Monday, January 30, 2012

Tweet your way to a new job: 8 Twitter templates

By Amy Levin-Epstein 

Recently I spoke to industry experts about how to maintain your Facebook page and LinkedIn profile so as to enhance, and not derail, your career. But can you tweet your way to a new job? The answer is yes -- if you use your 140 characters wisely. I've asked eight career experts for their best Twitter job search tips, as well as for specific sample tweets. You can tweak the eight basic templates below for your industry and desired position.


Note that some of these templates may be tweeted en masse to your (hopefully industry-targeted) network. But others should be sent directly to the corporate Twitter handle of your dream company, or to individuals there, suggests Tony Morrison, vice president of business development at Cachinko. "This builds an open channel of communication," Morrison says. One last suggestion: only post on Twitter what you would say face-to-face to your current boss, if you have a job.



Ask a question to start a conversation
The goal with Twitter shouldn't be to get a job offer, but to start a conversation that will lead to a job interview. Politely asking for feedback or a short coffee meeting can get that ball rolling, says Heather R. Huhman, founder of Come Recommended. Here's her sample tweet that should trigger responses:

@Looking for a job in X field, and would greatly appreciate feedback on my online portfolio! Check it out here: [link]



Be super specific
What value could you bring to a particular company? This should be front and center in an interview -- and in a tweet, says Caroline Ceniza-Levine, partner at Six Figure Start. Here is Ceniza-Levine's sample tweet for a marketing position:

@employerX I've run social media campaigns that increase Likes by 25% and followers by 10%. I can do the same for you [insert shortened LinkedIn profile hyperlink here]



Be attention-grabbing
Key words and appropriate hash tags allow Twitter's unique features to draw attention to your tweet, says Luis Perez, career advisor with Winter, Wyman. Here is Perez's sample tweet for an engineering position:


Accomplished mobile app engineer; knows #OOP, 4 and 5 star rated portfolio and high engagement rate. Just published this award winning app [insert hyperlink.]

Show your stuff


Be sure to link to samples of your work, says Ellen Lubin-Sherman, author The Essentials of Fabulous: Because Whatever Doesn't Work Here Anymore. Her example:

@employerX Searching for a new X? I believe in "show, don't tell." My online portfolio is proof positive I will deliver. [insert hyperlink]"


Tips 5 - 8 and complete CBS News article




Amy Levin-Epstein
Amy Levin-Epstein is a freelance writer who has been published in dozens of magazines (including Glamour, Self and Redbook), websites (including AOLHealth.com, Babble.com and Details.com) and newspapers (including The New York Post and the Boston Globe). To read more of her writing, visit AmyLevinEpstein.com. Follow her on Twitter at @MWOnTheJob.

Friday, January 27, 2012

Why Your Networking Sucks — And the Secret to Doing it Right

By Therese Schwenkler

Wanna know a secret?

Your networking sucks.

No worries, though. Mine used to suck, too, until I discovered the secret: stop networking altogether.
See, a few years ago I was a young professional, fresh out of college and ready to conquer the world. “It’s all about the people you know,” everyone told me. And so I went out to meet some people — I went out to “network.”

No matter how hard I tried, though, and no matter how many people I talked to, it never really got me anywhere.

I couldn’t understand what I was doing wrong. I couldn’t understand why people weren’t offering me jobs or leads or becoming my new BFFs. Instead I was lucky if they even remembered my name.

Fast forward two years to the fall of 2011.

I stared at my computer screen in disbelief.

“I’d like to fly to Boise and meet you in person. I’m really interested in what you’re doing,” read the message in front of me.

“Me?” my voice echoed around the empty room.

I looked around to see if there was any other Therese Schwenkler he could have been speaking of. Nope, it was just me.

Soren Gordhamer, the founder of the Wisdom 2.0 Conference? The guy who knows all these awesome people at Google and Facebook and whose sold-out conference features Eckhart Tolle (one of Oprah’s favorite peeps)? Soren Gordhamer wants to come talk to me? In my hometown of Boise, Idaho?
This was only the first of many unexpected and wonderful relationships that I’ve built in the past half year, one of many that have helped shape me into the person I am today.

So what am I doing differently now? How did I go from being a complete networking loser to forming relationships with some of the most genuine, most interesting, most well-connected people around?
It’s simple, really: I dropped the whole notion of “networking” and did something completely different instead — a little something I like to call “non-networking.”
Here’s how it’s done (or rather, here’s how it’s not done).

How to non-network in two simple steps:

1. Develop your own brand of awesomesauce

Awesomesauce is simply that thing that makes you interesting. It’s that thing that makes you, well, you.
Joel Runyon has it. So does Amber Rae. And Charlie Hoehn. You know what those people stand for when you see their names, right? That’s their awesomesauce.

Have you found your awesomesauce? If you haven’t yet, get on it. Otherwise you’ll forever be out of the game.

When I started growing my website, The Unlost, I unwittingly discovered my own brand of awesomesauce. All of the sudden people started coming to me. Bloggers and authors and brand strategists and entrepreneurs — suddenly they wanted to know who I was and what I was doing.
The concept’s simple, really: When you’re doing something interesting and unique, something that’s truly you, when you’re infused with energy and passion and life, people become intrigued. People want to get to know you.

