4 ways to resist distraction and focus at work

4 ways to resist distraction and focus at work4 ways to resist distraction and focus at workHave you said any of these recently?I get distracted and procrastinate.I make plans but I dont follow through on them.I get things done but notlagelage the right things.The problem oftencomes down to just one word reactive.Maybe that wasnt the word you were expecting. But reactivity isa problem people have been contemplating for thousands of years. And, yes, its a bigger issue now than ever.What is it? What can we do about it? Neuroscience and ancient wisdom from Buddhism and Stoicism haveanswers.Lets get to it . . .Your reactive brainMaybe youre lazy, maybe youre not lazy. But one thing is for certain yourbrain is.Research shows that even in our free time we often dont do what we enjoy fruchtwein - we do what is easy. Your brain doesnt want to waste energy. So its always a bit lazy.Problem is, the world is not lazy. These days its constantly shouting at you.Sometimes its the siren song of en tertaining things like text messages from friends and other times its scary things like work emails - but its shouting.Everything is demanding our attention. Wed like to make a plan and follow through or accomplish goals undistracted but the worldseems to be working against you.When I spoke to Duke professor Dan Ariely, he said exactly that the world is working against you.Heres DanThe world is not acting in our long-term benefit. Imagine you walk down the street and every store is trying to get your money right now in your pocket you have a phone and every app wants to control your attention right now. Most of the entities in our lives really want us to make mistakes in their favor. So the world is making things very, very difficult.Your lazy brain is happy to just react to that relentless bombardment of stimuli coming its way.But when youjust react, youdont usually make the best choices. And while youredefinitely doing something, yourerarely achieving your goals.Thats because whe n youre reacting, youre not in control of your life. In fact, reacting is the opposite of control. You see something fun and you chase it. You see something scary and you run away. Either way, your environment is determining your behavior.Its ironic that we so often say to others, Dont tell me what to do And yet, all too often, were letting the world around us determine our actions. Were not starting from plans and decisions, were reacting.And these days were often sitting there hoping we get a new text,email, update or notification. Were all but saying, Please, tell me what to do.And while technology has made the problem worse, this issuehas been around forever. About 2000 years ago the Stoic philosopher Epictetus said thisIf a person gave away your body to some passerby, youd be furious. Yet, you hand over your mind to anyone who comes along, so they may abuse you, leaving it disturbed and troubled - have you no shame in that?(To learn the 7 step morning ritual that will keep you happy all day, click here.)More often we need to step back rather than dive in. But how do we do that? First, we need to prepare. . .Control your contextBrian Wansink is a professor at Cornell who studies eating behavior. And one of the main things hes found about overeating is that its rarely due to hunger. Its usually due to context.FromMindless Eating Why We Eat More Than We ThinkEveryone - every single one of us - eats how much we eat largely because of whats around us.Youeat less when food is farther away and more when its closer. Heres BrianPeople ate half as much if we simply moved the candy dish off their desk andplaced it six feet away.So when you need to get work done, put your phone on the other side of the room. Make distractions harder to reach.When you have fewer things to react to or you make it harder to react to them, youll be less reactive.(To learn the 4 rituals neuroscience says will make you happy, click here.)Preparation is great but thats just the first lin e of defense. What do youneed to do when youre face to face with something thats pulling you into reactive mode?Stay calmTake a pause. Something fun is saying Come play with me Or something scary is in front of you and you want to run away and procrastinate. So just pause for a second.As Marcus Aurelius said a long time agoThe first thing to do - dont get worked up The next thing to do - consider carefully the task at hand for what it is, while remembering your purpose is to be a good human being.And modern science agrees. All that emotion is not going to help.Albert Bernstein, a clinical psychiatrist, says staying calm is key to making good decisions in the heat of the momentthe basic idea is that in many situations, youre reacting with instincts programmed into your dinosaur brain, rather than thinking through a situation. If youre in your dinosaur brain, youre going to play out a 6 million-year-old program, and nothing goodis going to happen.Neuroscientistssay stress takes your prefrontal cortex - the rational part of your brain - offline. Quite simply, stress makes you stupid. And thats why just reacting often makes you do stupid things.