From Engineering to Design

From Engineering to Design Success Story > From: Job To: Portfolio career From Engineering to Design “I was bored, uninspired and demotivated.” * From Engineering to Design When Beth Sheard found herself crying in the office toilets, she realised that her working life had to change. Now, she's found a novel way to follow her passionandkeep the best of her existing job. Here's her story. What work were you doing previously? I was working five days a week as a Bid Coordinator at an engineering consultancy. What are you doing now? Now, I work only two days a week in that role; for the other three days I work for a world-renowned knitwear and textile designer. I've also set up my own website and online shop. I'll be attending craft fairs to sell my products and my first craft projects book is coming out in October. Why did you change? My job wasn't fulfilling me at all â€" I was bored, uninspired and demotivated. When was the moment you decided to make the change? It got to the point where I was arriving at work and going into the loo to have a little cry â€" I knew something had to change. Are you happy with the change? Yes! I have the variety of two jobs now; it's so much more fulfilling. It's an ongoing development but so many doors have opened. My career is going in a completely different direction and it's had an amazing start. How did you go about making the shift? My first step was to see a career coach. I knew I wanted a change, but needed some help actually making it happen. How did you handle your finances to make your change possible? I work in my old job and the new role on a freelance basis, so it's hard not to have any paid holiday, sick pay, bank holidays, etc. I've just had to be more careful with my money. What was the most difficult thing about changing? The unknown â€" will I / won't I like it? Change is always scary. What help did you get? My partner has always been amazingly supportive; he really helped me in talking everything through. Family were also great. They all knew I needed to leave my old job as it was draining me of my passion for everything. What have you learnt in the process? To take a risk and try something different. Even if it isn't the perfect fit, once you've made the change other doors open and other opportunities arise. And I've learnt to take them! To find out more about Beth's craft products, visit www.bethsheard.co.uk. Image by Becca Lawson What lessons could you take from Beth's story to use in your own career change? Let us know in the comments below.

Book Review The Essentials of Business Etiquette - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career

Book Review The Essentials of Business Etiquette - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career THE ESSENTIALS OF BUSINESS ETIQUETTE is the tenth book by Barbara Pachter. She is an internationally acclaimed writer on subjects relating to business. Her books are looked upon as the perfect guides for conducting oneself in a business arena. Not only is she famed for her writing skills but also for her exceptional communication skills and enlightening seminars. She has more than 2,100 seminars to her credit and was also the pioneer for a womens seminar in Kuwait. In her latest book, THE ESSENTIALS OF BUSINESS ETIQUETTE, she practically guides you on how to manage social media in a business environment. The importance of personal branding in a professional manner in a business related setup cannot be stressed upon more. The way you introduce yourself and gesticulate while you are doing so speaks volumes about you as a business person. Many companies appoint employees as their representatives by looking at their credentials. However, just being good at your work or having a lot of knowledge is not enough in this age of cutting edge competition. Good manners are equally important. If you do not know how to behave in public, even the online public arena, you lose the respect of your colleagues, subordinates, bosses and business partners thereby causing damage to the companys reputation. Connecting with people you work with and work for is required, even though it may not be a part of your job description. In her book, Barbara Pachter elaborates on how you should greet the people around you and build rapport with them. You may have a world of knowledge with you but without the support of your co-workers, you won’t get anywhere. This is a gospel for fresh graduates from college as well as the Chief Executive Officers who are actively managing their personal brand. In this book, Barbara Pachter amplifies the basics of a professional demeanor. The 101 tips provided are extremely simple and easy to incorporate. This is one of the handiest guides that teaches one to behave in an assertive as well a friendly manner. THE ESSENTIALS OF BUSINESS ETIQUETTE is a perfect mentor not only for behaving in public forums but also on social media.  [tweet this] The way you conduct interviews on the web, the kind of photographs you post on social networking sites and the emails you send out are all a part of your professional persona. Have you ever wondered why some at your workplace are promoted faster than the others or why some are more successful than the others although they may be equals in terms of their education and experience? It is all about mastering the three basic skills on how you present yourself. The way in which Barbara Pachter has segregated the personality of a business person into three simple areas is easy to digest and implement. If you know how to greet the people you meet, how to conduct yourself while eating, and how to handle the web, then you are all set for a successful career ahead of you. Author: Maria Elena Duron, is managing editor of the Personal Branding Blog, CEO (chief engagement officer) of  buzz2bucksâ€"  a word of mouth marketing firm, and a professional speaker and trainer on developing social networks that work. She provides workshops, webinars, seminars and direct services that help create conversation, connection, credibility, community and commerce around your brand.   Maria Duron is founder  and moderator of  #brandchat   a weekly Twitter chat focused on every aspect of  branding  that is recognized by Mashable as one the 15 Essential Twitter Chats for Social Media Marketers. Are you busy? Here’s some quick and easy tips on  Social Marketing for busy people.