And that’s the goal of networking, right? Developing your own brand is simply coming at it from a different angle.

Everybody — yes, everybody — should take the time to discover and build their own brand of awesomesauce.

2. Stop caring about results and start caring about relationships

Thursday, January 26, 2012

Create Google Plus Circles for Your Job Search

by Hannah Morgan



OK, I got you with the headline, but first, can we talk about your job search approach…reactive or proactive?

Proactive Job Search

Defined by me (and others as well) as one in which you are seeking information from target company contacts about opportunities that may not yet be public.  A proactive job search is one in which you have control over.  Miriam Salpeter of Keppie Careers writes for On Careers and her post The Best Way to Take Control of Your Job Search has more detail (plus she references some of my tips!)

Reactive Job Search

This is the type of search where all you do is apply for jobs that are announced on job boards.  You spend most of your time just applying to jobs and are most likely one of hundreds or thousands applying.  Obviously, this type of search requires less effort and also nets poorer results.

Define Your Target Audience

Just ask yourself, “Who are the employers that would hire this type of position?”.  If you don’t know that answer to that question, ask people you know if they have the answer.  You can also visit your public library or check out some of the resources in Going Directly to the Source.

Now, On to the fun stuff!

If you haven’t heard about Google Plus (Google+) yet, you will probably want to check it out.  Whether you are an active or a passive job seeker, this tool has some great features and Search Engine power (it is a Google product!). You can read more about the features and benefits of Google Plus on Google+ Opens Up…Should You Jump On for Job Search?

Finding Targets on Google +

After you have created your branded Google Plus profile and shared at least one interesting/on brand post/update on Google+, you are ready to create circles and start adding people to your circles.
I suggest creating circles by target company to make it easy and clear to follow what they are saying and doing.  If it is easier for you to create a circle called “Target Companies” that’s fine too.

Read the rest of the CareerSherpa article for more tips and examples



Hannah Morgan, Job Search , Career and Social Media Strategist
Founder of Career Sherpa.net

What you will find on my site:

I dish out all kinds of advice on job search, careers, social networking, personal branding, you name it. Everything that has anything to do with providing you with necessary information to start your job search off on the right foot, keep it moving forward and maintain the search momentum once you’ve landed your next great gig!

Wednesday, January 25, 2012

Career Change After 50: Tips from an Expert

Nicholas Lore, author of The Pathfinder, shares six tips from his new book.

Nicholas Lore is a pioneer in the world of career coaching.

For one thing, he actually coined the term "career coaching" back in the early 1980s.

Before then, coaches were for athletes. In the years since, he and the career coaches at his company, Rockport Institute  have helped more than 15,000 people find the right career path for them.

In 1998, the first edition of his book The Pathfinder: How to Choose or Change Your Career for a Lifetime of Satisfaction and Success, put his new methodology into print and became a bestseller, recommended by Presidents and Ivy League schools. This week, the long-awaited updated and revised edition came out, with new chapters and updates.

I had the chance to talk with Nick Lore about the new book and his advice on choosing and changing careers, which is a special passion of mine as well.

He's a delightful example of what is possible when you consciously create the career change you want.
He made a major career change himself thirty years ago, when he was running an alternative energy company but realized it wasn't actually satisfying for him. Seeking out traditional career planning resources to find a new direction, he found the methods were too limiting.

Wanting a more holistic and personal look at what he wanted to be doing—and with the support of a remarkable friend and mentor, future-thinker Buckminster Fuller—Lore created a new methodology for people to see the elements and pieces of what it makes to make "a spectacular career choice."

I asked him what advice he had for people making career changes mid-life or later.

He answered, "What I tell them is that you can do it. Even though there will be voices discouraging you—some of which might be your own—voices telling you to stick with that job you hate because it pays well or whatever… you can do it. Thousands of people have changed their careers entirely, and you can do it, too."

Career changing at any stage of life can have a happy ending. Success stories for the Rockport Institute include an attorney who now runs a music school, and an economist who became a consumer product designer.

Nick was emphatic about the need for knowing what you're looking for if you want to succeed.
"The trick is that you have to be absolutely sure of your new career direction, because equilibrium and homeostasis is powerful. If you're at all vague about what you want, your mind will talk you out of it."
He shared some great tips from the new book for people over 50 who want to find a job they love:

1. Make it a project.
Design your career before you start job hunting, so you know exactly what you're seeking.

2. Become a career detective.
"Put on your Sherlock Holmes hat and look for clues about the best fit for you and the workplace," he told me. Look for what you do happily, naturally, perhaps even brilliantly, and notice your innate talents and a lifetime of experiences.


Tuesday, January 24, 2012

Employers Reject More Than 90% of Resumes – Will Yours Survive?

Many job seekers mistakenly believe because their old resume worked years ago, it’s going to work again in today’s job market.


Unfortunately, nothing could be further from the truth. Due to the shear volume of resumes employers receive, many recruiters and hiring managers have opted to automate their hiring process. Rather than read each resume, the vast majority of companies require that job seekers upload their resumes into a database which often contain hundreds perhaps thousands of resumes from other candidates. Hiring managers then use industry related keywords to filter and identify those candidates they feel are likely to be most qualified for the position. The more keywords they find in your resume the more likely it is your resume will be printed and actually reach the hands of the hiring manager.

