Can Music in the Office Motivate Staff

Can Music in the Office Motivate Staff When it comes to motivating your staff â€" and finding ways to motivate them â€" it can sometimes be a  bit of a tricky task. What might work for one business/team, may not work for another, so it’s  important to find the ideal solution for you to ensure your staff are in the best environment to work  as effectively and as efficiently as possible. In this post we will explore the key benefits from having  music playing in the workplace. It puts people in a good mood. Music is a great way of putting people in a good mood. It’s hard to feel motivated first thing on a  Monday morning, or last thing on a Friday when you’ve got the weekend on your mind, but if your  staff are feeling full of energy, it may put them in a positive frame of mind to work. It’s an effective  way to uplift spirits and give people the motivation to carry on. Not only this but it boosts  productivity, as well as improves team interaction. It improves writing skills. If you have the type of job where you spend a considerable amount of time typing on a computer,  you’ll know that sometimes it’s hard to keep that momentum going if you’re lacking in energy and if  your work is starting to feel monotonous. Therefore, music in the office could help you to write  quicker and obtain a more solid level of concentration. Getting your work done faster leaves more  time to proofread, perfect and get on with other tasks. It enhances energy levels. If music in the gym makes people train harder, run faster and more determined to succeed, surely  the same can be said for the office. No matter what environment you’re in, you’re more likely to  reach a certain goal, whether it’s meeting a deadline or prioritising tasks, if you have music to give  you a positive push. A chirpy, upbeat and feel-good song could give you the drive to apply yourself  and your skills more effectively. In a noisy workplace, music may be an escape. Whilst some may think that headphones in the office are a distraction from work, others believe that  office conversations are much more likely to prevent colleagues from getting on with their work.  Especially if the conversations aren’t work-related, it can make people more inclined to listen to  what’s going on rather that doing their work. Creativity in the workplace can be developed. It can be argued that moderate noise level in the workplace can really get creative juices flowing.  However, the type of music chosen is key. Songs with heavy baselines or screechy vocals may be too  distracting. In order to engage in deep work, and to use your creative abilities to the best possible  advantage, favour a more mellow sound. Music  improves focus. There’s been a time in all of our lives where we’ve struggled to concentrate on a task that it’s  essential for us to complete by a certain deadline. In these instances music is certainly not a  hindrance â€" well, not familiar music anyway. If you’re distracted in your surroundings and are finding it difficult to concentrate, putting your  headphones in and listening to some familiar music could be just what you need to help you focus.  If you need to focus intently then avoid new music, the reason being is that with music that’s  unfamiliar to you, you don’t know what to expect and will therefore subconsciously listen much  more closely to see what happens next. With familiar music from your favourite band let’s say, you already know what to expect which  means the music will not be your primary focus. What’s beneficial? During immersive tasks where you really do need to concentrate, obviously listening to music you  like is a good place to start. However, research has shown that there are certain types of music that  could be best suited to ensuring productivity. Classical:  Classical music rarely contains lyrics and because of this, is extremely popular when with people that  really need to get things done.  Studies have shown that music from the Baroque-period provide a huge boost to productivity. Remember, not all classical pieces will be as effective as others, some are pretty heavy in tone and  won’t be as effective as the delicate likes of Für Elise. Electronic Music:  There are many sub-genres of electronic music, one that we’re particularly interested in is chill-out,  ambient house, all in the category of ambient electronica. This type of music will never take over  your thought process, it’s something that you’ll very much notice but it’s extremely unobtrusive,  allowing you to concentrate on the task in hand. Author: Flo Turak is the Group Marketing Executive at Egan Reid, a workplace and education supplies and  furniture specialist based in North West England. You can find her on LinkedIn. Aside from managing  Egan Reid’s marketing and communication, Flo has a real passion for great content and unique design.  She’s also a bit of an office product geek.

