All posts tagged: Professional

Flooring professional explains how to repair cracked and broken tiles

Flooring professional explains how to repair cracked and broken tiles

Published by Daniella Wilson

Stay ahead of the curve with our weekly guide to the latest trends, fashion, relationships and more Stay ahead of the curve with our weekly guide to the latest trends, fashion, relationships and more Stay ahead of the curve with our weekly guide to the latest trends, fashion, relationships and more A leading choice for its versatility, durability and timeless appeal, tile flooring is perfectly suited to high-traffic areas, kitchens and bathrooms. Whether they’re ceramic, stone or porcelain, they blend practicality with style and can elevate your scheme from lacklustre to luxe. But what happens when signs of wear and tear set in, cracks appear, or they feel loose underfoot…. and you haven’t budgeted for new flooring? Expensive, at the best of times, especially once labour and materials are included. As Adrian Cox, managing director of Fix-A-Floor, winner of Best Innovation award 2023 at The Tile Association, and exhibitor at the Homebuilding & Renovating Show, points out, tiles which feel loose or sound hollow don’t always need replacing. White kitchen chair with blue tiled kitchen …

I was a professional fairy. The kids made the job magical – but the adults could be a nightmare | Australian lifestyle

I was a professional fairy. The kids made the job magical – but the adults could be a nightmare | Australian lifestyle

Published by Sam Flores

From the age of 16 to 22, I was a children’s entertainer. Most often a fairy, sometimes a witch, ballerina, princess or mermaid – with conspicuous legs underneath her tail. One time, hilariously, a ladybug. The hourly rate was excellent, the costumes were cute and the tiny customers even cuter. My special skills were memorising every child’s name, preparing hundreds of fairy-bread triangles, vacuuming a party space in full costume, singing while I applied sparkles to the eyelids of my pint-size revellers, and driving a small hatchback car filled with 50 bubblegum-pink helium balloons. Oh, and the position required a strong tolerance for the behaviour of parents. Of course, the job taught me about children. Their belief in magic starts to wane about age four but it lingers till shortly after they reach double digits. Boys and girls are equally likely, when presented with a choice of prizes, to select lipstick, nail polish and glitter eye shadow. The truth of who a person is or could be? It’s already there, when we’re tiny. Group dynamics …

When the pay gap is wide, women see professional beauty as a strategic asset

When the pay gap is wide, women see professional beauty as a strategic asset

Published by José Betancourt

New research indicates that many women view physical attractiveness as a practical tool for getting ahead in life, especially in the workplace. When faced with a large gap in pay between men and women, those who reject traditional gender roles often see beauty as a strategic asset for career advancement. These results were recently published in the journal Archives of Sexual Behavior. Societies often place a heavy emphasis on physical appearance. This focus can lead to self-objectification, a process where individuals view themselves primarily as objects to be evaluated based on how they look. Previous studies have linked this phenomenon to negative outcomes for women, including reduced motivation and poorer mental health. In recent years, researchers have also started looking at the potential social advantages of investing in one’s appearance. Economics and sociology researchers often refer to a beauty premium. This concept suggests that attractive individuals tend to receive higher wages, better job evaluations, and more social opportunities. Lead author Lijuan Xiao, a researcher at Xi’an Jiaotong University and Beijing Normal University, along with colleagues, …

12 Phrases That Make Even The Best Workers Seem Unprofessional

12 Phrases That Make Even The Best Workers Seem Unprofessional

Published by Jenni Sidey

Every workplace has its own distinct culture. Some workplaces are casual, while others have strict guidelines on employee conduct. Company culture establishes how employees interact with each other, yet even the most relaxed and informal workplaces are based around an atmosphere of professionalism. Employees are often judged on their level of professionalism, along with the quality of their work. But sometimes, the words they use may rub people the wrong way, and using certain seemingly reasonable phrases makes even the best workers seem unprofessional. The concept of professionalism measures people’s attitudes toward their jobs, so employees need to pay attention to how they speak to their colleagues and superiors. Using these 12 seemingly reasonable phrases makes even the best workers seem unprofessional 1. ‘I’ll try’ fizkes | Shutterstock Putting in effort is generally considered a good thing, yet the underlying message behind “I’ll try” sounds dismissive, as though the person saying it doesn’t actually want to try. It comes off as half-hearted and non-committal, like the employee doesn’t consider the work important enough to give …

I’m a professional book club moderator. Here is how to run your own.

I’m a professional book club moderator. Here is how to run your own.

Published by Sam Flores

When I tell people I have a job facilitating book clubs, the first response is almost always, “That’s a job?” Boy, is it. I work for a company that employs people like me: writers with doctorates, a need for cash and very few marketable skills. Most of my book clubs are made up of women somewhere between the ages of 45 and 99. They’ve met in a variety of ways — in college, in the pickup line at their now-grown children’s schools, through their ex-husbands. What they all have in common: They love to read, and they want to do it as efficiently as possible. I’m hired to make the book club run smoothly — to make everyone feel heard and seen, much like I imagine mothers do with their small children. (I’m not a mother; the closest I’ve come is a long-held souvenir spoon collection.) I’m there to smooth out all of the snags that sometimes occur when nobody’s in charge. There are personality differences, disagreement with book choices, intrinsic ways of seeing the …

The Repair Shop: The emotional story behind Britain’s first Black professional ballet dancer Julie Felix and her pointe shoes

The Repair Shop: The emotional story behind Britain’s first Black professional ballet dancer Julie Felix and her pointe shoes