You can drastically improve your response rate by creating targeted resumes that are focused on the needs of the employer.


One of the most common mistakes job seekers make is that they want their resume to be general enough to be used for a variety of unrelated jobs. When you focus on your past rather than the needs of the employer your resume is likely to simply disappear into their vast black hole of a database.

In addition to targeting your resume it is imperative that you quantify your professional accomplishments whenever possible using numbers, dollar amounts, and percentages. This information allows you to differentiate yourself from your competition and gives the hiring manager an idea of both the level of responsibility that you’ve held, as well as your success in your previous positions. The goal of your resume is to “Wow!” the employer and convince them that they will miss out on the best candidate if they don’t pick-up the phone and give you a call.

Many polls show that only one or two typos can be enough to disqualify a candidate from consideration. In fact, I’ve had the experience of working with one job seeker who had actually been offered a job and the resume was supposedly just a formality. After reading the job seeker’s attempt at a self-written resume which highlighted his poor organizational and written communication skills, the employer actually rescinded the job offer.

More Tips and Complete Careerealism Article

Monday, January 23, 2012

Help for people over 50 to score jobs

By ROBIN KAMINSKI Hour Staff Writer


For those who have been fired after the age of 50, the fear of not being able to find a new job can quickly set in, especially during a down economy.

Coupled with forms of age-related bias in the workplace, the future for out of work, older executives can seem downright bleak.

There is hope, however, and it comes in the form of a new book penned by Tucker Mays of Westport and Bob Sloane of Greenwich titled "Fired at 50: How to Overcome the Greatest Job Search Challenge."

With real-life examples of advice given to former executives navigating the job search, Mays and Sloane unveil tips on how the unemployed can land new jobs in a relatively short amount of time.

"Imagine a 52-year-old executive that is doing nicely, has a couple kids and a good sized mortgage," Mays said. "Then, all of a sudden, there's a reorganization at the company, or maybe it's through no fault of their own and they're let go. It can become depressing, especially when no one is calling them (for jobs). They feel lost."

That feeling of hopelessness can be quelled through step by step guidance, according to Mays, who said he and Sloane, co-founders of Darien-based OptiMarket, LLC, have instructed those over 50 to market their age as an asset to a new company and to stand out from the rest of the pack.
"There isn't any fluff in the book, just lots of detail and solid ideas," Mays said. "Bob and . . .


Read the rest of the article 

Friday, January 20, 2012

Five biggest time wasters when you are looking for work


 I was unemployed for over a year.

It’s why I ended up spending a lot of time on my bathroom floor, and have tile grid marks branded on my backside to prove it. When I graduated, I wish someone sat me down and told me not to do the things I’m telling you not to do. Instead I got the same generic, common sense advice every graduate gets.


 So for the recent college graduates, or for the young and newly laid off, here are the five things that were the biggest wastes of my time when I was unemployed.

1. Filling out a gazillion online applications
Filling out online applications willy nilly is like letting go of your stack of resumes on a windy day, and hoping one flies into the right person’s face.
Online applications eat enormous amounts of time. Unless you know someone at the company who will flag it or personally e-mail it to the right person, your application is more hay in the haystack. Your time is better spent meeting people in your field who can do something with your application than just filing out application after application after application with no response.

2. Going to “Getting the Gig” events
These are the worst. This is how these events usually go: You register, get a nametag, shell out $20-$45 to eat pretzels, carrots, brie and ranch dressing and hear one keynote speaker or a panel of five people (give or take) discussing what they look for in interns and employees, and what it takes to make it in that particular field. You are in blank conference room in a blank hotel or conference center with anywhere from 50-3,000 other people who are also looking for a job, all of whom will be queued up to talk to whoever spoke afterwards.

They’re all hoping the same thing: that they will hit it off so hard with one of the speakers that they will get a contact or a reference from them, then somehow through someone get a job. They think they will stand out in the crowd of other recent college graduates with the same degree, the same experience, the same elevator speech, the same, the same, the same.
Don’t throw your name in the raffle hoping it’s drawn. Create situations where you’re the only name in the bowl.

Tips 3 - 5 and complete article

Thursday, January 19, 2012

12 Ambitious Career Resolutions to Kick-Start Your 2012

By now, you’re probably chipping away at your New Year’s resolution: go to the gym more often, learn a new language, start a garden, stop biting your nails, etc…

Those are all worthy goals for 2012 and with enough dedication, you’ll be speaking Mandarin and shedding pounds in no time
.
But the New Year is also a perfect opportunity to take stock of your job or your pursuit of one. Like a car in need of an oil change, we too often forget about the basic maintenance required to stay sharp.
In case you haven’t added any career-related goals to your resolution list, here are 12 that will help you gain momentum professionally in 2012:

1. Update your resume

Even if you have a job and don’t plan on leaving, you just never know. Your resume should always be fresh and presentable. Once you update it, have a friend with a sharp eye look it over for errors. That way, when an exciting opportunity comes along, you’ll be ready.

2. Back up your computer files

Put all your files on a backup hard drive or server like Dropbox. If you have a job, make sure you ask about your company’s server and how to use it. That way, if your computer crashes this year, you’ll have a plan to fall back on. Don’t be that person who forgot to back it up!

