McJobNews

Five Ways to Sabotage Your Rise to Leadership

2011-02-13T15:38:00.000-08:00

By Barbara LaBier

Leaders in public, private, and nonprofit sectors fail to become exceptional leaders because they overemphasize personal goals at the expense of others according to researchers.

Barriers to success include:

Failure to Commit

As a manger you may be protecting yourself instead of supporting members of the team and making customers happy. Emerging leaders are advised to minimize scanning the horizon for predators and pay attention to others or an entire team. At this point in your career, capture the skills and resources that you’re missing to accomplish your goals.

Protection of Your Public Image

Many ambitious people choose between image and impact. Sometimes they are so busy creating a persona of the leader they would like to be that they fail to act as one. The best strategy is to help others achieve their goals and forget about appearing as a perfect leader in every situation.

Turning Competitors into Enemies

Turning negative relationships into toxic behavior carries significant leadership costs.

Distorting responses from other people you don’t like limits your view of reality and prevents valuable chances to collaborate. The better alternative is to listen to the other side of the story and turn revaluation into collaboration.

Going It Alone

People opt-out of leadership roles because the road is unsafe. Learning how to cope with your own fears is necessary and can be mitigated by relying on the advice of your “team” comprised of family, friends or mentors that help provide perspective, grounding and faith. Find others who believe in your desire and ability to lead and cherish them.

Waiting for Permission

While patience is the main ingredient in discipline and hope, it can also be a curse for emerging leaders. Potential can be undermined because we can be persuaded to continue to wait for someone to recognize our achievements and give us more authority. Generally influence leads to power so we are advised not to wait for the powers that be to anoint us but to take the chance to initiate change.

www.resumecrafters.com

The information for this article was excerpted from Harvard Business Review January-February 2011

Five Tips to Perfect Your Skill as a Mentor

2011-02-08T11:48:00.000-08:00

http://www.mcjobnewsblog.blogspot.com/

By Barbara LaBier

Many people enjoy mentoring others and feel it is their solemn duty to give back by bringing light and understanding into other people’s lives. Good mentoring is satisfying and challenges both parties by sharing ideas, experiences, feelings and knowledge as well as widening an understanding of others and expanding their point of view.

Here is how to share your personal and industry knowledge with others to help them grow in their career:

Share Your Knowledge

You can’t be a great mentor unless you have advice to give that is supported by illustrations. While you may have a wealth of experience sometimes you need a “push” to come up with relevant examples. Read books on different topics that target the goals, issues, and aspirations you’re trying to communicate. Reading self-help or business oriented books will provide ideas, insight, solutions or provocative thoughts to share. Read books or magazines or search the internet for articles to buttress your knowledge on a topic that can help capture a point when you’re providing insights to others. Soon enough, you’ll have a body of knowledge with examples at your finger tips that you can share.

Help People in Transition

To cross pollinate knowledge and expand your point of view look for people to mentor who are in transition. Perhaps, they want to make a lateral move or career change within the company or want to hone their leadership skills. They should be lacking in some area of knowledge in which you have expertise. If you are in a work situation, mentor someone outside your office or not under your direct supervision. Help guide new talent, share valuable life lessons and develop a meaningful relationship with a colleague by being a mentor

Select an End Date for Mentoring

Set a graduation date for your mentoring. Choose a time when you’ve both shared your point of view and developed goals and solutions to what your mentee wants to achieve.

Turn the Student into the Teacher

Learn what your mentee finds most valuable and is most enthusiastic about. At this point, he or she can share books or articles on a topic with you. In this way, they are able to add value to their knowledge bank and demonstrate the confidence to express their ideas to you while also enhancing your knowledge in a new area.

Mentor Several People Thorough Social Media and the Web

While you can mentor one person at a time, you can also enhance the knowledge of several people who would like to be mentored through writing and posting content on blogs or websites, hub pages, social media sites or videos on specific issues. At this point, many interested people may join in the conversation on-line resulting in an increase of new information and points of view.

Link: http://www.resumecrafters.com/

Why Feeling Bad for Some Leaders is Actually Good

2011-02-07T19:29:00.000-08:00

Feeling Guilty is Good for Leaders
http://www.resumecrafters.com/

By Barbara LaBier

Guilt-ridden people make great leaders according to new study from data gathered through Stanford’s Graduate School of Business. A link between performance and guilt showed that people who were guiltier than others received higher performance rating from their bosses and were perceived as stronger leaders by peers.

Director of the Center of Leadership Development Francis J. Flynn, gave 150 workers in the finance department of a Fortune 500 firm a psychological test which measured guilt and compared the results with their performance reviews.

One surprising finding was that these bosses with high levels of guilt felt guilty when they accepted layoffs and carried them out to be good soldiers and believed in the organization.

Guilt can be good the author concludes because guilty and more neurotic people are more altruistic and willing to help others. That is not to say, however, that organizations should create guilt in employees to improve performance. More research is needed to access the effects of guilt on a leader and the stress it brings into their life.

Excerpted from the Harvard Business Review January-February 2011

Job Hiring Improves for Some

2011-01-28T09:39:00.000-08:00

Job Market Improves for Some by Barbara LaBier
http://www.resumecrafters.com/

Improvement in employment is occurring for groups of college and skilled workers specifically --- IT, technical workers, lawyers, finance and accountants, according to Jonas Prising of Jobs America.
“There are 50 million unemployed and 3 million job openings. While over all employment is 9.4 %, there is a bifurcation. College and skilled worker unemployment is 5% while youth and non-skilled is 18%. The level of skills and devotion to life long learning is vital,” added Prising in a CNBC interview.

Even recent graduates with superior skills are having problems getting their foot in the door,

" I talk with my friends and most of them are having a difficult time getting hired. Everyone has a great resume and it seems as though many have had an internship on the Hill and worked for a Congressman, " according to Eric White, a recent graduate of George Washington University with experience working at a law firm and the Hill, with a background in Japanese.
Right now, employers are cautious about who they hire, making it tough for the average person. They are waiting for job seekers with the right skill set. Jobs in sales for example, are filled internally while other jobs which require credentials and education are recruited externally.
Employers complain that often they can’t find skilled labor. And consequently, they are willing to wait until this person appears.
You can enhance your chances of being found by writing bogs and creating your own brand. Of course, writing information or creating negative videos can hurt you.

Jump-start Your Career in 2011

2011-01-14T08:39:00.000-08:00

Take charge of your future and jump-start your career in 2011 with the right training.

By Yahoo! Education Staff

Was 2010 a rough year for you - professionally?

Good news: a new year is upon us and now is the perfect time to start training for a new career.
Keep reading to learn about eight exciting jobs you can jump-start in 2011.

Career #1 - Medical Assistant
If you want to start training for a rewarding career as a medical assistant you have two quick options. You can earn an associate's degree in medical assisting in two years, or a certificate or diploma in medical assisting in just one year.

[Search for Medical Assisting programs now]

About the job: As a medical assistant, your days will likely be spent working closely with patients, preparing them for exams, and explaining treatment procedures. You might also handle a variety of administrative and clinical tasks, like taking care of bookkeeping or recording vital signs.

Average salary: Medical assistants have an average annual salary of $28,300. The top 10 percent of medical assistants average at more than $39,570 per year.
[Jump-start your career. Find Medical Assisting training programs now.]

Career #2 - Dental Assistant

Start your dental assistant training now and you might soon be stepping into one of the fastest growing occupations in the country, according to the Department of Labor. Consider a one-year dental assisting certificate/diploma program or an associate's degree in dental assisting, which should take about two years to complete.

[Search for Dental Assisting training programs]
About the job: As a dental assistant, you'll interact with patients, keep the office clean and sterilized, and work alongside a dentist during procedures. Duties vary: You might make casts of teeth for temporary crowns, help with fillings, or keep patients comfortable during their time in the office.

Average salary: The average annual salary of dental assistants is $32,380, though top earners can make more than $46,150. More than half of dental assistants receive health benefits, according to a 2008 survey by the Dental Assisting National Board. In a time when health care costs are soaring, that's a huge benefit.

[Jump-start your Dental Assistant career. Find training programs now.]

Career #3 - Graphic Designer

Are you a creative person looking for the right career? If so, make 2011 the year you start training for your graphic design career. Most entry-level positions will require a bachelor's degree, but you can get started by earning your associate's degree in graphic design. This should qualify you to become an assistant to a graphic designer where you can gain hands-on experience in a graphic design firm.
[Search for Graphic Design schools near you]
About the job: Being a graphic designer is all about getting your message across in print and electronic media. As a graphic designer, you might work on layouts for magazines and web sites, make promotional materials for businesses, or even create the title sequences for movies or TV shows.
Average salary: Salaries will vary by job and experience. On average, graphic designers make $42,400 per year. According to the American Institute of Graphic Arts, entry-level designers earn an average of $35,000 while senior designers earn an average of $60,000.
[Start training for your Graphic Design career. Find schools now!]

Career #4 - Paralegal

If you want to work in law, but don't have the time or money to go to law school, you can train for a paralegal career in as little as one to two years. Consider earning either a two-year associate's degree or - if you already have a bachelor's degree - a paralegal certificate. Certificate programs can sometimes be completed in about a year.
[Search for Paralegal schools now]

About the job: As a paralegal you'll assist lawyers with their cases and help them prepare for hearings, closings, and trials. You might even prepare legal arguments and motions that need to be filed with the court. This is a savvy choice for job-seekers: According to the Department of Labor, paralegal jobs will grow by 28 percent between 2008 and 2018.
Average salary: Paralegal salaries vary depending on education, experience, location, and other factors. The average annual salary for paralegals is $46,120, with the top 10 percent averaging at more than $73,450.
[Prepare for this in-demand career. Search for Paralegal schools near you now!]
Career #5 - PR Specialist
If you want to start training to become a PR specialist, look into earning your bachelor's degree in PR/marketing/communications. Public relations is another field with much higher than average growth anticipated - 24 percent from 2008 to 2018 according to the Department of labor.

[Jump-start your career in Public Relations...Find the right school now!]

About the job: As a PR specialist, you may focus on generating buzz for your employer or motivating the public. If you're well versed with social media tools, this might be a great job for you, as more public relations firms are taking advantage of new technologies.
Average salary: Public relations specialists have an average annual salary of $51,280. The top 10 percent averaged at more than $97,910 in 2008.
[Search for Public Relations degree programs now]

Career #6 - Bookkeeping Clerk

If you're looking to switch to a job with long-term stability, bookkeeping might be just the ticket. According to the Department of Labor, over 212,000 new bookkeeping jobs are expected to be added during the next decade. An associate's degree in business or accounting is required for some positions.
[Search for Accounting and Business schools now]
About the job: As a bookkeeper, you may spend your days updating and maintaining all kinds of financial records. You might even handle payroll and keep track of overdue accounts.
Average salary: The average annual salary of bookkeepers is $32,510, while the top 10 percent earn more than $49,260.
[Search for Accounting associate's degree programs now]

Career #7 - Medical Biller and Coder
Health care jobs are on the rise industry wide, and the Department of Labor anticipates employment of health information technicians - like billers and coders - to grow by 20 percent through 2018. You can start training for this career in as little as one year by earning a diploma or certificate. Another option is to earn an associate's degree, which takes about two years to complete.

[Search for Medical Billing and Coding training programs]
About the job: As a medical biller and coder you'll be a crucial part of the health care industry, helping doctor's offices manage patient billing by assigning the correct codes to patients' medical tests. While you'll likely be working in a hospital or a doctor's office, you might not interact with patients directly.
Average salary: According to PayScale.com, medical billers earn $24,986-$35,023 per year while medical coders earn $25,072-$32,483. The Department of Labor reports the average annual salary of health information technicians as $30,610.
[Jump-start your Medical Billing and Coding career!]

Career #8 - Teacher

If you feel the calling to become a teacher, now is a great time to start training. To get started, you'll need at least a bachelor's degree in education. If you want to be a secondary school teacher, major in the subject you plan to teach while you take a program of study in teacher preparation. If you want to advance your career in the classroom, earn a master's degree in education.
[Search for Education and Teaching schools now]

About the job: As a teacher, you'll play an important role in the lives of children by planning lessons, grading tests, and working with kids in a classroom setting. You may use games, technology, or other hands-on techniques to help develop critical thinking skills.
Average salary: The average annual salary of kindergarten, elementary, middle, and secondary school teachers ranges from $47,100 to $51,180. According to the American Federation of Teachers, beginning teachers with a bachelor's degree earn an average of $33,227.
[Search for Teaching degree programs now]
Unless otherwise noted, all salary information is provided by the U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2008.

Opportunity in Professional Career Program

2011-01-09T21:20:00.000-08:00

by Barbara LaBier

Although Victor made a six figure income on Wall Street in the past as an analyst, the reality of the expiration of unemployment benefits made him ready to compromise and apply for a lower level job government job. He left New York and moved in with his mother in Baltimore. Instead of targeting a GS-14 position, he applied for jobs as the GS-11 level to hopefully get his foot in the door. He needed help with his resume and guidance about the Washington job scene.

Another client Robert, in his mid thirties decided he was willing to trade large bonuses as a contractor that he’d received in the banking industry for stability and security at Homeland Security. Robert had worked as a loan officer for 7 years and was recently laid off. Applying for a government job was not his first choice but gradually after confronting the lack of jobs in this economy, security and working for the government became more important.

Luckily, he discovered e a small number of Contract Specialist positions available in selected component regional offices. However, no regional field offices were accepting applications. It was not any government job that he was seeking but one as a Contract Specialist with a starting salary of $42,209. If accepted into the Acquisition Professional Career program (APCP), he would become a full-time employee at a GS-7 level. He would then be appointed to three one-year rotational assignments in DC. After completing the program, his salary and responsibilities would rocket up a GS-13, $89,033-$115,742 per year. He would have the chance to become a sought-after expert in the field of Acquisition and a potential leader in the government.

