Celeste Elle, Author at MoneyDigest.sg

Ways to teach your child to be independent

When you do stuff for your children that they are competent of doing for themselves, you are inadvertently sending a message that you lack trust in their capabilities.

As a result, the child loses self-esteem and independence and becomes unable or unwilling to complete age-appropriate responsibilities. This is often referred to as habitual defeatism. That explains why it’s critical not to hurry into resolving minor difficulties as they arise. Boost your child’s problem-solving abilities by asking if he or she can think of a solution. Offer them time to consider their options before presenting your suggestions.

Read on for ways to teach your child to be independent.

Allow failure

The most difficult lesson of all is to let your child fail and to be there for them when they need assistance. Don’t criticize or disempower them for underperforming, but don’t make their situation appear insignificant either. Failure is an inevitable aspect of life, and we will all stumble at some point. Teaching kids that it’s alright to keep trying will give them self-confidence as adults in the future.

Take time to teach

Most things are easier to complete yourself rather than having to educate your child on how to perform them. It’s also never pleasant to see your child battle with something you could simply help them with. Even so, consider the time you spend educating your child to perform a task on his or her own as an investment. You will spend less time performing those duties yourself next time if you take time now to teach your kid how to keep their toys or clean up their room.

Avoid over-supervision

Most kids require room to grow and change. And if they never have had the opportunity to be self-reliant as a child, they are unlikely to become more so in the future. Give your kids plenty of freedom to develop without being too much in “monitor mode” to foster independence.

For instance, allow them to play in their room without having to check in on them every five minutes. Whether it’s picking up the mail at the letterbox or ordering a meal at a fast-food restaurant, strive to figure out at least one opportunity each day for your child to do something independently with little supervision.

Shower praises and rewards

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When children breach the rules or fail to stay on target, paying attention to them is tempting. However, giving them negative attention might reinforce bad behavior. So, catching kids doing something good and praising them is the key to encouraging positive conduct.

Don’t forget to present a bonus for your children for their independence. Whatever form of reward or incentive program you adopt, it should be realistic. Reward your child for achieving their goals in the same manner as your boss does after you meet your KPIs.

Consider how much easier life would be if your children made simple breakfast for themselves, cleaned up after daily meals, and helped around the house. Teaching kids to be self-reliant will not only make your life easier, but it will also set them on the route toward being more responsible young adults as they grow older.

How to cope with being an outcast at work

Being a social outcast at work isn’t a matter of life and death, and social discomfort can be resolved if you’re willing to try. Though there’s no denying that it’s an unpleasant feeling.

The good news is that being a more socially adjusted individual capable of integrating into their work setting and favorably engaging with colleagues is feasible. Yet, the process of reaching such a position varies depending on the individual and circumstance.

Read on for methods you can take to cope with being an outcast at work.

Observe the social norms

Fundamental social interaction concepts can be learned from books, seminars, or socially aware folks, but they can also be comprehended by carefully examining the people you work with. Observe to understand how extroverted and possibly these socially outstanding people operate in their job. Implementing these findings in a job environment may help you change your social conduct and wave goodbye to any awkwardness.

Make the effort to socialize

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Likely, you’re not throwing yourself out there enough at the workplace, which could explain your uneasiness. If that’s the case, attempt to establish commonalities with your coworkers. Taking the initiative might make you appear more personable and open doors for connections. Try to be more social by joining in on tea breaks or attending after-work social engagements. Your coworkers will feel more at ease with you during office hours if you develop a personal rapport with them.

Talk to a trusted friend or mentor

Even if they don’t work for the organization, a trustworthy buddy can often help. They might be able to provide insight, advice, or at the bare minimum, a listening ear. Alternatively, a mentor from outside your immediate work circle may give you unbiased, forthright feedback on which actions are preferred and which are not within the corporation. If you don’t have a role model, look for someone who has skillfully risen through the ranks of the company and with whom you believe you could have an open, honest discussion about how to better fit in.

