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Making the Most out of Your Unpaid Summer Internship

Angela Manning Travel , ,
Making the Most out of Your Unpaid Summer Internship

The unpaid internship is the biggest conundrum of your college career. On the one hand, it offers invaluable experience that could help you find a job once you graduate. But on the other, you don’t get paid!

A whole summer without earning cash is hard when you’re already shouldering some of the biggest student debts on record. But it’s possible.

To help you survive with your finances intact, check out this list before your first day. These money-saving tips can help you make it to the fall semester with some money left over.

Search out cheap digs

In the ideal world, your internship is somewhere close to your parents’ house, where you can live for free. But in the event the commute is too far, you need to find somewhere affordable to live.

It’s hard to find a sublet on a broke student’s budget. If you’re struggling to find something, check in with these alternatives:

  • People you know.Check to see if you have family, friends, or friends of friends willing to put you up.
  • Although designed for short-term stays, this site might connect you with a host willing to open their home to you for a month or two.
  • As long as you’re willing to sleep in the same room as 10 other people and share a bathroom, you can save a lot of money by staying at a hostel long-term.
  • Local universities: Plenty of colleges open up their dormitories during the summer at lower prices for visiting faculty, students, and people like you.

Meal plan like a professional

While you can cut out most other “frivolous” spending during the summer, food is one of those staples you can’t live without.

Plenty of students survive off ramen and the occasional slice of pizza, but you can do better than this without spending a fortune. The answer is in meal planning.

Check out Leanne Brown’s Good and Cheap. Brown created this free cookbook to help people living on food stamps — which gives you just $4 to spend on food each day. Besides a ton of recipes, she shares special tips on how to shop on a tight budget.

Find free money

There’s no such thing as free money, or so they say. But this general rule may not apply to students. Every year, millions of dollars in scholarships, bursaries, and other awards go unclaimed.

Best of all? You won’t have to pay anything back if you win something. The only “price” to pay is the time it takes to search and apply for these scholarships. For that, we think it’s worth it.

Use a budget

A good rule of thumb when making a budget is to be as accurate as possible, so don’t fudge any numbers. Be as precise as you can be, using official invoices, transcripts, and contracts to fill out the basics.

Once you have a good idea of how much your internship will cost, compare it to what you have in terms of savings, bursaries, and leftover student loans.

If you don’t have enough to cover the bare bones of your budget, review your budget to see if you can change anything. For example, if you live relatively close to your internship, you can walk or bike to work instead of paying for transit or gas.

Try tweaking your expenses before you search out a personal loan. There are lots of reasons to get a personal loan when you’re on a tight budget, but paying for an anticipated expense isn’t one of them.

Online short term loans like lines of credit and installment loans are ideal for unexpected emergencies — like if the bike you use to get to work gets stolen, not if you can’t pay your rent every month.

Proactive thinking like this can help you get through your internship with some money left over. But hopefully, it doesn’t come to this.

Your internship is a fantastic opportunity to gain as much experience as possible. So make sure your finances are ready for the ordeal. Once you have your cash in order, you’ll be able to put 110 percent into your internship and maybe even get a job offer by the end of the summer.

7 Kinds of Protective Gear Used in Different Industrial Settings

Angela Manning Business , , ,
7 Kinds of Protective Gear Used in Different Industrial Settings

Whether you’re an electrician working with high-voltage equipment, a laboratory technician handling infectious specimens, a fireman who’s routinely called to extinguish conflagrations, or some other professional consistently exposed to similar risks of injury or infection, you would know how important it is to safeguard your wellbeing with the right personal protective equipment or PPE.

PPEs protect from many different hazards, including physical trauma, electric shocks, extreme temperatures, harmful biological agents, and dangerous airborne substances. Since so much is at stake when it comes to workplace safety, it is important to source your personal protective equipment from a reliable supplier of safety workwear clothing and other protective accessories.

In this article, we’ll fill you in on some of the main classifications of PPEs and why they are vital to creating healthy and productive workplace environments.

