South West Business Networking Portal . .

1. How to say no and thrive. Knowing how to say no at work is an essential skill. Knowing how to do it when job insecurity is rife is even more vital. There are three reasons why saying yes to all requests is a bad idea. READ MORE  

2. Thousands may be defying quarantine as Covid cases surge. Police across the country are dealing with thousands of alleged violations of quarantine rules involving residents who may not be self-isolating after trips abroad, reports The Guardian. The news comes as scientists say that the UK risks the return of national lockdown after another surge in the number of positive cases was recorded on Friday. The government’s daily figures for Sunday showed 2,988 new cases – the highest since 22 May and a rise of 1,1175 on Saturday. BBC

3. Britain is ‘not scared’ to walk away from Brexit talks. Britain’s chief Brexit negotiator insists the government is not “scared” of walking away from talks without a trade deal. David Frost said the UK would leave the transition arrangement “come what may” in December. Meanwhile, the EU negotiator Michel Barnier has said he is “worried and disappointed” about a lack of concessions from London. Mail on Sunday

4. An office model that suits everyone? Working from home has become much more popular since the pandemic broke, but many workers are keen to return to the office — at least, occasionally. This has led companies such as Deloitte and KPMG to consider the hub-and-spoke model, whereby a central main office (the hub) can be augmented by smaller offices or coworking spaces close to home (the spokes). Proponents of the model say it allows companies to drastically reduce the amount of space they need, while providing convenience and flexibility for employees. The Guardian

5. Positive thinking has limits. Dreaming of wonderful outcomes - landing a coveted promotion, reaching a long sought professional milestone - can feel great. But those good feelings can easily lull us into not doing the tough work to achieve our goals. Instead, we are better off using a technique called mental contrasting, where we image our great outcomes, step back and reflect on the obstacles in our way and then plan for ways to overcome those impediments. Our fantasies can help inspire and motivate us, but we often need a dose of reality to get moving. This concept during our free webinar: Ideas for Effective Management and Leadership. READ MORE

6. Putting self-doubt in its place. For those who stop themselves before speaking up at meetings or who think twice before sharing a new idea with a manager, take note: You are far from alone. Few of us are strangers to self-doubt, especially at work. Here’s a tip. Try to catch yourself when you're remaining silent at meetings and jump into the conversation even if you aren't completely sure what you're adding is accurate. Imperfect contributions can help lead a group to new ideas. Another tip? Pay close attention to the hedging phrases you use in conversation: Leading with "I may be wrong, but..." does no one any favours. Editor

7. Record number of young people are on benefits. An unprecedented number of young people are claiming benefits because of the coronavirus pandemic, government data shows. The number of under-25s on Universal Credit nearly doubled during lockdown, rising by 250,000 to 538,000. Last week, the government launched a £2bn employment scheme for school leavers in a national effort to restore the UK’s economy. BBC

8. Roads data suggests back-to-work push is failing. The government’s push to get people back to work appeared to be failing as a survey by the AA found that 40 per cent of people who normally drove to work were working from home all or part of the time. This rose to 54 per cent among senior or middle managers and professionals. The government said it is “keen to get people back in the office”. The Times

9. UK slides down the league table of global broadband speeds. British broadband speeds are among the slowest in Europe, plummeting 13 places in an annual study ranking the average broadband speeds of 221 countries. The UK was in 47th place, with a typical household taking more than twice as long to download a movie than the western European average. Among the countries leapfrogging the UK were Malta, Puerto Rico and Romania. Metro

10. The bottom line. The value of the “Union dividend” per person in Scotland for the year to 5 April is £1,941, up from £1,805 for the previous 12 months. Government Expenditure and Revenue Scotland figures showed £15.1bn more was spent in Scotland than raised there in taxes last year. The Telegraph