Category: Business Tips

Business Tips

Students Still Need Internships

Sue Huff

By: Katherine Vickaryous – College Intern with E. Sue Huff & Associates, Inc.

 

Freshman year of college is a first glimpse of freedom. For me, it started off just as any normal school year; I joined a sorority, studied more than usual, and was figuring out life on my own. All of a sudden, college life was cut short by Covid-19. Just imagine packing for what was supposed to be the best spring break of your life, tanning on tropical beaches or skiing down the mountains, but instead you are told to stay home, wear a mask, and remain six feet from everyone. Yep… just my luck!

Florida State University notified me that I would be spending an extra two weeks home after spring break and, little did I know it would quickly turn into six months.

Now as I begin my sophomore year of college, I never would have imagined it being from my bedroom. All of my classes are remote and require more responsibility than before because there are no specific meeting times. This forces me to stay ahead of the game and constantly plan out my tasks. Who knew I would miss running to my 8am lecture so much?

As the “new normal” sets in, college students across the world are facing struggles regarding the future. Applying for internships isn’t the same anymore; career fairs are virtual, interviews are being held over the phone, and opportunities are scarce. This is a major struggle for a potential intern because the way person comes across over a phone call could be completely different than how they could showcase their personality and charisma in person.

Currently, I am interning virtually with E. Sue Huff and Associates. Sue has given me a great opportunity to gain experiences during these interesting and trying times. We meet weekly through Zoom to discuss my projects where she offers advice and critiques. I am extremely grateful to be working with her and I encourage every business to take students under their wing, as Sue has done for me. And the best part is, we work for free! I encourage you to open your doors to an intern.

 

Business Tips, Community News, News

Finding Balance Between Work and Personal Life

Sue Huff

Some studies have found that a poor work-life balance can result in unhealthy levels of stress, unhappiness, and even reduced productivity. Prioritizing between your work and personal life is extremely important. Balancing these two things is important to living longer, healthier, and happier.

E. Sue Huff & Associates has made a commitment to living a healthier life and committing to a healthy work-life balance by joining the Blue Zones Project®.

The Blue Zones Project is a community-wide well-being improvement initiative to help make healthy choices easier for everyone in Southwest Florida. This initiative is helping transform communities across the U.S. into areas where the healthy choice is easy, and people live longer with a higher quality of life.

The organization encourages changes to our community that lead to healthier options. Every change that is made contributes to huge benefits for all of us: lowered healthcare costs, improved productivity, and ultimately, a higher quality of life.

Blue Zones encourages individuals to achieve healthier lifestyles through participating in daily exercise, living with purpose, finding stress relieving strategies, eating mindfully, participating in faith-based community, investing time with family, and surrounding yourself with friends who support you.

For more information about Blue Zones Project® visit southwestflorida.bluezonesproject.com.

We hope you will make the commitment to a better work like balance too. Check out their website and their Vitality Compass assessment.

Business Tips

Business Etiquette – July 16, 2018

Sue Huff

Mention the word “etiquette” and you might conjure up images of stuffiness and outdated rituals. But in the business world, “etiquette” translates to making people feel comfortable and respected. Old-fashioned courtesies put a personal face on our impersonal world (think Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn) and promote a healthy atmosphere of cooperation.

The next time you encounter a new business contact, whether its at a job interview or a lunch with new clients, devote a few minutes to write a thank you note and send it through the USPS. Don’t send it via e-mail, even though that is easier. If you do, your “thank you” is likely to be seen as a rote exercise instead of sincere graciousness. And while we’re on the subject of email, when you’re in a meeting or listening to someone speak, forget about your electronic devices. Turn off the phone, don’t check your messages. Just because other people are doing it doesn’t mean its still not rude.

But what is even worse than sticking your face in a screen while someone is talking is gossiping about them as soon as you step out of the room. Have you ever been in an elevator with people, only to hear them criticize, mock or otherwise trash the people they have just left? You are pretty sure they didn’t behave this way in the meeting, but seeing their phoniness in public makes you wonder what kind of people/company they really are.