Beauty Products That Every Working Girl Should Own

I've recently been really into attempting to find beauty products that I just adore and can't live without. And it's a lot harder than you think! So I thought I would share some of my findings below, because if a Working Girl needs anything - it's a little beauty to brighten her day.

Portable Rollerball Perfumes from Sephora

I've been traveling a lot lately (for pleasure and business), and it has always really bothered me that if I want to bring perfume with me I need to check my bags at airport because I am super picky about scents. Some give me headaches, some don't. So I was thrilled when I recently went into Sephora and found my signature Marc Jacobs scent in a rollerball perfume for only $25! And lo and behold they are the perfect size to travel with and meet the requirements to get through security without them snatching it up. Scents also come in L.A.M.B by Gwen Stefani, Stella McCartney, Burberry's The Beat and a lot more. Best $25 I ever spent!

L'Oreal Infalliable Never Fail Lipgloss

I hate lipstick. I'm more a lip gloss, chapstick kinda girl. But I so want to be a lipstick girl because their lips just always look so much better and it makes their face brighten and you know all that good stuff. So a few months ago I was at a conference and I got the L'Oreal Infalliable Never Fail lipgloss in my gift bag so I tried it and it has never left my bag since. The lipgloss is thick enough to look like a lipstick, but creamy enough to not dry out my lips. It stays on for 4-6 hours (but for me I have to say closer to 4) and it close in 16 shades. My favorite shade is Sangria! And I love that it's only $9.99.

The Vacation is Officially Over

It's another Thursday morning in the office and I'm sitting at my desk clicking the heels of my boots, eyes closed and whispering methodically, “I can make it to Friday! I can make it to Friday. I can make it to Friday?”

I'm officially post-holiday and feeling the sting.

It seems that things at work are getting more and more unpredictable as the company enacts sweeping changes. I've been around longer than most, more than five years, and I've never seen it quite like this. Restructuring, administrative musical chairs, cryptic company-wide memos, nixed holiday bonuses; its leaving me slightly on edge.

I've taken to sorting my afternoon Chex Mix snack into neat categories to calm my nerves. And, despite all the weirdness, it's insanely busy.

Taking a week and a half of PTO at the end of the year has caught up with me in a tremendous way. I've made the decisions eat lunch at my desk more than once since coming back. I'm seriously wondering if time off is work the hassle once its over? The flooded inbox, the mountain of sticky-note tagged items in my chair, the multitude of voicemails that must be returned though I know that half of them probably don't remember calling in the first place. (*sigh*) But alas, I have work, which is more than can be said for 10.2% of Georgians, so really I shouldn't complain. Somehow, holiday gifts are still trickling in Mid-January and there's nothing like an unexpected jar of individually-wrapped Rice Krispie Treats to brighten up a day!

And the weather has been miserably cold. Yes, I know its January but us southerners are accustomed to mild winters with the occasional two or three day "wintry mix" thrown in just to remind us why we choose not live in colder climates. But this frigid weather descended upon the Southeast over a week ago with temps dipping into the teens. At one point, Atlanta was colder than Alaska. . . Alaska, people! No one has time to be courteous now. Southern hospitality fades at 17 degrees. It even snowed, once, and only a few inches fell but since we were below-freezing, it hung around for days. Ice slick roadways made driving, even walking, hazardous. I actually made it across the frozen parking lot at work only to step in the door and slip. The fall was legendary. Think Home Alone. I was on the ground before I realized I was falling.

No, there is not a lawsuit pending but it did get me to thinking about a very real disorder, post-holiday blues, as I lay there wondering if anyone had witness the fall. PHD is a living, breathing, palpable funk that usually hits hard this time of year after the intense excitement of the end of the year holidays, especially if there's craziness at work. The lack of energy and motivation, sticker shock from overextending on must-have Black Friday deals, the fact that the next paid holiday may not be until May and just overall bad mood can strike even the most focused Working Girls so I googled these tips for getting back into the groove:

• Exercise! Okay, you’ve probably heard this a million times but exercising does make you feel good! Start working some form of exercise into your daily routine—you don’t have to buy a gym membership; going on walks or a 20 minute run three or four times a week is good enough, as long as it gets the heart pumping. Exercising will make you feel more alert and awake, which will help you perform well at work, even if you don’t want to be there. It will also help you get to bed at a reasonable hour, which will help your sleeping schedule get back in order. And of course, it will make you look good as well as feel good!

• Clean up. Get organized and put away all holiday decorations. This will help you mentally move on and get into a better mindset to get back to work. It will also take some stress off, knowing that you get to come home to a clean environment will give you some peace of mind.

• Take time to reflect on the wonderful things you did during your vacation. You may realize that, although the holiday is sadly over, you made the most of your time off and had a lot of fun. This will make it easier to accept that it’s time to get back to normalcy.

• Don’t forget about the little ones! Adults are not the only ones that don’t like going back to the old routine—your kids feel it too! Help establish the old routines by getting them to bed early and limiting how much TV they watch. Encourage them by reminding them that school is fun and how all their friends are excited to see them again. Have a positive attitude about going back, so that your children will mirror this positivity.

