Credit: Pexels.com I could have started freelancing much earlier than I did. But it didn’t happen. I was too scared of taking the plunge. What if I get rejected? What if people just laugh at my offer? What if no one ever replies me? Who would even buy writing services and advice from a non-native English speaker like me? If you want to start your own freelance business but find yourself hesitating, I can relate.

Anybody can understand why a job-seeker might choose to be extremely flexible and accommodating when they’re considering a job offer. It’s exciting to be offered a job. Somebody wants you to come and work for them.

Having lost over $2 billion over the last five years and suffering a slowdown in new subscribers, Twitter has been trying unsuccessfully to sell itself. Yet its market capitalization is still $12.2 billion — too much thanks to an easy-to-describe problem — Twitter is a toxic brand. Before getting into why that is, let’s talk about the first amendment – that ensures freedom of speech.

Dear Liz, When I came back from a two-year assignment teaching in China, I knew I was going to have a tough time finding employment. I am working toward getting certified as a teacher in the U.S. and working full-time at the same time. I tried temping at first, but the temp agencies didn’t have enough assignments that paid enough for me to live on. I only worked at temp assignments for two weeks out of the first eight weeks I was signed up with two agencies.

Photo Courtesy of Shutterstock Welcome to The Salary Chronicles, where we’re bringing transparency to negotiation and salaries, one story at a time. We ask women to share their experiences negotiating their salary and what their advice is for others doing the same. We share these stories anonymously so they feel comfortable speaking as openly and as freely as possible.

Shutterstock I’ve had this same experience several times: I’m introduced to an awesome person, maybe someone higher up on the ladder than me or a friend of a friend I’ve heard a lot about, and I immediately light up at the sight of him. He’s smiling too and I can’t wait to sit down and chat. I reach out to eagerly shake his hand and bam, I get slapped with a dead-fish handshake.

The biggest problem for many working people is that the actual work on their desks is the easiest part of the job. Nothing they are responsible for doing at work is especially challenging. It’s only hard to do the job because of the politics, the stupid rules and the dark, fearful energy that flows throughout the workplace and bogs everyone down. A broken culture makes everything else harder, from organizing projects to getting critical approvals to move your work forward.

Millennials became the largest share of the American workforce last year, with adults aged 18 to 34 representing more than one-third of the labor pool. Young workers’ attitudes toward work are a bit different than Gen Xers and Baby Boomers, though. The most important factor when choosing a job for millennials: a good work-life balance, according to a survey of nearly 8,000 global millennials by Deloitte.

For a long time, I coped with my fear of public speaking by finding excuses not to do it. But in 1995, when a group of young entrepreneurs asked me to present for them, I had a hard time saying no. So after weeks of sleepless nights, I found myself – heart racing, palms sweating – taking the stage to face 400 of my peers. And then came the tunnel vision. Although it was scary, I committed to the moment. As I kept speaking, my vision cleared and I got more comfortable.

(Photo courtesy of Shutterstock) Don’t you wish you could say “no” to your manager when he bullies you to do something? Being forced to do something, perhaps even something troubling, is the worst feeling. It is not easy to say “no.” Just thinking about it can be terrifying. You may fear for your job or that you will no longer be liked. Your goal is to be respected, not liked. Saying “no” will help you gain respect as a professional.