How NOT to Suck at Meetings

How NOT to Suck at Meetings Have you ever read Tim Ferriss The 4-Hour Work Week? One takeaway from that book really stood out: Avoid meetings at all cost. Even if it is your own business, let others do the meetings while you get on with your work. Tim Ferriss writes that he always makes himself unavailable for meetings, simply because they are a giant waste of time. I can relate to this and only ever attend meetings which have a clear agenda and desired outcome. Brainstorming get-togethers are not for me, especially not group sessions. Which leads me nicely on to this infographic from SalesCrunch, about how much money is watsted in offices during pointless meetings. See what you think and let us know if you agree. RELATED:  How Do American Workers Waste Time and Money?

5 Easy and Affordable Ideas for a Space Makeover

5 Easy and Affordable Ideas for a Space Makeover Giving your personal space a makeover is most times intimidating, especially for people who have limited time or funds. Hi, Im Abbi. And I am a home design pinterest addict. I am a sucker for home design ideas, and I spend countless hours pinning beautiful spaces into my board. However, between  all the work I am faced with daily and saving for a big trip at the end of the year,  I have very little funds or time to make a makeover happen. However, I took it upon myself to make a few changes in my personal space even with the limited resources because I believe that being happy with your environment does wonders to your productivity. I did it well under a budget and only during my free time. I never had to schedule anything in, yet the results were extremely satisfying. Here are the 5 steps that I took to update my personal space: 2. DIY. Changing the walls of your entire room can be tedious and costly. I suggest that instead of repainting your room you can paint several key pieces. A dresser, desk, or shelving can help add character to a room. Try a pop of bright color if you are currently working with a neutral palette. 3. Organize. When I was a girl, I used to justify to my mom that a mess is fine as long as I know where everywhere is, but the truth is  you never know where everywhere is when there is a mess of clutter all over your house. Your living conditions say a lot about you and how you function. Use boxes for items that you dont want to fold or use right away, and come back to it when you have time. Make sure you have small jars and trays to put the small stuff like keys, watch, coins, every time you change purses or leave and come home. 4.  Change the lighting. My condominium comes with a warm yellow light that worked well in the living room and dining area, but it came to me that the yellow light might be too relaxing for my workspace. The time it took to go to a lighting store and set a new lamp  in the room was not more than an hour  and it did such a great thing for my mood while working! 5. Item Swap. Throw a get together where your friends can bring items that they can swap with theirs. It can be old lamps, vases, or statement and storage pieces. This way both you and a friend of yours get to bring home new pieces that can give their space a new personality. These steps are much easier and more effective than sitting in your couch pinning and wishing. So get off your butt and get to it. Do a quick room upgrade following the seps above and tell us how it worked out in the comments below!  

6 Career Lessons from the Walking Dead to Sink Your Teeth into

6 Career Lessons from the Walking Dead to Sink Your Teeth into Now Im not suggesting you lure your enemies into a swarm of zombies if you have a disagreementbut there are a few lessons that you can learn about dealing with conflict,  building relationships and working in a team from the Walking Dead (if you look very closely.) Here are some of the top career lessons that Ive taken from Rick Grimes and co. 1) Its  better to work together, not against each other Youll never get anything achieved as a team if you dont cooperate and work together. Even if you feel like you have a clash of personalities, sometimes bringing different qualities and view points to a project can result in the best ideas and youll get things done much more efficiently. The Walking Dead demonstrates that there is strength in numbers and youre much less likely to get bitten by a zombie if you stick together!  Merle is just one example of someone who learnt the hard way, that going alone is more foolish than brave when he met a rather violent death in the hands of a rival! 2)  If you dont agree with the way things are being done, speak up Im not suggesting you scream all the reasons you disagree with someone in their face (or throw them to the zombies), but if youre not happy about the way something is being done, its better to be open than to let it stew or allow things to become sour between you both (though Rick is probably going to knock you back anyway.) In business, if you have a concern about the processes in place or your current workload arrange a meeting with your manager to discuss the issues. Be mature and reasonable about it and hopefully you can come to an arrangement. 3)  Be a leader The key to a strong team is a good leader, so why not throw yourself in and  become that person? Rick immediately took  on the role of leader of the group when things went pear shape and has put it upon himself to lead them to safety since the beginning of the outbreak. Though hes had a few wobbles, which is understandable considering the circumstances, hes remained strong and  smart in guiding the group and deciding the best course of action when times get tough. Though the idea of leadership can be a daunting one, it is a responsibility that often comes with career progression and can lead to more influence and status in the company. Plus watching your team succeed can be very rewarding! 4) Be decisive Youre going to have to make a lot of important  decisions in your working life that have potential to determine the path your career takes, so its important that you are able to stand strong in your decisions. Ignoring an issue doesnt make it disappear  unfortunately, so options and risks  have to be weighed up before the matter becomes a  problem. This is especially important if you are in a management role and it could effect other staff or the running of the business. Though a lot of the decisions the characters in the Walking Dead have to face are a little more life or death than the average persons, it proves that quick thinking is often essential. At times Rick has had to make the decision to leave someone behind in order to save the group, which is not an easy decision to be made, but someone had to do it! 5) Its not what you know, its who you know In the Walking Dead the key to survival is building strong relationships and trust with others, who will have your back in tough times. In the professional world its  equally about  who you know, as career success often comes from networking and building relationships with people who may be able to provide you with job opportunities, business prospects, etc. Moral of the story = Be nice to people and put the effort in! 6) Learn from your mistakes How many times have Rick and the gang had to battle a hoard of zombies? Too many if you ask me! But what they have done, is learnt from their previous mistakes. It took them long enough and a fair few encounters to discover  that dark spaces probably arent safe places and zombies dont die from a punch in the face, but they finally seem to have constructed a safe compound away from the zombies. For now. This lesson can be adopted in your career. Things arent always going to go to plan and mistakes happen, but its how you handle them and learn from them in the future that matters.