• Start thinking about the next fun thing you want to do, or the next vacation you want to take, so that you have something else look forward to.
  

Meeting Notes

Meeting Notes is a weekly feature. Here we will dish on tidbits, news, and important things we thinking Working Girls should know. So scroll down to hear what we think you should glean from this work week.

According to Crain's New York, more and more young women are venturing out on their own and starting their own businesses as the recession begins to limit career choices. [Crain's New York]

A source anonymously told the Post today, that senior Vogue staffers were told to start taking the subway instead of their usual mode of transporation: town cars. The cost cuts were supposedly instituted by publisher Susan Plagemann who the Post is now referring to as the "Cab Killer". [NY Mag]

Giant advertisements reading "Career Women Make Bad Mothers" appeared plastered on the sides of buses and on billboards in London last week when a campaign run by the Outdoor Advertising Association launched to prove the effectiveness of outdoor advertising. The ad came down after hundreds of mothers on Mumsnet expressed their disgust in the online forums. [San Francisco Chronicle]

The Rachel Zoe Project has a new character joining its ranks. LA stylist Ashley Avignone tweeted her new job status yesterday. Avignone is taking over for former Rachel Zoe employee Taylor Jacobson. [NY Mag]

Confession: I'm an X-rated surfer

Or so my new company may think. I’m learning quite quickly just how restricting corporate Internet policy can be. When I had down time at my last job (which happened quite frequently), I could surf the Internet as I pleased. Facebook, Gchat, Hulu, Perez, YouTube—the world wide web was mine for the taking.

When I moved on to the corporate world a few weeks ago, I knew that my carefree Internet surfing days were over. I promised myself I wouldn’t be as obsessed with the Internet as I was in my last job. And if I did feel the need to look something up that wasn’t job-related, I’d keep it very work-friendly. As in, only CNN and Weather Channel. A girl has to keep herself informed, right?

Well, unfortunately, because I started over the holidays, when projects and people were scarce, I found myself with a lot of extra time on my hands. I tried to restrain myself, but pretty soon my fingers were itching to type in my old favorite web addresses.

I started by looking up things I wanted for Christmas. My fingers flew furiously over the keyboard as I typed in the familiar store name. I couldn’t wait to feed in to my online addiction of looking random stuff up. After a quick second of loading, I was met with a blindingly bright white page. It practically screamed, in blazing RED letters, “Site restricted due to SEX.” Under that, in fine print, it plainly stated, “Attempt to access site has been logged.”

Crud. First week on the job and they already caught me trying to look at porn. Because you know me (oh wait, no you don’t), that’s totally my thing. Only, it’s not. At all. I was absolutely mortified. My new employers probably thought I was a pervert! And the offending site was Anthropologie.com. Who knew?!

Not long after, I decided to peruse the entire CNN website. (Yes, I had time on my hands.) I clicked on the Technology tab and immediately got the RESTRICTED website again, blaring at me in amazing technicolor. The reason? Games. On CNN. Really?

So in light of my recent restriction revelations, I now present to you my safe-for-work (thus far) Internet favorites:

CNN (except Technology)—My go-to site. But don’t be fooled. My most clicked-on tab is Entertainment. Oh and Travel, too. I like to plan my escape.

Entertainment Weekly—Unfortunately, I’m pretty sure Perez Hilton’s hand-crafted photo drawings and captions won’t cut it in the corporate world. That’s why I turn to EW.com for my entertainment fix. It’s a great place for watered-down celeb gossip and great TV/movie buzz.

Weather Channel—I’m kind of a weather nut, so I love to check out the forecast in my new city, old city, hometown, places I’ve visited, placed I’d like to visit, places I’ll never visit, etc. Checking the weather in Bora, Bora is kind of fun. Emphasis on kind of. Caution: This practice can cause daydreaming…and climate jealousy.

Real Simple—A superb site for finding simple recipes, amazing advice and helpful hints, tips and tricks for everyday life. I learn something new every time I log on.

Now it's your turn. Do you have any safe-for-work favorites? If so, I’d love to hear them. The more the merrier!

I Found My First Gray Hair Today...

And I don't want to talk about it. My first week of work was quite overwhelming, the special needs pre-schoolers I am working with require a lot of assistance and a LOT of patience. I have been trying to keep my cool all week (although I have cried everyday at 2PM when they leave), but the stress has started to get to me, and it's too early in 2010 to get burned out! With that said, I thought I'd write about stress. The word itself even gives me chills (and as I am typing this, the children who live above me are screaming crying and THAT is even stressing me out).

Being a Working Girl in any field can feel like a lot of pressure at times. There are things you are required to do in order to keep your job, as well as things you want to do to prove to your boss that you're right for the job. Presentations, reports, events, meetings, lesson plans, conferences, report cards...it's hard to keep track of everything (especially when you have to keep track of it for 16 three-year-olds and their parents as well), and it can get very stressful very fast. However the key is to manage your stress (along with managing your work, your boss's calendar, social events, and errands, right?) because if not stress will get the best of you and it can damage your performance, your mind, and your health. Here are some tips I found on about.com about why managing is important.

1. Get Organized: I live for making lists! "Food store", "calls to make", "stuff to pack for business trip" and to be extra organized I recommend numbering your lists according to importance.

