by Pamela Skillings      Send to a friend

Want to read something scary? Check out this article on AOL about all of the wily ways that your  company can track what you’re doing in and out of the office.

 

You’re probably aware that it’s possible for your employer to spy on your email and your computer usage. But did you know that corporations also use video monitoring, phone surveillance and radio frequency ID cards to keep tabs on employees?

 

If you’re naive like I used to be, you may have allowed yourself to be lulled into a false sense of privacy at work. After all, why would your company bother to watch every little move you make? As long as you don’t download porn or blog about your manager’s bad breath, you’re probably fine. Right?

 

Sorry, no. It seems some companies have plenty of time and resources to keep tabs on employees’ every email, phone call, and bathroom break. Here’s the awful truth:

• The ID card that gets you into the office may have an embedded radio transmitter that tracks when you enter and leave the office. Better not linger at Starbucks.
• Employers really do monitor email and 28% of surveyed companies have fired workers for e-mail misuse.  62% were fired for inappropriate  language in email, 26% for personal email use, and 22% for violating company confidentially.
• Some companies now use software that keeps track of employee printing down to individual print jobs. Better wait to print out that resume until you get home.
• Your boss could be monitoring your every keystroke at work in real time — including your typing speed, your Internet patterns, and what software you use. Nearly half of companies surveyed capture and save this data.
• Almost half of companies surveyed use video office surveillance, though most do inform employees if they are being recorded.

Creeped out yet? Well then, you better get back to work (and maybe delete some of those personal emails). Oh yeah, and smile pretty for the camera in the ceiling.

 

Popularity: 14%

by Pamela Skillings      Send to a friend

Yesterday, I decided that spin class is a lot like a bad corporate job. For those of you not familiar with this particular type of exercise  torture, spin class involves a bunch of people pedaling madly on stationary exercise bikes to music for an hour or so, following a lunatic instructor’s orders to go faster, increase resistance, stand up, sit down, sprint until you want to throw up, etc. Sounds like fun, right? In a sick way, it kind of is. Plus, you can burn 600-800 calories in an hour.

 

But as I was pedaling frantically in place yesterday, I couldn’t help but think of my last corporate job. That’s mainly because one of my biggest complaints in my corporate days was that I often felt like a hamster on a wheel. There was just SO much frenetic activity — so many documents, meetings, conference calls, and email trails –  to achieve very  little. Often, by the time I would receive all of the approvals and "buy-in" I needed for a particular project, there would be some kind of reorganization or budget cut and I’d have to start over from the beginning. It once took me more than nine months just to get the approval to redesign a brochureware web site. That was just to get started. The actual design process was a study in endless torture that I don’t want to get into. Spin class is similar in that you expend a lot of energy and work up a real sweat, but you never actually move forward.

 

Then there’s the instructor. See, in spin class, I don’t really mind when the instructor yells random instructions at me or seems to get great glee out of causing me pain. I’m definitely not as forgiving toward corporate bosses that do the same thing at work.  At least I know that spin class will only last for an hour and I’ll leave in better shape. (Shout out to Chris Murdoch, brilliantly evil trainer and spin class instructor at Equinox in New York and a corporate escape artist himself).

 

But the biggest reason that spin class is a lot more fun than a bad corporate job is because it’s actually challenging in a good way. Spin class forces you to  push yourself, to get stronger and better every day that you do it. Similarly, when I was working in the corporate world, I was able to put up with a lot of annoying stuff if the job actually allowed me to learn and grow. Most of us don’t mind sweating as long as we’re sweating for a good reason.

 

Now if only bad corporate gigs burned 600-800 calories per hour. Then, even if we were aggravated and frustrated, at least we’d be in great shape and could eat all the Krispy Kremes we wanted.

 

 

Popularity: 11%

by Pamela Skillings      Send to a friend

There’s an interesting article on Yahoo! (by way of AllBusiness.com) titled  5 Ways to Keep Your Job During a Recession.

 

There are a lot of articles like this one popping up, so it’s pretty clear that people are feeling job security anxiety these days. And this piece features some good advice. It’s always a good idea to boost your visibility (in positive ways only, of course) and marketability. Another tip that wasn’t mentioned — focus on maintaining a strong relationship with your boss (and, ideally, your boss’s boss) and make sure he/she knows about all of the valuable things that you do. Make sure that decision makers are aware of the value that you provide to the company.

