Vanya Wryter Consulting Services

Category: Business

  • The Cybersecurity Threat That Included Ransomware

    The Cybersecurity Threat That Included Ransomware

    Last week, chaos erupted at the office. Well, it was thoughtful chaos. Our company had a discussion about what we would need to do if we faced a cybersecurity threat that sent ransomware throughout our computer systems.

    It was a hypothetical situation, of course. Someone added an image of a dumpster fire on our collaborative Miro board. Another person added a happy face using the emoji stickers. But despite the levity of the images, the discussion was a real one.

    Cyber threats are everywhere, and no business is too small to be a target. Hackers don’t care if you’re running a Fortune 500 company or a local coffee shop; if they can get in, they will. That’s why having solid cybersecurity measures in place isn’t just a good idea—it’s a must. And thus, the reason for our discussion. We covered many points in our two-hour hypothetical situation, including the following points for businesses.

    Keeping Data Safe

    Your business holds a ton of sensitive information—customer details, financial records, employee data—just a few examples. If hackers get their hands on it, the consequences can be devastating. Encrypting data, using multi-factor authentication, and running security checks regularly can help keep data safely stored away.

    Avoid Losing Money

    Cyberattacks like ransomware and phishing scams can drain your bank account faster than you can say “data breach.” Small businesses, especially, don’t always have the extra cash to bounce back from a major attack. Investing in firewalls and anti-malware tools, and training your team to spot scams can save you a fortune in the long run.

    Earning Customer Trust

    Nobody wants to do business with a company that can’t protect their personal info. A security breach can destroy your reputation overnight. Show them you take their privacy seriously by putting strong security measures in place—it’ll go a long way in building trust and loyalty.

    Having a Solid Plan

    Employees should be aware of what to do if their computer becomes infected or if they are suddenly denied access to company data because of a cyber attack. Company leadership should also have solid protocols for contacting staff and customers when they do discover ransomware. Having a plan will get the company back to normal operations as soon as possible.  

    Key Takeaways

    Cybersecurity isn’t just for tech giants—it’s for everyone. By being proactive and setting up strong security measures, you can avoid data disasters, keep your business running smoothly, and give your customers peace of mind. 

    Thanks for reading this post!

  • How to Deal with Distractions While at Work

    How to Deal with Distractions While at Work

    Distractions can be relaxing. Distractions can be harmful. How you deal with distractions determines if you can manage your time or watch it slip away from you. Especially at this time of year, it’s easy to lose motivation at work. We’re still partly in holiday mode and readjusting to our work schedule. If you are distracted while at work, try these tips on how to deal with distractions to keep yourself focused.

    1 Shift Your Mind into Work Mode

    Imagine your mind as a bunch of rooms. If you can, divide your life into compartments to avoid distractions. If you work from home, there is plenty to distract you from doing your work. Your family members may want your attention. Or your delicious lunch is tempting you to go to the kitchen. That TV series you’re hooked on is beckoning you to finish one more episode.

    A mental switch into work mode can include changing into work clothes (your work sweater, your work hoodie) and starting your routine, such as getting your cup of coffee, opening up your computer, and checking your work emails. 

    If your job involves a lot of brainstorming and creative thinking, it’s easy to take a moment to check messages on your phone, wander off to get a quick snack, or peek out the window to see what the neighbors are doing. “I’m doing some research,” you say. The break might inspire you with a breakthrough.

    The ding! of a work email can be super exciting if your mind is completely blank and you’re stuck on your creative work task. What should you write next? How do you tackle this problem? Checking a work message can be a nice distraction. After all, you’re still in work mode. You’re just off task. Having a timer helps keep you on task.

    2 Prioritize and Time Your Tasks

    Sometimes, despite your best intentions, it is difficult to stay in work mode. You might still be in holiday mode and feeling sleepy now that you’re getting up early again. However, office hours have begun and you need to get some work done. Devoting a whole eight hours to work instead of doing whatever you like can be daunting.

    Start by mapping out what work tasks you absolutely must complete and what tasks would be nice to complete. Prioritize tasks that must get done by a specific time or end of the day. 

