News Archives - The Career Success Doctor

World’s Toughest Job – You Think You Are Working Hard?

Written by Natalia

Do you think that you are working hard? That you’re doing a tough job? Perhaps that your hard work is not even appreciated? That your day is full of difficult tasks and have no time to rest because your company or employer depends on you? I certainly know that feeling! However, checking the description of the world’s toughest job might change your perspective.

Let’s look at some of the requirements of the toughest job in the world, exactly as the hiring manager described them to the candidates: mobility, high-level of stamina, constantly on your feet; seven days a week; no breaks available; excellent negotiation and interpersonal skills; degree in medicine, finance and the culinary arts; ability to wear many hats, and a lot more… (and you don’t even want to know what the salary is!)

In the video below, you can watch the interviews with the job applicants and their reactions to the manager’s demands. You’ll be surprised by the number of people who are actually doing this job! Make sure to watch this through and you will be truly amazed!

http://youtu.be/HB3xM93rXbY

Ok, now that you know what this is about, please, do me a favour and watch it again one more time. It will make a lot more sense and you’ll definitely see things differently.

It’s true; mums have the hardest job ever! And we don’t appreciate it as much as we should. We take everything they do for granted. I mean, they’re our mums, it’s their job, right? Well, it’s the world’s toughest job! And mothers around the world are doing it for so many years without complains.

These ‘magicians’ are there for us 24/7 taking care of us, helping us and making everything possible! They’re always by our side when we need them (and even if we don’t know when we need them, they do).

And it’s not only about the big things (like the ones mentioned in the video), it’s the little ones too that matter. If you think about it, they’re not ‘little’ at all. That’s what I call magic.

As Guy Hatcher -in his article “Taking Time to Notice Mom“, on crosswalk.com- describes a simple ‘everyday-life’ scene:

” Eventually I was struck by a family of three – a noticeably efficient mom with a daughter approximately four years in age and a slightly older son. They’d arrived precisely on-time armed with a dual stroller, and mom’s carry-on bag thrown over her shoulder. As the evening wore on, I watched as a computer, head phones, milk bottle, cuddle blankets, books, games, Kleenex, wipes, videos and snacks were retrieved, all from this not-so-big bag – a bag of tricks for sure – as whatever need arose was instantly met with a quick dip inside by mom’s wonderful sleight-of-hand.

Observing this young mother with her little ones reminded me of my own family, and how my wife so lovingly and expertly cares for our children when we travel – somehow always able to meet their need at a moment’s notice. Her accomplishments are amazing and truly a gift for which I am grateful. But this experience made it all the more joyful, and turned an otherwise frustrating evening at the airport into a blessing I hope to always remember – not only to continue appreciating my wife, but to see motherhood as the gift it truly is. “

With Mother’s Day around the corner, take the time to appreciate, respect and thank your mother for everything she’s done for you throughout the years. Understand the challenges and sacrifices of volunteering to do the toughest job in the whole world. And live by that every day. Not only this Sunday. Show her your love and appreciation every single day of your life.

And for those of you who have children, a big ‘Thank you’ for being one of the billions doing the world’s toughest job! Our world is a better place because of you.

I love you mum!

Easter Traditions Around The World

Written by Natalia

Easter and Christmas are the two most important Christian holidays. With Easter Sunday coming in 3 days, I thought it would be a nice idea to see some of the Easter traditions and customs around the world, along with some facts. Did you know that many aspects of the celebrations pre-date Christianity with some of them having ancient roots?
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Easter Facts

Date Calculation

First things first, Easter is a moveable feast and the number 1 question I’ve had since my childhood is “how on earth do we know on which date Easter falls each year? Who decides it?” -well, back then everything I couldn’t understand had to be a “grown-up decision”. You’d be surprised, but I didn’t get my answer until recently. I found out how this date is calculated last year, while searching for a particular name day.

Do you know the answer? The truth is, it is very simple actually.

