Careers

• 
  Penelope Trunk's Brazen Careerist

• Check-up for self-delusion

  Penelope Trunk

  7 Feb 2010 | 9:41 pm

  It’s unbelievable to me that everyone continues to watch football when we know that men are getting genuinely, permanently, brain damaged. The game is tantamount to cockfighting, only with people instead of animals. The NFL has finally admitted the problem, to the extent it is poised to be the largest funding source for research about trauma to the brain. But still, the game encourages brain trauma. And people cheer. I can understand if it’s like smoking. You’re addicted, you can’t stop. But what about bringing your kids to the game? What about all the people who make the Superbowl a…

• Chat with me tonight, live, via video.

  Penelope Trunk

  3 Feb 2010 | 7:43 am

  Is this even a good headline for a blog post? I don't know. Do you want to know what I'm like unedited? Read this blog post. I never post unedited, but my editor has a day job, and he has no time to deal with manufactured emergencies like this one, so I'm just posting this post as is. I'm supposed to be doing a web chat thing tonight. I had this idea that this would be a good format for me. And I had this idea that I could stick to a schedule. But look. It's the day of my video chat and I have not even announced it. Because I'm nervous. I'm nervous about a…

• Frugality is a career tool

  Penelope Trunk

  1 Feb 2010 | 11:02 am

  I have earned a lot of money in my life. But I have never had an extravagant life. I don’t own a house. I’ve never bought a new car. I’ve never bought a new piece of living room furniture, and I do not own a single piece of real jewelry. What I have spent money on was always intended to help me with my career. That was so I know that I can always earn money doing something I love. I leased a BMW when it was clear that that mattered when it came to making deals in LA. I hired a stylist when I realized my clothes were holding me back in NYC. In Madison I have tons of household help so my…

• Being an expert takes time, not talent

  Penelope Trunk

  28 Jan 2010 | 9:39 pm

  I've been walking around with the July/August 2007 issue of the Harvard Business Review constantly, for close to three years. Sometimes, if I’m getting on a plane, I’ll put it with the other heavy stuff into my luggage, and then get it out later. When my last car broke down in the middle of an intersection, I got the magazine out of the trunk before I abandoned the car. The article that I’m attached to is The Making of an Expert by Anders Ericsson, Michael Prietula and Edward Cokely. I would not normally bother to tell you all three authors for one article in my blog. This is not a…

• Workplace news you cannot use

  Penelope Trunk

  25 Jan 2010 | 8:23 pm

  I collect data points constantly, and I index them by topic, and I always hope that they will come together in an interesting, useful way. Lots of times, that doesn’t happen, and I  just have to throw ideas away, because I have a rule for myself that I have to be useful in every post. But today I’m trying something new. I’m doing a post that is useless to you. Here are four ideas I was just about to toss out as incurably useless, but instead, I bring them to you: 1. Law firms are making concessions for women. One of the top law firms in the world, Allen Overy, just announced they are…

• 
  Simply Hired Blog

• January 2010 Unemployment Report

  Simply Hired

  8 Feb 2010 | 11:51 am

  The BLS just released their Employment Situation for January 2010 this past Friday, showing some positive changes in the U.S. economy. There was improvement in the unemployment rate over the month – now at 9.7%, falling from 10% in December. Also, half a million previously unemployed people are back in the workforce, as the number of unemployed persons dropped from 15.3 to 14.8 million in January. The total nonfarm payroll employment was essentially unchanged at 20,000 jobs lost in January. A majority of those lost jobs were construction jobs and transportation & warehousing jobs.

• IDG Enterprise and Simply Hired Announce Partnership

  Simply Hired

  5 Feb 2010 | 6:00 am

  Simply Hired is excited to announce its multi-brand partnership with IDG Enterprise, including the CIO, Computerworld, InfoWorld, ITworld and Network World properties. Do you love learning about IT news, trends and best practices? With this new partnership, you’ll be able to find the most recent jobs in the IT industry as you catch up on your IT and tech news. IDG Enterprise brands will integrate Simply Hired jobs onto their respective websites through jobs channels as well as Simply Hired contextual job widgets throughout the pages of each site. These job widgets enable readers to browse…

• Steps to Keeping Career Resolutions

  Simply Hired

  4 Feb 2010 | 2:30 pm

  Job seekers on SimplyHired.com recently took polls showing the top career related New Year’s resolution for 2010 is to "get hired." While it is great that so many people are focused and resolved to find a job this year, it can also be a daunting task, and it's difficult to know where to start. Here are a few tips to keeping your career resolutions in the new year: Break it down - Instead of making one large resolution such as "find a job," break it down into smaller and measurable steps.   Example: Spend four quality hours each day focused on your job search. Set…

• Simply Hired is a Finalist in the Shorty Awards!

  Simply Hired

  4 Feb 2010 | 6:00 am

  Thank you all for your votes for Simply Hired in the Shorty Awards – Simply Hired was announced as a finalist in the jobs category! Now, we need your help again in voting for Simply Hired to get us to the top. However, if you’ve already placed your vote, you unfortunately cannot vote again – but feel free to pass along this information to your friends and get the word out. Voting for this round (the final round) ends Friday, February 5th at 9am PST.To find out more information on the Shorty Awards visit their website, and check out the video from last year’s awards ceremony. Rules:…

• Get Fit with a New Job in Fitness

  Simply Hired

  3 Feb 2010 | 8:00 am

  Beach season is just around the corner, and what better way to get that beach bod than with a fitness job? It’s that time of the year when many begin to think about their spring break plans and summer trips, and realize they need gym memberships and new workout gear to support their fitness goals. In turn, this means that fitness stores, gyms and other health clubs are also beginning to hire to ramp up for the busy season.Now, before you tell yourself that you wouldn’t be a good match for a fitness job, remember that careers in fitness don’t only mean being a personal trainer. A job in…

• 
  Marty Nemko

• A Gen Y Woman Acknowledges Gold Digging's Resurgence

  Marty Nemko

  8 Feb 2010 | 12:11 am

  I received this email from a reader, who subsequently gave me permission to post it here.Hi Marty,What a refreshing blog! I'm a single 25/F. I appreciate many of your strong opinions, even the ones to which most women would likely take offense - regarding the stay-at-home mom/beast-of-burden epidemic. It's discussed all too seldom and maybe it's even a little taboo:I know a number of women who seem to have little guilt in putting the financial burden solely on their unassuming husbands/boyfriends to establish and maintain comfortable lifestyles. These women want a big wedding, children, and a…

• Should You Be a Specialist or a Generalist?

  Marty Nemko

  5 Feb 2010 | 12:44 pm

  I recently wrote a post on a similar topic, but your comments on it and further reflection have motivated me to write this second one.Many people find it fun to be a jack of all trades a master of none. I'm certainly guilty of that: I've enjoyed being a pianist, medical researcher, teacher, school psychologist, professor, rose hybridizer, college counselor, career counselor, actor, director, and writer of everything from columns to plays to movies to proposals for reinventing education. Currently, my learning time is divided among career counseling, men's issues, increasing higher education's…

• Men Don't Have It Easy Either

  Marty Nemko

  2 Feb 2010 | 1:08 am

  I've just written an article called Men Don't Have it Easy Either. I was tempted to call it: Men: The Screwed Sex but decided to exercise a little restraint...at least in the title.I believe it provides an airtight case for how the gender pendulum has swung so far that, except for the tiny fraction of men at the top, it's devastating the male sex.In April, the article will appear in the national magazine of Mensa, an organization for people with high IQs.I thought you might enjoy an advanced look. To read it, click HERE.By the way, I've enjoyed my involvement in Mensa and recommend it. For…

• We Are All So Damn Fallible

  Marty Nemko

  30 Jan 2010 | 1:52 pm

  If something's excellent, there's nothing to fix. So I tend to look for problems. In recent years, I've trained my sights on the U.S. government's failings: Going into such great debt that we've mortgaged our children's future, with China the main bank that will decide whether to modify our loan or leave us hanging.How despite repeatedly being told, the government let Bernie Madoff rip off billions of dollars from people. How despite being repeatedly told of dangerous conditions in a peanut processing plant, the warnings were ignored. How despite the Christmas bombers' father credibly warning…

• Job and Business Opportunities in Rebuilding Haiti

  Marty Nemko

  25 Jan 2010 | 6:00 pm

  The Chinese symbol for crisis is the same as for opportunity.If I were looking for a job or to start a business related to rebuilding Haiti, I'd do one or more of these:I'd try to get a job at of the companies that will get large rebuilding contracts. To find them, every day I'd Google (both its web and the news tabs) terms like "Haiti, rebuilding, contracts." I'd also look at the job listings at the websites of companies that got large rebuilding contracts after Hurricane Katrina. For example, CH2M Hill got $100 million just to remove damaged cars. Fluor and Shaw received huge contracts to…

• 
  On the Job by Anita Bruzzese

• 6 Questions to Increase your Accountability Muscle

  1 Feb 2010 | 9:30 am

  Some days I feel like I can hardly keep up with all the public figures behaving badly. Behaving badly and then lying about it. Then, apologizing for behaving so badly. And lying.That's why I was interested in discussing the issue of personal responsibility. Are we capable, I wondered, of taking personal responsibility? What impact does that lack of accountability have on the workplace? It's a question I explored in my latest column for Gannett:When ex-baseball player Mark McGwire recently admitted taking performance-enhancing steroids during his career, critics charged that his a truthfulness…

• 3 Ways to Give the Best of Yourself

  26 Jan 2010 | 7:38 am

  Mute.I love that little button on my TV remote. I use it a lot. Commercial comes on?Mute.A program with talking heads yelling at each other?Mute.In today's workplace, I think a lot of people long for a "mute" button. Unfortunately, not only do we not have the option of tuning everything out, but the increasing stress levels have made it just a bit too loud -- in all kinds of ways.Recently, I looked into the issue of incivility and stress in the workplace, and what we can do about it. Here's the column I did for Gannett:As you check your e-mail, return phone calls, gather materials for a…

• How to Move from Temporary Work to a Full-Time Gig

  19 Jan 2010 | 7:53 am

  When I was in high school I landed my first holiday job working at a small J.C. Penney's. Most of the time I was scheduled to work after school until about 9 p.m. I soon dubbed it as "The Dead Zone."There usually weren't a lot of customers during those hours, and all the stocking had been done during the day. This left me with long hours to be bored spitless, staring at double-polyester peach pantsuits and trying to look busy while doing it.One night I started re-dressing all the mannequins in clothes I liked better. I re-arranged displays and started throwing away broken supplies.I did that…

• 6 tips for handling a pregnancy and a career

  12 Jan 2010 | 7:46 am

  When I was pregnant with my first child, I was determined to be professional and discreet about the issue at work. I didn't even plan on telling my boss until I was past my first trimester. I was determined nothing was going to change -- just because I was pregnant didn't mean I would do my job differently.Then came the day a co-worker entered my office smoking a cigarette (back in the days when such things were allowed). I took one whiff, and nearly knocked the guy off his feet as I ran for the bathroom, overwhelmed by nausea.My green complexion until noon every day, and the ongoing…

• Eat your salad first, and other career strategies

  4 Jan 2010 | 7:52 am

  Every year I get loads of candy over the holidays, and every year I feel compelled to eat it as fast as possible. This is because I always make a New Year's resolution to lose weight and eat healthier, so I figure the faster I consume the candy, the faster I can get on the road to being skinny and fit.Guess what? It never works. Because before you know it, Valentine's Day is rolling around and that means more candy. Which means I need to get busy scarfing it down so I can get back to losing weight and exercising.New Year's resolutions are tough. But unlike other people who think they're a…

• 
  Everyone's Blog Posts - talent revolution

• I've Gotta Feeling That Today's Gonna Be a Good Day!

  Amanda Hite

  Ever since Bill aka @culturedude and Susan @culturebabe brought this video to my attention I've been playing it to launch every session I do and sometimes just to start or energize my day.It reminds me of a concept Kathleen Wood, who provides growth strategies to Leaders and Businesses has been working with us on called "The Power of One." To learn more about "The Power of One" visit Kathleen's blog here.

• Do you have an exit strategy for your inner critic?

  susan fawcett

  I don’t have to meet your inner critic…I have my own. I’d offer to share him with you, but something tells me you aren't going to take me up on my offer. Just as well, because I've put mine on notice. It was a tough conversation actually.When I told him that his position was being eliminated, he was silent…which is not at all like him. He’s usually not at a loss for words…in fact, quite the opposite...he hardly ever stops talking and has no problem talking over me. But he was unusually quiet. I reminded him that we had talked about this numerous times and that this shouldn't have…

• Bourbon & Branch

  Chris Reed

  Sometimes, a little journey into the past helps us see the present. Enter, San Francisco. Late last night, @sexythinker and I returned home after two days in that amazing city. The topic that made the trip possible was, of course, Social Media. However, one stop we made has helped solidify some of my thoughts for those who are beginning to enter the Social web. Bourbon & Branch, a self-described “glimpse back on the 1920s and the era of Prohibition,” was that one stop. To keep my description of Bourbon & Branch brief and not-so-eloquent, let me just say that it’s a very cool…

• Kirk Wins Illinois Republican Primary

  Gerard Bean

  boots the chemist shopping In the first midterm election of the year, with the U.S. Senate seat once occupied by President Barack Obama up for grabs, voters sent a moderate five-term congressman from a wealthy suburb to face off against a 33-year-old state Treasurer who used to play basketball with the president. Mark Kirk, the Republican congressman, won his primary by nearly 40 percentage points, according to the Associated Press. His Democratic opponent, Alexi Giannoulias, beat former Chicago Inspector David Hoffman–a relative unknown–by five percentage points. The election comes less…

• FOOD FOR THOUGHT - IS FAILURE A FORM OF SUCCESS?!

  Allen Kimmitt

  What is failure? What is success? Is success when you have achieved your goal and reached the end of your journey; or is it the systematic process of reaching that destination? If it is a systematic process there are moments where we will not achieve our intermittent goals as we designed. There may even come a point when achieving the end result is in doubt. So we stop pursing our original goal and change course. What if the new course takes us to places we didn’t plan on, delivering achievements that satisfy our sense of accomplishment and worth? Does this equate to success? Let’s assume…

• 
  Jobacle

• Parity for Mental Health Insurance Coverage

  Andrew G.R.

  8 Feb 2010 | 6:45 am

  New Rule’s Timing Couldn’t Be BetterOn January 29, 2010, federal regulations were issued regarding parity in mental health and substance abuse insurance coverage. What it means is that employer group health insurance plans (of companies with over 50 employees) will now have to offer the same coverage for mental health and drug abuse treatment as they do for medical illnesses.

• Sun CEO Jonathan Schwartz Resigns; Tweets Haiku

  Andrew G.R.

  4 Feb 2010 | 9:38 am

  Techcrunch reports that Sun Microsystems CEO Jonathan Schwartz has resigned from his job via Twitter. Today’s my last day at Sun. I’ll miss it. Seems only fitting to end on a #haiku. Financial crisis/Stalled too many customers/CEO no moreI guess when you're a CEO, you can get away with it.  But if you want to exit the right way and quit your job with class, you need The Exit Guide: How to Quit a Job the Right Way.  Included are some great resignation letter templates. Schwartz might be out of a job, but we're sure he can spare a few bucks to buy a copy.

• Super (Unemployment) Bowl

  Andrew G.R.

  4 Feb 2010 | 7:17 am

  This weekend there will be about 20 people at Jobacle HQ watching the Super Bowl.  We'll all be chowing down on chicken wings and pulled pork sliders, shushing each other as the first commercials start to play.At an average cost of $2.6M for 30 seconds, everyone from  Anheuser-Busch to Walt Disney will be jockeying for our attention.We'll all muse over the cost of these ads, a figure, which quite honestly, is incomprehensible to me and my middle class friends.The out-of-work construction worker will laugh; the unemployed teacher might chuckle.  And my friend's dad, who's worked…

• Choose Not to Fly Your Freak Flag at Work

  Andrew G.R.

  3 Feb 2010 | 7:00 am

  When Not Fitting in is a Good ThingIn a recent post, “VIDEO: Pains in the Office,” Andrew gave some terrific examples of stereotypical rude co-workers and how they drive us nuts.  I’ve always been thankful that at least they seem to be in the minority. But an article in eWeek.com, “Four in 10 Workers Say They Don’t Fit in with Peers,” tells us that it’s possible most of us are outnumbered by these characters. The article points out how one “bad apple” in a work group can “spoil the “barrel” and have a negative affect…

• Reality Check: Work Fire Drills FAIL

  Andrew G.R.

  2 Feb 2010 | 7:01 am

  Shouting fire in a crowded theater could land you in jail; yelling 'fire drill' at work is a big, fat, colossal fail.  While an exciting and welcome change of pace in fourth grade, workplace fire drills are a time-wasting distraction in the corporate culture.  Before my inbox gets jammed from fire survivors, let me preface this post by stating I am not anti-fire drill, nor am I pro-fire.  I just think the methods employed by most organizations are laughable.THE TRUTH ABOUT WORK FIRE DRILLS1) Don't give me a mandatory meeting place in the event of a fire.  I understand that…

• 
  Brazen Careerist

• Deliberate vs. Situational Job Seekers on Twitter

  amybeth

  8 Feb 2010 | 10:00 pm

  I believe there’s a lot of untapped gold on Twitter when it comes to searching for job candidates. The thing you need to keep in mind is that there is more than one type of job seeker on Twitter. Here are the two types of active job seekers I’ve noticed on Twitter: The Deliberate Twitter Job Seeker The Situational Twitter Job Seeker The deliberate twitter job seeker is the person who has written in their bio line that they are looking, whereas the situational twitter job seeker is one who might tweet that they dislike their job or want a new job after a frustrating day at work.

• 5 Ways to Not Be a Complete SAP on Social Media

  kyle

  8 Feb 2010 | 10:00 pm

  Maybe… I am just in a bad mood. Maybe… I am just upset because the Colt’s lost the Super Bowl last night. Maybe… I am just being honest and open with my opinions… whether right or wrong. Either way… I have a bone to pick with a certain group of people that use social media. I am going to preface this  by saying that I have also been guilty of this activity and have been trying to change my ways… There are a certain group of tweets, status updates, and posts that are sent out every day that consist of what I call “The Tony Robbin’s Smile Tweet-Post-Update.” If you are…

• The Grim Specter of Aging Gracefully

  mehnazthawer

  8 Feb 2010 | 10:00 pm

  Current Mood: Another monday.....heh. Current Song: Running by Jully Black Last week, I was again faced with my own mortality when I found three white hairs growing very close to the front of my face. Three, all in one shot. Well, actually I discovered one, and my sister discovered two others who were nesting nearby the first one. After hyperventilating at the thought of growing old (Oh My God! I'm going to have to dye my hair for the first time in my life! I'm going to have to get wrinkle cream! Gravity will soon ensure my butt is kissing the ground!), I had to get myself together. Luckily,…

• Your Comment Is Awaiting Moderation (#bloggers)

  andreaveralewis2009

  8 Feb 2010 | 10:00 pm

  I don't like it when bloggers moderate their comments.  I know, I know, some do it to keep the bad spammers away.  But, when I get the message, "Your Comment Is Awaiting Moderation", I always feel that both my time and opinion aren't valid unless, the blogger in question, says they are.  And that just plain sucks.  As an active member of the blogosphere and a social media advocate, I want to know what everyone has to say.  Whether, it's good, bad, or ugly.  Without it, we limit the sharing model that both communities are based upon.  In addition, taking…

• Close to Home

  samanthaekarol

  8 Feb 2010 | 10:00 pm

  They say “home is where the heart is,” and I really think that’s true. I grew up in Massachusetts, and moved to Long Island in high school. When someone asks me where I’m from, that’s exactly what I say. I haven’t lived in Mass. since I was 16, so I’m technically not from there anymore, but I don’t consider myself a Long Islander, or even a New Yorker, even though I live in Brooklyn. I’ve always been very close with my parents, and I don’t like to be too far away from them for too long if I can help it. When I applied to college, the farthest schools I looked at were in…

• 
  About.com Job Searching

• What You Shouldn't be Asked in a Job Interview

  8 Feb 2010 | 10:00 pm

  When I was interviewing for one of my first jobs, the company wanted know if I was married, and wanted to meet with my husband to be sure he didn't mind the travel involved. After I got the job, we had hiring criteria for the people who worked for me as part-time merchandisers, including being a married woman whose kids were in school, with time available mid-day to work, and who only needed supplemental income. Back then, you didn't hear that much about discrimination, but, that was only one blatant example. Federal and state laws prohibit prospective employers from asking certain questions…

• Company Reviews

  6 Feb 2010 | 11:00 pm

  When the job market is tight,  it's more  important than ever to get the inside scoop on companies you're interested in working at.  First of all, the more information you have, the more effectively you'll interview. Secondly, company information will help you decide if you want to work for a company - or not. Glassdoor, the company and salary research site, has excellent information for job seekers including company reviews, ratings, salaries, CEO approval rating, competitors, and much more company information. Job seekers can find and anonymously share company reviews, ratings and…

• Unemployment Down and Running Out

  5 Feb 2010 | 1:04 am

  The unemployment rate dropped slightly, from 10% to 9.7%, in January, with non-farm payroll employment losing 20,000 jobs. The number of long-term unemployed (those jobless for 27 weeks and over) continued to increase in January, reaching 6.3 million. In addition, the job market remains really competitive with over 6 unemployed workers for every job opening. Job losses continued in construction and in transportation and warehousing, while employment increased in temporary help services, health care, retail, and in federal government hiring. The underemployment rate, which includes  people…

• CareerBuilder Super Bowl Commercials

  4 Feb 2010 | 10:00 pm

  For the sixth year in row, CareerBuilder is heading to the Super Bowl.  This year, the commercials (three are in the running for the Super Bowl spot) feature ads from everyday consumers who entered and won the HireMyTVAd contest.   There were three winners selected, all of whom get a prize, but only one (not the ad that was too hot for TV) will be featured on game day.   Take a look at CareerBuilder's commercials - Job Fairy, (very) Casual Friday,  and Worst Seat - and vote for your favorite. The focus of the ads is fitting in at work. In conjunction with the ad campaign,…

• More Jobs in January

  4 Feb 2010 | 1:46 am

  Job search engine LinkUp, which indexes jobs from over 20,000 company sites, reports that new job listings on company websites rose by 69,082 in January.  This is an increase of 18% from December.  Even though December is traditionally a bad month for new job listings, the report shows  progress in the right direction. This is good news for job seekers and a sharp contrast to LinkUp's dismal December report in which new and total job listings job search by 24% and 17% respectively. By the way, LinkUp is a terrific site for finding jobs direct from company websites.  Job seekers can…

• 
  The Work Buzz

• The big game’s commercials

  If you’re one of the people who tuned into the big game yesterday–and seeing as the audience is expected to top 100 million people, you probably were a viewer–you saw a heck of a game. And by now everyone accepts the fact that the commercials are just as much of a draw as the game [...] Related posts:Don’t Miss Your Chance to Earn $100,000! A few weeks ago, we told you about a commercial... Vote for your fave At the beginning of February, we told you about CareerBuilder’s... Make our next TV commercial … and earn $100,000 CareerBuilder is looking to you to…

• January job numbers redux

  The BLS released January’s jobs report this morning, and while it wasn’t complete cause for celebration, it was encouraging. The unemployment rate fell from 10.0 to 9.7 percent in January, and nonfarm payroll employment was essentially unchanged, down -20,000 compared to -779,000 in January 2009. Here are the highlights: The number of unemployed persons decreased to 14.8 million Employment [...] Related posts:November job numbers redux In another indicator that the economy is healing, November’s overall... December job numbers redux The BLS released the last unemployment…

• Co-workers are strange. Very, very strange.

  Co-workers can really make or break a workplace. A bad boss can make your life miserable, yes, but at least you can commiserate with your fellow disgruntled colleagues. In most situations, they are the ones sitting next to you eight hours a day. They engage in idle chitchat with you and exchange e-mails with you [...] Related posts:Which Halloween Character Is Your Boss Most Like? Two days until Halloween! I got the finishing touches to... Are co-workers important to your ideal job? I’ve written my fair share of articles about annoying co-workers.... If the thermostat’s too high,…

• Are you overworked?

  Working overtime is never fun, no matter what state the economy is in. But, when the economy did take a turn for the worst, many employees found themselves with increased workloads, a worse work/life balance and working longer hours — all for the same compensation. In a 2009 CareerBuilder survey, 34 percent of employers said their [...] Related posts:A third of working moms are burned out You know all those May flowers that are blooming thanks... How Much Time Do Employed Workers Spend Working? Last week, I told you what laid-off workers are doing... 30 Percent of Layoff Survivors Feel…

• Tips for the long-term unemployed

  Although there are signs the economy is healing, there are still 15.3 million unemployed workers in America according to the most recent BLS data. Among those unemployed, the number of long-term unemployed (those jobless for 27 weeks and over) continued to trend up, reaching 6.1 million in December 2009. That means 4-in-10 unemployed workers have been jobless for [...] Related posts:Handling job search desperation When you really want to — need to — work,... Ask The Work Buzz! When past companies go out of business Recently I told you that faithful reader Mark had a... January…

• 
  Escape From Cubicle Nation

• How do you want to lead your life?

  Pamela

  8 Feb 2010 | 5:30 pm

  I had a very interesting coaching conversation the other day with a bright young woman. We were talking about her desire to expand her business and play bigger in the world. (And don’t worry, I asked her permission to tell this story. And no, that is not her picture, it is a stock photo ) When I asked what would happen if she started to put herself out in the world in a bigger way by offering more programs and connecting with more people, she got kind of quiet. I asked her what it would mean to her life if she grew her business.  This is what she said: “I would have to be out…

• Your all-or-nothing attitude will bring all stress and no progress

  Pamela

  2 Feb 2010 | 5:08 pm

  I can always tell when new entrepreneurs are starting to crack under the pressure of decisions. They say things like: “I know everyone tells me I have to choose a specific niche, but I really don’t want to limit myself to only working with one type of person!” “What if I spend all this time and energy getting this business off the ground and I find out (no one will buy from me) (I don’t like it) (I have no time) (fill in the concern).” “The URL for the business name I wanted is not available! How can I be successful without a catchy business…

• Question for you: what stops you from testing your biz ideas early? What helps?

  Pamela

  28 Jan 2010 | 1:26 pm

  I am really obsessed with the topic of test often and fail fast. I wrote a whole chapter about it in my book, and still feel like I barely scratched the surface. By “test often and fail fast,” I mean the ability to create a very small prototype or sample of your product or service and get it in front of your target market for feedback. So many new entrepreneurs get paralyzed with perfectionism. And you know what I feel about that! I am writing an article on this topic, and would love your insight into two questions (choose either or both, depending on which apply to your…

• Guest post by Seth Godin: You are not a cog

  Pamela

  26 Jan 2010 | 3:00 am

  I have never had a guest post on my blog before. Until now. Seth Godin wrote a special post for EfCN to celebrate the launch of his new book Linchpin. It comes out today — check it out here. You are not a cog If you have your own business, you’ve already taken a huge step, but it’s tempting, really tempting to let fear take over and let it push you to start following the rule book. You know the rule book I mean. The one with the musts, the shoulds and the of courses in it. The one that’s amplified by most how-to books and blogs, and enforced by banks, in-laws and…

• Registration now open for $100 Business with me and Chris Guillebeau

  Pamela

  18 Jan 2010 | 7:01 am

  Good morning! I am excited to give you the registration link for the program I told you about last week that I am co-teaching with Chris Guillebeau. We will be working intensively with an inaugural group in a month-long program aimed to power-charge your micro business. See all the details here, and if you are interested, grab a seat, because I have a feeling they will go fast. http://unconventionalguides.com/100biz.htm Here is to a fantastic, supportive start to 2010! — Update 5pm MT on 1/18: We had an amazing day — we sold out the February program in 3 hours, and are halfway…

• 
  Lisa’s Generation Relations Blog

• Terrific New Book: What’s Next, Gen X? by Tamara Erickson

  admin

  30 Jan 2010 | 2:12 pm

  Hi All, I recently received a copy of Tamara Erickson’s new book: “What’s Next, Gen X? Keeping Up, Moving Ahead, and Getting the Career You Want”It’s really an interesting read (especially if your a member of Gen X), where she accurately (I think) discusses the issues Xer’s face being the “stuck in the middle” generation, but follows that up with a framework Gen X can follow for shaping and creating a meaningful career. I also totally agree with her overview of “who” Gen X is as it’s completely inline with how I describe them…

• Article For Gen Y About Defining Your Leadership Brand at Work

  admin

  18 Jan 2010 | 3:01 pm

  Hi All! Heather Huhman, Founder & President of ComeRecommended.com (a unique community site that matches Millennial/Gen Y job seekers with employers), wrote an article for Dan Schawbel’s popular blog, PersonalBrandingBlog, about how to develop your personal leadership brand at work. The article is entitled: “Defining Your Brand via 6 Traits that Make You a Leader“. Heather was inspired to write this article after reading my new book, “Millennials Into Leadership“, and offered her personal perspectives on the key areas I suggest Millennials focus on when…

• Cambridge Psychologist During Prop 8 Trial Says Children Do Fine With Gay Parents

  admin

  15 Jan 2010 | 4:02 pm

  Hi All, Lots happening in San Francisco lately with the Proposition 8 federal lawsuit challenging California’s same-sex marriage ban. And today, Michael Lamb, a Cambridge University psychologist, undercut the questioning of the Prop 8 sponsors opposed to gay marriage by testifying that children raised by same-sex parents are as well-adjusted and safe from abuse as kids who grow up with a mother and father. The article about today’s events, and those of the past 5 days of the trial, also includes: “For a significant number of these children, their adjustment would be promoted…

• Relocating for An Entry Level Job – New eBook Provides Great Advice

  admin

  4 Jan 2010 | 12:16 pm

  Hi All, In this current economic climate it’s not unusual for people from ANY generation to pursue job offers that require relocation. And Heather H. Huhman, founder and president of ComeRecommended.com (a popular job and career site for college students and entry-level job seekers), has written a terrific ebook for Millennials (Gen Y) on the ins and outs of relocating successfully for a job. The ebook is entitled: “Relocating for an Entry-Level Job – Why You Probably Have to and How to Do It” This info-packed ebook is loaded with tons of useful info such as: 1. The…

• Thinking of Working Overseas? Here’s Some Advice

  admin

  29 Dec 2009 | 4:08 pm

  Hi All! Below is a guest article contributed by Paul Johnson, Director of Outsourcing Consultants with 10 years experience of HR and recruitment within the Middle East. Author Website: http://www.outconsult.com. I thought it was something many of you Millennials (Gen Y) would find helpful as you begin to explore career opportunities. And, it’s certainly great info for people from ANY generation who is toying with the idea of working outside of the U.S. So, without further delay, here is Paul’s article, entitled: Thinking of working overseas? Think, think and think again. I am…

• 
  CareerDiva

• Dying at work

  telleve

  9 Feb 2010 | 6:27 am

  It really turns my stomach to hear that employees who should feel safe are actually scared every morning when they head to work. An explosion claiming the lives of five workers and injuring 12 occurred earlier this week at a plant being built by Kleen Energy Systems in Middletown, CT. And while the cause of the blast is unknown, it turns out workers there knew they were working in unsafe conditions. The Wall Street Journal today quotes, Erik Dobratz, the son of one of the men killed in the blast: “He told me numerous times that it was very dangerous when they did the procedure that…

• Did “Undercover Boss” ever have a real job?

  telleve

  8 Feb 2010 | 6:54 am

  After the Super Bowl last night I was anxious to watch the new CBS show “Undercover Boss”. It was hysterical, sad, eye opening. Everything I had expected. But it also made me realize something unexpected — corporate executives today are ivory tower zombies. Basically, the premise of the show is corporate bigwigs go out into their companies and pretend they’re just average working stiffs. This allows them to see up close and personal what’s going on at the companies they run. Larry O’Donnell, the president and chief operating officer of Waste Management, was…

• Is joblessness funny?

  telleve

  5 Feb 2010 | 5:14 am

  I think furry beavers can be funny. And fiddling beavers are a howl. Same for a fairy with a beer belly and a broken magic wand. But being out of work ain’t funny. That’s why every Super Bowl I find myself conflicted over the inevitable comedic career commercials by the big search companies, Monster and CareerBuilder. I know everyone is trying to be witty in order to get the attention of the hordes of football fans and nonfans who will tune in this Sunday, but does it actually bum job seekers out? And sometimes these ads seem a bit condescending, no? Monster has a fiddling beaver…

• Don’t ignore jobless friends during their “darkest night”

  telleve

  4 Feb 2010 | 5:37 am

  The unemployment rate is about 10 percent and that means many of us who still have gigs probably know someone who’s jobless. What have you done lately to help out that unemployed friend? Have you called? Have you written? Have you bought the poor sap a cup of coffee? Some of you have told me you just don’t know what to say when you meet a unemployed friend at the supermarket or a cocktail party. Some of you, whether you realize it or not, start to distance yourselves from these individuals that were once your favorite office mates, or even friends. Some of you say, “I never…

• Caregivers are making themselves sick!

  telleve

  3 Feb 2010 | 5:32 am

  Many years ago, I volunteered for a nonprofit organization in New York called CancerCare. My work involved visiting with terminally ill patients so their loved ones could take a break from the caregiving process, maybe see a movie or go get their hair cut. One thing that struck me was when I got to the homes of these families sometimes it was hard to tell the terminally ill patient from the caregiver. Often times the caregivers looked more beaten down and tired than the family member battling cancer. I thought of this yesterday when I got a study from MetLife about how likely it is for…

• 
  Employee Engagement Zingers

• Walden 2.0: Daily Employee Engagement Week 5

  David Zinger

  9 Feb 2010 | 4:48 am

  The Walden 2.010 Project (Week 5) What percentage contribution towards employee engagement would you attribute to each of task, role, and organization? Daily employee engagement. This is a weekly reporting of a one year project monitoring, measuring, and assessing daily employee engagement. You can see the  original project plan, intention, measures and tools by  clicking here. Week 5. This was a week of highs and lows in engagement. Day 2 and Day 3 were the highest scores I have had all year in engagement and Day 4 and 5 were the lowest. Assessment and Review. Teaching continues to a major…

• Employee Engagement: Use Story not PowerPoint

  David Zinger

  8 Feb 2010 | 4:46 am

  Are you using story to create, foster, and enhance employee engagement within your organization. Robert McKee is a master of story. He offers a short insightful video look at the power of story to engage. Are you relying too much on data data, authority authority Are you relying too much on coercion: bribe, bully, coerce? Are you making use of story? Robert provides us with a strong 6 minute powerful “PowerPointless” video on how to use story to engage. He concludes with the comment, “I’d rather hear a fact woven beautifully into a story than look at a pie…

• Engage Now: Gabrielle Bouliane

  David Zinger

  7 Feb 2010 | 6:02 am

  I encourage you to take 5 minutes – how seldom on the Internet we will stay anywhere for 5 minutes – but I encourage you to take 5 minutes to watch and listen to Gabrielle Bouliane performing slam poetry on engage now. Here is the description that accompanies the YouTube video: The lovely and amazing performance poet Gabrielle Bouliane performs for the audience at the Austin Poetry Slam. This would be her last public performance. Gabrielle was diagnosed with Stage Four Cancer shortly before this video was filmed. Our dear sister fought hard, but she ended her fight January 29,…

• Today At Work – Episode 45

  David Zinger

  5 Feb 2010 | 8:58 pm

• Employee Engagement: Major Marshall Mojo

  David Zinger

  5 Feb 2010 | 4:56 am

  Mojo = Employee Engagement. Are you ready for major Marshall Goldsmith Mojo? Marshall’s Mojo. Are you working with Mojo and does your work give you Mojo? Marshall Goldsmith’s latest book is called Mojo. My mental image of Mojo is often something coming from a 7 foot 260 pound NBA player driving to the net so it is intriguing to watch the gentle but tenacious CEO coach with a Buddhist background, Marshall Goldsmith, focus on Mojo. Mojo and Nojo. Here is a  diagram from one of Marshall Goldsmith’s Business Week posts last year: Mojo defined.  Marshall Goldsmith explained…

• 
  J.T. and Dale Talk Jobs

• The Evil Co-Worker

  jtanddale

  5 Feb 2010 | 2:45 pm

  Dear J.T. & Dale: I have a co-worker who is always a total sweetheart when other people are present. However, when we are alone, she yells at me and calls me incompetent. I mentioned this to another co-worker, and he told me I was nuts, that everyone loves her. We do the same job, and I’m guessing she is threatened by me. I’m not sure I can hack much more of this evilness. — Francesca Dale: Hmmmm…no one else has seen this behavior, and your explanation for your co-worker’s obnoxiousness is that she is “threatened” by you. This worries me. I fear it…

• Can’t Find Work? Try Self Self-Employment

  jtanddale

  5 Feb 2010 | 2:18 pm

  Dear J.T. & Dale: In 2001, I pled guilty to a federal sex offense. I have not held regular employment since. Some potential employers are sympathetic, but none has been willing to offer me a job. I’ve got more than 20 years’ experience in computers, retail and home-rehabbing. — Ed Dale: Big problem, Ed. Even if you find employers who are sympathetic, at some point they are going to ask HR, legal or a partner some version of the question, “Are we opening ourselves up to lawsuits if this guy says or does something to an employee or customer?” Asking the question is…

• No One Will Take a Chance on Me

  jtanddale

  29 Jan 2010 | 12:33 pm

  Dear J.T. & Dale: I was in the trucking industry and drove 18-wheelers until last July, when I got fired because of a misunderstanding over company policy. Without going into the issue, I was wrong and the situation warranted termination. Since then, I’ve found it extremely difficult to find another trucking job. No one will take a chance on me. How do I get around this? — Mike Dale: Let’s look at a recent case study of getting back to work — the case of ex-con quarterback Michael Vick. Think of the chance someone took in hiring him. How did he return so readily to his old…

• Are Writing Skills More Important Than Ever?

  jtanddale

  29 Jan 2010 | 12:28 pm

  Dear J.T. & Dale: I’ve been applying for jobs recently, and several companies have requested that I send writing samples along with my resume. What are they looking for? Is there a certain format or length that is appropriate? — Anastasia J.T.: The key is to assess the kinds of writing you would be doing in the job you’re applying for. A person applying for a sales position would consider sending in examples of proposals to potential clients, while a training manager would send in samples of employee handbooks or training support materials. As for length, send two or three…

• How to Handle Medical Issues in an Interview

  jtanddale

  22 Jan 2010 | 12:15 pm

  Dear J.T. & Dale: I was assaulted by a former neighbor. As a result, I suffered a stroke and have headaches that lead to seizures. I lost my job after suffering a seizure during a phone call. How do I handle this in an interview? — Cynthia Dale: Before we get to future interviews, Cynthia, I was dismayed to hear that a seizure cost you your job. So let’s bring into the conversation a long-time friend of this column, employment law expert Scott Gordon of the Rodey Law Firm in Albuquerque, N.M., and ask him if there is something — perhaps the Americans with Disabilities Act —…

• 
  All Things Workplace

• Influence and Leadership: Raise the Standard

  Steve Roesler

  8 Feb 2010 | 5:48 am

  "Fitting in" is a big deal, and in many organizations it's seen as the way to career longevity. That's a problem.People are influenced by those they see as being "ahead of them." If you simply match the rest of the workforce and blend in, your influence is diminished. Eventually, you become invisible.If you want to lead, be willing to raise your personal standards to exceed the common expectations of your organization or work group. "Raising" equates with "elevating." Once you raise the bar for yourself, you begin to view things from a heightened position that expands your perspective. When…

• Influence Through Agreements

  Steve Roesler

  5 Feb 2010 | 6:49 am

  There's a misconception about influence that gets people into trouble. It's the idea that influence is a matter of "positional negotiation": one side lays out a case while the other counters with a stronger argument on a different position. This is actually a kind of competition that most often ends in conflict. The one with the most power wins while the loser walks away filled with resentment. Start Thinking "Partnership"Influence has its roots in agreements. In order to genuinely persuade someone to pursue a certain course of action, there needs to be an agreement about what is to be done…

• Meet Commitments. Build Trust. Say No.

