Category: Career & Education

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Career & Education Education

Continuing Education and Online Learning

education and online learning tips

Choosing to continue your education is a big next step. The learning goals increase and you’ll need to dedicate more time to perfecting your craft and developing your education. Continuing your education may also mean you need to stop working full-time to dedicate the amount of time you need to your studies.

With the current pandemic, online learning has increased exponentially. While this can be difficult for many who connect around and in school, for those who want to continue with their education, online learning provides a whole new opportunity to finish school from the comfort of your own home.

We’ll be talking about some quick hints and tips on how to continue your education through online learning! You’ll find yourself at the top of the class without having to leave your home or quit your job!

Education Opens Doors

Practical experience will take you a long way but spending time in the classroom gives you a step up in an increased education-focused world. Continuing education classes are a great way for anyone from any background to take part in this step up for the world and economy.

Continuing education classes are specifically geared to adults within the community and are designed by school boards, colleges, and universities. The topics range across everything from art history to computer programming. There are even programs that end with a certificate so you can show you’ve passed the course.

Those who already have a degree may choose to continue their education as well to hone their skills and keep learning so that they can teach or train others. Many employers allow for people to take part in these classes but it can still put a strain on your schedule if you have to leave or commute to continuing education classes throughout the week.

Online Learning Takes Center Stage

This is where online learning comes in! Classes that were previously only offered on a strict meeting schedule are now up in different forms online. You can enroll through your local school or university or check out classes offered by Ivy League schools through other websites.

This opens up the topics that are available to an even wider range! You can learn French from teachers in Paris, take cooking classes with world-renowned chefs, or connect with a teacher in your community to become a better educator yourself. No matter what you want to learn, there’s an online class for that.

While online learning has opened doors for many, it doesn’t offer quite the connection that in-person classes do. Keep this in mind when you are looking for a way to get connected to the larger learning community. Classes offered through online learning often have very flexible schedules so you can do your classwork when you’re home after work or even when your kids go to take a nap in the afternoon.

Takeaway

Choosing to continue your education is a great first step to further success! But dealing with commute times and strict class schedules can make it hard to commit. Online learning allows for flexible schedules and a new, wider range of class availability. Leap, enroll today!

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Career Career & Education

Want to Reinvent Your Career? Here’s How

reinvent your career in 2021

1.   Start Now

Are you still stuck at home, or maybe still on lockdown or stay-at-home orders? Well, there is no better time to start thinking of how you want to develop yourself with your career. You have plenty of time where the social gatherings will still be relatively restricted. So you can use some of that to position yourself to potentially jump at an opportunity and reinvent your career.

So, knock the dust off your resume, and make sure your LinkedIn profile is up to date (when have you logged into that thing yet this year?). Add any new job details, purge any old info, and be sure to update your accomplishments. Remember to keep it to about a single sheet for maximum effectiveness.

Take a look at LinkedIn, and find some people doing what you envision yourself doing, and browse their journey. See how they got there from where they started, how did they handle crucial steps. Even if you can’t find examples of those positions, particularly if you’re pivoting to something pandemic-influenced, you can still get value from it.

You’ll get ideas. You’ll see trends of how important, influential, or otherwise successful people describe and market themselves. This can lead to a lot of scrolling. However, if you see someone that is doing exactly what you want to do, don’t be afraid to reach out.

3.   Think Outside The Box

Step back and look at your personal, job, and educational experiences. How can those things benefit you in various roles and capacities either within or outside of, your current organization?

Many people don’t take this vital step in figuring out how they can add value. They only take into consideration their immediate day-to-day job. You may be able to find a version of your current job at higher value. For example, getting paid more for doing essentially the same work.

4.   Make A Plan For Your Career

Now that you’ve taken a look at people on similar paths, as well as taken an objective look at your own experience, you should try to map out your next steps. With bigger changes, this may be a multi-phase plan, while shifting from one industry to another doing the same work may only need a few steps.

