How to Stay Visible and Get Promotions When You Work Remotely - Introvert Whisperer

Introvert Whisperer / How to Stay Visible and Get Promotions When You Work Remotely - Introvert Whisperer How to Stay Visible and Get Promotions When You Work Remotely Brie Weiler Reynolds January 28, 2015 Networking, Office Politics, Promotion No responses Go to top Does working from home mean you’re doomed to fade into the background and go unnoticed by your manager? Yes, working remotely does mean you get less facetime with managers and coworkers. But it doesn’t mean you can’t stay visible or get promotions and recognition for your hard work. Since remote workers are typically more productive than their in-office colleagues, it’s important to be proactive in sharing your efforts and results with the rest of your team. As a remote worker, to get the visibility, credit, and rewards you deserve, you need to learn how to communicate your accomplishments effectively with your team. Here are four tips for staying visible and getting promotions when you work remotely. Start Casual Conversations “Water cooler” conversations are one of the best ways to establish yourself as an integral member of a team. Working remotely has a lot of benefits, but isolation from the rest of your team isn’t one of them. To avoid becoming a hermit, it’s important to start conversations with your managers and coworkers. Don’t wait for them to come to you. Send coworkers messages on Monday mornings to ask how their weekends were. Pick up the phone to wish them a happy birthday. Make an effort to maintain your own version of a virtual water cooler conversation with the people on your team, and others in the company. The more “friendly” you are as remote worker, the less likely you are to be forgotten. (Like this thought? Tweet it!) Ask Questions When speaking with your manager, ask them clarifying questions about the projects you’re working on. This will show them that you’re on-task with your assignments, and that you’re paying attention to details and want to do a great job. There is one caveat to this tip be sure to ask quality, specific questions. If you ask too many questions about a particular project, people will begin to wonder if you know what you’re doing! Keep In Regular Contact Plan to send your manager a daily email at the end of each day (or week). The email should be brief, and give them an update on the tasks you’ve completed, the ones you’re currently working on, and what’s on your horizon. You want your manager to understand quickly, and without an overload of information, how much you’re accomplishing and your value to the team. The goal of this particular tip is to give your manager every reason to recognize and reward your hard work. Remote work or not, if you’re producing for the team and the company, you’re an asset they can’t afford to forget! Be Strategic in What You Reveal Most of these tips revolve around regular communication with your manager and your team. But it’s important to be strategic with those communications. Keep complaints and negative thoughts to a minimum, and focus more on having a positive, enthusiastic approach. If you do have a problem to discuss, try to bring solutions to the problem, rather than leaving it for your manager to figure out. Because your manager probably has somewhat less contact with you as a remote worker than they would if you worked alongside them in an office, you want to be sure the impression you’re making is as positive as possible. Finally, all of this chit chat and conversing is great, but when it comes down to it, you need to ask for what you want. If your goal at the end of the year is a raise or promotion, do your best work all year long to prepare. But when the time comes, you should also be prepared to request a promotion or raise, with the data and evidence to support your request. Because you’ve laid a solid foundation of communication all year long, staying visible and recognizable, your manager won’t be able to deny your contributions to the company, no matter how far away your home office happens to be. Go to top Have you ever worked remotely, or had a remote colleague? If so, what was that experience like? Image: Photobucket Bottom-line â€" I want to help you accelerate your career â€" to achieve what you want by connecting you with your Free Instant Access to my 4 Building Blocks to Relationships eBookâ€" the backbone to your Networking success and fantastic work relationships.   Grab yours by visiting: CLICK HERE Brought to you by Dorothy Tannahill-Moran â€" dedicated to unleash your professional potential.