  Steve Roesler

  4 Feb 2010 | 10:02 am

  Who do you trust? Probably those who you determine are reliable. So, those who don't keep their promises quickly lose the trust of their friends and colleagues. Before you commit to a new project or obligation, be sure you can fulfill it. If you really aren't certain, then say so. It's better to simply disappoint someone now than show up empty-handed on the day of your big promise. If, despite your best effort, you think you'll miss a deadline or milestone, then contact the other person and explain what has happened. We've all been in similar situations and again: disappointment is a lot…

• Influence: Help Competent People Grow Through Questions

  Steve Roesler

  3 Feb 2010 | 10:22 am

  Leaders do have to tell people exactly what to do when a person isn't yet competent--and confident--about the task or assignment. (The whole "leader" thing isn't just about high-concept and vision). But how do you develop managers who are knowledgeable and committed?You can build increased confidence and deeper understanding by asking questions designed to help them make their own discoveries and decisions. Here are seven questions to get you started as  a "coaching" leader:As you become more comfortable with probing questions, you'll develop your own. In fact, what are some of your…

• How To Get Your Good Ideas Heard

  Steve Roesler

  2 Feb 2010 | 11:09 am

  After spending the last week or more in meetings, I heard a lot of ideas. Most of them were pretty good. But they didn't all get the same amount of air time.Why not? Adapt Your Thoughts and IdeasThe senior people in each meeting wanted to hear "new stuff." They also have "bigger picture" responsibilities, more demands on their time, and a long-term view of their respective companies. That makes their mental filters subject to some very specific criteria. As I watched the thumbs up/(silent) thumbs down process, I thought: "What am I learning from this that could be universally…

• 
  Jon Gordon's Blog | Developing Positive Leaders, Organizations and Teams

• Build a Winning Team

  Jon Gordon

  8 Feb 2010 | 6:47 am

  In the spirit of the New Orleans Saints winning their first Super Bowl I thought this was an appropriate newsletter this week. I often say that, “You win in the locker room first. Then you win on the field.” Whether we’re talking sports, business, education, healthcare, etc. the key to success is to build a winning team first. Of course this seems obvious but with increasing pressure to reach certain targets and goals and a challenging economy it’s easy for leaders and their teams to become outward focused on numbers and outcomes rather than inward focused on building the right…

• 6 Lessons for Life

  Jon Gordon

  1 Feb 2010 | 6:49 am

  I woke up Saturday morning in Newport News, Virginia, looked out the hotel window and all I could see was snow. I called the airport and heard the news no traveler wants to hear. The airport was shut down. I was set to speak to Lia Sophia Jewelry that morning at the hotel where I was staying and that night I was scheduled to be at an event in New York City. I knew one thing in that moment. If I was going to get to NY I wouldn’t be flying there. And most likely I would be stranded for a few days in Virginia. I decided to make the best of it and focus on inspiring, serving and impacting…

• The Power of Positive Interactions

  Jon Gordon

  25 Jan 2010 | 5:46 am

  John Gottman’s pioneering research found that marriages are much more likely to succeed when the couple experiences a 5 to 1 ratio of positive to negative interactions whereas when the ratio approaches 1 to 1, marriages are more likely to end in divorce. Additional research also shows that workgroups with positive to negative interaction ratios greater than 3 to 1 are significantly more productive than teams that do not reach this ratio. So what does this mean for you and me? For most of us it means we need to increase the number of positive interactions we have at home and at work and…

• 5 Ways to Motivate Your Team

  Jon Gordon

  18 Jan 2010 | 5:15 am

   1. Lead with Optimism - Negativity and fear are likely knocking your people off balance and it’s time to regroup, refocus, and unite to create a winning mindset, culture and positive team environment. Now, more than ever, is a time for positive leadership. Now is the time to uplift, encourage and inspire your teams. When your folks talk about the challenges, you talk about the opportunities. When others talk about why they can’t succeed, you give them every reason why they can. So often the difference between success and failure is belief and as a positive leader you need to inspire…

• Today Was a Good Day Because…

  Jon Gordon

  11 Jan 2010 | 5:00 am

  Eric Best of University Community Hospital shared with us an idea (picture below) he implemented at his hospital to focus the staff on the positives of the work day. He posted the board and without saying anything to his staff, they just started writing on it. Such a great idea! Click Image for Larger View

• 
  Career Upshift

• Put Yourself in the Interviewer’s Shoes

  Paul Freiberger

  6 Feb 2010 | 11:51 pm

  The job interview is not the place to confess your mistakes. It is not the time to demonstrate your weaknesses or let the interviewer know many of your faults. You will be asked about weaknesses, faults and mistakes for sure. These are traps, aimed at excluding you, and if you don’t handle these questions deftly you will not get the job. Think carefully about weaknesses and mistakes you are willing to discuss. Make sure you turn these answers into positives. If you have a weakness demonstrate that you manage it effectively. If you had trouble getting along with a colleague make sure it…

• Pause the Job Search for the Holidays? Ho, Ho, Ho. No, No, No

  Paul Freiberger

  23 Dec 2009 | 12:33 am

  Don’t follow conventional wisdom when it comes to your job search during the holiday season. The holidays actually present an excellent reason to connect with old friends and former colleagues and build or rebuild your network. Networking is a long and continuous process. Halting it at any time is not a good idea, and, in this tough job market you need to be follow your job search strategy relentlessly. Despite the holidays companies continue their process of filling open positions. A good company is always interested in finding talented employees. Besides, if more openings occur early in…

• Beware the Free Resume Critique

  Paul Freiberger

  22 Dec 2009 | 1:21 am

  Beware of some job search sites like The Ladders and a few others that offer a “free resume critique.” The purpose of these offers is simply to pitch you their resume writing service. If you send them your resume you will receive a standard “form” critique with an offer to write your resume for close to $1,000. Moreover, these sites don’t hire their own resume writers; they outsource to freelancers so you don’t necessarily know what you will be getting. If you want a professional resume writer, find a professional writer who can provide you samples of…

• A Little Golf Can Help You Par the Job Search

  Paul Freiberger

  29 Nov 2009 | 9:37 pm

  Don’t give up golf during your job search. I’ve found that my most successful clients at the job search game do two things well: 1) They are thorough and relentless in their job search, even following much of my advice, and, 2) They still make time for a bit of leisure. So, play a little golf. You can even make it part of your job search. Talk careers with someone you pair up with for a round. Call some long-lost acquaintances for a round and do some useful networking. If you have other leisure activities you enjoy to keep you cool during a job search, share them here.

• Interview with Michael Swaine: “Good programmers are in short supply”

  Paul Freiberger

  9 Aug 2009 | 12:05 am

  Michael Swaine Michael Swaine is among the world’s leading experts on programming and the software industry.  He helped launch the first personal computer newsweekly, InfoWorld. He co-authored Fire in the Valley, the seminal tech history book on which the movie Pirates of Silicon Valley was based. He was editor-in-chief of Dr. Dobb’s Journal and has written for and edited several other magazines. His latest creation is Prag Pub for The Pragmatic Programmers (http://pragprog.com/magazines). We asked him to discuss the state of programming as a profession. Career Upshift: Are…

• 
  College Recruiter

• Twitter Followers, Facebook Friends No Longer Trusted

  8 Feb 2010 | 12:23 pm

  I've long been a proponent of social media sites such as Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, blogs, and others as they've proven themselves to be wonderful sources of information and referrals. But it appears that the gravy train may be coming to an end, and perhaps it is because users of the social media sites are increasingly realizing that the so-called objective referrals they're receiving from their friends are often made at the request of the marketer and not adequately screened by the friend. For years, advocates of social media marketing have been telling anyone who would listen that…

• Marketers Plan 17% Increase in On-line, Mobile Spending

  5 Feb 2010 | 6:04 am

  I'm a pretty active member of the only trade association for job boards, the International Association of Employment Web Sites. One of the many pieces of information that I've digested at the meetings is that about 90 percent of the job boards generate about 90 percent of their revenues from two failing products: job postings and resume searching. Very few boards have successfully transitioned to products which deliver added value to their employer clients and so will continue to face a cash crunch even as the economy recovers. What are some of the more innovative, value add products that…

• Skills vs Behavioral Assessments

  3 Feb 2010 | 3:41 pm

  Oscar Hernandes of HireLabs asked me to participate in a video blogging effort in which HireLabs asked a number of people in the recruiting industries to discuss whether they felt that skills or behavior hold more importance in employment assessments. I believe that some employers for some positions such as information technology jobs feel that skills are more important while other employers for other positions such as sales jobs believe that behavioral traits are more important. For more details, watch the video below:

• Most Important Skill to Employers is Communication

  3 Feb 2010 | 1:32 pm

  Employers look for their job candidates to exhibit strong communication skills. Employers taking part in the Job Outlook 2010 survey by the National Association of Colleges and Employers' (NACE) ranked communication skills at the top of the skills they seek in potential employees: Communication Skills Analytical Skills Teamwork Skills Technical Skills Strong Work Ethic

• Great Economic News: Employers Adding 382,000 Jobs

  2 Feb 2010 | 8:02 am

  The recovery from any recession is always a two steps forward, one step back kind of a process. And sometimes it is one step forward, two steps back. But some great economic news was just released. The number of jobs advertised on-line increased by a whopping 382,000 in January. According to The Conference Board Help Wanted OnLine™ (HWOL) Data Series, the number of on-line job postings increased 382,000 to 4,024,000 in January 2010. This is the third straight month of increases with December 2009 being up 255,000 and November 2009 being up 107,000 for a total increase of some 750,000 over…

• 
  Career College Central

• New Bill Would Allow Students to Transfer Credits From For-profit Colleges

  CCC

  8 Feb 2010 | 7:10 am

  Metropolitan State College of Denver is so packed with students that officials are spending $24,000 a semester to rent space at a campus movie theater to hold classes. Though enrollment is up at colleges across the state, those serving high-risk students, such as Metro and community colleges, feel the squeeze the most. Enrollment is up 19 percent since the fall of 2008 at 13 community colleges across Colorado, and nearly 60 programs are full and putting students on wait lists. In November, enrollment at the 13 schools totaled almost 83,000, according to the Colorado Community College System.

• For Students at Risk, Early College Proves a Draw

  CCC

  8 Feb 2010 | 7:05 am

  Precious Holt, a 12th grader with dangly earrings and a SpongeBob pillow, climbs on the yellow school bus and promptly falls asleep for the hour-plus ride to Sandhills Community College. When the bus arrives, she checks in with a guidance counselor and heads off to a day of college classes, blending with older classmates until 4 p.m., when she and the other seniors from SandHoke Early College High School gather for the ride home. There is a payoff for the long bus rides: The 48 SandHoke seniors are in a fast-track program that allows them to earn their high-school diploma and up to two years…

• Obama's Higher Ed Plans a Mixed Bag

  CCC

  8 Feb 2010 | 7:00 am

  President Obama laid out several initiatives on Jan. 27 that he hoped would advance the cause for higher education in America. We note that two of the three mentioned are positive for the for-profit education sector. However, we view the most important initiative as a net negative for the sector. The first was a proposed $10,000 tax credit for four years of college education. This should be viewed positively, as the tax credit will increase incremental demand in the for-profit sector. Schools which have a focus on bachelor's degrees would benefit more as a result. We would especially like to…

• Liberty University's 'Your 24' Video Competition Strengthens the Institution's Online Community

  CCC

  8 Feb 2010 | 6:57 am

  Lynchburg, Va. (Feb. 8, 2010) -- Liberty University Online asked students to share their lives with fellow students through the "Your 24" video contest. More than 60 students submitted entries, capturing what they considered to be a typical 24 hours in their day balancing work, family, ministries and, of course, college courses. In her winning video, Caitlyn Rosander of North Carolina said, "It's hard to say exactly what will happen in a typical day in my life, but I do know that with all the busyness and distractions around us, Liberty Online lets me unwind and rewind."…

• The Emerging Hispanic-Serving Institution

  CCC

  5 Feb 2010 | 7:37 am

  The number of institutions officially recognized by the federal government as "Hispanic serving" is set to rise dramatically in the coming years, according to a comprehensive study of Latino enrollment in higher education. read more

• 
  Execpundit

• Quote of the Day

  9 Feb 2010 | 5:57 am

  Don't let yourself forget what it's like to be sixteen.- Anonymous

• Entertainment Break

  8 Feb 2010 | 6:38 pm

  The trailer for "Bullets Over Broadway."A great comedy, packed with great lines.

• C. S. Lewis: Mentor

  8 Feb 2010 | 6:27 pm

  David C. Downing has written a post on how C. S. Lewis was often a mentor by mail. An excerpt:Lewis’s advice to his correspondents often took the form of quotable epigrams. To a new wife who felt guilty over her mixed emotions about pregnancy, Lewis observed about guilt feelings, “You can’t help their knocking on the door; but you mustn’t ask them in to lunch” (3, 310). To a mother who asked Lewis to write a letter to her troubled daughter, Lewis answered prudently, “I think advice is best kept till it is asked for” (3, 320). On the same subject to the same correspondent, Lewis…

• 17 Guidelines: When Briefing the New Boss

  8 Feb 2010 | 3:14 pm

  Leave all humor at the door. Make sure your appearance is thoroughly professional.Don't badmouth the old boss.Don't criticize other managers or employees.Avoid any semblance of pandering. If you don't know something, admit it.Don't understate the impact of past mistakes.Make no assumptions regarding the boss's management proclivities.Be able to discuss and recommend alternatives to current policies.Know your subject area inside-out.Don't overwhelm the boss with details, but have them at hand.Be respectful of time.Expect interruptions.Know all areas of risk and all available resources.Don't…

• Sno Wovel

  8 Feb 2010 | 2:24 pm

  Cool Tools reviews the Sno Wovel, a timely tool for some parts of the country.

• 
  WebWorkerDaily

• 3 Apps For Collaborating on Scripts Online

  Doriano "Paisano" Carta

  8 Feb 2010 | 3:00 pm

  Here are some apps that provide useful ways to collaborate online on writing scripts for anything from short promotional corporate videos to full-length motion pictures. Sure, there are many ways to accomplish this task, such as sharing a document using Google Docs or Zoho Write, but these three apps focus specifically on the task of writing scripts, along with the formatting that requires. They each include the ability to invite other writers to join your project and maintain a centralized copy of the material for each contributor to view and update. Adobe Story Adobe Labs is currently…

• Minute Suites: Rest and Recharge, Airport Style

  Nancy Nally

  8 Feb 2010 | 1:00 pm

  Between security hassles and being charged fees for everything but the oxygen we breathe on board a plane, air travel has become something to be endured rather than enjoyed. But a new service that recently opened in Atlanta Hartsfield airport, called Minute Suites, wants to serve as travelers’ oasis from the stress of life traveling the unfriendly skies. Atlanta Hartsfield’s Minute Suites is located on Concourse B in a space that was formerly a business center, and bills itself as a “traveler’s retreat”. Minute Suites offered me the chance to give them a try during a layover on a…

• Taking a Closer Look with 1DayLater

  Georgina Laidlaw

  8 Feb 2010 | 11:00 am

  This year, in an effort to get a better grip on the ways I generate income, I’ve been looking for a free, simple app that will allow me to track my income easily. I should say that this was my first priority; as a second priority, I wanted to track my time more closely as well. Although I like feeling organized, I don’t want to spend ages learning how to use software, and one thing that really frustrates me is unintuitive systems with poor usability. Generally, I think the simpler things are, the better. So I was excited to hear about 1DayLater, a new time-, cash- and…

• 3 Places to Discover New and Relevant Content

  Dawn Foster

  8 Feb 2010 | 8:00 am

  Web workers are a busy group, and it can be too easy to get buried in our work while rarely surfacing to keep up with the latest news, trends and other information that we should be learning. While I love my RSS reader and check it frequently, RSS readers have limitations. They are best for keeping up with information that you have added to your reader because you know you want to read it. What about all of that other information from sites that you don’t already read? One of the best ways to find this news and interesting information is by using sites that provide smart ways to…

• New Book on Business Planning Helps Productivity

  Karen Leland

  8 Feb 2010 | 6:00 am

  Every December, I sit down to write my business plan for the upcoming year. Invariably, however, the lure of pumpkin pie, the razzle-dazzle of holiday lights and the continuous playing of Christmas music take me off track. I find that I’m just too distracted to seriously focus on the business planning at hand. Instead, I set my sights on January. The merriment is over, and I’m ready to get a grip on my work world again. The only problem is that my inbox is so backed up, and my to-do list has grown so long, that it takes me most of the month to process through the open items that have…

• 
  On Leadership

• Faux leadership stripes

  Howard Gardner

  9 Feb 2010 | 3:09 am

  If Sarah Palin genuinely wants to burnish her leadership credentials, she has to show that she can be a genuine leader of an organization, or play an important leadership role within an organization: the Senate, a major corporation or a major non profit. This is especially important because she left her only major leadership position abruptly in mid stream. Such a decision would mean that she could only run for president, at the earliest, in 2016. But, alas, the notion that one has to have demonstrated successful leadership skills in order to attain high office seems anachronistic. Celebrity…

• Become a more interesting person

  Alan M. Webber

  9 Feb 2010 | 3:05 am

  Sarah Palin needs to do what fledgling leaders in business and government have always done when they're trying to earn more credibility, widen their appeal, and establish themselves as serious leaders: listen and learn. We already know that she can fire up her existing followers. They will be her followers regardless of her command of policy, her knowledge of world affairs, her engagement with serious people doing serious things around the world. But the people who are skeptical, who think she lacks seriousness or intelligence or gravitas--the only way for her to engage those people is,…

• Senator Palin, maybe

  Slade Gorton

  9 Feb 2010 | 2:59 am

  It is difficult to burnish leadership credentials when one holds no position in which those credentials can be demonstrated. Her resignation as governor of Alaska was, at least at the time, an indication that Sarah Palin did not intend to run for president; it is perhaps more likely that she will be a candidate for senator at some future election, a race in which she might well be a distinct favorite. In the meantime, she will continue to do what she does best: rally the enthusiasm of her myriad of admirers and continue to cause her liberal critics to froth at the mouth at every possible…

• Leading the 'party of no'

  Donald Kettl

  9 Feb 2010 | 2:41 am

  In response to the On Leadership question: As Sarah Palin goes about laying the foundation for a possible presidential candidacy, what could she do to burnish her leadership credentials beyond her conservative base? Sarah Palin needs to take a page from New York Yankee great Yogi Berra's well-thumbed book: "When you come to a fork in the road--take it." She's doing well so far by leading a group that doesn't want a leader, but in doing so she risks separating herself from the rest of the country. She needs to be able to go down both forks if she's going to earn her leadership chops. Palin has…

• By punditry alone?

  Marie Wilson

  8 Feb 2010 | 1:50 pm

  Sarah Palin would have to have an "extreme makeover" in political knowledge and experience to restore confidence in her beyond the conservative base. The only people who have been able to come from outside the political world (and she is now outside that world) and run have been business leaders who have led a large corporations or reached a high rank in the military. It won't do to be a Fox pundit or a Tea Party heroine to lead a country in an era as complex as we live in now. If punditry alone is enough to get you elected president, then our democracy is in more of a disarray than I care to…

• 
  The HR Capitalist

• Undercover Boss: You Wish That's All It Took to Change Your Business...

  Kris Dunn

  9 Feb 2010 | 5:45 am

  Quick - Who watched "Undercover Boss" after the Superbowl?  Who thought it was entertaining?  Who thought it was lame?More importantly, who thought it was real?  Or that meaningful improvement could be had from this approach?  Could "The Situation" from the Jersey Shore have actually assisted with the intellectual honesty of this series?Let's imagine you're in the guts of an American business that has a workforce of 40K+ that's been built primarily through acquisition.  If you know anything about business, you know there are going to be plenty of…

• The Capitalist Says You Should Hire Lance Haun (aka Your HR Guy)....

  Kris Dunn

  9 Feb 2010 | 4:49 am

  That's right. The Twitter avatar for KD is Ari Gold, now I'm actively repping for talent I know and trust.  Except it's not Vinnie Chase or Johnny Drama.  Wanted to reach out to the readership and ask you to keep your eyes open for job opportunities for an HR Pro I know and trust – Lance Haun. Lance is based out of Portland and is a strong HR pro. While he’s early in his career, Lance has developed a great deal of authority in the HR/Talent game by making his voice heard at his blog, www.yourhrguy.com (also known as www.rehaul.com). After meeting Lance and working with…

• Is Your "About" Page Real, or Just Real Phoney?

  Kris Dunn

  8 Feb 2010 | 5:31 am

  About pages - they're everywhere these days.  Whether you have a bio on your company's site, you own your own business and have to tell people who you are, or simply have a bio via twitter, Facebook or LinkedIn, you've got choices to make regarding how you position yourself. Are you an expert, a working (wo)man, or something in between?  Remember - if you leave bio tools blank, you're still making a choice - you're telling the world that you're afraid to take a stand.  If I see that as someone who hires a lot, that's OK, I just think you're a nice…

• Want to Define Your Talent DNA? Don't Waste the Values Section Included in Your Performance Review...

  Kris Dunn

  5 Feb 2010 | 8:13 am

  I've been thinking a lot about performance management lately.  Of special note is the fact that I'm thinking of ways - real ways, not lip service - that the performance management process can be used to reinforce and/or build culture at our company. The main thought I've had?  In order to make the true cultural play, when it comes to your performance management system, you've invariably got to make some of your current team members uncomfortable and possibly even make them think that they don't belong at your company. Stay with me on this one and we'll discuss…

• The Concept of "Good Enough" and Your Talent Strategy: Who's the Customer?

  Kris Dunn

  4 Feb 2010 | 9:25 am

  I love the smell of wavering in the morning.  You know the type of wavering I'm talking about - the type of hiring manager wavering that wonders aloud if the candidate is "too qualified" and "too upwardly mobile" to plug into a spot in question at your company.  The argument goes a little something like this: "Let's don't overshoot our needs with this position, because I don't want to be filling this job again in 11 months because we've promoted this gal on to the next position." Good grief, Charlie Brown.  I'm usually a proponent…

• 
  Forbes.com: Career News

• The Weekly Layoff Report: Bad News Even In The Newsroom

  5 Feb 2010 | 1:34 pm

  Wal-Mart, Delta and CBS News are among those cutting jobs this week.

• America's Best And Worst Job Markets

  5 Feb 2010 | 12:57 pm

  Education and government work have the nation's capital on top, while sunbelt tourism meccas like Miami and Las Vegas suffer most.

• The State Of The Office Romance, 2010

  5 Feb 2010 | 8:41 am

  According to a new survey, more than half of workers have been pierced by Cupid's arrow on the job. And quite a few of them have gotten physical there.

• How Creative M.B.A. Programs Are Overcoming Bad Times

  5 Feb 2010 | 8:11 am

  A few imaginative winners stand out in a tough season for business schools.

• The Three Qualities You Need To Get Ahead At Work

  4 Feb 2010 | 11:51 am

  Being fully competent at your job is no more than the first step.

• 
  Tammy Erickson

• Are You Fun to Follow on Twitter?

  Tammy Erickson

  2 Feb 2010 | 5:50 am

  There's an art to tweeting. And, I'm sorry to say, most people just haven't mastered it. Twitter, for the few uninitiated out there, is a social networking site that limits your posts to 140 characters. You can sign up to "follow" (receive the Tweets) from just about anyone you choose. I initially signed up to follow lots of people — colleagues, journalists, academics, politicians, comedians, friends and family. Over the past months, I've been steadily "unfollowing" — if that's the right term — many of the people I originally signed on behind. Frankly, most people's tweets…

• Our Generation X President's First Year

  Tammy Erickson

  26 Jan 2010 | 5:44 am

  President Obama is arguably the United States' first President who is a member of Generation X. (I say "arguably" since the boundary line between Boomers and X'ers is subject to debate. Born in 1961, in my view, he's the vanguard of the next generation leaders.) While I don't believe any individual is poster child for the shared traits of a generation, I do think some of President Obama's actions reflect characteristics I've seen in other X'ers I've studied. Even more, as I reflect on his first full year in office, I believe some of the frustrations and celebrations of the year illustrate…

• The Moment Social Media Became Serious Business

  Tammy Erickson

  19 Jan 2010 | 12:31 pm

  It happened last year, around the first of July. In my experience, the switch was just about that abrupt. All last spring, most senior business leaders I met shrugged off the business applicability of Web 2.0. Allowing access to social networks in the workplace was something they were willing to consider only if it was absolutely necessary to keep younger employees from complaining. Twitter? What was that? But by summer, the conversations I was having with senior executives about the use of these new technologies took on a very different tone. Recognition grew that 2.0 technologies could be…

• Thanks, Gen X, for the Conversation

  Tammy Erickson

  12 Jan 2010 | 8:49 am

  This is a big month for me. And since many of you have contributed ideas to the discussion here over the past three years — and I'd like to ask you to join me in a little celebration. The third book in the trilogy I've written to the generations is published this month. More than the previous two, this book, is less "mine" and more "ours." Your responses to posts on this site helped me understand your perspectives; your voices are woven throughout. To be honest, the idea of writing three books in three years proved to be a bit more ambitious than I originally realized. Even more so, I…

• Predictions for 2010: Five Changes in the Way We Work

  Tammy Erickson

  6 Jan 2010 | 12:15 pm

  I predict this year will be marked by five changes in the evolving relationship between those who work and those who pay to have work done. Most of these trends have been percolating for some time — many stemming back to the 1981 recession, and its then-startling lay-offs. The most recent recession accelerated and intensified the changing nature of the employee-employer relationship. Recessions unquestionably leave a mark on the way we work. The approaches companies use to respond to difficult business conditions don't only affect the company — they leave a lasting impression on…

• 
  Sylvia Ann Hewlett

• Dubai's Young Women: Single and Determined

  Sylvia Ann Hewlett and Lisa Weinert

  3 Feb 2010 | 5:50 am

  This post was co-authored by Sylvia Ann Hewlett and Lisa Weinert The world over, well-educated young women are choosing different pathways — in their careers and their lives — than their older peers. This is particularly striking among young Arab women, a group thought to be more embedded in — and confined by — traditional values and cultural restrictions. Last month, as delegates to the Second Arab Women's Leadership Forum in Dubai, we participated in a focus group of young professional women in their late twenties and early thirties. The conversation was thoughtful,…

• Women in Emerging Markets: Tap Into Their Talent

  Sylvia Ann Hewlett

  26 Jan 2010 | 7:00 am

  As I looked around the conference room at Pfizer's regional headquarters in Dubai, I was stunned by the view. No, not the view of the Palm Jumeirah artificial island or the sail-shaped Burj al Arab skyscraper, but something much closer. Sitting around me were eight Pfizer senior executives, including the finance director and the head of HR for Africa and the Middle East. As the vanguard of Pfizer's strategy to establish a new regional hub, all are at the top of their game. As recently as five years ago, this kind of group would have been pale and male. Today, they were all women — five…

• Three Ways to Fish in the Global Talent Pool

  Sylvia Ann Hewlett

  10 Dec 2009 | 5:39 am

  The world is your talent pool. We've been hearing that message ever since corporations started chattering about globalization. The real issue is, how well do you fish in that pool? The difference between strategically fishing and merely flailing the waters of an increasingly diverse talent pool was the top issue at the recent Hidden Brain Drain Summit. Held in New York, the fourth annual colloquium brought together representatives from more than 50 organizations employing more than four million people in 152 countries around the world. Members range from American Express, Ernst & Young,…

• Women of the Workplace, Uniting

  Sylvia Ann Hewlett

  5 Nov 2009 | 1:03 pm

  Between waves of layoffs and evaporating job opportunities, we're in a climate that naturally breeds an every-woman-for-herself mentality. A recent study by the Workplace Bullying Institute found that female bullies were alive — and, more than 70 percent of the time, kicking other women. But I've also seen companies encouraging their smart women to help their women colleagues in ways that are more than just heartening. In fact, I'm convinced they're part of a new way of networking. According to research for my new book, Top Talent: Keeping Performance Up When Business Is Down,…

• Go Pro Bono to Rescue Morale

  Sylvia Ann Hewlett

  30 Oct 2009 | 1:18 pm

  I recently ran into a friend who had joined AIG just before the economy imploded. While he's grateful to have kept his job, working for a firm regarded as one of the four horsemen of the financial apocalypse has its downside. "When I say I work at AIG," he says, "people react as though I'm in the porn industry." It's hard to get excited about work when your company is reviled. And it's hard for companies to attract and retain top talent when their reputations are under siege. A new study from the Center for Work-Life Policy, discussed in the book Top Talent and the special report "Sustaining…

• 
  John Baldoni

• How to Face Your Critics

  John Baldoni

  3 Feb 2010 | 7:49 am

  When people criticize you, what's the best thing to do? Show up and face the music. President Barack Obama did just that when he met with Republican House members at their party conference last week in Baltimore. He met face-to-face with some of his sharpest critics, and in the process, demonstrated what it means to lead under fire. In doing so, the President, whether you like or dislike him, provided a template for leaders to use when they need to face critics. Here's what we can learn. Show up. Let your critics see you for the leader who you are. Adopting a "hide in the bunker" attitude…

• How to Encourage Small Innovations

  John Baldoni

  29 Jan 2010 | 6:03 am

  The announcement of Apple's iPad is turning many people's thoughts to the innovations behind big ideas. Innovations such as these play a critical role in a company's future, but companies often hinder themselves by focusing on finding the next big thing, when in reality, the next small thing might be more beneficial. The more that employees are encouraged to think creatively and apply that creativity, the more flexible in practice and nimble in responsiveness a company becomes. When you take pressure off people to come up with a "big" idea, you encourage the creativity that can bring about…

• How Leaders Should Think Critically

  John Baldoni

  20 Jan 2010 | 1:29 pm

  If you want to succeed in 21st Century business you need to become a critical thinker. Roger Martin of the Rotman School of Management figured this out a decade ago and as dean, has been working to transform his school's business curriculum with greater emphasis on critical thinking skills. As Lane Wallace explained in the New York Times, what Martin and many others are seeking to do is approach learning and problem solving from a multicultural platform that borrows from academia, business, the arts and even history. Critical thinking has always been a prized attribute of leadership, but over…

• The Importance of Resourcefulness

  John Baldoni

  13 Jan 2010 | 11:15 am

  With the recession forcing us to make do with what we have, being resourceful is now a necessary skill for today's generation of leaders. It is not simply a matter of doing more with less — companies have preached this for at least a generation. Rather, what's important is the realization that you can do more with less because you and your colleagues are more capable than you first believed. Resourcefulness is not a means of coping with deprivation; it can be a virtue that opens the door to greater accomplishment. Based on my observations of what resourceful leaders do, here are some…

• How Will You Make a Difference in 2010?

  John Baldoni

  7 Jan 2010 | 8:16 am

  What will you do to make a difference in your job this year? This is a variation on a question that Michigan Radio is asking citizens about how to make things better in 2010. Since Michigan is at the epicenter of the Great Recession, there is no shortage of suggestions about what to do differently. The challenge is in what individuals will do to make a positive difference. To me this question has relevance for leaders at every level, especially as we head into a new decade. And so I think it is worth asking, as you look at your job and the people for whom you are responsible, what will do you…

• 
  Evil HR Lady

• Bad Grades

  Evil HR Lady

  7 Feb 2010 | 12:29 pm

  i found ur id on;line and found that u ans evil hr question. i am struck with a question in interview of "why my grades are so low". and also cant find an ans where a positive mindset is going to be created in mind of the interviewer. i am a law graduate.You know why you can't come up with a positive answer? Because your grades are low because you don't care one whit about them. Or at least you didn't until now when you are in need of actual employment.How do I know this? Because you did a Google search, found my blog and thought I could solve all your problems (and I could, if I wanted to!),…

• How Did It Work Out?