The Professional Career Program (APCP) gives participants the opportunity to work in one of six career fields within in the Department of Acquisition. During a three year period, there is training available as a Contract Specialist Program Manager, Systems Engineer, Industrial Engineer, Logistician or Information Technology Specialist. Robert decided to apply for a job as a Contract Specialist which had duties similar to a system or requirement analyst.. I tailored his resume translating his excellent financial and real estate experience into skills that he could use to apply for many jobs along with a cover letter that highlighted his skills as s Contract Specialist. The application for this job requires a corporate style resume or US Jobs completed form that could be filled out on line. The candidates who are part of this program receive certifications within their career field that are recognized across the Federal government, as well as leadership and management training. Here are the nine agencies that have the same type of program

• Federal Emergency Management Agency • Transportation Security Administration
• U.S. Coast Guard • U.S Custom and Boarder Protection
• Immigration and Customs Enforcement
• U.S. Secret Service
• Federal Law Enforcement Training Center • Office of Procurement Operations
• Office of Selective Acquisitions
http://www.resumecrafters.com/

Job Interviewing Tips

2011-01-08T17:53:00.000-08:00

100 Potential Interview Questions excerpted from Monster.com

While there are as many different possible interview questions as there are interviewers, it always helps to be ready for anything. So here are a list of 100 potential interview questions.

Will you face them all? No interviewer would be that cruel. Will you face a few? Probably. Will you be well-served by being ready even if you’re not asked these exact questions? Absolutely.

1. Tell me about yourself.

2. What are your strengths?

3. What are your weaknesses?

4. Who was your favorite manager and why?

5. What kind of personality do you work best with and why?

6. Why do you want this job?

7. Where would you like to be in your career five years from now?

8. Tell me about your proudest achievement.

9. If you were at a business lunch and you ordered a rare steak and they brought it to you well done, what would you do?

10. If I were to give you this salary you requested but let you write your job description for the next year, what would it say?

11. Why is there fuzz on a tennis ball?

12. How would you go about establishing your credibility quickly with the team?

13. There’s no right or wrong answer, but if you could be anywhere in the world right now, where would you be?

14. How would you feel about working for someone who knows less than you?

15. Was there a person in your career who really made a difference?

16. What’s your ideal company?

17. What attracted you to this company?

18. What are you most proud of?

19. What are you looking for in terms of career development?

20. What do you look for in terms of culture — structured or entrepreneurial?

21. What do you like to do?

22. Give examples of ideas you’ve had or implemented.

23. What are your lifelong dreams?

24. What do you ultimately want to become?

25. How would you describe your work style?

26. What kind of car do you drive?

27. Tell me about a time where you had to deal with conflict on the job.

28. What’s the last book you read?

29. What magazines do you subscribe to?

30. What would be your ideal working situation?

31. Why should we hire you?

32. What did you like least about your last job?

33. What do you think of your previous boss?

34. How do you think I rate as an interviewer?

35. Do you have any questions for me?

36. When were you most satisfied in your job?

37. What can you do for us that other candidates can’t?

38. What are three positive things your last boss would say about you?

39. What negative thing would your last boss say about you?

40. If you were an animal, which one would you want to be?

41. What salary are you seeking?

42. What’s your salary history?

43. Do you have plans to have children in the near future?

44. What were the responsibilities of your last position?

45. What do you know about this industry?

46. What do you know about our company?

47. How long will it take for you to make a significant contribution?

48. Are you willing to relocate?

49. What was the last project you headed up, and what was its outcome?

50. What kind of goals would you have in mind if you got this job?

51. Give me an example of a time that you felt you went above and beyond the call of duty at work.

52. What would you do if you won the lottery?

53. Can you describe a time when your work was criticized?

54. Have you ever been on a team where someone was not pulling their own weight? How did you handle it?

55. What is your personal mission statement?

56. Tell me about a time when you had to give someone difficult feedback. How did you handle it?

57. What is your greatest failure, and what did you learn from it?

58. What irritates you about other people, and how do you deal with it?

59. What is your greatest fear?

60. Who has impacted you most in your career, and how?

61. What do you see yourself doing within the first 30 days of this job?

62. What’s the most important thing you’ve learned in school?

63. What three character traits would your friends use to describe you?

64. What will you miss about your present/last job?

65. If you were interviewing someone for this position, what traits would you look for?

66. List five words that describe your character.

67. What is your greatest achievement outside of work?

68. Sell me this pencil.

69. If I were your supervisor and asked you to do something that you disagreed with, what would you do?

70. Do you think a leader should be feared or liked?

71. What’s the most difficult decision you’ve made in the last two years?

72. What do you like to do for fun?

73. Why are you leaving your present job?

74. What do you do in your spare time?

75. How do you feel about taking no for an answer?

76. What was the most difficult period in your life, and how did you deal with it?

77. What is your favorite memory from childhood?

78. Give me an example of a time you did something wrong. How did you handle it?

79. Tell me one thing about yourself you wouldn’t want me to know.

80. Tell me the difference between good and exceptional.

81. Why did your choose your major?

82. What are the qualities of a good leader? A bad leader?

83. What is your biggest regret, and why?

84. What are three positive character traits you don’t have?

85. What irritates you about other people, and how do you deal with it?

86. If you found out your company was doing something against the law, like fraud, what would you do?

87. How many times do a clock’s hands overlap in a day?

88. How would you weigh a plane without scales?

89. What assignment was too difficult for you, and how did you resolve the issue?

90. If I were to ask your last supervisor to provide you additional training or exposure, what would she suggest?

91. If you could choose one superhero power, what would it be and why?

92. What’s the best movie you’ve seen in the last year?

93. Describe how you would handle a situation if you were required to finish multiple tasks by the end of the day, and there was no conceivable way that you could finish them.

94. What techniques and tools do you use to keep yourself organized?

95. If you could get rid of any one of the US states, which one would you get rid of, and why?

96. With your eyes closed, tell me step-by-step how to tie my shoes.

97. if you had to choose one, would you consider yourself a big picture person or a detail oriented person?

98. If selected for this position, can you describe your strategy for the first 90 dayss

99. Who are your heroes?

100.Tell me 10 ways to use a pencil other than writing.

Interview Questions

What’s Wrong with My Resume?

2011-01-01T14:59:00.000-08:00

By Barbara LaBier

Making a good first impression with your resume is the first door to open when applying for a job. If you’ve got technical issues such as misspellings, typos and grammatical errors and formatting problems you will never get your foot in the door. Many of us couldn't survive with out Spell Check and are eternally grateful to Bill Gates---but it Spell Check doesn't correct for the improper use of words that are spelled correctly.

Beyond these problems there is another list of more complicated issues to work on if you want to get an interviews and be considered as a serious candidate. Here are some typical mistakes found on resumes.
Lack of focus – Frequently, a resume contains a great deal of information about a candidate but there is no real focus on the key themes presented in the job description or developing a sales pitch. The resume may be too general. Through lack of skill or laziness, the applicant has avoided tailoring the resume to fit the job description and tweak their resume to match the job criteria for each job they apply for.

Too much detail- Some times people who have not applied for a job in 20 years find they have a very long, detailed, dated resume. The resume like an ancient scroll has been added to over the years. The product is a detailed mess that does not target the job they are applying for. They require the help of a good editor or resume writer to perform the magic of a facelift to their resume. This entails deleing dated information that does not highlight relevant skills & accomplishments or removing old software and updating antiquated formats.

Too much personal info- People often include too much personal information on their resume such as their marital status, children and hobbies. The writer may also mention that they were Captain of the basketball team in college 20 years ago. At one time, this fact may have indicated leadership skills. However, at this juncture, it seems like they have failed to move on. Since your resume is not meant to be like your Facebook account, this information should be deleted.

Failure to properly highlight accomplishments: Some job candidates have not captured the value they’ve provided at work or assessed the impact they have made through their accomplishments. For example, they could mention how much money they’ve brought in or saved the company or how the projects they initiated benefited their clientele.

Visually boring presentation: The formats of many resumes lack creativity. Most resume formats are changing or have changed. For example, Objectives are out and the Summary is in. It would take an hour or so to search the internet for new formats or view the latest resume books at your local Borders or Barn & Noble bookstore or the library.

Fix Resume Problems

How To Protect Your On-line Reputation

2010-12-31T18:42:00.000-08:00

By Barbara LaBier

These days it seems that anybody can say negative things about you on the web, but what can you do to fight back?
Through data mining Google and other search engines collect millions of facts and data that your future descendants might access to find out about you after you’re gone, according to Christine Schiwietz an Assistant professor of Sociology at George Washington University.

Dr. Schiwietz and Nino Kader President of International Reputation Management (IRM) spoke at the National Press Club last month offering tips on protecting your on-line image. The talk was supported by the Washington Network Group (WING).

Unfortunately, the days of privacy and unanimity are gone, if you don’t like what the world is saying about you the only thing you can do in response is change your name, revealed CEO Eric Schmidt of Google in a Wall Street Journal article.

Most of us do not want to go to this extreme to find peace of mind. As Google real-time search and sites like Facebook and Twitter continue to grow, it becomes more necessary than ever to monitor your on-line reputation.The first step in protecting your reputation is to Google your name on the net to see what comes up, suggests Kidder.

Schiwietz advises setting up a Google alert to capture what different websites or blogs are saying about you. Once a week or more often new instances of your name will be tracked and the information sent to you. Continue the tracking process by subscribing using your full name to Technorati.com, a bog search engine and BackType, a blog comment search engine to reach blogs that Google alerts do not contact. However, negative comments may be difficult to remove.

There are folks outrageous enough to steal a resume on-line. A Project Manager at GSA was given someone’s resume by her boss who said it looked very familiar. After reading it, she was shocked to discover that it was her resume that she’d used to apply for her current job several years before. Instead of finding her own name and address on the resume, there was a strangers. This person had stolen the content of her resume that she’d uploaded to Monster.com. When she requested that the search engine take down the counterfeit resume, they refused. She tried to contact author of the phony resume, but she could not be found.

Another kind of problem occurs if a negative comment about someone appears in a blog; generally, it’s usually not worth fighting over on-line. Contacting the owner of the blog off-line it is much better idea. Adding fuel to the fire could create a situation where the owner of the blog continues to broadcast untrue or negative information about you. Knowing who you are dealing with will determine how far you should go in pursuing a problem. Some people are decent and will remove the information but not everyone. If you are forced to clarify the issue on-line take an open, peacemaking attitude when answering comments.

Of course, you can try to sue the person for defamation of character. However it seems that legally the law has not caught up with the problems produced on the internet. According to employment law of the 1940-60’s, requesting a photo or any information regarding skin color, nationality, or origin was considered illegal and could have possibly lead to discrimination. Social media has produced a lot of change that has not as yet been challenged in the courts.

One solution according to Nino Kader of IRM is to counteract bad publicity by minimizing it by incorporating new material about you so that detrimental comments are pushed farther and farther back in the pages of Google. For example, you could have several people recommend you on-line and, consequently, revitalize your reputation.

• If you have a website purchase your own domain name including the following versions: .org, .com, .gov, .net. When you have two names in the title of your website, also buy the domain name that has a hyphen between the two names. If you don’t do this and your name is popular you may be subject to competitors who steal your name by creating domains very similar to yours.
• Write blogs and articles and post them from your own computer and distribute them to different sites. Identify blogs and forums you contribute to within your professional circle in your profile.
• Create content with video and audio to broadcast on U-Tube.
.Provide links listing your name and the location of the article and place a John Doe link to site.
• Establish an identity through Linked-in to provide a professional profile for work and networking. Update your profile frequently. Also highlight your experience as a board member and other activities.
• Write recommendations for others and they may reciprocate.
• Join groups on-line and contribute your opinions.
• On Facebook create an identity to reconnect with old friends.

Save On-line Reputation

Identifying Career Changing Skills by Barbara LaBier

2010-12-18T19:22:00.000-08:00

I

By Barbara LaBier

Identifying transferable skills is necessary when changing careers.

These skills can be used to market yourself to employers during interviews as well as writing cover letters and resumes. Transferable skills are universal and are used to describe experience in every occupation regardless of the type of work. They are more important than job-related skills which are used to describe one type of work since transferable skills are unrelated to past employment or educational experience.

You can use transferable skills to create a self-inventory that can be adapted to evaluate and describe any working situation. Put a check mark next to each of 10 skills that match your background and review in your mind the tasks you’ve associated with this skill.
Study a job description and the key words to determine the type of career that you want to apply for. Do a search on Monster.com or other job search engines to review job titles and match them against your background. Highlight keywords that you can use in a new context to describe your experience.

Learn the jargon or buzz words of your potential career. When you review the Transferable Skills Sheet located in a the same article located at www.resumecrafters.com, notice that each list of skills has a heading. In the first column you’ll see Analytical and underneath the title are descriptive key words you can use to describe your tasks in your resume. The table and columns contain transferable skills as well as specific examples of how the skills have been used. Putting each keyword in the context where you have previously used it on the job or to highlight activities such as part-time work, internships, special projects, volunteer work, and education is a great help when it comes to writing your resume and cover letter. Transferable skills are also used in statements to answers competency based questions for knowledge, skills and ability questions (KSA’a) that are part of a Federal resume or other questionnaires that may be part of other applications.( Unfortunately the Transferable Skill Sheet is a table that is not transfered properly inside this blog.

You can find the article and table at www.resumecrafters.com)

Gossip At Work

2010-09-27T10:39:00.000-07:00

By Barbara LaBier

Gossip at work benefits individuals and organizations—although in some manager’s opinion it is derogatory. When caught gossipers are punished with lower performance ratings.

Doctoral students in management from the University of Kentucky performed a study surveying 30-40 employees about their social networks and who they gossiped with and the influence that each colleague had. The more staff members gossiped the more influence they showed and the better was their understanding of their social environment.

Gossip can be useful if there is change going on in an organization when the flow of information is stifled then the few that are in the know can spread it and relieve anxiety. Conventional wisdom says just the opposite – supposedly gossip breeds stress and uncertainty. While it can cause fear research shows it does the reverse by building an emotional connection which provides social and emotional support. On the negative side, gossip consists of half-truths and hearsay and can absorb the staff’s time. So how can it be valuable?

By studying the network the study indicates it’s easy to discover who is a bully, or who is difficult to work with. For the manager it can be a great tool for hearing troublesome issues. Positive gossip is more typical than negative. Out of 72 percent of gossip relationships, positive gossip ranked 21 % while negative was only 7%.

Some bosses believe that gossip is subversive because the more someone gossips the more influence they have among peers. In away, it has a democratizing force and levels the playing field between managers and employees and is a threat to bosses who want complete control. In this study managers gave lower ratings to employees who gossiped more. Often managers try to squelch gossip without addressing the problems that was generating it.