(To learn how astronauts, Samurai, and Navy SEALs stay calm and make good decisions, click here.)Okay, you paused. But you cant just freeze every time something tempting comes up. So whats next?Think about your goalsMake sure the most important thing staysthe most important thing.Even the ancient Stoics knew that.Epictetus saidFirst tell yourself what kind of person you want to be, then do what you have to do. For in nearly every pursuit we see this to be the case. Those in athletic pursuit first choose the sport they want, and then do that work.Not big on Stoicism?The ancient Buddhist practice of mindfulness is on the same page. Joseph Goldstein, one of the leading experts in the field, told me something very similarWhere is this action leading? Do I want to go there? This thought which has arisen, is it helpful? Is it serving me or others in some way or is it not? Is it just playing out perhaps old conditions of fear or judgment or things that are not very helpful for ourselves or others?And modern neuroscience researchagrees with both.Thinking about your long-term goals when youre tempted by distraction gives your brain a sense of control and can release dopamine which will make you feel better and more motivated.Alex Korb, a neuroscientist at UCLA, told me thisBy thinking, Okay, what is my long-term goal? What am I trying to accomplish? Calling that to mind can actually make it feel rewarding to be doing homework instead of going to the party because then your brain is like, Oh yeah. Im working towards that goal. Im accomplishing something thats meaningful to me. Then that can start to release dopamine in the nucleus accumbens and that can start to make you feel better about what youre doing.(To learn more aboutthe six rituals that ancient wisdom says can make you happy, click here.)Youre calm and youre thinking about your goals. Now comes the hard part. . .Make adeliberate decisionTurning down fun distractionsis hard. Resisting the urge to procrastinate is really hard.Sotake a second and deliberatelydecide not to give in. I know,that sounds waaaaay too easy to be helpfulWrong.Neuroscience shows pausing andtaking the time to make adecision actually helps stop you from engaging in bad behavior.Via The Upward SpiralMaking decisions also helps overcome striatum activity, which usually pulls you toward negative impulses and routines.And then, finally, act on that decision. Follow your long-term goals. Heres neuroscientist Alex KorbWhen the prefrontal cortex is taken offlineby stress we end up doing things that are immediately pleasurable.Instead of getting overwhelmed, ask yourself, Whats one little thing that I could do now that would move me toward this goal Im trying to accomplish? Taking one small step toward it can make it start to feel more manageable.(To learn more ab out the neuroscience behind mindfulness, click here.)Okay, weve learned a lot. Lets round it up and see what happens when we put it into actionSum upHeres how to resist distraction and be less reactiveControl your context You cant react to whats not there.Stay calm Stress makes you dumb. Stress and reacting leads to dumb behavior.Think about your goals Get Stoicism, mindfulness and dopamine on your side.Make adeliberate decision When you do, your brain is betterable to resist no-nos.You dont have to react and answer that text immediately. You dont have to react to that delicious smell and eat all the cookies. You can pause, stay calm, think about your goals and decide to do the right thing.Were all so afraid of being bored that we run to any distraction that presents itself. But when we truly engage with the world and focus on our goals, were never bored.And as David Foster Wallace said, If you are immune to boredom, there is literally nothing you cannot accomplish.Join over 271,000 readers.Get a free weekly update via emailhere.Related postsHow To Get People To Like You 7 Ways From An FBI Behavior ExpertNew Neuroscience Reveals 4 Rituals That Will Make You HappyNew Harvard Research Reveals A Fun Way To Be More SuccessfulThis article originally appeared at Barking Up the Wrong Tree.

