The Pomodoro Technique founder has tips for meetings

The Pomodoro Technique founder has tips for meetingsThe Pomodoro Technique founder has tips for meetingsThe Pomodoro Technique was a game changer when it came into our world in the 1980s thanks to Francesco Cirillo. In order to be fully productive, he insisted that you needed to break the day up into 25-minute intervals (also known as pomodoros, which is Italian for tomato.) Once you do about four of those, you get a 15-20 minute break to clear your mind, which is also part of the process. You can also take five-minute short breaks after each Pomodoro.And now, he has taken the Pomodoro one step farther with his book The Pomodoro Technique which includes several new chapters specifically focused on teams and collaboration. Ladders spoke with Cirillo on why he focused on how people work together.In the digital era, teams are increasingly subject to time pressure mora interruptions, mora change, more uncertainty. Meeting your own objectives, even simple ones sometimes, always gets harde r or impossible if the team doesnt use a time management strategy, he said. The Pomodoro Technique can help teams be effective in unterstellung circumstances. This is the reason why I have dedicated various chapters in my new book to how to apply the Pomodoro Technique in a team.To apply the Pomodoro to a team, this is the process in four simple steps1. Write on a board the list of activities to complete in order to reach the days goals.2. Each team member chooses the activities they intend to complete, working on their own or often with one or more people in the Pomodoro Technique these people are referred to as a micro team.3. Each micro team writes out on index cards the activities they intend to complete next. They set their Pomodoro and work on the activities without interruption, taking (shortand long) breaks when the Pomodoro rings.4. At the end of the day, team members get together for one Pomodoro no longer and report on a spreadsheet what tasks were carried out and the number of completed Pomodoros that were required to do so. They then review the status of theset goals.Cirillo conducted his research by recording completed activities for each member of a team and observing its effect on the teams productivity. But this time, it wasnt me collating and analyzing the data. Each member of the team including the team leader and manager - recorded their own activities and worked on finding out how to improve the process within the team.What to do during the breaksCirillo says teams should get up and stretch the legs drink a glass of water swap ideas about what to do at the weekend. Simple, non-work-related activities that dont require significant mental effort. This schriftart of activity enables the brain to reorganize the information and be in top form when starting the next Pomodoro.He also stresses that teams should not cheat during breaks. I recall one of the first teams I worked with as a mentor. When the Pomodoro rang, one team member relaxed b ack in their seat, drank a glass of water and face brightening, they started to talk about the same activity we had been working on but in an informal way this time.How to make meetings less awfulOne thing that comes to mind when you talk about teams and collaboration is meetings, especially horribly unproductive ones. Meetings become tedious because they are long and exhausting. After hours of work, you often dont even reach the point of making any decisions. For me, the secret of an efficient meeting lies in distinguishing three activities acquiring information, forming an opinion and making a decision. The meeting is the time to share informed opinions and make decisions. It is not the time to acquire information and form an opinion.Send an agenda in advance with the decisions that need to be taken and a short document with the relevant information for making that decision. The document should be short enough to be read and understood in one Pomodoro (25 minutes). This will enabl e participants to have time to form their own opinions and go into the meeting prepared.Following these suggestions, you can set the duration of your meetings to one or a maximum of two Pomodoros. Without extensions.Inverting our dependency on timeOur dependency on time often stems from the fact that we are afraid of time passing. We turn around and see a dinosaur running towards us. What do we do? We are afraid and start to run. We turn around again and the dinosaur is even closer. We speed up. Stressed out, we speed up and work even more we make errors and fail to reach our goals.Time can help us reach our goals if we are its friend and we know how it can help us. We can use time to monitor how we are working and improve our processes. We can use time to help our brains organize information, which helps us to find and capture the solutions to complex decisions. Awareness is the key. This is how the Pomodoro Technique helps us to gradually invert our dependency on time.

