74% of Brits boast they could easily do their entire job in a four-day week

74% of Brits boast they could easily do their entire job in a four-day week74% of Brits boast they could easily do their entire job in a four-day weekA survey of 2,000 UK workers, carried out by YouGov for Indeed, explored British workers feelings about work.Most strikingly, the survey found that 74% of Brits believe they could do their job equally well in four days as they could in five. This percentage rises to 79% among Millennials, who were even more confident that they could perform their job at equal standards in less time.The idea of a four-day week, or at least working less, is gaining traction in Britain.Just recently, UK opposition leader Jeremy Corbyns Labour Party commissioned a study that would consider fewer working hours for public-sector employees, Bloomberg reported.Other findingsWhile salary, naturally is the most important part of work to Brits (57%), work-life balance came in right behind it (55%). For those workers who prioritize work-life balance over everything else, they would be happy to earn 6,000 pounds less per annum. Job security came in far behind work-life balance, at 45%.Pay transparency is supported by 56% of British workers. And for good reason a third (31%) arent happy with their current pay, and 52% said they might leave their current job if their salary didnt increase in the next 1-2 years.You might also enjoyNew neuroscience reveals 4 rituals that will make you happyStrangers know your social class in the first seven words you say, study finds10 lessons from Benjamin Franklins daily schedule that will double your productivityThe worst mistakes you can make in an interview, according to 12 CEOs10 habits of mentally strong people

A Sustainable, Power-Producing Textile

A Sustainable, Power-Producing Textile A Sustainable, Power-Producing Textile A Sustainable, Power-Producing TextileIn the ongoing search for environmentally friendly, renewable energy resources that can power personal electronics day and night, both at home and on the-go, Georgia Institute of Technology researchers are leveraging their work in triboelectricity and solar energy. The researchers have developed a wearable textile composed of two fabrics to source energy from both sunshine and mechanical motion.Its a novel solution with a collection of compelling features that, for the first time, is presented as a sustainable power source for wearable electronics, says Zhong Lin Wang, professor in the Georgia Tech School of Materials Science and Engineering and a pioneer and world leader in nanoscience and nanotechnology.Such a textile that generates electrical power from absorbed solar irradianceand mechanical motion could be an important step toward next-generation wearable electroni cs, he adds. The textile itself becomes a power generator for smartphones, personal global positioning systems, and other portable electronics.Although known to produce energy and a field of study for many years, triboelectricity producing an electrical dienstgrad from friction caused by two different materials coming in contact was largely discounted as an energy source because it was considered unpredictable and not well understood.A bracelet made from fabric woven with special energy-harvesting strands. Image Georgia TechAs so often happens, the discovery that the triboelectric effect could be harnessed for power generation was a happy accident triggered by a discovery made by Wang and his team five years ago. While working on piezoelectric generators, the output from one piezoelectric device was much larger than expected. The researchers traced the cause of the higher output to incorrect assembly that allowed two polymer surfaces to rub together. Further research by the group resulted in the invention of a triboelectric nanogenerator that was key to being able to reliably convert an electrical charge into current. Since then, Wangs team has been harvesting all kinds of mechanical energy that is wasted daily, such as menschlich motion, walking and other vibrations.The way that the triboelectric generator part of the textile works is that two dissimilar materials, one an electron donor and the other an electron acceptor, are used. When the materials are in contact with each other, electrons flow from one material to the other. If the sheets are then separated, one sheet holds an electrical charge. Then if an electrical load is connected to two electrodes placed at the outer edges of the two surfaces, a small current will flow to equalize the charges. By continuously repeating the process, alternating current can be produced.The separate photovoltaic fabric for harvesting solar energy consists of wire-shaped photoanodes fabricated by depositing two layers o f semiconductor over metal-coated polymer fiber. The solar cell is composed of wire-shaped photoanodes and copper coated polymer wires.The textile base is also made of inexpensive commonly used polymer materials on which the solar part and triboelectric parts are woven in a staggered way on an industrial weaving machine to produce the hybrid power textile.This approach enables the power textile to be easily integrated with other functional fibers or electronic devices to form a flexible, self-powered system, Wang says.The resulting textile is very versatile and can be customized into any shape and size, woven together with cotton or wool fabric and also be used as a coating on existing fabric products.The researchers are encouraged that the textile is ultra-thin, flexible, breathable, highly adaptable to clothing, and also because production and assembly are low-cost, environmentally friendly and likely to be suitable for large-scale manufacturing. They also believe the textile can be adapted for large-area applications such as curtains and tent although the size now is limited to the equivalent of A4 paper because of the capability of the weaving machine.Testing of a small piece of the textile by the team has shown that the combination of sunlight and any daily mechanical motion, such as human activity, car movement, or wind-blowing, has delivered sufficient power for directly charging a commercial cell phone or continuously powering an electronic watch. Testing also showed there is good performance in the temperature range that human beings tolerate.There are things to be done. Testing for long-term durability is one, although current experimental data does not indicate any evidence of a drop in electrical output under what would be considered normal use and also durability to moisture including rain. The team knows that electrical output of the textile is gradually reduced when relative humidity rises from 10 percent to 90 percent, but it is believed that i t could withstand rain if properly protected. Additionally, if the textile does get wet, performance can be recovered when the device dries.In presenting its findings in a paper published in Nature Energy, the team wrote, Developing lightweight, flexible, foldable and sustainable power sources with simple transport and storage remains a challenge and an urgent need for the advancement of next-generation wearable electronics. Searching for renewable energy resources that are not detrimental to the environment is one of the most urgent challenges to the sustainable development of human civilization.Nancy S. Giges is an independent writer. For Further Discussion The power textile can be easily integrated with other functional fibers or electronic devices to form a flexible, self-powered system. Prof. Zhong Lin Wang, Georgia Institute of Technology

