Category Archives: Personal growth

Cleanliness Is Next to… Effectiveness?

Posted on by
Reply
Antique filing cabinet

Behold...the antique oak filing cabinet that was handed down to me by my mother. Will I be more productive now that I can see the top of it?

I’m cleaning my home workspace to make room – well, honestly, to make it presentable – for an exchange student who is coming to stay with my family in a couple of weeks. Our house is a small one, and my home office space is at one end of our spare bedroom. It includes the family filing cabinet and a desk, in addition to my computer table, and stuff tends to accumulate. A lot of stuff. I’m too embarrassed to tell you how much stuff, but it’s honestly enough to justify the term “anal-expulsive”. ‘Nuff said. Continue reading →

Bing and Fox: Beware the Company You Keep

Posted on by
Reply

Obama waves State of the Union 2011

Photo Credit: Executive Office of the President of the United States (Creative Commons)


This is not a political rant. It’s not even really about politics. You’ll have to trust me on that because it’s probably going to seem very political at first. But really this is about trust, and about relationships. Continue reading →

In Search of the Perfect Screen Grab Utility

Posted on by
Reply
kkish.net screenshot

Screen grab captured with Skitch


For someone who lives in an Apple household and loves the death out of Apple products, I have to admit that I’ve now spent so much time working on PCs in my professional life (never been self-employed) that I actually find myself having to learn/re-learn how to use a Mac. Continue reading →

Take Time to Do it Right

Posted on by
Reply

… or…
Slow down; you’re moving too fast.

Christmas cookiesI love to cook.

I especially love to bake – a skill I picked up from my mom. I’m actually good at it, too. I’m the pie baker, cookie maker and cake provider for my extended family. If the occasion calls for dessert, nine times out of 10 I’m bringing it, and 99 times out of 100 it will be homemade.

But I’m also very distractable and have a hard time stopping myself from multi-tasking. If I’m not being fully challenged by a task, I sometimes let my mind drift forward to the next job. Given an opportunity, I look for another challenge. Continue reading →

Asking for Help: A Generational Divide?

Posted on by
2

You know that old stereotype that says men will never stop to ask for directions? I’d like to posit another theory: Young people in the workplace may be less likely to ask for help than their older colleagues.

I was talking the other day with a friend who mentioned that two of her co-workers share what she perceives as a common short-coming: If they have a technology question, they don’t ask for help. They can get completely stalled by a problem and just sit alone at their desks for hours trying to work it out by themselves.

“Why don’t they ask for help?” she wondered. Why not call IT, or contact the software company’s customer support staff? Well, it turns out that both of these colleagues are younger than my friend. Both are, in fact, digital natives.

“Get used to it,” I told her. Continue reading →

Happy Begets Happy

Posted on by
2

My “One Moment” this week

A long time ago, on a dare, I gave up swearing and grumbling. I was working in a newsroom at the time. My college education was in journalism, and the first 15 years of my professional life were spent in newsrooms — which is a lot like being raised by sailors. I’ve heard and used almost every kind of foul language, and almost nothing you can say would shock me. Swearing in a newsroom is pretty much second nature.

A reporter came into work one morning, either on or just before Ash Wednesday, and said she didn’t know what she should give up for Lent. Laughing, I dared her to give up swearing. She looked at me and said, “I will if you will.” Continue reading →