Your colleague asked how your weekend went

Your colleague asked how your weekend went. It was fine, you said. And this wasnt the first time he asked that question.You tried to sound convincing, as you rather not reveal the real score. You were still living with your folks (and you havent saved enough for your own place). You were anxious about the upcoming week. (A bit.) And you didnt have any plans for the next weekend. You dont want to be looked at as incompetent, yet you dont want to be one of those people who dont have a life. You would hate it if your colleagues pitied you. Alas, your weekend could define you.If youve been working for years, even a year or two, then you would learn to value weekends. Youll even look forward to them. No need to be ashamed about it, as youre not the only one. Some will consider loafing as guilty pleasure, while others will binnensee it as a sign of reaching old age. But were veering off the subject. You imagined the other responses to the question, which would prompt your colleagues to app raise you. Unless youre active in social media, be prepared to be judged. Ignore the comments if you want. Look at the bright side, though. You can learn a few things. Here are some possible answersNothing special. You dont want to know. It can mean two things. Youre concealing something, and youre being defensive about it. You may even deny about it, but think again. What is there to hide? If you happen to live with your mother, then tell them about your petty arguments. (It will be a hint that youre looking for a place of your own.) It its the pressure at the workplace, then dont think too much about it. (Be an optimist.) If its an uneventful weekend, then theres nothing wrong about it. A long sleep might make you more than ready for the next working week.You met your friends. It will be good if you did arrange a meeting with your pals, but something might be wrong if youre asked for details. It may have turned out that you chatted with them, even commented on the photo(s) they po sted on Facebook. (And your colleagues werent online during the weekend.) You havent seen your friends for some time because youre a workaholic. You dont want to admit it to your colleagues, as it might give them a wrong impression of you. Nothing wrong if you tell the truth without sounding bitter (or defensive) about it. Its your life. Youll get along in the workplace.You watched a movie. Youre free of responsibility, which can be a good thing. (Youre young, so nothing to be guilty about it.) You have interests, which would pique your colleagues curiosity. (They will find you interesting, and you might be flattered.) You may have an addictive habit, which you dont want them to know. And you should.What if you had a holiday? Your colleagues will be green with envy, and you have photos (posted on Facebook and Instagram) to prove it. Nothing like being the center of attraction.

As a Software Engineer, Choosing This Type of Company Made All the Difference Heres Why

