This week, the Fulton County Library System is launching an online tutoring service for Fulton County residents and library card holders. The service is provided in partnership with PAPER, formerly GradeSlam, and can be accessed by visiting http://www.fulcolibrary.org/digitallibraryor paper.co.

Earlier this year, PAPER was the winner in the tutoring solution category and finalist of the personalized learning solution category of The EdTech Awards 2020. Through PAPERs remote learning platform, students are provided unlimited 24/7 access to online tutoring in any subject from a fully vetted Paper educator, and essay review with annotated feedback within 24 hours. Through Socratic instruction methods, students are guided through concepts to find the answers on their own.

In addition to providing free academic support to Fulton County library card holders, PAPER will also be available for CLASS PASS participants fromAtlanta Public Schools, who currently use student identification credentials to access many of the librarys resources.

With many districts continuing to teach children with remote learning, the need for flexible and personalized online support for students has only increased. In partnering with PAPER, the Fulton County Library System is helping close the divide between those who can afford private tutoring and those who cannot.

The Fulton County Library System is very excited to begin offering PAPER to library patrons, said Gayle Holloman, Executive Director of the Fulton County Library System. This new online tutoring resource will allow the Library System to support students, families, and teachers as they continue navigating this virtual world of homeschooling and virtual learning during COVID-19, with the resources and support they need from their public library. We look forward to seeing the impact on student success as PAPER begins providing services to our library cardholders.

Teachers in PAPERs partner organizations have reported seeing an increase in students grades since using PAPER, and many students have reported feeling more confident with their school work.

Through CARES Act funding, the Fulton County Library System was able to fund the program which will be implemented for the 2020-2021 academic school year.

Since libraries closed due to COVID-19, the library system has launched a variety of new digital resources to enhance the library experience. Additional available resources include Lynda.com, Kanopy, Creative Bug, among others.

See the article here:
Fulton County Library System Partners with PAPER to Offer Online Tutoring - City of South Fulton Observer

San Diego Community News Group

Continuing a phased reopen of City services prioritizing the health and safety of San Diegans and employees, Mayor Kevin L. Faulconer today announced that San Diego Public Libraries would reopen Saturday, Oct. 3, for the first time since mid-March.

A dozen libraries will reopen to the public in a limited capacity accompanied by a new program SD Access4All targeted at bridging the digital divide while maintaining existing COVID-19 programs and practices.

Our libraries offer San Diegans a treasure trove of resources, whether its access to health information, distance learning, job searching or even just a book to pass the time, and we need them now more than ever, Faulconer said. Were reopening our libraries with health and safety as the top priority while also expanding digital access to give residents more opportunities as we get through this pandemic together.

Library locations will reopen in a limited 25% capacity beginning Oct. 3 from 9:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Monday through Saturday. The facilities will close for cleaning from 1 to 2 p.m. daily and frequently touched areas will be cleaned hourly and after each usage. Everyone will be required to wear face coverings, have their temperature taken and practice physical distancing when possible.

Our libraries have been closed since March 13 and, although we have added pickup service and virtual programming, there is no substitute for welcoming patrons into our buildings, said Library Director Misty Jones. That is why I am so excited that we are opening 12 of our library locations starting Oct. 3. While we are offering limited services when we reopen, our staff will be working diligently to expand services as quickly and safely as possible.

In order to protect the health and safety of staff and guests some services may be limited or modified by staff, including time limits for computer use. A full list of in-person rules and requirements can be found on the San Diego Public Library website.

The following library locations will resume in-person services:

The City continuesto prioritize the safety of all staff and guests as we fight through this pandemic, which is why were opening in a phased and thoughtful way, saidJoel Day, the Citys senior advisor for COVID-19 Response and Recovery. With enhanced sanitation protocols for every building, cleaning all equipment after each interaction, enforcing physical distancing and requiring face coverings, we have a plan that will allow residents to access these public resources while staying safe and healthy.