Why Learn French Discover the Benefits

Why Learn French Discover the Benefits How Can Learning French Help You? ChaptersGeneral Benefits of Learning a Foreign LanguageHow French Language Learning can Serve YouExploring the World Through Language and CultureLearn French as a GatewayDid you know that, at one time not so long ago, it was thought that speaking more than one language was detrimental to a person's mental health and intellectual capacity?Daft as it sounds, at the turn of the 20th century, school children were discouraged from learning any tongue besides the English language.Since then, numerous studies have concluded that learning a second language in no way harms verbal development or lowers a person's IQ.Quite the contrary! They uncovered so many ways that bilingualism  boosts mental performance.Let us shine a light on some of them, and the many ways learning French will benefit you!Learning French gives a tremendous boost to cognitive function Source: Pixabay Credit: Artsy_Beeassimilate data â€" words, numbers and facts, and make use of them as needed.Just like your physical self, your mind needs exercise to stay fit. So, if all you do is work, watch telly and hang out with friends, your brain may be starving for stimulation.Intellectual pastimes, such as sudoku and crossword puzzles, do little to arouse new brain activity.They are considered more of a memory challenge because you are not actually learning anything.Psychiatrist Norman Doige advocates, among other activities, that  learning a new language  is one of the best ways to keep your mind sharp.A Sharp Mind Helps Prevent Cognitive DeclineYou are alive and thriving in your mind but, somehow, what you know is not translating into what you can do.  What a horrifying scenario!Experts all agree that continuous learning is one of the best ways to stave off age-related mental decline.More importantly, the general consensus is that, while other intellectual functions may wane over time, vocabulary and the power of speech are the least affected by aging.That signifies that you are not likely to lose any word power as time goes on.One function that does suffer as we age is the ability to multitask.Coincidentally, studies have proven that people who have attended language courses, and can speak the language they learned with any degree of fluency, are better multitaskers.Isn't warding off dementia a great reason to sign up for language classes?Brain Processing Speed Slows Down in Young Adulthood.Causality for this alarming fact is as yet unknown. One theory posits that our minds go on autopilot around that stage in life, and there is some merit to the idea.Just finishing our university studies, perhaps already settling into our career... even our social status â€" getting married or otherwise starting a serious relationship does little to keep our grey matter active.Isn't it amazing how the ability to speak another language can forestall all of that?In fact, partaking of language instruction can:give you the ability to learn new words easilyhelp you identify patterns in speech, rhythm, an d word associationssuch as word derivates: familiar from family, for examplehelp develop problem solving skillscultivate good listening skillsimprove your communication skillsClaiming language as your mental playground will make vocabulary categorisation your personal jungle gym.As you make flashcards to study common words, while still a beginner in your language learning adventure, you can colour-code them according to noun, pronoun, verb, adjective and adverb.Later, as your language skills expand, you can create word families: vocabulary pertaining to people, to animals, to objects, to clothing, and so on.Grouping and labeling new words helps build relational bridges between what you already know and the new concepts you are studying; a skill that you can use in other aspects of your daily life.How can your French course London or Glasgow magnify those benefits?This word family represents digital communication. Can you say these words in French? Source: Pixabay Credit: Kevin KingH ow French Language Learning can Serve YouNow that we know the impact of continuous learning on our minds, health and quality of life, let us see how learning French can amplify those gains.Are you mad for discovering new vistas?If so, then you probably know that English alone can give you access to even the most remote parts of the world.However, French is the only other language besides English that is spoken on five of the seven continents.So, while you may get by to some degree  with English, on your skiing trip in Switzerland, a country whose official language is French, you would do much better if you could communicate in their native language.Especially if you wanted to get off the beaten path.In these times of people who value experiences over possessions, finding ways outside of mainstream cultural encounters is made easier by personally having more to offer.Would cycling through Cambodia to see Angkor Wat with your own eyes qualify as an extraordinary experience?If so, you' d better pack light and bring your French speaking skills, as English will not necessarily be understood by the locals.Some people go to French speaking countries to help students learn how to speak English, or to take jobs in telecommunications or engineering.Imagine how much more effective your teaching could be, or all of Morocco - as an example, that you could explore if you spoke French?Learn from a good French tutor here.Exploring the World Through Language and CultureSome people are perfectly happy taking guided tours of different countries, seeing the highlights and buying souvenirs.There is absolutely nothing wrong with that, as a holiday experience. But there could be so much more to holiday-making!Maybe you have been to Paris, or Lyon, or anywhere in the south of France. If so, you surely know the value chirping bonjour when you step into a shop, and merci once your transaction is completed.Perhaps you have gone beyond French greetings, and smack into phrases and expressi ons. Good for you!Language is the roadmap to a culture â€" Rita Mae BrownIf your travels are meant to broaden your cultural horizons, you could not hope for a better second language than French.There are no fewer than 29 countries whose citizens speak French, and an additional eight territories with a francophone population.Speaking French while visiting any of those regions will surely give you entry to the mysteries of their rituals, beliefs and daily life â€" those cultural aspects generally kept hidden from avid tourists.If you have been circling around the idea of language acquisition, wondering which one would yield the most, you could hardly go wrong with studying French.You may think of mastering French as a gateway to learning other romance languages Source: Pixabay Credit: FietzfotosLearn French as a GatewayUnlike English, French is a romance language, meaning it has the same grammatical constructs as Italian, Spanish, Romanian and Portuguese.Many French words are close in pronunciation to those other tongues, too.However, our mother tongue contains a wealth of French words and phrases; in fact, nearly a third of our vocabulary consists of words that originated in France!If you were to learn French, no doubt you would be surprised to find that many English words that end in -ion, such as attention, communication and television are actually French, with no translation needed!For that reason, linguists all aver that French is perhaps the best choice of a second language for native English speakers to learn, and it can serve as a gateway to learning the other romance languages.Once you can speak French fluently, why not learn Spanish or Italian?Study French for Higher Education OpportunitiesLet's say you have taken French courses in secondary school, and your language learning was reinforced by a French tutor on the weekends. The question to pose is: what are you learning it for?Most students select French as their preferred language on the A Levels in order to attend university abroad.For a good reason! The Shanghai Index ranks unis in French speaking countries second only to those in nations whose primary language is English!If you have gone beyond basic French in your desire to pursue advanced studies, we can think of no better way to immerse yourself in an all around learning experience than studying abroad!Pundits all agree that immersion is the very best way to absorb French grammar and French vocabulary.So, if you are a foodie, being bilingual will give you access to study haute cuisine at the Sorbonne, a world-renown institute where you can also major in anything from photography to philosophy!And think of how being fluent in French will increase your marketability!Come time to find work, your proficiency in the French language may get you hired faster, and put a few extra pounds in your pay envelope.Studies show that employees who can speak different languages tend to be more sought after, and earn more.Earning more is a fine point to wrap up the subject of why you should engage in French learning!Aren't you eager for French lessons now?