Everything You Should Know About Getting a Job Overseas

Everything You Should Know About Getting a Job OverseasEverything You Should Know About Getting a Job OverseasEverything You Should Know About Getting a Job OverseasCourtesy of Slava Bowman from unsplash.comGetting a job overseas can open new doors of opportunity for you. Whether you are planning to apply for an available overseas employment or assigned as an expatriate, overseas work can become a wonderful and fulfilling experience. There will be challenges to overcome particularly in language and communication. But overall, it will be an adventure as you will find yourself immersed in the traditions and practices of a new culture.People want to work overseas for a variety of reasons. If there is job scarcity, people will look for employment elsewhere. The Philippines main export is manpower. The unemployment rate is high at 6.1%, so many Filipinos work abroad in order to support their families back home.For some, they want to raise their families in a mora progressive country. Aust ralia averages over 100,000 migrants a year. They comprise skilled labor and represent people who want to experience Australias way of life and higher standard of education.Then there are the expatriates who are assigned by their company to manage the overseas operation of its offshore unit.If you are planning on getting a job overseas, there are a number of things that you need to know1. What is Your Purpose for Getting a Job Overseas?If you have a family, you may be separated from them for at least 2 years.Many companies do not allow overseas workers to go home even for special holidays like Christmas and New Year. The loneliness will bear down on you even if you are earning comparatively higher income.If you dont have a family, you may be on your own for the first few months. Adjusting to a new culture and the process of unlearning old behaviors and learning new ones will be difficult.You have to uncover your deeper motivations for getting a job overseas so you can commit to the process.2. Do you Have Enough Funds?Applying for overseas work can be expensive. You may have to renew your passport and if your intended destination requires it, you will have to apply for a visa.If you are planning to work in Australia, you may have to hire a Migration Agent to guide you through the process. Australia has one of the strictest Migration Laws in the world. It will be difficult to have your working papers approved without a Migration Agent.There are some employees who will not cover your cost-of-living expenses other than transportation. If your home country requires you to remit a percentage of your income a month to your beneficiaries, you may need some cash to keep you afloat for the first few months.There may also be other fees that you need to cover such as pre-employment medical exam, pre-departure orientation and processing expenses.3. What Particular Job Will You Be Looking For?There will always be demand for skilled labor overseas. If you want to know which jobs are in high demand, you can contact the local embassy or do a quick erreichbar search. If you want to find a job fast, its best to apply verbunden and do your research well.Review the list of jobs that are high in demand and check if any of these skills fall under your competencies. Assess your qualification versus the stated skill requirement for the job. Then try to find out what the salary is or the average wage rate for the position.Use these figures to determine if the decision to work overseas will be worth it by conducting a simple Income Statement. List down all the expenses you have in the month including overseas remittances then deduct it from your gross income. You should also deduct the appropriate taxes.If your After-Tax Income is not enticing enough, look for another skill and run the same qualifying process.4. Do You Have a Destination In Mind?Another way is to determine your ideal destination and research on available employment opportunities and requirements.S ome people look to work in countries where they have relatives so they can save up on board, lodging and have a support system. Then there are those who look for work in countries where they have a contact inside a company.Each host country will have its own set of employment processes and procedures that you should know about.In any case, make sure you can be conversant in the primary language of the country. If you want to work in Russia or Germany, you should take a few years to become proficient in their language. And of course, learn all you can about its culture and traditions.For international work, you should at least be certified as Level 8. This means you can read, write and converse fluently in a foreign language.5. Where Will You Find a Potential Employer?There are many potential sources of overseas employmentOverseas Employment Agencies. Check with the authorized government agency for its list of accredited overseas employment or staffing agencies.You can check their we bsite for job openings or visit their office for a walk-in application. These agencies can get quite busy during the day interviewing, screening and processing applicants. But with a little luck and patience, you could be interviewed and tested after submitting your application.Always bring at least 2 government IDs including your passport, 2 ID pictures, your birth certificate or marriage certificate, updated Curriculum Vita, scholastic transcript of records and copy of your diploma.Online Sources. There are also websites that can match you with companies looking for overseas workers. One of the best is Monster.After you create an online profile, Monster will look for the right fit employer to match your skills and requirement. It will send you an e-mail notification on clients with interest and those who plan to actively pursue you.Direct Application. You could also make a list of companies you want to work for then log on to their website and fill out an online application.If the y are interested in your application, they will set you up for an online interview and preliminary testing before proceeding any further.Companies are more open to the idea of hiring overseas workers to reduce costs while capitalizing on available talent.Referrals. One of the best ways is to go through your network of contacts and see which ones can be a powerful referrer.Write to the person and invite him or her for a quick online chat and see if he or she is willing to refer you to the company. If your contact is an expatriate in your country, invite him or her and sound out ideas.A referrer can connect you directly with the decision makers in the company.Rough It Up. If you are an adventurer, you can pack up your bags, fly to your country of destination and see if you can land a job there. Some people fly as tourists first and test the job market. If they can get a solid offer, the prospective employer can help them land a work visa.If you plan to rough it up, make sure you have enough money to tide you over for at least 6 to 9 months.6. Do you need to submit a CV or a resume?Before choosing between resume or CV writing when applying for a job abroad, read the following information.CV is the short form of Curricullum Vitae which means Course of life. A resume is a shorter version of a CV that includes more information about the things recruiters want to see. Usually, recruiters prefer to receive resumes, because CVs tend to contain informations about the applicant that they are not interested in knowing. Resumes are much shorter (one or two pages long) and they are more focused on the work history and duties.Most recruiters dont have time to read a long CV, and thats why they pay more attention to resumes.7. Do you need a cover letter?A cover letter is often referred as a letter of introduction to the potential employer. Its the first document that establishes a relationship between the two parties. Most of the time, if you are applying for a job online, th eres no need to submit a cover letter. For example, if you want to aply for a job using your LinkedIn profile, you should pay more attention to customizing your online resume, rather than creating a cover letter.If the employer specifically mentions what they want to receive in the job application (resume, references, etc), you dont need one.Nonetheless, in some cases, a good and well written cover letter can make the difference for your application. A cover letter allows you to tell the prospective employer why you are the right candidate for the job.ConclusionGetting a job overseas can be a start of a beautiful and rewarding life for you. As with all new endeavors, make sure you can stay committed to your plan to work overseas and have no regrets with your decision. Once you are on-board, there should be no looking back.Guest Author BioFelix TarcomnicuFelix is a virtual assistant at OutsourceWorkers.com.au. He often blogs about careers and businesses.cv editing will help you to fi nd job overseas.

