High 5 Weekly Career Transitions Roundup: 6 Secrets to Preventing Procrastination

This is our weekly roundup of some of the best career-related articles, interviews, blogs, etc., we've read during the week. We share them so you have some great resources to prepare you for the coming week. Enjoy!

• 6 Secrets to Preventing Procrastination: "The hardest part of any project is often taking that first step. Once I’ve gotten started, it’s usually easy enough to keep going."

• The One Skill That Makes You More Employable: "Whether you’re communicating with partners, customers, or coworkers, the way you write influences how people view both you and your company. Clear communication builds confidence and creates more productive relationships."

• Top 8 Interview Questions & How to Answer Them: "The following are LinkedIn's most commonly asked interview questions, along with my take on the best way to answer them."

• How Smart Women Successfully Make a Career Pivot: "For anyone considering a career change or radically relaunching a career, here are a few things I’ve learned along the way that may help you get started."
• 6 Words You Need to Eliminate from Your Professional Vocabulary:"To ensure you’re being perceived in the way you want, begin eliminating these words from your professional vocabulary."

4 Ways to Reduce Conflict in a Work Team

If you work with human beings, you are going to experience conflict at some point. And if you work primarily in teams, it is likely you’ll experience conflict on a regular basis. Conflict doesn’t have to drag you or your team down, though, if you handle it correctly, and it can lead to work breakthroughs and the deepening of relationships with your colleagues.

Here are a few ways to manage conflicts among your work team.

Set clear expectations. Work teams need to be clear about what behavior is acceptable and the appropriate ways to communicate. This should be modeled by leaders and supervisors at work, and teams need to have conversations around expectations for how the team will function and work together to ensure everyone is on the same page from the start, and a process is put in place to specify expectations for new individuals who join the team later.

Define terms. Sometimes arguments and disagreements take place in a team because common terms related to the work have not been defined and understood in the same way by others on the team. 

Seek to create a shared vocabulary that will reduce tension and conflict in a group. It can helpful to write these definitions down and provide access to the team so when conflict arises this document can be referred to.

Meet face to face. When conflicts arise, it is best to meet face to face and communicate in person with a specific person or with the team. It becomes easier to understand nuance and read body language, which can help come to a resolution. When setting expectations, it can be useful to come to an agreement on the types of information or communications that will be handled in person and those that can be managed through email or text.

Seek to understand and practice empathy. A practice to model and stress for the team is habit five from Stephen R. Covey’s book The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People: “Seek first to understand, then to be understood.” Implementing this practice will go a long way toward preventing or resolving conflicts when they arise within your team.

5 Ways to Make Your Emails Stand Out at Work

For many of us, email is the primary method of communication in our job and our inboxes are inundated with messages throughout the day.

It is likely that you send important emails each day but how do you make your message stand out and ensure that it is read, understood, and responded to in a way that allows you to do your job effectively?

Implement the following five practices to put your best email forward.

Personalize your email. Yes, it’s polite to start your email with “Hi Bill” or “Dear Susan”. Plunging straight into a request can come across as rude: “Send over that sales report by the end of the day” might be brief and to the point but it also can appear impersonal and rude.

Avoid the emoji. You might love emoji’s on Facebook or when you text but ignore them when it comes to your professional emails, especially when communicating with your boss, a senior executive, or a customer (unless you work at an emoji factory 😃). 

   

Be brief and specific. Keep your emails to the point and be brief. There is no need to go on about your weekend, or your aunt’s new rash. Stay focused and, if possible, provide a deadline if you are requesting some action: “Dear Susan, I’ve attached a spreadsheet with our sales projections for the 3rd quarter but I’m missing some information about Product XYZ. Can you look over the spreadsheet and fill in the missing information by 3:00 PM, tomorrow?” 

  

Don’t respond when angry or frustrated. If you’re dealing with a particularly stressful situation or a difficult personality, take some time to compose yourself before composing the email. Rattling off a quick, terse, and angry response is a good way to make a difficult situation worse. A good rule is to wait 24 hours, if possible, to respond when angry.

Be grateful and positive. Be sure to thank your colleague or customer when they reply with the information you’ve requested and make every effort to keep your messages positive when possible.

