Managing meetings effectively is a core skill every manager should develop. Although there's no mystery to what makes a meeting productive, it can take practice and attention to detail to become an effective leader of meetings. It all starts with knowing when to call a meeting, and why.Is It a Meeting?How do you know it's time to call a meeting? What type of meeting is it? What's the purpose of the meeting? Here are some typical situations when a meeting may be called for:You're Managing a ProjectProjects tend to require meetings at various stages: at the beginning, as the project plan is comi... view article details

Social Media: Answering All of Life's Questions Never has one incident singularly highlighted the good, the bad, and the incredibly ugly components of living in the age of social media than a situation earlier this month regarding a young engineer, his two job offers, and his decision to ask the Internet to help him determine which one he should accept.The young man, who has not been identified, posted a question to Quora -- the Q&A social media platform -- to help him decide between a job offer from the ride-sharing powerhouse Uber and Zenefits, an HR software startup. The man came u... view article details

When it comes to colorful language at work, on one end of the spectrum there's the timid colleague who gives up the occasional 'Darn!' and, on the other, there's the over-the-top constant curser who's probably got a trip to HR in his future.But sometimes, things are not be so black and white. That's why knowing the difference between the good, the bad and the ugly can save your ears -- and possibly your job. Here's how...Team Work: The Good Teams that can freely express themselves may build stronger ties. For example, when emotions run high, overlooking a 'freakin'' here and a 'What t... view article details

Survey Analyzes a Year's Worth of Tweets & Finds the 10 Most Hated Jobs Let the Hate Flow Through You If you hate your job and like to complain about it on social media, you’re probably a man living on the East Coast and working in retail. So says a recent study courtesy of Brandwatch and Monster, which analyzed more than 1 million tweets over the course of one year, from March 2014 to March 2015. Attention was paid to how many people tweeted about loving and hating their jobs, with states such as Hawaii, Oregon, and California ranking high on the “love my job” list, while workers in Florid... view article details

Here Are Some Things Your Boss Never Needs to Know About You or Your Life Keep Personal Info Personal Discrimination in the workplace is illegal. It's also despicable and certainly not anything we condone. In an ideal world, the details of our personal lives wouldn't matter nearly as much as our performance and productivity on the job. But the cold, hard truth is employers may still make decisions based upon details of an employee's life. From judging workers based on Facebook photos to thinking twice about promoting someone with kids or a chronic illness when another employee is free of ... view article details

Valentine's Day at Work: Roses Are Red, Violets Are Blue -- Keep Both of Them to Yourself on Feb. 14 Valentine's Day is a Double-Edged Sword Valentine's Day. Perhaps no other holiday evokes stronger feelings from both the lovesick and those entirely sick of love. Sure the celebration of holidays at the office can be fun. After all, you're still sporting that certificate for "Best Costume" at Halloween. But if management wanted you to make a big deal about Valentine's Day at work, they'd have handed out a list of names and asked you to decorate a card box for your desk just like in the fourth... view article details

It’s 8 A.M. on a Tuesday morning and adrenaline is coursing through your veins as you “sing” along with SZA to the chorus of the Grammy-nominated “All the Stars” in the bathroom mirror: “This may be the night that my dreams might let me know, all the stars are closer, all the stars are closer, all the stars closer…” No, you’re not working on your new LP with Kendrick Lamar, and you 're not the new Aaron Burr understudy in “Hamilton.” You’re getting ready for a job interview. You’ve probably read interview guides written by folks who expect you to go through all the robotic motions – “show up... view article details

These Careers Are Worth the Price of College Admission Is College Still Worth the Money? Maybe. As the cost of education continues to skyrocket and job prospects remain less than robust in a tough economy, the answer to the question, "What are you majoring in?" seems more important than ever. There’s no getting around it. Education is expensive. A four-year degree at a public university costs, on average, $37,343, while an education at a private school will set you back $121,930. While statistics show that a college degree will undoubtedly open doors and increase your earning potential, you... view article details

The Best Doesn't Always Win If only competition in the workplace mirrored the simplicity of Olympic swimming. Whoever does the best job and touches the wall first, wins. It's the winner who goes on to earn bonus money via endorsements, and your smiling face lands on a box of breakfast cereal! If only it were as easy as slamming that completed report in the boss’ hand and stepping right up on a big corner office desk for a playing of the National Anthem and an instant raise and promotion.But there’s no winning buzzer in your department (just the occasional annoying ringtone), and somet... view article details

What a Waste Are you interrupting your job duties to read this? Or, more likely than not, are you taking a break between filling out last-minute March Madness brackets? We understand the considerable amount of irony involved in taking time out of your workday to read an article about wasting time at work, but our annual Wasting Time at Work survey results are out and they're pretty interesting. Ever wonder exactly how much time the average American worker spends on non work-related items while on the clock? Are they checking Facebook? Tweeting? Doing some online shopping? And more imp... view article details