Body Protective Clothing

The skin is the largest organ of the body, one that naturally possesses a defensive barrier against pathogens and harmful substances. However, the protection provided by the skin can only do so much against hazardous elements from the outside world. Without proper body protection, a person working under unsafe conditions is at risk of acquiring injuries or contracting infections.

Thankfully, there are many PPEs developed specifically to protect the body, coming in different forms depending on the application. For example, splash-resistant gowns or coats can be used in laboratory settings where exposure to infectious agents or dangerous chemicals are very real risks. Fire-retardant and flame-resistant suits, on the other hand, can be used in industrial settings like fire smelting factories and steel mills, as well as for firefighting and rescue scenarios under extreme heat situations. On the other hand, general-use overalls can be employed in many other scenarios, such as in automotive repair work, house painting, gardening, glazier work, and many others.

Protective Gloves for the Hands

Used by people to handle and tinker objects with, the hands are understandably among the most often injured parts of the body. Make sure to protect yours with the right gloves. Some of the substances and conditions that gloves protect from include pathogenic agents, mechanical hazards, heat and cold, corrosive liquids, organic solvents, reactive chemicals, toxic compounds, and many others.

Hard Hats for the Head

Hard hats, otherwise known as safety helmets, provide protection against head injuries that can be caused by falling objects, falling building debris, and even electric shocks.

The secret to the safety helmet’s effectiveness can be traced to its suspended design, which means that the shell of the hat sits about an inch on top of the head. When an object falls on the head, the thermoplastic shell dissipates the energy, while the foam linings absorb some of the rest, keeping the head safe as a result.

Protective Eyewear for the Eyes

Protecting one’s eyes is an absolute must, considering how sensitive and vulnerable they are against the many hazards that a worker can encounter on a daily basis. Everything including small airborne particles, laser radiation, chemical substances, flying pieces of metal and concrete, and even the very tools and equipment used in the workplace can all damage the eyes.

It’s a good thing that there are eye protective equipment that can be used for just about all of these scenarios. These include general safety glasses, splash goggles, impact goggles, laser goggles, and full face shields.

Respiratory Protection

It’s become common in many Asian cities for people to wear pollution masks when going out on the streets or in other public areas. After all, one can’t be too careful when it comes to protecting one’s own lungs. And if people are protecting themselves out on the streets, the more they should in workplace settings that present a hazard to the respiratory system.

NIOSH-rated respirators, depending on the type, can protect the wearer from a variety of hazards, including airborne pathogens, particulate matter, fumes, vapours, and gases.

Hearing Protective Devices

Dangerous tangible objects and physical substances are not the only hazards to the human body. High levels of sound, for example, present a risk of injury to the auditory system—something that is of particular concern if you work in an environment that is consistently noisy.

In order to protect you hearing from long-tern damage, you need to make sure that you wear protective accessories like earplugs, earmuffs, canal caps, and electronic noise reduction devices, especially if the noise levels in your workplace exceeds 85 decibels.

Protective Shoes for the Feet

Feet and toe injury can have debilitating consequences to an affected individual. After all, a person needs their feet to be able to get from one place to another. Long-term or permanent injury to the foot can have a devastating effect on an individual’s productivity and mobility. As such, never neglect your feet when working in potentially dangerous environments.

Safety shoes and boots with steel toe reinforcements can prevent your feet from getting crushed in the event of a compression or falling debris accident. There are many other types of safety shoes, including, puncture resistant shoes, electricity-resistant shoes, chainsaw resistant shoes, heat- and cold-insulated shoes, shoes with antiskid soles, shoes with ice claws, and others

No matter the industry, if you’re working in an environment that presents a hazard to your health and wellbeing, you need to protect yourself with the right personal protective equipment. Make sure to check with your safety workwear supplier if they have the items you need. If they don’t, procure the necessary materials from other suppliers at the soonest possible time.

Steps to Working from Home in 2018

Angela Manning Finance , , ,
Steps to Working from Home in 2018

The future of work is remote. Or so say many of the most influential and forward-thinking minds in the business world today, at least, which means that when it comes to working from home you need to put your right foot forward in order to make it happen. This can mean a bit or hard work and determination on your part.

