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Better Employees Avoid these Top Five Office Blunders Being a good employee can go a long way when it comes to the workplace and job advancement. When you are working in an office there are certain unspoken rules that you will want to follow. One of the biggest mistakes that one can make when they are working in an office is having romantic relationships with co-workers or their boss. This completely colors the work situation and can cause major problems in the workplace. Although office romances are common, they typically bring about some friction between the couple or the couple and others. The remedy for office romance issues is that usually one or both members of the romance leave the job. Being dishonest is an office blunder that can land you in the unemployment office. Stealing from your job, lying about reports being done and trying to cause conflict by lying to one co-worker about another are all very silly mistakes that employees make. It is not acceptable to borrow money from the float, even if you are intending to pay it back. Pretending like you have completed your work when it is only half done is not wise. Gossiping and stirring up rumors is also not a good idea. All of these things can make you the bosses’ number one most wanted to fire employee. Not following the dress code is another easy to remedy problem that many employees make. The reason why this is such a big deal is because it says that you do not care about your position enough to wear the right clothing. It also can land your boss in hot water if the director or head supervisor comes into the department. Not only will you be reprimanded for not having on proper uniform, your boss will be singled out for not making you comply with uniform standards. The too can make you very unpopular with the boss. Saying incredibly inappropriate things is also a blunder that can easily be avoided. Jokes and comments about the way that people look in their clothing can border on the line of harassment. In fact, just about anything can be proven to be harassment by a good lawyer. That is why it is best to keep jokes and opinions about others to you and you only. You could lose your job and find yourself in a lawsuit otherwise. The number one blunder than employees make on the job is having a bad attitude. People that are very negative bring down a crowd, not just themselves. That means that when the time comes to make cuts, the bad attitude person is the likely candidate. Removing a negative person from the workplace can bring up the morale of everyone else. Even very effective employees with bad attitude are often terminated simply because they bring down the mood and productivity of others. Be thankful that you have a job and keep a positive frame of mind. If you are not happy with your job, search for another one. In addition to these five blunders that better employees avoid, there are a few obvious ones. Being tardy is perhaps one of the most prevalent and easy to prevent blunders employees make. Being tardy on a regular basis is not acceptable. There is no reason to continuously be tardy for work. If you are getting stuck in traffic, leave earlier or take a different route. Being a good employee can take you a long way at work and in your personal life. It feels good to know that you are an effective person be it at work or elsewhere. Be kind to co-workers and go through your days with a positive mindset. With these tools in place you will be able to avoid blunders more effectively.

Networking Ideas to Land a Job You Want Finding a new job is always a chore, especially if you are looking for your ideal job. While all jobs have pros and cons, finding employment that you enjoy or feel strongly about can greatly improve your job satisfaction. There are many ways to network and find the job you want. One of the biggest ways to make connections is to volunteer or find an internship. If you have not been able to land a permanent position in the career of your choice, apply for internships or offer your services for free. This is an ideal way to get your foot in the door and since the employer will already be familiar with you, it increases your chances of being hired when an opening arises. Meet people in the field you want to be in. If there are conferences or organizations that members who work in your desired field join, see about getting a membership or attending. Networking within your field of choice can build connections that blossom in the future. Take a lesser position at the company you want to work at. If you want to be a manager but are offered a customer service position, take the customer service position. Management roles are less stressful when you know what the company expects from you. Watch and learn the ins and outs of being a manager at that particular company. After you have some experience under your belt, apply for the next opening. Ask around. Most job openings are not posted anywhere. Finding openings is typically more about inquiring than finding posting. If you are eager to be a part of a company, e-mail your resume to the Human Resources department and see what type of hits you get. Stop by local companies and inquire in person and leave a copy of your resume if there are openings. Most employers are using the Internet to find new employees. Even if the position they are hiring for is not posted online, searching through posted portfolios is commonplace. The best way to get noticed is to have a concise portfolio that goes into detail about past work experience and your future career goals. Before you make it to an interview, the employer should already have a good idea about whom you are. Having a web presence is essential to job-hunting these days. Many employers are using e-mail and electronic submissions to screen employees. With that in mind, you need to be Internet savvy. Brush up on Internet skills, learning the tricks and trades of using the web as a way to seek out the best jobs. Purchase a domain and post your portfolio there. Be sure to show versatility, accomplishment and organization in your portfolio. Also if you choose to use social or networking sites represent yourself in a positive light. Be sure to keep your portfolio updated even when you are not actively looking for work. An interested employer could choose to contact you based on your updated portfolio. Be open to relocating. Search through Internet job postings for other states. Leaving your hometown might be difficult but the job of your dreams may be out there somewhere. Pack up and move to a more economically viable area and mingle with the populous. Make your employment intentions known without seeming desperate for a job. No matter what type of job you have been dreaming of, there are numerous ways to get that position. The key to pinning down, and getting the job you desire is to never give up. If you have been on the job hunt for two years without any success, do not give up.

Copyright Infringement Play It Safe: Making Sure You're Not Committing Copyright Infringement Copyright infringement is not an easy thing to explain. While it may seem as simple as not using someone else’s work, it’s not that easy. Thanks to the Electronic Frontier Foundation, and many other organizations, we have the ability to use others’ works – as long as we use it under ‘fair use’ laws. So what does fair use have to do with copyright infringement, and how can you utilize it? Fair use laws are the conditions in which you can use a copyrighted work without having to pay someone royalties. This includes when you use a copyrighted work for educational or instructional uses, criticism of the work, commentaries on the work, news reporting about the work, teaching on the work (including multiple copies for classroom use), scholarship uses, and research. This is talked about fully in Section 107 of the Copyright Code (commonly called Fair Use) and is available for you to read at your local library. Copyright Infringement in day-to-day life Sometimes, if you’re writing a paper for work or school, or if you are creating a Power Point presentation, you need to use someone’s work that is already in copyright. So how do you use it without committing copyright infringement? All you have to do is ask – the worst they can say is no, right? But, if they do say no, there are several items in the public domain which may help you to finish your project without having to commit copyright infringement. What is the public domain, and how does it relate to copyright infringement? Material that is not copyrighted is considered in the public domain – you cannot commit copyright infringement on works in the public domain. These works include things that the copyright has expired on, or is not copyright-able – such as government publications, jokes, titles, and ideas. Some creators (writers, musicians, artists, and more) deliberately put their work in the public domain, without ever obtaining copyright, by providing an affiliation with Creative Commons. Creative Commons allows people who create materials to forfeit some, or all, of their copyright rights and place their work either partially or fully in the public domain. So, how do I ensure I’m not committing copyright infringement? First of all, if you’re going to use someone else’s material, you may want to check the public domain to see if something is suitable for use, instead of trying to use someone else’s copyright. However, if you can’t find something suitable (and you can’t create something yourself), the next best thing (and your only legal course of action) is to find a piece that is in copyright, and contacting the copyright holder. When you contact the copyright holder, make sure you tell them what you want to use their piece for – whether it’s for your blog, podcast, or report – and ask them if you can use it. You may have to pay royalties, or an attribution in your piece, or a combination of both. The creator may also place many limitations on when and how you can use their material. Follow all these instructions they give you, and you’ll be free and clear to use their work as you want. Once you have permission to use a copyrighted work, you need to make sure you stay within the agreed-upon boundaries - if you veer outside their agreed terms, you may open yourself up for a copyright infringement lawsuit – which can be nasty, costly, and time consuming. If you’re in doubt, before contacting the copyright holder, contact a copyright lawyer to ensure you’re following the law – and protect yourself!