Problems

Have you heard of the “Can you hear me now?” scam? You receive a call, are immediately asked that question, and if you answer “yes,” it gets recorded and may get used to claim you agreed to be charged for their services. It is ridiculous, and the bad news is that technology is getting better. As Ben Popken explains in an article for NBC News, some automated robots are even programmed to assure you that …

Remote offices—especially ones that consist of just your home office—have no on-site cyber security staff. Thus, you must fend for yourself. An article from Staples provides some hints. Having access to a VPN (virtual private network) is usually a big part of a remote working experience, as it provides access to critical shared resources in a secure manner. In cases where speed is really of the essence though, employing cloud services to access resources may …

Realistically, in spite of how many millions of dollars of equipment and information are stored in offices, the average office worker is not sweating security. People just take it on faith that nothing will ever be stolen, and they are right—until they are wrong. In a post for MVP Protective Services, Braden Russom shares 10 tips to remember about building security: Practice effective communication: Designate a single trusted person to broadcast security information via email, …

Does your office look dated, or just plain hideous? That could cost your business. Rose Leadem shares an infographic at Entrepreneur displaying the findings of a British survey on what in your office can create negative lasting impressions. For instance, 33.9 percent of respondents believe a cluttered workspace would be most likely to leave a bad lasting impression. Lack of natural light received 20.5 percent, and dated decorations received 19.1 percent. Poorly dressed staff—perhaps the …

In an article for Fortune, Ian Siegel asks you to reconsider whether your current job is irredeemably awful (if you feel that way in the first place). He says to ask yourself a few questions first. The, ahem, first of them is, “Are you miserable?” As in genuinely miserable, where you dread having to go to work every single day. It could be you are just having a temporary rough patch. The second question is, …

If an anvil had to drop on someone in the office, your coworkers would unanimously nominate you. How did this happen? Well, let’s not sweat the ugly details and instead focus on improving your image. Jacquelyn Smith shares how in an article for Business Insider. In the first place, make sure the distaste for you is actually real and not just imagined. It could be that people simply disagree with your ideas, as opposed to …

A study of over 1,100 employees conducted by psychologists found something amusing: Coworkers considered difficult were described the way that people with personality disorders are described in professional manuals. In other words, that coworker you hate might really be a little nuts. In an article for Fast Company, Gwen Moran shares some tips to reassess how you approach this troublesome person: Reflect on your own history: It could be that you do not like the …

A popular phrase these days goes something like, “You don’t quit your job. You quit your boss.” Bosses just have a habit of being a central reason for dissatisfaction at work. In an article for the Muse, Stacey Lastoe gives some little tips for what to do when you love your job but are at wit’s end about your boss. Firstly, take a good, long look at your situation. Are the things that you hate …

Having a bad boss hang over your work is like having a blizzard hang over your house—there is no escaping it, and it affects your outlook. In an article for Harvard Business Review, Manfred F. R. Kets de Vries shares five tips for handling this frustrating situation: Practice empathy: Bad bosses’ behaviors are typically a result of pressures and demands from their own bosses. Be mindful of this and make a deliberate effort to better …

In a post at her blog, Patty Azzarello gives us a quick pep talk about fear, namely, that even the most successful people feel it. However, successful people always work through it. General fear of failure is not a good reason not to take on a new opportunity. And even if we do fail in small ways, valuable learning opportunities will come from them. If doubts are still lingering, then we can seek out a …