3:45 PM

Boss that Never Exist

Posted by @office

Have you ever had a boss, but you felt like there’s “no-boss”. When you confuse with your job, you can’t find him; when you’ve a problem at work, you ask him, but he leave you with no answer; when you give your best but he never know or the worst he don’t want to know. When you see that he do nothing, and wasting time that only God and himself who know what is he exactly do.


He often does not make decisions and let things ride until someone else has to make the decisions. He’s a boss who often does not know what is going on and depends on subordinates to know”, said Gini Graham Scott, Ph. D., author of: A Survival Guide for Working with Bad Bosses. In short, this boss may have the title, but in fact has left the ship rudderless or without a captain. As a result, management and leadership by default fall onto the employees. But this is not the same as a self managed team, where team members have a clear idea of what they are doing, know who’s in charge, understand the limits of their authority, and set their goals and tasks to get there. Instead, there is more of a sense of muddling along and filling in because the boss’s lack of management has created a leadership vacuum, explained Scott.


How does a boss end up in or continue in this position? One common way is when a person with technical expertise gets promoted into management, yet is still making a good technical contribution. The person may even continue to be supported by upper level management because of his contributions as a technical expert. As long as the boss has an assistant or other employees who can pick up the management/leadership slack, the situation can continue, explained Scott.


Yet, while some employees might welcome the freedom and autonomy of a boss who is missing in action, this situation often leaves employees frustrated and uncertain about what's going on. Additionally, some non managerial employees taking on the management role might come to feel resentment and think they are underpaid, since they have in fact become the managers.


So these are the solutions. If there's a management vacuum, you can fill it yourself; after all, nature abhors a vacuum. If you have a boss who isn't acting like a boss, it may be because he really doesn't want to be a boss and would really rather just be a technical expert. If you're a better manager or leader than your boss, then go do it; in the long run, you will be recognized as a manager and a leader, too. If your boss is making no decisions, that is a decision to continue the status quo. If that's not what you want, seek to make the decision yourself so you are better able to get what you want.



In short, it would seem like a win-win situation for everyone if you were to continue taking over the management/leadership vacuum. Make it clearer to the other employees and yourself that this is what you are doing, and you will feel less frustrated and uncertain about what you are doing yourself. As long as upper management knows what is going on and rewards you for your efforts, you can probably count on a promotion sometime in the future. Keep doing your best and success for you.

5:05 PM

The 6 New Work Challenges - Page 2

Posted by @office

The road to job success starts after you study up on these 10 real-world work rules.


On an interview, wear neutral colors. Research shows that bosses view candidates better when they wear blues and grays with pastel accents.


Don’t up-talk. Speaking in a singsong voice and posing statements as if they were questions leave you sounding girlie and unsure.


Pipe up first in meetings. Staffers who contribute at the start of a meeting are judged more favorably than workers who wait until the end.


Stop over-apologizing. Women tend to say they’re sorry even when they didn’t do anything wrong, taking blame for others’ errors.


Keep your emotions tightly under wraps. No matter what’s going on in your life, crying or getting angry will make you seem immature.


Never assume you’re disposable. You may be entry level, but if you quit, it’ll cost your boss time and money to find a replacement.


Shake firmly. A limp handshake makes you seem unenthusiastic and nervous, but a strong grip will convey that you are confident.


Bag pointless bitching. It’s fine to voice a complaint or concern, but only if you propose a solution to the problem as well.


Don’t be the workplace narc. Say something if you witness an illegal going-on, but it’s smarter to bite your tongue when you spy a minor incident.


Get rid of your giggle. Develop a good laugh that shows you have a sense of humor. A giggle sounds childish and isn’t appropriate for the workplace.

[CR]

4:48 PM

The 6 New Work Challenges

Posted by @office

Once you land a job you really dig, it doesn’t take long to figure out that getting ahead isn’t simply about being good at what you do. In the current hyperactive work world, there are booby traps at every turn. So besides the skills, you need flexibility, street smarts, and people know-how.


“Things have gotten so tricky these days, work almost qualifies as an extreme sport,” explains Barbara Moses, PhD, author of What Next? The Complete Guide to Taking Control of Your Working Life. Below, we spell out the six most common new challenges, then give real-world advice on how to master them to set you on the path to success.


From staffers beeping you on your lunch break to your boss calling your cell at night, you’re always on the job.

It’s ironic that the same high-tech tools meant to make life less rigid have become invisible leashes tethering you to the workplace. “Voice mail, text messages, and e-mail let coworkers get in touch with you around the clock, erasing the boundary between work and the rest of your life,” explains Joanne Ciulla, PhD, author of The Working Life. “When you’re constantly on call like this, you end up stressed in a new way.”

