How can I survive hot-desking in an open-plan windowless office?
I have recently started a new job. And while I love the work itself, the working environment is new to me and causing me to regret taking the job. I now work in an open-plan office without any natural light, and I am hot-desking. What can I do to make the environment nicer, and more of a productive area to work in?
Keep yourself from going stir-crazy when you work from home
Working from home is practically the new American dream. Everyone I know wants to do it, and everyone I know says they envy my ability to set my own hours, pick my own clients, and work in my pajamas (or naked!) any time I feel like it. What’s less obvious is that working from home can be a huge stressor sometimes. Luckily, there are plenty of ways to keep yourself from losing your mind as a stir-crazy freelancer. Here’s just a few of the ways I keep myself sane on a daily basis…
I’m an American expat living abroad: AMA about international moves, travel plans, culture shock, or looking for a job as an expat
I’m an American expatriate living, studying, and working abroad. I’ve also travelled a lot for fun and business — my old-school passport has two extra stamp booklets. In the years and moves that followed, I learned about stuff like budgeting for an international move, planning a big trip or move overseas, dealing with both culture shock and reverse culture shock, managing finances and legal issues internationally, looking for a job as an expat (in native and non-native language situations), learning travel safety tips both the hard and the easy ways, handling back-home junk food cravings that strike without warning… So let’s talk — Ask me anything!
How to live with a passionate [read: obsessive, driven, fanatical, and somewhat egotistical] partner
When I say the word “passionate,” I’m not talking about the down on your knees, overly-romantic type fanfare. I am referring to how I describe a person who is passionate about whatever specific interest they hold dear to their heart. Other words such as obsessive, driven, fanatical, and somewhat egotistical also come to mind. What if these tend to describe your partner?
Staying spooky in the corporate world
When you work in a corporate environment, it can be easy to fall into the pattern of dressing the way your co-workers do, especially if you haven’t quite wrapped your head around the concept of “business casual.” For a long time, I felt the need to basically be undercover as a “normal person” at work to avoid raising eyebrows, and because I felt I needed to dress a certain way to be respected. I’m going to let you in on a little secret I’ve learned after 7ish years working in offices: this just isn’t true. There are plenty of ways to express your creepy side in a work-appropriate manner.
Does my “petite woman” stature mean I’ll never be seen an adult?
I am a petite 27-year-old woman. My whole life I have looked younger than my age, and my size has always been a defining characteristic. When do I get to just be a normal adult woman? When I’m married will people start treating me with respect? When I have kids will I no longer be just a little person who miraculously does a lot of things? When will I be given the respect that I feel I deserve as a woman closer to 30 than 20?
Learning to fold: everything I know about laundry I learned from working shitty retail jobs
When I was in college, I worked for The Disney Store. They taught me this thing called “The Disney Fold” … a laundry folding method that I use to this day.
Should I volunteer or start a job?
I know that volunteering would be an amazing way to gain the experience that I need, but with graduation quickly coming and all my debt looming in the distance, I worry if I can afford it and if it’s worth the risk. Then again, I have had a few professors tell me that I should get a job instead of volunteering or interning, but I worry that no one will hire me due to lack of experience.