thecareerbeat.com Blog

Drinkers get paid more than nondrinkers?

What a perfect topic to discuss right before my vacation.

A 2006 survey from the Reason Foundation looks at why drinkers make more money than nondrinkers. The researchers found that self-reported drinkers earn 10-14% more than abstainers. In addition, white males who visit bars at least once a month earn 7% more on top of the drinkers’ 10% premium.

The news makes me want to do more happy hours after work! For more interesting studies about salary, check out “9 Reasons Why Your Salary Isn’t Higher.”

NOTE: I will be on vacation tomorrow through Aug. 11, and I will not be posting during that time. But I will be drinking. (If you haven’t taken a vacation yet this year, don’t let it get away!)

Jealousy on the job

The green monster often raises its head in the workplace.  Envy is something you can’t often control or predict, but there are good ways to minimize its potential damage.

We all know jealousy can poison romantic relationships, but it can do the same for professional relationships if you’re not careful.

One good way to get a hold of your own jealousy of coworkers is to do a month-by-month (or some other frequency) resume that tracks your progress and performance highlights.  This way you focus on your projects and results, not coworkers or their actions.  You can also use this document to update your real resume and update your boss at an opportune time for a promotion and/or raise.

For more suggestions, check out this article.

What your inbox says about you

Are you a perfectionist or a procrastinator? Your email inbox could have the answer.

At work I just try to keep my inbox as empty as possible.  And that means, according to this article, that I am a perfectionist.  Hmmm.  I’ve always heard keeping your inbox empty was a good sign of efficiency, and I’m pleased with how well I stay on top of it.

But the article suggests I may have a “Pavlovian-like attachment” to my inbox, meaning that I perk up every time I hear a ding that alerts me to a new message.  These frequent interruptions could adversely affect my productivity and concentration — and they do, honestly.  I cope by keeping lists so that I can rebound from the constant distractions.  But I hate to think of the opposite scenario with the overstuffed inbox.

Which P-word applies to you?  Find out more here.

Meryl Streep: one inspiring risk-taker

It was just a matter of time before I found a way to feature Meryl Streep here.

Full disclosure: I am a HUGE fan of this actress — not only because she is unbelievably talented, but also because she is a classy human being who has conducted her career with integrity and intelligence.

There is a great tribute to her career and her choices in the San Francisco Chronicle this week. The starting point is an appreciation for her latest, surprising work in the film musical “Mamma Mia!”

The article rightly points out something we can all learn from Ms. Streep: Don’t be afraid to take risks. For example, after her amazing work in “The Devil Wears Prada,” she acted in a few well-intentioned duds last year, such as “Dark Matter” and “Rendition.” Nevertheless “Prada” and “Mamma Mia!” were also risks, and they paid off big-time.

She is a “Super Trouper” inspiration for us all.

(For more on career risks worth taking, see this article.)

Portrait of an active job seeker

We hear lots these days about job losses and the rising unemployment rate in impersonal reports.  I thought this mini interview with a job seeker, Sean Bartel, might add more depth to the picture.

Sean Bartel is a broadcast journalist who lives near Cincinnati, and he’s set up his own site, seanbartel.com, to help with his job search. Below is a Q&A I conducted with him via email recently, and I think his experiences can benefit many others.

Q: How long have you been actively looking for a job?

A: For seven months. Four days after Thanksgiving I was told I’d be laid off, but my final day wasn’t until January 4th (because of negotiations of severance and things of that source).

What has been the biggest challenge for you in your job search?

Sifting through all the new options on the Internet for a job search. I haven’t been out of work since I graduated college (1999) and haven’t changed jobs in four years, and the difference in the amount of websites and ways you can get your work to an employer is staggering. Figuring out which ones are good, which ones aren’t worthwhile, and how to proceed has been more difficult than I imagined.

How has having your own Web site helped in your job search?  Would you recommend that as a tool for others, perhaps as a supplement for a resume?

Absolutely, for anyone inside or outside of television. It saves you in a number of ways: Obviously the cash to send your material to a possible employer, but also time and gives you extra creativity. What you can do on a Web site far exceeds the limited imagination of a resume.

What is the most significant thing you’ve learned during your job-search process?

Read up on good ways to job search, ways you haven’t thought of. “Knock ‘Em Dead” is a book filled with simple ideas I never did before but am starting to employee. Also, when you’re sending out cover letters or creating a Web site, let your personality flow. Stop thinking about listing accomplishments for a second, and find a way to write like you’re talking to your best friend (in a professional way, obviously)

What advice would you give to others who might be facing a lengthy job search?