2. Work It Of: Sometimes you just don't feel like going to the gym, and I can't blame you. After a tiring day at work it's hard to get motivated to go back out (especially if the weather is crummy) so lay on the floor and stretch. Take deep breaths as you reach above your head and to your toes. It will help relax your muscles.

3. Develop Strategies: It's impossible to avoid stress. It happens. Have some back up plans to keep you on track such as an easy meal you can defrost if you don't have time to make dinner or a "go to" outfit that makes you feel more important for that intense meeting next week.

4. Take 5: When you feel yourself getting tense get up from your desk (or ask a teacher to cover your class) and take a few minutes to get your head clear. Get some fresh air or splash some water on your face and take lots of deep breaths.

5. Set Realistic Goals: Lose 40 pounds by March is only going to stress you out more when Feb 28th rolls around and you've only lost 10.

6. Take A Nap: Studies show that a 15-20 minute nap can improve your mood and stress-handling abilities. As for myself, when I come home from school if I took a nap, I wouldn't wake up until the next morning. But there's nothing wrong with crashing on the couch for a bit after a long day.

7. Stay Involved: Join sports teams in your area, go to weekly dinners with friends, or take up a new hobby.

8. Eat Well: Try to stick to a balanced diet during the week to keep your immune system strong and help you sleep well. Vitamin C is magic to a teacher.

So remember girls, it is okay to be stressed out, but managing it is key. Stay organized and take some time for yourself. You deserve to have some fun! And if you ever need to vent, email me and we can share war stories!

Meet Healthcare Working Girl

I attended a national high school journalism conference in Washington, DC about halfway through my senior year. One of the first assignments we received was a huge interviewing project where we had to pick a buddy, interview each other and write a nice little intro piece for the conference booklet. I came across said booklet a few weeks ago and was completely taken aback to see that my ten year plan included, among other things, working for CNN, buying a house and birthing ten children. Yes, ten! Now, its approaching eleven years after that bizarre interview and since I’m not introducing myself as Media Working Girl you’ve probably guessed by now that at least part of that plan fell through.

Instead of hosting my own prime time news-talk hour and giving Anderson Cooper “the eye” during commercial breaks, I’m managing the professional lives and schedules of two wonderful—albeit high maintenance—senior vice presidents at an Atlanta-based healthcare consulting company, one of whom actually compared himself to Diana Ross during my first weeks as his assistant. While I’ve seen many a professional, degreed career woman scoff at the lowly assistant role, I happen to enjoy life in the trenches. Think of one of those popular TV dramas wherein the main characters are sprinting across the world following clues, torturing suspects, taking out WMDs, etc. There is rarely an episode where said characters do not find themselves in a jam and in immediate need of the recipe for a do-it-yourself dirty bomb or the floor plans of the Bagdad airport and out pops the cell phone. You see, that’s me, on the other end of that cell phone, tucked away in a darkened office, crouched in front of multiple computer screens with fingers flying over the keys, hacking into top secret files and supplying the intel.

Well, that’s kinda me. While my job is not nearly that glamorous nor does it involve national security, I do get quite a rush tracking down a client for a pop-up conference call or locating an alternate route to a meeting venue at the crack of dawn or figuring out the fastest and most cost effective way to get one of my guys to appointments in Chicago, San Diego, Las Vegas and back over a two day period. Its challenging and rarely boring. I did say rarely boring, not never boring, because there are times when 100+ page documents need proofing and PowerPoint presentations require formatting but at the end of the day, its fulfilling work.

After the daily grind, I leave my office and head over to what I consider my SECOND job: Two Little Girls, Inc.! My seven and four year old daughters are far more high maintenance but definitely more rewarding than any paying job I’ve ever had and being a single mother means that I can’t tag my partner into the ring when I need a break after 5 rounds of Uno Attack or just to create a diversion while I attempt to prepare a nutritious yet kid-delicious meal. So, after a day of tackling piles of expense reports, cold calling prospects and clearing paper jams in the copier, my evenings generally involve squeezing as much parenting as possible into the two hours we have together before bedtime. At that point, I take off all my hats and attempt, yes I do mean attempt, to focus on me: my health, my writing. Not in that order and rarely every day. I have a list of “me things” all lined up for the year 2024. That’s when the youngest will (hopefully) set out into the world, leaving me the time and energy to finally get some things done. And yes, I’m kidding . . . I hope.

As for the rest of my ten year plan, I didn’t get very far and I’m OK with that. I’ve come to terms with living in the aftermath of a failed marriage and several other not so great decisions that leave me feeling, at 29, way older and perhaps a little wiser. The fact that we’ve just entered a new decade has me all excited about renewal and endless possibilities while I’m simultaneously taking stock of my entire existence as I prepare to exit my twenties next month. It’s a strange yet electrifying place to be as I join the WG Staff as Healthcare Working Girl!

Meet Advertising Working Girl

Hi, I’m Advertising Working Girl and I’m a catchphrase-concocting Copywriter. I reside on the creative side of the advertising world and boy, do I love it. And now that I get to whip up compelling (and hopefully entertaining) posts as a Working Girl Contributor, I’m absolutely giddy with glee. (Yay Glee!)

