Life Tips Daily

If you spend a lot of time on the computer, either at work or at home, you may find that you become stressed and disorganized when you can’t find files or documents that you’re looking for. The naming system you used made sense at the time, as did the location you saved it to, but now, for the life of you, you can’t recall what you were thinking (or what you were drinking!).

Here’s today’s tip to help you feel more in control of your clutter:

Clean both desktops
There is of course the physical desktop, where your computer keyboard and screen sit upon if you have a desktop computer. Some laptop owners sit at a desk at least occasionally, though that is perhaps not the general rule. Either way, make sure the surface on which your computer rests is clean: no post it notes mocking you with things you have to remember, no empty drink bottles, food plates, no stray pens and pencils everywhere. You may have to bring out some surface cleaner to clean your newly discovered (and likely dusty) surface.

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Last week we looked at some questions about workplace and this week’s Your Turn is no different! What are your answers to the questions below:

1. A coworker has gotten into the habit of telling you all of his or her problems, all because you asked him/her one day how s/he was doing, and listened while s/he gave his/her life story. How do you extricate yourself from this position of constant confidant?
2. A coworker dresses inappropriately for the office (in your opinion). How do you go about addressing this?

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While we’re on the topic of work, Here are some indicators that it’s time to leave your job.

You hate waking up (to go there)
(Of course, the caveat is that you didn’t always hate waking up to go to work). If all of a sudden, the thought of waking up for work fills you with dread, start looking, right away.

Every coworker gets on your nerves. Every day.
We don’t always get along with our coworkers, that is why workshops like “Getting along with difficult people” are offered by a local work training centre where I live. However, if you feel like every coworker exists to annoy you, there isn’t one person you can tolerate talking to, working with or exchanging pleasantries with, it may be time to say sayonara.

You have received multiple warnings about your attitude or your performance
When you are not enjoying your work, you may find it hard to put any effort into it, resulting in a decrease in the quality of your work. Alternatively, you may continue to produce good work, but your attitude, in a word, stinks—you’re sullen, rude and sarcastic and don’t treat others with respect. Perhaps you stopped dressing in an appropriate fashion for work, or your personal grooming skills have plummeted. These are all indicators that you need to leave.

If you find that you are exhibiting any of these attitudes at work, it is time to reconsider your future with the company. However, if you find you have these feelings about all aspects in your life, you may be suffering from depression. Please seek out friends, family or a professional who can help you.

Good morning!

It’s been a while but work has been kicking my butt-both jobs as a matter in fact. It makes me wonder how those people who start a business that eventually moves to being their primary gig manage do it. You know who I’m talking about: the person who works at her full time 40 hours a week desk job, while doing web design on the side at nights and on the weekend, or the person who combines a full time job with a part time job, making their work week 60 hours a week-or more.

Although I have two jobs (Full time job + part time job of 12-15 hours a week), there are people who manage to fit much more into their weeks. How do they do it? I don’t know for certain but here are some helpful tips for those of you who are considering taking on a second job.

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Let’s go back to Your Turn for this week, because I have two work-related questions for you that have been asked by me and others over the last while. What do you think of the following:

1. How much notice should you give an employer before leaving for a new job? Is this answer affected by terms under which you decide to leave? Does your answer depend on what industry you work for?

2. You work in an office where you share some appliances (coffee maker, fridge, toaster, kettle). There are rules in place for the operation of this equipment, including cleaning up after yourself. How do you deal with a coworker who constantly breaks the rules?

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Are you tired of unwanted advances from a coworker? If you are not ready to report a coworker to your office’s human resources department because you suspect he or she is harmless, try the following tips. It is important to try them in the order that they are written, and keep a record of the dates and times you try each step so that if you decide to take your grievance to the appropriate people, you have a logical collection of efforts recorded:

Hint less subtly
If you’ve noticed that all your hints that you are not interested in the conversation you’re currently engaged in go over your coworker’s head, it’s time to be more obvious in your hints. Tell the coworker that you have important work to do, every time he or she approaches you. After saying this, turn to your workstation and begin to work, even if all you are doing is writing “I cannot stand you” over and over again onto a blank screen. After receiving this sort of treatment several times a day for a week or so, your coworker should get the message.

It is important that you keep this treatment up consistently. If you give in and talk with your coworker every second or third time he or she approaches you, you will not be sending a strong message across at all.

