Horrible house guests, we’ve all had them. Whether it be that annoying family member that over stays their welcome, or that old college buddy that leaves beer cans and potato chip crumbles all over your couch, we have all experienced those discourteous visits. If you thought that was bad etiquette, you’ve yet to see the worst…
Imagine coming home and finding that your current work has gone missing, your valuable data has been completely disorganized and all your important files have been put in the trash, what would you do? I’m not referring to your terrestrial home, I am talking about the virtual home most businesses today share – the cloud.
Cloud computing has its own essential and unwritten code of ethics. As a cloud user, you must be courteous of others you share the cloud with, no one appreciates an ill-mannered cloud partner. For those reasons we have put together a few etiquette tips to help you be the best house guest possible when visiting the cloud.
Keep emails and subject lines concise and to the point. If you find yourself four paragraphs in and still haven’t gotten to your point or asked your question, it’s time to pick up the phone.
Subject lines, keep them short, useful and specific! “Do you have a minute to chat?” is too vague and doesn’t really explain the contents of the email. Instead try, “Let’s meet to discuss the new BDR solution and pricing.” Use words that people would reasonably search for. Instead of “Please review the attached,” include what they are reviewing: “Cloud Etiquette 101 blog draft for review.”
Compress your files, please. There is nothing more irritating than receiving an email that takes 10 minutes to load because of a 50 MB attachment. Be sure to always compress files before hitting send. If a file cannot be compressed any further, you can also use a cloud-based storage solution with shareable links such as Dropbox or WeTransfer.
Maintain accountably. Cloud computing works best when there is accountability. Everyone need to be made aware that sometimes there will be many individuals working out of the same project. Because of that, it is always important to communicate all changes made to any folders or files in the cloud.
Ask before you delete! When deleting from the cloud, the files aren’t just deleted from your computer – they’re deleted from everyone’s computer whom you’ve shared the with. Make sure to never delete files from folders without asking.
Don’t pick stupid names. Try and be as specific as can be when naming a file or a folder on the cloud. The file-naming convention that your business uses needs to be understood by everyone in the cloud.
Don’t overfill folders. Be aware of the size of your files. Don’t add a massive 3 GB mega-file that’s going to take up all of that folders storage space. Also, be sure to keep your data organized to avoid annoying others with unnecessary clutter.
Together is the only way we can make #thecloud a better place. Don’t be that person no one wants to share their cloud with. Put these cloud etiquette tips to use and you will surely be invited back into the virtual home.
Data loss is not a matter of if, it’s a matter of when – and it happens to every company, big or small. More than half of businesses locate their disaster/backup systems in the same physical location as their primary system – red alert! If you only have one copy of your system’s backup at your office, and your hardware fails or a breach occurs and all your data is stolen, then a backup was completely useless to begin with. In a bit of irony, it turns out that the safest place to be during a storm is “in the cloud.”
Cloud computing not only offers back up protection against system malfunctions or natural disasters, it also keeps businesses safe against cybertheft, ransomware, malware, viruses, phishing, cross-site scripting, employees, and the list goes on. It’s not that businesses don’t recognize the importance of having a disaster recovery plan in place. It’s just that they simply have it in the wrong place.
So, let’s say you’ve finally agreed that it’s time to move to the cloud – where do you start?
Here are some recommendations that can help you though the process:
While the road ahead may be tough, with these tips in mind, you can begin moving your business processes to the cloud safely and efficiently.
Everyone is talking about cloud computing these days and for good reason. The cloud is revolutionizing how computing power is generated and consumed. Cloud refers to software and services that run on the Internet, instead of locally on your computer. When tech companies say your data is backed up “in the cloud,” it has nothing to do with those white fluffy things in the sky. Your data isn’t actually up in the cosmos or floating around in space. It has a terrestrial home. It’s stored someplace – lots of places, actually – and a network of servers find what you need, when you need it and deliver it.
Cloud computing, if done properly can make your business much more efficient. However, a cloud solution is only as good as the quality of the research, the implementation, and the follow-through. So, how do you know if moving your business applications and data to the cloud is the right answer for you? There are few things you need to know about the cloud first.
What exactly is the cloud? This is a tricky question in and of itself. Just like the clouds in the sky, there are many clouds when it comes to technology. In the simplest terms, cloud computing means storing and accessing data and applications over the Internet instead of your computer’s hard drive. It is using a network of computers to store and process information, rather than a single hard drive.
Public vs. Private vs. Hybrid? Not all clouds are the same. You have options with public clouds, private clouds, as well as hybrid clouds. Choosing the right options for your business comes down to the needs and the amount of control you would like to have.
HaaS or Saas? Just like there are different types of clouds, when it comes to cloud computing, there are also different types cloud services. Most commonly used cloud services fall into two categories: HaaS and SaaS.
Is it safe and reliable? As mentioned before, cloud computing is the way of the future. We know it is easy and inexpensive – but, is it safe and reliable? What good is saving money and switching to a cloud solution if it will bring additional risks to my business? Most cloud service providers offer encryption features such as service-side encryption to manage your own encryption keys. So, in reality, you ultimately decide how safe your solution is. As far as reliability goes, in many cases, cloud computing can reduce the amount of downtime right down to seconds. Since there are multiple copies of your data stored all throughout the cloud, there is no single point of failure. Most data can usually be recovered with a simple click of the mouse.
In the end, though, companies shouldn’t make decisions entirely based on what they are comfortable with, or what with what is cheapest. What should be most important is deciding whether or not transitioning into the cloud will work for your business.