Managers gossip too, because they say they need a lot of information to do their work. But are they gossiping with the right people? Do they say what the manager thinks or introduce information about the state of the company or are they people who are critical about the functioning of the company. If they are not happy at work, they can find many ways o bring the organization down. The number of people supervisors gossip with are 7.4 people. The average numbers of people nonsupevisors gossip with are 3.9.

The study was carried on by Giuseppe Joe Labianca , a Gatton Endowed Associate Professor of Management at the University of Kentucky/ Linked Center for Research on Social networks in business exam med social interactions in a branch of a US company

Gossip At Work

This article was excerpted from the August/September 2010, Harvard Business Review.

What Resume Do I Submit For a Federal Job? by Barbara LaBier

2010-09-25T11:53:00.000-07:00

The appropriate “Resume” to submit for a Federal job has become confusing. Despite the Obama administration’s efforts to focus on corporate resumes and eliminate KSA’s--- the majority of agencies still do their own thing. The best advice is to read each job description and instructions carefully before applying for a federal job because each agency has different standards.

The Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities questions are known in govspeak as KSAs. Answers to these questions show that you are qualified for advertised jobs. During the 1980’s, KSAs were originally used as a replacement for the old civil service exams. A few agencies have stopped using them, including the Army and the U.S. Customs Service. Others, however, are still requiring them.

According to The Office of Personnel Management KSAs will soon be a thing of the past. The Obama administration has asked agencies to stop requiring the time-consuming essays and instead accept a corporate resume. The government form when compared with a corporate resume contains details such as an employer’s name, phone number, address, time at the job, salary, and references for each job. The corporate resume on the other hand is about two pages. The text is written in phrases and may contain a career summary and never reveals salary for each position.

Elimination of KSAs is part of a comprehensive initiative by the Obama administration to overhaul the federal government’s hiring process. Right now, the USAJOBS form filled out on-line is acceptable by all agencies. Go to the USAJOBS site to research and apply for jobs. This format used to be called the “Remix” resume and was updated six months ago. Some agencies will still accept a 171. Depending on the agency you are applying to, once this form is completed on line, you may be transferred to another registry where there is yet another form to fill out during the application process. Paying attention to the closing date and time is also very important. You don’t want to be shuffled from different registries as the window of time disappears as you try to make the application deadline.

For the moment, KSAs (and their equivalent for senior executive positions, the ECQs) are still a reality for the vast majority of federal jobs and they are taken seriously by HR officials. Make sure your answers be error free by using spell check and the help of a friend to proofread for you.

Rely on your resume for information. Your challenge is to insert everything that would be in your normal private-sector resume somewhere in concise and coherent answers to the questions.

As far as KSA’s are concerned you must fill out every question to your fullest ability. Some questions may require research to complete because you may have forgotten the material they refer to. If you don’t have the complete response nailed you may get partial credit. You want to emphasize experiences and examples that support your answer to the question. If you have to repeat information in another KSA rewrite it focusing on other points. Also important is to emphasize recent achievement, degrees, certifications and training.

resumecrafters@yahoo.com

The Next Chapter

2010-08-18T15:00:00.000-07:00

By Barbara LaBier

Today’s retirees will live longer than other generations and still have working on their minds. For many, a second career will supplement social security and offer opportunities for new areas of self-fulfillment. Many people have told me that finding work different from what they did during 40 years of their lives will add a new dimension to living where they are better able to match their passion with doing something they like.

This attitude is prevalent among retirees who come from successful careers who are seeking opportunities to make more money while finding self-fulfillment through work.

Instead of taking any job after retiring, experts say it is time to focus on a career that brings you some pleasure.

“It has been a voyage of self discovery according to Sam who worked as a salesman and real estate broker for Long and Foster for 30 years. Sam always knew that he enjoyed the teaching and training aspect of his career. When he retired, he soon found that he was bored and broke staying at home playing the stock market. After visiting a career counselor, he learned to evaluate what turned him on about a new career and chose coaching for real estate professionals. Now, Sam teaches strategies for building real estate businesses through career coaching seminars and retreats for professionals looking to build their sales and businesses. He enjoys the travel and participating in retreats and public speaking where he earns thousands of dollars for his advice.

Rob who spent 30 years in the restaurant business as an owner, manager, chef, bartender and server was burned out. He wanted to retire and utilize his skills in the restaurant industry in second career in a job that was easier on this body.

After a few sessions with a career coach he was able to redirect his career skills to a large corporation where he is working in the area of corporate sales in the retail and industrial food services area.

“Sysco was delighted with my skills because I had intimate sales knowledge of purchasing equipment, recipe planning, food services and sales. When I meet new clients in the corporate world, we speak the same lingo, ” Rob said happily.

But what about the folks who retire and feel devalued by the experience? Many people are enraged about loosing their title, job, and income as well as the way they were once defined by society. When they start a new career their seniority is gone, they make mistakes and stumble, they have lost their mentor status, they are reduced to the status of an apprentice. Comparing themselves to a youthful culture is often painful.

Cynthia who is in her middle sixties will be retiring next year. For 35 years she worked in the IT industry as a technical writer and now is getting ready to embark on a second career as a Financial Planner.

“I am very excited about trying something new.” she said. “A career that capitalizes on my love of people, interest in stocks, companies and business and my delight in creating strategies to help others succeed is what I want. ”

But what about failure? For Cynthia her long career filled with ups and downs has made her philosophic.

“During my working life, I developed wisdom about how to fail gracefully and recover. Not everything has to be achieved in a day. My youthful impatience of expecting over- night success has been replaced with an inner confidence, knowledge and an expanded sense of humor. I know that I will be successful given time,” she added.

Six Ways To Stay Unemployed

2010-08-15T20:32:00.000-07:00

I was perusing an old diary that belonged to my Uncle Willy who lived through the Great Depression and found this bit of advice on how to maintain your mental health.

“Baring your soul can be therapeutic,” he wrote. “So the next time you are depressed and you can’t afford a psychiatrist make an appointment with a potential boss at a job interview.”

1. When the employer asks why you are leaving your current job tell him why you hate your work and your boss is such a jerk.

2. Also reveal why you’re so dissatisfied with your current buddies at work.

3. After he or she brings up salary tell them you are flexible but with your talent and experience and won’t settle for peanuts.

4. If the interviewer asks what you’re planning to do in the next five years- don’t be shy tell them the truth …that you’d like to be retired.

5. Should they ask you if the job you are interviewing for is the perfect job for you tactfully explain that you like the job as a Contract Specialist but would be better suited as a Radio Host.

5. And finally, if you’re asked if you could hear people at work talking behind your back what would they be saying about you… say “Nothing, I lip read and am deaf in one ear.”

6. Be sure to send a thank you note a week after you have finished the interview.

Follow Barbara at http://www.resumecrafters.com/

What’s Going On With Social Media At Work?

2010-08-07T13:13:00.000-07:00

Social Media can be a boon for any business when it’s used to promote products and a company. For many entrepreneurs it is free marketing. Clients get to know the company on a personal level and feel connected. A Facebook Page brings customers to a website to find out more information or to contact the business owner.

Marketing businesses understand that emailing potential clientele during business hours can result in building stronger relationships that will eventually bear fruit with more business. Collaboration and creativity improves office morale and sparks participation in online communities such as Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin and Govloop. Staff in this environment are treated as mature adults not disobedient children who are constantly monitored by their bosses.

Yet, employees using social media can create problems for some business owners. Executives say they block social media sites because of breeches in security and the belief that social media leads to lack of productivity. Others think that employees spend too much time updating their profiles rather than working.

Computer World reported in 2009 that 54% of companies in the USA banned social networking sites such as Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin and My space; Nineteen percent allowed only social networking sites for business. And only 10 % of 1400 CIO’s are allowed full access during office hours. In a more recent study of companies that have 1000 employees – 8% percent of them have been fired because of their behavior on social media sites. Some got caught on-line revealing confidential information about the business or clients.
Social media critics take a negative approach and say that using social media as a strategy takes too much time to bear fruit and that it removes marketing resources and taking them away from other marketing plans. And, most important customers are annoyed by emails.

Social media in the private or the governmental arena has become a management problem. Social media sites are currently in place at every Government site. GAO, for example, performed a study that showed that these technologies could actually expose government records and sensitive data. Privacy issues may be compromised until methods are established for protecting and managing personal information. A balance must be achieved where networks are protected from threats and intellectual properties maintains compliance with internal and government regulations. Every employer should be prepared to develop management policies ahead of time regarding social media. What has been your experience using Social Media in the office?

Link to www.resumecrafters.com

Hone Your Talents If You Want To Be Truly Successful

2010-08-05T21:26:00.000-07:00

Some people will tell you that the secret to success in life is identifying the things you don’t do well and get better at them. Actually, it is just the opposite because if you spend all your time focusing on your weaknesses you’ll end up with a lot of strong weaknesses. Instead, focus on your strengths and delegate weaknesses to someone who has passion and talent in that area. If you want to have the opportunity to excel focus on your strengths and let the rewards that follow pay for help to do the things you can’t.

For example, I am mathematically challenged so when tax time comes around I hire a gifted accountant to handle my taxes. When I did them myself, the IRS would send me love notes about my mistakes and since the errors were simple they’d even recalculate my taxes for me. Not that I don’t trust the IRS or am not grateful for their help—but I decided it was time to seek other services.

So it makes sense to focus on capabilities and multiply your confidence. When you feel confident you can do amazing things. Lacking confidence makes it much harder to put your capabilities to work.
Thinking about how you can grow your clients capabilities instead of just selling them products and services is a leap for most entrepreneurs. However, it can be the key to innovation that can lead to exceptional customer loyalty, enthusiastic referrals, brilliant testimonials and dramatic increases for future growth.
No matter where you find yourself try to make your future bigger than your past—identify and capture opportunities to multiply your efforts, results and contributions to others.

Getting Up Early Can Influence Your Career, according to Scientific Study

2010-07-29T21:24:00.000-07:00

Early morning people are better positioned for career success because they are more proactive, according to a survey of 367 University students in Heidelberg Germany. These students were more successful because they were willing to take action to change a situation. Also they tended to get better grades which got them into better colleges leading to better job opportunities. Eventually their proactively resulted in better job performance, career success and higher wages.

However evening people tend to be smarter and more creative than the morning types. They have a better sense of humor and are more outgoing even though they may be out of sync with the corporate schedule, reported Christopher Randler, professor of biology who conducted the study.
Can you change your biorhythms? In one study half of school students were able to alter their daily sleep/ wake schedules by one hour. The facts are that about 50% of a person's chronotype is due to genetics.
To change your biological clock you must change your type. This means that people who get up early have more time to prepare for their day but there is no guarantee that they will be more conscientious.
Getting up early also is deeply ingrained and part of societies Calvinist beliefs. There are different traits associated with each type. For example, morning people are thought to be agreeable, optimistic, stable, proactive ,conscientious and satisfied with life. Evening people, on the othe hand are creative, intelligent, humorous, extroverted, pessimistic, neurotic, and depressed.
Science still does not completely understand the circadian cycle. More research is needed to understand how to bring out evening peoples’ potential benefits in an organization. Studies also show that evening people adhere to another schedule during the week and weekends while morning people maintain the same time schedule during their time off according to an article which appeared in The Harvard Business Review, July-August 2010.
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Golden Rules to Increase Your Salary in 2010

2010-03-31T21:21:00.000-07:00

By Barbara LaBier

Believe it or not salaries will actually do more than double in 2010. Since in 2009, they hit a historic low of 2.1 percent and one-third of all companies froze raises!
By 2010, salaries are projected to rise to 4 per cent a year according to a survey of employers conducted by WorldatWork, a global human resources association.
However, jobs don’t usually recover in sync with the economy. Some employers plan to use raises as a carrot to motivate and retain talent but not for everyone. They plan to give out raises based on performance. Some will get bigger salaries and others will get none according to WorldatWork experts.

Here are some tips for getting rewards

Do your job well – Optimize your efforts by doing your job professionally. Produce high quality work.

Be visible – Don’t try to hide because you believe if you disappear you won’t get on the layoff list. This is faulty logic because when it comes to recognition if no one thinks about you, no one will know what you’ve done.

Help out your boss – If you don’t know how just ask. Show a good attitude by offering to do chores.

Ask for a raise – Tell your boss what you’ve done and how it fits in with your department’s goals and why you deserve an increase. If the answer is no ask what you can do to improve your performance and don’t give up.

Excerpted from Margaret Steen’s article “Companies Cautiously Prepare to Raise Salaries.” and an employee survey at WorldatWork.org

Does Mailing Your Resume Make Sense?

2010-03-31T21:07:00.000-07:00

By Barbara LaBier

While everyone in the world is sending their resume over the internet, a contrarian may be sending his by old fashioned snail mail. Some people actually use snail mail to send their resume and it works if you apply the proper strategy. The best results come from a tailored resume that addresses a specific employer in the cover letter. Nothing gets attention more than saying “I want to work for you.” And it doesn’t matter how you send the resume say career experts.

Others for example, use a three pronged approach to get attention by starting with voice email. If you know the name of the hiring manager leave a voice mail to let them know you mailed your resume. Next, send a fax with a cover letter noting on the cover page that you sent your resume and cover letter both ways by mail and by fax. This works best with small companies who are less likely to have a sophisticated HRIS system that can slow down your job campaign.

Key to this technique is to know who the boss is. You send an InMail via Linkedin or if you have the title and address of the hiring manager send your resume in a Priority US Mail by special delivery the most cost effect way to send your job related materials.

Never use mass mailing according to experienced career coaches, because statistics demonstrate that the chance for success is very small and the resume can not be targeted to all the jobs descriptions.

However, targeted mailing works if you know the name of the potential hiring manager. If this is the case, send then your resume and cover letter. Another tip is not to send it to (whom it many concern) because it will never get to the right person. Next, call the hiring manager within three days to determine interest. This proactive approach can be a dynamite strategy that can gain an employers interest in you 15 seconds after they open the envelope!

McJobNews: Golden Rules to Increase Your Salary in 2010

2010-03-31T11:46:00.000-07:00

McJobNews: Golden Rules to Increase Your Salary in 2010

What is more correct--- Chronological or Functional Resumes?

2010-03-20T16:06:00.000-07:00

There’s a hot controversy brewing when it comes to marketing your career with a chronological or functional resume. Resume writers have logical arguments for supporting the type of resume they recommend. Some strongly disagree about what kind of resume a potential employer wants to receive from a potential applicant.

