The Institute of HeartMath http://www.heartmath.org/index.html promotes healthy learning and working which is what we “Good Work” bloggers are all trying to achieve.  They are the leading researchers in the link that connects heart to brain communication, emotions, and cognitive functioning.  They believe in and have proven that synchronizing the mental, physical, and emotional aspects of a student leads to much, much healthier learning.  A healthy environment and HeartMath’s learning strategies lead to better memory retention, overall better school and work performance, and best of all a huge reduction of stress!  Heart imaging and the heart-brain communication are used to show that optimal levels of performance and learning can be attained by using the right tools and techniques, such as those of HeartMath.  They believe that there is such a thing as heart intelligence or as they like to say “the little brain in the heart”.  By connecting lessons taught in class to the students’ values and emotions it creates a healthy learning environment and the students will be prone to paying better attention and better performance.

MacMillan, D. (2005, November 5). Social Networking with the Elite. Retrieved December 5, 2007, from Business Week Web site: http://www.businessweek.com/innovate/content/nov2007/id20071114_257766.htm?chan=search

Today, there are many networking sites emerging that are more elite, ones for only executives, hedge fund managers, and some are even invite only. These more exclusive sites allow for acquisitions, mergers, and advertising to be done in a virtual environment. Founders of a game company were able to link with Yahoo! and get a giant deal for ad space. If you can find one that is more exclusive to what you want to specialize in or your interest it could turn out to be a fabulous find for you. If you’re going to link yourself on a networking site remember that you are projecting an image of who you are to thousands of people, how do you want to be judged?

Kelly Stillman

Damast , A (2004, Dec 4). Tuition: Earn More, Pay More?. Retrieved December 5, 2007, from Business Week Web site: http://www.businessweek.com/bschools/content/dec2007/bs2007124_770986.htm

Schools are using differential tuition to charge students who study an area with a larger promise of financial success more; most commonly, the business schools. The people raising the prices believe that because business students will earn more later on they can pay more now. Other schools are raising prices to stay in competition and maintain accreditation with these new standards. With the extra money these colleges are able to recruit better students and hire excellent professors.

This idea of differential tuition can discourage students from studying what they desire, if they don’t have enough money to afford the $500 extra to study in the college of business it could lead to very negative effects on the student and retention rates for the university. Although I agree that generally business students are better prepared to earn higher paying jobs I don’t think it’s right to set them apart from other people at a university.

Kelly Stillman

Trunk, P (2007, July 5). What Gen Y Really Wants. Retrieved December 5, 2007, from Time Web site: http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1640395,00.html

Gen Yers don’t care whether we spend more time at work or home as long as what we are doing is meaningful and useful. We will move back in with our parents if it means we can hold out for a job we want. Where travel was once seen as a negative it now makes the employee well-rounded. Gen Yers want to work with their friends and are more willing to work on the weekends as long as they have flexibility during the week.

This is a great example of the new work-life balance that is emerging in the workplace. I think it also shows how we have the power to dictate what work environment we want to work in. Baby Boomers are retiring and many companies are in need of hard workers, we are in demand!

I like that companies are willing to work with Gen Yers to find a balance that will work with both sides to be the best. If a company is willing to spend money to invest in a career counselor, or mentor for a new employee their going to get a better retention rate and employees who have greater pride in their company.

When looking for your new job remember to not put your values aside, if it was meant to be, things will work out.

Kelly Stillman

Fisher, A (2005, Dec 4). 7 Ways to Make Your Office Greener. Retrieved December 5, 2007, from Fortune Web site: http://money.cnn.com/2007/12/04/news/economy/environment.fortune/index.htm?postversion=2007120509

This article talks about 7 little things you can do to make your office greener

1. Bring in your own coffee mug; stryofoam is not recyclable

2. Use your office paper more than once and as much as possible; recycle!

3. Switch your computer to “sleep” mode when you’re away on lunch break  (95% savings)

4. Turn the computer OFF when you leave

5. Have a plant, looks pretty and helps filter air

6. Work from home; saves on gas

7. Use refillable pens; Americans buy 5.1 billion a year and waste 770 tons of plastic

Even if someone did even one of these things it may make a big difference in what our world will look like in the future. If being green is something you’re passionate about make sure there is an outlet in your company where you can share your passion and spread it on. There is nothing negative that can happen by doing these 3 few tips; you can just be responsible for helping keep the world a cleaner place! Now, don’t forget to turn your computer off tonight!

Kelly Stillman

(2004, Dec 4). Lectures on iTunes make university classes portable. Retrieved December 6, 2007, from Los Angelos Times Web site: http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/bus/casual/stories/1104DNbusiPhoneU.1d1468f.html

Universities are beginning to post lectures on iTunes for free. Some do it to keep up pace with students, parents, and alumni while others want to spread the learning opportunities that being in college provides, sharing the ivory tower’s intellectual riches with the rest of the world.” Apple picks up the bill for storing these lectures and gains goodwill with universities and increases the demand for iPods. For many professors it’s a catch-22 because students use it as an opportunity to skip class while for others it’s a learning opportunity they’ve never had.

