8 Honest Reasons You Didn’t Make It Past the First Interview

You breezed through the phone screening and your first interview went surprisingly well.

But weeks go by and you never hear back. If you do end up getting a rejection email, you’re left staring numbly at an auto-response with too many clichés and not a single explanation of why you didn’t make the cut.

And so, the vicious circle continues. How can you improve your interview game when no one is telling you what you’re doing wrong?

Study Shows Political Language Is Changing, Affects Parties Differently

Though we might not think much about them in the context of all the issues discussed during elections, rhetoric and language play a critical role in the success of U.S. presidential candidates. The 2016 presidential election process has been particularly fascinating and prompted us to take a closer look at how election language has changed over time and how it influences candidate success.

5 Alternative Ways to Say “Thank You in Advance”

You just got an email from Susie in accounting asking you to bring three dozen of your famous cupcakes for Dave the office manager’s retirement party. Which, by the way, is tomorrow. Susie signed her email:

Thank you in advance,

Susie

Your reaction to that sign-off will probably depend on the tone and content of Susie’s email. If she politely apologized for the short notice and begged you to please consider whipping up what has become an office favorite (because, really, who doesn’t like cupcakes?), you might get busy baking after work.

Will You Join Us for March MADness?

Yesterday, Selection Sunday marked the start of the frenetic sports season many like to call March Madness. Today, we’re launching a bracket like the one you may have filled out yesterday, but our March MADness tournament contains only the most infuriating, enraging work communication pet peeves. These annoying office habits keep you from understanding—or, sometimes, liking—your coworkers, and we’re trying to find the worst habit you can form at work.

Please Advise: When to Use “Please Advise”

That email is sitting in your inbox. You know the answer to the question it’s asking, but those two words are still haunting you: “please advise.” It can show up in the subject line, somewhere in the middle of a message, or, most frequently, right before the signature at the end of the email. But what do you do with it?

The good news: if you know the answer to the main question in the email, just write your reply and boom!

Is Using “As Soon As Possible” Rude?

Your co-worker just sent you a message on Slack:

Bossy McBosserpants

I need the report as soon as possible

What runs through your head? Along with potential anxiety about a looming deadline (looks like you’re eating lunch at your desk again) you may feel annoyance. After all, that demand sounded pretty darn pushy.

via GIPHY

Requests that include “as soon as possible” (or the ubiquitous acronym ASAP) can come across as rude.

Strategies to Deal With Chronic Interrupters

Getting interrupted is no fun. Whether it’s at work or with a friend or family member, being the interruptee can make you feel disrespected and unheard. The good news: there are strategies for dealing with interrupters.

First, approach the situation differently based on the context and kind of interrupting. Here are some examples:

• You’re giving a presentation and your boss interrupts with a question
• You’re in a brainstorm session and a colleague interrupts your idea with a different idea
• In a chat with a friend, he or she keeps interrupting to give advice, or change the subject
• In an argument with a significant other, you both interrupt each other to make your point
• In a panel on gender and diversity and business, a male executive repeatedly interrupts a female executive (and doesn’t seem to notice until someone calls him out)
• In an award ceremony, Kanye West interrupts Taylor Swift’s acceptance speech to say Beyoncé made a better video than Tay Tay.

What to Do When Someone Takes Credit for Your Work

You feel great after finishing a project, but then someone else takes the credit. What should you do? If you lose your cool, you could lose your job. Don’t run the risk! Let’s look at three scenarios and some strategies that can help you turn a bad situation into a favorable one.

The Passive Praise Stealer

You collaborate with a coworker on a project. Later, you overhear your boss commend your colleague: “What a fantastic job!

Not-So-Sweet 16 Game 7: Passive-Aggressive Notes vs. Loud Music

We’re nearing the end of the Not-So-Sweet 16, and so far, we’ve had some fierce battles over everything from emojis to interrupting your coworkers. But we’re not done yet! Today’s voting presents the last two battles of the season, and they’re both going to be nail-biters.

For this match, we have a classic debate between silent passive aggression and overtly aggressive, loud music.

Essay Writing Mistakes: The 3 Ss and How to Correct Them

Guest Post by Jennifer Frost, LoroCreative

“To write is human, to edit is divine.” — Stephen King

You’ve probably already read and heard the tips on how to write an essay, from developing a thesis statement to crafting an unforgettable conclusion. But you may still dread showing your work to others because you are not sure if you’ve missed some errors or failed to follow a rule. Maybe you don’t have a teacher, an editor, or a friend beside you all the time to identify the parts of your writing that you need to correct or improve.