Whenever you talk to someone about a job, advice, anything, ask at the end, “Do you know anyone else I could talk to?” Quickly build a new network for your job search to add to your old one. Send more thank-you notes than you ever have before. But don’t drive yourself nuts. Work on your job for a number of hours each day from 9-5, but when your accustomed quitting time arrives, try and relax. Have a nice meal, and start fresh again the next day.

Boomers do good, avoid retirement

The concept of retirement is losing favor, in part because of economic necessities but also because many older workers want an “encore career” instead.

The trend is taking hold among the massive baby boomer generation, many of whom are hitting retirement age but want to use their talents to “give back” through work that helps society and is personally fulfilling.

The phenomenon is explored in the book “Encore: Finding Work That Matters in the Second Half of Life,” by Marc Freedman. The book features inspiring real-life examples, including an insurance agent now working for HUD, a car salesman who became a social entrepreneur, and a health-care executive who now serves the homeless community as an advocate.

You can learn more at encore.org and Civic Ventures, the organization founded by Freedman.

New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof also wrote an inspiring column yesterday about this trend. I am already looking forward to my encore career!

Coming soon: 4-day workweeks?

How will the average American workplace look different in five years?

The experts at outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas (CGC) make seven fascinating predictions in this recent article from Yahoo! HotJobs.

My favorite is that four-day workweeks, consisting of 10-hour days, will become more common. Surprisingly, 23% of companies already offer this option for employees, according to John Challenger, CEO of CGC.

This sort of work schedule would make a lot of employees happy (myself included), in part because it will save on commuting costs. But it could also save employers when it comes to energy bills, not to mention other benefits. (See my earlier post about how Utah state offices are adopting the four-day week.)

For the other six predictions, read the article.

‘No long pants’ rule beats heat at work

An advertising-public relations firm in Salt Lake City is enforcing a novel workplace policy as a way to beat the heat: a “no long pants” rule.

From July 15 to Aug. 15, all employees in the firm Richter7 must wear shorts, capris, skorts, kilts — anything but long pants — to work until the city’s record-breaking heat lets up. The dress code even applies to meeting with clients. Those who violate the rule will be fined a quarter.

July 2007 was Utah’s hottest month on record, and August 2007 was 0.1 degree away from matching the hottest August on record, according to the firm.

When I first got the firm’s press release, I wondered what would happen if someone showed up at Richter7 for a job interview in the next month wearing a suit. Tim Brown, Richter7’s partner in charge of morale boosting, told me that he would consider such a long-pants-wearing candidate “normal.”

But if the person showed up in shorts because he or she did research and knew of the no-long-pants policy, that would be a “major score,” he said.

“There’s someone who has set himself or herself above the rest,” Brown told me via email. “We’d think, ‘Way to be connected to your audience,’ which in this case is Richter7, the job interviewer.”

His response underscores the point that you should always research company culture and dress code before an interview, and then dress accordingly. Expert recruiters recently offered more good fashion and grooming tips on Yahoo! HotJobs.

I still wouldn’t recommend capri pants for men — especially in an interview.

Annoying coworkers add to workplace problems

As a follow-up to my last post about rage in the workplace, here’s another interesting poll result from Yahoo! HotJobs about annoying coworkers. Over a quarter of respondents (28%) report dealing with more than three annoying coworkers on a regular basis.

Q	Of the coworkers you deal with daily, how many do you find really annoying?
None	13%
One	25%
Two	23%
Three	10%
More than three	28%
11251 Votes to date

Are you an annoying coworker? Check out this article to make sure you’re not one of the six most annoying types.

Watch out for anger in the workplace

Yesterday a colleague said to me, “I’m just about to lose it!” I figured he was sort of joking, and I pretended to run.

And then I read this article about how common “office rage” has become in the U.S. workplace. People really are losing it! Nearly half of all workers report yelling and verbal abuse on the job, and nearly a quarter say the behavior drove them to tears, according to Reuters.

A recent Yahoo! HotJobs site poll also found that 1 in 4 respondents lost their temper at work at least once a week. Another 10% admitted to losing their temper once a month.

Top it off with all the bad news out there about rising fuel costs, job insecurity, and lower home values, and you can see why there’s a lot of bruising going on at the office.

If you encounter rage, experts recommend several responses, such as not taking it personally and letting the person “vent.” It’s also a good idea to walk away, perhaps excusing yourself to take care of another matter. If the incident is offensive or severe, document it, as it may be a matter for the HR department. Or you could really walk away, as in find a new job.

Here are two good Yahoo! HotJobs articles with more tips how to deal with anger and with bullying at work:

• Anger Management at the Office
• Bullies in the Workplace