Classroom Behavior Management

Classroom Behavior Management You could spend a lot of time creating a great lesson and perfecting your teaching approach only to have it all undone because of a rowdy classroom. Here are seven behavior management tips that will put you back in charge and keep your students focused on learning. Establish a short list of class rules. Make sure your class rules cover the essentials but do not feel like you need to write a list of 50 rules. That might cause confusion or result in students ignoring them altogether. Share consequences and rewards. Rules do no good if students are unclear on the penalties for breaking them. Similarly, its important to establish a system for rewarding positive behavior and good role-modeling. Establish a seating chart. Seating charts help you retain control of the classroom but dont be afraid to move students around periodically if you find some students talking too much or struggling to pay attention based on where they are seated. Create routines for transitions. Think of the moments in your classroom when students tend to get talkative and establish routines that keep things active and minimize disruptions. Incorporate brain breaks. Brain breaks are proven to help students regain focus and perform better after sitting or working for an extended amount of time. Correct bad behavior quickly. Dont stop everything to deal angrily with one misbehaving student. Stay calm, give direction, and administer a consequence if the student continues to interrupt. Then, carry on. Praise good behavior. Acknowledge and thank the students who follow the rules and meet your expectations. Every student has good days and not-so-good days. Keep these ideas on hand for the times when you need to get your students back on track and refocus on helping them succeed.

Jobs For The Boys More Idiomatic Expressions in English

Jobs For The Boys More Idiomatic Expressions in English One of my students asked me the meaning of the idiomatic expression Jobs For The Boys this week. Have you heard it before?Let’s look at it in this lesson.  What is the meaning of the expression jobs for the boys?  Jobs for the boys refers to favoritism in the workplace. The word boys suggests a closed circle of contacts to whom jobs are offered mostly including family or close friends.The saying is said to reflect the traditional public school bias in the United Kingdom towards ‘the old boys network.’ Here, professional contacts are comprised of acquaintances and friends from the same schools and later universities and jobs are often given on this basis.Let’s watch an excerpt from a British satirical program from the 1970’s called Yes Minister where the prevalence of the jobs for the boys mentality in the British political system is ridiculed.Before you watch the video note that the word Quango mentioned refers to a quasi (almost) non-governmental organization, or an organi zation to which the government has handed over power. This satire suggests that these Quangos were filled (at that time) with jobs for the boys.