Dear Susan, I’ve attached a spreadsheet with our sales projections for the 3^rd quarter but I’m missing some information about Product XYZ. Can you look over the spreadsheet and fill in the missing information by 3:00 PM, tomorrow?

Thank you for your attention to this.

Have a good day,

Jim

High 5 Weekly Career Transitions Roundup: Stressed Out at Work?

This is our weekly roundup of some of the best career-related articles, interviews, blogs, etc., we've read during the week. We share them so you have some great resources to prepare you for the coming week. Enjoy!

• Stressed Out at Home? Stop Doing These 5 Things at Home: "The way to maintain your sanity is to find a few specific things you can stop doing at home to take off a bit of pressure. And then, when things calm down — maybe don’t start doing them again."

• 5 Ways to Reduce Work-Related Stress: "While one might think a vacation could be a good cure for this, many people feel pressure to work during their time off. According to the survey, 33 percent of women and 26 percent of men say their bosses expect them to work during vacation."

• 5 Steps to Resolve Work Conflicts Before They Get Personal: "At the root of many of these issues is a simple, common problem: miscommunication. At work as in life, it comes in many forms."

• The 10 Commandments of Effective Communication: "To communicate in a way that others understand, you have to learn what's on their minds, first. That's why listening is so important."
• What to do When Work Stress (Literally) Makes You Sick: "Take inventory of your own stress touch points, and set boundaries that feel right to you. Try removing your phone from your bedroom entirely, which can take away the temptation to check in early or late and allows melatonin to work its magic."

Six Ways to Be a Great Coworker

To be successful in your career you need to learn to work well with others, similarly to when report cards noted when an elementary school student could play well with others.

It is unlikely that your career will lead you occupy a solitary position that doesn’t require you to work closely in collaboration with other people. Your ability to be a good colleague and coworker can significantly benefit your career and help you enjoy your job.

Here are six ways to rock the workplace as a great colleague.

Share the credit. Your success is not your own and is made possible by the support of others working with you. Be sure to recognize and acknowledge the others that help you successfully complete your tasks and projects. 

Be supportive and help out. In turn, offer your assistance to your colleagues and volunteer to help out with other projects when possible. Stay alert to co-workers who might be struggling with a particular task or project and step in to support them.

   

Let your guard down and be social. Some people try to keep their professional and personal lives separate but it’s important to be authentically you in the office. It’s difficult to develop meaningful relationships with colleagues without sharing some details about your personal life and finding some things to bond over. Develop these relationships by socializing with your colleagues at lunch, for dinner and drinks after work, and at the company-wide holiday party.

Smile and be kind. Your generous smile and greeting to a passing coworker can help ease a stressful day and brighten the office for others. Showing kindness to your colleagues is a simple way to build rapport and contribute to a positive work environment.

Offer what you know. You don’t need to have a formal mentoring relationship with someone to provide them with some training and offer guidance. You don’t want to come across as a know-it-all but be willing to share your skills and knowledge with others who could benefit from it.

Communicate effectively. It’s impossible to overestimate the importance of learning how to effectively communicate with you colleagues, customers, and supervisors. Developing positive ways of communicating with others will enable success in many other areas of your career.

Implement these practices and you’ll develop a reputation around the workplace as someone others look forward to working with.

How to Fire Someone or Have a Difficult Conversation with an Employee

There has been a lot of news recently about some high-profile firings in government, along with some discussion about how best to let an employee go so this seems like a good time to cover some of the basics.

In addition to following your company protocol, when having a tough conversation with an employee or colleague, or when firing someone on your team consider the following basics.

Meet in person. Difficult conversations are best held face to face. This allows you to convey some degree of warmth and compassion for the other person through your body language, in addition to your words. It also provides a sense of dignity and brings professionalism to the situation. Just as you should never break up with a romantic partner by text or email, do not have tough work conversations through these methods of communication.

Stick to the facts. You'll want to focus on the specific details related to the firing or the need for the meeting and keep it simple and short. There is no need to do a lot of unnecessary small talk because the other person will likely need time away to process the information and their changed situation.

