Bad bosses come in all shapes and forms and are, unfortunately, common in the workplace. There’s the micromanager who hovers over every task and project; the yeller who motivates employees with fear and reprimand; and the irresponsible boss who blames employees for his mistakes. If you take orders from a bad boss, follow these 9 simple ways to improve the relationship between you and your boss.

1. Put on your emotional armor. Detach yourself from the situation and don’t take your manager’s crude remarks personally. If your boss is a jerk, he’s probably a jerk to everyone else. It’s easier to ignore your boss’s insults and misdeeds if you can numb your emotions. 

2. Analyze your own behavior. If you’re having a problem with a boss, first assess your own performance. Whether you take the high road or resort to passive aggression (or even backstabbing), you need to be mindful of your actions towards your boss. Once you know where you stand, you can improve your behavior or better understand where their animosity stems from. It’s possible your boss’s behavior has impacted your work performance. If this is the case, find positive reinforcement elsewhere and focus on your tasks, so there can be no room for reprimand.

3. Get out of the gutter. Just because your boss makes inappropriate comments, does not give you authority to do so. It’s not smart to play his game of nastiness, especially because that’s probably just what he wants. Don’t stoop to low levels of conduct. Instead, take a step back and say, “I’m looking forward to this conversation at another time, but not in this way.” 

While the iPad does many things that users love, they don’t have windowed apps to make it easy to multitask. Apple has always focused on full screen apps, which makes it difficult to switch from one app to another. Now iPad owners have that option if they have a jailbroken device.

For those who are not familiar with jailbreaking, it is a process where you change the iOS so that it can accept applications that are not from the App Store. This allows users to download apps from third-party providers that improve and enhance their device.

What is Quasar?

Quasar is an app developed by Pedro Franceschi that allows users to work with multiple apps, simultaneously. It lets you resize windows so you can see several at once, and they can all be running at the same time. You can also drag the windows around and place them where they are most convenient. This could be beneficial if you are using one window to accomplish something on another.

Another benefit of Quasar is that it improves iPhone apps on the iPad. Normally these apps do not take advantage of the iPad’s larger screen, but that is not a problem with Quasar. It is easy to switch between full-sized and reduced apps.

It’s a bittersweet moment when your child goes out on their own, either graduating high school and moving on to dorm life in college, or getting a ‘real job’ after college graduation. What kind of gift would you get them to commemorate such an important occasion? Here are a few suggestions to help.

For the High School Graduate

They are going to be entering a new phase in their life, one that may be both exciting and scary (for them as well as you). If they will be living on a college campus, you have numerous options for gifts. Here is a list in a wide price range:

-Small refrigerator – they will appreciate having snacks and cold sodas handy for late night studying

-New laptop for all of the reports they will be doing

-Portable fan for white noise; dorms can be loud

-Luggage to make it easy for them to pack and come home on weekends

-A set of gift cards for local restaurants in the college town

-A bed-rest pillow for long nights of studying on their bed

Reports have been showing that the housing market is improving, which is good news to both buyers and sellers.  There are several indicators that show we may be transitioning to a seller's market. 

Inventory

The length of time that it takes for inventory to turn over has dropped to around three months, which is good news for sellers.  This means that if there were no new homes listed for sale, it would take three months for all of the homes to be sold.

More Jobs

When new businesses open or current businesses add new workers, more people will be buying homes.  People may move into the area and others feel more confident to buy a house when they have a stable income.

House Prices Increase

This indicator is usually one of the later to be seen.  However, you will begin to see less negotiation between buyers and sellers; buyers are more willing to pay the sales price.  Sellers are less likely to offer deals or reduce their price because they know someone else will be interested in the house at the selling price.

Wondering if you have what it takes to own your own business? Here are the traits that connect all great business owners. 

You’re motivated by the Bottom Line

You are the type of person that likes to see results, and you will adapt your business plan to get those results. You look to others for advice if you are not getting the desired outcome from your efforts, and you’re willing to change.

You Can See the Big Picture

You understand the importance of attention to detail, but you don’t get so caught up in it that you forget the overall picture. You are willing to do the extra work needed because you are focused on the goal. This may mean working some long hours and weekends to get the business off the ground. You may also end up doing others’ tasks just to keep things going.

You Work Well with People

Whether it is working with employees or customers, you like people and enjoy interacting with them. This may form the bulk of your job at times. You will have to be visible in the community to market your business. Employees also need to hear that they are doing a good job, and there will be times when they need a morale boost.