New Boss? Don't Be Too Nice!

As your previous boss leaves for greener pastures and a new manager takes over, you’re likely eager to win them over. Many employees assume that, by being overly nice during a manager’s first few days on the job, they’ll be granted more leeway on future projects and will advance ahead of coworkers.

Although a proper welcome for the new boss is certainly in order, don’t be too nice. Overwhelming niceties will label you as a brownnoser and can prevent the employer from seeing a need to earn your respect. Here are a few more reasons why you shouldn’t go overboard on first day pleasantries.

Don’t be a Brownnoser

This likely won’t be the new boss’s first rodeo in the director’s chair, which means they’ll be on the lookout for brownnosers. Those employees who shower their new boss with gifts and praise are quickly called out as being fake and overly eager to please. By being labeled as a brownnoser, you’d simply cause the new boss to question your credibility and honesty in the future.   

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5 Ways to Successfully Handle Your First Customer Complaint

Whether you’ve recently started a business or have taken your first job in customer service, your success depends on the outcomes of your customer interactions. If you’re a business owner, your success relies on the repeat purchases of customers and positive word of mouth regarding your services. If you work in customer service, your work performance is primarily based on how you handle customer complaints or on how you keep customers happy with each interaction.

How a customer’s complaint is resolved will mainly impact whether that customer will return for future services. With that being the case, here are five ways to successfully handle your first customer complaint as you step into a customer interaction role.

Apologize Genuinely

Customers want to feel as if their concerns are fully recognized and instantly know when company representatives aren’t genuine in their apologies. Detach all personal opinions from the validity of a customer’s complaint and instead keep only the company’s well-being in mind. Do this by apologizing genuinely to all customer complaints, regardless of how minor the issue may be.

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Why You Should Wear Red Panties to Every Important Meeting

Some of the most successful people in the world had to fake something on their path to gaining everything. Success doesn’t just suddenly appear; it is created. So how do you create something out of nothing?
 
The spiritual savvy call it “manifestation”- think rich and you will be rich. Smile and you will be happy. Act confidently, and people will have confidence in you. But what if you’re not rich, happy or confident? Then what? You fake it… until it’s real.

Now I am not talking about creating a shallow façade for the sheer purpose of presentation. This is not about being “fake,” it is about being authentic, it’s about pulling your inner confidence out, then using a crutch to help hold you up until you can stand confidently without it. For many business leaders, heads of companies, individuals who have had profound success in their careers, that crutch has come in the form of a little, seemingly unimportant things or habits.

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Finding Work You Love

You’ve got to find what you love… Your work is going to fill a large part of your life and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven’t found it yet, keep looking, and don’t settle. As with all matters of the heart, you’ll know when you find it. And like any great relationship, it just gets better and better as the years roll on. So keep looking. Don’t settle. ~ Steve Jobs

No job is going to be perfect all of the time, but if you find yourself continually dreading going into work, or with the strong feeling that there is something else you should be doing, it is time to take the leap and find a job you really love! Here are a few suggestions to get you started down the road of finding work you really do love:

Don’t Stop Searching

As Steve Jobs says above “keep looking and don’t settle”. I think that is one of the best pieces of advice any of us can follow when trying to find our passion or turn it into something that can support us financially.  It took me over twelve years of my adult life to find work I love (and it is still evolving!). Some people grow up clear what they want to do and some of us need to uncover it for ourselves through life experiences. Either way: my advice is doing stop searching! You are never “too old” and it is never “too late” to do work that really lights you up.

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5 Ways to Stay Fit While Working Long Hours

From demanding project deadlines to unexpected new clients, many situations keep you working longer than the standard 8 to 5 schedule. Working long hours at the office is a great way to earn overtime as an hourly employee or to show commitment as a salary worker.

However, long office hours also bring certain drawbacks. Increased stress, less personal time and bad eating habits are all typical overtime side effects. If not kept in check, these side effects of long office hours can lead to an increased waistline and overall lowered health level. Here are five tips to stay fit while working long hours so you can enjoy the benefits of overtime without the drawbacks.

