Should you pursue a hot, steamy office romance?

Posted on December 24, 2014 by admin

By Eric Bradford
If you have hot, romantic feelings (the kind that feel too strong to fight) for a colleague, you are not alone. Happy Worker reports that 42% of adults have had a relationship with a colleague. Another 50% of adults have had a secret crush on a colleague. When you think about it, it makes perfect sense.

Where else do you see people as regularly as you do at work? Even if you work at a factory that requires employees to wear ugly, bland uniforms, there’s bound to be someone who you find attractive. If the attraction if purely physical, it’s a good idea to take things slowly. After all, in time you’re likely to meet someone at a social event, club, airport, sporting event or cultural festival that you think is good looking.

Yes. As intense as it can be, physical attraction comes and goes. If that’s all there is to a workplace attraction, you might want to set your sights on someone other than your colleague.

Office romances to avoid

20% of workers reported that they dated a married colleague. This is one to avoid. After all, what would you do if your date’s spouse showed up at the restaurant or movie theater while you and your colleague were hanging out (showed up with the kids)?

If you’ve been hit with a sexual harassment lawsuit before, dating a subordinate might be a bad idea. Another instance when you might want to avoid an office romance is when you’re attracted to an office gossip. Move forward with that relationship and the details of every date that you go on could make the rounds throughout the entire workplace. Same applies should you two break up.

Should you have an ex who works at the firm, you might want to pump the brakes before you start another office romance. Start another office romance and your ex and new lover could bump heads, creating undue tension at work. And again, if the relationship is purely, sexual – think twice.

Successful office romantic relationships
The good news is that more than a quarter of office romances end in marriages. President Barack and First Lady Michelle Obama met at work, so did Bill and Melinda Gates. Celebrity couple, Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie met while working on set. According to Forbes,  CBS CEO, Leslie Moonves, also met his wife, Julie Chen, at work. AOL’s founder, Steve Case, met his wife, Jean, while both worked for AOL. Considering that more than 25% of office romances lead to marriages, it’s not surprising that some of these unions not only endure but go on to be lovingly successful.

Yet, not all office romances endure. When these relationships end, they can get ugly. The trickiest office romances occur between subordinates and managers. In fact, some company policies strictly forbid supervisors and managers from entering into romantic relationships with their subordinates. At the start of the relationships, the last thing from couples’ minds if what will happen should the romance end.

Think before you leap into the arms of a colleague

And just what happens? Subordinates have sued managers (and entire firms) after a romance ended, claiming sexual harassment and that they were coerced into the relationship. After breakups, former partners have also found it too hard to continue working together on a project or team. Approximately 7% of these partners leave the firm after the relationship ends. Then there are instances when one person in the broken relationship struggles to let the other person go. During these times, human resources and compliance managers might get involved, possibly putting someone’s job in jeopardy.

Therefore, as with any relationship, it’s smart to think seriously before entering into an office romance. Make sure that your feelings aren’t fleeting. For example, is what you’re feeling infatuation, a crush or lust? Generally, these three have not proven to be enough to keep a relationship going strong over the long term. Also, consider your professional relationship (i.e. subordinate, manager) with the colleague you’re attracted to. Think about what could occur should other people in the office find out about the relationship should you decide to start dating a colleague.

If you do decide to move forward with an office romance, give the relationship the same thought that you would give any other romance. Take the time to get to know the other person. Avoid putting on blinders. Accept facts as they present themselves. Also, avoid raising the other person to hero or heroine status. And keep your working relationship professional. If the relationship is meant to be, you’ll have plenty of time to hook up after work.

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How to eat healthy meals without spending a lot of money

Posted on November 22, 2014 by admin

By Rhonda Campbell
Food is one of the earth’s greatest resources. Without it, the human body wouldn’t have the fuel or the energy to do anything. Yet, eating any type of food is not enough. In fact, eat the wrong foods and you could develop illnesses and diseases like high blood pressure, heart disease and diabetes. You could also start packing on unwanted pounds; no time may be easier to do this than the holiday season.

