In early November, I helped run the Weekend For Good event as part of the Code For Good West Michigan admin team. The event brought together 120+ volunteers and 14 local nonprofits to help build, rebrand, or update websites. It was scheduled for three straight days, and I was there for all of it.

It’s safe to say I needed a break after working my normal weekly schedule along with the extra hours I put in over the weekend. This made November 5 an important day—and not because it was Guy Fawkes Day, but because it was the first time I had used any of my allotted vacation time. Read more on What I Learned from Working 32 Hours a Week…

Dear Slack,

We’ve known each other for years now. When we first met, I was excited by how pretty you were. I could customize my theme, add whatever emojis I wanted—even GIFs!— and throw a ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ after every message where I just wasn’t quite sure. What more could a girl ask for in a messaging service?
Read more on A Love Letter to Slack (or, My Favorite Slack Features)…

No matter your profession, if you’re a part of the workforce in the United States, you have at some point been confronted with a seemingly simple question: “Do you love your job?”

It is an inescapable phrase, wrapped up in our national psyche along with ideas of the American Dream, the purpose of our lives, and what we do with our time here on earth. It’s also a privilege to be able to consider the question in any employment decision. So, do you love your job? Read more on Are You in a Relationship with Your Job?…

Life is complicated at times, for all of us, both in and out of work. For me, being married while raising two kids and maintaining a full-time job can get crazy at times. Though you may try hard to keep your home life separate from your work life, it is not always possible to have a clean division… nor should you feel obligated to do so. Read more on How to Be a Good Teammate When Your Personal Life Affects Your Work…

Music can be incredibly beneficial to various types of work, including coding. There have been studies on which types of music can help us focus better, feel less anxious, and relax after a stressful day. I’ve found five kinds of audio experiences that help me stay more productive at work, and there’s research to back that up. Read more on Five Types of Music that Can Improve Your Productivity…

A few months ago, I read “The Surprising Power of Questions” in the Harvard Business Review. It resonated with me quite a bit. I was most interested in the idea that simply asking more questions can help you learn more and bond with others. For example, one study found that “I wish they had asked more questions” was the most common negative feedback after initial meetings. Read more on 60 Days of Questions – An Experiment…

Because I’m a recent college graduate, the experience of researching and interviewing for my first job is fresh in my mind. This time last year, I was researching different companies, marking my calendar with the university’s career fair, preparing for the interview process, and turning down my first job offer ever. It was an exciting, but stressful, time of life.

Now that I’m a few months into my full-time job, I’ve been able to reflect on the things I wish I’d known going into the process. In no particular order, here are the top five pieces of advice I’d give to other soon-to-be graduates who are navigating the job search process. Read more on Choosing Your First Full-Time Job – Five Tips from a Recent College Grad…

Recently, my husband and I received some great news: We’re expecting our first child in February! We’re thrilled, and the journey is going to be very exciting, but it does come with some significant changes. Namely, for the last few months, I’ve felt that the things I needed to do have required several times the amount of energy that I’ve had available.

During this time, I felt like I was dropping the ball on all of my commitments at once. I was keeping up with daily project work, but I was falling behind on almost everything else. Every way I turned, it felt like I was letting someone down.

Here’s how I managed to get through this time, mitigate issues, and repair some of the damage. Read more on On Taking a Step Back: Gracefully Managing Your Commitments When Everything is a Little Too Much…