With the pandemic shedding light on the urgency of tackling the digital divide, Faulconer also announced SD Access4All a new initiative aimed at tackling digital inequity by expanding broadband access in San Diego. An estimated 53,000 San Diegans lack access to reliable internet, a resource that has proven vital for distance learning, employment opportunities and access to public health information.

The program creates patio areas at select library locations to offer free WiFi and plastic-coated laptop computers for public use in a physically distanced setting. Capacity and cleaning requirements for the in-person reopening will also apply to all SD Access4All locations. While additional locations are currently being retrofitted for this program, these services are currently offered at the following locations:

In May under the first reopening phase, City libraries began a contact-free pickup service at some library locations. Now as the City enters the second phase, contact-free pick-up services will be maintained at 24 City libraries. To continue to provide services for San Diegans during the pandemic, San Diego Public Library moved many of its resources online for San Diegans to enjoy and share from home, including:

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Mayor reopens libraries with in-person services increased digital access - Continuing a phased reopen of City services prioritizing the health and...

University Archivist & Special Collections Librarian and Associate Professor Meg Miner showcases a book that will be included in the medieval manuscript digitizing project.

Oct. 2, 2020

BLOOMINGTON, Ill. The Ames Library is partnering with Indiana University Bloomington and a consortium of higher-learning institutions in a three-year grant for The Peripheral Manuscripts Project: Digitizing Medieval Manuscript Collections in the Midwest. The project will create a digital repository and catalog of medieval manuscripts across Midwestern collections.

The project involves digitizing and cataloging 78 codices (books) and 406 medieval manuscript fragments from a consortium of 22 Midwestern institutions, including contributions from The Ames Library. The project focuses on distinct collections that have not been economically feasible for holding institutions to digitize and catalog on their own. The Council on Library and Information Resources (CLIR) awarded $281,936.10 for the project, and IU Bloomington will serve as host for the grant.

Elizabeth Hebbard, the project's primary principal investigator and assistant professor of French and Italian in the College of Arts and Sciences at Indiana University Bloomington said: Every surviving medieval book and fragment has the potential to tell us more about medieval book arts, textual traditions, individuals lives and libraries, and even, through their physical qualities and materials, things like animal husbandry and commerce. This is why it is so important to continue to locate and describe unstudied and understudied manuscripts.

Illinois Wesleyan initially proposed contributing 12 single manuscript leaves, dating from 1220A.D. to 1450A.D. and one complete 16th century codex. Associate Professor Meg Miner, University Archivist & Special Collections Librarian said, During a recent planning meeting I was excited to learn we will be able to add three books that contain six fragments of manuscripts. These were used by book binders in the 15th-17th centuries to support the structures of these printed books. The experts on medieval manuscripts for this CLIR project will examine them and provide us with more information that I can share with our community.

Stephanie Davis-Kahl, University Librarian, said We are grateful for the efforts of the IU Bloomington Libraries and CLIR to include a variety of institutions in the project, and I am especially appreciative of Meg Miners efforts to share the gems in our special collections with an appreciative audience.

IU Libraries will scan or photograph the manuscripts, and researchers at IU Bloomington, Loyola University Chicago and Saint Marys College, with assistance from partner librarians and subject specialists, will catalog these objects, including many manuscripts unrecorded in previous bibliographical surveys.

As a result, The Peripheral Manuscripts Project: Digitizing Medieval Manuscript Collections in the Midwest will bring a wealth of previously inaccessible and uncatalogued medieval material to scholarly consciousness.

All of the data generated by the grant team will be made freely available through digital library repository services developed and maintained by IU Libraries. This data includes manuscript descriptions and high-resolution images that meet International Image Interoperability Framework (IIIF) compliance standards.

This new material will be aggregated with existing digitized collections to yield a more comprehensive understanding of North American manuscript holdings.