Moneybookers Even more payment options

Moneybookers Even more payment options italki can now accept payments through Moneybookers, one of the worlds largest payment partners. Moneybookers is used throughout the world to help process: Credit Cards and Debit Cards: In addition to Visa, Mastercard, American Express, and JCB, there is also Visa Delta/Debit (UK), Visa Electron, Maestro (UK, Spain Austria), Solo (UK), Diners, Laser (Ireland), and more. Online Banking: Giropay (Germany), Direct Debit (Germany), Sofortueberweisung (Germany, Austria, Netherlands, Bulgium, Switzerland), eNETS (Singapore), Nordea Solo (Sweden, Finland), iDEAL (Netherlands), EPS (Austria), POLi (Australia), all Polish Banks, ePay.bg (Bulgaria), and more. Moneybookers ewallet: Moneybookers also has its own electronic wallet You can view this list when you go to purchase italki credits on the My Finance tab. Heres an update of what the payment options look like One of the key things we believe about italkis marketplace is that it is important to make it as easy as possible for anyone to join the teaching ecosystem. Unfortunately, not all payment systems are available or popular in every country. Not having a convenient payment option is a barrier for people to transact, and therefore a barrier to learning or teaching a language online. We hope that adding these payment options will make it easier for many users to pay for teachers and language services on italki. Keep following us, and well continue to tell you know about new features and payment options that we hope will make italki even more useful for language students and teachers around the world. The italki team Moneybookers Even more payment options italki can now accept payments through Moneybookers, one of the worlds largest payment partners. Moneybookers is used throughout the world to help process: Credit Cards and Debit Cards: In addition to Visa, Mastercard, American Express, and JCB, there is also Visa Delta/Debit (UK), Visa Electron, Maestro (UK, Spain Austria), Solo (UK), Diners, Laser (Ireland), and more. Online Banking: Giropay (Germany), Direct Debit (Germany), Sofortueberweisung (Germany, Austria, Netherlands, Bulgium, Switzerland), eNETS (Singapore), Nordea Solo (Sweden, Finland), iDEAL (Netherlands), EPS (Austria), POLi (Australia), all Polish Banks, ePay.bg (Bulgaria), and more. Moneybookers ewallet: Moneybookers also has its own electronic wallet You can view this list when you go to purchase italki credits on the My Finance tab. Heres an update of what the payment options look like One of the key things we believe about italkis marketplace is that it is important to make it as easy as possible for anyone to join the teaching ecosystem. Unfortunately, not all payment systems are available or popular in every country. Not having a convenient payment option is a barrier for people to transact, and therefore a barrier to learning or teaching a language online. We hope that adding these payment options will make it easier for many users to pay for teachers and language services on italki. Keep following us, and well continue to tell you know about new features and payment options that we hope will make italki even more useful for language students and teachers around the world. The italki team

Beijing SMIC Private School and Kindergarten

Beijing SMIC Private School and Kindergarten Beijing SMIC Private School and Kindergarten BJ SMIC Private School is a Preschool through 12th Grade institution. Currently, there are 1650 students and 260 full time teachers from 16 nationalities. The School stresses each students holistic development and also emphasizes the importance of moral integrity in education. As we expand into more classes, we continue to hire qualified staff throughout the year. Overall, we have one of the lowest rates of teacher replacement you will find in China, especially among local staff, but also among our expat teachers. Our teachers are committed to their students, and enjoy deep friendships with their coworkers. Administrators make every effort to place teachers where they can refine their teaching skills and develop professionally, with opportunities for advancement to those that desire it. Working for a growing company with $1.7 billion in annual revenue has definite benefits; you never have to worry about delayed salary payments or layoffs due to budget cuts. SMIC Private School offers salaries more than sufficient to cover the low cost of living in Yizhuang. Living in Yizhuang is getting easier every year as well. Whether, cycling, driving, taking the bus or subway, Yizhuang is less congested and easy to get around. Two new shopping plazas have opened nearby, Lippo Plaza and Creative Life Plaza (with a Sams club, Papa Johns, Starbucks, and bilingual movies). McDonalds, KFC, Subway, and a half dozen pizza restaurants serve Western food nearby. On weekends, teachers fellowship in each others homes or attend a nearby church, the subway and express buses reach the downtown expatriate fellowships and districts (CBD, Sanlitun) in less than 1 hour. Yizhuang has many square miles of parks, lakes, rivers and natural areas to enjoy, and Decathlon has plenty of international-standard sporting goods. There are many volunteer opportunities nearby as well, including New Day Foster Home and Shepherds Field Childrens Home within a short drive. View our Brochure