3. Ask about or reassess your 401(k)

See if your company offers a 401(k) retirement plan. If you can’t afford to max out your 401(k), at least contribute enough to get your employer’s matching contribution (aka “free money”).

4. Network, Network, Network

Set a goal to meet with 1-2 people in your industry each month, or folks who could help connect you to the industry you want. Again, even if you’re in love with your job and could never imagine leaving, maintaining and growing your network is one of the best things you can do for your career. Keep your options open and your contact list robust. If setting up 1-2 lunches a month is too taxing, join a business networking group and attend monthly meetings.

5. Learn a new job skill

In between Mandarin verb conjugations and your flourishing garden, find time to add a technical skill to your repertoire and make yourself more valuable professionally. Most people like being asked for their knowledge and expertise, so sidle up next to a friend or co-worker and gain a new skill for free.

Danny Rubin is a national news consultant for media research firm Frank N Magid Associates. He is a former television news reporter, lives in Washington, D.C. and tweets as @dannyhrubin.
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Brazen Life is a lifestyle and career blog for ambitious young professionals. Hosted by Brazen Careerist, we offer edgy and fun ideas for navigating the changing world of work -- this isn't your parents' career-advice blog. Be Brazen.
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Wednesday, January 18, 2012

Why I Won’t Hire You

If you've ever hired anyone for a job, you understand a whole new perspective on what makes an applicant stand out—and what makes you toss an application to the bin. Fair or not, blogger, consultant, and hirer Charlie Balmer discusses honestly the mistakes that can ruin your chances with a potential employer.


I will be very honest with you in this post. Most interview articles only show obvious mistakes, as if most people don't know showing up late is bad form. I will tell you the things I didn't really know about until I was the one interviewing, and interviewing for a variety of positions and person-types. No interview prep article ever prepared me in the right way for how interviewers really think. That is what I will be sharing with you today.

When you first walk in to my office, I am expecting you to be one of the 99%+ people who I know I won't hire in the first 5 minutes. I am hoping I will be proven wrong, because I really want to hire you and be done interviewing. Unfortunately, most people looking for jobs don't deserve them. Here are the most common ways I know you don't deserve any job I have to offer.


You send me a stupidly long resume

If I have to spend more than 30 seconds finding out what you have accomplished, forget it. You have annoyed me. Somehow, since resumes went digital, people feel like they can cram in 10 pages of boring essays talking about this achievement or that role, and expect me to read every juicy word. More likely, I will ignore the whole thing, write down in my notes "poor communicator", and move on. If you have a good set of skills or something catches my eye, you might still get an interview, but I'll still never read the resume. And you had better be a better communicator on the phone or in person.

Think about it this way – the resume items communicate to me your past successes in a (supposedly) succinct manner. If you can't nail it in one sentence, do I really want to look forward to your rambling emails every day? If I can't read your resume, it doesn't bode well for your emails, and I get enough of those in my inbox as it is.

To craft a great resume, tailor it to my job posting. If I have a skill set in there like "Windows Administration", make sure you have at least one bullet point talking about success in a project where you used that skill. Make the bullet no longer than three sentences. One is better. I am likely to read one sentence. I might read three. More than that and I won't even know what you wrote there. You wasted my time and your own.


You can't tell me why you like your current job

I always ask people what they like most about their current job before I get into any details about a role. Why? I want to see if you'll be happy working in this new job. If you can't tell me anything you like, or you tell me something you like but it sounds really generic? Then forget it, I have no idea what you want to do in life and you probably don't either. Come see me when you know what you want to do. I would even be happy with something like "Well, this job doesn't enliven me, but my last job, I loved doing XXX every day, and man, I miss that. It looks like this role will let me get back to that." Let me know you're passionate or don't waste my time.

The worst answers? "Well I like the challenge" or some other BS. Don't BS me. I have a super BS detector, and most other interviewers do too. The worst BS is the kind where more than 50% of candidates say the same thing. If you can't be original about what you like about your unique job how can I expect you to be creative working for me?

If you have a generic answer like you enjoy learning, the challenge, helping customers, that can be alright. Just sound excited when you talk about it. Give me an example of a time when you got really fired up about it. I don't mind if it doesn't relate to the job I am interviewing you for, though that helps. Just expect me to ask why you think this job will give you the same passion – and have a good answer ready. Really, why else are you applying if you don't know this?


No career plans or vision

When I ask you what your next role is going to be after the one you're interviewing for, you had better have a good answer. Everyone should have a story about why you want to come work for me, in this specific role. If you can tell me how this role helps you accomplish your long term goals, I'm much more likely to think you'll be happy here and work hard in the job. If you just want a job, why should I care? Someone else will come to me with their vision. Eventually.

A good answer is a well thought out vision. You should have that anyway. Here is a good example: "I am looking to move away from working in my current small company to a bigger company with more career growth and opportunities. I want to rise to an executive level in the next 10 years, but my current company is too small to allow me to stretch effectively in that way. [This role] builds on my strengths in communication and project management, and will help me grow as a leader and improve my influencing skills. In a few years, I would look to becoming a senior manager…" and on with how this role fits into your life vision.


