Abandon Canada? Excuse moi!

CREDIT: Graeme MacKay

The following is a response from a question I was asked to answer on Quora:

I’m sorry that you had to even ask the question: it bespoke a fear. Never good in any situation.

If Canada were allowed to deport a Canadian citizen, I think many Canadians would come up with someone they’d like to deport: Justin Beiber high on many lists.

Your husband wants to be heard. So you listen.
If you get a chance, perhaps ask him what country he is comparing Canada to?

People lose their jobs all over the world. I assure you, it is not a regional specialty. In my city, we’re dependent upon oil, and that’s the risk we take if we’re employed in that industry that likes to dip and peak at various times.

Perhaps your husband doesn’t like his career choice? Maybe it’s time to go back to school and do what he really wants to do or always wanted to learn.
I’m not sure whether even other Provinces in Canada have them, but in Alberta, the provincial government does have means to support those wanting to change careers.


Perhaps you live in the city where housing or rent is much more expensive than in the rural areas.
It’s only a hunch, but with the fast pace of Amazon expansion, he could get in the food or agricultural business. With the world’s population continuously expanding and borders bulging, food is something that will always be in demand. Restaurants tend to be risky and finance averse (lenders are wary).

Finally, take your husband to a Remembrance Day service on November 11th - it is a time we honor those who have fought on our behalf and the world to be a better place for Canadians. It is a Saturday. No excuses.

I’d almost guarantee that he’ll feel more proud of being a Canadian and appreciate a coffee at Tim Horton’s afterwards to ask him what he’d rather do or where he’d rather be.

America crashing cultures

Good heavens.  
Is the cookie crumbling?

I don't know which is worse:

1. Harvey Weinstein
2. Charlie Sheen
3. Donald Trump's disrespect for the office of the President

What would you choose?

They're all horrible [ ref tweet as @optioneerJM ].

Here starts the debate that will fuel a media frenzy churning around like the fiercest tornado or hurricane:  this one being online in social media.

Pull up your socks, flex your fingers, because there is no way there is any winner among the candidates.

My disclaimer:  I am a 56 year old gregarious mother of 4 children, 3 girls and a boy, ages 23 to 28.  When I add in my son-in-law, we have 3 boys a male dog = 4 compared to 4 gals.  We have to all agree on topics and set boundaries because as they grow older, they are more aware of what is going on around their world, not just in their immediate sphere.

My additional disclaimer:  I am Canadian.  3rd generation from both sides with both sets of parents married for over 50 years before the couple disintegrated by loss of one partner.  White, middle class, educated.  I spent 5 years living abroad in Europe while my father served in the Canadian Military.  My eyes were opened wide from a visit to a concentration camp, far more compelling than any museum, art gallery, church or castle [which all individually carry a lot of clout].

The biggest problem I have with is Trump as President and the scandals rocking Hollywood first with Harvey Weinstein, and now Charlie Sheen.  Trump may be thinking he's looking like a choir boy or Harvey may justify that at least the women were adults.

The only metaphor or image that keeps spinning in my mind, are depicting the media as Piranhas attacking their subject [certainly in this case not a victim, good gracious!]

 

This is a still from Piranha 3D - but real-life fish can be almost as terrifying Photo: Moviestore Collection / Rex Features

Why recruiters should learn to read

Original content by

Jeannette Marshall

Posted on Linked In

(c) Copyright

Good afternoon Jeannette,

I hope this message finds you well.

I am reaching out to see whether you might be interested in an Escalation Manager opportunity.

 I have included a brief job description below. Let me know if you are interested and we can speak about this opportunity further. If you are not interested, it would still be great to hear from you to get an update on what you are working on at the moment.

 Lastly, if you know anyone in your network who might be interested in this opportunity, please feel free to pass on my details.

 Look forward to hearing from you and have a great day!

 Best,

**********

Technical Recruiter

Interesting. Perhaps not.

Firstly, I have never heard of this person or been in touch with the organization she works for before.

Secondly, I did call her back, as per the normal manners should anyone call you, even a head hunter, recruiter or your favorite job description for this role.

She referenced my resume being in their "data base" from quite a while ago [how she came to reach out to me].

Thirdly, I wonder: "isn't there was a rule that was going to be enforced that does not allow employment agencies to approach people unsolicited, without your permission. Especially by email?"

Well, the main point of sharing this is because the company she was calling on behalf of is an employer. It may indicate that the sender had not reviewed who the letter was being sent to, never mind reviewed my resume?

If I were the client engaging this organization, they may wonder how they research the candidates they may put forward. [In my case, not an option].