Steps to Create a Career Development Plan for Employees

Steps to Create a Career Development Plan for EmployeesSteps to Create a Career Development Plan for EmployeesThe Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) identified 18 conditions that must be present in the workplace for employees to experience engagement. Then, employees rated their overall satisfaction with each of these factors in their workplace. Four of the lowest rated seven conditions that must be present for employees to experience engagement were related to training, professional development, and career development. This shows that the growth and development needs of employees are bedrngnis a typical priority in many workplaces. Yet, when employees identify the factors that they must have from work, career growth and development is one of the top five. A career development plan is a win for employers and employees. The plan focuses on the employees needs for growth and development and the assistance the organization can provide so that the employee has the opportunity t o grow his or herbei career. In addition to growing their career, employees are also interested in developing themselves both personally and professionally. Creating a Career Development Plan You can create career development plans with your employees by taking a few simple steps. For career development planning to be effective, expand your view of development and that of your employees. An outside training class is not the only way to develop employees. Thedevelopment that is provided in-house is often more effective. Here are some ways to create a plan Tell the employee that you want to meet with him or her to discuss career development plans and hopes. Ask the employee to think in advance about his or her options for growth and development and how they see their career unfolding in your company. Encourage the employee to think about how theyd like to see their careers progredienz.Suggest that the employee think about and come prepared to discuss these questions What professio nal job or career growth goals does the employee hope to achieve within three years? What would the employee like to accomplish this year? Offer opportunities for the employee to consider as options to accomplish these goals. Prepare recommendations on what the employee can do to ensure that he or she is making progress on his career path. Determine and discuss resources and support the organization can provide so that the employee can accomplish his or her professional job or career growth goals.Determine what professional and personal goals will help the employee improve or develop great performance in their current job. What additional support can this organization provide so that the employee can accomplish these goals? Hold a meeting with the employee to discuss these questions and formulate a plan with the employees involvement. Be flexible because the employee may have other avenues that he or she wants to discuss. As a manager, your job is to know all of the options availabl e to the employee such as job shadowing, mentoring, and coaching on particular skills.Make sure that youre up to speed and can talk knowledgeably about all of the training and development options that exist for your reporting staff members. Many employees dont consider development in any other sense beyond taking a class, and it helps to share with them all of the additional available options for training. Create and fill out a form that details the employees career development plan and turn it into Human Resources for review, additional input, and filing. Carrying Out the Plan Employee development is a great concept but is not without issues. The best plans keep the responsibility for follow-through squarely on the shoulders of employees. Otherwise, if an employee does not complete his development opportunities, he may choose to place blame on management, which is counter-productive for all of the involved parties. Steer the employee in certain directions, but dont do the work for him. Make it the employees responsibility to find a great class in listening if hes a poor communicator.If it turns out to be a poor choice, the employees responsible and if it doesnt produce the desired results, cannot place blame on anyone else. Both the Human Resources department and a manager can help the employee explore his or her options, but the employee is ultimately responsible for the choice and follow-through.If the employee finds what he thinks is a great development opportunity, he is responsible for selling the company on the idea. Working with the experience of the HR staff to select excellent vendors and avoid low-qualitydevelopment opportunities is the responsibility of the employee. HR has the experience the employee needs. Things to Avoid in Career Development Planning There are certain issues and statements that you would want to avoid as you and the employees who report to you create career development plans. A few types of issues can get in the way of an effective plan, such as Guaranteeing or forming a contract with the employee by promising that the company will provide training or any other promised benefit. The best that you can do is to say that you will help however you can, but that the company growth, economic circumstances, priorities, and goals will have an impact on the employees desired developmental path, promotions, and career goals. Nothing is guaranteed.In states such as Michigan where laws are interpreted literally, you want to avoid statements that over-commit the employer. For example, at a small manufacturing company, HR put up a career opportunity bulletin mainboard in the lunchroom. The company attorney advised them that the board implied that employees were promised careers and asked HR to call the board job opportunities board instead. Know your state and international governmental laws. The manager owning or having responsibility for carrying out the plan. The career development plan belongs to the emplo yee. You can facilitate its pursuit, explore options with the employees, provide opportunities for the employee when possible, encourage the employee to have goals for growth and expansion of his or her career and skills, but you cannot do it for them. The employees must own their plan.Overcommitting your time or resources. As much as you are devoted to helping the employees who report to you grow, you have a limited amount of time available to help, in addition to the rest of your job. For example, unless you are already aware of a great class or resource, researching options for the employee to develop skills is not your job.