Deal with it: Limit the number of times you check your digital devices outside the workplace. “Unless your boss has indicated that she may need you, logging in once a night is enough,” says Ciulla. “This creates breathing room between your job and your life, but you’re still being a conscientious employee.”

Another tip on loosening the electronic umbilical cord: distinguishing between urgent messages and those that can wait until you’re back at work. Next time you check your e-mail at a friend’s house and notice a message from a coworker, ask yourself, Will attending to this now make or break my rep? If not, go back to enjoying your downtime.

Finally, make sure you aren’t unwittingly encouraging coworkers to call on you anytime by giving out your digits or offering to do nonessential projects at home. It’s smart to let your boss and a few key folks know that you’re available after hours. “But alerting the entire staff puts you at the mercy of disrespectful employees who can take advantage of you,” says Ciulla.


You’re really, really hoping to snag a decent raise this year, but these days, it’s a 3 percent (or less) economy out there.

Not too long ago, skilled staffers could expect pay raises of 5 or even 6 percent over their previous year’s salary. But with the current economy still so sluggish, many businesses won’t fork over more than a measly 3 percent.

Deal with it: Scoring a reasonable raise isn’t hopeless. But since this probably isn’t a decision your boss can make on her own, you have to convince her that it’s worth asking her higher-ups if they’d consider doling out the extra dough, says Lynda McDermott, a management consultant in New York City.

Here’s how: Schedule a meeting with her around the time of your annual review or at least six months after your start date. Then assure her that you understand her hands may be tied, but you’d like to make the case for why you merit more moola. “Spell out your specific achievements and how they go beyond what the typical employee accomplishes,” adds McDermott. Next, map out how you plan to contribute in the future to assure her that you have invested in the job and aren’t going to take the money and run in six months. “End by saying that you believe your efforts warrant more than the usual raise — then lay the dollar amount you have in mind on the line,” she says. “Hopefully, you’ll persuade her to go to bat for you and get her bosses to set aside what you’re asking for.”

In the end, while your supervisor may love to secure a bigger raise for you, she simply may not have the power to do so in this current financial climate. Your fallback plan: Negotiate for perks that don’t have a price tag. Extra weeks of vacation, more comp time, a title change, or a weekly work-at-home day are all sweet deals, and she probably has more leeway in these areas, says McDermott.


In a high-speed super-connected work world, it’s easier than ever to screw up royally.

People have been blowing it on the job forever. But what makes today’s mistakes so terrifying is how quickly they can morph into a major snafu.

Think: the careless employee who in a mere second accidentally cc’s a personal e-mail about her latest hookup to hundreds of coworkers. Or consider the assistant who forgets to let her boss know that a crucial video conference was rescheduled, causing her department to lose out on a megabucks contract. “New technology and the intense pace of most jobs allow staffers to blunder with bigger, more instant ramifications,” says Ciulla.

Deal with it: Finger-pointing travels as fast as your mistake did. In other words, there’s no place to hide in the fishbowl world we work in. So as soon as you realize your faux pas, offer an in-person apology to your boss as well as anyone else involved. A short “I’m so sorry, I totally dropped the ball” should do the trick. Hearing that you are apologetic, accept full responsibility, and understand the gravity of your gaffe will help you regain respect, says Ciulla. “Offer too many details or make excuses, however, and you’ll come off as immature,” she adds.


Your inexperienced boss can’t make a decision and doesn’t know how to delegate — and it’s starting to affect your reputation.

“Because employee turnover is so high these days and promoting from within is cheaper and easier, it’s increasingly common for businesses to turn lower-level workers into managers before they have the right leadership skills,” says McDermott. And though you’d think a younger boss would be less of a hard-ass and more relatable, her lack of experience often leaves her creating a general sense of disorder and confusion.

Deal with it: Put yourself in her shoes for a moment: After only a few years in her field, she’s already under pressure from her higher-ups to do a stellar job while being responsible for lowerlevel staffers who may not quite know the ropes. No wonder she’s struggling.

By putting the onus on yourself, she will be more apt to suggest solutions that benefit both of you. “Plus, she’ll see you as an ally, and workplaces are more productive when staffers feel they’re on the same side,” she adds.


Differences between your job and your guy’s are throwing a curve in your relationship.

“Young women today are working longer and harder than women of any previous generation, and this makes it extremely difficult to date or tend to a steady relationship,” says Moses.

Also, there’s now a good chance that you’re taking home a heftier paycheck than your man is, you have a different work schedule, or you’re serious about your career while he’s still in slacker mode. “Even the most equality-minded dude is likely to have trouble handling the role reversal,” says Moses.