She was kind enough to forward the job description, which is really a nice touch.

******** Manager

On behalf of our client, actively seeking an Escalation Manager who will perform incident management duties on high-severity troubles for our client's partners as well as end customer sales fulfillment escalations.

Escalation Manager Job Details

• Assess, monitor and escalate resolution activities
• Communicate status and impact on issues/escalations
• Assess and prioritize issues and the inherent risks
• Coordinate resolution activities as required
• Ensure implementation or restoral of service operation or resolution of issue as quickly as possible with minimal disruptions to our customers
• Develop and maintain meaningful records
• Maintain and enhance the NGM issues and risks management system
• Communicate incident status and progress in a timely manner to all concerned parties
• Assist in the relationship management between resolving groups, service management and the customer key contacts
• Ensure the best resource utilization in supporting the business and the customer
• Become a Subject Matter Expert (SME) for E2E Service Assurance and/or Fulfillment process
• Work collaboratively with others across the organization and build strong inter/intra departmental relationships
• Provide coaching back to team members across the organization to drive accountability and learning
• Be a process champion consistently looking for better solutions
• Make recommendations to enhance or simply process, and metrics to monitor process performance.
• Own and revise as needed our commercial and residential RACI charts
• Facilitate meetings with a cross section of internal stakeholders

Escalation Manager Mandatory Skills 

• Experience with Salesforce, Domo, Jira
• Knowledge of Wireless and Wireline products and services
• Solid problem solving skills with the ability to think creatively
• Excellent customer service in fast-paced, high stress environment
• Strong sense of ownership (customer-focus)
• Facilitate meetings with a cross section of industry players

Location 

Vancouver/Edmonton/Calgary

Start Date

Immediately 

Jeannette is a familiar social media personality as @optioneerJM - she blogs and writes as she learns and shares what she learns. She lives in Calgary, Alberta CANADA and is an unofficial ambassador for the city she loves.

Should you bother with social media or develop a follow?

Kissy Face by Stephanie Keir Tumblr / Instagram / DeviantArt

Great Question! [answer from QUORA ]

To be fair and to put things into perspective, you have to ask first: what would you want to get out of social media?

1. If you say YES to wanting to keep in touch with my friends online.
2. Check out what is buzzing around the world: art ~ politics ~ violence ~ gossip ~ things ~ technology ~ innovation ~ hollywood scandal [aka Weinstein horry show].
3. Continue a conversation around a specific topic or event aligned by a hashtag for ease of use [ i.e. in Twitter, you are automatically popped into the feed of that hashtag ]
4. Kill boredom: surf through viral videos to watch, new music to hear or interesting blogs with emerging writers.
5. Where just about any conversation is captured somewhere that allows you to join the discussion, lend some knowledge, bend an ear or provide advice.
6. Think of today’s traditional media: newspaper, magazines, television or radio and blend them all together, broadcast simultaneously, and you are in control of what you are watching without all the commercials or advertisements.
7. You are interested in other cultures, other people, other issues, other places.
8. You can view beautiful places on earth captured visually by the gifted eyes through photography, art, videography 24 x 7 x 365 days a year.
9. There is a mosh pit of people all speaking, yelling, crying, joking, sniffling, spooking, scaring, inspiring, motivating, blaming, claiming fame at the exact same time.
10. You like a challenge. Where else can you test your theories, sneak insights and learn things across the universe, to seeing NASA’s photos of earth at its most blessed times and horrific [hurricanes].
11. You may not be alone, or even a loner, or even feeling lonely. Who cares either way? You can make new virtual friends exponentially times infinite divided by the time you realistically have to spend nurturing new acquaintances on to friendships.
12. In some instances, you could want a life chronologically captured: posts from memorable events she wanted to share, like new jobs, new beau, new baby, or simply new hairdo!! The Millennial generation need not have the worry their parents and grandparents had over keeping photo albums updated and all photos filed, chronologically and cross-referenced to person or event (i.e. tag) accessible in seconds, not hours.
13. If you are trying to sell something then you have the big YES! Keep in mind, if you are applying for a job or looking for a new one, you will need to be connected online if you want to appear as though leaping into the way of doing things digitally rather than dragging and clinging to paper with ink lovingly gripping tradition and determined never to let go.

My son showing me something from his mobile device.

Mental health diagnosis : anxiety

Causes

Researchers don’t know exactly what brings on anxiety disorders. Like other forms of mental illness, they stem from a combination of things, including changes in your brainand environmental stress, and even your genes. The disorders can run in families and could be linked to faulty circuits in the brain that control fear and other emotions.

