A Guide to Happiness in the Workplace

A Guide to Happiness in the Workplace We wish all employees would love their jobs. Unfortunately, this is not the case for a lot of people. The factors influencing the way we feel at work are myriad and sometimes not under our control, but being happy at work will increase your morale, productivity and potentially, pay check. If your workplace is not running like clockwork in a friendly atmosphere, relax, you are not the only one in this case. Can you change the current situation? Yes. But what steps can you take to make your work life a little bit happier? This guide from Career Savvy  will help you out! Takeaways: Exercising will help you feeling better in your work place. Reducing your sleep time only by 1.5 hours will decrease your alertness by up to a third! Smile and think positively! Try living close to your workplace. Reducing commute time has a big consequence on your happiness. Happy employees stay in the job twice as long. RELATED: Happy and Healthy Jobs that Boost Well Being

Top 3 Career-Boosting Advice from Experienced HR Managers

Top 3 Career-Boosting Advice from Experienced HR Managers The job market is currently growing at an amazing rate. Companies are expanding to new markets and increasing their operational capacity thanks to the growing economy, so it is only natural that they now have more key positions to fill. This climate will continue to make the job market buzz for several years to come. If you’ve been aiming for a promotion for a while, or if you want to make a switch to another field, now is the perfect time to get started. Here are some amazing tips from experienced HR managers on how to boost your career to new heights. Work on Your Skills The market is looking for people with specific skills more than ever. This is why those with a specific major or field tied to their bachelor’s and master’s degrees are highly sought after. To become a better candidate for key mid- and top-management positions, you need to start working on your skills. Fortunately, there are a lot of ways you can add new skills to your CV. For starters, you can take short courses and certifications to master specific skills that are relevant to your career. You can also take a bigger leap and enroll in top universities such as the University of Cincinnati. Pursuing a master’s degree may seem like a big undertaking at first, but today’s best universities actually have accredited online programs for you to choose from. You can, for example, pursue an online bachelor of science in respiratory therapy degree while working a full-time job. The online respiratory therapy program is designed to be highly flexible and very manageable. Be More Proactive It’s your career. You need to be an active part of its development to be able to reach the next level. If you’ve been stuck in a position for too long, find ways to get noticed. A good way to start is by asking your superior about your performance and ways you can improve. Mention, subtly, that you’re trying to advance in your career. Pursuing a master’s degree is another great thing to mention. Make sure you let HR know that you’re enrolling in an online program in an attempt to master specific skills. You can also inform your superior about your pursuit of a bachelor in respiratory therapy degree. Not only will you get noticed, you may also get aids and other forms of assistance from the office. Make the Jump Find a career path that you love; the energy and time you invest in it will be well worth the results and the experience you get along the way. There are a lot of great new jobs to explore too, which means you can choose to make a career shift if you want. The key here is to find a position that’s actually higher than your current one. Acquire the skills needed to perform in the new field and don’t hesitate to aim high. More importantly, make that jump. Just try applying for a position in a new field and go through the process. The results you get in the end may surprise you.

