Happy hour is intended to be jovial and relaxing and has many other benefits like:

• Free drinks and treats: How could anyone pass up a free meal and yummy adult beverages? This is probably the most obvious reason (and financial) to attend your companies Happy Hour.
• Meet New People and Network: This is great chance to branch out and meet other people in your company. Company Happy Hours are popular with most companies so most likely Friday afternoons you will meet people from other companies in different industries. Plus you never know when you could possibly find new business or a new client or know someone who knows someone. So don’t be shy, broaden your horizons and bring lots of business cards.
• Show a different side: Your company is aware of your talents and what you are capable of in the work setting. But being able to mix and mingle within coworkers and other people at the Happy Hour could show your boss that you are able to be personable. Seeing that you are able to keep a fun and personal life and a work life separate could land you the next big account. So smile and start socializing!
• Build and Maintain Relationships: Most likely the work you produce for your company comes from the help of fellow co-workers. You may be part of a team and you rely on them as much as they rely on you. Those who work together and play together will learn to build trust.
• Fun Stress Relief: It is perfectly acceptable to have a cocktail or two with co-workers and have fun. You spend your whole week trying to meet a deadline and it’s enjoyable to celebrate. It’s good to socialize and it’s a bonding experience for the company to know that you all can work and play nice together.

A few tips to keep in mind to make sure it is a true ‘Happy’ hour. Be sure to eat, empty stomach does not mix well with alcohol. Don’t overdo it; set yourself a drink limit to prevent possible negative occurrences. And remember what your mother told you, ‘If you have nothing nice to say, then don’t say anything at all.’

Be safe and happy socializing!

Author Bio

This Guest post is by Christine Kane from internet service providers, she is a graduate of Communication and Journalism. She enjoys writing about a wide-variety of subjects for different blogs. She can be reached via email at: Christi.Kane00 @ gmail.com.

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Employee vs. Employer

1. Employee Negativity
   Negativity in employees is something that is almost unavoidable because everyone has bad days and everyone can find something to complain about. The problem with having negative employees is that when they gossip with other employees it can be infectious. When one person laments their unhappiness to a coworker it can make the coworker realize that they, too, are unhappy with a situation, and then each person’s negativity builds and grows off the other.
2. Employer Negativity
   One of the worst situations a workplace can have is having a boss that brings in an undesirable attitude. Their workplace negativity is almost more damaging than just the employees having a bad attitude because it breeds employee negativity, creating a hostile and destructive environment. It’s also harder to deal with confronting someone’s poor attitude when it’s the boss because many employees are uncomfortable approaching their employer about adverse matters.

Tips for Dealing with Employee Negativity

1. Discern if it’s a one day thing or a more permanent situation
   Everyone will have a bad day every now and then and will want to complain about it. That’s normal and even healthy. However if someone comes in every single day unhappy and complaining that’s what leads to decreased productivity because it will start to influence other people. At that point the situation needs to be assessed and potential solutions need to be explored.
2. Talk it out
   Being able to give constructive criticism is important to maintaining a well-balanced workplace, so whether you’re the employee or the employer you should be able to talk open and honestly about how someone’s actions are affecting the work environment.
3. Figure out if the negativity is valid
   If someone is continually negative you need to evaluate if their feelings are justified or not. Are there double standards in the office place that are causing disgruntled employees? Are the employees not being productive enough which is in turn making the boss unhappy? There’s a huge difference between if someone is just breeding negativity and if someone has valid points in their negative reactions.

Workplace negativity is unavoidable to some degree. It’s how you deal with it that determines if the company moves forward in a productive way or if the negativity infiltrates the company. Since workplace negativity leads to decreased productivity through low morale and even work attendance, it’s an issue that needs to be dealt with quickly and decisively, otherwise it can be poisonous.

Author Bio
Melanie Slaugh is enthusiastic about the growing prospects and opportunities of various industries and writing articles on various consumer goods and services as a freelance writer. She writes extensively for internet service providers and also topics related to internet service providers in my area for presenting the consumers, the information they need to choose the right Internet package for them. She can be reached at slaugh.slaugh907 @ gmail.com.

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There are so many changes and improvements in version 6.0 but I will only mention some major ones:

• the server part is now using Apache, php and MySQL – instead of IIS, .NET and XML (as the previous version). This makes the installation process easier and faster (and we will not stop here, as we plan to add a Linux version for the server as well soon).
• the client application has been replaced with a new one that is able to store all the logs locally if there is no connection with the server (disregarding the number of days that the connection is not possible). It is still a light weight application that runs smoothly on all Windows versions (starting with Windows 2000 till Windows 7 or 2008 Server).
• all the existing features from the old versions are included in version 6.0 and furthermore, some new features have been added:
  • Relevant is the changes in the productivity report, where you can define which web site, document or chat conversation are productive.
  • Activity Categories added, which allows you to create your own custom category where you can then include different actions.
  • Software Inventory report added, which lists all the installed software on the employee’s computer.
  • Improved reports by email section allows you to select which report from the Statistics section to receive by email.
  • Alerts option improved and allows the administrator to create a set of local working rules.
  • More dynamic user interface build with a flexible php template and incorporates sharp high quality flash charts.
  • and many more … (check our change log)

Like I already said, these are only a few of the changes so, I will let you discover the new version by yourself by following the online demo and by installing the FREE trial, which is fully featured and allows you to monitor up to 30 users for 15 days. Don’t forget to give us your feedback. Enjoy.

