Is your job just a way to pay the bills, or would you prefer it to be a source of great fulfillment?If you chose the latter, one way you might be able to reach that goal is to ensure that your career matches your personality.While we are all individuals and none of us want to be encumbered with labels, certain personality types complement certain types of jobs.This article explores seven common personality categories and the types of jobs that may lead to more success—and ultimately, happiness.1. The Leader You are self-confident, decisive, have excellent communication skills, and lov... view article details

Dear Heather:I read your 'Death in the Workplace' column and found it to be helpful. But the person who was sick/dying wasn't in the workplace. It was a spouse of a co-worker. Right? How do you deal with a death IN the workplace?Thanks, 'Rachel'-----------------------------------------------Dear Rachel,While job promotions, moves, and career changes can shift the balance of personalities and politics in an office place, death leaves a sudden and often unexpected vacuum. With a co-worker's ascent up the career ladder, there is at least the promise of 'lunch' and a continued connection on Linked... view article details

Dear Annette,One of my teammates is a slacker. I'm tired of carrying his weight. What can I say or do?AtlasDear Atlas,I'll never forget the time Dickie had to fire his pedicurist for inattention and neglect. We were being recognized on International Women's Day in the thrice-named, fictitious Eastern European country where I was born. As we processed down the aisle of the newly repatriated 11th-century cathedral where the ceremony took place, Dickie went 'clickie-clickie' all the way to the altar, paw-nails reverberating for seven seconds. It was as if Pravda's Cold War typing pool were taking... view article details

If you open up a biology textbook and look at the pictures, you'll find a number of dull images of DNA, chromosomes, and photosynthesis that have been putting you to sleep since high school. Unless you’re looking at a book with new and enthralling scientific illustrations by Nicolle Fuller. As an independent science artist, Fuller conceptualizes and creates the scientific images found in magazines, scientific journals, and textbooks. Her artwork runs the gamut from paintings of ancient dinosaurs to intricate depictions of highly complex cellular systems. What every one of her pieces has in com... view article details

There are seven common reasons why networking fails in the professional arena.The most common among them is the fact that 1) people are unsure of how to start a conversation, let alone what to say or the appropriate questions to ask. This can often be unnerving, making people 2) uncomfortable, particularly with people they have just met. Naturally, there is a 3) fear of rejection that accompanies networking, but networking can also be difficult due to 4) people's busy schedules, which causes them not to respond, understand the request or care enough to engage in a networking conversation. This... view article details

Choose Your Investments Wisely When a couple decides to have children, the sacrifices start early. Perhaps they look around their cramped city apartment and think about the spontaneous days when they’d hop on the back of a motorcycle and speed off to wine country for the weekend.Suddenly, the conversation turns to selling off the Honda CB77 Super Hawk for a Honda Odyssey EX-L with third row seating, and researching suburban towns where you get the most room for your money.A smart couple putting a premium on education continually weighs the cost of an investment versus the potential pa... view article details

Getting a raise. Climbing the corporate ladder. Receiving a better title. Taking on more responsibility. Advancing your career. These are the accomplishments most people in the workforce strive to attain. Countless resources exist to guide you every step of the way, from entry-level newbie through middle management and all the way up to the executive offices. How much heartbreak and anger has been exercised lamenting when things don’t go as planned? Why can’t I earn more money?I can’t believe I got passed over for that promotion!My boss is so incompetent, I could do so much better!So if you ar... view article details

We all have our guilty pleasures, and one that continually draws me in from my DVR is “House Hunters International” on HGTV. Each episode, viewers watch as the subject of the show gives up their life at home and travels thousands of miles to an international destination in order to buy or rent a new home or apartment. Those of us playing at home are sucked in through a game show angle, trying to predict which of the three choices will be the winner.This show makes me very angry for several reasons.They never seem to choose the “right” house.When the agent says it’s “a little over your budget.”... view article details

What's Your Career Personality Type? We all know good, qualified people who just couldn’t succeed at a certain company. Why not? Many times it's because they just weren’t the right cultural fit.This fit -- which has less to do with your qualifications and skills and more to do with your personality type -- is vital to employers and hiring managers. You can have all the skills in the world, but if you're not going to mesh with the team or the company, they won't do you much good. These types, also known as archetypes, have been around since the beginning of storytelling. Everyone from ... view article details

Reason No. 1: Your Leadership Doesn’t Care Whenever people attend a cocktail party, invariably someone in the room will have an occupation that others will solicit for some (free) advice. Medical doctors are asked “Does this mole look cancerous to you?” Car mechanics are queried whether the “chunka-chunka” sound the engine makes means a new transmission is needed. And as an industrial/organizational psychologist, I get interrogated about “Why is my company such a lousy place to work? Why do I hate working there?” There can be any number of specific reasons why one’s work experience is l... view article details