3 Reasons LinkedIn is an Awesome Place to Work

3 Reasons LinkedIn is an Awesome Place to Work Google, Facebook and Twitter are all well known for having super cool offices. Recently, LinkedIn have joined them with an office renovation  that regular business owners  could only dream of   and it definitely lives up to the hype. I recently had the pleasure of visiting their offices and I couldnt believe  the incredible  amount of thought that had been put into every single room. Could this be the coolest office ever? Ive decided to look at 3 reasons why LinkedIn is an awesome place to work, and why everyone that works there is healthy, happy and motivated.  So as well as a crazy-cool office, what else have LinkedIn got that makes them a cut above the rest? 1) Culture: LinkedIns company culture is something that differentiates them  as an employer. They focus on 5 main pillars  Transformation, Integrity, Collaboration, Humor, Results.  Theyve put together the basis of their culture in a slidedeck (see below). One of my favourite things about the LinkedIn culture is  the concept of transformation. They outline that they mean this both professionally and personally which shows they actually care for their employees health and wellbeing in general. I also love it when brands  share their culture through slides. 2) Working space: The LinkedIn London office is probably the coolest office Ive ever visited. Each floor follows a specific theme (such as TV, music or sport) and then each meeting room within these floors has a  main design theme too for instance on the music themed floor, there was a Ziggy Stardust inspired room with a lightning stripe and a glittery floor. On the sport themed level there was a Wimbledon themed room (which was my favourite!) where there was  astroturf covered walls, nets and even an umpire chair, which obviously I had to try out (see below): Queen Ruby in her throne at @LinkedInUK ????#LifeatLinkHumans / #LinkedIn20m pic.twitter.com/fLbXhxVk6s Link Humans (@LinkHumans) January 20, 2016 3) Benefits: One thing I noticed about the LinkedIn offices was the incredible amount of food that was available EVERYWHERE! I decided to have a little look on Glassdoor.com to see what other benefits employees get if they  join LinkedIn, and the list is pretty substantial. They have on site gyms, healthcare benefits and pretty generous  holidays, among other things. LinkedIn have a Glassdoor rating of 4.4 and 88% of the workforce would recommend it to a friend. Now thats some good employee feedback! Do you work at LinkedIn or have an opinion on this article? Let us know over on Twitter @UndercoverRec.

Employee Turned Entrepreneur Thinking of Taking the Plunge - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career

Employee Turned Entrepreneur Thinking of Taking the Plunge - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career As an employee turned entrepreneur myself, this is a plunge I have taken and coach clients on from a career, business, and personal level. With nearly 30MM job seekers, including 14MM unemployed, and a job search process that takes over 211 days to land a new job, it’s no wonder many professionals are wondering if now is the time to take the plunge and open their own small business. If you are among the millions of Americans considering going this route, take the time to think through it thoroughly. Finding funding Quite a few small business owners starting their first entrepreneurial venture start with the “friends and family” funding option. With The Great Recession’s impact, many friends and family have likely had their stable careers, income, and savings accounts impacted negatively requiring an alternative funding source. Up next, credit cards and banks. Credit cards are a scary option as the interest rates are high and you’ll likely need to get them in your personal name since the business has no established credit or history. That leaves banks, still are an option for those with very good credit. Contact your local SCORE office for help with small business and minority, and women-owned business loans. Saving for success We all love our own ideas and think our business will be the best one yet, or we sure wouldn’t be invested the time, energy and effort â€" much less money- into it. To prepare that you and your family are set up for success ensure you have at least 12 months of savings in the bank before you embark on your entrepreneurial journey. The stress of opening and operating a business will be far more than working as an employee; adding the strain of finances will be enough to put your business under even if began as a great idea. Balancing act Do you remember the first time you kissed your wife, or husband? What about the first time you saw your baby’s face? Your new love will be your business and it will take away from every other love in your life. Your blackberry or iPhone will take priority from your family, your friends and your vacations. You’ll be responding to clients and orders when you used to be relaxing. Vacation? Two weeks will seem like an eternity. The 40-or-50-hour work week will soon become a thing of the past, a dream you have on the nights you achieve more than 4 hours of uninterrupted sleep when you’re not business planning during the night. The best part about all of this is that although you’re walking around in a daze, partly from the lack of sleep and partly from being consumed by your business ideas, you will contributing and working for…you. All of this will be going to your bottom-line. That also means that every minute you take off is a minute that you’re not generating revenue or closing a deal. Opening my businesses has been the best journey in my life. They have cost me dearly in many ways, relationships that were lost to my blackberry addiction and hundreds of dollars spent on creams to avoid dark under eye circles. They have benefited me in far more though â€" cheering on my nephews at 2p.m. soccer games, heading to N.Y. at the last minute â€" after all, I work on Sunday too! Author: Adriana Llames is a veteran career coach and acclaimed author of Career Sudoku: 9 Ways to Win the Job Search Game, released with top book seller Amazon.com. She is creator of   “HR In-A-Box,” a Human Resources software product helping small businesses across America and a professional keynote speaker motivating and inspiring audiences with her focused programs on “9 Ways to Win the Job Search Game”, “Confessions of a Career Coach” and “Nice Girls End Up on Welfare.” For more information, visit www.adrianallames.com

