Is "inbox zero" right for you? Email can hurt productivity and create distractions during the workday, and some people have responded by embracing a concept known as "inbox zero," where each email is labeled delete, delegate, respond, defer or do. Here are questions to determine whether you should try this approach. U.S. News & World Report (5/23)How to build your creative muscle Research finds networks of connections between both hemispheres of the brain contribute to creative thinking, and strengthening this connectivity helps us solve problems, writes neuroscientist Tara Swart. Allow your mind to wander when problem-solving, participate in the arts and practice mindfulness to build these neural connections. Fast Company online (5/30)
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Making the Connection
10 questions to help you connect with a new manager Help yourself get off to a strong start at a new job by asking your manager about deadlines, meetings and communication protocol, writes career coach Caroline Ceniza-Levine. Asking these questions shows you're proactive and care about your performance. Forbes (5/23)
Poll
Poll results: Have you ever detoxed from your phone? Functional medicine practitioner William Cole did an eight-week detoxfrom his smartphone by switching back to an analog phone, putting his phone in a basket when he got home, and only checking emails at work. "I didn't have my smartphone to distract me, numb me, pull me from the present moment," he writes. New poll question on Monday.
No, but I'd like to
34.10%
No
33.53%
Yes
32.37%
The Landscape
States grapple with minimum wage, paid-leave policies Nevada, New Hampshire and Vermont are mulling legislation to boost the minimum wage, and paid-leave bills are on the docket in several states. Meanwhile, at the federal level, attorneys general from 15 states are considering whether to mount a legal challenge of proposed overtime rules. Chain Store Age (5/28)
Your Next Challenge
Include these references on a resume Arrive at an interview prepared to provide a list of at least three people who will speak to your work ethic, soft skills and expertise, writes Heather Huhman. A reference list could include a former supervisor, co-worker, teacher or academic advisor. Glassdoor (5/28)Advice for narrowing down your career search If weighing a career change but unsure what path is best, start by identifying what abilities set you apart from others and what issues you care about most, says Sheena Iyengar, Columbia Business School professor. "Ultimately, when you describe what you do, you want to be able to create that narrative of what you're doing and why you're doing it and what makes you feel good about it," she says. Quartz (tiered subscription model) (5/28)
Social media's glorification of working too much, often called "hustle porn," has to stop, says Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian. "You have this culture of posturing, and this culture that glorifies the most absurd things and ignores things like self-care, and ignores things like therapy, and ignores things like actually taking care of yourself as a physical thing for the sake of work at all costs," he says. CNBC (5/27)
The Water Cooler
Scientists find fossil containing an entire school of fish A 50-million-year-old fossil was discovered in the Green River Formation -- which spans Colorado, Wyoming and Utah -- with 259 fish inside of the limestone. The large slab gives researchers the rare opportunity to observe how these ancient fish behaved in a school. ScienceAlert (Australia) (5/30)
There's no other country in the world that has a system where someone [who's been fired and is broke] could turn a simple idea and hard work into a company that employs more than 400,000 people and has created thousands of successful millionaires.
