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The question, Where do you work? used to be answered by sharing your employers name. Today, however, it could also include the physical location, such as working from home, in the office full-time, or a combination of both. Whether your coworkers are down the hall or time zones away, a good percentage of your communication will be virtual. Its commonplace to use instant messaging and email to communicate with people who are only a cubicle away, says Andrew Brodsky, assistant professor of management at the University of Texas at Austin and author of Ping: The Secrets of Successful Virtual Communication. But people often approach their workplace communication somewhat mindlessly. They use email because theyve always used email for this. Or they have a meeting because we’ve always had meetings for this. Humans have been interacting with each other for thousands of years, but virtual communication on the scale of human history is recent, which means we havent yet mastered its best usage, says Brodsky. Unfortunately, your choice of communication tool can undermine your ability to build strong relationships and corporate culture by opening the door to misunderstandings or missed opportunities to connect. Choosing the Right Form of Communication Before you reach out to anyone, Brodsky recommends identifying your most important goal for the communication and determining the best mode to achieve that goal and improve work-related outcomes. Is it about being productive and concise so that I can focus on work tasks? he asks. Is it about building a relationship and trust in a situation? Is it about making a good impression? There isnt one absolute best mode all the time; there are different best modes for different goals. Use that information to decide what technology will best achieve that goal. For example, if you need to ask someone a long series of questions, email isnt the most efficient form. The recipient would need to carve out time to respond, which could take a day or two. They may also want to edit and rewrite their answers before sending them back to you, adds Brodsky. On the other hand, a live phone call can be scheduled for a half an hour as you go back and forth with questions, answers, and clarifications. This is also true for meetings. Many people say we should get rid of all meetings and only do emails, says Brodsky. What they miss is that emails have a good time sink because of this potential to want to edit and make sure everything’s perfect, as opposed to the naturalness of synchronous language that can happen in video meetings or phone calls. If a situation involves complex information, especially if it could need clarification and further questioning, then a synchronous mode, such as phone or video, is best. If a situation requires unambiguous certainty, then a text-based mode, like email or Slack, could be the most productive form. Think About the Recipient When youre communicating virtually, whether it’s email, instant message, and video, its often hard to remember that there’s another person on the other side of communication because youre staring at your computer screen, says Brodsky. That’s a problem because when other people don’t realize they’re interacting with a human being, theyre less likely to collaborate and build relationships, he says. Think about ways to humanize your communication that may happen naturally in face-to-face interactions, suggests Brodsky. For example, text-based communication tends to have less small talk, and while small talk decreases productivity, it’s useful for building trust and building relationships. The more familiar people feel with one another, the more they realize that there’s a human heresomeone who’s got their own interests and feelings, says Brodsky. Small talk humanizes the interaction. In virtual communication, such as email, Brodsky recommends starting by briefly asking about something personal they recently mentioned, such as a weekend trip they took. You could also include a quick note about yourself that’s related so it doesn’t feel out of place. You can also build some time into the beginning of a videoconference call to make small talk. I’m not saying go into way too much detail about yourself, says Brodsky. Even a few quick words of small talk can be really useful for humanizing yourself and building trust. Find Opportunities for Spontaneous Communication When youre in person, water cooler conversations can happen organically, providing opportunities to connect and exchange information. If youre working remotely or in a hybrid situation, Brodsky recommends looking for ways to add spontaneous communication, such as short video interactions, to re-create real-time conversations. When you can see the other person, you feel like you’re more familiar with them, as opposed to just reading some text from them, he says. That’s not to say that you should just go interrupting everyone with video calls. It’s good sometimes to send a quick instant message beforehand, saying, Hey, are you available to talk? The Advantage of Virtual Communication As we become more adept at virtual communication, our experiences are likely to start mirroring in-person interaction. While it may feel like out of sight is out of mind, Brodsky says its possible to build stronger relationships remotely when you are intentional about virtual communication. There’s nothing particularly magical about being able to touch the person in front of you, he says. Its a lot easier to send a quick text to someone saying, Hey, how are you doing? What’s been going on? Virtual tools can strengthen relationships because they increase the frequency of interactions, and the frequency of interactions is one of the main predictors of what creates strong, long-lasting, trusting relationships.