5.   Profit From Your Pivot

With the huge shift in business operations from everything that does not require a presence in a “brick and mortar” building, there are a lot of new positions to fill. These are going to be positions that end up being created or staffed for the sole purpose of saving money or refining operations from remote working.

If you have an idea of how something can be done better now that business is largely virtual and remote, now is the time to pitch it! The old systems are out the window with the pandemic, and organizations (read: older generations that can benefit from your tech-savvy skills) are in need of help and ideas everywhere.

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Career & Education Debt Education Financial

How To Deal With Student Debt

student debt

It seemed like a good idea at the time, right? Getting a few student loans to make it simple to focus on college without having to worry about funding it with your already thin paycheck. But now you’re looking at graduation, or maybe you have already turned your tassel, and that loan balance is weighing heavy on your mind. It certainly can be a daunting situation, but it doesn’t have to be completely overwhelming.

The first thing you need is a plan, which is probably what brought you here. You’re intelligent, so you’re likely searching for some of the best ways to deal with what seems like a mountain of student debt. Don’t worry, we’ve got you. Here are some of the most effective ways to handle and pare down student debt:

1.   Keep The College Lifestyle

You just left what was in all likelihood one of the most frugal lifestyles that you have lived thus far. Why stop now? Many people learn to get by with so little in college, and when you leave school that can repay dividends.

While others are splurging on meal services and subscription boxes, you can still be eating on a tight budget and putting the extra money into your debt payments. Living like a pauper for a few years means you could be debt-free a lot sooner than many of your peers.

2.   Follow The Snowball

The snowball method of debt payment is a popular technique, and for good reason, it works well. First, you list all of your existing debts, from small to large. Every type of loan you have.

Maintain all minimum payments, and focus all additional liquidity on the smallest debt. When that one is done, move to the next smallest, and so on. Each time, gathering up the minimum payment from the previous debt and rolling it into the current one.

3.   Push Your Extras Right Into That Debt

This one’s simple. Did you get a bonus? Debt payment. Raise? Debt payments. Any other non-essential liquidity? DEBT. PAYMENTS.

4.   Sharpen A Side Hustle To Cut Your Debt Fast

If you can work up a profitable side hustle you can shrink your debt must faster than with your single income. Additionally, if you can create income streams from streaming, Patreon, or other paid content sites, you may be able to become debt-free incredibly fast, followed closely by being financially independent.

5.   Refinance Only If It Makes Financial Sense

This is something you should only consider if the interest rate variance makes the process truly worth it. Sometimes people are much too eager, and they run right to an unscrupulous lender, or even a lender who simply doesn’t care if it’s the right move for the consumer.

Make sure the result is going to be an improvement on what your loan terms and payments are currently. The last thing you want to do is refinance, only to find out your payment is now much higher than before and you cannot meet it.

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Career Career & Education

8 Virtual Interview Tips to Help You Land the Job

Virtual Interview

The interview landscape has changed significantly in the past year, let’s take a look at the best tips for remote interviews.

1.   Location, Location, Location

Sure, you’re stuck at home, maybe even on another lockdown, that doesn’t mean your interview backdrop has to look like it. Make a conscious effort to place your computer where you will have a blank background, or perhaps a bookshelf or houseplant behind you. Keep it professional, or at the very least, neutral.

2.   Be Ready

Not on time, but technically ready. Have your appropriate plug-ins and updates installed and ready. Test your camera and mic, so that you aren’t showing up to your interview with no video, or a critical system update that won’t let you snooze it.

3.   Dress For The Job You Want

Wardrobe selection is just as important here as it is for a traditional interview. Make sure your selection fits the situation, and if unclear, your HR contact point should be able to provide clear guidance. Generally, you want to avoid chunky or distracting jewelry and excessively bright colors.

