Displaying All Posts by Joseph Lewis

Holidays: To Go or Not to Go on Vacation?

The holiday season is upon us! Actually, I believe the holiday season officially began around October 1, when the Halloween horror movies started airing continuously and the Christmas commercials were already peppered in among them. But in addition to the compulsory shopping, binge eating, and general stress, there is a silver lining: Vacation time off.

But should you take it? Click Here to Read Article …

Office Campaigns and Crusades

My recent article about dealing with unreasonable bosses and unreasonable requests generated a lot of debate. Some readers agreed with me that you often need to simply grin and bear it until you can get a better job, for various practical and financial reasons. Others argued that the best course of action is to always fight back, to demand fair treatment, and to put your ethics above your wallet. One person even suggested contacting a union representative, but that really only works in the 1950s or in France (which amounts to the same thing).

Because this is such an important issue for the people it affects, I think it deserves a little more discussion. Click Here to Read Article …

17 Awesome PowerPoint & Keynote Presentation Templates

One of the keys to success in any endeavor is having the right tools and knowing how to use them to maximum effect. And one of the best ways to use any tool is to have an expert take care of the fine tuning. Graphic design – whether for Web sites, t-shirts, or presentations – is no exception.

In this article, we’ve assembled a gallery of PowerPoint and Keynote presentation templates available from GraphicRiver that range from classic to modern, and from simply cool to smoking hot. So if you’re not in the business of designing templates, you might want to consider using one of these. Click Here to Read Article …

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This is Not in My Job Description

For those of you who are young, idealistic, and just brimming with shiny hopes and dreams, I have some unfortunate news: Life isn’t fair. Nor is it reasonable, rational, sensible, logical, nice, or fluffy. Life is strange, ridiculous, cruel, fantastic, bizarre, whimsical, capricious, and just a little bit dirty.

I tell you this because one day, possibly one day quite soon, your boss (or someone who wields even more power over your fragile working existence) is going to ask you to do something that you don’t think you should be doing. And you are going to be very unhappy about it. Click Here to Read Article …

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Gaining Office Allies in the Right Places

When you first start at a new job, the one person you are probably most concerned with is your new boss. You want this person to like you, to help you, to defend you, to overlook your mistakes, and to applaud your successes. And this makes sense because your boss is always around and has the most control over your immediate future.

But while managing that very important relationship, it is equally important to pay attention to certain other people in your office as well. These other people can carry you to success or bury you before you even get started.

Click Here to Read Article …

How to Win the Ground War at Work

A great philosopher once said that love is a battlefield. That may or may not be true, but you might be interested to know that work is also a battlefield.

To succeed, to win, you need to plan for the long term. You need more than skills and tactics, you need a strategy. But why bother dreaming up your own strategy when you can just steal one from Napoleon Bonaparte: “An army marches on its stomach.” Don’t see the connection? Let me walk you through it. Click Here to Read Article …

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How to Clean Up Your Slides in 5 Minutes

What do you think about when you hear the phrase “clean up”? Maybe you picture cleaning up food after a party, or cleaning up a small biohazard after your dog. That’s the real world for you: Stinky. At least at work, cleaning up is a bit easier on the nostrils.

It doesn’t matter who you are or what you do, sooner or later someone is going to ask you to “clean up some slides” in preparation for a meeting. This is because “someone” had time to doodle in PowerPoint but lacked the time or skill to create a proper business visual. Cleaning up slides is rarely an opportunity for fun, so let’s try to make it quick. And while we’re at it, let’s make that slide look sharp. Click Here to Read Article …

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School Did Not Prepare You for Work

Congratulations! You’re out in the real world, living on your own, holding down your own job, building your career one day at a time. You made it through high school, through college, through the job hunt, and now you’re here: at work!

But you’re not entirely comfortable, are you? Something is slightly wrong with the world, but you can’t put your finger on it. You like your job, more or less. You like your company and coworkers, more or less. Your career seems to be on track. And yet you feel anxious, out of place, rudderless.

I think I know what’s bothering you. Click Here to Read Article …

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