TV Revolution

If you’ve been paying attention, you are already aware that analog televisions are approaching extinction. They will soon be long gone like the Sony Walkman, Pac Man and VCRs. In February of next year, Television will upgrade to digital technology and will no longer be broadcast in analog, which is very similar to AM/FM radio. While the chore of upgrading may be cumbersome, the switch will provide a better picture, improved sound quality and more programming options!

If you’re inquisitive like me, you may be asking, “Why is this change happening?” This change in technology is occurring because our U.S. Congress has mandated this change to free up broadcast frequencies for police, fire and other emergency operations.

The next question you might be asking is “Will I have to purchase a new television?” Thankfully, the answer is NO, but there is a catch. If your TV set is analog, meaning you have “rabbit ears,” you will need to buy a converter box. If you have cable or satellite on your analog set, you should be able to operate as usual.

To learn more about this TV Revolution, visit the official government website on Digital Television. Remember to make the necessary transition by February 2009 and stay connected!

Strike a Balance

Have you ever been in a perceived trap at work where you are consistently taking work home? No matter how early you come in, or how many lunches you skip, you can’t seem to finish all you need to do by COB (close of business). I can certainly identify with this rut and since coming out of it, I have discovered a method to avoid the “taking work home” madness.

True indeed, times may arise where it is necessary to work a few hours in the evening or over the weekend, but the perpetual act of taking work home can actually be an impediment to productivity.


A trick that works for me is making a priority list the day before on what needs to be accomplished the following day. Prioritize these items and target the tasks that are time sensitive first. It doesn’t do you any good if you work on those projects you enjoy doing, while neglecting those you dislike. Completing those tasks that must be completed by COB can help to eliminate a lot of unnecessary stress. In addition, you may get some kudos by completing a critical project before the due date.



If you are finding that almost every project on your plate has a challenging deadline, your workload may be a little too heavy. It is not uncommon for upper management to grossly underestimate the resources required to perform a task. While no one likes to admit that they’re not qualified or up to the challenge, develop a proposal for bringing in temporary assistance to perform any tedious administrative tasks that are consuming too much of your time. After you’re caught up, hopefully your workload will become more manageable. If not, your position and/or qualifications may need to be reassessed.



Life is much too short to work all day and night. Even if you are totally thrilled with your occupation, it always helps to step away and return reenergized. Often times when you take a break, you become more productive than you were when you were completely absorbed. Strike a balance between your career and personal life, smell the roses and stay connected!

Disgruntled IT

There are so many career paths that one can pursue within a lifetime. If you’re fortunate, you may have discovered your niche and feel that the line of work you’re in is a “natural fit.” Well, if you truly enjoy what you do and you’re in a technology oriented career, I share your enjoyment and enthusiasm. You may; however, find it interesting that IT professionals are not the most engaged employees.

According to an “Employee Engagement” study conducted by Princeton consultants, BlessingWhite, Inc., fewer than one in four information technology department employees are fully engaged in their work. Of the eight staff areas studied, the IT function ranks last across the globe.

How can this be? Are all the techno-savvy fashionistas of the world “checked out” on the job? Compared with employees in other functions, IT workers are unusually independent, and tend to identify more with their profession than with the organization. IT workers tend to be achievement-oriented and the most important driver of increased performance is training and development opportunities. This comes as no surprise when you consider that IT employees are most often promoted based on their technical proficiency.

These are some additional findings you might find interesting:

• While only one-quarter of IT employees are fully engaged, at the other extreme nearly 20% of them are actually disengaged.

• Trust among IT employees is comparatively low with only 62% of IT employees trusting their organization’s senior leaders.

• In contrast, more than 78% of IT employees trust their immediate manager. Not surprisingly, trust tends to increase with engagement level, with 91% of engaged IT employees trusting their manager.

• Only 57% of IT employees said their manager recognizes and rewards their achievements.

• The most common reason for IT employees to remain with the organization is their career, with 28% agreeing or strongly agreeing with the statement “I have significant development or advancement opportunities.”