Category:
E-Commerce
More people than ever aspire to become influencers on social media, given YouTubes proliferation as an entertainment source and the popularity of Instagram and TikTok. Some 57% of Gen Z aspire to be influencers, according to a 2023 survey of 1,000 U.S. respondents. It makes sense after seeing influencers earn big payouts while having more freedom and flexibility to work on their terms. There are many glamorous aspects of becoming an influencer, but being able to earn a full-time salary is challenging. Its a considerable amount of hard work, requires some luck, and the field has gotten competitive. And thats why some experts suggest aspiring content creators consider freelancing. What influencers really earn Just 4% of the estimated 50 million global creators are earning more than $100,000 a year, according to Goldman Sachs Research. And 48% of creators earned $15,000 or less in 2023, reports The Wall Street Journal, partly due to social networks reducing creator program payouts and other incentives used to encourage posting. Due to creator saturation, brands have more creator partners to choose from, sometimes leading them to be more selective over who they work with and pay less for that work. And investing time and resources solely into these social networks is an unpredictable pay-off, considering the changes to X (formerly Twitter) since 2023 as well as TikToks uncertain future in the U.S. Going full-time as a creator can be challenging, especially when relying on brand deals, which can be inconsistent and volatile, says Lindsey Gamble, a consultant, advisor, and speaker on the creator economy and influencer marketing. Diversifying your income Despite these drawbacks, you dont need to abandon your aspirations to become a creator or influencer. But for most people, its not a realistic full-time focus or going to deliver the pay day you may be thinking. Instead, more professionals will find success by being a well-rounded freelancer and having one of your focus areas be creating content for social media. That way youre not disregarding your interests in being an influencer, but also protecting your income. Freelancing can provide access to a wider range of projects diversifying your income and providing better long-term stability. As a freelancer, you have the ability to offer a mix of services and products to companies and individuals based on your expertise and experience. Diversifying types of work and clients is paramount for younger workers during this period of AI-boosted jobs and work disruption, says says Sophie Wade, workforce innovation advisor and instructor, and host of the Transforming Work podcast. Relying only on influencer/creator income is unwise, rather than developing transferrable skills, diversifying clients and projects, and building a range of experiences and expertise to be prepared whichever way markets evolve. Freelancing takes many forms like offering consulting, coaching, creative services, marketing, technical support, professional training, project management, speaking, and other services. For example, a web designer could offer brand partnerships on social media as a content creator, sell courses to other designers, and provide website redesign services to companies. That way, as any aspect of your business ebbs and flows due to seasonality, economic conditions, or whatever other reason, youve got multiple income streams to rely on. Plus, freelancing lets you diversify your presence beyond the highly competitive social media landscape, helping you compete for work across private and public marketplaces, networking platforms, industry events, and professional communities. Finding creative fulfillment Diversifying your offerings allows you to vary your day-to-day workload, so youre not repeating the same tasks over and over again. Sometimes, I get bored or creatively drained working on the same kind of projects, so alternating between freelance and creator work allowed me to be creatively free and work with a variety of brands, says Jayde Powell, a freelance social strategist and content creator. Doing both truly feels like yin and yangdifferent but balancedwhich has allowed me to establish my own lane as a creatorpreneur. And the advantages of diversification works in all directions whether theres times youre getting stability and income from being a content creator, a speaker, an advisor, or in another capacity. If theres anything [the last year] taught me, its that having two streams of income is not only fruitful for my purse but also for my mental health, adds Powell. As is the case with freelance work, sometimes you can go months without picking up any projects. I often found myself in a position where agencies I would talk to knew they needed a freelance social strategist but simply werent ready to bring one on. My saving grace was working as a creator and influencer. My earnings from my brand partnerships often helped supplement my income as a freelancer, which mitigated any potential financial stressors I could have had. Keep in mind that there are some barriers to entry with freelancing are higher than posting on social media, as youve got to earn professional experience, develop an in-demand skillset, and attract clients. Freelancing is less familiar to Gen Z, who have undeveloped professional networks and skillsets, and it takes time to grow a client base, says podcaster Wade. In most scenarios, offering freelance services will require that you’ve worked at a company full-time for at least a few years to get hands-on experience, gain professional contacts, and earn any necessary credentials. That way you’re qualified to provide high-quality services, potential customers can trust in your offerings, and this experience can act as a starting point for growing a customer base. This is where being a content creator is advantageous as you can generate valuable visibility for your other types of freelance work. Finding the