Healthy meals habits worth forming

To get into the habit of eating healthy meals, set certain times of the day when you’ll eat. Stick to these times as closely as possible. This can keep you from going long stretches without eating only to feel famished in the evening, causing you to overeat on starches or carbohydrates. Drinking water before you eat helps to satisfy hunger pangs, keeping you from overeating.

Another thing – going too long without eating, then eating could cause your blood sugar levels to spark. Keep the habit of going too long between healthy meals going and you could also develop low blood sugar. Eating healthy is not solely about the number of calories you consume each day, it’s also about “when” you consume those calories. If you’ve ever eaten a large meal before going to bed, then waken to find that you gained weight, you’ve had a first hand experience with the value of “timing” when it comes to eating.

Put a filter on your kitchen faucet and drink six or more glasses of fresh water a day. It beats paying for bottled water. If you don’t go with a filter, consider boiling and cooling water before you eat it. This one dietary habit will also help to flush your system of unhealthy food items after you finish digesting what you eat. Drinking plenty of water has also been shown to keep the skin smooth and vibrant. It’s also good for your hair.

Eat fresh vegetables instead of frozen vegetables, as frozen and processed foods are packed with sodium, an ingredient that helps your body hold onto excess water (which shows up on your bathroom scale as excess pounds). If you’re worried about the time it takes to cook fresh vegetables, consider cooking a large pot of the food on weekends so all you have to do is heat it up during the week. You could also juice your vegetables and enjoy a vegetable smoothie two or more times a day. Along with this, it’s a good idea to buy healthy food in bulk, definitely enough to last you a week or until you return to the grocery store.

Creating a healthy dietary lifestyle

It could take commitment and a high level of self-awareness to break out of the habit of eating unhealthy food like sugary foods, pizza, cakes, cheeseburgers, potato chips and French fries. It could also take a significant amount of money, especially if you replace the unhealthy food by starting to eat healthy food. But, it can be done. Be patient with yourself. Give yourself time to grow accustomed making healthy dietary options.

Also, when choosing healthy meals, look for foods that are rich in vitamins and minerals. For example, fresh fruit like oranges and apples are rich in vitamin C. Vegetables like spinach, broccoli and collard greens are rich in are rich in iron, calcium and fiber. Eat these foods and there’s a good chance that you’ll keep your energy levels high. You’ll also likely stay regular.

Trying to get your triglycerides down to keep your heart healthy? Add fresh fish and Omega 3 supplements to your diet. According to John Hopkins, you could lower your triglycerides by 20 percent if you lose 5 to 10 percent of your body weight. Cutting back on sugar, cheese and milk could also lower your triglyceride levels.

Remember; eat several small meals a day, maybe every three hours. Cut down on carbs and sweets. Eat plenty of fresh veggies and fruit and drink lots of fresh water. It goes without saying that you’ll also want to get moving. Studies are showing that sitting for hours (even if you’re eating a healthy diet) can have a negative impact on the human body.

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12 places to get business exposure

Posted on November 2, 2014 by admin

By Rhonda Campbell

It’s not surprising that social media outlets (i.e. Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest) are top of mind when business owners and marketing managers think about steps that they will take to introduce their products or services to new customers. Even during the recession, online retail saw a sales increase of 11%, according to Buzzle.

Tap into growing online business sales

Future expectations for online businesses are good. Consider this. Online sales in the United States alone were at $225.5 billion in 2012. By 2017, those sales numbers are expected to increase to $434.2 billion.

Technologically savvy Millennials, ease-of-use, improved online customer service systems and shipping discounts are factors that are attracting more shoppers to virtual storefronts. Yet, not all businesses are online. Depending on how you look at it, that could be welcomed news.

However, if less than 10% of all United States based businesses are online, you’d still have to find a way to set your organization apart from over three million other firms (Manta reports that there are 34,725,120 companies in the United States across a broad range of industries).

How do you set your business apart in this crowded field, in perspective customers’ minds (not just in your mind as the business owner)? Fortunately, there are several options open to you, many which we will cover in this article.