The benefit of participating in a project like this is our small collection will join with the other partners in the Midwest in this virtual space, said Miner, and ultimately become part of a network for North American repositories. Researchers worldwide will be able to consult and compare across collections.

Lisa Fagin Davis, executive director of the Medieval Academy of America, said The Peripheral Manuscripts Project is important and timely.

Davis said that in working with Melissa Conway on the "Directory of Collections in the United States and Canada with Pre-1600 Manuscript Holdings" they discovered that the vast majority of medieval manuscripts in North America are woefully undercataloged or not cataloged at all, making them utterly inaccessible to students and scholars alike.

"Our hope was, and is, that scholars across the continent would take up our call to study and catalog these hidden collections, image these unknown medieval manuscripts and make these important relics of the medieval past available in open-access, discoverable environments," Davis said. "Peripheral Manuscripts will do just that and will serve as a model for similar consortial projects in other parts of the United States and Canada."

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The Ames Library Partners to Digitize Medieval Manuscripts | Illinois Wesleyan - Illinois Wesleyan University

The Friends of the Library organization was officially formed on Sept. 29, 1970 to help foster a love of libraries, books and reading.

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. The Friends of the Library donated $50,000 on Wednesday to commemorate the 50th anniversary of when the organization was officially formed.

Knox County Mayor Glenn Jacobs and officials with the Knox County Public Library accepted the donation during a check presentation at Lawson McGhee Library. Officials said it will be used to buy downloadable ebooks and audiobooks that people will be able to check out and enjoy.

They said that the check can provide funding for about 850 new ebooks and audiobooks. Officials said that since March 21, patrons borrowed more than 422,000 e-books and audiobooks.

Previous gifts from Friends of the Library have been used to help fund Spanish language computer workshops, purchase equipment to clean discs and restore paintings by Knoxville artist Catherine Wiley.

Friends of the Library was officially formed on Sept. 29, 1970, to foster a love of libraries, books and reading through outreach campaigns, advocacy and supporting the community. The organization donated nearly $1 million to the library system since it started, according to officials.

This gift will help us provide much-needed resources in emedia, which is growing in popularity daily," said Library Director Myretta Black in a release. "Truly, we are fortunate to have such a dedicated group of volunteers who care about our community and the health of the library system.

Thanks for all the love! Weve loved being Friends of the Knox County Public Library for the past 50 years, and we plan...

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Friends of the Library donates $50,000 for 50th anniversary - WBIR.com

Announcing the Calvert Library Foundation Charity Auction to benefit Calvert Library on October 25, 2020. This auction is the first event in the Foundations capital campaign to raise funds to support the construction of a new Calvert Library Twin Beaches Branch in North Beach.

The auction will be hosted by Chesapeake Auction House in St Leonard, MD on their website.

The items to be auctioned will be available for online preview from October 11-17. Bids can be placed from October 18-25. To participate in the bidding, one must register on the Chesapeake Auction House website. The auction will go live at 7 pm on October 25. Interested individuals can inspect any item October 11-23 by contacting Scott Deacon at 443-975-1001 or via email

The Foundation is accepting donations of items with a minimum value of $100, through October 9. Suggested popular items to donate could include experiences like a fishing charter or a week stay at a vacation home; jewelry, art, antiques, recreational crafts, e.g. canoe, kayak, etc. The goal is to have over 100 items to be auctioned.

The Foundation is looking forward to making this event a huge success and welcomes the communitys support of Calvert Library. The beauty of fundraising in a COVID-19 environment is that you can attend this auction from the comfort of your own home no expensive dress-up clothes to buy or (well be honest) less than fabulous wine to consume. Just the comfort of your home and an opportunity to support the library. The library and its staff have done an outstanding job providing services in these difficult times. They have proven that libraries are not only relevant but an essential part of our daily lives and culture. Please take time to thank them and support this auction.

If you would like to make a donation to the Twin Beaches Capital Campaign, please contact Foundation President Scott Deacon at skdeacon2@aol.com or 443-975-1001 or Library Executive Director, Carrie Willson cwillson@calvertlibrary.info or 410-535-0291.