right balance For freelancers, creating content is key today; it helps you get in front of prospects, showcases your expertise, and gives them a preview of what its like to work with you, adds consultant Gamble. As someone who left a 9-to-5 six months ago, Ive found the combination of creator and freelancer to be working really well. Both sides complement each other, helping you secure bigger budgets and become more integral to the companies you work with, he says. Thats where freelancing and influencing go hand-in-hand. Youre not only being flexible in the support youre able to provide to clients, but giving yourself optons to ensure you’re financially stable, enjoying variety in your day-to-day work, and continuing to develop your skills in the process. I think increasingly people are answering questions that have been posed as an or with an and, says Ziad Ahmed, an expert on Gen Z and the head of Next Gen at United Talent Agency. We have watched as creators have evolved into actors and entrepreneurs, as baristas have turned into internet sensations, as freelancers have taken yearly hiatuses to be travel bloggers, as the lines between creators and creatives and colleagues have all blurred. There are no shortage of options to explore and benefits to tap into as a content creator, but its a competitive and unpredictable path that many will struggle to turn into full-time work. A more realistic approach is to diversify as a freelancer, and make creating on social media one of the many skills you offer.
Category:
E-Commerce
Watching TV no longer just means watching TV. After the rise of tablets and smartphones in the late aughts, a second-screen experience became the new standard for home viewing. Live-blogging the latest season of Netflix’s Stranger Things, or buying a new T-shirt during it, is now just reflexive for millions of people. According to a 2023 YouGov study, 91% of Americans at least sometimes look at their phones while watching TV. For generations weaned on TikTok, that sometimes might be a little closer to always. As Saturday Night Lives Michael Longfellow recently joked about the apps brief ban: What do I even watch during a movie now? Although viewing habits have long been headed in this direction, whats changed more recently is that Netflix now appears to have adapted to those habits by optimizing for second-screen viewing. A December deep dive into Netflixs approach, from literary culture magazine n+1, describes how the streaming service has subtly changed the way some of its movies and shows get made. As Will Tavlin writes, Several screenwriters whove worked for the streamer told me a common note from company executives is have this character announce what theyre doing so that viewers who have this program on in the background can follow along. (Netflix did not respond to Fast Companys request for comment.) Tavlin goes on to include a dialogue exchange from last years Lindsay Lohan-comeback vehicle, Irish Wish, that sounds like an audio commentary track describing what has previously happened. (I admit it was a beautiful day filled with dramatic vistas and romantic rain, Lohans character says at one point, but that doesnt give you the right to question my life choices. Tomorrow, Im marrying Paul Kennedy.) Overly expository dialogue is nothing new. Its usually just a sign of lazy writing. If its no longer just a trope but rather part of a studio-wide effort to relieve viewers of having to come up for air from their phones once in a while, well, that feels like a different story. The n+1 report isnt the only suggestion that streaming services like Netflix are now making content with an eye toward background viewing. Actor and director Justine Bateman made headlines in 2023 when she told The Hollywood Reporter, Ive heard from showrunners who are given notes from the streamers that this isnt second screen enough. More recently, U.K. outlet The Telegraph singled out a conversation on BBCs Miss Me podcast, between Stranger Things actor David Harbour and host Miquita Oliver, about the process of second-screen pitching. During it, Oliver mentioned that studios are asking for ideas that people will kind of ignore, so they can be on their phone.” Netflix seems especially receptive to such ideas. In 2020, New Yorker writer Kyle Chayka coined the term “ambient TV” to describe Netflix programming like the breezy sitcom Emily in Paris and the reality series Dream Home Makeovershows that are pleasant enough but require zero engagement from viewers. [A]s prestige passes its peak, Chayka wrote, we’re moving into the ambient era, which succumbs to, rather than competes with, your phone. At the time, the growing abundance of this kind of content could have been written off as a coincidence. If a streaming service is meant to be all things to all people, of course some areas of its programming would have a similarly smooth-brain feel. These recent reports all but confirm, however, that the company is actively making its content more palatable for background viewing. There is nothing inherently wrong with providing ambient TV for those who just want to zone out while thumbing through TikTok (while we still have it . . . ). Considering how many prestige shows still aspire to be taken seriously as high art, its refreshing to see shows with the courage to be trashy fun to have on in the background while doing house chores or decompressing after a long day. Netflix was making the latter kind of show for years before The New Yorker gave it a genre name. It certainly hasnt hurt Netflixs bottom line, eitherthe company just posted a Q4 revenue increase of 16% from a year earlier, helped along by another 19 million subscribers for the quarter. Clearly, Netflix seems to be delivering what people want from it. The question remains, though, whether the company is only contorting some of its original content to be better background viewing, or if that aesthetic is becoming its feature attraction.