Displaying your skills in a functional resume is still an important way of attracting a potential employer. Yet, it remains controversial. Other professionals see it as a red flag that a person is trying to use to cover up gaps in their work history. This is sometimes true in other cases it is not.

Still others believe that if a resume is well written and the skills and achievements are properly highlighted, it doesn’t matter what format is used.

"Whatever works is based on knowledge of the industry and company. Functional resumes are generally used for the mid to upper six figure jobs. I just coached an executive with a $155K income and he put together a functional resume and got four interviews.” according to Mark Harris, an Outplacement Consultant and Trainer.

Your resume is still the major way of capturing an employer’s attention. So it makes sense to become familiar with problems associated with these two resume styles and learn how to positively change them.

Chronological Resume
A chronological resume starts by showcasing your work history with the most recent position listed first. The rest are written in reverse order containing details about what you did. You also should list the beginning and end date of each job. This resume works for job applicants who have a strong, solid work history with a series of the same types of positions. It is easy for an employer to see how you’ve moved up in the company and have a consistent work history with few job gaps.

However, this type of resume does not normally focus on your job skills. You can change this into more of a hybrid resume by breaking out your most important achievements in a section called major skills or accomplishments. These skills can also be described in a summary at the top of your resume located under your name, address, phone etc.

Similiar to a proposal
Writing your resume is similar in some ways to writing a proposal—you must know everything about the product and the prospective customer to make a sale. Strategy, content and design must be superior to get noticed. and the average length is two pages for an experienced professional. Candidates with less experience can format their background and qualifications into a one page resume.

Functional Resume
The functional resume divides your resume into a summary of your work experience and two or three different skills sets. For example, one heading could be management, another administrative and the last sales skills. Relevant jobs are formatted and fit under the appropriate heading. Generally, the dates are not included. This style resume is good for someone who has had several different types of jobs and wants to focus on experience. Often this job seeker wants to change careers. They may have job gaps or want to emphasize a particular set of skills that would not be highlighted in a chronological resume. Perhaps the skills they want to emphasize occurred at a job that is more than ten years old. This style resume acknowledges that work was performed but does not focus on the dates. Some employers object to the functional resume because it may hide job gaps but not always. In some cases, the person has a steady work history but the type of career they want in the future uses different skills than those mentioned in a chronological resume. To show consistent employment, you can always turn your resume into a targeted resume by adding a section entitled Work History. The work history section lists the job title, name of business and the dates. A targeted resume highlights only the experience and the skills you have that are relevant to the job you’re applying for.

If for any reason the functional resume is not getting interviews, you must try another kind of bait to meet the conditions to attract new fish.

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McJobNews: Hark! Its Time to Brand Your Resume.

2010-03-12T11:26:00.000-08:00

McJobNews: Hark! Its Time to Brand Your Resume.
http://mcjobnews.blogspot.com/

When you’re searching for a job the rules of the game have changed, say social media marketing experts.

Now, you must brand your resume to capture your career identity, passion and image. It is not good enough to produce a resume to help recruiters find you join social media sites such as Linkedin, Facebook, and Twitter. The best situation is when a recruiter types in your job type and does a search on Google and comes up with your name.

Define your brand

Branding is defined as a promise of the value of a product that it is better than all others. There are 6.9 billion people on the planet and each one of us is different. Branding defines your unique image. You create it by defining who you are at the top of your resume and follow up with a personal/career statement. The top line should say “Marketing Executive” instead of your name on your resume. Underneath that title, write your name and address just like in an old fashion resume.

Develop a branding statement for your resume

A branding statement is similar to a sales presentation that tells an employer what makes you special as well as the qualities that make you unique and accomplished. It mentions what you can do for an employer such as the benefits you offer and the problems you have solved for other. The basic formula according to Brand Yourself by David Andrusia and Rick Haskins is Skills plus Personality/Passion plus Market Needs = Branding Statement.

Use words like poised, positioned, equipped, prepared or delivered to start off your description of what you can do for an employer and finish the statement by adding and skills and personal qualities.

For example:

Educational Non-Profit Executive

Deliver strong sales and leadership skills with a significant record of progressive success at non-profit organizations. Developed a keen ability to forge relationships and recognize multidimensional levels to turn business opportunities into vibrant centers of profit. Excel at strategy building, marketing, and fundraising while functioning as a highly articulate and effective communicator.

Certified Sterile Processing Technician

Poised to deliver excellence while performing decontamination, preparation, sterilization and distribution of surgical instruments, hospital trays and medical equipment used at medical facilities. Skilled at nuclear waste disposal as well as organizing and maintaining laboratory inventories. Productive, courteous, efficient and reliable with a strong commitment to providing superior service.

Brand business cards and cover letters

Your business cards, resume, and cover letter must show a unified format. Every word, bullet point and border must reflect a consistent branded look and should support the message you want to send. Today not developing your brand can be compared to attending a business meeting with a blindfold on and cotton stuffed in your ears.

Support your branding statement with effective sentences that build layers of skills and accomplishments and support the general premise.

Focus on your unique accomplishments

The content of your resume should focus on your unique accomplishments and tell how you increased profits or efficiencies at prior jobs. Focus on developing keyword density by repeating key words loaded in the job description in your branding statement and work history. Apply the same strategy in creating a cover letter.

Build an on-line branding plan to get your resume posted on the front page of Google and Facebook. Recruiters search for candidates on Google and through other social media to fill job openings. Getting found is extremely important. They have to be able to find you by typing in the job tile you entered on your resume. Join linked-in to develop a professional rich keyword profile. Join groups and participate in discussions and grow your contacts through networking on-line and by meeting others. Respond to discussions and blogs on-line by leaving comments and a link to your resume, blog or website called link backs.

Submit your resume to different search engines such as careerbuilder.com and Monster.com which will allow you to advertise your resume on their site.

Resources

The New Rules of Marketing and PR by David Meerman Scott 15.49 Hardcover: 276 pages. Wiley. ISBN-978-0470-11345-5.

Career Distinction Stand Out by Building Your Brand $21.95 Hardcover: 244 pages. Wiley. ISBN-10: 0470128186.

Branding You: How to Create an Identity for a Brilliant Career. Paperback: 256 pages. Ballantine. ISBN: 0345423593

Blogging for Dollars $$$

2010-03-02T18:57:00.000-08:00

Make Money Blogging, an ebook by Daniel Scocco reveals trade secrets, tips and tricks that in combination with persistence, knowledge, and luck may result in generating cash from your blog. The book is a good basic read for newbies and experienced entrepreneurs who are trying to expand readership of their blog and produce an income stream. The recipe for generating cash is a long one that contains lots of foreplay before the climax. Scocco takes his flash light and illuminates a series of useful steps that must be completed before your blog hyperventilates and its tentacles cozy up to Technorati. Once this happens the big blog bucks may start pouring in.

Scocco builds on basic concepts presenting what you need to accomplish and how to do it. Some content and terms of the book could be developed more. Perhaps the author wrongly assumes we know more than he reveals. He doesn’t discuss the other side of monetization where the blog shakes you down. There are advertising vehicles that could bring you success, notoriety, traffic, articles, and affiliate business quickly but these are pricy solutions that require a larger budget than some novices are ready for. In general found this book very useful and compact and I’d highly recommend it.

To get your copy of this ebook go to http://www.dailyblogtips.com/make-money-blogging/

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8 Tips For Getting Hired As An Older Worker

2010-02-22T20:06:00.000-08:00

Honing your negotiation skills is a bonus at any age but becomes a necessity as we grow older. Negotiating a satisfactory salary worthy of your experience is a challenge for mature workers. As we age and retire, salary prospects may decline because of age discrimination, transition to self-employment, consulting or part-time employment. Mature workers often times must convince an employer to pay them more than the salary associated with the job. The criteria for a decent salary is based upon experience, education, job responsibilities and the average pay rate of pay for a position. Career coaches advise never to reveal your salary history or salary requirements until an offer is made. Revealing your salary requirements before you’ve been offered the job can lower your starting salary.

Be prepared to negotiation by gathering information and planning a strategy that requires that you assess your strengths and those of the competition. Before an interview evaluate the state of the economy as well as the unemployment rate. Also learn about the history and culture of the company. Rehearse several scenarios and your responses to questions concerning salary with a mentor, career counselor or friend. Practice until the information flows easily off your tongue.

When you are older it takes longer to get hired according to the Bureau of Labor and Statistics. For example, people over the age of 55 take an average of 29.9 weeks to find gainful employment, and those under 55 look for a job for about 21.4 weeks. According to the American Association of Retired Persons, the desired salary of the job hunter also affects the length of the search. Those looking for $40,000 to $75,000 take an average of 25 weeks to find a job, and people who expect to earn $100,000 take more than 30 weeks to secure one.

Being savvy to new market trends plays an important role. Older workers may require career coaching to learn how to better market themselves. Others believe that the same methods that worked for them when they first started their career are still as effective today. While some techniques may still be successful, people don’t realize that the content, style and format of a resume, for example, has changed in the last 20 years and marketing techniques have changed as well. Money spent on career counseling can save time and help older workers to learn new marketing skills. Getting feedback from a career coach can help in developing self awareness about how you come across to a potential employer. Practicing interviewing with a professional can target skills that need to be developed as well as improving their delivery. While a mature worker offers a background of diverse skills and multi-tasking, updating their resume style plus the ability to send out dynamic cover letters can help them stand out from the crowd in today’s competitive market place. They must write their resumes for the future demonstrating how their skills can earn money for their new employer and help others.

Having too much experience can be tricky. Earlier in your career lack of experience may have resulted in not being qualified for a job. Now when you are older, too much experience can backfire because to an employer experience also means you want more money. Often expectations of an older worker are painfully unrealistic. They need to research how to get a job using social marketing sites on the Internet . A crash course on how to join networks, build a profile and market themselves as well as Networking Netiquette and making contact with others on-line may be needed. The Dummy.com series has published books on marketing for Linked-in, Facebook and Twitter that are helpful in understanding how social media can work for you.

To better grasp the market and apply for long-term assignments, identify industries in your region that are growing or at least stable. Select markets that do reasonably well in good or bad times such as the food industry, transportation, utilities/energy, healthcare and accounting according to the MetLife Study of the New Realities of the Job Market for Aging Baby Boomer.

To succeed in today’s job market workers skill- set must be continually evolving. Mature workers should have a basic awareness of their strengths, passions and values. Rather than enroll in an academic program for a degree, job experts recommend taking on-line certification classes. SkillSoft.com is one organization that provides on-line certification classes in IT and business subjects. For example, the program includes reading on-line books that are part of the program, software, practice session and tests on material that lead up to a certification exam as well as a mentor can help you achieve your goals.

Hiring managers will often judge a candidate based on their technology skills. Aging Boomers who do not keep their technology skills up to date are creating barriers for themselves in the job market because it gives employers one more reason to reject older job seekers. Seek out organizations that demonstrate a management style and work culture that is respectful of all workers. Retirement.com has more than 60 companies that pass a test through its “Age Friendly Employer Certification Program as well as AARP, according to MetLife Insurance.

Networks are critical for Boomers who often must count on personal relationships to cut through the impersonal electronic application process and age bias. Job coaches advise you to continually build a network and evaluate your skills through skills and assessment testing to give you better insight into your strengths to make sure that they are in sync with the market place.

How to Avoid Career Change Blunders

2010-02-09T21:09:00.000-08:00

Making a career change without a strategic plan can wreak havoc in your life. Seasoned executives make unfortunate and ill-timed career moves according the Harvard Business Review.

Job moves are inevitable but seldom easy. The average baby boomer will switch jobs 10 times, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Too often job changes lead to a decline in performance that can last up to five years. People who switch organizations face an upheaval in their home and social life that can involve potential relocation expenses and adjustment to a new corporate culture and political environment. To minimize these effects careful and conscious assessment of risks can help prevent making mistakes that can ultimately sabotage your career.

Job hopping errors were analyzed from data from three executive research teams comprised of a survey of 400 executive search consultant from more than 50 industries, HR heads at 15 multi-national companies and interviews with 500 C-level executives in 40 countries. Executives surveyed were not young, untested managers but experienced individuals who had substantial practice in making hiring decisions on themselves.

Avoid these nine mistakes when searching for a new job:

NOT DOING ENOUGH RESEARCH

Search consultants revealed that often job seeking clients don’t research their own industries. Many of candidates have not looked for a job in years. Since they are not informed about the present job market, they have unrealistic expectations about how long the search will take. They assume, for example, that companies offering them a job are financially sound. Yet, many businesses hire for senior level positions even when there are problems ahead. So it is up to the applicant to investigate to see if the job will exist in six month.

FAILURE TO CONSIDER CULTURAL FIT

While hiring managers are supposed to supply this information, often they don’t. It pays to take the time to contact people who work for an organization to determine what the corporate culture is really like.

OFFICE JOB TITLE AND JOB DESCRIPTION DO NOT MATCH

In poorly managed organizations people find themselves in jobs that have little relationship to their formal titles. One executive, for example, was given a CFO title even though most of his work involved duties of a COO. As a result, he lacked the credibility he needed to get the job done.

FORGET TO ASK ABOUT PERFORMANCE MEASUREMENT

Job candidates often fail to ask potential employers about how their performance will be measured. Without an understanding of this information a job candidate’s success depends totally on luck.

LEAVING FOR MORE MONEY

Often executives rank income fourth or fifth in terms of importance when contemplating a job search but move it to first place when making their decision. In one case, an executive was about to make a move but realized that he would be increasing his salary by $10,000 but realized it was not worth it since he would be leaving behind his old contacts and relationships.

GOING FROM DARKNESS INTO THE LIGHT

Unhappy with their present position a candidate mayl rush to another position without waiting for the right offer. Job seekers do not take the time to do intensive research when they have the opportunity to move on to what they think are greener pastures. They forget to look strategically at their current company for other opportunities that may still exist for them. They may fail to imagine what their job would be like if their boss left.

OVERESTIMATING YOURSELF

According to search consultants some applicants over estimate their skills and contribution and undervalue the strengths of their company in helping them achieve their goals. They do not realize the length of the job search and what the costs will be. They may also miscalculate their new salary and the ability to deal with the challenges of a new organization that could be too large to easily implement change.

THINKING SHORT-TERM

Short term decisions can feed into each of the mistakes listed above and create problems. Pressure can force candidates to focus on details such as salary and job title instead of raising deeper questions that involve long term evaluation.

