#learn hr speak so you can be professionally petty

[dittolicous]

they reorganized the area behind the front desk at work and im.... not a fan. the temp manager saw my expression and asked me about it, so i told her i didnt like what they did snd she fyckin. said 'what? cleaned and organized it?'

like.

fuck you????? i literally DID have it organized and was the one constantly cleaning up after others. *i* was the one who organized where all the bags wents, where all the photo goods were kept, made sure like items were together. it was organized, you just didnt like the way it was.

god. fucking backhanded bull. the only reason i even spoke my mind was because i was taking a chance to trust her..and boy do i gucking regret that

[madswritingvoid]

Say You’re Sorry

Pairing: Max Phillips x f!reader

Words: 3k (oops haha)

Warnings: SMUT. 18+ only. Oral (f receiving), unprotected sex, p in v sex, fingering, swearing, slight choking, first time writing smut should probably be a warning itself, sexism, Max Phillips is a warning probably.

You knew it was a bad idea. Well, actually, no you didn’t. Not fully. The voice in your head was just screaming at you to stop - there were other ways to get his attention. Other ways to make Max feel bad for what he did during the Synersavers presentation that didn’t require you stooping this low. Fuck it, you figured, if he can go around and do whatever he wants to get his way then so can I.

Fixing your hair and outfit in the mirror one last time, you went back into the office looking for the desk you usually avoid like the plague. Max Phillips, fuck you.

Earlier That Day

“So you see, Mr. Jacobson, our third quarter projections have us coming in on top by two million dollars and the fourth quarter is looking even better. I mean really champ, if these numbers were anymore amazing they’d be as hot as your associate there in that fetching skirt,” Max winks at the woman taking meeting minutes for your potential new client, causing her skin to blotch, “fucking unreal. Pardon my French,” he finishes, earning a big laugh from the CEO of Synersavers, the new bullshit placebo pill that was supposed to alter the brain’s natural neural pathways to promote synergy. You weren’t sure what dreams synergy was helping pathetic humans to achieve, but it meant a bonus if they signed on so you made sure that PowerPoint presentation was the best slides of your career.

You scoff, worried that if you roll your eyes they’ll get stuck. You know Max Phillips was quite the charmer, you knew better than anyone in the office. This past year saw him go from being just your hot vampire boss you had a crush on, to your hot vampire boss that was now your boyfriend. 

While you never made an official statement to your coworkers, you quietly signed the papers Amanda in HR needed signed and let the sound of you screaming Max’s name in his office while he was balls deep inside you let the rest of your coworkers know of your relationship. Overall, Max was a great boyfriend. Better than expected even - attentive, caring, protective to a fault, all while still being that loveable (?) piece of shit frat boy extraordinaire he had been at the beginning. 

You knew he still had to lay on the charm to close sales from time to time, never actually violating your relationship in any way, but after the fight you had this morning you didn’t think flirting with the only person in the meeting who did not actually control whether or not this partnership was going to happen right in front of you was the best move.

“Mr. Phillips,” Jacobson says, once again only acknowledging Max and completely ignoring you as he had been for the entire presentation, “you got quite the silver tongue. But I like that about ya, I think you get what our product is all about and I wanna make this partnership work. I’m surprised your presentation is as good as it was, because if you’ll pardon my French, if my secretary looked as delicious as yours does I’d be too busy fucking her left, right, and centre to even think about the fourth quarter anything!” He laughs and claps Max on the shoulder and you tense up, sure that Max is going to say something. Not even because he’s your boyfriend, but because he landed the sale and doesn’t have to be as sleazy as this dickhead is. 

“See that’s where you’re wrong Jacobson, it’s almost like I’m working double to avoid her. Just doesn’t get the mojo flowing, y’know? Maybe we should switch, what do you think sweetheart?” He looks over at the still flustered secretary, “Come on and work for me and we’ll work on some new ways of making synergy happen,” he wags his eyebrows and you’re surprised this poor woman hasn’t slid right off her seat. You’re stunned. Even as Mr. Jacobson laughs and brings a laughing Max into some sort of capitalist bro hug, you can’t bring yourself to move. It isn’t until you hear the squeak of the wheels from the chair Mr. Jacobson’s secretary was sitting against the shitty meeting room carpet that you snap back to the present and shut everything down. By the time you finish everyone is long gone, leaving you to stew in your rage.

A hesitant knock on the meeting room door makes you jump as you’re met with a sheepish looking Evan in the doorway. You were never a big fan of Evan when you started, kind of thought he was a wimp but he was nice enough. After getting with Max and learning their shared history, you couldn’t stand Evan, but were able to be far more professional when needed until Max.

“Oh, sorry, I didn’t realize anyone was still in here after Max and the Synersavers people left,” he shrugged. “What the fuck do you mean Max left with them?” You asked through clenched teeth. Scratching the back of his neck nervously, Evan took a deep breath before telling you, “yeah, um. They left for a late liquid lunch from what it sounded like, Max said you would be too busy learning how to make a paper clip bracelet to join them… Sorry, he’s such an asshole. You don’t deserve that, especially not from that bastard,” He couldn’t meet your eyes. Even though he still tried to tell you to leave Max every single day, you appreciate him being there this time.

There were many things you could be mean to Evan for, but deep down you knew he didn’t deserve the wrath of your anger this time. 