Diagnosis

If you have symptoms, your doctor will examine you and ask for your medical history. She may run tests to rule out medical illnesses that might be causing your symptoms. No lab tests can specifically diagnose anxiety disorders.

If your doctor doesn’t find any medical reason for how you’re feeling, she may send you to a psychiatrist, psychologist, or another mental health specialist. Those doctors will ask you questions and use tools and testing to find out if you may have an anxiety disorder.

Your doctor will consider how long and how intense your symptoms are when diagnosing you. She’ll also check to see if the symptoms keep you from carrying out your normal activities.

Treatments

Most people with the condition try one or more of these therapies:

• Medication: Many antidepressants can work for anxiety disorders. They include escitalopram (Lexapro) and fluoxetine (Prozac). Certain anticonvulsant medicines (typically taken for epilepsy) and low-dose antipsychotic drugs can be added to help make other treatments work better. Anxiolytics are also drugs that help lower anxiety. Examples are alprazolam (Xanax) and clonazepam (Klonopin). They’re prescribed for social or generalized anxiety disorder as well as for panic attacks.
• Psychotherapy: This is a type of counseling that addresses the emotional response to mental illness. A mental health specialist helps you by talking about how to understand and deal with your anxiety disorder.
• Cognitive behavioral therapy: This is a certain type of psychotherapy that teaches you how to recognize and change thought patterns and behaviors that trigger deep anxiety or panic.

What to Expect From ADHD and Anxiety

When you have anxiety along with ADHD, it may make some of your ADHD symptoms worse, such as feeling restless or having trouble concentrating. But anxiety disorder also comes with its own set of symptoms, like:

• Constant worry about many different things
• Feeling on edge
• Stress
• Fatigue
• Trouble sleeping

Anxiety disorder is more than just having anxious feelings from time to time. It's a mental illness that can affect your relationships, work, and quality of life.

How to Tell Your ADHD and Anxiety Apart

Sometimes, anxiety comes as a result of ADHD. When that's the case, your worries are often about how much -- or how little -- you're able to get done. You're anxious about or overwhelmed by your ADHD.

When you have anxiety disorder on top of your ADHD, your worries are usually about a wide variety of things and not only tied to your ADHD struggles.

Talk to your doctor so the two of you can figure out where your anxiety is coming from. Some questions they may ask you are:

• Do you worry about things that don't make sense?
• Do you have a hard time controlling these worries?
• Are you getting good sleep?
• Are your fears and worries keeping you from doing your regular activities?
• Do you feel anxious at least three to five times a week for an hour or more a day?
• Have you had a big life event happen recently?
• Do any of your family members have a history of anxiety?

How to Treat ADHD and Anxiety

To zero in on the best way to treat ADHD and anxiety, your doctor will likely look at which condition affects you the most. It's possible that your treatment for ADHD may ease your anxiety, so you may only need to take ADHD medication.

When you get treatment for ADHD, it can:

• Cut your stress
• Improve your attention so you manage tasks better
• Give you mental energy to handle anxiety symptoms more easily

If your anxiety is a separate condition and not a symptom of ADHD, you may need to treat both disorders at the same time.

Some treatments can work for both ADHD and anxiety, such as:

• Cognitive behavioral therapy
• Relaxation techniques and meditation
• Prescription medications

Effects of ADHD Medication on Your Anxiety

The most common drugs that doctors suggest for ADHD are stimulants like methylphenidate and amphetamines. Even if you have anxiety, these meds may work well for your ADHD.

Anxiety is a common side effect of stimulants. Your doctor won't know how a medication will affect you until you take it, but it's possible stimulants may make your anxiety symptoms worse.

If that's the case for you, your doctor may suggest other medicines, such as the nonstimulant drug atomoxetine (Strattera).

Your doctor may also recommend antidepressants like:

• Bupropion (Wellbutrin)
• Desipramine (Norpramin)
• Imipramine (Tofranil)
• Nortriptyline (Pamelor)
• Venlafaxine (Effexor)

High blood pressure drugs like clonidine (Catapres, Kapvay) and guanfacine (Tenex, Intuniv) may also help.

CREDIT SOURCE:  https://www.webmd.com/add-adhd/anxiety-adhd-link#2

A solitary reflection

George Karasov 

This blog was original written and posted on the optioneerJM blog. 

Excuse moi to readers who come to optioneerJM for business, leadership, sales or social media advice.  You have been bombarded with clips from Polyvore, independently posted.

I apologize.  It was another experiment or test.  No apologies for the test certainly.  I disclose that I am constantly trying out new avenues online to see what is what, what works, and how I may want to do things differently.