Creating strategies outside traditional thinking can prevent you from accepting an easier solution. Self-awareness is very important say experts. With the help of a mentor you can create a list of positive and negative scenarios that can be used to plot a three year path at each company evaluating what decisions would be right in each situation before leaving a job for a new one. With more self knowledge you will be aware of mistakes you’re prone to make, how to correct these errors, how others perceive you, and the elements of a job that can help balance life and work.

*material excerpted from "Five ways to Bungle a Job Change," by Boris Groysberg, associate professor at Harvard business school and Robin Abrahams, research associate which appears in the January & February issue of Harvard Business Review

Surviving Mentally After a Layoff

2010-01-29T16:00:00.000-08:00

Here are some tips to stay focused:

• Write a list of your goals for the year.

• Make yourself more valuable now and in the future by taking courses or learning new material from the internet and library.

• Keep up with social marketing and blogs in your industry.

• Start exercising regularly

• Read a best seller and keep current with the news so you have something to talk about that isn’t focused on you.

• Build an attractive resume website.

• Call old contacts and tell them about your plans.

• If starting a business find a mentor. Explain your goals and ask them if they will help you define them. Start with SBA’s Score.

• Have lunch with someone new

• Improve your speaking skills by joining Toast Masters

• Develop an elevator speech and go to several networking activities a month

• Earn income as an adjunct teacher through a college or adult education program.

• Develop outside income through freelancing or by teaching a skill.

• Search for a job boards through Google and post your resume

Washington Networking Event - International Folks

2010-01-24T10:51:00.000-08:00

Attended a Washington Networking event for international folks. Met MBA graduates from USA and Russia looking for government and international jobs. Talked with Roxan Kerr who recently started RA Kerr, a law firm which targets employment issues, Tonietta Wheatle who founded WHEATLEPEART, an educational business that trains youth in the art of entreprenureship and Shonika Proctor,a blogger-commentator for PBS who talks and writes about young entrepreneurs. Others businesses focus on providing help to grow US firms into international enterprises; serving as international movers,and performing statistical measurement and analysis for industrial psychology project. Ecoprint was represented by Dave Michaels, an outreach coordinator who manages environmental consulting, report writing and printing functions. During the three hour event, bought our own drinks and gobbled down three kinds of thin-crusted, tasty pizza.

How can the Goverment's reorg of www.usajobs.gov help you?

2010-01-11T08:15:00.000-08:00

Tips for Understanding the Government’s On-line Revolution

The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) plans to present a stream-lined version of www.usajobs.gov as part of a general reorganization which will occur by January 23, 2011 according to OPM. The usajobs.gov site, for example, will display a lot more features than before in close proximity of each other. With the click of a mouse you will be able to see the pay scale, grade and occupation for the job you’re applying for. You can also share your document on LinkedIn, Twitter and other social media sites. The Remix on-line resume format has been updated and will serve as one uniform resume which contains all the information necessary to apply for all types of government jobs on-line. Although, currently you can store up to five resumes on usajobs.gov.

OPM says you can use keywords to communicate multiple skills and qualifications that you can discover by reading the job announcement. When constructing a resume, they advise putting all your selling points at the top of the page. This sounds a lot like a kind of summary of your work history describing your background, skills and accomplishments. The Government suggests that you highlight your activities by describing them using figures or percentages.

For example, “Produce 10 publications by using lower cost paper reducing costs by 15 percent.”

Since time equals money, OPM suggests that you describe other accomplishments with time as part of the consideration.

For example: “Produce twice monthly payroll or write four 750 word articles for a monthly newsletter consistently meeting 3 pm deadline.”

Another tip is to add figures when you describe how you save money, for example, managing the office supply budget.

“Buy yearly office supplies on sale at Staples saving over $500 dollars.”

Or when describing how many people you manage you could say:

“Manage 450 people in the five offices of OGP, prepare performance appraisals and assist 40 employees implement a plan for personal growth.”

Job seekers interested in grade GS15 jobs have the choice of using the 612 form which can be downloaded from the OPM website and when completed faxed or mailed to the appropriate address at OPM. Applicants must answer ECQ questions that represent three types of qualifications described as cases. For example, A- cases are based on demonstrated executive experience.

B-cases support successful participation in the OPM approved SES Candidate (SESCDP) program. There is a form executives can fill out that leads to eligibility for non-competitive appointments to the SES. On this form, you can document short and long term developmental activities, managerial, or leadership skills developed through reading books, attending webinars/Pod casts and other training which helps deliver broader perspective and deeper knowledge of the agency and Federal government. This form can be downloaded from the OPM website.

C-cases are based on having special or unique qualities that provide evidence of the likelihood of success in the SES.

While completing a resume candidates must address all five ECQ’s for each job or write a general resume and then attach a narrative that contains a discussion of the five Esq.’s statements: The ECQ statements are: Leading Change; Leading People; Results Driven; Business Acumen, and Building Coalitions. For an in depth discussions of the key words related to each ECQ go to http://www.opm.gov where you can download the Guide to Senior Executive Service Qualifications.

Another way to apply for an SES job is to organize a narrative that follows the (CCAR) model which describes skills needed to be successful in a variety of SES positions. The CCAR model describes the context of the challenge, the action you deliver, and the result. You can start with this model as the basic structure of the narrative. Then integrate the Executive Core Qualifications (Esq.’s) along with key words into your statement to describe how throughout your career you have provided strategic leadership and commitment following the goal of one of the cases mentioned earlier such as in case A-- demonstrating executive experience.

Your resume and the narrative can be faxed or mailed to the appropriate personnel office. The entire job announcement and other attachments are found by doing a search on SES jobs by utilizing the usajobs.gov search engine. When the job announcement information is downloaded, you will see listed the personnel specialist assigned to answer your questions and a phone number as well as the address of where to send your application

2009-12-15T22:53:00.000-08:00

What Does A Capture Manager Do?

A Capture Manager is a term that’s been tossed around on career job sites lately. If you do a search you’ll be surprised to see lots of openings for Capture Managers. But what exactly does a Capture Manager do to earn them a hundred thousand plus salary?

At first it seems that a Capture Manger is a new name for Proposal Manager in the Federal market place but after investigation, the duties of a Capture Manager are similar but involve a lot more responsibility. For example, a Capture Manager must have experience managing deals from $10 – $100M. They use their big nets to target and capture large federal contracts. They sell products to large agencies or bid on proposals to get work for their company. In the proposal writing area, tasks include coordination of timelines, writing assignments, value proposition creation and ensuring that the sales message is articulated throughout the proposal. Normally, the proposal must demonstrate that the companies solution is superior to other bids. As well having great organizational skills, a Capture Manager must have a strong background in business practices and knowledge of Federal Acquisition (FAR) regulations and a record of winning bids.

Some Capture Managers have a direct sales background or work with a Sales Manager. They may have held positions as Sales Managers selling products to other companies and have worked as business developers finding new customers for products. They develop sales and bidding strategies to win proposals to gain work for the company. In addition, they sell the idea of bidding on a proposal to higher ups in the company as well as managing small proposal teams. In most instances, they write the less technical sections of an RFP and work with technical staff members to answer technical proposal questions. They also review, write and revise proposal content to achieve target messages.

How to write a resume for a Capture Management job.

Every resume should have a summary that describes sales and business development experience. You should mention a figure that shows how you’ve driven revenue growth within competitive markets in sales. Since you will be capturing federal contracts in the market place list the highest awards you’ve won. Your proposal management experience and skills should focus on the types of documents you have written as well as the number of people that you have supervised. Mention your sales and organizational skills, knowledge of business practices and ability to work with a variety of people as well as your ability to handle stress.

List your accomplishments—the number of proposal wins, how you increased the bottom line or saved money for the company.

Next create a section on your resume for computer and software skills.

Under Career Highlights, list your experience chronologically as it relates to your capture management experience, sales management and business development. Mention your writing skills and how you used them to write, evaluate, and revise proposals. Discuss employment during the last ten years; this is as far back as employers want you to go.

Create an Education section listing your degrees and training that pertains to the job you are applying for

Develop an awards or affiliation section and list your recent awards within the past 10 years

Leave references off your resume.

How Much Am I Worth?

2009-12-05T17:46:00.000-08:00

The prospect of coming up with an answer at an interview to this question makes most of us queasy. Yet, in this down economy many employers insist that you reveal a salary range during the interview. If you ask for too much you might believe you can ruin the deal or ask for too little and be unable to pay your bills. So what should you to do?

Experts say prepare before the interview to identify your salary range. This can be accomplished by researching your salary on the internet through Google. There are several businesses that ask you questions and for $49.00 will come up with info on what your skills are worth in today’s job market given your background, experience, and education. When using an on-line salary calculator answer the questions truthfully to get the low, the average and above average salary.

After Googling several free online careers and working through the process, I discovered some of them did not have information about a senior technical writer, my specialty or information systems but there was plenty of free information on many occupations. I also noticed that in general the salaries were a few thousand higher than they were last year. I guess to compensate for the decrease in the value of the dollar some employers have raised their salaries. When dealing with headhunter’s who specialize in contract jobs they try to get you to name a rate before they will submit you for the job. Recently four job shops sent me emails for the same job. I talked with one who demoted my rate by $10 dollars per hour. I said no to that offer. I did not give up and when asked by the next recruiter from another company who was selling the same job; my range was $15 dollars more per hour. He said that the beginning of the range that I had quoted him was “Ball Park” and he would bid me at that rate which was actually $16 dollars more an hour than the previous offer.

LET THE EMPLOYER BRING UP THE SALARY

When you’re applying for a permanent job, it is best to let the employer bring up salary before disclosing a salary range. Some of employers will try to get this information from you before inviting you to an interview as a way of screening you out. You can always provide a verbal defensive move, “I will be happy to discuss my current salary when we talk about the issue at the interview.”

When asked about salary at the interview you can ask “Are you offering me the job?”

If the answer is yes, be enthusiastic and appreciative. Mention the range you researched and where the information came from. If they give you a low ball offer say you’d like 24 hours to think it over and mention that your expectations for the salary are higher because of your expenses, experience, former work history and compensation. Market your self by documenting your skills and accomplishments and emphasize the reasons why you should get the offer. This will give you the opportunity to see if the employer is flexible with the salary. Try to get their offer in writing before you make up your mind in case you decide to decline the offer. If you say no, be positive and gracious so you can say goodbye on the best of terms. “

There is more to a job than a salary, so it helps to have a long-term strategy, according to Nancy Rehnquist, a Program Management and Communication expert .
“I once needed a job and got a low offer, but the benefits were very good including money for education and professional development. Instead of asking for a higher salary I asked if they could pay my last class in graduate school. They said they could not do it but ended up increasing their offer so that I could take the class.”

BE READY TO NEGOTIATE

Refuse to be intimidated and act with self confidence according to Sandy Bloomberg, a Senior Windows engineer for the government.
“It all depends on what you bring to the table—if you are confident in your skills and capable of talking about it through verbal communication, resume and references than negotiating a salary is a must. Role play and do your homework!

Whether you will negotiate for a better salary depends on your state of mind. For example, one of the first things you learn when playing QB in high school and college is to take what the defense gives you,” according to GM Ralph Medlow.

“If there are eight guys in the box and they are inviting you to pass you’ll likely win yardage, if you run you’ll be thrown for a loss. When you’re in a position to negotiate without fear – you will play hardball. If you have been unemployed you’ll probably take the offer without negotiations.”.

Do You Need Keywords?

2009-11-09T17:39:00.000-08:00

How Relevant are Keywords When Applying for a Job?

It’s very important to add key words to your resume in a summary and include them in a description of your job history while writing down the duties at each job, according to Patrick Larkin, a recruiter at Superior Technical Resources, Inc. An average recruiter has to deal with the problem of selecting the right candidates to bid on jobs everyday. Sometimes a job candidate will leave out keywords in their resume listing only that they have experience but not describing what kind.
.
“ Just the other day I received resume information from an Administrator who failed to include any information about her 16 year career besides listing her job titles and dates. Employers want to know what you did at each job.” says Larkin.

Today’s recruiting businesses subscribe to database services that captures resumes from top search engines such as Career Builder, Dice, Monster and HotJobs and others. When you submit your resume on-line at these job sites it goes into a database where it’s reformatted according to job description, location, and contact information and sent electronically to different recruiting clients.

Recruiters have software which allow them to perform searches on these databases. The process involves entering criteria.

“Sometimes I enter up to five keywords to describe a job because no one thinks of the same exact keywords for every position.” added Larkin.

Other areas that should be included in the job history are technical skills and competencies.

The search results save thousands of hours for recruiters when they are trying to indentify the perfect candidate for a job. The recruiter reviews the results and calls or contacts the candidates whose background best matches the job description through email. At this point, the job seeker is encouraged to send a copy of their resume to the recruiter who will follows up with a telephone interview. If the candidate has the right experience, location and salary range their information is sent to an employer who decides which prospects they’d like to interview.

Looking for Job Leads as a Lobbyist

2009-11-09T15:39:00.000-08:00

Tonight I attended a networking event for lobbyists or public relations professionals sponsored by Washington Network Group (Wing) (http://www.washingtonnetworkgroup.com/). There was a crowd of 90 well-dressed people who slowly meandered into a private room located at Bar Louie near Gallery Place and shared the hors oeuvres. The event partner was the American League of Lobbyists, founded in 1979 to enhance the professionalism, competence and ethical standards of lobbyists. The president of the group said he’d like young people to email their resumes to the American League of Lobbyists because the association has members who know of lobbying jobs. Employers who are looking for more experienced folks would like to see candidates who have a legislative background as an analyst and have run a Congressional Office.

I met an attractive woman in her mid-forties who said she was lobbying on her own for the environment. She’d been looking for a job for more than six months – her expertise was health care related—she was also selling insurance. She’d moved to the District two years before from Virginia and seemed discouraged. She said that it’s been very hard to find a new job—she’d been laid off and blamed her situation on age discrimination.

Another man who previously worked for the health care industry talked about his trade negotiations and policy experience. He had several master degrees and an MBA and was also was working on a doctorate in finance. He was getting flack from potential employers who apparently didn’t like the idea he was working on his Doctorate and so he wanted to leave it off his resume. One employer said that they were afraid to hire him because he would be too distracted working on his thesis.

