Career And Education Articles

A lot of people are happy that 2008 is over and done with so hopefully the economy will start to get better in 2009 and 2010. There were many job losses in 2008 and many more are expected in the coming months and maybe even the coming years as the economy continues to worsen.

Although no one knows the future there are things you can do if you are worried your job or career may be in danger. One thing is to upgrade your skills to make you a more valuable employee. This can be true whether you learn new skills in your existing line of work or trade or if you learn new skills for a new career.

Now can be an excellent time to return to school to learn needed skills for possible job advancement or to get the training needed for a new career altogether. If possible do not wait until it is too late to start figuring out your options. Since it is the New Year many people are in resolution mode and will be contacting or applying to schools and colleges to fill in some open class slots. If you wait it could push you back since some classes fill up quickly.

So sit down and make a list of careers you may be interested in. Then contact several different schools including both more traditional campus based trade schools and colleges as well as online or distance learning schools and colleges. Then find out all you can about the programs offering for a degree or career training.

Some questions to consider asking include when you can begin the program, how long programs take, how much they will cost, and what you can expect once you have completed the program. For example will you then have a degree, a diploma, or some type of certification? Not all programs of study take years, depending on your career interests some may be completed in just months.

Another thing to remember is some career fields offer both degree and diploma options. If this is the case with a career field you are interested in make sure to understand the difference in both length and cost of the programs but also in the different career opportunities available upon completion of the program. For example some job opportunities may not be available if you earn a diploma compared to a degree. The only way to know for sure is to do your homework during the process of talking with schools and to gain a full understanding of the career or job requirements and what employers are looking for.

Knowing proper spelling is very important for a number of reasons. First of all, when words cannot be spoken from our mouths we can write them down. If these words are not spelled properly, then that communication is compromised. Since communicating in writing is very important in many of our jobs, it is important that we know some very important grammar rules. Second, many use writing to write down their ideas. If proper grammar isn’t used, then those who like to write in diaries and journals would not understand what they wrote when reading it years down the road. So not only is it important to learn English speaking skills, writing is also important when communicating with others, it is also important when communicating with ourselves.

Below are rules regarding the addition of prefixes and suffixes to words.

Prefixes

Prefixes are those additions that usually do not change the spelling of the word. The prefix is attached to the word despite any consonant duplications, accents, or syllabication. Examples are:

- Unavailable - the prefix is the “un” and it is easy to see that the remainder of the word, available, does not change.

- Misspell - Ironically, this word is the most misspelled word. A great way to remember how to spell misspell is that “mis” is the prefix and “spell” is the main word. The spelling of the main word does not change at all, but it is amazing how often this word is not spelled correctly.

Suffixes

When adding a suffix, the main part of the word usually changes the spelling of the word, but sometimes there are exceptions. Take the word treatment, for instance. “ment” is the suffix of the word and “treat” is the original word. Simply add the “ment” to “treat” and you have treatment without any spelling modifications.

For those words that have a short vowel sound and end with a single consonant, the consonant is doubled when adding on a suffix that starts with a vowel. These suffixes canbe ed, ing, or er. Some examples:

- Biggest- big is the main word that has a short vowel sound and ends in a singal consonant. As a result, we add another “g” and then the “est” since it starts with a vowel.

There are exceptions, though. There are some words that end in r,x,w or y and don’t require doubling. Such a word is blowing. The suffix is “ing,” but because the single consonant is a ‘w’, there is no need for doubling.

If there are two consonants at the end of your main word, or two vowels, the consonant doesn’t need to be doubled. An example is the word keeper. The vowels are e e, so the “er” can be added on without doubling the consonant. Another thing to keep in mind is that when a suffix is added that begins with a vowel and the main words ends with a silent “e”, that silent “e” should be dropped like it is in the words pricing and surprising. However, if the suffix used begins with a consonant, the silent “e” should be kept such as in the words likeness and advancement.

It is also necessary to drop the final “Y” in the main word when adding a suffix if the “Y” has a consonant before it. The word worry becomes worried and supply becomes supplies. But this rule does not apply to words ending in why in which the “ing” suffix is added. Examples are: Crying and obeyed.

English lessons are very helpful and it is important to know the rules regarding prefixes and suffixes. It is easy to see that there is more involved with adding a suffix than a prefix, but with practice suffixes can be added on without even thing about them. These rules are vital for effective communication, so knowing the rules is very important.

If you are living in North America, you need to know English. Even if you are living in an area where another language is predominately spoken, such as ethnic regions in big cities or French-speaking areas of Canada, not knowing English is a major disadvantage. Learning English is not difficult, so why not overcome these hurdles and learn the language so that you can live more comfortably in the area you have chosen?

