Monthly Archives: December 2017

Animation Trends: 6 Tips to Help You Land the Job

These days, many individuals have decided to pursue a career in animation. If this is the case for you, now is the time to figure out which strategies you need to implement for the purpose of landing the ideal job. Below you’ll find six tips that you can deploy to remain on track to finding the right position:

1. Choose The Right School

Your first step to landing the ideal job in the animation sector is choosing the right school. Taking this step will ensure that you attain the skills, knowledge, and hands-on experiences necessary to prepare you to operate successfully within the field. Some of the benefits that result from attending animation school include:

• Hands-on experience
• An accredited degree
• Time to grow your portfolio
• Networking opportunities
• Access to latest tools and software
• Career placement opportunities

To ensure that you can find the ideal school, make sure that you do adequate research. This research will empower you to determine whether the school in question has the reputation, course offerings, staff, and faculty necessary to provide you with the cutting edge, customized education that you need and deserve.

2. Excel In School

Note that finding and obtaining entry to the ideal school is just the first step in making you a more marketable job candidate. Additionally, you’ll need to focus on excelling in school so that you can attain and maintain the type of competitive GPA necessary to stand out when you begin to submit your resumes. There are several strategies you can deploy to increase your likelihood of performing well academically. One of them is participating in study groups. Another is implementing stress-busting strategies to ensure that your school-related anxieties don’t compromise your mental and physical well-being throughout the educational process.

3. Obtain A Great Internship

While you’re completing your animation degree, make sure that you obtain a great internship. This strategy will benefit you in multiple ways. First, it will empower you to connect with other people who are already successfully working within the animation sector. These individuals will oftentimes be able to inform you of job opportunities in the field once they become available. Also, note that your supervisor or employer may hire you if she or he feels that you did an exceptional job while completing your internship. Finally, remember that any notable experiences or skills that you acquire through the internship can be documented on your resume to make you a more marketable job candidate.

4. Complete A Mock Interview.

Another strategy you can deploy to help you land the ideal job is completing a mock interview. This tip will help you prepare for the types of questions that the prospective employer will likely ask you. Once this happens, you’ll likely be more confident and composed during the actual interview. Another benefit of these interviews is that they empower you to role play with an individual who is knowledgeable regarding the position you’re seeking. This individual will thus be able to give you highly specific feedback that helps you eliminate your weaknesses and build on your strengths so that you become the interviewer’s strongest candidate.

5. Send A Thank You Letter Following The Interview.

Once you’ve completed your interview, make sure that you send a thank you letter to the employer. This strategy demonstrates your possession of social skills while also putting you back in the mind of the prospective employer. Remember that these types of little details can give you a big edge over other job candidates who are just as qualified, dynamic, or hard-working as you!

6. Utilize Professional Recruitment Services.

One final strategy you can deploy to help you land a job in the animation sector is utilizing professional recruitment services. These services are important for many reasons, one of which is that many employers announce their available positions to recruiting agencies prior to making them available to the general public. Also note that recruiters are oftentimes particularly skilled in matching job candidates with an employer who would be ideal in light of their unique skill set, physical location, long-term career goals, personality, etc.

Conclusion

If you love the animation sector and want to pursue a career in this dynamic field, you should access and implement strategies that will empower you to land the job of your dreams. Utilize the tips and techniques outlined above to increase your odds of attaining the position that will lead to your personal fulfillment and professional growth in the game design sector!

How to Stay Calm in Aggressive Driving Situations

For most of us, driving is a daily part of life. It’s not often that we consider the stresses and dangers of driving. Despite this, road rage is a very real thing. While it may not happen to you on a regular basis, it’s still important to be aware that the risk does exist. Learning to stay calm is the first preventative measure when it comes to road rage, and can help you prevent accidents, legal repercussions, and in some cases, even physical harm.

Road rage is defined by violent anger caused by the stress and frustration involved in driving a motor vehicle. Road rage can erupt seemingly out of nowhere and for something as minor as prolonged eye contact. You may even find yourself a victim of road rage and not even be aware of why the other driver is upset. Needless to say, this can lead to undue stress and as a result, can turn into a violent, dangerous—and possibly even deadly—situation.

Aggressive driving is associated with a high number of fatal car accidents and can very quickly turn into a road rage situation. Speeding, tailgating, failing to yield, sudden braking (“brake checking”), cutting off other vehicles, and racing are only some of the aggressive driving methods that can escalate to dangerous road rage incidents or accidents.

A good preventative measure when it comes to road rage is to always be prepared for the unexpected. Even when you’re not driving, it’s always useful to practice breathing exercises and calming methods to familiarize yourself with the process. These techniques could be useful if you ever find yourself in a road rage situation. Some other preventative measures for road rage include listening to calm music, understanding that the road is to be shared, keeping an adequate amount of space between your vehicle and others’, and finally, being aware of yourself and those around you.

