Value in a good night's sleep

We all know how important a good night's sleep is to both our mental and physical health.  We've heard it time and again that we should be getting 8 hours of sleep a night... which amounts to sleeping away a third of our lives.  When we were young and our day-to-day responsibilities were a fraction of what they are in our adult lives, we could log 12 hours of sleep and not think twice.  

Occasionally we might have to sacrifice some of those hours to catch up on school work but when the weekend came around lunch would quickly turn into breakfast... but that doesn't last.  

Topics: education, health, leadership, lifestyle, personal health, sleep, sleep deprivation, success, Tips + Tricks

At one point or another in your career, anxiety is bound to come into your life. The stressors that cause anxiety won’t always be work-related. Anxiety can be chronic, it can stem from issues in the home, finances, sickness, and a multitude of other things.  No matter the cause, anxiety can affect your work, relationships with coworkers, and your overall view of your job.

Topics: Uncategorized

How cool is that we are fortunate enough to live in world where we are no longer limited to accomplishing all of our work from the confines of an office. 

Topics: AICPA, APA, ASAE, career guidance, Flexible Work, HRCI, SHRM, technology, Time Management, Work Schedules

Have you ever stopped to think about how the world of marketing has evolved over the last century?  We could even go back 1000 years if we wanted but we going to focus on the last 100 years since it encompasses the advent of radios, television, computers and Artificial Intelligence/Machine Learning.

Topics: AICPA, APA, Artificial Intelligence, ASAE, HRCI, marketing, online education, online marketing, SHRM, technology

Who doesn't have a story they continue to tell about a regretful purchase?  We are used to hearing people reference 'Buyer's Remorse' when speaking about large purchases along the lines of homes and cars.  However, this concept can apply to any purchase, all the way down to a $10 trinket. 

Topics: AICPA, APA, ASAE, buyer beware, buyer's remorse, CPA, earbuds, headphones, HRCI, refund, SHRM, technology

I’ve worn a customer service hat for a very long time. I started out at VTR (then VLC) as an intern in the support department.

Even waiting tables in high school, my focus was on “supporting” people through their meals, making sure everything was as it should be, and that my tables had all the tools they needed (refills, ranch, napkins, etc.) to best enjoy the food, the restaurant’s actual product.

The longer I work with directly with clients (whether they be businesses or individuals), and especially since I have more recently worked to coordinate our other departments, the more I am convinced that service and support is one of the most important things we do. 

Topics: career guidance, Ethics

By far, the most underrated element of every business has to be the payroll department.  I use the term, "underrated," because I feel like most entrepreneurs, myself included, expect running payroll to be the least of their worries when they are gearing up to go into business for themselves.  It sounds so simple on paper 

Topics: APA, ASAE, Business, Business Talk, HR, HRCI, payroll, SHRM

In a past blog, I mentioned my love for philosophy and, undoubtedly, one of the concepts I’ve latched onto is that of via media: the middle way. Aristotle, the ancient Greek thinker, emphasized this concept in the realm of ethics, theorizing that the Good is found in the middle, avoiding the extremes of excess and deficiency. 

Topics: APA, ASAE, Business, Business Talk, Ethics, HRCI, SHRM

The Exposition
Rising Action
Climax or Turning Point
Falling Action
Resolution

Referenced above are the standard five key components to a story plot.  Pretty simple when you think about it.  This is the framework for virtually any movie or book.

One could argue that stories are the greatest gift to mankind.  

Topics: career guidance, CE, continuing education, continuing education online, courses, learning, online education, story, story based learning

All too often, we find ourselves discussing the great things that technology, education and business do to enrich our daily lives.  Today we break the trend and will explore the opposing side of the benefits we can take for granted.  To do this, we are going to explore the 3rd party provider world and when it fails us miserably.

Topics: Apple Maps, Apple Maps fail, fail, Google Maps, infusionsoft, overcome, technology, third party provider