sometimes plans to be drawn take up so much of time that there is not much time left for their implementation and the objectives to be achieved.(iv) Planning does not Guarantee Success Any plans needs to be translated into action or it becomes meaningless. Managers have a tendency to rely on previously tried and tested successful plans. It is not always true that just because a plan has worked before it will work again.

2. What are the main features to be considered by the management while planning?Ans: The main features to be considered by the management while planning are(i) It Focuses on Achieving Objectives Planning is purposeful. Planning has no meaning unless it contributes to the achievement of predetermined organisational goals.(ii) It is the Primary Function Planning lays down the base for other functions of management. All other managerial functions are performed within the framework of the plans drawn. Thus, planning precedes other function.(iii) Planning is Pervasive Planning is required at all levels of management as well as in all departments of the organisations. The top management undertakes planning for the organisation as a whole. Middle management does the departmental planning. At the lowest level, day-to-day operational planning is done by supervisors.(iv) Planning is Continuous Plans are prepared for a specific period of time, may be for a month, a quarter or a year. At the end of that period, there is need for a new plan to be drawn on the basis of new requirements and future conditions. Hence, planning is a continuous process.(v) Planning is Futuristic The purpose of planning is to meet future events effectively to the best advantage of an organisation. It implies peeping into the future, analysing it and predicting it.(vi) Planning Involves Decision Making Planning essentially involves choice from among various alternatives and activities. If there is only one possible goal then there is no need for planning. The need only arises when alternatives are available. Planning thus, involves thorough examination and evaluation of each alternative and choosing the most appropriate one.(vii) Planning is a Mental Exercise Planning is basically an intellectual activity of thinking rather than doing, because planning determines the action to be taken. Planning requires logical and systematic thinking rather than guesswork or wishful thinking.

3. What are the steps taken by management in the planning process?Ans: The planning process involves the following steps(i) Establishing Objectives The first step in planning is to determine objectives which must be realistic, specific and clear so as to specify what is to be accomplished by the network of policies, procedures, strategies etc.(ii) Developing Premises They include assumptions or forecasts of the future and unknown conditions that will affect the operations of the plans. They provide an idea about the future which facilitates the work of planning.(iii) Identifying the Alternative Courses of Action The next step in planning is to identify the various alternatives available to achieve the objectives.(iv) Evaluating Alternative Courses The merits and demerits of different courses of actions are evaluated in the light of objectives to be achieved and their feasibility is judged i.e., how far they will be successful in helping to achieve the objective.(v) Selecting an Alternative The next step is to find out the most suitable course to be followed. The efforts are directed towards selecting that course. Which increases efficiency in the organisation by maximising output and profits at the minimum costs.(vi) Implement the Plan At this step the best alternative chosen is put to use.(vii) Follow Up Only putting the best alternative to action is not enough. The future is uncertain and dynamic. Therefore, it becomes important to check back whether the plan is giving results or not

4. Is planning actually worth the huge costs involved? Explain.Ans: Planning involves huge cost, when plans are drawn up huge costs are involved in their formulation. These are in terms of time, money, effort etc. Detailed plans require scientific calculations to ascertain facts and figures. The costs incurred sometimes may not justify the benefits derived from the plans. There are a number of incidental costs as well (which are indirect) like expenditures on organising a meeting, consultation fees given to professional experts, market survey etc. But despite the high cost no firm can work without proper planning if used properly.

Case Problem

Art auto company C Ltd is facing a problem of declining market share due to increased competition from other new and existing players in the maket. Its competitiors are introducing lower priced models for mass consumers who are price sensitive. For quality conscious consumers, the company is introducing new models with added features and new technological advancements.1. Prepare a model business plan for C Ltd to meet the existing challenge. You need to be very specific about quantitative parameters. You may specify which type of plan you are preparing.Ans: In such a situation, formulating a strategy would be advisable.A strategy is a single use plan. It is normally made to fight competition in the market.The model business plan, i.e., strategy will be(i) It is objective and its purpose is that how much sales it wants to increase over a specified time.(ii) The company should then list down its strengths and weakness. This brings in light as to what will be easy and what will be difficult.(iii) Aggressive, advertising and sales promotion techniques to be adopted.

2. Identify the limitations of such plans.Ans: Limitations of the above strategy can be(i) Shortage of funds.(ii) Shortage of technical professionals.(iii) Top level may not be competent enough to develop a suitable strategy.(iv) The company may not be successful in assessing the future plans of the competitors as compared to its own strategy.

3. How will you seek to remove these limitations?Ans: The above limitations can be overcome by(i) Arranging funds in advance.(ii) Effective methods of recruitment should be adopted to ensure availability of effective staff in all departments.(iii) Middle level should be encouraged to propose plans in the form of suggestions. After considering all these, a strategy should be planned.(iv) The company should be able to assess the moves of the competitors.

from Blogger http://www.margdarsan.com/2020/08/ncert-class-12-business-studies-chapter_4.html

[scienceblogtumbler]

The science of tickling: why the brain won’t let us tickle ourselves

by Caleb Davies

Ever tried tickling yourself? Next time you have a private moment, give it a go – you’ll find it next to impossible. With a few well-placed wiggles of the fingers, most of us could send children, friends and even some animals like rats into fits of giggles. The reason we can’t do the same to ourselves has long been a puzzle, but one that we may now be closer than ever to solving. Understanding it requires a deep dive into the workings of the brain; for such a playful activity, the science of tickling is surprisingly sophisticated.

The first thing to understand about our inability to self-tickle is that it’s just one example of a widespread phenomenon: humans respond differently to touch depending on whether the sensation was created by ourselves or something else.

