Exact Staff News

George Orwell’s fictitious Big Brother may not truly be watching you… …but Amazon’s very real Alexa is definitely listening to you. All the time. And recording everything she hears you say. Kinda creepy when you think about it. Even worse? A Portland woman claims that the Echo virtual assistant took things a step further, recording…

Finding new ways to improve your effectiveness – both as an individual and a leader – is a common goal among managers, and it’s a common theme to posts you’ll find on our blog. In fact, we’ve written about the topic frequently over the past year or so, sharing great advice from a variety of…

They’re disciplined. Tenacious. And remarkably resilient. They’re mentally strong people, and their grit helps them overcome tremendous obstacles to achieve their goals. Whether it’s personally or professionally, we all face challenges in our lives that test our mettle. Do you have what it takes to succeed, even when the going gets rough? Make sure you’re…

“You have absolutely no idea who I am, and I have absolutely no idea how to start this email.” You wouldn’t begin writing an email this way, right? Unfortunately, some business professionals pour a ton of effort into writing compelling email subject lines that get their emails opened, but drop the ball once they get…

Ever had to lead a dull meeting? Give a presentation on a dry topic? Teach your team something that’s important but incredibly boring? Then you know how tough an audience can be. By now you’ve probably heard that statistic from Microsoft saying that the average human attention span is shorter than a goldfish’s. Regardless of…

Ever hear of dead butt syndrome? It sounds creepy, but it’s a real medical condition! Also known as gluteal amnesia, the condition develops when the gluteus medius (one of the three main muscles that make up your behind) stops firing correctly. Left untreated, it can lead to lower back pain, hip pain, as well as…

Fact: People judge books by their covers… …and emails by their subject lines. You may have great news to deliver. An unbelievable offer to share. Or an urgent request that can’t be ignored. But none of that matters if your recipients never open their emails from you. And the secret to getting your emails opened?…

We’re a productivity-obsessed nation, always looking for new ways to save precious hours and accomplish more in less time at work. One of the biggest workplace productivity saboteurs? You guessed it: meetings. Every year, businesses waste $37 billion (yep, with a “b”) on unproductive meetings. Middle managers report spending 35% of their time in meetings,…

It’s cold. It’s raining. You’re tired. And in 45 minutes, you’re headed into another day of that firestorm/3-ring-circus you call work. The question is: Is it going to be a great morning or a fantastic one? That’s not a misprint; it’s an example of choosing a positive outlook to improve your experience – and it’s…

“Innovate or die.” It’s more than a cool catchphrase. Factors like rapidly advancing technology and intense global competition make it extremely difficult to keep up with the accelerating rate of change in business today. Maintaining the status quo, or even striving for incremental improvement, is no longer enough to stay at the leading edge of…