Ask MetaFilter posts tagged with work

What are the best printing companies in Manhattan?

Optimus Chyme — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 07:11:50 -0800

What are the best printing companies in Manhattan? I thought that of all questions, this would be the easiest to Google - but it seems like I can't find any letterpress printers uptown, and most of my results for printing in general are for Kinko's and such.

I'm looking for both offset and letterpress printing companies. Uptown is preferred, but I'll take anything reasonably close to there, including the other boroughs and NJ. Thank you!

How can two freelancers schedule in a baby?

gottabefunky — Mon, 18 Aug 2008 22:59:38 -0800

How do two self-employed people who work at home (writers) deal with having their first child? So Funky Jr. is due in January, and Ms. F and I are wondering how in heaven's name we're going to keep our careers going when we both work at home.

We want to be equally and fully involved in raising the child, so we won't (and for financial reasons can't) just drop him/her off at daycare. One or both of us is (are?) going to have to start working outside the house, for reasons of concentration and space. (One of our offices will become baby central.) We already do about half our work in coffeeshops.

We're thinking about getting a nanny (or maybe daycare) a day or two a week, and splitting the rest of the hours. This will probably involve cutting back our working hours, but we're willing - and it'll probably make us work more efficiently anyway. We want to the baby to become a part of our lives, not the sole focus of them.

But the terrible freedom of freelancing is starting to make us antsy. We're wondering how exactly to go about dividing up the time: by days? Half days? Shifts? (7 a.m-1 p.m., 1-7 p.m.?) How can we make the line between home and work, already blurry as it is, more clear? How will we ever get enough quiet creative concentration time, let alone sleep?

Any advice would be great, but I'd especially love to hear from any dual-freelance couples out there...

Need a hint. What to do with my life?

gofargogo — Mon, 18 Aug 2008 16:28:40 -0800

JobFilter: At a loss to figure out where to go from here. Please help me make a career jump! I'd like to make a lateral move from my niche-middle-managment position as a graphics guy (who has no formal design training) at a technical/legal-type consulting firm, to something with a broader pool of careers and advancement. Except I'm not sure how to weave the skills and experience I have into a better job.

I think the crux of the problem is that I'm a Jack-of-all-trades, master of none. I do graphic design work that is more assembly, less design. I work with architects, but I'm not one. I've got a smattering of skills that range from carpentry to IT.

So I ask the HiveMind where should a guy in his mid-30s with graphics experience, a logical/legal mindset, and a love of systems-level thinking apply his efforts?

(I think I'd be exceptional at working with companies to create/refine work-flows, as I've basically been doing that in various guises since I started working in high school).

I'm depressed. Should I still go to work? What should I tell my boss?

theposterboy — Sun, 17 Aug 2008 13:09:56 -0800

I just started a new job about 2 months ago, have a history of depression, and can feel a bout of it coming on right now. Basically I don't know what to tell my employer--I've already missed 4 days in my first month or so because of sickness (related to stress/depression/etc.). Obviously, this concerns my boss because if I'm going to miss so many days then we have an issue. What do I tell him? Or should I quit?: I'm usually fine at managing depression/anxiety, and can perform fine at work, but I feel right now that I really need to take some time off, due to certain things that have recently happened in life that will and have exaberate my depression.

My first concern is that I have been at this company (very small company, 10 or so employees, so no big corporate programs or anything to help with this kind of stuff) for only 2 months. I have already taken about 4 sick days, which has been brought up with me by my boss, and rightfully so. Basically he said that if I continue to need so many sick days we'll have an issue--and from that I assume that he will 'let me go' if I keep that up.

Second, due to recent events, I feel like I need a couple of weeks off just to do nothing / recover. I don't think I will be very valuable at work if I go. So, what should I tell my boss? I've read some similar ask mefi threads, and the consensus seems to be the less info given the better. Oh, and FYI, I'm located in Canada. My job has me on 6 months probation which means I can get 'fired' or 'let go' pretty much any time for any reason.

