9 Strategies for Surviving Workplace Conflicts - The Muse

9 Strategies for Surviving Workplace Conflicts - The Muse9 Strategies for Surviving Workplace ConflictsAs much as wed all love the working world to be like a happy episode of Parks and Recreation, thats not always how office relationships turn out. And when things gets tough- with a jealous co-worker, an uncooperative team, or even a simple miscommunication issue- it can be hard to figure out what the right course of action is. No one wants to have to manage conflicts, but its almost always your only way out of them in a way thats safe and healthy for those involved, not to mention your company, too.Luckily, disputes of any sort are all generally similar to navigate, no matter how distinct one problem is from the next. Here are nine ways to approach any sort of workplace friction with style.When you boil strife down to the key players involved, youll notice there are common ways to address each situation accordingly. (Washington Post) Its easy for things to get heated when all sides of an issue feel that theyre involved for the right reasons. Just keep in mind that resolving the situation is about sharing and communicating from all sides as opposed to merely finding out whos right and whos wrong. (YES Magazine)The best way to deal with office turmoil? Actively listen to whos hurting and try to understand his or her point of view. (Forbes)Try to stay optimistic through it all. As a point of caution, you should always expect to continue working with those involved, so burning bridges is not an vorkaufsrecht here. (mindbodygreen)If youre worried the situation might be getting too carried away, these are some options for de-escalation you should keep in mind. (The Recovering Engineer)Stepping back for a moment might help you realize that whatever caused the disagreement isnt actually worth all this drama, anyway. Choose your battles and dont sweat the small stuff. (Lifehacker)Again, never burn bridges- especially in the office. Even if you dont like a single trait about one of your colleagues, there are still ways to work with him or her.Or maybe someones been getting on your nerves and the best option to maintain your professional cool is to confront her, come clean about whats bothering you, and be honest with her to work on fixing it. (Entrepreneur)Finally, just remember It feels difficult now, but youre going to be OK. A little confidence can go a long way when it comes to settling things with those around you. (The Daily Muse)

The Embr Wave could solve office air conditioning wars

The Embr Wave could solve arbeitszimmer air conditioning warsThe Embr Wave could solve office air conditioning warsThere are three common problems employees face in the summer Trying to focus or get anything done when it is beautiful outside and half your office (and people you communicate with) are on vacation living their best lives, fighting the urge to not wear shorts, flipflops, skimpy sundresses, beach coverups, bathing suits every day, and arguing with your coworkers over the temperature in the office. Oh, summer in the officeAccording to a new CareerBuilder survey, nearly half of workers (46%) say their office is either too hot or too cold and 51% say sitting in an office that is too cold impacts their productivity, 67% say sitting in an office that is too warm does the same. This all can lead to some major disputes as 15% say theyve argued with a coworker about office temperature (7% of men versus 22% of women and corporate temperature espionage as 19% admit theyve secretly changed the office temperature in the summer. If you arent careful, you may find yourself curled up under your desk in the fetal position wrapped in a Snuggie and holding on to a popsicle. Not that Ive done that But there is a new invention that has the potential to fix the thermostat wars. The Embr Wave, which when you wear it around your wrist looks a bit like the Apple Watch, will help you cool down and warm up at the press of a button. Its your own personal cooling system that doesnt leave you vulnerable to your 50 coworkers diverse hypothalamus receptors (the part of the brain that produces hormones that regulate the bodys temperature).Started by MIT educated Embr Labs co-founders David Cohen-Tanugi and Sam Shames, they wanted to serve the10% of people who are thermally underserved. I tried out the product and though I feel like most of the temperature change was in my wrist area it did definitely warm me up in our freezing cold office so I was quite satisfied.Ladders spoke wi th Shames about the Wave and how it could finally resolve the thermostat warsOn coming up with the ideaWe came up with the idea to heat and cool people directly after we had to put on sweatshirts in an overly air-conditioned lab in the middle of June. We entered a student contest in the materials science and engineering department at MIT in the summer of 2013.On the Wave potentially replacing the office ACWhile its not a replacement for air conditioner or heaters, it should definitely help reduce their usage. Our research with UC Berkeley has shown that 3 minutes of using Embr Wave can make people who are uncomfortable,feel like a room is +5 degrees. That means if Im too hot in a 72-degree room, then Embr Wave can make the room feel 67-68.On choosing the Wave over layering up or offTheres a time and a place where adding and removing layers makes sense. Weve heard from customers who work in professional settings in which they dont have the freedom to add and remove layers of clothing , so they use Embr Wave to stay mora comfortable. We also hear that Embr Wave gives users mora control over the temperature than adding and removing layers because you can adjust exactly how warm or cold it feels and tune it to your sweet spot.On the new featuresWe introduced Extended Mode based on feedback from our customers. A number of people have regular meetings in freezing conference rooms and wanted to set Embr Wave once and then have it run for an entire 30-minute meeting. We have been working with these customers for months to develop and test this new feature. Once we knew they loved it, we released it to all our customers via the Embr Wave App. Were really committed to listening to our customers in order to learn their needs and develop new features based on that feedback loop. Were excited that the Embr Wave App can offer these kinds of improvements to customers.On women needing the Wave moreWe find that women tend to be more thermally underserved than men, and we do hav e more female customers than male. However, temperature is personal, and we hear from both men and women about how Embr Wave helps them warm up, cool down, and take control of their comfort.