  Evil HR Lady

  4 Feb 2010 | 2:21 am

  Evil HR Lady has been up and running for long time and I've answered a ton of questions. (Although, not nearly as many as I have not answered, unfortunately.)Anyway, Ask A Manager had people write in with updates, and I hope she doesn't kill me for copying her, but if you had your question posted here, send me an e-mail at evilhrlady@hotmail.com and let me know what happened. Good or bad. If you could include a link to the original post, that would be helpful.Please? I promise it will be fun. And I'll post the updates so everyone can see what happened.

• Break Room Cell Phones

  Evil HR Lady

  2 Feb 2010 | 3:45 am

  I have a question regarding the use of cell phones in the employee lunch room. I was recently asked this question by a manager, who I might add is problem manager, but that is another topic. So this is the question she asked"I keep asking my staff not to use their cell phones in the building and around the lunch tables while other people are there, eating and socializing with others. I often ask them to punch out and take a walk 'downstairs'. I personally don't like being in the break room and listening to people on cell phones. What's your opinion on this please?"So, Evil Hr Lady, what do…

• The Joy of Unions

  Evil HR Lady

  27 Jan 2010 | 3:43 am

  My brother-in-law works for a unionized company and has for 2 years now. He has all the qualifications needed for his job and is going to night school to get even more qualifications that are recommended for his job but not required. Another co-worker in another sector of the company is being laid off and was told by HR that if he gets a certain class of driver's license by the end of the week he can have my brother-in-law's job instead and they will lay my brother in law off instead. Is this even legal?Yep! It's called bumping and it happens all the time in a unionized workforce. How the…

• PIP

  Evil HR Lady

  25 Jan 2010 | 2:11 am

  Can a company divulge the details of a performance improvement plan to another company verifying a candidate's (assuming the candidate was put into a performance improvement plan by his former employer) employment history?Can a company? Sure! (Keep in mind that I am not a lawyer, this is not legal advice, and I have no knowledge of your actual location, so this may not apply to you at all.)People have this strange idea that companies are a. only allowed to verify titles/dates/salaries or b. forbidden from giving bad reviews. This is false. Now, if you follow the official rule book and your…

• 
  What Would Dad Say

• Things We Say in Minn E Soda.

  wwds

  5 Feb 2010 | 4:35 pm

  I am not from here originally, but I admit that I say “U betcha,” which is very Minnesotan, maybe Norwegian.  We are also fond of ending sentences with with.  As in “we are going to the bar to watch the Super Bowl, want to go WITH?”  (u betcha!) What are the things you say in your state or hometown? As for Brett Favre, I hope he comes back.  If he does he will become the ONLY PROFESSIONAL PLAYER EVER IN ANY SPORT to have his jersey retired by two teams.  (Packer snd Vikings) The above billboard was put up in Brett’s hometown in Mississippi, Hattiesburg, and…

• LinkUp vs The Government Jobs Report: We Called It. Again.

  wwds

  5 Feb 2010 | 6:49 am

  Well, we (LINKUP) called it.  Again.  Two days ago, ahead of the ‘official’ Department of Labor report issued at 7:30 am CST this morning, @TobyDayton released the LinkUp numbers showing a dramatic improvement in the jobs report for January.  Most pundits, networks, bloggers and followers were on the other side.  Cretins.  Never go against LINKUP. January’s jobs report from the Department of Labor is scheduled to be released later this week and based on data released this morning by LinkUp, Friday’s report will show that the job market improved sharply during the…

• Money Mules, JobSeeker Victims and the American Way

  wwds

  29 Jan 2010 | 7:39 am

  Generally speaking it is not a good idea to even mention a competitor.  Even bad PR is still PR.  But it is hard to stand by and watch job seekers get taken to the proverbial cleaners by people in the industry who profess to help them.  A few days ago, JT O’Donnell had @TobyDayton and me on a webinar talking about How To Use a Job Board.  There were lots of questions, mostly about the bad practices of some of the job boards.  It was sad to hear the experiences of these job seekers who are frustrated and angry. After the session I received a call from a CEO in our industry, who runs…

• Luckily, THIS Will NEVER Happen Here in USA

  wwds

  27 Jan 2010 | 1:25 pm

  From today’s Daily Mail, Jan. 27, 2010

• Jacob Share’s 117 Funny Job Ads

  wwds

  27 Jan 2010 | 6:45 am

  My friend Jacob Share just posted 117 job and recruitment ads.  Hilarious.  There are ten or so here, but please, jump over to his site to browse through them all.  It will brighten your day.

• 
  Karen Burns, Working Girl

• 30 Best Creative Writing Blogs

  Karen Burns

  7 Feb 2010 | 8:48 pm

  Working Girl just got word that this little blog was named one of the “30 Finest Creative Writing Blogs of 2009” by Online Colleges and Universities.  Thanks, guys! It’s kinda cool to be included on the same list with Neil Gaiman (author of “Coraline”). Also worth checking out are “Apostrophe Abuse” (name speaks for itself), “Blue Pencil Editing” (you can never be reminded too often about the difference between “continuous” and “continual”), and “The Urban Muse” (check out the recent thread about…

• Quit Your Job With Class

  Karen Burns

  3 Feb 2010 | 11:14 am

  If you’re anything like a majority of Americans you may be counting the days until the economy improves  and you can find a new job.  Better than the old one. So, in advance of that happy day, here is a primer on the best way to quit your job.  Meanwhile, hang in there.

• Is College Worth It?

  Karen Burns

  2 Feb 2010 | 2:17 pm

  Want to make parents of teens nervous?  Even a little P.O.’d?  Ask them the above. They definitely do not like questioning the base premise: i.e., that whatever it costs, whatever sacrifices you have to make, you absolutely must send your kid to college.  Working Girl loves questioning base premises.  She’s always found conventional wisdom to be, well, conventional.  And she has long wondered whether getting a college education is always always necessary.  Don’t get her wrong, WG loves learning, loves books and ivy-covered halls and all the rest, and feels that…

• How Much Do You Make?

  Karen Burns

  1 Feb 2010 | 5:23 pm

  If like Working Girl you were raised to abhor discussion of money, sex, or religion, you will find the above question intrusive.  Even offensive. Problem is….job hunters get this question all the time.  For example, a reader writes: On sharing salary…I saw a friend at a networking function; he’s someone I know very well.  He mentioned they’re expanding and hiring, so naturally I threw my name into the hat.  He asked me what I’m making.  I didn’t want to say but he wanted a ballpark…I know he’s not the one who will ultimately hire but…

• Playing Well With Others

  Karen Burns

  29 Jan 2010 | 1:13 pm

  How to work well as part of a team is this week’s offering over at U.S. News.  See “listening,” “showing appreciation,” “sharing credit,” and the rest.  It’s actually not rocket science.  But let’s face it.  We forget. Bonus:  Advice applies to life, as well as work.  A twofer!

• 
  Satisfying Career - Happier Life

• How to Manage Work Overload and Fire Fighting at Work

  Shweta Khare

  5 Feb 2010 | 10:01 am

  When work overpowers your life and it is work while you work and work while you play – that means no time off for Johnny; it is time to sit back and evaluate what is going wrong. Many employees around the world are prone to burning the candle at both ends and in the long run the results are hard hitting on their health, personal life and even career.Is it just that the work at present is too much or is it that this is the norm – you are mostly in a fire fighting mode at work and the tasks at hand are taking control of you rather than being the other way around?Until and unless the reasons…

• Your Sweetheart is at your Workplace

  Shweta Khare

  5 Feb 2010 | 9:53 am

  I can gaze into your eyes for hours together, many a times I fail to blink. I do not mind that at all, I can strain as much and would happily take on glasses or contacts but cannot think of a day when I do not look at you.I want to take you home from work, but my wife does not like you. I sometimes sneak in around bedtime to my home office and look at you through my PC, just another hour with you completes the day’s work – I mean worth. I wish to accessorize you with the latest adornments; I will save for you so you feel updated.My laptop/ my computer, you are my sweetheart. You are the…

• Employment and Workforce News

  Shweta Khare

  5 Feb 2010 | 9:26 am

  Employment, workforce news and updates from the last month and projections for the future from various sources, and as usual you will see that the reports are not so very consistent.. we all hope that the recession is behind us and the predictions make us elated or sad and so does the DOW goes up and down… more people have lost jobs in the last 2-3 months than ever before in a given month then why are we rejoicing on the unemployment rate "falling" to 9.7 percent!Well, the bottom line is not that how many people lost their jobs but how many more jobs were created.Here are some major news…

• Interview Tips

  Shweta Khare

  4 Feb 2010 | 12:41 pm

  A list of articles on the Careerbright Blog on interview tips and advice - prepare, present and follow-up, and there is more on how to make your next interview a success story.Interview Etiquettes, the Preparation and Presentation Before and During the InterviewYour Non-Verbal ImpressionsYou are assessed much before you even speak the first word. A substantial amount of your impression is put forward through your body language and other non-verbal skills. If you have prepared or done a role-play earlier it might make you more confident and get your non-verbal skills up to the mark.Read…

• 3 Ways to Position Your Professional Resume to Land the Interview

  Shweta Khare

  31 Jan 2010 | 11:01 pm

  Guest Post from Great Resumes FastEver worked in more than one industry or more than one position on your way to career super stardom? I thought so. Many of us get trapped by this feeling that our resume has to be a complete historical rundown of everything we have ever done and everywhere we have ever done it. Not true. Don’t misunderstand what I’m saying; I’m not advising you to lie, be untruthful, or withhold information. What I am going to share with you are three ways to focus your resume so that you can optimize your opportunities for interview call backs.DO NOT SEND A GENERIC…

• 
  Manager Skills And Management Development - Articles

• Lesson #5: Be Flexible Enough To Change With The Times

  9 Feb 2010 | 2:00 am

  Smith has grown Federal Express into the corporate giant it is today by maintaining a flexible and nimble structure that has been able to adapt to its changing environment.

• Father of the Overnight Delivery Business: How Smith Revolutionized an Industry

  9 Feb 2010 | 2:00 am

  How did this one-time pilot become one of the most successful businessmen in America?

• Lesson #3: Learn To Put People First

  9 Feb 2010 | 2:00 am

  Although he started out with just one employee – himself – Smith has since grown his company to include over 275,000 workers. And, he did it by valuing the people that were part of his team; Smith understood that success would not be accomplished with his hands alone.

• Fred Smith Has Lift-Off: The Beginnings of Federal Express

  9 Feb 2010 | 2:00 am

  After leaving the U.S. Marine Corps, Smith purchased a controlling interest in Ark Aviation Sales, a company that focused on aircraft maintenance. This was the first step towards realizing his goal of what would soon become Federal Express.

• Fred Smith Quotes

  9 Feb 2010 | 2:00 am

  I wasn't afraid to lose my money. I knew I was right; I knew I had put this thing together properly and that it was going to be all right. That was what stood me in good stead. I was very committed to the people that had signed on with me and if we were going to go down, we were going to go down with a fight. It wasn't going to be because I checked out and didn't finish it out.

• 
  Newly Corporate

• 3 Tips on Avoiding the Dark Side of Working Weekends

  Brandon Henak

  3 Feb 2010 | 7:29 am

  This guest post was contributed by Shannon Wills, an avid reader and contributor to a number of other professional blogs. There are some people who swear that their job is their life, and then there are others who try their very best to prevent their jobs from becoming their lives. It’s different strokes for different folks, but no matter which category you belong to, there will come a time when you have to work harder than ever, stay long hours at the office, spend your weekends cooped up in your cubicle, or have to forsake your holiday because an important project just cropped up.

• Fit Professional Secret 1: A Mid-Day Workout

  Brandon Henak

  11 Jan 2010 | 9:27 am

  As young professionals, or any age professionals for that matter, we often struggle to balance heavy workloads with the right amount of exercise to keep us physically fit and focused.  Although we aren’t perfect here at Newly Corporate, we are going to share which “secrets” or strategies have worked best for us, we welcome your feedback and additional suggestions as well. The first “secret” is a mid-day workout.  Many workplaces have in-house or nearby gyms with discounted memberships for employees (and showers), especially in this healthcare-sensitive…

• 2009 Holiday Gifts For Young Professionals

  Dan

  19 Nov 2009 | 12:39 pm

  It is getting to be that time of year again. It can be hard to shop for twentysomethings, but the team here at Newly Corporate does an annual brainstorm to identify great products for generation Y professionals. We try not to break the bank with our recommendations, but we don’t discriminate against more expensive objects of desire either. Everything we link to goes to amazon.com, so feel free to investigate the suggested products as well. We’re confident you’ll be able to find something nice for that young professional on your list! See the whole list! 1. LG Blue-ray player…

• 5 Engagement Ring Buying Tips for the Young Professional

  Brandon Henak

  28 Oct 2009 | 10:36 am

  Yes, it’s true, I have recently taken a major step in my life and asked my girlfriend to marry me.  As part of this process, I went through what most men do: the search for the perfect ring.  Based on my girlfriend’s answer to my proposal (Yes!) and all the positive feedback I have received on the ring post-proposal, I figured I would share what worked for me.  No yes-answer guarantees but, here are my tips on a purchase that can be pretty daunting. 1. Decide whether you want it to be a surprise or you want to go shop with her.  Being old fashioned, I wanted to surprise…

• 10 Lessons from Creating an iPhone Application Start Up (Part 2)

  Brandon Henak

  30 Sep 2009 | 7:18 am

  This is the second of a two part series (click here for part one) from a friend of the Newly Corporate bloggers, Eli Gratz.  iPhone Apps and Start Ups are two of the most fascinating things for young professionals today and Eli has done both during his spare time (see http://www.drinkspecialsapp.com)!  I asked him to share some of his experiences creating the Drink Specials App for the iPhone (available in the app store) and recieved 10 great lessons for young professionals looking to start their own businesses or develop mobile applications! 6. Be flexible on your vision, hold to your…

• 
  Michael Lee Stallard

• The Science of Employee Engagement

  Michael Lee Stallard

  8 Feb 2010 | 6:06 am

  For this month’s edition of Talent Management magazine, I was invited to contribute a guest editorial.  The piece I wrote is entitled “The Science of Engagement.”  You can read it at this link to Talent Management’s digital magazine or below. The Science of Engagement Michael Lee Stallard Most leaders focus on achieving task excellence alone.  With metrics and programs such as Six Sigma, Lean and benchmarking, the quality of our work has certainly gone up.  The problem is that focusing on task excellence alone is not enough. What happens every time is that the…

• Relationship Failure at Microsoft

  Michael Lee Stallard

  5 Feb 2010 | 5:20 pm

  An article appearing in The New York Times entitled “Microsoft’s Creative Destruction” makes it clear that the company has big problems stemming from internal rivalries. We teach that organizations that sustainable superior performance = task excellence + relationship experience.  So often organizations die because the failure to achieve relationship excellence sabotages task excellence. Keep that in mind when you read the article and it will become clear that Microsoft is heading down that path.

• Employee Engagement Network, 2,000 Members

  Michael Lee Stallard

  4 Feb 2010 | 9:17 am

  Congratulations to David Zinger who founded and has developed the Employee Engagement Network.  It’s a must place to be for anyone interested in employee engagement.

• Boost Productivity, Innovation: New Program with Linkage

  Michael Lee Stallard

  3 Feb 2010 | 4:29 pm

  Jason Pankau and I recently teamed up with Linkage to offer a course on our book, Fired Up or Burned Out: How to Reignite Your Team’s Passion. Creativity and Productivity.  The course includes video with supporting participant and facilitator guides.  Here is a backgrounder on the program entitled Fired Up Leadership to Boost Productivity and Innovation.

• Lifting Spirits In Difficult Times

  Michael Lee Stallard

  3 Feb 2010 | 2:10 pm

  “The times are difficult. They require courage and faith.” – Thomas Merton Last Saturday evening, my wife Katie and I attended a gathering to hear about a new artistic collaboration between our friend Rob Mathes and Irish poet Michael O’Siadhail. The evening of conversation, poetry and music brought a dose of truth, beauty and goodness to my day.  It lifted my spirit. Performing one of the songs with Rob was vocalist James “D-Train” Williams.  Prior to the performance, my friend Ian Cron, catalyst to the Mathes-O’Saidhail collaboration, said a…

• 
  msnbc.com: Careers

• Campaign to save Dave the libidinous banker

  4 Feb 2010 | 8:32 am

  An online campaign has started to save the job of an Australian banker who became an Internet sensation after he was caught viewing images of a scantily clad supermodel. Politics - Campaigns and Elections - Products and Services - United States - Environment

• Sponsored By:

  4 Feb 2010 | 8:32 am

• Your Career: Smart blogging can set you apart

  31 Jan 2010 | 5:29 pm

  If you’re looking to land a job out of college, enhance your career or find a new one, maybe you’re thinking about jumping on the blogging bandwagon. Employment - Business - Careers - Changing Careers - Job Search

• Wages, benefits rise weak 1.5 percent in 2009

  29 Jan 2010 | 5:51 am

  Wages and benefits paid to workers posted a modest gain in the fourth quarter, ending a year in which workers saw their compensation rise by the smallest amount on records. Wage - Workers' compensation - Law - United States - Legal Information

• Workers finding fulfillment in encore careers

  25 Jan 2010 | 7:32 am

  In search of fulfillment, many workers are now turning to so-called “encore” careers. Order fulfillment - Business - Distribution - Kiva Systems - Transportation and Logistics

• 
  Gautam Ghosh on Human Resources

• Photos from the Indian Marketing Summit

  Gautam Ghosh

  31 Jan 2010 | 6:19 am

  I had earlier posted on my presentation on Social Media for Small And Medium Businesses that I made at the Indian Marketing Summit on 23rd January. Here are some pics from the Summit. If you'd like me or someone else from 2020 Social to come and address your firm/conference on how building Online Communities (of customers, partners, employees) can help your business, just email me. Connect on Twitter | Linkedin | Facebook | HR Community | At 2020 Social, I help clients connect their customers, partners and employees. Ask us how we can help your firm

• Changing the Business Game

  Gautam Ghosh

  27 Jan 2010 | 11:51 pm

  Nilofer Merchant asks: Can we Change the Game of Business? She suggests we all need to change to change the way business is conducted. She suggests: Stop wanting praise. Stop focusing on Titles, Shmitles. Remember, be good humans. Shooting the conflict avoiders. Discussing/Owning Failure. Killing Power-games. As much as I agree and identify with Nilofer in her mission to change business into collaborative and open discussions, there are other things that need to change apart from just people and their behavior. People are the most difficult to change - if they don't see how they and the…

• Small Businesses, Social Media and the Internet

  Gautam Ghosh

  26 Jan 2010 | 7:57 pm

  I got quoted in the SME Times article on how social media can help small businesses. Building social platforms around a social object (lifestyle, cause or passion) might not be scalable for all SMEs - this step can be done by a third party - a facebook for SMEs somebody - to connect not around the products but around users. Here's part of the article: Another prominent speaker on the occassion, Gautam Ghosh, Consultant of 2020 Social Media, said, "Internet can act as a leverager for users who are already using the Internet. If a person is not on the Internet it really can't help much." When…

• Connectedness and Transparency

  Gautam Ghosh

  25 Jan 2010 | 2:51 am

  Building open organizations that embrace radical transparency is not easy. It is resisted by the powers that are. Whenever people want to open up anything that was guarded and secret - there are always people who are threatened. These can be the Supreme Court in India (which is saying that the Right to Information does not apply to it) or the big-wig editors in the Media (who question the right of bloggers to question them). However, there have been organizations even before the age of social media who have implemented radically transparent systems like shown in the book Maverick by Ricardo…

• Managing People - The toughest job?

  Gautam Ghosh

  24 Jan 2010 | 10:29 am

  Is managing people the toughest job in the world? Some people might disagree - saying things like managing finances is tough. Or managing disasters is tougher. Or something else. Here are my reasons why I think managing people is tough (if not the toughest job in the world!) People (you bosses and your subordinates!) expect you to be a mindreader and understand what they want Whenever you take a decision for your team there are sure to be at least some people who are unhappy about it When people have to give good news they'll do that directly - but when it's bad news its you who have to…

• 
  Networking Effectively by Scott Bradley

• Are You Reading These Three Amazing Books?

  Scott Bradley

  20 Jan 2010 | 8:30 am

• How To Find The Best Social Media Content On The Web To Share With Your Network

  Scott Bradley

  29 Dec 2009 | 10:51 pm

  The best part about building your network using social media is the ability to share things pretty quickly using sites like facebook and twitter. The reason it is important that you share things with people in your network throughout the week is because by taking the time to share something of value with others, it helps you build the trust between you and your contacts even more than those who don’t take the time to share. I recently found a little goldmine of a site called Social Media and Search News which is a site that handpicks the best social media content and seo content from…

• EVENT: Powerful 5 Hour Live Interactive Workshop

  Scott Bradley

  22 Oct 2009 | 5:32 pm

  I am putting on a live event in CA on November 11th for those who really want to learn how to leverage the social web to build strategic connections, drive a ton of traffic through their website and who want to use this powerful technology to generate a windfall of customers and leads. If you are interested in learning more about this powerful, live event click the link below to sign up now! Click Here: ==> http://bit.ly/2QwIto

• The Best Insurance Policy You Could Ever Have…Especially In A Recession

  Scott Bradley

  22 Apr 2009 | 5:26 pm

  If you haven’t already figured out by now…we are in a recession . Not just any recession but rather one of the worst recessions since the great depression. Every day more and more people are laid off and businesses struggle to stay afloat. As employees and entrepreneurs experience hardships, there are a select few who are experiencing the economic storm and interestingly enough have nothing to fear and are thriving. Who are these people you may ask? The individuals who have nothing to fear are those who are highly connected in their niche. Each of these very individuals who are highly…

• The Personal Branding Book All Networkers Must Read

  Scott Bradley

  7 Apr 2009 | 5:20 am

  I just read Dan Schawbel’s new book, Me 2.0: Build A Powerful Brand To Achieve Career Success, and I have to tell you, as a networker this is a must read . Not only does he explain how to use social media to brand yourself effectively, but moreover he does it in a way that all people can understand. I highly recommend that you pick up a copy of his book over at amazon . With Dan’s permission here is an excerpt of his book from chapter 1. Personal branding is about unearthing what is true and unique about you and letting everyone know about it. As a brand, you are your own free…

• 
  Personal Branding Blog - Dan Schawbel

• Personal Brands: Be Ready to Answer This

  Nance Rosen

  9 Feb 2010 | 4:30 am

  In Sunday’s New York Times, the least likely person in American business is interviewed in the Corner Office column. She’s Susan Docherty, who “leads” General Motor’s US sales, service and marketing team. In case you don’t get the joke, GM is one of the more famous bankrupt companies in the US, based on its resistance to building cars that Americans want to drive. If it weren’t for their pesky rebuke of its target market, GM’s sales, service and marketing team would be doing just fine. You might expect Ms. Docherty to be keeping a low profile, since GM has reported record…

• 3 Reasons Why Personal Branding is Essential For Networking

  Dan Schawbel

  8 Feb 2010 | 4:00 am

  When I was in college, I was always told that it’s all about who you know. I heard this common saying from teachers, my parents, older friends and managers at my internships. It was very hard to disagree with this phrase because I had spent months interviewing to get a job upon graduation because I wasn’t comfortable networking. There were many opportunities for me to attend events, meet alumni and connect with friends, but I felt introverted and didn’t have the confidence back then to take the “networking leap.” By disregarding networking from my job search, I…

• Personal Branding Interview: J.D. Roth

  Dan Schawbel

  7 Feb 2010 | 12:02 pm

  Today, I spoke to J.D. Roth, who is one of the blogospheres most beloved personal finance experts (Get Rich Slowly) and the author of Your Money: The Missing Manual.  In this interview, J.D. talks about his new book, how he got the idea of it, how he’s differentiated himself in his niche, how his blog led to his book deal and more. How did you get the idea for writing “Your Money”? It wasn’t actually my idea. I started Get Rich Slowly in 2006, and by the end of 2007, I was being approached by agents and publishers. I explored the book idea a little bit, but never…

• Two Breakthrough Ideas That Changed My Life

  Emily Bennington

  7 Feb 2010 | 4:30 am

  Keeping up with information these days is like sipping through the proverbial fire hydrant. You don’t need to check your Twitter, Facebook, Google Reader, etc…..you already know what’s building up on the other side. An avalanche of knowledge That’s right, when the circle stops spinning or the screen is fully loaded – BAM – the constant avalanche of knowledge, hypothesis, and musings from real experts, pseudo-experts, and everyone in between begins again. Even junkies like me who actually thrive on the continuous info-stream can get a bit numb to the never-ending pitches, articles,…

• Personal Branding Interview: Susan Whitcomb

  Dan Schawbel

  6 Feb 2010 | 6:03 pm

  Today, I spoke to Susan Whitcomb, who is the founder and president of The Academies and author of the new book, The Twitter Job Search Guide. In this interview, Susan explains what her own branding model is as a career coach, what you should and shouldn’t include on a resume, and brand consistency for job seekers. If someone is unclear about their own brand, what are a few things he or she can do to establish it? Start by getting clear on these three “A’s”: Authentic Image: This is “the genuine you”—not costumed to play the part of someone else, but cast in the right…

• 
  Information Technology Dark Side

• 20/10 Hindsight: 5 Things A Rails Noob Should Do From the Very Beginning of Your Rails Project

  David Christiansen

  5 Feb 2010 | 7:02 am

  Lo-Glo as You Go Globalizing and localizing a Rails app isn’t hard work, but it’s mind-numbingly tedious if you have to do it all at once. Trust me. You’ll be happier if you lo-glo as you go, so just do it if there is the slightest possibility you’ll need to later on. REST Along the Way I’m not talking about naps (never been a fan of those). I’m talking about how you structure your controllers and views. If you don’t understand REST at the beginning of your project, just take a little time to learn it. I wish I had. Now, every time I touch something…

• Setting Growth Goals for a SaaS Product Using Agile Principles

  David Christiansen

  3 Feb 2010 | 6:08 am

  A Goal to Dream On How do you think a company should set it’s growth goals for a SaaS product prior to its launch? What do you think those goals should be? What criteria might you use to figure it out? Would you look at market size, price point, competition market share, etc? When I was daydreaming about TroopTrack.com, I did exactly that. After a while, I came up with a goal that was basically enough customers to make $500,000 in revenue after 2 years. Pretty reasonable right? Wrong The problem with this sort of goal is that I didn’t have a clue what I was doing. I wasn’t…

• Five Signs You Might Not Be a Good Fit for a Work From Home Position

  David Christiansen

  29 Jan 2010 | 4:53 am

  You are an extrovert. You consider drugs, alcohol, porn, food, or video games an adequate substitute for human beings. You value a clear distinction between work and life. You already have marginal hygiene. You can’t afford to buy 7 new pairs of pajamas all at once. That is all. Happy Friday!

• TechDarkSide 2.0

  David Christiansen

  8 Jan 2010 | 7:06 am

  For years, this blog has carried the sub-title “Corporate IT Survival Guide”. It was a testament to my efforts to find success and satisfaction in the oh-so-complicated social nightmare that is the corporate IT cost center. Over the years, satisfaction became more important than success to me. I realized that hating my job was ruining parts of my life. It was hurting my health, my friendships, and my family relationships. It wasn’t hurting my wallet, and right up until the moment I gave up, I was doing reasonably well at the success side. I don’t work in Corporate IT…

• Scars from the Dark Side

  David Christiansen

  29 Dec 2009 | 7:21 am

  Sometimes I struggle, now that I’ve left the dark side (forever), to remember that the old rules don’t apply anymore. When things are going well, it’s easy, but there are occasions when the scars from my decade of toiling away in dysfunctional work environments makes it hard. Times like yesterday and today. What’s weird about yesterday and today is the context. The thing that triggered my dark-side-reflex was not significant. It was a minor misunderstanding. But, somehow, it conjured up images of a former boss, a person I hated, admired, and often colluded with to get…

• 
  Career Opportunities

• Great Mark Twain Quote for the day

  career@welchwrite.com (Douglas E. Welch)

  7 Feb 2010 | 10:23 am

  “Keep away from people who try to belittle your ambitions. Small people always do that, but the really great make you feel that you, too, can become great.” — Mark Twain From Career Opportunities with Douglas E. Welch Get more great content on Podcasting, New Media, Gardening, Los Angeles Events and Technology at WelchWrite.comGreat Mark Twain Quote for the day Related posts:Great Quote on Pessimism Elsewhere Online: Manager Tools offers help after recent market turmoil Organizing can be a great boost to your career

• Elsewhere Online: Does Having Passion for Your Work Even Matter?

  career@welchwrite.com (Douglas E. Welch)

  5 Feb 2010 | 11:56 pm

  I have written about the intrinsic need for passion in your work over the years and it is good to see someone else addressing the topic. He has several good reasons passion is important. One reason the author doesn’t state is one of my favorites… “You cannot do your BEST work unless you are passionate about what you are doing. You can do GOOD work, maybe even GREAT work, but never your BEST work. Your best work arises from the belief that you are doing something that really matters to both those around you and the world at large.” You can read more about my thoughts on…

• Don’t be a groundhog

  career@welchwrite.com (Douglas E. Welch)

  30 Jan 2010 | 1:43 pm

  Don’t be a groundhog By Douglas E. Welch Listen to this Podcast Download audio file (career-op-20100129.mp3) CareerCampLA: Helping to Build the Carer You Deserve Saturday, March 27, 2010 Northridge, California A hybrid conference/unconference dedicated to “helping you build the career you deserve”. The day will include scheduled speakers, ad hoc presentations and breakout sessions on all aspects of building your career. CareerCamp is for anyone who wants to build and/or improve their career. Visit the CareerCamp web site for more information For some odd reason, maybe…

• CareerCampLA Registration is now open!

  career@welchwrite.com (Douglas E. Welch)

  23 Jan 2010 | 3:42 pm

  CareerCampLA 2010 Saturday, March 27, 2010 The Congregational Church of Northridge Northridge, California A hybrid conference/unconference dedicated to “helping you build the career you deserve”. The day will include scheduled speakers, ad hoc presentations and breakout sessions on all aspects of building your career. CareerCamp is for anyone who wants to build and/or improve their career. Visit the CareerCampLA Web Site to register! Please note, there are special fields for people who would like to volunteer and people who would like to speak at CareerCampLA. Make sure you fill…

• Everyone a teacher

  career@welchwrite.com (Douglas E. Welch)

  22 Jan 2010 | 9:03 pm

  Everyone a teacher By Douglas E. Welch Listen to this Podcast Download audio file (career-op-20100122.mp3) CareerCampLA: Helping to Build the Carer You Deserve Saturday, March 27, 2010 Northridge, California A hybrid conference/unconference dedicated to “helping you build the career you deserve”. The day will include scheduled speakers, ad hoc presentations and breakout sessions on all aspects of building your career. CareerCamp is for anyone who wants to build and/or improve their career. Visit the CareerCamp web site for more information Look anywhere in the news today, local,…

• 
  Applicant

• Writing a Good Resume : A Comprehensive Guide

  Mark

  7 Feb 2010 | 3:01 pm

  As one of the leading job search career site, we’ve been covering resume tips quite a bit on applicant.com. Although searching for jobs using social media platforms has become a norm in today’s fast paced world, the use of resume isn’t going to disappear anytime soon. Resume still serves as the window to a job applicant’s qualifications. Recruiters get hundreds and thousands of resume each month, it’s obvious they can’t go through them all. If a quick glance at the resume doesn’t spark interest, it is sure to land in the garbage. We’ve compiled…

• The Ultimate Social Media Checklist For Job Hunters

  Mark

  3 Feb 2010 | 3:19 pm

  Recruiters prefer—overwhelmingly—to fill positions through personal referrals. To connect with someone with hiring power, you need more than a list of jobs; you need a network of people. To build a powerful network (translation: one that will find you a good job) in this era, you have to use social media. And to get the most out of social media, you need to have all your bases covered. So here it is: the ultimate social media job search checklist. Complete these setup tips and daily routines, and you will increase your job possibilities and drastically improve your chances of landing that…

• But We Don’t HAVE $3.83 Trillion!