Get more for your business online

To start, if you haven’t done so already, build an online storefront or company presence. Simply put, if over 2.8 billion people are online globally, having an online business is an early key step that gives you the chance to connect and communicate with those prospects. More ways to get exposure for your business online are:

• Build a customized Facebook page (tie the design in with your company’s branding elements, including colors, themes and imagery).
• Mirror your Facebook top of page design on your Twitter pages (stay consistently active on social media accounts).
• Post pictures of company events (i.e. speaking engagements conferences) at Pinterest.
• Send one to two press releases per month. Even if the press releases aren’t picked up by major media outlets, press releases can pull up in search engines when prospects search for products or services that your business produces. Be sure to include one to two links to your company website in the press releases.
• Set up a customized company page on LinkedIn and post job openings, news about upcoming company events, business blog posts, etc.
• Build a company blog. Link to at least one other article at your company website in several blog posts each week. Promote blog posts internally and externally (For example, you could send an email to employees inviting them to “Like” blog posts and post links to your blog posts at their social media accounts.)
• Produce professional videos. Make sure that the videos are informative and entertaining. Publish links to the videos at your company website.
• Create a YouTube channel for your company and post weekly videos at your company YouTube channel.
• Create online tip sheets and white papers that are specifically related to your business field. Offer these informative documents to prospects for free, only requiring prospects to provide you their name, email address, business name (if applicable) and regional or city and state location.
• Develop weekly podcasts (make sure that you list your podcast at iTunes and other podcast directories).
• Design a weekly or monthly digital newsletter (spice your company newsletter up with coupons, feature interviews, contests, holiday greetings, relevant statistics, etc.).
• Conduct feature interviews with local, regional and/or national media outlets that post the interviews online (even better if the media outlets also give the feature interviews print exposure).
• Post pictures of attractions that you visit in between business trips on Instagram

Each of the above steps could positively influence your Alexa ranking. The higher your Alexa ranking, the better.

Easy ways to get more offline business customers

To get more exposure for your business offline, consider incorporating one or more of the following steps into your daily marketing and advertising initiatives:

• Design postcards that have loads of personality and send to targeted prospects
• Direct mail catalogs (again to targeted prospects and to current customers
• Offer customer rewards to customers who refer two or more new customers to your business
• Write and publish a training manual (include your business contact information, about us information and website URL at the front and back of the manual)
• Sponsor and attend community events
• Build a company foundation and get media exposure for large donations that your company makes to charitable and community organizations
• Use customized folders, letterhead, presentation templates, carry out bags, etc. that complement your company brand and logo
• Offer giveaways and freebies (always include your company branding and website URL in giveaways). Ask people who take the giveaways to tell their friends about your business and to “Like” your social media pages

As you can see, there’s a bounty of action steps that you could take to get more exposure for your business, online and offline. A key is to be consistent. Measure and monitor the results of your efforts. Some steps may produce stronger results for you than others.

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10 practical steps to help you land your next high paying job

Posted on October 25, 2014 by admin

By Ericka Simpson
Unemployment in the United States was at 5.9 percent as of September 2014. Hiring has increased, so too have salaries. National job salary index averages have also increased, exceeding $44,000. Organizations like the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) share that salaries are expected to increase by approximately 3 percent during the 2014 annual salary increase cycle.

Go and get the job you really love

It would appear that getting hired into a better job would be relatively easy. It would appear. . . However, anyone who has been searching for a better job for several weeks is familiar with how long and frustrating it can be to work your way to receiving an offer letter. Including the recruiter’s or hiring manager’s first and last name in your job cover letter is one way to give yourself a better chance of getting hired into jobs you really want. Other practical steps you could take to possibly land a job you truly want follow.