One man started his own company called StrategiConneX International,LLC during the last two months working with groups who were devising strategies to grow their business and focused on helping POW’s. He makes connections for clients by introducing them to the right military contact where they can get funding. Starting his own company with partners has brought in some business with more jobs in the pipe line, he said.

Several people had their own businesses. One man had a software company that was intertwined with Congress providing data analysis to support a data warehouse for Congress. Another person who was looking for lobbyists in the Healthcare field gave me his card. A lot of people were attending the event for the first time such as a Business Development Officer Roumen Boudin from Eagle Bank.

A young man who was seeking a job as an energy lobbyist said he’d been looking for a year for work and had volunteered on the Hill for a Senator and for the Republican party as well as a few other organizations but still did not get a job, He had sent out 130 resumes received 10 phone interviews and nothing happened. He was very passionate about saving energy and was in a fight to gain more experience.

There were about eight women at the event, one had her own business in education and training, another had a graphics and publishing enterprise, and then there were two selling insurance. Bill Stokes an executive search consultant and a board member for WING, mentioned a man who has a digital IT business verifying negative things that are being said about job candidates and through his programming expertise is able to manipulate Google so that the negative feedback is buried and appears as search comment 500. He can’t get totally rid on negative events or comments but is able to bury it. For example, my friend who sued two companies she worked for and received a nice settlement has had a difficult time since then landing another job. At the previous company she worked for for eight years as a manager she was involved in a sexual harassment suit. It took her four years to get her present contract which is half her pay and will expire in February. She could use this firm.

Resume Trends

2009-05-19T12:36:00.000-07:00

LATEST RESUME TRENDS

Here's some info on the latest resume trends...

Write a career summary that’s a snapshot of your career accomplishments.

Tell an employer about your strengths.

Use key words to show you have the qualifications and the personal qualities an employer is looking for.

Showcase your accomplishments in a dynamic Career Summary:

High octane Executive with 15 years experience marketing consumer products in the telecom industry producing $175 million in sales. As an outgoing, energetic thought leader, developed the knack of sizing up individuals and creating successful partnerships. Background in management, sales, engineering and technical knowledge of consumer products. As an Executive VP, manage a sales team of 250 and lead $200 multimillion dollar ad campaigns for products that sold RoboTV via the internet, newspapers and magazine articles. Handled all marketing campaigns for devices and marketing plans for brochures, flyers, web content. Direct maintenance and development of website and managed advertising campaigns with retail sales. Cultivate relationships with Press. Serve as point of contact. Lead briefings for events.

To write an accomplishment oriented resume that focuses on different skills., match your skills with the appropriate work experience. Tell an employer what you’ve done as well as your accomplishment.

Below you’ll see a Job Title and a List of Skills. In another column, you’ll see accomplishments associated with a skill.

Executive
Manage
Finance
Train
Leadership

Accomplishments

Manage- Managed 250 direct reports at xyz company
Finance- Added $20 million to the bottom line and saved the company $1M by changing suppliers
Train - Oversaw training of 150 sales reps at xyz company and increased sales by 20 percent
Leadership- Led seminar on emotional intelligence and increased performance by 30 percent

Technical Writer

Write

Design

Edit

Interview

Research

Graphic Design

Write - Wrote three user manuals in two months
Design- Designed style sheet and format document
Edit- Edit text written by others
Interview- Interview managers and programmers to get information
Research - Researched information on the internet
Graphic Design - Created format, schematics, and drawings in Visio

Public Relations

Manage

Market

Website administrator

Relationship guru

Accomplishments

Supervise staff comprised of : Manager, Communications Manager, Creative Services, Webmaster AdministratorImplement marketing campaigns for publications.
Develop marketing plans for brochures, flyers, web content
Direct maintenance and development of website
Cultivate -relationships with press.

Tips

Limit your resume to the last 10 years of work experience

Become an expert in your field. Join a social networking group like Linked-in to write a profile and build contacts.

Join alumni organizations or groups in your field.

Comment on discussions, write articles, or refer articles by providing links to them.

If you have an interview don’t arrive more than 10 minutes early.

Research the company to find out how the market has affected the company.

Check press releases, annual reports, media coverage, media blogs and consult your network to learn about events and the corporate culture.

At the interview you must differentiate yourself like never before. Make yourself memorable. Know about the company products.

Wait until you’ve been offered the job before talking about money. Before research the average pay range in case you are forced to name your price.

After the interview, send a thank you note to the right person.

Wait a week before calling the company to see how you did, and always call the employer at the office.

Curious About New Jobs Created By The Government Read This..

2009-03-03T23:59:00.000-08:00

What Jobs Will the Stimulus Create?
By John Rossheim, Monster Senior Contributing Writer

In his first address to Congress, President Barack Obama put his top priority for America’s beleaguered workers in simple terms: “Now is the time to jumpstart job creation.” The work of reversing the labor economy’s slide will not be so simple. The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act seeks to bring timely relief to 11.6 million unemployed Americans and 734,000 discouraged workers -- so called by the Bureau of Labor Statistics because they have given up looking. The jobs created by the Recovery Act will make a world of difference in the lives of millions, even though it can’t put everyone back to work tomorrow. “The approximately 3.5 million jobs created or saved will reflect the current distribution of jobs across the economy,” touching all industries, says Heidi Shierholz, an economist at the Economic Policy Institute. Due to the severity of the recession, “that’s not going to fill in the employment gap entirely,” she says. About 3.6 million jobs have already been lost in the recession that began December 2007, according to a February 2009 BLS report, and no one expects the losses to stop anytime soon. Four strategic sectors will receive money targeted for job creation, either directly or indirectly: energy (459,000 jobs), infrastructure (377,000), education (250,000) and healthcare (244,000), according to a report by Obama administration officials. And the broader stimulus created by government work, recession relief and tax relief is projected to create even greater numbers of jobs across the economy. Alternative Energy Jobs Get a Jolt The stimulus package calls for unprecedented spending on clean energy, including $60 billion in loan guarantees for alternative energy projects such as wind turbines and coal gasification. The money is sorely needed, because the green sector has been especially hard-hit in the downturn. “Since November, hiring has been in a lockdown,” says Doug Scott, regional managing director for recruitment firm the Mergis Group. “It’s starting to improve, because companies who have the money to make a play are now doing so.” Engineers and tradespeople should see demand for their services rise when federal funding reaches their prospective employers. “Electrical, electronic and mechanical engineers will transfer their skills the quickest to alternative energy, to work on solar panels and wind turbines, for example,” says Scott. “Technical salespeople will be needed, as will skilled tradespeople to work in installation, infrastructure and field service.” Learn more about energy-related opportunities and search for jobs.Construction and Infrastructure Win Major Support “Job growth from the stimulus will be heavier in industries that have been hit harder,” says Shierholz. “Those industries have the most opportunity for bounce-back.” Construction, with its free-falling housing sector, desperately needs that bounce. So hardhats and their coworkers should be somewhat reassured to see that Recovery Act infrastructure spending will be measured in the hundreds of billions of dollars, and so-called shovel-ready projects will receive funding as soon as this spring. For example, the infrastructure stimulus will include billions of dollars for public transit, encompassing projects ranging from railway repairs to the purchase of hybrid buses. Learn more about construction-related opportunities and search for jobs. Education Gets into the Rebuilding Act Recovery Act funding for education is projected to create or save hundreds of thousands of jobs, from teaching positions to bricklayers. This may give school officials across the country a breather as they struggle to balance budgets while state and local funding dwindles. Education spending will include a variety of initiatives, from billons of dollars in school repairs to additional millions for programs for students with learning disabilities. Learn more about education-related opportunities and search for jobs.Healthcare Gets a Shot in the Arm The stimulus package includes many billions of dollars for healthcare, including $21 billion for healthcare information systems and technology. “The new administration will emphasize capturing information to better deliver pharmaceuticals and healthcare services,” says Jason Hersh, managing partner of Kline Hersh International. “Professionals in medical informatics will be in demand over the coming years. Job seekers who are looking to transition skill sets into this environment should look into healthcare IT,” he says. Learn more about healthcare-related opportunities and search for jobs.Millions More Jobs to Be Added Across the Economy Beyond the four strategic sectors, some 2.3 million jobs are projected via other components of the stimulus package, such as extensions of unemployment benefits, aid to states and tax cuts. These jobs will be born in diverse industries, including retail, leisure and hospitality, manufacturing, professional and business services, government, financial, wholesale trade, transportation and warehousing, information technology and services, mining and utilities. Employment in these areas will likely come online sooner than jobs created in the strategic sectors. “Because it takes time to carry out new spending programs authorized by legislation, we expect the jobs created by spending on infrastructure, education, health and energy to be concentrated in 2010 and 2011” rather than this year, the administration report notes. Even given this jobs-building program of historic proportions, the rising tide of unemployment is unlikely to reverse itself in the near term. “If we can start adding net jobs in early 2010, we can say the stimulus did its job,” says Shierholz. Get Ready to Land a Stimulus Job Whether you are hoping to find a job in one of the four strategic sectors -- energy, education, infrastructure, healthcare -- or one that is indirectly created by the stimulus package, you can take action right now to be ready to stand out as the jobs are posted.
· Research: Narrowing in on the types of jobs you want and are most qualified for will help you keep your job search on task. Check out Monster’s Career Snapshots to learn about different jobs and get insiders’ perspectives on what it is like to work in these fields. This can also help you identify any skills gaps you may have so you can seek the appropriate training.
· Update Your Resume: Now that you have some potential career goals in mind, you need to make sure your resume will get you there. Be sure your resume is ready to go with your most up-to-date skills and accomplishments, and consider customizing your resume to the different jobs you plan to apply for.
· Keep an Eye on Jobs: As the stimulus begins to have its impact on the economy, the job postings will trickle in. Set up saved job searches now for your different target jobs so that Monster can notify you as they are posted. And look for when Monster’s Keep America Working Tour will come to a city near you, so you can take advantage of the on-site career-building opportunities.

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How to Write a Profile for Your Business

2008-09-17T20:19:00.000-07:00

DEVELOPING A BUSINESS PROFILE

You can showcase your purpose and strength of your company in a business profile. Your profile is like a resume for your business. It’s crucial to building your marketing visibility and letting the reader know exactly what your business does. You can mail your business profile, fax it, upload it to the net, or add it to your website as a marketing tool

You can hand carry it to sellers with a cover letter or mail it to out of town owners or financial people with copies of your testimonials. The business profile is key to selling the services of your business. It’s a sales document that provides a way to show value to a seller, private lender or institution that know virtually nothing about your company.

GUIDELINES FOR CREATING A BUSINESS PROFILE

Develop a hook or lead to draw the reader in to make them want to read more about your businesss·

Discuss how long you’ve been in business and what the business does
· Champion the services you provide and the clients you serve
· Describe the mission of your businesses and goals
· State how many houses you’ve sold and the money you’ve made
· List your telephone, address, and website

How do you build a profile? Begin with a hook or lead to interest the reader in finding out more about your business. List the services you provide. Next, tell what your business does. As a wholesaler, for example, you may be in charge of managing the following sequence of invents: finding properties, researching them, estimating rehab costs, acting as a trouble shooter when negotiating with the seller, and clearing up title problems.

STANFORD REAL ESTATE ENTERPRISES INC.
“ Quality Service since 1992”

The competitive edge that investors look for in planning renovation of undervalued properties is available at Stanford Real Estate Enterprises Inc, located in Dupont Circle in Washington, DC. This wholesaling enterprise manages the process of finding distressed properties and works with a network of rehabbers, private lenders and institutions to renovate and restore them to the market place. Stanford Real Estate troubleshoots problems caused by neglect, structural damage, clouded titles and urban blight. Properties that were once eye sores and havens for crime are targeted for rehabilitated. After restoration, they provide tax revenue for the community as well as improve the neighborhood.

A winning situation is created for everyone. Sellers are able restart their life with credit and cash in their pocket. And through team efforts the property can be returned to circulation in the real estate market. Stanford provides outstanding service as change agents for residential properties. During the past ten years, this wholesaling company has been instrumental in restoration of over 10,000 properties in the Washington Metropolitan area with earnings of 3 million dollars per year.

Stanford Real Estate builds relationships with rehabbers, lenders, and title companies, providing jobs while improving the community. Through knowledge and experience, this business solves tough, complex problems that evolve when dealing with distressed sellers and older properties. Proud of its reputation, Stanford Real Estate Enterprises has built a reputation based on integrity, dedication and a 100 percent track record of problem resolution. Call for an appointment today at 202 244-0479 or contact us at our website at Stanford Real Estate Enterprises@Yahoo.com
.

Tips to Craft an Executive Summary

2008-09-13T14:21:00.000-07:00

Writing an Executive Summary

An employer’s attention span could be limited to 30 seconds at least that’s what recruiting experts tell us. Every executive resume should have a summary that introduces the applicant and provides a quick snapshot of a job candidate’s background.

A potential boss may have the perfect candidate in mind. Most likely the keywords for this special job have already been selected and a search has been performed using the latest scanning device. The applicant with the most of these impressive keywords in their Executive Summary will most likely have their resume read or will get a call about their background and possibly an interview.

So how do you get and keep a competitive edge in this process?

Let’s start with writing an executive summary because it’s one of the most challenging parts of a resume. It represents an overview of your current work and what you’ve done in the past. Key words are used to describe your experience also represent your career. They tell the reader in a few seconds, if you have the background an employer is searching for.

To write a summary yourself, requires self knowledge and acceptance plus the ability to create a positive description from your achievements at work. Too many times, we’ve grown sick of our past and have lost sight of our salesmanship and wordsmith ability. These are tools that can be used to create a glowing portrait of your background.

How come it is easy to assist a friend when it comes to highlighting successes in their resume and so difficult to mirror our own? While no one has a 100 percent positive view of the past, you must be able to put unfortunate, embarrassing, hurtful, and terrorizing episodes behind you and focus on the positive. If you are unable to do this yourself, then it is probably less stressful and saves time to hire a creative resume writer to craft your resume for you.

But seriously, if inducing amnesia or purchasing the services of a resume writer is too costly, you can always write it yourself. Begin your summary with a catchy phrase or description about your career. For example, you could start with:

“Results driven executive with 20 years experience in sales and marketing” or “Seasoned professional with a background in financial services and operations.”

