Career Advice

If bosom buddies transmute into evil enemies, deal with ‘em before they ravage your mojo. Just another day at the office: your former same-sex love interest forsakes goodness, starting an unholy reign of terror to rule earth by dark magic. Oops, that’s the plot of “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them 2.” In this sequel, ex-besties Albus Dumbledore and Gellert Grindelwald have a falling out. Just like workplace pals often do. Though in their case the world’s fate is at stake.

Turn your tendency to take the high road into a competitive advantage at work. Don’t you hate it when a-holes get rewarded? Makes ol’ Machiavelli seem bang on: All’s fair at work and war.

Free job search coaching, funding, and donated interview clothing: there are resources for low-income folks in need. Job hunters with low incomes have some extra hurdles. Some can’t afford proper clothes for interviews. Lots of others would never get good search help if it weren’t subsidized. Thank goodness there’s a whack of resources out there. Whether paid for by our taxes or charitable giving, being jobless doesn’t have to mean being penniless.

Bet you didn’t know the real name of Queen’s late frontman is Farrokh Bulsara. Canada also has famous crooners born of newcomers. Immigration rocks! And rolls too. Where would Queen have been without its genre shattering lead? Who knows, had Mr. Bulsara and parents not schlepped from Zanzibar to Britain. Canada too boasts music celebrities whose forebears come from away. There’s Able Tesfaye, slightly better known as The Weeknd. Nelly Furtado is of Portuguese descent. And who can forget worldwide rap star, Aubrey Graham? (He’s sometimes called Drake, btw.)

Fed up with after hours e-intrusions from the job? No specific law protects you, yet! Nasty beeps and buzzes from work after hours. They’re today’s unpaid overtime. Barging into your private world. Next asshole who texts you from work at 9:52 p.m. – expecting an answer – must be slain (metaphorically). Value your Netflix-and-chill moments? But shook that dodging dings from the office makes you disloyal? Bad news: Nowadays the right to disconnect’s a grey zone.

Does this costume make me look… inappropriate? Having some Halloween fun at the office can be a good thing but releasing your inner superman or killer zombie could be a scary career move. The last thing you want to do is spook away that promotion, or even drive a deadly wedge between you and management. Taking into account the popularity of Halloween and the fact that adult costume sales have eclipsed children’s, be prepared for stranger things to come alive in your office. But remember you’re not a kid, and there’s no tricking allowed. Your costume is part of your professional brand.

There’s no Canadian legal ban against side hustles, but that doesn’t mean it’s always acceptable. Damn you, butt dialling! It chewed a well-paid IBM Canada employee in the behind. Some pocket-produced calls exposed his moonlighting. Got him fired from his real job. He took it to court but lost. Should folks with a full-time job who side hustle start fessing up? While there’s no specific law banning secondary work, certain factors make it risky. Whether to reveal or not thus depends on what’s shaking.

Extra pounds are bad for your career. They can weigh heavy on performance, and not only that, the pounds quickly add up! One recent study reports that nearly 1/2 of workers have put weight on at their current job – one quarter admits to at least 10 pounds. Double that for others!

In the time between accepting the offer and start-day prep to make succeeding nothing but a swish. Pay rapt attention. No, even Raptor. NBA superstar Kawhi Leonard has transferred to Canada (at least for 2018-19). How’s this California native prepping for his moose and Mountie debut? A lot like you before starting a new job. He’s using pre-season – the half-time after offer signing and before officially starting – to ensure his game’s lit. No reason you should be a basket case on your first day. Not if you follow the playbook.