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How to Not Screw Up Your New Job
It’s one of the best feelings in the world, heading in for your first day at a new job. Everything feels fresh and new, you feel like you’re starting with a clean slate and that you’re really going to ace this one. You’re just so positive about everything, especially if it’s the kind of job you’ve been hoping for and working toward for a long time. You know, the kind you see on commercials for online employment sites where the dude in the tie is doing the arms-raised-high and both-feet-hitting-his-lower-back-type jump, fueled by that new job joy.
But, starting a new job can be especially difficult for some. Perhaps you just can’t seem to fit in, no matter where your career takes you (this happens a lot more often than people think, I assure you). Here are some things to avoid doing (many of which I’ve personally witnessed) that will go a long way in getting your ass on the outside curb quicker than you thought possible.
The Definitive Guide to Covering Your Ass
Doing the kind of work I do, I’m often asked questions like “Do you know if the changes to suchandsuch.com were pushed to the live site?” or “Did Timmy get those edits done?”. Hell, even in my own house: “Did [mother-in-law] give [son] a bath?”. Questions to which, most of the time, I don’t have concrete answers. So, I answer in a non-concrete fashion.
It always slays me when people answer categorically “No” or “Yes” to a question when they don’t even know, for a fact, that their answer is correct. Not to get too geeky, but a former coworker of mine once asked another former coworker “Does C# support multiple inheritance?”. The latter coworker, without batting an eye, said “Yes”. He was wrong. (The meaning of the question is unimportant - so don’t spend too much time trying to figure it out - just an example). His problem? He didn’t cover his freakin’ ass.
6 Simple Ways to be a Nicer Person
I consider myself to be pretty easy-going most of the time. I tend to get along well with people and I find it pretty easy to talk to most folks that I come in contact with.
As to why I’m a nice guy, that you can attribute to my parents. My father was a hardass and my mother is pretty much the sweetest lady ever. My father went out of his way to make sure that I did certain things when dealing with other people that are pretty much reflex now.
Not saying that I’m an authority on “nice” or anything, but I’ve certainly picked up a few nuggets in my young life. It’s surprisingly easy, actually - even for people who tend to be on the shy side.
How to Backup *All* of Your Data for Pennies per Month
Every so often when I’m out running errands on the weekends, I’ll catch a radio talk show dealing with technology (users call in with questions, etc.). I swear I can’t get through an hour of this show without the subject of data backup coming up at least once (or perhaps the entire hour will be spent covering different backup strategies). It’s safe to say that most people don’t properly backup their information and personal files, despite the myriad of available applications.
I think it’s because the solutions come in one of two forms:
Read more
Transform Your Cell Phone into a Productivity Juggernaut
All of us productivity nerds have our tools of choice. Some instinctively reach for a stack of index cards, others for a PDA or Pocket PC. I’m here to tell you that your regular, everyday cell phone can probably be just as effective as any other swiss army knife out there.
It’s all about taking your phones built-in features and combining them with some terribly powerful websites/services available today. And your phone doesn’t have to be anything fancy - this ain’t just for you iPhone/Treo folk, oh no. I’m talking to those of us with normal, average-joe-type cell phones - usually the kind that comes free with a new contract.
Most of these services require only the ability to send and receive text messages (and, obviously, phone calls). Ready?
Don’t Take a Break Unless You Need One
One area where I find myself disagreeing with many of the community gurus is the area of breaks and the taking of breaks. Many will say that one should work n minutes per hour and take a 60-n minute break, like clockwork. I disagree. Attempting to shoehorn humans into a robotic schedule when their work doesn’t dictate such a schedule is, in my opinion, counterproductive. After all, when you take a break, you’re no longer being productive (and, yes, I understand that “recharging” is important to overall productivity - I just don’t believe it to be something that should be scheduled).
We’ve all heard about “the zone” (though, perhaps by a different name). Those rare occasions when you’re completely focused on what you’re doing and you’re at the peak of productivity. The rest of the world has faded into the background and it’s just you and [your task]. For those of us who have been there, it’s a bit like a good night’s sleep: you don’t realize how awesome it was until it’s over. This is my main reason for not taking scheduled breaks.
The Productivity Trifecta, Part 1: The Word ‘No’
…your “Delete” key. It is in a three way tie with for the best productivity tool ever with the Trash Can and the word “No”. - Org-Fu Überpost - Productivity Whitepaper by Patrick Rhone. This statement is the inspiration for this series of posts called The Productivity Trifecta.
Of all the things you can do to limit the amount of input you’re forced to deal with, this has got to be one of the hardest. Having to look somebody in the eye and tell them that what they’re asking isn’t worth your time (because, really, that’s what you’re saying) is tough business. People don’t tend to react well when they’re told they can’t have what they want in the workplace. Why is that?
How to Construct the Perfect Email Subject Line
How many times have you received an email with a subject line that said something like “Question” or “FYI”? Or, worse yet, had no subject at all? For all the millions of email messages that traverse the Internet every day, the ability to effectively formulate an indicative subject message seems to be fairly unimportant to most people. A quick skim of the last 100 or so email messages you’ve received will likely support my claims.
It is because of this seemingly global issue of email subject apathy that I give you this (what I consider to be) definitive guide to creating the perfect email subject.
Productivity Infused with Style: Behance Action Products
(Disclosure: Behance is a sponsor of Cranking Widgets - but that doesn’t mean I am obligated to give anything but my honest opinion regarding their products. The following review is comprised of my untrammeled thoughts and reactions - nothing more, nothing less)
The first thing I noticed about the sample product I received from Behance was the almost Apple-like attention to detail. Everything came in high-quality plastic packaging (no shrink-wrapping for these folks) and simply looked great. Even the stationary looks awesome. It’s the kind of thing that makes you excited to be more productive (much like Moleskine products, especially for me). You can tell that a good deal of hard work and thought went into the design of products like this, and you feel like you’d almost be insulting them if you didn’t use their powers for good.
The Single Biggest Enemy of Workplace Productivity
If you asked 100 people what keeps them from accomplishing their goals, completing tasks at the office, etc., I imagine you’d hear answers like “procrastination”, “interruptions” and the like. And while those things are definitely formidable foes in their own right, I believe there’s a single object that, for all the benefits it brings, hampers our overall effectiveness more than any of the aforementioned, abstract notions.
This object is one that veils itself in a shroud of almost magical power. It can take you around the world, show you things you’ve never dreamed of seeing, teach you just about anything you could possibly want to know - and even tell you when your prescriptions are ready to be picked up…