Later That Afternoon

After taking the elevator up to the office to mentally cleanse his mind from that mindless lunch with that absolute creep Jacobson, Max was trying to come up with the best apology for you. He knew he didn’t have to be so forward flirting with that secretary, what the fuck was her name anyways, in order to win the sexist CEO over. But he was feeling petty after your fight while you were getting ready for work he figured it wouldn’t hurt to remind you that many other women find him quite the catch.

“You’re lying! You have to be lying!! There’s no way that happened oh my god,” Max stops dead in his tracks as he hears your giggles from inside the office. “It is! I totally saw Tim practising the dance moves the day after that Kelly Clarkson concert in the men’s washroom. I didn’t even know she had dancers, but from what I saw it really must have been a hell of a show,” Evan says as you throw your head back and let out another over-the-top cackle. You’re sitting on top of Evan’s desk, resting your hand on his shoulder as he sits in between your open legs, clearly enjoying the attention. 

You’re hamming it up, he knows that, he knows that’s not what your real laugh sounds like - the laugh he gets to hear when he really does something that you like. He knows you don’t mean it but he’s immediately flooded with anger and guilt. He obviously didn’t realize how much the day had taken a toll on you and now you must be really mad if you’re going to Evan to get back at him.

“Oh my god Evan that’s too funny,” you giggle and place a hand on his shoulder, “you just made my day! I won’t tell Tim anything, it’ll be our little secret,” you wink. Evan’s blush deepens at the touch, maybe you weren’t so bad after all and if Max (and Amanda at this point) didn’t look out he would maybe ask you out for a drink sometime soon. Bring you back to the land of the living.

Deciding he’s absolutely had enough, Max quietly comes up behind Evan and slaps both hands on his shoulders after seeing you move yours back to your lap, causing him to freeze and let out a little squeak. “Slugger, I’m sure whatever’s going on here is just too funny, but didn’t I ask you to finish up that presentation for tomorrow’s meeting with NuevaWeight?” he pouts, “I really thought you were taking this job seriously buddy, but maybe I should just get Andrew to take over…”

“N-no Max, sorry. Yeah the presentation is almost done, it’ll be ready before the end of the day,” Evan stammers. Max finally meets your eyes and smirks, “and you can meet me in my office. Apparently you think you can stop doing your job and distracting my employees.”

You can’t even speak, your jaw set and eyes burning from the absolute rage you feel right now. Yeah you’ll meet him in his office, but it won’t be so he can lecture you about whatever bullshit he’s already thought of. “Of course Mr. Phillips, meet you there,” you manage to snap back, calmly making your way to his office. Anyone walking by you immediately gets out of your way, your anger coming off in waves making your undead coworkers shiver.

Clapping Evan on the shoulder one more time, Max saunters over to his office, ready to make you beg for his forgiveness after that little stunt. As soon as he opens his office door he realizes that won’t be happening.

You’re sitting in his chair, legs propped up on his desk in a way that makes your skirt ride up and expose more thigh than what HR might deem office appropriate. “Ah, Mr. Phillips, so nice of you to make it,” you smirk. “Sweets, I think there must be some sort of misunderstandi-'' you cut him off with a dark look and stand up. Walking up to him you close his office door and push him against it, “No champ,” you sneer, “I think you’re confused here. I’m not the one who decided to be a very, very bad boy by flirting with someone else and insulting me in front of new clients.” Chest to chest, your hand slithers up to grab Max’s throat. Even though he is a vampire who could toss you around like a ragdoll, you know he’s letting you be in control. He likes it.

“While you were out entertaining I’ve been thinking about what I could do to make you really sorry, baby. You were already on thin ice from this morning, but now you’re drowning,” you squeeze a little harder on his throat making his eyes roll back. “What are you gonna do? I’m so sorry,” he whispers. You take a moment, just looking into those eyes you love so much, before answering.

“Maybe I’ll sit on your cock. Let you fill my pussy up but not let you cum, because only good boys get to come, you know that Maxie. Maybe I’ll just use you like my own walking, talking dildo. If I’m so replaceable you won’t mind not getting to fill me up? Right?” You smirk again as he whines, his hands clenching because all he wants to do is make you feel good now. 

“You wanna run that mouth, Phillips? You wanna make everything think you’re so fucking special when I know you’re really just a scared little vamp, huh?” You say with a pout. Grabbing his hair, you force his head up so you can look right into his eyes that are now almost completely black from lust. “Come on big shot, if you wanna be a big boy then you gotta show me that mouth can do something other than just spew bullshit, slugger.” 

That’s all the permission he needs. He hoists you up in his arms and thanks to vampire speed you’re now sat on his leather couch, skirt up around your waist, underwear ripped clean off, fully exposed to his hungry eyes. “Baby, I’m so sorry,” he pouts, “let me make you feel good. I just want you-” You’ve heard enough, pushing him down so his mouth finally reaches your core. Moaning at finally tasting you, Max wastes no time taking your clit and sucking hard, already teasing your entrance with one of his long fingers. 

“Y-Yes Max, fuck! Be a good boy and make me cum just like this,” you moan and clench around the finger inside of you, knowing you’re absolutely dripping onto the couch underneath you. He adds a second, then a third, making you arch your back until you’re almost sitting up from how good he’s fucking you with his hands. His mouth doesn’t stop, sucking and licking, spelling out his apologies against your body. Knowing you’re close, he starts focusing on that spot inside of you that drives you wild. 

