What to do when feedback is hurtful

by Rhonda Scharf | May 29, 2023 | Ask Rhonda, Communication, Efficiency, Help Me Rhonda, Management, Office Solutions, Positive attitude, Tips

We all need feedback and learn from the good and the not-so-good feedback. I intellectually get it, but when I receive critical feedback, I often take it personally and am hurt by it. I know I shouldn’t, but it often stings as I’ve taken the feedback...

Email Subject Lines to Save You Time and Effort at Work

by Rhonda Scharf | May 23, 2023 | Ask Rhonda, Communication, Efficiency, Help Me Rhonda, Management, Office Solutions, Positive attitude, Tips

The average person receives more than 100 business emails per day (financesonline.com), and that doesn’t include spam! How much of your day is spent chasing people who don’t respond to your email in the first place? Do you regularly complain that people just don’t...

Good Enough is NOT Good Enough

by Rhonda Scharf | May 15, 2023 | Ask Rhonda, Communication, Efficiency, Help Me Rhonda, Management, Office Solutions, Positive attitude, Tips

We are launching our new website right now, and as you can imagine, the transition from old to new is long, complicated, and filled with “what ifs.” It would be easy to delay the launch until the site was perfect. You and I both know that it will never be “perfect.”...

Can you BLUF or KISS your way to success?

by Rhonda Scharf | Apr 11, 2023 | Ask Rhonda, Communication, Efficiency, Help Me Rhonda

I was chatting with Heather, one of our finalists for the Canadian Administrative Professional of the Year, and she threw out the term BLUF. I smiled, as I hadn’t heard that in many years. BLUF – bottom line up front. How many of you work for professionals that are...

Spring Cleaning for the Office

by Rhonda Scharf | Apr 2, 2023 | Ask Rhonda, Efficiency, Help Me Rhonda

  I can smell the spring in the air. While I still see snow in my yard, the days are getting longer, the birds are louder, the trees are waking up, and I can smell that winter is finally ending. At this time of year, the annual “spring cleaning” bug...

TIPS FOR ADDING SELF-CARE TO YOUR DAILY ROUTINE

by Rhonda Scharf | Mar 28, 2023 | Ask Rhonda, Efficiency, Goal Setting, Help Me Rhonda

My week-long vacation included six full days on the beach. I read four books cover to cover (and the fifth one started), a beautiful dinner with my honey each night, time in the bathtub to soak and chat, followed by ten-plus hours of sleep each night. Less than an...