Career and Kids

October 31st, 2006

Halloween at the office

How much candy did you eat at the office today?  Two pieces for me.  A lady walked around and gave the candy to each of us.  Plus, there was a Halloween clip art type picture attached to my monitor.  A few people wore very Halloween inspired clothes, but I did not notice anybody actually wearing […]

By mike -- 2 comments

October 30th, 2006

Chores prepare your kids for future careers

Are you tired of fighting to get your kids to clean up their bedrooms and mow the lawn?  Does it often seem like it would take less time and be less effort to just do those chores yourself?
STOP.  Do not let your kids weasel out of these tasks.
Chores do more than just make our life […]

By mike -- 5 comments

October 28th, 2006

My new favorite pens that I think might be magic

I prefer using pens over pencils. I also do not like paying much for pens because I loose them pretty frequently. This means that I often use cheap, crappy pens.
My company started buying these uni-ball pens that I am in love with:

I have used the black, red, green, and blue. The black […]

By mike -- 11 comments

October 27th, 2006

Work schedule regularity

Yesterday, I had to watch the kids for a little bit in the morning which caused me to get to work a couple of hours late. Which also made me get home a couple of hours late. When I walked in the door, the family was just finishing dinner and we ran around […]

By mike -- 5 comments

October 25th, 2006

The next best thing to running to work

If I lived within a few miles of work, I would probably try to jog to work a few times a week.  I do not.  We signed up at a local gym a few months back to try and encourage us to stay in shape.  It is around $30 for both of us combined and […]

By mike -- 1 comment

October 24th, 2006

Can your kids read a paycheck?

Kids think that money grows on trees. My kids think that all you have to do is hand someone a debit card and you magically get to take anything you want home. They are three. Most kids don’t learn that money is a real thing until well into college when they start having trouble paying […]

By mike -- 3 comments

October 23rd, 2006

Obey the office dress code

I started a new assignment with a new client last week.  Now that fall is here, I am starting to break out my sweaters again.  They felt really good last week when I was at the heigh of my cold.  On the second day, they joked with me about the dress code requirement that everybody […]

By mike -- 1 comment

October 22nd, 2006

Fund raising in the office

How much of your family life do you bring with you to the office?  Do you share stories about your kids’ accomplishments in school?  Do you tell them when your kids get a cavity?  Do you beg for money from your coworkers so your kids’ band program will not get cancelled?
School fundraisers are everywhere these […]

By mike -- 3 comments

October 20th, 2006

Writing for success at work - extradite

Using big words at work can impress some and tune out others.  They have their time and place.
I am often told that I write emails to my wife, and often blog posts, like a drunken donkey.  I rarely do more than a cursory spell/grammar check which might have something to do with why my wife […]

By mike -- 3 comments

October 20th, 2006

The Super Duper Long Drive to Work

Living in the suburbs and working as a consultant involves some fairly long commutes from time to time. I spent most of the first half of the year working for three different companies all in the same five mile radius about an hour commute from my house.
That puts a crimp in the old family time. […]

By mike -- 1 comment