What I want to do is talk to my boss, tell him my situation, and ask for a week or two unpaid time off. My worry is that he will tell me to not bother coming back, if I'm going to be unstable like that.

I am very good at my job, and do great work (my co-workers have told my boss this), but I don't want to go to work during a time when my work will be less than standard. And don't want to go to work during a bad bout of depression, which I feel has started now, and will probably last a couple of weeks.

How can I stop fearing the new hire?

jacobjacobs — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 16:14:31 -0800

I'm working +60 hour weeks, but I'm resistant to my employer hiring someone to help b/c I'm afraid they'll usurp my value within the company. How can I get over this fear? I realize this may be classic fear of failure conundrum. I have too much work to do, but I'm afraid a new kid on the block will come and "steal my thunder" within the company. That my lack of communication skills will come to front, that 6 months from now, this guy will be my boss and I will be a tool.

I am an UI designer and damn good by most accounts. I suppose my confidence is not where it needs to be. I try to perfectly do everything for everyone to perhaps gain that confidence. My verbal communication skills are just not there and I'm afraid a more extroverted version of myself will demote my impactin the company. Or perhaps they'll just be all around better and I'll come out looking like a schmuck.

How can I snap out of this self-defeating outlook, and perhaps help recruit an employee and make my life better?

I'm sure there's an easy solution (yes, jk).

Help me fuel my Starbucks addiction through freelancing!

adverb — Wed, 13 Aug 2008 18:41:32 -0800

What are some good sites to find short-term freelance writing/Internet gigs? Similar to this post, I'm looking for some temp work that will bring in a little supplemental income. I've been using Mechanical Turk for a few weeks, and have made some nice pocket change, but I'd like something a bit more substantive (and, of course, better paying).

A lot of the freelance boards seem to focus on more full-time/daytime contract work, which won't work for me. I have a full-time job and would like something to work on during the evenings and weekends.

An ideal situation would be a site where I could view some projects, bid/accept them, and work a few hours/days to finish a product for $25-$50. My background is in writing and editing, but any type of broad IT-related jobs (IA, usability, blogging) would also be good.

How to tell the boss I'm knocked up?

Anonymous — Tue, 12 Aug 2008 14:33:00 -0800

How do I tell my new boss that I am pregnant? I've read the general tips online, but I'm looking for first-hand experiences from those who have travelled this treacherous path before me. How did you handle this, and what did you learn?

FWIW, I work in higher education administration. I am in a new position (about a month), with significantly more responsibility, in a department I've worked in for several years. I'm 3 months pregnant with my first child. I plan to go on leave for a few months and then come back to work while my partner stays home. My new boss is an older, childless, powerful, not-very-warm-or-fuzzy woman -- in other words, I worry what psychology will play into how she hears my news -- and I definitely am still in a position where I need to earn her trust and confidence.

My instincts tell me to buy myself as much time as I can. I'm thinking of making it a habit to bring a huge box of donuts to work every day to give the impression that I'm just porking up. This, sadly, is the best idea I've had so far. Please hope me.

How to stop torrents at work?

numlok — Mon, 11 Aug 2008 19:13:20 -0800

I'm sure this question will not make me the most popular student at the dance, but is there a way to identify (via IP) machines running BitTorrent clients within an internal network (ie. work)? My company has around 50 employees, and the old, "Please don't torrent at work" doesn't seem to be doing much good anymore. It brings our email and web browsing to a near standstill, and dropping by the "usual suspects" is not only tiresome, but doesn't seem to find all the sources of traffic any longer. Any help would be appreciated, thanks.

not lacking motivation, just knowledge

Anonymous — Mon, 11 Aug 2008 16:13:33 -0800

Advise for a 32 yr old amateur who wishes to dedicate the rest of their life to creating art Sometime soon (over next 15 months or so) I’m going to change careers and begin creating contemporary art full-time. I realize I’m starting way late (I’m already 32), so I want to make the best early decisions that I can and not waste my time. Please give me any advice that you can to help me get started on this path right.