Send a frank email
If you think your coworker is not a bad person, you may want to let him or her down firmly but not so aggressively. Send an email that explains how the attention paid to you makes you feel, why you feel it is inappropriate, and what sort of work relationship you would like to have with the person (if at all). Send it from your work email address and save a copy of this email and any replies you receive, just in case.

Tell them straight out
Confrontation is difficult but nothing beats hearing it straight from the horse’s mouth (so to speak). Even if all you do is read the contents of your previous email aloud, do it. Tell your coworker that you are disappointed that your email was not as well received as you wished, restate the reasons why the attention you are receiving is inappropriate or unwelcome by you and ask firmly that the behaviour stop.
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If you find that none of these previous tips work, wait for a couple of weeks. After this time, inform your coworker that you have not noticed a change in behaviour, and that you will be filing a complaint with human resources in one week’s time if nothing changes. And if nothing changes, do it. Most coworkers care enough about their job that they will take your “threat” seriously, at least as seriously as you take it. If you do need to approach your human resources department, you should have at your disposal a well documented summary of how things have progressed up to that point.

coworker, unwanted advances, harassment, workplace harassment

Do you have a coworker who stands a little too close to you when talking, talks a little to often to you, and always finds a reason to be around your desk or cubicle, even when he or she works on a different floor or side of the office? Have you had other coworkers ask if you’re having a relationship with this coworker? Have subtle hints on your part failed to reach your clueless coworker? If any of these ring through, and this person isn’t your significant other (in which case you’d want to follow a separate set of tips such as tip #1: end relationship, tip #2: restraining order), you are likely suffering from unwanted advances from a coworker.

While you are perfectly justified in contacting your office’s human resources department and reporting this behaviour which no doubt leaves you feeling uncomfortable, if you have any reason at all to believe that your new shadow is unaware of how you feel about the advances he or she is making towards you, tune in tomorrow for ways to stop unwanted advances.

coworker, unwanted advances, harassment, workplace harassment

Many Canadians spent yesterday, July 1, at a barbecue or with family or friends (or both) in celebration of Canada Day. Some people had to delay their festivities until today, however, because they had to work. I’m not talking about emergency workers, policemen, or gas station attendants but people who work in the retail sector.

That’s right: many local malls were open on Sunday for Canada Day. According to the federal Holidays Act, when Canada Day falls on a Sunday, the next day is designated Canada Day, which means business may be open on July 1. The problem is few people seemed to be aware of this fact: most treated yesterday as Canada Day and it was celebrated as such, and not many seemed to know that Monday was the national holiday.

I work in the retail sector part time and as a result, I worked yesterday. I was surprised by the number of people who were out shopping and not celebrating, or relaxing at home (though granted, their plans may have been later in the day). Many customers expressed sympathy that I had to work “on Canada Day”. My reply to them was to inform them that the number of customers shopping proved to the mall that it is certainly worthwhile to be open. In response, a couple of customers sheepishly tried to explain why they were out shopping but the point is people like to shop and if the stores are open, they will shop.

I can’t deny I wish we could go back to the days where stores were closed on Sundays.

Canada Day, open Canada Day, shopping on Canada Day

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Good day and indeed the day is more than half over. I like to get an entry out earlier in the day so I can hear what you have to say but I was the victim of an ornery laptop so I am in the library of an educational institution pounding out a few thoughts before returning to my conference.

That’s right, I am out of town, and have found myself unexpectedly unprepared to deal with the loss of my laptop (and internet connection by default), so naturally, I’d like to talk today about being prepared.

While it is not possible to be always prepared for whatever life may throw us, I’d like to make the following suggestions on how to make sure that you are prepared for the unexpected somewhat, using my particular case as an example.

Research what you are going to be faced with
Even if you think you are well aware of what you will face, research it because even though you are familiar with the concept or idea in your particular location, perhaps it is different where you are going. Had I taken the time to research the weather in my locale, I may have packed different clothing: instead of my closed toe shoes and pants, I might have brought capri pants and sandals, and allowed my feet to enjoy a little sunshine. This is a very innocuous example of the benefits of researching your new surroundings, but other examples might include researching a different culture that you will be entering to ensure that your speech, manners, dressing will not be offensive to the inhabitants of where you are going. If you are going on a work trip, you may also want to make sure you are familiar with what will be discussed/covered during the trip, and who the key players are.

