Latest news with #worklife
The Sun
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- The Sun
I lived on a cruise ship – we got no days off but you did get free food and didn't have to pay tax or rent
A TRAVEL fan has revealed what it was really like to live and work on a cruise ship. Anaya Daisy, who is currently exploring Thailand but was previously working on a cruise ship in the shore excursions department, claimed that during her stint on the ship, she never got any days off. Despite this, she revealed the benefits to living on a cruise ship and explained that not only was the food free, but she didn't have to pay any rent or tax either. Posting on social media, the brunette got candid on cruise ship life, as she said: 'Do you get days off while working on a cruise ship? Now, this is a question I get asked quite a lot, both by people off the ship and then guests that are actually on the ship, but the answer, unfortunately, is no, we don't get any days off.' Anaya explained that 'most of the crew' don't get any days off, as it is 'an unwritten rule' that you work the entirety of your contract. The content creator, who doesn't have to pay tax whilst on board, acknowledged that contracts can range from anywhere for three months up to nine months. She added: 'Because the cruise is running nearly every day of the year, we can't have any days off because obviously, we're gonna have passengers, and who's gonna look after the passengers if everyone's having days off? 'Yes, this does sound like a lot, and yes, it sometimes does feel like a lot, but even though we're working seven days a week, that doesn't necessarily mean that you're gonna be working all of the entire day.' Anaya then expressed that rather than having a day off, many departments will get the middle of the day off to relax and explore the cruise ship. Her hours vary, but she never works more than 10 hours a day. But Anaya, who gets free food onboard and is allowed to eat at the crew buffet, isn't bothered by never having a full day off, as she claimed that there are 'so many perks of working on a cruise ship.' In particular, for Anaya, who lives in a 'basic' but free shared accommodation with bunk beds, waking up in a different country every day is something she finds 'literally insane.' I 'live' on a cruise ship with my son & fiancé - the food's amazing, there's childcare & our laundry's done for free too Not only this, but she then continued: 'Although that's not a full day off, you're still getting time to actually enjoy the ports that we're going to and enjoy the countries that we're visiting. 'It might sound kind of crazy that we don't have any days off, especially if you have a really long contract, but you just get used to it after a bit and I suppose it's the price you pay for seeing the world, so, yeah, I really don't mind.' Social media users react Anaya's TikTok clip, which was posted under the username @ has clearly left many open-mouthed, as it has quickly racked up 94,300 views, 3,220 likes and 107 comments. Social media users were stunned by Anaya's full on work life on the ship and many were eager to know more about life on board. It might sound kind of crazy that we don't have any days off, especially if you have a really long contract, but you just get used to it after a bit Anaya Daisy One person said: 'Up to nine months without a day off is crazy!' Another added: 'Love the ship content.' A third commented: 'That sounds so full on, sounds amazing though.' Pros and cons of going on a cruise ship Whether you're considering a long holiday, working remotely or even living on board a cruise ship for a few months or years, here are the pros and cons from a former cruise shipper. Pros Travel the world, learn and experience new cultures Meet new people Don't have to think or worry about room cleaning, or food Cons Internet connection can be painfully slow and expensive Limited luggage allowance so have to wear the same clothes on rotation Having no control of where the ship would go next and the possibility of visiting the same ports Having the same onboard entertainment, on-demand movies, and little choice of TV channels No fresh newspapers or new books unless someone adds them to the library Relatively the same food week after week unless major menu changes occur seasonally. Occasional rough seas, bad weather and viral outbreaks while inboard. Meanwhile, one user asked: 'Genuine question because I want to work on a cruise but how do you see the world if you don't get a day off?' To this, Anaya confirmed: 'Because sometimes we have breaks off in the middle of the day and I work in the excursions department so I spend a lot of time on the trips and seeing the places that way.' At the same time, someone else questioned: 'What happens if you get really sick?' Setting the record straight, Anaya explained: 'You would see the medical centre if you were ill. If they thought you were too sick to work then you'd get 'signed off'. If you've not been signed off by medical then you'd still have to work.' Not only this, but one person wondered: 'How common is cheating?'
Bloomberg
17-07-2025
- Business
- Bloomberg
Hybrid Work No Longer Dominant Policy of Fortune 100 Companies
For the first time since the pandemic upended work life five years ago, more than half the companies in the Fortune 100 have their employees fully back in the office, according to a report from real estate firm Jones Lang LaSalle Inc. Hybrid schedules, which two years ago were offered by 78% of the 100 largest US companies by revenue, are now available at just 41% of them, while the share of Fortune 100 firms requiring full-time office attendance has jumped to 54% from 5%.
