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Hey Ladies- it’s BB Blog Thursday! This week I’ll be sharing some always useful interview tips . Let’s get right into it: The first step to a successful interview is always to be knowledgeable about the company/interviewer . The company website, social media, or other press releases are great places to gather information about the work they do and what they stand for. Being able to accurately answer questions they may ask or relate their past work to your experiences is a sure fire way to gain some bonus points! If you’re looking up a specific person, say for a research position, the same rules apply. Familiarize yourself with their background, education history, or other tidbits of information that you could use to relate yourself to them. However, be sure not to force a connection! Along with being knowledgeable about the company, you should have a clear understanding of the position you’re applying for . It may help to pull out specific skills detailed in the listing, and find ways that you meet the requirement. That way, when formulating your responses, you can highlight these points and let them know how you can fulfill their needs. While answering questions, it’s important to remain clear and concise. Your answers should include: what you did, how you did it, and the result produced . To ensure this, practice your answers to routine questions either in your mirror or with a friend. Extra bonus points for relating your answers back to the key skills you pulled out from the job listing! Some examples of routine questions are: Tell me about yourself? Why do you want to work here? What are your greatest strengths/ weaknesses? What is a difficulty you’ve faced, and how did you overcome it? As you know: prepare questions for your interviewer. The best interviews are the ones that feel more like conversations than interrogations. Make them feel like a person and inquire about their experiences with the company, their likes/dislikes, or even what brought them to the company. If this doesn’t feel right in the moment, just show a genuine interest in the position. Remember: you’re interviewing them as much as they’re interviewing you. You can follow up with what your next steps should be or ask how your performance will be measured in the first few months. Speaking to current events, ask how the employer handled the COVID19 pandemic and how their employees were taken care of, or inquire about what they’ve done to actively increase and promote diversity in the workplace. If you’re feeling bold, or want to check in on your performance, feel free to ask your interviewer if there is anything from your background that would keep them from moving forward with you or how your experience compares to other candidates for the position. It’s possible some may decline to answer, but this is actually a really great growth opportunity. Lastly, send a thank you note! Your note should be sent by email within a few hours of your interview, or the following morning at the latest. Be memorable and personalize the note directly to your interview experience. Thank the person for their time, and express your eagerness to hear from them soon. Some other practices to ensure a smooth interview day are to: - Prepare in advance to be early, you don’t need any additional stress on your big day! - Bring an extra copy of your resume, just in case. - Have your game face on as soon as you step into the building, not just the interviewers office- you never know who’s watching! - If applicable, be prepared to talk salary. Use Indeed’s salary calculator if you’re not sure what the salary for your field should be. - Confidence is key! Show them you belong there! - Relax and be yourself! Your qualifications speak for themselves, but further, who you are is perfect- you shouldn’t need to change for a job, and if you do, maybe rethink if this is the correct position for you. These are all practices that I follow, and, if I do say so myself, I consider myself pretty great at interviews. Follow these pointers, and your interviewer will love you! Talk next week! 💋 Jenn

Dealing with an intense period is something that all of us women go through.  Some women may suffer from period related symptoms more frequently than others.  This may be because of genetics or it could just be “bad luck.”  There are many different circumstances in which women experience painful periods.  While we may not know all of the reasons why we encounter a case of horrible PMS, we can certainly pinpoint ways to relieve the pain and discomfort that comes along with your monthly menstrual cycle. Let’s talk about cramps. A lot of women deal with the pain and discomfort of cramps when on their menstrual cycle.  The first step to initiating a plan to getting rid of the pain is to know why it is occurring in the first place.  During our periods, our uterus is contracting and shedding.  The shedding of our uterus lining is what results in our flow and the contractions are the culprit behind the cramps.  If you are anything like us, you have researched the question “how to relieve period cramps?” at least a thousand times.  After severe research, we have discovered a few tips and tricks that have proven to be the most effective.   - Taking over the counter pain medication such as Pamprin (highly recommended period relief medication) or Tylenol. - Applying a heating pad to your cramps.  We suggest using a heating pad that doubles as a stuffed animal, for companionship during your time constrained to your bed. - Consuming ginger.  This is a wonderful herbal option for easing the pain of your menstrual cramps.  We would recommend ginger tea or ginger chews.  Stay away from ginger ale when on your period; carbonated beverages can make you feel worse before you feel better. - Turmeric.  Consuming turmeric not only helps ease your cramps, but if you take turmeric pills consistently, it will help you to regulate your cycle.  