Workplace Buzz: Today’s Headlines

Shifting This Year’s Resolutions
NEW YEAR’S resolutions tend to be discarded like old Christmas trees, and often just as quickly. But blaming ourselves for being weak only masks a larger problem. We don’t go to the gym or get home in time for dinner with the family because our lives contain too much stress and not enough time, and we, the workers of the world, cannot unilaterally change that. So this year I suggest turning the idea of resolutions on its head, and making them for other people. Specifically, people empowered to change the punishing pace of the working world. New York Times

A Company’s Best Asset
Job seekers will be in their glory in 2008. With U.S. unemployment low (4.7%), companies will be clamoring for the best talent. Job seekers will be able to expect more than just competitive salaries. Look for opportunities with professional training and lifestyle benefits like flex time, physical fitness programs and alumni associations. The best companies recognize their employees are their strongest asset, and they regularly show them their gratitude. Forbes.com

Opt-Out: Ubiquitous Phrase From 2007
In "The Motherhood Manifesto," a 2007 documentary about America's inferior family policies, two young women chat at a kitchen table. The film, produced by MomsRising.org, supports 2007 research conducted by University of California's Joan C. Williams, author of "Opt Out or Pushed Out? How the Press Covers Work/Family Conflict." Williams' article exposes bias and flawed research used to produce the sensational 2003 New York Times story, "Why Don't More Women Get to the Top? They Choose Not To" and the following flood of copycat media stories. Anchorage Daily News