First, I should say that I’ve already looked at other threads on this and similar topics. I’m not interested in creating commercial art (graphic art, design), nor am I interested in creating popular art (art shows, craft pieces, reproductions). I want to create gallery art, seeped in an understanding of art history, criticism, and theory. I have a serious muse itch (I have a binder full of hundreds of ideas), and I don’t think I will be able to stop it any time soon. Plus, I’ve already spent 10 years doing work I’m not fulfilled with; I want to dedicate myself to art 100% (understanding that I may have to spend time networking and communicating).

My technique is not the greatest. All of my technique had been developed in middle school and high school (in the 90s) and various self-training. Over the last year I have been trying to retrain my technique, but I don’t want to waste much time if I don’t have to. Frankly, most of my ideas will end up being mixed media sculpture anyway, so I’m not sure how long I should focus on drawing and painting.

I’m not independently wealthy by far, but I live cheaply enough, and I’ve saved up enough money over the last 10 years to float me for at least another six or so. Plus my spouse is pretty supportive and is willing to subsidize me.

Any advice will be helpful, but here are some things I've been particularly brooding over:

1. Do I spend time and money on a BFA? Or a MFA? There are colleges within range of me that are not fantastic, but probably adequate
2. How do I make connections with other artists?
3. How do I establish my credibility?
4. How do I get my pieces into galleries?
5. How difficult is it to get a piece into a museum (like PS1, for instance)?
6. Who should I try to meet?
7. How do I pay for things? Some of my ideas may require access to some serious machinery and materials. Are there secrets?

How to switch companies?

Anonymous — Mon, 11 Aug 2008 13:37:35 -0800

Controversial Job Change: Family business broke up, 1/2 the family left current company to start competing business. Considering the bad blood, how do I make a switch to the other team? Background:
I have been working for a family business for the past 5 yrs. When I started, I was hired by one of the owner's children. At that time, the company was a complete family affair (parents and children).

Approx 1.5 yrs after I started, the parents got a divorce. At the same time, the family split and 2 children not-so-secretely went off to start a competing company. Currently, There is bad blood between the 2 halves. The person who hired me, my boss at the time, was one of the children that left. I truly enjoyed working for them and agree with their vision, business model, and values.

Current:
The company they started up is ready to take me on as an employee. The position would be a promotion and I would be entering on the first floor of a growing company. If it is successful, I stand to do very well. I am very excited at the prospect of being able to help shape the development of a company.

I've decided to take the risk and made a commitment to moving to the start-up.

Problem:
How do I leave my current job?

In an effort to be honest, I feel I need to tell my supervisor (non family member) why I am leaving and where I am going. I feel he knows that it's business and will congratulate me. Once the owners get wind of this, I feel they will fire me, or just ask me to leave. The thing is, I would like the time to train someone to takeover my position. My coworkers and I work in a sort of "team" and my leaving would negatively affect them until a replacement can be found or trained.

Does anyone have experience with something like this? Should I just leave the ball in the owner's court? I feel an ethical obligation to not leave my coworkers hanging.

Thanks for any help.

mentor

vocpanda — Mon, 11 Aug 2008 09:18:35 -0800

What things you wish you knew or did when you got a mentor at work? Or any other advices that would maximize my opportunity with a mentor. I'm still relatively new in the work force (>3 years) and I just got a new mentor at work! She's the head of an innovative department with bunch of managers under her whereas I am internal consultant who basically run around in meetings, researching, or implementing fixes.

I do have some ideas about what I want to be mentored in but I'm not sure how to measure those (required by company) or if there's areas that I should ask for help but currently am not seeing.

For example, how to deal with people and be sensitive to their needs while making sure we get things accomplished. Or how to deal with office politics, especially when I don't see the bigger pictures that my manager's manager is seeing. How can I measure these?