Read the situation. Upon providing the news or feedback be silent. Let the other person decide if they want to ask questions or ask for clarification. As noted above, some people will simply want to leave, others might get upset and emotional. Be prepared for a variety of responses and respond calmly and kindly.

Don't make it about the other person. As noted above, you'll want to focus on the specific facts or behaviors that have led to the firing or the need for the discussion. Do not comment on the other person's personality, psychological, or emotional qualities. You are not there to attack their character or personality but to provide a reasoned critique of their work performance.

Follow these basic principles to make a difficult conversation proceed more smoothly.

High 5 Weekly Career Transitions Roundup: 4 Psychological Reasons You Aren't Attracting Success Into Your Life

This is our weekly roundup of some of the best career-related articles, interviews, blogs, etc., we've read during the week. We share them so you have some great resources to prepare you for the coming week. Enjoy!

• 4 Psychological Reasons You Aren't Attracting Success Into Your Life: "We create the outcome we (consciously or unconsciously) expect. Once you start assuming the best in people and assuming there will be positive outcomes in all situations, you’ll be surprised how right you can be."

• To Be Successful Take the Stairs, Says Richard Branson: "Take the slower route. You’ll be able to learn from your experience and better prepare yourself for a future of success."

• 4 Times When Aiming for "Good Enough" is a Great Productivity Strategy: "So if and when you find yourself stuck in this endless loop of revisions, you’re better off just picking something and committing to it. Because, honestly, either way is likely just fine."

• Why It's a Bad Idea to Follow Your Passion: "Following your passion isn’t necessarily a bad choice for a career, but there are some drawbacks people tend to ignore. Consider them carefully before choosing a field you’re passionate about."
• 5 Things Most Leaders are in Denial About: "That information shortage hurts working people and their employers in several ways. It keeps people from being able to make the best decisions, and creates stress."

5 Characteristics of a Great Employee

Sometimes it feels like being a good employee simply requires us to keep our head down, plug along, mind our own business, and get the work done.

However, that might have been true years ago but today's great employees take initiative and bring a passionate approach to their work.

Below are five additional characteristics of a great employee.

1. Team player. Great employees know that to be successful others on the team need to be successful and so she works well with others in the company, helping them to achieve their goals.

2. Curiosity. To be a great employee one must be curious about the company you work at, curious about all the divisions and areas within the company. curious about the company's competitors, and curious about how to make the company better and more effective.

3. Humility. Instead of glorying in success and taking credit, great employees will deflect praise in humility, understanding that successes require a team.

4. Communicates effectively. Great employees understand the importance of (and practice) good communication. In addition to excellent verbal communication skills, good employees know that effective written skills are important, too. Good communication also means avoiding gossip, and speaking positively about your job and company.

5. Takes responsibility. Every employee will experience some failure in the workplace at some point but it is the great employee who will get back up without blaming anyone else, take responsibility for the failure, and move forward to make things right.

What other characteristics does a great employee have?

Daily Leap Career Video of the Week: 8 Tips to Be More Efficient

Each week we present our Daily Leap Career Video of the Week. The video we share presents news or advice related to career and life development, searching for a job, the economy and employment, and other career-related topics.

The video below presents 8 tips to be more efficient with your time, starting with: stop multitasking. See more below:

5 Rules for (First-time) Managers

You just got that promotion to manager and your team of ten staff members is looking to you for leadership and direction. Now what?

Becoming a people manager for the first time (or any time, really) can be a daunting task, and it's not a job for everyone. However, here are five rules to become an effective manager:

1. Learn everything about the job. Take time to learn all aspects of your job and the work of your employees. You'll be a better advocate for your team and be a better problem-solver when you understand every aspect of your employees tasks.

2. Listen (and Learn) from your employees. Your employees are the experts. Learn from them and make an effort to listen before jumping in with suggestions. Be know as a someone who really hears his or her employees and you'll become a successful manager.

3. Communicate effectively and often. Don't hide in your office or cubicle all day. Be visible, and communicate with your employees often in person and by email. Become a student of effective communication.

4. Admit your mistakes. You will make mistakes and your employees will notice them (and talk about them behind your back). Make an effort to own your mistakes, admit them when appropriate, and correct them. Your team will come to respect you when you can take responsibility for your errors and work to fix them.

