According to WHO (World Health Organization), “Mental health is a state of well-being in which an individual realizes his or her own abilities, can cope with the mental stresses of life, can work productively, and is able to make a contribution to his or her community”.

In the past few months we have been hearing a lot about COVID-19, pandemic, stay home, lockdown, social distancing, quarantine, and many more. But what about the impact on one’s mental health because of these?

Yes!!! The COVID-19 pandemic has caused severe threats to the lives and to mental health.

Also Read: Lock down Blues: 7 Things We Can Learn From the Introverts

Washing hands, wearing a face mask, social distancing, staying at home is all precautionary to stay safe from a virus attack which everyone is aware of. However reduced access to family/friends and other social support systems causes loneliness increasing mental issues like anxiety and depression.

Some people can fight against or cope with their psychological problems and some may easily give-up and end their lives. According to the studies, mental health plays major role in these death rates of patients during COVID-19. Read more about CORONA and COVID 19.

We have to give equal importance to addressing people to take care of their mental health as well as to stay safe from infection. Then how we can take care of our mental health?

Also Read: You want to be an Engineer? Read the pointers at your own risk before taking up Engineering!

Here are 4 key tips to become Mentally Healthy and Strong in this changed lifestyle:

Safe Connection:

Staying inside does not mean we should not talk to friends/family/loved ones. Communication is the key point to keep ourselves busy and for mental relaxation. Also because of technology improvements, there are many ways to connect to people virtually like video calling, WhatsApp, Facebook, and other social media. Connecting with people may not be always mean meeting them personally. When you realize that you are feeling lonely, depressed or even if you are not keeping well; you need someone to share your feelings then don’t hesitate. Talk it out.

Remember ….

“People would listen to your story rather than attending your funeral”

Never worry about what people think about you if you let your feelings out. Communicate. Even when it is uncomfortable or uneasy. One of the best ways to heal is simply getting everything out and if you live bitterly, you live a lonely existence.

Short Term Goals

COVID-19 is not going to stick to our lives permanently. If there is a problem then there must be a solution but finding one may take some time. Short term goals are one which can be accomplished over a short period may be in a day, week, or month.

“Work towards your goals rather than the depressive thoughts”

Set some short term goals that you can accomplish in this lock-down period. For example:

• I will/must read 100 books before lockdown ends
• I will/must learn some new language before lockdown ends
• I will/must learn to cook my favorite dish
• I will/must save ‘X’ amount of money and will travel to my destination place after lockdown

There are many such goals that we can list out and try to attain them during/before lockdown ends. Learn how to achieve your goals smartly.

Find a Hobby

A hobby is something which you love to do or which keeps you busy. When our mind is busy with work then there will not be space for negative thoughts. Spending time on activities that you enjoy can help improve your mental health and well-being.

Research shows that people with hobbies are less likely to suffer from low moods, stress, and depression. There are many health benefits in setting some time for activities that you enjoy. Apart from reducing stress, the hobby helps you to boosts your creativity.

“Utilize COVID-19 pandemic time to explore yourself”

Books – Mind Therapists

Books are the resources that can enhance recovery and inspire those with mental health difficulties. Reading makes you more mentally flexible, improves creativity, empowers you to empathize with other people, and fights depression symptoms.

Read at least 20 pages per day to reduce stress. In one of the inspiring book by Hector Carcia and Francesc Miralles has stated – “Live in the moment – stop regretting the past and fearing the future. Today is all you have. Make the most of it. Make it worth remembering” – IKIGAI

“Books are the discount tickets to everywhere”

Everyone reacts differently to a stressful situation, especially during this COVID-19 period. These are strange times. A healthy lifestyle, a safe living environment, meaningful active participation in society, and community are important factors for mental health, and well being.

The life we are leading now may not be the same after ten years. Everything is going to be normal over the years. Until then we should stay strong and stay safe.

What are you doing to remain mentally strong and healthy during the lockdown period. Do let us know, in the comments below. At same time, if you are looking for someone to talk out to, we are just a comment away. Feel free to reach out to us.

Stay Home , Stay Safe both Physically and Mentally!