This is a "do differently".  

Polyvore allows users to create fashion statements, creative ensemble within a specific user base:  fashion enthusiasts, fashionistas and creative personalities.  I hadn't been there for a while before yesterday.  Because I haven't, I looked at the experience with fresh eyes, as if new.

Polyvore is a great environment for the fashion conscience, creative minds, fashionistas and the like.  My meanderingsabout blog is my reflection on creative expression ... outside the "box" of what I write here.  

Creativity is an integral part of who I am.  I recognized the following I had and that they were not interested in the fashionista and beauty side of who I am:  a woman in her 50s fighting aging by using a tasteful fashion, accessories, beauty regime.  That's where I created Meanderings about a year ago.  

Maybe the original idea was to have a blog where I could "rant".  Then realizing that people just don't like to read about rants, in general.  The only time I've seen them work is when a group amasses to express a similar disapproval.  More often, I've noticed, they are directed at airlines.  I would say telecommunication cellular providers would battle for first other days.  

Then I began writing as if I was giving advice to my daughters on life, living, love and dating.  They may not read it.  My three daughters and stepdaughter aged 22, 23 and 25.  A great representation of the Millennials.  

Not all experiments are successful.  Usually you can extrapolate what you have learned from the exercise and extrapolate "do differently" for down the road.

So Polyvore has the right idea:  they allow enthusiasts to share their creations on Pinterest, Tumblr, Twitter and Facebook.  Sadly, missing is instaGRAM.  Also, when you select posting for a Blog, the default is Tumblr, while allowing you to select "BLOG" for Google's Blogspot posts.  It defaults to the blog you have associated with your email address, which in this case is optioneerJM.  It doesn't allow me to distinguish it if you happen to have more than one blogspot.  

I will continue to fiddle around and experiment.  Thank you for your understanding.  I apologize if it seemed misleading to draw my loyal readers here, thinking I may be writing about sales and instead be bombarded with these posts that seem commercial.  You share the image you created on Polyvore, and then what Brands represent the products you have selected.

Polyvore has Polyvore Clippers, which I am liking, and just getting around to trying (for instance the image of Sally Field in character of Doris surrounded by scarves and cat eye glasses.  

There are a lot of tools or sites that start out with one idea and its users evolve and experiment, bringing a wider ensemble of tools and ways to share.  I'm never content to just create, post, share.  I like to test to see how it can be used in building social media audiences or "content" as the big thing these days is.  

Corporate brands and companies have gotten the message.  They are adding "Blog" to their websites.  However, the conundrum is how to keep the Blogs fresh, relevant, with regular posting.  A way to drive viewers to the website, where the website is suppose to take over and keep the audience there longer, to click, go deeper into the site.  Even better if an inquiry or lead generated or a sale.

I will keep exploring and doing experiments and reporting findings for others to benefit.  Even if that means an annoying array of blog posts that seem to have little to nothing to do with the central theme.

IF, this happened to make you curious.  I went to Polyvore to gather ideas for a Halloween costume -- obviously, I'm looking to be "Doris" from this great, whimsical, movie about an isolated woman in her 60s who steps out, after the passing of her mother whom Doris was caregiver to.  The idea of how she takes on what is normally Tween or Teenage experiences about dating and socializing.

  Doris is wonderfully portrayed by Oscar winner Sally Field, whom I hope gets an Oscar for this great role.  You can't help but be entertained with her crush experience, being coached by a 13 year old friend's granddaughter.  

Now, I will tidy up optioneerJM and move the creations over to meanderingsABOUT and delete the errant posts from here once they are where they belong.  (CHECK ~ done)

I will continue to experiment and try new things.  To report on findings that may help others with their social media experience, expand their social selling efforts, or share advice on business or leadership.  It has been a fun ride, and after 200,000+ page views, I look forward to continue to learn and share those experiences with you.

You can join me on Polyvore and join in the fun!  I've experimented with GROUPS, creating one for fashionista creatives who want to create ensembles that Doris would love:

This post has also been featured on "The Publisher" and "optioneerJM".

LINK to The Publisher

optioneerJM

I was a little taken aback by this blog I had written.  I can't say why it was sitting in drafts?  I am going to guess it was Halloween 2016.  

That was my first climb out of depression.  I am honestly telling everyone.  Twice, in the past 6 months, I threatened suicide -- not to my family or friends -- to respond to the threat of bullying, commonly accepted culture where I found myself spiraling downward into.

If "Alice in Wonderland" fell into a hole with magical ramifications and whimsical delights, then I fell into the waiting room with next step:  HELL!

If you stand out, stand up.