4.   Personal Space

Make sure you are positioned effectively for your interview. Check your setup and distance from the camera with a friend if needed. Make sure you aren’t hunched over in front of your computer, but make sure you aren’t 8 feet away. Place your camera a comfortable distance away, sit up straight, and don’t fidget with things on your desk during the interview.

5.   Practice Makes Perfect

Go over and practice your answers to potential questions, so that they are clear and concise. Give yourself an honest chance to purge all of your “um”, “uh”, and “well…” fillers from your repertoire. Make sure you iron out all of your grammar and double-check any typed responses for accuracy.

6.   Do A Dry Run

With the help of an honest friend or family member, run an entire mock interview. Not only will it give you a chance to go through the process front to back, but it will let you test your tech again to make sure the interview connection will be perfect.

7.   Be Your Own Best Cheerleader

With virtual interviews, it can be challenging from an employer’s perspective, to get a real feel of the person being interviewed in a virtual environment. That initial “vibe” can be crucial, so make sure you tell them why you feel you’re a good fit so that they can feel it. Highlight your qualifications, achievements, and so on, and be enthusiastic about them.

8.   Be Your Best You

You aren’t going to be interviewed extensively at first, your potential employer is looking to see in a more general sense if you seem like a good fit for the company. The best way to lower your stress is to just be yourself. Don’t worry about what you think they want to hear, just tell them who you are. This will always give you the best shot at finding the best fit for you too.

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Career Career & Education Health & Home Recreation & Leisure

Lunch Break Ideas that Will Make Your Day Better

things to do during your lunch break

You may have made an ideal early morning routine for yourself, considering how it needs to gear you up for the day at work. But what about the rest of the day after your lunch break? Doesn’t it deserve to be unique and worthwhile too?

Of course, it does, and we have ideas of things to do on your lunch break to spruce up the rest of your day.

1.    Play Time

Yes, it’s not just for students. Rather, adults working in offices can do with some playtime too. Try playing dumb charade during lunch break with your colleagues, or just put on some music in the cafeteria (if you can) and encourage your colleagues to shake a leg with you.

The rest of your day is sure to brighten up automatically.

2.    A mid-day Stroll

Why not combine lunch with a stroll afterward? Encourage as many as you can to join in. A walk outside will relax everyone’s bunched muscles and brains and let some of the stress out. The light activity will also energize you for the rest of the day.

3.    Lunch Roulette

This is a great way to expand your networking at work. Lunch roulette is a game wherein you invite someone you’d like to know to grab lunch with you. This is an excellent way of making friends with someone you could never start a conversation with, even though you’d sat across from them for months.

4.    Look Up Recipes to try

If you’re a good cook, whipping up recipes for dinner is a sure way to spend the day in optimistic anticipation. You could look up recipes at lunch break and make plans for a special dinner in the evening for the family or even for yourself only. Food never fails to delight.

5.    Call Your Best friend

If your best friend has the skills to brighten up any conversation, then a chat over the phone with them during your lunch break is a great idea. It would surely put you in a good mood for the rest of the day.

6.    Make Plans

Work friends have a charm of their own and partying with them is a lot of fun too. Use your lunch break to make a dull day sound a lot better by planning an outing, a movie night, dinner, or getting together at home with them. It will put you all in a festive mood.

7.    Take a Power Nap

Power naps have endless benefits, and no one needs scientific evidence to believe them. Napping at any time refreshes and reenergizes you, gearing up for more activities for the rest of the day. Besides, a bit of rest in the second half of the day is good for your health too. It helps your body regulate some processes while improving your memory as well.

8.    Work out

If you can manage a late lunch break, you can make the most of this opportunity by fitting in some workout. Your physical performance is at the peak between 3 pm to 6 pm, and the risk of injuries even lower. Plus, your lungs perform optimally, too, so it would be great to exercise at this time.

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Career & Education Children Education Family

Help Your Child Succeed in Elementary School

elementary school

Wondering how you can help your child to succeed in elementary school? If so, here are some tips and ideas to help your kids.

