Yesterday’s tip-jar sign written by yours truly.
The inspiration behind yesterday’s tip-jar sign at Small World was a personal message from me that read, “I loved Anne-Marie Slaughter’s article in The Atlantic.” Not only did I love the article, but the sign was also an attempt to publicize her recent “Why Women Still Can’t Have it All” to our regulars, some of whom are Princeton University professors or administrators. Continue reading
Natalie Star on vacation in Puerto Rico (photo courtesy of Natalie Star)
Today’s jobtalk is with Natalie Star, a psychotherapist who has worked in both institutional settings and private practice. Though it has been almost three decades since Natalie received her master’s degree, she still feels as excited and challenged by her work today as she did when she started her career.
Title: Psychotherapist
Education:
M.S.W. University of Pennsylvania, 1983
L.C.S.W. 1993
Career Stage: Advanced
Why did you become a psychotherapist?
I was drawn to working with people in a helping mode. I found that people felt it was really easy to talk with me. As an introvert, I’m a good listener.
You might also say that I had a natural curiosity about what made people tick. It probably started because I grew up in a pretty complex family system where it behooved me to understand exactly what those subtle nuances of posture, words, and interactions meant. It could mean the difference between getting pulled into the family drama or managing to escape. Continue reading
With the Princeton University students away and summer in full swing, the café is slowing down. Yet as slow as it was on Monday, my awesome co-worker and I made fantastic tips. We used the slower-paced environment to take extra, extra care of each customer. Lots of smiling. Lots of eye contact. Lots of enthusiasm in our voices.
I know that earning great tips had very little to do with saying all the right things such as “What would you like today?” and “Would you like anything else?” and “Have a good day.” People who work in customer service say those exact words all of the time but don’t necessarily mean it. It’s always obvious because their body language doesn’t match their words. They may not even make the effort to look you in the eye. Those are the people who don’t make great tips. And those are behaviors – poor eye contact and incongruence Continue reading
Tony Bacigalupo
You’ve got a great job that lets you telecommute from home. You’re young and living with your parents on Long Island. Your hometown lacks nightlife, and you’re getting a little lonely from the lack of face-to-face interaction with people. Continue reading
Bloomberg’s soda ban is not going to work. Even Brian Wansink and David Just, the authors of one of the studies that the rationale for the ban is based on, say that it will backfire. According to the Wansink and Just, Bloomberg ignored a key part of the study.(The study demonstrates that the bigger the portion size, the more people eat.) In the study, people were given foods in gatherings where they were not likely to pay attention to portion sizes. But Bloomberg’s ban will take away people’s right to choose the size they want, which Wansink and Just believe won’t work to curb soda consumption.
Kirsten Thoft (photo courtesy of Kirsten Thoft)
Today’s jobtalk is with Kirsten Thoft, whose architectural work you can see firsthand if you live in Princeton. You can also see samples of her beautiful work by visiting her website.
Today’s jobtalk is with Erin Mickelwaite, who has a massage practice in Princeton, NJ. While Erin loves working with her hands, she is furthering her career by studying social work to create more avenues by which she can help people. Continue reading
Tuesday morning, Princeton University graduated its class of 2012.
Many 2012 graduates have a job lined up. Many don’t. Even those who are graduates from the Ivy League are without jobs. I know one Princeton grad who returned to her parents’ home in Nashville without having any job leads at all. I wished her well this morning when I bumped into her getting caffeinated at Princeton’s local coffee shop before she buckled up for the long drive back to Nashville.
She’s like many new graduates who are entering a job market that isn’t exactly waiting for them with open arms. Continue reading
Last week, I had the opportunity to Skype with Adam C. Baker, who founded manvsdebt.com in 2008 and co-founded Crank Tank Studios with Grant Peelle in 2011. Currently, Crank Tank Studios has raised over 49K on Kickstarter to fund its first documentary I’m Fine, Thanks. Continue reading