Avoid Stress Eating
Long office hours often lead to increased stress. This stress then turns many employees to junk food and mindless snacking. If you’re stressed from an extended work schedule, avoid eating more in response to that stress. Food provides comfort against the things you can’t control but it also provides additional calories with each snack you consume.

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6 Desk Organization Tips to Boost Your Productivity

If you find yourself overwhelmed, disorganized or having trouble concentrating, simply improving your work surroundings can have a positive impact. If you are looking for a way to boost your productivity, begin with these six tips for desk organization!

1. Avoid Over-Organizing.
This may seem like an oxymoron in light of the topic but often times we can overwhelm our workspace with all the containers, trays, shelves, writing utensil holders, paper clip cups, sticky note dispensers, etc. In our effort to be efficient, we can actually create a certain amount of organizational chaos. Evaluate your workspace and decide if you can consolidate some of your office supply holders. Does having everything at your fingertips help you or hinder you by taking up valuable work area. How often are you using all of the items on your desk? Even our attempts to be organized can create clutter that stifles productivity. 

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The Career Option of Entrepreneurship

Have you ever considered the option of being your own employer? Done right, self employment can free you from the ups and downs of the employment market, and the impact of personal likes and dislikes of your boss. It can also allow greater flexibility in using your time, like rescheduling work to meet essential personal commitments.

The above and other advantages of self-employment will materialize only if you do it right. Let us explore what doing it right means.

Select the Right Business

Starting self-employment can be seen as starting a business of your own. And selecting the right business is at the top of the right things to do. There are several issues to consider when you select the business on which you will be focusing (probably for the rest of your life):

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Parents in the Workplace: Tips for Returning to Work after Maternity Leave

Your first few months as a parent are filled with getting to know your infant, creating a parenting schedule and sleeping whenever possible. However, just as you’ve settled into your new life as a parent, everything is rearranged once again as your maternity leave is nearing its end.
Returning to work after maternity leave brings many emotions. While you may be excited to begin working again and contribute to the family’s income, you’re likely hesitant to leave your infant for the first time. The following are four tips to successfully make this transition while minimizing the stress it can bring.

Begin with a Half Week
Jumping into a full work week directly out of maternity leave often brings stress, worry and guilt. Rather than taking on more than you can handle, ease into the transition by working a half week or by only going to the office for half days during the first week. This allows you to slowly adjust your schedule without as much stress while your infant becomes acclimated to the childcare setting. Working half days for one or two weeks may also allow you to stretch your maternity leave a little longer before transitioning back to fulltime.

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5 Ways To Reduce Your Stress Levels

Stress is a word we hear a lot these days. For many people stress and work are closely linked. Whether it is about dealing with the boss from hell or managing a work load, there are many opportunities for stress to present itself in the workplace. Here are some suggestions to help you deal with and reduce your stress levels:

1.       Clarity

What is making you stressed? Rather than just thinking it is “everything about your job”, narrow it down and try to get to the bottom of what is causing you anxiety. Being clear about what is the problem is the first step to being able to do something about it (and there is usually something that can be done about most problems, despite what we might first think).

2.       Relax

Create a relaxation habit! It really is possible but it is something that often needs to be worked at if you are not used to it.  There are lots of ways we can relax; you could look into exercising at lunch time, doing a few stretches in your work day or meeting friends for coffee. Taking time out of your day to stop work and relax your mind and body is so important and beneficial. Schedule it into your diary each day to make sure it happens (even if it is just ten minutes)!

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5 Ways To Make Yourself Unpopular At Work

Obviously, no one wants to be unpopular at work so I have put together a list of common pitfalls that could make you unpopular at work, so we can all avoid them!

1.       Gossiping

A little harmless gossip doesn’t necessarily have to be a bad thing, but be careful about talking about your colleagues behind their backs (especially being negative) and getting the reputation as the office gossip.  Being seen as a gossip could mean people are less likely to trust you and makes it easier to become embroiled in office politics! Keeping things simple means you can stay out of any drama and stay professional.

2.       Sucking Up

Be yourself with your colleagues and boss without sucking up. Being authentic is an admirable quality; no one likes to be around people who are trying to be nice to people based on their status or what they think they can get out of them.  Treating everyone you come into contact with respectfully and equally is an admirable quality.

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