8 Common Employee Engagement Myths Debunked CareerMetis.com

8 Common Employee Engagement Myths Debunked In its noble quest to find the elixir of employee productivity, every few years the HR fraternity finds a new trend to latch on to. The flavor of the last decade or so has been “employee engagement” â€" that heady mix of satisfaction, motivation, loyalty, and advocacy.It has often been claimed to be the one true path for organizations to reach peak productivity. The brightest minds in HR have been working on it and as a consequence, it has been the subject of intense opining. But not everything you read is true.evalWe’ve seen a decade of changes in the business world â€" open office plans, Friday potlucks, flex-work, telecommuting. Organizations have tried to build yellow brick roads to accommodate everyone’s needs yet engagement levels are getting worse and not better. High employee attrition rates and low engagement levels are still costing companies in a big way.We have already talked about why you should run survey employee engagement surveysand how engaged employees and disengaged employees can impact the growth of the company. But in and of itself, engagement is an abstract idea, something intangible. Even as discussions of engagement have become ubiquitous, myths abound and managers end up forming wrong opinions about what motivates their employees.In this article, we’ve put together a list of some common myths about employee engagement that far too many leaders are still putting stock into.1) Perks Equal EngagementVery often we see employers peddling benefits as a means of buying their way out of the engagement problem. Ping-pong tables, play stations, gyms in the office to club memberships, employee wellness programs to free meals and nap times at work, we’ve probably seen it all. Sure, all this is trendy and exciting in the short term. But it is also the laziest, not to say, the most expensive way of approaching engagement and the value only goes so far.Such perks can help people stay longer, but won’t make them pour their heart and soul into work. They can at best be viewed as add-ons that can bolster your engagement efforts. In and of themselves, they cannot replace the day-to-day work on organizational culture.Discretionary effort, the cornerstone of employee engagement, is largely founded on an emotional connect, something that you can’t buy but have to earn, every single day.2) Higher Compensation Translates into Engaged EmployeesThis holds true only for a certain segment of employees â€" mostly contract and entry-level workers. evalAs an employee’s career progresses, the marginal utility of every additional raise keeps diminishing. For the majority of middle and senior managers money is usually not the top priority. What matters more to them is recognition, work-life balance and of course, a sense that they can further their career as a result of working with a specific company or in a certain role.Meaningful work and having a deeper connection with their organization’s vision and mission are also becom ing increasingly important factors in engagement, especially with the millennials.While people may certainly stay on with an employer who pays more, retention does not mean engagement or even loyalty. Having a flat bench does not translate into productivity or high performance. It only makes employee engagement seem like a bigger cost center than it has to be. With assured bonuses, employees’ expectations will rise and if a company fails to keep up, the disappointment will trump any engagement achieved.3) Engagement Is Just a Fancy Word for SatisfactionEngagement and satisfaction are terms that sound similar. The two are also connected, but not synonymous. Look closely and there’s a world of difference.evalEngagedemployees are passionate, driven and strongly invested in the company’s success. They try to improve processes and outcomes and try to add real value to the business. Typically, the are also happy and satisfied with their jobs.Satisfiedemployees are simply content wit h the compensation, perks, benefits, etc. but are not necessarily engaged. Satisfied employees are happy with current practices and do not concern themselves with evolving and improving.Satisfaction is based on personal happiness, while engagement indicates a sense of connection and commitment to the organization. While satisfied employees may not be “troublemakers”, they won’t necessarily perform better than unsatisfied employees. But, engaged employees are internally driven to improve job performance.For long now it was thought that satisfied employees are productive employees. At some point, we convinced ourselves that engagement was about perfecting the employees’ circumstances and removing their hassles. It is reasonable, but the wrong assumption about human motivation and behavior, at least in the context of work.In the real world of work, it is impossible to please all employees simultaneously. Our individual needs and desires are not only vastly different but often a t odds with each other.4) Disengaged Employees Are Bad EmployeesNot all disengaged employees are not “actively” disengaged. Yes, there is a difference.Actively disengaged employees are the most disconnected from work. They often feel under-utilized and believe they do not get meaningful work. They undermine their colleagues, they complain and have a generally bad attitude about everything. If not identified and addressed quickly, they can spread this attitude to others in their teams and the organization at large.Do you know how one rotten apple can spoil the whole basket? The analogy perfectly suits this kind of employee. Actively disengaged employees are a drag for the whole organization.evalDisengagedemployees, on the other hand, are employees who are disoriented and potentially exhausted. ? They lack passion, and enthusiasm for their work. This could be for a variety of reasons. But all said and done, they are not trying to actively damage the business. In fact, it’s quite likely that some of them are still working hard even though they may dislike some aspects of their current workplace. Once this difference is understood, it is easy to see how disengaged employees actually represent an opportunity, rather than a threat. With enough effort, you could course correct and actually wind up with an engaged employee.5) Disengaged Employees Can’t Be FixedNot true. Disengaged employees