    Use a timer and block off your day in 15 or 30-minute chunks – decide what increment works best for you. It’s easier for your mind to wander if you think you have all day to finish your work. Set a goal to complete a specific task within your time block. With short-term goals, it’s easier to stay focused.

    3 Set Aside Time for Self Care

    Sometimes, telling yourself to switch to work mode or prioritize tasks isn’t enough, especially if you’re dealing with something that affects your mental or physical health. 

    For example, you just found out you have a major health issue to deal with in the coming months or you’re dealing with a conflict at home that’s giving you sleepless nights.

    Provide yourself with something to look forward to, such as a favorite snack or lunch to reward yourself when you finish part of the work day. If you can, take a nap or listen to some music. Go for a walk during lunch. Talk with a friend during your break. What you do after work is important as well, such as spending time with friends or family, or going to the gym. Check if you’re getting enough sleep. Plan an activity so you have something to look forward to at the end of the work week.

    Distractions can be fun, but sometimes too much distraction can lower your productivity.

    What do you do when distractions pull you in multiple directions?

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  • Santa’s Top Skills Revealed

    Santa’s Top Skills Revealed

    This interesting and timely article dropped into my mailbox: a blog about the soft skills needed to run Santa’s worldwide business. Soft skills are skills such as leadership, active listening, critical thinking, and multitasking.

    Here are just some of the highlights from the longer article about what skills Santa uses to run his global gift operation.

    Leadership skills: he directs talented elves and a herd of magical reindeer and coordinates with families during one night of operations.

    Multitasking skills: Santa can’t miss that one deadline per year, so he has a lot to coordinate, from tuning up the sleigh to reading all the gift lists and managing the toy shop.

    Active listening skills: Santa listens carefully to all the children so he gets the details for their wish lists right, and he asks questions when needed for the best interaction possible. He pays attention to body language and the way the child is feeling.

    Santa possesses many soft skills that are needed to run such an important gift operation.

    For more about these skills, check out the original article.

  • 5 Tips on Working for a Virtual StartUp

    5 Tips on Working for a Virtual StartUp

    Nowadays, it’s possible to go to an office address and find that the company you’re looking for doesn’t physically exist there. At all. Technology has enabled the employees of an entire company to work from home. 

    Some of these companies are startups that are 100 percent virtual. These companies are great if you hate commuting and love working in your own space. But, as startups, they also have their drawbacks.

    Keep these five tips in mind if you’re thinking of working for a 100% remote startup company. These tips can improve your success at working for such a company in the long term.

    1 Believe in the mission and vision

    Look into the company’s mission and vision before you go to your job interview. The company’s goals should completely line up with yours. Of course, you want to work for a company with a purpose you believe in. With a startup, it is even more crucial that you aren’t working for the paycheque. Here’s why.

    Startups are start-ups. The journey can be bumpy as the company experiences growing pains. Roles for each person may constantly change. Policies and procedures may frequently update as the company tries to determine what works and what doesn’t. Even the company’s products and services may change as it adjusts to become a better fit for its ideal customers. 

    If the company’s goals are goals you fully support, it makes the constant shifting and adjusting easier to bear.

    2 Be flexible and open to change

    If you’re going to work for a startup, you absolutely must embrace change. As the company grows at a rapid pace, more people will join the team. Roles and responsibilities will shift. You may find yourself working with more team members or find yourself managing a team. You may have more tasks on your to-do list. Or you may have fewer, more specialized tasks as your role becomes more defined.

    Procedures may also improve and change over time as the company experiments with different types of software. Instead of tracking your hours on a simple spreadsheet or table, you now need to learn to use customer management software (CRM software) such as Salesforce. Instead of casually mentioning in a chat that you finished a task, you’ll need to write your update in a project management tool, such as Trello, Asana, or Click Up.

    3 Take initiative

    A startup company is still figuring out many things. Just picture a company that is settling into its office on moving day. Office equipment and office furniture are everywhere as people try to figure out where everyone will sit and what will go in each room.