  Mark

  1 Feb 2010 | 3:21 pm

  Monday began with the rumored $3.83 trillion (yes, not million or billion, but trillion!) proposed budget trudging from the Obama White House on to Congress for approval. That’s a dollar amount most people just can’t understand, especially those of us in between jobs. But it’s not just about the numbers. The whole concept of increasing the difference between expenses and income (despite a spending freeze in some programs, a record $1.56 trillion of the proposed budget is money the government just doesn’t have) doesn’t compute to the millions of people for whom…

• 2009 U.S. Job Trends Report

  Mark

  31 Jan 2010 | 3:20 pm

  SimplyHired,the largest job search engine and recruitment advertising network, today released its inaugural 2009 U.S. Job Trends report, outlining year-over-year (YOY) employment trends by metro region, state and industry. The report is based on Simply Hired’s extensive analysis of more than 3 million job listings from the first quarter of 2008 through the close of 2009. In this week’s State of the Union Address, President Obama called for job creation as the number-one focus of the American people in 2010. Following a year of widely reported layoffs and upticks in unemployment numbers,…

• 5 Ways To Diversify Opportunities With Existing Skills

  Mark

  28 Jan 2010 | 3:38 am

  Your skills don’t always have to be used for what they typically are used for. There are other paths that you can take and create new and interesting possibilities. When you use your skills it can open all kinds of different opportunities. Sometimes you just have to be ready to explore and think outside the box. Here are 5 examples of how you can diversify opportunities with existing skills. Use What You Are Good at and Freelance There is something that you are just very good at! Everyone has that “something” they are good at. You can use those skills to start your own…

• 
  Where Great Workplaces Start

• 20 Practices That Distinguish the Best Places to Work

  greatworkplace

  2 Feb 2010 | 10:24 am

  What does it take to be one of the best places to work for top talent? This is a common question that many employers ask ERC as they seek to develop workplaces that attract, retain, motivate and engage top performers. This past year, ERC identified 20 common practices among the best places to work in Northeast Ohio spanning the full cycle ofemployment from recruiting for a position to planning for the future talent needs in the organization. These practices include: Staffing & Workforce Planning Aligning their workplace with the needs, interests, and preferences of top performers Branding…

• The 2010 NorthCoast 99 Application is Now Available

  greatworkplace

  1 Feb 2010 | 9:13 am

  ERC is pleased to announce that the 2010 NorthCoast 99 Application is now available.  The NorthCoast 99 is considered one of the most prestigious business recognitions in the region and recognizes the top Northeast Ohio workplaces.  There is no cost to completing the application.  Applications will be accepted from now until April 30, 2010. Applicants are encouraged to register at www.northcoast99.org/application to begin their organization’s application process. Every organization that applies receives a complimentary benchmark report in September which summarizes applicant…

• Staffing Tips in the New Economy

  greatworkplace

  26 Jan 2010 | 10:06 am

  According to ERC’s most recent 2010 Economy & HR survey, the staffing landscape is expected to change this year, particularly in a positive light. Employers appear more inclined to hire or maintain their staffing levels in 2010. A new study conducted by staffing.org suggests that new trends have emerged in terms of what are the most important staffing objectives this year. According to the poll, candidate quality has emerged as the most important priority for 2010. But what does quality of hire mean? How do organizations select for quality of hire and measure quality? While each…

• Executing Top Performance – Tips for Your Supervisors

  greatworkplace

  20 Jan 2010 | 3:05 pm

  By now, end-of-year performance reviews have been conducted and most of your employees have probably developed new performance objectives. From now until the next performance review process, it’s all about performance execution – and the critical parties in this process are your employees and their supervisors. Your supervisors will be the key to executing top performance and ensuring that those performance objectives are being met throughout the year. We’ve compiled a few general tips/guidelines for your supervisors in executing top performance from your employees: Observe and document…

• What to Watch in Executive Pay During 2010

  greatworkplace

  12 Jan 2010 | 9:57 am

  Executive compensation has shown some remarkable trends in the last year and many leading compensation experts (Mercer, Watson Wyatt, WorldatWork, Pearl Meyer & Partners) suggest that executive compensation will be a fundamental compensation and rewards issue in 2010 seeing as 2009 yielded greater governmental oversight and regulation, decreases or no changes to many executives’ base salaries and bonuses, lower rates of long-term incentive usage due to the difficulty of measuring performance, lower pay adjustments (if any) than prior years, increased focus on driving short term…

• 
  Bailey Workplay The Alchemy of Soulful Work

• Hush Up And Just Enjoy Those Super Bowl Ads

  Chris Bailey

  8 Feb 2010 | 11:28 am

  I’m always fascinated with the day-after fallout of the Super Bowl adfest. There are plenty of people doing their Monday morning armchair quarterbacking thing, lamenting how terrible the commercials were and how much they continue to suck year after year. It’s at this point I try to take my branding hat off and recognize something I think is rather important. The commercials were not made for us. They were made for the 95% of everyone else who wants to be entertained. They were made for people like my dad who could give two craps if there was an overabundance of slapstick violence…

• I’d Rather Be The Tortoise Than The Hare

  Amanda McGuckin Hager

  1 Feb 2010 | 3:30 am

  Today’s Guest Creator is the wonderful Amanda McGuckin Hager, Founder of GoMarket.me, an online Marketing Mentor. She’s also the Regional Marketing Manager for North American Programs for SolarWinds Inc. Connect with her on LinkedIn or on Twitter where she is known as @shoogie. On Friday, I had the honor of speaking on Chris Bailey’s Entrepreneur Panel at the sold-out CareerCONNECTS event put on by Novotus and St. Edward’s Professional Education Center. He thinks I have an interesting story, and asked me to share. So, here it is: Over the last 15 years, I’ve worked in…

• The Battle Between Getting Things Done And Yummy Chocolate Cake

  Chris Bailey

  26 Jan 2010 | 7:16 am

  I’m not the best one to talk about to-do lists, Getting Things Done, or the other various thinkings about task management. All too often, I still find myself just keeping those various things that need to be completed inside my head. I do have a Pro account with Remember the Milk so I can sync my tasks with my BlackBerry but it doesn’t take long for me to neglect the lists. Perhaps its a lack of discipline, but that’s not to say that I’m not productive…okay, maybe I’m not as productive as I could be. Now I’ve heard plenty of people talk about the…

• Community, Not Campaigns For Small Business

  Chris Bailey

  13 Jan 2010 | 6:33 pm

  Is your business still thinking of marketing as a set of campaigns? It might be time to switch gears and start thinking more about connecting with prospects and customers via community. Today, we learned that two major brands are rethinking their strategies (also read here): Coca-Cola and Unilever are shifting their digital focus away from traditional campaign sites and towards community platforms, such as Facebook and YouTube, as social media begins to dictate their marketing activity in 2010. Yes, these are the big kahunas of the corporate branding universe…but can their strategies…

• My Blogging Quandary…I Need Your Help

  Chris Bailey

  9 Jan 2010 | 5:03 pm

  Here’s the challenge that is weighing rather heavily on me as we enter the new year. As a blogger, I just don’t feel I can keep up with two primary professional blogs and a business blog for BaileyHill Media (let alone trying to continually grow BaileyHill Media’s business). I now realize that what I once loved to do has become an arduous chore and I don’t like it. So while there’s no perfect solution I’m trying to figure out what will allow me to sustain my passion for blogging ideas, my desire for further building a community here, and my commitment to…

• 
  JobMob

• Top 50 Online Freelance Marketplaces That Cost Nothing To Use

  Jacob Share

  8 Feb 2010 | 11:01 am

  These are the most popular FREE freelance marketplaces on the Web according to the Alexa ranking system. Unless mentioned otherwise, any site listed here is free to use, whether to post jobs or to apply for them, and is in English. The list also mentions site specialties where relevant. 1) Elance.com – general 2) Suite101.com – writing 3) odesk.com – general 4) GetAFreelancer.com – SEO, writing, programming, design, marketing 5) rentacoder.com – programming, graphic design, writing, translation 6) ScriptLance.com – programming 7) Guru.com – general 8)…

• All Ages Job Fair in Jerusalem, Wednesday February 10th 2010

  Jacob Share

  2 Feb 2010 | 2:19 am

  Hiring companies, speakers and expert counselors will be at your service as Merkaz Hamagshimim Hadassah and AACI put on their first job fair since 2007. Update 05/02/10: Shira from the Mercaz sent me the list of companies that are supposed to be at the fair, see below. Who From the official release: “For job seekers in all fields (computers, science, medicine, teachers, researchers, pr, admin, engineers, tour guides, translators, etc), as well as students, those who recently completed the army, new and veteran olim, and Israelis, English, Hebrew, and other language speakers…

• Free Haifa Seminar for People Wanting To Transition Into High Tech Careers on March 2nd 2010

  Jacob Share

  30 Jan 2010 | 2:47 pm

  Microsoft Israel is sponsoring a free employment seminar with the Haifa Municipality aimed at people who would like to get into high tech in Israel. Who The event is aimed “academics, engineers and students” who are interested in joining the “computers and high tech” industry. What According to the official announcement, the event’s schedule runs from 4:30 pm until 8:15 pm, including speakers from Microsoft Israel (What Will the World Look Like in 15 years?), AllJobs (Transitioning into the World of High Tech), and others. Possibly the most interesting part will…

• On Personal Brand Destruction, Hockey and the 2010 Winter Olympics

  Jacob Share

  28 Jan 2010 | 11:00 am

  How you take rejection can determine whether or not you’ll need to do so again. The story begins when… A really interesting personal branding-related story took place on the road to the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, Canada, and as an avid hockey fan, I’m glad to have finally found a way to sneak my love of hockey into an article here for you. It all began when national hockey team rosters were announced, deciding which lucky few would get to represent one of the 12 national teams that qualified for the men’s ice hockey event. Each team is allowed to choose a…

• 117 Funniest Creative Job and Recruitment Ads

  Jacob Share

  26 Jan 2010 | 11:00 am

  The most creative and funny job ads that recruiters are using to get your attention. Enjoy! Click through to see larger versions at the source. Which one is your favorite? Tell us in the comments. Bonus More funny and creative job ads 10 Ridiculously Genius & Creative Recruitment Ads Top 10 Best Job Ads of the World Subscribe to JobMob via RSS or email and follow me on Twitter for more funny creative job stuff. -- Jacob Share, Job Search Expert and Professional Blogging Consultant Related posts:Funniest Strangest Job Titles Ever 10 Questions With Recruitment Consultant Anna Talmy of…

• 
  The Career Key Blog

• New Study: Matching Your Holland Personality with Your Career Boosts Earnings

  Juliet Wehr Jones, J.D.

  8 Feb 2010 | 2:03 pm

  Matching your Holland interests or personality to your career choice or "job congruence" leads to higher earnings, according to a new research study involving alumni from 300 U.S. colleges and universities. The study appears in the journal Labour Economics and authors are from the University of Iowa, University of Massachusetts - Dartmouth, and ACT, Inc., respectively. (Citation below)In short:choosing a career that is consistent with or matches your Holland interests (RIASEC types) results in higher earnings;Job congruence affects earnings almost to the same order of magnitude as additional…

• Who Cares What a College Degree is Really Worth? It's Career Planning that Matters.

  Juliet Wehr Jones, J.D.

  2 Feb 2010 | 11:02 am

  While it's helpful that this WSJ article "What's a Degree Really Worth" draws attention to some overblown numbers for the value of college degree and the risks of getting a degree, I think a main point is missed.  Instead of focusing on the average lifetime earnings of a college grad - not a terribly useful or accurate statistic for people choosing a career or educational program, focus instead on career direction and planning. Our "Getting Started" article gives the 3 steps for that process based on the best science and practices of professional career counseling.The point is not…

• Back from a Successful Cannexus Conference

  Juliet Wehr Jones, J.D.

  1 Feb 2010 | 11:28 am

  After a fantastic CANNEXUS conference last week in Ottawa, Canada (photo left), I am finally getting back online. Because I live in Seattle, the grey weather did not scare me. I gave 2 presentations:"Choosing a Post-Secondary Program: Increasing the Odds of Success" focusing on research studies demonstrating higher grades and in some cases, retention, for students choosing a major that matches their Holland interests, and A demonstration of The Career Key Canada website, the new Education Key e-Book, and our scientifically valid tests, The Career Key and the Career Decision Profile.I…

• Practical Advice for Setting up an Information Interview

  Juliet Wehr Jones, J.D.

  18 Jan 2010 | 9:53 am

  Information interviewing is one of our top ten recommended ways to learn more about jobs or careers that interest you.  It fits in with Step 3 of High-Quality Decisions: to learn more about your career options.For more practical advice on how to set up an informational interview, I highly recommend the last chapter of Roadtrip Nation: A Guide to Discovering Your Path in Life called "Do it Yourself: How to Set Up Your Own Roadtrip Experience." I've read a lot of career advice books and this one offers very practical ways of handling "cold" calls or emails.  Plus it has great…

• Popular Career Advice e-Book "2010 What Job is Best for Me?" Just Released

  Juliet Wehr Jones, J.D.

  15 Jan 2010 | 4:04 pm

  If you're looking for a helpful career advice resource on smart career decision-making, we just updated our popular career e-Book, "What Job is Best for Me?" The new 2010 edition is now for sale in the Career Key eBookstore. You can purchase it for $8.95 or save by purchasing it with The Career Key test for $14.50 (over 20% off separately purchasing the two).We updated links and added new material about evaluating a career's job outlook, job satisfaction, and using social media to get career information. To learn more you can see a the Table of Contents at our description page for the What…

• 
  The CareerXroads Annex

• Let the Good Times Roll

  Gerry Crispin

  7 Feb 2010 | 11:00 am

  Mark and I have completed our numbers crunching for about 180,000 hires we collected from 40+ firms last month and we will publish our 9th Source Of Hire whitepaper probably by the end of next week- we're writing it now. An early peek at the data will be discussed privately in an "open mike" webinar with survey respondents and CareerXroads colloquium members before the end of the month but an ERE webinar next week (2/17) will be the first public look at the current SOH data. In addition to collecting data about how firm's hire, we also ask each year about how they did versus previous years…

• Diversity of Thought and the Google-China Controversy: Who Walks the Talk?

  Gerry Crispin

  25 Jan 2010 | 12:58 pm

  Google is thinking about leaving China. Really?(he said very slowly and sarcastically) For years I’ve been listening to companies whining about how they have to cave to various local customs that violate basic human rights standards. The most common rationale is that it is better to give some hope to those who are discriminated against, supressed or otherwise denied basic freedoms by being there than not. Really? B_ _ _S_ _ _ Google’s comments are disturbing and disappointing. Their rationalizations would embarrass me if I were an employee. Do no evil indeed. If Google’s leaders…

• Source of Hire: Slowly we turn...step by step...

  Gerry Crispin

  21 Jan 2010 | 11:00 am

  Mark Mehler, my business partner in CareerXroads, and I are in the midst of collecting Source of Hire data from this past year. We started two weeks ago and will finish in another week and a half (January 31). Then I'll crunch a few numbers and write another whitepaper.  For nearly a decade we've been observing and commenting on the shift of recruiting sources of hire and the context in which the data is collected and analyzed (and then used to invest in the next cycle). The last SOH whitepaper is still quoted several times a week and considered "recent" even though we don't think it is (all…

• Faces in the Crowd

  Gerry Crispin

  7 Jan 2010 | 6:50 pm

  Today was Career Day in NJ. Rutgers University hosted their 45th semi-annual career fair for their students, the students from any other college willing to travel to New Brunswick and, actually, anyone else who felt like showing up…student or not. An estimated 3500 did. So did Mark, my business partner, and I (we typically spend a day a month on college campuses or outplacement centers just to get a sense of the playing field.) Janet Jones, one of Rutgers Career Services Directors and a great friend over more than a few years met us at the door. 165 companies had booths. A lot of…

• Heading to India

  Gerry Crispin

  6 Dec 2009 | 4:29 pm

  I'm in Newark Airport's continental lounge getting ready to head out to India with SHRM's HR delegation. FutureStep, Recruitnblogs.com and Alliance Q are underwriting my adventure and I'll be blogging on the trip from a link on Recruit   ngblogshome page.  Traveling to my 20th country as a student and learning how staffing differs culturally around the world is about as good as it gets. 

• 
  Career News

• Career Advice from MBAs

  19 Jan 2010 | 9:46 am

  At MBACareers.com we asked our viewers: What do you know now that you wish you had known when you chose your career/profession? Here's some Real life advice from MBAs! Formal business acumen is important Go back to graduate school earlier Have excellent financial management skills, as your backbone. Critical thinking is essential. I married an MBA colleague, we both had high-powered jobs, but when he had the opportunity to move overseas and run a division, I gave up my job. It was the only decision at the time, but now we are separating and he's on the fast track, and I'm starting at…

• Find Job Opportunities through Networking -

  14 Jan 2010 | 7:36 pm

  Job Search Strategies from The Career Exposure Network Looking for connections to help your job search? Networking opportunities can be found in a variety of places. You never know which tip, connection or venue might lead to your next career opportunity. Be sure to consider these potential sources and utilize your connections. Colleagues in you chosen profession Career fairs and job expos On-line job listings. (Be sure to utilize niche sites.) Professional associations Family members and friends Faculty, advisors and classmates at your College/University Alumni network at your University…

• Career Advancement Tip: Find a Mentor or Two

  12 Jan 2010 | 11:34 pm

  A recent CareerWomen.com poll found that 62% of women have a formal or informal mentor in the workplace. Of these mentors, 64% were male and 36% were female. The support these mentors provide is very different. Male mentors help women by providing general business training, leadership opportunities, coaching feedback and advice on networking and career advancement. Women mentors help other women by providing informal fellowship, guidance within the corporation, motivation, encouragement, and strategies for career success, work/life balance, job sharing, maternity leave and counteracting…

• Happy Holidays!

  24 Dec 2009 | 5:32 pm

  Have a Happy Holiday Season - from Everyone at The Career Exposure Network™

• Career Strategy Checklist - New Year Career Tips

  22 Dec 2009 | 11:33 am

  As the year draws to an end, now is the time to plan for coming years' career goals. In addition to creating holiday shopping lists, take the time to create your own career strategy checklist to make the new year a career-defining year. Read the full content here.

• 
  Steve Pavlina's Personal Development Blog

• How You Give Your Power Away

  Steve Pavlina

  2 Feb 2010 | 12:38 pm

  One of the themes that repeatedly came up at the last Conscious Growth Workshop was the problem of giving your power away. Instead of focusing on your true desires, you erect false structures in front of your desires and then feed your power to those structures as a delay tactic. Here are some typical scenarios of how people give away their power in different areas of their lives: Relationships Let’s say that your true desire is to be in love. You want a relationship with someone special. You want someone that you can smooch, cuddle, play with, and make love to. You want to be with…

• 2010 Conscious Growth Workshops

  Steve Pavlina

  28 Jan 2010 | 1:49 pm

  Our second Conscious Growth Workshop January 15-17 was another amazing weekend of fun and personal breakthroughs. It was a real treat to see so many conscious growth enthusiasts coming together in one place. CGW #3, 4, and 5 We’re already in the process of booking the next 3 CGWs for the remainder of 2010. All of these will be held in Las Vegas. This info is still very tentative, but I wanted to give you a heads up since many people have been inquiring about future workshop dates. Most likely CGW #3 will be May 14-16, 2010 (Fri-Sun). CGW #4 will probably be in July or August. CGW #5…

• How to Build a Stronger Ego

  Steve Pavlina

  20 Jan 2010 | 9:30 am

  There’s a notion that’s been spread around the spiritual side of the self-help field that suggests one of our primary aims in life should be ego-less enlightenment, a state where we achieve near-perfect inner peace, where we’re one with everything but attached to nothing, and where nothing in the physical world can knock us off balance. This creates some personal challenges for me because whenever I write about anything remotely spiritual in nature (and sometimes even when I don’t), some readers assume I’m one of the guys promoting this same sort of ideal. Then…

• Domination-Submission and Personal Growth

  Steve Pavlina

  7 Jan 2010 | 6:22 am

  I want to share some thoughts on an interesting dynamic I’ve been observing as I continue to explore domination and submission (D/s) with my consensual slave partner. A key aspect of personal growth is that in order to grow, we must stretch beyond our comfort zones and experience something new. If we stay within our comfort zones and stick to the familiar, we deny ourselves the opportunity for expansion. Yet we don’t know for certain how new possibilities will impact us until we dive in and experience them. Many years ago I thought about being an entrepreneur. Since I’d…

• Domination and Submission

  Steve Pavlina

  4 Jan 2010 | 5:10 pm

  As I mentioned in my 2010 Focus post, my personal focus for this year involves immersing myself in the fun and exciting world of domination and submission (D/s). (I really love my life!) Now one obvious question I’ve been asked a few times is: What the heck does this have to do with personal development? Once you get past the socially conditioned attitude that D/s is somehow naughty or deviant, you’ll find that it has a tremendous amount to do with personal development. Let’s start with some of the most basic elements and go from there. Body Image First, when you consciously…

• 
  ERE: Inside Recruiting

• Tin tặc có thể “đầu độc” trình duyệt qua Wi-Fi

  Các mạng Wi-Fi công cộng như ở quán café, sân bay đã trở nên một mối đe dọa lớn hơn với người dùng máy tính vì tin tặc có thể thâm nhập vào thiết bị truy cập.

• Năm 2012, AMD đưa GPU vào các máy chủ

  Bắt đầu từ năm 2012, AMD sẽ chú trọng hơn đến việc tích hợp nhiều lõi BXL đồ họa (GPU) vào các máy chủ phổ thông để tăng hiệu năng hệ thống.

• Truyền thuyết Linh Tháp

  Cứ mỗi phiên bản The Legend of Zelda ra đời là một câu chuyện cổ tích thú vị mà Nintendo dành tặng cho mọi người.

• 
  Bob Sutton

• Let's Invent a New Word or Phrase: What do you call someone who "opts out of participating in something but then complains about the outcome."

  Bobsutton

  6 Feb 2010 | 11:37 am

  This question came in an email yesterday from Mozilla's Asa Dotzler, who is renowned for his skill as an open-source marketer, especially in spreading the Firefox browser.  The engine that propels any open source community is having a wide range of smart and hardworking people who generate and refine solutions, and are eager to step in and fix them when things go wrong.  So maintaining norms that encourage people to participate in generating solutions and making decisions-- rather than those who don't pitch in or help make decisions but always complain bitterly about the…

• IDEO CEO Tim Brown: "I found it vaguely embarrassing and frustrating to be in an office."

  Bobsutton

  4 Feb 2010 | 1:13 pm

  I have argued in the past that there are a lot of evidence-based disadvantages to working in an open office, as there are many more interruptions, distractions, and other stressors --- and of course less privacy.  And there are quite a few studies that show when people move from closed to open office designs, they don't like it all and their productivity sometimes drops.  I had an experience a few weeks back, however, that has me questioning the limits of this research -- and believing that if an organization has the right norms, leadership, and especially collective…

• What a Mess: The Tenure Appeal Meeting at Ohio University

  Bobsutton

  1 Feb 2010 | 1:33 pm

  I got a comment this morning about the outcome of the the appeal meeting at Ohio University for Bill Reader's tenure case.  You may recall that I wrote about this in detail in my post on The No Asshole Rule Versus Compassion for the Mentally Ill. The meeting appears to have been an ugly scene.  According to the report in the school paper:"A standing-room-only crowd of students and faculty members in Baker University Center 219 heard Dean Greg Shepherd and Director Tom Hodson defend their decision to deny Reader tenure, calling him a non-collegial bully incapable of…

• I Am Now Blogging at Psychology Today

  Bobsutton

  1 Feb 2010 | 11:43 am

  I just started blogging at Psychology Today last week. This page and blog will remain the place where I put the lion's share of my effort.  Most of my posts will appear here first, and then I will reprint some of them there to reach a different audience.  The name of my blog there is Work Matters: Straight Talk and Solid Evidence About Organizational Life.  I also will let you know when I write anything in Psychology Today that is now printed here.  For starters, I thought a good way to introduce myself to Psychology Today readers was to introduce them to a range…

• You Know It Is Snake Oil When They Say That It Explains 75% of Success in Life

  Bobsutton

  24 Jan 2010 | 12:26 pm

  I clearly have strong beliefs about what drives human behavior, and think there is pretty strong evidence to support many of them. At the same time, I believe equally strongly that there are no magical cures for organizational and individual problems, or any one theory that explains all human behavior. Behavioral scientists battle over these issues -- and they should, it leads to better evidence -- over things like nature versus nurture, extrinsic versus intrinsic rewards, cognition versus emotion, and on and on, and each of us -- me too -- is probably unduly biased in favor of our pet…

• 
  Three Star Leadership Blog

• Undercover Boss: A Repellant Piece of Trash

  Wally Bock

  8 Feb 2010 | 11:38 am

  Undercover Boss is a repellant piece of trash. CEO participants know the game and are sure to come out looking good. Everyone else takes their chances. And everyone pretends they don't notice the cameras.

• 2/7/10: Leadership Reading to Start Your Week

  Wally Bock

  7 Feb 2010 | 8:48 am

  Here are five choice articles from the business schools and the business press to start off your work week. I'm pointing you to articles about ATT's iPhone problems, RIM's Smartphone advantage, creativity, more on Toyota, and the silver tsunami.

• Book Review: The Checklist Manifesto

  Wally Bock

  6 Feb 2010 | 11:42 am

  Atul Gawande's book, The Checklist Manifesto, is as fascinating and fun to read as his earlier books. But, if you're a business reader, you'll find it takes more work to derive good practical value. Even so, you should find some ideas about how to do a better job of dealing with complexity in the workplace.

• Putting Drive to Work: Getting less of what you don't want

  Wally Bock

  4 Feb 2010 | 3:22 pm

  Reprimand is a powerful tool for getting less of behavior you don't want. But you have to use it correctly and you should never use it for performance.

• 2/3/10: Midweek Look at the Independent Business Blogs

  Wally Bock

  3 Feb 2010 | 3:35 pm

  Every week I select five excellent posts from this week's independent business blogs. This week, I'm pointing you to posts on giving air cover to your team, work you love, learning from your younger workers, starting over (in your mind), and successful CEOs.

• 
  Bigg Success

• Do What You Love But Choose How to Compete

  bigginfo@biggsuccess.com (bigginfo@biggsuccess.com)

  8 Feb 2010 | 3:00 am

  We like Domino’s – from the story of its beginnings to the brand itself. We’re sure you’ve heard about their new pizza. Or at least, you’ve heard about the interesting campaign they’re running to market it. ___ ___ They’re basically saying that their old pizza sucked, but this new one is good. The problem is that they’ve run ads in recent years talking about how good their pizza was. So what are we supposed to believe? Domino’s built their business on fast delivery. They delivered, literally, an affordable product more quickly than any of…

• The Super Bowl is Not a Good Analogy for Business

  bigginfo@biggsuccess.com (bigginfo@biggsuccess.com)

  4 Feb 2010 | 3:00 am

  What do you think it could be? With the Super Bowl upon us, we’re thinking about the bigg game – in football and in business. Today we want to compare the two. The goal in both is the same: to win. But that’s where the similarity ends. ___ ___ Let’s look at five differences between football and business: The game In football, teams play one game at a time. In business, there are multiple games going on all the time. The clock In football, there is a clock to tell you when the game ends. In business, there is no clock because the games are ongoing. However, a lot of…

• Groundhog Daze

  bigginfo@biggsuccess.com (bigginfo@biggsuccess.com)

  2 Feb 2010 | 3:00 am

  What do you think it could be? We love watching seasonal movies – Halloween movies, Christmas movies, and yes, the one movie for this time of year … Groundhog Day. Bill Murray plays Phil Connors, the generally unhappy weather man with a cutting wit. He’s on assignment in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania. He can’t wait to do his bit and get back to the city. ___ ___ Instead he ends up in a time loop, repeating Groundhog Day over and over again. Real life can be like that sometimes. It may feel like you’re doing the same thing, day after day. It’s too much of the…

• The Single Biggest Threat to Your Personal Finances

  bigginfo@biggsuccess.com (bigginfo@biggsuccess.com)

  29 Jan 2010 | 3:00 am

  What do you think it could be? Don’t peek! Or did you already? You did, didn’t you! ___ ___ ___ As we prepared for this show and George threw out this idea, my first thought was: “Overspending.” ___ ___ It’s funny – I thought of that one as well. However, most people have really reigned in their spending. On top of that, I think we’ve all relearned some valuable lessons about frugality. ___ ___ Okay, so then I thought: “High interest rates.” ___ ___ Even though we’re in a period with historically low interest rates, I think…

• A Succession Planning Lesson from NBC

  bigginfo@biggsuccess.com (bigginfo@biggsuccess.com)

  27 Jan 2010 | 3:00 am

  Jay’s on top. Jay’s out. Conan’s in. David’s on top. Conan’s out. Jay’s in. ___ ___ Can we as entrepreneurs learn any lessons from the mess NBC has made of The Tonight Show? We think so. Pursuing your dreams is risky Bigg success is life on your own terms. You own your life. You’re not a brand manager. You’re not a CEO. You are the entrepreneur in charge.  Entrepreneurs are risk-takers. Conan O’Brien isn’t an entrepreneur in the traditional sense of the word. But he sure did take a risk to fulfill a lifelong dream. He was very…

• 
  My Global Career

• Developing Leadership for Growth Companies

  Hank Moore

  7 Feb 2010 | 10:01 pm

  Not all executives are leaders.  Not all managers are executives.  Not all career people are professional. Top company management usually comes from the ranks of those who sell the core business product-service, not from those on the firing line who deliver it.   That’s why in media, programming and news people rarely become management.  Since advertising sales is the primary product of media, the sales people become the managers.  In education, good teachers stay in the classroom.  In the energy industry, engineers dominate. Engineers steadfastly believe that they’re in…

• Backing Your Career Passion

  Vaughan Evans

  2 Feb 2010 | 10:01 pm

  Are you unfulfilled in your job? You are not alone. One-half of US employees are dissatisfied with their jobs, up from two-fifths 10 years ago. Perhaps it’s time to move on. But where? And will you be successful in your new job? Or would it be a case of “out of the frying pan into the fire”? You can minimize that risk. You should find a job that fires you with hwyl—the Celtic concept of passion, fervor, and spirit that can lift you to extremes of success. Then you need to check that market conditions at this job are favorable, and that you will be at least reasonably well placed to…

• Getting and Staying Employed in a Shrinking Job Market

  Marc Dorio

  31 Jan 2010 | 10:01 pm

  To call today’s economy tough is like calling Moby Dick a big fish. Let’s face it, with the threat of double digit unemployment looming ahead it is down right scary for the vast majority of people I hear from each day. However, if you can stay focused, determined, upbeat and flexible these times offer opportunities for not only continuing but also advancing your career. Here is the straight scoop as I see it. While the number of jobs may be on the decline there is still work to be done. Doing more with less is a mantra I hear resonating with employers I speak to around the country. So…

• Leveraging International Experience to Launch a Global Career

  Stacie Nevadomski Berdan

  27 Jan 2010 | 10:01 pm

  The world economy is in flux but emerging economies continue to drive significant growth for global enterprises. Global companies recognize that their best chances for success lie with recruiting managerial talent with international experience – it’s the big resume differentiator. For students who have studied abroad, this is good news, especially considering the contracting U.S. job market. However, many students with who have lived abroad don’t understand how to package this experience in a way that’s appealing to prospective global employers. And what do companies value…

• What You Need to Lead – Negotiating Tactics

  Selena Rezvani

  25 Jan 2010 | 10:01 pm

  If you think about it, we’re negotiating on the job all the time.  Whether we’re asking for the big promotion, the funding to attend a training or conference, or to take a vacation during “busy” season, we’re in more bargaining situations than we realize at work. Women, in particular, need as many negotiation tools as possible, given that we’re still paid less than men for equal work, and don’t have a critical mass―and therefore equal decision-making authority―at the top of companies.  Consider the following strategies the next time you enter a negotiation at work, and…

• 
  Business Pundit

• Toyota Reluctantly Recalls Prius Hybrids

  Drea

  9 Feb 2010 | 6:39 am

  In light of increased government scrutiny of its cars, Toyota has announced a worldwide recall of its Prius hybrids. The Wall Street Journal reports: Toyota’s quality chief Shinichi Sasaki said at a press conference (in Japan) that the problematic brake systems in the recalled cars “meet safety standards,” a comment implying the company isn’t required legally to recall the vehicles. But Toyota decided to take action and update software that controls the brake system in order to “be in accordance with the spirit” of those standards, Mr. Sasaki said. Many at…

• An Unfortunate Toyota Tagline

  Drea

  9 Feb 2010 | 3:10 am

• The 25 Worst Infomercials Ever

  Drea

  8 Feb 2010 | 8:15 am

  Infomercials captivate. That’s their job. If they hold your attention long enough, you might find yourself picking up the phone and ordering that tomato peeler, talking dog collar, or remote-controlled bathroom caddy. Yet some infomercials leave you scratching your head in amazement. Are they really trying to sell this stuff? We collected 25 of the worst-ever infomercials, for your viewing pleasure. 25. The Shake Weight for Men If you hate working out for hours at the gym, the Shake Weight for Men can get you, um, ripped in just 6 minutes a day. 24. The Potty Putter There’s no…

• Luxury Shoppers are Back

  Drea

  8 Feb 2010 | 7:23 am

  $2 million cognac. Source: Most-expensive.net. While some people scramble for free khakis, others are indulging in high-end indulgences like designer perfumes and $5,000 coats. The Financial Times has more: More prosperous American shoppers seem to be defying continuing high unemployment levels and economic uncertainty to renew their spending on luxuries such as jewellery, fashion and cosmetics. That is the picture emerging from the current round of US earnings and sales reports. Tracey Travis, chief financial officer of Polo Ralph Lauren, said last week that the fashion brand and retail…

• Dockers Free Pants Campaign is a Hit

  Drea

  8 Feb 2010 | 6:32 am

  A chorus of pantsless men sing astride a knoll. After airing a Super Bowl commercial last night featuring men singing in their underwear, Dockers is giving away free khakis in a a raffle. You enter your name, gender, email address, and ZIP code to enter. Next, you click on an image of khaki pants. They slide away and tell you if you won. If not, you get a coupon code for 15% of a pair of men’s Soft Khakis. You can play every day up to February 15. The Dockers Free Pants campaign is doing really well. It started by shocking and possibly confusing people with a Super Bowl commercial…

• 
  One Louder

• Is this abra cadabra business creepy or is it just me?

  HeatherLeigh

  5 Feb 2010 | 2:50 pm

  I can't decide. Either weird and creepy or weird and cool?

• I won't be making it into the office today...(cough, cough)

  HeatherLeigh

  5 Feb 2010 | 2:03 pm

  Gawker gives you the rules on using sick days (hint: don't use them when you are sick because that is no fun at all). The hangover day has been a topic of conversation. Some people feel it's OK as long as you don't do it a lot. Me? I like to punish myself for drinking too much (why is that a lesson we have to learn over and over in life?). So I work through it...sometimes I even run it off. When I have managed people, I have always been cool with the impromptu day off. If you don't have anything on your calendar, skedaddle. No need to act sick. 

• Uncluttering at work...

  HeatherLeigh

  4 Feb 2010 | 12:40 pm

  I struggle with time management. I get my stuff done, but the issue of "time" always comes up. Yesterday, someone mentioned that everything I was talking about with regard to my life outside of work was about time too (Do I have time to get this all done before I put my house on the market? Is this the right time in my life for this? Can I have time to make a good decision about this? This would all be/feel different if it happened at a different time. Jebus, I can't believe I am 41....where did the time go? Hah.). So yeah, time is on my mind. Time and attention are my currency. Anyway, time…

• Why do you need it? Just because it's there? And Steve Jobs told you that you do?

  HeatherLeigh

  3 Feb 2010 | 10:46 am

  iPad. Lord have mercy. I don't even think I have a joke that has not already been said before. I'd say I'm speechless, but I don't do speechless. I had a conversation last night with someone that is super cheesed-off that their music content is being held hostage by Steve Jobs and I have totally been there. Switching over to a Zune, for me, wasn't out of blind loyalty. I used my iPod for years. I researched what to do when the screen froze. I bought music on iTunes. I felt comfortable. And this is exactly what is wrong with my life. Just because something is comfortable doesn't mean its right…

• The possibility of not getting a job because of those jello shots

  HeatherLeigh

  28 Jan 2010 | 3:57 pm

  Apparently, we sponsored a survey that found that the majority of recruiters had declined to pursue a prospect/candidate because of information they found about a candidate online. Wow....so this makes me realize that it has been a while since I worked a desk. I admit that. But I still have an opinion. And it's complicated. I am sure that recruiters could point to a large number of hires they made, good hires, where if they had searched the person online, they would not have hired them. We look at online info about a person as evidence of how they "are" but it's really just how they "were." I…

• 
  Career Hub

• Jigsaw Puzzles and Job Seekers

  billiesucher

  8 Feb 2010 | 8:31 am

  Who invented the jigsaw puzzle? A. Ben Franklin B. George Washington C. Abraham Lincoln D. John Spilsbury E. Thomas Edison F. Christopher Columbus According to this site, an Englishmen by the name of John Spilsbury invented the jigsaw puzzle in...

• Seeking a How-To Book to Get Your Search Started?

  Chandlee Bryan

  5 Feb 2010 | 1:37 pm

  One of the biggest challenges of any career transition is getting started--especially when you are confronted with shifting priorities such as family, financial pressure, or simply the overwhelming feeling that your talents could be better used elsewhere. In the words...

• Transform Your Job Search

  billiesucher

  5 Feb 2010 | 10:50 am

  The other day I attended a transformational leadership program called "Lessons From Gettysburg" delivered by The Lincoln Leadership Institute at Gettysburg. When I attend seminars, I am always interested in how I can take what I have learned and apply...

• Hot Spots for Finding Jobs

  Mark Hovind

  3 Feb 2010 | 6:22 pm

  There are over 2,000 Hot Spots nationwide for finding jobs, and you might be surprised how many there are where you live now. Hot Spots are industry-location combinations that are adding new jobs and growing faster than the normal workforce...

• 5 Steps To Overcoming Your Fears

  Sital Ruparelia

  2 Feb 2010 | 4:01 pm

  Are you….. Scared of making a vital call? Worried about sending an email to that contact? Fearful about making a big decision? …..do you consequently feel paralysed and powerless? Ok, try following these steps: 1) Write down EXACTLY what you’re...

• 
  EveryJoe

• Is Kansas For Real?

  Lyndsey D'Arcangelo

  9 Feb 2010 | 6:42 am

  Now that the pro football season has  come to end (shout out to the Saints — Who Dat!), we can concentrate fully on basketball without any needless distractions. There is so much parody in college basketball this season. Every time a new team reaches the number 1 spot in the polls, they get beat. The movement between the top 25 teams has been so fluid that you can’t really figure out who’s got a leg up on who? Kansas protected the number one spot on Monday with a win against Texas. That’s why when Kansas took over at number 1, I thought, “this is only going to last…

• PSA Screening Detection: U.S. versus Europe

  Marijke Durning, RN

  9 Feb 2010 | 6:05 am

  Detection of prostate cancer using PSA blood levels (prostate specific antigen) is significantly lower in the United States than in Europe, say researchers. Prostate cancer screening using the PSA levels is being encouraged to detect early prostate cancer, but who is screened and how often depends on individual physicians or clinics. The U.S. National Institutes of Health site notes that higher risk men are usually recommended to be screened starting at the age of 40 or 45 years. For men with no risk factors for prostate cancer, such as family history, some doctors are not actively…

• Fallout 3: New Vegas Coming Fall 2010

  Amy Tucker

  9 Feb 2010 | 5:25 am

  I haven’t played Fallout 3 in months – maybe even a year. OK. I don’t think a whole year but it has been so long I can’t remember the last time Iplayed the game. Why is this important? Because Fallout 3 was amazing and wonderful and I LOVED it but after a while, I got incredibly bored with it. I also saw the ending of it while watching Tucker play his save and was so damn disappointed in the crap ending that I didn’t see a reason to keep on playing. BUT, now I’ve seen the New Vegas trailer and while I can’t exactly put my finger on why, New Vegas gets…

• “Bioshock 2” Is Now Available!

