Incomia

For many young professionals, attending a networking event sounds about as fun as going to the dentist. Necessary? Yes. Enjoyable? Not so much. Attitudes like this are understandable—the pressure is high, you’re not sure who to approach first and conversations can range from awkward to downright embarrassing—but they’re also shortsighted. Networking remains one of the most effective ways to find a new job, particularly when done in person. Anecdotally speaking, connecting with others via networking events has been integral to building my business . I’ve formed partnerships, gained affiliates and won clients all directly because of networking. Of course, you already know that networking is valuable . What’s harder to understand is that it doesn’t have to be miserable. When you reframe your thinking around networking, it stops being a necessary evil and starts becoming an asset in building your personal and professional brand . Here are my top two tips for accomplishing this: 1. Illum...

How do you design a website so that it’s easy for people to use? They expect usability. When visitors load your site, they have goals. If your website manages to meet these requirements efficiently, users will return.   What Site Usability Is About Photo credit Creating and maintaining a site takes money and effort. Don’t let that go to waste by not investing in usability. Here’s what to think about when you’re designing a website with the user in mind:   Availability and Accessibility Make sure your site works – it’s as simple as that. Fix all instances of broken links, speed issues, and downtime, amongst other things. If your website caters to a global audience, you’ll want to ensure it’s available regardless of where they’re located. You can do that with a website audit tool .   Explicitness Don’t make things confusing for your visitors. Your job as a site owner is to meet your users’ goals with simplicity and consistency. Clutter won’t make people...

My first ever “speaking engagement” was at my childrens’ kindergarten. I was so nervous my knees were shaking and my fingers fumbled through the copious notes I kept referring to. It’s fair to say I was far more focused on myself—making a good impression and not making a fool of myself—than on the people in the room. All three of them. It was a humble beginning. Since then, I’ve spoken to thousands of audiences (yes, numbers have increased), and I’ve gotten better. The real aha moment came one day in Columbus, Ohio, when a tech issue left me without any slide deck or speaker notes. Nervous about messing up, I went into the bathroom and said my go-to prayer: “Dear God, me again. Any advice?” As always, a divine whisper: “You know your stuff, Margie. You don’t need those notes. Just speak to serve and all will be well.” And it was. In fact, it was the best presentation I’d ever given. More from the heart, less from the head. Countless people have asked me for advice on how to speak ...

“Hell isn’t a place, it’s other people,” is a quote loosely translated from French philosopher Jean-Paul Satre’s one-act play No Exit . Keynote speaker Todd Davis got a chuckle from the SUCCESS Live Long Beach crowd when he asked if anyone could relate to this quote. The response of the crowd stems from the fact that we’re often measured by the results we get, but our results rely on other people—“People who won’t do, or change, or behave the way we want them to,” said Davis.  Davis, who is the chief people officer for FranklinCovey and author of Get Better: 15 Proven Practices to Build Effective Relationships at Work , says 30 years of coaching the world’s most successful leaders about legendary author Stephen R. Covey’s development principles has taught him this: Change stems from influence , and influence comes from successful relationships with others . Because we get results through others, the most powerful tool we have is the ability to influence—starting with ourselves...

Communication takes work , and it can be difficult—on both sides of the conversation—to improve it. You might not even realize that work needs to be done. But think about this: You probably spend more time second-guessing the intent behind poor communication than working to improve it. “Oh, she didn’t copy me on purpose.” “He’s withholding information to make my life harder.” “Making us guess what he’s thinking is just a big power play.” “Why would she put something that important in an email?” “What’s that supposed to mean anyway?” “Why did she copy my boss?” Sound familiar? Communicating well builds the most important ingredient of any successful team —trust. So take the time to establish clear expectations around how your team is communicating. Discuss where it’s working best and when it’s breaking down. The good news is that once you’re aware something is wrong, you can fix it—like these seven common communication mistakes, which are all worth fixing, stat: 1. Assuming ma...

Losing your job can be traumatic. Whatever your feelings about your employer or situation, being let go unexpectedly can produce many emotions, including fear, anxiety and depression. Many people spend most of their time at work, and suddenly losing that connection can mean a loss of your income and identity, possibly leaving you with feelings of inadequacy.  Dealing with sudden job loss can leave you floundering, wondering what to do next. While it’s essential to take care of the practical things like filing for unemployment and looking for a new job, it’s equally important to take care of your mental health and well-being.  Listen to this week’s episode of the rich & REGULAR podcast about sudden job loss, and keep reading for some tips to help you mentally deal with being laid off.  Prepare in advance Although you probably won’t see a layoff coming years in advance, laying the financial groundwork to manage a job loss well ahead of time can make the process ea...

If an employer offered unlimited paid time off, most people would likely jump at the chance. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics , private industry American workers (making up just shy of 85% of all workers in the U.S.) are given an average of 10 paid vacation days after a year of service and 20 days after 20 years. When that’s the standard, is it any wonder that employers can tempt potential employees with limitless holiday time? However, it appears that organizations with unlimited paid time off policies actually see their employees taking less time off than they did before the policies were introduced. While this may seem like a benefit for the organization, employers considering unlimited paid time off likely care about their employees and are trying to reduce burnout . Burnout is a known contributor to low profitability , but it’s important to acknowledge that unlimited paid time off will not address employee stress, burnout and disengagement on its own. The Hidden Costs...