5. Praise your employees and put them in position to succeed. People respond well to praise and encouragement and you'll want to make this a regular part of your management style. Find unique and innovation ways to praise and acknowledge good work, but don't ignore the importance of a simple thank you. In addition, put your employees in position to succeed by allowing them to utilize their strengths in their jobs.

Follow these five rules for management and you'll make the transition from first-time manager to experienced supervisor that much easier.

4 Tips for Work-Life Balance

What is work-life balance and is it even attainable? For many people the stresses of the day-to-day job can impact home life and make it difficult to focus on anything other than the demands of work and career.

If you are one of those struggling with how to maintain a healthy and stress-free personal life consider the following four tips for achieving a healthy work-life balance:

1. Identify and set priorities and boundaries. Be sure to be clear about your priorities. If you need to get in a daily run ensure that you go to bed at a reasonable hour so you can get up early and get that run in before the busyness of the work day hits. Determine the things you want to get done in the morning--exercise, meditation, breakfast, time with family--before you check in with your job. Are evenings just for your family? Do you need to schedule a weekly date with your partner? Identify the things you need in your life and block off the time, preventing work and job demands from infringing on this time.

2. Turn off communication. Once you've determined your priorities and boundaries be sure to turn off your work phone or log off your email. Set yourself up for success, rather than making it easy to fail by checking your email when you should be focused on your personal time.

3. Recharge on the weekend. Set aside your weekend for recharging your batteries. Do the things that you enjoy and that increase your energy. If you need to do a work-related activity limit it to a specific task that you can complete in an hour or two. Take care of yourself on the weekend, avoiding late nights and excessive caffeine or alcohol.  

4. Reduce stress with meditation and sleep. Even a simple and brief practice of meditation in the morning can bring significant benefits to your work and personal life, and can greatly reduce stress. The importance of adequate amounts of sleep cannot be overstated. Focusing on those two area--adequate sleep and a meditation practice--can set you up for greater success throughout your day.

4 Communication Tips for Work and Career

The way we speak and what we say--both our words and nonverbal communication--has a serious impact on our career and life success. Developing effective communication skills is integral to meeting your work and career goals.

When thinking about your communication patterns at work keep the following tips in mind:

1. Speak positively about your boss. It is inevitable that your boss will make decisions you don't agree with but you should never discuss this with others in a way that demeans your boss or demonstrates a lack of respect for him or her.

2. Encourage and support colleagues. Develop a reputation as one who praises, encourages, and supports co-workers and you will have others wanting to work with you, including those higher up the chain of command.

3. Do not disparage former workplaces or supervisors. Be sure not to speak ill of former companies, managers, or colleagues. The world is a small place and you might just find yourself working with, or for, some of those individuals again.

4. Speak with confidence. Believe in and own your opinions. Look people in the eye and state confidently what you believe about making the project a success. You will gain the respect of others when they see your confidence paired with your ability to follow-through.

4 Steps to Developing an Effective Working Relationship with Your Boss

A key to your job satisfaction is developing an effective working relationship with your boss. If you have a difficult or negative relationship with your supervisor you are unlikely to enjoy your work and it can seriously impact your work quality and, therefore, your opportunities for moving up.

You have the ability, however, to improve this relationship and here are 4 steps to help build a good working relationship with your boss.

1. Understand your boss's working style. It is important to understand how your supervisor likes to work. Is she detail-oriented, driven by deadlines, or does she make decisions slowly and deliberately? You need to understand how your manager likes to work in order to best meet his or her expectations.

2. Speaking of expectations. What exactly does your boss expect of you? The clearer you can come to understanding this the more effective your working relationship will be and the more effective you can be in your job. Try to get these expectations in writing so all parties can reference them if necessary.

3. Develop a communication plan. When you've done the work to understand your manager's style and know what her expectations are then you should have an indication of how best (and how often) to communicate. If he or she is a micro-manager then you might need to provide daily updates on a project and if you know your supervisor prefers face-to-face meetings then you likely don't want to provide these updates by email. Work with your boss to develop a communication plan that works for you both.