I always knew I wanted to be a writer for as long as I can remember (except that one month when I was 8 in which I had to be a Disney cartoonist…until I realized I couldn’t draw). As soon as I got to college and discovered the joys of copywriting, I knew that’s what I wanted to do. Though, as I’m sure pretty much any copywriter would agree, I would love to write books one day. Preferably chick lit. There’s nothing I love more than getting lost in a good, and somewhat mindless, book.

And while I love what I do, I haven’t been able to focus much on it lately. Why’s that? Well, in the last six weeks, my life has been swept up in a crazy whirlwind of change.

I took a huge leap of faith (and love), packed up my little life and moved to a new city, a new apartment and a heck of a new job . I’ve moved on from a tiny ad agency where everyone knew my name, shoe size, favorite ice cream toppings—everything—to the gigantic corporate world where I’m literally just a number.

The best part? For the first time in a long time, I feel excited. I’ve only been at my new job a few short weeks (with some holiday chaos thrown in for fun), but I’m absolutely loving it. I got the dream job I’d been craving and though I’m still learning the ropes, I know it’s going to be everything I hoped it would be—and more. Though it certainly won’t be without its challenges, it’s a position that’s filled with seemingly endless opportunities to grow and succeed.

But let’s be honest—being the new kid is awkward. As someone who is shy around new people, I’ve really tried to step out of my shell. In an office chock full of inside jokes, it’s a bit difficult to fit in. I find myself constantly trying to find the balance between happily joining in on conversations with co-workers and being the creepy eavesdropping girl who butts in. It’s quite difficult!

That’s nothing compared to trying to navigate my way around the actual office building. I would love to carry a map with me (oh yes, there are maps) but I’d rather not look like a lost little freshman. Thank goodness I had a nice long orientation to get me situated. I couldn’t even find the bathrooms for at least a half a day.

I honestly had no idea what to expect when I stepped into the corporate world. Over the holidays, I had three different relatives congratulate me on my first real job. Huh? I felt a tiny bit offended. After all, I’ve been a Working Girl for a few years now.

But honestly, it kind of does feel like my first REAL job. I actually have to dress up every day (which meant I just had to buy a new wardrobe, of course). And now I couldn’t be more excited to dive right in and take my new company by storm…a happy, thriving, successful storm.

Meet Teaching Working Girl

Over a year ago, WG1 and WG2 asked me to be a guest contributor and write about my not-as-typical Working Girl life after graduation, and I am honored to be asked to come back as a full-time contributor. For those of you who are too lazy to click and read (trust me - we all have our days), I'll give you the brief summary.

I graduated in 2007 with my degree in Communication. After interning in the city for a media company I realized it just wasn't for me. My days of playing school and teaching my dolls how to count Cheerios were still with me so I went to graduate school to become a teacher. After taking about 60 credits in one year and completing my student teaching I was a certified teacher. I thought I would complete my Masters in the next year but an unexpected job offer came up the last weekend of August.

The position turned out to be a teacher at a Head Start Preschool, which is a federally funded organization for underprivileged children. It was a challenging year (since I was one of the few teachers who was not bilingual), but the children were amazing. I took some more online courses and became officially certified in Early Childhood Education. It was heartbreaking to leave my ninos in June when I bought a condo with my sister and moved to Hoboken.

I spent most of my summer babysitting and job searching and when September rolled around and I was unemployed, I panicked. September passed, as did October and November. By this point I had been unemployed for 5 months. Speaking of, why isn't there a contributor called Unemployed Girl? Because I could so be her mentor! As much fun as it was at first sleeping late and watching Soap Net all day, it got old. Fast.

I applied for unemployment and got denied since I left my previous job voluntarily because of the move. My money was gone and I was scared I'd have to move back home. Luckily, my sister offered to be my sugar mama and helped me out so I didn't have to make that dreaded phone call to my parents.

December came and a friend of my fathers (who recently started a sales company) said he was looking for some help...in White Plains. For those of you who are geographically challenged like myself, this job required me to drive 2 hours both ways in traffic with angry New Yorkers. On top of that, the job entailed sitting at a desk in a small room with 5 other people making cold calls to appliance repairmen. My dream job? Notsomuch. Having no background in this I was shocked when I made my first sale..and then another..and another. It felt good, but not as satisfying as when I am with children and watching them grow and learn. Granted my preschool paycheck didn't put a dent in my bills, but the important thing was that I still loved it.

Luckily, I got a call on my third day of working as a corporate girl and got offered a job at a preschool for children with disabilities. And on my fourth day of work I gave my two weeks notice.

I was surprisingly sad to leave my White Plains coworkers. They were a lot of fun and we had become fast friends sitting in that office everyday from 9-6 but they understood why I had to leave. My boss knew my passion was teaching and he said he would never ask me to give it up. His support made me feel good about this new position, even though I am taking an extreme pay cut. (And I mean extreme as in making minimum wage). But it's not about the money because if it was I'd still be sitting in traffic on my way to White Plains at this exact moment (yes, the commute is torture). Plus, I have my sister aka my sugar mama to watch my back so I'm not too worried!