It may be a sign to leave if you’ve tried all that you can and still don’t feel relief in your present circumstances. This is especially true if your distress is driving you to lie awake at night or you’re dragging your feet to work even after a year. At this juncture, cutting your hardship and starting over at a new company that is more compatible with who you are will empower you to be more genuine in your skin. In the long run, you could have a higher chance of accomplishing successes that will benefit both your company and your professional career.

Follow these tips to prevent dehydration

When your body needs or consumes more liquids than it absorbs, you run the risk of getting dehydrated. When this happens, your body is unable to perform all of its functions properly.

Therefore, it’s essential to drink loads of water to stay hydrated, notably if you’re exercising or working out in the sun for prolonged periods. If you have plans to do anything outside, strive to do it during the cooler times of the day. Given Singapore’s hot and humid climate, make sure you’re dressed in light, comfortable apparel too.

Follow these tips to prevent dehydration.

Stay indoors

If at all feasible, stay indoors in an air-conditioned setting. It’s not a bad idea to head to the shopping mall or public library on weekends if you don’t have air-conditioning at home. Avoid sun exposure, especially between 10am and 3pm when the sun’s rays are at their harshest. Plan outdoor pursuits for early morning or evening time.

Drink when thirsty

It’s easy to get caught up in day-to-day routines and forget to pay attention to your thirst prompts, but they are your body’s way of telling you that you need to start drinking up. Keep a bottle of water close to you and drink from it anytime you feel thirsty. Better still, drink water frequently now and then to avoid even reaching that parched condition.

Cut down on caffeine

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Caffeine, the primary active element in tea and coffee, is a diuretic, meaning it dehydrates the body. This is because when you consume tea or coffee, the amount of pee you produce climbs. Dehydration happens when your body’s fluid balance is disrupted, and caffeine, by increasing fluid loss through urination, conceivably leads to dehydration.

Snack on fruits and vegetables

Have a wide selection of fruits and veggies in your refrigerator for instant access. You can also choose frozen fruits and vegetables, which are just as nutritious as fresh ones, and in some circumstances, even more so. Fruits and veggies, both fresh and frozen, make ideal hydrating snacks due to their elevated moisture content.

Supplement intake when exercising

Drinking plain water is usually sufficient to prevent dehydration. However, certain occasions necessitate something more. For instance, those who participate in physical activities that last longer than an hour may need to restore their electrolytes, which can be done easily with a sports drink. Just make sure to read the nutritional information label first, as many of these beverages can be high in sugar and calories.

Natural biological activities cause us to lose water daily, but dehydration happens when we shed more bodily fluids than we take in. We need to keep the right balance of water and electrolytes in our bodies because humans are largely composed of water and electrolytes. Staying adequately hydrated can not only prevent you from getting those nasty side effects, but it will also make you feel better in general by preventing weariness, elevating your mood, and enhancing your cognitive abilities.

How to disagree with your boss and still survive

Disagreeing with your employer isn’t career suicide because fresh ideas can lead to greater insights. Therefore, if your company’s workplace culture encourages diverse viewpoints and perspectives, “clashing” with your employer will be a lot easier.

Nonetheless, it’s also important to remember that bosses are people with unique leadership approaches. The most crucial thing is to get to know your employer and their management style so you can gauge how much dissent will be welcomed with open arms.

So if you’re planning to disagree with your boss and still survive, stay on this page for more deets.

Avoid judgments

When it comes to communicating your concerns, be mindful of your terminology. You should avoid using judging words like “bad” or “ridiculous” as they may irritate your counterpart. Cutting away unnecessary adjectives can be an excellent move because they can be easily misunderstood or taken too seriously.