Kelly Stillman

    Aly Romanus

      In the the article " At the Interface of School and Work," Theodore Lewis discusses the changes he feels need to be made in order for companies to shift with the times.  He explains how the way people work is changing and going from " hands to minnds." This means that workers  brains are being more relied upon rather than their braun. The times are changing and therefore the industry is changing.  "He contends that knowledge has become the primary factor of production, superseding labour and capital, and further, that "Value is created now by productivity and innovation," both applications of knowldege to work."  With this iit is apparent that education must change as well. It is not so much about the material anymore but more so how to interpret and expand upon the material. Some teachers are good at doing this, that is truly making the students expand upon what is being presented and even question it . But sadly, tgis is not true for all some still rattle of information with no means of letting the students explore. This will no longer work, with the internet information is endless, but it is the capability of interpreting this information in to knowledge that has become invalauable. This is the skill that must be taught, this is what is important in this day in age. I feel that this way of worl and learning will be implemented over time, but large changes like this occur slowly which will be its setback.

"Green Light: Helping you to help the Environment"

Mike Timmons’ article, in "The British Journal of Administrative Management" magazine, offers some good tips and information regarding resource saving practices.  This particular article speaks to the office and business community and provides suggestions on how to make your office space less wasteful.  I have already reviewed several articles on this topic, but I am still able to find new ideas and practices with every article I read.  This shorter article is actually packed with useful information and links to other resources such as "green-work.co.uk" which is a furniture recycling company in the UK.  Simple practices such as utilizing washable dishes and glassware for office parties and or everyday use can save lots of paper/plastic rubbish that gets thrown out after 1 use. Also, as mentioned, buying refurbished or recycled office furniture can be a huge resource and money saver for your company.  This article also offers many resources that you can contact to find out how to make your office and building more eco-friendly and more electrically efficient. Lastly, if offers a suggestion to subscribe to Energy and Environmental Management, which is a magazine published by the UK government that focuses on Environmental issues and building safely/eco-friendly.

This article offered some helpful tips and connected me with another source that has helped me with my "furnishing" section to our project. Many initiatives are being taken these days by companies to make the construction process less wasteful and more productive in the long run. These are all things that we want to implement into our new resident hall that we are designing.

Timmons, M. (2004). Green Light. British Journal of Administrative Management, 30. Retrieved December 3, 2007, from Business Source Premier database.

Beau Martin

Blog 1

 In this article, the person is writing about how good enough is not good enough. Basically, what he is striving to say is that you should always try your hardest at everything you do because it doesn’t matter whether you like the job or not, if you work hard at it than you should get something out of working hard. The same goes for the people you are trying to serve. The author, Bart Cleveland, is saying that much like a doctor you should always tell your client what the right thing to do is. Like many people who go to doctors, a lot of them don’t always listen to what the doctor is telling them like to stop smoking or to decrease your salt intake; even though these people aren’t listening it doesn’t mean that the doctor is going to stop telling them what the right thing to do is. Also, another aspect of this story is that good work is defined as average work and average is usually forgotten because that is the thing most achieved, however most agencies that do average work end up dieing. The main point here is that if you’re an agency or just a regular associate, you’re goal shouldn’t be good work which translates to death; you’re goal should be success which translates to excellent work.

Cleveland, Bart. "Want to Survive in This Biz? Dont Settle for Work That’s Anything Less Than Great!" Advertising Age 78 (2007): 23. Academic Search Premier. 5 Dec.

Blog 2

 This article is actually about the top 100 companies to work for in the

United States

. The number one company to work for is Google. The reasons vary for all companies and since this report started coming out companies have been vying for a spot on the top 100 for ten years now. The good thing about this survey is that it all depends on what the employees have to say, not the employers. Some of the perks that Google has for their employees are free meals, swimming spas, and free onsite doctors. Also, engineers for Google are allowed to spend 20 percent of their time on independent projects. This is why Google gets 1300 resumes a day. What this survey shows us is, it is good to take care of your workers and to make them happy and setup a good workplace. People who are taken care of want to work for your company and they not only want to work for your company but they will work harder for you as well. Other companies include Whole Foods. While the pay at Whole Foods may not be the best neither is the CEO’s pay. The CEO decided that his yearly salary will be one dollar and also decided to forego all stock options. This may not be the smartest thing to do but certainly does lead by example.

 Levering, Robert, and Milton Moskowitz. "In Good Company." Fortune 155 (2007): 94-116. Academic Search Premier. 5 Dec. 2007.