Another example would be that a year ago, I wasn't interested in managerial positions but now I'm coming to realize that I would like to manage people (which I have been unofficially doing for a while now). Are there other things I'm shutting myself out of that I don't realize right now?

Feel free to give any other advices that would maximize my opportunity with this mentor.

Other info:
* I have no clue what I want to do in the long run or what career path.
* As such, I would like to get a MBA one day but have no clue in what. Undergrad is in business/economics.
* Currently work is hybrid of research, business requirements, some technology development, and implementation of fixes.

How to keep track of staff working hours and vacation time?

Acarpous — Mon, 11 Aug 2008 05:27:08 -0800

Office manager for a small not-for-profit WLTM time and headache-saving way of keeping track of staff working hours and vacation time for loving LTR. The UK charity that I work for has recently expanded from three to seven members of staff. All staff members including myself are part time, each working different hours and days to one another which means we all have different holiday and sick entitlement. To make things additionally complicated, we often do overtime which has to be take back as time in lieu or leave the office early and make up the hours later.

I need a better way of keeping track of staff vacation time, time owing and sick leave than the tatty wall planner currently in use from our days as a trio which fails to adequately keep track of anything. Ideally, I'd like a piece of software that does this, so I could set it up with staff details and allowances and then when I told it that someone was on holiday, sick or had done overtime it would automatically calculate time off remaining or time to be made up.

I am sure that this could probably be set up quite easily by someone with a sprinkling of Excel knowledge but I am not that person and currently do not have the time to become them. If the piece of (free if possible but willing to pay if necessary) software of my dreams does not exist, can anyone suggest an alternative way of doing things that means I'm not spending such a large part of my working week manually calculating on post-it notes where everyone is at?

How do I self-promote myself at work on the sly?

Anonymous — Sun, 10 Aug 2008 15:17:39 -0800

How do I self-promote myself to my boss without looking like I'm doing so? I think I do a pretty good job at work, if not an excellent one. Indeed, I know I do a great job at work. My clients are always telling me how satisfied they are with the level of service I provide and my written work rarely, if ever, gets reviewed. Our 2iC and I get on very well, and she often praises me for the work that I do and the results that I achieve. I also do a lot of work above my pay level and I know for a fact that I do all of this very well.

I've decided I'd like to be recognised for all the work I do because currently I don't think I am. In fact sometimes I feel that my boss, who obviously is above me and our 2iC and who I also suspect is largely antipathetic towards me, barely recognises me at all. I've been at my job for almost three years now; he's barely been with us for one. In that time he's come to fall in with a small group of my co-workers who I know don't like me, and I think this has poisoned his view of me to a degree. So much so that he does not take my views into account much of the time and, as I said, barely pays me any attention or praises me for the work I do. As you can imagine, all of this has led to me feeling somewhat marginalised at work.

It's probably also important to mention at this stage that my two previous bosses in this job before this boss came along actually did like me, told me that they valued me and praised the work I did.

Because of my suspicions that my boss may not necessarily like me (but probably does not hate me enough to fire me), I think that I could not only improve my relations with him if he knew what a great job I actually do every day but also improve my pay level were I to self-promote a little.

But this is not my style. I'm the sort of person who likes to show up at work, keep my head down, do my job as best as I possibly can every day and let my work speak for itself. I'd agree with anyone who says that this style has probably been to my detriment in this instance. But as I said earlier, my two previous bosses seemed to realise that my work was great and actually told me so, so I never felt the need to self-promote before now.

So I've never self-promoted at work but I suspect that I'm going to have to start doing do. Given that I've never done this before, I'd like some tips on ways to do so. And if possible, I don't want it to look like I'm doing it (even though I am).

So what are some great ways for me to promote myself and my work to my boss without him or anyone else overtly realising that that's exactly what I'm doing?