Deal with it: A little reassurance can go a long way with a guy. So if your job duties prevent you two from seeing each other as often as you’d like, remind him that you don’t actually prefer work over him — it just comes with the territory, at least right now. Also, checking in regularly via e-mail and text messages will keep you two emotionally close, even though you’re not physically together.


If a gap between your salary and status and those of your man have made him upset, don’t question your ambition. “It’s almost inevitable that a young guy today will at some point make less money or be in a lower position than his girlfriend, and if it truly bugs him, he may not be boyfriend material,” says Moses.

To find out, sit him down and ask him if something deeper is really rattling him. He may admit that he’s afraid other people will have less respect for him or you’ll leave him for a man with a higher professional stature. “If so, assure him that you don’t care how much he makes, what he does for a living, or what other people think — you just want him to be happy,” she says.


Your workplace is a cross between The Apprentice and Survivor

A healthy dose of competition can push you to accomplish great things. But these days, the younger staffers who are your peers are more likely to be downright cutthroat. One possible reason for the ruthlessness: Thanks to self-esteem-enhancing praise and a sense of entitlement while growing up, lots of today’s 20-somethings expect to be moguls by the time they’re 30. And they don’t see anything wrong with playing hardball to reach their goal.

Deal with it: You can actually lighten the vibe by practicing random acts of kindness in the workplace — for example, helping out a coworker with a deadline or covering someone’s shift last minute. “Doing small yet significant things can create a ripple effect of goodwill,” says Ciulla.

And even though the ultracompetitiveness is a recent phenomenon, some old-fashioned solutions can help dilute it. “Weekly happy-hour outings or a monthly lunch to celebrate the end of a deadline can build a sense of community,” says Moses. “If no one is excluded and you make sure the get-together doesn’t turn into a gripe session, it’ll reinforce the idea that everyone is on the same team and there’s no reason for hostility.”

[CR]



6:03 PM

Are You in the Right Field?

Posted by @office

After you graduated, you are surrounded by so many different choices of occupation and activity. At that time, maybe you try one, two, or even three different job. Year after year goes by… One day, you wake up in the morning with one question in your mind that come from nowhere but in your head keep wondering: “Am I in the right field?” Every day you just working, working and working, but do you love what you do?

One of the great secret of financial success is do what you love to do,” says Bryan Tracy, author of Success Principle: 21 Success Secrets of Self-Made Millionaires. “This is also one of your primary responsibilities in life. It is to find out what you really enjoy doing, what you have a natural talent for, and then to throw your whole heart into doing that, very, very well.”

It is important to find a field where you have natural strengths and abilities, when the other do it with trying so hard, but you just do it and give the best result. When you are doing what you love to do, you seem to have a continuous flow of excitement, energy and ideas to do what you do even better. It’s not hard to find what it is. Here are the steps:

First, answer the question from Tracy: “If you won a million dollars, tax free, tomorrow, would you continue to do what you are currently doing?” If the answer is “yes”, congratulations! You already found what you love to do. But if the answer is “no”, so what will you do if you won a million dollars?

If you still didn’t find your field, you can try the second step: write down your activity every single day for a month. After a month, open back your notes , observe what did you do the most and what activity you explained longer and more detail than the other. You will find out what it is. And once you find what you love to do, you will never work a day in your life.

1:32 PM

Get Your Dream Job Started

Posted by @office

Okay, this is the year you’re going to make something big happen. And we mean big, as getting your dream job successful…Check out the mind tricks that will take you there.


By now, you probably have a vague idea of what your dream job looks like. Or hell, maybe you’ve been fantasizing about it – very precisely – since you were 5. Not that your current situation is bad, but there are always a few huge things that you envision doing one day. Trouble is, it’s hard to get moving when you have no clue where to begin. “Fostering change is exciting but daunting at the same time – unless you know how to approach it,” says life coach Scott W. Ventrella, adjunct professor at Fordham University’s Graduate School of Business, where he teaches a course called “the Total Quality Way of Life.”

That’s where I come in. These smart strategies for tackling any big plan will guide you through the process of making something new happen for you. (Just keep in mind that depending on what you want to accomplish, some of these tips will apply to your goal more than others.) Here’s your handbook.

Visualize the Outcome

If you can’t actually imagine yourself, say, landing that dream job, you never will. “Not only does seeing yourself there make the goal feel comfortable and therefore accessible,” explains Jack Canfield, author of Success Principles: How to Get from Where You Are to Where You Want to Be, “but it also enables you to bat around a ton of different possibilities and versions of your aspirations in your head, without consequence, until you figure out what’s right for you.”

Start by simply closing your eyes and letting you mind wander. Think of it this way: You’re shopping for a major life change. So attack it like a trip to the mall. Try on for size a whole lot of different options and separate what works from what doesn’t. You may have to keep jumping from “what if” to “what if” until you find the perfect fit.