IT professionals are greatly valued and support the foundation of a company’s competitiveness. While many enjoy working in isolation, the value they bring is unique and deserves to be recognized. IT professionals stand and be counted! Life is too short to be disgruntled. Smile, engage and stay connected.

Silver Linings

I can’t help by being plagued with the slumping economy, devastated housing market and sharp surge in rising fuel prices. It’s in the media every day, we overhear depressing conversations and are even affected personally. Even those that are accustomed to spending somewhat lavishly are inevitably forced to examine their shopping behavior. This downward spiral has caused many of us to lose our homes as well as our jobs. For those of us that have managed to stay gainfully employed amidst the storm, there’s a silver lining, according to WorldatWork. Silver lining?

The WorldatWork association studies employment trends and according to their 2008-2009 Salary Budget Survey, “…organizations are in fact planning to continue the pay increases awarded in recent years; very few organizations are expecting pay freezes.” The national total salary budget increase average in North America is 3.9% for 2008 and this number is expected to grow by the same amount in 2009!

Many of us have probably prematurely calculated the money we won’t be receiving next fiscal, but there is a sound reason behind this good news. Simply stated, companies need to hold on to their existing employees and reward them so that productivity levels remain constant or even increase. Companies have also responded to rising fuel prices by adopting flexible scheduling and telework programs.

She-Tech understands your desire to remain stylish despite the not so chic economy and have also responded to these turbulent times. Our TOTEally Chic Event, going on now, offers up to 50% off some of our most popular totes. Shop now while supplies last. Times are tough, but tech savvy women always come out on top. Let’s weather the storm together and seek out the silver lining in every situation. Be a role model for optimism and stay connected!

Mobile Mail

We all like to keep in touch when we’re on the go whether the occasion is business travel or pleasure. While text messaging is a great convenience, when what we need to communicate requires more explanation or includes attachments and links, email is the preferred method. To ensure that your mobile communication goes smoothly while you’re on- the- go, the insightful folks at MSN have offered these suggestions.

Try doing e‑mail offline. Write messages when you're inspired, not when you're connected. If you have a laptop with you, take advantage of offline time to read messages you have already downloaded and compose replies and other new messages. Unlike Web-based e‑mail, programs such as Windows Mail save your messages locally (on your hard disk), rather than on the Web. The next time you connect to the Internet or your company network, you can download new e‑mail and send any messages you have ready to go, sitting in your Outbox.

Hone your skills at finding Internet cafés. If you're traveling without a mobile PC, train yourself to watch for Internet cafés and other places where you can rent a computer for a short period of time to check your e‑mail. Don’t wait until you absolutely have to check e‑mail and then expect to find a place on the nearest street corner. Depending on where you're traveling, there might not be very many Internet cafés. Learn what kinds of places offer computers with Internet access and wireless connectivity. You can also plan in advance and Look up Internet café locations before you go. This can be important if you will be traveling in areas where Internet access is less likely to be available. Several Web sites offer lists of Internet cafés around the world.

If at all possible, Stay at hotels that offer Internet access. This is becoming less of an issue as more hotels and motels offer Internet access. But if you really want to be able to do e‑mail from your room, you might want to skip that charming bed-and-breakfast or quaint country inn, where guest Internet access is probably not on the list of amenities. Most hotels or motels that have wireless Internet access include it in the price of a room or offer it for a modest fee. Business-class hotels usually offer the speediest Internet access. Ask about Internet access when you check in or make room reservations.

E‑mail important documents to yourself before you leave. E‑mail is for more than just communicating with people. If you're not bringing a laptop with you, you can use e‑mail to send important documents to yourself that you want to read or work on while traveling. Then you can access them from an Internet café or Internet kiosk. Another option is to put files on a Web-based storage service, although this will require you to find a service you like and sign up for an account there.

Communicating via email can be a lifesaver in many situations and I hope these helpful hints come in handy. While I am a big fan of electronic communication, I must admit that in some instances it's always best to pick up the phone. E-mail smart and stay connected.