 |
|
|
|||||
It’s popular right now to talk about meritocracy and how we want the most talented people to be able to rise to the top. Yet that’s not the reality for many. Lots of people experience a workplace reality where they see a few charmed people become the darlings of leadership. These darlings get recognized for their contributions and fast-tracked for honor, opportunity, and promotions. Sometimes, that’s for good reason. If you’re feeling jealous of the office favorite, it’s worth trying to be objective. Perhaps you wanted the recognition and reward and didnt get it, and so you’re projecting your frustration on someone who really deserves the recognition. But, there really can be favorites at work. There is a phenomenon in psychology called the “halo effect,” in which an initial positive impression of someone can lead you to interpret all of their subsequent actions more charitably than you might if you didnt have that initial positive impression. So, what do you do if youre not the favorite, and you keep watching others get rewarded for their merit, while you get passed over? Play the long game Halo effects are a result of first impressions. While you dont get a second chance to make a first impression on someone, the merry-go-round of organizations means that youre likely to have many chances to make first impressions on influential people. Your supervisor may move on to another role. You may move to a different part of the organization. That means you need to continue doing good workeven when you arent being recognized for it. Stifle the urge to complain about the success of others. Be a good colleague and develop a reputation of being trustworthy. Over the long-term, that will help. You also have to hone your skills at making a good first impression. If you find that you have trouble communicating in public or in small groups, then consider getting some training. Join a public speaking group like Toastmasters to get more practice. Pay attention to how your habits affect impressions. Show up to meetings and work on time. If you tend to dress in a way that differs from the norm at work, think about whether that is affecting other peoples initial sense of who you are. Individuality and free expression through your appearance are important values, but you should decide whether they are the hill to die on at work. Create new opportunities Even if you dont experience any leadership changes, you can still bring yourself to the attention of new people. Large organizations typically require a lot of projects that cross silos to bring people together in a significant effort. If you get involved in those projects, you’ll invariably meet lots of new people. Seek out ways to be part of these other projectsprovided you have bandwidth to do so. There are two benefits to these engagements. First, you have an opportunity to make a good impression on a new group of people. Second, people you help from other groups may then pass their positive impressions back to your supervisor and others in your area of the organization. These positive comments that come from others can often lead people who know you to reevaluate their impressions. Make your case It’s hard to toot your own horn, and you certainly dont want to do it all the time. But when the right opportunities come about, you need to help guide peoples impressions of you. Your annual performance evaluations with your supervisor are a place where you can try to reset the way you are seen. There’s a tendency to use those evaluations as a way to list all of the things you have done during the year. Rather than just listing the things you have done, focus on specific ways you would like to change how you are perceived by your supervisor. Organize your discussion of your accomplishments for the year in a way that highlights those aspects of your work that you want to emphasize. Help your supervisor to see aspects of your contribution that may not ordinarily be obvious. You wont completely overcome a lackluster first impression with one meeting. But, you may help your supervisor to start seeing aspects of your performance that they have missed in the past. That work can slowly help your supervisor (and others) to see the contribution youre making.
Category:
E-Commerce
When the Federal Emergency Management Agency recently removed the Future Risk Index tool from its website, it not only took away a critical way to quantify the economic impacts of climate changeit also wiped out years of data from multiple federal agencies, including the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, NASA, and the Environmental Protection Agency. But before all that data went offline, two software engineers were able to re-create the toolrebuilding it themselves and sharing it on their GitHub free of charge. The Trump administration has been scrubbing all sorts of information from government websites, from details about U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) work to pages that mention DEI to anything concerning climate change. FEMAs Future Risk Index was another recent casualty of those efforts. The tool, launched in December 2024, mapped the projected economic losses from climate change down to the county level, based on hazards like flooding, drought, heat waves, and wildfires under different emissions scenarios. In February, the map was quietly removed from the government website. But before that happened, Rajan Desai and Jeremy Herzog, who both work at the consulting firm Fulton Ring, were tipped off that it would likely come down. In preparation, they took screenshots and downloaded the available data so that they could rebuild it themselves. Though theyre not climate expertsDesais background is primarily in data science and Herzogs is in software engineeringDesai says they believed this could be one tangible way to actively fight the destruction thats happening at the federal level right now. Theyre not alone; online archivists, amateur or otherwise, have been rushing to save data sets, web pages, and tools from government websites amid the Trump administrations attacks. To Desai and Herzog, it was clear that the tool was important, and the result of months of work across agencies. There was basically about a year’s worth of taxpayer-funded resources that were put into this tool, and it’s ultimately for public consumption, Desai says. (FEMA did not return a request for comment about the tool or its removal.) The Future Risk Index was a supplement to FEMAs National Risk Index, an interactive map that shows which communities are most at risk from various climate hazards. (As of publication, that index is still on FEMAs website). But the Future Risk Index was different in that it included data on the effects of climate change, and how those hazards would become both more frequent and more severe over time. While the National Risk Index could show expected annual losses from climate hazards over the next few years, for example, the Future Risk Index took that further, all the way to mid-century, when the impacts of climate change will be even more extremewhen the sea level could rise more than 8 feet and global temperatures could be 3 degrees Celsius hotter