Write it right, now.

The rules of writing are a-changin,' folks. It was true 1,000 years ago, and it still is. Relax, this isn't a philosophical diatribe about social evolution. 

Worse, perhaps. It's about communication.  

As many of us realize there are rules - gasp! yes, grammar rules - that govern texts. And many of us "of a certain age" blatantly ignore them. Most that do, I'd argue, do so out of a deplorable combination of disdain and ignorance. 

For a more lucid description of the problem, please read Arika Okrent's recent article in The Times. 

Now, my plea: Dear writers, please snap out of it. 

The point of writing well is that doing so helps us communicate better. Language evolves, and while in our snobbish moods (I'll admit to the occasional snit) we like to lament the "evolution" as "degradation," I think, more often than not, evolution isn't driven by laziness, it's driven by results. As in, better communication. 

Now, I hope you'll notice I didn't say "hopefully" it's driven by a need for better communication. But rather, note that I said I am hopeful. 

Please.  

~Diane Stresing

5 Things I Love About Working at Home

Following Yahoo's rather clumsy announcement that its workers were to report to the office, pronto (without sugarcoating the accusation that some were just plain slacking off), Herb Greenberg wrote an excellent, concise piece in defense of working from home.

Go ahead, read it - I'll wait.

I agree with him about the serious side of things - thinking is underrated, and too often hard to do well in a bustling office. He's right, too, about the greatest drawback to working from home: you never leave work behind. Ever. <sigh>

Now, back to the more positive aspect of things: I'm especially eager to second Greenberg's praise of phone calls.
 ( What's this Retro thing?  Tell me again, how do I use it?)

Perhaps because texting and instant responses from social media are so prevalent, the good-old-fashioned telephone is enjoying a certain glow. I swear I've noticed the person on the other end of a phone call is MORE attentive than he/she would have been a couple of years ago - which I attribute to the phone's relative novelty.

Speaking of the phone, that's just one of many things you don't have to worry about when you work at home: annoying your co-workers when you talk too loud, or place every call on speaker.

Add to that list - no worries when you burn popcorn or re-heat fish in the microwave. Well, at least you won't upset your co-workers when you do; your spouse and/or kids are still likely to complain.

I'm quite sure Yahoo and Marissa Mayer don't care, but for what it's worth, here are five of my favorite things about working from home:

1. The obvious: no commute, dress code, or office politics
2. My neighbors recognize me - and I them.
3. The softer side: my dogs are the fluffiest co-workers a girl could ever have.
4. Health bennies a-plenty! Comp time is no problem; I can manage my schedule and doc appointments, walk at lunchtime (or mid-morning, or both) eat super-healthy leftovers, and enforce my own no-toxic-perfumes and other policies without risk of offending someone.
5. I get to pick my own background music, every day - and if I get up to dance, no one complains.*

It's not all fun and games at home, of course. It is work, after all. Without a boss looking over your shoulder, you've got to find your own motivation to get things done, and when things go wrong, it's all on you. But I'll cover the drawbacks of working at home (staying fully charged, for one thing) in another post. For now, I guess I'll just put on my dancin' shoes and work away. 

~Diane Stresing

*as long as I remember to close the shades

Grammar 101 for Job Candidates

In an article not-so-cheerfully titled Seven Ways to Flunk a Job Interview, author Adriana Gardella shares an anecdote about a job-seeker whose Linked-In grammar earned her instant dismissal (as a candidate for said job).

Yes, grammar counts, even when you're engaging in a semi-social media venue.

Would you start a telephone interview with "yo, whassup?"

Of course not.

A little formality (capital letters to start a sentence, for example) is expected in any exchange related to a job.