The Guardian
14-07-2025
- Lifestyle
- The Guardian
Jess Cartner-Morley on fashion: How to switch to holiday mode? Easy, get a bag big enough for a book and a beach towel
Is there any point putting an out of office on your emails when you go on holiday any more? 'I won't have access to emails.' Yeah, right. Sorry, you aren't fooling anyone: no one goes on holiday without their phone in 2025. Your office know perfectly well that if you don't answer emails, they can still reach you by text or direct message. Even, theoretically, by actually calling you, although obviously that won't happen because that's another thing that no one does in 2025. Tweak your out of office message as much as you like – you might as well stick your fingers in your ears. The Guardian's journalism is independent. We will earn a commission if you buy something through an affiliate link. Learn more. No, the best way to set your brain to holiday mode is by signing out of your Work Bag. Swapping the bag you take on your daily commute for a free-and-easy alternative is more effective as a psychological gear change than logging out of your emails. In day-to-day life, I change handbags as rarely as possible, the potential for leaving keys in an inside pocket and getting locked out being just too real. But when you get home after work and you aren't going back for a week or two, there is something very pleasing about marking that moment by throwing away leaky pens, marvelling at how you managed to accumulate 14 hairbands, and then shaking the bag over the bin and feeling disproportionately thrilled when a pound coin falls out. Stashing the bag – with your office pass inside – is very out of sight and out of mind. Your 'holiday' bag, whether you are home or away, sets the tone for how you spend your break. I switch to a bag that's bigger than my work bag, because if I'm waiting for a bus or eating a sandwich I get to read my book rather than doing emails. But if you carry your laptop around with you on a work day, freedom might feel like a smaller bag, not a bigger one. My dream handbag – well, apart from a Hermès Birkin – is a straw basket, which to me is the essence of summer. When I sling a basket bag over my shoulder, I swear my pulse rate slows. If I'm not working, I don't want the rush-hour-tube energy of shiny hardware and a zip fastening, and the artisanal, pottering-about vibe of a basket is the perfect antidote. On holiday, I take a big one that maxes out the under-the-seat-in-front-of-you space on a plane, which has room for a swimsuit rolled up in a cotton towel, as well as a book. To save rummaging, I pop in a brightly coloured pouch to keep money, keys, phone – something pretty that I can keep on my lap or on the table at lunch, to save being constantly vigilant of valuables in the basket at my feet. For summer days at home, I cannot tell you how much I love my Sézane Farrow Bag, £130. This has room for what you need, without being so big that you can't find anything, and has an elegant but functional leather drawstring to keep it secure if you have to take the tube. This is the third summer I've used it and it is as strong as it was when I bought it, while many lesser bags have unravelled or have straps that look in danger of snapping. What's in the bag matters too. Summer dressing being simpler, accessories are an outfit-maker. Take sunglasses. The right sunglasses have the power to bestow instant cool and glamour upon you in the way that no other accessory (or anything you can wear, actually) can do. I am generally wary of trends in shades – it is hard to beat the classic Ray-Ban Wayfarer style, which looks great on almost everyone, men and women – but I'm making an exception, this year, for the angular cat eye style that is everywhere. & Other Stories have an excellent pair that come in black, tortoiseshell, off-white and various other colours, for a pleasing £27. Plus they seem to create cheekbones on those of us not blessed. Basket on your shoulder, shades on your nose. OOO activated. Nails: Sophie Higginson using Chanel Le Vernis in Faussaire and Chanel La Crème Main. Model: Amaka at Milk Management. Dress, £79, Nobody's Child. Bag, £45, Phase Eight. Towel, £35, Boden. Fluffy bag charm, £39, Dune. Pez bag charm, £175, Anya Hindmarch. Sunglasses, £16, River Island. Shoes, £49.99, Zara
Forbes
09-07-2025
- Forbes
5 ChatGPT Prompts To Delegate Your Work To AI And Hit The Beach