There are many phrases that could describe what you’ve done to show you have business skills and the soft skills to manage others. To open up a world of ideas search on different careers which display job descriptions at Monster.com or other search engines or go to your local library to read resume books on Executive Resumes that contain resumes that have been collected by expert resume writers. Then begin tailoring your resume to fit the job.

If you are applying for an executive position most employers will want to know about your managerial skills such as the number of people you supervise and how you help them develop skills, take initiative and experience job growth.

Other possible questions are:

How do you inspire staff to meet the company’s mission? Or how do you distribute the work load, develop and implement strategies, procedures and follow-up and perform evaluations that ensure quality results?

Other answers to questions you may want to integrate into your summary or resume are:

Ø How do you build effective collaborate relationships for managing staff and stake holders?

Ø How do you demonstrate ethical vigilance and model behaviors that support the companies’ values of integrity, service, respect and excellence?

Ø How do you motivate and inspire others?

Ø How do you increase the bottom line or save the company money?

Ø In your summary briefly highlight your most important skills. For instance, you may have an operations and managerial background that could be summarized in a succinct statement.

Ø Don’t forget to integrate information about personal qualities into your summary.

But keep it short. Information in the summary should not be repeated in the body of the resume. If you want to get into more detail about one of your achievements describe it in the body of the resume, if you’ve got space.

If you’re writing about your current job, the writing should be in the present tense using the nominative case but leaving out the pronoun. For example, “As topnotch manager, spent 17 years acting as a risk consultant in the oil and gas industry.” In stead of writing, “As a topnotch manager, I spent 17 years as a risk manager in the oil and gas industry.”

When writing KSA’s for Federal positions, a job applicant always uses “I” to describe their background unlike the format that is traditionally used in a corporate or executive resume

For examples of Executive Resumes go to http://www.resumecrafters.com/. Find the index on the left and click on Samples

A Work Place Phenomenon

2008-09-03T14:05:00.000-07:00

A Work Place Phenomenon

Currently there is a workplace phenomenon called Munchausen at Work that’s now attracting attention. Workers are making up stories about events that never happened to take credit for fixing them according to a story in the Washington Post by Phred Dvorak.

A night manager, for example, called the owner of a restaurant to report that she had handled an out of control customer by giving her a free meal. The owner subsequently reviewed the surveillance footage only to discover the manager had made up the incident to look good and was afraid to confront the employer about a raise.

Munchausen at Work is a type of illness that has been named after the Baron Munchhausen who lived during the 18 century and told may dramatic and untruthful stories to gain attention. Later a book was published called The Surprising Adventures of Baron Munchausen by Rudolf Raspe.

This type of behavior is considered by psychologists to be a form of Munchausen syndrome and now refers to a psychological disease where people make up history about an illness or create sicknesses in others to gain attention.

At the work place such stories about heroic deeds may be hard to detect and get rid of. Perpetrators may gain promotions or recognition. According to work place psychologists, this syndrome happens in many industries. For example, executives may withhold help or key information and then step in to save the day. Some executives don’t want to give up control. Instead they undermine their staff favorites and then suddenly appear to repair the damage to show how indispensible they are.

In another case, a woman celebrated fixing a problem that she had secretly created. The manager blamed computer glitches as the reason for a delay in depositing insurance checks only to discover that the manager had them squirreled away in her desk. Subsequently, she was fired.

What To Include In Your KSA's

2008-09-02T16:45:00.000-07:00

You Don't Need A Special Form To Answer KSAs...

Each KSA should be listed on a separate piece of paper. The average length is from one full type -written page to a half a page. Be sure to list your name, job announcement number and position title at the top of each page.

In order to be selected for an interview for a Federal job, you must compete with other folks to describe your Knowledge, Skills, Abilities for a particular job.

If the KSAs are submitted on-line do not use bullets, bold lines, or under lined text. Each agency has its own address and method for submitting the KSA, so thoroughly read the job description on line at http://www.usajob.gov/.

Begin writing your KSA by using “I” to start each work experience or accomplishments.

Ask your self these questions “When, Where, or Why" did you accomplish these tasks, how often did you do them and what were the results. Incorporate this information in the KSA.
Use forceful verbs to describe your activity summarizing your experience. Discuss examples that support your statements or attach examples of your work that show a detailed description of what you did.

Be sure to note the kind and level of training that you completed.

Include computer based on-line training, seminars, classes, hands-on training on the job or self-taught tutorials you completed for new software. Include special licenses or certifications that are relevant to the job description.

Discuss your experience for all agencies, offices, and departments you worked for to show the depth and range of experience.

Write about how you used your skills in the office and for other offices to produce results using software to achieve results.

If you supervised people tell how many and what your special duties were in regard to your employees.

If on the other hand, if you do not have a supervisory background but performed in a leadership role with those you worked with for such tasks as planning the work load and assigning work to others describe what you did.

Did you work independently with little supervision? Were you a self starter who had to draft memorandums or letters? Did you assist in managing and supervising programs? If so, include this information in the KSA.

Did you coordinate large projects and coordinate activities for several groups? If so describe how you coordinated responsibilities and acted as a strategic planner.

Does your job impact the safety of others? If so discuss the standards you followed in your current and past jobs.

If you oversaw the work of others, discuss how many employees you supervised, their titles, and what were your supervisory responsibilities.

If you have worked as a Supervisor you must elaborate on your leadership skills:

Demonstrate leadership qualities by discussing how you helped others work towards the organization’s vision, mission and goals in an environment that fosters reduction of conflict, self development, cooperation and teamwork.

Show how you used technical knowledge, analysis of problems and risks to achieve high quality results; manage human, financial, and informational resources; and build coalitions with other Federal Agencies, state and local governments and non-profit organizations.

Mention in your KSAs, new groups you may have contact with such as different process engineering work environments, partnerships, and quality work groups.

Describe how you showed initiative and creativity in your office while working under stressful conditions. Name the projects, programs, products, or activities you were responsible for and how you used your experience and strengths to get the job done. Tell what you did in a detailed explanation to save time and money and how you achieved results in percentages. For example: I implemented Sarbanes Oxley cost procedures that saved the office over 50 percent in miscellaneous expenditures during the last year.

List all the monetary and other recognition awards such as letters of achievement, write-ups in your office newsletter and scholarship, service, or volunteer awards.

Name contacts and your relationship with headquarter staff, agencies, inspectors, government officials or authorities.
· .

McJobNews

2008-03-11T09:02:00.000-07:00

Wednesday, September 20, 2006

Perfect Candidates For Broadcast News

Experienced journalists have skills for broadcast news says an expert...

With a writing background your skills can be easily transferred, according to Bridgette Langmade Polmar, a ten-year veteran who has made a career out of covering stories for top local television stations in the Washington metropolitan area.She spoke recently at a Washington Independent Writer’s September workshop on “Writing For The Ear.” along with broadcast journalists Jennifer Davis and Jim Davis.Polmar offered some advice about how to write a story for broadcast news.

-Write like you were having a conversation with a friend.
-Break all the rules of grammar. Use nothing but contractions, half sentences, and no pronouns.
-Refer to everyone as “folks”. Folks at the bus stop, soccer field, and at the department store. Everybody is just plain folks.

-Don’t use an ellipse instead use dashes.

-Read your story out loud. The TV newsroom is loud and raucous with everyone talking to himself or herself at the level the story will be presented on camera.

-Producing a story for broadcast journalism it is a group effort, where you are a member of a team.

-Learn to work with a video editor, a cameraman, and photographer.

-Combine sound and pictures and write around them.

-Make your words clear and razor sharpNatural SoundCues for “Natural Sound” are integrated into every script. Music and graphics are added. The writer is a storyteller who uses his or her creativity to craft a story through pictures, sound and words. A horn honking, the sound of steps on a gravel driveway, laughter or birds makes up “natural sound.”

The writer in broadcast journalism enters these cues into the script but relies on a team of experts to shoot the shots and integrate the sound and edit the piece. Unlike print journalists who assume a god like role by evoking emotion through writing descriptions and dialogue, a broadcast journalist has different tricks to offer by artfully using film, video, and words to trigger emotion.“You can be brought to tears in 60 seconds through TV while it could take 15 minutes to create the same effect through a magazine article," said Polmar.

Even the way words of a story are counted is different. In TV everything is measured in seconds compared to counting words and lines in a news article.A broadcast writer’s job is to create a “paint by numbers” document that tells where the pictures will go and gives directions to the team and creates words that will later be read by an anchor.“Thirty percent of my job is watching tapes and writing around their contents. I work with a video editor picking out sound bites.

I brainstorm with the photographer to create a compelling interesting shot to open the story with,” according to Jim Davis, a freelance broadcast journalist who works for Cox News.Broadcast journalism has its own language. There is a kind of shorthand for such words as a vo, achor tag, anchor toss, Ap on track, double bites on vo etc. You learn this while working in media, said Jennifer Davis, a television reporter who has worked for Fox, CBS, Discovery, and National Geographic.Money While salaries for anchors may be higher, writers' salaries are decreasing in broadcast journalism, according to Polmar.

As a freelancer you can expect to make $50,000 a year or between $300 – 400 per day. As a freelancer, being a member of a Union ensures that you will have health benefits.On some jobs you are expected to write something each hour if you work an eight-hour day. Writing to meet deadlines is very important.

Establishing Your SelfBreaking into broadcast journalism can be challenging. Adopting an attitude of being “Fearless and shameless” helps,” according to Polmar.Networking is important. Don’t be afraid to call well-known people in the business asking for an informational interview in exchange for coffee. If they turn you down, keep going. Some well established people have a generous streak when it comes to beginners, she believes.Reading books will help speed up your learning curve. Check out “Successful Television Writing,” by Lee Goldberg and William Rabkin or bone up on the basics of speech writing in “Can You Say a Few Words,” by Joan Detz (St. Martin’s Press, April 2006).

“Rewriting Network News,” (1990) and “Writing Broadcast News,” (1977) by Mervin Block http://www.mervinblock.com/A portfolio of work is required before you get into the game. Finding an internship at a news organization is the way to go according to Polmar who ignited her own career by working as an intern for CNN.Once you’ve got samples to show of your work, it is time to get a job. Contact alumini who are in the field from college and invite them to lunch or dinner to develop contacts. Keep your campaign of cold calling active as a way of making new contacts.

Join Women in Film & Video Listseve at www@wif.com (subscription); Intl. Television and Video Assoc (Free on-line DC Production Guide) http://www.itvadic.org/, and http://www.mandy.com/ (free) Into Film & TV Production Resources.For employment resources check out: WIW Job Bank (subscription) http://www.washwriter.org/ to join.Freelance Marketplace (subscription)

http://www.mediabistro.com/http://www.washingtondc.craigslist.org/
posted by Barbara LaBier @ 12:15 PM 0 comments
Sunday, September 10, 2006

How Long Should My Resume Be?

CRAFTING RESUMES

Cutting your resume down to size may be as painful as cutting off your baby toe for some...but in today's world shorter is better.It's a fact that corporate resumes should be no longer than two pages long for people with a lifetime of experience. Remember an employer only wants to see the last ten years of your work history. If for example, you’ve done many things during your career but the experience most relevant to the job you're seeking occurred in 1992, you might consider writing a functional resume. There are tricks for overcoming your lack of work consistency that can still make you look presentable on paper.Your resume should high light the skills described by the job description which should be treated as a sacred document. Recent graduates or those headed for their first job should write resumes that are no longer than one page. There are exceptions, of course, to the rule. One client at Resume Crafters had a scientific background with most of her relevant experience in two internships. The articles she created were published in a prestigious scientific journal. The resume focused on her hands on studies in nature, awards and papers. In another case, a young anthropologist had most of her relevant experience not in jobs but in internships where she got to use the skills she was trained for conserving exhibitions. Most employers don’t want to read more than one page and are over whelmed with thousands of replies to their job advertisement that appear on line search engines such as Career Builder, Monster, Net-temps, or Hotjobs.

Keep this in mind when you edit your resume.Resumes written for the government have different rules. Each agency has its own criteria for writing your resume these days that is described in information accompaning the job description at http://www.usa.gov/ website where you can search for jobs. Government agencies are trying to reduce paper work across the enterprise and want shorter resumes. If you recall in the past, the 171 form was used to apply for a federal job. While you can still use this form or the shorter 612, agencies prefer a shorter resume. However, there are exceptions. The Holocaust Museum, for example, limits the number of characters and spaces you can use in developing the text for each position. Several months ago an executive position was open in the marketing department. According to a job specialist, the length of the document could be from two pages to 16 pages.

The number of spaces and characters were specified and they numbered in the thousands. Resumes, I was informed are scanned and matched against specific job criteria that have been set up for each job. The resumes that make the final cut are set aside. Several months down the road high-ranking job candidates are interviewed.Barbara LaBier
posted by Barbara LaBier @ 6:42 AM 0 comments
Wednesday, September 06, 2006

CAREER DIGEST I

CAREER DIGEST

Executive Tips for Your Job

GOT A BIG INTERVIEW SCHEDULED AND YOU'RE NOT SURE HOW TO PREPARE?

HERE ARE SOME IDEAS FOR NAILING THE INTERVIEW

Act enthusiastic about the job. Employers are impressed by your energy level and a willingness to jump in and learn.

KNOW THE ORGANIZATION

While your college pedigree may be impeccable what is more impressive to an interviewer is knowing details about an organization where you are applying -- such as the number of employees on staff, how large it is and what they do.

DON’T TRY TO CHANGE AN ORGANIZATION

If during the interview, If you’re asked about what you’d do on your first day on the job don’t tell a potential employer that you have a vision for changing the organization. In other words don’t over reach. Become familiar with the corporate culture before making suggestions about changes

PREPARE ANSWERS BEFORE HAND

Rehearse answers to even the most predictable inquires such as “What’s the most challenging business problem you’ve ever faced and how did you handle it?” Avoid appearing like a the deer-caught in the headlights withs double takes and vague replies. Don’t be caught off guard by questions that seem to make you look unprepared. Make sure you’ve researched details that you can weave into the conversation.

DON’T USE ANSWERS YOU’VE REHEARSED IN APPROPRIATELY

You can memorize your lines but don’t deliver them at the wrong time.

DO INCLUDE THE UNEXPECTED

Never sound boring or become intimidated by your interviewer. Always have a few anecdotes you’ve prepared to illustrate a point to make the conversation interesting.

DON’T FORGET TO EXPECT SOME HUMILIATION

Answer questions calmly and stand your ground. Be honest and show your integrity, don’t allow the interview to make you sound angry or defensive.