  Jeanne Dupuis

  9 Feb 2010 | 2:48 am

  The highly anticipated Bioshock 2 was released today and I can imagine that hundreds of copies are flying off the shelves as I type.   The original Bioshock was released back in 2007 and they’ve already got a great-looking follow up to the acclaimed game. The sequel is set about 10 years after the events of the first game and it all unfolds in the underwater city of Rapture.  A monster has been kidnapping little girls and you can’t exactly let that continue, can you?  In order to help them, though, you’re going to have to survive which might be easier said than done. Here are some…

• Ellen to Make “American Idol” Debut Tonight

  Jeanne Dupuis

  9 Feb 2010 | 1:38 am

  In a season filled with controversy, Ellen DeGeneres will be making her debut as the new judge on American Idol.  After Paula Abdul quit, it was a scramble to find someone to fill her seat and considering the fact that Ellen is such a huge fan of the show, I thought it was a good choice. image: Michael Becker / FOX Of course, there’s been all kinds of drama and there have been reports that Ellen is already clashing with fellow judge, Simon Cowell.   With viewership down, I’m sure they are hoping she can bring back the ratings and a feud with Simon would definitely help that. Post from:…

• 
  The Monster Blog

• Super Bowl Commercials Recap Around the Watercooler

  Norma

  8 Feb 2010 | 1:14 pm

  Last week, I promised to look at how the 2010 Super Bowl commercials tackled the office, and this year it just didn't happen like last year. Perhaps we're all looking for a more optimistic time, and the anger towards the workplace we saw in last year's commercials is not something we want to be reminded of on a weekend when we're watching football -- or commercials -- with friends.  But I'm sure that doesn't mean there wasn't plenty of talk around the watercooler about the Super Bowl ads at your work. In fact, the first IMs I received this morning were about…

• Why Does Work Show Up in the Super Bowl Ads?

  Norma

  3 Feb 2010 | 9:51 am

  Pass the chips and dip, because this weekend I'm ready to hunker down to watch the Super Bowl commercials. I'm sure the action between the Colts and the Saints will be exciting, but for me it's secondary to the ads surrounding all the plays and touchdowns.In preparation for the event, I've been revisiting some of my favorite Super Bowl commercials from years past. And I am noticing that work is often the main topic or setting for many of these ads. How come?   Take this list of the most memorable Super Bowl spots. Monster.com's "When I Grow Up"earns a…

• Are You Ready for Job Shadow Day?

  Norma

  1 Feb 2010 | 11:35 am

  While I hopePunxsutawney Phil doesn't see his shadow tomorrow (did you know the forecasting groundhog is hip to texting, Facebook and Twitter?), I hope many workplaces see plenty of them -- job shadows, that is!   Yes, February 2nd is Job Shadow Day, which was created to give students across the country a firsthand look at different jobs. I've been shadowed before and have found it to be quite rewarding. What you need to remember is that you are not just doing your job for the student to watch, but you are engaging the student and helping him get excited about the world of…

• One Person's Revenge on the Job Search Black Hole

  Norma

  28 Jan 2010 | 6:26 am

  Job seekers far and wide have expressed their anger and frustration about the job search black hole. And in this economy, folks seem to be getting lost in it more often.   But for all of you who have felt this discouragement, you may have a new hero: writer Neal Hirschfield. In a NY Times blog, he explores the electronic snub and details his tale of revenge.   The story begins innocently enough with his being invited to interview for a magazine. He does so and even completes and returns an editing test at the company's request. Then three months go by without a word.  …

• Before You Tweet, Does Your Employer Have a Social Media Policy?

  Norma

  26 Jan 2010 | 6:05 am

  The NFL doesn't allow players to post to Twitter, Facebook and other social media sites at certain times on game day.   The US Marine Corps has banned access to social networking sites from its network.   Companies take such measures when it comes to social media to prevent information from being leaked by employees, even inadvertently. Other companies are concerned about security risks that may come from these sites.   In a recent blog post on News Channel 9's Web site, Latricia Thomas writes: "Businesses big and small are using social media to communicate…

• 
  Lisa Rosendahl

• The Anti-Writing Demon

  Lisa Rosendahl

  9 Feb 2010 | 4:00 am

  Two things I've got on my mind lately are writing and credibility. I took up leadership credibility earlier last week so today I'll toss out some thoughts on writing.  I just started reading Thinking Write by Kelly L. Stone. Besides thinking the title of her book would have been an awesome name for a blog if I only would have thought of it first, I was drawn to the tag line, "the secret to freeing your creative mind." Now, my mind could use a little freeing these days. I love to write, am committed to writing more, would welcome a little mula for…

• Leadership Development Carnival

  Lisa Rosendahl

  8 Feb 2010 | 4:00 am

  While it's snowing in many places across the country and the football game is on, The Leadership Development Carnival is on at Talented Apps.  With talk of masks, leadership and authencity, this moth's carnival kicks off in grand style with contributions from across the web. Hitting on a variety of leadership topics, I came across many contributors new to me. I'll be taking some time over the next week to read through the posts and I hope you do too. Be sure to mark your calendar for next month (March 7th) when the carnival returns to its home at Great Leadership.

• Fistful of Talent and HR Capitalist Power Rankings

  Lisa Rosendahl

  3 Feb 2010 | 1:50 pm

  Our friends at Fistful of Talent and HR Capitalist, published their February Talent Management Blog Power Rankings and believe it or not, this is the sixth round. Yes, it's the 6th version and I still look forward to it each and every time!  When I scan the list, I am honored to be included amongst people who inspire, friend and whether they know it or not, challenge me to keep getting better. My Google Reader is in flux with new blogs being added all the time. There are new voices joining the conversation and it is so great to see them…

• HR Carnival Super Bowl Edition

  Lisa Rosendahl

  3 Feb 2010 | 10:00 am

   The HR Carnival is hosted this time by Steve Boese over at Steve's HR Technology Journal, where he takes on HR Technology, teaching and a little barbecue. Little is an understatment as this guy does BBQ like no other - with passion. Steve was one of the first people I met in Twitter and he has made HR Technology a little less overwhelming for me. Because of Steve, I am that much more comfortable asking questions, trying out software and widgets and can even sort of impress my friends and neighbors. I love the theme and the lead ins to the posts. Steve out did…

• Have You Checked Your Credibility Lately?

  Lisa Rosendahl

  1 Feb 2010 | 10:00 am

  Two things I've got on my mind lately are writing and credibility. I"ll take up writing and the anti-writing demon I'm reading about in a separate post. But I do want to toss out some thoughts about credibility. When was the last time you were asked to decide a black and white issue? Keep thinking . . . keep thinking . . . got one yet? The last time I was asked to decide a black and white issue I told the group to do an about face and come back to me with the answer, but I digress. Why is it that issues are never black and white? When was the last time you…

• 
  The Chief Happiness Officer

• Getting to action: My latest Reboot talk

  Alexander

  8 Feb 2010 | 3:52 am

  Here’s a video of my presentation at last year’s Reboot conference in Copenhagen: For a long time, I’d been wanting to do a speech in shorts and flip-flops and since Reboot is a) held in the summer and b) mostly attended by IT geeks, this was the perfect venue to do it :o) The theme of the presentation is action. My point is simple: A bias for action is good for you because stuff happens when you act. But mostly I talk about how you get to action. Your take What about you? What helps you act? When do you get up and do stuff and when do you prefer to think, analyze and plan?

• A question for ya

  Alexander

  4 Feb 2010 | 4:39 am

  I’m currently writing an op-ed piece for a Danish newspaper about how to treat new hires. A lot of companies get this wrong and more or less toss in new recruits at the deep end to let them sink or swim for themselves. Others, like for instance Disneyworld or Zappos.com spend a lot of time and money on their new people to make sure that they “get” the company culture and are given all the tools, instructions and knowledge they need to succeed. For all of us, starting a new job can be a stressful time. You don’t know anyone there, you don’t know the written and…

• Hooray – it’s snowing

  Alexander

  4 Feb 2010 | 4:29 am

  Denmark is having the coldest winter in many years and the whole country has been covered in snow for the last several weeks. This, predictably, annoys the Danes. The roads are icy, the trains are late, your feet get wet, etc… So last night I went on Danish TV to explain why snow makes us happier. Here’s the clip: Basically, it’s because snow reflects light which means that the days are brighter which counteracts winter depressions (or SAD – Seasonal Affective Disorder).

• Quitting time

  Alexander

  1 Feb 2010 | 12:25 am

  I got an email from Red in the Philippines, who took a major step towards happiness at work last week: Red writes: I have been your follower and i really admire your writing style. In fact, I have adapted your style in my report writing. I just talked with my boss this morning (after reading your article on fear about being fired – now what vs. so what) and told him that I have reached my quitting point and I am resigning effective March 31, 2010. You know what, I felt a sense of relief deep inside and it was really great. Though I dont have a job lined up, I believe that it is worth…

• Friday Spoing!

  Alexander

  29 Jan 2010 | 4:02 am

  Here’s some major happiness at work at the Providence St. Vincent Medical Center in Portland, Oregon. What you see is their staff doing a Pink Glove Dance for breast cancer awareness. Thanks, Elaine.

• 
  Managing Leadership

• Roundup: Lessons from every quarter

  Jim Stroup

  5 Feb 2010 | 2:25 pm

  Advice for effective management has been showing up in some of the most unlikely places over the past several weeks, or in unexpected guises. Let’s take a look at some of these, leavened with some real advice from some of the best management trainers around. Clues to communication. The range begins at The Boston Globe, for an excellent piece on “cognitive fluency” and what it means for anyone – from managers to marketers and beyond – trying to make a message connect. It then moves on to Steve Roesler’s piece on getting your ideas heard – note point numbers one and two,…

• The Management Uncertainty Principle

  Jim Stroup

  26 Jan 2010 | 5:19 am

  We’ve seen how physicists have discovered the limitations on their ability to attain precise and comprehensive knowledge about the characteristics of an object at a given moment in time. How certain, in the face of this from physics, are we in our own field that we can even identify precisely the vital components of management – or, even more implausibly, of individual leadership – much less take them on in our own persons or teach others to do so? If the physicists are having such a hard time with what most of us would acknowledge are at least legitimately testable scientific…

• The Heisenberg Uncertainty Principle

  Jim Stroup

  20 Jan 2010 | 5:23 am

  One of the most peculiar phenomenon uncovered in physics over the past century is known as the Heisenberg Uncertainty Principle. This states – to the great frustration and irritation of many – that we cannot know with precision both elements of certain pairs of characteristics of an object. Most commonly, position and velocity are used, and the meaning of the principle is that the more precise is our knowledge about an object’s position, the less so is our knowledge of its speed, and vice versa. There is some debate about what this principle is saying to us at a fundamental level:…

• Notes for the New Year

  Jim Stroup

  11 Jan 2010 | 1:15 am

  Events drive others until you prioritize, imposing some degree of control on their flow and on the degree to which that affects you – or, better yet, reversing the direction of that influence. In my case, a re-prioritization was called for by events of late last year, and one of the events affected by it is the publishing schedule of this blog. I long worked to present an essay or item a workday here. As it happens, I will not be able to maintain that. I am and will continue to review the means by which I get my message out, and this blog will remain an important part of the effort. But it…

• A Baker’s Dozen plus one for 2010

  Jim Stroup

  1 Jan 2010 | 11:07 am

  It is time to offer a list of recommended additions to your daily reading list – sources that have found their way firmly on to mine over the past year. Some have clear staying power, and others are new, but promise to be keepers. I hope you will bookmark this page and give them all a thorough visit over the next week or so. I am confident you’ll be glad you did. Here they are, in random order: All Things Workplace, by Steve Roesler. Chaos Scenario: Cam Beck, Paul Herring, and John Herrington. The Delaware Employment Law Blog, authored principally by Molly DiBianca. Execupundit.com, by…

• 
  Employment Digest

• Example Cover Letter For Resume – Tactics to Make the Recruiter Pick Up the Phone

  EmploymentDigest@gmail.com

  9 Feb 2010 | 6:09 am

  You can pull a cover letter off the web. It will be expedient. But be truthful. It won’t get you the job. A cover letter that really gets attention has something extra. It doesn’t have to... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

• Dr. Tom Denham – Executive Career Coach

  EmploymentDigest@gmail.com

  8 Feb 2010 | 7:30 am

  [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

• Discover “Guerilla Strategies” to Land Your Dream Job

  EmploymentDigest@gmail.com

  8 Feb 2010 | 6:07 am

  In order to get the perfect job you may have to use revised tactics. It may prove very beneficial to bring out the cunning you and take a slightly different approach to job search. Here are few... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

• Resumes For Executive Jobs – Tips on Length, Formatting and Style

  EmploymentDigest@gmail.com

  7 Feb 2010 | 5:59 am

  Job seekers often ask how long their resume should be. Some people can barely stretch theirs to a single page, while others have difficulty fitting it into four pages. What makes this decision so... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

• Tough Interview Question – “What Do You Dislike About Your Job?”

  EmploymentDigest@gmail.com

  6 Feb 2010 | 5:57 am

  What will be your answer if the interviewer suddenly asks you a difficult question about your current job and why you want to leave it? If you spend too long searching for an answer you’ll... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

• 
  Six Degrees

• Altered Images Sings Happy Birthday!

  Dave Mendoza

  7 Feb 2010 | 11:04 pm

  No wrinkles and keeping all my hair at 40 is something certainly worth celebrating!

• Twitter Weekly Updates for 2010-02-07

  Dave Mendoza

  7 Feb 2010 | 4:25 pm

  New Blog Post: Twitter Weekly Updates for 2010-01-31 http://bit.ly/dneUXS #New Blog Post: Man in the Box – Dead Lady's Office http://bit.ly/cnLd0o #RT @tweetmeme Russ Moon, The Sourcing Samurai: "Wisdom of The Trade" – RecruitingBlogs.com http://is.gd/7se2G #New Blog Post: Andy Sernovitz Interview: Coke's New Social Media Policy http://bit.ly/cJEPjN #I subscribed to jobs2web's channel on YouTube http://www.youtube.com/user/jobs2web?feature=autoshare_twitter #New Blog Post: Source Your Own Career Destinations: "10 Standards of Care" of Job Search…

• Seth Godin Series: Gary Vee on Being Indispensable

  Dave Mendoza

  5 Feb 2010 | 3:35 pm

  Linchpin: GaryVee from Seth Godin on Vimeo.

• DiDi “Hey Jude” American Idol

  Dave Mendoza

  4 Feb 2010 | 8:37 am

  Touching performance!

• Russ Moon, The Sourcing Samurai: “Wisdom of The Trade”

  Dave Mendoza

  3 Feb 2010 | 5:20 pm

  This profile is one in a series titled Monday Member Showcase. It was originally published on RecruitingBlogs.com, a recruiting and HR community, where I am a featured contributor. To read the whole series please click here.As part of the next generation of interviews within the SixDegreesfromDave.com series we introduce “Wisdom of the Trade.” It was going to be called Tricks of the Trade, however, my friends, what our peers do are not equivalent to what illusions a magician pulls from a hat, but rather – the product of wisdom they have gained from years of dedicated…

• 
  The Chad Enjoy the Game

• Direct SEO v2 has arrived!

  Chad Sowash

  26 Jan 2010 | 10:59 am

  DirectEmployers is happy to offer SEO programs to all our member companies at NO additional charge. JobCentral SEO This automated product is set-up to create hundreds if not thousands of specified optimized job pages for a specific member on the JobCentral domain, which in turn links job seekers back to the jobs on your site. This platform has already been engaged for all 500+ member companies. Direct SEO This product replicates the automated power of JobCentral’s proven SEO best practices on the company’s very own domain, which provides more relevancies to search engines driving…

• Death of Cheezhead

  Chad Sowash

  25 Jan 2010 | 5:54 am

  I’ve recently noticed the Cheezhead and HRSEO domains are redirecting to Jobing. You might ask.. So what? Well for those of you who compete with Jobing, all of the back links (aka Google Juice) your blog or site was giving Cheezhead and HRSEO are now providing the “CheezJuice” to Jobing, resulting in a healthy heaping helping of “link-love” for Jobing instead of the originally intended admiration or daily shots taken at Cheez. None of this is a surprise, although if you were linking to Cheezhead.com you may way to revisit those links. (You can always point to…

• Happy Holidays from DirectEmployers!

  Chad Sowash

  17 Dec 2009 | 11:34 am

  If you haven’t noticed we’ve been doing a fair amount of video lately and it wouldn’t be complete without a Holiday GREETING! Hat tip to Nancy, Travis and Lisa.. Great job! Social Bookmarks Hide Sites

• Nebraska expands listings on JobLink

  Chad Sowash

  10 Dec 2009 | 11:51 am

  National Labor Exchange announcement: “The Nebraska Department of Labor announces the addition of job postings from a 50 mile perimeter around the state through an update that provides a daily download of jobs from DirectEmployers JobCentral National Labor Exchange.” and “Now, a nightly download from the National Labor Exchange will increase the number of job postings available through “JobLink” in Nebraska by more than 2,000 jobs daily and will enhance opportunities for Nebraska’s job seekers to find the positions they are seeking, the department…

• Job Boards are DEAD! yada, yada, yada…

  Chad Sowash

  2 Dec 2009 | 6:28 am

  I’ve read many times over the years about job boards dying and also the contrary position of how they will emerge from this recession like the Phoenix, stronger than ever.. Yada yada yada.. Let’s face it, there are a variety of angles to this story although I tend to side with the one who actually vote with their almighty dollar. Hiring Companies.. Where they go, the industry goes.. Here’s another article published just yesterday with a myriad of angles… In the end vendors can continue pushing their same old wares… OR look to help hiring companies better leverage…

• 
  Lindsey Pollak Career Blog

• On MyPath.com: An Interview with Two College Career Services Professionals

  Lindsey Pollak

  4 Feb 2010 | 2:00 am

  What are the major hiring trends on campus this year? What are the best strategies for finding an entry-level job? What are the biggest mistakes students make in the job search process? To answer these questions and more, I spoke with with Trudy Steinfeld, Executive Director of the Wasserman Center for Career Development at New York University, and Manny Contomanolis, Associate Vice President and Director of Co-op and Career Services at the Rochester Institute of Technology. Don’t miss the opportunity to hear top tips from two of the best career services professionals in the country!

• On MyPath.com: Job Opportunities with Women-Owned Businesses

  Lindsey Pollak

  28 Jan 2010 | 5:09 am

  I recently came across a study by the Guardian Life Small Business Research Institute predicting that about one-third of new jobs created over the next eight years will be at small businesses owned by women. As a woman small business owner myself, I was really intrigued by this news. It also reminded me that many students and young professionals miss out on great opportunities because they overlook the potential to get a job at a (man- or woman-owned) small business. In this week’s podcast, I share my thoughts on the opportunities available in small businesses, how to find these…

• On MyPath.com: 5 High-Impact Career Habits

  Lindsey Pollak

  25 Jan 2010 | 4:00 am

  Exercise for 30 minutes a day. Sleep eight hours a night. Floss. Good habits are the building blocks of a healthy life. The same goes for your career: small daily habits add up to big success. The earlier in your working life you develop smart daily practices, the easier they will be to maintain and the more overall impact they’ll have. Here are 5 important career habits to cultivate: 1. Keep up with the news. We live in the Information Age, so there’s no excuse for not being informed. Whether you read a news site every morning, watch the headlines on TV or subscribe to a major news…

• Next 30/20 Vision Podcast: Wednesday, January 20th at 5:00pm EST

  Lindsey Pollak

  19 Jan 2010 | 12:31 pm

  Join me and my fabulous co-hosts, Christine Hassler (author of The 20-Something Manifesto) and Alexandra Levit (author of New Year, New You), for our next 30/20 Vision podcast on Wednesday, January 20, at 5:00pm EST. Our topic this month is The Future of Work: what it will look like and what that means for you. Click here to join us live or download the episode anytime.

• On MyPath.com: An Interview with Financial Literacy Expert Manisha Thakor

  Lindsey Pollak

  14 Jan 2010 | 4:30 am

  Are you making smart money decisions in your 20s? In my podcast this week for MyPath.com, I’m thrilled to present an interview with Manisha Thakor, financial literacy expert and co-author of two great books on personal finance, On My Own Two Feet and Get Financially Naked. In this 15-minute segment, Manisha answers the questions on the minds of today’s college students and recent grads, such as: - What are the most important financial steps to take in your 20s? - What are the biggest mistakes to avoid in your 20s? - How can college students make good decisions about how much…

• 
  The Anti Pimp

• Time Breakdown of Modern Web Design

  The Anti Pimp

  7 Feb 2010 | 9:34 am

• Do you just take up space??

  The Anti Pimp

  29 Jan 2010 | 8:49 am

  What value do you provide or are you someone that has their proverbial hand out waiting on someone to provide value to you.   Are you constatly thinking…”hmm…how is this person trying to fk me over?…” or figure out everyone’s angle.  If you spend most your time during a meeting or phone call being a cynic, I’ll label you as a horrible listener.   I only say these things b/c I catch myself doing it at times and it’s a abominable characteristic. Change your game.  Provide value first. If you can’t find any, ask.  Ask how you can…

• How to find a recruiter that doesn’t suck

  The Anti Pimp

  27 Jan 2010 | 4:34 am

  Someone told me a while back that the industry turnover for headhunters was 70% in the first year.  No wonder why people that have never worked with OR have had a bad experience with their first recruiter think that the entire industry are complete assholes.  I’d think the same thing. Think about that for a second.  7 out of 10 recruiters will QUIT w/in the first year of employment!  How do you find a decent one when all of them are quitting?   Two very simple questions you can ask them when they call you. How long have you been a recruiter? How long have you been with your current…

• A Mutual Challenge from @Brett/Mashable

  The Anti Pimp

  26 Jan 2010 | 6:46 am

  In one of my early morning, one eye open stupors, shuffling around the house I grabbed my iPhone and settled in a quiet place and checked my tweets from last night.   The first one I saw was from Brett Petersel – East Coast Events Coordinator for Mashable – that read, “so far, I have not fullfilled my promise to blog on a daily basis.  I’ll write for others, but my personal blog is getting lonley.” So like a complete dumbass, I replied with “ditto”, never thinking I’d get a response.  Dumbass was wrong – Brett replied with a suggestion…

• The Victim

  The Anti Pimp

  12 Jan 2010 | 11:11 am

  I’m a huge Seth Godin fan.  Yanked directly from his site…this is a very good read for the entrance into 2010. The victim Does your job happen to you? If you’re a willing cog in the vast machinery of work, it’s entirely possible that the things that occur all day feel like they’re being done to you. The alternative is to create a job where you create forward motion, where you do things to the job, not the other way around. Take a look at the language you use to describe what happened at work yesterday, that’s your first clue. If you’re not the one…

• 
  HR Daily Advisor

• Smart Managers, Dumb Moves

  stevebruce

  9 Feb 2010 | 12:00 am

  In yesterday's Advisor, we covered several common legal but stupid actions that managers think are smart. Today, we'll hit a few more, and we'll take a look at a unique HR audit system that ferrets out stupid moves before the feds do

• Legal, Yes, But Stupid

  stevebruce

  8 Feb 2010 | 12:00 am

  They say a little knowledge is a dangerous thing, and that goes for many managers who think they know all about employment law. Unfortunately, there are a lot of actions that may be technically legal, but practically stupid.

• 5 Ways to Put the Spring Back in Workers' Steps

  stevebruce

  5 Feb 2010 | 12:00 am

  Are your employees happy? Probably not, says Dave Anderson, an author and lecturer and president of Dave Anderson's Learn to Lead. The most recent survey by the Conference Board suggests that only 45 percent of Americans are satisfied with their work—an all-time low since the study was established in 1987. And unhappiness on the job has some very real consequences.

• Where New Supervisors Make Their Worst Mistakes

  stevebruce

  4 Feb 2010 | 12:00 am

  In yesterday's Advisor, we covered supervisor training tips from Jonna Contacos-Sawyer and Polly Heeter Wright. Today we'll cover more tips and take a look at a unique product just for small HR departments.

• When Supervisors Fail, Their Fault or Yours?

  stevebruce

  3 Feb 2010 | 12:00 am

  A lot of new supervisors fail, but it's usually not their fault. They simply don't know how to be a supervisor until you teach them, say Jonna Contacos-Sawyer and Polly Heeter Wright.

• 
  CEO Blog - Time Leadership

• Top 10 Distinctions Between Millionaires and the Middle Class

  Jim Estill

  9 Feb 2010 | 6:09 am

  I recently read The Top 10 Distinctions Between Millionaires and the Middle Class by Keith Cameron Smith.The book is so bang on I could have written most of it myself. It espouses many of the same principles that I've said repeatedly on this blog.One of the distinctions is Millionaires think long term. I've blogged about the value of long term thinking in my Secrets of Self Discipline post.Millionaires embraces change and of course I've often said that change is opportunity and one of my mantras is change change change, embrace change, welcome change, make change, create change.Millionaires…

• The AMA Handbook of Leadership

  Jim Estill

  3 Feb 2010 | 3:15 pm

  I recently read the The AMA Handbook of Leadership by Marshall Goldsmith which is a collection of articles, similar to the one I recently reviewed by Malcolm Gladwell (although these are each by different authors).The book has five parts.1 - Forging ahead - The Global Picture2 - Developing People - The Key to the Future.3 - Engaging People - Force of Change.4 - Facilitating Change - The Leaders Role.5 - Taking the Lead.The articles are thoughtful, well chosen, well edited and for the most part interesting and thoughtful.There was an article by R. Roosevelt Thomas Jr. on Leadership and…

• Performance : Your Guide To Personal & Professional Excellence

  Jim Estill

  2 Feb 2010 | 8:00 am

  I recently read Diane Matyas Book - Performance : Your Guide To Personal & Professional Excellence. It's summarizes most of what most great self-help books contain. One thing that resonated with me is her first few chapters involve talking about energy - spiritual, mental and physical. One thing I've increasingly been emphasizing in my time management systems is that it's not about time management it's about energy management. So figuring out how to gain more energy, what gives you energy what takes your energy is an absolute must.She then goes into a section on imagination and this would…

• The Imposter

  Jim Estill

  1 Feb 2010 | 7:33 am

  I read a great book on the weekend called The Imposter - How a Juvenile Criminal Succeeded in Business and in Life , a transformation memoir by Kip Kreiling. The reason I say it was a great book is I founded a gripping and didn't put it down.Although it's just a bit longer than most normal business books that I'm reading (285 pages), the font size is large so I had suspected its even less words.As the title suggests, Kip is concerned that he is an impostor when he becomes a success in life. I think many people who are successful have that fear that perhaps they'll be found out someday.I don't…

• Motivation and Ways to Wake Up Early

  Jim Estill

  29 Jan 2010 | 8:01 am

  One of my readers sent me the following email in response to my 6 Reasons to Wake up Early article:Feeling the annual winter-lack-of-motivation-I-don't-want-to-get-up blues...Why do I want to get up early? Because by the end of the work day I'm exhausted, and have no interest in doing anything except lying on the couch and reading (which I think is okay, sortof). But I like the IDEA of using some time in the morning to clean, organize, write a note to a friend, search the web for fun, exercise. I somehow can motivate to exercise at night (usually, but not everyday and it should be), but…

• 
  THE M.A.P. MAKER

• Visual Self-exploration: Your Life in Pictures #11

  Curt Rosengren

  8 Feb 2010 | 5:11 pm

  Welcome to this week's installment in the Your Life in Pictures series. In this series, you will find photos to use as a point of departure for self-exploration.Q: What insights does this picture prompt about your career? Your life? [Click on the image to see it full-sized.]Pictures have great potential for self-exploration, because they provide a point of departure for asking, "how does this apply to my own life?" There is no specific meaning to any of these pictures. They are simply here to give your brain/intuition/creative mind/etc. something to bounce off.Your exploration could be…

• Five Friday Favorites

  Curt Rosengren

  5 Feb 2010 | 11:09 am

  It's been an eon or two since I posted a Five Friday Favorites post, but it feels like it's time to pick up the habit again. So here, in no particular order, are five of my favorite blog posts from this week. Celebrate Your SuccuessPluginID5 Ways to shake hands with yourselfHELLO, my name is Blog!Frugality is a career toolPenelope Trunk's Brazen CareeristWork Happiness Tip - Keep Track of Your MoodWork Happy Now!Follow your spark, not that hollow feeling in your chestAvocationistDo you have a favorite blog post from the past week? Post a link in the comments for all of us to see. Enjoy! Time…

• Change your world: Join the Listen & Learn Revolution

  Curt Rosengren

  3 Feb 2010 | 1:02 pm

  Want a deceptively simple, yet powerful way to change your world? Join the Listen & Learn Revolution. When you do, you'll be taking your own personal step towards dissolving a culture of divisiveness and conflict.The Listen & Learn Revolution is about jettisoning the need to be right when you encounter someone whose opinion or point of view differs from yours. Instead of clubbing them over the head with your opinion, take some time to engage them with a sense of curiosity. Explore why they believe what they do, not from a, "How the hell can you think that??" perspective, but from a…

• Get unstuck with a 7-day goal

  Curt Rosengren

  3 Feb 2010 | 5:55 am

  Do you ever find yourself feeling stuck? You know you need to move forward, but somehow you've managed to sink your wheels into the mud and all momentum is lost. It can be a frustrating, draining experience. In one of the herd of books I'm currently reading, The Power of Focus, I came across a great, simple idea to blast out of that stuckness. The authors described adventurer John Goddard's response when asked about overcoming roadblocks: "When I get stuck, I restart myself by focusing on one goal I can finish in the next seven days - something simple. I don't think about anything else - that…

• Visual Self-exploration: Your Life in Pictures #10

  Curt Rosengren

  2 Feb 2010 | 9:40 am

  Welcome to this week's installment in the Your Life in Pictures series. In this series, you will find photos to use as a point of departure for self-exploration. Q: What insights does this picture prompt about your career? Your life? [Click on the image to see it full-sized.]Pictures have great potential for self-exploration, because they provide a point of departure for asking, "how does this apply to my own life?" There is no specific meaning to any of these pictures. They are simply here to give your brain/intuition/creative mind/etc. something to bounce off. Your exploration could be…

• 
  Diggings

• Google’s ‘Parisian Love’ Search On Ad Takes Top Prize In Superbowl

  Toby Dayton

  8 Feb 2010 | 11:49 am

  Of course a search engine is going to take the top prize in the annual advertising competition known as the Superbowl. How could they not given the drivel put forward by Doritos, GoDaddy, Skechers, and most of the other advertisers? The ads were generally disappointing this year (Monster and Careerbuilder’s spots were particularly weak), with only a few exceptions. The E*Trade spots were amusing (Dad?!?!?), the Coke ad in Africa with Bolero playing was great, as was the Bud Light Lost spoof, and the Brett Favre spot was good. Flo TV’s spots weren’t too notable but their…

• Look For A Very Positive January 2010 Jobs Report Friday

  Toby Dayton

  3 Feb 2010 | 8:04 am

  January’s jobs report from the Department of Labor is scheduled to be released later this week and based on data released this morning by LinkUp, Friday’s report will show that the job market improved sharply during the month. LinkUp, a job search engine that indexes jobs from over 20,000 company websites throughout the U.S., reported that new job listings on company websites rose by 69,082 (18%) from December. Total job listings on company websites in LinkUp’s search engine increased by 34,525 (4%). This is in sharp contrast to LinkUp’s dismal December report in which…

• Beware of Money Mule Job Listings On Monster, Careerbuilder, Indeed, And Simplyhired

  Toby Dayton

  28 Jan 2010 | 8:47 am

  Yesterday, G.L. and I were fortunate enough to have the opportunity to participate in a Careerealism webinar for job seekers organized by career advice expert J.T. O’Donnell. During the discussion about how to effectively use online resources in a job search, we mentioned the risks associated with traditional pay-to-post job sites such as Monster and Careerbuilder as well as job aggregators such as Indeed and Simplyhired that republish job listings from Monster, Careerbuilder, and thousands of other pay-to-post job boards. The risks we mentioned result from the prevalence of fraudulent…

• The Ladders Is One Gigantic Scam That Preys On Unsuspecting Job Seekers

  Toby Dayton

  27 Jan 2010 | 12:26 pm

  Nick Corcodilos, aka Ask The Headhunter, has written an outstanding article on his blog about what an absolute scam The Ladders is and how fraudulent their claims are about delivering to job seekers ‘only $100K+ job listings.’ I have written about what a rip-off The Ladders is in the past, and I applaud anyone who helps shine a light on what a disservice Marc Cenedella and the other hacks who work for The Ladders are doing to job seekers, employers, and the entire recruitment advertising & talent acquisition industry. I especially applaud Nick for writing such a thoughtful and…

• I’m With Coco

  Toby Dayton

  14 Jan 2010 | 12:00 pm

  Everyone at NBC has completely lost their minds. The ridiculous episode with Conan O’Brien (by far the funniest and most entertaining person to ever appear on late-night TV) is exhibit BB in the ongoing saga that is the largely self-inflicted demise of traditional media.

• 
  Work Happy Now!

• How Can I Help You in 2010?

  Karl Staib - CZO (Chief Zen Officer)

  6 Feb 2010 | 11:17 pm

  We are 1/12 through 2010 and how much happier are you at work? February marks the two year anniversary of this blog. My main reason for creating this business was to help other people who feel tired and weary of the grind. I rarely feel stressed out, trapped and alone at this stage in my career. Instead of continuing to be pushed around I took control of my own work happiness. For the past two years I’ve researched stress, relationships (self, co-workers, and boss), and productivity. The same conclusions keep coming back. If we want to get our desired results, we need to be happy now. The…

• Hard, Fun and Beautiful – Calming Tea Edition

  Karl Staib - CZO (Chief Zen Officer)

  4 Feb 2010 | 7:28 pm

  Where we are free to talk about the hard, the fun, and the beautiful of our work week. The best way to learn from our experiences is to step back, be honest, and reflect on pain and joy of our work week. Using my blog to meet amazing people has been a huge perk. I’ve interviewed Steve Pavlina (Personal Development Master), Jonathan Field (Career Renegade), Tony Hsieh (CEO of Zappos) and many others. I’m saying this because I’m interviewing someone else that I’ve admired for a long time. She is an amazing writer and business woman. You’ll find out very soon. I can’t give it away…

• How to Build Better Relationships at Work

  Karl Staib - CZO (Chief Zen Officer)

  3 Feb 2010 | 6:10 pm

  Relationships are built on trust. If I trust you to help me finish a project and you flake out on me, that trust is gone. If you are a stand up person who sweats, bleeds, and cries by my side and also encourages me to be great than you’ve earned my trust. I’ll love you until the end of time. This video was shot on my lunch hour because that morning I worked on a project with a group of guys I would go to business war with. They are smart, fun, and we get a lot accomplished. Yes, I’m talking about my day job. Hey, I’m doing this for you, so I can learn first hand how to…

• Work Happiness Tip – Keep Track of Your Mood

  Karl Staib - CZO (Chief Zen Officer)

  2 Feb 2010 | 7:07 pm

  Every week I like to bring you a work happiness tip that can help improve your mood, relationships, productivity, or reduce your stress. The idea is to put you back in the driver’s seat. This week’s tip: Keep track of your mood. For a whole month I kept track of my mood and recorded it every morning, afternoon, and night. I added it as a chapter in my soon to be released book. For a month I rated my mood three times a day to discover how I actually felt. My rating was on a scale of 1 to 10, 1 being severely sad and 10 being so amazingly happy that I could barely contain my joy. I was…

• Interview with Social Media Expert – Nathan Hangen

  Karl Staib - CZO (Chief Zen Officer)

  31 Jan 2010 | 7:08 pm

  Every now and again, I like to bring you short interviews to give you a new perspective on work happiness. During my study of work happiness I found that there are many paths to the same goal. Some people believe that loving what you do is a must, while other people believe that relationships are vital to enjoying the work that we do. Interviews are a great way to get out of our own perspective and see what other people are doing to be happy at work. Today we have a social media extraordinaire, Nathan Hangen with us. He has recently published an ebook called Beyond Blogging that case studies…

• 
  Digital Recruiting

• What do you think Social Media is about?