10 Great Manager Traits

10 Great Manager Traits Great manager traits cannot be found in every manager or employee you meet. When you come across an employee or manager with these great traits below, start developing your business, team, and career alongside them. Don’t let them go!1. PatienceGreat manager traits like patience have become more important in recent years as the world has become more connected. We deal with new people, changes, opinions, and challenges every day. The last person you want managing a team is someone who comes across as impatient and heads for the nearest exit whenever times get difficult.2. Psychic Powers (At Least It Seems Like It)I am not talking managers with a crystal ball. I am referring to managers who seem able to predict the future. They know what will happen next in business and make moves to keep the company strong. Management traits like this one mean knowing how to proactively keep your employees and company prepared for relevant changes.3. CharacterManagers who lack character often seem t o have no moral compass and questionable ethics. They are easily persuaded by stronger personalities, fear standing up for what they believe is right, and untrustworthy.Managers with strong character will be there for you when you are right. They will put you in your place when you are wrong. Great managers with this trait understand protecting the bigger picture and can be trusted when making tough decisions. You can always count on them for support until you start lacking character yourself.4. AgilityTimes and technology change faster than ever before. Great manager traits like agility mean a manager is able to handle change. These managers don’t do things because “that’s how things have always been done.” Managers with agility also know how to think on their feet. They think outside the box when required and can do so at a moment’s notice. These managers are usually very creative, too.5. Ability to ExecuteGreat ideas and motivational skills are one thing. Great manager traits like the ability to execute sets motivators apart from problem solvers. Spotting a problem, identifying it, and coming up with ideas is easy. Making solutions happen is the strength of every great manager with the ability to execute.6. Positive AttitudeThe great manager trait of a positive attitude means having managers with a great perspective on life and business. Their mindset is healthy because they think and behave healthily. Even on days when they are not feeling positive, you cannot tell because they know, “If you cannot change something...change your attitude.”7. Great at PrioritizingGreat manager traits like prioritizing mean understanding the difference between knowing what needs to come first, and more importantly, how to explain priorities to others. Managers I have had in the past with great skills at prioritizing often said things like, “If we don’t do this first...that will never happen”. They were explaining the chain of events caused by properly pri oritizing.8. EmpathyGreat managers understand workplace emotions are always in a state of flux. Employees worry about failing, not getting enough acknowledgment, not achieving goals and many other things. A great manager trait is to spot what needs attention, show concern, and help employees through it. This way they will be more productive at work and feel supported.9. HonestyWould you rather have a manager lie to you, or tell you exactly what is happening? Honesty is a great trait because the world today worries a great deal about being too offensive. The reality is that truth hurts, so it takes strength, to be honest even if the consequences are negative. This does not mean “brutal honesty”. Being brutally honest is a way people can use the truth to hurt someone’s feelings. A great manager trait is knowing how to “tell it like it is” while remaining constructive and productive.10. AccountabilityI saved my favorite great manager trait for last. Managers with accountabili ty are fair and balanced people who can tell you exactly what they did wrong. They can tell you what you did wrong, too. What they will never do is unfairly assign blame to people. They know holding yourself accountable for your own actions is a key step to finding solutions to problems.Most importantly, management traits like accountability rub off on employees after a while leading to a staff filled with successful managers!For some not-so-great traits of managers, check out the 5 Bad Manager Traits to Avoid.

Personal Branding Interview John Baldoni - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career