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• 1. Enrich our personal experience – learn more things. Stepping out from the comfort zone will bring us into the learning zone. This means that we will learn how to deal with new experiences, how to act in new situations and what we must do.
• 2. Extend the comfort zone. Once we experience new situations we learn how to manage them and next time when we will be in the same situation we will already know what has to be done. This means that the comfort zone has been extended.



• 3. Break the routine. Facing new situations and tasks every day will break the routine and the chances to be bored while doing specific activities will be significantly decreased.
• 4. New challenges every day. Taking new challenges every day, provided us stimulating setting in which to work and grow. Also they help us to fit in a position that benefit from our strengths and enhance our skills.
• 5. Enhanced level of concentration and focus. Our routine makes us handle things mechanically, while dealing with a new situation needs more attention and an increased level of attention and focus.

Extending our comfort zone is one of the best things we can do ourselves for our personal improvement. On long term this will have a good influence both on our professional but also on our personal live.

If you have other good reasons why extending our comfort zone is a must, please share them with us in the comments section below.

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As this is a major version it is normal that the changes are major too: both in terms of design, functionality and performance. I won’t tell you too much, I will just show you a screenshot so you can see how Cyclope 6.0 looks like.

Keep you updated with the progresses we make.

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Back to the office where all my plans are shaped, the atmosphere is also re-energized. There is no need to change furniture or to take new technology to feel fresh.

1. The first thing you need is spring cleaning. Throw everything you don’t need, organize all the paper and even the information on your computer. (I know your desktop is full with useless icons )
2. Change your desk location. Move your desk closer to window if possible, or maybe closer to the door. In fact it doesn’t matter as long as you will feel comfortable in the new location.
3. Get a new plant for you office. You will always find a place for a small plant or flower. This will bring spring directly into your mind.
4. Decorate walls with maps, new pictures, a nice calendar or anything else you think could fit your personality and season.
5. It’s not enough to bring only the view of spring into your office but also the smell. Bring the fresh smell of spring using porcelain teapots with potpourri or flowers for a creative spring look.

Now, when everything has been arranged to welcome spring, you can sit back on your chair, enjoy a tea while you prepare the step by step plan for your objectives. Because the most important this spring is to grow your ideas

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It seems that from a general point of view:

• - 67% are confident that 2011 will be a better year while
• - 33% think that 2011 will be worse than 2010.

Even if more than half are expecting a better year, only 25% believe that there won’t be people dismissed from the company they work. 50% are expecting people to be dismissed and the remaining 25% don’t know what is going to happen.

Another important aspect is related to salary increase. Only 50% of employees are expecting a salary increase this year.

Regarding companies’ spending with employers, 42% said that their employers are too money grubber and this increase is most probably not going to happen. There are other 17% of the employees that believe the company cannot afford to increase spending for their benefits.

When employees were asked how they started work in 2011, 75 % said that started work optimistic and 25% were very disappointed that they had to return to work after holiday.

Even if some of our surveyors did not have such a good start in the New Year, I’m sure this will change and in the end, we will all have a great and satisfying year.

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To get an idea regarding expectations for 2011, please take the 2 minutes survey listed below:

Employees’ predictions for 2011

The beginning of the year is a good time to plan new objectives, to strike a better work-life balance and to archive satisfying success. And even if you did not have a great New Year start, you  can change this on your way and all negative and pessimist feelings will become new opportunities and high aspirations.

If you did not take the survey, you can also share your feedback and predictions for 2011 in the comments section below.

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These being said, I wish you and your loved ones Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

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Office is where we spend most of our day. And I particularly love welcoming Christmas in a warm and cozy atmosphere specific to this season.

As an employer you can consider Christmas as a great opportunity to motivate your employees and to prepare them for the New Year coming. There are few things every company should consider during winter season and I will list the ones I consider the most important below:

1. Decorate employees’ offices. Some Christmas decorations for windows, some tinsel, and globes will bring the specific atmosphere into the office. If you have the possibility you can get a Christmas tree in a pot and in this way you will be able to use it next year also.
2. Organize a Christmas party. For some employees this might be one of the few moments when they will socialize with employees from other departments. This is a fact we cannot ignore but we can take advantage of this situations to build new relations and make new friends. I am always impatient to take part at the Christmas party.
3. Get  personalized presents. Order some agendas, t-shirt, pens or any other personalized object for your employees. You can also organize Secret Santa. Everyone buy a present for someone but it keeps it secret and no one will know who bought the present for them. The fun part is when everyone starts to make suppositions regarding his/her “Secret Santa”.
4. Award employees. Name the best salesman, the most valuable worker and give them a diploma. It’s cheap and it’s a good motivational source.
5. Improve meetings. Bring something new and specific to season in each meeting you have with employees. You can bring post-its with Christmas templates, red pens, red paper etc and you will definitely arouse admiration among employees.
6. Make lists with “best of” and “worst of” 2010. Ask employers to write (anonymous or not) what did they considered to be the “best of” or the “worst of” 2010 related to their works, colleagues and employers. In this way you will better understand employees’ wishes and you will be able to make things better in 2011.

What about you? If you are an employer, are you preparing something special for your employees? And if you are an employee do you know what is preparing your company this Christmas?

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