“Oh! Oh, Maxie yes. Such a g-good boy,” you pant, meeting his hand thrust for thrust trying to reach your high, “make me feel so good please please please baby I’m right there, I-” you can’t finish that sentence as your vision goes white and all you can do is let out a strangled moan that sounds like his name.

Once your legs start shaking you pull both of you up, undoing his belt and pushing him onto the couch so you can straddle his waist. You wrap a hand around his neck and start nipping at the area, rocking your soaked pussy along his aching cock that was now free from the confines of his dress pants a few times before sinking down on him. A wicked grin stretches across your face as his moans get louder. He chokes when he feels you gush around him, not expecting you to come again so soon but you were still sensitive from his mouth, the hair above his cock rubbing deliciously against your clit, but you wanted more still. 

Picking up the pace, you squeeze around his throat again and start taunting him, “You gonna replace me baby? Yeah? You gonna find a pussy that takes you this good? Be my guest. Go right now and find something better, or show me how goddamn sorry you are.”

Granting him permission to take over, Max flips you on your back, making sure your head is supported by one of the couch cushions. He immediately wraps your legs around his waist, angling one leg to let him sink even deep inside of you, your moans mixing together as you both revel in the feeling of him finally being inside of you. Wanting to prove himself he wastes no time pulling out just to start slamming back into you. 

You moan and clench around him, making him hiss and he doesn’t let up. Watching him disappear inside of you over and over again, he starts babbling his apologies. “N-Never baby. Could never replace you. Never gonna find a pu-pussy this fucking good. Look at you, so perfect, so so perfect taking my cock like that. I’m sorry. You’re so good. I don’t deserve it, it’s- fuck it’s so fucking good. Best pussy of all time,” he moans as you clamp down on him, your third orgasm ripping through you. 

“Yes - yes Max, that’s fucking r-right. I’m the best pussy you’ll ever have,” you moan again from being so full. You know he’s sorry so you decide to let him finish after all. Taking your hands off his shoulders, you start tangling your fingers in his hair and bring his face close to your so your lips are almost touching, “you did so good Maxie,” you coo, “you cock made me feel so fucking good I know you’re sorry now.” He shudders at your words but keeps his steady pace, trying to make you cum again, still holding back his own impending orgasm. “Thank you baby, ‘m so so sorry, I love you and I just wanna be good for you-” “shhh shhh Maxie, I know I know. You did good baby, now show me how good you are and cum inside of me.” 

That’s all he needs. 

Something between a groan and growl comes deep from within Max as he finally lets go, pushing himself as far as he can inside of you as he starts painting your walls. Coming down from his high, he nuzzles his face into the crook of your neck as you start peppering him with kisses wherever you can reach, carding your fingers through his hair.

“I’m really sorry baby,” you hear him mumble into your neck, “I love you.” He kisses along your throat and you hum, moving your head to give him more access. “I know Max, I love you too. I forgive you. But try that again and I’ll cut your dick off in front of the whole office,” you laugh.

He chuckles too, continuing to shower you with love. “As much as I want to stay right here forever baby, let’s go home and I can keep showing you how sorry I am,” he suggests, wiggling his eyebrows to earn a giggle from you, “sounds good Maxie, you’re lucky I’m just sooooo forgiving.”

Untangling from each other and making yourselves as presentable as you care to be, you leave the office hand-in-hand, ready to see what the rest of the night has in store.

[landofsomethingsomething]

It’s so god damn easy to tear people down. People do it every day. It’s simple, it’s satisfying, it’s cathartic, it feels like balm to people who have been wronged, to people who have suffered, to people who have to live their lives outside this virtual space in fear and in real danger, in abusive households and abusive communities and situations that do not foster kindness, empathy, or the extension of good faith toward strangers. Being able to lash out safely from behind a screen at people that are safe to lash out at and who feel like a source of your continuing oppression -- that’s novel, at first. It’s invigorating. It’s freeing. The ability to be angry, to say angry things, to express your hurt and rage at any number of nameless or unnamable things is so fucking seductive it’s no wonder so many lgbt+ people have spent time in that place, have had periods of their lives where they engaged in this behavior and said what they wanted and lashed out without thought and allowed others so similar to them to enable their behavior. 

It’s so easy to find lgbt+ people who are in pain. To take these people who are in pain and to give them targets. To mold young people and your peers and take advantage of their trauma (so like your own!) and whip it up, normalize it within your group, foster it on any number of available platforms. Focus it on whoever you deem deserving at any given time. Actions speak louder than words. Context is irrelevant. Dialogue is weak. Abusers are abusers are abusers, except when you’re the abuser, because the abuse you have suffered justifies your actions. Your abuse makes you relatable. Your abuse is more important, more valid, more meaningful, more deserving of the care and empathy of others regardless of your coping mechanisms. 

It’s so damn fucking easy to just say whatever you want on the internet. It’s so easy to paint a group with whatever paintbrush you like, because no one fact checks, no one cares about context, no one concerns themselves with nuance, no one views the words on the screen in front of them as coming from another human being with an entirely separate lived history full of its own tragedy and triumph and biases and triggers and needs and understanding and hard fucking learned lessons. 

