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Avoid Stress in the Work Place

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Too much stress can have a negative impact on your well-being. Stress can not only cause anxiety and depression, but can also have a negative impact on your health. Most people have filled days with little time to spare. Bad and unforeseeable things come up here and there, and the To-Do list keeps on getting longer and longer with no perspective of seeing light at the end of the tunnel. Learning how to cope with all this will be the deciding factor on your stress level.

Whether it is your boss that causes you stress or you simply have too much to do, keeping a positive outlook on things is the number one key to manage your stress effectively. Below are 10 simple tricks that will help you create a positive environment. It will help reduce stress, make you more efficient, and overall a happier person at work and in your personal time.

1. Be Well-rested

Getting enough sleep is crucial. Many people watch TV until late at night and then are surprised that they have difficulty falling asleep. As relaxing it may seem to you, watching TV causes your mind to keep running. Instead get some rest not just physically but also emotionally. Listening to calm music and drinking bed time tea are two great alternatives to watching TV and eating popcorn. If this still doesn't help you get a better night of sleep, pay closer attention to what you are eating at what time. It is advisable not to eat any later than 4 hours before you plan on going to bed. Having too much food in your stomach close before bed-time will make it much more difficult for your body to find rest.

2. Get up With Enough Time

Start the day on a positive note! Avoid cutting your time too short in the morning. Starting your day off stressed on time will leave a negative impression in your head that will carry on throughout the day. Instead get up with enough time to shower, to get dressed, and to eat a little bit of breakfast.

3. Eat Breakfast

Eating a balanced breakfast will fuel your body with viable nutrients and sustainable energy. Avoid eating on the run, but instead take a few minutes to sit down. Stay away from breakfasts with too much simple sugars and simple carbs as they will cause a quick spike in energy at first with a crash shortly after that leaves you off more lethargic than before you ate. A few slices of whole-wheat toast with some lean ham and an egg or two are a great way to start the day.

4. Dress Right

Make sure that you keep your wardrobe somewhat organized. Finding your work clothes easily will make it much easier to get ready in the morning. Pay attention to the colors you are wearing. If a suit and tie is part of your business attire, use "positive colors" such as blue and green. Especially blue is said to have a calming effect on people including yourself. A blue suit and/or dress shirt are great. If you like to wear more color, then do this in your smaller pieces of clothing such as your neckties. A light green necktie will give your outfit a fresh and positive look that will carry over to your attitude.

5. Beat Traffic

Know what time to leave and what route to take to work to beat rush hour. Spending an hour in stop and go traffic will cause your unnecessary stress. Also consider other forms of transportation or car-polling with close by living co-workers.

6. Organize Your Work-space

When you leave work, make sure to clean up your desk. You will be glad the next day! Starting your day on a clean and well organized desk is an important part on reducing stress at the office. In addition, having a clean desk will have a positive projection on co-workers and superiors. It shows that you are a well-organized person that pays attention to detail.

7. Plants

Bring more life into your workspace with plants. Weather you prefer the look of cut bamboo on your desk, or a larger plant in the corner is personal preference. Research has shown that plants will help in creating a positive and friendly environment that has a more soothing effect on people.

8. Pictures Give your workspace a familiar face by bringing in a few pictures of people or things that are important to you. Having a picture of your wife and kids on your desk will help reduce stress.

9. Be Productive Make a To-Do list at the beginning of each day. Prioritize each item based on importance and timeliness. Also estimate how long it will take to complete each task. Not only will this help you create an achievable goal for the day, but is will also help to track progress using time as a measure.

10. Communicate

Is your boss causing you stress? Keeping good communication will help! If your boss is not doing his/her part, take the initiative and open up the communication. Communication will help you know what is expected of you, as well as it is important for your boss to know what he/she can expect.

If you follow the tips above you will have done a great step in managing your stress. No matter what you do, keep a positive attitude and have confidence in your abilities.