If you clap your hands, then have someone else clap one of your hands with theirs, you will generally perceive the latter as more intense. This difference in how we perceive ourselves and other things in the environment isn’t limited to humans, or to touch. In 2003, a study showed that crickets perceive their own chirps as quieter than those of other crickets.

Having this ability makes sense in evolutionary terms, says Dr Konstantina Kilteni at the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, Sweden. It’s useful to know if a sensation is worth paying attention to or not. ‘If you have a bug crawling up your arm, you want to be sure you notice that,’ she said.

Body ownership

A prerequisite to this is that our brains have a sense of body ownership, so that we know whether a touch comes from our own moving fingers, say, or some foreign object. Understanding how this works is probably a crucial part of getting to grips with tickling. Dr Kilteni says that a raft of studies began to probe this in the late 1990s, but while they established a link between the intensity of touch and where it originates, they didn’t explore the precise conditions for this. She began the Tickle Me project in 2017 to go deeper.

One of her key experiments involved looking at the way people perceived touches on their fingers using a clever set up of levers. In the first part of the experiment, people touched a lever with their left forefinger, which instantly triggered a second lever to touch their right forefinger.

Dr Kilteni then compared this with two variations. In the first, people let their left finger rest on a plate above the first lever, then the plate was removed letting the finger fall onto the lever. This triggered the second lever to touch the right finger, but crucially this was now involuntary. In a final variation, the right finger was touched by the lever without any input from the person at all. It turned out that people perceived the touches generated by these three methods as successively more intense, even though they were all made with the same force. This suggests that if the brain knows a touch is coming, it feels it as less intense. This confirms that one of the reasons we cannot tickle ourselves is because our brain has already planned it, says Dr Kilteni.

In a separate experiment that used the same lever equipment, Dr Kilteni also introduced a sneaky twist so that when the participants touched the first lever with one finger, there was a delay of a fraction of a second before the second lever touched their other finger. It turned out that this element of surprise was important; the delay made the sensation more intense. All this gives us another hint as to why self-tickling is so hard: when you tickle yourself it is hard to be caught unaware.

‘You have to get kind of rough with the rats to get them to laugh; it’s rough play they like.’

Marlies Oostland, Princeton University, US

Dr Kilteni conducted a raft of experiments like this during her project, but perhaps the most telling paper she has produced came out just a few months ago and concerns an area of the brain called the somatosensory cortex, a part of the brain that receives sensory information from the body.

In one experiment she had 30 volunteers touch their index fingers together, and then separately have their fingers touched by a robot, while she scanned their brains using an fMRI machine. Some people seemed to perceive the self-touch as less intense than others, and Dr Kilteni could see that these individuals tended to have stronger connections between the somatosensory cortex and another area of the brain called the cerebellum.

Little brain

The cerebellum, or ‘little brain’, is found at the nape of the neck. It is central to the control of our bodies’ movements but it is also thought to play a crucial role overseeing cognitive processing. Think of the brain like a factory with different parts processing different information and the cerebellum is the quality control supervisor. Neuroscientists suspect that the cerebellum sends signals to dial down the perception of tickling in the somatosensory cortex when it is our own fingers, not someone else’s, at work. Dr Kilteni’s fMRI studies lend weight to that hypothesis.

Over in New Jersey, US, Dr Marlies Oostland is planning to further probe this connection through her NeuroTick project. One of Dr Oostland’s project supervisors, Professor Michael Brecht, at the Bernstein Center for Computational Neuroscience at Humboldt University of Berlin, Germany, was the scientist who along with his colleague Dr Shimpei Ishiyama, discovered that rats are ticklish in 2016. They showed that when tickled, rats emit ultrasonic ‘laughs’ and that their somatosensory cortex lights up like a Christmas tree at the same time.

Tickling the rats didn’t come entirely naturally to Oostland when she had a go on a visit to Berlin. ‘I’m used to working with mice, so I was too gentle,’ she said. ‘You have to get kind of rough with the rats to get them to laugh; it’s rough play they like.’

Dr Oostland is beginning her project at Princeton University by making fundamental studies of how the cerebellum in mice predicts the animals’ movements. She is using probes to measure the activity of individual cells in the cerebellum of a mouse to understand what’s going on in its brain as she puffs air at their whiskers (which isn’t unpleasant but should be surprising).

Armed with this understanding, the plan is for her to then move to Prof. Brecht’s lab in Germany in two year’s time to study the connection between the cerebellum and somatosensory cortex and try to confirm whether and how the signals pass between the two.

As well as helping us build a better fundamental understanding of the most sophisticated object in the universe, the human brain, Dr Oostland says work like this could help us understand autism spectrum disorder better too. People who have an injury to the cerebellum soon after birth have a 36 times higher chance of developing autism later in life. We don’t fully understand why, but Dr Oostaland says fundamental studies like this could help.

The research in this article was funded by the EU. If you liked this article, please consider sharing it on social media.