Some extra info for you;

* I'm a guy, if that matters at all.
* I'm an introvert as well, so no over the top self-promotion stuff please.
* I like my job very much (and I need the money), so leaving isn't an option.

Thanks!

How can I transition from a programming career to a more laid-back, independent lifestyle?

greenie2600 — Sat, 09 Aug 2008 16:13:37 -0800

I want to quit the corporate world, grow a head full of dreadlocks, make a living selling handmade beads, and just kind of...hang out, y'know? How do I do that? Okay, I'm exaggerating, but here's the deal. I'm a smart and successful web developer, but I've been working white-collar computer jobs since I graduated from high school (I'm 31), and I'm seriously burnt out on it. I'm passionate about web technology, and I'm pretty damn good at it, but I'm a hacker in the classical mold, and the corporate/business world is poison to me. I've been trying to make it work for over a decade, and it just doesn't. It's slowly killing me—I honestly feel like I'll be dead at 50 if I don't make a change.

I'd like to switch to a completely different line of work—something not in an office, maybe even something outdoors; something relatively independent and/or low-pressure and/or with a flexible schedule, which leaves me with enough enough freedom and energy to pursue, y'know, a life. I've always had a very strong work ethic and sense of personal responsibility, but I'm ready to be an irresponsible, unproductive parasite on society, at least for a few years. (I'd be maintaining my technical skills during this time; part of the reason I want to do this is so I can enjoy computers again.)

I'm willing to tighten the belt a bit to make this happen, and I don't have any debt or other significant obligations. But—here's the problem—I can't think of any line of work that doesn't involve a huge (i.e., crippling) reduction in pay. I'm making a decent salary as a programmer, but computers are all I really know. I'd be climbing any other career ladder from the bottom—and anyway, the whole point is that I don't want a career. I picture myself working in a bookstore, or a greenhouse, or something like that—and, of course, that's gonna be shit pay.

(For what it's worth: I'm great with writing/editing, I have a natural head for science, and I enjoy both. I'd be okay with something more career-y in those areas, I think.)

So, yeah—it's the classical dilemma of the Starving Artist. I feel like I have to choose between financial viability and my soul. I want freedom, but I don't want to starve.

So I'm just looking for general advice on how to make this happen. Suggestions of jobs that are worth looking into? Anecdotes from personal experience on this path? A third path between the two extremes I've described? Anything? I need a plan.

Help me become a higher-output writer!

Bardolph — Fri, 08 Aug 2008 10:55:20 -0800

Academic writing filter: I am a painfully slow writer. How might I go about developing a composition process that's higher-output, requires less concentration, and is more revision-friendly? I've never been the kind of person for whom words just spill out onto the page. When I'm able to write anything at all, I usually manage it by pacing and thinking through things until sentences shape themselves spontaneously in my head, at which point I transcribe and move on. What emerges is (I'm told) fairly high-quality, but to get into "writing mode" at all requires hours of unbroken concentration-- and once I'm in the zone, I generally have to write the paper more or less continuously for the next few days, without doing anything else (including social interaction) that might break my focus. At my best, I can squeeze out an average of about four pages per 24 hours, assuming I do nothing but write.

Now that I'm staring down the barrel of some serious writing, I'm realizing I really need to overhaul my composition process. If I'm ever going to tackle book-length projects, I'll need (a) to be able to work in reasonable stretches-- say, five hours at a time instead of 96-- and (b) to find a way to write with only a reasonable investment of concentration and effort, as opposed to the torturous, childbirth-worthy levels of focus I currently require.