on average. [Image: Fulton Ring] That made the Future Risk Index a crucial tool for people like tribal leaders, local and state elected officials, urban planners, and businesses, because it made the sometimes ambiguous effects of climate change into tangible economic impacts. Looking at Miami-Dade County, for example, the National Risk Index showed that the county could expect annual losses of up to $5.9 million from coastal floodingbut the Future Risk Index showed that by mid-century, even under a lower emissions scenario, those projected annual losses could skyrocket to $29 million. It also showed which hazards (wildfires or floods, for example) would be more or less impactful in a specific area, helping communities prioritize their resources and plan for the future. An internal FEMA worker first reached out to Desai about saving the tool; swift action was crucial. Though they were able to get a version up on their Github and quickly offer an alternative, Desai and Herzog are realistic about the limitations to this ad hoc way of preserving government projects. They took on the task for free, and plan to keep the tool free, but theyre also a small consulting firm with limited resources (Herzog is the cofounder, while Desai is a data scientist there); they cant do much more to advance the toollike allow it to get more granular than county-level datawithout funds. It’s also now, essentially, frozen: It preserves the data the government already gathered, but theres no ability to update it as things change. Thats a reality with any individual or small team of archivists doing this work, and theres a threat, they say, that only big companies with vast resources will keep sharing such data and making these useful tools. In an ideal world, the government would be maintaining data sets, Herzog says. But with those coming offline, the only institutions with the actual capabilities to fill the need and take this work further are giant, private companieswhich have already been acquiescing to the Trump administration (like Googles move to rename the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America on its maps). When Desai and Herzog were reading the documents associated with the climate data they downloaded, they saw clearly that FEMA workers interviewed people from every agency with every data set they collected from NOAA, from NASA, etc., Desai says. The amount of work that was poured into this . . . it would take me months to put together. That speaks to the greater loss of these government resources, and the limitation on the private sector to fill the gaps, attempting to replace the work that was being done by thousands of people who have now been fired. More than 200 FEMA workers have been dismissed since January, and NOAA could soon see more than 1,000 firingsin addition to the more than 800 workers who were already let go. The documents the pair downloaded from FEMA also didn’t include all the specifics on methodology; some information was even censored. All that institutional knowledge held by FEMA staffers gets lost tooeven as citizens try to rebuild tools and bring information back online. Even the best efforts that people are doing to archive this data, theres so much information thats lost, Desai says. There’s more information that’s in people’s heads that is just not documented, and we’re never going to know what that information loss looks like.
Category:
E-Commerce
Its a . . . well, weird job market out there, to put it diplomatically. If youve suddenly found yourself looking for work among what feels like a never-ending onslaught of layoffs, youre not alone. Now more than ever, standing out is essential to landing your dream job. In that spirit, LinkedIn Learning offers a variety of free courses that can help you sharpen your skills, boost your confidence, and navigate the job-seeking landscape with ease. Here are six free LinkedIn Learning courses that can assist you in finding a new job. Polish up your résumé This 2.5-hour course covers everything you need to know about creating a résumé that showcases your skills, experiences, and achievements effectively. You’ll learn how to format your résumé, choose the right keywords, and tailor it to different job applications.Additionally, the course provides tips on avoiding common mistakes and how to use action verbs to highlight your accomplishments. By the end, you’ll ideally have a polished résumé that sets you apart from other candidates. Ace your interviews Interviews can be nerve-wracking, but preparation is key to success. This 1.25-hour course offers expert advice on how to answer common interview questions confidently and effectively. You’ll learn how to research the company, understand the job requirements, and prepare responses to questions about your skills, experiences, and career goals. Also covered techniques for handling tricky questions, such as addressing gaps in your employment history or explaining why you left your previous job. Keep your wits about you Youve sent out hundreds of résumés. The fish arent biting. The ones that are result in rejection. Youre getting discouraged. This quick course is a half-hour pick-me-up that teaches you strategies for setting realistic goals, staying organized, and managing stress. It also provides techniques for building self-confidence, overcoming self-doubt, and staying motivated even when the going gets tough. Land a job on LinkedIn Love it or hate it, LinkedIn is still a powerful tool for job seekers. This hour-long course teaches you how to finesse your LinkedIn profile to make it more attractive to recruiters and hiring managers. You’ll learn how to create a compelling headline, write a professional summary, and showcase your skills and experiences. The course also covers strategies for networking with industry professionals, joining relevant LinkedIn groups, and utilizing the platform’s job search features. Land a job not on LinkedIn (or anywhere else) Not all job opportunities are advertised publicly, and many great positions are found through networking and personal connections. This half-hour course reveals strategies for tapping into the hidden job market, where you can discover unadvertised positions and reach out to potential employers directly. You’ll learn how to identify key contacts, craft persuasive outreach messages, and build meaningful professional relationships. The class also covers techniques for conducting informational interviews and leveraging your network to uncover hidden opportunities. Always be networking Even if youre not looking for a new job, building a strong professional network is more important than ever. This 40-minute course offers practical strategies for connecting with industry professionals, joining relevant online communities, and using social media to your advantage. You’ll learn how to create an engaging online presence, share valuable content, and participate in virtual events and discussions. Along with all that, youll get tips for maintaining and nurturing your network over time, ensuring that you have a solid support system as you navigate your career.
Category:
E-Commerce
All news |
||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||