Also Read:

• Change your field if your current job do not give job satisfaction
• Multitasking is a myth and here are 5 tips to avoid multi-tasking
• Do you deserve a hike or a promotion
• Colleague’s Influence at Work
• Effective ways to manage day at Office
• Stick with current job or Jump

The post Mental Impact of lockdown and 4 key tips to become Mentally Healthy and Strong appeared first on JumpWhere.

A mentor is one who can train, advice, guide and help by enabling individuals to develop their skill in a particular domain; especially when you are fresher/ junior in that domain even when they are not doing well off.

We all have/had a mentor in our life (professionally/personally) but few individuals will make a strong impact on us which will even create a difference within us. You may hear of people saying “Basics are important for you to emerge as a good professional”. But the one who will guide us to have a strong base is a mentor.

Not every mentor is 100% perfect and knowledgeable but when we come across one, we should make use of the opportunity given. Thankfully, I have come across someone whom I can proudly say he’s my mentor and I have been mentored by so and so person. Apart from subject knowledge, these mentors also teach us professional etiquette, situation handling and a lot more which will motivate us to become next mentors.

Here are the top 7 lessons one must learn in their life:

There is always another door:

A major mistake we do as a professional is unidirectional thinking. When we end up with an error or when we stuck with some issue, we just try to find a solution in the easiest way aka jugaad way. We never think about the root cause or any better ways to find a solution. When in such situation a mentor says “Don’t think in only one aspect, there will be multiple options to find a solution, don’t restrict you to one and don’t conclude anything in a hurry just to complete your task faster”.

“CHANGE YOUR THINKING PERSPECTIVE, not problem statement”

Self-satisfaction is everything, appreciations are nothing:

Between self-satisfaction and appreciation, around 60% of the people choose appreciation over self-satisfaction. These are the type of people who wants to get on the limelight among a bunch of employees. But does such appreciation really make you happy?

No…

One cannot be happy without work-life satisfaction. You have to accept the appreciation as a way to get motivated in work but you should never get demotivated if you do not receive any appreciation. So in the end what really does matters is how satisfied you are with your job.

 

“DON’T JUDGE YOURSELF ON HOW MANY APPRECIATIONS YOU RECEIVED, YOU WILL
NEVER BE SATISFIED”

Designations are meaningless unless you deserve it

How will it be if a fresher/college graduate looking for an IT manager role?? It doesn’t make any sense! There are certain roles/positions to be earned over a certain period based on experience as well as knowledge.

A good mentor will never recommend you to compete for the positions/designations. There is nothing wrong in having a goal to achieve success via promotion but before that, you should be abundantly knowledged, deserving and a valuable person to dignify the position.

“DESIGNATIONS WILL AUTOMATICALLY FOLLOW WHEN YOU HAVE KNOWLEDGE”

Accepting mistakes > Excuses

Not more than 30% of the people accept the mistakes we do. We give lots of reasons to escape from our silly mistakes. As a human being, it is common to make mistakes. But there is a big difference between committing and admitting those mistakes. Accept when you do something wrong rather than giving excuses. This is the greatest lesson I learnt from my mentor.

“LEARN FROM YOUR MISTAKES BUT NEVER REPEAT THOSE”

Worship not the job but your knowledge

This doesn’t mean we shouldn’t love our job. But there is a big difference between worshipping the job and loving the job. It is how we worship a god and how we love our parents. Learning is a vast ocean, we never finish learning. Love the job and at the same time focus more on learning things. Job is like one-sided love, you don’t know when it leaves you but knowledge is like parents, even though you leave them, they will stick to you.

“KNOWLEDGE MAKES YOU AN CONFIDENT PERSON”

Quality of work is better than the quantity

Quality or quantity depends on the situation. Suppose, you are in a desolate area (Desert) and you get a bottle of water. Would you rather drink that water or will you see if it is a bisleri/ filtered water? At that situation, you will not look for the quality. However, you are in a 5-star hotel and you have an option to choose between the filter and non-filter water. Obviously you will prefer a quality at that time.