How to Use Houstons Admissions and Outplacement Services

How to Use Houston's Admissions and Outplacement ServicesIf you are trying to find out about Houston's Admissions and Outplacement Services, then you can simply start your search online. You can find a lot of information on the internet regarding different aspects of Houston's schools. But before you can even begin to look for this particular job, you should first consult an employment expert who will help you choose which type of school you want to attend.Of course, you would not want to hire just any career guidance counselor for this. It is important that you go through his or her resume that he or she will present to you in front of the college admissions officer. If possible, you can also talk to his or her former students who might have better insights about the school that you are interested in attending.For many people, finding jobs that match their skills and talents is quite difficult. In such cases, you may need to talk to your HCO or Career Education Center's counselor fo r advice on the best way to get the job you really want. However, since most of them have a list of popular career fields, it is easy to get through. But if the field you want to apply for is not listed anywhere, then you may need to look for it online.If you cannot find what you are looking for online, you can always use your real life experience. This is because no matter how many times you visit the school, you are bound to be told that there is no admission date yet. You can also try your luck with the online admission letters that will tell you when the school is waiting for you to send in your application.If you are really enthusiastic about finding the right school, you can always go to the Career Education Centers and contact their counseling staffs for advice on where to apply for your desired career. The counseling staff will help you search online to find out which schools are actually offering the program that you want to join.Before applying to Houston, you must make su re that you are completely prepared. There is nothing wrong with applying in the Spring when it is usually easier to get accepted than when the school is actually filled up. As a result, you may also find yourself fighting against other students for the limited spots available at the time.However, if you are really determined to attend Houston and you can fulfill all the requirements, you can talk to the career guidance counselors and find out if there are any necessary prerequisites. If there are, then you can fill out the form online before you submit it. This is a good way to ensure that you do not waste your time applying at a school that does not require any prerequisites.Do not forget to ask the career guidance counselor about Houston's Admissions and Outplacement Services before you send in your application. Since this is such a common question, they will have an idea on the types of courses that can be taught by the school. So if you really want to get the job of your dreams , you can go online and find out more about the options that Houston offers.