3 Common Mistakes People Make During Their Job Search

3 Common Mistakes People Make During Their Job Search3 Common Mistakes People Make During Their Job SearchYou really want a new job- but you need to be smart about how you go about trying to get one. Job searches can be very stressful, so its best to slow down, take a deep breath, and be sure to avoid making any of these common mistakes.Here are three common mistakes job seekers often make1. Sending the same cover letter and/or resume to multiple employers.It may save time to use a boilerplate approach to your job applications, but hiring managers and recruiters will know the difference. Instead, its important to customize each cover letter and resume you send to address the specific requirements of each position. To do this, you must familiarize yourself thoroughly with both the company and job that you want. Review the job listing in detail, and craft an original cover letter that speaks to how you can help the employer meet the companys needs based on your work experience and skil l set.While you can likely keep key sections of your resume intact without changing them with each application (such as the education section and descriptions of some of your older positions), you may want to modify the points you emphasize in your current position to best reflect accomplishments that are relevant for the new job. Youll also want to adjust the summary or objective statement at the top of your resume to match the type of position to which youre applying.2. Failing to clean up social media.Your digital footprint is more important than you might realize. How you represent yourself online can make or break your job search.Research shows thatemployers now use social media sites to vetpotential candidates. Whats more, the information they find can, in some cases, cause them to toss your application into the no pile.With this in mind, its critical to thoroughly vet all of your social media profiles- whether on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, or other sites- to be sure that yo ure presenting an image of a professional part who youd want to hire.3. Having bad timing.A big part of conducting a successful job search is understanding the right timing for each step of the process. The negotiation stage is commonly misunderstood, and many candidates make the mistake of asking the wrong questions at the wrong time. Its almost always best to wait until youve been offered a job to ask questions about salary and benefits.For example, if youre hoping to work some days from home, you dont want to ask about this in the first interview. It can make you appear to be more interested in personal perks than in helping the employer meet their goals.Making faux pas in your job search tactics could jeopardize your career potential. By being savvy about your search strategy and aware of what turns recruiters and hiring managers off, you can increase your chances of landing that dream position.Wantto put your best foot forward during your job search? Check out our job search ti ps category.