How To Recognize And Beat Work-Related Burnout

The national values instilled as a society coupled by the relatively high cost of living in Singapore led to the “hardworking” culture that is embedded in almost everyone’s veins. With the amount of commitment that most people have towards their jobs, they can occasionally experience an unpleasant consequence called Burnout.

Coined in the ’70s by the American Psychologist Herbert Freudenberger, Burnout refers to the outcomes of relentless work stress and high ideals. Work-related burnout and its co-morbid problems commonly lead to absenteeism due to sickness. For instance, you have been spending more time at the office to get more things done but ended up being physically and mentally unwell. Going beyond the limits of your body is just counterproductive to your well being and finances. This is why you must recognize the telltale signs of work-related burnout. Here are some of them…

4 SIGNS OF BURNOUT

Image Credits: pixabay.com

Image Credits: pixabay.com

1. LACK OF MOTIVATION

Have you been fantasizing about swimming on the beautiful Bondi Beach? Or are you wishing that tomorrow is a “newly proclaimed” non-working holiday? Well, wanting to run away from your work is a common sign of burnout.

2. COGNITIVE PROBLEMS

Burnout can cause cognitive problems in memory and attention. You can experience slip-ups such as messing up on normally easy tasks, forgetting to remember simple things, and having a hard time focusing.

3. FATIGUE

You are always tired. Need I say more?

4. NEGATIVE EMOTIONS

If you are wondering about whether what your doing is appropriately compensated and if it has any significance, you are experiencing “reduced accomplishment”. It is a common symptom of burnout that can affect anyone who has been working too hard including elite athletes and renowned surgeons.

4 WAYS TO HANDLE STRESS

Image Credits: pixabay.com

Image Credits: pixabay.com

1. SEE YOUR FRIENDS

Sometimes, changes in the working environment and tangible support from others can help with the problems brought by the workplace stress. Consider spending some time with your friends or the people who make you smile. You may be putting off some of your tasks (for the meantime) by doing so but is it not the whole point of destressing?

2. HAVE A “ME” TIME

Since burnout is influenced by mental clutter, learning to relax and removing the distractions for an ample period of time can ease your negative feelings. Put your work assignments or projects down and do something you really enjoy. Set aside at least 10 minutes of the day to yourself.

Listen to your favorite love song, book a spa appointment, eat your favorite dessert, purchase new video games or try on different shades of lipsticks. You deserve it!

3. EXERCISE MORE

Exercise has physical and psychological benefits such as reducing stress, anxiety and depression. It can also improve one’s quality of life, self-concept and self-efficacy. So get pumping! Run outside the house or gather a group of friends to start a regular exercise routine.

4. GET QUALITY SLEEP

When you are tired and sleep deprived, you are less patient, less concentrated and easily irritated. As sleep deprivation can increase your stress, it is advisable to get quality sleep.

Nothing beats the feeling of waking up refreshed and rejuvenated after a good night’s rest. It does give you the boost you need to deal with the hurdles that the new day can bring. Give your body the restorative rest craves for. At least 6-8 hrs of sleep is ideal for working adults.

Sources: 1, 2, 3, & 4

Read More...

Budget-Friendly Ways To Make People Notice Your Business

As a small business or a startup, you are likely to experience some financial set-backs whilst trying to get more people to notice your brand. The constraint placed on your budget only means that you must be strategic in managing the pillars of your presence.

Fortunately, it is not that complicated! 🙂

1. POST ADS FOR FREE

Online Classifieds are a good choice as these are cost-effective, convenient to relay contact, visible to a large-scale of consumers, and the advertisers are able to edit a listing anytime. If you are a promising entrepreneur working on a minimum budget, look for free yet established classifieds such as these:

a. STClassifieds had been a favorite of many Singaporeans since 2007. It allows its users to post an add for free in a wide variety of categories. Furthermore, you can upload up to 10 images so you can really get the best angle of your product.

b. Renowned as Singapore’s Number 1 Free Classifieds Site, Gumtree Singapore is well known for providing good classified services with one of the largest visibility. Their ads let you show the description, photos, date listed, price, condition, address, and your contact information.

2. GET A CATCHY DOMAIN

Once you settled the costs of the products or services that you are planning to sell, you can start creating your own website. Go Daddy sells website domain names for as low as $2.26 per year.