I'm really excited that I will be able to share my less typical Working Girl experiences with you. And just in case you wanted to know more about me, here are some fun facts. I am obsessed with this blog, The Office, Tom Hanks, and my dog Phoebe. I have a weird thing for Chris Daughtry and I love anything involving magic. I'm on the Junior Board of Directors for The Valerie Fund and I'd die if I didn't have DVR or Rock Band.

We're Back (And I Mean It This Time)

Remember about a month ago when I said we were back to blogging. About that...

We admit it, we're serious slackers. But to defend ourselves, it's been an insanely busy (almost) two months. To illustrate, let me catch you up on my life. Since we last posted, I got a part-time job at the Gap for the holiday season, took a trip to Kansas City, went to a Bears game with clients, participated in planning a fundraiser for my charity board, saw New Moon and decided I'm on Team Jacob, decided to start freelancing, had lots of holiday parties to plan and attend, went to an awkward grade school reunion, and you know the holidays were sloshed in there somewhere along with a death in the family. Work wise, I am going nuts with an event for 250+ people that I feel like I am planning alone and another event coming up in March.

In short, I don't sleep. Unfortunately, WG1 and I can't keep up at the pace we used to. With jobs, part-time jobs, family, and social lives, we are both super busy and blogging took the back burner. Although we like to pretend we can do it all, sometimes we have to admit that we take on too much. That being said, there are going to be some changes made around here.

Instead of seeing some sporadic posts go up every once and while by WG1 and myself, we have recruited some Working Girl Contributors who will now be posting weekly. Meeting Notes will still go up on Wednesdays. I will still be posting, and WG1 will be working more behind the scenes.

All this week we will be introducing you to our new Contributors with some introduction posts on who they are, what they do, where they live, and all that other good stuff. We hope that this will be a better way of doing things not just for us (and our sanity) but also for our readers. You'll be getting a lot more variety with the different professions of our Contributors and all sorts of Working Girl advice.

Without further ado, here is the schedule we will work with going forward:

Monday: Teaching Working Girl

Tuesday: Advertising Working Girl

Wednesday: Meeting Notes

Thursday: Healthcare Working Girl

Friday: Working Girl Two

Wow, I almost just wrote, "If you have any questions or comments, please email me". Which obviously means I'm working too much. Yikes bikes.

In other more self-promoting news, Working Girl was nominated for a 20 Something Blogger Bootleg Award for "Best Group Blog". We were very surprised since we disappeared off the face of the earth for a good two months, but thank you for all your votes! And if you feel so inclined, please vote for us again!

Meeting Notes

Meeting Notes is a weekly feature. Here we will dish on tidbits, news, and important things we think Working Girls should know. So scroll down to hear what we think you should glean from this work week.

• While I should probably start this by saying this site is totally unethical, I have to also admit that I love it. The website Expense a Steak helps you generate fake receipts when you're in a bind for spending too much at your work lunch - the receipts even look crumpled! [Cup of Jo]

• Careerwoman.com recently revealed new survey results that showed the top 5 reasons women change jobs. In order, they are family obligations, expanding opportunities, higher pay, relocation and last but not least job burnout. [News 8 Austin]

• According to an analysis done by Consolidated Credit Cousneling Services, Inc., women trying to build their careers are more likely than men to incur credit card debt. The reason behind this travesty - women spend more on clothing and personal care items. [Cape Fear Business News]

• Designer Adam Lippes complained recently about the turnover of interns in his house of fashion. He said, "It's rare to find an intern - especially one from a fashion school - that has good style. Because they try sooo hard, and it never works! You know?". [NY Mag]

Scandalous!

Wow. So all of your stories of what got your office mill going were all, in a nutshell, amazing. And it was really hard for us to pick the winners. Our winners and their stories of office drama are below. Seriously these are must reads!

Congrats to all who won! And if you did win, please send me an email me at workinggirltwo@gmail.com with your complete address so we can have your Starbucks Doubleshot Energy+Coffee prize pack sent to you ASAP.

Winner #1 - Katie

"I had just started my first job out of college, getting adjusted to working having a work life balance (still working on that one). But anyway, per company policy, employees are not allowed to start a competing company with co-workers that they meet while working in our office. Ok long story short...someone narked by printing out some files they found on a zip. I walk into work the next morning and there are police dusting for finger prints on the printer. I know it's hard to believe. I still laugh about it today!

Winner #2 - Miss Burb

"This one girl was fired who was on the "Fun Committee" (think birthdays) and she actually TOOK the money she had collected and said she deserved it. Glad I never donated."

Winner #3 - Citizen

"One of my coworkers, who I assume was just bored one day, emptied a bottle of hand sanitizer on his desk and proceeded to light it on fire. This of course scorched his desk, and set off the smoke alarms. Strangely, he is still employed here."

Winner #4 - Born with a big mouth!

"During a buyout of another company, one of my fellow employees called on our of local radio stations to share her concerns and aggravations on the merger. Her choice in verbage, and the fact that she said her boss's names on the air had people waiting at the door to escort her back to her car. Gossip was flying for days along with a copy of her on the radio. Wow - I guess if you are gonna complain on air is NOT the way to do it if you want to keep your job!"