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Calvert Library Foundation Hosts Online Auction - The Southern Maryland Chronicle

Beginning Monday, Oct. 5, 2020, Riverside County voters may drop off their completed ballots for the Nov. 3 election in portable ballot boxes like this one at Moreno Valley City Hall in Moreno Valley on Thursday, Oct. 1, 2020. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)

Beginning Monday, Oct. 5, voters in Riverside County may cast their ballots in the 2020 presidential election.

In-person voting will be available 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays through Oct. 30 (excluding Oct. 12), 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Oct. 24, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Oct. 31-Nov. 2, and 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Election Day, Nov. 3, at the Registrar of Voters Office, 2720 Gateway Drive in Riverside.

In addition, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Oct. 23-25, voters may cast their ballots at the Galleria at Tyler, 1192 Galleria at Tyler in Riverside; Westfield Palm Desert, 72-840 Highway 111 in Palm Desert; and Promenade Temecula, 40820 Winchester Road in Temecula.

Voter Assistance Centers that will replace traditional polling places, meanwhile, will be open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Oct. 31-Nov. 2 and 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Election Day, Nov. 3.

Meanwhile, those who want to skip the lines are encouraged to vote their ballot at home and drop it in a secure ballot drop-off box at the registrars office 24/7 beginning Monday, or at any of the locations listed above or below:

