Mike McBride Online

Career | Links | Mental Health

Linked: Want to be an effective mentor in 2021? Talk about mental health
ByMike McBride June 30, 2021June 30, 2021 Reading Time: 2 minutes

This is really the big question many of us have, and rightfully so. Hopefully, your workplace is smart enough to encourage you to disconnect during off hours, or take care of your mental health needs, and speak up if you’re feeling burned out. But, what do we do if that same employer also rewards the folks who don’t do any of that? How does an employee keep up healthy boundaries and not get left behind in their career when they watch the peers who work all hours of the day/night, never disconnect, and work in an absolutely non-sustainable way are praised for their “grit and commitment”, and maybe even promoted over folks who work harder at maintaining a sustainable work-life balance?

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Career | Links

Linked: The problem isn’t remote working – it’s clinging to office-based practices
ByMike McBride June 28, 2021June 28, 2021 Reading Time: 2 minutes

Most things that I hear managers and CEO’s complain about remote working, like how their team feels disconnected, or suffers from “Zoom fatigue”, or might not be spending every minute of the 9-5 working for the company, are things that should have been true for those of us who worked remotely prior to 2020, but it wasn’t true.

When you design, and manage, for remote work, instead of forcing everyone to be in more meaningless meetings just so you can “see” them, or track their activities every minute of the day, these issues don’t exist.

Read More Linked: The problem isn’t remote working – it’s clinging to office-based practices
Career | Links

Linked: How Different Personality Types Cope with an Always-On Culture
ByMike McBride June 26, 2021June 26, 2021 Reading Time: 1 minute

The issue in mid-2021 is that there are a lot of people who have found ways to balance that suits them, and they are all a little different. So, after a year of figuring out the best way to handle our work and personal lives, individually, companies are forcing everyone back into the same template. The flexibility we had to find what works best for us as an individual, is gone. We all have to adjust back to whatever works for the CEO making this decision, as opposed to what works for us as individuals.

It’s hard to imagine that there are so many managers and executives who don’t understand this. Or maybe they just don’t care?

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Links | Tech

Linked: “I’m totally screwed.” WD My Book Live users wake up to find their data deleted
ByMike McBride June 25, 2021June 25, 2021 Reading Time: 1 minute

I hope the folks who lost data can somehow get it back. Losing data to a failure of any kind is a pain in the ass. On the other hand, if the ransomware plague has taught us anything, it’s to have backups, online and offline. Because anything connected to the infected device is at risk, but if I have a copy that isn’t connected to anything, it’s safe.

Yes, it’s more work. Yes, it takes time and effort.

So does figuring out how to deal with losing all of your data.

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Links | Security

Linked: This Phishing Email Almost Got Me
ByMike McBride June 23, 2021June 23, 2021 Reading Time: 1 minute

Doug’s experience tells me one thing, they’re getting better, and phishing emails are less obvious.

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Career | Links | Mental Health

Linked: Gallup: U.S. workers are among the most stressed in the world
ByMike McBride June 21, 2021June 21, 2021 Reading Time: 2 minutes

In the end, maybe that’s the take away I would want any manager to have. That each of your employees is an individual, with individual issues in their own lives in and out of work. Don’t assume you know, and don’t assume they are all OK. Consider some of the larger points about how you can contribute in a positive way to support your employees.

After all, you can either do what you can to help, and keep them with you, or lose them when they realize that the job that does nothing but cause additional stress, with no support, isn’t worth their mental health.

Read More Linked: Gallup: U.S. workers are among the most stressed in the world