Mystery Lotion: Repairs 8 Signs of Dry Skin

If you ask me, one of the worst things that can happen to one's skin is DRY SKIN. The skin's moisture is what keeps it looking fresh, young and elastic. I was actually in a perpetual search for the best moisturizing lotion and then this mystery lotion came. No, there weren't trumpets and banners when it arrived...just great skin. Wanna know what it is? I'll keep in touch.


Love your skin too,

Your New PR Girl

No TGIFs Anymore

Is it T.G.I.F. too soon? If you haven’t heard about T.G.I.F., it means “Thank God It’s Friday” and it has been used in the American corporate lingo for a long time in the intention of mocking a boring and seemingly meaningless job. Today, we are lucky that more and more workplaces have dedicated their time in efforts for positive psychology in terms of jobs and profession. Basic human resource management would tell you that the higher the person feels his morale is, the better he will be in doing his job. As I write, more and more offices are being renovated and rebuilt to induce a juicier and a more fun workplace, so work doesn’t feel like work at all. 

Together, we move forward into a society of people who truly love and enjoy what they do and at the end of the day, institutions accomplish their goals and we build a whole new culture of fulfillment.

In the field of Positive Psychology, work may be categorized into three groups: jobs, careers and callings. The first category is the “jobs”. These are the things which we spend a lot of time and effort on but our only motivation towards doing the work is merely salary. There is no passion; everything feels like manual labor. No work, no pay; and no pay, no work.

On the other hand, careers are the kinds of jobs with a mixed reward system: salary + advancement. In careers, there are goals to be met and there is the promise of prestige through dedication. People who dedicate themselves to careers often get promoted and with the same amount of devotion, they will eventually get to the top. 

However, once they are already at the top, they won’t feel the same vigor and challenge anymore and the career will subsequently wither and turn into a (sigh) job.

The last category is the “callings”. As the name implies, it is a calling, a purpose which pulls you towards fulfilling its reason. The rewards are more internal and they provide meaning in our lives. Most callings require special talents or characteristics, like the ones involved in arts and literature. They motivate the individual through sheer being and you, as a worker, will feel like you can do the work without pay, promotion or other forms of compensation. Callings are the dream jobs.

When you find satisfaction in your job, you can easily turn it into a calling by finding the meaning in it and commending yourself for every successful task that you accomplish. Try to see what makes your work special and how you can also motivate other people to do better in what they do, or choose to do what you do. What is inside you, that you can relate to the work, that you consider a gift? You can easily see the difference between jobs and callings. For example, teachers who treat teaching as a job will be moody, inconsiderate and will talk to the students only about lessons and anything school related. But a teacher who considers teaching as a calling will give extra effort when making reports, have a special way to deliver lessons in class, and will treat every student like it’s his or her own child.

If you put some cheer and genuine dedication in the work that you’re doing, you will end up being a more productive worker and not long, you will receive recognition. Everything will look more vibrant when you go to work in the morning and the intrinsic motivation will continue to develop.

So if you’re already in a job that you’re happy about, kudos to you and continue to pour devotion into that job. Not everybody has their dream job under their noses. But then again, it’s always ALWAYS a matter of choice.

SM's Kiddie Search: Little Stars 2011

The ultimate kiddie talent search is back! 

SM City Davao is inviting all kids from ages 4 to 7 years old on July 2, 2PM at the Event Centre to join SM Little Stars 2011. It's their first audition leg for kids all over Davao region.


Over 2.5 million in total prizes to be given away...plus a trip for 2 to Xiamen, China for the top 3 winners. (Secure your passports kids!) The GRAND WINNER will also enjoy scholarship grants. Darn, I wish I was 5 again!


Drag/ threaten/ bribe your kids to join! Now na! :-)

Crazy Promos: 8telcom's Mobile Craze with Smart

No nonsense- 8telcom and Smart brings one crazy sale!

Buy a Nokia X2-01 and get P4950 worth of load* valid for 3 months. It's like getting your phone for free!!!

If you buy 2 Nokia X2-01 phones, you get each at the discounted price of P3,900 (that's more than 25% discount folks!) PLUS you get a free Nokia 1280 phone! AND we thought phones were supposed to be expensive! Hahaha!

This sale is brought to you by the joint craziness of Smart and 8telcom, located at the ground floor of Gaisano Mall of Davao (Atrium). Sale valid for June 24-26 only. Go crazy now! :-)

*Smart load

Regards,

Your New PR Girl

How to Work Less and Earn More

I have a friend who always tells me that she’s not happy with her work anymore. What’s more, she hasn’t been (happy) for several months already. At first, I was surprised by this confession. After all, she’s one of those happy-go-lucky friends I had way back in college. Plus, whenever I look through her things or even at her Facebook profile, she seems happy and well-off. I ask her what’s making her unhappy. She said that despite the hefty paycheck that she receives every fifteen days, her work doesn’t encourage her to grow as an individual and as a career woman, and she has workmates who have serious attitude problems.

