How to Freely Communicate with your Employees

Business success is directly related to the openness of communication. As an employer, you have to build a trustworthy relationship with your employees to retain them and provide a free work culture.

The cost of hiring new employees and training them is much higher than retaining trained employees. People satisfied with their workplace prefer to continue working in the same company.

How to Communicate Properly with your Employees?

We will look at the basic principles of communication with your human resources.

Encourage transparency

Successful organizations follow a transparent policy even with the company employees. If you trust the employees with the business information, productivity increases as they understand the risks.

  • Provide various communication channels for your employees.
  • Schedule informal communication to talk to your employees without expecting them to do something.
  • You should organize one on one meetings and group meetings frequently.

Listen to your employees

Communication should never be a one-way channel. You should use multiple ways to communicate with your employees. You should encourage the employees to initiate communication.

The feedback mechanism is helpful to understand employees’ perspectives, and it can help you solve grievances before they become a threatening issue. Value the comments of your employees and take their input seriously.

Deploy a reward system to encourage employees to share their ideas voluntarily. If the employees feel that their voices are heard, they will become more passionate about their job.

Deliver your message clearly

Employees are often burdened with information overload. Employees thrive well if given concise information on what is expected of them. Managers assign multiple tasks and expect the employees to prioritize on their own.

The tone of communication should also be adjusted according to the audience. The communication should be personal while providing appropriate context and explaining the strategy.

Remaining open and having the ability to listen is crucial for the success of any communication.

Following the considerations discussed above, you can effectively communicate with your employees.

Why Should You Keep Your Professional and Personal Lives Separate?

The professional world is full of challenges and competition. One wrong step and you will move towards your downfall.

Moreover, a dozen people are waiting to replace you, which will make you, and so you are no longer indispensable at the workplace. It becomes essential to strike a perfect balance in this scenario and not let anything bog you down or distract you and shift your focus.

Here’s where the importance of keeping personal and professional life comes into play. It’s essential to keep the two as away from each other as possible.

Let us tell you why.

People judge you:

People can be judgmental and narrow-minded. They will not look at your work ethic or how much you’ve managed to battle your personal life to make the most of your professional one.

They will not give you credit when you do something right but will be ready to slam you when you mess up. So it’s better not to exhibit your personal life at the workplace as there are fingers ready to be pointed at you at all times.

Your boss is watching you:

Your employers don’t care about your personal life. All they care about is how you deliver at work. You may have a relationship issue or an individual struggle bothering you, but they expect you to perform nevertheless. And why not?

This is what professionalism is all about. Don’t get into the bad books of your boss by letting your personal life come in between your work.

This reflects on your commitment to your job, and you don’t want to leave a bad impression.

It is all about balance:

You need to strike a perfect balance in your life. This can only happen when you give your 100 percent focus and effort in the workplace while battling with your personal life outside the physical realms of the office.

This will be beneficial for you as you will no longer get distracted by your personal life and perform well at work.

How to Earn Extra Income?

If you are looking to make some extra cash on the side, then you’ve come to the right place!

With the continuous advancement of technology, many of us are often left mind-boggled by the limitless possibilities of earning online or physically.

Even though it’s not so easy to make a living out of this, here are the top 4 and most legit ways of making extra income.

How to Earn an Alternative Income?

1. Sell images online –

If you love photography, you could sell your clicks through websites like Shutterstock and iStockPhoto. Many photographers are doing this already, and it is an excellent way of generating income without putting in a lot of effort.

2. Become an Uber driver –

By: Snapic Photoproduction on Shutterstock

If you have some extra time to spare and your driving skills are on point, you can consider driving for Uber. You can rake in a decent amount of money in a short period. All you need is a car per the company’s specifications and a clean license.

3. Write and sell an eBook –

If you have a knack for writing, why not write an eBook and sell it? You can write on a topic that will solve a problem or teach your audience something more technical.

Books on these topics typically sell like hotcakes. Amazon’s Kindle program and Apple’s iTunes Connect let you sell eBooks without investing much.

4. Sell hand-crafted products on Etsy –

If you are naturally talented in creating hand-made items that people would love to use, you could consider setting up your store on Etsy.com. The site charges a nominal fee to list your products, but it’s worth it.