No Skills

Please, don't bother applying if you don't have the required skills. I will know. If you'll be programming, expect to program in the interview. And program well. If you'll be project managing, you had better be able to tell me about the right way to build a project plan and project vision. I'll probably even describe a project and ask you to build a plan right there, with me. Just because the title has something in it you vaguely think you can do, if you don't meet the requirements, please don't waste my time. I might be ok if you are up front with me and tell me you want a career change and are willing to take a more junior position to learn. I might take a chance on you if everything else is solid. But tell me that in your resume so we don't waste time. Yes, telling me that in your resume improves your chances of getting hired, even if not necessarily for this job or winning an interview. I won't claim this is true for all interviewers, but it is true for me.

It's about setting expectations. If you come in, and my expectation is, for instance, that you know Unix administration, and then you tell me "Well, I read a book and I really want to learn it", no, I won't like that. If instead you put in your resume an objective line "Looking to grow skills in Unix administration from a project background", now we are on the same page. If I don't need an expert right now, maybe I will invest in training you since you have the vision and self-motivation. Oh, and describing what you are doing to prepare is also good, even if you don't have on the job experience. See how the expectation can change my perspective? Give me happy surprises, not unhappy surprises.

Answer my questions with conjecture - Read the rest of the lifehacker article for more insight

Tuesday, January 17, 2012

Inside the Recruiter’s Head: What He’s Really Asking You During the Interview

Jayne Mattson is Senior Vice President at Keystone Associates, a leading career management and transition services consulting firm in Boston, Massachusetts. Mattson specializes in helping mid-to-senior level individuals in new career exploration, networking strategies and career decisions based on corporate culture fit.


You applied for a new job, and you’ve been called in for an interview. During the interview process, there are three main questions that need to be answered to help the HR person determine if you’re the right fit for the job:
  • Can this person do the job?
  • Will he do the job?
  • Will he fit in with the company culture?
By asking what I call “the question behind the question,” hiring managers have a better chance to making the right hiring decision. As job seekers, your task is to answer them honestly and fully. Here are 10 top questions that the interviewer might ask, along with the hidden agenda behind each one. Tread carefully — the way you approach the answer might tell more than what you actually say.

1. As you reflect back at your last position, what was missing that you are looking for in your next role?
This question gets at the heart of why you’re leaving the current job or, in the case of a reduction in workforce, it helps the interviewer understand what was missing. If you answer with, “I didn’t have access to my boss, which made it difficult to get questions answered,” then the interviewer might follow up with, “Can you give me a specific example where you had to make a decision on your own because your boss was not available?” This follow-up question will help the interviewer determine your level of decision making and how much access to the manager you’ll need.

2. What qualities of your last boss did you admire, and what qualities did you dislike?
This is precarious territory because your answer needs to have a balance of positive and negative feedback. It will show if you are tactful in answering a tricky question and if your leadership style is congruent with the admired or disliked ones. If you name a trait the interviewer dislikes or that’s not in line with company culture, then you might not be a fit for the position.

3. How would you handle telling an employee his position is being eliminated after working for the company for 25 years, knowing they would be emotional?
This question is not unrealistic in today’s job market, since companies continue to downsize as a way of conducting business. Knowing that you might have to deal with this situation, the interviewer wants to know how you would tell the long-term employee the bad news. Would you tell the business reason why the company is downsizing, and would you thank the person in a genuine, heartfelt way for years of service?

4. How do you like to be rewarded for good performance?
As simple as this question is, it helps the interviewer get a sense of what motivates you — is it money, time off or more formal recognition? If you’re interviewing for a management role, the follow-up question could be: How do you reward the good performance of employees who work for you? Are you a “do as I say, not as I do” type of manager? The interviewer is looking for congruency in behaviors, because if you don’t practice what you preach, then it might not be a cultural fit.

Questions 5 - 10 and Complete Mashable Article

Monday, January 16, 2012

Six Reasons You Won't Get A Better Job In 2012

Looking for a better job? You’re not alone. Year after year, “Get a Better Job” is one of the most popular New Year’s resolutions. To start your job search off on the right foot for 2012, stop and recognize what you are doing wrong. What’s stopping you from getting a job? Brazen Careerist recently featured an article called “6 Reasons You Won’t Get a Better Job in 2012”. If you can overcome these issues, 2012 might just be the year you hit your stride.

Do any of these sound familiar?

1. You are only applying online. Submitting your resume online can be like sending it into a black hole. Companies get hundreds of online applications and sometimes don’t even bother looking at them. Your strategy for the job search must include more than one route. Try networking, setting up informational interviews and utilizing social media. Branch out and it will improve your chances of getting noticed.

2. No one knows you’re looking for a job. Let at least a few people know you’re looking for a new job. You don’t need to broadcast it to the world (unless you want to!), but the more people in your network that know you’re looking, the more people you have looking out for you.

3. You’re looking for the wrong job. If you’ve been struggling with your job search for a while, perhaps it’s time to look into a different field. Take time to study trends and growing fields where there might be a hidden abundance of opportunities.