But what would you prefer between the quality of work and quantity of work? When it comes to the quality of work, we look for the perfection on the work and when it comes to quantity of work we just keep count on the work we do. So it is always preferable to go with the quality rather than the quantity.

“PRODUCTIVITY IS NOT ABOUT DOING MORE BUT ABOUT CREATEING MORE IMPACT
WITH LESS WORK”

Listen and then react:

Most of our lives spent reacting to other actions before listening to them completely/properly before thinking. Such a gesture at work place may portrait you ‘half-baked beans’. You will not learn anything thoroughly neither does listen. So as a professional the first thing you should learn is to listen and then to react. When someone is explaining to you something you should listen to them carefully, give a pause, think and then respond.

“LISTEN, UNDERSTAND, ACT”

This is the value of having a great mentor. As I said earlier not everyone will get such
opportunities to be shadowed by someone and it is not like a class room training/coaching, it is not that “I teach and you are done”, it is a knowledge that you can acquire from someone over a period of time.

The best mentor will always ask a lot of questions so as my mentor. But I end up blabbering something. So someday when I asked him “did I say anything wrong” his answer was “No, you just have to improve your memory power”!!! He will never give up on his mentees.

Being a mentor is not an easy task. He has to be a trusted person, good advisor and a knowledgeable person. A good mentor will understand his/her mentees learning style,
personality, goals, and way of working. One of the positive things I have seen in my mentor is that he feels happy with the success of his mentees and he, even more, motivates to achieve something big.

It is always the best feeling to have a mentor who can support you in all the way possible to attain success professionally/personally. All you have to do is to show some respect for their effort and interest in what they say.

Other must-read articles:

• Lecturer going extra mile to deliver the lectures/clarify students doubt
• Tips and tricks for group discussion
• What if Coding is not my cup of TEA?
• College Project may decide your job

The post All complaint but very few correct and improvise us – Mentors! appeared first on JumpWhere.

A career is the one that stays with you; which you carry forward throughout your life and the future depends on this very decision. The very first common mistake that people do is failing to make the right decisions when it comes to career. We take decisions based on placements we get, suggestions from others or just because we want to earn money instead of considering our interests and passion.

With the right piece of advice and knowledge, you will be able to select a career that will lead to success in the years to come. Below are a few interesting reasons you must consider if you are looking forward to starting the career at a software firm.

Well, ask yourself the following to begin your career at software industry:

1. Do you love solving logical problems?
2. Do you want to solve problems in an efficient and cleaner way?
3. Do you wish to change the world with some innovation in the world of technology?
4. Do you hesitate to make career decision thinking that you might not get
   time for your personal life?
5. Do you worry about job security?

If your answers are YES, then you must definitely consider Software Job as your CAREER!

Here are 7 checklists for a fresher to consider a career at the Software Industry:

Fixed Time than The Flexible One:

When you ask people working in different shifts (flexible shifts, night shifts etc), you will get to know how it feels working in a shift base, especially at the weekends. But when you work as a programmer, you will have the eight working hour, 5 working days. You can manage the time, create your own schedules. No weekend works, you can spend time with family. You will get enough time for your passions as well.

What’s more satisfying than the convenient working hours?

Game of Programming:

There are many programming languages like C, C++, C#, JAVA, JAVASCRIPT, SQL, Python, PHP, RUBY, iOS, and HTML so on. Each and every programming language has its own unique features and may be best suited for certain purposes. Learning any of these programming languages will fetch you good opportunities. However, a career in the software industry is not just about programming. Check out other career options you can opt apart from if coding is not your cup of tea.

The Career should be all about the role not just about the job.

Bunch of Opportunities:

Does anyone dream of a job where you can stop learning and stop attaining success?

No!!!! Everyone chooses a career to achieve something great in the years to come. These days, the career in the software industry is booming for the right candidates. As a software employee, you get a lot of opportunities to grow and succeed. Moreover, there are numerous options such as developer, tester, designer, operations, analysts, architects, project managers etc and mastering one will yield you a great deal of profit.

Success is where preparation MEETS opportunities

Are you a Creative and Logical thinker?

