Landing a new office job doesn't just mean having to learn the responsibilities associated with your position, it also requires mastering a new language made up three-letter words and abbreviations. Some are simply spoken and others regularly appear in e-mail correspondence. Regardless, you can prove yourself fluent in corporate lingo (or at least appear to be) by memorizing these commonly used business acronyms:

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EOD: End of Day
Example: Please have that report to me by EOD. (Related term: COB or Close of Business)

ROI: Return on Investment
Example: Our new initiative, which cost no money and only a few hours of work, has increased profits by 10 percent. Talk about huge ROI!

RFP: Request for Proposal
Example: If we want to be considered for the business, we must respond to our client's RFP before their deadline.

PO: Purchase Order
Example: Please fill out this PO and fax it to the vendor.

OOO: Out of the Office
Example: I will be OOO

5 Easy Ways to Keep Your Brain SharpBy WomansDay.com Staff


Research shows there's lots you can do to avoid those "senior moments." Some techniques worth trying:

1. Chill Out
The brain remembers better when it's relaxed, say researchers at the California Institute of Technology. Take a few minutes each day to breathe deeply or meditate.

2. Focus on the Future
People who regularly made plans and looked forward to upcoming events had a 50 percent reduced risk of Alzheimer's, according to a recent study. Don't worry if your calendar isn't overflowing with life-changing events: Setting a goal to have a weekly coffee date with a friend (and keeping it) will do.

3. Go for a Walk
Mildly elevated glucose levels (even if you don't have diabetes) can harm the area of the brain that helps you form memories, say Columbia University researchers. Experts agree that physical activity can help get blood glucose down to normal.

4. Snack on Berries
Blueberries have compounds called anthocyanins that help

By Kimberly Fusaro

There are some errands (say, a visit to the DMV) that everyone dreads-and rightfully so. As anyone who's spent a lunch hour at the post office knows, it's easy to lose an afternoon trying to cross the simplest things off your to-do list. And even enjoyable tasks, like a trip to the movie theater or hair salon, often take two or three times the amount of energy they should. But you don't have to waste countless hours sitting in a waiting room or standing in line. Follow our expert tips for streamlining your days-and you might even find you have time to spare.

Doctor's Office

Request the first appointment of the morning. Since phone calls and last-minute visits will throw off a doctor's day from the get-go, you should try to see her before she's fallen too far behind. Bear in mind that you may still spend some time in the waiting room, though, and plan ahead: Pack thank-you cards that you've fallen behind on, suggests lifestyle expert Christine Louise

The accelerated pace of office life has made us lose touch with common courtesies once taken for granted, like saying, ''Good morning.''

By Sara Eckel

Cecille Hansen works with a great guy who has an extremely irritating habit. Whenever someone speaks to the account executive, he makes a "hurry up" motion with his hand, winding his wrist as if to say, "Hurry up. Get to the point, already."

"He didn't even know he did it until someone brought it to his attention," says Hansen, a records manager for an insurance broker in Bellevue, Wash. "He's the nicest guy. He just goes at a higher speed than most of us."

Hansen's generous view of her colleague's rude behavior is due, in part, to her awareness of her own sins: She often fails to look at people when speaking with them, and is sometimes mortified to realize she has carried on an entire conversation with co-workers without even glancing up from her computer screen.

"I just get focused on what I'm doing and an 'interruption'--i.e., a

When the afternoon doldrums set-in, we go in search of that time-honored combo: sugar and caffeine. And for about 15 minutes, it works wonders: We're productive, energetic, and chatty (maybe a little too chatty). Of course, that's followed by the inevitable crash. In search of a better way, we asked nutritionist Lauren Slayton, founder of Foodtrainers, a nutrition counseling service in New York City, for advice on how to eat for more energy throughout the day.

Think small. "All I want after a big meal is a siesta," says Slayton. "Instead of eating a 500-calorie lunch, try small meals of 200 or 300 calories instead. This will stoke your metabolism and keep your blood sugar levels from dipping." She tells clients to heat half their lunch at 12:30 and the other half at 4. "People brag that they don't snack, but snacking is the best way to eat," she adds.

Pump iron. "Whenever someone says she is low in energy, I immediately assume that her diet is also low in iron and protein," says

More Americans say that they would rather work for a man. Why?

By Willow Duttge

"You know, you're not a man," Akio Morita, Sony's cofounder and former chairman of the board said to one of the firm's senior female executives over dinner one night.

"Nope, that's absolutely true," the woman, a single mother divorced with three children, replied.

"But you're not a woman."



"Uh, OK. What am I?"



"You're in a third category."



Right, she's a woman boss.

It was some two decades ago that Barbara Annis, now of Barbara Annis & Accociates, a firm that advises blue-chip companies on gender diversity and inclusiveness, had that conversation with the late "god of Sony." But not a lot has changed in terms of how we view female leaders.

The real surprise came when the ForbesWoman Facebook community was canvassed: "Would you rather work for a man or a woman?" The majority replied, "A man any day of the week," to use the words of Stephanie Rovengo.

Are men actually better bosses? Are women

What are the odds you took a shower today?

The majority of American adults ( 1 in 1.59 , or 63%) shower at least once a day. And that doesn't count baths.

People love their showers. Fifty percent of mothers admit they use the shower as an escape. And a full 25% of the population admits to occasionally breaking into song. Some people like to daydream, but there are also the Type A's who insist on being productive even under the suds. Forty-eight percent of men and 64% of women compile their to-do lists while showering.

People in the Northeast out-shower those in other parts of the country. Men are more likely ( 1 in 1.43 , or 70%) than women ( 1 in 1.75 or 57%) to take a daily shower, but women stay in a tad longer. The average shower for a man lasts 12 minutes; add two more minutes for a woman (it's the hair!).

Like all human endeavors, showers have been studied and analyzed for their positive and negative qualities, and all is not perfect in the world of tiles and