As a Software Engineer, Choosing This Type of Company Made All the Difference Heres Why For those of us who want to make an impact on the world through ur careers, finding work within non-profit organizations may seem like the most logical path. But for Sherry Xu, a San Jose, California-based software engineer, her idea of what making an impact could look like came to take on a slightly different form.I stumbled upon computer science when a friend of mine showed me a hackathon project of a bracelet that could potentially detect seizures and alert emergency medical services, Xu recalled. I thought it was amazing, and was absolutely floored that someone could bring something new to life like that, which could potentially benefit a lot of people, in just a couple of days with some code.It was shortly after this that Xu became completely immersed in computer science, a path that ultimately led her to working Cisco, a worldwide leader in IT, networking, and cybersecurity solutions.Recent ly, Xu shared with Fairygodboss what the day-to-day of life pursuing this mission looks like, as well as her No. 1 piece of career advice to women who want an impact-driven career like here.What is your title and department?Im a software engineer within the Internet of Things here at Cisco.Can you walk us through how you came to the role, and to this line of work broadly?Ive always loved challenges and creating things from the ground up. Growing up, I wanted to be a doctor so that I could help improve the lives of others. I wound up working the graveyard shift as an emergency medical services responder in ambulances while studying at university. It was very rewarding helping people, but it wasnt a career path that allowed me a lot of freedom to innovate and be creative. I stumbled upon computer science when a friend of mine showed me a hackathon project of a bracelet that could potentially detect seizures and alert emergency medical services based on the detected movements. I though t it was amazing and was absolutely floored that someone could bring something new to life like that which could potentially benefit a lot of people in just a couple of days with some code.Sherry Xu, software engineer at Cisco.After that, I became immersed in computer science. I later went on to hold several leadership positions in the oldest and most prominent computer science organization at university and served as a student voice to the computer science department. I planned and hosted numerous hackathons, tech talks, and got involved in many developer communities. I also worked with an amazing group of peers to launch the first of many iterations of the worlds largest collegiate hackathon, CalHacks.I now work as a software engineer at a wonderful company that gives me ample opportunity to be creative in not only my work projects, but also outside of my day to day work. I often build side projects to display at conferences and have been able to demo and speak about my work in fr ont of different audiences. Im thankful of the many opportunities that I have been given up to this point in my career and look forward to whats aheadWhat is an accomplishment that you are proud of?Im proud of starting new organizations and stepping up to leadership roles in existing organizations Being a cofounder of multiple organizations that flourished in my university and helping bring people with similar passions together has been such a rewarding and unique experience. As a child I was quite introverted and quiet, I never thought I would actively enjoy speaking in front of crowds or doing presentationsWhat is a challenge that youve faced and overcome?A big challenge that Ive struggled with and am still working on improving on is taking risks. Ive always been afraid of failure and that has caused me to miss out on fantastic opportunities both in my personal life and my career. Thanks to wonderful mentors and inspiring colleagues that Ive met throughout my college and professio nal life, Ive slowly been more comfortable challenging myself to do things that are a stretch for me.What is the 1 career tip youd like to share with other women who want to have successful careers like you?I would encourage other women to not be afraid to attempt things that they may perceive outside of their abilities or are uncomfortable doing It sounds clich but I do feel like a lot of the time I see many talented women unwilling to try for opportunities due to uncertainty or fear of failure. Advocating for myself and really taking advantage of the opportunities that came up helped me greatly to get where I am today. I want to encourage women to really advocate for themselves more and not pass up opportunities due to fear or uncertainty of their abilities.Why do you love where you work?I love my job because of both the cutting-edge technology stack that we are using and because of the people. During my time at Cisco, Ive met many amazing people that I have been blessed to learn from and work with. Ive been thankful for the ample opportunities to represent the company at conferences, school, and talks. My colleagues have inspired me to try different hobbies and have definitely encouraged me to grow by doing things outside of my comfort zone. Ive made incredible friends and have inspiring mentors I am truly grateful for all the kindness and encouragement that my colleagues have given me--Fairygodboss is proud to partner with Cisco.

How Your Small Business Can Deal with a New Competitor in the Marketplace - Spark Hire

How Your Small Business Can Deal with a New Competitor in the Marketplace - Spark HireWhen youre a small geschftlicher umgang owner, a new competitor in town can feel menacing. However, just because some competition pops up in the marketplace, doesnt mean that your own company is doomed. Utilize these strategies in order to neutralize the threat and keep your business moving forwardDont immediately slash your pricesFor some business owners, the natural instinct is to slash prices as soon as a new competitor pops up on the horizon. The thought is that this will make you most desirable to your clients, giving you the advantage. While you certainly want to make sure that your prices are competitive, making them as low as possible wont necessarily ensure that your business thrives, and can actually end up hurting you in the long run. Instead, focus on the quality of your product or service and strong marketing efforts.Dont talk smack about your competition to your customersFight the temp tation to go around talking smack about the new guy in town to anyone who will listen. Even if what youre saying is true, this makes you look unprofessional. It also shows that youre threatened by the presence of this new business. Instead, focus on highlighting the positive attributes of your own company, only talking about the competition when asked.Find your nicheWhen new competition pops up, it simply means that your business needs to find its niche. Yes, there can be two coffee shops in the same town, as long as youre offering different kinds of coffee or different experiences. Differentiate yourself from your competition and youll find that your client base wont shrink just because theres someone else in town offering something similar.Take an honest look at your processUse this time to get honest feedback from your customers and potential customers. What are you doing well? What could you be doing differently? What service could you offer that would really benefit your client s? By doing this, youre making yourself invaluable to the people you serve.How did you handle the presence of new competition in your area? Let us know in the comments reputation Rawpixel/BigStock.com