Depression Is Making Unemployment Longer

Depression Is Making Unemployment LongerDepression Is Making Unemployment LongerDepression and anxiety create a destructive cycle for job seekers, making it harder to find a job.Soroush Ghaderi welches a confident young engineer. He worked at Sun Microsystems, one of the giants of Silicon Valley, where he had been on staff for 10 years, almost his entire career since college.As Suns fortunes faded, the QA engineer survived 13 or 14 rounds of layoffs before luck caught up with him and he was laid off with thousands of other employees in April 2009. He called it a blow to his attitude, but he knew it was coming and maintained faith in his abilities and the prospects for a short job search. In fact, he considered unemployment an opportunity. He had 60 days left on staff at Sun and severance coming after that plenty of time to find a new, better job.Fast-forward to April 2010, Ghaderi had sent out hundreds of resumes, been on dozens of interviews and received zero job offers. Ghaderi, on ce cocksure and positive in his demeanor, was blowing it on job interviews. The answers to technical questions werent as easy for me, and I was told by a couple of companies that they didnt think my programming knowledge was strong enough, he said. In an interview, you have maybe five or 10 minutes to answer a question. They ask you to write some code on the board. If youre leid doing it day in and day out, its going to take you a little longer to get the exact syntax. Thats what was getting difficult.His confidence wasted and depression raging, it got to a point where I knew I wasnt going to get an offer before I even went to the interview, he said. Looking back now, I realize that my depression and negativity was probably a factor in some of my interviews.Ghaderi was trapped in a destructive cycle common among the unemployed - depression and negativity were making it harder for him to get a job, which compounded his depression and negativity, and so on.Depression, anxiety and mal aise arent just a case of the blues to snap out of, said Deb Brown, a cognitive behavioral psychologist. The condition will sap your confidence and impact your ability to think and act, making it difficult to sell yourself as the best and brightest candidate for a job.Time and RoutineFor most, the length of time it takes to find a job and unmet expectations make matters worse. The duration of time that people are dealing with is probably going to be much longer than they thought when they first lost their jobs.Brown, who has experience coaching job seekers to climb out of depression and improve their presentation skills, said its critical for people who have been unemployed for long periods of time to continually check their attitudes. This, of course, is far easier said than done, which is why a close network of friends, family and colleagues is key. The time people tend to want to withdraw is exactly the time they need people around them to provide support, perspective and more th an a little cheerleading.It is very common for people when they start feeling down to withdraw, and that unfortunately is the very last thing that someone out of work should be doing, Brown said. Stay out there, stay networking, even though thats hard when youre starting to feel down and hopeless.Job seekers should also work to maintain a routine based in part on business best practices. It is extremely important for those who have been out of work for an extended period of time to create mission statements and modified business plans in buchen to breathe new life into their situation, said Jeffrey Sumber, a licensed psychotherapist and career development coach. I encourage people to spend at least three hours a day, each day, doing things toward getting hired. Three hours is a huge amount of time that needs to be factored into ones schedule, ideally in the morning.Publicist Jeremy Belitsos, who faced his own yearlong stint of unemployment, agreed that routine and taking care of you rself are critical. Belitsos recommends working out, getting up early (Getting up late seriously makes for a lazy day) and finding some kind of work within your field. Constantly interning and getting experience within your field, even if its weekend contract work you find over the Internet, has obviously good implications for keeping your work samples and references fresh, said Belitsos.Confidence BoostAfter feeling out of practice and a few steps behind the pack, Ghaderi decided in mid-2010 to sharpen his programming skills - in Perl, specifically. But what he found in class was not only new information but also confidence. I am a fairly good programmer, and being in class where I was able to compare myself to 30 other students gave me some confidence.With a brighter personal outlook, new skills and a slightly improving job market, Ghaderi received not one but two job offers in the fall of 2010, just a few weeks before his unemployment benefits were set to expire.Of the two jobs he was offered, Ghaderi decided to take the one that paid less but was full time as opposed to the contract-to-permanent opportunity offered by another company. The firm he is now working at is smaller than he is used to, but offers a lot of opportunity.Still, Ghaderi is not letting his guard down I still look at job sites, he said, checking out the skill sets theyre looking for, making sure that I dont slack off on any of those things - in case something goes wrong again.