Personal Branding Interview John Baldoni - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career Today, I spoke to John Baldoni, who is the author of Lead Your Boss: The Subtle Art of Managing Up and is a leadership consultant, coach, and speaker.   In this interview, John explains how you can lead your boss in a hierarchical organization, why leadership is important in a bad economy, some tips to influence management, and the most important job survival tip. How can you lead your boss in a top down organization? There is a notion that CEOs do what they want to do and everyone follows. I call this the “myth of the hierarchy.” Senior leaders set the agenda; employees execute it. But within that frame work, there is room for creativity, innovation, and influence. Those are the points of leverage that a manager in the middle can use to lead the manager. Why is leadership so important in a bad economy? We have witnessed a significant failure of leadership in our great recession. Companies need to become more agile and responsive; this is nothing new but such agility will require leadership from the middle, men and women who can look around the corner so to speak and consider what the future might hold. Middle management is tactical by nature, but when it is challenged to become strategic it opens the door to apply new ideas in new ways that stimulate innovation. Therefore, leading from the middle can become a strategic and tactical advantage. What are your top three tips to influence your superiors? Before you can influence, you need to focus on what is happening and position your idea as a way to improve performance. So you must: Understand the business case, e.g. what are we in business to do and why Understand what your boss wants to achieve; what are his/her hot button issues: quality, performance, cost, innovation, etc. Develop your leadership pitch to embrace the business case and address what your boss desires to accomplish. Can you name one individual who has led from the middle? What made them successful? Noted people who have led from the middle include Eleanor Roosevelt who served saw her role as First Lady to bring issues to the President that otherwise may have been overlooked. She was a champion of the disadvantaged as well as an advocate of civil rights. She also served as a chief morale officer for our troops stationed overseas during WWII. Bono uses his celebrity to promote the One Campaign to eradicate poverty in Africa. In that role, he lobbies governments, heads of states, and teams with others such Bill and Melinda Gates. But speaking personally, I know of many middle managers who lead from the middle. These are the men and women who champion projects across functions, or leverage customer needs to develop new products and services. Leading up does not always mean that the manager must come up with the initiative himself; very often such initiatives are handed down from on high, but it is up to the person in the middle to influence others in different departments and different functions to adopt the initiative. The adoption of lean thinking, a process of continuous learning and improvement, is one such example that requires leadership from the middle. Critical to success is tenacity and the courage of standing up for what you believe. What job survival tips can you offer to all the managers out there? Believe in your ability to make a positive difference. Find ways to lead by example. You do this by being good at your job, then you use your credibility to advocate what you think is important not simply for your team, but for the entire organization. - John Baldoni is the author of Lead Your Boss: The Subtle Art of Managing Up and is a leadership consultant, coach, and speaker. His work centers on how leaders can use their authority, communications and presence to build trust and drive results. He is the author of six books on leadership, including Lead By Example, 50 Ways Great Leaders Inspire Results. In 2007 John was named one of the world’s top 30 leadership gurus by Leadership Gurus International. For more on John and his work, visit www.johnbaldoni.com.   John writes the Leadership at Work blog for Harvard Business. Previous to that he has written extensively for FastCompany.com and CIO.com. Johns articles on leadership have appeared in the Harvard Management Update, Harvard Management Communications Letter, Executive Excellence, Leader to Leader, Link Learn, PR News, TD, Wharton Leadership Digest, and Global CEO. John is also widely quoted on radio as well as in mainstream and trade publications including the New York Tim es, Chicago Tribune, and Harvard Management Update.