Focus on getting a website domain that represents your business well leave a lasting impact to your target market. For example, you can use “xxx.flowers” instead of “xxx.com” if you are selling beautifully arranged blooms.

3. STAY SOCIAL

Because of the emergence of social media, your marketing must create and showcase a credible online persona for your brand and its products or services. A great online persona will attract more people to the website, boost the brand’s loyal consumers, and increase the number of new consumers.

The efficiency of this social influence is due to the Bandwagon Effect. Bandwagon Effect is a phenomenon that occurs when people do something predominantly because others are doing it. Social media allows the consumers to talk about a brand and its competitors. Using this tool to your advantage can help boost your sales.

4. HOST A GIVEAWAY

A surefire way to make people notice you is to sponsor a giveaway on various social media platforms. In fact, that is one of the early strategies of Money Digest. As much as possible, do this on websites that receive tons of traffic regularly such as Facebook and Instagram.

Get more traffic by incorporating the number of “likes” and “shares” to the mechanics. Also, there are several apps on Facebook that will help you send a message to your followers and help you choose a random winner.

Image Credits: pixabay.com

Image Credits: pixabay.com

Read More...

Essential Questions To Ask A Millennial Job-Seeker During Interview

As you are about to enter your workplace, thoughts of how this day will commence circulated your mind. You see a hallway filled with aspiring professionals. Some looked more prepared while others seem to care less. You have one important task today – to conduct the job interviews.

Asking the right questions on a job interview is crucial to the success of hiring the best qualified candidate for the job. With the weight of the company resting your shoulders, you must come up with intelligent interview questions that will cater not only to the older generations of employees but also to the new generation of job-seekers.

Millennials (Gen Y), people born from 1980s-2000s, have a bad rep in recruitment compared to the older generations. You see, more than half of the local bosses in Singapore felt that people from the Gen Y are hardest to recruit because of their unrealistic expectations. These unrealistic expectations are translated thru the irrationality in pay, promotion, and work-life balance.

Personally, I feel that some Millennials pose more importance with self-reliance and self-fulfillment that they forget to be a part of an entire organization.

Regardless of the generation woes, your duty now (as the interviewer) is to pick out the aspirants who will remain loyal to the company as their personal goals are in lined with that of the organization’s. Start by considering these questions:

1. WHAT ARE YOUR CAREER GOALS?

One of my Millennial friends has been jumping from one job to the next because she has no clear idea of what she really wants. She lives for the thrill of the new experiences and worries about the present moment alone. Without a list of career goals, I am pretty sure that she will shift to another job by the end of this year.

There are many Millennials who view their careers much like my friend. This is why it is important for you to gauge whether or not the job-seeker’s career goals match that of the company’s. Remember that having a deeply rooted career goal can motivate a person to fulfill the needs of the job.

2. DO YOU VIEW THIS JOB AS A STEPPING STONE?

To know whether or not the aspirant is there to stay, be forward and ask about his perception about the available position. Is it merely a stepping stone or is he committed to succeed when given the job?

Use your expert judgement when examining their answers.

3. WHAT ARE YOUR EXPECTATIONS REGARDING THE SALARY?

As the aforementioned survey above stated, there is a high number of Millennial with irrationality in their expectations when it comes to pay. And this tricky question may just prevent that!

By asking this question, you will know if the aspirant has a good grasp of the actual salary based on his qualification and the available position. Also, you will see the true colors of the aspirant (given that he is completely honest). For instance, if he gives you a salary range that is within what you can offer then you can easily negotiate a pay that will satisfy his expectation.

4. WHAT MOTIVATES YOU THE MOST: SUCCESS OR FAILURE?

There is no right or wrong answer to this because a person can either be driven by the determination to succeed or by the fear of failure. You read that correctly! Failure can not only paralyze a person but it can also propel them to work harder. A person may do his best just to prevent failure from happening.

Image Credits: pixabay.com

Image Credits: pixabay.com

You just have to figure out what form of motivation do you prefer most when it comes to selecting the best candidate.

Sources: 1 & 2

Read More...

Welcome To The Wide World Of Freelancing

Aaahh FREELANCING! What started as a theoretical idea became a reality with the launch of “e-lancer” websites such as Guru.com (1998) and Elance.com (1999). Back then, clients from around the world posted jobs that are bound to be completed after a day, a month or a year. The virtually connected e-lancers join together into temporary networks to sell goods and services. Once the network dissolves its e-lance members become independent contractors again.