You can also go to some websites which pay you to take surveys and read emails!

Download Apps to Make More Money!

A new report suggests that an average person has at least five social media accounts and squanders about 1 hour 40 minutes browsing these networks every day.

Instead of scrolling down your newsfeed on Facebook endlessly, you can now utilize that time to make money using particular apps on both Android and Apple phones.

You won’t be earning huge sums of money, but it will be enough to fund your movie tickets, groceries, or even a plane ticket!

We have listed 3 of the most favorite apps that will help you to make some money on the side:

1. Pact
Pact is my top pick of all the apps available. This app helps you look great and pays you for it! The pact gives you money to work out and eat healthily. All you need to do is make a schedule to go to the gym, eat your veggies and stick to your goals.

The app tracks your activity by means of GPS and connects to other apps to track your diet. This is perfect for all you fitness freaks out there!

2. iBotta

It’s not that you need any more incentives to shop, but wouldn’t it be great if you could recover at least 10% of what you spent on your shopping?

iBotta lets you make money by shopping for groceries by completing tasks at home, buying the products at a supported store, and sending a scanned copy of your receipt to the app.

As of now, iBotta is supported by 241 stores, including Target, Publix, and Walmart. Once you have unlocked some cash, the money will be deposited within 48 hours into your account.

3. OfferUp & Mercari

Have any marketable items in your junkyard that you don’t use anymore? Use these two apps to sell your stuff online.

OfferUp lets you sell the items locally at no cost, while Mercari allows you to list an item similar to eBay, but for free. However, you need to pay 10% of your listing fee and shipping costs.

In most cases, you’ll have to earn a minimum amount before you can cash it out. Some of these apps will pay you in cash, while others pay using PayPal.

 

Top 5 Tech Companies to Work For

The IT sector is booming with the rise of start-ups and tech giants and new and innovative initiatives and projects.

The lay-offs at Cognizant and other IT firms should not be bothering any IT professionals as there is no dearth of job opportunities in this avenue.

Here are the top 5 tech companies you should work for:

LinkedIn:

By: Kovop58 on Shutterstock

This company has an online database for professionals to create their profiles and look for employment and business options. The employees can avail opportunities to grow in their fields.

They are also given incentives to attend exciting events and programs.

Fast Enterprises:

This company offers technological solutions, software assistance, and consultancy options for government agencies.

This place offers work independence, a lasting impact on projects and undertakings, and an easygoing and comfortable environment. However, you need to put in a lot of hard work.

World Wide Technology:

This company is technology solutions and consulting and specializes in supply chain software management.

The caring approach towards its workers and the many perks ensure employee satisfaction and consumer satisfaction objectives, making it a wonderful place to work in.

Google:

By: Achinthamb on Shutterstock

Google is the biggest search engine globally and is a major tech giant, also offering services like cloud software, e-mail services, Android phones, navigation, and many other technological solutions.

The work ethic makes this the second largest company globally, along with an emphasis on innovation and new-age methods to serve people.

The work profile is extremely time-consuming, so make sure you’re passionate enough before you apply for a job.

Facebook:

By: Askarim on Shutterstock

The No.1 tech company worldwide, Facebook is one of the world’s largest social media sites. Due to the high demand for this site, the work pressure is intense.

With leaders such as Mark Zuckerberg, your work experience will be full of innovation, and you will be able to retain your individuality.

If you are looking for jobs, now you know where you need to apply to.

6 Tips to Not Lose Your Temper in Your Workplace

Anger is a demon that eats away relationships and opportunities. You need to control your anger, especially at your workplace.

Here are some tips to calm yourself down in an uncomfortable situation and not burst out during tense arguments.

Withdraw yourself, and think

You need to stop acting and think. Observe and analyse the situation and see what you can do to settle the crisis without any negative reactions. If you react aggressively to a situation, you will end up embarrassing yourself, and that won’t solve the core issue.

Evaluate the relevance of this situation. Would you be angry about this a year after this date? If not, forget about it, and move on. Don’t react. Just let it go.

Be the wise one

If you’re in an altercation and the other person raises their voice, give yourself a moment to cool down and keep your voice low.