BE LIKEABLE

Answer questions with an easy smile and disarming rapport and earn an extra two or three minutes to present your case just because you’re likeable.

DON’T BE TOO SLICK

While it is good to be assertive and confident, don’t over due it. Shiny surfaces don’t impress executives who look beneath them. Employers are thinking about the candidate for the job in these terms," I have to like this person, think their nice. Can I work with this person everyday? Can I be in a meeting with him or her? Can I talk to him or her? Do I want my clients to be with him or her? Does this person fit into our culture?

DO LET THEM SEE THE REAL YOU

Be open about your life as a wife or husband and businessperson. Don’t be afraid of adding anecdotes about your family if they are relevant and serve a point.

DON’T HID EVERY FLAW

It’s the oldest interview question in the book: what are your weaknesses? Tell the truth. Trying to hide every imperfection may result in revealing things you never meant too.

MAP A LIFE PLAN

Law school, business school, professional football, your own company, you may seem to have it all except a sense of direction about f where you’re headed today. Your interviewer may think that if they hire you, you many change course again. Don’t let your interviewer see your weakness. Give yourself a clear direction in life, at least for the interview.

DON’T FORGET THE COMPANY’S PLACE IN YOUR LIFE

Make sure you can talk about past jobs in length including the one you are applying for. Explain how your prior experiences have prepared you for the current job you are applying for. What personal growth do you hope to achieve at the new job and what can you contribute?“See yourself as victorious. We have a lot of chances and opportunities and the timetable for achievement is often greater than we think it is. Don’t ever shortchange yourself on what life has to offer. The only losers are people who never try. Failing means you tried something. That means you are capable of trying again, which means you are capable of success. It is very important to remain optimistic and keep moving forward. But above all, you can never give up. Never, ever, give up. Be tenacious. It is the best way to handle setbacks and the best way to achieve success. Believe in yourself in all circumstances.” --- Donald Trump.

MISCELLANEOUS QUESTIONS·

Tell me about your leadership style- what’s it like to work for you?·

Would you enjoy working for you?·

When it is appropriate to bend the rules?·

What do you think would be your ideal job in this organization?·

How important is education to you?·

Do you consider yourself a loyal employee?·

Who is on your enemy list?·

Why should this company hire you for this job?

Material for this article comes from Lessons from the Apprentice, by Michael Robin. The reality television show The Apprentice aired on CBS staring Donald Trump and his staff of advisors. During a 13-week period last fall , contestants competed for a job at Trump Enterprises. They were interviewed and tasked with grueling professional challenges.

ROMANTIC LOVE AND THE GOOD LIFE

What does romantic love and a good job have in common? A great deal, according to E.L. Kersten , a former professor of organizational communications. His article, appears in the February's Harvard Business Review.The romantic ideal of finding a perfect mate is doomed to failure Kersten argues because of unrealistic expectations. If you hold on to these false expectations, the author says you'll end up disappointed and make your life partner miserable. In the same way he says employees get excited about the corporate ideal of the “right job.” A job that will meet all your needs rarely exists. People who subscribe to these beliefs have bought into a personalized version of Maslow’s hierarchy of Needs customized to fit their ideals. They too share a fantasy that they soon discover rarely happens. As a result employees feel frustrated, disappointed and demeaned when they discover that business is more interested in what they do than who they are.

Statistic reveal that last year only 50% of U.S. workers were satisfied with their jobs, the lowest point yet in a steady decline that began in 1995, says the author. With an exception of a few years, job satisfaction in the U.K. has been dropping since 1991 according to research done at the University of Kent.Participants in a study complained about the lack of personal fulfillment, “robotic” meaningless work, work/ life imbalance, insufficient acknowledgement of efforts and lack of influence with supervisors. Conventional wisdom blames unhappiness on poor leadership and a bad work environment. But have working conditions in the past decade really degraded so much for so many? Decline in satisfaction persists in periods when employers have the ability to make changes and when workers have been lucky to have jobs at all. Moreover, an average worker spends more than two hours of each eight-hour day surfing the Internet, conducting personal business or just spacing out. This suggests that many employees have autonomy and a manageable workload.Perhaps employees are dissatisfied because they’ve been taught to expect too much from their jobs, Kersten says.

In the 1990’s organizational behaviorists concluded that great work environments would produce happy, productive workers. Humanists suggested that work should be a vehicle for growth and self-expression. These ideas became part of conversation for companies and observers of companies including management companies and the business press. Employees as a result came to expect that their jobs would be satisfying and meaningful and their employers would help them grow professionally and develop their true potential.

Much misery could be avoided if employees do not expect companies to imbue their lives with meaning. You have the right to expect a decent wage, good working conditions but not self-fulfillment from your employer concludes Kersten.This article was abstracted from Breakthrough ideas for 2006, Harvard Business Review “Why they call it work”, by E.L. Kersten a former professor of organizational communications.. Kersten heads a company in Austin Texas that produces satirical products for the office.

MANAGING A SCARY BOSS

Great intimidators create fear and loathing at work but they also create value in the work place, according to Roderick M. Kramer, a organizational psychologist whose has written about intimidating bosses in February's Harvard Business Review.Kramer found from his research that intimidators have great political intelligence and are able to utilize the weakness and insecurities of others to get what they want through manipulation. They use the strategy of keeping everyone guessing because it is easier to change direction without losing credibility if people don’t know where you’re coming from, catching them by surprise. Despite all the chaos they create, intimidators are magnets for the best and brightest workers.People want to learn from them and they inspire great performance. In the best situation, they are able to turn around organizations and in the worst situation may find themselves suddenly fired.

To subordinates, they may be unfeeling, cold, and abusive. Rage is always an option to strike fear in the heart of those who have displeased them. Employees are left with fear, trepidation and anxiety about being fired. In general intimidators are detailed oriented and do their homework. The great ones are organized, clear thinking, tough-minded and surround themselves with smart people who can engage in combat with them.

They have people skills that can be turned on instantly when sucking up to those who count in their world as well as being cold, icy, and dismissive to subordinates.So if it’s your luck to be promoted to a job under one of them, how do you survive? The trick to reaping big benefits, says Kramer, is to find a way to work effectively with them and get them to mentor you. Here are a few suggestions to get on their good side:

DO YOUR HOMEWORK.

Check out the great intimidator’s past. Find out which people have managed to work effectively with them. Learn what worked and what did not.

WORK HARDER

Work smarter and not harder means being efficient and clever with one’s time. Putting in time may impress the great intimidator even more. Matching their energy and drive is one way to get their attention. Work nights, weekends… give 200 percent. Be open to getting anything, anywhere and any time, Kramer suggests.

LAUGH AT THEIR ANTICS AND EARN THEIR RESPECT

Proving yourself unflappable is a great way to impress them.

CALL THEIR BLUFF

If you suspect they are mixing truth and fiction say out loud “I don’t believe it.” This puts the ball back in the intimidator’s court by showing you're not a push over. Show you’re tough under pressures and that your inner steel matches their own.

KEEP YOUR PERSPECTIVE

Don’t take things too seriously. One employer purposely interviewed his candidates by having them sit in the hot seat in an office with the hot sun streaming in a through a window while he remained in darkness. He secretly buzzed his secretary to come in very few minutes with new information to disorient the candidate and throw him off. However, he persevered and got the job.

STICK AROUND

Don’t pack your bag and leave because you want an easier job but remember why you wanted to work for the great intimidator in the first place. By learning through the processes of working for him, you can sharpen your own negotiation skills.Abstracted from the article, The Great Intimidator, by Roderick M. Kramer, Harvard Business Review, February 20006

EXECUTIVE RECRUITING REMOVES BARRIERS

Executive recruiting, one of the most exclusive businesses around, is finally opening up its membership and that is paving the way for fresh faces according to Roger O. Crockett in February's Business Week. large headhunting firms are promoting new search talent including Heidrick & Struggles International Inc, and James Citrin at Spencer Stuart, who is part of the old boy network. But perhaps the most notable elite are Roger Tribbett and partner Andrea Redmond, co-directors of their CEO and Board practice at Russell Reynolds Associates, Inc. The pair has been shaking up and the corporate world. For years Roche, 74, has ruled this high stake business as senior chairman at Heidrick and by Thomas J. Neff, 67, chairman of Spencer Stuart. It used to be that CEO succession was about attracting stars during the go-go 90’s. But the corporate world and the game of executive search is changing.

Today’s work force is more mobile. Loyality has been usurped by mobility even at the top.CEO turnover of 12 percent now matches the normal attrition rate for all employees. According to BNA Inc, the rate of CEO dismissals among the world’s 2500 largest public companies increased by 300 percent from 1995 to 2004. At a time when China and India are the hot markets and Latinos, the surging population and Gen X workers are replacing aging baby boomers.There is no inner sanctum more controlled by elder white males. says Joseph Daniel McCool, former editor of Executive Recruiter News.Andrea and Charles represent fresh perspective in an industry that in many ways was antiquated.

They are trying to get boards to think differe4ntly about leadership. Redmond is 49, is one of the few women at her level in the industry, Tribbett, 50, is regarded as the highest ranking African American in the industry"We’re going beyond the top 10 companies for CEO’s "says Tribbett. When they are on assignment they try to become insiders at the company, familiar with its troubles, prospects, and culture. They suggest unknown names.If someone shoots you down one day, you have to come back another day and say I listened and understand exactly what you are saying but I would like you to hear me out on this.

RECRUITERS’ TIPS FOR CLIMBING TO THE TOPCONSIDER THE TRADE-OFF

Family time suffers, hobbies get shelved, work vacations don’t exist.“If you ‘re running an organization, you can’t wake up Monday and decide to check your email,” says Redmond.

BUILD A REPUTATION

Executives should stay at one company for at least five years. Two or three years is not enough tenure to demonstrate success.

GET OUT OF THE US

There is no substitute for working abroad. Boards want global executives who can diversify the company.

LOOK FOR A COACH

Managers with big ambitions should find an executive coach... someone who can advise them on career moves and once they arrive, serve as a confidantInformation abstracted from Business Week –Roger O. Crockett The New Kingmakers,- February2006

THERAPY OVER THE INTERNETE-

Coaching may soon become part of the telemedicine and telehealth movement in the near future ...Right now, however, E-therapy is one of the most innovate therapies being used by psychiatrists, psychologists and counselors overcoming major health barriers such as distance, scheduling, stigma and cost.Therapy via the internet uses email, handheld computer devices, computerized telephone systems and websites and streaming video to treat conditions such as anxiety, addiction and post-traumatic stress disorder for clients who in many cases could not receive traditionally therapy because of location and other problems.For example, in San Jose California, office of addiction counselor Leslie Washburn, welcomes a group of alumni of an intensive alcohol treatment.

The therapy sessions are broadcast using streaming video. The faces of 7 patients are broadcast individually on separate screens as they converse using microphones while participating in a group session. The therapist is located at the center on another computer. A list of screen names appears at the bottom of each screen as the members arrive. One logs in from Alaska, another from Cairo, Egypt and others from other cities in the US. The computer screen captures the intense emotions from each client's face and voice as they recount the events and problems of the previous week.Jay Shore, a psychiatrist at the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center at the Veterans Administration Health Center, says this hi-tech treatment is already the norm for him.. Only four of his 20 hour a weekly clinical hours are traditionally face-to-face psychiatry, the rest involve patients located hundreds of miles away. For three years he’s conducted weekly group therapy using videoconferencing for Vietnam veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder.How well do these therapies work?

According to a study being conducted at Penn State, preliminary findings indicate that the computer works as well as face-to-face therapy and is a lot cheaper. However, according to the American Psychological Association much more research is needed to determine how effective this type of therapy really is. what problems do you get quality health care.

This article was abridged from The Promise of Therapy by Beryl Lieff Benderly from Volume 16, Scientific American Mind. E of success.

posted by Barbara LaBier @ 6:05 AM 0 comments
Saturday, September 02, 2006

McJob News

The Fate of Older Workers Get Better with Time According to Studies...

Many baby boomers who turn 60 this year are retiring and 25 year olds may take their places.This seems like a good deal to some employers. As more people retire the workforce will become filled with flexible, young, cheaper labor who have years of productive service ahead of them.Right now, workplace policies, age-discrimination and early retirement incentives push older workers out of full-time jobs; and, when they leave they take critical knowledge, relationships and expertise with them. according to Catherine Green, of Green Consulting Group, a leading futurist organization located in Chevy Chase, MD. She spoke at a 40 plus Meeting held in Washington last month.As time marches on, changing demographics will highlight the fact that there are fewer younger workers available to work. One of these days, older workers will be sorely missed at the workplace, according to studies that predict a competition for talent among US companies for older workers by 2015. Eventually, some of them will be appreciated and treated as rare jewels.Why? Because older workers have it over young folks.

The older generation has values, customer service and problem solving skills that are lacking in some of the younger generation. On the other hand, older workers are more set in their ways and have expensive health benefits. Because there were certain periods when fewer children were born in the US, there is a growing shortage of younger workers.Every older worker will not be accepted with open arms. It is only the best of the older workers who will be sought after with special employment treatment, says Green. Meanwhile, you can work at Home Depot and other companies who are interested in hiring older workers. See the link below.But what if you can’t retire because of your financial situation or other reasons? What are your options?Green suggests continuing to upgrade your skills.

There are certain industries such as health care that are desperate for workers and other areas that are discussed in studies created by AARP that are located in the links located below. Baby boomers are considered to be the most outspoken and activist generation in history. Today’s employers must be educated to see the value in an aging workforce, and most likely baby boomers will be up to the job of changing their minds.AARP has put together a study examining the recruitment and retention of workers as business case perspectives. See links below to look at jobsites where you can find employers who are seeking older works and where a job search can be performed.Examples of employer practices to attract and retain 50+ workers:http://www.aarp.org/research/work/employment/aresearch-import-892.htmlThe careers section of AARP’s web site:http://www.aarp.org/careers/ This site lists the employers that participate in the AARP National Employer Team, which connects employers who are interested in hiring 50+ workers with job seekers.http://www.aarp.org/featuredemployersThis site explains the AARP employer recognition program and includes information about some of the practices that these employers have in place to attract and retain 50+ workershttp://www.aarp.org/bestemployers

Barbara LaBier posted by Barbara LaBier @ 6:06 PM 0 comments

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