If you need any supplies/equipment, be sure to obtain these items well in advance
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Here are five keys to career happiness, as expressed by John Izzo:

*Follow your heart

*Risk more

*Choose the right balance

*Focus on the difference

*It’s never too late

I’m off to read the whole article here!

In Canada, the deadline to file taxes is the end of April, and I understand that some Americans have been given a four day extension (due to the storm that resulted in power outages in some areas), leaving one more day to get their taxes in.

Every year I tell myself that I’ll file my taxes faster than the year before and every year I don’t. Usually this isn’t a big deal, since I have always received a refund. Less than two months ago, I filed my taxes for 2005 and discovered that I owed the government money (a ghastly amount, with four numbers before the decimal point!): not only did I have to pay what I owed, but there had been an accrual of interest! I vowed not to let this happen again, to file 2006’s taxes well before the end of the month, yet here I am again, tax forms scattered about my house and I’m only starting to contact the one past employer for a missing T4 (W2 for you Americans).

In a surprising result, I found out I had miscalculated and received over half of the amount I had paid for 2005’s taxes back! While this was a lovely result, clearly, I am not the person to give you tips on filing taxes accurately or on time.

I did, however come across the following resources that you may find useful:

Canadians
The Canada Revenue Agency’s website is a good first stop in the search for information. You can find the required forms in electronic form and print them off, and this site has answered most of my questions so far.

Canadian Living has a list of 20 tax tips for Canadians (Tip 9: Claim all of your child care).

H&R Block’s site not only encourages you to leave the filing of taxes in their capable hands, but it also provides tips for filing as a student and as a couple that is getting married or in a common law relationship. The site also has a countdown, including minutes and seconds, until your taxes are due!

Americans
The Internal Revenue Service website provides all the information that you need to file your taxes, and it’s neatly broken down by who the taxes are being filed for, right at the top.

Tax Girl is a great resource and the Tax Girl herself writes in a very easy to understand manner. You can even send in questions to her personally (although you may be too late to get your questions answered for this tax period!).

And not to be outdone, H&R Block’s American site has an easy to find tax tips section that I’m sure you’ll find useful!

Have you come across any other tax tips or resources?

tax, taxes, filing taxes, money

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Despite all the gadgets we have in our lives to save time and improve our life, people are becoming increasingly busy and stressed (perhaps as they struggle to pay for all these life improving gadgets!) and a study claims that as modern gadgets, particularly in the workplace, increase, so does the stress level of the employees.

If you start a job and are given a company laptop and mobile phone, you may think that your employer is being rather generous or even spoiling you. While this might sometimes be the case, friends of mine who have these toys claim that it reveals, in their opinion, a desire on the part of their employer that they be available at all times to their employer. If you don’t get your work done at work (due to its volume, rather than laziness), and you have a laptop, how much more likely are you to feel that you can finish the work at home? Some rationalized that at least they can work from home instead of staying late at the office, but this reasoning doesn’t sit too well with me: work should be done at work and when you are home you should be able to focus on what you want to focus on (which hopefully is not work).

Similiarly, with a mobile phone, even if you leave work on time and leave the laptop behind, you can still be reached by phone should an emergency arise. An acquaintance who has a cell phone admitted to feeling guilty if the phone is turned off and not on his person for the whole weekend.

It’s difficult, especially if you are in a work environment where promotions are based not only on producing excellent work but also on working overtime, not to join those who pride themselves on their ability to work at all hours of the day, but I encourage you to take a look at these tips and work on being efficient with the time you have rather than chaining yourself to the desk more than your requisite 8 or 9 hours a day (I do understand that on occasion, longer hours may be unavoidable). Go to work, work hard and when the day is done, leave what is left for the next day. By working efficiently, you will eventually catch up and carry over less work.

Or, if cutting down on stress by leaving your gadgets at work is unavoidable, you can always buy the stress eraser–yes, another gadget–and use it to give you the calm you crave.

stress, work stress, time management time saving, work, office

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Here are some time management tips that I heard on the radio, courtesy of John Tesh’s site and from Julie Morgenstern’s book, Never Check E-mail in the Morning:

Cut your workday by 30 minutes
Although this sounds like it would just make you have less time to accomplish that which needs doing, apparently you’ll be more efficient because you’ll know you have less time in which to do things. I guess it would force you to prioritize and determine which items really need to be done and which ones can be put off until a later date. My only question is: who is going to sell this idea to my boss?