We separate into teams and look for ways to score points against the other side. We make ourselves willfully ignorant so we don’t have to switch sides, or even better, remove ourselves from the game entirely. We busy ourselves with tearing our enemies down with unattainable standards, ignore our own hypocrisy, and look to our side to tell us we’re right, we’re right, this time we are right and we will not be silenced and we will not be bullied and we will not let them win. 

Our actual abusers don’t see any of it. They don’t care. They go on living their lives. We take our rage and our pain and our frustration out in arenas we understand, in the places we feel safe, and the people we lash out at are the people who should be our friends, our allies, our brothers and sisters and nonbinary siblings who have suffered so much in a world that denies our sexuality, denies our gender, denies our expression, denies our right to exist. 

We know our abusers won’t listen. We know our pain is nothing to them, a drop in a bucket. So we hurt the people that can’t help but listen, because our stories are so alike. 

I went through an angry phase. I spent a few years screaming at people I felt deserved it, too. Some of them did and some of them didn’t, and doing so brought me short term satisfaction and a deep sense of power that I had not experienced anywhere else. A deep resonance with my own identity that I was powerless to exhibit anywhere in my real life, because family is complicated, friends are the choir and speaking up about microaggressions at work gets queer people fucking fired every fucking day, and you need that god damn money to eat. to live. to pay for your fucking brain pills. 

So. 

When you have a platform and a fandom and you feel that thrill of being heard, finally -- I get it. 

But here’s the thing. 

Your abuse never justifies levying abuse on others, strangers, people whose context you do not know and whose stories you have not heard. 

Your emotions are valid. You are free to feel however you like. If you need to vent in private, among friends and colleagues and people you feel safe with, by all means. 

Your favorite characters and your favorite ships and your favorite relationships and your fanfiction and your fanart may be how you express yourself or vent or cope. Your Shit means different things to different people, and to some, it means nothing at all. Let it fucking go. Your shit is not the bar of lived experience other people in fandom must meet to be considered sufficiently oppressed to spare them your bullying. 

Your trigger and your context and your trauma is your own. It does not belong to anyone else. It is your responsibility to understand your limits and respect the rights of other creators, just as it is the responsibility of creators to properly tag and label their work to spare those whom it might upset the indignity of reliving their trauma within a space that is supposed to be safe for them. A space that for some may be the only safe space they have. A space that for some may be the only escape available to them. A space that, for some, may be the only way they can begin to express themselves, furtively, in stolen moments in an oppressive environment. 

Fandom is where so many of us found ourselves. It’s full of us, lgbt+ people in various life stages, expressing ourselves in communities dedicated to content that made us feel enough to find ourselves here in the first place. It’s where children currently are discovering labels for feelings they have never had the words to talk about before. It’s where adults go in the midst of their busy lives to contribute to a body of work motivated by nothing but emotion for the source, for the community, and/or for the hope of encouraging feedback from their peers, their fans, their heroes, all three. It’s where everyone goes and discovers there are people out there just like them, after all. 

It’s where people are picking their teams and suiting up and getting in line and hurting people just like them, every day. 

It’s where people are putting the feelings and wellbeing and sanctity and rights of fictional characters over those of actual human beings who committed the grave sin of enjoying a thing a different way, or for different reasons.

Fandom is full of amazing connection and moments I wouldn’t trade for the world. I wouldn’t be married to my amazing wife right now without it. But it’s also a battlefield in a bubble where I watch oppressed people tear each other apart every single day, while of course, in the meantime, outside the filmy fucking boundary between this world and the real one, the same privileged sorts continue to dominate every aspect of mainstream media, the white house is full of incompetent, hateful people, some of whom are literal nazis, white nationalists feel safe enough to wear swastikas on public transit in liberal epicenters, gay men in russia are being sent to death camps, the police are murdering people of color indiscriminately without fear of personal or professional consequence, the supreme court is one death or retirement away from setting back civil rights in the united states a century, trans people have to watch a nation of frightened pissbabies scream about the sanctity of public bathrooms while they themselves suffer from an increased rate of being literally fucking murdered simply for existing, gay teenagers ostracized from conservative families sleep homeless in the street with winter fast approaching, hurricanes devastate a dozen nations because this century has paved a political landscape where corporate profits prevail over basic human rights  -- and you know what, fuck it, let’s make it a little personal -- 

half my family has never acknowledged the fact that I have been married for a year because they don’t believe it is a legitimate marriage because I and my wife are both women, my wife and I went to the hairdresser the other day and when we checked in with the same last name we were asked if we were sisters (and upon clarifying, the woman who was to cut our hair loudly and incredulously gasped, “is that legal here?”), one of my best friends, a woman I have known since high school (that’s 17 years ago, for those keeping count) was told she would have to undergo a thorough and lengthy process via working with HR, her boss and the owner of her company before she could represent herself as her correct gender at work - and even after she jumped through all those hoops, she was told she was absolutely not allowed to use the women’s restroom under any circumstances - When I told my father about my engagement, he tearfully turned to me and said “but you’re supposed to marry a guy, and have babies” - and because this was my father, who I have always had a good relationship with despite remaining closeted most of my life, who I have always and still deeply love despite the shit that comes out of his mouth sometimes, who worked 12 hour days in construction to support me after divorcing my mother when he was nineteen years old - I actually fucking felt guilty. 