I suspect the answer might be to aim for lower-quality, higher-quantity prose, and to revise as necessary. Thing is, I have
no idea how to do this. I'm not some crazy perfectionist saddled with debilitatingly high standards; at this point, I'd be perfectly happy to pour out dreck, given that I suspect my advisors won't read half of what I write anyway. It's just that my mind doesn't really allow me the option of producing high-volume, bad writing. In the throes of composition, it doesn't come down to a bad sentence in five minutes vs. a good one in 15; it's the good sentence, or else a blank page. If there IS some time-consuming process of mental revision at work, it's taking place way below the surface of my consciousness, at some level where I can't presently access it. (An additional guilty secret: I've never really revised an academic essay. All the sentences end up being so bound together by rhythm, logic, sound, shape, etc. that I can't really amend much without just taking everything apart and starting over from the beginning.)

Any advice, suggestions or inspirational stories would be very very welcome, particularly if there's anyone out there who's successfully turned this corner. Useless advice thus far: "Just relax, don't worry, and do it!" (I'm not worried, but I can't), and "Just sit down and type anything, without thinking!" (I've tried; nothing comes out, which is my problem in the first place). Any ideas?

Why do I annoy people?

Anonymous — Fri, 08 Aug 2008 08:45:42 -0800

I seem to annoy a lot of people. I don't mean to, it just happens. What can I do to become less annoying? I try to be a nice guy. I go out of my way to be nice to folks, but I inevitably annoy people.

For example, at work, I asked a girl if she was on a certain project and she just blew up at me. I tried to apologize, but she said I'm not sorry because I always do what I did to annoy her.

I can think of a couple of things that may be causing this:
1. I have an immature sense of humor: I try to keep this to myself and to a few firends, but it ends up slipping out here and there.

2. I try to please most people: I think this is a good thing, but perhaps people find this annoying.

I know some people here might need more explanation from me, so I set up a throwaway e-mail: annoyingtheworld@gmail.com

Thanks!

How to spec a work trailer so daily life won't suck?

TheManChild2000 — Fri, 08 Aug 2008 05:48:01 -0800

My group of contractors works fulltime onsite at Big Agency, and Big Agency has run out of room and is considering getting trailers to put us in. These would be onsite, have water/sewer/electric. I'm hoping to get ideas from people who have worked in onsite trailers on features I should gently suggest Big Agency consider when they are checking out what to buy/rent. Group size is 8 people.

My book? Don't ask.

Work to Live — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 16:22:51 -0800

Last October I left a great full-time job, ostensibly to write a novel. Now it's a year later and, for a variety of reasons all having to do with me, there's no novel and chances are slim that there's going to be one. I'll have to go back to work eventually. When coworkers ask me how the book is going, what do I tell them to save the greatest amount of face? In my own defense, I've sold two short stories, and have three others making the rounds. But writing a whole book? Honestly, I don't know any more if I've got it in me.

Work Hard and Hope for the Best, or Stay Safe and Lose It All?

dmaterialized — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 00:43:10 -0800

Am I making a huge mistake? I'm deciding whether I should take a term off from my beloved college in order to work in the "real world", scraping together money for a study abroad program (Semester at Sea). My instincts say to do it, but I'm suddenly hesitant and wonder if others might have suggestions. Here's where it stands. I planned on making tons of money this summer doing freelance work (in a job that in the past has made me quite a bit of money), but that didn't work out. Instead of having a wad of cash at the end of summer, I've basically broken even. Now I have to figure out what to do next-- and as senior year looms, things seem to be getting desperate.

I intend to go on Semester at Sea this spring (my final term)-- yes, I managed to convince the faculty to let me! SAS is literally the most important goal I have, and I desperately need to be on that boat, but I'm not sure how to make ends meet-- especially since the cheaper rooms all got snatched up and it now costs $5,000 more than it was "supposed" to.

I'm an entering senior in college, paying for the whole thing myself and have no family assistance whatsoever (thanks to a lot of financial aid, I have just enough cash to finish two terms there, but that isn't much). Semester at Sea costs $23,000 -- not including personal expenses or additional fees that might come up. Of that, roughly $12000 of my aid will transfer, and there is a $10k workstudy grant if all goes well. That pretty much means I could go-- though without a cent to spare (not even enough for things like plane tickets etc).