Anza First Southern Baptist Church, 39200 Foothill Road *

City Hall, 99 E. Ramsey St. **

Beaumont Civic Center, 550 E. Sixth St. **

Bermuda Dunes Community Service Center, 78400 Forty Second Ave. *

City of Blythe, 235 N. Broadway **

Cabazon County Library, 50425 Carmen Ave. *

City of Calimesa, 908 Park Ave. **

City of Canyon Lake, 31516 Railroad Canyon Road **

City of Cathedral City, 68700 Avenida Lalo Guerrero **

Date Palm Country Club, 36200 Date Palm Drive *

Coachella Branch Library, 1500 Sixth St. *

City of Corona, 400 S. Vicentia Ave., Suite 155 **

Home Gardens County Library, 3785 S. Neece St. *

The Shops At Dos Lagos, 2795 Cabot Drive, Suite 6-110 *

Trilogy at Glen Ivy, 24503 Trilogy Parkway *

Lake Tamarisk County Library, 43880 Lake Tamarisk Drive *

City of Desert Hot Springs, 11999 Palm Drive **

City of Eastvale, 12363 Limonite Ave., Suite 910 **

Eastvale Community Center, 13820 Schleisman Road *

Harada Neighborhood Center, 13099 Sixty Fifth St. *

City of Hemet, 445 E. Florida Ave. **

Seven Hills Members Club, 3050 Jacaranda Way *

Valle Vista Branch Library, 25757 Fairview Ave. *

Idyllwild County Library, 54401 Village Center Drive *

City of Indian Wells, 44950 Eldorado Drive **

City of Indio, 100 Civic Center Mall **

Indio Corporate Yard, 83101 Avenue 45 *

Indio Public Library, 200 Civic Center Mall *

City of Jurupa Valley, 8930 Limonite Ave. **

Glen Avon County Library, 9244 Galena St. *

Louis Robidoux County Library, 5840 Mission Blvd. *

La Quinta City Hall, 78495 Calle Tampico **

La Quinta Wellness Center, 78450 Avenida La Fonda *

City of Lake Elsinore, 130 S. Main St. **

Lake Elsinore County Library, 600 W. Graham Ave. *

Outlets at Lake Elsinore, 17600 Collier Ave., Suite F154a *

Mecca County Library, 91260 66th Ave. *

City of Menifee, 29844 Haun Road **

Kay Ceniceros Senior Center, 29995 Evans Road *

Palmilla HOA Community Center, 29892 Fernleaf Drive *

Sun City County Library, 26982 Cherry Hills Blvd. *

City of Moreno Valley, 14177 Frederick St. **

Garvey Allen Academy, 22515 Alessandro Blvd. *

Moreno Valley College, 16130 Lasselle St. *

Rising Stars Business Academy, 23750 Alessandro Blvd. *

City of Murrieta, 1 Town Square **

Friesian Focus Equestrian Center, 43975 Tenaja Road *

Murrieta Senior Center, 5 Town Square *

City of Norco, 2870 Clark Ave. **

Norco County Library, 3240 Hamner Ave. *

Villa Amalfi Hidden Valley, 10 Clubhouse Drive *

Nuview County Library, 29990 Lakeview Ave. *

City of Palm Desert, 73510 Fred Waring Drive **

City of Palm Springs, 3200 E Tahquitz Canyon Way **

Demuth Community Center, 3601 E. Mesquite Ave. *

Camper Resorts of America, 375 E. Ramona Expressway *

City of Perris, 101 N. D St. **

Mead Valley County Library, 21580 Oakwood St. *

Moses-Schaffer Community Center, 21565 Steele Peak Drive *

Perris County Library, 163 E. San Jacinto Ave. *

City of Rancho Mirage, 69825 Highway 111 **

Arlanza Community Center, 7950 Philbin Ave. *

City of Riverside, 3900 Main St., 7th Floor **

Dales Senior Center, 3936 Chestnut St. *

Highgrove County Library, 530 Center St. *

Janet Goeske Senior Center, 5257 Sierra St. *

Lake Mathews Community Room, 16453 El Sobrante Road *

Orange Terrace Community Center, 20010 Orange Terrace Parkway *

Renck Community Center, 4015 Jackson St. *

Woodcrest County Library, 16625 Krameria Ave. *

Ysmael Villegas Community Center, 3091 Esperanza St. *

City of San Jacinto, 595 S. San Jacinto Ave. **

City of Temecula, 41000 Main St. **

Temecula Community Center, 28816 Pujol St. *

Temecula Public Library, 30600 Pauba Road *

Thousand Palms County Library, 31189 Robert Road *

City of Wildomar, 23873 Clinton Keith Road, Suite 106 **

Wildomar County Library, 34303 Mission Trail *

Patterson House Museum, 28030 Patterson Ave. *

* Open 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday-Friday Oct. 5-Nov. 2 and 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Election Day, Nov. 3.

** Open during regular city business hours Oct. 5-Nov. 2 and 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Nov. 3.

For more information, visit the Riverside County registrars website at voteinfo.net.

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Riverside County voters, heres where to cast ballots in the Nov. 3 election - Press-Enterprise

MARION (WSIL) -- Marion will once again be one of 300 host sites for the annual Live 2 Lead Conference.

The leadership development and personal growth experience is open to anyone who wants to become a better leader, or focus on personal growth. Traditionally, the event is held at the Pavilion of the City of Marion, but due to COVID-19, the event will be fully virtual.

The live broadcast is Friday, October 9th, from 8 to 12.

This year, people can interact online and and chat with other viewers They can also join a discussion group after the broadcast.

"You don't have to go to a major city, to be able to attend this type of conference. These type of resources are available here in our area, and with it being a virtual event, it's available to their work computer, their home computer, wherever they happen to be working," says Karen Mullins, Executive Director of the Marion Chamber of Commerce.

Those who buy tickets through the Marion Chamber of Commerce will also have access to pre-recorded talks from several local community leaders.

You can find more information and buy tickets on the Marion Chamber of Commerce's website.

Excerpt from:
Marion to host virtual Live 2 Lead Conference - WSIL TV

Executive Summary

At home and at work, busy culture worsens the problems it promises to solve. We think that the busier we are, the bigger impact well be able to make. But in reality, busy culture destroys productivity, while pulling us away from our families and coworkers alike. What can leaders do to dismantle a toxic culture of busyness? In this piece, the author shares three strategies to encourage healthier work-life boundaries, including instituting financial incentives for disconnecting from work, modeling focus on your primary goal, and leaning on peers within the organization to support a more positive company culture.