Pygmalion and Galatea Effects Management Secrets

Pygmalion and Galatea Effects Management SecretsPygmalion and Galatea Effects Management SecretsYour expectations of employees and their expectations of themselves are the key factors in how well people perform at work. Known as the Pygmalion effect and the Galatea effect, respectively, the power of expectations cannot be overestimated. Whether applied consciously or unconsciously, the expectations affect the productivity and contribution of your employees. These are the fundamental principles that you can apply to performance expectations and their outcome of potential performance improvement at work. Elementary Roots The Pygmalion effect and the Galatea effect were first identified while measuring the effect of expectations on elementary-age schoolchildren. According to J. Sterling Livingston, writing for the Harvard Business Review Self-fulfilling prophecies, it turns out, are just as prevalent in offices as they are in elementary school classrooms. If a manager is convinced t hat the people in her group are first-rate, theyll reliably outperform a group whose manager believes the reverse- even if the innate talent of the two groups is similar. The Pygmalion Effect of the Managers Expectations You can summarize the Pygmalion effect, often known as the power of expectations, by considering that Every supervisor has expectations of the people who report to him or her.Supervisors communicate these expectations consciously or unconsciously whenever they communicate in any manner with an employee.People pick up on or consciously or unconsciously read and experience these expectations from their supervisor.People perform in ways that are consistent with the expectations they have picked up on from the supervisor. The Pygmalion effect was described by Livingston even earlier in the September/October1988 Harvard Business Review. The way managers treat their subordinates is subtly influenced by what they expect of them, Livingston said in his article Pygmalion in Management. You Can Do It Messages The Pygmalion effect enables staff to excel in response to the managers message that they are capable of success and expected to succeed. The Pygmalion effect can also undermine staff performance when the subtle communication from the manager tells them the opposite. These cues are often subtle. As an example, the supervisor fails to praise a staff persons performance as frequently as he praises the performance of others. In another example, the supervisor talks less to a particular employee. In another instance, the manager fails to acknowledge the contributions of all of the members of a team, thanking just a couple of key people. Livingston went on to say about the supervisor, If he is unskilled, he leaves scars on the careers of the young men (and women), cuts deeply into their self-esteem and distorts their image of themselves as menschengerecht beings. But if he is skillful and has high expectations of his subordinates, their self-confide nce will grow, their capabilities will develop and their productivity will be high. More often than he realizes, the manager is Pygmalion. Boosting Performance Can you imagine how performance would improve if your supervisors communicate positive thoughts about people to people? If the supervisor actually believes that every employee has the ability to make a positive contribution in the workplace, the telegraphing of that message, either consciously or unconsciously, positively affects employee performance. The effect of the supervisor gets even better. When the supervisor holds positive expectations about people, she helps individuals improve their self-concept, and thus their self-esteem. Employees who are held in high esteem by their supervisor tend to live up to their potential for contribution and succeed in the workplace. People believe that they can succeed and contribute, and their performance then rises to the level of their own expectations- to create your best, most succ essful, oben liegend employees The Galatea Effect of Employee Self-Expectations Even more powerful than the Pygmalion effect, the Galatea effect is a compelling factor in employee performance. The manager who can assist employees to believe in themselves and in their efficacy has harnessed a powerful performance improvement tool. Youve heard of the often-repeated and referenced words, self-fulfilling prophecy. Applied as the Galatea effect, these words mean that the individuals opinion about her ability and her self-expectations about her performance largely determine her performance. If an employee thinks she can succeed, she will likely succeed. Consequently, any actions the supervisor can take that increase the employees feelings of positive self-worth will help the employees performance improve. The vorhaben is not to oversimplify this concept. Many other factors also contribute to the level of an employees performance, including your company culture, the employees life expe riences, education, family support, and relationships with co-workers. However, positive supervision is one of the key factors that will keep good employees on the job. Give Challenging Opportunities Provide opportunities for an employee to experience increasingly challenging assignments. Make sure that he or she succeeds at each level before moving forward. Enable the employee to participate in potentially successful projects that bring continuous improvement to the workplace. Provide Coaching Development Provide one-to-one coaching with the employee. This coaching should emphasize improving what the employee does well rather than focusing on the employees weaknesses. Build upon what the employee already does successfully rather than focusing your energy on building weak areas of skill. Provide developmental opportunities that reflect what the employee is interested in learning. Sure, you need to provide developmental opportunities that also reflect what the business needs from the employee. You need to strike a balance that also honors the employees needs and wishes. Assign a successful senior employee to play a developmental mentoring role with the employee. Mentoring is an excellent use for your more senior employees, most of whom are anxious to share what they have learned before they retire. Keep their knowledge available. Give Positive Communication Hold frequent, positive verbal interactions with the employee and communicate consistently your firm belief in the employees ability to perform the job. Keep feedback positive and developmental where possible. Make sure the employee is receiving consistent messages from other supervisory personnel. How you speak to others about the employees who report to you powerfully molds their opinions of what a particular employee can contribute and do. In an extended Pygmalion effect, the expectations of other senior leaders, managers, and co-workers affect the employees self-esteem. Project your sincere c ommitment to the employees success and ongoing development. You need to frequently tell the employee of your confidence about these matters. Bottom Line beschirrung the power of the employees self-expectations to ensure powerful, productive, improving, and successful work performance. Youll be happy and feel rewarded when the employees exceed your expectations- and theirs.