If I forego college for one term, it hinges on getting a full-time job (9-5) as well as supporting myself through my existing freelance work and bartending (which I haven't yet gotten a job in, but feel like I will if I give it some more time). I can stay at a friend's place for very little rent, and will have ultimate freedom (one of the things I seek most in life). I'll be running myself into the ground, but I really think I might be ready for the "real world": at least, I hope so. And at the end of it, I would be able to save up some money and have an amazing trip--potentially even able to buy a nice f/2.8 for my DSLR!

Things to consider: I would be leaving behind some people I care very much about and who I might not see again (including a long-term relationship that I'd pretty much have to give up on), I would need to graduate college a term late (and miss a whole year of watching my friends grow up), and I don't know how the job market is in NY (though I have an incredible amount of skills, I seem to have consistent trouble getting work normally). The advantage is that I would be applying for a fulltime position (with more than 4 months available to work) and I imagine there are certainly more opportunities for those than for part time/internship work. If it doesn't work, though, the whole thing is a bust.

If I stayed at college, I would be dirt-poor (just like always) and potentially miss out on being able to afford the trip (even if I got a gig bartending in the town, it wouldn't be enough to save up). Even things like visas, memory cards, or plane tickets might be more than I could handle. I have credit card bills that I would need to set money aside to pay over the 3 months I'm at sea, and I'm not sure how I could do that either. It would be so comforting, so easy, to go back-- but I'm not sure it's the right choice in the long run. I sense that I'll be changed a lot after SAS and I think being independent beforehand might be really important.

I'm pretty much at the max of my financial aid, though it's possible I might be able to take out a $5-7k loan. My credit's not great, so I'm not too sure of my chances of that.

I'm just trying to think this out-- what seems to you to be the sanest idea? Strike out and hope that a job will be waiting (I'm doing tons and tons and tons of research), or go back and be happy, finish school, and move on as best I can (my college is paradise on earth, and nothing else will ever be quite like it)? And what other options might I have for this kind of thing? Are there appropriate loans I might look into that are outside the normal structure of financial aid?

The whole thing is incredibly scary to me, but exhilarating... is it really just a question of courage, and working is obviously the right choice, or am I right to be cautious of abandoning ship in this economy?

When and/or how do I ask for feedback at work?

Anonymous — Tue, 05 Aug 2008 19:35:43 -0800

Have you initiated asking your boss for feedback on your job? When is the time to do it, and how's it done? I have recently transitioned from lab-bench academia to administrative-ish-but-we're-all-still-geeks academia. In graduate school I always had problems knowing if I was doing well, doing enough work or producing enough data, especially with a lab adviser who rarely gave regular feedback on my progress. Therefore, I definitely would like to generate regular feedback from my current, new supervisor. I do worry about sounding somewhat "needy" however, or begging for compliments (I have a sneaking suspicion I am prone to such behaviours.) So how does one go about initiating asking for feedback, if at all?

They slammed me and then gave me a raise.

Anonymous — Mon, 04 Aug 2008 19:18:20 -0800

PerformanceReviewFilter: I got a less than sterling review at work, but I still got a 10% raise. What gives? I just had my 6 month review and it was painful. Granted, this is the first review I've ever had, but it hurt.

I work as an attorney at a small firm. My bosses brought me in there and basically pointed out everything I've been doing wrong so far. They both asked me questions and I simply froze up on some of them. I felt really embarrassed and they had very little that was good to say. Still, I got a pay increase of 10%.

Then, this morning, my new supervisor said that one of the bosses feels that I'm not coming along as quickly as he'd hoped I would. She said that my job was not in jeopardy, but I'm freaking out.

Should I start preparing my resume, or does this sound like honest criticism and an interest in seeing me improve?

If you need more details or want to e-mail, please e-mail worriedatwork at gmail dot com.