The memory of how I felt in that moment will follow me until I fucking die, and when I log on to this website at the end of the day and just want to fucking relax and spend time yammering about things I like with people who like those same things, when I just want to spend time in this space that makes me feel good, when I just want to create content for the joy of creating it and the joy of seeing others enjoy the thing I created -- the fucking last thing I want is to see myself, my wife, my close friends and fandom friends alike being put on blast by petty people leveraging a nebulous, ever-changing definition of purity, backed by a group of people I know have suffered and hurt and feel justified hurting others because of it. 

Fandom is where we go to escape the hellish fucking bullshit that is reality, for fuck’s sake.

I don’t fucking care who hurt you. Visiting pain upon others in the aftermath is your choice. Bullying others because a group of impressionable, hurting people looking for a leader will follow you into the trenches here on a battlefield where we should all fucking know better is your choice. 

Your feelings aren’t always your choice. That’s fair.

The way you choose to express and react to and process and deal with those feelings IS your choice.

Your actions are your choice.

So try to be kind. Try to be empathetic. Understand your feelings and understand when you are being manipulated and for god’s sake, when other queer people come out in droves to tell their stories, try to think critically, even if they are on the other “team.” Block content that upsets you. Use tools available to you to keep yourself safe! Blacklist tags. Blacklist URLs. Block people. Be frank about your triggers if you are able and try to give people the benefit of the doubt -- and if you can’t, put space between you and them, and then use the myriad of tools available to you to put a wall in that space. 

I know all about the kind of catharsis that comes from being a “mean gay.” I know all about constructing a set of rules within a group and then judging others outside that group by that context and punishing them when they fail purity tests they knew nothing about. I know all about fighting disrespect with disrespect and anger with anger and logging out at the end of the day to go cry -- not because I was sad, but because I was so fucking angry I couldn’t process the emotion any other way. 

I also know all about walking away from that life, that toxicity. I know about taking a break. I know about reading, a lot, for months and years, about experiences both like and very much unlike my own. I know about resolving to be better. I know about cutting out the people who made me worse, and keeping the people who encouraged me to be better. 

I know how much my life improved when I endeavored to keep my venting and negativity among friends who could actually support me, in places where I couldn’t hurt anyone, and present a positive force to the public, instead. To lift up the things I like and to block and move on with the things I don’t. To let creators have their space and their platform here in this one place where we can each carve out some small part for ourselves and feel like we are in control for once in our fucking lives. I know I stopped crying so much. I know my hobbies stopped making me so angry, all the time. I know that the only times I have been truly, deeply upset in my time in this fandom have been when I have been targeted or those I care about have been targeted. 

I know how fucking hard it is to tear yourself away. 

I know how fucking worth it it is. 

Take care of yourselves. 

[premk-blog]

The power of culture: How to hire and attract amazing people

 Before Amazon bought Zappos.com for $1.2 billion, the online shoe retailer was already known for two things: exceptional customer service and a vibrant company culture.

As CEO Tony Hsieh once said, “Zappos is a customer service company that just happens to sell shoes.”

Zappos empowers its call center staff to make emotional connections and to wow their customers in every interaction. That explains the service-driven reputation. But how do you create a strong, healthy culture — especially as your company grows?

Well, Zappos defined 10 core values that guide the whole organization. It’s their hiring process, though, that really stands out.

Zappos has two different interview types. The first explores the candidate’s abilities, experience, and team fit. The usual stuff.

Next, the HR department does another round, purely to evaluate culture fit. As Hsieh told Forbes back in 2010, you have to pass both interview types to get the job:

“We’ve rejected many talented people who we know would have made an immediate impact on our top or bottom line. Because culture is our number one priority, we’re willing to give up short-term profits or revenue growth to make sure we have the best culture. In fact, after orientation we offer people $2,000 not to work at Zappos. The ones who stay are right for our culture.”

Also, when an applicant flies in for an interview, the company sends a shuttle to the airport. Zappos leaders will later ask the driver if the person was nice, or if they were rude or standoffish.

No matter how talented the candidate, rude people never make the cut. Talk about living your culture — and your values.

Ambitious companies attract ambitious people

“Talent is the multiplier. The more energy and attention you invest in it, the greater the yield.”

- Marcus Buckingham, author and business consultant

It starts at the roots. Whether you’re selling airline tickets, eyeglasses, software, or burritos, you need to have a great product.

After all, talented people want to work in organizations that make an impact. They want to change the world — even just a little. And there are many ways to become world class.

There’s a terrific restaurant near our office that changes its menu every month. If you’re an ambitious, creative chef who’s hungry to learn, this is where you want to land.

Even if you provide a “boring” product (like, ahem ahem, web forms), your approach could make it an amazing place to work.

 “If you are lucky enough to be someone’s employer, then you have a moral obligation to make sure people do look forward to coming to work in the morning.”

- John Mackey, CEO, Whole Foods

Culture can be a major asset. It helps you to attract top-notch people and encourages them to stay for the long run.

1. Ensure a comfortable work environment

Make sure your office is a place you and your team want to spend time in, even if it’s small. Equip staff with powerful technology, up-to-date equipment, and all the tools they need to work safely and efficiently. Free drinks and snacks don’t hurt (but you don’t need the ping-pong table). All these details are also cheap to provide, relative to employee salaries. Don’t cut corners on your most valuable asset.