Published by Horizon

source https://horizon.scienceblog.com/1278/the-science-of-tickling-why-the-brain-wont-let-us-tickle-ourselves/

[royal-red-asks]

5 Great Lessons You Can Learn From SEO 2019

With the way things proceed so fast on the internet, many business people find internet design and search engine marketing (SEO) to become like the moving target. Dave Gregory, Content Marketing Supervisor from the UK based functionality marketing agency, SiteVisibility, predicts that will 2019, and not 2018, is usually going to be the true year of voice. If we consider Google's Guide then there are almost 200+ factors that lead a internet site in ranking, which we possess researched and clustered in twenty one On Page SEO Factors, that will needs your attention in 2019. SEO Wise Links can automatically link important terms in your posts plus comments with corresponding posts, webpages, categories and tags on your own blog. 41. An effective sociable media strategy needs a strong SEO plan. Google does make several of this data accessible in their particular free Webmaster Tools interface (if you haven't set up a free account, this is a very important SEO tool both for unearthing search query data and with regard to diagnosing various technical SEO issues). AI and Tone of voice Search Impact SEO, Lets discover how voice search analytics Impact's SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMIZATION and can impact in the particular coming time. A great many businesses choose to hire external help to be able to get the full benefits regarding SEO, so a large portion of our audience is studying how to convince their customers that search is a good investment (and then prove it! ). Nevertheless, SEOs tend in order to prefer links higher on the page. Because your site, thanks to the nature of your current business is going to become more image orientated than text message heavy, you may be at a minor disadvantage when it comes to be able to employing SEO techniques such because keywords, backlinking and so on. There is definitely no magic wand in your own hands to regulate or manage your competitors' strategies or administration, Google analytics update, or user's behavior communicate business but a person can manage your SEO. In this particular new environment, the digital internet marketer who views SEO in the broader context will surely come out there ahead of the competition within 2018 and beyond. Good SEO textbooks explain in detail how greatest to use keywords and exactly how to structure your entire web site to attract the attention associated with search engine spiders and associated with human visitors, and a posting such as this cannot perform the topic justice. While businesses begin on an SEO advertising strategy, they should realize that a good entire marketing campaign can drop flat on its face when a business is unable in order to reach the masses, that will be, their target audience. If your own pages were designed to obtain the most out of Search engines, with commonly known and today outdated SEO techniques chances are usually Google has identified this plus is throttling your rankings within some way. Numerous business people find keeping upward with the "moving target" associated with SEO distracts them from everyday priorities more than they actually imagined, so it's good in order to appear closely at what can make sense for every business. The app process for the SocialSEO Electronic Marketing and SEO Scholarship will be done 100% electronically and demands the next list of materials. If you speak about search ranking in SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMIZATION, you're talking about the place of your content on research results pages (SERPs). Kent Lewis, Originator, and President of Anvil, the performance-based firm based out associated with Portland, says that in 2019 voice search and Amazon lookup will end up a lot more notable than they were in 2018. Google Search Console (Webmaster tools) is one of the particular SEO basics. If you desire to find out how I actually actually do it, visit Post Czar for any free gift plus details of could use content marketing and SEOcious to get top Google listings. It really is geared towards SEO professionals (in-house and agency), marketing managers, and business people. But now SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMIZATION considers tweets, retweets, Google+ authorship, as well as Blog9T other social signals. Besides position the web site, the SEO team turns into fault Client's marketing or product sales team by converting surfers or even visitors into buyers. Because therefore much sharing now takes place on major social media systems, social signals may become simply because important to SEO as period on page, editorial linking, plus content quality. Using social mass media marketing in PA with SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMIZATION tactics can help boost the website's ranking and popularity. This may create friction and the impact that most well-designed websites are usually very poorly optimized for SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMIZATION. They have impacted SEO previously as well by bringing inbound links, and today it's even even more. The traditional method to SEO has been devoted to creating excellent content that will is easily searchable via research engine bots. To realize SEO, you'll also need in order to know how Google search functions. 2019 may still use many of these kinds of newly implemented tactics, but lookup engine optimization experts are likewise suggesting there will be even more. Currently more than half associated with searches account for mobile gadgets, and the number will definitely move up in 2019. Within the remaining 2018 quarter, a person need to invest in mobile-first content that will rank a person higher in mobile search within 2019. The vast majority of your SEO learning need to come from online resources, yet there are a few textbooks that will help you conceptually understand the history of research Here's What Industry Insiders Say About SEO 2019, search engines, and how SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMIZATION has changed through the yrs. There are a lot of methods that webmasters use within order to entice potential clients to their site—one of the particular most important and effective associated with those being Seo (SEO). SEO is important for plenty of companies because if individuals find you using a web lookup and find what they're searching for, you can receive plenty of new web visitors that will can help you earn even more money. Good SEO follows guidelines that Search engines determines are best practices in order to have your articles ranked upon top. SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMIZATION services do thorough keyword analysis for the specific website, and after that optimize the information on the particular basis of these keywords plus theme of website. Search engine optimisation (SEO) is one of this most important marketing things to consider upon your studio website. SEO might generate a sufficient return upon investment However, search engines are usually not taken care of organic search visitors, their algorithms change, and generally there are no guarantees of carried on referrals. An excellent starting point whenever using keywords for SEO will be to identify existing pages that will may use some optimization. These are called keywords, plus as you will see, these people are an important part associated with SEO. In fact, this particular will actually hurt your cyberspace SEO because search engines such as google will recognize it because keyword stuffing - or the particular act of including keywords particularly to rank for that key word, rather than to answer the person's question. Just before we begin, one thing a person want to keep in thoughts when using some of the following SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMIZATION elements is not to overdo it. You might be enticed to shove a lot associated with keywords onto your pages, yet that is not the objective. In situation you create links to some other websites and reverse, it can improve your SEO ranking. In fact Cisco predicts that globally, on-line video traffic will be eighty percent of all consumer Web traffic by 2019 (a amount that is up from sixty four percent in 2014). I've bookmarked therefore many SEO websites and assets that it's overwhelming to