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The Science-Backed Excuse You Can Use When You’re Feeling Unproductive We all have things to complain about in our office. It’s too warm during the winter, too cold during the summer, too crowded, too loud, too quiet, too stuffy, too bright, not bright enough. And usually, these issues start and end at just that, complaints. There’s no good fix to please everyone, so you learn to adjust, whether that means wearing more (or less) clothing, buying seat supports, or investing … Continued

How Do I Set Goals in a Position That Has No Clear Goals? Hi Kyle, I’m an executive assistant. Most would say this position doesn’t have any goals, but our performance review system requires me to set goals. How do I go about this? Signed, Goal-Seeker Hi Goal-Seeker, Goals are in place to help us take care of business as usual, sure, but they’re also intended to challenge us to grow as professionals and advance in our careers. Everyone has … Continued

5 Email Templates That’ll Give You the Courage to Reach Out to People You Admire Making small talk with strangers is one thing. Pushing yourself out of your comfort zone by speaking up in a meeting full of important people you don’t know is another. And putting yourself out there and extending a “Hello, hi, you’re awesome” note to someone you admire is yet another one completely. Sometimes, though, it’s the practice part of this equation (and not necessarily the resulting correspondence) that counts. … Continued

3 Times “Being Super Passionate” Isn’t Enough to Land You the Job Imagine for a moment that you’re a hiring manager. You’re considering two job candidates: one who’s passionate about the work and one who isn’t. Who do you choose? If you answered, “ Duh —the passionate one,” without even pausing, then you’re reading the right article. Because, while we hear a lot about how companies want employees who care, that’s only one selling point. So if you’re going into a competitive … Continued

3 Great Workarounds for Job Searchers Who Truly Hate Writing You’re ready to find your dream job. Your resume is updated and you know exactly what sort of work you’d like to do. It’s time to launch your search full-force. But, before you really get going, you stop yourself. You see the application calls for a cover letter, or that you’re connected to someone at the company and your best bet is to send over a note. You freeze up, … Continued

4 Questions Smart People Always Ask Their Boss About New Assignments You just left your meeting with your boss, and your head is spinning. She assigned you to a new project and you feel super unclear about several aspects of it. I’ve been here before—a lot. It’s not very fun. And while it’s ideal for supervisors to present their employees with all the necessary details from the start, it doesn’t always happen. So because I hate feeling destined for failure, … Continued

5 Reasons I Almost Responded to Your Email, But Didn’t I’m no mathematician, but I’d estimate that I get between 100 to four billion emails a day. And as much as I’d like to respond to every single one, it’s just not possible. Not if I want to do other things with my life, like get through my to-do list and make eye contact with fellow human beings. So, how do I decide who gets a response and who gets … Continued

Turns Out You Could Be the Reason Why You’re Unhappy in Your Career How many times in your life have you experienced hurt, disappointment, anger, or stress from the difference between your imagination and reality? When we set out to do things, we always expect that everything will turn out exactly the way we want. Does this sound familiar? “I’m going to finish my degree. And then all the companies will line up for me. I’ll pick the one with … Continued

Ask a Career Coach: How Do I Brag About My Work Without Being Obnoxious? Hi Career Counselor, I am working my butt off, but my boss doesn’t seem to have the slightest clue about what I’m actually achieving. My role involves a lot of different tasks and projects, and I am largely supposed to manage my own time and priorities. I’ve always seen it as a sign of independence that I don’t bother my boss with the small stuff, but after my last … Continued

The 9 Best Things You Can Read Before You Start Your New Job Being the newbie at work is always rough, despite it being something we all go through again and again throughout our careers. On top of learning the day-to-day requirements of your new position and trying to impress your boss, you also have to navigate the intricacies of office politics and making new work friends. It’s a lot. And it probably feels a little bit like a whirlwind. So before … Continued