2. Always choose positive, collaborative people

I know it might sound simple, but having smart, friendly, talented, positive people lays the foundation for your culture. Good people attract more good people, and you’re also promoting an inspiring work environment. Nothing will send people running for the door faster than a culture of infighting, gossip, and petty competition.

Leverage good word-of-mouth

You’re scrolling through Instagram. In one post, your friend tags a hotel they love. The next post is a sponsored ad for a competing hotel brand.

Which are you more likely to remember and try for yourself?

Real endorsements from our network are powerful. If you love your job, company, or work environment, you’re likely to tell friends and family.

We post our job openings on LinkedIn and online job boards. We’ve also used head-hunters for leadership positions. But nothing works better than word-of-mouth.

When valued employees refer their friends and former colleagues, we pay close attention. These are often our best candidates.

Interview efficiently and decide quickly:

According to a recruiting survey by the National Association of Colleges and Employers, employers hiring new college graduates take, on average, two weeks to make a job offer after an interview.

Beyond new graduates, author and HR expert Liz Ryan says companies should never take more than 3–4 business days to contact or share feedback with candidates after an interview.

Often, we call the candidate as they’re walking to their car — right after the interview.

If you don’t move fast, there’s a good chance someone else will snap up a great employee. Forget about waiting periods or outdated rules and do it your way.

How is it possible to move so quickly?

Well, we believe in having all the decision makers in the room. Everyone has the chance to observe and ask questions.

After the interview, we have a five-minute discussion. If it’s a long debate, the person is probably not right. But a quick, easy consensus usually means that we’ve found a great fit.

Hire for skills and knowledge:

Knowledge and skills are not the same.

Whatever position you’re hiring for, ask the candidate to perform a hands-on task. Over the years, we’ve encountered both “developers” who can’t actually code and dark horses who performed far beyond our expectations.

It’s equally important to talk with the applicant about their chosen field. Can you have an intelligent discussion? Do their ideas and arguments make sense?

Sometimes, people speak in buzzwords but they don’t have real knowledge. They’ve just memorized headlines and jargon.

Ultimately, it’s a matter of balance. Candidates need to have some real skills (and that level will vary by position), but the right person can also acquire what they’re missing.

The same goes for knowledge. Young employees will gain deeper expertise over time, but if they’re truly interested in the topic, they will already have opinions about marketing or data science or design.

One more note: Watch for people with side projects. If a developer has their own app, for example, that’s a great sign. It means they’re ambitious and engaged.

In different fields, this could also be a blog, a podcast, a passion for reading, participation in a professional group, or taking extra classes and workshops.

“Leadership is absolutely about inspiring action, but it is also about guarding against mis-action.”

- Simon Sinek, author, speaker and marketing consultant

Company culture is like the infinity symbol, or the old chicken-or-the-egg dilemma.

Which comes first: great people who establish a healthy culture, or a healthy culture that attracts great people?

Answer: it doesn’t matter.

People talk about culture as a static entity, but it’s constantly changing. Culture also has its own equilibrium. Sometimes it evolves for the better, and sometimes it needs to be nudged in a better direction.

Internal culture is a topic that can easily fill entire books, but here are my top lessons.

Culture changes as you grow

Our first 10 employees were men. That wasn’t my intention. It just happened, but then I learned about this mistake and realized we needed to attract more women. As the balance (happily) shifted, our company became more professional, just to name one improvement. Change made us stronger. These are the kind of culture shifts that organizations should always embrace.

People influence the culture

Let your staff contribute. Our small, cross-functional teams naturally develop their own cultures — and that’s a good thing. They enrich our entire company and make more interesting and diverse place to work.

Don’t enable incongruent behavior

Just as Zappos measured candidates’ humility and openness by talking to their shuttle drivers, it’s important to weed out both people and actions that don’t match your values.

For example, we care deeply about our users and we take responsibility when they make mistakes.

One day, we were watching a usability test, and an employee joked that the user was stupid. I realized that I had to immediately change the narrative, without publicly chastising the employee.

I told the team that we should assume people are busy and overwhelmed. That’s why our goal is to make a simple, incredibly easy-to-use product.

If we had all laughed, other team members would have assumed that it’s okay to mock our users — and that doesn’t align with our values or our culture.

“A company’s culture is the foundation for future innovation. An entrepreneur’s job is to build the foundation.”

- Brian Chesky, co-founder and CEO of Airbnb

While I’ve never offered someone thousands of dollars NOT to take a job, we do believe in humility and we reward learning. I’ll also share a little secret.

Every intern — whether they’re studying programming, marketing, UI, design, or business — spends their first week answering customer support questions.

Throughout this process, they are being rated; not just on their skills, but also on how they listen and treat our customers.

Sometimes, they think support work is beneath them. That attitude overshadows their skills and their knowledge.

And those interns will never have a seat in our company.