actually look at. Link authority is the major component of SEO, yet purchasing links is forbidden simply by Google, Bing, and other lookup engines. SEO is really the shortened phrase for search motor optimization. I believe SEO within 2019 will largely be such as SEO in 2018, with the particular exception of some big” Search engines update that wipes out sufficient websites to make people think the algorithms have grown significantly smarter. SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMIZATION works by optimizing a home page's pages, conducting keyword research, plus earning inbound links. The business offers excellent SEO packages that will help rank the clients' web site within top three pages associated with search engine pages. That can make SEO an ideal lead era tool, because when searchers adhere to links back to your web site, you have the chance in order to convert them to leads, plus later make sales. Whenever asked to point out ideas that are unique towards the particular web, most people will arrive up with two main types: SEO and social media. How many links do a person need for good off-page SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMIZATION? If you are carrying out a professional SEO audit to get a actual business, you are going in order to have to think like the Google Search Quality Rater Plus a Google search engineer to supply real long-term value to the client. 44. Give your own social media profiles an SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMIZATION boost. 10% of our experts believe that will there's likely to be the lot of focus on cellular in 2019, as older SEOs realize optimizing for desktop will be pointless. White hat SEO is not really just about following guidelines, yet is about ensuring that the particular content google search indexes and consequently ranks may be the same content the user will see. Businesses with multiple websites and SEO-agencies can set up report themes. Its search engine marketing group provides expertise in Pay-per-click marketing services, organic SEO and interpersonal media optimisation. The particular ads that you often discover on various web pages demonstrated and those that also show up on the rightmost side associated with search engine results are inorganic SEO examples. While I nevertheless see this trend in have fun with with many enterprises still within the midst of their electronic transformation, the convergence in the particular MarTech space is creating several synergies and opportunities and this particular should be seen as the welcome development for brands plus agencies who are looking with regard to an edge in regards in order to their SEO driven content advertising or outreach strategies. Along with the only complete certainty that SEO's, Website owners may have several adjustments to make to sites under their care in the particular mobile and voice search surroundings. The basics of GOOD SEO hasn't changed for years - although effectiveness of particular elements provides certainly narrowed or changed within type of usefulness - a person should still be focusing upon building a simple site making use of VERY simple SEO best practices - don't perspiration the small stuff, while all-the-time paying attention to the essential stuff - add plenty of unique PAGE TITLES and lots associated with new ORIGINAL CONTENT. Keyword research is usually THE first step of any kind of SEO campaign. Looking deeper: In present-day SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMIZATION, you can't simply include because a lot of keywords as possible to achieve the people who are searching for you. SEO stands for Search Motor Optimization and refers to strategies you can use to assist ensure that your site rates high in the results associated with search engines for example Google. It blends ratings and search volumes in the manner that makes it even more relevant, insightful and easier in order to understand than any other SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMIZATION performance tracking approach. About: Advanced Search Summit is definitely designed for advanced SEO specialists, digital marketers, and analysts with enterprise and mid-market sized businesses who want advanced tactics plus techniques. SEO stands for seo. ” It is the process associated with getting traffic through the free, ” organic, ” editorial” or natural” search results on search motors like google. If you're believing about ramping up SEM initiatives to complement organic SEO, end up being sure to take a appearance at Google Adwords ' Lookup Ads page. The large a part of SEO is generating valuable, high-quality content (e. h., blog articles and web web page copy) that your potential audience will certainly find helpful. SEO alone cannot perform much for your business yet when combined with content advertising, social internet marketing, email advertising, mobile marketing and PPC advertising, it can help businesses achieve the pinnacle of success on the web. To get a better SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMIZATION, helps your website can obtain on the top among well-known search engines like Bing plus Google. On the various other side, you can ensure a good effective content marketing campaign just when you apply the SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMIZATION techniques properly. SEO : Search engine optimization: the procedure of making your web site better with regard to search engines. The purpose of SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMIZATION writing is to make your own company more visual, more attractive in website search engines. SEO will be the practice of increasing this quantity and quality of site visitors to your website through natural search engine results. 31. SEO data can notify a smart social media technique. Solid keyword & marketplace research assist SEO strategy plus allow us to deliver realistic projections and forecasts of opportunity inside your market. Nevertheless, when this comes to developing and carrying out an audio SEO strategy intended for your business, just creating content material for the keywords your clients are looking for is each arduous and, well, wrong. In this situation, in, the article ranks correct after the official Google suggestions (and it makes sense that will Google should be number one on their own branded query) but Smashing magazine is proven as a position 0” little of text on the question Google pop up guidelines” within. Search Engine Land, a top quality SEO blog this is the pillar of the community will be ranking after Smashing (which occurs to be really a style blog than an SEO one). Search engines regard metadata plus meta keywords as less essential than they used to, thanks a lot to many years of dark hat misuse, however the name of your page and the relevancy towards the content may always be a highly essential factor in SEO. SEO is important because this helps you get found simply by improving your ranking on the internet lookup results. Inorganic SEO is usually good for populating links with regard to your website, even on various other websites which signed up regarding online ads to be proven on their web pages. Of course, finding the period for you to write your own SEO articles daily can become difficult in light of the particular fact that you still possess a company to run. Social media provides its perks aside from SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMIZATION value. So when you think about it, SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMIZATION is really just a procedure of proving to find engines that will you are the best web site, one of the most authoritative, the most reliable, the most unique and fascinating site that they can provide to their customer - the particular searcher. SEO professionals employ the variety of different ways associated with make websites appear higher within your list of results and create it much more likely that will you'll click on them in order to find what you're looking with regard to. SEO more usually talk regarding domain trust and domain specialist in line with the quantity, type and quality of inbound links to a site. SEO entails attaining a higher ranking within search engines via changes in order to your site content and program code to make it more related and therefore more search motor compatible. A reputable SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMIZATION company carries on along