As a programmer, the way you think, the way you try fixing the bugs varies and the very same thing applies to your daily life as well. You will start thinking out of the box as programming is all about problem-solving and applying logic.

Creative thinking leads to great innovations…

Dedication and Confidence:

Success is also about dedication. You may not be where you want to be or you may not be doing what you want to do during the journey, But dedication and confidence will lead you to an incredible destination. As a programmer, you get to solve complex problems which demands your 100% dedication and Once you solve the problems or bugs in the program, the individual’s confidence level increases, which motivates the person to achieve great success both in professional and personal life.

The Price of Success is Dedication and Confidence.

Job Satisfaction:

The most important thing for any individual is job satisfaction. If you are not into the field which is not relevant to your educational background, then you are more likely to be unhappy with what you are doing. Suppose if you are an Engineering graduate and studied logical reasoning, algorithms, Software development life cycle, soft skills etc. But you get to work in a call centre. Will you be happy and satisfied with your job in call centre compared to a career in the software Industry!!!?

Also Read: Tips and concepts to prepare for Technical Interview

Communication:

When in a team, communication with the team members becomes very crucial in personality development which sometimes also helps in getting the work done easier and quicker. Programming is one of that profession which provides a platform to develop valuable personal characteristics that will help you not only become a better programmer but also a more effective human.

communication is the most important characteristic for success as a software engineer

Conclusion:

When it comes to a career, there are many things that need to be considered before making a final decision. Choosing a career is the most important decision you will make in your life and it can be a fun experience too, but it’s always important to think about what you really passionate about and whether you wish to take your career in the coming years on the same line.

Be sure to think about your interests and listen to your inner self. It’s never too late to plan your goals and to create your career path. If you are looking for any guidance or if you have any questions, feel free to ask in the comments below.

Other must-read articles:

• Mistakes in freshers resume
• 11 qualities every recruiter will look while hiring freshers or fresh graduates
• Tricks to crack group discussions
• College Project may decide your job
• 10 things a fresher must do when not selected in campus placements
• Aptitude free concepts and test

The post 7 checklists for a fresher to consider a career at the Software Industry appeared first on JumpWhere.

So now, what is Multitasking?

Multitasking is an act of juggling the tasks; i.e. one involves himself/herself in more than one task or activity in a specific time period. For example, Reading and listening to music, driving and talking on the phone, cooking while checking the mobile phone, and so on.

Multitasking is a Myth? Let’s figure out:

Your brain is not a machine!

A door to mistake:

“PUT YOUR EFFORT TO INCREASE THE QUALITY OF WORK RATHER THAN TO INCREASE THE MISTAKES”

This is what happens when you try to do more than one task alternatively and there are more chances of ending your work with errors. When you multitask, your mind will be divided between the tasks resulting in increasing mistakes. That’s why you should put your entire effort on one task at a time.

Time is all that matters!

“TIME IS WHAT WE WANT MOST, BUT WHAT WE USE WORST”

Multitasking ≠ Productivity:

“PRODUCTIVE THINKING IS WHAT MAKES YOU GET NOTICED”

The art of messing up several things:

• Are you able to complete all the three tasks successfully?
• Are you able to focus on all the three tasks?

Also read: Effective ways to manage time at the office

“IF YOU CHASE TWO RABBITS AT THE SAME TIME, BOTH WILL ESCAPE”

People might say that we are youths, young generations and we have the capability to do multiple works at once. But again, the study has proven that the concept of multitasking doesn’t work for anyone regardless of the age group.

5 tips to work more efficiently and avoid multitasking:

1. When you are working on one task, don’t get distracted by any other sources including
   your mobile phone. Remain focused.
2. If you still can’t concentrate take some break or allot specific time period for other things and come back, continue your work from where you have stopped.
3. Prioritize the tasks. (Consider you have 3 projects to work on and the deadline for all the
   3 projects are on the same date. You feel more worried when the deadline is in the
   corner to accomplish the goal and to complete the task. This may lead you to do all the
   3 projects alternatively. So identify what is important and which might take the most
   time, at the beginning itself and complete that task first. It’s better to work smarter than harder).
4. Concentration and dedication are the most important things to accomplish something.
   You need to be more proactive and dedicate your time to one task only and concentrate
   on that task.
5. Keep target of goals and accomplishment and motivate yourself to achieve those. Having milestones is the best option as it boosts your confidence, every time you meet them. Read how to achieve smart goals.