The Art of Constructively Responding to the Report Card of a Struggling Student

The Art of Constructively Responding to the Report Card of a Struggling Student When a student is struggling in their classes, the time of the year when report cards are released can be a time of overwhelming tension, stress, and anxiety for both the child and parent. These types of negative “report card interactions” impact the environment of the household as they not only put a strain on the relationship between you and your child; they can actually take a toll on your child’s academic performance as well. So how can we take these difficult situations and use them to evoke positive, constructive interactions? The Fear Factor: “Tiger Parent” A “Tiger Parent” is the type of parent that elicits fear within their child regarding their academic endeavors, whether this be through constant displays of heavy disdain and/or anger with their child, excessive punishments, or an overall aggressive approach to their child’s academic status. Many parents will unconsciously display some of these behaviors, ironically, out of love and care; however, such behaviors do not translate that way to the child. I once had a friend who had what I’d like to call “Tiger Parents.” He was struggling in his classes and was afraid of the reaction he would receive from his parents at the sight of his report card. This fear became so great, that he actually paid a friend of his to Photoshop his report card grades into more appealing ones, rather than choose to academically work his way up to an ideal report card each time. This is a display of exactly what the “Tiger Parent” persona can do to a childâ€"such distress being generated in a child can actually cause an adverse effect on the struggling student, causing distance between themselves and their parents. Changing The Atmosphere When struggling students enter into an environment where they are shrouded with the anxiety of fear, it sets the foundation for an automatically negative “report-card-presenting-experience;” and no parent would ever want to set that type of a foundation for their child. Although parents have good intentions for their children, sometimes the disappointed natures in which they approach their children’s report cards can be mistranslated to the child and make them more likely to become heated rather than cooperative. It’s Not all About the Letters: An Understanding Approach In order to communicate well with a struggling student, the first approach a parent needs to take is an approach of understanding. Parents usually have a default way of looking at the letter grades and making immediate negative assumptions, then proceeding to automatically react accordingly, without allowing any space for the child to explain. Let’s say your child brings home a report card, smack dab with lesser-than-ideal letters. Before reacting directly to the letters with an automatic face of disapproval, look to your child first. Go through the report card with them and allow them to explain such letter grades. When you look to your child first without the face of judgment, he/she will be more likely to cooperate and participate in healthy discourse with you regarding their academic standings. Let Them Be Heard: Controlling Impulses Once your child has expressed their struggles, the reaction that you might have would be the impulse to regard your child’s expressions as simply “explanations” and “justifications” for not doing too well. Make sure to back up when this impulse to go on a tangent occurs. Your child will feel most loved and encouraged when they feel as though they are being heard and listened to by you. When they feel heard, they will be more willing to allow you to work with them on how they can attack their academic struggles in order to produce more ideal letter grades for their next report card. Displays of deep disappointment and spurts of discouragement can cause what is referred to as “Self-Prophesized Fulfillment,” a phenomenon where (in this context) a child hears/sees such deep negative talk towards them that can cut so deeply to the point to where they will begin to believe that that is what they are: a disappointmentâ€"that they will always be a disappointment. This causes loss of hope and for children and will decay any remaining academic motivation to build themselves up. Remember that your words to your child as a parent make a huge impact on them during such malleable stages of life. Eating Humble Pie: Positive Reinforcement…and Ice Cream too! This is probably the most important part of all: Positively Reinforcing your child’s achievements. It’s easy for any parent to see a child with a report card studded with “A’s” and take them out for ice cream. However, let’s say a child brings home a report card that might seem like a mess. Although it may not be easy to accept that your child is not exactly presenting the cream of the crop, take the time to accept it. Then realize this: Whether a child scores “A’s” or “C’s,” every student still has strengths and weaknesses, and each report card is a display of suchâ€"really look into the report card to see the ways in which your child has grown in their strengths. For instance, take the time to see that although your child did not exactly score an “A” in math and rather, earned a “C”, notice that he/she did happen to score higher in their math class with that “C” in comparison to their last report card’s math score of a “D.” Celebrate that improvement, and make it known to them that you are proud of that achievement. This positive reinforcement will point out to your child that you have faith in them as a student and will encourage them to want to do well. There’s always a good reason to take your child out for ice cream!