Tips 4 - 6 and complete Article

Thursday, January 12, 2012

Six tips to get your job hunt organized


Wednesday, January 11, 2012

3 Compelling Ways to Market Your Non-Traditional Work History

One of the great things about living in a capitalist economy is that there is quite literally a business for everything.
Candidates have come into my office with all kinds of projects and jobs. I’ve heard job applicants talk about coordinating the production of an iPhone App, raising money for a village in Africa, working in a business that plays the middle man between lottery winners and the government, and more.
The coolest jobs are often some of the most unconventional, which makes it difficult to translate that experience into a marketable resume should you ever find yourself needing or wanting to enter the traditional workforce.
Many of these candidates ask for assistance because while they may have spectacular experience, putting a non-traditional job on paper sometimes leaves hiring managers scratching their heads. The good news is that you can tailor your resume to meet the needs of the job while still touting your work history.
Here’s how:

1. Think about your transferable skills

If you have an unconventional or just plain random work history, it’s your job to find a way to make your resume functional. That means identifying a skill set that’s transferable and using it as your angle.
For instance, let’s say you worked for a non-profit by raising funds and then also sold Mary Kay to make some extra money. In both cases, you had essentially the same goal: get someone to give you their money by using your marketing and selling skills. As a result, you would focus on how your sales abilities, whether you’re selling a product or a good cause.

2. Call yourself an employee when you can

It’s common these days to come across candidates who ran their own small businesses and had to close them down because of the recession. While I personally love go-getters and entrepreneurs, they can run into some real problems when entering the traditional workforce.
The biggest problem is credibility. You can have all the legal documentation in the world, but you still won’t have the professional reference of a superior, making it difficult for someone to attest to your work abilities. The other issue is that anyone can say they ran a business, and sometimes they’re lying.
You need to list these businesses, of course, but don’t call yourself the owner or president on your resume. Instead, simply state the tasks that you accomplished, such as sales or operations, and when possible, show how you worked as part of a team. When the time comes for an interview, make sure you can quantify those accomplishments; that will help the interviewer feel confident you’re telling the truth.

Jumpstart your job search this February 6-17 with BrazenU’s online bootcamp How to Get a Job You Will Love. Top experts teach techniques for stellar resumes, must-read cover letters, savvy networking and more.

Tuesday, January 10, 2012

Are You Overlooking How Facebook Could Help Your Career? [NEW STUDY]

What’s your Facebook policy on friending professional contacts?

Users between the ages of 18 and 29 tend to use the site mainly to interact with friends and family, not as a career resource, according to a new study by Millennial Branding, a Boston-based branding consultancy that worked with Identified.com to pull data.

Only a third of GenY users add a job title to their Facebook profile, the study found, yet more than half of those young professionals add at least a handful of work contacts as their Facebook friends.


That leaves Generation Y in a bind. While many don’t see Facebook as a professional space, we still interact with work contacts – which means how we present ourselves on the social networking site spills over into our professional life.

“GenY needs to be aware that what they publish online can come back to haunt them in the workplace,” said Dan Schwabel, a personal branding expert and managing partner of Millennial Branding. “GenY managers and co-workers have insight into their social lives, which could create an awkward workplace setting or even result in a termination.”

Before it gets that far, you can take some simple steps to ensure your Facebook profile feels and looks professional, even while remaining personal. It might even help you use your network to your advantage.


Facebook as a resume

First, add your current and past job titles. While 80 percent of Millennials include their college or university on their profile, only 36 percent list an employer, Millennial Branding reports. Especially if you’ve changed jobs recently, make sure to keep your work information current.

Then check out Facebook’s recent design changes, which make your work history even more important. The redesigned profile is more than a new look; it presents a timeline of each user’s life, with past events ordered chronologically and easily accessible.

The timeline format could effectively become a digital resume, says Job coach Gerrit Hall. He predicts employers will increasingly turn to Facebook to vet potential hires.

“From the giant cover image at the top to the chronological organization down the line, your Facebook profile is a resume for your life, not just your career,” Hall, co-founder of RezScore, a company that analyzes and grades resumes for job seekers, wrote on digital news site Mashable.

If you activate the new look, Facebook gives you a week to review everything on your profile before making the changes public. Take that time to review old status updates or photos, and delete ones that might not be appropriate for your professional friends. And don’t just think about what to take off; the switch is a good opportunity to literally see what information, including your work experience, is missing and what you might add.

Other helpful Facebook features

Read more: http://blog.brazencareerist.com/2012/01/09/are-you-overlooking-how-facebook-could-help-your-career

Monday, January 9, 2012

5 Critical Career Moves You Need to Make Now

It’s January, the time of year when you once again resolve to lose weight, quit smoking, drink less and recycle more. All worthy personal and altruistic goals. But what about career resolutions? Whether you are happily employed, a disgruntled employee, or out of work positioning yourself for the next great opportunity should be among your top priorities. So make room on your list for the top 5 critical career resolutions you must make regardless of your employment status to give you the best chance of long-term career success:

1. Focus on your personal brand. You are unique. Who you are, how you think, how you project yourself, what you have to offer is what you are selling to an employer. Starting on the outside then looking in – be honest with yourself. Is it time for a make-over? Men, this applies to you, too. From hairstyle to shoes, do you look current, confident and professional? Are you self-aware about how others perceive you? Are you the type of colleague that others want to be around, work with, trust, respect, can count on? That means being solution-oriented, positive, collaborative, collegial and accountable.