1.    Make Your Child’s Learning Important

Teach your children that learning is important. Of course, children learn better and quickly if they love a particular subject. However, learning other things that they don’t find interesting is also important. It helps them to know and explore different things.

2.    Aim High

You don’t need to pressure your children; just teach them to aim high. You must realize that your expectations can significantly impact your child’s performance in elementary school. So, don’t expect your children to score 100% in every subject but encourage them to do their best.

3.    Prioritize Your Child’s Study Time

Playing and interacting with other children is important for your kid’s social and intellectual skills. But that doesn’t mean to give them a free hand. Make it clear from the beginning of their school life that they have to study before playing. This will help them understand the importance of studies over other things.

4.    Stay Up to Date

It’s important to stay informed about your children’s school. You can check the school’s website and see the calendar for the upcoming events and tests. You can also check what new posts they have published on their site for annual exams.

5.    Meet your Child’s Teacher

You need to meet your kid’s teacher whenever you get time. You can discuss your child’s performance and ask the teachers to guide you on what you can do for the betterment of your children.

6.    Help them Prepare for Tests

It’s important to prepare your kids for class tests and discuss their studies. The more you will involve with them in the preparation process, the more they will feel motivated to study.

7.    Stick to a Routine

Many parents don’t understand that having a proper routine for their kids is crucial even on holidays. Having a routine will prevent them from getting off the track. You need to give them breakfast, lunch, and dinner on time. They should give time to their studies and also get to play with their friends. Also, make sure they sleep on time.

8.    Talk Often

You need to know how your children feel about their teacher, classmate, and classroom. Ask them what they like and dislike about their school. Give them a chance to express their excitements, anxieties, or disappointments every day. Moreover, support and encourage them by praising their efforts and achievements.

9.    Show Your Interest

Don’t only ask about your children’s day or what they think about school. You need to listen to them carefully and show interest. Guide them on what they can do to solve a certain problem. Also, teach them how they can improve themselves even more.

10.  Designate a Space For Your Child’s School Work

Like adults want a workspace to complete their tasks without any stress and distractions, children also need a study room. You need to designate a place in your house with ample light, enough room to work, and lots of supplies. This will encourage your kid to study without being distracted.

Bottom Line

If you want to make your kid succeed in elementary school, you need to give time to your children. But make sure to avoid putting a lot of pressure on them, as it can negatively impact their performance. Try to be their friend with them while discussing studies.

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Career & Education Children Education Family Government Grants

Education Grants for Single Mothers and Fathers

Education grants for single parents

We’ve all seen the ads talking about “grants for single mothers” or “go back to school now, forgivable loans”. But they always seem to feel like scams, and I’m left wondering many times if there is any authenticity to them. In most cases, they are exactly what they sound like: too good to be true.

Many end up leading to lists of financial aid links and programs that you can buy, while some others aren’t even legit websites and are just scams trying to take money and information from those looking for help.

With that in mind, there are some real educational funding programs that provide grants for single parents. There are also scholarship programs and educational grants for single parents that are based on skill and merit. Lastly, there are programs to help students pay off educational loans.

Federal Pell Grants

The Federal Pell Grant Program is one of the more well-known grant programs. It is not limited to only single mothers, despite being known as the “single mother grant”. Pell grants have helped many parents continue their education and boost their earning ability.

Federal Pell Grants are based strictly on financial need and are generally offered only to undergraduate students. To qualify for a Federal Pell Grant the applicant must first have filled out and filed a Free Application for Federal Student Aid or FAFSA. Applications can be filled out online through the official website. The 2020-2021 school year holds a maximum possible Federal Pell Grant amount of $6,345.

Federal Supplemental Education Opportunity Grants

The Federal Supplemental Education Opportunity Grant programs operate on a state-by-state basis. They are most frequently given to students who show the most need based on the information submitted in their FAFSA. Depending on the degree of financial need, awards up to $4,000 per year can be seen.

