An Unheralded Invention and Some Office Do’s & Don’ts | A Linking Mess

The world’s greatest invention.

No, it’s not the iPhone. This Economist piece reviews a book about paper, which is said to have been invented in China in 105 AD. A couple of the more important developments in paper’s evolution and production occurred when Chinese prisoners in the 8th century taught Arabs the technique for making it, and the 1439 invention of movable-type printing in what is now Germany.

Happy find: A cheap, portable, printable invention – The Economist

Wave pompoms to get noticed.

Business Insider has provided a handy guide on how to ruin your career, in eight steps. What they don’t tell us is if you have to fulfill all eight “career-killing behaviors” to guarantee ruin. Seriously, though, a couple of them I don’t like. Number one is “Not promoting your own work” and number four is “Not being assertive.” I don’t like those two because I’ve always had trouble with the idea that good work and the best workers aren’t necessarily noticed based strictly on merit. Yes, I understand that managers aren’t perfect and might need a reminder of who is doing the best job, but it still seems to suggest that the most confident and emphatic among us will succeed based on cheerleading skills.

8 Work Habits That Can Ruin Your Careeer – Business Insider

Wait, judging people is a bad thing?

Check out this list of “7 Bad Speaking Habits That Turn People Off” (versus “7 Bad Speaking Habits That Turn People On,” I guess). But who wants to steer clear of the things on this list? What would life be like without gossiping, judging, being negative, complaining, making excuses, exaggerating, and being dogmatic? Imagine how terrifically boring you’d be if you managed to avoid those seven. My favorites are judging (way out in front), being negative, and complaining. I can see how you might turn people off if you employed all seven of these habits in nearly every conversation, so I recommend using a selective peppering of them in your interactions.

7 Bad Speaking Habits That Turn People Off – Business Insider