If there's anything this pandemic has taught us, it's that going forward the perk most requested by job applicants may not be a robust salary and benefits package (which remains crucial, of course), but the flexibility to telecommute. Gone are the days where employees were perfectly content sitting in bumper-to-bumper traffic to make it to a pointless 9 a.m. meeting that could have just as easily been handled via Microsoft Teams or Zoom.  If there's anyone who can attest to the misery of an agonizingly long commute, it's yours truly.  I work a mere 8.2 miles away from home, but my morning and evening commute during the school year runs anywhere from 45 minutes to an hour! (And if there's an accident, I flirt with an hour and a half.) Blame it on antiquated infrastructure and a city population bursting at the seams.  You can imagine what a wonderful respite working from home has been for people like myself who have to contend with clogged streets and jam-packed highw...

Right now, many of us find ourselves working from home -- a mandate imposed by local and federal officials aimed at curbing the spread of coronavirus. Yet, some people have the flexibility to work from home as often as they'd like, even when we're living in normal times. Working from the comfy confines of our room or home office can be something of a mixed bag. As far as disadvantages, juggling work and childcare can be challenging. While there may be no shortage of distractions awaiting you at the office, having your toddler throw Fruit Loops in your face as you attempt to finish the expense report by the 3 p.m. deadline can undoubtedly test your patience. That's to say nothing of the chatty neighbor who comes knocking every few hours, the maintenance being done on the unit downstairs, the dog barking incessantly in the yard, or the simple temptation to plop on the couch and skirt your work duties. Having the fridge close by isn't doing our wasteline any ...

You should never be afraid to lose people -- whether close friends or mere acquaintances -- if keeping them in your life means losing yourself in the process. And how might you lose yourself? You can lose your self-identity by (1) changing yourself to appease them (2) doing everything in your power to please them while neglecting your own needs and wants. Sure, in any relationship, a little flexibility -- some give and take, if you will -- is to be expected. Sometimes you may accede to the other's wishes as far as where to go and what to do. Maybe your friend has kids and you don't, which necessitates planning outings around their busy schedule. But a line needs to be drawn somewhere. If you find yourself making concession after concession while the other person refuses to meet you halfway on anything, let's call the relationship what it really is -- one-sided. Unfortunately, some people become a little too complacent, expecting the other person to always bend...

If there's one thing that's certain about your life, it's that it isn't perfect . Don't fret. Neither is mine. Neither is anyone else's. And that's precisely the beauty of it all. Not having everything we want makes us appreciate what we have even more . Think about it: If we had everything we could possibly desire, wouldn't that make life, well, a tad boring? There's no such thing as the perfect job . There will always be something or someone at work that isn't to our liking. If our jobs were perfect, they'd be called a hobby. But in order to keep food on the table and a roof over our head, we have to make some concessions. There's no such thing as the perfect partner.   Just as we say "batteries included" for many of the items we buy, you can rest assured that your partner comes with "flaws included." There's no such thing as a perfect human being. We have no choice but to take the good with the bad if ...

Being a kid is similar to being a parent in that someone else usually dictates and/or influences many of the decisions you make . As a child, you answer to your parents and abide by their rules. As a parent, your spouse and kids exert a major influence on your choices. Either way, your flexibility is limited, as other people in your life play a chief role in your overall lifestyle. Things are markedly different in our late teens/early 20s, however, as we transition into young adulthood. For most people, the college years are the only time in our lives where we're responsible for -- and answer to -- no one but ourselves. I don't look back on my childhood fondly. My parents got divorced when I was only 3, and my father was extremely overprotective of me. Having to go from one house to another each week was not fun in the slightest. Middle school and high school were largely forgettable. College, on the other hand, afforded me the opportunity to reinvent myself. I reli...

If you could relive any phase of your life, what would it be? For me, it would be my college years, hands down, and many of my friends, relatives, and co-workers echo that very sentiment. And it's not because I miss drunken fraternity parties or on-campus events. For starters, I don't drink and I was never in a fraternity. Because I was a commuter student, I never actually lived on campus and thus didn't have the quintessential college experience. Still, I loved college because the academic atmosphere suited me. I always excelled in school (thanks largely to my mom, who instilled in me a passion for learning) and felt completely in my element. Even though I got a part-time job during my junior year, I still considered school my top priority. Indeed, I was one those reviled nerds who enjoyed reading voraciously and writing papers. One of the best aspects of college -- it's probably the one I miss the most -- was the flexibility it afforded me. When you're i...