Academic Competitiveness Grant

This is another merit-based grant. The Academic Competitiveness Grant is specifically designed for first year college students and second year students who graduated in 2006 or after. It is awarded as a supplement to students receiving the Federal Pell Grant. Students can expect up to $750 for their first year and up to $1,300 for their second year.

Individual State Grants For Single Parents

In addition, a large number of states offer their own various grants and financial assistance options for single parents. These are less popular and often underutilized because fewer people know about them. Qualifications for each of these will vary by state. California’s version, called the Cal Grant is prioritized for low-income and otherwise disadvantaged families. These programs should have websites in coordination with the state, and more information will be available there.

SMART Grants

The National Science and Mathematics Access to Retain Talent Grant or SMART Grant is an award given to students in programs related to the sciences, such as mathematics, technology, engineering, and more. The recipients are determined by merit from third and fourth year Pell Grant students.

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Career Career & Education

7 Things You Can Do for Your Career

Career Work From Home

With the recent pandemic, millions of people have now found themselves home much more than they have in the recent past. Many of us don’t mind the additional comfort and decreased anxiety of pursuing our career from home, particularly when you get to see your spouse, child, or even your dog much more than before.

But to many people, the extended lockdowns and remote work have also felt like they were delaying or stagnating their career. Others were in constant fear or anxiety of the possibility of being laid off entirely. The numbers of those in fear grow each day that the economy becomes more volatile.

Even if you aren’t worried about job security, you probably still have pressures from remote working challenges, lack of networking opportunities, and the cancellation of many industry events like conferences and expos.

It can be frustrating in different ways for all of us. But we’ve also redefined how we work and collaborate using technology, so this also brings us opportunities. Here are some great ideas on preventing stagnation and malaise in your career while you’re stuck at home.

1.   Update And Stay Current

Have you even logged into your LinkedIn account this year? Take a day to update your resume and LinkedIn profile, making sure you pull old info and update with new. Don’t forget to highlight new career accomplishments!

2.   Continue Your Education

Learn something new. Another language, programming, an art skill, or any number of random things. There are a number of websites that offer micro-degrees or other structured courses that you can use to break up the time. Some may even add value to your skillset that you can leverage for more pay at work.

3.   Maintain Networking Connections And Bonds For Your Career

Just because you can’t hit happy hour and shake some hands, or attend the yearly industry events doesn’t mean you can’t keep networking. Communicate with your work contacts, especially ones you may have neglected recently, and see how they’re doing. Maybe set up a zoom coffee so you can chat.

4.   Start A New Project Outside of Work

Kick-off a new side-hustle outside of work, tweak your personal brand or even start a new blog, book, or website. Original content is valuable, particularly with the rise of NFTs.

5.   Get A Jump On Busywork

We spend an average of one day out of every five to six, simply researching our information and setting up documents. Take some time to cook up a few templates, references, or cheat sheet resources to help you save time down the road when you are at work.

6.   Volunteer For A Project That Scares You At Work

It doesn’t literally have to scare you but step out of your comfort zone, that’s not where growth happens. You’ll not only help your team and organization, but you may even inspire some enthusiasm.

7.   Crack A Book

We’ve got a lot of free time lately, which many of us are using to get some great information from experts. Many experts have written books about subjects that are incredibly important to your field or industry. Find one or two, and make it a point to read them over a month or so.

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Career & Education Education Government Grants

How to Finance Your Child’s College Education

pay for your child's college tuition

Finding out that your child has been accepted into college is most likely going to be one of your proudest experiences. But then the reality sets in of how much it’s going to cost to pay for tuition, fees, and even room and board for four years at a private college. With averages that top $30,000, paying for a college education isn’t as cheap as it used to be.

Thankfully, there are a handful of ways to make sure there is some financial wiggle room for when your little genius starts their higher education. Let’s take a look at the top ways.

