Muscular Dystrophy Association Greater Atlanta – Gallery Collection Charitable Donations

The Gallery Collection, as part of our charitable donations program, recently donated 2 Get Well Assortment Boxes and 2 Sympathy Assortment Boxes to the Muscular Dystrophy Association Greater Atlanta.

Get_Well_Assortment

The Muscular Dystrophy Association is the world’s leading nonprofit health agency dedicated to finding treatments and cures for muscular dystrophy, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and other neuromuscular diseases. MDA funds worldwide research; provides comprehensive health care services and support to MDA families nationwide; and rallies communities to fight back through advocacy, fundraising and local engagement.

For more information about the Muscular Dystrophy Association, and how you can help, please visit their website at http://mda.org/.

What are the Most Common Job Interview Questions

When heading in for a job interview, it is always important to try and be prepared for the types of questions that you will be asked. The more prepared you are, the better you look to your potential employer. Below are some of the most common questions that are asked during job interviews. We are sure that at least a couple of them will be brought up in your next interview!

interview

  1. Why do you want to work for this organization?
  1. Why do you think you should be hired for this position?
  1. What is your means of transportation?
  1. What are your goals?
  1. What words would you use to describe yourself?
  1. Do you like teamwork?
  1. Are you available to work overtime if requested?
  1. Where do you see yourself five years from now?
  1. What is your greatest strength?
  1. What is your greatest weakness?
  1. Do you prefer multi-tasking or concentrating on one project at a time?
  1. What do you like/dislike about your present job?
  1. What are your goals for the future?
  1. What are your salary requirements?
  1. What can you contribute to this company?
  1. What did you like/dislike about your previous job?
  1. Are you willing to relocate?
  1. Do you have any questions for me?
  1. If I were your supervisor and asked you to do something you disagreed with what would you do?

Team Building Activities For Work

Sitting at the desk working on the computer for many hours can be tedious. With this in mind, several members in my company and I were discussing possible ways to alleviate this tension and came up with the idea of a Suggestion Box we would set up for the staff, requesting ideas on activities we could pursue to help us relax mentally and physically. To our surprise, we received an abundance of responses, some ideas that I will not mention here!, including several that we seriously considered.

Work_Yoga

One of these suggestions came from our co-worker, Betty, who has been practicing yoga for over a year. Betty found that yoga has helped her to relax and has found it very rewarding both mentally and physically. She has offered to share her knowledge of yoga and its benefits with us as a team building activity. After presenting this to the staff they proved to be very enthusiastic and showed great interest in this suggestion. We all decided to move ahead with the planning of this team building activity.

Next on the agenda was scheduling. After much discussion, we decided to divide our lunch hour into two parts; 30 minutes practicing yoga under Betty’s supervision, and 30 minutes enjoying a “healthy” lunch. Our Human Resources department offered us one of the Conference Rooms for this practice and we were ready to move ahead. As beginners we focused on the fundamentals, learned to follow the rhythm of our breath, and develop a sense of body awareness; understand alignment and avoid injury; learned to strengthen and stretch, and much, much more. This was a wonderful team building activity for all who participated and we have grown from a group of twenty to fifty. I have since become a yoga advocate and workout routinely at home.

Memorial Middle School – Gallery Collection Charitable Donations

As part of The Gallery Collection’s charitable donation program, we recently made a donation of various assortment boxes of greeting cards to Memorial Middle School in Little Ferry, NJ. These assortment boxes were to be used as part of a Tricky Tray fundraiser for the school.

All Occasion Assortment Box

Memorial Middle School serves students in grades K-8. They are committed to academic excellence for all students. If you are interested in learning more about Memorial Middle School, please visit their website at http://www.littleferry.k12.nj.us/site/Default.aspx?PageID=9.

Birthday Decorations To Surprise A Co-Worker

Well, let’s get started! So you want to have a nice surprise celebration for a co-worker and make birthday decorations to hang around the office. That’s a great idea.

Birhday

The first place you should decorate is his or her desk or cubicle.

  1. One great decoration is Garland. Now you know you have a great deal of paper around the office so make that your primary object to use. You can begin with cutting an 8-1/2” x 11” sheet in half width wise and cut as many of those as needed to print Happy Birthday, one letter on each half sheet and the person’s name on the paper also. If you have any string or ribbon around the office use that for hanging the garland. Use a hole punch to make holes in the paper and thread the string or ribbon through the holes to hang the garland. If you do not have string or ribbon, you can make a paperclip chain and attach the paper to the paperclips to hang the garland. Find some markers and write Happy Birthday or other nice things about the person on the paper and use colored paper wherever possible. Makes it bright!
  2. Their Chair! Hang a Happy Birthday sign down the back of their chair in a vertical position. If you can get some netting or lightweight fabric, it is fun to make a large bow and put that on the back of the chair also.
  3. Necklace! Works for either a man or a woman. Make a chain necklace with paperclips and hang little paper “charms” on the paperclips. These could be pictures or drawings or something nice written about the birthday person. Then hang them around the paperclip necklace and after you all yell SURPRISE you can put this around the person’s neck.
  4. Make a banner with a birthday cake on it and happy birthday typed out from your computer. You can usually find some free clipart online to copy and blow up and print it tiled on your computer. Use a glue stick and glue the pages together to make the banner. Hang the banner on the table you will use to serve the cake or goodies everyone will be bring to eat!
  5. And last, the birthday card. Find some cardboard or more colored paper and make a great big birthday card!  Now if someone in the office is talented enough to draw the front of the card, Great!  If not, go back into that free clipart file on the computer and print something funny out and glue stick it to the paper or cardboard. Make sure everyone signs the card and stand it up in the birthday person’s cubicle.
  6. If there are gifts given to this person, pile them up nicely on their desk and make the cubicle look festive.