The post Multitasking is a myth and here are 5 tips to avoid multitasking appeared first on JumpWhere.

Even though one is unhappy about their current job, they still continue with the same job. Of course, everyone has their own reasons for this. Few being:

• No clear goals
• What after quitting the existing job?
• Lack of self-confidence/Motivation
• Fear of not getting opportunities

Another big mistake especially what freshers commit is accepting whatever opportunity comes to them when they are desperately looking for a job (even if it does not belong to their area/field). This is not the actual problem, the problem arises after few months.

Once you get a job and start earning, the thirst and activeness for seeking better opportunities slowly die. This is the main reason why people end up with a job in which they are actually not interested.

People may find it difficult to quit the job suddenly because of their own reasons, however, it is their individual choice to decide if they want to continue to stay unsatisfied or find better ways to make their present job interesting one or change the job itself.

The first thing that comes to mind while talking about job satisfaction is self-motivation. Motivation is the action where a person gets inspired or energized by something which helps them to achieve success. It’s a desire or willingness to do something by creating enthusiasm in employees. Lack of motivation may lead to lack of self-improvement and those who fail to inspire themselves are likely the people who do not have any desired destination in life.

8 simple ways to get motivated at work:

• My Life in 3 Years – Ask yourself, Are my goals clear? What are my goals for the next 3 years?

The goal is very important for each individual, it’s a pillar of success. A life without a goal is meaningless. So, set some goal and work hard to complete the desired objective by effort, skill and courage. It’s waste of having a desire when you are not trying to achieve it.

“GOALS ARE DREAMS WITH DEADLINES”

If you really don’t have any goal, take some time, make a to-do list and write down something you need to acquire within a specific period of time. Read that to-do list every day. For example, you have the desire to take your current project to a new level. Work hard to do so.

Also, read An interesting article which will help you set smart goals.

• Ahhhh! I am so damn irritated by this Job – Find the core valid reasons for your irritation

There should be a valid reason or cause for your lack of interest. When you know what exactly the problem is, it’s easier to find the answer. Maybe your work environment is not friendly, frustrated about the boss, leave problem, negative people and so on.

“A POSITIVE ATTITUDE WILL LEAD TO POSITIVE OUTCOMES”

Create a positive environment, be a good employee so that your boss will appreciate your work and praise you, which in turn will increase your motivation level. This will result in improving yourself and help you implement better plans. Interact more with your colleagues so that you get to know about everyone around you. The more you interact, the more you learn. Think positively and have a positive attitude as a right attitude is important even if you have the right skills. Here is a simple strategy to build the right attitude.

Example: A guy has joined an engineering college, the very first day he received a lot of negative vibes, ragging, language problem, and he was not a friendly guy to get close with his classmates.

He took all this in a challenging way, he thought of learning one language per year, started to get close to seniors, juniors, classmates, lecturers. By the time he completed his engineering he was the president of the college, he learned 4 different languages, President of the anti-ragging squad, university rank holder. This is what we say ‘positive attitude’, taking things sportively.

Interview tips for freshers

• “There is nothing left to improve skills, then how can one get motivated at work” is what usually people complain – Learning Never Ends!

Learning is like a vast ocean, whatever we learnt may not even be 15% of what we can learn in our lifetime. There is no end to learning. New technologies are entering the market as well as competition level is increasing, you need to update your skills to compete in this evolving world.

List new skills you want to acquire and set a time period to accomplish the same. Once you start learning new skills your learning speed increases, you will be an interesting person, you will not get bored, your mind will be busy, and you won’t have time for unnecessary things. Most importantly, either learn what you love or love what you are learning.

“DON’T STOP WHEN YOU’RE TIRED. STOP WHEN YOU’RE DONE!”