At home and at work, busy culture worsens the problems it promises to solve. Its natural to assume that the busier we are, the bigger the impact well be able to make but in reality, studies have shown that busy culture destroys productivity and pulls us away from both our families and deeper relationships with our coworkers.

Like all work cultures, busy culture starts at the top, with leaders who want to appear successful, important, and productive. But what makes it so tough to overcome is that it also has roots at the bottom, where junior employees compete to stand out as hard workers eager to contribute and move up.

And then, of course, theres the problem of how porous our work-life boundaries have become, thanks to the proliferation of technologies that make it possible to work and connect with one another from anywhere, at any time.

So what can leaders do to combat a toxic culture of busyness? Theres no easy answer, but here are three strategies that can help:

Incentivize boundary-setting. Busy culture has to be fought with unquestionable company commitment. Praising employees and awarding them extra time off is a good start, but those measures can often come across as token gestures. What works better, it turns out, is paying people to be less busy.

That may sound radical, but paying people to work less is an appropriate solution for what has become a serious problem. More than four-fifths of employees send work emails on weekends. Nearly six in 10 do so while on vacation, and more than half check email after 11 PM.

These are problematic behaviors if youre worried about the health, satisfaction, and productivity of your employees. The good news is, theyre also behaviors that managers can easily track and use to promote boundary-setting.

One tech company, FullContact, has been doing this for years. Employees can earn a $7,500 annual vacation stipend by following three simple rules: No checking work messages, no working, and no staying home (although recently, staycations have also qualified). Referred to internally as a paid, paid vacation, the stipend is enforced through a combination of vacation photo-sharing, communication channel monitoring, and self-reporting.

A few years after launching the program, the companys communications director, Brad McCarty,told the Washington Postthat the program was working incredibly well, adding that when employees returned from these vacations they were shining brighter, working harder, and more excited to get back into the swing of things.

Another popular approach is to structure vacations as paid sabbaticals. In 2011, just 4% of employers offered paid sabbaticals. By 2017, more than four times as many employers did.

Because unused sabbatical time doesnt have to be paid out when the term of employment ends, companies are able to offer more generous policies if they treat that time as a sabbatical rather than a vacation. In addition, especially in the academic sphere, sabbaticals are a culturally accepted way to take time for personal development not directly related to work. Reframing vacations as sabbaticals may help employees feel less stigma around taking time off.

Focus on your core contribution. Countering busy culture means saying no to tasks that dont align with your primary duties and leaders have to set that example. Until the rest of your team sees you saying no to secondary duties, they wont feel comfortable doing so either.

Do you enjoy downtime when you get it, or do you fill it with less-than-critical work? Do you abandon side projects which are only useful insofar as they serve your core focus early and often? Does everybody you work with know what your primary duties are? Even employees you dont work directly with should know what those duties are and recognize your commitment to them.

On this front, too, a radical approach is often the most effective. In his book Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less, the leadership strategist Greg McKeown argues that to combat busy culture and create a healthier and more productive work environment, leaders should say yes to only the top 10% of the tasks presented to them. Show through your actions that your core duties are your priority, and make saying no to other work the norm.

Thats the approach that the co-founder of CD Baby, Derek Sivers, has adopted. If its not a hell, yeah, he says, its a no. Sivers understands that its not bad opportunities that can kill his business but mediocre ones.

Lean on lateral and external influencers. Culture is built informally, interaction by interaction. But no single individual can change the culture of a large organization alone. What works to effect change is positive peer pressure, exerted by social connections rather than top-down directives.