 

However, I think the most valuable advice comes in the conclusion of the article: "And, because there’s no guarantee that you will retain your job in a recession, no matter how hard you try, it doesn’t hurt to be prepared. On your own time, update your resume. Also, make sure that you are still networking with old bosses, coworkers, and business contacts. Don’t wait until you are laid off to keep your contacts and resume fresh. You will get better results if you are prepared ahead of time."

 

Amen. The bottom line  is that there is no way to control whether you’ll keep your job during a recession or even during a strong economy. Today, all corporations go through layoffs and it’s hard to predict when or how they are going to happen. It’s not only companies in underperforming sectors that lay people off. You can waste a lot of time and energy worrying about layoffs that would be better spent preparing to minimize any negative fallout if it does happen.

 

I don’t mean to be a Debbie Downer, but I think people should keep in mind that strong performance is no guarantee that you’ll stick around. I have seen many valuable employees get laid off and many slackers survive job cuts. I have wasted many hours gossiping about layoff rumors, speculating about the safety of my job, and ostentatiously "adding value" in every meeting to show how indispensable I was. All of that while I could have been working on my resume.

 

The truth is that layoff decisions are often made for reasons that have nothing to do with performance. Sometimes an entire department is laid off or just the people who make the highest salaries in a certain group.

 

That’s why you can’t ever take it personally. Future employers know that getting laid off is no reflection on your value as an employee or a person. In fact, most job candidates at this point can probably boast at least one lay-off on their resumes.

 

So yes, you should keep performing well. This is no time to slack off. But stop gossiping, worrying, and biting your nails. Instead, use your spare time to step up your passive job search efforts and start looking for your next position. Even if you don’t end up needing a new job, it’s always a good idea to keep your options open.

 

Popularity: 21%

by Pamela Skillings      Send to a friend

As you probably know by now, JP Morgan has announced that it will acquire  former rival Bear Stearns for a bargain basement price of $2 share. The deal was helped along by the federal government amid fears that a collapse of Bear Stearns could have disastrous effects on the global financial markets. 

 

Bear Stearns was said to be the the most exposed to risky bets on the subprime mortgage market and a CNN poll shows that most resondents were more annoyed than relieved by the bailout and viewed it as "rewarding bad behavior.’

 

A JP Morgan spokesman would not comment on plans for Bear Stearns’ 14,000 employees around the world.  I know what it’s like to work for a big, historic financial services firm during an unexpected collapse and bailout.  I was in the public relations department at Barings, the U.K. merchant bank that  financed the Napoleonic Wars and the Louisiana Purchase, when one "rogue trader" (eventually played by Ewan McGregor in the movie about the event) brought down the whole firm.

 

Eventually, ING swooped in to buy us out and absorb us. That proved to be a dramatic lesson learned at my first job out of college. I went on to experience many more dramatic developments at my places of employment — another corporate bankruptcy, a major merger, and many acquisitions and reorganizations.

 

I can certainly sympathize with those at Bear Stearns and JP Morgan (and other Wall Street firms battling disappointing quarterly results). It’s hard to stay focused on work when you’re worried about your job and how all of the drama is going to play out.  When you work for a big firm like Bear Stearns (or Barings), you don’t imagine you’ll ever have to worry about the whole company going down the tubes. You may expect layoffs and reorganizations, but you don’t anticipate waking up to find that the entire firm is on the brink of collapse and there are Daily News reporters waiting outside your office building.

 

I imagine that the big financial services industry recruiters will be fielding a lot of calls today. Back in the day at Barings, I was polishing my resume within moments of hearing the news. The encouraging news is that I had a new job lined up before the first round of layoffs hit after the reorganization.

 

There’s not much you can do to prevent  being laid off (the names on those downsizing lists are rarely chosen based on performance), but you can take charge of your career by keeping your options open and developing a solid Plan B. See my post at Lifehack about how to prepare for a possible layoff.

 

Popularity: 21%

by Pamela Skillings      Send to a friend

According to a new survey from the Financial Women’s Association, women who work in finance are still paid less than men for comparable work and have made little progress on the equal pay front since 1998.