2. Update your Internet profile. Is your resume and profile on Linkedin and other social and professional media current? Do you even have a Linkedin profile and know what it is? And that’s just the bare minimum today. Many professionals have their own career page and twitter accounts. You’ve got to work on your profile and get yourself out there…speaking of which…
3. Network, Network, Network. Networking is to the Job search as Location, Location, Location is to the house search. Need more convincing…two-thirds of all job opportunities are never advertised and are filled through networking. Resolve to ask everyone in your network to introduce you to just one new person in the coming year and watch your network and prospects grow accordingly.


Friday, January 6, 2012

New Rules For Branding On The Job Search

By:



Advice about developing a personal brand is widely accepted because it is effective. But, in today’s economy, there are new rules for personal branding, especially on the job search.
Traditionally, your personal brand is the absolute best of yourself. It is purposefully unique and encompasses the kind of problems you solve, the way that you get things done, the situations that you excel in and the types of organizations you build. It is your values and your personality; it’s the very best of you.
Yet, today, in the job search, the brand that you worked so hard to develop just doesn’t cut it any more.
Your personal brand needs a few new rules.

Rule #1: Your brand is not about you. As counter intuitive as that sounds, your brand is not about you. Rather, it is about the value you deliver externally. Its all about your audience: their challenges, their needs, their dreams and how you can get them there.

Rule #2: Your brand is different for every opportunity. In the same way that you adapt to different situations, your brand needs change for every opportunity. It will emphasize different strengths, experiences and capabilities based on your audience (and their challenges, needs and dreams).

Rule #3: You need to be their Super Hero. Feel free to laugh at the name, but lets be clear, the goal of your personal brand is convey a direct and concise story about how you will be the organization’s Super Hero. That is, how you will defeat their challenges and enact the change that they are desperate to make.

More advice and complete PersonalBrandingBlog.com article

Thursday, January 5, 2012

6 Tips for a Successful Career Change in 2012

Are you ready for a career change? What better time to make a fresh start than in the beginning of a new year. If you are looking to make a career change, here are six tips that can help make this big step more successful:
1. Assess your interests, values, and qualities. The start of a new year is a great time to review your previous roles. Evaluating your goals, values, and lifestyle is an important first step in any career change. Yes, it can be difficult trying to figure out your ideal job. Below are questions to help you find the answers you seek:
  • Do you like to volunteer?
  • What would you do for free?
  • Is there something that you would like to try?
  • Are you living your values?
  • Do you like working with your hands?
  • Do you enjoy helping others?
  • What are some of your hobbies?
2. Brainstorm your “ideal” job. The second step in finding that dream job is to imagine yourself in a rewarding and fulfilling job. What would it look like? Think about all the facets in a job, including hours, pay, working conditions, skills, challenges, values, and the people you work with. You should also consider how you would want to be managed or how you want to manage others.

3. Identify what motivates you and makes you happiest. It has been said that if you are working at something that doesn’t feel like work, then you have found a passion. Once you have identified your interests, then it is time to match the interests with careers, jobs, and fields. Simply take a sheet of paper and draw a line down the center. On one side, jot down your interests, and on the other side, jot down what career those interests relate to. There may be many choices for each interest.

Tips 4 -6 and Complete CareerRocketeer Article

Wednesday, January 4, 2012

Stop Spending Time on Job Boards and Pick Up the Phone to Find a New Job

The old adage "It's not what you know but who you know" often rings true, especially when it comes to job hunting. Even if you have an impressive resume with great credentials, most companies do their hiring based on referrals and suggestions from current employees—or at least those referrals get interviews. All that said, if your job search has you spending day after day behind a screen sending out waves of emailed resumes and automated job applications, it's time to change course and start calling your network instead.


No one's saying you should give up on job search sites and tools, and no one's saying you shouldn't send in your resume to opportunities you find on the web, but according to Career Sherpa, Hannah Morgan points out that you're better off spending more of your time calling your friends and family, past supervisors, colleagues, vendors, and even customers you can still connect with, and other people in your professional network and let them know you're looking for new opportunities and willing to talk to people they can send your way.


Read The Rest Of The LifeHacker Article For More Advice

Tuesday, January 3, 2012

2012 Job Outlook

The job outlook for 2012 is more of the same with a stalled employment market expected to add only 1.3 million new positions annually -- slightly lower than 2011’s 1.5 million jobs, says Marisa Di Natale, Moody’s Analytics director.


That job outlook sounds OK until you realize that almost 9 million jobs disappeared during the recession. “We’ll be in recovery mode for all of 2012,” Di Natale says. It will take until 2014 for the employment market to return to its prerecession size, says Di Natale, who predicts companies will create 2.7 million jobs in 2013 and 4.5 million jobs in 2014.

The job opportunities being added back to the market will be different from the ones lost during the recession. “Many of the jobs being created are at the top and the bottom of the skill set,” Di Natale says. “There’s not a ton being added in the middle.”

The job outlook is great for highly skilled workers (think finance, technology or engineering), along with entry-level workers in nonoffshorable service jobs (such as some hospitality jobs and healthcare jobs), Di Natale says. The job outlook for semiskilled workers is weak. Job opportunities in the middle have disappeared as technology replaces workers like receptionists, while manufacturing jobs have been offshored to lower-cost foreign workers, she adds.