with your Company Profile and then do individuals profile building and then Nearby Business Listing Optimization. Our first five steps had been dedicated to on-page SEO strategies Link-building is the primary goal of off-page SEO, and is usually also an enormous factor within how search engines rank your own web pages. So far because I know, this only functions for HTML or CSS web pages - I don't go very much for Flash websites, and I actually am unsure how that pots and pans out regarding search engines plus SEO. In fact, a huge part of SEO in 2018 is writing for humans PLUS search engines (also known since: SEO copywriting”). SEO is the significant part of any web marketing strategy. Canonical: This connect to handles content syndication, which basically allows other blogs to distribute your job (similar to franchising) without having hurting your website's SEO ranking—simply with the addition of a rel=canonical can obtain your brand and content away on the web in several outlets, ensuring a greater get to and bigger audience without harming your own search results. We are usually offering affordable search engine marketing SEO services to clients throughout the globe. If you want the strong social media strategy, a person simply can't ignore SEO. Another SEO-related plugin, W3 Total Cache is used to boost the performance of your Wp blog or a website simply by integrating features such as content material delivery networks to be capable to reduce the loading occasions for your pages. There are usually lots of ways to discover keywords for SEO. SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMIZATION article writing guidelines number two. Keywords, they are little concealed subliminal messages within the composing which are to be within conjunction with the topic which usually is being written on. Key phrases are extremely important to the particular SEO article writing guidelines. SEO is often component of an overall internet advertising strategy and complements other techniques like social media marketing, articles marketing and more. The conference brought together thirty six speakers, 15 sponsors and more than 1500 of the search industry's brightest and the best regarding search for a day associated with actionable SEO advice and marketplace leading content. A principal benefit associated with SEO is its cost-effectiveness because there is no payment toward the search engine for getting placed within it. This will be very important for the 'search head', high volume low intention searches that are expensive within paid search. In 2019, I believe that will Google will continue to drive paid search ads and declare the majority of the over the fold organic SERP. Since, paying a search motor to put your business web site at the top of the list doesn't come cheap, the particular next smartest thing one may do is to use research engine optimization or SEO methods to increase the clicks in the direction of the website and help this work its way up the particular search engine's results page. If you are nevertheless sticking with old SEO formula strategies and searching optimized key word for the article, Sorry! Ranking aspects can be divided into on-page SEO factors (including technical SEO) and link building or off-page SEO factors. Take the 10 pillar subjects you came up with within Step one and create the web page for each one particular which outlines the topic from a high level - making use of the long-tail keywords you arrived plan for each cluster within Step 2. A pillar web page on SEO, for instance, may describe SEO in brief areas that introduce keyword research, picture optimization, SEO strategy, and various other subtopics as they are determined. On our blog all of us chronicle current trends in on the internet marketing and SEO and current interesting studies, statistics and tendencies. Increased site usability - Within an effort to make your own site easier to navigate intended for the search engines, SEO concurrently helps to make your site more navigable for users mainly because well. You are capable to host your video upon YouTube for that foundational SEO greatest practices, but link and high light the embedded video on your own own website. Image SEO is actually a crucial part of SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMIZATION different types of websites. Max DesMarais is definitely an SEO plus PPC Specialist for Vital, a new Digital Marketing & PPC firm that specializes in PPC supervision services. But this also has an incredible roundabout benefit to your bottom series: boosting your search engine optimisation (SEO). It may be the scenario (and I surmise this) how the introduction of a certain SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMIZATION technique initially artificially raised your own rankings for the pages within a way that Google's methods never approve of, and as soon as that issue is spread out all through your site, traffic starts in order to deteriorate or is slammed inside a future algorithm update. You will become introduced to the foundational components of how search engines such as google work, how the SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMIZATION landscape is promoting and exactly what you can expect in the particular future. The SISTRIX Toolbox consists associated with six modules 1) SEO, 2) Universal, 3) Links, 4) Advertisements, 5) Social and 6) Optimizer. Low-quality content can severely impact the achievements of SEO, within 2018. When your own SEO starts building strong reasons, competitors can start maligning your own SEO backlinks. ” With content marketing spend likely to reach $300 billion by 2019, this statistic is worrisome. Now the electronic marketing companies know how in order to use AI for SEO, plus in coming years AI may dominate in developing the SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMIZATION strategies of the digital marketing and advertising companies. Ray Cheselka, AdWords and SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMIZATION Manager at webFEAT Complete, the design and SEO agency, states that in 2019 search objective will continue to become even more important. Expert writers of SEO articles can take the time to study the particular industry or specialized niche market. 2 tools to help with regional SEO are BrightLocal (for rankings) and MozLocal (for local lookup optimization). Concerning on-page SEO best practices, I usually link out to other quality related pages on other websites exactly where possible and where a individual would find it valuable. It includes a well known Routine Table of SEO Success Factors”, a 9-chapter guide to SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMIZATION basics, and links to a few from the site's most useful blog posts. An SEO on the internet marketing strategy is a extensive plan to get more individuals to your website through lookup engines. Several search optimizers try to key Google by using aggressive techniques that go beyond the fundamental SEO techniques. Subscribe to the particular Single Grain blog now intended for the latest content on SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMIZATION, PPC, paid social, and the particular future of internet marketing. SEO can furthermore stand for search engine optimizer. Like the rest of the particular digital landscape, SEO marketing is usually continuously evolving. Search Engine Book — Read information right after Moz's guide to solidify knowing regarding it of the basic parts of SEO. If a person do not have the period or have insufficient training upon web design or SEO, Appear for web design experts plus hire a professional SEO assistance agency to keep your internet site and your good reputation usually you business may depend upon it. I ended with the website number 1, 228, 570, 060. This particular generates SEO anchor text, which usually helps you in improving your own search engine rankings. SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMIZATION marketing is focused on the keyword choice that will attract a excellent deal of unique visitors in order to your website. Maybe you have speculate what will be the brand new changes and updates that we all can experience in SEO back links sphere in 2019? A Cisco research found that by 2019, eighty percent of all consumer Web traffic will be from Web video traffic. If you have spent time online recently, might probably look at the term "SEO, inch or "Search Engine Optimization.