To cloud, or not to cloud? The choice is all yours. Do your research and ask the right questions.
Are you trying to figure out how to deal with stress at work? Then trust me, you’re not alone! Thousands of Americans are affected by work related stress on a daily basis, and a constant barrage of this stress could cause severe instability in your life.
Yes of course, many people like to say that “it’s just stress” and you should just let it pass by. But how long are you going to wait before realizing that this waiting game is never ending?
The University of Maryland Medical Center (UMMC) has stated, “If stress becomes persistent and low-level, however, all parts of the body’s stress apparatus (the brain, heart, lungs, blood vessels, and muscles) become chronically over-activated or under-activated. Such chronic stress may produce physical or psychological damage over time.”
This simply means that stress over time is not going to get better, and will actually only get worse unless you take action for dealing with stress at work.
There are many different ways deal with work stress. The first step? You have to admit to yourself that the stress is becoming a burden. Once you’ve convinced yourself.. go ahead and try out some of the stress relieving techniques below –
Start your day with a couple of basic moves to relax your body.
Exercise and stretching techniques go well together when it comes to dealing with stress at work. These two techniques are great for you to use outside of work and even during your breaks.
This doesn’t mean you need to go out and get an expensive gym membership, nor is there the need for extra finances being spent on equipment either because you can do these exercises with your own body weight.
Body weight training is simple and effective. Two great exercises to perform are push-ups and squats. Both of these exercises help release hormones in your body that suppress stress related mental blocks, and they are great for getting your body in better shape!
Push-ups exercise your entire upper body from your shoulders down to your stomach, and then squats tighten up your legs and midsection. Beat stress and look sexy? Hell yes!
So how do you go about actually doing these exercises? A great idea is to make the most of the morning hours. When you wake up and start to dread about the work day – take a deep breath, smile you yourself and then all you have to do is:
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These three basic techniques are going to get your body warmed up and refreshed for the challenges of your work day that are still to come! Be sure to eat a decent breakfast to give your body further energy that lasts throughout the day.
Stretching techniques have been used for centuries by various cultures to ease the body and mind of physical and mental stress. Stretching could simply be rolling your head from left to right in order to relieve the tension in your brain cavities due to headaches caused by stress, or it could be more advanced techniques such as yoga!
Physiologically, yoga relaxes the body and mind. Yoga combines breathing and stretching techniques into an advanced, fluid motion of moving from one motion to another. You don’t need a class to perform the basics. Simply look up a few stretches and do them at home or at work.
Take a couple of minutes to breath. Go outside if you can.
Take a moment away from your busy schedule; take in a deep breath, and then exhale. Have you noticed that by doing so your body just naturally feels more relaxed and ready to take on the remaining work tasks? This is because every time you take in a slow, deep breath you send a chemical message to your brain. This message is to alert your brain that something is wrong, and then the brain takes the message and sends it via your nervous system to the rest of your body, which causes the relaxing feeling to occur.
The best part about using breathing techniques when it comes to coping with stress at work is that it’s free! No need for equipment and you can perform it anywhere you want, and to deal with any stressful situation at work. “Those things that happen when you are stressed, such as increased heart rate, fast breathing, and high blood pressure, all decrease as you breathe deeply to relax.”^
Make sure B-vitamins are a good part of your daily nutrition. You will find it very helpful when it comes to dealing with stress at work. Dr Manny Alvarez has stated that, “B vitamins are known to promote proper functioning of the brain and nervous system, as well as help induce relaxation and fight fatigue.” All you have to do is make sure that you eat foods that are high in B-vitamins such as nuts and eggs – preferably in the morning when your body has just been fasted while you were asleep.
Dealing with stress at work just becomes cumbersome and tiring, and you understandably just want to start pulling your hair out. But hey, take a deep breath… and before you go crazy trying to figure out how to deal with stress at work – take an active approach. The methods shown above will help you get lead a better quality life with much less stress. Work is always going to be there so long as you have bills to pay, and a stomach to feed but stress doesn’t have to come with the package.
Taking an inactive approach only leads to depression, anxiety, and body fatigue, which only gets worse every day that passes on. Money is never an issue because most things you can do to prevent work related stress is free! So what do you think? Are you ready to change your life for the better?
Also learn how to deal with stress at work during pregnancy.
Do you have any tips on how to deal with stress and pressure at work? Do share – I’d love to know your thoughts.
^Murray MT, Pizzorno JE Jr (2006). Stress management. In JE Pizzorno Jr, MT Murray, eds., Textbook of Natural Medicine, 3rd ed., vol. 1, pp. 701–708. St. Louis: Churchill Livingstone.
A 2017 Identity Fraud Study by Javelin Strategy & Research revealed that nearly one in three consumers notified that their data has been breached became victims of identity fraud. With the recent Equifax cyberattack still fresh in our minds, more than 145 million Americans’ names, addresses, birthdates, social security numbers and other sensitive information may be at risk. Cybercriminals are clever and constantly exploring ways to swipe your personal information. The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) reported that phishing plots continue to lead its “dirty dozen” list of 2017 tax scams.
So what is the average American to do?
The National Cyber Security Alliance (NCSA) and the Identity Theft Resource Center (ITRC) have once again joined forces to help consumers remain safe during tax season with tips for identifying cyber scams, actionable online safety steps and what to do if you fall victim to tax identity theft. To download their informational report, click below:
CLICK HERE: Tax-Time-Tip-sheet-2018