Winner #5 - Bogeygrl

"I work in a very conservative office where if someone wears a skirt above their knee people raise eyebrows. But this story goes a bit beyond that. There is an older guy in our office who is fairly chatty; most people know him. He is about 65 and seems normal. Let's call him "Older Guy". The head boss gets a call one day from a man who is livid. Let's call him "Livid Man".

"Livid Man" says he wants "Older Guy" fired. When the boss asks why, "Livid Man" says that "Older Guy" has been swinging with his life. "Livid Man's" wife has also been posting all of her adventures online. In fact, "Older Guy" and "Older Guy's" wife and "Livid Man's" wife have all been swinging together! If this wasn't enough, "Livid Man" emails a video of the three of them getting it on. Because it turns out that "Livid Man's" wife is really into being watched or whatever. And "Livid Man" says that his wife is now filing for divorce because "Older Guy" is so freaking fabulous in bed.

Needless to say "Older Guy" called in sick for two weeks and I am totally serious."

That Guy

I have recently become addicted to the show How I Met Your Mother. I was late on the bandwagon, I know, and after watching tons and tons of reruns I'm really mad I waited this long to become obsessed with this show. Sidenote: yes, I have a crush on Jason Segel and no, I'm not ashamed of it.

So while watching one of my reruns the other night, I happened upon an episode where Barney Stinson (aka the greatest TV character of all time) gave a great nugget of info to the love of my life Jason Segel aka Marshall about how to not get laid off. He said, and I quote, "You just need a way to make yourself absolutely essential...You need a thing. Something that makes you fun and well-liked."

Which segued into the types of "those guys" in the office - the Food Guy, Toy Guy, YouTube Clip Guy, and so on. So in an effort to become indispensable Marshall became Fantasy Football Guy.

And while obviously this show is meant to be funny and not taken completely seriously, I started to ponder about this theory. Could it actually work in the work force? And I have to say yes I think it can. At my last job, there were tons of people who should not have been there but they had a 'thing' they were known for. Like I was indispensable because I knew how to work our mail system and where supplies were and sadly I could navigate our storage area like a pro. I had common knowledge of our office but it wasn't something that everyone could do. I had given myself a shield of some sort.

Recently at my office, a few people have been fired. And I know I'm not in HR so I can't say for sure they why, but of course it makes you think, 'Oh God, I'm next'. It's the automatic reaction. And I don't think I have a "thing" yet at my more recent job. I think my best bet is to become the Party Girl - not in that I get wasted all the time but that I always plan parties. Then I'll be golden!

What "guy" are you at work?

The Food Guy making tacos on How I Met Your Mother

Some Housekeeping Items

Here is your homework for the weekend. Go here and enter our Starbucks contest! As a reminder there will be five (yes five!) lucky winners of the following prize pack from Starbucks:

• Stealth Switch - the "world's first desktop cloaking device" that uses patent pending technology to instantly and completely hide applications with a press of a foot-switch. The applications are not just minimized, they are made invisible.
• $5 Starbucks® card
• Starbucks Doubleshot Energy+Coffee coupons
• Starbucks Doubleshot Energy+Coffee branded white board

All you have to do is post a comment (aka answer) to the following question: "Sip on Starbucks Doubleshot® Enegery+Coffee to upgrade your energy levels without raising eyebrows around the office. What's your best real-life story of how some idiot in the office raised eyebrows and stirred up the gossip mill?"

As a reminder, the contest ends at 9AM on Monday, November 9th - so you have all weekend to think of an answer!

For all my Chicago ladies, I have a few events that might be of interest for networking, noshing, and all around awesomeness.

First is the Winter Wonderland CRAVE party on December 9th. In store for those who purchase tickets is an opportunity to pre-order the hottest fashions from local Chicago boutiques, indulge in mini spa treatments, and sampling some great food (and drinks of course!) all under the same roof. I know I will be there - so let me know if you're going so we can meet up!

Where: The Historic Stan Mansion at 2408 N Kedzie in Chicago

When: Wednesday, December 9th, 7-10pm

Purchase tickets here!


Second event is happening next Friday, November 13th (and I'll also be in attendance there as well!). As part of her nationwide tour to promote her book, Girl on Top, career expert and author Nicole Williams will be having a networking/shopping event/party at The Limited in the Woodfield Mall. The evening will entail an amazing gift bag, an exclusive 40% discount on The Limited's new business chic attire, cocktails and free career advice. Totally worth trekking to the Chicago burbs for!

When: November 13th, 2009

Where: The Limited at Woodfield Mall
Schaumburg, IL

Time: 6-9PM

Click here to RSVP!

Wardrobe Malfunction

Tomorrow, I leave for a business trip. This evening, I've been packing for said business trip. I've discovered that I hate all of my clothes. Okay, not all of them. But most of them.

I had a business trip last week which, for the most part, was rather casual and therefore easy. In packing for this trip, I've become increasingly frustrated with my clothing.

The problem, I think, is that I haven't taken the time to develop my wardrobe. When I first began working, I invested in a few quality items. The rest were all from lower end stores that were very affordable but low in quality. Three years later, I still have and wear some of these clothes and every time I wear them to work I hate them and I have the "I hate how I look, how could I put together such an awful outfit" feeling all day. Some of these things have really got to go.