If you find yourself in a road rage situation where you upset another driver, you must attempt to defuse the situation. Of course, if you feel that you are in imminent danger, the first step should be contacting the police. If on the other hand, the driver seems that he could be reasoned with, there are several possible methods of calming him:

  • Apologize
  • Allow room to pass
  • Nod your head or wave

Depending on the situation, the driver may not be close enough to hear you apologize, but mouthing the words with a hand on your chest is usually enough to show your remorse. Alternatively, you can allow room to pass, nod your head or wave them by. Even if the road rage situation wasn’t your fault, it’s important to be the bigger person. If no one was hurt and no damage was done, then why escalate the situation when a situation can be avoided?

Now, let’s put the shoe on the other foot. Let’s say that someone upsets you. Knowing how to stay calm could mean the difference between going home in peace or finding yourself in legal battles. The first thing you should do if you’re upset while driving is to pull over. Angry driving is impaired driving and it is against the law. If you drive while angry, you’re endangering your own life and the lives of others. Pulling over allows you to recollect your thoughts and get your emotions under control.

Once you’ve pulled over to a safe area, turn off your vehicle and begin taking deep breaths. Several deep breaths will help keep your mind clear, at least for a few minutes. If you feel that you’re not yet calm, counting backwards from 10 is advised. Humming a soothing tune, reciting a prayer if you’re religious, or just closing your eyes for a few minutes (with your vehicle turned off) are all appropriate ways of dealing with anger while on the road.

Before deciding to take revenge on the other driver, understand that you’re in control of yourself and your feelings. No one can make you feel a certain way unless you allow it. Think about what would happen if you “lost your cool” in the road rage incident. Are the consequences worth it?

By recognizing and applying calming techniques, you can be calm in road rage situations. You can be the bigger person and protect yourself and others on the road. By understanding this, you can avoid legal repercussions, accidents, physical harm, and in extreme cases, even death. When you think about everything that you stand to lose over a heat-of-the-moment situation, it’s clear that road rage is not worth it.

6 Ways to Maintain Financial Stability

Achieving financial stability can help you to live a more comfortable lifestyle and to sleep easier at night. After all, constantly worrying about how you will make ends meet is no way to live. If you have been living with financial stress for a lengthy period of time, achieving security and stability in this area can seem practically impossible. However, you can turn your finances around and take control over your life by following a few reasonable steps.

Create a Realistic Budget
You may have heard about the importance of budgeting for years, but you may not yet actively use this critical tool. At its most basic level, a budget tells you how much money you will have over a specified period of time, and it gives you a strategic plan to allocate those funds as necessary. Without a budget, you are required to keep track of all of your expenses and extraneous spending in your head. It can be difficult for most people to think through all of the expenses they have paid for over the last few days much less over the course of a month. Therefore, creating a realistic budget and living within its constraints regularly is an important first step to take.

Live Well Beneath Your Means
After you create a budget, take a closer look at your total income and total expenses. You may think that you are doing well if your income is even slightly more than your expenses. However, the difference between these figures represents the money that you may have left over for savings, unexpected expenses and more. You can see that if you live very close to or over your means that your lifestyle is a major cause of your current level of financial stress. Take steps to actively reduce expenses so that you can live well beneath your means. This may include simple steps, such as shopping for a better insurance rate or refinancing your car loan. It may also include major steps, such as downsizing to a smaller house.

Fund a Savings Account
Everyone will have unexpected expenses from time to time. After all, it is unreasonable to think you would live in your home for 30 years and never have a broken appliance or weather-related damage. These are only a few of the unexpected expenses that you could face. Your savings account gives you a way to pay for these expenses, so you must fund a savings account. This will help you to avoid taking on extra debt when something bad happens.

Buy Insurance
A savings account is an effective way to plan for smaller unexpected expenses. However, you also need insurance to pay for larger expenses. For example, a home insurance policy can pay for repairs related to serious damage to your home. This is only one of many types of insurance coverage available that you should consider buying.

Reduce Debt Balances
Credit card debt can cost you a small fortune each month in interest charges and other related fees. Paying down debt balances is critical if you want to bring your budget under control and even free up more money to save. When you know how to consolidate debt, you can potentially reduce your interest charges and set up the debt on a payment plan through an installment term.

Invest in a Retirement Plan
Once you have taken these steps to improve your financial stability and security, you are ready to think ahead and plan for the future. Investing in a retirement plan, such as an IRA or 401k, is a great way to prepare for your future when you are no longer working. Remember that you will pay hefty penalties if you withdraw this money before you reach retirement age. Therefore, only invest as much money as you can reasonably afford, and keep additional funds invested in a non-retirement account.

Each one of these steps can impact your financial situation in different ways. While each has its own benefits, you will find that the combined benefits are substantial. When you walk through these steps and actively keep up with these tips on a regular basis, you will see your financial situation continue to improve over the months and years to come.