5 Easy Steps To Quit A Part-Time Job - Algrim.co

5 Easy Steps To Quit A Part-Time Job - Algrim.co Want to know how to quit a part-time job? It’s easier than you might think. But it’s a great thing that you are referencing this writeup to help ensure that you don’t make any common mistakes. Let’s jump right into what you should know before you decide to put in your two-weeks notice with your part-time employer. Table of Contents Common Part-Time Job “Quitting” Mistakes How To Resign Gracefully From A Part-Time Job What If They Ask For A “Two-Weeks Notice” Letter Common Part-Time Job “Quitting” Mistakes Here are some of the frequent mistakes that employee’s make when quitting a part-time job: They believe they don’t have to submit a resignation. Sometimes part-time workers feel as though all they have to do is tell their employer that they want to quit and the deal is done. While that can certainly be an action you could take. It makes you look terrible. And it harms the employer. They can’t prepare for your replacement and this puts them in a difficult position. It’s a malicious way to quit your job. They don’t need to complete their two-weeks. Once again, an instance where an employee feels as though because the employment is part-time that there’s no requirement to complete your two weeks. Don’t be fooled. By not completing your two-weeks you could be showing your employer that you were not happy with their employment. And that could hurt you in the future. For example, if they are called to be a reference for future job applications. They don’t get a letter of recommendation. Getting a letter of recommendation can be a valuable tool for you in your career path. Even if your employment was part-time. If you don’t complete your two-weeks or resign gracefully, getting this letter of recommendation is going to be challenging. They don’t resign gracefully. Lastly, this is something you should know how to do. Resigning gracefully means you aren’t quitting by email. You aren’t leaving a voicemail saying you’re done with the job. You sit down with your employer and mention to them that you are desiring to move onto the next opportunity. Related: Quitting A Job After 3 Months? Here's What You Should Know How To Resign Gracefully From A Part-Time Job In order to resign gracefully, here are the steps you should take in order to quit your part-time job: Request to meet with your employer. First, set up a meeting with your employer. Mention that you’d like to connect with them at their earliest convenience. Have the conversation. When you’re having the conversation, be sure you start with how thankful you are for the opportunity and how thankful you are for the education you’ve received working with them. Then mention that you’d like to move on. Set an end date. Be sure that you work with your employer to set a date when your employment would end. This will be your “two-weeks”. It’s important that you work with your employer to ensure they have enough time to train someone new. Don’t lose focus. Most people start to lose enthusiasm for the position during their last two weeks. This is normal. Even if you were an incredible employee, try to keep this up during the final weeks of your employment. It will come in handy when you ask for a letter of recommendation. Ask for your letter of recommendation. A letter of recommendation can be a really valuable tool in the future. Even if the job you’re applying for doesn’t have any relevance to the job you have a letter of recommendation from. A part-time job still has a manager and that manager has an opinion of you. Get your letter of recommendation. Related: Leaving A Job After 6-Months: The Good, The Bad, The Ugly What If They Ask For A “Two-Weeks Notice” Letter If your employer asks you for this, then they’re looking for your resignation letter. A resignation letter for a part-time job is very similar to a letter for a full-time job. Here are the things you want to be sure you say in your resignation letter: How appreciative you are of the opportunity to work with them. Keep your mentions of people and your manager in a positive light. Mention your agreed upon end date. Mention that you’d appreciate any future opportunity to work with them once again Bring up that you’d be happy to help train your replacement and that if you can assist them with that process, you will be more than happy to do so. Related: How To Quit A Job, Look Professional & Retain Your Reputation Here’s an example of what that might look like: Dear Ryan â€" It’s been a wonderful journey working together. I remember coming into the office and seeing the team for the first time. I was immediately impressed with the level of work you were doing. Getting the opportunity to get employed by you has been a blessing. I’ve learned so many things from yourself and the rest of the team. While it’s been a difficult decision, I’ve decided it’s best for me to move onto the next opportunity. I would love to work with you and the rest of the team at some point in the future, if that opportunity ever arises again. My final date of employment will be May 1st, 2015 as agreed upon in our meeting on April 15th, 2015. If there is any way I can be of assistance in training my replacement, please let me know. Thank you so much, Matt Part-Time Job Resources Learn about the best part-time jobs - 5 Best Part-Time Jobs Plus 14 Other Easy Part-Time Jobs Learn about part-time job cover letters - 2 Best Part-Time Job Cover Letter Examples Learn how to gracefully resign from a part-time job - 5 Easy Steps To Quit A Part-Time Job Learn how many hours in a work week constitutes part-time employment - How Many Hours Per Week Constitutes Part-Time? The Answer Here Learn what the difference between full-time and part-time is - Part Time vs Full Time Explained Do part-time employees get holiday pay? Learn about the laws, rules, and regulations - The Laws On Part Time Employees & Holiday Pay Learn what the best paying part-time summer jobs are - 10 Best Part-Time Summer Jobs By Highest Pay (Salary)

Leave the family business to know if you should stay

Leave the family business to know if you should stay For too many people, staying in the family business is the easy way to worm out of difficulties of adult life: finding a place where you fit in, discovering what you love to do, and living with the fear of rejection. Especially today, with a dried-up job market, the family business is a way of avoiding a difficult job hunt. I worked in a family business â€" a bookstore. I started when I was eight, selecting titles for the early reader section, and by the end of college I was a walking card catalogue. After so many years, I was the heir apparent to the store. But I wanted to do something else. I just wasnt sure what. Fifteen years and three careers later, I am certain that there are three things you should do before you decide to settle down with your family business for the long haul: 1. Figure out your dream job. Dont worry about being realistic. Rock star, movie producer, politician: everything is fair game. Then decide if you want to go down the path to fulfill that dream. Dont feel bad if the dream is impossible many dreams are not realistic, but they contain gems of truth. For example, someone who dreams of being a rock star probably wants to be creative at work. The exercise of dreaming helps you to figure out your core needs. Once you know these needs, take an honest look at the family business. If you cannot fulfill your core needs in the family business, you should leave. 2. Get a job. Even if you are sure youll stay in the family business, get a job outside of the business. Job hunting sucks, which is why you should do it. The process is humbling and scary because on one level, you are asking someone to pay you to work so you can eat; at another level, job hunting requires understanding yourself well enough to talk about your dreams, your strengths, and your weaknesses. You need to experience what it is like to ask for a day off from someone who doesnt love you. Working for someone outside your family helps you to interact effectively with all people outside your family. This process is a rite of passage, and if you dont go through it, you risk stunted growth. 3. Take a large risk. If the entrepreneur is on the high end of the risk-taking scale, the kid who stays in the family business is on the low end. At the end of life, the thing people most often say they regret is not taking enough risks. Make sure that staying in the family business will not make you wish later that you were a risk taker. If you take a large risk early on, then you can be more certain that you are not staying in the family business because you are scared of taking risks. Risks are different for everyone â€" a mountain for one person is a molehill for another. Find something that scares you and do it. Adult life is about learning what matters to you and creating a life that reflects your values. In order to know whats important, though, you need to see the world. Take time to establish yourself independently from your family â€" at least for a while â€" so you can see yourself more clearly. Whether you stay in the family business or go somewhere else, youll be a happier person for making the decision honestly.