Apart from its name, freelancing has evolved throughout the years. Freelancers today have the option to work on a full-time or a part-time basis as they are essentially self-employed. With the big players such as UpWork and Freelancer, the world of freelancing is more competitive than ever. A testament to that are the other websites that offer relatively “cheap” labor to a wide variety of global clients. Here are just some of them:

1. CODEABLE

Codeable is unique in every sense as it focuses on the outsourcing services for WordPress. This niche site started back in 2012 and has since grown due to its dedication to hire excellent WordPress developers. These developers are then connected to the clients that are in need of on-demand website support.

2. PROJECT4HIRE

Project4Hire aims to meet the outsourcing needs of small business owners, individual webmasters, and large companies due to its variety of professionals. With hundreds of project categories, it makes it easy to determine jobs that suit your skill sets.

3. TOPTAL

Toptal’s approach to outsourcing is different as only the top 3% of applicants are allowed to be on the site. Toptal is sure to reward your prowess with meaningful projects and fair compensations from renowned clients such as Airbnb and J.P. Morgan.

4.  99 DESIGNS

Originally from Australia, 99 Designs became one of the world’s largest online graphic design marketplaces. They have been connecting designers to customers who are in need of quality yet affordable designs. If you have always been good and passionate at Photoshop or any graphic design tools then 99 Designs is perfect for your skills. Simply enter t-shirt, logo, website, and print design contests to win and earn money.

Image Credits: www.pixabay.com

Image Credits: www.pixabay.com

As you explore freelancing as a viable career option, do not forget the important factors such as time, effort, and cost!

Sources: 1, 2, 3, & 4

Read More...

Useful Financial Tips For Bread-winning Wives

Over the past few decades, the workplace culture has shifted towards equality of genders. Gone are the days when every woman stay back to take care of their children and the entire household.

Based on a study by Prudential Company in 2012, approximately 53% of the sample were women breadwinners while only 22% were married or living with a partner who made more than them. Aside from these numbers dual-career bearer households have increased globally. The fact that women are working more nowadays is something that society is beginning to accept – regardless of gender stereotypes.

When women earn more than their husbands or when they solely provide for their families, there can be an unwanted tension between the household and the finances. Here are some useful tips to handle it:

1. EMBRACE YOUR CURRENT SITUATION

Psychotherapist Olivia Mellan shares that many new-age women are not raised with the expectation that they need another person who earns more than they do. This empowered attitude may be difficult to adopt especially if the people whom you interact with (e.g., your peers) are opposed to this idea.

They might not be ready for a modern-aged Superwoman but here you are! Accept and embrace the reality that you are an accomplished breadwinner. All your hard work and ambitions led you to this moment and there is nothing to be ashamed. Your capabilities allow you to provide a comfortable life not just for yourself but for your children.

2. GET PROPER INSURANCE COVERAGE

To help secure the financial security of your family, get a proper insurance coverage for both you and your beneficiaries (i.e., your spouse and children). You may consider purchasing a life insurance policy to secure your dependents’ future after you die. However, you must consider your current financial situation as well as your standard of living in order to maintain the lifestyle of your dependents.

If you are single, purchase a life insurance policy and designate a close family member as your beneficiary. He or she will pay off your expenses and other issues should something happen to you.

3. SAVE MONEY FOR EMERGENCIES

It is always a good idea to save some money for the rainy days. No matter how long you work or how many jobs you have, you are limited by the uncontrollable factors. These factors include age, time, economy, and incentives. Since you are the primary provider for the household, it is important to save in case these said factors are negatively affected.

Experts suggest to have an emergency savings amounting to least 6 times your monthly salary. This will help ease abrupt unemployment.

4. HANDLE THE BUDGET TOGETHER

Working your body to its limits will eventually bring more harm than good. Understand that it is acceptable if you cannot do it all. Enlist your husband’s help as much as possible. It will not only give you breathing room but it will also make him feel that he is not dispensable.

Couples shall work together and communicated openly on financial decisions in order to share the responsibilities and keep the balance in order.

Sources: 1, 2, 3, 4, & 5

Read More...