Published by Daniella Wilson

Get the latest entertainment news, reviews and star-studded interviews with our Independent Culture email Get the latest entertainment news with our free Culture newsletter Get the latest entertainment news with our free Culture newsletter Britain’s first professional black ballerina was left “winded” and “breathless” after witnessing the restoration of her historic pointe shoes on the BBC’s popular programme, The Repair Shop. Julie Felix, a London-born dancer who is of Caribbean heritage, brought the very ballet shoes she wore for her inaugural professional solo performance four decades ago to the reality series. Her emotional appearance offered a poignant reflection on the profound struggles she endured throughout her pioneering career, with her mother remembered as her staunchest supporter. Ms Felix recounted a pivotal moment in the 1970s when a London ballet company explicitly rejected her due to her race, stating: “we can’t have a brown ballet dancer in the line-up of the swans”. This stark discrimination ultimately compelled her to seek opportunities abroad, shaping her remarkable journey. She subsequently secured a contract with the all-black Dance Theatre …

The Repair Shop: The emotional story behind Britain’s first Black professional ballet dancer Julie Felix and her pointe shoes

Julie Felix: The emotional story behind Britain’s first Black professional ballet dancer and her pointe shoes

Published by Daniella Wilson

Get the latest entertainment news, reviews and star-studded interviews with our Independent Culture email Get the latest entertainment news with our free Culture newsletter Get the latest entertainment news with our free Culture newsletter Britain’s first professional black ballerina was left “winded” and “breathless” after witnessing the meticulous restoration of her historic pointe shoes on the BBC’s The Repair Shop. Julie Felix, a London-born dancer, of Caribbean heritage, brought the ballet shoes she wore for her first professional solo performance four decades ago to the popular reality programme. Her appearance offered a poignant reflection on the struggles she endured throughout her career, with her mother remembered as her staunchest supporter. Felix recounted a pivotal moment in the 1970s when a London ballet company rejected her due to her race, explicitly stating, “we can’t have a brown ballet dancer in the line-up of the swans”. This discrimination ultimately led her to seek opportunities abroad. She subsequently secured a contract with the all-black Dance Theatre Of Harlem, based in New York, a move that shaped her professional …

The Repair Shop: The emotional story behind Britain’s first Black professional ballet dancer Julie Felix and her pointe shoes

Julie Felix: The emotional story behind Britain’s first Black professional ballet dancer and her pointe shoes

Published by Daniella Wilson

Get the latest entertainment news, reviews and star-studded interviews with our Independent Culture email Get the latest entertainment news with our free Culture newsletter Get the latest entertainment news with our free Culture newsletter Britain’s first professional black ballerina was left “winded” and “breathless” after witnessing the meticulous restoration of her historic pointe shoes on the BBC’s The Repair Shop. Julie Felix, a London-born dancer, of Caribbean heritage, brought the ballet shoes she wore for her first professional solo performance four decades ago to the popular reality programme. Her appearance offered a poignant reflection on the struggles she endured throughout her career, with her mother remembered as her staunchest supporter. Felix recounted a pivotal moment in the 1970s when a London ballet company rejected her due to her race, explicitly stating, “we can’t have a brown ballet dancer in the line-up of the swans”. This discrimination ultimately led her to seek opportunities abroad. She subsequently secured a contract with the all-black Dance Theatre Of Harlem, based in New York, a move that shaped her professional …

Rock League is giving curling its first true professional franchise league

Rock League is giving curling its first true professional franchise league

Published by Jenni Sidey

The sweepers are out front, and curling is trying to move faster than it ever has before. Just over a month after the Winter Olympics put the sport back in front of a huge global audience, the new Rock League is set to open in Toronto from April 6 to 12. It will offer something curling has never had before: a professional league built around franchises, team branding and a broadcast-ready format. The league will feature six mixed-gender franchises and events across men’s, women’s, mixed team and mixed doubles competition. According to The Curling Group, which operates the league, games will run about two hours. The company also owns the Grand Slam of Curling series. Additionally, it has brought in former Olympic champions Jennifer Jones and John Morris as strategic advisors for rosters and format. For chief executive Nic Sulsky, the timing was the point. The league will feature six mixed-gender franchises and events across men’s, women’s, mixed team and mixed doubles competition. (CREDIT: Rock League) “Curling is always among the most watched winter Olympic …

Curling-Sport’s new professional league bets big on Olympic buzz

Curling-Sport’s new professional league bets big on Olympic buzz

Published by Sam Flores

April 4 : Curling’s first professional league is striking while the iron is hot, launching just over a month after the sport captivated audiences at the Winter Olympics. Boasting an Olympic-heavy roster that includes several medallists from the Milano Cortina Games, the Rock League will feature six mixed-gender franchises competing across men’s, women’s, mixed team and mixed doubles events from April 6-12 in Toronto. The league is operated by the Curling Group, a company which also owns the Grand Slam of Curling series and counts former Olympic curling champions and retired NFL Hall-of-Famer Jared Allen among its advisors. “Curling is always among the most watched winter Olympic sports… it was incredible, it was super fun and electric,” Curling Group CEO Nic Sulsky told Reuters.  “We knew when we founded The Curling Group, that capitalizing on the Olympic momentum was going to be core to our business. “The initial idea was, ‘hey, maybe we’ll wait until 2027 or 2028 to launch, because we’re a startup that’s been in existence for less than two years… But it was …