  Alex Hens

  1 Feb 2010 | 10:06 am

  I was recently asked by a journalist/publisher for my input (along with probably everyone else on this blog and 5 of our regular readers - the 6th reader being my mum, and in the nicest possible way they're right not to ask her) about "social media, fad or future?". I can't decide whether it's cheeky to pre-publish here or not. I'm sure the final article they pull together will still make an interesting read irrespective of me pre-empting, but I'll probably forget to post this if I don't do it now. The thing I really wanted to do though was ask any of you who haven't been asked to…

• The iPad - a Friday kinda look

  Alex Hens

  29 Jan 2010 | 12:00 am

  You may have noticed a little buzz this week just past about a certain Apple release. What? You missed it? Well don't worry - I'm sure it'll be beamed to the space station you must be on someday soon. There's been plenty written about it already - from people who would love it because it has an apple logo on it to people who hate it because it has an apple logo on it and from developers who hate the fact that Apple operates a very closed development environment to those who really believe that apple have once again (as they did with the iPhone) significantly raised the bar. It's not perfect,…

• Crowdsourcing Apathy

  Sinead Bunting

  25 Jan 2010 | 10:02 am

  Ah, election year....the prospect of shiny new change or focusing your current leaders to deliver on past promises they have made...how exciting! or really....it used to be, but not so much this year. I don't think I can ever recall being this apathethic about a general election. It's a sad state of affairs to be in, feeling that neither party offers any particular hope. Just as well then, we have something of interest we can watch from our seats of indifference - how each party fayres in their use of social media in helping to get elected. After Obama came to power on the wave of hope and an…

• RECaid Free Training - 18th February 2010

  John Whitehurst

  25 Jan 2010 | 8:09 am

  Support for job-seekers in recruitment advertising. For those people in recruitment marketing who aren’t working at the moment but who are keen to keep their skills up-to-date, help is at hand. RECaid, the recruitment advertising charity, is organising a series of free training and development sessions designed to support job-seekers in our industry. The first of these training events will run on the morning of February 18th and will be hosted by Global Radio. This will involve a series of three back-to-back sessions designed to help job seekers improve their interviewing skills, widen…

• The Mobile Age Cometh

  Sinead Bunting

  18 Jan 2010 | 3:14 pm

  So, I'm thinking of getting an i-phone..they're pretty cool and being able to access the web wherever I want, whenever I want, is a big attraction, especially since my laptop packed up. Also, being free from the red light of my work blackberry, which doubles as my personal mobile phone will surely be healthy. I'm not alone in my desire for a smart phone, in fact, it would seem at long last, we just may be entering the 'Mobile Age' - the perennial prediction comes to bear.... Mary Meeker in her presentation at the Web 2.0 event- convinced me the mobile is all set to be the main device for web…

• 
  growing changing learning creating

• Spaces surrounding higher ed

  Tom Haskins

  8 Feb 2010 | 3:12 pm

  Most institutions of higher ed go to great lengths to improve the completion rate of its enrollment. The institutions are neither callous, cynical or indifferent. Here's a list of some of the ways they try to catch students before they fall out of college:Remediate their reading and writing skills if they are below college level competenciesProvide freshman courses in study skills and other practices for success in collegeAccommodate changing majors if their first choice proved to be too stressful, demanding or boringAllow failing grades to be replaced by taking the course again with a…

• Viewed from an innovation space

  Tom Haskins

  5 Feb 2010 | 5:38 am

  I've spent most of today in the space of the innovation I'm currently developing to submit to the business plan contest next week. I've been finding it very enjoyable to get immersed in my imaginative exploration of this new possibility space. It's also fun to look back on current reality as if it's a bygone era from the vantage of the innovation space. The new found sense of freedom from all the problems we take for granted is exhilarating because it seems like a new adventure and an ongoing process of discovery.In the future I've just returned from, it seems extremely weird to speak of…

• Situations that call for innovations

  Tom Haskins

  4 Feb 2010 | 7:43 am

  Some situations call for productivity. We can keep things simple and do what needs to be done. There's no need to ask troubling questions or second guess our every move. We can rely on what's worked in the past and do what's been done before. If anybody asks, we can tell them to "mind their own business" while we mind our own. What's on their minds is none of our business. We've got a job to get done and that's that!Other situations call for innovations. We've got to make things more complicated before we can get any more accomplished. We need to ask troubling questions about our past…

• Evaluating immersive learning

  Tom Haskins

  3 Feb 2010 | 6:54 am

  Two decades ago, I was playing Tetris on my computer. The game issued one block at a time for me to orient before it fell into place, filling in the growing pile without gaps. Because my movements were so limited, the game could learn my habitual reactions and then outsmart me. It would issue an unexpected block that was also turned in ways I was not ready for. A decade later, Macromedia offered add-ons to Flash and Dreamweaver software for so-called learning. The user's movements were limited to dragging objects within a frame and inserting text into fields. The accuracy and time taken could…

• Innovating by changing our thinking

  Tom Haskins

  2 Feb 2010 | 6:42 am

  A few weeks ago, I read Roger Martin's new book: The Design of Business: Why Design Thinking is the Next Competitive Advantage It's stayed on my mind since in a way where I've realized what a great approach it offers to innovation. Here are the key ideas that stood out for me -- translated into my own way of conceptualizing creativity:When we're making money, enjoying a success, or getting a job done, we're in a mode of exploitation. We're taking advantage of available resources, familiar situations and established routines to realize more of the same results. Improvements are within reach,…

• 
  Career Transition Services Blog, Corporate Outplacement, Job Search Services at RiseSmart

• ACS to offer RiseSmart outplacement services

  Sanjay

  5 Feb 2010 | 12:16 pm

  Affiliated Computer Services, a Fortune 500 company and global leader in business process outsourcing and information technology services, has introduced a new service offering, ACS Transition Services - Powered by RiseSmart. Said Mark Squiers, executive managing director of ACS Human Resources Outsourcing services, in the company’s press release: This is a new model for transition services, one that is geared to providing strong returns for both employers and employees. By eliminating costly traditional services like office space and group seminars, which have been found to be of low…

• RiseSmart on “Up in the Air” in Wall Street Journal

  Sanjay

  5 Feb 2010 | 11:59 am

  I don’t generally think of myself as a movie reviewer, but my critique of “Up in the Air” — written, of course, from my perspective as the CEO of an outplacement firm — has gotten some attention, first in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette and then in the online Wall Street Journal. Wrote the Journal’s Josh Beckerman of our press release on the movie (which this week was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture): Best of all is RiseSmart’s debunking of the theory that “laid-off workers can be mollified with generic pep talks.” The company invokes…

• Consider the effect of social media throughout the employee lifecycle

  Sarah

  21 Jan 2010 | 7:43 am

  The impact of social media cannot be denied. The 2009 word of the year was “tweet,” and the word of the decade was “google,” according to the American Dialect Society. Social media such as Twitter, Facebook, MySpace, Flickr, and YouTube—which are defined by their user-generated content—have wiggled their way into most people’s working hours, and thus onto many workplace computers. In the field of Human Resources, most talk of social media has to do with pre-employment: talent sourcing, advertising job openings, and performing background checks. But social media is now integrated…

• Guiding your career transition in the direction of future growth

  Sarah

  15 Jan 2010 | 1:24 am

  “Career transition” is on a lot of minds these days. The U.S. has more than 15 million unemployed — and if you count the discouraged and underemployed, the number is more like 27 million. You may be one of these people seeking a new job, or you may be one of millions of others who are employed, but trying to strategize a major career change in a tough market. No matter the specifics, the economic downturn is probably affecting your career. As you craft your long-term plans, you’ll want to consider where the jobs are — and where they are going. Consumption drives these patterns, but…

• Grow as a learning organization with a mentoring program

  Sarah

  8 Jan 2010 | 6:58 am

  If one of your business resolutions for 2010 is that your company should grow as a learning organization, developing a mentoring program should be high on your to-do list. Mentoring is useful and popular because it benefits the individual mentors and protégés alike, all while helping the larger organization. Whether you are focused on grooming existing talent or simply sharing organizational knowledge, mentoring can help your organization grow, thrive, and change. A notable expert in the field of mentoring is Lois J. Zachary, Ed.D. Dr. Zachary is the author of the books The Mentor’s…

• 
  Escape From Corporate America

• Be An Entrepreneur….Or Just Think Like One

  Pamela Skillings

  24 Jan 2010 | 7:35 pm

  As a career coach, one of my core philosophies  is that we all must learn to think like entrepreneurs when it comes to managing our careers. That doesn’t mean all of my clients are running their own businesses — many are very happy and successful in Corporate America or working for others. However, they all know that it’s important to run their careers like they would run a business. An entrepreneurial mindset is key to success in any career path these days – whether you’re starting your own company, climbing the corporate ladder, or managing a career transition.

• Join Me on JobRadio USA on Tuesday

  Pamela Skillings

  11 Jan 2010 | 8:05 am

  Tune in to JobRadio USA on Tuesday, January 12th at 9pm. Host Kenrick Chatman and I will discuss strategies to help you escape from Corporate America and create a dream career around your passion. We will be taking your calls to help you brainstorm your own escape plans. To attend this show by phone, dial 347-838-9326. You can also listen via your computer by visiting www.blogtalkradio.com/thecareercatalyst and pressing the play/chat button. If you cannot participate live, visit the same URL above to either download or listen to the archive.

• We Wuz Robbed — Career Advice for Burglars

  Pamela Skillings

  17 Dec 2009 | 7:17 am

  On Tuesday evening, I returned from leading a 2-day workshop in DC to discover that my apartment had been visited by burglars who helped themselves to some holiday gifts and rifled through our belongings. I was shocked and more than a little freaked out. I have always felt 100% safe in my building and my neighborhood. We have not had a break-in in the building for more than 10 years. We have a doorman and security cameras and a very vigilant live-in super. The burglar struck in the middle of the afternoon when my husband and most of my neighbors were at work. He was wearing a suit and tie,…

• Free NYC Workshop — How to Start a Freelancing or Consulting Business

  Pamela Skillings

  13 Dec 2009 | 5:45 am

  If you’ve ever fantasized about escaping from Corporate America to start your own freelancing or consulting business, mark your calendar for Thursday, December 17th. I’m leading a free workshop on making the leap from employee to entrepreneur in New York City, in partnership with the U.S. Small Business Administration and Operation Hope. Join us to get practical advice and useful resources for launching your own freelancing or consulting business and network with other current and future solopreneurs. This holiday season, give yourself the gift of career independence. How to Start…

• Attention Career Changers: Free Makeover and 15 Minutes of TV Fame

  Pamela Skillings

  10 Nov 2009 | 7:23 am

  A major women’s magazine is working on a TV special and looking for a career changer who could use a makeover to update your look, boost your confidence, and wow them at your next interview or meeting. If you’re a woman between the ages of 25 and 45 and currently searching for work, you could get a makeover from a dream team including a top NYC stylist and colorist, professional  makeup artist, and fashion stylist. If you’re interested in this makeover opportunity,  send an e-mail to mschaberg@hearst.com by November 15th, 2009 with your name, address, e-mail, phone number,…

• 
  life@work

• Mom's life@work Post #3: How to Reduce Your Stress During the Second Shift

  Heather Mundell

  3 Feb 2010 | 12:14 pm

  This post is third in the "mom's life@work" series, which is bridging my work here with what I'm doing at Mom In The Balance. The first post was Help for the Working Mom, and the second was Blend or Separate?  Last night at home from approximately 6:10 to 6:11 this is what happened: I was preparing chicken for dinner My younger daughter called out to me to log her on to the computer While I was out of the kitchen, Nico the Crazy Cat jumped onto the counter and started licking the butter I came back into the kitchen and yelled at the cat The cat jumped off the counter…

• Kaizen and the Art of Your Job Search

  Heather Mundell

  20 Jan 2010 | 11:01 pm

  This post is part of the Career Collective's collection of January 21st posts on helping job seekers make the most of the new year. Follow us on Twitter at #careercollective. Have you already broken your resolutions for 2010? We're three weeks into the new year, and many of us are already disappointed with our track record. We aren't living at the gym, we're not eating five veggies every day, and we haven't hit our goal of attending one job interview each week.Well take heart - at least you've made it through January 18 - said by some to be the most depressing…

• Mom's life@work post #2: Blend or Separate?

  Heather Mundell

  4 Jan 2010 | 2:38 pm

  This is the second post in the "Mom's life@work"series I'm writing on this blog. Read the first post, Help for the Working Mom, here. Are you a blender or a separator?I'm not talking kitchen appliances or bras here - I'm talking about how you navigate your work and home time, energy, and identities.Blenders are most comfortable weaving family and work together. They like working from home if possible, and don't have set work hours. They can switch gears quickly between tending to their three year-old's meltdown to initiating that week's team…

• Mom's life@work Post #1: Help for the Working Mom

  Heather Mundell

  16 Dec 2009 | 2:12 pm

  This post is the first in the "Mom's life@work" series that I'm writing on this blog. I'll be exploring career topics that are of special interest to mothers, such as transitioning, on-ramping, balancing, blending, and negotiating. If you're not a mom, keep reading! There are tips in these posts that apply to everyone seeking career happiness.Deciding to write this series was inspired by the world I'm immersed in at Mom In The Balance where I help sandwich generation moms (those juggling responsibilities for both their kids and their parents) thrive, even as…

• Have a Holly Jolly Job Search

  Heather Mundell

  8 Dec 2009 | 8:31 am

  This month the Career Collective community, a group of career coaches and resume writers, is posting about how to make the most of your job search during the holidays. Follow us on Twitter at #careercollective.December is in full swing, and many of you have put a hold on your job search because: "No one's hiring in December". "I have shopping, baking and other holiday stuff to do". "I just want a break from the job search". Searching for a new job, whether while you're employed or not, does not generally bring about holiday cheer. It doesn't have…

• 
  StellaCommute

• Snowpocalypse? Or Snowtopia?

  8 Feb 2010 | 6:23 am

  You know, it's really up to you whether or not your employees are able to get stuff done during adverse weather. Those employers with good remote working tools in the hands of their employees (stuff like a real VPN and training on how to install and log into it, webcams on laptops, virtual machines, and all that good stuff, along with people who are able to use it) are able to do a little work today in DC and Baltimore.Just forward your phones to your cell, fire up the laptop and get rolling. And suddenly it's a Snowtopia!Stellacommute...there's no place like home.

• You Know What You Don't Get As A Telecommuter?

  7 Feb 2010 | 6:50 pm

  You don't get an office Super Bowl pool. You don't get randomly selected numbers, and so if you're like Stella, you have even less incentive to pay attention.That said, having lived in Baltimore for 15 or so years, I cannot be indifferent to the joy of watching the Colts lose. And as someone concerned with economic justice and who is nonplussed by our inability to rebuild huge swathes of NOLA, I'm also pleased to see the Saints win.I wonder who won the office pool?Stellacommute...there's no place like home.

• Stella's Team Wins

  3 Feb 2010 | 4:54 am

  After a long hiatus caused by work, babies, and general malaise, we were back at Geeks Who Drink, and we pwned. Yay us! I was sad to miss the excerpt from "Turandot" on the Opera/Opera round (actual opera and rock opera) but really, it was one pretty small sung moment, and not really enough to tell. Stellacommute...there's no place like home.

• The Key Is In Your Data

  2 Feb 2010 | 3:57 am

  I know Stella has said that face-to-face visits are the gold standard of development work, and that's true. But the information about whom to visit and what to talk with them about is all in your database. I love databases and people who know how to look for things in them will rule the world.People who know how to find lists of entities that have key attributes in common will rule the world even more. This post from the Tom Donovan in the Harvard Business Review blog goes through why and how this is so. These are good insights about data use. My favorite:Everybody who makes observations has…

• Simple Criteria to Evaluate Your Telecommuting Readiness

  1 Feb 2010 | 4:32 am

  From the IT Dark Side, a quick list of characteristics that might preclude you from doing well as a telecommuter. Honestly, Stella can't see anything to add. Oh, wait. Yes I can.The most important skill for a telecommuter is a willingness to deal with the messy technical details of handling your own IT life. You need to be able to plug in a new camera, mess around with your home network, install new VPN utilities and so on without hand-holding from IT. I can't tell you the number of people who have a hard time getting to the stuff they need to do their work because they can't work around…

• 
  Martial Development

• Share Your Martial Arts Workout Playlist

  Chris

  5 Feb 2010 | 12:00 pm

  Which songs are on your martial arts workout playlist? Here are a few more of my favorites, and other classic martial arts themed hits. Alright cree Mix up the yoga with the tai chi Mix up the roots dem with the lychee Strengthen up my back Now ready fi whine she When time me come the gal dem haffi cry cree… Cree – T.O.K. Everybody was kung-fu fighting Those cats were fast as lightning In fact it was a little bit frightning But they fought with expert timing… Kung Fu Fighting – Carl Douglas It’s gettin’ It’s gettin’ It’s gettin’…

• Martial Arts Charity Drive 2009

  Chris

  20 Dec 2009 | 5:30 pm

  Our recent and spirited discussion of “McDojos” and mob justice was recently picked up at another forum. Apparently, the forum administrator is upset that I turned off comments on the original post, because he didn’t get an opportunity to express his dissenting viewpoint. In the interests of fairness and education, I will summarize his rebuttal here. Point: McDojos exist only because customers want them. These customers are not always honest about their motivations, especially during a hostile interrogation. Counterpoint: No comment. Point: When given a choice between…

• Another Boring Example of Nonviolent Self-Defense

  Chris

  20 Dec 2009 | 4:59 am

  Yes, I was practicing martial arts in public, but I wasn’t looking for trouble. I wasn’t looking for attention, just wanted to enjoy a beautiful fall afternoon at the park. I was only twenty minutes into an outdoor routine (that is, an indoor routine stripped of any provocative elements) when I heard a group of teenage boys approaching behind me. I continued to mind my own business, but they were not content with theirs. Did they taunt me with the standard Bruce Lee kung fu yelps? Well, of course they did; and I ignored it, just as I have ignored it three dozen times before. But…

• This is Krav Maga, Not Self-Defense

  Chris

  11 Dec 2009 | 8:02 pm

  Two perspectives inspired by John Zimmer’s post on Kung Fu and self-defense… One Adira walked down the street, wearing a comfortable summer ensemble: tank-top, shorts, and flip-flops. Twenty yards ahead, she spotted two idle and suspicious men sitting quietly. To a Krav Maga expert of her status, they were no concern. She casually walked past them. Suddenly, the nearest man lunged forward. Adira’s training immediately kicked in; she silently asked herself, How should I disable this attacker? In an instant, she had already struck him in the chin, kneed him in the stomach and…

• 2009 Review: The Best Kung Fu Movies

  Chris

  6 Dec 2009 | 2:54 am

  Raging Phoenix [Yesasia] [IMDB] I would love to cite Raging Phoenix as the first awesome martial arts film with a female lead. I would love to do that. But its choreographers and writers conspire against me. Raging Phoenix is the story of a young female rocker (played by Jeeja Yanin) who gets caught up in a ruthless kidnapping ring. Women are abducted off the streets of Thailand, drugged, and taken to a secret laboratory hidden within a Temple of Doom, which is in turn hidden within a metropolitan sewage system. Naturally, the women’s tears are harvested there, to concoct a patent…

• 
  Avocationist

• Follow your spark, not that hollow feeling in your chest

  Avocationist

  4 Feb 2010 | 1:49 pm

  Photos: (c) Allan Bacon (left) and by fazen (right) For most of my career, I was busy with work and the little remaining time was dedicated to my family. While this arrangement made me feel like I was taking care of everything, over time it left me feeling hollow. Somehow I knew that the empty feeling was from not doing the things in life I was born to do. When the pace would slow down a bit I would think up big plans for how I could fix my work or my life to fill that gap. But none of these dreams were practical – and deep down I didn’t believe that they would really fix things anyway.

• Why you should give yourself a demotion this year: The art of strategic downshifting

  Avocationist

  26 Jan 2010 | 11:06 am

  Photo by Roby Ferrari Have you completed employee reviews in the last month? Did it feel like a good use of your time? Did you feel like you were really building value in your company or did you feel like you were checking off a box on someone else’s cover-my-butt list? Be honest. When your Outlook calendar is completely colored in and you don’t know what half of the meetings are, you should probably start to think about giving yourself a demotion. I’ve been inspired reading Seth Godin’s new book “Linchpin” which launches today. (Buy it here. I love the book because you can dive…

• Guilt-free networking: How Allan dropped his elevator pitch and started meeting cool people

  Avocationist

  14 Dec 2009 | 12:03 pm

  Photo by TheGiantVermin 7:06 pm at the Hilton. Running late from work. Pay my $15. Put on nametag. Gulp. Walk into a ballroom of strangers standing around chatting. Everyone knows someone but me. Crap. Maybe I’ll just stand in the corner… Have you ever experienced the "yuck" factor of networking? Do you feel like you have to pretend to be someone different to make new contacts? Do you feel guilty about bothering people you'd like to meet? I did too. Then I learned that networking was something I already knew how to do. I just had to forget everything I'd read about the "right way" to…

• The Lunch Break Dream Launch: How to pursue any passion in 25 minutes or less

  Avocationist

  14 Oct 2009 | 2:33 pm

  Photo by renedepaula Do you have too many interests and not enough time? Here's a quick way to try out your secret dreams, create some new ideas and sow the seeds of your next adventure - all without leaving your desk. Today I used it to feed my "travel jones" during lunch: I went to Brazil. Here's my Lunch Break Dream Launch process: 1. Choose the first interest that pops into your head Start the process with any dream you have - world travel, music, woodworking. Think quickly and capture the first things that come to mind. Then write down what your dream is - it's fine to be vague,…

• How Best-Selling Author Pam Slim Started Her Blog to Balance Her Life and Dreams

  Avocationist

  25 Jun 2009 | 8:34 am

  Pam Slim has just published Escape from Cubicle Nation based on her hugely popular blog of the same name. Pam’s work focuses on helping corporate employees start their own businesses. [Side note: I highly recommend this book if you are considering making the move] In the first excerpt from our interview, Pam explains how she started the blog and gives insights into how she has successfully balanced the practical parts of her life with her passion for helping budding entrepreneurs.

• 
  The Blog of Author Tim Ferriss

• Random Episode 8 – 2010 Resolutions with Kevin Rose and Tim Ferriss

  Tim Ferriss

  17 Jan 2010 | 10:52 am

  This new, long overdue Random episode covers our personal resolutions–personal, business, physical, and otherwise–as well as favorite recent gifts (both given and received). The video is recorded on two cameras, including Glenn’s new experimental HD delight. Topics include: - Chocolate - Powerlifting - Filtering false friends - Funny hats - The art of the decline … and naked ladies. Best to give the video 10-20 minutes to buffer before watching. It’s a big ‘un. Please let us know in the comments what you’d like our next show topic to be! If you missed…

• The First Time Online – Enjoy While You Can

  Tim Ferriss

  8 Jan 2010 | 2:00 am

  Most of you have never seen this. I really hope you enjoy it. To download, just sign into Vimeo and you’re set. If you Final Cut it up, please set to a Crystal Method or Sevendust soundtrack :) In other breaking news: I need only 120 more Amazon reviews to beat The Tipping Point by Malcolm Gladwell, a dream I’ve had since 2007! Not because I dislike him, but precisely the opposite — he’s one of my writing role models and I long viewed his book as untouchable. If you’ve read the 4HWW but haven’t left a short review on Amazon, please take 30 seconds and help…

• Thank You, Facebook Bankruptcy, and Late Christmas Presents

  Tim Ferriss

  6 Jan 2010 | 3:08 am

  (Photo: source) Thank you… Thank you… Thank you! The last two blog posts have moved me more than any others, and the new expanded 4-Hour Workweek has hit #4 on The New York Times bestseller list and #3 on the USA Today Money list! In a future post, I will explain exactly what I did in PR and marketing (including recordings and screenshots) to help it happen, but the reality is: you made it happen. You all rock. For buying the book? No. For making this community what it is. For helping one another and sharing your stories and lessons learned. For teaching me more than I can ever…

• Cold Remedy: 18 Real-World Lifestyle Design Case Studies (Now It’s Your Turn)

  Tim Ferriss

  31 Dec 2009 | 2:18 am

  If not in 2010, then when? (Photo: jphilipson) The video case studies that I asked for in the last post really caught me unprepared. I…am…so happy that it’s hard to put it into words. From Denmark to India, from college students to retirees, from yoga instructors to engineers, the stories poured in. Narrowing them down to finalists, even with several people, was excruciating, but below you will find 15 of our favorites. Many more are worth watching (I watched them all) and can be found here, or by searching “4hww success” on YouTube. There are also 150 comments…

• Cold Remedy: Free Flights Anywhere in the World

  Tim Ferriss

  22 Dec 2009 | 8:38 am

  Where would you go if you had a free ticket anywhere? The island of Bohol in the Philippines? (source: WisDoc) Not long ago, I received the following comment — edited for length — from Ryan N.: I hate you Tim. I had a secure future ahead of me, and I left my job, my reasonably well paying professional career all because of your book. Best thing I’ve ever done!! I was wondering if you might be able to put up a blog post where people could post their ideas or muses as case studies. I’m sure there are a lot of people like me who would like to share their stories and listen to…

• 
  Hire-Engineers

• Database Administrator / Engineer (Hybrid DBA / Software Engineer), Fort Worth, TX

  David Herrmann

  27 Jan 2010 | 7:58 am

  Database Administrator / Engineer (Hybrid DBA / Software Engineer), Fort Worth, TX The Database Administrator will be responsible for designing and maintaining databases for all of the company’s engineering data. The ideal candidate will have a strong software engineering background in addition to the IT focus. Seeking a DBA who has served as a software engineer on engineering applications (low or high level) written in C/C++. Strong Mathematical bent would be ideal. MATLAB would be a plus. Seeking a self-starter, highly motivated, and have a focus on quality. Excellent benefits, in a…

• Sr. Electrical Engineer, North Dallas suburb, Salary DOE, Full-time

  David Herrmann

  22 Jan 2010 | 12:09 pm

  Sr. Electrical Engineer, North Dallas suburb, Salary DOE, Full-time As the Senior Electrical Engineer at this global leader serving government and Fortune clients with much-needed technical services, you will analyze, design, engineer, test and document complex PCB assemblies used for high speed digital signal processing hardware. You will work with a cross-functional team engineering high performance architectures, platforms, and data transfers needed for complex RTOS and imaging systems. You will design and optimize digital circuits for DSP, Microcontrollers, FPGA and PLD systems requiring…

• Verification Systems Engineer (Scientific Software and Electronics), N Dallas suburb, salary 70-80k

  David Herrmann

  14 Jan 2010 | 8:47 am

  Verification Systems Engineer (Scientific Software and Electronics), N Dallas suburb, salary 70-80k target A global leader providing vitally-needed services to Fortune clients worldwide needs a Verification Systems Engineer to qualify and validate performance of complex systems, including instruments, sensors, algorithms and subsystems used in their services. In this role a successful employee will have experience in hardware or software development, technical documentation, and validation / verification test planning. Responsibilities include maintaining thorough and detailed notes of…

• Electrical Designer (Sustaining and PCB electronic support). Contract target to April – $25-30 /hr – N Dallas

  David Herrmann

  7 Jan 2010 | 1:43 pm

  Electrical Designer (Sustaining and PCB electronic support). Contract target to April – $25-30 /hr – North Dallas area Position Overview and Definition: The Electrical Designer will work with product developers, technical operations, procurement professionals and strategic suppliers to provide sustaining engineering and technical support for new product introductions. – Maintain controlled engineering documentation for electromechanical components – Identify, qualify and document substitute and alternate electronic components to ensure availability of material to…

• Product Marketing Manager (Enterprise/Security SW). N Dallas Area

  David Herrmann

  29 Dec 2009 | 11:50 am

  Product Marketing Manager (Enterprise/Security SW). N Dallas Area Base Pay: $90,000 – $110,000 /Year Join a growing, vibrant organization and leverage your Product and Channel Marketing skills into a fast paced role and visible role. This key employee will define the product strategy and roadmap while delivering PRDs and User Stories with prioritized features. Functional responsibilities include leading cross-functional teams to translate customer needs and technology directions into product definitions. Will design and establish overall product features based on customer feedback.

• 
  One Day, One Job

• Knewton

  Willy Franzen

  8 Feb 2010 | 7:45 am

  You thought that you were done with test prep, but now the economy is in a rough spot and the job market is kind of weak. You’re thinking about grad school, and that means doing the standardized test thing all over again. Luckily, things have changed since you took the SAT or ACT. The one size fits all approach of classroom instruction is out, and “adaptive learning” delivered through an online platform is in. Knewton is a New York City based startup that is one of the leading innovators in the test prep market. They seem to be mostly focused on the graduate school test prep…

• National Football Foundation

  Willy Franzen

  7 Feb 2010 | 8:22 am

  It’s Super Bowl Sunday, which means that it’s time to talk about jobs in football (we’ve featured NFL jobs in addition to a few other cool opportunities). Since it’s our practice to feature non-profits on the weekend, I started browsing around the NFL’s Join the Team site, which features all of the league’s charitable work. One of the things that I came across was the Play It Smart program, which partners “academic coaches with student-athletes in order to, ‘take a student-athlete’s passion for sports and intense dedication to their team and…

• Advertising Research Foundation

  Willy Franzen

  6 Feb 2010 | 8:43 am

  I’m always amazed with the diversity of the non-profits that I come across. Yes, there is a lot of redundancy in the non-profit world, but I swear that you can find an organization for every idea, interest group, and cause. Take Advertising Research Foundation for example. They are a New York City based organization that aims “to improve the practice of advertising, marketing and media research in pursuit of more effective marketing and advertising communications.” They bring together people from all areas of marketing to promote collaboration and the open exchange of ideas.

• DriveCam

  Willy Franzen

  5 Feb 2010 | 8:00 am

  It’s every teen’s worst nightmare. You finally reach that magical age where the state says that you’re ready to drive a car. Your parents reluctantly hand over the keys to the family station wagon. You get a lecture, but you’re going to escape. You’ll finally have the freedom that you’ve been waiting for all your life. But there’s a catch. Your parents have installed a camera in the car to assess your driving and mitigate risk. It’s from a San Diego based company called DriveCam. To you it’s a terrible idea. You hate being spied on. You…

• Academia.edu

  Willy Franzen

  4 Feb 2010 | 8:03 am

  I always thought that .edu domains were reserved for accredited colleges and universities. It seems as though those restriction may have loosened (or they may have never been as tight as I thought they were). Lately I’ve seen some dodgy online education sites built on .edu domain names, so when I came across Academia.edu, I assumed that’s what they were. A closer look showed me that they’re nothing of the sort; in fact, they’re not an academic institution at all. They’re actually a San Francisco based startup that is building an online portal to help people find…

• 
  Slim Pickins' Pork

• More Ragu (feeding the beast)

  3 Feb 2010 | 6:21 pm

  There can be no doubt now that my interest in ragu is quickly turning into an obsession. I've done beef, lamb, pork, and, for my latest version, duck:The recipe is from Salt to Taste, and as soon as I saw it, I knew I had to try it. Pretty standard approach: the meat (duck thighs) get browned, and then braised for a couple of hours with aromatics, stock, and a bit of tomato paste. I then shredded the meat, added it to more aromatics (soffrito, a version of mirepoix where the carrots, celery, and onions are diced finer and browned), and simmered it in the braising liquid and a bit of red wine.

• Italian Pate

  31 Jan 2010 | 4:35 pm

  Turns out the French don't have a corner on the pate market; the Italians are pretty good at the noble meatloaf as well. The current inspiration comes from one of the books I am currently working through, Cooking by Hand. Any book with a whole chapter devoted to the pig is alright in my book.The pate is referred to as Ciccioli (I'm glad this isn't a podcast, cause I'd murder that name). As the author notes, it is closer to rillettes; pork fat and meat (in this case, I used mostly jowl meat, with a bit of lean loin thrown in) is slowly rendered in its own fat, then coarsely chopped and pressed…

• Happiness is a full smoker

  25 Jan 2010 | 6:05 pm

  The Beatles famously contested that "Happiness is a Warm Gun," and while their body of work certainly is beyond reproach, I do offer this counterpoint:That is about 20 lbs. of pork foreleg getting its smoke on. Specifically, on the uppper right is a Boston Butt slowly transforming into good old pulled pork, and on the left, a picnic ham I decided to smoke French-style (I hit it with a heavy dose of Herbes de Provence).Oh, and I have a hard time taking the smoker out for a spin without making some baked beans. I use Alton Brown's recipe, with one minor exception. I substitue beer for vegetable…

• Mambo Italiano

  11 Jan 2010 | 11:10 am

  I've been away from my post (literally and figuratively) the past few weeks. And while I've enjoyed the cold weather of the frozen North, I'm ready to pick up right where I left off, specifically Cooking by Hand and all things Italian. Fate seems to have smiled on my Italian adventure, as I just received Salt to Taste, another great Italian book right in my wheelhouse (simple, rustic), as a birthday present. As many of Paul Bertolli's recipes are a bit involved, the addition of Salt to Taste will allow me to add some simpler recipes to the process.My first recipe back is a classic, beef…

• Pig Day

  17 Dec 2009 | 11:18 am

  With a new pig from Springhill Farms breathing (or in this case, not breathing) down my neck, I've got to make room. That means putting the final touches on the remaining hog from last year.As always, my bible is Charcuterie, with a bit of Cooking by Hand thrown in for good measure. On the agenda is tasso, boudin, tesa (Italian bacon similar to pancetta), bacon, lard, and andouille sausage.When that much hog is about to be processed, preparation is everything. I'm fanatical about my mise en place, so everything was set up the night before:I begin first by slicing up some pork shoulder,…

• 
  MeatHenge

• For Zoomie's Contest - Martian Food

  Dr. Biggles

  8 Feb 2010 | 6:57 pm

  I dug deep for this one, looked, looked and then searched. I came up with nothing, then searched again. I came home and found it! It might not come off so quickly as Martian Food, but at third glance seemed to have a lot to do with Penises and Turds. Ick. Here is my submission, however so late as it might be, Penises and Turds. I'd send you a direct link to the post, but this is the best I can do for Zoomie of Zoomie's Station's Martian Food Contest posted on Feburary 2nd. xo, Biggles

• Martian Food Photo Contest !!!

  Dr. Biggles

  4 Feb 2010 | 4:10 pm

  2 days ago (the clock is ticking!) Zoomie of Zoomie's Station announced a contest. If you go take a look, she cooked something, snapped a shot and it looked absolutely unrecognizable. It looks horrific even! If you take pictures of your food, you've most certainly come across at least a handful of shots like this. Sometimes, it's after you've posted it or handed it to friends and received some really odd, quizzical looks. She's offering up a photo contest of your own and the best out of millions will receive a prize! Go see, it was posted February 2nd, just follow the link above. And most of…

• Meathenge's Mish Mash Eyeball Chicken - a crock-pot recipe

  Dr. Biggles

  31 Jan 2010 | 9:11 am

  I wasn't quite sure if I was going to post this or not, but since the images came out and I did a few things differently this time I thought I would offer it up. I've been wanting to do a whole chicken in the crock-pot since I did the pork, yesterday was the day. I called it Eyeball Chicken because I opened the fridge and looked for, then grabbed stuff. No measuring, used my eyeball for portion control. I did use a lot of the ingredients and portions from my Crock-pot pork shoulder taco heaven - Or, I did it, I did it, I did it !!! As previously stated, ya can't just dump stuff in to the pot…

• Crock-pot pork shoulder taco heaven - Or, I did it, I did it, I did it !!!