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Be Your Own Employer, Beginning A Home based business

The opportunities for a home based service are endless. There are likewise unlimited methods to stop working, even if you are good at it. This short article will help to maintain your home company afloat with fantastic recommendations as well as ideas, on making it successful and preventing normal risks.Talking down the competitors is constantly negative company technique, which is no place extra apparent compared to when it concerns home based business. Bad-mouthing competitors makes the speaker look petty and also less than professional; these are two track records the home based business owner intends to prevent at all costs. Smart home based business owners focus on speaking themselves up.Maintain an open mind for imaginative budgeting when you begin your home based business. Often earnings is irregular - particularly at first. You could discover it handy, for example, to change your bill paying routine from bi-weekly or regular monthly to once a week if your home business is the kind that makes a bit of money daily approximately rather than a couple of huge paychecks a month.Expectations can be low for home businesses, so it is up to you making certain that you overdeliver on every product and services that you market. Think of incentives as well as added means to reveal admiration for the individual who is paying you. They will bear in mind and also utilize you, the next time they should get something. Even better, they could recommend you to buddies. Castle Rock Colorado Homes for Sale Know just how much it will set you back to mail any type of specific thing in your inventory. It is as well very easy to under price our shipping fees when we offer online in particular. Evaluate your products and identify just how you will ship them before you ever provide them on the internet. You'll save yourself aggravation and loan!Prevent fatigue as well as keep yourself on track with your home based business procedures by seeing it equally as you would certainly watch any other job. Set routine hrs for yourself and also stick with a taken care of schedule. This permits you to maintain your residence and business work separate from one another, which can also help you to remain organized.A terrific pointer for your home business is to consider joining an associate program. This could be highly valuable due to the fact that it will assist to spread your service and also bring in even more revenue than you may have believed possible. Make certain to study as well as see which ones will apply best to you.After starting your home business, send out a mass email to loved ones members, allowing them find out about your company. You can sweeten the promotion with a discount rate for them, especially for assisting so early in your service. It builds self-confidence and also exposure while boosting networking capacity.If you are a music-lover, why not attempt your hand at disc-jockeying? Start-up costs would certainly include tools and songs, but it's primarily an evening/weekend work and you can learn and earn while maintaining your day job! That recognizes, you could make enough to quit the day work completely doing something you enjoy!No person is unsusceptible to misfortune. Sometimes, companies take a hit that is out of their control, while various other times, it might have been stopped. This article has offered home-based company owner, a great begin on making their company far better and also preventing those pricey blunders.

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7 Steps to Take Before You Quit Your Job

How to Pivot with Dignity and Respect

Face it. You will eventually quit your job. It may be this year. It may be next. It may be ten years from now. But it’s inevitable. It’s only a matter of time. The only real question is: How do you pivot (professionally) without burning your bridges?

After all, you may want to come back. I left one company, Thomas Nelson, and eventually returned and became the CEO. You never know. At the very least, you may need a reference.

Unfortunately, many people don’t always end their tenure at a company as well as they began. The key is to begin with the end in mind. As leaders, we should be intentional about everything we do—even quitting.

Let’s start with the outcome we want. You want your employer and fellow employees to celebrate your contributions, grieve your departure, and eagerly welcome you back if ever given the chance.

It’s possible, but only if you handle your departure well.

Before you turn in your resignation—or even begin looking for another job—let me suggest that you consider the following seven actions.

1. Determine to Exit with Dignity and Honor

This is where it starts. How you leave a job says way more about our character than how we start. It’s all about a decision. You really can leave on a good note.

Take the moral high ground. Don’t speak ill of your supervisor, your coworkers, or the company. It will only make you look small and petty.

It’s amazing how negative comments have a way of spreading—and moving up the org chart. It’s a small world. And the industry you are working in is smaller still.

You never know when you may be working for someone you’re working with now. You never know when you may want to come back. Leave the door open. As a CEO, I’ve always paid attention to how people leave. It influences whether I’m willing to write a letter of recommendation or serve as a reference. It makes a difference.

2. Count the Cost of Leaving Your Present Job

Someone once said, “The grass is always greener on the other side of the fence. But sometimes we forget: it still has to be mowed!” How true.

I was talking with a young pastor who was irate with his board. “They just don’t get it,” he said. He was already working on securing a new post.

“Look,” I said after about twenty minutes, “I’m not saying you shouldn’t go. But don’t kid yourself. The same knuckleheaded elders are at that church too. In fact, they’re at every church. Could this be an opportunity for you to grow in your leadership by staying? What would become possible for you in the future if you learn to lead these very kind of people?”

Every job has its pluses and minuses. I’m happier in my work today than I’ve ever been. But I have bad days too.

The key is to be realistic. To me, it’s more important to be going toward something, rather than moving away from something.

3. Give Your Employer a Chance to Address Your Issues

You need to carefully identify what the real issues are. Is the problem your current job, your boss, a coworker, the system, the whole company, what?

If you don’t tell your supervisor, he or she can’t fix it. Who knows what’s possible—a different job description, department, schedule? You might just be surprised at how different your experience can be once your key issues are addressed.

Of course, they might not be able to fix it even if they know what it is. But unless you give them a chance, you’ll never know. If you can’t work it out, then make sure you give your employer ample time to find a replacement and plan for a smooth transition.

4. Honor Your Commitments to Your Current Employer

Whether you have an employment contract or not, you have a “duty of loyalty.” This means that you are expected to provide an honest day’s work for an honest day’s pay.

Don’t grow slack in your work or let things fall through the cracks. You want to turn your position over to your successor in tip-top shape. You don’t want your successor saying, “No wonder she left. It’s a miracle she wasn’t fired. She left us with a mess.”