 

96% of the 259 association members surveyed said that women are paid less. This is exactly the same response received to the same question a decade ago in the Financial Women’s Association’s 1998 survey. When asked about improvements over the last three years, only 10% felt that pay parity had improved.

 

The survey also revealed that nearly two-thirds of  respondents consider their gender a factor that holds them back in their careers in the financial industry. Many cited a lack of access to decision-makers, mentors, or the type of assignments that are critical for career advancement. Some of the specific obstacles perceived as obstacles to women’s career advancement were:

 

• "Old boys’ neworks"
• Women failing to support other women
• Female stereotypes
• Family obligations
• Limited access to flex time/part-time
• Lack of political savvy and "ability to play the game"
• Ethnicity

 

Is anyone else starting to feel really depressed? I worked in the financial services industry for many years and I must admit that I witnessed a lot of  these obstacles firsthand. In at least one position, I know I earned significantly less than a male colleague with less responsibility, fewer years of experience, and lower performance scores. I also remember well feeling shut out of the old boys’ network and many lovely specific incidents that I won’t get into here.

 

So I’m not surprised that these  factors are still issues. I guess what bothers me is the fact that these issues are still so common. And the fact that there have been no improvements since 2002 (at least) despite all of the happy corporate talk at big companies about diversity and on-ramping and encouraging women leaders.

 

Is the financial services industry particularly unfair to women or is this a symptom of a bigger issue across industries? In my research for Escape from Corporate America, I was encouraged to learn about great programs to promote diversity and  flexibility at many forward-thinking and employee-focused firms. Unfortunately, these companies seem to still be exceptions to the rule when it comes to fair treatment of all employees, regardless of gender and ethnicity.

 

What do you think? I’d love to hear from financial services industry employees about their response to this survey and whether they think the results are representative.

 

Popularity: 23%

by Pamela Skillings      Send to a friend

Sick and tired of long meetings that accomplish little? Wish there was a way to show your manager just how much time is being wasted by his obsession with meetings? Check out a nifty little application from PayScale.com called the Meeting Miser.

 

The application first asks you to enter your location, then the number of meeting attendees and their job titles. Then it’s time to start the timer and watch as the dollars in wasted salary add up as the seconds tick by.

 

I punched in the details for a recent sales and marketing meeting that I attended and the cost was $3.10 per minute (not including the consultants in the room, which probably more than doubled that rate).

 

For employees, meetings continue to suck time after they leave the conference room and return to their desks. Once the meeting’s over, they have to make up for lost work hours and catch up on emails.

 

That’s not to say there aren’t times when a meeting is justified. Some issues just can’t be resolved effectively via rounds of emails and phone calls. Sometimes you really do need to get everybody in the room and hash things out. But let’s face it, even necessary meetings are usually too long and constantly wander off-topic.

 

Here’s an idea for the next time you anticipate being trapped in a long and unproductive meeting. Launch the Meeting Miser surreptitiously and make a note of the final dollar tally. Later, share the horrifying figure with your boss in a diplomatic and non-confrontational way (remember — none of this is his fault in any way, of course) and offer to help brainstorm ideas for streamlining meetings (like cancelling most of them and keeping the rest focused on more specific agendas).

 

There’s nothing managers like more than an employee with a keen respect for the bottom line. You might just be able to reduce your meeting load and boost your reputation with the boss at the same time.

 

More Advice on Meeting Management

 

7 Ways to Avoid Pointless Meetings from Ben Yoskovitz at Instigator Blog  — Great tips on how to make your meetings more effective (and, most imortantly, shorter)

 

How to Kill Meetings at Lifehack.org — Leo Babauta offers advice on avoiding time-suck meetings.

 

Meeting Tokens at 43 Folders — Merlin Mann at 43 Folders introduces a brilliant new concept — meeting tokens good for just 15 minutes. On a related note, Merlin and the creative people at The Mule have collaborated on this great t-shirt for members of the anti-meeting movement.

 

 

 

Popularity: 18%

by Pamela Skillings      Send to a friend

Is your job making you crazy? Spending 40+ hours per week in a stressful work environment can take a serious toll on both your mental and physical health. Job stress has been linked to conditions including anxiety, depression, ulcers, obesity, chronic back pain, high blood pressure, and heart disease. That  "I hate my job" feeling could literally be making you sick.