Speak in a normal, peaceful tone. When the other person realises that you’re the calm one, they will understand their folly and lower their tone down too. You might get an unconditional apology for this.

Watch your words

Be very careful about what you say in a fit of anger, as it might work against you and tarnish your reputation. It will also bring you in the bad books of your boss.

So never say anything the consequences of which you won’t handle. And if you have something objectionable but justified, tell the other person, do it when nobody else is around as it will help keep away witnesses and gossipmongers.

Be patient and understanding

You never know what the other person might be going through. That might explain their behaviour at work. So try to understand everyone’s struggles and perspectives before you react and create a mess.

Leave the situation as it is

If you feel you’ll break and your patience will run out while handling a particular situation, walk away. Take time to think about it, and tackle it with a calmer mind.

Take a walk and come back after some time to have a peaceful conversation about the issue.

Channelise your emotions

You can bust your stress and anger by taking a break from work, listening to some calming music, reading something funny, or talking to a close friend. This will help you deal with any unpleasant situation at hand.

Well, if you have a bad temper, these tips will surely help you keep calm.

3 Ways to Become a Successful Entrepreneur

Most entrepreneurs began small. With limited resources, limited experience and miniature teams, they just had one resource- persistence. It isn’t a one-day job to be a successful entrepreneur. It takes grit, interpersonal skills, expertise, and relentless efforts to be at the top of the market.

And things may go awry, but then you got to maintain your calm. A positive approach, humility, perseverance, and an organized outlook towards your business will enable you to be at the top of the game.

Here are a few tips on being a successful entrepreneur:

Be passionate about your work:

Your efforts will be half-hearted if you don’t love what you do. Entrepreneurship thrives on passion. You need to have the conviction to go the extra mile for your business enterprise. If you don’t believe in your idea yourself, you can’t sell it to others.

So keep at it, and never lose the respect you have for your job. You may encounter obstacles, but that shouldn’t impact your drive in any way.

Small steps are the key:

Don’t take huge leaps, or you’ll come further backwards from where you started. Some people invest their entire capital in one venture and achieve success, but it’s a matter of luck and achieving success like that is not very common.

Constantly evaluate your risks, and start small. This will help you analyze your venture, and you will be able to manage any losses easily while gaining experience in the bargain.

Small accomplishments are always better than huge failures.

Take a cue from other entrepreneurs:

Learn from the success and failure stories of other entrepreneurs. Spend a few years under the tutelage of an experienced and successful entrepreneur or business mentor.

Apply for an internship or be a part of their team. This will help you pick up nuances and set your enterprise with all the knowledge in hand.

Well, hope these tips get you started in the right direction.

5 Tips for Quick Decision-Making

Decision-making can be a severe challenge for some people when priorities are messed up; making those choices can drive us insane.

But like everything else in life, decision-making is a systematic and logical process.

Here are a few tips to make good and quick decisions to avoid missing out on the more incredible things in life.

Make a deadline:

Set a time frame for making your decisions. The pressure of this deadline will prompt you to quickly weigh the pros and cons of a situation before concluding.

This will force you to act quickly, and you can also set a timer on your phone to achieve this. This helps you to stay alert and make decisions quickly.

Make it about extremes:

In certain situations, there are many options for you to weigh in. You might want to explore grey areas, which make it even more confusing to reach a decision.

Just compartmentalize your choices into good or bad. In this case, make it about black and white. This helps narrow down your options and make better decisions much quicker.

Pick it out randomly:

This seems kiddish, but it works when your decision is too hard to make. Write all your possible choices on separate pieces of paper, fold them up, put them in a jar, shuffle, and pick out one chit from the lot.

This random selection will help you make a choice, especially when there’s little difference between the alternatives.

You could also do this by choosing the priority of tasks you’re least willing to perform.

Make it all about now:

Don’t base your decisions on long-term goals. Sometimes looking at the bigger picture can make you choose the wrong things in life. This also exhausts you mentally as you start over-analyzing your alternatives.

Just keep yourself armed for the situation at hand and decide what suits your present interests best. If you keep pondering the future, you will lose out on your present.

Be prepared for the worst:

One thing that keeps us from making a decision is the fear of a negative outcome. This leads to overthinking, and we put off the decision for later.

