In our unstable economic times, there are few employees who feel absolutely sure their job will still be here tomorrow. But it's not productive to be distracted by needless worry every day. So how do we know when to relax and when to worry (and start polishing up that resume?) Pay attention to true warning signals, but don't get too caught up in office gossip. It can lead to low morale. Just keep your eyes open for these signs that your job may be on its way to the downsize dump.1. There are rumors of layoffs Here's an obvious one. Generally, when the... view article details

Unique, Affordable Last-Minute Gifts Whether you celebrate Hannukah, Kwanzaa, Christmas or Festivus (and who doesn't love the Airing of Grievances?), holiday gift-giving is in full swing. To that end, we've put together a bunch of awesome gifts for the people on your list.And don't worry, we know even though there's talk of economic recovery, most of us are still a little light in the wallet. So we made sure most of these gifts fall securely under the $50 mark.Happy shopping."Where I've Been" Scratch Travel Map This lottery ticket inspired travel map is perfect for that loved... view article details

Network = Net Worth Author Porter Gale may have spelled it out most clearly: Your Network is Your Net Worth. If you could isolate only one single factor to determine career success, from landing your very first position to advancing up the corporate ladder and even helping when things aren’t going well, it’s having a solid network in place.Networking is about making connections and building enduring, mutually beneficial relationships. It’s a vitally important skill, yet one that still mystifies many people.Let’s take a look at 5 networking tips from industry experts.5. Change From a "... view article details

Decisions, Decisions There are many times in life when a poor decision is going to cost you some money.There are the little decisions that bug you, like waiting too long to buy an airline ticket and the price jumps $60, buying a pair of jeans only to see them go on sale for 50% off the next week, or illegally parking your car for just a minute while you run an errand, only to find a $125 ticket on your windshield when you come outside.Then there are some big decisions. One look at Wikipedia’s list of most expensive divorce settlements – twenty-two of them more 50 million dollars! – wi... view article details

Office Holiday Parties Can be Minefields With its booze, year-long pent-up emotions towards co-workers, the specter of organizational politics, various inter-office rivalries and the 'secret' cubicle farm romance everyone knows about, the annual company holiday party has all the explosive potential of an open fire in a dynamite factory.That hasn’t slowed the party train yet. New data from Challenger, Gray & Christmas, a global outplacement consulting organization, indicates more companies are holding holiday celebrations this year. Despite economic uncertainty, 72.4% are planning to p... view article details

Don't Make Virtual Meetings a Bore You have to hold a meeting, but everyone who should participate is somewhere else. What should you do?Hold the meeting virtually.More than 20 million virtual meetings are held every year. Some 85 percent of projects now include remote team members and that percentage keeps rising. If you plan it right, a virtual meeting will let you accomplish everything you could with an in-person meeting. Here's a guide for doing that.7. Set a Goal As with any other kind of meeting, be clear on what you want to accomplish. Do you want to convey information... view article details

Negotiate Wisely We know, you don’t like negotiating. But here’s a hint – very few people do. So despite it being about as enjoyable as nails on a chalkboard, it’s also necessary. And it’s too important to screw up.A misstep during the salary negotiation portion of your job interview – or worse, your failure to negotiate at all – could end up costing you thousands. Unfortunately, there are a variety of pitfalls along the way and traps you can inadvertently fall into that could derail your chances of success. That’s why we’ve identified the nine biggest mistakes most people make when n... view article details

Did you know employers sometimes pay a premium for the right education and experience? Or that you might be able to earn more by doing the same job in a larger company? In fact, these could be some of your strongest negotiating points in your next performance review, job interview, or request for a promotion.Employers typically adjust their market data when determining how much to pay a specific employee to do the job. In other words, they price the 'space' - the position in the organization - before they price the 'face,' or the person doing that job. After they determine the value of the pos... view article details

Ask anyone who's ever sold a home, and they'll tell you how seriously they took the process of selecting a real estate agent to represent them. It's likely they also took a proactive role in ensuring that the agent worked hard to market their home. When it comes to home buyers however, the number of people who end up with a real estate agent by accident is amazing. The person who helps you find and buy your house is integral to the success of the process, which is why buyers ought to put the same effort into finding an agent as home sellers would.Who's who in real estate agentsTo find the righ... view article details

Dear Heather,I read one of your articles on what to do about hating your job and it moved me to write you a message myself.Like the woman in the story I too have come to absolutely loathe coming into work. I've been in my current line of work for close to five years, and to be honest I really enjoy what I do. In case you were wondering I'm an Ophthalmic Technician for an Ophthalmology office. At first my advice and actions were very respected and the rest of the office seemed to care about them. But as time slipped past the luster started to fade and the true beast began to rear its ugly head.... view article details