Americans Expect You to Speak English

Unlike many parts of Europe, Americans do not cater to people who speak other languages. Unfortunately, many stores and businesses do not have bilingual employees. Americans expect those who live in their country to speak English. If you are living in or near America, the people around you will expect that you know how to speak their native tongue.

In fact, when you live in North America, especially in America itself, and cannot speak English, you will almost have to rely on someone else to serve as your personal translator when you are out and about in the community. Unless you want to drag your English-speaking friend or child along with you to help interpret for you wherever you go, you really should learn English. This will allow you to be independent as a resident of America.

Signage and Labels Are in English

Since Americans expect the people living in their country to speak English, most signs and labels are printed in English. If you cannot read English, you will have a difficult time driving and shopping in North America. Some border areas, such as those near Texas, will have signs and labels that are bilingual, but the majority of places in America only print signage in one language, and that is English.

Imagine getting in your car and heading out on the freeway to go to the grocery store. You see a sign indicating that there is road construction and a detour, but you cannot read it. Suddenly you are sent on a detour that sends you somewhere you have never been before. How will you get back to the road you intended to be on in the first place? Knowing English is the only way to make sure that you can get where you need to go.

When you reach the store, you will need to know English in order to buy the items on your list. If you need shampoo, you will need to be able to read the shampoo bottle to choose the right type. You could end up walking out the door with shampoo meant for curly haired people when your hair is straight, or you could even end up buying conditioner. Learning to speak and read English will save you from these potentially embarrassing situations.

Knowing English Will Get You a Better Job

If you are looking for employment in North America, not understanding English puts you at a severe disadvantage. You will earn less money and work less prestigious jobs if you do not know English. Even if you have technical knowledge that would give you the chance to earn a decent income, if you cannot communicate in English you will not be granted the job. Most jobs that center on computers and technology require you to speak English, making these jobs unreachable for you until you learn the language.

The bottom line is that if you want to succeed as a resident of North America, communicate with your neighbors, and get a good job, you need to know English. If you do not know English, you are at a severe disadvantage. To overcome this disadvantage, sign up today for an English lessons or find a program online that can teach you the language. Your career and quality of life in North America depend on this action!

All too often in life, it seems that the times in which we felt most productive were times when we actually had the least amount of time to spend. What do I mean? Think about that looming deadline set by your boss or that all-too-rapidly approaching final exam.

Do you find yourself not doing the work you’re supposed to do, when you have plenty of time to complete it yet when you’re giving yourself a time table and short sharp bursts of urgent timelines you excel above and beyond what you ever expected?

These are some more detailed examples:

Not important and not urgent. You have a book report to hand in at the end of the semester. It’ll take you 10 to 20 hours to read the book and 4 or 5 hours to write the report. You have 3 months and it’s worth 10% of your final grade.

You should get started as soon as possible so it doesn’t become urgent.

However, how often does this important task turn into and “Important and urgent” task, which is exactly what you don’t want What you need to do is pretend in your own mind that you only have a quarter of the time to get it completed, then you’ll complete it much faster and be able to spend the rest of the time “polishing” the finished product into something really great.

Not important but urgent. You have a quiz tomorrow but you haven’t reviewed anything. It’s worth 5% but you need every mark you can get.

You know perfectly well you could have done this sooner, and more easily, in between other tasks. Now, however, you need to worry about it unnecessarily.

If you ever find yourself in a situation like this, concentrate on the areas that you consider the most weak, work on polishing some of those areas 80 percent of the time, then 20 percent polishing your strongest points.

Important but not urgent. You’ve been given a project with a one month deadline. You estimate you will need approximately 20-25 hours to complete this project. When completed, the project will comprise 35% of your final grade.

On top of chunking it down into bite size chunks you also need to give each bite size chunk a deadline and timeline, so that you have a realistic expectation and understanding of your workload, this will take the pressure off you, so you can relax when you set time to relax and be very focused in the times you allot for each chunk.

Important and urgent. You have a final exam in two days, it’s worth 70% of your final grade. You haven’t put in enough time - there is so much new material to cover you don’t know where to start. Panic starts to set in.

This is a waste of your time. The best strategy is to focus the majority of your time on working on things that are important, but not urgent; the trick is to plan your time to make this possible. Sooner or later you will find this skill invaluable in all the aspects of your life.

The ideal coping method is to take a more objective look at the issue, and take the time to think it over calmly. There is no situation that can be best dealt with in haste; every difficulty needs some thought put into it, and every difficulty can be better overcome if you plan a little before diving into the situation.

Once you get this fine balance right, and at the same time learn how to make the urgency “work for you” with especially the urgent projects and exams, you’ll truly have a formula that will see you through any exam, project or work related task you’ll ever need to complete.