Wednesday, May 31, 2017

The Beyond-the-GRE Word Quiz, plus the 327 words on my to-learn list.

My PsychologyToday.com article today is the third in a four-part series aimed at helping professionals take their vocabulary to the highest level you’ll need in the real world.
 
I present 21 words in a sentence.  Your job is to decide whether it’s being used correctly. Simply decide; true or false.

After I provide the answers, I've appended the definitions of the 327 words I identified in doing the research for this series. They are the words I had heard of or read but didn’t know their meaning. There are worse uses of your time than to learn ten a night, perhaps just an activity to do during the commercials on TV.

Tuesday, May 30, 2017

The Meaning Behind the Meaning: A short-short story about lexical love

This is the second in a three-part series. It's for professionals who'd like to improve their vocabulary. The words are particularly helpful to people in the helping professions. This installment uses the short-short story format to avoid the how-to article’s aridity.

This installment uses the short-short story format to avoid the how-to article’s aridity.

Will Humans Be Necessary: Abridged and updated version

A while back, I wrote a long article, Will Humans Be Necessary?

As my PsychologyToday.com article today, I offer a column-length and updated version.

Sunday, May 28, 2017

Should You Change Careers or Merely Pivot?

As my PsychologyToday.com article today, I've posted an edited transcript of my exchange with a caller to my radio program today. It offers thoughts for anyone thinking they want to dramatically change their life.


Inducing the Swoon: How an average person can land an above-average job.

In a rational world, the average person wouldn’t get hired for an above-average job. After all, the internet enables the employer to expose an opening to millions of job seekers, get dozens if not hundreds of applicants, and applicant tracking software and job-simulation testing enable employers to select the best candidate. That’s rarely an average person.

Yet average people get hired every day. How? Because the employer doesn’t care enough to do a thorough search or has irrationally become fond enough of a person to forgo a more rational hiring process.

My PsychologyToday.com article today shares tips for how to induce the swoon.

Saturday, May 27, 2017

The Making of a Mass School Shooter: A short-short story

Why do most of the mass school shooters seem cut from a similar mold? In my PsychologyToday.com article today, I forward one hypothesis.

Thursday, May 25, 2017

Answering Job Ads: An underrated tool if done right.

Job seekers are told to emphasize networking over answering ads. But done right, answering ads can often pay off. My PsychologyToday.com article today explains why and how.

Wednesday, May 24, 2017

Tuesday, May 23, 2017

46 Uncommon But Useful Words

As my PsychologyToday.com contribution today, I define 46 uncommon but useful words.

Monday, May 22, 2017

About to Get Fired

As my PsychologyToday.com contribution today, I offer an edited transcript of the exchange between me and a caller to my radio program who is about to get fired.

The Retirement Party: A short short story

My PsychologyToday.com contribution today is a short-short story that explores what goes through Charlie's mind at his retirement party. It addresses the tension between authenticity and being socially correct.

Sunday, May 21, 2017

The Bar-Mitzvah: A short-short story about being judgmental.

As my PsychologyToday.com contribution today, I offer a short-short story that tells the thoughts of a person attending a bar-mitzvah. Does he deserve opprobrium as "judgmental" or praise for his discernment?

Saturday, May 20, 2017

"Do You Take This..." A short-short story about the decision to marry

Here's a short-short story that tells what's going through a couple's mind as the officiant asks them to take the marriage vows.  That's my PsychologyToday.com contribution today.

Thursday, May 18, 2017

"Are You Going Crazy?" A short-short story about middle-class stress

As my PsychologyToday.com contribution today, I offer a short-short story about middle-class stress. 
 
Note: This photo is merely of someone staring. He bears no relation to the story's protagonist.

Managing People

Today, a career counseling client told me he’d like to move from being an individual contributor to a manager of people. 

But while he's in-step with current management beliefs—be collaborative and a good listener---he fears he’s too nice and that smart, strong supervisees could steamroll him. 

He doesn’t want to spend the time and money on an MBA or other extensive management training. So he asked me if I could offer some streamlined advice. I share what I said in my PsychologyToday.com article today.

Tuesday, May 16, 2017

Straight Talk for Employees 50+

Much advice to older employees is Pollyannish. In my PsychologyToday.com article today, I attempt to offer more helpful advice.

Sunday, May 14, 2017

Doubt: 19 Questions with answers less certain than many people believe.

Today, we seem ever more polarized. Of course, the U.S. presidential election brought this into full relief but apart from that.

Excessive zeal leads to excessive closed-mindedness, intolerance, and enmity.  
In a small (if lengthy) attempt to engender moderation, my PsychologyToday.com article today lists some of the day’s more contentious positions and reasons why moderate positions and certainly respect for differing opinions is justified.

Thursday, May 11, 2017

12 Questions We Should Ask

Asking the right questions can get you information you want. That can also make the person feel important or cared about.

My PsychologyToday.com article today lists a dozen questions that can be particularly potent.

This article is part of a series. The others are:
10 Expressions Everyone Should Stop Saying Now.
13 Things Everyone Should Stop Doing.
13 Things Many People Don’t Do but Should.
11 Questions Everyone Should Ask Themselves



Come See My One-Man Show, Odd Man Out

I'm doing my one-man-show, Odd Man Out this Saturday afternoon.

It's a bit of a misnomer to call it a one-man show because my wife  Barbara Nemko pops up periodically to annoy me. Plus, awesome singer Jeffrie Givens and I tell her amazing story in words and song. The word "amazing" is overused but not in Jeffrie's case.

The show has been reviewed twice, in the Berkeley Daily Planet and in the Napa Valley Register. 

The performance is this Saturday, May 13, at 1:00 PM at the Octopus Literary Salon: 2101 Webster St., Oakland, CA. $10. For more info and tix, click HERE.




Saturday, May 6, 2017

Dual-Income Couples: Challenges and Solutions

I describe some challenges and solutions for dual-income couples in my PsychologyToday.com article today.

Fired: A true story about a comeback

Movies, TV shows, and magazines tell of people whose lives were a zero and now at a 10. Far more realistic is the true story I tell in my PsychologyToday.com article today.

Thursday, May 4, 2017

The Case for a Career as a Songwriter

As a thought experiment, I decided to try to make a case for pursuing one of the careers least likely to generate even a survival living: songwriter. I post that as my PsychologyToday.com article today.

Tuesday, May 2, 2017

Developing Drive: Building motivation depends on why it's low.

Developing drive is among my clients' most central problems. In my PsychologyToday.com article today, I offer three prescriptions for addressing the problem .

Seed: A short-short story

We can be motivated by the thought we're planting seeds. I tell a short-short story about that as my PsychologyToday.com contribution today.
 

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