So, keep this in mind when it comes to starting a working from home career in 2018.

Find the Right Job

The right job at the right time doesn’t always just materialise. But, when it comes to working from home you need to at least be in the right field of work to make that happening. Good choices for this include design work, marketing and even tutoring. You could even try the new and exciting world of being a virtual assistant. Research your options, decide what is best for you depending on your skills and make sure you have the right resources in place in order to make it happen.

Of course, you should also consider simply choosing a job that you love first and foremost. It could even be fostering Liverpool if you have a passion for helping children in need. It doesn’t matter, so long as you are happy with the choice in your career at home.

Don’t Get Conned

There are plenty of people who have been burnt when it comes to the working from home set up. They will be offered a job, do the work and then never receive a penny no matter what they do in order to chase the payment down. A situation that can be experienced through either a fake ‘employer’ or simply from a client who refuses to pay for services rendered.

As such, as someone who wants to work from home you need to take everything with a slight grain of salt. Always ask more questions than you need to when it comes to finding jobs and ask for a partial payment up front. It may not seem trusting, but it saves your bank account if the client or supposed new ‘boss’ becomes reluctant to cough up payment after the work has been completed.

Be Decisive

Making your own way in the world will mean that you need to have a decisive attitude and a sure grasp of the direction you want to take. It also means that, for the most part, you need to ensure that you do not get taken advantage of. It’s similar to not getting conned, but more in the sense that you don’t do more work than you are getting paid for. A confident attitude and decisive business dealings are the only way forward when you work at home.

Create a Routine

Having a specific time to start and stop work is vital for your health as a home worker. Not having a routine, working throughout the day no matter if you should or shouldn’t be, can leave you being overworked and stressed. Make sure you get up and start work by a certain time, then finish at a healthy hour of the day. You may be working from home to escape the 9 to 5, but that doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t keep to a similar routine in order to maintain your sanity.

Remember to Socialise

When you work at home, you may find yourself alone a lot simply because everyone else is out at work. It’s not like you can lean over and talk to a coworker whenever you are starting to feel slightly stir crazy. This is where going out at night, speaking to your friends and even taking a small Facebook break become integral to stop you becoming lonely.

If you do feel like working from home is becoming too isolating, then you can always choose to start working in a coworking space. These are a rent-a-desk type of setup and mean that you could make friends, see people on a regular basis and basically have somewhere to be that isn’t home at the end of the day.

Final Thoughts…

Working from home can offer a lot of freedom, fun and give you the working flexibility that you have been dreaming of. However, you need to also ensure you are doing something that you love and can actually motivate yourself to get up and do every morning.

Not to mention, keeping simple things from a normal job like a routine and actually seeing people in order to keep a healthy attitude in place without getting lonely. Keep these things in mind and you should find working from home a delight that the typical 9 to 5 never was!

How to Make Your Office a Much Greener Place

Angela Manning Business , , , , ,
How to Make Your Office a Much Greener Place

When you are working on creating a more eco-friendly life, it is ideal to extend your efforts to the office. You have spent a lot of time making your home greener, but you can do a variety of things at work to help reduce the entire company’s carbon footprint. Look for inspiration from projects, such as the Cadiz Water Project, and others that are helping to make life more sustainable on a larger scale. Starting with a few basic ideas, however, is sure to make the process relatively simple and smooth.

Check Your Electricity Usage

In an office, you often have bright lights on all day and this can result in dramatic electricity usage. Consider putting smaller lamps at everyone’s desks and whenever it is daytime, take advantage of the natural light. Open all blinds or curtains so the sunlight filters in and shut off the overhead lights. This can result in a significant decrease in electricity usage. It also allows for a more ambient and pleasant environment that might help folks to feel less stress while they work.

Be Mindful of Office Water Usage

Using too much water is one of the biggest factors in an office that is not eco-friendly, but there are methods you can employ to change this. For example, look to do something similar to the Cadiz Water Project, but on a smaller scale. This means you can look for ways to reuse water so that it is renewable in your office environment. For example, get a bucket for the community refrigerator and instead of tossing the leftover water in people’s bottles, put it into the bucket. Once it is full, you can use it for cleaning the office.