 

But it’s not always easy to walk away from a bad job. I speak from experience. I learned about all of the sanity savers on this list the hard way – I stayed in a job I didn’t like for years before I worked up the courage to quit.

 

1. Make a Plan to Get Out

 

 

The most important first step is to get serious about changing your situation. You will be amazed at how much less aggravating your job can become once you have a solid plan to get out. Even the worst days are easier to bear if you know the end is in sight.

 

So think about what you can do to stop the madness – get off of that hellish project, transfer to a different department, replace that incompetent employee, or figure out how to quit your job and move on to something more fulfilling. What would it take to make things better? And then, what do you need to do to get there?

 

If your job is running you ragged, the idea of making time for planning can be daunting. That’s why so many people stay stuck in bad situations. But you have to prioritize your long-term health and happiness and find the time, even if that means your days become a little more hectic in the short term. The reward of a better job situation is well worth the temporary strain. We can’t depend on our employers to guide our career paths anymore. It is up to us to take charge. And if we don’t proactively plan, we run the risk of getting caught up in momentum toward goals we don’t even really want.

 

2. Take a Mental Health Day

 

 

One way to make time for hatching your escape plan is to take a mental health day. That’s right. Play hooky. Some of you Type A personalities may have trouble with this idea. However, if you’re on the verge of burnout and your employer refuses to let up the pace, you may have to take matters into your own hands.

 

A day away from the madness can be a great way to get some perspective. It’s easy to start taking work way too personally when you never have a chance to step back and view things objectively. At the same time, countless studies have found that people perform better when they have time away to refresh.

 

So you owe it to yourself and your company to take a day off if you’ve reached your limit. You can call in sick and you don’t even have to lie. You’re “not feeling well enough to come in.” After all, burnout can be just as debilitating as a bad cold.

 

3. Take a Walk

 

 

 

You don’t have to take a whole day off to benefit from a little mental health break. Even a ten-minute break to step away from your desk and take a few deep breaths can be beneficial when you’re feeling stressed out.

 

Even better, getting out of the office environment for a little bit longer can give you the space you need to figure out a better solution to the problem at hand or defuse a negative situation. When you’re feeling out of control or on the verge of saying or doing something you might regret, just walk away. Take a walk around the block or duck out to the gym and work out your negative energy. 

 

Just stop what you’re doing, get away from the people who are getting on your last nerve, and focus your mind on something besides the cause of your stress.  If you can, go outside for a breath of fresh air. Psychological studies have shown that gazing at views of nature can provide relief from mental fatigue and enhance competence.

 

4. Make Time for Activities that Energize You

 

 

 

All work and no play make Jack not only a dull boy, but also a very cranky one. If you’re not getting the fulfillment you need at work, you have to make time for your passions after hours. Without a regular dose of joy in your life, burnout is inevitable.

 

Think about what’s missing. Do you need a creative outlet? Do you long to be able to make a bigger difference in the world? Do you hunger for greater intellectual challenge? Look into hobbies, classes, or volunteer work that can help you fill the void. You may think you don’t have time for fun or fulfillment, but I can guarantee you that a little bit of inspiration will give you more energy and make your days much more pleasant.

 

5. Make Friends In and Out of the Office

 

 

 

Recent research studies show job satisfaction increases by nearly 50 percent when you have a close friend at work. It’s a lot more fun to come to the office when you have colleagues that you like and respect. Having friends at the office is even more important when you’re stuck in a miserable job. You need at least one trusted confidante that you can vent to. You can also benefit from the informed advice and support of colleagues who know all of the players and issues that you’re dealing with.

 

At the same time, make sure that you continue to cultivate a circle of interesting friends outside the office. The very act of getting away from work and work people to enjoy totally unrelated activities and discussions can be very rejuvenating. Spending time with “normal” people can also provide you with new and healthier perspectives on your work. You may even meet someone who can hire you or recommend you for a better job. You certainly won’t find job leads if you spend all of your evenings crying into your beer with the gang from the office.

 

6. Sleep On It

 

 

 

If you’re dealing with a stressful job, chances are good that you haven’t been getting enough sleep. When schedules get hectic, people tend to start cutting back on their sleep hours in order to fit everything in. We’ve all pulled an occasional all-nighter when an important project called for it. However, consistent neglect of your body’s natural need for sleep can make you more irritable and lead to significantly lower job satisfaction.