I think this is a pretty alarming issue. As I continued getting to know some of my previous classmates’ and colleagues’ lives, I find out that most of them work JUST for the money. What’s worse, around 50% of them are actually underpaid (and mostly women); it’s just that they don’t think they’ll get another acceptable job if they quit their job. Hence, there goes the salary again.

According to a recent global survey spearheaded by Accenture, women think that they can move up the corporate ladder only if they put in more hours for work. On the other hand, more men think that they can do so because of their skill or talent. In developing nations, particularly, career advancement is also heavily dependent on long hours (men and women). The result herein is that most people tend to work harder just so they can get that promotion or at least get noticed by their superiors. The real deal is this—there are actually ways to work less and yet earn more. I’ll share them to you.

First, you have to give your talents and skills the value that they deserve. Think deeply, and think about the things that you can do exceptionally well. Creativity is often one of the most overlooked skills in the office but it can help for better problem solving and winner marketing techniques.

After that, get out a little bit and show that you can do instead of trying to work longer doing the same routine. This way, you’ll get noticed and people will start respecting you more. There is something that experts call a “disruptive skill set”. That skill set refers to a unique skill set that you have and others don’t. Getting this knows will set apart an individual value for what you bring to the table.

Moreover, speak up. There are a lot of people who have the right skills, the right talents and even the right words at the right time…only they were too afraid to speak up. If a project  interests you and you have an idea that may reap good results out of it, tip your superior about it and lobby for it. Of course the best way to do this is to prepare a little presentation or proposal; but really, you may just skip the formality and tell you idea in its rawest, yet workable form.

Lastly, be your best publicist. You know what you are capable of. Remind the world what those things are and be proud of them. There’s a thin line between being boastful and simply being proud of what you were able to do. The smoothest way to self promote is to cross-reference to other skilled individuals who helped you achieve it and to simply keep doing what you’re doing (because people will notice it eventually). Of course, the first step is still to get noticed. So go back to tip # 2: get out a little bit. Also, try to network better by  having colleague lunches instead of eating alone in your desk. This way, you build better professional relationships and these can help you rise up the ladder at any given time. Don’t worry, it’s not sly at all. It’s just…work.

Good luck in your work,


Your New PR Girl

Globe Completes Network Upgrade

Globe Telecom has completed planned upgrades on its network transport backbone which spans Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao. With the upgrade, the ultra-high capacity transmission system is now more resilient, providing subscribers with improved network coverage and better services even during extreme weather disturbances.

The upgrade utilized an automatic switch optical network protection which ensures network systems remain reliable and fully stable, especially in anticipation of the rainy season ahead. To complement the upgrade, Globe also made significant improvements in its disaster recovery plan to prevent network disruptions during natural calamities, as well as to execute faster restoration time when services become severely affected.

Globe expanded its fiber optic coverage in the Mindanao region and implemented added protection for its transmission backbone in Zamboanga. It also completed its network modernization project in South Luzon to improve network capacity and quality for mobile and wireless broadband services.

“These are important pieces in our network enhancement initiatives to further improve on our service. We are also implementing a network modernization program to transform our network into a multi-service platform that is fully-redundant for uninterrupted, seamless and consistent network connectivity.  In line with giving our subscribers a superior experience, our modernization program will allow subscribers to feel the difference in terms of connectivity across our products and services,” said Robert Tan, Chief Technical Adviser of Globe.

Tan added, “This transformation will increase our network capacity, as well as build up network resiliency and availability through architecture enhancements, improved hardware and network intelligence, as we continue to keep up with the increasing demand for voice and data use.”

Apart from upgrades on its transmission systems and installation of protected fiber connectivity in critical areas in the country, Globe has invested and partnered with multiple cable systems for diversity and service resiliency for both international data and voice. To date, Globe utilizes 5 submarine cable systems in the country, allowing worldwide connectivity of telecommunications services such as voice and data. By 2013, the company’s newest submarine cable investment, the Southeast Asia Japan Cable (SJC) System, is expected to go online to further increase network capacity and quality.

            With network quality as top priority for the company, Globe earlier announced that a substantial portion of its 2011 CAPEX amounting to US$500 million will be allocated to build up capacity, as well modernize and optimize network infrastructure. The significant investment will also include the commercial deployment of the country’s first and biggest 4G mobile network by initially utilizing the global standard HSPA+, which provides subscribers with high speed broadband access with the added convenience of full mobility.

The Great L'oreal Total Repair 5 Sale!

It's the GREAT L'OREAL TOTAL REPAIR 5 SALE!

Get the 180ml bottles of L'oreal Total Repair 5 Shampoo and Conditioner for only P99! This is a huge price drop, girls; more than 30% off!!!

