Imagine being told that you are not offered job A, then imagine being told that you are not offered job B. Which scenario would make you most unhappy? I sort things out this way sometimes. I hope it makes sense.

I confess that I picked up this way of thinking from an episode of Friends, if anyone thinks this sounds familiar. When Rachel thought she was pregnant, Phoebe told her the pregnancy test was negative, and Rachel was saddened. She thought that she didn't want to be pregnant, but then realized that she did.


Donna

I don't do it enough - does that count?  Inevitably, the one thing I don't write down is the information I need later...

Donna

You have to speak up. It's not easy the first time, but you get used to it. "Bossie, I'm finding it difficult to give this the attention and concentration needed to do a good job on this, and get it done quickly. If you could hold off on bringing these other things to me for ___(time)___, we could sit down and review them together when this is completed."


DonnaP99

It's good that you have more information to work with. I recently also interviewed for another position, and since then have changed my mind about working there, but it was a good experience, to keep my skills up.


DonnaP99

Ah! I didn't know that had a name!

DonnaP99

What is a brought forward system?

DonnaP99

Last week I held my semi-annual two-day board meeting. There was one member who seemingly feel off the face of the earth, as did his assistant, and he didn't show. They didn't return calls or emails left for them. He is the Chief Technology Officer of a major medical technology company.

This morning my boss received the following message (edited a bit for anonymity):

========
H-

I sincerely apologize for not being able to make it to the meeting last week.  JC, my assistant that you may have spoken with to arrange my attendance, was put into the hospital last week with ovarian cancer.  This is quite a blow to me as we have been friends/co-workers for over a dozen years now.  I felt the most important thing I could be doing was spending time with her.  She is doing better now after the first round of chemo.

Please keep me informed regarding future meetings as I look forward to attending them.

Sincerely,

T
========

I am going to send her a get well card, along with a note that she has a fantastic boss!



DonnaP99

Has anyone looked at the article on the US home page? http://us.deskdemon.com/pages/us/career/informationsystem

Am I missing something? There are only FIVE options that my eyes see:

In reply to:

---

There are only 6 things you can do with any piece of information:

Discard—Permanently get rid of it. Ask yourself the tough questions—do you really have the time to read it? What’s the worst that could happen if you discard the item? Can you get another copy if necessary? You must be ruthless in this stage! Studies have shown we only refer to 20% of all the information we insist on saving. Today, the question is not, “Can I throw this away?” but “Why should I keep this?”

Delegate—Refer the item to someone else. Get it going “out the door” to that person right away. We cannot “manage by doing” in the DigitalAge, so give away as much as possible.

Do—If you have the time to complete, review, sign, or reply to the item, do it immediately. Then get it going back out the door to the requester. This step is generally for action items that will only require two to five minutes to complete. Investing the time now will save time in the long run because you won’t review the item over and over again.

Date—For items you can’t work on immediately, determine when you need to see the item again and put in the appropriate dated storage system.

5. Drawer—File items you can’t toss, delegate, and that don’t require any action.

Deter—Halt the information; keep it from getting to you in the first place. Stopping reports, memos, letters, minutes, catalogues, magazines, and junk mail that you don’t need or have time to read.

If you think of these options each

---

OK... I see the problem... What I pasted above did not include the automatic numbering, which is where the sixth seems to have been dropped. The #5 item is mixed in with the #4 item, and #5 should really be #6.

SOOOOO... Can someone please fix the page?

Thanks!

Donna (feeling very long-winded!)

DonnaP99

If I had it, I'd use it! The more that people use it the more well-known it will become, which can only be a good thing!


DonnaP99

I missed it! ARGHHH!

DonnaP99

I agree with Jackie's advice. Please let us know of the resolution. Hugs!


DonnaP99

Ya know, this makes me wonder... are we really lacking in comedies on TV, or is it just a change in tastes? Hmmm...

As for me, anything Star Trek, especially Riker - I mean The Next Generation - and Voyager.

I go out of my way to watch very few things. We don't record anything, or we'd be sitting around watching tapes constantly. I really miss Alias. I also miss Alien Nation (anyone remember that one - had to have been 10 years ago!).

The only thing I really try to catch right now is House. Last TV season it was The 4400. But I'll watch CSI or Law & Order when I get home just about daily because it's on and I'm too unmotivated to do anything around the house.



DonnaP99

Well put, CountriGal.

My children, who were then 15, 14, and 12, will not know the feeling that I and my peers will remember - that US soil was seemingly beyond the reach of harm's way. Now we are suspicious and have "what if-s" running through our minds, as do the companies we work for. Everyone - personally and professionally - has an emergency plan. How many of us now have at least one ICE number programmed into our cell phones? I do!

And I have to say -- my deepest appreciation goes out to the military personnel and their families -- every day!



DonnaP99

You are correct - I could have worded that differently. However, being honest about this position is something I am still inclined to do, as when accepted the position 2.5 years ago (in desparation as I was unemployed), I took a step backward in the level structure here. My manager completely understands this - her hands have been tied. She and I together moved departments in January with yet another set of promises that I would be upgraded. This past month has been full of disappointments in that area - for her as well. My concern is that I will be overlooked for a level 10 or 11 position because I am currently an 8 - when 3 years ago I was a 9.

Suggestions for communicating this in some other way?

DonnaP99

Yesterday I was having another one of those "I can't stand this any more" days - it's getting old having two bosses, and the latest yesterday was that I'm going to be moved to the highest traffic area of the floor. While I'm still grateful for having a job... I took a look at the online job board, and lo and behold, there was a position that looked quite interesting! I had just spoken with someone in that department yesterday as well, and thought maybe I would give her a call.

This morning rolled around and I had not given any more thought to it. Then guess what? This person called me as a follow up to yesterday's phone call, and mentioned that she's wrapping things up as this is her last week. OH REALLY - I thought - jump on the chance. I said "I noticed a job posted yesterday - is that your position?" Well, that led to a great conversation, followed by my sending her my (already updated and ready to go!) resume. She loves the job, but has earned her Master's in HR, and is moving within the university to an HR position.

What worries me is the unimpressive-ness of the positions I have held in the last 2.5 years. So this is the email I sent with the resume - does it sound OK?

===========
Dear XXX,

Attached is my resume for position # XXX. Thank you for taking the time to chat with me this morning. I have been looking for a position as described in the XXX post. They don't come up often.

Since early 2004 I have held positions which have been shared between two or more units. None of these positions have fully utilized the skills I have, and despite discussions since my hire, none of the plans to expand this position have come to fruition. If I may direct your attention to the duties I held at the Department of XXX for eight years, this more accurately describes my abilities and skills.

I look forward to hearing from you!

Regards,

Donna
===========

It all feels really good... Please keep your fingers crossed for me!


DonnaP99