4. Maintain a positive attitude. There still might be times when your supervisor frustrates you or handles a situation or project in an unexpected way and in those times it's important to take a step back, realize your boss is human too, and maintain a positive attitude toward him or her. Avoid falling into the trap of bad-mouthing your manager to colleagues or other managers.

Implement these four steps and you'll likely see improvement in your interactions with your manager.  

Daily Leap Career Video of the Week: How to be a Leader

Each week we present our Daily Leap Career Video of the Week. The video we share presents news or advice related to career development, searching for a job, the economy and employment, and other career-related topics.

The Forbes video below identifies 4 essential tips to being a good leader, including trusting your team enough to delegate to them.

High 5 Weekly Career Transitions Roundup: 7 Tips to Boost Your Reputation at Work

This is our weekly roundup of some of the best career-related articles, interviews, blogs, etc., we've read during the week. We share them so you have some great resources to prepare you for the coming week. Enjoy!

• 7 Tips to Boost Your Reputation at Work: "You might be sabotaging your success by choosing the wrong words when you speak. Your word choice influences how others perceive you."
• Keeping a Journal to Become an Outstanding Leader: "Extraordinary leadership is rooted in several capabilities: seeing before others see, understanding before others understand, and acting before others act."
• 6 Things Great Leaders Do Differently: "It’s through a leader’s actions—what he or she does and says on a daily basis—that the essence of great leadership becomes apparent."
• Sleep Deprivation is Killing You and Your Career: "The short-term productivity gains from skipping sleep to work are quickly washed away by the detrimental effects of sleep deprivation on your mood, ability to focus and access to higher-level brain functions for days to come."
• 9 Phrases Smart People Never Use in Conversation: "In everyday conversation, it’s the little things that make all the difference. Try these suggestions out, and you’ll be amazed at the positive response you get."

Daily Leap Career Video of the Week: Useless Phrases to Eliminate from Your Emails

Each week we present our Daily Leap Career Video of the Week. The video we share presents news or advice related to career development, searching for a job, the economy and employment, and other career-related topics.

The Fast Company video below provides some great tips to making your emails for efficient and to the point.

High 5 Weekly Career Transitions Roundup: Build Your Brand Through Public Speaking

This is our weekly roundup of some of the best career-related articles, interviews, blogs, etc., we've read during the week. We share them so you have some great resources to prepare you for the coming week. Enjoy!

© Bellemedia | Stock Free Images & Dreamstime Stock Photos

• 3 Steps to Communicate With Confidence: "Communicating is not easy, until you are in tune with your authentic self and possess the self-awareness to position your message in a way that adds value."


• 3 Steps to Build Your Brand Through Public Speaking: "Public speaking really isn’t about you. It’s about serving your audience by giving them something of value – inspiration, information, knowledge, and validation."


• How to Handle Negative Feedback: "First, there’s no question that not interrupting and listening carefully is the right thing to do when you’re getting negative feedback."


• 6 Motivating Quotes to Help You Persevere: "Always remember you are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think."


• 7 Daily Habits for More Success at Work: "We instill a culture that people should work on tasks that use their core strengths ... We don't believe in wasting people's time getting them to improve their weaknesses."

4 Soft Skills You Need to Develop for Your Career

In surveys employers and businesses often note that many applicants are lacking soft skills they deem necessary. Even many job postings will note the soft skills an employer is seeking, in addition to the technical skills and mastery required of the job.

Below are 4 soft skills to develop and highlight in a job interview, along with several tips to improve these skills.

1. Communication. It's important to write professional emails, speak appropriately on the phone, and look people in the eye and shake hands firmly when meeting and speaking in person. Watch others who are good communicators and model their behaviors. Ensure that your emails include a greeting a and a closing. You might also consider joining a local Toastmasters to develop your communication skills.

2. Initiative. An effective way to develop initiative is to volunteer for new opportunities as they come up at work. An even better way is to suggest new processes or projects and take the lead in testing them out.

3. Team work/collaboration. A great way to develop team work and collaboration skills is to

volunteer with a local nonprofit or church organization and participate in planning an event or fundraiser. The more opportunities you have to work in collaboration with others the more you'll be able to improve your skills in this area.