[mrwilliamcharley]

Job Candidate Disclosing Why They Quit a Job – Ask #HR Bartender

One of the most common questions asked during an interview is “Why did you leave your last job?”. Today’s reader wants to know the best way to answer that question. 

Hi, just found your blog. I wanted to get your advice on how to respond to prospective employers regarding the reason why I left my senior position. The real truth of the matter is that we got a new boss with whom I had some integrity issues – we did not seem to see things in the same light.

After 10 years on the job, I felt it was better for me to accept the package and move on. I also signed a separation agreement. How can I explain this without trashing my former employer?

I wish I could say that there’s always one absolutely right answer in this situation. Since there are different considerations, I reached out to two respected colleagues to get their thoughts. Hannah Morgan (aka Career Sherpa) is a well-known job search, career and social media strategist.  She’s the author of “The Infographic Resume” and a regular contributor at U.S. News & World Report. Recruiting Animal (and yes, that might be his real name) is the host of the wildly popular Recruiting Animal show (broadcast live every Wednesday at 12n Eastern). He’s also a professional recruiter.

When asked about the reason you’ve left a job, is it okay to mention unflattering things about a former employer? Why or why not?

[Morgan] Let’s first address the reason employers ask candidates why they left their previous jobs. Employers want to know if the candidate was forced to leave due to performance issues or was downsized due to no fault of their own. Asking this question helps employers weed out ‘potentially problem’ employees.

Since candidates are usually on their best behavior during an interview, it can be difficult to see problematic behaviors first-hand. During the interview, the employer listens for any signs that the candidate is unhireable. Employers are listening for a pattern of leaving jobs and blaming it on bad bosses or companies. If a candidate has had several jobs in a short period of time and blames bad managers, it’s likely that the problem isn’t the managers. The common denominator is the candidate and a sign of a problem employee or an employee who hasn’t learned how to evaluate future bosses.

That being said, it is never advisable to bad-mouth or mention unflattering things about a former boss, employee or company. In fact, it is unprofessional. Some might call it character assassination or slander to say negative things about other people. No matter how awful or unfairly you were treated, never divulge that information. It only makes you, the candidate, look bad.

[Animal] Recruiters hate it when a candidate bad-mouths an old boss. They say that it’s not professional. They want you to lie or obfuscate. I agree in part. You shouldn’t go into an interview and say ‘I wish that a**hole would die a painful death. He has it coming’ or ‘I wish I could be the one to pull the switch.’

While that might be how you feel, you can’t admit that you have a hate-on for anybody because you’re supposed to have control of your emotions. But you should be straightforward about policy differences if they were the reason for leaving.

People usually say they left for ‘philosophical differences’ but that could mean anything and it’s clearly just a dodge. If the differences you had with your old boss involve sensitive issues for your old company, you could say that you had policy differences and would prefer to discuss how you fit with the new job in the early stages of the hiring process. Leave a discussion about the details of your differences with your old employer until the new employer is serious about you as a candidate.

I remember the case of an accountant who was pressured to sign off on some creative bookkeeping by his famous, aggressive CEO and CFO. They all ended up going to jail. He should have left the company and had no fear of explaining exactly why he did so. There is no shame in it and you don’t want to work for a company that cannot appreciate that.

In this scenario, the employee talks about integrity issues with their boss. For a moment, let’s just say the boss is a jerk. It’s not really about something ethical. Is it okay to say during an interview that “the boss and I just don’t get along”? Why or why not?

[Morgan] If your boss was a jerk, that’s your opinion. And just because you didn’t get along with him or her doesn’t mean others can’t. If your boss was unethical, sexually harassed you, or did something else illegal, that’s up to HR and law enforcement to resolve. It doesn’t belong in the job interview. As unfair as it sounds, employers are more likely to side with the past employer/boss than the candidate who sounds disgruntled or unable to cope.

Rather than try and explain the ins and outs of your relationship with your jerky boss or complicated ethics violations, it’s better to gloss over that detail and stay focused on the bigger reason of why you left – more rewarding work, more relaxed work environment, better pay, more challenging career or whatever you were looking for when you decided to leave. Taking ownership of your career shows an optimistic, can-do attitude and that’s what employers want.

[Animal] Presumably, you left just because you didn’t like her personality? I don’t think that’s likely if she did everything else well. If someone has an unpleasant personality, it’s bound to be reflected in her management style and you could focus on that rather than her personality. This means that you could describe your differences as management issues rather than simply personality. If the old boss shouted at people or made inappropriate comments, you should say so. But you have to ask that the recruiter promises to keep your remarks very confidential.

You could also say that you were looking for a change of culture. When they ask what you mean, you could describe the personality, so to speak, of the kind of place you are looking for. Maybe you want to work with people who talk about the non-fiction books they are reading instead of sitcoms. Or maybe you want to work with people who are more upbeat in the mornings. You might not have to say that your boss is a low-brow drinker, who has endless family problems, and drags herself into the office looking like death warmed over every morning.