Category:
E-Commerce
Much has been written about the lack of trust in todays workplace. And no wonder: A 2023 Gallup study found that only 21% of U.S. employees strongly trust the leaders at their organization. Without that trust, there are real and detrimental outcomes: Employees disengage, innovation slows, and turnover increases. But trust is a nebulous thing, and restoring trust once it has been eroded is a massive undertaking. Instead of talking about and attempting to build trust as if it were a new product, something external to the leader or a company, [leaders] should concentrate on building trustworthiness, writes Fast Company contributor Ludmila Praslova. Consider a genuine, long-term friendship. It cant be produced by telling someone you must like me. she explains. It comes from the experience of genuinely supportive behavior. Similarly, long-term trust, psychological safety, loyalty, and other desired employee or customer psychological outcomes cannot be commanded into existence. Trust must be earned, and this starts with trustworthiness. If one of your goals as a leader this year is to improve your trustworthiness and increase employee engagement, here are some areas to focus on: 1. Get honest about your weaknesses Have employees expressed feedback about workplace frustrations or challenges, whether in-person, via an employee engagement survey, or in exit interviews? Being receptive to feedbackand articulating how you plan to act differently in the future is a key first step. Will you communicate more transparently? Prioritize employee wellness by offering new benefits? Hire more support for overextended workers? There are four elements that comprise trust: competence, reliability, sincerity, and care, writes contributor and executive coach Sara Sabin. Doing an audit in each of these four areas and seeing where you might be falling short is a start. Then, you can set some action steps you can take to improve. That said, building trust requires more than just making a public commitment, and theres a real risk to promising change and then not following through. The best way to show that employee input is valued is by using it to improve processes, writes Praslova. When employees see that the leadership operates with honesty and integrity, trust grows organically. On the other hand, if input-seeking is simply a checkbox exercise or worse, a trap, trust is crushed. 2. Delegate more Trust is a two-way street. Bosses too often have trouble trusting their reports to carry out a vision and get caught in the weeds, stunting their teams growth and derailing progress. Some leaders are hesitant to delegate the details, writes Chris Lipp, author and professor of management communication at Tulane University. These leaders get stuck in micromanaging. The inability to delegate and the desire to micromanage are often states of disempowerment because they derive from fear. This fear saps our personal power, and it saps the power of those below us to contribute creatively. 3. Plan before a crisis Professional crises are bound to arise, and its important to have a plan before they do, writes behavioral scientist and contributor Art Markman. Part of that includes developing the outline of a communication strategyto both clients and staff. Your communication plan must include the key audiences who will want information, writes Markman. Employees will want to know that key issues are being addressed, whether there is risk to their jobs, and any effect a crisis is likely to have on their daily work life. External stakeholders will want communications about any service disruptions or other influences a crisis may have on their experience. Its also important to think critically about who you want on your team when a problem arises. Playing out different potential scenarios can help you respond more effectively when the real thing occursand give you a distinct advantage when it comes to maintaining trust among your team.
