Communication
Sarah Shuel
Change: Alter, Transform and Switch; To Become ...

: to make different in some particular : ALTER

: to make radically different : TRANSFORM

: to make a shift from one to another : SWITCH

: to become different

Ahh yes: “Alter, transform and switch, to become different’’.....these words resonate a lot in FIG’s evolution, we’re excited about a little bit of change (and a little apprehensive if we’re being honest!).

Change: Alter, Transform and Switch; To Become Different
Communication
Sarah Shuel
Technology Addiction: Yes, It's a Thing...

In her Wall Street Journal article: Digital Addictions Are Drowning Us in Dopamine, Dr, Lembke, a Stamford University professor and psychiatrist, talks about the scientific biological effects of addictions to our devices. It’s real folks. This is not FIG banging the drum of putting down our phones or any other technological apparatus and talking or connecting with our fellow human beings. No. This is concrete, physiological, measurable, science based fact that continuously interacting with our high-tech electronic leashes, gaming apparatuses and social media actually, physically, alters our brains to crave more of it, thereby de-incentivising us to engage with others on a human level.

Gasp, shock and awe!

Technology Addiction: Yes, It's a Thing...
Communication
Sarah Shuel
Mistakes: Perfectly Human

Mistakes. We all make them, we’re human beings and by definition 99.9% imperfect (with apologies to those of you who think otherwise), which results in, guess what? Mistakes (we make them hourly at FIG)! That gaffes, miscalculations and oversights are a part of our collective experience on this earth. Why (on earth!) is it so hard to admit to making mistakes, take responsibility for these human aberrations and move on after making a miscalculation or error? Hmmmm?

Mistakes: Perfectly Human
Communication
Sarah Shuel
Habits: The Good, The Bad, and the Intangible

We all have habits - some serve us well and some get in our way…...Google states: “A habit is a settled or regular tendency or practice, especially one that is hard to give up.” Establishing a habit usually takes about two weeks to become routine and is subsequently supported and reinforced by practicing it daily.

Habits: The Good, The Bad, and the Intangible
Communication
Sarah Shuel
Life Happens

Ever had a “Monday” on any day of the week? Ever had your day perfectly planned, scheduled and organized only to have all your intended “to-do’s”: meetings, calls, oh yeah, actual “work,” utterly blown up by an unexpected interruption, complication, interference? Ever had someone insert themselves into your day with their drama, troubles or lack of planning (real or self-inflicted), requiring you to shelve your carefully laid out day(s) and requiring you to stop whatever you’re doing for their fire drill?

Yeah, us too.

Life Happens

Future Image Group

"Give a Man a Fish..."

"Give a Man a Fish..."

“…..and you'll feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish, and you've fed him for a lifetime."

Confucius.


Overstating the obvious, Confucius was a smart guy.


Torturing the fishing metaphor a bit: learning to set a hook, choosing or making bait, the art of casting, reeling, landing, cleaning and filleting a fish all are easy skills to write down, but in practice, take an enormous amount of time, tutelage, patience, practice and more practice. We don’t become mature, capable anglers without first sticking ourselves with an errant hook, get grossed out by baiting a hook with a worm, losing a fish on the line or winding up falling in the water. Right? Then we land our first one! And we replay the experience in our heads: what worked? The bait? The location? Time of day? How can we replicate what worked so we can catch another and another and another to feed ourselves for a lifetime?

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Back in the Day... Perspectives from Gen X, Baby Boomers, and Traditionalists

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Back in the Day... Perspectives from Gen X, Baby Boomers, and Traditionalists

We thought it would be interesting to mix things up a bit and talk about the experiences of the Traditionalists, the Boomers and Generation X. A lot of time is spent dissecting the methods, communication styles and habits of Millennials and Generation Z, so we thought a trip down memory lane would serve us well and might even be interesting to the younger among us. Now, we certainly don’t want to be “that guy” - you know the one we’re talking about: the old guy, rocking back on his heels, thumbs in suspenders harkening back to ‘the good ole days,’

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We’ve Earned the Internet (Finally), but Will It Continue?