Best Online Resume Writing Services

Best Online Resume Writing ServicesA large number of people these days are outsourcing resume writing to those that offer the best online resume writing services. That may seem strange, because there are many companies in the market who offer good quality resume writing services, but they don't offer services which will enable them to get hired.Resume writing is an essential aspect of the job search, and you would do well to hire someone to help you with this, rather than outsourcing your work to a freelance or outsourced person. You'll be able to avoid problems at the start, and ensure that you're getting the best results from a company that you wish to employ. Before we go any further, let's have a look at what those things are that you can expect from a company which is offering the best online resume writing services.When you are hiring an online resume writing service, it is very important to find out whether they are qualified to do the job or not. You need to know whether they have experience in this kind of work, as well as how much experience they have. This will allow you to make a judgment about whether or not they are the right kind of help you need.It is also a good idea to look for testimonials on websites for the company you are considering using. If they don't offer testimonials, you should move on to another company. It is always a good idea to go with a company that offers proof of their success in the past, so you can be assured that you are in good hands.Make sure that you are also looking at the services they offer. While there are some services that only specialize in one thing, such as resume writing, there are others that can offer services such as editing, designing, proofreading, correcting grammar and spelling errors, and helping you decide on the content for your resume. Always make sure that the services you receive from a company offer exactly what you need.When you want to hire an outsourcing company for best online resume writing services, it is a good idea to check with the Better Business Bureau and see if there are any complaints. Companies that don't have enough experience and won't be able to work on any kind of project that you have will probably be more trouble than they are worth. These will probably cause you a lot of trouble, so make sure that you're dealing with a reputable company that is confident in their work.One way to identify whether a company which offers an online resume writing services is going to be reliable is to check out the testimonials that are on their website. There are many reputable and well established companies out there who do excellent work, so make sure that you read through their testimonials carefully. The good news is that there are many great companies out there who offer quality services, so you should be able to find a reliable outsourcing company who will meet your needs.There are many things that you can take away from best online resume writing services. While i t might be true that some companies might charge you a lot of money for outsourcing, you can generally find a company who can offer you good service at a reasonable price.