  1. Add two to three keywords to your resume and cover letter that are listed in the job description. You’re going to have to read through the job description to spot two to three keywords. For example, if you want to get hired as an administrative assistant, you might include keywords such as “administrative assistant,” “office manager” or “administrative associate” to your resume and job cover letter, depending on the words that the hiring manager or recruiter used in the posted job description. Why do this? Companies, particularly large companies, use automated tracking systems (ATS) to search through hundreds of resumes. Keywords are a major part of that automated search process.
  2. Proofread and edit your resume and job cover letter before you finalize the documents. Believe it or not, one typo could put you out of the running for a job.
  3. Read through job descriptions from start to finish. Be honest with yourself. If you don’t have the work experience or skills that match the job description, it might be advantageous to move on to another job. Instances when this may not be the case are when your work experience is close to the experience required for the job. For example, if the job description calls for four years of supervisory experience and you only have three years of supervisory experience, the hiring manager might find that you have sufficient experience, combined with your education, to meet the job requirements.
  4. Draft a cover letter and resume to fit each job you’re applying for. If you have graphic design skills, but you’re applying for a copywriting job, a graphic design resume may hamper your chances of securing the copywriting job.
  5. Set up job alerts with job boards that you regularly visit. This saves time and search effort.
  6. Visit niche and general job boards daily, so you become aware of new jobs quickly.
  7. Apply for jobs you want within one to three days or as early as possible.
  8. Get necessary training, including licenses and certifications, you need to get jobs you want.
  9. Network with former colleagues, relatives and other professionals, alerting them about specific types of jobs you want to work.
  10. Join professional organizations and forums that are geared to people who work in the industries you want to work in.
  11. Follow the directions included in job postings and at job application websites.
  12. Ask someone you know to recommend you for jobs you apply for (if you know someone who already works at the company you’re applying for a job at).
  13. Follow up with recruiters and hiring managers if they reach out to you to schedule interviews.
  14. Study hourly and/or annual wage rates for jobs you want to avoid asking for a salary that’s too low or too high.
  15. Dress professionally and approach telephone interviews (they are becoming more common) similar to how you approach face-to-face job interviews.
  16. Arrive to face-to-face job interviews 10 to 15 minutes early. Arriving to early could cause recruiters and hiring managers to feel as if they are being pressured to start interviews early (even if that’s not your intention).
  17. Ask questions during job interviews.

The more job interviews, both telephone and face-to-face job interviews, you conduct, the better you may get at interviewing. The less nervous you’ll likely get about interviewing. You’ll come to know what to expect from interviews, how to best answer questions and the signs to look for that clearly show that you have a good chance of getting a job.

Posted in Employment and Finding Jobs | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Great healthy winter food

Posted on October 19, 2014 by admin

By Rhonda Campbell

Winter is a great time to stay indoors spending quality time with family and friends. You can cook your favorite dishes, perhaps even barbecuing on an indoor grill, and watching an exciting football game on television while your friends “bad mouth” your favorite team, laughing and kidding you. Some of your best memories may be created then.

Healthy winter food you’ll love eating

Whether you realize it or not, food is a major part of many of you most memorable events. Eat the right healthy winter food and you will not only delight your taste buds, you could also keep your energy levels high and sleep better at night. Recipes that are tasty and healthy as well as help keep you warm run the gamut, coming from all cultures.

Minestrone soup that’s sprinkled with pesto croutes is filling, hot and tasty. Ingredients in
minestrone soup are onions, celery, potato, tomatoes, cabbage, sage, beans, pesto and parsley. It takes less than an hour to cook the soup.

Another great winter soup is potato and leek soup. If you love potatoes, you’ll love this soup. In addition to needing plenty of potatoes, you’ll also need butter, parts of leek, an onion and milk to prepare potato leek soup.

A healthy winter food meat lovers delight is a baked chicken dish that uses dried cherry tomatoes, pesto and fresh basil. In place of dried cherry tomatoes, you could add sweet red peppers. Chicken also works well when added with a pot of cooked vegetables.

To get a popping taste out of cook vegetables, start with fresh vegetables. If you toss in several handfuls of green, leafy vegetables, you’ll have plenty of chances to chew your meal, something that could keep you from overeating even as temperatures drop outside.

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