About the Role of a Manager

About the Role of a ManagerAbout the Role of a ManagerMuch like everything else in our era of change,the role of a manager is evolving. What used to be predominantly a supervisory and over-the-shoulder type role monitoring the work of others, is now a blend of leader, coach, strategist, project leader, kollektiv developer and even team member. The notion of the manager as micro-managing bureaucrat has been retired and replaced with that of a critical enabler of learning and change. The differences between the two views and rolesare stark. The former (bureaucrat) is a vestige of the industrial revolution when the focus was on teaching farmers and artisans to do the same task over and over with ever-increasing efficiency. The latter view reflects our world today whereuncertainty and volatilityin our markets, industries, and firms demand learning and adaptation at the speed of change. For anyone interested in pursuing a career as a manager or in strengthening your effectiveness in the r ole, this article offers insights and links tohelp you better appreciate the hard work, challenges, and rewards of managing. Managers Are Closest to the Real Work of the Firm While executives are ultimately responsible for majorstrategic decisions, a firms managers are the ones working with the people, customers, and teams driving the business. Some managers lead functional groups such as operations, customer service, marketing, finance, I.T., human resources or one of the many other functions found in an organization. Other managers such asproject managersorproduct managersare responsible for working with people across all functions in pursuit of initiatives (projects) or respective product categories. Managers translate the firmsgoalsinto the work of their function. They are measured according to how well their teams perform and meet definedkey wertzuwachs indicators (KPIs), and their success is based completely on the efforts and success of their team members. The role of a m anager is one responsible for the work and results of others. As such, a great deal of the work of a manager focuses on building and supporting an effective team. Its All About the Team Effective managers operate with a clear view of their role in enabling the success and productivity of others. They strive to create an effective working environment where individuals are free to apply their skills in pursuit of departmental objectives. Todays manager is focused on building teams based on trust and shared values. The goal of the manager is to develop and support a team dedicated tohigh performance.A number of critical tasks in this process include Scoutingand recruiting great talent.Developinggoals and objectives.Providingperformance feedback.Trainingand developing team membersMotivatinghigh performance. A Managers Decisions Drive Actions Another critical role the manager plays is that of decision-maker when it comes to setting priorities or making tradeoffs. From talent deci sions to supporting strategic decisions to helping team members navigate challenging issues, managers are involved in decision-making every hour of every day. Here are a number of supporting articles Increasingly, Strategy is the Work of the Manager A strategy is all of the work that goes into determining which customers and markets a firm will pursue and how it will direct its resources to succeed in those areas. Given the proximity of many frontline managers to customers, partners and the critical functions needed to execute on strategy, many managers are integral parts of the strategy process in their organizations. Developing an understanding of the language and tools of strategy is essential for success as a manager in todays world. The Bottom Line Managing is hard work, as is developing as an effective manager. Its much less about telling people what to do and much more about providing, guidance, clarity on goals and coaching and support. Managing in this era is less o f a desk job and much more of a hands-on support role with ample decision-making authority. While some modern theories and punditssuggest that the role of the manager is obsolete in our world of knowledge workers, a good manager can be the difference maker in the pursuit ofexcellenceand high performance in our organizations. Updated byArt Petty

