A year ago I asked my boss if I could work from home one day a week. He said no. Now my job has changed, and I don’t interact with the team as much. Is it too soon to ask again?

As a rule of thumb, I would say it never hurts to ask. If employees were afraid to make requests, there’d be no such thing as pay raises, lunch breaks, vacation time or maternity leave. If you believe that you can handle your workload from home one day a week, and that it will greatly improve your life, bring it up again! I’ve never heard of anyone being fired (legally) for simply asking to modify his or her schedule. But also look around: Is there anyone else in the office who works from home on a regular basis? If the answer is no, maybe it’s worth looking for an employer with a little more flexibility.

My heart still skips a beat anytime my daughter’s school calls saying she’s sick or in trouble—and it always happens when I’m in a meeting. How can I handle this better? I feel so guilty that I’m not there when she needs me.

Your heart will always skip a beat when there’s an issue with your child at school—there’s no getting around that. But you shouldn’t also feel a pang of guilt. First of all, the school should not be calling you that often for an emergency—maybe once a year? School personnel should be able to handle a scraped knee, a slightly queasy tummy or an altercation with a classmate.

However, if you make it a habit of sending her to school when she’s sick, you might want to set up a better contingency plan for days she wakes up with a fever or a bad cold. A conversation with her teacher or the office staff might help clarify when you need to be contacted—and when an ice pack and a hug will do the trick.