are, sort of, on the fence. Whether they will go the way of “active disengagement” or “engagement” depends to a large extent on the organization’s attitude towards them.Once identified, these employees need to be addressed squarely but in a reassuring rather than threatening manner.The organization should take determined steps to address the root causes of their disengagement. Your disengaged employee may well have been satisfied and enthusiastic before something soured the deal â€" maybe it was a new manager or a new location. Sit down with him and address the si tuation head-on. Chances are, you will turn him back into a motivated, productive asset.eval6) Employee Engagement Is Solely an HR ResponsibilityEmployee engagement is about people. HR is also about people. It is certainly the HR department’s job to design and implement employee-friendly policies and practices that attract and retain talent. But can they alone be responsible for keeping employees engaged? Not really, but it’s a trap countless organizations have fallen into.HR professionals have a unique vantage point that can be useful in “measuring” engagement levels and suggesting remedies, but improving engagement is everyone’s job. It’s every employee’s job to participate and truthfully highlight concerns when a survey is run. It is every manager’s responsibility to make sure the survey recommendations are followed in their teams. It is the leadership’s responsibility to allocate time and resources towards engagement work.The HR departments can be effective fac ilitators of the process but to think they alone can affect any meaningful change will be foolhardy. Not even the best HR minds are in a position to independently take the actions required to influence engagement levels.7) Measuring Engagement Does Not Fix ItOf course, it doesn’t, at least not on its own, but it’s a start.Many organizations recognize the importance of employee engagement but end up misdirecting their efforts based on hearsay. If the company down the road is doing Whacky Wednesdays to engage their teams then surely Friday Fundays will fix yours. If only things worked that way. Each set of employees, each organization’s culture and the interaction of the two can vary vastly.How to go about raising your company’s engagement levels can be a vexing problem. The most sorted and logical way to begin the engagement process is an engagement survey of your employees. Finding out what makes your people tick (or ticked off!) is the first step toward change.Making visibl e efforts to measure employee engagement in the form of surveys can often fuel the fire of hope and anticipation among employees. Even the mere announcement of an initiative like an employee surveyis known to raise employee performance in the short term. When their voices are heard and given importance to, it has a very obvious impact on employees’ motivation levels. It shows the organization’s intent to improve engagement.However, one must be careful to not leave a survey at that. Careful follow up based on survey findings is an absolute must. In the absence of tangible action, hope can quickly turn into disillusionment. While planning a survey, the organization must also plan and allocate resources for the implementation of survey recommendations.8) Everyone Tells the Truth on Employee Engagement SurveysEmployee dishonesty on surveys is often cited as the top reason to not have them.People lie on surveys. Yes, of course, they do. Sometimes these are small lies, sometimes big o nes and sometimes people don’t even know they’re lying. People have been known to lie even on customer surveys. Why do we do it? Human nature.An employee engagement survey at work has much higher stakes than a simple customer survey. As an employee, you’re being asked to critically analyze and give feedback for your workplace, your manager, and even senior leaders. It can definitely feel risky to tell the whole truth. And when the HR makes such a fuss to make everyone complete the survey, employees are bound to be a bit cautious, if not outright suspicious.When employee surveys are an infrequent occurrence or the results have not been implemented in the past, employees are likely to give non-committal answers just maintain the status quo. Why rock the boat for something inconsequential?But there are conditions, which if adhered to, can help draw real and honest feedback from employees. The first being to ensure complete anonymity. When employees are assured they will not be si ngled out, they are more likely to be candid. Second, the survey should be designed and run professionally. The length and language of the survey must be calibrated carefully. Thirdly, have a seamless communication strategy â€" why is the survey being conducted, what will be done with the results, etc. Prepare managers for any potential personal criticism and suggestions that may come up in the survey. Assure them that survey scores will not be connected to performance ratings or compensation.Lastly, results and recommendations must be shared with the participants, if not all then at least the highlights. Nobody wants to fill in dead-end surveys where your responses seem to be going into a black hole.Outsourcing the survey to a third-party service provider can help address all of these conditions while making the whole process time and resource-efficient.ConclusionThe idea of employee engagement is constantly being reimagined. In fact, it no longer has a singular definition. It is l iterally different strokes for different folks. There will never be a perfect workplace and even the so-called “great places to work” have people issues to deal with. Having said that, organizations need to work towards building a workplace that makes people wantto work.Employee engagement strategies need to be customized and multidimensional. Organizations need to be far more invested than handing out gift cards once a year. At the same time, they need to be cautious of indulging in a “participation trophy” mindset, where every little accomplishment is praised to the point that recognition effectively means nothing.As strategies, technology and work methods evolve, companies have an amazing opportunity to tap into the benefits of a more committed workforce. Easier said than done, but it’s certainly a worthy pursuit. After all, when you get it right, the rewards of an engaged workforce are huge and everyone stands to gain.