Pick the right time

When confronted with a dispute, we all react defensively to differing degrees. And the more stressed a person is at the time of a conflict, the less probable that the grounds for the conflict will be adequately heard. Picking a fight with your manager at a business meeting is pointless because he or she is unlikely to respond positively. Oppose only when you have sufficient time to speak with your superior regarding your dissatisfaction.

Be mentally prepared

There’s always the possibility that you will say what you’re thinking but nothing will alter. Thus, you better brace for such a scenario. Your viewpoint may be conveyed, but it may not be well taken, in the sense that it will not influence any processes, whatsoever. It doesn’t mean you will lose your job; it just means you will have to do what your boss thinks is best. If that’s the reality, even if you disapprove, strive to come to terms with the decision made.

Determine their communication style

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Taking the effort to figure out your boss’s main communication style will help you better connect. If your supervisor, for instance, prefers to interact through email, make it a habit to write them an email first, requesting to address them face-to-face about an issue. The more you know about how to connect with your manager, the smoother your work interaction will be. In short, be mindful of the other party’s preferred communication style while exerting your own.

Unlike most Western-style approach which encourages people to open up and establish their identities, Asian culture frowns on challenging hierarchy and articulating opposing viewpoints. Seniority takes precedence over all other considerations, and disagreeing with your boss implies going against the culture’s conventions. However, things are changing for good and there have been an increasing number of progressive businesses, notably in the tech and start-up sectors, embracing conflicting stances. Just remember to mind your tone and disagree politely in a way that adds value to the conversation.

How to conserve iPhone battery life

If you have owned an iPhone for a while now, it’s safe to say that you like both the design and the functionality of your gadget, which is suitable for work and play. Nonetheless, you are sure to have encountered drawbacks such as restricted battery performance.

The average battery capacity after a single charge varies greatly based on the iPhone model and how you use your smartphone. That is why we’ve written on the following strategies that can help you reduce iPhone battery drain on a routine basis while maintaining the majority of its functionality.

If you don’t want to modify any of the settings, we suggest you get a power bank, upgrade your battery, or buy a new iPhone. Otherwise, read on for ways on how to conserve iPhone battery life.

Brightness

One of the most significant battery drainers is screen brightness, hence, reduce the brightness of your screen to conserve energy. Swipe down from the top-right edge of the screen to launch the control center and slide your finger down the brightness bar to reduce it. You may also enable auto-brightness, which automatically adjusts the intensity based on the amount of environmental light available.

Airplane mode

When you’re in a location with a weak signal or no cellular service at all, your iPhone uses up battery power searching for a signal or attempting to reconnect. If your cellular service is poor, turn on airplane mode because you won’t be able to accomplish anything with a weak signal regardless. Airplane mode will keep your iPhone from hunting for a signal indefinitely, preserving battery life until you can get to a stronger connection.

Low power mode

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When you need to stretch your battery power, use the low power mode. With a single toggle, the function suspends mail retrieval, auto-downloads, background app update, and more. Your iPhone will stay longer in low battery mode before needing to be charged, but just note that some functions may take longer to load or perform; they may not run until you switch off low battery mode or charge your iPhone to 80% and above.

High-power apps

Apps that require greater processing capacity from your phones, such as HD video editors or high-resolution games, can drain your phone battery. Keep to applications that don’t require a lot of data to launch or are mostly text-based while attempting to preserve power.

This includes the camera on your iPhone. While not as draining as other apps, repeatedly snapping photos or videos may deplete your battery faster. FaceTime is considerably worse because it must load both your video stream and the live video of someone else. Explore the battery section for more details if you’re unsure which applications are the culprits.

Is there anything more frustrating than seeing your iPhone’s battery bar turn red? Annually, the battery capacity of iPhones advances; this means that the iPhone 12 lasts longer than the iPhone 11, while the iPhone 13 series last even longer. Every new iPhone model, however, brings with it a host of new methods to deplete the battery. Consider the suggestions in this article if you want to help your iPhone’s battery survive as long as feasible when you’re out without a charger or power bank.