The way you start off your free resume should be something that shows that you can write well. A good example of this is putting in your career objective as the first section of your resume. If you have the same career objective as your interviewer, they will immediately feel that you are serious about the position. You should also include your skills and accomplishments in the e-mail resume and writing sample to impress the interviewers. Using an E-Mail Resume and Writing Sample to Impress the Interviewers

The way you start off your free resume should be something that shows that you can write well. A good example of this is putting in your career objective as the first section of your resume. If you have the same career objective as your interviewer, they will immediately feel that you are serious about the position. You should also include your skills and accomplishments in the e-mail resume and writing sample to impress the interviewers. Using an E-Mail Resume and Writing Sample to Impress the InterviewersAn e-mail resume and writing sample to impress the interviewers is a great way to land that dream job. If you are not sure where to find an e-mail resume and writing sample, then you should try an online service that provides this for free. These services are created by expert resume writers who know exactly what will impress the potential employer.

Careers in Mobile Technology - CareerAlley

Careers in Mobile Technology - CareerAlley We may receive compensation when you click on links to products from our partners. If you are the type of person that simply cant live without the newest gadgets or obsess over what apps are best, a career in mobile technology might be your calling! Because mobile technology is so popular and has no plans of slowing down, you can be sure that your choice to pick this path is a good one. Literally billions of dollars are being spent by businesses and consumers each year for these new technologies and you can be a part of it! Companies are constantly looking for qualified individuals for both mobile application development and mobile device expertise. As a researcher for an iPhone and iPad repair company, we are constantly seeing how mobile technology is moving devices towards an all in one resource for companies and consumers. A career in this field ensures a lifetime of constant learning and security. Mobile Application Developer There is literally an app for everything these days, but just because you can find an app for whatever your needs are, doesnt mean that app will work effectively or be all it could be. Hop over to the Google Play store or Apples iTunes store and youll quickly realize that many people try but fail miserably with mobile apps. If you have extensive HTML5, Objective-C and Java experience you can create apps that will work across multiple mobile platforms. This type of experience can create an ongoing secure spot in the wonderful world of mobile application development. Lucrative and fun this is a great choice for creative individuals who possess the technological education needed to change and improve how apps are created and used in todays world. More Jobs in Mobile Technology Mobile System Engineer Applications Test Specialist IPAD/Tablet Developer Game/App Developer Mobile Architect / Mobile Platform Architect Mobile Tech Mobile Equipment Plant Mechanic Security Expert Verification Manager Mobile Device Architect CS Officer Marketing Manager Tech Support/Engineer KPI Engineer Maintenance Engineer/ Communications Tower Installer Windows Mobile Applications Developer Regardless of what you choose, rest assure youll never be bored! You can continue to improve your education and move up to more impressive positions that can bring you a substantial income. There are certain requirements in order for you to become part of this exciting field and for those who are serious below are just some of the requirements companies are looking for. Educational Requirements for Working in Mobile Technology M.Tech. Wireless Sensor Networks Engineering degree in B.E./Batch. for Electronics/Communications Diploma in Communications and Electronics Mobile Technology Certification Wireless Networking Certification Science/Mobile Technology Associates Degree Mobile Technology Communications Associates Degree Bachelors degree in Mobile And Networks Engineering Masters in Information Technology/Mobility Masters in Business /Mobile Technology Masters in Design/Technology Ph.D. in Mobility, Telecommunications, Mobile Computing Wireless Networks, Sand Networking, Security For those who possess a real desire to learn innovative technologies and create a more effective, secure and enjoyable experience for consumers, there is a real opportunity for greatness! Take the plunge and dive into the world of mobile technology! Author Bio Sarah S. is a research/writer for an iPhone, laptop and iPad repair company. She researches mobile trends including education, applications and news in mobile technology. This is a Guest post. If you would like to submit a guest post to CareerAlley, please follow these guest post guidelines. Good luck in your search. Joey Trebif

How to Build Confidence - Jane Jackson Career

How to Build Confidence - Jane Jackson Career Mature Medieval knight on a dark backgroundHow to Build ConfidenceDo people think you’re more confident than you really feel?Have you perfected your face for the world, your protective armour, the way you present yourself so that you seem in control most, or all, of the time?Ill share a secret with you. Over the years I’ve created an amazing façade of self-confidence and, most of the time, I do feel confident in myself. However, there were times when I felt self doubt, unsure whether my choices or actions were the right ones for myself or for others and I questioned if I really knew what I was doing.     If you can relate to this, then we are not alone!Perhaps you’re reading this article because you’ve lost something or someone and it’s affected your self-confidence.Or perhaps you’re reading this because you’ve never really felt 100% confident in yourself, in your abilities, in your beliefs or feel impostor syndrome at work.Our world is either a place filled with warmt h and light all of the time; a place filled with some warmth and some light some of the time; a cold, dark place where we have to fight to survive or we just drift and expect nothing much out of our existence.Id like you to think back, way back, when we were born kicking and screaming into the world. We were brand new and very confident. We demanded air, we demanded to be fed, we demanded to be clothed, and we demanded to be cleaned because we deserved to be taken care of, to be nurtured, to be educated and to be loved.What happens to our confidence?Then stuff happened. We either got what we expected or we didn’t. That influenced the way we now view our world, and placed a filter over our eyes and our minds.Whatever happened, you’re reading this because you are looking for something that will give you the key to being happier and the feeling of confidence and self belief that you deserve.What is the key to confidence?     What is the key to knowing the essence of YOU?   Unfortun ately, there is no magic key to conjure up a feel-good warm fuzzy feeling. However, I have something better. Ive created this How to Build Confidence Online Course so you can gain the tools to be confidence and develop resilience despite lifes challenges.Have a look at how you can transition from confused, a little scared and feeling daunted about the future, to confident, clear and excited about the next step in your career!   Click here to find out more.Over the past 18 years, Ive coached over 2,000 people to overcome the challenges of change by developing the clarity and the confidence to take control of their careers.   Id love to help you too.    Lets have a career clarity chat its complimentary and a chat will help you to understand the steps you can take to build your confidence again. Book hereThere are many things that can affect your confidence levels.   Here are some more articles that will give you greater clarity so you can take action to take control of your career:Wo rkplace Bullying and the World of WorkThe Five Fears that Hold Us BackThe Spirit of Confidence  For more reading, click here to read an excellent article in Forbes about women and how they can project confidence regardless of age!