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

Three tips for new job-seekers from the Oracle of Omaha

Posted on February 10, 2012
Filed Under Employment, Finding a Job, First Job, Networking, Promotion, The Workplace | Leave a Comment

To a certain extent, Warren Buffet bewilders me. Although seemingly embodying all of the attributes of a good leader (and a track record bearing signs of financial wizardry), Mr. Buffet strikes me as somewhat of an anomaly. Lacking some of those deficiencies we sometimes like to ascribe to captains of business—in addition to his prescience, Buffet’s apparent lack of haughty egoism gives him an almost neighborly appeal—Buffet is a beloved by many of his peers, and, quite frankly, wonks everywhere. Unlike the figure of antiquity for whom he is named—Pythia, whose storied sulfur-fueled artificial powers of clairvoyance drew the attention of some of antiquities most prolific writers—the Oracle of Omaha gathers his power not by hanging precariously above volcanic, toxin-laden ground, but from a laser-focused intellect and perceptive disposition. Every year Buffett entertains approximately 160 students in Omaha, and plays Oracle, answering questions about his worldview, personal development, and of course, investment strategy (at the conclusion of the trip, he also makes himself available for goofy photographs). 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

What not to say when you’re late for work

Posted on January 27, 2012
Filed Under Corporate Policy, Employment, Keeping your Job, The Workplace | Leave a Comment

Some time ago, I published a list compiled by CareerBuilder detailing some of the most ridiculous excuses ever used be employees to get out of work, my favorite of which was “chicken attack.” Although, I fervently believe that Occam’s Razor—the simplest explanation, ceteris paribus, is the most likely—is a less than useful tool for judging the validity of employee excuses. In fact, I’ve found the opposite to be true: the more outlandish the excuse, the more likely. Call it anti-Occam.  Why would anyone concoct an unbelievable lie? Of course, this logic gets us into the same catch 22 the protagonist in Joseph Heller’s novel, which coined the term, finds himself. Logic aside, CareerBuilder recently compiled another list, this one detailing “10 weird excuses workers use when late to work.” I’ll let you be the judge. Just for fun, I’ve included the clipart attached to the original post published by TheWorkBuzz—an “I can haz cheezburger-esque” image of a cat in a tie exclaiming, “I no haz hiccups.” Read more

Bllamas, New Year resolutions, and your job search this 2012

Posted on January 17, 2012
Filed Under Employment, Finding a Job, Hiring Forecast, The Workplace | 1 Comment

We do it every New Year: ring in January 1, proclaiming change. Feeling refreshed, optimistic about the promise of a new year, we commit ourselves to a series of resolutions, regardless of whether we possess the will to follow through with them. Growing up, my proclivity for the absurd was put on full display each New Year’s Eve. As a child, and on into my youth, I relished the rather insensitive thought of making a mockery of the whole process. I would silently commit myself to incredible, extraordinary, and sometimes egregious resolutions, such as plotting the genetic sequence and splicing together the DNA of a bull and llama, creating a bllama. A “bllama,” I resolved, would be an animal with the valor and august disposition of a llama, and the innate competitive spirit of a bull. Let it suffice to say, none of my far-fetched resolutions (of which the above resolution is merely representative), ever came to fruition. So where am I going with this? Believe it or not- your career. Read more

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