This means that we no longer have control over our lives. This is worse than a bad choice. Fear of failure should not keep us from deciding the course of our lives.

Please take it in your stride and have the courage to face any outcome that comes your way.

6 Tips to Relax During Exams

Exam days are full of stress and panic, especially when you haven’t studied all year. Exams can give you nightmares, so it is better to relax while preparing.

Here are a few tips on how to do so:

Work out as much as possible:

This helps reduce your cortisol levels and shoots up your endorphin levels. This also increases the blood flow to your brain hence increasing your concentration.

Eat healthy:

Avoid sugary and fattening foods. This leads to drowsiness and lethargy. Have a high-protein breakfast with green vegetables and healthy sprouts for lunch.

This will keep you active and refreshed. Avoid caffeinated drinks and look for other alternatives.

Keep yourself hydrated:

Avoid caffeinated drinks and drink copious amounts of water. This will help you focus for longer intervals, and you’ll be less drained out.

You can also have coconut water which is an excellent hydrant. This will keep you fresh for a long time.

Spend time outdoors:

Go outside your room and breathe some fresh air. Spend some time in the garden. This keeps you refreshed and stress-free and also helps you focus better when you’re back to your books.

Sleep well and take more breaks:

Take a 15 minute break every one hour. Otherwise, whatever you study will vanish, and you’ll not be able to retain anything. And, never pull off an all-nighter.

Lack of sleep will leave you less energetic to write an exam the next day. The brain needs 7 to 8 hours of good sleep to perform well on exam day. Make sure your room is dark and cool when you sleep.

Don’t Cram:

Don’t mug up your syllabus at the last moment. A large amount of syllabus will increase your stress, and whatever you study will escape your memory in no time.

So approach every topic proactively without rushing or urging to cram it up.

If you have exams anytime soon, do follow these tips.

How To Dress For An Interview: Important Dressing Tips

To create the best first impression, you should wear the appropriate outfit for your interview. Interviewers spend only a few minutes with each candidate, and they form opinions within seconds after looking at the candidate.

While the dress code may be different with each company, you must follow some general guidelines if you want to be hired after the interview.

Interview Dressing Tips

You should choose your interview outfit based on the employer, location and time of the year. When in doubt, choose traditional outfits.

  • Men can always choose dark-coloured suits with matching ties to create a good impression. In most cases, dressing down is not appropriate.
  • Women have various options, but you should be comfortable with what you wear. Suits are always a safe bet, but make sure that the skirt is long enough to sit comfortably.
  • You can also wear other workplace outfits if suits are not your style.
  • Professional hairstyles are best for interviews as they appear less messy.
  • While choosing accessories, ensure that they are not loud. A briefcase or interview bags are more appropriate than a purse or a clutch.
  • The interview is not the right place to make a fashion statement, and your dressing style should be elegant. If you have piercings, remove them and wear an earring maximum.
  • Cover up your tattoos if they showcase your wild lifestyle.
  • Your attire must be properly washed and pressed before the interview.
  • Your shoes should be clean and polished.
  • Keep your hair and nails appropriately trimmed ahead of the interview.

Professional dressing shows your interest in respecting yourself, interviewers and the company. Dressing wisely also increases the chances of landing the job if all other things go well!

Top Tips to Get a Promotion

In this competitive world, every person is in the serious hunt for a better life than they presently live. For this, immediately after their studies, they tirelessly try to get hired in any job of their course.

After attaining the job, their next immediate target would be promotion.

Getting a promotion is not that easy for any normal employee. They need to have perfect planning, which must be strategically followed over time.

Here are a few steps that can be followed to get promoted to the hierarchy level.

Prove yourself:

The first thing which is very much needed for any employee to get promoted is dedication. He needs to prove himself among all. He needs to be unique where the exact needs to be reflected in his work.

Seniors support:

For any junior employee, senior support is essential for him to develop in his work and grow in the company.

He needs to design his work, which must synchronize with the senior official’s goals. If he proves himself and satisfies them, there are many probabilities to top the promotion list.

Backup plan:

If he has worth in his work, there would be many doors which invite him to work in their company with the better packages.

So, he can demand his senior officials to hike the salary package and even the promotion.

Hope these tips showed you a clear picture of what you need to do next.