The temperature of the workplace was people’s top complaint for many years. In the same location, some said it was too hot and other workers said it was too cold. Fortunately, some thought the temperature was just right.
Very few people think the ringing of someone’s cellphone is just right. In a study by workforce solutions firm Randstad USA, unusual rings were named as workers’ number one pet peeve.
Randstad reports that many rings are particularly obnoxious like fire engine sirens, a fog horn, or a child’s voice crying out. Many people have several rings to identify various callers such as parents, friends, and spouses.
With so many ringtones available online, it shouldn’t be difficult to pick one that doesn’t drive co-workers and customers to distraction. According to M:Metrics, a Seattle-based research firm, 19.8 million mobile-phone users downloaded ringtones in one recent month. About half of them were employed full time.
Part of the problem is with more open workspaces. Some companies pipe “white sound” into open areas to reduce noise. Another factor is the increased number of young people who have grown up with cellphones.
Most organizations require that phones be set on vibrate during meetings and when talking with customers.
We should remember that discretion is best when choosing a ringtone. Consider what bosses and co-workers will think when your phone rings.

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Those who retire early but live long lose a bundle in Social Security benefits
Only about 5 percent of retirees wait until full retirement age to claim Social Security benefits.
Retiring early can cost dearly, according to the Social Security Administration (SSA), especially if you live a long time.
The SSA calculates that retirees who live to age 90 would lose $39,000 in benefits if they retire at age 62.
Some financial analysts say retiring early would cost far more because of the cost-of-living increases that boost Social Security checks. They figure the loss would be $83,000 for those who take benefits at 62 and live to age 90 and nearly $149,000 for those who live to age 95. The reason: Cost-of-living adjustments would apply to larger sums if a person retires at age 66.
Age 77 is the SSA’s estimated break even point. If you think you will die before age 77, retire early. If you think you will live past age 77, delay retirement as long as possible.
People are, in fact, living longer. There is a 41 percent chance that a 62-year-old woman will live to age 90. A 62-year-old man has a 29 percent chance.
For a married couple, there’s a 58 percent chance that one of them will live to age 90, and a 29 percent chance that one will reach 95. If you don’t think you’ll live very long, taking benefits early could hurt your spouse. A married beneficiary can continue receiving his or her own benefits or the deceased’s benefit, whichever is more. So spouses who take benefits early also reduce the amount the surviving spouse could receive.
People who want to retire early and can afford to live on their retirement savings until age 66 may also save on income tax.
Married couples with $32,000 in combined income face income tax on half of their Social Security benefits.

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Last August, Congress passed the Pension Protection Act. It encourages companies to sign up employees automatically for 401(k) plans.
Previously, only a third of eligible employees participated, but the new rules are changing that. The 401(k) plans have three compelling benefits:

• Investments are made with pre-tax dollars. Investments and interest earned are not taxed until you withdraw your money at age 59-1/2 through age 70.
• You get “free money.” Employers can match contributions dollar for dollar. Typically, however, they match 50 cents on the dollar up to 6 percent of your salary, according to Fortune. Some match 25 cents on the dollar.
• The federal limit on your contributions is $15,000 per year or $20,000 for those age 50 or older. The minimum contribution is set by the plan.

A plan generally has a set of default options for investing your money. They are primarily balanced mutual funds and investment pools that include a mix of stocks and bonds. Some companies include target-date or lifecycle funds, which change the mix of stocks and bonds according to how long it will be before you retire.
Fund tracker Morning Star reports that balanced funds returned an average of 9.7 percent a year since 2004, making them a good choice.
Most 401(k) participants depend on the plan to make their investment choices. Participants who feel knowledgeable about investments, however, can make or change their own choices from various investments available within the plan.
Advisors at Fortune say letting your investments grow on “autopilot” with the plan’s choices has paid off for most people over time.

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For greater success, get passionate about your work, your world
Let’s say you’re a calm, laid-back person. You deal with the world from a take-it-as-it-comes point of view. And it has always worked for you.

But didn’t you ever envy people who seemed to be on fire, enthusiastic and passionate about their work, their pro football team, and their home life?
There’s no question that you can’t change the color of your eyes and other in-born traits. The height of your fire is something else.

In The Welch Way, Jack and Suzy Welch say there’s no question about it. You can stoke up your fire, uncork your passion and get hot! When you do, you can turn clock-watching workers into fired-up people as well.
It’s every leader’s job to make purpose come alive and to turn cynicism into engagement, say the Welches.
Sometimes it takes an event to do it. They tell of a break-even unit of a big manufacturer. The unit had little growth and its people had little motivation. They just plugged along with the work.
When the unit was sold, everything changed. A few slackers were let go, but through great attention to individuals and promises of better things to come, work became fun for those who stayed.
Fortunately, you probably won’t have the buyout situation to contend with but the new owner’s techniques could work for you too. By focusing on individuals, what they are doing and what they could become, you could replace cynicism with excitement.
When you get passionate about what your people are doing, true engagement will be your reward. And theirs.

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Nassim Nicholas Taleb calls his new book The Black Swan: The Impact of the Highly Improbable. (It was the discovery of one black swan that invalidated the theory that all swans are white.) His work continues the theme of his previous book Fooled by Randomness, which is about the role chance plays in life.

It’s not just forecasters who take a chance on predicting the future, however. Each of us does it every time we make an insurance payment or fasten our seat belts. But Taleb says improbable events are inevitable.

The Black Swan is symbolic of the dramatic, earth-shaking events that shape the course of history. He cites such events as September 11, World War I, and the Wall Street crash of 1987 as demonstrations that the world is dominated by the extreme, and the improbable. These events have massive impact. Taleb says, “History does not crawl, it jumps.”

Reviewer Chris Anderson calls the book “a delightful romp through history, economics, and the frailties of human nature.” He quotes Francis Bacon who 400 years ago warned that our minds are wired to deceive us.

Taleb says we spend our lives engaged in small talk, focusing on the known while ignoring the possibility of events that could change our lives. A mathematician turned philosopher, he contends that we really have no idea why stock markets go up or down on any given day, and whatever reason we give is sure to be grossly simplified, if not flat out wrong.

He says our love for simplistic explanations blinds us into thinking we understand how things work. He recommends looking for ways to profit from serendipitous developments (good Black Swans), while at the same time preparing broadly for disaster.

The Black Swan: The Impact of the Highly Improbable by Nassim Nicholas Taleb, Random House, 400 pages.

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