1.   Federal Loans

This should be the student’s first stop If the funds haven’t already been saved. Filling out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid or FAFSA will help determine the amount of aid your student may be eligible for through federal and state programs. Some of these programs will be grants, but a major portion of the cost will likely be paid for by Federal Student Loans.

If your child is a dependent, they may also be eligible to get a Parent PLUS Loan, if you provide your information. It will depend on your credit, but it’s a fixed-rate and will cover up to the entire cost. The other option for federal loans is Stafford Loans.

2.   Private Loans

Even after grants, scholarships, and federal loans, depending on where your child is going to be enrolled, there still may be some costs due. This is where private student loans may be of benefit. They will often be at varying levels of interest, depending on credit, and each lender will have their own terms, just like with any other type of loan. Loans can be obtained either in the parent’s name or in the student’s with the parent as a co-signer.

3.   Leverage A 529 Plan

The 529 College Savings Plan is becoming increasingly popular these days. These savings plans allow a higher contribution than other savings plans, and the funds can be used for any college-related costs tax-free. The plan can be diversified significantly and offers a much better return than traditional savings accounts.

4.   Use Home Equity

This is one of the two “last resort” options. If you are the owner of your home you may be able to fund some or all of your child’s tuition with the equity in your home. This is not the highest-risk method, but it’s second in line. You can use either a home equity line of credit, take out a home equity loan, or even do a cash-out refinance. All carry some risk.

5.   Use Retirement Funds

This is an absolute last resort option. The type of funding available would depend heavily on the type of retirement account that was being drawn from. If this is an option you would like to pursue, you should reach out to your financial institution, as well as your tax professional, to discuss how to impact your retirement minimally.

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Career Career & Education

Want A Promotion? What You Should Be Doing

career promotion

The current employment landscape can be a challenge to navigate, particularly when normal office politics are not playing their normal role in water-cooler chats and the like. But even with lockdowns and stay-at-home orders, many people are still trying to get a promotion. In the best of times, this requires determination, hard work, and often, persistence.

What is the best way to ensure you have the best shot at that promotion? We’re going to take a look. Not only at the #1 thing that will put you ahead of your coworkers, but at additional factors that can also give you a performance edge.

1.   Strong Leadership Skills

The #1 thing you should be doing to get a promotion is to demonstrate leadership abilities. When you are evaluated as a potential candidate for a promotion, you are seen as having the potential to be groomed for management, or even higher. This means you need to be able to lead and motivate effectively.

2.   Add Value

If your organization is going to invest not only time but more money in you, they must see the value that you bring to the table. This isn’t about coming in early and staying late to the point of burnout, that’s boomer value.

Nobody needs seat warmers. You need to bring value to the organization because when your employer invests in you, they are hoping to multiply that value and gain a healthy return on their investment.

3.   Attitude is (Almost) Everything

Attitude in the workplace is crucial. Every office has a person or two that people simply don’t want to work with because they just don’t have a good attitude for whatever reason.

Rest assured that you will be constantly weighed and measured. People seriously considered are going to be people that are respected contributors and morale-builders. Future leaders almost always stand out to current leadership.

4.   Skills To Pay The Bills

Anytime you are being considered for a promotion, your higher-ups will be evaluating your skill set in comparison to other candidates. You should be prepared to show that not only do you engage in personal or professional development but that you plan to continue such.

The habits of older generations were to become skilled in something, and then stagnate at that level. This paradigm is completely dead, and few things are more attractive to employers nowadays than individuals who invest in themselves and commit to growth.

5.   Be Bold

When opportunities come up, jump on them. Be ready to trust a feeling that says “volunteer for that project” when it scares the hell out of you. Growth doesn’t happen in your comfort zone.

When you were hired initially, leadership saw qualities in you that they were confident would bring value to the team. In most cases, that will not have changed, and you will only have honed your skills further. You have the ability to be great, you just need to use it.