Category:
E-Commerce
Years ago, a friend was alarmed to discover $2,000 missing from her bank account. She couldnt imagine how someone had managed to steal from heruntil she had the dawning realization that she was that someone. Over the course of a very stressful six-week period, she had blown two grand in dribs and drabs, never shelling out more than $45 at a time. My friends situation is a textbook example of why understanding your spending is crucial to budgeting. But unless you happen to be the sort of person who actually enjoys spreadsheets (and, yes, they do exist), tracking your spending is probably about as appealing as a colonoscopy. Thankfully, there are ways to keep an eye on your spending that dont require you to track every penny. Heres what you need to know. Why your spending habits matter At its core, a budget is a framework for determining how much money comes and goes each month. To reach your goals, you should be making active choices about your money, rather than simply letting the money flow through your hands without any forethought. And this is why its so important to understand your spending habits, since that is the part of personal finance were least likely to think about before acting. While my friends loss of $2,000 was an extreme example, every single one of us has had a similar experience. Spending money is remarkably easy (especially in the time of one-click purchasing), but keeping a mental tally of our expenses is impossible. There is no shortage of opportunities to spend and overspend and borrow to spend, meaning were fighting an uphill battle in trying to keep our expenses below our income. Tracking your spending is a way to force yourself to know your spending habits and think about your money choicesbut its not the only way. Creating a budget without tracking There are several ways to get a handle on your spending habits without having to track your expenses. Any of these strategies can give you the information you need to make proactive budgeting decisions. Let a robot do it for you Virtually every financial institution now offers a spending analysis tool that will show you where your money is going every month. All that you have to do is set up a regular date with your money to go over what information the banking robot has aggregated for you. For many people, a monthly check-in will be sufficient, although newbie budgeters or anyone who struggles with overspending may want daily or weekly money dates. The good news is that the spending analysis tool is doing all the drudge work. All you have to do is figure out how the information they give you will affect your financial decisions going forward. Limit your ability to spend Tracking your spending is designed to keep you from going over your budgetbut you can also do that by setting and enforcing hard spending limits. Certified Financial Planner Roger P. Whitney developed this system, which he calls the Cash Flow Bucket. Under this plan, youll start by having your paychecks deposited into your savings account, rather than your checking account. From there, youll set a maximum monthly spending limit for yourself, and have that amount automatically transferred to your checking account. Then you can simply spend money without tracking it throughout the month. Just remember, you will need to regularly check your account balance to make sure you havent accidentally overspent. (But remember, the banking robots have your back here, too, since you can set up low-balance alerts when your account balance gets below a certain amount.) The benefit of this system is that it gives you a monthly spending framework without asking you to track your spending. Since your income is deposited into savings, it also makes saving automatic. Only track problem categories Many of us are perfectly capable of making good spending decisions in most casesbut then make it rain the minute we find ourselves in a bookstore (or another den of sin and temptation). If this sounds like your money situation, you could only track the specific categories that consistently cause you to overspend. Instead of having to keep track of every single purchase you make, you will only have to remember to log the purchases in your problem categories, and will still get a good sense of how much extra money youre spending. This strategy also increases the likelihood that you will think twice before making a purchasebecause you know youll have to write it down. If you choose your two or three problematic spending categories to track, you still benefit from reconsidering the purchase before pulling out your credit card. Take control of your spending Despite what you may have learned, you do not have to track every penny to create a budget that works. However, you do need to basically understand where your money goes so you can make the best decisions about your finances. But there are a number of strategies that allow you to do that without becoming a spreadsheet geek. To keep an eye on your money outflow without tracking your spending, consider using your financial institution’s spending analysis tool and setting up regular check-ins. Alternatively, you could have your income deposited into savings and only transfer your monthly spending amount into checking each month to limit how much you can spend. And for would-be budgeters who are generally frugal, only tracking the problem categories can provide the necessary spending insight to stay on budget. Knowing exactly what you spend is less important than making sure you proactively think about your spending habits. Thats because its the active spending decisions, not the tracking, that prevents what happened to my $2,000? panic.
Category:
E-Commerce
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