I also haven't taken good care of some of the more quality items I have. Items that should be dry cleaned, don't get dry cleaned. Items that should be hand washed get sent out for wash and fold. What I'm left with are half ruined pieces of clothing. No one wants that.

Now, I'm making some shopping/clothing resolutions for myself:

1. Stop purchasing cheap (in quality) items.
2. Take inventory of what I have so that when I shop I know what I need and what outfits I can put together.
   
3. Purchase more quality items that I'll wear for a while.
4. Take care of said quality items.
   

Once I get these resolutions going, my next step is learn how to accessorize. I love buying accessories but hate wearing them. I always feel like I look foolish.

My Disappearing Act

I think I owe an explanation for my disappearing act, because like I said on our first post back on Monday WG1 had a much better explanation of why she has been MIA.

I've definitely been in a working funk lately. When my last boss left our company, I was in total and complete limbo. They had no intention of hiring a new Executive VP (even though that would make sense) so no one needed a new assistant. Everyone was pretty much scrambling to find a place for me to fit in. They knew that I wanted to keep doing the events, but what else would occupy my time? Before I had been doing various projects that popped up but that was all based on my workload from my old boss. My new boss suggested I become a Project Manager and work with consumer marketing. This included figuring out email schedules, working with new clients, and such.

So for almost two months they had me "shadow" someone who had been managing projects at our company for almost 4 years. And in the middle of those two months, he quit to go back to school. Which left me with his workload, zero understanding of what I was doing, and a mountain of stress. Not to mention I was uber confused. I knew that I still really loved events and they weren't taking those away from me, but now I was doing someone else's full-time job. And I didn't even like it! I wanted to say something to my boss, but the feeling that the only reason I still had a job was because I was filling in with what needed to be helped with, made me think twice about that.

In a nutshell, I wasn't a happy camper. I thought about getting an new job - even applied to a few. Of course, I heard nothing back because the economy is shot so I kept going about my business in a job I didn't love with a mountain of work.

Just last week, my new boss sat me down and proposed that I go back to working with merchant marketing - a job I had kinda been doing before in my old position. She suggested I work on their projects which would include working with the sales team. I would still be doing events but I would get to work on collateral for the sales team and all their supplemental marketing requests. All things I did at my old job. Things that made me feel more comfortable. Things that so far have made me a teensy bit happier.

I won't really transition into my new position until Monday, and really other than doing new things not much else has changed. I didn't get a raise and my title didn't actually change. Don't worry - all things that I will talk about with my new boss in the next coming weeks. I'm settling in for the moment, not just into my new job but also into a new desk (which is ten times larger than my old one and I'm no longer lodged next to all the creatives who I am convinced hate my guts).

Things are getting better and most importantly I'm back from the black blogging abyss.

Meeting Notes

Meeting Notes is a weekly feature. Here we will dish on tidbits, news, and important things we think Working Girls should know. So scroll down to hear what we think you should glean from this work week.

• According to The Shriver Report: A Woman's Nation Changes Everything, 40% of families mothers are the major breadwinners. Some other fun facts - 32 women have served as governors, 38 have served as senators, and 4 out of 8 Ivy League presidents are now women. Despite these stats, NY Times contributor Joanne Lipman argues that women's gains in the working world have stalled.
• Do career women make bad wives? According to a 2006 article in Forbes Magazine, research suggests that yes they. The author, Michael Noer, pointed out research that suggested that "career women" aka women who work more than 35 hours a week are "more likely to divorce, less likely to have children, and, if they do have kids, are more likely to be unhappy about it". A new article by Suzanne Venker revisits this research in an article here.
• The face of home economics in high schools is changing to become more career focused. The subject which used to prep future housewives has started to veer towards prepping all students with "contemporary world skills". At a high school outside Houston, students can take teach training classes or architectural design. At a school in Wisconsin, students take advanced food science class while a school in Florida has a fashion design option. [Associated Press]
• Is the recession harder on women or men? Some argue men since men have lost more jobs than women, but some experts say women are getting the brunt of it since working women are delaying have children or planning for smaller families because of financial burdens created by the recession. A study conducted by Citi revealed that 53% of working women indiciated that they work longer hours now to make ends meet and while women may make up 45% of the workforce, they only collect 38% of the wages paid. [Reuters]

First Day Back & We Have a Contest

So a break from blogging that was only supposed to last a long weekend turned into a 3 week hiatus. While WG1 has a pretty damn good excuse (not only did she just move into a new apt., she also had a huge event at work to do and crunch time was October), I on the other hand have less of an excuse and more of a case of laziness.

Today, as a welcome back to the blogging world after our almost month long absence, we'd like to announce a contest (in hopes to get you back in our good graces).

Who's giving the goods: In honor of their energy/coffee sent-from-the-gods drink Doubleshot® Energy+Coffee, Starbucks is hosting a contest across the blog-o-sphere to promote their drink that keeps you energized AND has dose of vitamins, protein, and minerals. Which means I basically want this in an IV at my office desk.