What to Avoid as a Manager When Giving Orders

What to Avoid as a Manager When Giving OrdersWhat to Avoid as a Manager When Giving OrdersMany people believe that to be an effective manager you have to give orders to the people on your team or in your department. They are wrong. Orders should be reserved for emergency situations. Instead, offer direction and encourage employees to define the best way forward through the use of open-ended questions. Orders Stifle Critical Thinking and Reduce Creativity When you give orders, you tell someone to do something. Put that file on my desk,is an order. So is, Put Roger on the late shift.When you give an order, you do not allow the other person any latitude to think about what to do or how to do it. All they can do is comply with your order. By doing this, you are suppressing creative and critical thinking and problem-solving and stifling learning. Instead of giving orders and telling someone what to do, good managersoffer direction and provide high-level instructions. Instead of tellin g people how to do something, you tell them what you want to be done and leave the rest up to their efforts. The Power of Asking for Input A more effective approach than issuing orders is to describe the work to be completed and ask for ideas and input. Most people prefer to have some degree of control over how they complete their work. Your role asa manager is to describe the end goal or target. You own the What however, where possible, delegate the How to encourage buy-in and stimulate creative thinking. When you tell an employee what you want to be done, instead of giving an order, you give them the freedom to come up with their best way of completing the task. They are challenged to think for themselves and even to think creatively. While their ideas may not always match your view on the best method to complete the assignment, it is important to recognize there may be multiple effective methods to get the job done. Perhaps the employee will come up with a better approach. Le arn to present new assignments as challenges. Describe the underlying problem to be solved or the opportunity to be realized. If possible, describe the goals for the assignment. And then, draw upon one of the managers most effective questions How do you want to go about tackling this assignment? Use follow-on questions, including What do you perceive are the different approaches to completing this assignment?Which of the possible approaches do you perceive you will take?What are the benefits of your approach?What are some of the eignung risks?What help will you need from myself or others? Your open-ended questions are empowering for your employees. Instead of requiring them to conform to their perception of your method, you are encouraging them to think broadly about the task and the implications of the different approaches. Your willingness to let them select the approach shows that you trust them to make good decisions. Your challenge to think through the potential risks increases their possibility of avoiding or mitigating those risks. Do Be Specific About the Intended Results Orders are generally very clear while describing the task and desired results leave room for interpretation. So when you give instructions instead of orders, you need to explicitly define the intended results. Instead of saying, Id like you to review the past months data and get back to me on it,be more precise. For example, you could say Please review the past months data. Ideally, I would love to hear your analysis of the data and recommendations for how we should proceed.The management team is looking for our ideas on the new project investments, and your efforts here are critical to this initiative. The meeting is on Thursday, so if you complete this by Tuesday, it gives us time to talk through your findings and recommendations during our weekly meeting on Wednesday morning. Thanks When setting direction, always highlight What you are asking for.The use or context of the assig nment.The intended outcomes.The time-frame or as needed, specific due date.Your appreciation for the individuals efforts. When Orders are Acceptable Exceptions to the Dont give orders rule include situations involving emergencies or the health or safety of individuals. The right orders at the right time can save lives, prevent injuries, and stave off potential disasters. From military to law enforcement to firefighting or the hospital emergency room or surgery suite, there absolutely are situations where direct orders are required. However, if your environment is less volatile than those situations, use orders sparingly. The Bottom Line Your job as a manager is to get things done. However, it also means getting things done through others. When you give orders, you limit the group to your level of expertise. When you give instructions, you let the employees contribute whatever they can. The next time you start to give an order, give instructions instead. Tell the employee cle arly what you want to be done. Let them figure out how to do it. It is a better solution for both of you.