Don’t multitask
This tip is music to my ears: I am terrible at multitasking (I can’t even eat or drink and walk at the same time) and it’s great to hear that studies have shown that it takes four times longer to do a task if you’re doing it in conjunction with other tasks. And think of all the errors that can happen when you’re doing a few different things at once! I keep thinking I’ll make a terrible mistake at work due to my attempts to multitask; the fact that we deal with confidential information makes it that much more frightening. Of course in an office setting, where people come to you with requests that they always seem to need “as soon as possible”, it might be hard to avoid having a couple of things going at once. But you can jot down a few things and then go back to the original task and finish it off in its entirety instead of jumping from task to task. That way you’re not losing any brilliant ideas that come to mind and you’re (relatively) focused on one task.

Don’t look at email first thing in the morning
I’ve heard different variations of this tip before. You’re (presumably) your most fresh and energetic in the morning so it makes sense that you spend those precious hours on work that requires you to be fresh and alert. Responding to inane email requests is therefore not the best use of alert self.

I’ve also heard that you should check email only once or twice a day (once in the morning and again in the evening). This is a wonderful time saver; I’ve tried it. The only time it gets tricky is when a coworker sends you an email and then comes to your office shortly thereafter to make sure you got their email! This can end up using more of your time as you’re now forced to read the email in the coworker’s presence and respond right away. But once coworkers know when you’ll be checking emails, they’ll know when to send you an email that requires your immediate attention.

Another related tip I’ve heard is to try to touch something only once. For example, if you pick up a file, do all that needs to be done to the file before putting it away. This means you might have to spend more time with the file than you planned but at least when you put it away you know you’ll be done with it for a while. This is a more efficient way of handling large numbers of files, and it also helps with minimizing the chances of mixing things up when multitasking. This is another tips that definitely works!

What time saving tips that you swear by?

time, time management time saving, work, office

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I’m going to be a bridesmaid in a wedding in just over two months and it has just hit me: my dress will be here in a few weeks and it might not fit as nicely as I’d like it to! While I don’t want to lose so much weight that the dress no longer fits me [ahem], I would not mind beginning a healthy program that guarantees that my bare arms are toned, my stomach protrudes as little as possible, and my chin and neck regions look long and elegant.

To this end, I’d like to suggest some healthy tips and exercise ideas that you can add to your (work) day. You’ve probably heard of or thought of these before but it never hurts to repeat them:

Who needs one hour for lunch?
No matter how long your lunch period is, I challenge you to slash it in half: spend half of it eating, and the other half walking. I must admit, if anybody had dared suggest this to me even a month ago, I’d have looked out the window and laughed in their face but spring is here and the sun is out. To make this even easier, I suggest you bring in a pair of running shoes to work and leave them there. This conveniently gets rid of the “I don’t have my appropriate footwear” excuse (one that I have used a few times in the past)!

Trade your coffee break for a water break
For those of you who use coffee as a jolt or pick me up, I know that replacing coffee with water probably won’t do the trick. However, if any drink will do, I suggest you trade in that coffee for water, or a beverage many don’t get enough of: milk. These two choices will help with hydration of the body and milk consumption has been linked to abdominal weight loss (see here and here), which is especially important since abdominal fat has been linked to diseases such as diabetes and hypertension.

Create an everpresent fruit bowl
I’m lazy and if I have to choose between eating the jellybeans in my desk drawer, or going to the kitchen, washing an apple and bringing it back to my desk to eat, I’ll reach for the jellybeans every time. So why not bring in a bowl, wash some fruit and keep them on your desk? This way it’s even more accessible than that bag of jellybeans that you have to open the drawer for! And hopefully, replenishing your jellybean supply will become a thing of the past, and you’ll tempt yourself with the bright colours of apples, oranges, peaches, plums and bananas instead. A coworker of mine does this and I have to stop myself from reaching for an apple when I’m in her office.

Take the stairs
Another coworker of mine (did I mention that about 70% of my coworkers are health freaks?) takes the stairs up to our office which is on the 15th floor. Fifteenth. She does this every day and considers it her exercise for the day. I am not yet at that level of fitness but I do know that I could take the elevator to the 10th floor and then climb the remaining flights of stairs if I wanted to. The workout that climbing upwards provides to your gluteals and thighs is worth the panting at the top of the stairs, I promise (and since very few people use the stairs, no one will witness it!). I intend to do this once a week, and hopefully work up from there.

What easy exercise/good health opportunities have you snuck into your day? Plesae share!

walk, health, work, fruit, diet

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