High 5 Weekly Career Transitions Roundup: Ask These Two Questions to Build Resilience

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!

• To Build Resilience, Ask Yourself Two Simple Questions: "Anxiety can lead to exaggerated worry, irrational fear, and obsessive thoughts. So how do you maintain your calm when the roof is falling on you?"

• 6 Questions to Help You Handle Criticism: "It is important to learn how to take criticism seriously but not personally."

• 9 Toxic Behaviors and How to Avoid Them: "What you probably haven’t heard much about, however, is self-destructive behavior that all-too-often claims the careers of aspiring executives and business leaders."

• 4 Ways to Maintain Momentum: "Here are four strategies that you can use to sustain momentum, avoid having to feel activation energy again, and keep moving in the direction of your dreams."
• 2 Things You Need to Remember When You're Burned on the Job Search: "Part of staying positive throughout your search is managing your expectations."

Boost Your Career With These 5 Tips for Healthier Living

In the US, employees take an average of about five sick days per year. That might not seem like a lot but consider the number of times you work when you’re sick with a cold or some other ailment. When you’re ill you likely are not working at peak performance.

In order to excel in your work and career you should also pay close attention to your health. Below are five simple strategies for improving your health and boosting your performance at work.

Sleep 7-8 hours. Getting adequate sleep provides many health benefits and studies have indicated that getting 7-8 hours of sleep reduces stress, increases creativity, improves memory, and sharpens attention, among other things. On the other hand, sleep deficiency has been linked to increased risk of heart disease, kidney disease, high blood pressure, diabetes, and stroke.

Meditate. A brief, daily practice of meditation can result in significant health benefits such as reduced stress, better sleep, and perhaps even improved immune functioning. Meditation can also help you focus on positive and encouraging thoughts, which can lead to more joy and greater focus throughout the day.

Drink (a lot) of water. Staying properly hydrated is important to provide energy, strengthen muscles, improve skin, and keeps your gastrointestinal tract functioning healthily. As we’ve all heard, our bodies are mostly water and we need to drink enough daily to avoid fatigue, headaches, and other issues.

Move 30 minutes. Our bodies are made to move and we need to ensure some basic level of movement daily in order to stay healthy and strong, and to avoid illness. You don’t need to train like a professional athlete or body builder to see results. Get out and walk two miles on your lunch break, or bike in the morning before work … or, better yet, bike to work. Schedule this time every day just as you would any other important meeting. You’ll soon find that you have more energy and accomplish more throughout the day.

Avoid alcohol. While a drink at a social event or company party might lower inhibitions and help manage some social anxiety, frequent alcohol consumption has many negative consequences—damage to the brain, heart, and liver—and can lead to addiction. In addition, alcohol is a depressant and if you struggle with depression it can exacerbate it. To be at your best limit your alcohol intake.

Implement these five simple strategies and you’ll soon feel healthier, stronger, and more energetic.  

Daily Leap Career Video of the Week: The Top 5 Networking Mistakes

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.

In the video below from Entrepreneur, BNI Executive Director, Tim Roberts, shares his tips on how to make your networking more effective by avoiding five common mistakes.

High 5 Weekly Career Transitions Roundup: 35 Things You Need to Give Up to Be Successful

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!

• 35 Things You Need to Give Up to Be Successful: "Just as we deceive ourselves into believing something will make us happier than it will, we also deceive ourselves into believing something will be harder than it will."

• How to Start Your Mornings Right: "The key is to identify habits that resonate with you. Be playful and try different things until you find a groove that works. If the effects wear off or you get bored, switch it up with abandon."

• 6 Things Great Mentors Do Differently: "But it's the mentors who follow through with actual action that stand apart from those willing to offer advice alone."

• The 5-Step Guide to Funding Your Small Business: "Whether you’re a millennial making your first foray into business, or a seasoned entrepreneur looking for a fresh start, here’s five steps to raise the funds you need to launch your venture."
• 8 Crucial Steps to Negotiate a Higher Salary: "If you can explain why a salary bump for you will also benefit the company, you’re setting yourself up for a successful negotiation."

The Mid-Year Career Tune-up

It's June and the year is nearly half over, so where are you at with your career goals and objectives for the year? This is a good time to pause and reflect on your career and evaluate if you're at the place you want to be.

Consider the following three areas and make corrections and adjustments as needed so you can move forward successfully.

Continued Learning. It is incredibly important, both to your job satisfaction and to your future career success, for you to have continued opportunities to learn and develop new skills. Take a look at what you've done so far this year, along with the skills you've developed, and consider if there are some training sessions or a conference you can attend sometime in the next few months. If your employer offers free training or provides reimbursement for classes take advantage of these perks. Sign up today.

Network Building. Throughout the year you want to continue to develop your network in several ways, including through social sites such as LinkedIn and Facebook. Be sure to keep your LinkedIn profile updated with new skills and responsibilities. In addition, if you're not currently working with a mentor seek one out. You can likely find a good mentor at your workplace or through your network of contacts. A good mentor will also introduce you to others and help expand your network. Finally, find a networking group in your community you can begin attending or register for a conference. Conferences are great places to meet great people doing cool and exciting things in your field and some of these people can become mentors and future collaborators.

Healthy lifestyle. It's difficult to be at your best in your career if you're not getting enough sleep, or if you're eating unhealthy food and drinking too much. Take a look at your habits and determine if you need to build more activity into your schedule. Perhaps you live close enough to bike into work a few days a week. Or join the yoga class at the office. Maybe starting your day with a few minutes of stretching and mindful meditation can get you more focused on developing a more healthy lifestyle that will benefit you and your career.

Daily Leap Career Video of the Week: How Do I Figure Out What I Truly Want?

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.

In the video below Mel Robbins discusses one of the most common questions she gets: "How do I figure out what I truly want?" Mel believes we do know what we want and offers suggestions for clarifying our vision. Learn more by watching the video.

High 5 Weekly Career Transitions Roundup: 4 Email Habits to Avoid for Improved Productivity 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!

• 4 Email Habits to Avoid for Improved Productivity at Work: "Instead of being carried away by email interruptions, map out a time in your daily schedule to check email."

• Top 3 Job Interview Fears and How to Beat Them: "You might be ready with a comment, for example, about a specific innovative program that the company has initiated, or with a compliment based on what you've heard employees enjoy about the corporate culture."

• Why Being Alert is Essential to Being Successful: "No matter how knowledgeable or experienced we believe we are on a subject, there is always something more to learn."

• How to Boost Workplace Morale at Your Business: "Employees who are appreciated will work harder and stay longer at your business. Bring in pizza or bagels one day. Surprise employees with spontaneous company parties and food."
• What to Wear for Your First Job Interview: "Given the wealth of information available about companies online ... there’s no excuse for showing up to an interview in something that clashes with a company’s existing office culture."