  Dr. Biggles

  26 Jan 2010 | 2:56 pm

  Here's the post I was talking about yesterday, did this a week ago or more. Been looking for a simple crock-pot recipe/method, something that didn't require too much effort. I have learned though, that one really should take the extra few minutes to brown this and/or that, reduce a juice, do a little more than just dump, cook and pray. I did it. I'm still in the experimentation stage, so headed out to find some stunt meat. Something inexpensive and easy to deal with, a pork butt. My local grocery had some mystery butt in a clingy net, perfect. For all the reasons stated above, and because it…

• Mold Patrol !!! Mold Patrol !!!

  Dr. Biggles

  25 Jan 2010 | 3:11 pm

  Where has Biggles been in over a week? I thought I already mentioned that, Mold Patrol! Downspouts? I'm doing it wrong. That combined with heavy rains, a clogged fan in the bathroom and 55 gallons of fish water in the dining area, spells moisture. Then? It's mold. And I ain't talking about a little bit, I'm talking gut the room and clean everything with bleach. What sucks most is the fact I did this a month ago. Why haven't I put in a French Drain system? It's $3200.00 dollars. Oh Biggles, it's just a hole lined with junk, just dig it yourself! No. Have you ever seen an episode of The…

• 
  One Day One Internship

• Knewton

  Willy Franzen

  8 Feb 2010 | 7:54 am

  You thought that you were done with test prep, but now the economy is in a rough spot and the job market is kind of weak. You’re hoping that things will bounce back before you graduate, but in the back of your mind you’re thinking about grad school. And that means doing the standardized test thing all over again. Luckily, things have changed since you took the SAT or ACT. The one size fits all approach of classroom instruction is out, and “adaptive learning” delivered through an online platform is in. Knewton is a New York City based startup that is one of the leading…

• National Football Foundation

  Willy Franzen

  7 Feb 2010 | 8:52 am

  It’s Super Bowl Sunday, which means that it’s time to talk about internships in football (we’ve featured NFL internship in addition to a few other cool opportunities). Since it’s our practice to feature non-profits on the weekend, I started browsing around the NFL’s Join the Team site, which features all of the league’s charitable work. One of the things that I came across was the Play It Smart program, which partners “academic coaches with student-athletes in order to, ‘take a student-athlete’s passion for sports and intense dedication to…

• Advertising Research Foundation

  Willy Franzen

  6 Feb 2010 | 8:52 am

  I’m always amazed with the diversity of the non-profits that I come across. Yes, there is a lot of redundancy in the non-profit world, but I swear that you can find an organization for every idea, interest group, and cause. Take Advertising Research Foundation for example. They are a New York City based organization that aims “to improve the practice of advertising, marketing and media research in pursuit of more effective marketing and advertising communications.” They bring together people from all areas of marketing to promote collaboration and the open exchange of ideas.

• DriveCam

  Willy Franzen

  5 Feb 2010 | 8:03 am

  It’s every teen’s worst nightmare. You finally reach that magical age where the state says that you’re ready to drive a car. Your parents reluctantly hand over the keys to the family station wagon. You get a lecture, but you’re going to escape. You’ll finally have the freedom that you’ve been waiting for all your life. But there’s a catch. Your parents have installed a camera in the car to assess your driving and mitigate risk. It’s from a San Diego based company called DriveCam. To you it’s a terrible idea. You hate being spied on. You…

• Academia.edu

  Willy Franzen

  4 Feb 2010 | 8:06 am

  I always thought that .edu domains were reserved for accredited colleges and universities. It seems as though those restriction may have loosened (or they may have never been as tight as I thought they were). Lately I’ve seen some dodgy online education sites built on .edu domain names, so when I came across Academia.edu, I assumed that’s what they were. A closer look showed me that they’re nothing of the sort; in fact, they’re not an academic institution at all. They’re actually a San Francisco based startup that is building an online portal to help people find…

• 
  Cube Rules

• How to deal with workplace conflict

  info@cuberules.com (Scot Herrick)

  9 Feb 2010 | 1:00 am

  Je t’accuse by davidsidlinger Whenever teams are formed, they go through stages of effectiveness — including storming. Conflict brews, disagreements are aired and it honestly looks like the whole team will fall apart. It could, too, if conflicts are not resolved in a way that builds the team instead of tearing it down. When I’m talking conflict here, it is about conflict in a team about a direction or a decision that needs making about the work they do. In this type of situation, conflict is good. Conflict builds a better decision than if the disagreements were never aired.

• Interview Question: What did you like least about your last job?

  info@cuberules.com (Scot Herrick)

  8 Feb 2010 | 1:00 am

  Eye of I (12/365) by Cycrolu Oh, the interview questions hiring managers will throw at us when we are must vulnerable during the interview. Things are moving along nicely, then comes this zinger: “Tell me what you least liked about your last job?” The question begs you to bare your soul about all that was horrible about your last job, last manager, and last team. Because the question begs you to bare your soul about your last job (or your current one), too often people do just that. Fail. This interview question is about your motivation to do the work Tough times happen in every…

• Sharing Sunday, February 7, 2010

  info@cuberules.com (Scot Herrick)

  7 Feb 2010 | 1:00 am

  Acid & juicy by multisanti Ah….Super Bowl weekend — but the reading is still good on Cube Rules! Here’s some of the best of the week: The e-snub It’s the e-mail snub that gets under the skin after the interviews, isn’t it? You go through hoops, get the face-to-face interview, turn in the right forms after the interview and then…nothing. Zilch. No responses to your e-mails. Or phone calls. Well, there’s a way to fix that. And hilarity ensues. Check the E-Snub. How to kill your limiting beliefs In the self-development arena, the beliefs we have…

• Serindipity Saturday, February 6, 2010

  info@cuberules.com (Scot Herrick)

  6 Feb 2010 | 1:00 am

  Remember this commercial introducing the Macintosh during the Super Bowl in 1984? A classic to remember. ©  Cube Rules, LLC, 2006 to now. This Feed is for personal non-commercial use only. If you are not reading this in your news aggregator, Facebook or on your mobile phone, the site you are looking at is guilty of copyright infringement.

• To get hired, your job skills are not enough

  info@cuberules.com (Scot Herrick)

  5 Feb 2010 | 1:00 am

  Jump for joy! by chiarashine You have killer job skills, had a fabulous interview with the hiring manager and really showed your job skill stuff. NAILED IT! Then, a week later, you find that you didn’t get the job. Instead, someone with 75% of the job skills and experience you have gets the job. “Wow,” you think. “What happened?” What happened is you forgot that job skills are not the only thing that gets you the job. Your job skills only get you in the door. Once you get to the point of having an interview with the hiring manager, your job skills — because…

• 
  Epic Living

• What's Entrepreneurism Got To Do With It?

  Epic Living

  9 Feb 2010 | 5:18 am

  The answer to my post title question is; legacy.  I've found (and am finding) that God is using this thing called entrepreneurism as a tool to help shape my legacy.  And legacy is important.  For me, for my wife, for my kids, for my followers, for those I haven't met yet, and the movie that is called "my life." In our world today we dig tangible return.  For example, if I invest $10,000 in the stock market, I want a return of 8%.  That's great, but who remembers the return and how long does the euphoria last once you get it?  Never lasted long for me...more like sand in my hands. …

• One Question For Your CEO

  Epic Living

  28 Jan 2010 | 7:45 pm

  If your could only ask your CEO one question, it should be the following: "What are you doing to improve your skills and your character?" If the answer only covers the former, then "danger, Will Robinson."    More than likely he or she is running your organization into the ground.  It may not happen immediately, but it's happening like atrophy. 

• 19 Jan 2010 | 7:40 pm

  Epic Living

  19 Jan 2010 | 7:40 pm

  A great exercise (The Alphabet Plank) courtesy of my friends at Runner's World.

• The Roots Of Greatness

  Epic Living

  8 Jan 2010 | 10:58 am

  How well do you execute on the following: Returning the client's call-same day. Slowing down to admire a fresh snowfall or beautiful sunrise. Seeing people as a source of connection. Trusting those who work for and with you (this is a big one for those "in-charge".) Involving yourself in something bigger than yourself. The answers to the above will reveal two things: Your true values (the type you would deny or hide) Opportunities for growth I don't recommend seeking greatness if your motives are suspect.  But if you are aligned with motivations around changing the world, it can be a good…

• Finding the Authentic Swing

  Epic Living

  6 Jan 2010 | 5:27 pm

  This film clip is one of the most inspiring scenes I've ever watched...art truly imitating life.  Have you found your authentic swing?  Don't wait until tomorrow to find it. Spread the word...

• 
  The Change Blog

• You Can’t Force Other People to Change – But You Can Help Them

  Ali Hale

  9 Feb 2010 | 4:30 am

  Photo by Amir K. By Ali Hale Do you have a teen who just won’t get off his backside and do anything? Is your brother deeply in debt? Have you got a friend whose romantic life is a series of disasters which she never seems to learn from? Are your parents severely overweight? Is your partner a smoker? The chances are, there’s someone in your life who you believe is in need of change … but they’re not making any progress. If you’ve devoted yourself to change, perhaps making great strides in your personal and professional life, then it can be frustrating to see others – friends…

• Want To Change Your Life? Travel. Or Don’t.

  Nathalie Lussier

  4 Feb 2010 | 6:13 am

  Photo by Andy C By Nathalie Lussier We often hear of people traveling across the world and experiencing profound life changing epiphanies. Well I’m here to tell you that’s not how it happens. Sure traveling around the world will change your life, but not exactly in the way you expect it to. At this time last year my boyfriend Robin and I were just two travelers visiting East Asian countries like China, Korea, and Singapore. We considered ourselves to be independent, non-confirmist souls. We had all these notions of inner change taking place. Or at least I did. Nathalie at the…

• How to Build the Confidence Habit

  Mark Harrison

  25 Jan 2010 | 5:00 am

  Photo by Andy C By Mark Harrison “If you hear a voice within you say “you cannot paint,” then by all means paint, and that voice will be silenced.”  ~ Vincent Van Gogh We are all beset with doubts sometimes. Even the most self-assured and successful people can be unsure of themselves. Some people are clearly more confident than others, though. To what extent this is ‘nature’ and ‘nurture’ is unclear, though I suspect that ‘nurture’ has a lot to do with it. I’ve seen my own confidence wax and wane over the years, and external factors have certainly played…

• Reactionary or Revolutionary: What’s Your Attitude to Change – And Is It Holding You Back?

  Ali Hale

  21 Jan 2010 | 4:00 am

  Photo by h.koppdelaney By Ali Hale Broadly speaking, there are two political outlooks on change. Reactionaries see change as a bad thing, something to be treated with caution. Revolutionaries celebrate and embrace change. Take, for instance, attitudes towards the rapid changes in society due to technology. A reactionary would voice concerns about children playing video games, about the short attention spans caused by the internet, and about security and privacy risks. A revolutionary would talk about the new possibilities created – new ways of working, new art forms, and new connections…

• Signs of Aging

  CA Mobley

  18 Jan 2010 | 5:35 am

  Photo by jonrawlinson By CA Mobley My recent birthday gave me ample opportunity to reflect, as I always do, on my life thus far and what the forthcoming year means to me. As a woman I’ve become very aware of how our society puts an extreme amount of emphasis on aging as a marketing tool for beauty products (most of which are completely unnecessary and useless- but they smell good and look pretty!) I find it fascinating how aggressive the marketing is aimed at being anything other than your age. Specifically if you’re a woman over 40- that is the target demo. Those are the ones to…

• 
  Alexandra Levit's Water Cooler Wisdom

• Practice Good Karma at Work

  Alexandra Levit

  8 Feb 2010 | 5:00 am

  According to the Buddhist tradition, karma is the total effect of a person's actions during successive phases of existence.  It assumes that your conduct in this lifetime will influence events and relationships in future lifetimes.  Whether or not you believe in reincarnation, practicing good karma at work can only help you, for most people see the consequences of their behavior play out in this life.  How do you do it?  The main strategy is to consciously manage your work relationships, which are similar to family relationships in that while we don’t necessarily…

• 6 Ways Working Parents Can Spend More Time Parenting

  Alexandra Levit

  4 Feb 2010 | 5:00 am

  Here are some tips I recently shared on Lifehacker and ABC News:Choose webinars over in person training: Webinar technology allows for one-way communication from an individual speaker to an audience, and it can include polling and electronic Q&A. You can now avoid two days trekking through airports on both ends of a conference, which is a major win if you're a working parent.  Services like Cisco’s WebEx don't require any special software or hardware. All you have to do is launch your Web browser from your home office and you can attend or deliver real-time training,…

• How I Stay Happy

  Alexandra Levit

  1 Feb 2010 | 5:00 am

  In the last year, I’ve had the opportunity to get to know Gretchen Rubin, the writer of the Happiness Project blog and the bestselling book The Happiness Project, a little better.  Gretchen was kind enough to feature an interview with me on happiness, a topic I really enjoy but haven’t had the chance to discuss much on Water Cooler Wisdom.  I thought you might be interested in some of my thoughts. Gretchen: What’s a simple activity that consistently makes you happier? Alexandra: Going out to a good restaurant or a beautiful natural spot with friends. Even if I’m…

• Turn a Temp Job into a Permanent One

  Alexandra Levit

  28 Jan 2010 | 5:00 am

  My friend and colleague Anita Bruzzese wrote a great piece for her Gannett News Service column and her blog, 45 Things.  She was kind enough to feature my thoughts on turning a temp job into a permanent one, as well as terrific advice from Martha Finney, president of Engagement Journeys.  Here’s what Anita had to say: “Employers, still nervous about the health of the economy, have kept their permanent staff numbers lean, but have boosted their number of temporary workers. So, the question is: if you’re a temporary employee, how to you get an employer to hire you on a…

• Lessons Learned from New Job, New You

  Alexandra Levit

  25 Jan 2010 | 5:00 am

  Sometimes success hits you when you least expect it:  I worked on promotional tactics like the New Job, New You webinar and website for a good chunk of the last four months.  And while these did reasonably well, none of them compared to the incredible response I received from the Chicago launch event at Rockit Wrigley Bar & Grill on January 12th.  The event was planned more or less at the last minute, but nevertheless we had 250 people register and a waiting list of 50.  More than 80% of registrants attended, and I received a flood of e-mails the next day telling…

• 
  MN Headhunter/Nerd Search

• Four Reasons You Might Be Bummed If You Aren’t Working And What To Do About It

  MN Headhunter

  4 Feb 2010 | 3:55 pm

  The following post is courtesy of the Recruiting Blogswap From: Dorothy Tannahill-Moran What do the following people have in common? •    Retired engineer •    Laid off project manager •    Stay at home parent •    Newly graduated student •    Trailing spouse to a military soldier •    Injured and recovered worker •    Out of work actor These people have much more in common than you probably realize.  The commonality is what they are missing.  All of these people…

• Who Do We Hire For the Future of HVAC?

  MN Headhunter

  1 Feb 2010 | 6:11 pm

  The following post is courtesy of the Recruiting Blogswap From: Matthew Warzel, MJW Careers The growing trend of Baby-Boomers retiring from the HVACR industry has forced many companies to scramble to find candidates to replace those seasoned service technicians and journeymen mechanics. Without a doubt, the best way to find potential employees is through referral networks. Managers and HVACR contractors must always be on the lookout for new talent, even if they are not actively hiring. Companies that are not fishing for new talent as actively as they should will certainly feel the…

• Jobs from the Fortune 500 Vol 11

  MN Headhunter

  29 Jan 2010 | 12:58 pm

  The following post is courtesy of the Recruiting Blogswap From: CareerAlley “Go for a business that any idiot can run - because sooner or later, any idiot probably is going to run it.” - Peter Lynch Excellent quote, and I'm sure we've all known an idiot or two. I'd like to think that any company that makes it to the Fortune 500 is run by an intelligent person, but I'm also sure that this group of companies has seen its fair share of idiots as well. That being said, the Fortune 500 is a rich field for job search (no pun intended) and these companies are generally the best placed for bad…

• Email From A 13 Year Old

  MN Headhunter

  29 Jan 2010 | 7:49 am

  Yesterday I received an email from a 13 year old boy young man that stopped me in my tracks. He is the son of a job seeker who listened to my series of presentations “Be Your Own Headhunter” about job search, LinkedIn and Social Media. His father took my advice about doing a job search, how to network both online and in person and in a small way I was able to make an introduction through a friend of a friend on LinkedIn and that is how he got the offer and his job at the new firm. What I did not know how to do was reply to this young man. I have been doing these types of presentations for…

• Minnesota Start Up Culture Roundtable

  MN Headhunter

  27 Jan 2010 | 1:53 pm

  The Minnesota Tech Start Up conversation continues on and thanks to Thomas Knoll (@thomasknoll) we will take it from online (Tweets, podcasts, email and blog posts) to the in person. Thomas started the conversation Startup culture roundtable before I posted Minnesota Startup Community: The Time Has Come For Less Talk and More Walk on Minnov8. Some of what Thomas wanted to talk about has been aired in one form or another so now we are going to talk about action steps. Thomas is getting a group of interested folks together February 5th from 8 – 10 AM for the (click this link) MN Startup…

• 
  FreelanceFolder

• 5 Bad Work at Home Habits: Are You Guilty?

  Lexirodrigo

  9 Feb 2010 | 4:30 am

  Isn’t working at home great? That’s why so many of us are either already doing it, or dreaming about doing it. We know it’s just the thing for creative types who don’t like structure and hierarchy. Working at home has its perks. However, working at home also brings many temptations that can sabotage our productivity, creativity, sanity, happiness and even our health. Below are what I consider to be the five most common pitfalls of working at home, why they’re bad for us, and how we can avoid or overcome them. 1. Working in Your Pajamas or Underwear You have to…

• 10 Free Project Management Applications

  Laura Spencer

  8 Feb 2010 | 4:30 am

  How do you make sure that you get all of your work done on time? As freelancers, we wear many different hats. In addition to performing our freelancing specialty for the client, we’re also the sales staff, the manager, the support team, and the accountant all rolled into one person. For many freelancers the project planning tasks that go along with freelancing may seem kind of overwhelming (especially if they’ve never done any project planning). Other freelancers may find that they need to provide the same kind of project plans to their clients that would have been required of…

• How to Make Your Portfolio Better Than the Competition’s Portfolio

  Amber Weinberg

  7 Feb 2010 | 4:30 am

  Competition is fierce in the world of freelancing. In the clients’ eyes, one of the few factors that differentiates you from the competition is the quality of your portfolio. While much of what makes up a portfolio is both subjective and based on personal preferences, there are still several surefire ways to distinguish yourself in the sea of freelancers. Let’s takes a look at some ways you can make your portfolio better than your competition’s portfolio. A Great Design Sounds obvious, but you’d be surprised at how many terrible freelance portfolios are on the web.

• Staying Sane While Freelancing With a Loved One

  Tim Wasson

  5 Feb 2010 | 4:30 am

  Two years ago, I was the full-time web guy at a conservative insurance company. My wife could see my frustrations there and encouraged me to quit and pursue a freelance career. She suggested that we could use her income as our base if things got really tight, financially. I’ve never been happier. However, during the last two years, I’ve seen her deal with the same frustrations in her current work situation that I experienced two years ago. I realized our situations were reversed, and since she rescued me from my previous work situation and offered me a better career and better…

• Mastering the Art of Client Relations

  Laura Spencer

  4 Feb 2010 | 4:30 am

  How comfortable are you with your clients? Do you feel like you understand what they need and want? Would you rate your communication with your clients as being excellent? Do you think they would come to you for ideas? Are you the first freelancer that your clients turn to when they need something done? If you’re like most freelancers, you probably don’t know your clients very well. You do your best to make your clients happy and provide quality work, but your communication is limited to when there is work being done. Many articles have been written about client relations, but not…

• 
  Keppie Careers by Miriam Salpeter

• What to tell your job references

  Miriam Salpeter

  5 Feb 2010 | 1:05 pm

  My colleague, August Cohen (@resume_writer on Twitter) tweeted about preparing your references to talk about you should a prospective employer call. This is an often overlooked topic. Job seekers are so busy trying to get interviews, often thinking ahead to the next step (references) is an afterthought. Some things to think about… Do you know what your references are saying about you? Many job seekers overlook this important part of the job hunt.  Especially if you have often reached the final stages without landing the job, touching base with those who may hold the keys to your next…

• Finding the silver lining in job search – Altruistic Tuesdays!

  Miriam Salpeter

  2 Feb 2010 | 10:53 am

  If you look hard enough, you can find a silver lining in this economy for job seekers. Many people have been trudging along in careers that didn’t suit them, but leaving seemed impossible and risky. Taking advantage of a layoff and turning a difficult situation into an opportunity is not always easy, and it may not be the first thing that comes to mind when making plans for the future. Let’s face it, if you have always done a certain type of work, it is easy to think that your “next” thing needs to be that same thing. If your field does not seem to have much of a…

• How to apply for jobs that are a reach

  Miriam Salpeter

  31 Jan 2010 | 9:17 pm

  Key advice for job seekers – apply for jobs you are clearly qualified to do! However, it’s also clear that there will be times when you need to apply for jobs that may be a bit of a reach. I don’t think that this is contradictory advice. The important thing is to demonstrate that you are qualified to do what it is you want to do. Don’t assume that anyone reading your resume is going to give you “credit” for anything that you don’t clearly show that you can do. Here are some things to think about… Job ads are “best case scenarios,” sometimes…

• How to apply for jobs

  Miriam Salpeter

  27 Jan 2010 | 9:08 pm

  Have you been applying for jobs and have not been hearing back? I recently read something about the percentage of employers who are not replying back to job applicants…If anyone is familiar with a post along these lines, please share it, as I cannot put my hands on it now. Suffice to say that many, many job seekers never hear a word in reply to their applications. The question is – can you apply for jobs in such a way that you don’t wind up in this predicament? Of course, there is no perfect approach, but I want to suggest something to consider – ONLY APPLY FOR JOBS…

• Job searching tips from the trenches – how to get the job you want

  Miriam Salpeter

  26 Jan 2010 | 3:45 am

  Today, I am happy to share a guest post by Teresa Basich, who has just joined Radian6 as the company’s Content Marketing Manager. Teresa writes a terrific blog, Writing On Purpose and is on Twitter @transitionaltee. Job searching. It’s daunting these days, isn’t it? With talk of mile-high unemployment rates and the scarcity of jobs lurking around every media corner, it can be easy to become overwhelmed at the thought of having to look for your next big break. When I began my job search in January of 2009, I was up against more than just a bad economy and scary news stories; I was…

• 
  So You Want To Be a Banquet Manager...

• My Waiter Poured Liquid Eggs in Her Coffee!

  Banquet Manager

  8 Feb 2010 | 5:00 am

  Do you f'in believe it?  My dumb-ass waiter put liquid eggs in a customer's coffee cup instead of half and half. How stupid could she be? Here's the story... We had a wedding for 213 people on Saturday and all was going well.  The band stopped playing when I asked to, the kitchen did their job and gave us plenty of food for the cocktail hour (another miracle) and my staff was on their game.  I did my usual routine; bride and groom intros, first dances, parents dances, cake cutting ceremony, with no issues. Just as the waiters started to pour the coffee, I noticed one of my…

• 15 Interesting Food Facts - Part 3

  Banquet Manager

  5 Feb 2010 | 5:00 am

  1. Large doses of coffee can be lethal. Ten grams, or 100 cups over 4 hours, can kill the average human. 2. Laws forbidding the sale of sodas on Sunday prompted William Garwood to invent the ice cream sundae in Evanston, IL, in 1875. 3. Mayonnaise is said to be the invention of the French chef of the Duke de Richelieu in 1756. While the Duke was defeating the British at Port Mahon, his chef was creating a victory feast that included a sauce made of cream and eggs. When the chef realized that there was no cream in the kitchen, he improvised, substituting olive oil for the cream. A new culinary…

• A Glass of Wine...

  Banquet Manager

  3 Feb 2010 | 3:00 am

  To my friends who enjoy a glass of wine... And those who don't and are always seen with a bottle of water in their hand. As Ben Franklin said:  In wine there is wisdom, In beer there is freedom, In water there is bacteria. In a number of carefully controlled trials, scientists have demonstrated that if we drink 1 litre of water each day, at the end of the year we would have absorbed more than 1 kilo of Escherichia coli, (E. Coli) - bacteria found in feces. In other words, we are consuming 1 kilo of poop. However, we do NOT run that risk when drinking wine & beer (or tequila, rum,…

• Pet Peeve #2 - Water on the Bathroom Sink

  Banquet Manager

  1 Feb 2010 | 5:00 am

  How many times have you gone into the bathroom at work, take care of your business, then walk over to the sink to wash your hands?  First off, I hope you ALL are washing your hands after taking care of your business... Then as you bend over to wash your hands and face, your suit jacket rests on top of the sink and is now sitting in all the dirty soapy water from the last SOB that used the sink.  I hate this shit! Why can't you MF's clean-up after yourselves?  If you spill water all over the sinktop, take a damm paper towel and dry it up for goodness sake.  Don't just leave…

• I've Got 88 Assistant Banquet Managers!

  Banquet Manager

  29 Jan 2010 | 4:00 am

  Would you believe it?  So far, 88 different people have signed-up to be a "follower" of this blog.  That's great.  But I'd rather call them my assistant banquet managers 'cause you are with me every step of the way.  Each week, you take part in the pre-shift meeting I have with all the other readers of this blog. I fill you in on what to expect for the next event, what happened on the last event and how we can do better, and finally you learn about all the crap you need to deal with in this business.  Together we can get thru the day.  For that I've very…

• 
  JibberJobber Blog

• Giveaway: 12 Boxes of Golden Grahams cereal

  Jason Alba

  8 Feb 2010 | 12:27 pm

  LinkedIn for Job Seekers for $49.95 $25. Check out all the specials here.Seriously (or is it, cerealously)…. 12 boxes of Golden Grahams cereal. Not a book, not a DVD.  Cereal You know how this is done (if you don’t, read about other Monday Giveaways here)… the question is: What was your funniest or most awkward job experience? Leave your answer in the blog comment, below!  Good luck! Dear FTC: this cereal giveaway is possible because of General Mills.  I’m not touching the boxes, they’ll ship it directly.  I’m just a blogger trying to have fun.  Go…

• My daughter cut her own bangs (related to your job loss)

  Jason Alba

  5 Feb 2010 | 8:09 am

  LinkedIn for Job Seekers (the DVD) for $49.95 $25. Check out all the specials here.My three year old daughter cut her own bangs this week. Actually, the appropriate word is not “cut,” it is “butchered.” Just like every other kid in the world, she found some alone time with a mirror and scissors, and she had just seen my wife trim her bangs.  So it was something she wanted to do. At first she was pretty proud of the job she did.  But as people started noticing and talking about it (with a snicker here and there) she started to realize that her haircut wasn’t…

• Question: If a job seeker has no money, what can he GIVE?

  Jason Alba

  4 Feb 2010 | 4:04 am

  When I figured “it” out (it = my job search), everything changed. The biggest change was in my happiness and excitement.  I was jazzed about life and my job search. Why? Because I had figured out what I could GIVE. I couldn’t give money, or lunches, or anything that would be out-of-pocket. Even $10, like what I blogged about yesterday, was out of the question.  How could I give $10 to someone when one of my kids needed food, or shoes, or ____ (there’s always something, right?)? But then I figured “it” out. I could give something to those who needed it…

• Ten Bucks for Keisha

  Jason Alba

  3 Feb 2010 | 4:21 am

  My buddy Daniel Johnson changes his status regularly, and this one caught my attention: Dan doesn’t know I’m writing this post right now. He just knows I contributed, that’s all. Dan is… how do I put this… the salt of the earth.  Dan is one of those really good, genuine people.  We’ve known each other virtually since 2006.  I have always had a lot of respect for what Dan does for job seekers (a lot). He’s one of the first bloggers I wanted to get to know, and I can say that having known him has enriched my life. You may have already given at the…

• Why Don’t Job Postings Have Salaries Listed?

  Jason Alba

  2 Feb 2010 | 4:35 am

  I HATED not being able to see the salary listed on jobs I was applying to. I HATED IT. I didn’t know if I was applying to something for $45k or $90k or $130k. I don’t know when companies stopped listing salaries but I think they should PUT THEM BACK IN. Kudos to Funding Universe who blogged about an opening for a Sr PHP Developer and listed the salary range at $55k – $75k DOE.  This is so helpful, it weeds some people out right away. (oops to a Funding Universe person who listed the salary at $60k – $80k DOE.  If I were interviewing I’d totally ask for the…

• 
  Talent Technologies

• New! One Day Supervisory Skills training now available

  admin

  2 Feb 2010 | 7:28 am

  Constant firefighting… a lack of accountability… Resources being squandered… Mediocre performers mistaking themselves for high performers… Managers ‘doing’ rather... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

• Breakthrough Time Management

  admin

  29 Jan 2010 | 3:51 am

  Talent Technologies helps individuals manage their time, workflow and projects with Productivity Factor, our management training programme for Thai and multinational companies. In this article we... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

• How Highlands helps you discover your talents… and work to your strengths

  admin

  26 Jan 2010 | 10:43 pm

  Talent Technologies offers the Highlands Ability Battery to individuals and companies in Thailand and South-East Asia. In this article we look at how the Highlands Ability Battery helps you discover... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

• Does the Customer Experience make a difference to your bottom line?

  admin

  24 Jan 2010 | 10:38 pm

  Ten years ago, a major US Hotel chain approached Tuck Business School with three questions: how many new restaurants should we open in our New York City hotels? How many should we reformat? And... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

• Working to your Strengths

  admin

  24 Jan 2010 | 10:35 pm

  If you’ve ever wondered why so many people are unable to play to their strengths in the world of work, this video gives an introduction to what strengths are and the barriers to living and ... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

• 
  Delightful Work

• You’re Brilliant!

  Tom Volkar

  27 Jan 2010 | 1:41 pm

  Copyright © 2010 Tom Volkar. Visit the original article at http://www.delightfulwork.com/business-startup/youre-brilliant/.You really are brilliant, you know.  Out of 6 billion of us on the planet there is no one like you. That’s not some cruel joke.  There is meaning to your being. Your uniqueness is your greatest blessing. Are you leveraging your uniqueness? Are you expressing your authentic individuality? If not what do you fear? I know you’ve experienced flashes of your own brilliance. I know you’ve felt authentic aliveness with the arrival of a bold new idea. How…

• Live Big or Die Small

  Tom Volkar

  18 Jan 2010 | 6:09 am

  Copyright © 2010 Tom Volkar. Visit the original article at http://www.delightfulwork.com/true-callings/live-big-or-die-small/.No matter who you are or what you do for a living there is an excellent chance that you’re playing too small. Perhaps you’ve experienced the brilliant flash of an idea but it seemed too unattainable so you’ve compromised, thinking that you can lessen the risk. But what if by backing a second place dream you’ve actually increased your risk? What if there isn’t enough true north aliveness within that compromise for you to eagerly…

• Did All Of These Things Really Happen at the Big Link Rally?

  Tom Volkar

  4 Jan 2010 | 7:20 am

  Copyright © 2010 Tom Volkar. Visit the original article at http://www.delightfulwork.com/true-callings/did-all-of-these-things-really-happen-at-the-big-link-rally/.Spontaneous Declarations of Calling Male to Female Chest Bumps Songs sung about unconditional acceptance and wealthy body cells Visit Big Link Rally to read these and another 37 authentic Big Link Rally occurrences.

• First Comes … The Courage To Listen

  Tom Volkar

  10 Dec 2009 | 8:57 am

  Copyright © 2010 Tom Volkar. Visit the original article at http://www.delightfulwork.com/true-callings/first-comes-%e2%80%a6-the-courage-to-listen/.What made you begin to listen to your still, small voice within?  Was it the pain of not doing so?  Most of us put off facing even the possibility of true calling for as long as we can stand it. I think on some level we are aware of the pain and suffering we’re causing ourselves but the alternative of trusting life and the fear of what a calling might demand of us is even greater; so we continue to endure the pain. I can tell you from…

• Wounds + Authentic Makeup = True Calling

  Tom Volkar

  28 Nov 2009 | 10:51 am

  Copyright © 2010 Tom Volkar. Visit the original article at http://www.delightfulwork.com/true-callings/wounds-authentic-makeup-true-calling/.Would you be the person you are today without the experience of surviving your major life wounds? I’ve been pondering the idea of a truly benevolent Universe. In such a Universe everything conspires for your highest good. Everything includes every annoyance and even your most heart-breaking disappointments.  Every challenge has been for your good and the highest good of everyone else involved. Normally when we say “it’s all…

• 
  Carve Consulting: Social Media, Corporate Social Networking, ePR, Social Recruiting, Reputation Management

• Top 5 most ‘engaging’ brands in the UK

  Sarah Thomas

  8 Feb 2010 | 3:43 am

  Three of the top five most engaging brands in the UK (as judged by research agency Hall & Partners) are brands that have defined how we interact on the internet and been at the frontier of the social media revolution so much so none of them actually exist outside the internet. The top five include Google [...]

• All the best 2010 Superbowl ads in one spot

  Sarah Thomas

  7 Feb 2010 | 3:46 pm

  Brilliant - for all you creative types out there, at least. Below you’ll find all the ads from the 44th NFL Superbowl (thanks to the clever people at Forbes.com), equally renowned  for the competition on-field as it is for the creative warfare on-screen. Last year the NFL final was broadcast to a US audience of [...]

• Econsultancy’s 20+ mindblowing social media stats plus 2 Oz ones

  Sarah Thomas

  1 Feb 2010 | 9:57 pm

  Econsultancy has put together a snapshot of some of the statistics floating around about social media usage and compared it to six months ago. Regardless of all the bookmarking tools there are around, I’m always losing track of figures like this when I need them so I thought I’d whack them on here and I’ll always [...]

• Hitler gets an iPad

  Adelaide

  28 Jan 2010 | 11:25 pm

  No Apple release in recent years has avoided this classic mash-up treatment, but Hitler gets an iPad has got to be the funniest yet in view of the mega-hype ( it was front page news on every serious UK newspaper yesterday. *Parental Warning* - there is some strong language.. Enjoy

• Social Media: Change and Trust Agents

  Paul Harrison

  23 Jan 2010 | 5:12 am

  Following up on the post on Charlene Li / , the The Havard Business Publishing interview with Groundswell co-author Josh Bernoff is also worth watching. The interview is below, are there are some  good takeaways for organisations who are trying to socialize their operations such as identifying and addressing one core objective with stakeholders -  and [...]

• 
  Rehaul by Lance Haun

• Now Up For Hire: Me

  Lance Haun

  8 Feb 2010 | 8:30 am

  This is an odd post to be writing. Again. Yes, about six months ago, I wrote about how I was available for work. And then a job found me. Now I am looking again. What gives? For starters, I love working for MeritBuilder. I would love to continue working for MeritBuilder full time. It is a really great fit. We have spent the last month pushing forward on exciting plans that are making MeritBuilder what I imagined it could be when I first joined in August. What has developed is a fee free but fully featured way of managing your employee incentive and rewards program. We developed it to the…

• Podcast: Multi-Generational Workforce

  Lance Haun

  3 Feb 2010 | 5:58 am

  A couple of weeks ago, my buddy Chris Ferdinandi over at Renegade HR and I talked about multi-generational workforces and what they mean to employers for his podcast (one of the few I actually listen to). Want to have a listen? Of course you do: Listen Here So what are always my main points about generations? There are differences between various generations. Sometimes these differences are blown out of proportion to their importance. Often these differences relate to career level rather than generations. Truly skilled managers rarely have issues dealing with a multi-generational workforce.