Skill Set Focus
If you had one of the 8.75 million jobs eliminated in the recession, you’ll likely need additional training or education to find a new job, especially if your skills are specific to an industry like construction, says Kerry Chou, a senior practice leader for World at Work, a human resources trade association.

“We have millions of people out of work, but the kinds of jobs that are going to be needed in the future aren’t necessarily the ones where the current unemployed population can go out and get two weeks of training and switch into the careers,” Chou says.

Good options include blue-collar technical training and healthcare certifications, two fields with excellent job outlooks, according to Jodi Chavez, senior vice president for Ajilon Professional Staffing, a Melville, New York, recruiting firm. You may also have to be flexible about where you live, since local economies have recovered at different rates.

If improving your skills and education or relocating to another job market aren’t options for you, you’ll still have more opportunity to find work in 2012 than you did in 2011. “Skilled workers will find employment more quickly in 2012,” Chavez says. “However, when jobs are added to the labor pool, unskilled jobs will also be added in great number.”

Some Job Sectors Improving
The job outlook is looking up in specific industries -- manufacturing (the whole industry hasn’t been offshored), residential and commercial construction, and healthcare, for example -- and financial services jobs are plentiful in some pockets of the country, Chavez says.

Companies are also hiring consultants to fill middle-management positions eliminated in 2008 and 2009, leaving managers stretched to the limit, Chavez says. Taking a contract role can position you to become an employee with the same company when the economy improves and companies shift from hiring contract and temporary workers to hiring permanent workers, likely in 2012.

“We’re beginning to see a greater push toward permanent-placement hires than in 2011, and we’re seeing confidence coming from employers,” Chavez says.



Read More Of The Monster Article



Job-Hunt.org's 10 Stealth Job Search Tips for the New Year

The New Year always brings renewed interest in finding new jobs, particularly for people unhappy in their current positions. With job dissatisfaction at record levels, Susan P. Joyce, Internet job search expert and Editor of award-winning job search portal, Job-Hunt.org, recommends that employed job seekers take great care, or risk ending up jobless by following these 10 tips for a stealth job search.


Marlborough, MA (PRWEB) January 01, 2012

Employers have legitimate concerns regarding the safekeeping of important company information and also the time wasted by employees spending more time preparing for their next interview than doing their jobs.

With more than 66% of employers monitoring employee use of the Internet (according to an American Management Association study), great care needs to be taken to prevent job loss while job hunting.
Top 10 Stealth Job Search Tips

1.    Don't openly job search. That's a good way to get fired.
It's called a "stealth job search" for a very good reason. It needs to be very low profile. Don't share job search plans and progress with colleagues or co-workers. "Loose lips sink careers."

2.    Job search at home. Not at work - not even during "personal time."
Employees have no guarantee of privacy - even during their "personal time" at work, during breaks or at lunch time. Many employers monitor use of e-mail, Web surfing habits, voicemail messages, and even use of services like personal Gmail accounts.

3.    Use a personal or other non-work e-mail address to for job search.
Using a current employer's name, address, and phone numbers as contact information is a very good way to blow a job seeker's "cover," and makes it impossible to stay in touch if the job seeker leaves or loses their job.

4.    Follow employer "social media use" and "Internet use" policies.
Employer policies should define what is acceptable and what is not. If the employer has them, smart employees pay attention. It is not safe to assume that a lack of policy means an employer doesn't care or isn't paying attention.

Monday, January 2, 2012

Your career resolutions for 2012

Now that both the heads and wallets of New Year’s Eve revelers have been cleared, it’s time to focus on a task that can be more painful than a hangover: crafting New Year’s resolutions.
We at @work can’t make you stick to a vow to manage your career better in 2012, but we can help you come up with as many ways as you can handle to pursue that goal.

We polled some big-time career experts about what they’d tell workers and job seekers alike to help them supercharge their work lives, and the advice was varied and plentiful. From creating a bond of trust to testing your assumptions, here’s a pack of New Year’s resolutions designed to help you get straight and fly right in 2012.

expand your circle
Meet new people. If I had to name the single characteristic shared by all the truly successful people I’ve met over a lifetime, I’d say it is the ability to create and nurture a network of contacts. So make a positive effort to make new friends this year. Look for gatherings of people whose interests match yours, and network. Then find a creative way to stay in touch. There’s no better way to improve your life.
— Harvey Mackay, speaker and bestselling author, most recently of “The Mackay MBA of Selling in the Real World”


Stop second-guessing
Don’t confuse motivation with follow- through. Motivation is in the mind, follow-through is in the practice.

The mind is essential to motivation, but with follow-through it’s the mind that gets in the way. We’ve all experienced our mind sabotaging our aspirations. You decide you need to speak more in meetings, but when you’re sitting in the meeting you think, “I’m not sure what I’m going to say really adds value.”
If you want to follow through on something, stop thinking. Make a decision about something you want to do — “I will say at least one thing in the next meeting” — and don’t question it. Then when your mind starts to argue with you — and I guarantee it will — thank it for its thoughts, smile and then just ignore it.
— Peter Bregman, leadership consultant and author, “18 Minutes: Find Your Focus, Master Distraction, and Get the Right Things Done”