Questions That Successful People Ask Themselves

Questions That Successful People Ask ThemselvesQuestions That Successful People Ask ThemselvesAsk yourself critical questions on the way to success.There is no set way to become successful, no guide. You dont have to emulate every single thing that a successful person, such as reach the same books, listen to the same podcasts, watch the same movies. However, it doesnt hurt to pick and choose certain rituals that many successful people do and apply them to yourself. Questions, for example, are a great way to probe deeper into your thoughts and mind and find out what you can do to be a better employee/manager/etc. Asking yourself questions is a way to criticize yourself and find out what you can do better. These questions are a great place to start.What decisions can I stop making?To put it simply, making decisions takes time and energy. If you can minimize the number of decisions that you have to make in any given day, it gives you more time and energy to focus elsewhere. Take Mark Zu ckerburg, for example. In a recent interview, he welches asked why he always wears the same grey shirt. Zuckerburg responded with a similar response of how getting rid of the decision of what to wear each morning saves him valuable time that can be spent elsewhere.What is todays most important goal?You probably have a large schedule that you work off of on day to day basis. There are lots of things to get done. Being able to prioritize these things is an invaluable skill, and one that all successful people have. When you start a day, think of the single goal that needs to be accomplished that day. If you keep that goal in mind, you will be more productive throughout the day to reach that goal.What am I afraid of?Being able to conquer your fears is a step towards becoming successful. The road to success is leid an easy one- you will come across obstacles that will be hard to deal with and overcome. Being able to identify these obstacles ahead of time, at least to the best of your abi lity, will give you the chance to find solutions before the obstacles arise. If you can identify what you are actively afraid of, you should also be able to come up with a strategy for how you are attempting to move past those fears.What are my weaknesses?If you want to be successful, you cant lie to yourself. Of course, you should already know your strengths. But you should also be able to truthfully identify what your weaknesses are. Once you know what they are, you can take the steps needed to remedy them. Think about the tactic for a job interview, where the interviewer asks what your weaknesses are. You shouldnt lie or talk about weaknesses that are actually strengths (i.e. Im too detail-oriented). You should talk about challenges that you face in your career, and the steps you are taking to get rid of those weaknesses.Are the people around me supportive?You are only as strong and successful as the people you surround yourself with. If you take notice of successful people, thei r inner-circle typically consists of other people that are equally, if not more, successful. If you surround yourself with people that are unsupportive or destructive, they are likely to bring you down with them.