What you're playing for: Five (5) lucky bloggers will win the following

• Stealth Switch - the "world's first desktop cloaking device" that uses patent pending technology to instantly and completely hid applications with a press of a foot-switch. The applications are not just minimized, they are made invisible.
• $5 Starbucks® card
• SDEC coupons
• SDEC-branded white board

Not only that - but the blog with the most "valid" comments will win a special prize pack at the end of the contest (which includes a set of noise-canceling headphones which let me tell you, I need desperately!). So not only will you win the prizes above, but you'll also be helping me win sweet peace and silence at work. Can I just say I don't appreciate the fact that my next door cubemate likes to play techno at full blast every Friday in anticipation of the weekend.

Here's the nitty gritty: All you have to do is post a comment (aka answer) to the following question: "Sip on Starbucks Doubleshot® Enegery+Coffee to upgrade your energy levels without raising eyebrows around the office. What's your best real-life story of how some idiot in the office raised eyebrows and stirred up the gossip mill?"

The 5 answers that we think are the best will win the prize packs mentioned above. To get you thinking let me just say that the most idiotic thing I ever saw at work was when a co-worker got canned for watching porn at work - yea, no joke.

The contest ends on November 9th so get commenting Working Girls!

The fine print:
This promotion is solely sponsored by Working Girl and has not been endorsed or approved by North American Coffee Partnership. By entering, you agree to look solely to Working Girl Two for any claims in connection therewith, and not the North American Coffee Partnership. NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. Subject to Contest guidelines. Open to U.S. residents only. Contest ends November 9th, 2009. Void where prohibited. Starbucks Doubleshot^® Energy+Coffee sent me samples and a prize pack and here's what I think. All the opinions expressed here are mine.

Yes, We're Alive!

Eek. So, you might have noticed that WG1 and I have been absent for a while (and by a while I mean almost 1 week and a half, but who's counting?!?). So we wanted to let you all know that we're alive.

Also...

...We are still recovering from our trip to Las Vegas last weekend where we partied like ballers, spent money like crazy people, and saw Britney Spears in concert (which was amazing and highly entertaining!).

...We're both super swamped at work with events, events, and more events. They take over lives. Seriously.

...Not only that but we're both busy in our after-work lives too! WG1 was apartment hunting and moving in with her boyfriend and WG2 has been helping plan an event for a board she is on and yes, just maybe she's been job searching (but don't tell!).

So we're sorry that we've been MIA. But we promise we'll be back in full force this Monday. And if you need a little Working Girl fix, you can always follow us on Twitter!

Queen of the Interns

On The Hills, Kelly Cutrone scared the crap out of me. Then, on The City, I decided I loved her because she was hardcore and hilarious.

In the clip below, I'm not sure how I feel about her. Kelly says, in the clip, that she's the patron saint of interns, that she made interning famous and that no one in the outside world knew what interning was before she was on MTV. I can't tell if she was joking or not. Either way, that's false.

I do agree with one thing though. She discusses that interns start working for her and believe their internships are going to be glamorous and then they become disgruntled when they learn they have to pick up heavy boxes or run errands. While I've experienced this with some interns, it's got to particularity true in the fashion industry where everything the public sees is oozing with glamor.

Kelly says that she always hires the "village girl," which she defines as the one who "stays late and helps clean up."

Interns don't necessarily have to stay in the office until 10 PM or empty the garbage cans but the ones who put in a lot of effort and go above and beyond at the ones who get noticed. Might be a good idea to listen to Kelly even if she is a little crazy.

Scared Workless

Like most people who sit in front of a computer all day, we at WG have been following the murder case of Yale graduate student Annie Le closely (pictured on the right). How could someone stuff her into a wall and not expect to be caught? Who was the murderer? And the question that has really been bothering us, what was the motive?

According to New Haven Police Chief, James Lewis, the grad student's death was one that resulted from workplace violence. "It is important to note that this is not about urban crime, university crime, domestic crime but an issue of workplace violence, which is becoming a growing concern around the country," Lewis said during a news conference today.

The suspect in the case is a lab technician named Raymond Clark III that worked in the same building as Le on campus. Numerous news reports say he served in a custodial role at the university campus overseeing the lab mice that Le worked with while pursuing her doctoral degree.

Just in case you don't know the details - Clark has been charged in the death of the 24-year-old Annie Le, who disappeared on September 8th. Her body was discovered five days later (on what was supposed to be her wedding day!). The body was found stuffed into a utility compartment behind a wall in the basement of the research building where she and Clark both worked.

Various news reports are now painting a portrait of Clark that depicts an angry employee who gave workers a hard time for not handling the lab mice or lab tools correctly. In fact, ABC News reported that Clark sent a text message to Le the day she disappeared requesting that they meet to discuss the cleanliness of the mouse cages she had been using. [ABC News]

As details still emerge, the talk of workplace violence has begun circulating. An American human resources firm stated that office suicides jumped 28% in 2008 from the previous year, which many attribute to the recession. [National Post]

According to the United States Department of Labor, violence in the workplace is "a serious safety and health issue" that in its most extreme form leads to homicide. Homicide is the 4th leading cause of fatal occupational injury and in 2005, there were 564 workplace homicides out a total of 5,702 workplace injuries.