When I had straight hair, L'oreal Total Repair 5 was my best shampoo and conditioner loot. It made my hair look fuller, shinier and healthier. I simply couldn't ask for more (than this sale). Aside from the shampoo and conditioner, I also superlove their hair treatment mask. Read my rave review about it here.

Promo runs in all stores nationwide. Until July 2011 only. So stock up, girls!

Beat you to the counter,

Your New PR Girl

Woman, Are You Too Emotional at Work?

When I was working as a front desk, I had a boss I really didn’t get along with very well. She admitted that she really has a short temper and that it is highly likely that she would pour all her frustrations and angst on me because, I was, after all, her executive assistant. Yes, kinda like that alalay with a blazer. And a bachelor's degree.

There were days when she’d start the day scolding me; noticing the littlest things in the office no one goes to except me anyway. It was very difficult because during most days, we would clash, but then I was forced to smile and act cheerful despite how I felt. I was manning the front desk, after all. I quit after a month and a half, and my career has been so much better since.

Now that I’m more than happy with where I am and what I do, I still find myself getting a tad too emotional about work. It made me realize, was I really too emotional about work? Are women too emotional at work?

I read somewhere that there’s something called a Workplace Emotion Evaluation Profile. (Funny, it’s acronym is even WEEP.) The WEEP is a tool to help people take care of their levels of “emotional resiliency”. It asks questions that try to measure your capacity to be emotional at any given time of the day and cross references it to how you deal with work issues and home issues. It also teaches one how to deal with very strong emotions like sympathy, fear, anger or anxiety. For the one who finds herself getting too emotional, she can start by asking herself about the common things that usually gets her very emotional, and how these affect work.

A topnotch career coach and psychologist, Anne Kreamer, advises to keep in mind the acronym DING when dealing with workplace-related emotions. First, “take Deep breaths, Imagine what the other person is feeling, Name those emotions and, Go on”. She says it is important to take that moment to reflect and put yourself in another person’s shoes. Afterwards, learn to move on and move forward since there is so much room for more productivity anyway.

I say that DING is, by far, the best advice that I have read. It has helped me get over the stuff that stress me out. Most of the things that I deal with when it comes to work (events management) are people who are very hard to get along with and things (out of my control) that screw all my  plans up.

If you ask me, maybe the top reasons why women oftentimes get too emotional at work (or be judged as such) is because women are generally more sensitive and we pick up the stimuli that most men don’t. We are more keen to detail and, sadly, we are even the harsher critics of workplace emotion. I admit, when I used to see a female co-worker crying, I see her as weak and I am irritated by the situation because I think she perpetuates the stereotype of women in the workplace tagged as weak. Moreover, women are more pressured for perfection and women are burdened with so many expectations in order to be labeled “successful”. (But don’t let me do all the ranting here. This is not a feminist column after all, hehe.)

Love,

Your New PR Girl

Build the Best Virtual Team

It has been 3 or 4 years since my first internet-based job. I wrote, edited, marketed and made plans for companies, and published and executed them online. I also “met” many amazing co-workers whom I have become very good friends with as time went by; most of them are amazing artists and people from the Marketing and PR world. With the breadth of experience I have working online, it’s still astonishing how many people (especially executives) don’t see that it is really possible to build very strong virtual teams, and how much work can get done online. After all, the top candidates for a company job opening may not live in the same place, right?

With virtual teams, one is really driven to look at the skills of the person and in what s/he brings to the table rather than how “visible” they are. There’s no coffee break, less overhead and you can demand more of the brainwork rather than physical work. Because of this, your team can become more result oriented.

Now, no matter how good virtual teams may sound right now, this arrangement also has drawbacks. For example, many things that I didn’t like about working in virtual teams is having multiple time zones, trust issues and usually, there’s the need to overcommunicate most of the time. I think what every employer should do is to land with the right people and set realistic expectations for them as early as possible.

When hiring for a virtual team, employers must be on the lookout for people who are used to working independently and those who are internet-savvy as well. Schedule webcam interviews and ask about their experience and their internet connection. Try to measure, also, how trustworthy they are as early as you can. (Don’t worry, there’s Skype and there are free conference calls available. For team-based office work, there’s Huddle and Google Documents to track those.)

By the time that you have the right people on board, set specific goals and put it in a file where everyone can see it. If you want, you may even spend one meeting where you explain it to them and when they are free to ask questions. With that, celebrate your little successes (milestones) and always be sensitive of your communication. Maybe you are communicating too often, maybe it’s also very loose that people start developing trust issues about you/ your team. It’s not enough that people deliver, people also need to be “seen” online when needed. If you’re the boss, you must also be the most flexible part of your team.

Those are the little things that matter most to building and maintaining virtual teams. Got more questions about working virtually? You can email me via yournewprgirl@gmail.com. ♥

Lotsalove,

Your New Pr Girl