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Resume writing for Government Position

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Young Asian ProfessinalsThe Senior Executive Service (SES) is a group of federal employees who serve at the top levels of the U.S. government. These individuals fill federal managerial, supervisory, and policy positions above GS-15 that are not filled by presidential appointment. In order to be considered for these positions, an individual must submit an SES resume to be reviewed by an independent Qualifications Review Board who evaluates it utilizing criteria established by the Office of Personnel Management (OPM).

The majority of SES positions are filled by those already in government service often for 5 or more continuous years. Further, previous leadership often at a specified series and grade is required. Therefore, most applicants requiring an SES resume have a basic federal resume to build from. However, for SES positions, it is crucial to ensure that leadership and supervisory skill is demonstrated. Therefore, it is important to revise and adjust a federal resume to reflect these attributes and skills from previous positions. The most effective manner in which to demonstrate this information is to provide a situation or example, describe the problem you faced in the situation, and then how you resolved it. Utilize key words from the job announcement to ensure that the examples in your resume meet the qualifications for the position. Anticipate your resume to be long – on average 3 to 5 pages.

Once your federal resume is updated, an addendum that addresses the “Executive Core Qualifications (ECQ’s)” must be attached. Successful candidates must demonstrate their competency in each of these five executive skill areas. The five basic ECQ’s are:

1. Leading Change
2. Leading People
3. Results Driven
4. Business Acumen
5. Building Coalitions

These ECQ’s are further broken down into 22 competencies that have been identified as needed to successfully perform in these federal positions. Additionally, there are 6 additional overall competencies that are designated as important to all five ECQs. These competencies are interpersonal skills, oral communication, integrity/honesty, written communication, continual learning, and public service motivation.
While each ECQ statement covers a separate ECQ, the competencies that are applicable to all can be addressed in general terms as warranted in the statements. The overall main focus of these ECQs is leadership and these statements should reflect this fact.

Similarly to creating content for your resume, ECQs should follow a format in which an applicant describes the situation and its context, explains the action taken to address it, and then provides the result of the action taken. Each ECQ statement should contain at least one specific job related example from the last 10 years that integrates the competencies that are linked to it. As applicable, highlight awards and recognition, volunteer experience, and training that are related to the ECQ. Finally, each ECQ statement is typically a page to a page and a half.

Together an applicant’s resume and ECQs should demonstrate the necessary knowledge, skills, and abilities to succeed in federal leadership role. Ultimately those tasked with filling SES roles are seeking applicants who can foster a culture that is results driven, customer oriented, and capable of creating successful teams inside and outside an organization.

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Jason Kay is a professional resume writer and provides guidance with federal job applications. He contributes to career magazines and websites such as KSADoctor.com, which provides SES resume writing services and ECQ samples.

Source: http://www.isnare.com/?aid=324840&ca=Career


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Job Interview Questions common in Singapore

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If you are well prepared in advance, the job interview and process doesn’t have to be stressful. With some research, practice, and confidence, the interview process can be just another exciting rite of passage.


To break the ice and to learn a little more about you personally, most job interviewers will start with some positive personal questions. The first question is generally - tell me about yourself. Don’t go on and on. Only give the relevant facts such as married or single, education, and former jobs. If you have children, this is certainly the time to mention them.


Next the interviewer will more than likely ask about your goals, where you see yourself in the next ten years, and describe your most important achievements. Be ready with the goals before the interview. Don’t make some goals up; be honest or you won’t be trusted. Don’t answer what you think the interviewer will want to hear.


Give your goals and briefly explain why they are important to you. When asked where you see yourself in ten years, briefly explain how you see yourself in the company and how you will be contributing to the company’s success. Even if your most important achievements are in college, they are worthy of mention. If you have past business achievements, by all means talk about them, but not in a bragging way. No one likes someone who toots his own horn. Make sure that you give your co-workers at least partial credit for your achievements. You always want to look like a team player. That is very important in the business world.





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