 

If you’re feeling overwhelmed, you may very well be better off going home to bed than working late. You’ll think more clearly in the morning and be more productive. Likewise, if you have a big decision to make or are feeling tempted to respond emotionally to a work conflict, try sleeping on the situation in order to get enough distance (and rest) to make an informed choice.

 

7. Book Your Vacation Now

 

 

 

Research has shown that workers who take regular vacations have lower stress levels and are less likely to experience burnout.  Unfortunately, half of U.S. workers don’t take the vacation days they’re given. In fact, U.S. workers forfeited approximately 421 million vacation days in 2005.

 

If you’ve got vacation days coming, don’t put them off any longer. A vacation lets you recharge your batteries so that you can do a better job at work when you return. It can also give you time and distance to think about your job situation and how you’d like it to change.

 

Even if you can’t get away right now, you can schedule your trip and start planning your vacation activities. Scheduling your getaway now will give you something specific to look forward to and think about on those days when work feels like it will never get better.

 

8. Laugh It Off

 

 

 

Did you know that humor can reduce job stress, boost morale, strengthen workplace bonds, and even help ward off burnout?  And here you thought all those stupid forwarded joke emails were complete wastes of time.

 

A little comedy can help you release tension and lighten up a bit. So keep your funniest friend’s phone number handy and call when you’re having a bad day. Upload sets by your favorite stand-up comics to your iPod and take a quick comedy break when you need one. After all, it’s physically impossible to feel totally miserable when you’re laughing.

 

9. Just Breathe

 

 

 

You may have heard this advice before, but it bears repeating. When things get tough, deep breathing can take you from crazed to calm in just a few minutes.

 

When we get stressed, we tend to start breathing more shallowly. As a result, our cells don’t get as much oxygen and when your brain cells don’t get enough oxygen, it’s hard to think clearly or calmly.

 

The best quick relief for feeling overwhelmed is to just breathe. Find a secluded or semi-secluded spot, close your eyes, and focus on taking deep slow breaths from your belly. Keep your mind on your breathing and refuse to be distracted by other thoughts or outside noises, if only for a minute or two. This process will help you get that oxygen to your brain while also clearing out unproductive thoughts. It can be a great temporary fix when you’re feeling frazzled.

 

10. Get Some Help

 

 

 

If you’ve tried everything that you can think of to make your bad job tolerable and you’re still suffering, it may be time to call in some outside help. Working with a career counselor or coach could help you more clearly identify the root causes of your job misery and explore solutions that you haven’t thought about. If your work situation is having a serious emotional impact, you may prefer to speak with a counselor or therapist.

 

There’s no need to suffer in silence and no shame in asking for help. They don’t give out medals for bravely enduring terrible jobs.

 

If your job is affecting your mental or your physical health, you owe it to yourself to do whatever you can to make the situation better. While your ultimate goal may be a better job, these ten tips can help you keep your sanity until you’re ready to give your notice. 

 

Do you have additional ideas for minimizing stress in a horrible job? Share your stories and advice and add to the list.

 

 

Popularity: 100%

by Pamela Skillings      Send to a friend

Workplace stress is the most frequently cited reason U.S. employees consider leaving their jobs, according to a new survey by consulting firm Watson Wyatt Worldwide.  Employees defined their  top causes of workplace stress as long hours, work/life balance, technologies that expand availability, and managers’ inability to recognize stress.

 

More surprisingly, another Watson Wyatt survey found that nearly half of employers (48%) acknowledge that stress caused by overwork is affecting business performance and 32% said that work/life balance issues were taking a toll on the bottom line. 

 

Although companies know that workplace stress is a problem, very few are taking steps to address it. Only 5% said they are taking action to address stress caused by long hours. A more encouraging 16% said they are taking action to relieve stress caused by work/life balance issues.

 

Those companies that don’t address these issues may find themselves paying the price in health care and retention costs. According to a statement by Shelly Wolf,  national practice director of health and productivity at Watson Wyatt: “Too much stress from heavy demands, poorly defined priorities and little on-the-job flexibility can add to health issues. By leaving stress unaddressed, employers invite an increase in unscheduled time off, absence rates and health care costs — all of which hurt a company’s bottom line.”

 

 

Popularity: 19%