The reader didn’t ask, but let’s say the reason they left was because they were terminated. Should the candidate be 100 percent truthful about the matter (even if they don’t agree with the reason they were fired)?

[Morgan] There’s a big difference between being fired and laid off in the eyes of employers. It’s probably best not to use either term because of the negative connotation each has.

If you were laid off, use downsized, position eliminated or impacted by a reduction in force. In the reader’s question above, if there was a reduction in force and an opportunity to leave with a severance package, then the candidate can take the answer one step further and spin the situation into a positive to help ease the future employer’s mind. For example:

“After 10 years with the same company, I decided it was time for a change and took the separation package. This gave me time to reassess what I want to do next and look for my next great assignment.”

On the other hand, if an employee is fired because of something they did wrong, it’s referred to as being terminated for cause. It’s possible, during a background check, that this information can be verified. The prospective employer may ask if the ex-employee is eligible for rehire or the reason for termination. When an employee is laid off it usually means they are eligible for rehire. However, someone who was fired, would not be eligible for rehire. Since this information could be discovered, it is best to be truthful about being fired.

If a candidate was fired, they should simply state that he/she was let go or dismissed. Then the candidate can explain what they learned from being fired. This brief explanation helps the employer understand the situation and hopefully believes that it won’t happen again. For example, the response might sound like this:

“I was let go from my last job. I didn’t do my best work or make the best decisions then. But I now realize how important it is to my team and supervisor to be accountable and on time. This has taught me a valuable lesson and in my next job, I look forward to being an employee that others can rely on.”

[Animal] If you think that there are some things that reflect poorly on you that would not come out unless you, personally, reveal them then leave those things out because they would probably be insignificant details.

But if that’s not the case, then the candidate would have to acknowledge her errors and show quite clearly that she has learned her lesson. The candidate might need to be prepared to take a lesser job at a lower salary. Organizations might be willing to help individuals rebuild their reputations if they get a good deal. Example: I know a guy who was fired because he was too slow on the job. It was easy to believe because he spoke as slow as molasses in everyday conversation. He would have to admit that he realized he needed a job that did not require a lot of quick action.

One more thing…If you don’t agree with the reason you were fired, then you have to prepare a strong case and present it in a calm, reasonable manner. And it has to be a solid case. If you present a biased and distorted view of things by brushing aside your obvious errors, no one will consider you.

I want to extend a huge thanks to Recruiting Animal and Hannah Morgan for sharing their thoughts on this topic. These two professionals sit at different places in the hiring process and have different relationships with candidates. While their styles might be very different, their advice wasn’t.

Today’s post is one of those that I would bookmark for future reference. You know at some point, a friend, family member, or colleague is going to ask you this question.

Images captured by Sharlyn Lauby while exploring the world.

The post Job Candidate Disclosing Why They Quit a Job – Ask #HR Bartender appeared first on hr bartender.

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[mrsteveecook]

bad morale “points of no return,” my office book club is always late, and more

t’s five answers to five questions. Here we go…

1. Is there ever a bad morale “point of no return”?

I have a question about morale in small businesses. It seems as though it can be a tricky thing to maintain at times. Is there ever a “point of no return” where somewhere is just a tough place to work and it’s not going to change?

I generally like the company I work for and I want to see it continue to succeed, but a lot of the business practices and employee management styles that have developed in the past year and a half-ish are really at odds with what I think generates a positive and successful working environment. I’ve read some truly awful things in the letters on this website, so I know that the general slump of people feeling consistently undervalued and management nickel and dime-ing people is far from the worst place to be … but I feel like my workplace has really fallen into a routine that keeps morale pretty low (and consequently we’ve been seeing more employees quit, which is a route I’m currently considering).

It’s been brought to the attention of upper management in the past and there have been attempts to address the issues, but our CEO is, for lack of a better word, cheap and a “bums in seats = productivity” kind of person so there’s a lot of hurdles. Can small businesses come back from falling into habits that are bad for morale?

Sure, if the leadership at the top changes — either by changing how they think and operate, or by getting new people into those positions. But without that, this kind of thing is very hard, if not impossible, to change from below.

Sometimes losing a string of really good employees can be a wake-up call that jostles an organization’s leadership into reexamining how they do things. Other times (and more often, frankly), it reinforces some of their worst tendencies (like “why should we be flexible and generous with people if they’re all just going to jump ship anyway?”) … and as good people leave, and less-good ones remain, that too can reinforce bad practices (since if the staff quality goes down, it can feel like there’s more need for, say, micromanagement or distrust).

Without a commitment to change from the top, and a real understanding of what that change needs to be and why, this stuff can get very entrenched. (Hell, even with a real commitment from the top, really strong management takes so much will and skill — especially when there are cultural problems to overcome — that the organization still may not be able to pull it off.)

2. Telling a low-performer we’re not giving her a new project she wants

I have an employee who was clearly promoted beyond her capabilities (long before I became her supervisor), which everyone at the agency is aware of now. She is not as aware of her limitations. Although she acknowledges some of them and I’ve attempted to help her develop those areas, we’ve had very limited success. In other areas, she really does not recognize the problem at all.

We’re in the process of rolling out a new initiative that will require staff from our office to be trained and then provide that training to others. Every time we discuss any part of this project, my employee is very intentional to remind me that she really wants to get the training and become a trainer. I’ve largely put it off by telling her those decisions aren’t made yet, we’re still working on the curriculum and the management staff will make those decisions closer to the date. All of that is true. But what I’m not saying is that I would never put her in the position of representing our agency publicly and that my bosses have already told me that they would also never allow it. So, eventually I’m going to have to tell her no. Any advice on how I can best do that?