Create an Office Recycling Program

Between office supplies and lunch items, you probably accumulate a lot of waste every week. You would be amazed how much less waste you would have if you recycled. This is relatively easy to implement in an office environment. Start with the lunch area and the room where you keep your supplies. Take three small bins and put a set in each of these rooms, with one bin for glass, one for plastic and one for paper. At the end of the week, you just need to quickly bag it up and drop the recycling off at the local center.

Switch to Recycled Products

There are multiple office supplies that you can find that are made from recycled products. These also tend to be relatively inexpensive, so it will not add much to the budget of the company. You can find products, such as refillable ink cartridges, recycled paper and non-toxic highlighters for this purpose. In fact, between non-toxic and recycled items, you should be able to replace most of the items in your office with more eco-friendly ones.

Consider the Office Food Choices

If you do a lot of potlucks and similar events in the office, be careful about the foods you choose. Look for produce that was grown sustainably and reduce how much meat is served. You should also avoid serving it on products, such as paper plates, and opt for those that can be washed and reused instead for a greener environment.

Switch to Cleaning Products That Are Non-Toxic

Most of the cleaning products used in the office environment are incredibly harsh and this can have a major impact on how eco-friendly everything is. There are products that you can switch to that do not contain any harsh chemicals. They allow you to fully clean your office without the risk of harsh fumes or degrading any of the surfaces. You might also consider basic items, such as white vinegar and baking soda, since these are non-toxic and can be used to clean an array of surfaces.

Work on an Office Carpool

One of the biggest ways to reduce your carbon footprint is to reduce your reliance on your vehicle. Since driving to work is likely something you cannot skip, if you share a ride with your coworkers, you are decreasing how many cars are on the road during your commute. You can switch off who drives each week, so that factors, such as vehicle wear and tear and fuel, are evenly split between everyone who joins the carpool.

You might also talk to the boss about creating telecommuting opportunities if this is possible. This means that people can spend one or more days a week working from home to avoid having to drive their vehicle at all.

You can see that it is not too harder to make your office much greener for yourself and everyone else. Once you start implementing changes, it will not be too hard to get your coworkers to join in. Just start small so that the process is not too overwhelming for yourself and everyone else that wants to lend their help and support.

4 Heart Health Tips for Office Workers Constantly On-the-Go

Angela Manning Health , , , , ,
4 Heart Health Tips for Office Workers Constantly On-the-Go

Source

The busier you are, the more likely you are to neglect your health and well-being.

You probably understand well enough the dangers of heart disease and other complications from living the hustle-and-bustle lifestyle. That being said, ignoring your heart health is a dangerous gamble, especially if you have a history of high blood pressure or hypertension in your family.

If the phrase “lifestyle change” freaks you out, instead consider the small tweaks you can make to your day to day routine to keep your heart health in check. The following tips apply to any entrepreneur looking to stay healthy regardless of your profession.

Get a Handle on Your Medication

The price point of your daily medication shouldn’t be the deciding factor as to whether or not you manage your heart health. Yet with the rising costs of healthcare, many people fall into a trap where they let their wallets determine their well-being.

Consider first and foremost the fact that you can find discounts on Xarelto and other crucial medication via web coupons. Meanwhile, consider how daily supplements such vitamin C and folic avid can reduce your risk of heart attack, strokes or blood clots despite being purchased over the counter. Starting off your day with your medicine likewise keeps you from missing doses and helps you start your day off on the right note.

Clean Up Your Diet

Diet is arguably the biggest hurdle most people face in regard to their health and well-being. Nobody wants to give up fast food and instant meals in lieu of fresh fruits and veggies; however, are those few moments of pleasure during mealtime really worth a potential heart attack?

There are tons of heart healthy diet plans out there, but as a rule of thumb you should strive to limit or eliminate the following from most meals:

  • Red meat
  • Excessively sugary or salty processed foods
  • Alcohol

Beyond prepping healthy meals in advance, knowing what to avoid can help you make dietary decisions on the go that won’t take a toll on your heart.