Many things interfere with the regularity of our menstrual cycles, but stress is the number one cause of late or missed periods.  Taking a turmeric pill once a day will help keep you on track, while also keeping the cramps at bay and enhancing your immune system. When speaking of cramps, y’all may not know that Black women are 2-3 times more likely to develop uterine fibroids than women of other races, which can intensify period pains. So, for my ladies with the unbearable cycles that feels like nothing works, I recommend speaking with your doctor about getting tested. And of course, advocate for yourself in these spaces!! Though, cramps may not be the only uncomfortable symptom experienced when on your period.  You may also experience nausea, fatigue, irritability, headache, mood swings, and depression.  While there is no way to fully get rid of all of these symptoms at once, you can always prepare for your cycle by taking care of yourself in the days to come.  If you know you are scheduled to have your period in 4 days and you have a history of cramping and nausea, treat yourself to a bath and take light pain medication ahead of time so that way when your friend ‘Flow’ comes around, you will be prepared.  Comment down below your strategies for dealing with painful periods!  We’d love to exchange tips and tricks. Written by the B&B Journalism Team

Seasonal depression is a mood disorder that many of us struggle with on an annual basis. It typically lasts for about four to five months (during the cold seasons) and resolves itself once the weather becomes warmer. If you’ve been in a weird “funk” lately and you can’t seem to figure out why, we may have some answers for you. It is possible that you are dealing with seasonal depression; it is real, and you are not alone. Spring has sprung, and studies have shown that individuals who suffer from seasonal affective disorder, also referred to as “SAD”, start to notice their symptoms lessening and disappearing during this time of year. Many people experience seasonal depression and begin to feel very worried that they are undergoing an unbearable shift in their mental health. Being hit suddenly with feelings of intense sadness, loneliness, fatigue, social anxiety, and insomnia to name a few, can be a very scary new reality to come to terms with. Emotions are often thought of on two ends of a spectrum: good and bad. The emotions and feelings that our brains classify as “bad” or “negative” automatically place us in a state of discomfort. It is one thing to experience these uncomfortable feelings all at once, and it is another to experience them for months on end. Every person is different, but in many cases, these intense feelings that we categorize as “bad” begin shortly after the holiday seasons of Thanksgiving and Christmas, and they begin to disappear right around the time of Easter Sunday. I know what you’re thinking. Why am I affected by SAD during the winter months? Well, typically during the wintertime, we spend less time outdoors, resulting in less sunlight exposure and vitamin D. While too much sunlight without the proper amount of protection can lead to skin issues, the right amount works wonders for your mind and your body. Exposure to sunlight allows your body to produce a hormone called serotonin. Think of this hormone as the “happy” hormone. It’s responsible for boosting your mood and making you more cool, calm, and collected. Because we spend minimal time outside during the wintertime, our body doesn’t produce as much serotonin as we’d like, leading to symptoms of seasonal depression. Now that spring has sprung and you are beginning to build a connection with the sun again, it is very likely that your symptoms related to seasonal depression will begin to diminish. However, that does not mean that there are not things you can do to keep your mental health in good standing. Here are a few tips that are highly recommended to keep your mental health in check. Go for daily walks. This may not be as impactful as sitting on the beach and soaking up some sun during the winter, but it can definitely help you to clear your mind and provide a space for you to understand your feelings. Consider talk therapy. Speaking with a licensed therapist is a great way to deal with feelings of depression, anxiety, and many other mental health rates challenges. While the costs of weekly therapy may become difficult to manage, there are still amazing resources online to find access to mental health counselors, support groups, etc. Pick up a new hobby, like exercising. Exercise is known to improve the status of mental health. This is recommended often, and for a good reason; it works! During exercise, your body releases a hormone called endorphins, which projects feelings of positivity into your body. That alone is a great reason to get some movement into your day. Try meditation. There are many free meditation apps available online. My favorite one is the Calm app. You can also find meditations online. This will help you balance yourself, center your body, and have more control over the negative thoughts and feelings that come along with seasonal depression. Prayer. Similar to meditation, prayer can also help to heal your feelings of discomfort. In this day and age, there are many resources available online where you can find access to virtual church services, prayer calls, etc. If you are religious in any way, you should certainly give this a try. Please know that you are not alone if you experience seasonal depression. There is a light at the end of the tunnel, and we are all coming out of it together. If you ever need someone to talk to, feel free to interact with us here at Beauty and Brains, or we can put you in contact with certified mental health professionals. You are not alone, and we hope that the change in weather leads to a positive impact on the status of your mental health. Happy Spring! Ariana