Grab higher-than-average raises
In her first year with her current employer, Lancaster, Mass., admin Jocelyn Rodgers received a 36 percent hourly pay increase. The next year, her pay rose another 20 percent.
Year: 2005
Save the boss time: Screen applicants
To keep hiring from stealing too much time from your boss’s day, offer to interview promising candidates by phone before you set up an appointment.
Stand firm when marketing yourself
Sherry Turner, Chicago, wanted to apply for a newly created position in her organization that combined three jobs and offered more management duties than her existing admin job did.
Expert’s Corner
People will help you realize your dreams—whether that’s a plum assignment, a new job or a total career change—but you have to identify those potential partners.
Reduce your stress through innocence
Las Vegas—Issuing snap judgments of those who annoy or irritate you adds to the stress you experience, argues Richard Carlson, author of Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff at Work (Hyperion).
In step with technology
If you’re spending too much time managing who can use which meeting room when and what equipment they will need, turn to software for a solution.
View windows side by side
View windows side by side (such as a Word document and a Web page) by opening both. (Don’t minimize them.) Next, right-click on a vacant area of the task bar at the bottom of your screen. Then, choose "Tile Windows Vertically" or "Tile Windows Horizontally." To switch between the windows, hit Alt, Tab.
Shopping for a copier?
Shopping for the copier? For the second consecutive year, Imagistics copiers topped J.D. Power and Associates’ survey of customer satisfaction. By introducing new models and better training its sales force, Hewlett-Packard jumped from last place in 2003 to a tie with Toshiba for second in 2004. Only a few points on a 1,000-point scale separated […]
Small offices can go paperless.
If you think your organization is too small for an electronic document system, check out eCabinet ( www. ecabinet.net ). This small (about 25 pounds), single device connects to computers, photocopiers, fax machines and other devices to capture and retrieve files.
P.S. Postscript
Turn up the thermostat if your productivity lags in the winter. When the temperature drops, people type slower and make more errors, a Cornell University ergonomics professor says. The extra money your employer spends on heating may be offset by increased productivity. Soft-sell your idea. If you think your manager will resist an idea that […]