Bonjour! Did you catch that? That was the only French word that rolls easily off my tongue after several years of college French classes. Yes, that is pathetic. Yes, I am ashamed. This shame was only compounded when I saw today’s infographic. Apparently, the language I tried to learn is considered “easy.”
Using the Foreign Service Institute, among other sources, this infographic divides some commonly learned languages into three categories- easy, medium, and hard- based on various factors. The estimated time to achieve proficiency in each category is also included at the top of the sections. This time-frame is tempered with a reminder that each learner is different. (Learners like me and the small man in the top left of the graphic seem to have it a little harder…)
It is common sense that many Romance languages are gauged as “easy,” based on their similarity to English, but I was surprised that Russian is only “medium.” Arabic, Chinese, Japanese, and Korean comprise the list of “hard” languages to learn for native English speakers.
Source: http://dailyinfographic.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/Hard-Languages-To-Learn.png
Tags: achieve ashamed based bonjour category chinese college com common comprise dailyinfographic easily easy english estimated french hard hard- hard-languages-to-learn http infographic institute japanese languages learn learner list man medium native proficiency rolls romance sections sense several similarity source surprised tempered time-frame today tongue top tried uploads various wp-content years yes
Many people have access to the Internet from their computers at work. The Internet can easily tempt workers to waste time online during work hours. Different individuals may be drawn to different activities online. Here is a list of ten different ways that people waste time online while they're at work!
Social Networks
Facebook and MySpace can be quite addicting. It's easy for someone to logon just to see what new postings are there and end up reading for several minutes without realizing it. Those who use the game apps on the networks having an even bigger draw to keep up with the competition.
Personal Email
Most people can check their personal email online. Checking email often turns into reading email and then responding to email. Time can pass much quicker than you realize.
Youtube
This has become a popular site to go to for a little stress relief. You can look for your favorite music, nature videos or all sorts of humorous videos that have been posted.
Blogs & Blogging
People have their favorite blogs that they subscribe to. A quick login can lead to clicking on a link that leads to another blog, and another, and another…
Forums
There are forums online for almost every interest you can imagine. They are great connecting point with others who share similar interests. Checking in on your forum posts is another online habit that workers can be drawn into.
News
News reports by national news groups are being updated throughout the day. You can login throughout the day to keep up with what is going on around the world. Others read the local newspaper online.
Pornography (!)
Although many of these other activities can be deemed inappropriate use of your work computer, viewing pornography via the Internet is something that many employers take very seriously. Unfortunately, it still remains a temptation for many online users. (! = I personally don't recommend this option!)
Shopping
It is very easy to shop online for any number of things. When a birthday is getting close, or you’re running short on time for your holiday shopping, it could be tempting to do some shopping during work hours while sitting at your desk. (This option is very good for ladies)
Travel Planning
Most people doing their travel and vacation planning online. They research destinations, lodging and ticket prices. Another way to spend more time than you realize on a non-work related activity.
Chatrooms
OK, this one is really waste of time... Many people frequent chatrooms for entertainment. People may find that certain people they’ve chatted with are often online during work hours. This can tempt them to logon to the chat sites from the work computers. (In this post you can chat with strangers, its a lot of fun to chat with people who you don't know!)
Many employers are setting up policies limiting the use of work computers for personal browsing and email which include their right to monitor your online activities performed on employer owned computers. These types of policies can be affective in decrease these types of time wasters, when they are enforced, BUT you can always find a way to waste your time at work!
Now it's your turn, what do you do to waste time at work? Is there any special option that you are using? Let us know to double the fun!
Tags: activities although blog chat chatrooms checking computers deemed different drawn easy email employers facebook favorite forums fun hours interest internet keep lead login logon networks news online option others people personal planning policies pornography post reading realize recommend shopping site subscribe tempt throughout travel turn types videos waste work workers
When you’re trying to establish a professional identity, you need to be savvy about the various networking sites online and how they work. These are the places that people look these days when trying to find out more about a person. Each of the social and professional networking sites have different strengths. Understanding what those are, will help you in creating your online image. Here are 10 Best Ways to Promote Yourself Online, lets check them out...
Facebook
Most people have a personal facebook page. If you are a professional in the arts or in business for yourself, you should also have a facebook page that focuses on you as the professional. It’s easy and its free.
Linkedin
This is the premier business professional network site. Whether you are self-employed or a lead employee in your company, you should be listed and connected on Linkedin. It is the place where you make contacts with most anyone in the business world.