You have to be honest with her! It’s actually not fair if you, as her manager, aren’t sharing your assessment of her work with her. She’s entitled to believe that if you had serious concerns about her, you would have shared them with her — and certainly that if she’s asking to take on work you don’t think she’s capable of, you’d level with her. I can’t tell if perhaps you have had that conversation about her work more broadly and it’s just not registering with her, but if you haven’t done that yet, you definitely have to. (And are you sure you should be keeping her on, at least in her current role? If she’s not suited to it, that’s something that you as her manager need to address, even if it means ultimately transitioning her out.)

To explain why you’re not going to make her a trainer, you could say, “Doing this work well requires a track record of excelling at XYZ. I haven’t seen what I’d need to see from you in those areas, so we’re not going to make you a trainer for this initiative.” It might also make sense to add, “Right now what I need you focusing on is raising your performance in your current role, specifically on ABC.”

Have this conversation soon, because this isn’t about “those decisions haven’t been made yet”; it’s about “you aren’t qualified for this program,” and she deserves transparency from you on that. But it sounds like there’s also a bigger discussion to have here!

3. My office book club always starts really late

About 20 or so employees in various departments at the company I work at belong to a book club. All employees regardless of position can join and they only need to commit to attending a week in advance. We read a book a month and get together on the final Sunday morning of each month at a diner for brunch where we talk about the books. I think it is a good way to build camaraderie in the workplace and partake in an enlightening hobby together.

My problem is that about 40% of the people who agree to come on any given week show up at least 30 minutes late (sometimes over 45). Last time, I was stuck sitting in the parking lot for over an hour, first because one person showed up 40 minutes late, then because we had to wait 20 minutes for the diner to set a large table.

I am upset about this. I posted on the group’s Facebook page that it was not respectful of my time to show up so late after having agreed to come at 10 a.m. The facilitators of the group privately agreed with me but they refuse to go ahead and eat until without waiting for the late coworkers. My best friend, who has less patience than I do, said she would have left after waiting 10 minutes. I am afraid that doing so would create a lot of tension at work, but it would stop my time from being wasted. What do you think?

I think you are in a book club with people who don’t arrive on time, at least not on Sunday mornings, and that if the facilitators aren’t willing to do anything about that, there’s probably not a lot you can do yourself. You could try raising it with the group (do it in person at the next meeting, not over Facebook) and ask if people have ideas to address it — for example, is 10 a.m. too early for people, would it be better to do it over lunch during a workday, etc.?

But if that doesn’t solve it, then … well, this is a group of people who want to to get together but aren’t going to commit to a rigid start time. Some people prefer a more relaxed kind of gathering, and that might be this group. If that’s the case, then you’ve got to decide if you still want to participate, knowing that people take the start time very loosely. If you do, then you might decide to start coming late yourself, or just to expect it’ll start late and bring a book or something else to occupy yourself while you wait, or even see if the on-time people want to branch off into a separate wing of the group.

4. Do ethics rules prohibit accepting an engagement ring?

My friend (Jennifer) just got proposed to by her boyfriend (Steve). My friend and I are both contractors working at government facilities, and her boyfriend is a government worker at a different facility.

Jennifer’s government lead is trying to tell her that because Steve works for the government, she cannot accept the engagement ring he gave her because its worth is over a certain amount. He’s telling her that if she doesn’t give it back, he will have her removed from the contract for misconduct. Can he do that? I have no idea how to advise Jennifer, and naturally I thought of you.

I don’t know what’s in Jennifer’s company’s ethics rules, but I would be very surprised if this were actually prohibited. It’s an engagement ring. It’s highly unlikely that this would fall under anyone’s ethics rules. But she should talk with her contract lead — not her government lead — for guidance, both on any applicable rules and also about how to handle this guy (since I’m concerned about how it’s going to go when she has to tell him he’s wrong on the rules, given that he’s already threatening her for “misconduct”).

5. Surviving a six-hour car trip with coworkers

I am lucky enough to have been selected to attend a conference in a city a six-hour drive away. I’ll be going with three other colleagues, none of whom work from the same office as me. One of these colleagues is the current boss of the entire organization and has a reputation of being a total hard-ass. I haven’t had a lot to do with her, but her reputation is that she is a bully and difficult. The two other colleagues are also a lot more senior than me, and I don’t know them well.

I’m worried about the awkwardness of being in a car with them for such a long time. I don’t know if I have the energy to maintain conversation for six hours in a car with people I don’t know well, particularly with the boss. The conference is only three days, and then we drive back again for another six hours. I’m guessing everyone in the group will feel similarly in that they’d rather not chit-chat for six hours but I’m not sure what the etiquette is here, especially as I’m the most junior in the organization. My partner thinks it would be okay to chuck in some ear buds and listen to podcasts after a bit, but I’m not sure about that.

I’m tempted to pay for my own ticket to fly, but I think that would look odd and people would raise their eyebrows. How should I approach this car trip?

Yep, it’s very likely that everyone else in the car will want to zone out and do their own thing too. Ear buds are almost definitely going to be fine, although I wouldn’t put them in the second you enter the car. Have some chit chat for half an hour, and then feel free to use them. (If you feel awkward about it, you can always say, “I get carsick unless I zone out so I’m going to put in some ear buds and close my eyes.”)

Definitely don’t announce that you’re buying yourself a ticket to fly; it will indeed look odd and like you’re taking extreme measure to avoid the time with coworkers.

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bad morale “points of no return,” my office book club is always late, and more was originally published by Alison Green on Ask a Manager.

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