The Chronicles of Resume Thesaurus

The Chronicles of Resume Thesaurus Specify precisely what your responsibilities are and work in a couple of numbers to convey the range of what you do. Education Your education matters, especially if youre just beginning, so include your school info and degrees youve received, and details about your precise training. Quantify your accomplishments if youre able to. Your resume should demonstrate that youre capable of coordinating projects and supervising different employees, and display your capacity to work with clients. Its only normal to be anxious about hiring an on-line essay writer since you can not ever be koranvers whether you are employing the correct service or not. You dont have to indicate that youve a high school diploma if youve completed a greater degree of education. It can be helpful to check at job boards to find out what technical skills employers require. Each business and profession has specific keywords and phrases. Odds are good that hiring managers a t other organizations are utilizing the very same criteria for their employees. Recruiters become bombarded with a slew of resumes each and every moment. It is very important to include three or more jobs, and numerous employers will want as much as a 10 year history. Employers search for certain words. A Startling Fact about Resume Thesaurus Uncovered Have a look at the list below, and get prepared to make your resume way more exciting. Take a look at our expansive cover letter library for those advice you need to be successful. Proceed to sample cover letters to discover the perfect one for you to personalize. A cover letter is the principal method to give an introduction to an expected contact or employer. To be considered for nearly every position, you have to compose a letter of application. One, we apply an extremely careful range of our writers. Sprinkle the correct buzzwords into your resume and cover letter to demonstrate that youre a component of the business. I n the example of text however, such context is not readily conveyed to the reader and may be read incorrectly. Where to Find Resume Thesaurus Unless you are in possession of a great reason to broaden your variety, the below success verbs can cover most bullets its possible to think about. Occasionally its better to permit the accomplishment speak for itself. This list of resume action words can act as a guide to help you in adding power to your resume. Power words are used for many reasons. Utilizing the right resume words will allow you to get that job that youve always desired. The action word extracted, on the flip side, carries a whole lot more power. The Ideal Strategy for Resume Thesaurus Administration and Management irrespective of the business, all jobs need administrational efficiency. To find out more on what it requires to be a Budget Manager, take a look at our complete Budget Manager Job Description. Hiring managers want to scan your resume and discover th e information that they need in record time so that they are able to move on to the next resume. A chronological resume isnt recommended in case the work seeker has gaps in his career summary. As much as possible, you should attempt to tailor your letter to every work prospect. When a recruiter reviews your resume we wish to realize that you will take action if youre hired for the job. Not very comforting once youre job searching and trying your hardest to obtain an employer to look closely at your resume. When a recruiter reviews your resume, we would like to realize that you will take action if youre hired for the job. If you are able to, include metrics so hiring managers may see the effect of your work. Every hiring manager would like to employ somebody who will take initiative. If you need a position for a landscape architect, its very important to your resume to demonstrate your experience and your understanding of the surroundings. Now you know how to leverage the cor rect word balance, lets walk through a few examples of action words you may use for different abilities, jobs, and accomplishments to supercharge your resume. Skills The very best thing to do is create an overview of skills in the kind of bullet points and set them at the peak of your resume, DiRocco suggests. The best resumes highlight particular abilities that portray a special skill collection. It then offers to discover the definitions for every one of those synonyms. Clinical is among the best words youll be able to utilize. You must always steer clear from vague and not as impactful words. Employing strong words here is needed.

What Is So Fascinating About Resume Writing Format for Exam?

What Is So Fascinating About Resume Writing Format for Exam? Our talented writers can deal with nearly every sort of writing assignment, in addition to Math and Physics troubles and a lot more. Writing a strong application is a difficult procedure and we would like to make it simpler. It is possible to also Book Writing Template. Quite frequently, students do not understand how and where to begin writing. Heres What I Know About Resume Writing Format for Exam Each day youve got to perform plenty of assignments and process a great deal of information. Possessing a thorough understanding of what things to include in a resume is the initial step in preparing a resume. During the procedure, you will work one-on-one with a certified, experienced professional till you have a resume youre pleased with. Understanding how to tailor your resume will obviously offer you an advantage. If youre looking for the ideal writing services online, youre in the ideal location. Theres numerou s motives why you may look at selecting a top rated resume writing service. Resume writing samples provided will offer you a peek into the type of resume you desire to have according to your profession. Perhaps while trying to find examples you noticed poor samples throughout the internet. If youre puzzling who will be able to help you with the assignment at the lowest price as youre a student and may be pressed for money, youre at the appropriate place as we offer cheap custom made writings. The work description might also earn a difference. The contact information is the initial portion of a resume an expected employer sees. For example, a candidate who wants to submit an application for work in IT will have a different resume to an individual who is applying for employment in music field. If You Read Nothing Else Today, Read This Report on Resume Writing Format for Exam Nevertheless the easy fact remains that you want to supply a personalized contact rather than simply copy as it is. In addition, it provides you a sort of the resume that may be utilised to make your personal. You may be concerned that, when you decide on a reasonable, urgent resume writing service, you may be furnished a copy-pasted version of some other individuals CV. Resumes are mandatory for your professional identity if you prefer to change jobs or submit an application for a new job. They play imperative roles and they are the best recommendation. The Standard Resume provides you a comprehensive guide concerning what to put in your personal resume.