The usual restless youth plus work questions

universal_qlc — Sat, 02 Aug 2008 11:32:45 -0800

If you were an entry-level MechE with only a year and a half of not-so-great experience under your belt, what would you be doing? As it turns out, it only took me six months to become this guy. While I'm not entirely sure about leaving the engineering field entirely, it's certainly something I'm considering.

I currently work for Big Defense Contractor, which I find slow, uninspiring and generally uninteresting, even after asking for and receiving additional duties to try and stay challenged and learning (management was super nice about this, and I really do like them as people but the environment is just larger than they are). I worry that if I stay here much longer (I've been here a year and a half) I will be utterly unemployable elsewhere due to both accumulating apathy and lack of compelling engineering experience. I'm thinking of doing one of the following:

- Beating around as hard as I can for work in a solar energy startup which I find to be an interesting and growing market, though I worry about oversaturation
- Looking for work in consumer electronics, although I worry my growth would be limited there, since I'm not a EE
- Taking a class or two in market and/or data analysis, and then trying to find a job in that field if I enjoy it (which will be difficult to do with no experience or relevant education, and I might have to stomach a pay cut, but not being bored would be worth it)
- Giving into cynicism and finding more hobbies outside work (which is always great, but I can't help that I have to spend 40+ hrs a week at work). Well, at least my personal life is great.

I'd prefer not to go back to school full-time unless it's for an MBA - I pretty much figured myself done with that after my M.S. Traveling the world for an extended period is unfortunately also not an option.

If you were in my shoes, what would you opt to do? Are there industries other than aerospace that need MEs you'd seriously want to jump into? I'm female, mid-twenties, and in the SF Bay Area.

refreshrefreshrefresh

mustcatchmooseandsquirrel — Fri, 01 Aug 2008 10:26:29 -0800

Should I quit my job? I've been working at an IT Help Desk/Computer Lab type job for the last three years. It is pretty boring aside from refreshing AskMeFi relationship questions and fixing printers and software. Since I graduated from college, I am only allowed to keep working there until August 20. I really want to just quit after next week because I've come to dread having to sit at a computer for nine hours a day with not much else to do.

The thing is, if I didn't quit, I would make ~$400 in the extra two weeks I'd be working. That's not a trivial amount of money for me but I don't necessarily need it. Additionally, the job is slightly changing management at the end of this week so the future seems annoying at best.

So, metafilter, how much is $400 really worth? Should I quit my job or just stick it out for an extra two weeks?

Simple IN/OUT system for work?

dougiedd — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 11:09:41 -0800

I want to set up a SIMPLE in/out system for about 75 employees using available technology if possible (outlook, skype?) so that our operators can see where folks are at easily. any recommendations? Rather not buy new software unless it is cheap and easy easy easy

DreamJobFilter

mockdeep — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 19:12:21 -0800

What are some of the best architecture firms to work for? I recently began following my programming ambitions by going back to school for a masters in computer science. Conveniently the school I am attending--UChicago--has a night school program so I am still able to work towards my architecture license during the day. However, I can see that the work load at school will likely grow considerably and make it very difficult for me both to work full time and attend school. As such I have been thinking about negotiating a part time work agreement at my current firm.

At the same time I've been thinking that this might be a great time for me to move up in the world. Being rather disenfranchised with my current firm I want to take a look around and see if I can't find something a little closer to my 'dream' job. So who can tell me about some architecture firms that have really great work environments?

Specifically, I picture a firm that is very forward looking and is open to new ideas. It should work on eco-friendly projects, use the most effective software (BIM anyone?), have a laid back atmosphere and reasonable hours, invest in training for its employees and have partitioned office space (no more conversations across the office, please?). Other pluses include flexible hours and being able to work away from the office. I'm not particularly concerned about location nor am I picky about the sort of architecture, though the bulk of my interest lies in hostels, travel lodges and coffee shops.

Bonus points if you can tell me what such firms look for in a hiree and give me some ideas on how to get there.