    Some startups don’t have a human resources (HR) department or a clear line of authority. In these cases, you may need to be more assertive than you’re comfortable with. For example, if the person you report to is disrespectful to you, you’ll need to figure out who you could talk to about your boss. Similarly, without an HR, you won’t have someone to speak to about disrespectful treatment by a coworker. You will also have to take the initiative about getting a raise because the company is still figuring out what the pay raises, bonuses, and benefits should be.

    4 Be prepared to put in extra hours and effort

    Working for a startup could mean working extra hours and putting in more effort. Depending on how established the startup is, the company may require you to work longer days to get procedures set up. They may be short staffed, so you’ll find yourself taking on the role of more than one person.

    At some companies, they will appreciate the extra effort and reward you with a promotion, such as a change in job title or responsibilities, or better pay. At other companies, particularly those that aren’t well organized, your extra effort will be required but will go unnoticed. They will expect you to work weekends and evenings in addition to regular office hours.  

    5 Invest in yourself

    If you’re working for a virtual startup, you may feel a bit disconnected, especially if you’re a social extrovert. You may only know the person who brought you into the company after the job interview. You’ll also know the people who you work with regularly. But everyone else will be just a name in a chat group. You don’t get to meet people casually in the hallway or during lunch break. 

    The people you work with may not remember to introduce you to key members of the team or remember to show you how to use the software you’ll need. 

    It’s up to you to reach out and remind them of your skills if you want a promotion or pay raise. Your supervisor may not remember these details, especially if the team has been growing and your supervisor has changed and there is no HR department. 

    Learning new skills is important, especially when it comes to technology. No one from the IT Department is going to knock on your door to help you set up your computer or connect to your internet. If you lose your internet connection or your computer breaks down, you lose your lifeline to your virtual job. 

    Key Takeaways

    Not all startups are the same. Leadership affects how the company treats its employees. If there is strong leadership, the startup will grow quickly while providing the support that each person needs. People will feel acknowledged and appreciated for their work. If you’re considering working for a virtual startup, be prepared to put in extra effort and be ready for rapid and constant change.

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  • Is AI Good or Bad?

    Is AI Good or Bad?

    Daily writing prompt
    What technology would you be better off without, why?
    View all responses

    I would say that AI (artificial intelligence) is technology that I would be better off without – but it’s a necessary part of life. AI is here to stay.

    It helps us to complete tasks much faster and more efficiently. Yes, AI will replace tasks and possibly jobs. This week, a friend was asked at her job to use AI to speed up her workflow. She will be able to finish her tasks at three times the speed if she asks AI to do the work for her. Is there an ethics question there somewhere? Probably. Are we encouraging AI to replace certain jobs? Maybe. But do we have a choice? If my friend makes a stand and says, “No AI for me!” she could be job hunting tomorrow.

    Out of curiosity, I asked AI to write a paragraph about the benefits of AI, and it replied, “Artificial intelligence is rapidly becoming a necessary part of life in the modern world due to its transformative potential across various sectors. AI-powered systems enhance efficiency and productivity by automating tasks, analyzing vast amounts of data, and providing valuable insights in fields like healthcare, finance, and transportation. From personalized medicine and medical diagnosis to fraud detection and risk management, AI improves decision-making and problem-solving. Additionally, AI enhances user experiences through virtual assistants, recommendation systems, and customized content, making technology more intuitive and accessible. As AI continues to evolve, its ability to address complex challenges and drive innovation makes it an indispensable tool for progress and improvement in various aspects of life.”

    This paragraph was generated in one second. I can’t type that fast, let alone think that fast. In the future, our skills won’t be about how well we think creatively but how well we are able to use AI to do our work.

    It is clear that even if some of us push as hard as we can against the progress of AI, others will pull equally as hard to advance AI so we can incorporate it more into our daily lives and our jobs. In the future, AI will be as commonplace as mobile phones. Those who can use AI will reap the most benefit. What do you think?

    In part 2, I share more about the impact of AI on writing jobs.