Easter Sunday can only fall between the dates of 22nd March and 25th April and it is based on the lunar calendar. Easter Sunday always falls on the first Sunday following the Spring Equinox Full Moon (the full moon after 21st March, which is also called the Paschal Full Moon).

Easter Name

It is believed that Easter derives its name from the Anglo-Saxon Goddess of spring and fertility, Eostre (other known names: Oestre, Eastre, and in Germany Ostara). Eostre had a hare as her companion (rings a bell?). The Christian holiday usually took place during “Eostremonat” (meaning “the month of Eostre”) which was the time of the pagan celebration of spring. In an attempt to Christianise the celebration, it took the name Easter.

Before that it was called Pasch (Passover) from the Jewish word ‘Pesach’. In most non-english languages, this is still the root for the holiday’s name (e.g. Pascha in Greek, Pasqua in Italian, Pascua in Spanish, Paques in French).

Easter Traditions Around The World

Easter Bunny

Bunnies have always been known as symbols of fertility. According to some sources, the Easter bunny has its root in Eostre’s hare. When the first German immigrants arrived to America in the 1700’s they brought their tales of Ostara’s egg-laying hare with them.

Easter Eggs

There are many explanations for the origin of this tradition. It is a fact that eggs symbolise new life. Eggs and rabbits (fertility and new life) were both featured in pagan spring celebrations. In the Christian holiday they represent Jesus’s resurrection and victory over death. Some sources claim that people started decorating eggs in the 13th century and that this custom might have its roots in the Lenten season. People celebrated the end of it by decorating eggs which were a forbidden food during Lenten.

Easter Parades

In Medieval Europe, churchgoers would take a walk after Easter Mass, led by a crucifix or the Easter candle. Today these walks endure as Easter Parades. People show off their spring finery, including lovely bonnets decorated for spring. (Johnson, David. Ross, Shmuel. “Easter Symbols and Traditions.” Fact Monster.)

Greek Red Eggs

Easter is the biggest holiday in Greece. Each and every day of the Holy Week has its own dedicated activities. There are many traditions related to Easter and many places have some more customs of their own.

Perhaps the most apparent traditions are the Easter sweets (special tsoureki and Easter Cookies) and red Easter eggs. In Greece eggs are hard-boiled and painted red, to represent Jesus’ blood. At Easter table, everyone takes an egg and a game of egg tapping (egg knocking) begins. The aim is to knock out all your competitors’ eggs, while keeping your egg’s shell intact. Whoever wins will have good luck.

German Easter Trees

In Germany, one of the traditions not passed to the American world by the immigrants is the Easter Tree (“Osterbaum”). Germans decorate either small living trees and bushes, or branches with painted eggs (wooden and real).

Britain’s Royal Maundy Service

This tradition is inspired by the Biblical tale of Jesus washing the feet of his disciples on Maundy Thursday. The Royal family gifted clothing and money to the poor, along with the foot wash, for centuries. The tradition has undergone many changes (yes, the foot wash has stopped).

Nowadays, on Maundy Thursday, elderly men and women who are considered to have given Christian service to their community—one for every year of the Queen’s life—receive two leather string purses, one white, one red. The white one contains normal British currency for food and clothing, and the red one contains Maundy coins, the amount given corresponding to the current Queen’s age in pence. (McAlpine, Fraser. “Five British Easter Traditions That Will Surprise Americans”. BBC America.)

Hungary’s Sprinkling

In Hungary and other territories with Hungarian-speaking communities, the day after Easter men visit women’s homes and sprinkle them with cologne, water or perfumed water and receive Easter eggs, cookies or alcohol in return.

Norway’s Easter Crime

In Norway, a popular Easter tradition is Paskekrim (Easter Crime) which is reading or watching crime mysteries. Television channels run crime shows and detective stories and book stores are filled with crime novels.

What about you? What traditions do you have where you live?
Do you have any special customs in your family?
Share them!

Happy Easter Everyone!