Consider how Ben & Jerrys finally got workers to use its nap rooms. At first, people were so embarrassed about using them that they would use phony names like Donald Duck on the signup sheet. After removing the signup sheet, Ben & Jerrys realized a simpler system could still show everyone that the rooms were being used without revealing individual users identities: If the door is closed, a spokesperson explained, you know it is being used. Although rooms can no longer be booked in advance, Ben & Jerrys realized the higher priority was making everyone feel comfortable using them in the first place.

Similarly, the founder of Gabb Wireless, Stephen Dalby, who I met while working in the nonprofit world, struggled to put his phone down after work until his 6-year-old son asked a cutting question: Daddy, can we play a game or is your phone too important? Despite founding Gabb to help young people spend less time on screens, Stephen struggled to turn off business mode. To combat this culture in himself and his team, he encouraged employees to establish small, daily traditions like device-free dinners and he talked about those dinners at work, reminding his people that healthy boundary-setting was the norm.

All companies get busy. The trick is to keep that busyness from becoming chronic and cultural, because when that happens, it also becomes corrosive no matter how productive or positive it may seem.

View post:
How to Defeat Busy Culture - Harvard Business Review

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While the pandemic has waylaid many professional development plans, some people have still managed to pursue a lot of growth and development. And not only is that growth going to feel great, it's also likely to have a positive career impact.

A new CollegeFinance.com report surveyed over 1,000 people who self-isolated or self-quarantined in recent months, as well as more than 200 hiring managers, to assess how people spent their downtime.

An encouraging finding from the report is that 83% indicated learning something new while staying at home during COVID-19and78% expanded their existing skills or knowledgeduring the pandemic.

And for anyone who took the initiative to grow their skills, here's some really good news: 90% of hiring managers surveyed said they were more likely to hire and promote someone who worked on their professional development during the pandemic than a person who didn't.

Notwithstanding the likely career benefits,60% of people said picking up a new skill set during the pandemic was a self-development pursuit and 39% indicated they were trying to reduce their stress levels.

It's also likely that these self-development pursuits will have longer-term carryover effects. In the Leadership IQ study, "If Your Employees Aren't Learning, You're Not Leading," we discovered that employees who are always learning new things are ten times more likely to be inspired than those who are not.

The respondents in the CollegeFinance.com report didn't just dabble in learning. People who were out of work because of the pandemic spent more than 12 hours learning each week and those who were employed spent nearly nine hours per week.

Now, it would be fair to wonder how people can dedicate that much time to self-development and learning every week. There are really two answers: First, the data above makes it clear that learning generates great returns for one's career, happiness and motivation. When you have an activity with such positive benefits, it makes perfect sense that people would spend a lot of time pursuing it.

Second, a majority of people are actually more productive working from home than they were working in an office. In the study, "The Truth About Working From Home In 24 Shocking Charts," we discovered that 29% of people say their productivity is much better working from home, and an additional 24% say it's a little better.When your productivity is significantly better, it's much easier to find the time for big self-development goals.

People weren't just pursuing technical skills, as 41% indicated learning self-motivation during the pandemic. And 45% of hiring managers said self-motivation was more important than ever before and 65% said it was an essential employee trait.

One of the great lessons of the past few months is that people have far more control over their mental well-being and self-motivation than they might have previously thought.

In the Leadership IQ study, "Employee Engagement Is Less Dependent On Managers Than You Think," we discovered that employees' self-engagement (i.e., their personal outlooks like optimism, resilience, proactivity, etc.) could actually matter more than working for a great manager.

For example, having a trustworthy boss statistically explains about 22% of an employee's inspiration at work. But having resilience (i.e., surviving difficult times with little trouble) explains 25% of an employee's inspiration at work. And that's clearly a more powerful statistical driver.

None of this is meant to downplay the horrific impact that the pandemic has inflicted upon so many. Rather, these studies are pointing that, notwithstanding our current chaos, there are still ways that each of us can advance our career and our psychological health. Investing time, and even money, in professional development is one of the greatest emotional salves for stressful times, for several reasons.

