‘Job creep’

Posted on April 13, 2012
Filed Under Career Change, Corporate Policy, Employment, Health, Keeping your Job, The Workplace | Leave a Comment

While a constant parade of new, handheld, mobile devices has enabled us to adapt to, push forward, and thrive in the new techno-centric culture that emerged as a result of a slew of interconnected technological innovations that came to define the mid-late 20th century, culminating in the creation and spread of personal computing and the Internet, in the 21st century, I have sometimes found difficult the task of finding my bearings in a culture that is constantly evolving with the technology it creates. Rarely am I able to pause and wonder whether, in fact, I am indeed better off. Although the Information Age has done just what its name purports—eased access to and democratized information, breaking down some of those social or cultural barriers which, in the past, might have obstructed access to education—the emergence, and quick embrace of handheld, mobile devices has allowed us to remain ‘plugged-in’ while making us more accessible. Though I am careful not to bemoan the very innovations and technology allowing me to compose this blog post, social and cultural values have changed quickly to accommodate the, oft blindingly fast-paced, technological innovations of the 21st century, many of which affect each of us on a personal level (in some way), and have, since their invention, chipped away at our work-life balance, something I refer to as ‘job creep’. Read more

Uniting your passion with your profession

Posted on March 29, 2012
Filed Under Career Change, Employment, Finding a Job, First Job, Keeping your Job, Promotion, The Workplace | Leave a Comment

By Shun McGhee, Guest Contributor

Walking through the mall as a wide-eyed 25-year-old I approached a book store. As I was just about to pass the store one of the books caught my attention. The title was “How I Retired at 26! A Step-by-Step Guide to Accessing Your Freedom and Wealth at Any Age” by Asha Tyson. Desperate to change my financial predicament and rapidly approaching age 26, I was drawn to the book. I picked up the paperback with some skepticism. I thought, “This could be another pyramid scheme.” I decided to skim the book a little just to see what it was about. In the pages I read while at the bookstore, the author assured readers she was not promoting a get rich quick scheme of any kind. This made me a little more comfortable and I decided to buy it.

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A case against cellphone usage at work

Posted on March 13, 2012
Filed Under Employment, Keeping your Job, Technology in the Workplace, The Workplace | Leave a Comment

Do you remember your first cellphone? I remember mine; though, calling it a cellphone—which in some way seems to connote small or minute size—may be a bit of a misnomer. It was a large, rectangular prism which, in terms of its dimensions, size, and weight, resembled a red stone brick rather than a cutting edge piece of telecommunications technology. Even if the phone filled up at least twice the volume of my front jean pocket in which I would cram it, I wore this piece of technology, protruding from my front most pant pocket, as a badge of honor. Although as the components supporting our telecommunication devices have grown more complex, the size of mobile phones have, again, begun to balloon. Unlike when I was trusted with my first cellphone, mobile phone technology has become ubiquitous. More than an accessory, it has become a permanent, unwieldy facet of human life. Unfortunately, as mobile phones have become as ubiquitous as, say, a kitchen blender, use of mobile phone technology fills our day, so much so, that addict cellphone users, when separated from their mobile device, experience a something akin to phantom leg syndrome, called phantom vibration syndrome. Even if our cellphone may accompany us wherever we go, there remain some temples within whose walls their inconsiderate use would not only be inappropriate, but undignified and unwise. One such ‘temple’ is the workplace. Read more

Finding focus in your work

Posted on February 13, 2012
Filed Under Employment, Keeping your Job, The Workplace | 1 Comment

As someone who works from home quite often, I have an acute sensitivity and awareness of distraction—things which could derail an otherwise productive day. While I have been able to reduce or eliminate most distractions from my day, there are still two, seemingly inexorable forces that, every day, try to pull me into an abyss of distraction. I imagine falling into that abyss is a lot like finding yourself on the other side of an event horizon of a black hole: unable to trace the boundaries of the event horizon, a space traveler unwittingly crosses through to that inescapable region of space, only realizing his mistake after it’s decidedly too late. My two distractions actually have names: Slinky and Pogo (the former of whom is pictured above, purring while wedged into the internal framework of an old couch). Read more

Why simply doing your job just isn’t enough anymore

Posted on February 3, 2012
Filed Under Employment, Keeping your Job, Recession, The Workplace | 1 Comment

In one of my earliest blog posts, I characterized the job search as a ruthless war of all against all. Suit-clad, briefcase wielding, warriors battling it out, constantly attempting to eke out the competition through an adept application of cunning and practiced professionalism. Although we have always found signs that this war exists in the workplace, the stakes are higher now—the war more furious, with the workplace looking less like a group of individuals working toward a collective goal, and more like a chess board. In the same way that the rhetoric and tone of our politicians has, in recent years, taken on an almost (or, rather, exclusively) venomous tone—amounting to “political brinksmanship”—employees must today stake their claim, and demonstrate bold tenacity to get ahead. Showing up and simply doing your job, settling into the background, simply won’t cut it anymore. In a few words, you have to get out in front. (As an aside on today’s political discourse, the mud slung today, in print, online, and coating the halls of Congress is hardly comparable to the gruesome, toxic sludge politicians hurled at one another in the early days of our republic—check it out.) Read more

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