The older the woman, the wider the gender pay gap

The older the woman, the wider the gender pay gapThe older the woman, the wider the gender pay gapWomen at every age earn less than men of the same age, but the gender pay gap is far wider for older working women.Newdata from PayScaleshows that women age 45 and older earn 70 for every dollar that men earn, before adjusting for factors like experience and industry. By comparison, women age 30 to 44 earn 78 for every dollar men earn, and women in their 20s receive 83.Follow Ladders on FlipboardFollow Ladders magazines on Flipboard covering Happiness, Productivity, Job Satisfaction, Neuroscience, and moreThe older women get, the wider the pay gap becomes. Women ages 55 to 64 earn just 69 for every dollar earned by a man, and those 65 and older take home only 65 compared to men.When researchers adjust the data to account for factors like job titles, industry, and experience, the pay gap shrinks markedly For women over age 45, that apples-to-apples pay gap is only 97.But thats not necessa rily a good thing. That gulf between so-called controlled and uncontrolled pay gaps represents what PayScale calls the Opportunity eu-agrarpolitik- societal and business forces that keep women in lower-paying jobs and industries while men continue to advance and earn more.Women are opting out of- or being excluded from- some of the highest-paying industries, such astechnology, where women make up just 29% of workers, and theyre not being promoted into management as quickly as men are.When workers are in their 20s, the report finds that three-quarters of both men and women hold non-managerial jobs- what youd expect early in a career. But by age 45 and above, 30% of women are managers or supervisors, while 38% of men are. In that age group, only 3% of women have become executives, vs. 8% of men.The gender pay gap gets talked about as if its a single number or a single problem, but there are so many issues that contribute to why these gaps exist, says Lydia Frank, PayScales vice presid ent of content strategy.In addition to earningfewer promotionsand smaller raises, women are more likely than men are to taketime off from work to care for family membersthroughout their careers. Over time, that absence contributes to the widening pay gap.In anearlier study, PayScale found that workers who took at least a year off from a job earned 7.3% less on average than similar employees who did not take a break.While some of the solutions to the pay gap may have to come from company policies and regulatory changes, there are ways you can make sure youre being paid a fair wage throughout your career.Know your valueAt sites likePayScaleandGlassdoor, you can get hard data on the market-rate salary for your position, vital ammunition when negotiating for raise. If your manager still says no, dont let the conversation end there.Its okay to ask questions, Frank says. If it has something to do with your performance, you want to understand what you can do better, and when you can follow up on the conversation.Keep one foot in the workforceSometimes taking time off to care for a sick parent or to help with new grandchildren is unavoidable, but try not to put your career entirely on the backburner.Continue to network and consider taking on some gig economy work while youre caring for family, so that companies can see youre still up to speed when youre ready to come back.Seek out companies dedicated to gender equityA growing number of companies are committing to closing the pay gaps within their ranks. Look for firms that are publicly discussing their efforts to do so.One good sign A diverse C-suite and board of directors. If you look at an organization, and their entire executive team is white men, run, Frank says.This article first appeared on Considerable.You might also enjoyNew neuroscience reveals 4 rituals that will make you happyStrangers know your social class in the first seven words you say, study finds10 lessons from nestkken Franklins daily schedule that will double your productivityThe worst mistakes you can make in an interview, according to 12 CEOs10 habits of mentally strong people