5 ChatGPT prompts to delegate your work to AI and hit the beach You're sitting at your desk right now, grinding through tasks a robot could handle while your dream beach trip stays a screensaver. You have no idea your existing skills could transform hours of daily drudgery into automated processes that run while you surf. Work smarter. Work less. Live more. That's the game. What if you could cut your workday in half and double your impact? The tools exist. The capability is there. Here's your roadmap to working less and enjoying more leisure time, however you want to spend it. Copy, paste and edit the square brackets in ChatGPT, and keep the same chat window open so the context carries through. Transform your workday with ChatGPT: work less, live more Time tracking reveals the truth about your productivity, or lack of it. For one week, document everything. Every email, every meeting, every task that hijacks your attention. Rate each activity from 1-10 for complexity. Those low numbers hold your freedom. Start there. Build from simplicity. Get ruthless clarity about where your time actually goes. Put this prompt into ChatGPT. "Based on what you know about my work from our previous conversations, help me identify which of my daily tasks could be automated or streamlined with AI. First, ask me to list my main work activities from this week. Then, for each task I mention, rate its automation potential on a scale of 1-10 and explain why. Focus on tasks rated 5 or below as immediate opportunities. Create a prioritized list of 3 tasks I should automate first, with specific AI tools or methods for each. Ask for more detail if required." Now you have your priority order, start at the top. But target the tasks that don't need your unique human voice. Keep your LinkedIn comments human for now. Think low stakes. Administrative work crushes souls. Data entry numbs minds. Research compilation eats hours. That's the badger. Eliminate everything that doesn't require your superpowers and ask ChatGPT how to do it. "I want to use AI to handle [describe a specific repetitive task from your work]. Based on what you know about my business and working style, create a step-by-step guide for automating this task while maintaining quality. Include: specific AI tools to use, exact prompts or workflows to implement, potential pitfalls to avoid, and how to maintain a human touch where needed. Make this actionable enough that I could implement it today. Ask for more detail if required." I booked a five week trip to Australia before I properly systemised my business. It became my deadline. Parkinson's Law says work expands to fill the available time. And it's true. So create pressure. Book that beach vacation next month. Force innovation. Make automation urgent. It's amazing how fast you learn when paradise has a departure time. Stop waiting for readiness. Ready happens after you book the flight. "Based on what you know about my work schedule and commitments, help me plan a vacation that forces me to streamline my operations. Ask me about my dream destination and preferred travel dates. Then create a reverse timeline showing exactly what I need to automate or delegate before I leave. Include weekly milestones, specific systems to implement, and contingency plans. Make this timeline aggressive but achievable. Ask for more detail if required." AI handles routine. You handle remarkable. Picture your work after automation takes the mundane. Strategy stays. Relationships remain. Creative breakthroughs happen daily. Everything else disappears. People cling to busywork because motion feels like progress. But activity fools you. Achievement transforms you. Define what deserves your human genius. "Based on our conversation history about my work and the tasks I want to automate, help me redesign my role for maximum impact. First, list all the tasks AI will handle based on our previous discussion, with a timeline for when each could be in place. Then identify what remains that only I can do. Create a new 'job description' for myself that focuses on these high-value activities. Include how my daily schedule would look and what success metrics I should track. Ask for more detail if required." Old patterns die hard and free time gets filled without intention. You've been there before. Don't let it happen again. Design your 5-hour workday. Or 3-hour morning work sprint. Block deep work. Schedule breaks. Guard boundaries fiercely. Notice the creep. The random tasks trying to reclaim territory. Get addicted to elimination and love living by this routine of freedom. "Based on everything we've discussed about automating my work, create my new weekly schedule assuming I only work [specify number] hours per day. Include: specific time blocks for remaining human tasks, buffer time for unexpected issues, designated hours for checking automated systems, and protected time for [personal priorities]. Show me what this looks like Monday through Friday. Then suggest 3 rules I should follow to maintain these boundaries. Ask for more detail if required." Your beach day awaits: use ChatGPT to delegate your workload The 8-hour workday belongs in museums. Your skills can transform half your daily grind into AI-powered systems running without you. Track everything. Identify automation possibilities. Book trips to force deadlines. Redesign your role around genius work. Lock in your new schedule. Freedom starts with one automated task. Then another. Your future self already lives this reality. Time to catch up and hit the beach. Access all my best ChatGPT content prompts.
CNA
09-07-2025
- Business
- CNA
Work It - Should I quit a painful job when the market is bad?
Feeling stuck in your current job but uncertain about what's out there? How should you decide if you should stay put or start looking for something new? Have a work-related question to ask a career counsellor? Email us at cnapodcasts [at]