Sources:

1. Wikipedia 2. History.com 3. Daily Journal Online 4. Fact Monster 5. BBC America

6. Easter bunny image by Jeroen van Oostrom, FreeDigitalPhotos.net

7. Red eggs image by graur razvan ionut, FreeDigitalPhotos.net

April Fools’ Day 2014: The Best Of The Online World

Written by Natalia

Thursday today and this year’s April Fools’ Day just passed. Did you pool any pranks to your friends or colleagues? Did anyone fool you?

I was lucky enough not to be fooled by anyone this year, but for 4 days now I’m counting on painkillers to move around the house because my back is killing me. Not much of a luck, right? I think I should focus more on changing my working habits and try to sit even less.

According to CBS News, 75% of Americans said they wouldn’t play a prank this year. Thank God April Fools’ didn’t “die” this year as one could think, and the online community had many reasons to laugh -or to be fooled.

Anyone working in a tech company can verify that to them April Fools’ is like Christmas! And usually their pranks are in the top 10 every year.

Of course, Google -who has earned the title of the ‘prankmaster’ of the tech world- exceeded our expectations once again, and in my opinion is in the first place with Google Maps division’s new job opening: Pokemon Master. For anyone who updated their Google Maps app, there was a little game inside where pokemons where hidden all over the world and participants had to “catch em all” until April 2nd.

Other divisions, like YouTube, Gmail and Google+, played their own pranks as well. If you checked your Gmail you probably saw a popup introducing Shelfie, the new Gmail feature, while YouTube announced this year’s upcoming viral video trends.

Google’s Pokemon Master

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Twitter announced the “Twitter Helmet”, a wearable device with which users will be able to tweet through a “pecking” head motion.

Reddit, on the other hand, introduced “Headdit”:

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Microsoft couldn’t be left out of the “party”. Bing subscribers received a newsletter in which they learned about Bing’s newest features: Bing Dogglz and Bing Pet Translator.

And what about “fake” articles that have nothing to do with tech companies like the ones we mentioned above?

I believe everyone heard about the chickens in Suffolk, UK, that lay square eggs, right? ITV secured an interview with the farmer.

One of the funny stories that went viral was one from the Sun, according to which, the Queen drills for gas in the grounds of Buckingham Palace.

Toronto Sun has an article with the 10 best April Fools’ jokes. It made me smile many times while reading it, I had to share it. In addition, it includes some of my own favourites, like The Guardian’s article (and video) claiming that Scotland would switch to driving on the right if it gains independence.

“ If something sounds too outrageous to be true, it’s a good idea to check the calendar. April Fool’s Day brought out the usual array of odd, offbeat and outlandish stories designed to expose the gullible and make suckers of us all, though some of the jokes were so blatant, they were not likely to fool anyone. Here are some of the best: …… “

Here’s the link to Toronto Sun’s article: “The 10 best April Fool’s Day pranks”
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What about you?
Did you see anything funny online this April Fools’ Day?
Did you play pranks to your friends? Did anyone pull a prank on you?

Working Women And Health Issues: Sitting Is Deadly!

Written by Natalia

Most of us already know sitting is bad for our health, but how many of us actually know that sitting is deadly? No, I’m not exaggerating; this is what four experts say in the report presented below.

We all know that prolonged sitting causes obesity and disrupts metabolic function -anyone trying to lose weight is aware of this-, and that’s why more people every day are adopting a healthier lifestyle, including exercise in their daily schedule.

Nonetheless, research shows that even if we engage in regular exercise, it’s not enough to neutralise the consequences of too much sitting during the rest of the day.

According to a study by Dr. Hidde van der Ploeg, a senior research fellow at the University of Sydney’s School of Public Health, sitting for 11 or more hours per day increased risk of death by 40 percent, regardless of other activity levels (Van Der Ploeg, Hidde P. (2012). “Sitting Time and All-Cause Mortality Risk in 222 497 Australian Adults”. Archives of Internal Medicine, 172(6), 494-500. doi:10.1001/archinternmed.2011.2174).