Like it or not, your successor will be the primary steward of your reputation at the company. You want her to say, “Wow! She left some big shoes to fill. If I can do the job half as well as she did, I will be a success!” Or, “She left everything in great shape. The files were well-organized and I knew the status of every project. The transition was seamless.”

5. Don’t Look for Another Job on Company Time or with Company Email

In essence, this is stealing. Your employer is paying you to work for her. Your time—at least during work hours—belongs to her. She provides you with an email account to use for company business. It doesn’t belong to you.

Worse, everything you ever send or receive via company email is retained for years—even if you delete it locally. This includes complaints about your boss or coworkers, discussions with prospective employers (or competitors), fights with your spouse. Everything.

It can come back to bite you. Believe me.

In my previous leadership position, we had an executive who left badly. Someone suggested he had conspired with a competitor prior to leaving. So I had our HR department check the email servers. Sure enough, they found a mountain of evidence, and the discovery had negative consequences for him and, unfortunately, his family.

6. Don’t Share Proprietary Information with Prospective Employers

This should be obvious. It’s a simple matter of honesty. Company data, reports, contacts, and so on are assets of the company.

Using them for your own benefit is no different than stealing physical property. And providing them to a prospective employer is theft.

As an employer myself, I would instantly break off discussions with any prospective employee if they volunteered to give me information from their present employer. They may think they’re enticing me to hire them. What they are really doing is revealing that they have no moral compass whatsoever. These are not the kind of people I want infecting my corporate culture.

Even if you don’t have an employment agreement with the confidentiality provision in it, act as though you do. No one wants a cheat, a tell-all, or a gossip.

7. Don’t Conspire with Others to Leave the Company

In 1986, Robert Wolgemuth and I left the company we both worked for. We ended up starting a new publishing company called Wolgemuth & Hyatt Publishers. We left within weeks of one another, but we did not discuss going into business prior to our departure.

We wanted to be able to say with integrity that we had not left with plans to start something else together. But I have seen others take a different path and usually with disastrous consequences.

You want your current employer rooting for you. You want to be able to use him or her as a reference. If you are any good at your job, your employer will hate losing you. If you attempt to take other employees with you—especially good employees—it will only add insult to injury. More than likely, it will burn a bridge that you may well need later.

Finally, if you are determined to quit, then don’t discuss your decision with other employees until you have discussed it with your supervisor. This is a simple matter of respect. The last thing you want is for him or her to “hear it through the grapevine.”

With a little planning, anyone can make a graceful exit. Life is short. The world is small—and cold. You don’t need to create any unnecessary enemies. You’ve already made an investment in your job. Now make one in your career. Think of the future and keep the end in mind.

from Michael Hyatt https://ift.tt/32gHed8 via IFTTT

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Be Your very own Employer, Start A Home Business

The opportunities for a home organisation are endless. There are also endless methods to stop working, also if you excel at it. This article will help to maintain your home service afloat with wonderful advice and tips, on making it profitable and staying clear of typical mistakes.Talking down the competitors is constantly negative service method, which is no place a lot more obvious than when it comes to home based business. Bad-mouthing rivals makes the speaker appearance petty and also less than professional; these are 2 credibilities the home based business owner wants to avoid whatsoever expenses. Smart home business proprietors concentrate on speaking themselves up.Keep an open mind for creative budgeting when you begin your home based business. Sometimes revenue is irregular - specifically in the beginning. You may find it handy, for instance, to change your expense paying timetable from bi-weekly or month-to-month to weekly if your home business is the kind that makes a bit of money on a daily basis or so instead of one or two huge paychecks a month.Expectations can be low for home based business, so it is up to you to make certain that you overdeliver on every product or service that you market. Consider incentives and also extra means to show gratitude for the person who is paying you. They will keep in mind and utilize you, the next time they have to get something. Even better, they might suggest you to buddies.Know what does it cost? it will certainly set you back to send by mail any particular item in your inventory. It is too simple to under price our delivery charges when we market online in particular. Consider your products and determine exactly how you will deliver them prior to you ever provide them on-line. You'll conserve on your own disappointment and loan!Prevent fatigue as well as keep yourself on the right track with your home based business operations by watching it equally as you would check out any other job. Establish regular hrs for yourself and stick to a repaired timetable. This enables you to keep your home as well as company job different from each other, which could also assist you to remain arranged.A terrific idea for your home business is to think about joining an associate program. This can be very beneficial since it will certainly help to spread your business and bring in more income compared to you could have believed possible. Be sure to study and see which ones will apply finest to you.After starting your home based business, send a mass e-mail to family and friends members, letting them learn about your service. You can sweeten the ad with a discount rate for them, especially for helping out so at an early stage in your business. It builds self-confidence as well as exposure while increasing networking capacity. Seguin TX homes for sale If you are a music-lover, why not try your hand at disc-jockeying? Start-up expenses would certainly involve devices and also music, but it's mainly an evening/weekend work and also you can discover as well as gain while maintaining your day work! Who understands, you may make enough to give up the day task entirely doing something you enjoy!Nobody is immune to misfortune. Occasionally, companies take a hit that runs out their control, while various other times, it can have been avoided. This article has actually provided home-based company owner, a great start on making their company much better as well as staying clear of those pricey mistakes.