Make It a Point to Move

In some way, shape or form you’re going to need to find to exercise. From biking to work to a walk during your lunch break, even the smallest bit of physical activity on a daily basis can result in huge benefits.

Ideally you can find at least thirty minutes a day to get your heartrate up at the gym. You can also knock out your workouts incrementally throughout the day. For example, consider investing in pedometer to get 10,000 steps throughout the day day, even if that means pacing around the office.

Eliminate Stressful Situations from Your Life

Simply put, the more you’re stressed out, the more likely you are to suffer from heart problems.

Client driving you insane? Morning routines and traffic regularly resulting in road rage? You need to make it a point to approach each and every day calmly versus dreading your daily activities. Although doing so may take time, it’s well worth it in the long-run and you avoid putting unnecessary strain on your heart.

Don’t allow heart problems to creep up on you. Make the point to find time in your busy schedule to focus on your heart and know that such a decision will be worthwhile in the long run.

How to get better at photography

Angela Manning Business , , , , ,
How to get better at photography

Of all the skills in which people want to improve, photography often tops the list. Whether they want to make their memories look better or they have a dream to make money from their compositions, interest in improving this skill set is very high.

John Kleinheinz Fort Worth was an avid photographer for a long time, as he used most of the free time he had away from his businesses to sharpen his skills.

Eventually, he was able to make his passion his new full-time career. Whether you want to become a pro photographer or you simply want to make your holiday snaps look better, the tips outlined below will help you move closer to either outcome.

1) Conceptualize the picture in your head before shooting

When it comes to consistently being able to shoot amazing pictures, you just can’t point at what seems to be an interesting subject and simply press the button.

The first step towards shooting amazing pictures lies in being able to know what they will look like after the fact before clicking the shutter.

When you see something that captures your interest, don’t just haul out your camera and start snapping away.

Take a few seconds to consider what you want in the frame and you want to exclude, and you’ll end with cool shots that require little additional cropping in order to make them look good.

2) Obey the rule of thirds

The rule of thirds stipulates that photographic elements look more compelling when they occur along equally proportional vertical and horizontal lines.

For example, instead of centering a picture of a tree in your frame, set up the shot so that this element is placed along the first or second vertical line and the bottom horizontal line.

Many cameras come with a grid overlay, but even if they don’t, imagining one shouldn’t be that tough. Failing that, make use of the grid lines when cropping images in your editing program after putting them on your computer, and you’ll get your images looking their best.

3) Shoot when the light is right

We get it – getting up at the crack of dawn is hard, especially when you are used to getting up at the crack of noon.

However, the harsh light of midday makes it difficult to make your photos pop, as the sun is directly overhead.

It doesn’t help that everybody and their dog is milling about at this hour too. If you need light shining east to west, you’ll have to set your alarm clock for that hour.

Once you have finished taking your set, you can always go back to bed a couple of hours later. Alternatively, you can wait for the hours around sunset, but this only works well for subjects that get lit up by sunlight coming from the west to the east.

Otherwise, you’ll be limited to shooting sunsets like everybody else, as other subjects will just get washed out by the hostile light conditions.

How to Deal with Unfair Dismissal

Angela Manning Business , , , , ,
How to Deal with Unfair Dismissal

Losing your job can be a tough time but it can be even worse if you feel like you’ve been unfairly dismissed. Being on the receiving end of this can be hard and it can be difficult to know what to do about it. There are however, several steps you can follow in order to contest the decision and lodge a complaint against the dismissal. In the beginning, it is always vital that you check that you have grounds for believing the dismissal is unfair and you aren’t acting emotionally out of anger. If in the case that you were let go based on grounds of race, gender, age, religion or appearance you have a valid case to contest. You can also make a strong case for unfair dismissal if it was directly related to trade union, whistle-blowing, health and safety matters or for making sure your rights as an employee were upheld.