Considering that most of us work in an office, we spend 8-10 hours on a chair in front of our desk. If you add the time we spend sitting in non-working hours, such as in our car stuck in traffic, having lunch or dinner -especially in a restaurant with clients or friends and family where we tend to spend more time due to discussions and socialisation-, and of course, when we’re back home after a long day sitting on the couch watching TV seems such a nice and relaxing idea! OK, did I just counted at least 12 hours sitting daily? According to the experts, we are slowly killing ourselves.

In the infographic below, published in The Washington Post Health & Science, you’ll find a report about all the health issues researchers have linked with sitting for long periods of time and why they claim that sitting is deadly.

Therefore, apart from exercising we need to cut down the hours we spend sitting. We should spend less time in front of the TV, go for a walk instead of sitting on the couch, go on foot to the closest convenient store instead of taking the car; there are plenty of ideas! But what about work?

Considering the nature of our jobs, that’s easier said than done. We have to change our working habits and incorporate more activity.

It is important to note here that standing is not panacea. Prolonged standing has its own risks as it can lead to “the development of musculoskeletal disorders, especially in the legs, knees and lower back. While you can stand for as long as it feels comfortable, most experts recommend a 50:50 sit-stand ratio” (as stated in Men’s Health, “Best Stand-up Desks“).

In the report below the interviewed experts suggest a few things we can do to eliminate the dangerous effects of sitting in our health and change our working practices. Apart from that, here are some other things you could try:

Stand up while you are on the phone.

That way you can walk around your office every time you are taking calls.

Implement active meetings.

Have you seen how Hugh Laurie as Dr House in the famous TV series ‘House MD’ conducts meetings with his team? Walking on the corridors of the hospital, or in the elevator while going to see a patient. Although we are not all famous doctors that everyone needs urgently, using his way and implementing walking meetings will be truly beneficial for our health. Not to mention that by moving small meetings from the conference room to the concourse will boost creativity.

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“The health hazards of sitting”
Reporting by Bonnie Berkowitz, Graphic by: Patterson Clark

The experts | Scientists interviewed for this report:
James A. Levine, inventor of the treadmill desk and director of Obesity Solutions at Mayo Clinic and Arizona State University.
Charles E. Matthews, National Cancer Institute investigator and author of several studies on sedentary behaviour.
Jay Dicharry, director of the REP Biomechanics Lab in Bend, Ore., and author of “Anatomy for Runners.”
Tal Amasay, biomechanist at Barry University’s Department of Sport and Exercise Sciences

Read the The health hazards of sitting report on Washington Post Health & Science.

Professional Leadership Development: 5 Encouraging Signs For Women

Written by Natalia

Great news for women who are committed to their professional leadership development and aim to be bosses! According to Aaron Guerrero’s article in US News, “trends are slightly moving in the favor of females who want to lead“.

I particularly enjoyed the part where the author refers to a Pew Research Center survey. Its results showed that Americans rate women superior to men in many leadership qualities, and believe that they are equal to them in some others. With women being the minority among business leaders, I find this study quite encouraging. It was about time for people to understand that women are competent, are not meant just to follow, and acknowledge their leadership skills.

Mary Barra made history this month when it was announced she’ll become General Motors’ first female chief executive officer.

Over a span of 33 years with General Motors, Barra, 51, has moved up the ladder from intern to chief of global product development and soon CEO, succeeding Dan Akerson on Jan. 15. When she starts her new post, Barra will join the ranks of 23 other women who head Fortune 500 companies. What’s more, she’ll be the first woman to lead a major automaker.

For some women, aiming for a higher office can be stalled by worries about work-life balance. In an October Pew Research Center survey, 51 percent of working mothers said being a working parent made it harder to advance their career, compared with 16 percent of working fathers who felt the same way. Other women may feel held back by sexism in the workplace. According to an August 2013 Gallup poll of 1,309 adults, about 15 percent of U.S. working women surveyed said they have at some point felt passed over for a promotion or opportunity at work on account of gender.

Still, here are some encouraging reasons why more women might be moving up in the workforce.

Read the whole article here “5 Encouraging Signs for Women Who Want to Be Bosses”