3 real reasons youre getting radio silence after a final interview

3 real reasons youre getting radio silence after a final interview3 real reasons youre getting radio silence after a final interviewAuthors Note This manager and the entire HR department of Brewer Science, Inc. follow best practices for hiring candidates, including ethical standards, diversity and inclusion, and all Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) federal guidelines.You were flown in for an in-person interview, where you had the chance to meet and get to know the team. It went great or so you thought, but its been over a month since youve heard from the hiring manager. The job posting is mucksmuschenstill open, and HR said theyd get back to you within two weeks. What happened?From your point of view, it looks the company where you were so excited to work may have ghosted you, but what seems like radio silence to you is probably a flurry of tasks for the hiring manager to complete before you can be offered the position. Read on to understand some common reasons why you havent hear d back and what to do next.1. Its elend you - its meMaybe this was an inconvenient time for your soon-to-be supervisor. Perhaps they squeezed in your interview just before going on vacation. Its super-convenient for the manager, but its bedrngnis so convenient for you, since you have no way of knowing about the travel. Once the manager returns, theyll trudge through all the email from the last few weeks, until they get to the swath of HR messages that say, We still need a decision on this personIt could also be that internal communication has been unclear. Once the hiring manager has decided they would like to extend an offer to you, that manager needs to contact HR. Or was it HR that was supposed to follow-up? Did anyone in HR send out an email to clarify? Gary, could you touch base and find out where we are? These situations happen easily in a busy company environment.If you think the interview went great and were expecting the offer, trust your gut. It could be internal red tape and emails that havent connected. Be confident, and stay positive.2. Fess up did you embellish a little? (A lot?)Senior executives at Hewlett-Packard have suggested that women will apply for a job when they meet most, if not all, of the requirements of a job posting, while men are comfortable applying at much lower levels of qualification. In my experience, both men and women who feel lacking in a specific area will find ways to make one relevant detail in their resums into the crux of their entire application.On paper, a job candidate can skate to the next round using this tactic, but in person, you may be required to discuss this topic at length and describe how you would use that experience to propel the company forward. You may be willing to learn the skills you need, but if the manager suspects that your resum is a lie, they wont hire you.Youre better off with honesty. If you only meet 60% of the qualifications and requirements of a job posting, the hiring manager will focus o n the reasons why you think you are a good fit for the job and ask whether you would be open to learning the skills that the job requires.3. Youre not quite what were looking forAs the manager of a multidisciplinary team, I select unique candidates who are somehow different from the rest of my team, but this kind of team-building can mean that, despite an outstanding resum and a stellar interview, I might think that your education and experience are too similar to the professional hintergrund of another team member. The way that you see your experience isnt easily communicated in a resum but is discernable once youre conversing with the team. When a recruiter says, Your personality wasnt a good fit, a team dynamic like this could be at play.Unfortunately, there are also toxic environments that discriminate during the interview process, especially once they see what a candidate looks like and how she speaks, but you can use this knowledge to get a foot in the door. Check social media accounts for the company and find real world images of the companys demographics. How do they dress? What do they do for fun? If youre a female Millennial with a tattoo sleeve but social media indicates that the company makeup is majority white male over the age of 60, you can be prepared with a black blazer and a sleek updo. Its not fair or right that you should be the one to adjust to get the job, but this is an environment that perpetuates. Once you have the job, then start changing the culture from within.Where do you go from here? If its been a month and you still want to be a member of this team, go email your HR contact Two weeks is enough time for most companies to make a decision, so check in.Make it a brief note Thank you again for your time during my interview on DATE. If youve had a chance to touch base with hiring manager, I would appreciate knowing if they have come to a decision or if they have any further questions. Wanna be gutsy? You can also throw in a line about having other offers to consider. It accelerates the timetable- but could also be an immediate rejection. If you have a phone number, use it You might get a real person to answer the phone. Be prepared and polite, and check any impatience at the door. Try your luck The worst they can say is no.Dr. Amanda Riojas is a freelance writer and computational chemist living in Austin, Texas. She is the recipient of the 2018 David Carr Award, for her writing on the intersection of life and technology, and her articles about life as a working mom have been syndicated at WorkingMother.com and SheKnows.com. When shes not advocating for women and minorities in STEM, Amanda enjoys spending her time traveling, cooking, and preparing for impending arrival of Baby 2.A version of this post previously appeared onFairygodboss, the largest career community that helps women get the inside scoop on pay, corporate culture, benefits, and work flexibility. Founded in 2015, Fairygodboss offers company ratings, job listings, discussion boards, and career advice.

How Career Degrees Can Help You Get Your Dream Job

How Career Degrees Can Help You Get Your Dream Job How Career Degrees Can Help You Get Your Dream Job A huge benefit of career degrees is that they actually put you on exactly the right course for success in your chosen field. In many cases your studies will focus only on things that are necessary or beneficial to performing well in a specific career. Where success in a traditional higher education setting may have a portion of coursework that is heavily focused on career skill development, there will almost always be generalized learning that may or may bedrngnis translate well to improved performance in your chosen field. Thats why you need to seek a college degree if you are set on entering a certain field. When it comes to career specific training, you are much more likely to receive the hands on training you need to succeed in your chosen career and much less likely to waste time on coursework that may not hold a great deal of benefit.Career degrees can also benefit job seeker s by getting them into the workforce more quickly. Due to the fact that there is usually little or no unnecessary coursework, career-specific degrees can also prepare you for a specific career in a shorter time period than a generalized college degree. By eliminating much of the time spent on developing potentially unnecessary skills and focusing only on the knowledge needed to excel in a particular field, you may be able to dramatically cut down on the time youll need to spend earning your degree and get into the workforce faster.Making the decision to pursue a specific career degree is a big decision. Youll receive valuable and necessary education to prepare you for success in a specific field, but prior to making the commitment to career specific education, it is imperative that you do the necessary research to ensure that it is the correct career path for you. Seek the advice of a career counselor or take a few career aptitude testslike those here to ensure that you are embarkin g on a career that you will both love and feel rewarded by. Once youve made the decision of the best career path, seeing if there are career degrees available for your chosen field could help you get fully prepared as quickly as possible for the career that youve selected.