Just make sure you pay attention to you visceral responses along the way. “When you stumble upon a choice that’s right for you, you may feel calm, happy, or even energized,” explains Canfield. “But if an idea causes you anxiety, it’s a clear signal that you’re on the wrong track.” And if there’s a single image that you keep coming back to – bingo! “Often, the option that’s right for you is the one that repeatedly pops into your head,” says Canfield.

Ponder your occupational options by imagining what the day-to-day would be like. Sure, donning a power suit and chilling in a corner office sounds cool in theory. But would you really be happy waking up at dawn and playing corporate politics? If picturing yourself pulling on panty hose every morning leaves you less than elated, the answer is no. But if envisioning yourself presiding over a board meeting gives you goose bumps, that may be your destiny.


Think Backward

You’ve visualized exactly what you want, yet attaining it still seems daunting. No worries. Wrapping your brain around an enormous undertaking is easier than you’d guess. “You don’t have to tackle the whole venture at once,” says Ventrella. “Instead, break down your objective into manageable increments and tackle them one by one.” Here’s the hitch: You might not know what the first increment is. The trick is to start with a step you do know, and then work in reverse. Check out this strategy in action in the following examples, and you’ll see exactly what we mean. Bottom line : ”Thinking from finish to start elucidates the stages and helps you foresee any roadblocks along the way,” says Ventrella.

You know that hearing the words “You’re hired!” is predicated upon a kick-ass interview. Of course, you can’t nail an interview you’ve never had, which is where networking comes in. But before you start calling and e-mailing your contacts or posting your credentials on a job Website, you have to polish up your resume. Aha!


Research

It’s easy to get so excited about your impending metamorphosis that you neglect to find out exactly what you’re diving into. “When we fantasize about doing something big in our lives, we often fail to take into account what achieving it actually entails,” says Marilee Adams, PhD, author of Change Your Questions, Change Your Life. “There are bound to be a billion little things that come up that you had no clue about.”

Clearly, it’s crucial to do your homework. “The problem is, in this information age, we have access to so much data that attempting to process all of your findings can make your head spin,” says Adams. That’s why she suggests making a list of five key questions you want answered before you attempt so much as a Web search. Don’t labor over the questions; just jot down what you think is most important. For example: If you want to make a career switch, you might implore “Will I need to go back to school for an advanced degree?” or “What is the average salary?”

“These queries will give you a starting point from which to build your knowledge base so you don’t became overwhelmed,” says Adams.


Find Someone Who’s Done It

Nothing is as valuable as getting advice from someone with personal experience. “One of the most effective ways to work toward a goal is to find a person who’s successfully accomplished it,” says Canfield.

That said, let the networking begin. “You’ll often find an individual with expertise in the area you’re investigating via word of mouth,” explains Canfield. That’s why it makes sense to pick the brains of everyone you know. Ask coworkers, neighbors, and former professors if they can turn you on to someone who could lead you in the right direction. “Don’t feel like you’re bothering them,” says business consultant Susan Murphy, PhD, coauthor of In the Company of Women. “Most people love to talk about their accomplishments.”

What they don’t love is a time suck. So before you touch base with the person, be prepared with questions. After all, this might be a one-shot deal, so get as much info as you can. “And don’t be afraid to ask for the good and the bad,” says Murphy. “You can learn from others’ mistakes.”

You may dream about running a company someday, but that doesn’t mean Bill Gates is going to meet you for coffee to discuss. “You don’t necessarily need to go to the top of the heap for career advice,” says Murphy. “Your main goal is to get started, and often someone in middle management is more likely to assist you.” (For example, if you want to own your own boutique, ask a local shop owner for advice, not Ralph Lauren.) Then make contact via e-mail (no one wants to be cold-called), armed with questions like “What part of your day do you dread?” and “What are the busy-work aspects of the job?”


Set Deadlines

You constantly have deadlines imposed on you at work and school, but no one is going to breathe down your neck and ask you why that life change is late, so you need to act as your own deadline tyrant in order to move from the maybe-one-day mentality to making it happen. Keep in mind that these deadlines aren’t meant to stress you out, but rather to motivate you and keep you aware that you truly are making progress…even if your goal is a long way off.

So how do you meet your goal without becoming anxious? Set a realistic timeline. “Establishing a viable calendar makes the process seem more manageable,” says Ventrella. Think about how much time you have until D-day and how much time you can devote to it. Then bust out your planner and give yourself mini goals. For example: “I will do X, Y, and Z by such and such date.” Be sure to chart your progress in writing. “Every time you mark something on your calendar, you’ll see that you’re one step closer to your goal, which can be highly motivating,” says Canfield.



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