Job Search and Social Media A Collective Approach

Job Search and Social Media A Collective Approach You cant run a job search in a vacuum.   You cant even run a job search alone.   If you think of any of the great wins or successes in history, they all involved one or more of the following: partnerships, collaboration, alliances, agreements, negotiations, and trusting relationships. Whats missing from your job search? Is it the social element? This post is one of many Career Collective posts by resume and career experts on social media for job search .   I am honored to be part of this group and want to thank   Miriam Salpeter, of Keppie Careers, and Jacqui Barrett-Poindexter, of Career Trend, for coordinating this initiative now on its second year.   You will find links to the other expert posts at the bottom of this post.   I highly encourage you to read them all and bookmark them for future reference or sharing with friends and family.   If you are on Twitter, you can see our community by following #careercollective. The key to a successful social job search is using the right tools for the right reasons! Here are four ways to think about your job search differentlysocially.collectively. Learning and Sharing Knowledge Learn what you dont know from those who are in the know and share what you know with those who may want to know!   Stop being stingy with your intellectual property. SHARE. Write about what you know. This could be starting your own blog, writing an eBook, commenting on blogs, or even writing a book review on Amazon. Speak about what you know. Give a presentation to a professional association or group.   Make your slides public on Slideshare or Prezi. And if you do engage in any of the above, add them to your LinkedIn profile via the available applications! This becomes your online portfolio. The New Business Model isnt Competitive. It is Collective! Think of Open Source software, Wikipedia, Online Forums, LinkedIns QA, Quora (7 Tips for How and Why to Use Quora).   These solutions are open and collective.   People freely provide their expertise, knowledge and experiences to HELP OTHERS, oh and to build their brand. Space and Time (zones) No Longer Limit Joining forces with the global community is possible, even easy, with social networking and social media. Join forces with like-minded individuals scattered across the world. Join Twitterchats (see listing of existing Twitterchats here) LinkedIn groups (3 Ways to Use LinkedIn Groups) Even Facebook groups. The Sum Is Greater than Its Parts Work together with other job seekers.   Learn and share with each other. There are LinkedIn discussion groups and Twitter chats to help. These are links to the transcripts from some of the top job search related Twitter chats. JobHuntChat HFChat InternChat Dont forget about your local resources for meeting IRL (in real life) to grow and foster your network and job search efforts. What I know and have seen first hand is that those job seekers who engage in a group to hold themselves accountable are always far more successful (meaning they find a job faster) than those who go it alone. Recommended Reading There are four books I highly recommend you read if you want to better understand social media/social networking and our new social economy and job search. Trust Agents by Chris Brogan and Julien Smith The Thank You Economy and Crush It by Gary Vaynerchuk Social Networking for Career Success by Miriam Salpeter So my hope is that by reading these books and all the following posts, you will want to build a collective job search strategy.   Step into new territory and learn from others. And remember, managing your career is on-going. Make Your Career More Social: Show Up and Engage, @WalterAkana You 2.0: The Brave New World of Social Media and Online Job Searches, @dawnrasmussen How to Get a New Job Using Social Media, @DebraWheatman Social Media: Choosing, Using, and Confusing, @ErinKennedyCPRW How to Use Social Media in Your Job Search, @heatherhuhman Updating: A Social Media Strategy For Job Search, @TimsStrategy Your Career Needs Social Media Get Started, @EliteResumes @MartinBuckland We Get By With a Little Recs from Our Friends, @chandlee Expat Careers Social Media: Social Media is Potentially 6 Times more Influential than a CV or Resume, @expatcoachmegan Social-Media Tools and Resources to Maximize Your Personalized Job Search, @KatCareerGal How Having Your Own Website Helps You, @keppie_careers Social Media: So whats the point?, @DawnBugni Tools that change your world, @WorkWithIllness HOW TO: Meet People IRL via LinkedIn, @AvidCareerist Effective Web 2.0 Job Search: Top 5 Secrets, @resumeservice Jumping Into the Social Media Sea @ValueIntoWords Sink or Swim in Social Media, @KCCareerCoach Social Media Primer for Job Seekers, @LaurieBerenson

2 years of Open Source Software - The Chief Happiness Officer Blog

2 years of Open Source Software - The Chief Happiness Officer Blog About 2 years ago I got myself a new PC, and since then Ive only use one piece of software that I paid for and thats Windows. Every other program on my computer is open source and free, and it has worked perfectly. I havent missed Outlook, Microsoft Office, Dreamweaver or any of those other programs I used to use. Instead Ive been using: openoffice.org Reads and writes Microsoft Office files and works just as well. Contains a Word, Excel and PowerPoint clone all of which have all the features youll ever need. And you can save your documents as pdf files. Audacity An excellent program for recording and editing sound. I used it to mix music and to edit an audio book. nvu HTML editor. REALLY easy to use. Firefox The best browser around. Thunderbird A mail program that kicks Outlooks butt. Filezilla A killer ftp client. Azureus The best bittorrent client around. Has the best user interface of any program Ive ever seen. egroupware Additionally we use egroupware in The Happy At Work Project to share calendars, adress books and to manage some of our websites. Not only is all the software mentioned here free and open source, its also available on multiple platforms, so if I decide to switch to a Linux or Apple machine tomorrow, I can continue to use the same programs and to work on the same files. So why are you still paying Microsoft and others for software? Thanks for visiting my blog. If you're new here, you should check out this list of my 10 most popular articles. And if you want more great tips and ideas you should check out our newsletter about happiness at work. It's great and it's free :-)Share this:LinkedInFacebookTwitterRedditPinterest Related