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We’ve Earned the Internet (Finally), but Will It Continue?

The Internet is an integral tool in our day to day lives that we have come to take for granted. For the younger generations, the Internet is omnipresent; they’ve never known life without it. My son, a GenY, came with me to my office many years ago, saw and was fascinated by an old typewriter I had on my shelf. He had trouble understanding that what was being typed wasn’t stored automatically or that he couldn’t edit, copy or paste the product!

Seldom do we take time to consider the vast brilliance, the scope and the reach of it, nor do we consider the ills afforded by the anonymity of being safely behind a screen. We are able to research anything, locate any place, watch videos, movies, listen to podcasts, search our ancestry, order food, find a date etc. and find immediate gratification for basically whatever we want nearly instantaneously. We are able to search the web from a device in the palm of our hand, we can communicate at any time with our family and friends across the entire world. The Internet has the astonishing capacity to educate us, connect us, and advance us.

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What We’re Missing: The 30 Second Walk-By Meeting

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What We’re Missing: The 30 Second Walk-By Meeting

With the Covid-19 Crisis in full swing, many offices and workplaces made the mass shift to remote work. Working from home has many benefits (including the remoteness from others in a time of contagious virus), but takes practice, and lacks many of the productive subtleties of the in-person workplace. Many didn’t realize they’d miss these small moments and perks of being in a formal office setting until they had to cope with no longer having them. One of those is the 30 second walk-by meeting.

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Top 8 Office Faux-Pas

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Top 8 Office Faux-Pas

When working in an office environment, it’s easy to take the passive approach, especially when it comes to building professional relationships. Technology has made it effortless to avoid any human interaction at all in the workplace - a fact that can be crippling for office workflow, happiness, and employee longevity. Here are 8 office faux-pas that can be fixed quickly to improve office communication and make a big difference in how employees construct and maintain both personal and professional relationships.

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Let’s Talk About Self-Love: Self-Care to Make Yourself a Better Professional

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Let’s Talk About Self-Love: Self-Care to Make Yourself a Better Professional

Around Valentine’s Day every year, we like to take the time to think about love in a different frame. Love of others isn’t the only important thing. Love of self and an understanding of how to weave love into personal and professional relationships is a foundational part of having a healthy social life. This year, we want to talk about using self-care to make yourself a better professional.

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New Year; New You: 4 Quick Changes to Make 2020 Your Best Professional Year Yet

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New Year; New You: 4 Quick Changes to Make 2020 Your Best Professional Year Yet

Happy New Year! 2020 is here, and it isn’t slowing down. Have you thought about your professional goals for the next 365 days? Do you know how you’re going to achieve them? To get you started, we’ve made a list of 4 quick changes you can make now to kick your year off right - and have your best professional year yet.

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Future Image Group on "Undervalued the Podcast"

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Future Image Group on "Undervalued the Podcast"

At Future Image Group, we believe in helping others succeed, whether it’s a young professional in the world of business for the first time struggling with social anxiety, or a Baby Boomer who’s nearing retirement and is nervous about leaving their company in the wrong hands.

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5 Ways to Overcome Social Anxiety

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5 Ways to Overcome Social Anxiety

Do you become overwhelmed or anxious in social situations? You’re not alone. According to The National Institute of Mental Health, 12.1% of U.S. adults experience some kind of social anxiety at some point in their life. Of those who are affected, an estimated 29.9% had serious impairment, 38.8% had moderate impairment, and 31.3% had mild impairment.

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FIG Book Club: February Recommended Reading

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FIG Book Club: February Recommended Reading

Welcome to Future Image Group’s Book Club! Every month, we’ll recommend a book, abstract, or research paper related to personal and professional development in the workplace (which, in turn, is also related to the development of social skills and more meaningful personal relationships).  We hope you enjoy – and we’d love to hear your recommendations for books that have helped you or given you some insight on your own journey of professional or personal social development.