Walla!!!! You have made a great and bright and festive area to celebrate that co-worker’s birthday with everyone in the office. And the decorations didn’t you cost anything at all!

Hope it’s a great celebration!

Anniversary Cards for Long Time Employees

I’ve been working for one company for let me say many, many years. We sign and exchange cards for birthdays that come up on a monthly to yearly basis but it’s those rare special milestone occasions that hold true meaning for employees that have worked for a company for several years.

anniversary

My company is rare because employees stay long term which is an excellent reflection of the company itself, and when companies take the time to acknowledge their thanks on those rare occasions by giving an Anniversary Card to a Long Time Employee may it be for a one year or a 10 year celebration it truly shows they appreciate that employee for the time, hard work, loyalty and dedication they’ve put in with the company. What better way to thank that long time employee by giving a Special Anniversary card to acknowledge they’re special and appreciated by the company. Anniversary cards will hold special value because they express how the company feels about you and the commitment you’re made as a long time employee to help the company succeed.

So when that special milestone Anniversary comes along for one of your long time employee, present them with that  Anniversary card to  show how much they’re still appreciated after 5, 10, 15, 20 or so years.

Top 10 Motivational Quotes for Work

Most of us were not born with a silver spoon in our mouths, so we have to work for a living. It is great to be able to work at something we love, but that is not always the case. So if we don’t do what we like we should learn to like what we do. This usually takes some motivation. Where we get that motivation is up to each individual person. Personally, I find motivational quotes for work are an inspiration to me. They raise my spirit and give me the right outlook to continue in a positive, upbeat fashion.

motivated employee

Here are my top ten favorites:

  1. I found that the men and women who got to the top were those who did the jobs they had in hand, with everything they had of energy and enthusiasm and hard work. Harry S. Truman, 33rd President of the United States
  2. I’m a great believer in luck, and I find the harder I work, the more I have of it. Thomas Jefferson, 3rd President of the United States
  3. There are two kinds of people, those who do the work and those who take the credit. Try to be in the first group; there is less competition there. Indira Gandhi, 3rd Prime Minister of India
  4. My principal motivation is supporting my family, which is not a bad reason for getting up in the morning. That’s always been my motivation – to take care of the people who rely on me. Tony Parsons, British Journalist and Author
  5. If you must have motivation, think of your paycheck on Friday. Noel Coward, English Playwright, Composer and Director
  6. The highest reward for a person’s toil is not what they get for it, but what they become by it. John Ruskin,, English Writer and Art Critic
  7. The biggest mistake that you can make is to believe that you are working for somebody else. Job security is gone. The driving force of a career must come from the individual. Remember: Jobs are owned by the company, you own your career! Earl Nightingale, American Motivational Speaker, Author and Radio Host
  8. Every job is a self portrait of the person who did it. Autograph your work with excellence. Jessica Guidobono ,Canadian Author
  9. Don’t be afraid to give your best to what seemingly are small jobs. Every time you conquer one it makes you that much stronger. If you do the little jobs well, the big ones will tend to take care of themselves. William Patten, American Biologist & Zoologist
  10. For me, motivation is a person who has the capability to recruit the resources he needs to achieve a goal. Arsene Wenger, French Football Coach

I find I am able to work better, have a better outlook and enjoy my work, life and family better when I remember what is important to me. Wherever you find the inspiration use it to enhance the quality of life you live. If one or more of these quotes help, by all means use them for inspiration or gather some favorites to use for that added boost to your morale. Then go out and conquer the world, personally I’m too tired from all that reading.

Top 5 Job Interview Tips

You’ve found the job of your dreams and you got yourself an interview. We’ve all felt the stomach-churning mix of excitement coupled with terror when that coveted interview is circled in red on the calendar. Take a moment to review our Top 5 Job Interview Tips to help turn that interview into your new job.

job interview

Tip #1:

Know the company.

Knowing as much as you can about the company you’re interviewing for is an invaluable tool and can give you a leg up as far as understanding what they might be looking for in a potential new employee. Visit the company website to familiarize yourself with how the company views itself, its mission statement and history as well as specific products and services. Glassdoor.com can provide a ton of company-specific information, much of it from people with first-hand experience there. Even social media such as Facebook and Twitter can provide insights into a company you might otherwise not have access to. Many interviews begin with a general ‘So, what do you know about our company?’ and you want to be able to wow them with your knowledge, foresight and interest.