Part 1 – Making Your Appeal

Following a dismissal, you need to immediately start by lodging an appeal against the decision with your employer. Depend on the company and company size, they should have a grievance procedure for you to follow. If for example, you’re a member of a trade union, you can seek to your union representative for advice, and ask them to attend any meetings or proceedings that may be organized – if you aren’t part of a union, you don’t always need a representative and you’ll still be entitled to lodge an appeal.

Always guarantee you have a case by collating all forms of evidence whilst getting a clear understanding of the facts regarding your case. It’s crucial that you stay calm and professional through the whole of the proceedings otherwise you will lose your right to appeal.

Please note that in specific cases it can be tricky to lodge an appeal or even open a dialogue with your parted employer, especially if it is a small company or if it ended on bad terms. If you find yourself in this situation, an employment tribunal will expect you to have attempted to resolve the dispute personally before taking legal steps, so it is important to lodge your appeal first to show you’ve tried.

Part 2 – Mediation

If you’re appeal was rejected, unsuccessful or you weren’t even able to make one, you may want to mediation. Mediation – if you aren’t aware – is an informal way of resolving disputes without resorting to official procedures through legal clerks or dispute resolution solicitors. An objective and neutral third party is brought in to facilitate the discussion of the issue of the argument. It is crucial that mediator is a neutral party – you can seek out organizations for this such as the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service who provide advice and mediation services in any employment matter.

Part 3 – Seek Legal Advice

If mediation doesn’t get to the root of the dispute, the next step to take is seeking help from a solicitor. A solicitor will be able to give you best possible advice on the legal steps ahead, and they’ll be able to inform you whether you should take things to a tribunal. A tribunal will give the power to award compensation or even give you the position back (if you want it). It is sometimes best to seek related or local help as they will have better knowledge of the companies that operate in that area and they will be easier to meet to discuss the case. This doesn’t mean however, that you must employ the best employment lawyers Manchester has to offer for example, it just means that it will be much easier to hold discussion between all parties within the same region. A lawyer will also be able to advise you on whether you are able to make a claim against your employer on other grounds – for example, if you were dismissed on grounds of race, age, religion, or gender, you may be able to file an additional claim against them for discrimination.

Overall, the main part of this to remember is that if you’re looking to take your employer to a tribunal you must do within three months of the dismissal taking place so don’t leave things to fester! Whether the case is brought to a close through an appeal or legal proceedings, you have a number of options available to you if you believe you’ve been dismissed unfairly.

7 Top Tips to Excel in the Workplace

Angela Manning Travel , , , , , ,
7 Top Tips to Excel in the Workplace

There are a few things you need to know to excel in today’s modern workplace. The modern workplace is more and more competitive, knowing to know how to work the modern workplace to your advantage will set you up for success.

  1. Get Educated – Holding a bachelors or all masters in business administration will give you an excellent toolkit to succeed in the modern workplace. An education from a business school will give you a solid set of skills which you can use everyday
  2. Improve your soft skills – Improving your confidence and skills with people will massively help you to build relationships and work with your colleagues. Being a likeable person can be a skill that you can learn.
  3. Learn how to sell – no matter what kind of job you are working in, everyday you will need to sell. Whether it’s yourself, a product or a service you will constantly need to show your best to get the best from the workplace. Learn how to make yourself a salesperson constantly able to sell yourself or whatever you need to.
  4. Get organised –  Skills within organisation will help you stay on track and do what you want to do. Plan your say and make objectives for every day, this will help you to stay on track towards achieving your objectives.
  5. Learn discipline – Being able to delay instant gratification is key to being successful with whatever you do. There are many things you can do to build your discipline, one of the best ways to start is to wake up early every morning.
  6. Dress for success – The way you dress has a huge impact on the way people perceive and treat you, dress well within the workplace. If you start dressing for success people will begin to treat you better and success will follow, dress like you are already in the position you want to be in.
  7. Always be on time – being good at timekeeping is a key skill to impress your clients and your employer. Always try to turn up to events always 15 minutes before an appointment. Always trying to turn up early for meetings will mean that even if you are running late you will still be on time.

There are many things you can do to improve your employment prospects and excel within the workplace. Always improving yourself is a massive way to improve yourself, having this compounded with discipline means you can work for long periods amounts of time without