Being Unemployed

Posted on September 9, 2011 by R. A. M.

Fired businessman Being unemployed can make you feel hopeless and miserable, but the most productive course of action is to look at your unemployment as a chance to reinvent yourself.

This is an opportunity for you to start over. If you can get over the fear of it all, you may actually feel refreshed. Whether you’ve admitted it or not, you’re probably already at the place where it can’t get much worse. So, bottom out and begin to look for new ways to break free of the cycle. Forget about your resumé. Take some free on-line classes that show you how to reinvent yourself in social media. See if your secret hobby or your weekend passion might be a better fit for you. Get to know your neighbors and spend more time with your friends to see if their work might suit you. Enjoy the relief of not being confined by all the things you hated about your last job. Focus on what it is you truly love, then see if you can find a new way to apply yourself to it. You have nothing to lose.

Photo © Lasse Kristensen – Fotolia.com

The Paint Trade

Posted on September 7, 2011 by R. A. M.

The house painter Has it been a while since you had to button up that smart white shirt and knot one of your slick silk ties? Can you remember the last time you took that cashmere blazer out of the garment bag and slipped into it, feeling the rush that comes of being a well-dressed man on his way to work? When was the last time you polished those two hundred dollar shoes? If you’re drawing a blank, you might do well to shift your intention and expectations.

Step outside and take a look around. What do you see? Houses? Apartments? Businesses? Yes, and they are all buildings, structures that need periodic painting. There’s no reason why you can’t get in on this market. All you have to do is create a little company (Camelot Painters?), a snappy slogan (“Every Home Can Be a Castle”?), print a few business cards, and begin knocking on doors to drum up some business. Yes, it really is that easy.

The equipment you’ll need is easy to find and not all that expensive. You’ll want drop cloths, paint pots (two gallon and five gallon), brushes (a couple of #30s and #40s), some roller covers and a roller or two, paint screens for the five gallon buckets, paint rags, a good screwdriver, and a putty knife. For your own outfit, you only require a pair of painter’s overalls and a cap or hat. The shoes you’ll paint in will become your painting shoes.

Once you’re outfitted, you are ready to go to work. Your hours are your own, and you can make a lot of money if you’re willing to work long hours and work hard. Remember! You can always make a buck in the paint trade.

Photo © Vladimirs Koskins – Fotolia.com

The Pros And Cons Of Working With A Friend

Posted on September 1, 2011 by Willis P.

sunny morning If you’ve seen The Social Network, you know that going into business with a friend can spell the end of a friendship, but it can also be a rewarding experience built on trust and understanding. When a friend offers to hire you, it can be incredibly tempting, but you have to consider the pros and cons of having a friend for a boss.

Pro: If you’re friends with your boss, you’ll feel a lot more comfortable asking for time off or a promotion. This improved communication will make it a lot easier for you to excel at your job.

Con: In trying to climb the ladder, you may find yourself in an awkward position with your friend; it’s always important to keep your business relationship and your personal relationship separate in this kind of situation, because if you don’t get that promotion or you have to work late, you don’t want it to end your friendship.

Pro: You get to spend a lot more time with a friend. This can be a great way to tighten your friendship if you find a way to balance the two components of your relationship.

Con: If you work for your friend, it can change your dynamic outside of the office. It can be tempting to talk about work related issues when you’re just hanging out, but you have to be very careful to just be friends when you’re not at work.

Ultimately, the most important thing in deciding whether or not to work for a friend is taking some time to evaluate whether or not you are both capable of keeping your work and personal lives separate. This can be difficult, but if you’re up for it, it can also be highly rewarding.

Photo © Dmytro Konstantynov – Fotolia.com

How To Exercise While At Work

Posted on August 30, 2011 by J. Widget

The flexible happy woman with the laptop on a white background If you have a barely used gym membership, and untouched fitness equipment at home, you’re far from alone. With today’s long hours and sedentary lifestyles, fitting exercise into your daily schedule can seem almost impossible.

The answer could be to exercise during the working day. There are more ways of doing that than you may have thought. And though these tips may not turn you into a super-slim fitness hero overnight, they can certainly help burn off some calories.

For example, you should start to notice tighter buns within weeks by squeezing your butt muscles, holding for 10 seconds and releasing. Do this at least 10 times each session to ward off ‘office chair spread’. The more you squeeze, the better the results.

It’s an obvious one, but don’t take the elevator – walk! If you work at home, have your office somewhere which forces you to go up and down the stairs several times a day. Wherever you work, how about using the bathroom on another floor?

Another idea, which admittedly you may want to do while no-one is looking, is the Funky Chicken. Place your fingers on your shoulders and raise your elbows before pushing them down to your sides, as though attempting flight. More discreetly, you can place your hands on your chair arms and just raise up your body. Repeat as many times as you can.

There are other things you can do. Walk to a colleague’s desk to discuss something or take a message or document, rather than relying on phone or email. It’s more sociable, too. Another tip is to take a pedometer to the office and set yourself a goal for the number of steps you walk in a day. Ideally, this should be between 6,000 and 10,000.

If you go to the shops at lunchtime, park somewhere that means you have to walk–or leave the car behind. Or if you have a headset rather than a standard phone, walk around while talking.

Be creative—use large filled water bottles as dumbbells for example—but make sure you get up and move around at least every hour. And, remember, any movement is better than none!