There is no shortage of careers to consider when you’re looking for a new job. However, if years of school and tens of thousands of dollars’ worth of debt aren’t the routes you want to take in the pursuit of a job, you may find yourself considering a career in trucking. It’s true that there is some training involved, but it doesn’t require a special degree, and many who become truckers graduate from the program without any debt. MORE

A reader writes: I work in the corporate office of a business in the entertainment industry. We were slowly dying before, but Covid-19 has placed our industry in an uncertain position as all of our outlets are closed. As such, I have been furloughed for an indefinite period of time. My company is amazing and is paying 100% of my benefits (health, dental, life) while I’m out without any expectation of repayment once I am back. MORE

Damn you, Glassdoor! . Quit toying with me. I have enough s##t going on without you cratering my expected value. A couple of years ago we were recruiting software sales pros at Kinetix and SF was a target market. So I used my Glassdoor account to confirm that the Bay area was an expensive place to hire hunting sales pros, listing my occupation and location to match the target. I never changed it. I expected my value to fall a bit during COVID, but c'mon. MORE

Like many people, I was laid off as part of a company-wide reduction in workforce due to COVID 19. One of 50-60 people at a software company serving one of the hardest-hit industries. They did a decent job as far as paying some severance, etc. MORE

Calming Cubicle Décor. Let’s face it, we spend an inordinate amount of time at our cubicles. That’s why sprucing up your office with calming cubicle décor can be so helpful to both your mental health and your productivity. Surrounding yourself with items and décor that is calming, serene, and Zen-like will not only create an atmosphere you enjoy being in but will also help you to focus and complete the tasks on hand. MORE

It’s a special “where are you now?” season at Ask a Manager, when I’m running updates from people who had their letters here answered in the past. Here are four updates from past letter-writers. Applying for a full-time job and asking to work part-time. I knew going back to this letter would be humbling, and it was. MORE

It’s five answers to five questions. Here we go…. How do I stop clients from ranting about why we haven’t reopened yet? I work for a national nonprofit that does hands-on, in-person work. We have been closed since mid-March, got a PPP loan in the second round (so staff are still getting paid), and are closed until upper management/staff feel that it is safe to reopen. MORE

A reader writes: I work for a small company with about 10 employees working full-time in the office. We all report directly to the CEO, Phil. When the pandemic hit, Phil went into full panic mode and had us all move our desks 12+ feet apart, wash our hands every 20 minutes, sterilize everything in between uses, etc. Nothing super weird, and better than having no reaction at all, but it was a hypervigilant process that made me expect him to be very accommodating when our state went on lockdown. MORE

A reader writes: Your advice around the pandemic and expectations for managers has been extremely helpful. However, I am struggling with when it is reasonable for employers to expect employees to get closer to pre-coronavirus work outputs. It seems clear that we will not be going back to a “normal” work environment anytime soon, so do you have any guidance on how long it may take people to readjust? MORE

A company cell phone policy is an agreement between employer and employee regarding the use of cell phones and smart devices while at work. MORE

For many of us it seems that we are actually now in more uncertain times than we were a few weeks ago. Lockdown may have come upon us all relatively quickly, but its realities were easily understood – we were told we can’t go out, meet that person, visit that store. Unlocking our lives once again is much more complex. It’s all a question of judgement. What should change? By how much? How fast, What milestones? Who decides and on what advice? Who’s checking? MORE

“I felt completely out of place.”. Helen Graves was suffocating in a toxic work environment. But while her new path was easy to identify, she still had obstacles to face. Here's how she tackled imposter syndrome, the wrong clients, and building up work on the side, to make her ideal role a reality MORE

It’s a special “where are you now?” season at Ask a Manager, when I’m running updates from people who had their letters here answered in the past. Here are three updates from past letter-writers. My child-free coworkers constantly complain about people with children. I’m still at the same workplace. The grousing specifically about children died down fairly quickly, and I didn’t end up having to address it directly. MORE