My clients have seen big changes the last couple of weeks, but all for the good thankfully. The “Fred” update was a biggie and it looks like some websites that have massive ads with little quality content got hit hard. I saw one post where their traffic plummeted 95% and they are virtually invisibleRead more
My clients have seen big changes the last couple of weeks, but all for the good thankfully. The “Fred” update was a biggie and it looks like some websites that have massive ads with little quality content got hit hard. I saw one post where their traffic plummeted 95% and they are virtually invisible in search now……it is times like these I am thrilled I only do white-hat work….sometimes I scratch my head and am tempted when I see competitors outrank me with crappy sites with no backlinks…but I have hope their day will come! 🙂
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I keep getting tasks that are above my skill level. How can I address this without coming accross as grossly incompetent?
First, this answer hinges on the fact that you do mention to those who are assigning you tasks that you will have difficulty with them, and that this is accepted. Particularly in a junior role, even if only with a specific technology stack, that really should be accepted; nobody can expect someone wRead more
First, this answer hinges on the fact that you do mention to those who are assigning you tasks that you will have difficulty with them, and that this is accepted. Particularly in a junior role, even if only with a specific technology stack, that really should be accepted; nobody can expect someone who has only worked with a technology stack and a mass of source code for half a year to be as productive as someone who has been doing the same for years.
See lessDealing with an employee that went over my head
Company work hours by default don’t mean everyone has to work them. They only mean company business hours, when someone can come in. Small companies usually have the most flexibility in this regard, so it’s natural for people to assume that flexible hours is a norm for non-customer facing roles. IsRead more
Company work hours by default don’t mean everyone has to work them. They only mean company business hours, when someone can come in. Small companies usually have the most flexibility in this regard, so it’s natural for people to assume that flexible hours is a norm for non-customer facing roles. Is this a helpdesk or sales position? Is it a software developer / network admin / another technical role? Two different treatment plans.
Regarding how to deal with this or similar situation (when employee requests a non-standard accommodation), you need to try your best to accommodate them. Talk to your boss, see what you can do. If you can allow some flex in work start/end time, do so. If after all this you are absolutely sure hours are strict, you must provide a reasonable explanation why this would be the case (unless it’s obvious to everyone, like a bank teller – need to cover a specific shift). In 2017 you cannot just reject them “because I said so”.
See lessHow to approach applying for a job at a company owned by a friend?
Of course it will. But that’s not in and of itself a problem.1 You know this person well enough to consider him a friend so it would be very strange not to give him a heads-up, especially because he’s actually the owner and it’s a small business. Just tell him that you saw the ad and think that youRead more
Of course it will. But that’s not in and of itself a problem.1 You know this person well enough to consider him a friend so it would be very strange not to give him a heads-up, especially because he’s actually the owner and it’s a small business. Just tell him that you saw the ad and think that you could potentially be a good candidate, even if you aren’t a perfect match experience-wise. Just be direct, honest and make it easy for him to say no. There are legitimate reasons not to hire friends, even if there are a few levels between you, your friend might simply prefer not to mix business with personal relationships, or they may as you suspect prefer a more experienced profile.
See lessHow to handle personal stress caused by utterly incompetent and lazy co-workers?
Gotta get some perspective on what matters. If incompetent, lazy and/or stupid people stress you out that much, you’re going to be dead at a very early age, because people who fit that description comprise the vast majority of all societies. Also, realize that “not doing things exactly as I would orRead more
Gotta get some perspective on what matters. If incompetent, lazy and/or stupid people stress you out that much, you’re going to be dead at a very early age, because people who fit that description comprise the vast majority of all societies.
Also, realize that “not doing things exactly as I would or want them to be done, catering to my own timeframes and desire” is not necessarily being lazy or stupid. Do you cater to their wants the same way you want them to cater to yours?
It could very well be that you are simply surrounded by complete losers and idiots. Make sure, if you’re going to stress yourself to an early grave, that it’s really over them being lazy and/or incompetent, and not a case of you having a very self-centered life view.
See lessHow to evaluate whether a career coach is beneficial?
Now lets talk about changing a carreer : what do you want to do? Are there job in this field? If there are job, its is were you live or you will need to relocate? The salary would be good? Don’t forget you will start as an inexperienced person so the salary could be low. Talking about it with the coRead more
Now lets talk about changing a carreer : what do you want to do? Are there job in this field? If there are job, its is were you live or you will need to relocate? The salary would be good? Don’t forget you will start as an inexperienced person so the salary could be low.
Talking about it with the coach is a good idea. Having an other opinion will surely help you. Depending on the country some assiociation exist for this topic and you can contact them for free.
See lessHow do I tell my new employer that I can’t use the computer they gave me?
To expand a bit on my comment on @KateGregory’s answer, the problem you face with using your own computer is “who owns what?”. How is a line drawn between things that you do on that computer for the company vs. for yourself? If you work on other projects off the clock, can the company make any claimRead more
To expand a bit on my comment on @KateGregory’s answer, the problem you face with using your own computer is “who owns what?”. How is a line drawn between things that you do on that computer for the company vs. for yourself? If you work on other projects off the clock, can the company make any claim to those? Does the computer have to comply with all corporate standards & policies, including antivirus, web filtering, remote scanning for unapproved software, etc.? Who owns the software you’re using? Who’s responsible for the licensing?
You are going to have to wait a couple weeks before you can make any kind of pitch to get a usable computer. Otherwise, you come across as the new guy who wants everything “just so”, and that will not earn you any points.
See lessShould I start with Django or JavaScript?
I will disagree with Rishabh on this one, it\'s only when I started with JavaScript did I truly come to appreciate the design decisions that are made in any programming language. JavaScript taught me a whole lot of semantic concepts. Be it the prototypal school of inheritance, or functional programmRead more
I will disagree with Rishabh on this one, it\’s only when I started with JavaScript did I truly come to appreciate the design decisions that are made in any programming language.
See lessJavaScript taught me a whole lot of semantic concepts. Be it the prototypal school of inheritance, or functional programming concepts like closures, functions as first class citizens, higher order functions.
Yes, JavaScript did have a bad reputation a while back, but let bygones be bygones. Investing sometime – emphasis on the fact that you need to invest time in learning the language, the design decisions and especially it\’s good parts will enrich your repertoire.
Today JavaScript is pervasive, node.js in the server, EcmaScript 5.1 in the browser, databases all were powered by this language. So, the investment is well worth the gains.