Twitter
Creating a following on Twitter can bring you a surprising amount of recognition. This little sound bites called Tweets are the marketing tool of today.
MySpace
Although MySpace is not in the news the way Facebook is today, it still is one of the largest social networks on the Web. You don’t want to overlook this opportunity. Make sure your information is available and up to date on your MySpace page.
Ezine Articles
Posting Ezine articles about your niche can be a great way to establish yourself as an expert in your field and also drive traffic to your website or blog.
Manta
Manta is a directory listing of businesses and individuals in business. It ranks high in search engines and is free to join. Just another simple way to get your name noticed.
Google Profiles
Where better to tell the world who you are, and what you want them to know about you, than right on Google itself. Fill in your information and allow Google to assist you in self-promotion.
Social Harbor
This site will do the promotional networking for you. With a paid membership, they will make sure that you have profiles set up on all the major networking sites, and that they are all consistent.
Visible Me
Visible.me was formally known as Naymz. It is a personal branding site that will assist you in establishing yourself consistently across the Web and also help you to connect with other members of their free service.
Xing
This is a business and professional networking site established in Europe but with a very global outreach. If you’re looking to establish new connections within the global business community, this site provides you with a very large membership to draw from.
These are just the top ten sites for promotion on the web. There are plenty of other sites that target niche markets that you should also consider, as you attempt to establish your personal and professional brand.
Source: http://www.highspeedinternetproviders.net/blog/2011/10-best-ways-to-promote-yourself-online/
Tags: articles assist better blog brand business connect consider consistent creating date establish ezine facebook free global google help information linkedin listed manta markets membership myspace networking niche online opportunity outreach page people personal professional profiles promote self-promotion site social sound sure surprising target today tool traffic twitter visible web world
The average reader is able to read approximately 2 words per second, or 120 words per minute. But with practice, readers have been able to increase their reading speed to upwards of 1,000 words per minute. The following is a list of 10 ways reading speed can be increased, while not missing any important information.
Skim the whole text first
Take a few minutes to get to know the lay-out of the reading material. If you are reading a book, read through the Table of Contents to learn what the main ideas of the material will be. Think about what you already know about the information you will be reading, so as to make connections with the text as you read. Speed-reading should not reduce your comprehension of the text.
Read the last sentence of the first paragraph
Typically, this sentence is called the “thesis sentence,” which is a one sentence summary of the main point of the paper, or chapter, if reading a book.
Read first sentence of each paragraph
This sentence is called the “topic sentence” and the following sentences in the paragraph will contain supporting material or examples. Reading this sentence will determine if you need to read the rest of the paragraph or if you can skim the content, or skip ahead.
Read the first and last sentences of the last paragraph
Typically, the last paragraph will summarize the whole chapter. It is the “conclusion.” Read the last paragraph to determine if you have noted all the information, or if you need to review content for an important point you may have missed.
Do not speak each word as you read
Eyes can move faster than the mouth, in speed reading the less movement, the better.
Read everything written in Bold Print, ALL CAPS, italics, or underlined
If the author of the article thinks the information is important enough to use some unusual format to make it stand out from the rest of the printed page, then the information is important. Read it. If the information jumps off the page, it will be quick and easy to read.
Read all numbered or bulleted lists
Lists are another technique writers use to convey a lot of information in an easily accessible way. Lists are quick and easy to read since they do not have to follow grammatical rules of sentence structure.
Read all the sidebar information
Here again, is information that is supportive or repetitive of the text. It is also noticeable and easily accessible, and can oftentimes be a replacement for reading the text.
Read graphs and picture captions
Because people learn in many different ways, writers often include graphs or other visual supports of the information they are trying to convey. These are all excellent ways to reinforce the information from the text to ensure comprehension.
Instead of reading each word at a time, practice reading whole sentences at a time
When we learn to read be start by recognizing letters, then syllables, then whole words. Most people do not stop there, but continue to read by seeing phrases, or small groups of words that make up an idea. Draw this technique out to include whole sentences by using peripheral vision and reading speed will increase.
If you are really interested in speed reading, you could go back through this list, read only the bold print (which is also a numbered list). Everything else is supporting information as to WHY reading those particular parts of any text is important.
Source: http://www.highspeedinternetproviders.net/blog/2011/10-tips-for-speed-reading-beginners/
Tags: able accessible bold book called chapter comprehension content convey determine easily easy everything following graphs idea important include increase information learn list main material minute missed numbered page paragraph people per point practice print quick read reader rest sentence skim speed supporting technique text think typically ways whole words writers