• Leadership skills and active involvement – When are you going to take some initiative?

An active personality attracts other people. This will help in establishing a bond of trust. A leader is one who knows how to handle a group of people, how to handle the situation, how to have an active and lively work environment and of course get the best productivity from the team.

Take initiation in executing additional tasks apart from your role or if you want to learn something new. Active involvement is about how lively and enthusiastic you are. Participate or engage yourself in a particular sphere or activity in a spontaneous way.

 “NEVER SAY, “I CANT “ALWAYS SAY, “I WILL TRY”

• Self-respect, Confidence, Smile – CUP of motivation

What you think about yourself is much more important than what others think about you. When you like yourself and start respecting your decision you will not look forward to people’s validation or their attention. Don’t compare your performance level with others either.

Confidence plays a massive role in getting motivated. Be positive and love what you are doing. The way you dress, the way you walk, the tone of talking, the way you sit, the way you greet people shows how confident you are. The way you carry yourself plays an important role so focus on your body language and appearance. When you are confident you will feel comfortable with new challenges and also, you will be focused on your decisions.

A smile is a beautiful language to spread positivity. Each morning when you go to office take some time to wish the people “Good Morning” with a smile on your face.

“BELIEVE IN YOURSELF”

• Acquire New skills – Not toofaani but let’s try something new

Acquiring new skill is a way to express your creative mind. It could be learning a new programming language, writing a book, painting, writing, reading, pencil sketch, craft work, golf etc. help you to keep in touch with inner ability and creativity. When your mind is busy with the field you are interested in apart from the office work, then there is no space for negative thoughts.

As you get involved more with your new skill set, you will be more confident and eventually come across new opportunities. It’s something interesting or enjoyable that provides a short respite from a tedious situation but to pursue any new skill as a career takes a lot of time and efforts for which one needs to be disciplined. It is difficult to get motivated every day but we can definitely be disciplined to follow or pursue anything we love.

“WHEN A HABIT BEGINS TO COST MONEY, IT’S CALLED A HOBBY”

• Meet new people – Are you communicating with people?

Communication is what makes a team strong. Nowadays people are busy with the social networking platforms like Facebook, WhatsApp, Twitter, and Instagram. Talking more to machines and less to humans besides you is a clear indication of real communication issues.

When you don’t talk to people, you will feel lonely and depressed, and you don’t wish to learn or know about anything new. This will lead to lack of motivation and you eventually start losing interest in everything you have been doing. You will be having a small circle of friends, it’s obvious to feel safe with that group of people. But, when you stick to a comfort zone, you don’t grow. So try to be more active by talking with new people, participating in social events.

“COMMUNICATION IS THE KEY TO PERSONAL AND CAREER SUCCESS”

• Competition – Are you ready to compete?

Competition is yet another powerful aspect to get motivated. When you set a target, you will be eager to reach them. When you have a competitive mind, you will put your best which will create possession of a strong desire to be more successful compared to others. This will also show, how you get involved in something and finally helps you in your overall career development.

“COMPETITION IS A SIGN OF POTENTIAL”

• Distractions are also mothers of many screw ups

Distractions are your weakness. Kick your distractions off.  Distractions will always prevent you from concentrating on your work. So, the best way to avoid distraction is by not responding.

As they say, time will heal everything. Similarly, things will get solved by themselves. Your approach to distractions shows your level of focus as well as strong will. ‘Starve your distractions, feed your focus’.

Equally, take good care of your health. When your body is healthy, your mind will be active and focused. Don’t regret about the things in the past, let it go. Determine which exact factor can motivate and demotivate you to achieve success based on your past experiences.

Hold onto whatever keeps you warm inside. When you change the way you think about your job responsibilities, you will change the way you approach them and you will find yourself happier and motivated at work.

Also Read:

• 10 awesome insights about Procrastination at work
• Do you deserve a hike or a promotion
• Colleague’s Influence at Work
• Effective ways to manage day at Office
• Stick with current job or Jump

The post 8 simple ways to get motivated at work even if your job is boring appeared first on JumpWhere.