51 COUNTRIES!!! - The Chief Happiness Officer Blog

51 COUNTRIES!!! - The Chief Happiness Officer Blog My awesome coworker Arlette Bentzen is speaking at a conference in Azerbaijans capital city Baku today. This is the 51st country weve worked in.? Its great to see, that happiness at work is gaining traction all over the world. Here are all the countries weve worked in so far: Antigua, Australia, Azerbaijan, Bahamas, Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, Chile, China, Croatia, Curacao, Czech Republic, Denmark, Dominican Republic, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greenland, Guatemala. Hungary, Iceland, India, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Sri Lanka, Suriname, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, USA, Vietnam 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

The One Thing That Puts You Ahead On The Job

The One Thing That Puts You Ahead On The Job Did you ever think about what a potential employer is really looking for in all openings, no matter what the job description is? Reliability. No matter what that job description is, and on top of any skills listed as requirements, their foundational need is a worker who shows up on time consistently and does the job responsibly every time they are expected to do so. Sometimes an unforeseen crisis may prevent a perfect attendance record, but an employee who is reliable is a better investment than hiring a brilliant whiz kid who doesnt show up or goofs off most days. This need for reliability is why references are so important. Your references are people who testify to the way you are to work with, the kind of person you are, and ultimately how reliable you will be. And that promise of being able to rely on you for a job well done is what an employer is putting their faith in when they hire you. So, how do you go about getting a good referenceregardless of the circumstance  that discolors a dubious job history? Sometimes the work situation was not your fault but affects your record. If this is the case, choose your reference providers with care. If you can, do some volunteer work that will show you are reliable. You want to make a case for your potential reliability by showing how you have been reliable in the past and proving it with the testimony of those who worked with you in the project. If you must address the issue during your interview, avoid disparaging remarks about your previous employer and be professional in your representation. Point out your best accomplishments and the fact that you look forward to being more productive. Diplomacy is professional and always impressive. You are showing in real time that you can be relied upon to do the best you can in any circumstance, and that puts you ahead of the pack.