4. Creativity. Everyone is creative in some way. Creativity is not just for artists and designers. Creativity enables you to look at problems in a different way and come up with unique solutions. It may even mean that you come to understand that the problem really isn't a problem after all. You can continue to develop your creativity by being curious. Don't stop learning. Meet new people and travel to new places. And don't neglect your personal passions. They can co-exist with your job.

Consider finding a mentor to support you in developing these soft skills and you'll find yourself improving in ways you never imagined.

High 5 Weekly Career Transitions Roundup: Mentors, Communication Skills, and More

This is our weekly roundup of some of the best career-related articles, interviews, blogs, etc., we've read during the week. We share these every weekend so you have some great resources to prepare you for the coming week. Enjoy!

© Bellemedia | Stock Free Images & Dreamstime Stock Photos

• Want the Best Mentor? One Thing to Know: "The best mentors have no answers. They have only questions, frameworks, multiple open choices, a light to shine and an open mind. They are listeners first and foremost and they bring encouragement, compassion and a soft voice."

• Why Well-Thought-Out Career Choices Still Sometimes Don't Work: "A very common complaint I hear from my clients is that they accepted a job believing it was one thing but it turned out to be another. You have to do your due diligence in the interview process and be skeptical."                                                      
• 6 Tips to Become a Master Communicator at Work: "Be mindful of how you communicate and how your body language and persona either invite or push away people at work. Ultimately, the better your communication skills, the more likely you are to succeed in any workplace, so don't underestimate their importance."


• 8 Crippling Mistakes Job Seekers Make: "A mass email announcing your unfortunate layoff or asking to keep an eye out for a job opportunity will almost guarantee you won't get a response."


• The Most Effective Ways to Make It Right When You Screw Up: "In the modern workplace, we often operate as teams. So when you fail to meet an important deadline, chances are it's not just your boss that's affected—it's your whole team, and possibly your whole organization." 

Three questions to ask to get your point across

While creativity is a skill CEOs feel is critical to workplace success, the ability to communicate effectively is another. Communication - particularly how you get your message across to another or to others - is an art as well as a skill. Before you share your message, ask yourself these questions to do so appropriately and to maximize others' understanding of it.

What language does my audience use? By this question I don't mean "English," "Spanish," "French," etc. but what are the key terms and concepts that your audience is familiar with that they will respond to. For example, if you are giving a presentation to a non-business audience, using terms like widgets, gross margin, net revenue, etc. will not only lose them, they will feel frustrated at being lost. Another example would be in a job interview: if you use a lot of acronyms from your old position, you are going to confuse and irritate your interviewers. Get into the head of those you will be conveying your message to and be sure that you are using words to which they relate.

What is a metaphor that best conveys my message? I love using metaphors to get my point across, as they can take complex topics or issues and make them more relatable and accessible. While you can risk becoming cliché with your metaphors, a well-placed simile can heighten your audiences' understanding of your subject. One time while working at a university I had to explain the difference between "campus cash" (campus currency that could be used anywhere on campus) and "dining dollars" (campus currency that could only be used in the dining halls). "Picture the university as the United States," I said. "Campus cash is like the U.S. dollar: it can be used anywhere. Now, think of the dining halls as amusement parks. Not only can you use the U.S. dollar at amusement parks, you can also purchase amusement park cash for special deals and bonuses, but it is only usable at the amusement park." A simple metaphor, but it helped my audience left understanding it perfectly.

What is the best medium for my message? This is a question that many of us frequently underestimate. In our digital age a message can be conveyed in many ways: over the phone, face-to-face, via email, and in some instances via social media. The advice I typically give is the more sensitive the message, the greater the need for person-to-person communication. Bad news is best delivered face-to-face, but so can good news when you want to specifically recognize individuals for their achievement. General information and announcements can be made via email and a message that you want to get out to the public can be made via social media. There are endless permutations to this, however, so use your best judgment and consult with a trusted colleague if you are unsure how to proceed.

Your point isn't to merely say what you need to say: it needs to be received, understood, and acknowledged. Ask yourself these questions to ensure that your point comes across.