First, in frightening times, there's a natural inclination to burrow under the covers and wait for the badness to pass. The problem is that hiding under the covers only reinforces our powerlessness. By contrast, learning new skills is a way to take back control and essentially shout to the world, "I'm in control of my own destiny!"

Second, few things feel better than accomplishing a goal. It's a chance to prove your resilience to yourself, and it's an opportunity to celebrate your success. When you achieve a goal to learn something new, whether it's self-motivation, a technical skill or whatever, you've given yourself license to celebrate your accomplishment. And by infusing your days with legitimate celebrations, you're giving yourself an antidote to some of chaos in the outside world.

It's no wonder that hiring managers were inclined to want to hire and promote those who pursue self-development during stressful times. Not only is self-development a smart way to protect one's emotional wellness, it's also a wonderful signal that the learner has an optimistic and resilient mindset.

More:
Hiring Managers Are More Likely To Hire Someone Who Worked On Their Professional Development During The Pandemic - Forbes

For one year, ICIC memberswill receive accompaniment, courses, mentoring and coaching to facilitate the processes of building their Mastery of Life. They will receive multiple benefits.

MIAMI, Sept. 30, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- More people from all over the world will be able to join the Ismael Cala Influencers Circle (ICIC), an exclusive group of associates who work directly with the communicator and strategist.

"This year has been a test of resilience for the entire world, but that has not interrupted our personal life mission, which is to empower the leadership of Latin Americans. At ICIC, we remain committed to transforming people's lives through self-knowledge and sharing the tools of success," explained Ismael Cala.

Information:

https://influencerscircle.ismaelcala.com/ email: [emailprotected] +1 (786) 312-3341

Influencers Circle was founded in December 2018, with a Platinum membership. Now, starting in September, the program will add two new memberships: Silver and Gold, which will bring together a select group of people committed to going beyond their own limits.

"The root of the real world crisis lies in the internal conflicts of each individual, the lack of trust and personal commitment, the evasion of responsibility, procrastination and lack of focus. To solve all these problems, one must have an awakening of consciousness, a process of transformation," Cala added.

For one year, ICIC memberswill receive accompaniment, courses, mentoring and coaching to facilitate the processes of building their Mastery of Life. They will receive multiple benefits such as:

-Masterclasses with Ismael Cala and experts -Group coaching sessions -Access to all courses at Cala Academy -Access to the EsCala Meditando app for one year -Special event certificates -Access to CALA Library for one year -Seminar tickets for "The Business of Being You" -Individual coaching sessions -Cala Encuentros at the CALA Center -Cala Encuentros "Divine Consciousness" or "Secrets of Bamboo" -Cala Mundos and much more

In 2019, members of the Influencers Circle enjoyed a magnificent trip to Australia. The next destination will be Iceland, when health circumstances allow it.

"If, during a week of courses or workshops you can learn a lot, imagine how much you can transform yourself in one year. This coaching will turn your life around to create a new version of yourself," said Jacques Giraud, academic director of Cala Enterprises and author of the book "Super Resilient."

See the video summary of 2019: https://youtu.be/1TinsozfZZQ

ABOUT ISMAEL CALA

Life and business strategist. Presents and directs CALA, the light night show on MegaTV. For five and a half years he hosted CALA on CNN en Espaol during prime time. Author of eight bestsellers on leadership, entrepreneurship and personal development, including "The Power of Listening" and "Wake Up With Cala." Cala was born in Santiago de Cuba in 1969 and has a degree in Art History from the Universidad de Oriente. He graduated from York University's School of Communication in Toronto and holds a diploma from Seneca College in Television Production. He is the president and founder of Cala Enterprises Corporation and the Ismael Cala Foundation.

SOURCE Cala Enterprises

https://influencerscircle.ismaelcala.com/

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Ismael Cala Creates New Opportunities to Join the Influencers Circle, His Exclusive Group of Associates - PRNewswire