Tag-a-long Tip:  Be sure you understand  – at least to some degree – what the specific job you’re interviewing for entails. It might sound obvious, but having knowledge of the position itself allows you to tailor your answers to highlight your most relevant skills. This can be a critical preparation.

Tip #2:

Practice, Plan, and Practice Some More.

Having some idea of what questions might be asked and planning how best to answer to ensure that your particular skill set shines through makes a big difference and keeps the look of panic off your face. You don’t want to come across as scripted, but having some key thoughts prepared and at the ready should allow you to relax and your abilities to shine. Go over some hypothetical replies out loud when you’re in the car or otherwise alone so you can get comfortable with how you might answer.

Some common interview questions to be prepared to answer:

  • What did you like or dislike about your previous job?
  • What is your greatest strength? Greatest weakness?
  • Describe a difficult work situation and how did you handle it?
  • Tell me about yourself
  • Why should we hire you?

Tag-A-Long Tip: Be prepared for an interview from the moment you’re ready to make contact with a company. Your very first call could lead to an immediate phone interview or pre-screening, so review your resume and have some responses ready.

Tip #3:

Know your resume.

It’s a long-running joke that all resumes are ‘padded’, but if you really do have the skills required for a position, be ready to back them up. Fudging dates and skills, only to be backed into an uncomfortable corner during the interview doesn’t do anyone any good. Be prepared to answer questions such as why you left a previous position, and how particular skills listed on your resume helped you achieve specific goals. If you can’t answer these, you probably shouldn’t include them on your resume.

Tip #4:

Dress for Success.

It sounds cliched, but first impressions are critical when it comes to interviewing, because this may be the only impression you get to make. Any interview – even if is it’s at your local fast food place – necessitates dressing neatly and cleanly. The type of workplace will dictate whether you don Business Casual or more formal Business Attire, and this is where Tip #1 comes in, knowing something about the company. In either case, you want to look professional and convey the idea that you appreciate the time that’s being afforded you, as well as care about the image you present. One important note:  It doesn’t matter if you know the company has dress-down Fridays – leave the jeans and sneakers at home for the interview.

Tip #5:

Know What Not to do.

  • Don’t be late. This will be noticed and noted.
  • Keep your phone on silent and stowed away during the interview. In the same vein, leave your coffee, bottled water and gum in the car.
  • Don’t complain about a previous employer or job. It’s unprofessional, not to mention you never know who the interviewer might know.
  • Don’t get into anything personal during the interview. This isn’t the time to gush about your kids or complain about your medical bills and how much you need benefits.
  • Don’t be the first to bring up salary. Let the interviewer bring it up first, and only ask (tactfully) if compensation hasn’t been addressed by the end of the interview.
  • And most of all, don’t lose sight of why you’re there. This is your opportunity to show them your best and brightest self. Don’t be afraid to show some pride in your skills and accomplishments.

Bonus Tip:

Be sure to follow up after the interview, thanking everyone you met with. In this day and age a Thank You email is considered appropriate and couldn’t be easier. A handwritten note is also fitting and might help you stand out even more. This quick follow up allows you to restate your interest as well as bring your name to mind once again post-interview.

Most of all, take a deep breath, and good luck!

Spring Dell Center, Inc. – Gallery Collection Charitable Donations

As part of The Gallery Collection’s charitable donation program, we recently made a donation of 350 Birthday Cards to the Spring Dell Center, Inc. These cards help to spread birthday cheer for clients on their special day!

Birthday Cupcakes Card

Spring Dell Center, Inc. is dedicated to assisting individuals with disabilities in achieving their highest level of independence by providing support and opportunities for the quality of life they desire within their community. They believe in connecting people with disabilities to the community and employment.

If you are interested in learning more about Spring Dell Center, Inc, and how you can help, please visit their website at http://springdellcenter.org/.

What Should I Write In Employee Happy Birthday Cards?

As the owner of a small greeting card company with slightly less than one hundred employees, I like to acknowledge the birthday of each member of my staff by sending an employee happy birthday card.  As always, after my loyal assistant brings my attention to the date of each employee’s birthday as it comes up, I like to include a personal message from myself inside the card, in which I express my appreciation for their contribution to the success of my company.  My staff deals with our customers with compassion and genuine care.  As a result, profits increase annually, therefore allowing me to give a salary increase and/or bonus to each staff member.

birthday cards

The message I extend is one of gratitude and appreciation, such as “Thank you for your dedicated service,”  …..  “Thank you for your outstanding work” …..   “We strive to give our customers an exceptional product and superior customer service and you have helped deliver on these standards” ….  “I appreciate all the hard work you have done to help make this company what it is”.

This show of appreciation on my part, and, an employee Happy Birthday card to each member of my staff has brought much gratitude from all and, I’m happy to say, the comrade is felt and shared throughout my company.