• Doing a Career Transition the Right Way

  Lance Haun

  2 Feb 2010 | 7:45 am

  We all know that the recession is making Americans think differently about where they are heading in their professional lives. Whether it be by choice or by the force of circumstances, many people are taking this approach. I know it has certainly pushed people I know to change (or postpone, or move up) their plans given the state of flux. Are you ready to prepare for your career change? Given the lack of resources for people going through this (especially updated resources since the job market has changed so drastically in the last few years), I was pleased when I heard that Alexandra Levit…

• Words Matter But Actions Matter Most

  Lance Haun

  1 Feb 2010 | 6:22 am

  When I went to visit Washington DC last week, I stopped by the National Archives to visit some of the US’s greatest political treasures. By far, the most compelling exhibit was the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution. Taking a look at these two documents side by side was a powerful moment in my life. The words (now barely visible) jumped out of the bulletproof cases and into my psyche. It got me thinking: Why are these words important to me? The words are obviously significant. There is quite a bit of hubris centered around what is and isn’t defined by the…

• Connecting In Person Still Critical In The Digital Age

  Lance Haun

  28 Jan 2010 | 9:36 am

  Yesterday, I attended #connectHR and it was, by all measures, a smashing success. Even for a guy who has pretty great luck working a room and talking to new people, I don’t think I got through the entire guest list of over 100 people in a little over two hours. What I continue to find is that as my digital network expands, getting to know people in a face to face environment becomes even more critical to connecting with a person rather than a user name or an avatar or a profile. I’ve always considered social networking a shortcut to get past the first few steps of networking. You…

• 
  HRM Today Featured Posts

• Seven Tips for Selecting Salary Surveys

  Catherine Dovey

  8 Feb 2010 | 4:00 pm

  Salary surveys are an essential tool for any organization.  Knowledge of the market makes it easier to make good pay decisions.  But there are always new and changing data sources.  How can we get the most out of this important resource without unnecessary spending?  Here are some tips for finding the best surveys for your organization. 1) You get what you pay for. HR is sometimes penny wise and pound foolish when selecting survey data.  For example, in a company with $10 million in revenues it would not be unusual to have $7 million going to salaries.  Yet we are reluctant to spend…

• Undercover Boss and Decision Making

  speakingofmbti

  8 Feb 2010 | 3:56 pm

  I’m hoping you were able to fight over your food coma after the Super Bowl long enough to catch CBS’s new show- Undercover Boss. If you did, I bet the show gave you goosebumps. It really affected me in a profound way. The premise of the show is a CEO goes undercover and works in the entry level jobs that are too often under appreciated in large companies. Larry O’Donnell, President and COO of Waste Management, was the first to take on the challenge of going undercover in his own organization. He picked up liter (and got fired), cleaned out port-a-potties, and ran a trash…

• Will HR Become More Effective?

  Karen Wills

  6 Feb 2010 | 3:49 pm

  HR has the unfortunate tendency to be inward focused; rather than collaboratively engaging cross functional colleagues in HR project design and implementation, they garner sources of information from other HR practitioners to inform their project process. Successful HR projects that drive business goals require the expertise, input and engagement of the rest of the organization. Therefore the CHRP should include a significant requirement to develop a high level of competency in cross functional collaboration, project management and systems thinking. Business acumen is all well and good but of…

• We Ask, You Win: Share Your Biggest 2010 Recruitment Challenge and How You Plan to Navigate It & and You May Win a Garmin!

  The Hiring Site

  5 Feb 2010 | 3:40 pm

  How are you navigating your biggest recruitment challenge this year? Share with us for the chance to win a Garmin GPS Navigator! (See what we did there?) With a new year comes new hope for improved economic conditions, but it also often comes with new challenges – as evidenced by CareerBuilder’s recent survey about the staffing challenges employers anticipate having this year.  Among the challenges mentioned are the ability to provide competitive compensation, maintain productivity levels, and retain top talent. (Any of this sound familiar?) In light of these results – and in an…

• Survey: How Customer-Focused Is Your Organization?

  HRM Today

  4 Feb 2010 | 1:51 pm

  i4cp research has not only shown that having a customer-focused workforce is the most important issue facing companies in 2010, but that high-performance organizations are more customer-focused than others. But what practices separate these firms from the rest? What workforce strategies are companies taking to make their employees more customer centric? To get answers to these and other questions, i4cp is conducting an important new study. The findings will be used by many of the largest and most respected companies in the world to identify next practices on the topic. As always, in exchange…

• 
  Punk Rock Human Resources

• Job Do-Overs

  Laurie

  9 Feb 2010 | 3:45 am

  I wish I could have a do-over of an experience in 2007. I worked for a VP of HR who was losing his job in a company-wide reorganization program. I had one foot out the door, too, and there was no love lost between the two of us. I spoke my mind. He spoke his. It was a sad level of dysfunction, and I never missed an opportunity to be a bitch for the sake of keeping myself entertained. When it was confirmed that the VP of HR was scheduled to leave, one of my colleagues asked me to take a professional portrait as a gift to the VP. My picture would be included as part of a larger departmental…

• Rejection

  Laurie

  8 Feb 2010 | 6:45 am

  Jess left a comment on my blog that I wanted to share with you. What I’m disgruntled about currently… is the long online application process of many organizations. I’ve spent upwards of 6+ hours for a good job submission… carefully constructing my cover letter, researching the company a bit, tailoring my resume to that position, crafting essays…. taking online personality tests, skills assessments, etc. Only to hear nothing. Or to receive a generic email two months later that the position was not created. I understand why the online submission process is lengthy… but after…

• Monday Morning HR Humor: New E*TRADE Baby Commercials

  Laurie

  8 Feb 2010 | 3:45 am

  Last year, I hailed the arrival of the E*Trade Baby commercials as the savior of the Super Bowl. This year? You tell me. Whaddya think? Do you like these new commercials or is E*TRADE trying too hard?

• Sunday Shout Out: Jennifer Hughes

  Laurie

  7 Feb 2010 | 3:45 am

  Happy Sunday! I want to recognize my friend, Jennifer Hughes, who works in the Public Affairs/Media department at SHRM. Jenny has been a supporter of Punk Rock HR since I first started writing this blog. (I hope that doesn’t get her fired.) She is so helpful when I need information and data from SHRM. Whenever I can’t figure something out, Jenny is there to lend a hand. Some people wonder why an anti-establishment blogger would remain an active member of a large HR association — and it’s because of women like Jenny. She makes that organization great. Jenny, you are…

• Guest Post: UNC Grad Seeks Non-Lameass Job

  Laurie

  6 Feb 2010 | 3:45 am

  Today’s post was sparked when I saw an ad from James Diagle on Facebook. I’d like to thank Laurie for the opportunity to guest post on Punk Rock HR. Laurie clicked on one of my Facebook ads that I use to drive traffic to my job search website, and was kind enough to let me share with you all how my job search has gone so far. I’m a December, 2009 graduate of UNC-Chapel Hill with a degree in Interpersonal and Organizational Communications, and I’ve been looking for a job for about two months. I started my search about a month before I graduated. Like a lot of people, I posted my…

• 
  Coworkers.com Blog

• Interesting iPhone Apps for Jobs & Career Development

  Coworkers.com

  3 Feb 2010 | 2:26 pm

  NOTE: All links will take you to the app directory website Appolicious, where you can read more about each app, and also download directly from iTunes if you wish.Audio Job Interview: The iPhone will audibly interview you and record your responses as if it were a prospective new employer. Choose from a library of common interview questions to build your own interview template.myinstantCOACH™ is an application that is a revolutionary first of its kind, providing you access to your own Certified Professional Coach – delivering support, guidance and insight to help you remove the barriers…

• Use your LinkedIn Account to instantly Sign up for Coworkers.com

  Coworkers.com

  29 Jan 2010 | 4:31 am

  We're excited to announce that new website visitors can now use their LinkedIn account information to sign up instantly for a Coworkers.com account. This is made possible thanks to the recently announced LinkedIn API.How does the sign up process work?If you have not yet registered with Coworkers.com, you can do so quickly, without a password, by signing in to your LinkedIn account. Simply visit our Free Registration page, and click on the "Connect via LinkedIn" link at the top of the page. We will import some information from your LinkedIn profile, such as your name, location, and work…

• Feature Update: Feedback Template Library

  Coworkers.com

  27 Jan 2010 | 1:58 pm

  We've made it even easier to browse, preview, edit, create, and share Review and Feedback templates. You'll find a number of predesign templates covering everything from in-depth 360 degree work performance reviews to simple forms for getting feedback on a meeting or presentation.Our users can create their own templates by either modifying an existing one, or building one from scratch. If a user decides to, they can share their custom templates so that they appear in our ever-growing library. As always, our templates fall into the three major categories of:Work Performance Event/Milestone…

• Get Valuable Input, on Autopilot: Schedule Feedback Requests

  Coworkers.com

  5 Jan 2010 | 4:30 am

  Have a weekly meeting that you manage or attend? How about a monthly or quarterly milestone? Do you wish you could setup an annual or quarterly review request today, that will go out on a future date?Coworkers.com PRO users can now Schedule Feedback Requests. This is a helpful way to get into the habit of collecting ongoing comments and ratings from your colleagues. Simply use our Get Feedback wizard and include the optional scheduling information. Set it up once and you can:Schedule a one time request to go out on a future dateSchedule a recurring request to go out: daily, weekly or…

• Five tips for incorporating work feedback into your daily routine

  Coworkers.com

  28 Dec 2009 | 8:48 am

  The most effective individuals and companies share a common trait. They encourage frequent, honest feedback. The key to evolving beyond the dreaded periodic performance review, is to make workplace feedback more granular, recurring, and measurable. Here are some tips for leveraging professional feedback in order to improve the work you do.Foster a feedback-friendly work environment. Tell your colleagues that you think an ongoing, open, honest, and informal peer review process is good for everyone. Don't be afraid to get the ball rolling without a formal process. Lead by example and start off…

• 
  Maximize Possibility Blog

• Startups and Culture-Shaping

  "The Rainmaker"

  9 Feb 2010 | 4:37 am

  I see it often... Employee team members who should have been let go a long time ago but because they paid their dues early in the history of the company - they get to stay and drain the lifeblood from the company in terms of cash and employee morale. The "golden children" are easily recognized. They do not perform at the same levels of new employees and everyone knows it. Unfortunately, this "story" is more common than everyone may think and it is not just a "story" of the private sector. All companies have powerful stories of sacrifice and determination...

• The Rainmaker 'Fab Five' Blog Picks of the Week

  "The Rainmaker"

  8 Feb 2010 | 3:53 pm

  I like to start every week by pointing you to my choices for the top five talent management, leadership development, and human resource management blog posts from the past week. Below are my top five picks for the week of February 1st - February 7th. Steve Roesler, All Things Workplace: How to Get Your Good Ideas Heard Michelle Malay Carter, Mission Minded Management: How To Interview Your Prospective Boss for Leadership Potential Micheal McKinney, Leadership Now Leading Blog: Leadership Book for February 2010 Derek Irvine, Globoforce: How Loyal Are Your High Performers? Tim Nolan, Fistful of…

• Possibility Maximizer: Jim Jacobus' "Man-Up" 2010 Challenge

  "The Rainmaker"

  5 Feb 2010 | 6:27 am

  Happy Friday! I've got a great resource for you today to help Maximize Possibility in your organization and your personal life. Enjoy! The Resource:Jim Jacobus' "Man-Up" 2010 Challenge What it is: One Urban Dictionary entry for "man-up" defines the term as "being an adult male in the truest sense of manhood". That is what Jim's "man-up" challenge is all about - discovering what it means to be an adult male who exemplifies all the qualities of true manhood. To clarify, Jim is not talking about how to be a man in the primordial sense of the term (think…

• The Rainmaker 'Fab Five' Blog Picks of the Week

  "The Rainmaker"

  1 Feb 2010 | 5:00 am

  I like to start every week off by pointing you to my choices for the top five talent management, leadership development, and human resource management blog posts from the past week. Below are my top five picks for the week of January 25th - 31st, 2010 . Enjoy! Chris Ferdinandi, Renegade HR: Renegade HR: Getting Started - Chiris shares his manifesto for Renegade HR - "Recruit great people, and help them do amazing things that drive your business " - and goes on to explain how you can start practicing Renegade HR in your organization today. Michelle Malay Carter, Mission...

• Possibility Maximizer: SHRM on Facebook

  "The Rainmaker"

  29 Jan 2010 | 6:25 am

  Every week I like to highlight a resource that I feel will add value to your life at work and improve your professional effectiveness. This week I'd like to shine the spotlight on a great networking and social media resource. The Resource: The Society For Human Resources' Facebook Page What it is: If you are not familiar with a Facebook Fan Page, it is a place on Facebook where fans of an organization, club, group, or other entity can come together to interact with that organization and other individuals who are also fans. Why You Should Be a Fan: Facebook...

• 
  Careersthatdontsuck.com

• Career Question: Has being unemployed long-term caused you to rethink your career choices or options?

  D.D. Johnice/Careersthatdontsuck.com

  8 Feb 2010 | 4:39 pm

  Unemployment numbers are scary.  Being unemployed is scarier.  Millions of people are currently unemployed and have been for months.  If you’re among them, you understand the long-term unemployment stats intimately. LONG-TERM UNEMPLOYMENT STATS 6.3 million people have been unemployed for 27 weeks or more. 8.3 million people have been forced to work part-time due to an inability to find full-time work or because their hours were cut. 2.5 million people were marginally attached to the workforce (they wanted and were available to work, looked but didn’t find work in the prior 12…

• Hot Job: MGR., HUMAN RESOURCES…

  D.D. Johnice/Careersthatdontsuck.com

  8 Feb 2010 | 6:31 am

  Hot Job: MGR., HUMAN RESOURCES (MED) at Anheuser-Busch (San Antonio, TX): MGR., HUMAN RESOURCES (MED) Company:Busc… http://bit.ly/avYStp Hearthis post Related PostsHot Job: Human Resources Gener…Hot Job: SPORTS AND ENTERTAINM…Hot Job: Human Resources Gener…Hot Job: Human Resources Admin…Hot Job: International Human R…

• Hot Job: Human Resources Gener…

  D.D. Johnice/Careersthatdontsuck.com

  8 Feb 2010 | 4:26 am

  Hot Job: Human Resources Generalist at Alliance Data (Lafayette, CO): Epsilon – including its Abacus division – is… http://bit.ly/cjVxSQ Hearthis post Related PostsHot Job: MGR., HUMAN RESOURCES…Hot Job: SPORTS AND ENTERTAINM…Hot Job: Human Resources Gener…Hot Job: Human Resources Admin…Hot Job: International Human R…

• Hot Job: SPORTS AND ENTERTAINM…

  D.D. Johnice/Careersthatdontsuck.com

  7 Feb 2010 | 4:11 pm

  Hot Job: SPORTS AND ENTERTAINMENT – ADVERTISING AND MARKETING at Premier Advertising (Cleveland, OH): Description … http://bit.ly/a5t3Po Hearthis post Related PostsHot Job: MGR., HUMAN RESOURCES…Hot Job: Human Resources Gener…Hot Job: Human Resources Gener…Hot Job: Human Resources Admin…Hot Job: International Human R…

• Hot Job: Human Resources Gener…

  D.D. Johnice/Careersthatdontsuck.com

  7 Feb 2010 | 2:10 pm

  Hot Job: Human Resources Generalist at Sawyer and Associates Executive Search (Avon, CT): The Human Resources Gene… http://bit.ly/9HCggt Hearthis post Related PostsHot Job: MGR., HUMAN RESOURCES…Hot Job: Human Resources Gener…Hot Job: SPORTS AND ENTERTAINM…Hot Job: Human Resources Admin…Hot Job: International Human R…

• 
  Job Hacking

• Job Ads Redux

  Dave Hardwick

  9 Feb 2010 | 6:00 am

  Job ads, can't live with them, can't live without them...Most job ads seem to be written to bore the reader to death. Or, to scare the applicant away from applying. It's too bad because they are an amazing place to start making your company a better place.The challenge is in finding a job ad that really nails it, to use as an example.Try this one: Looking for a LAMP God. When you read this, what comes through to you? Why wouldn't you want the person this attracts (after you sift through the no-fits)?Caveats: I do not know who wrote this, I do not know the firm PhotoRocket,…

• Can you tell just by looking at it?

  Dave Hardwick

  7 Feb 2010 | 8:24 am

  How do yo know that a software program, or a website, or an iPhone app has a bad UI?When there are explanations to help guide you through the interface.The latest example: Facebook's explanation, "Welcome to our new, simplified home page."This change reminds me of a Grocery Store reset. You know, when the contents of a store's shelves are all re-arranged to "make it easier on you, the shopper", when actually they are just trying to make you confused, upset your usual shopping patterns, and in the process, get you to pay attention to products you don't…

• re: Good Enough

  Dave Hardwick

  5 Feb 2010 | 6:30 am

  Kris Dunn has a very intriguing post for all you hiring manager & company execs out there, The Concept of "Good Enough" and Your Talent Strategy: Who's the Customer?If you've ever waffled regarding a hiring choice between several candidates because of your perceptions of how long you think they'll stick in a job (no, I'm not talking about you, but you have a friend...), then go read this now!

• Movies

  Dave Hardwick

  3 Feb 2010 | 7:14 am

  Last night, I was hunting down family movies on Netflix, and guess which movie is on the most popular list  in my suburban enclave?The Grapes of Wrath, starring Henry Fonda, ca 1940.Next week will be "The Seventh Seal" because that's how we roll in the 'burbs...

• Stupid Human Tricks: Ageism

  Dave Hardwick

  1 Feb 2010 | 6:09 am

  There's this guy I know, he's a programmer. We'll call him John. He learned Java shortly after Sun released Java 2 that was his 3rd or so major programming language he learned (he's added a few more since). He's the kind of programmer who takes the compiler's bugs in stride, works around them, and then goes back and updates his code once the bug is fixed. (For those of you who consider yourself non-technical, why would you think that software to create software is any different that your Web browser, your PC's operating system, your word processor?)Anyway,…

• 
  Polly Pearson's Blog

• Valentines Day Gifts for the Passionate, Tough, and Stylish Leader in your Life!

  polly pearson

  2 Feb 2010 | 3:29 pm

  Photo:  London Wasp Rugby, Sponsored by EMC. Player in EMC- and Wasp-branded Canterbury Shirt.VALENTINES DAY GIFTS!  For those in the extended EMC community wanting to give a loved one some cool branded material, check out the Wasp site. Lots of wearables that would amp the hottness of your hottie.My husband has two Rugby shirts made by Canterbury (the maker of these Wasp shirts), and my fashionable 14 year old daughter wears one constantly as well. They ooze with cool you can't easily find in the US. Even guys comment each time my husband wears one -- ("Hey, where did you get…

• 10 FREE RESOURCES for your Journey with Social Media in the Enterprise and Employee Engagement

  polly pearson

  22 Jan 2010 | 2:48 pm

  My friend Allan Steinmetz of Inward Strategic Consulting and I just finished a Webcast featuring EMC's story on building an employment brand and engaging employees by leveraging web 2.0 and social media behaviors /tools. I discussed how the body of work started, our strategic approach, how the brand was built out across multiple mediums and social properties, and how along the way organic brand ambassadors emerged and started making real magic happen.This topic always draws a large audience and today was no exception.  For those who want to start the social media/Web 2.0 behavior and…

• The White House and EMC -- Cool Brand Affinity

  polly pearson

  22 Jan 2010 | 8:32 am

  The White House Likes Us! The White House Likes Us! When I was the PR manager at EMC (long ago), we liked to find customers who were happy about our products and willing to be featured in News Releases.  To my knowledge, 99 out of 100 times, it was us, rather than the customer, who would be issuing the new release and discussing how EMC's technology benefited their operation or business.*  So it was with delight when I opened my news feed on EMC this morning to see the headline generated by The White House declaring that they were using EMC technology -- and had been using it ever…

• How Significant is Social Media for Job Search?

  polly pearson

  21 Jan 2010 | 4:26 pm

  This week DICE.com came to visit me for a video interview on job search for technical talent in today's market. A big take away for the interviewer was that job seekers needed to break out of comfort zones and "get out there; be found on the Internet."  Recruiters operate on-line today.  If they can't find you on-line, you are at a competitive disadvantage.  And the disadvantage is GROWING by the day.Check out this just-issued chart by JCSI.  They state that more than 50% of recruiters will use social media to find candidates, get referrals and post open positions in…

• Quite Nice Today ...

  polly pearson

  20 Jan 2010 | 6:40 am

  About yesterday's post with the awful snow photos ... thought I'd make up for that today with some nice shots of my backyard in Westborough, MA this morning.  It was actually stunningly gorgeous when I drove my daughter to her friend's house at 6:50am. There were people out walking dogs and jogging -- the sky was bright and the air was crisp.When I got home from work last night, I was delighted to hear my kids had spent the afternoon out sledding. My two little ones had so much fun, they kept playing sweetly when they got in-doors ... including rehearsing for a musical that…

• 
  David Sandusky's Hire Educated

• How Many Pages Should Your Resume Have?

  davidsandusky

  13 Jan 2010 | 10:49 am

  We get a lot of resume questions and I understand why.  Many job seekers blame the resume for not getting the interview.  That might be true, but the reality is you did not get you the interview.  But you want to know about how many pages a resume should have.  You ask me and you post the question on LinkedIn, etc. often, so I know you need to know what the recruiters think. My thought: As an executive recruiter who has interviewed more than a thousand executives, I will tell you resumes are very important, I even read some.  Cover letters are very important too. But what tops my…

• Executive Recruiting the Wyckoff Way on Your Brand Radio

  davidsandusky

  10 Nov 2009 | 8:37 pm

  CLICK HERE for the 10/01/09 podcast with Luke Wyckoff on Blog Talk Radio Visit Your Brand Radio LIVE on Blog Talk Radio every Thursday at 4:00MTN Retained executive search is art and a science. At least the way Luke Wyckoff and his firm Wyckoff Consulting do it. The Science part is unique with a proprietary six-step Wyckoff Executive Search Tools™ (WEST) science to pinpoint precise behavioral, cultural, and competency matches. What is even more unique is Luke Wyckoff because as Your Brand Radio listeners know well, your business is not unique, but you Luke Wyckoff are! Invite your friends,…

• Recruiting and Retaining Brand Champions

  davidsandusky

  15 Jul 2009 | 7:43 am

  Human capital is an ongoing challenge in any economy.  Recruiting and retaining the best is a game won by those with great awareness of culture and a process to attract the right people while maintaining a challenging and supportive environment to retain top talent. I can’t think of a better way to go about enjoying recruiting and retention success than learning what it means to recruit and retain brand champions as my friend and collaboration partner, Rex Whitman outlines so well in his AmEx Open Forum article. Posted in Interview, Personal Brand, Recruiting Tagged: culture brand,…

• Networking for CEOs

  davidsandusky

  16 Jun 2009 | 1:56 pm

  C – level executives made it to the top for many reason and their network or networking is a significant part of the story. The challenge at the top is keeping the network fresh and being deliberate about scheduling time to connect with the connected. Adding value back to the connections along the way is critical as well. Many think that once at the top, executives no longer need to network. That is strategy for failure as the unemployed CFO will tell you when they seem to be network dry and starting over. Or worse, have a reputation for just showing up for “coffee” when…

• Complications of Personal Brand Simplified

  davidsandusky

  18 Apr 2009 | 12:46 pm

  In executive recruiting, my clients and/or associates would often describe a certain “kind” of person we need to be recruiting for a particular business plan and culture.  Within industry or disciple that “kind” of person had a name.  An example statement would be “Get me ’a’ Brett Godfrey“  Get me ‘a’ Brett Godfrey does not mean get me Brett Godfrey.  There is a huge difference.  The cost associated with Getting the CEO and co-founder of Virgin Blue including his bleeding heart passion for the company makes Brett rather…

• 
  THE MBTI BLOG

• Undercover Boss and Decision Making

  Breanne

  7 Feb 2010 | 9:25 pm

  I'm hoping you were able to fight over your food coma after the Super Bowl long enough to catch CBS's new show- Undercover Boss. If you did, I bet the show gave you goosebumps. It really affected me in a profound way. The premise of the show is a CEO goes undercover and works in the entry level jobs that are too often under appreciated in large companies. Larry O'Donnell, President and COO of Waste Management, was the first to take on the challenge of going undercover in his own organization. He picked up liter (and got fired), cleaned out port-a-potties, and ran a trash route. To say he had…

• Introversion/Extroversion and Puppy Bowl VI

  Breanne

  7 Feb 2010 | 8:21 pm

  Super Bowl is one of my favorite days of the year. No- that's not because I am a big football fan. No- it's not because of the commercials. It's due to Animal Planet's annual Puppy Bowl and Kitty Half-time Show. I look forward to 2 hours of the most feel-good TV you can see all year long. Two full hours of laughing and saying "awe!" It's pure animal-lover heaven!I had an unexpected observation during this year's game. If you're looking for a fun new way to introduce the behaviors typical of Introversion or Extroversion, you might want to add a few YouTube video clips from the Puppy Bowl.The…

• New Webinar via TypeLabs on MBTI and Leadership with Sharon Richmond

  Breanne

  1 Feb 2010 | 8:45 am

  Heads up- there is a new webinar being hosted by TypeLabs with the author of Introduction to Type and Leadership- Sharon Richmond. I love seeing a webinar at a reasonable price that also includes MBTI Continuing Education credits. Enjoy!__________________________________________________Cultivating Leadership in Your Organization: Leadership Development, Emotional Intelligence and Personality TypePresented by Sharon RichmondFriday, March 5, 20101pm EST to 2:30pm EST MBTI CE Credits: 1.5Secure Your Spot TodayRegular Price: $119Early-bird Price: $79 (Save $40)One of the most pressing concerns in…

• Type and Generations Workshop at OKA and a 20% Discount!

  Breanne

  21 Jan 2010 | 5:58 am

  I'm so excited to tell you about another great workshop being held at OKA (Otto Kroeger Associates) focusing on personality type, MBTI, and Generations. This is such a hot topic and this 2-day workshop looks full of great information! Plus, OKA has been so generous and has offered a 20% discount on this workshop to all MBTI Blog readers! Just enter MBTIBLOG in the coupon line when you checkout! Enjoy and thank you OKA!________________________________________________________OKA’s Generations and Type: 17-18 February 2010 in Fairfax, VAMore and more OKA clients are asking us for help in…

• Job Interview Tips for Introverts and Extroverts

  Breanne

  20 Jan 2010 | 1:56 pm

  Interviewing is no fun! I don't know anyone who enjoys the process of being interviewed for a job. Even when you feel like you're a good match, there is still that feeling that you're standing on the playground waiting to be picked for a game of dodge ball. It also seems that for some people, no matter how much you prepare or how confident you are, you will just feel like you didn't click with that interviewer. Sadly, not all interviewers are good at interviewing. Some will ask oddball questions like "If you were a cereal, what would you be?" Nevertheless, you need to be at your personal best…

• 
  TheJobBored

• Multiple Job Offers – Choosing Between Them

  Brian

  30 Jan 2010 | 5:00 pm

  This is from an Ask Brian Question. Send in your own Ask Brian Question here. My name is XXXX, and Im 24 years old. Ever since last year i have been applying for different jobs in the field of fashion, I used to work and still do as a Fashion Stylist, which means I do a lot of shoots for tv and print ads etc. I finished my diploma course in Fashion Design last year and i thought i should leave the world of fashion styling behind because it was very difficult to find shoots on your own if you did not know the right people. But i found some young entrepreneurs like me and although work is slow…

• Can Facebook Harm Your Job Search?

  Brian

  27 Jan 2010 | 9:35 am

  For years now, as social media has proliferated, we’ve been hearing more and more about how what you do online can be viewed and viewed negatively by your boss… or by a prospective boss. But what about Facebook? After all, can’t you control who sees what on Facebook? Well, if you’re doing a job search, you’d certainly better hope so. According to new research by Microsoft, if HR people can check your Facebook page, then they probably will. And what they find there can have an impact on your chances of getting hired. In other words, Facebook can have an impact on…

• Resume Paper – What Paper Should I Print My Resume On?

  Brian

  8 Dec 2009 | 2:44 pm

  What is the best paper to use when printing up your resume to present in an interview? What is the best paper to use when mailing a resume as part of a job application? I guess this goes along with my post concerning the best font to use for your resume. I actually have a very specific answer to this question. For more than a decade now, we’ve been printing hard copies of people’s resumes as an add-on feature to our resume writing service. And in all that time, we’ve used the same paper. I’ll tell you all about it, but first, let me make clear: I’m not getting…

• What Does It Mean When They Say They’re Still Interviewing Candidates?

  Brian

  18 Nov 2009 | 11:06 am

  Here’s a quick Ask Brian question that has been sitting in my inbox since last week. It’s a short question, but I think I have a short and possibly unpleasant answer. Here goes: A reader asks: What does it mean, a week after my interview they say they are still interviewing candidates? Brian sayz: Unfortunately, it probably doesn’t mean much good for you. Not to be too harsh here, but interviewing is like dating. When you’ve found the one, you kind of know it right away. The long and short of it is, if they thought you were the one, they probably wouldn’t be…

• Retiree Job Search Tips – Job Tips For Over-65 Job Seekers

  Brian

  27 Oct 2009 | 2:22 pm

  Interesting article in the New York Times regarding retiree job seekers and the special job search problems facing retirees and those over the age of 65. …In fact, there are more Americans 65 and older in the job market today than at any time in history, 6.6 million, compared with 4.1 million in 2001. Less well known, though, is that nearly half a million workers 65 and older want to work but cannot find a job — more than five times the level early this decade and this group’s highest unemployment level since the Great Depression. The unemployment rate for older Americans is still much…

• 
  Pongo Blog RSS - Pongo Resume

• Does Your Job Search Take More than 18 Minutes a Day?

  8 Feb 2010 | 7:00 am

  Several weeks ago, I found a post that focused on an apparent claim that the average job seeker spends 18 minutes a day looking for a job. It led me to ask: How much effort do you put into your job search on an average day?

• Phone Interview Survival Tips

  4 Feb 2010 | 1:04 pm

  The phone interview (more aptly called a phone screen) is becoming more and more popular as the first step in the hiring process. If you haven t had one yet, you will, so it s essential to get yourself primed and ready before the phone rings.

• Got a Question About Job Searching? Ask It Here

  3 Feb 2010 | 1:00 pm

  If you could ask a hiring manager one question, what would it be? Here s your chance to post your question and we ll reply with helpful answers. It can be anything about the job search, the hiring process, resume submissions, interviews, etc.

• Don't Go It Alone in Your Job Search

  2 Feb 2010 | 1:30 pm

  Recently, I saw the movie Up in the Air, which reveals the shock and emotional hit of being jobless and all alone. But it doesn t have to be that way. You need to cultivate a network to help support you, and guide you to that next opportunity. Here are three rules to help you succeed at networking.

• Getting Back at Employers Who Snub You

  1 Feb 2010 | 7:15 am

  Most of us have gone through the experience of following up on a resume submission, or a promising interview with an employer that was very interested in hiring you. But then they inexplicably ignore you. Here s how one person settled the score.

• 
  EmploymentMetrix.com

• Beyond.com Career Trends Report: Small Businesses Offer New Hope to Unemployed Americans

  Tara Berger

  4 Feb 2010 | 1:48 pm

  Part-Time, Temporary and Small Business Jobs Experience Growth in Fourth Quarter of 2009 In the wake of President Obama’s proposal to provide more loans and tax credits to small businesses to promote jobs, Beyond.com, Inc., the world’s largest network of...

• Top 10 Tips On How to Be a Successful Entrepreneur

  Tara Berger

  1 Feb 2010 | 2:46 pm

  As an entrepreneur, it is important to understand: who you are, what you are good at and what you are passionate about. Once you understand yourself, it is important to surround yourself with the right people to help you achieve...

• How to Avoid the “Techie” Stereotype and Improve Your Tech Career

  Tara Berger

  20 Jan 2010 | 1:58 pm

  When you think of your company’s tech team, what is the first thing that comes to mind? Typically tech people are known for being a wiz at solving complex problems. They are comfortable with logic, facts and data, but are...

• Beyond.com Employee Gives Agile Presentation to Local Project Management Group

  Tara Berger

  14 Jan 2010 | 2:21 pm

  At Beyond.com, we are constantly striving to empower our employees and recognize individuals who exceed in their area of expertise. One of our fellow colleagues, Kevin Schlabach, Manager, Strategic Development and Project Coordinator, has hosted several informal presentations and teambuilding...

• What is your company doing to instill hope for 2010?

  Tara Berger

  7 Jan 2010 | 9:41 am

  2010...It is not only a new year, but a new decade. With hopes of economic recovery on the horizon, many companies are looking at 2010 as an opportunity to start fresh, especially after the roller coaster ride created by the...

• 
  Great Leadership

• Leadership Lessons from Undercover Boss: Episode 1

  8 Feb 2010 | 5:28 pm

  The first episode of CBS’s new reality show “Undercover Boss” aired Sunday night right after the Superbowl. For those of you that may not have heard, each week the show will feature a CEO that goes “undercover” to find out what everyday life is really like within their own companies. What a perfect opportunity for Great Leadership lessons and advice!Each week I’ll provide a link to the synopsis and my own leadership lessons learned that I believe would benefit any leader or aspiring leader (so you won’t have to have watched the show).The first episode didn’t disappoint. It…

• February Leadership Development Carnival – Carnevale di Venezia Edition

  7 Feb 2010 | 7:19 pm

  Looking for this month's Leadership Development Carnival? Nope, it’s not here. It’s hosted by Mark Bennett, Meg Bear, Amy Wilson, Vivian Wong, and the rest of my friends over at the Talented Apps blog. Take a look! There are 35 posts from my favorite leadership bloggers!Mark points out that this month’s edition is during Carnevale in Venice. That’s kind of fitting, given I’ll be in Venice next month. (-:Next’s month’s edition will back here on March 7th.Now I gotta go watch Undercover Boss.

• Career Advice Part 3: Lateral Moves

  6 Feb 2010 | 9:17 am

  A lot of career advice these days deals with how to get a job and how to get ahead (promoted). Makes sense, given the current economic conditions.However, at some point in your career, you will most likely be faced with another kind of career decision – whether to make a lateral move into a role that’s unfamiliar to you.Before I get into the ins and outs of lateral moves, I need to give you some context as to where my advice is coming from.My jobs have always been all about talent management. I have to make sure my company has strong leadership capability and a of pipeline emerging…

• Career Advice Part 2: Never Stop Learning

  31 Jan 2010 | 5:26 am

  This is the second part of a 5 part career advice series. There’s three parts to every career path: the past, present, and the future. Kind of like Dickens’s Christmas Carol. A lot of us tend to think of these elements in terms of the results we’ve achieved (as documented on our resume), the work we’re doing, and what we want to do when we grow up (our career plans and goals). There’s another way to think about your career path – think of your career as a learning journey. The Past:Most of know it’s a smart habit to update our resumes every year. It’s like paying your taxes -…

• Career Advice Part 1: Don’t Settle

  27 Jan 2010 | 4:47 pm

  I’m going to veer a little bit from the primary mission of this blog (leadership development) and offer a 5 part series of career advice posts.I do this with some hesitation. There are hundreds of career advice blogs out there already. For a good sample, start with Alltop’s collection of career blogs. I’d also recommend signing up for the new SmartBrief on Your Career free daily newsletter.The point is, I can’t even begin to compete with some of my favorites like Anita Bruzzese, so I won’t even try. I humbly bow to their expertise.However, I have picked up a few strategies that…

• 
  The Accidental IT Leader

• New Job, Same Company: What’s An IT Leader To Do?

  Dr. Jim Anderson

  3 Feb 2010 | 8:01 pm

  Image Credit Moving From One Job To Another Can Be A Big Hassle Changing To A New Job In The Same Company Can Be Difficult Times of change can be difficult for everyone, including IT Leaders. We all know how hard it can be to lose your job – in fact I think that we’ve probably either experienced it or have friends who have gone through it. What this means is that we all have a basic understanding of what to do if it happens. But what if you don’t lose you job, it just changes on you. What do you do then? When an IT department shrinks, there are suddenly fewer people to do all of the…

• It Turns Out That Personal Skills ARE Important For IT Leaders

  Dr. Jim Anderson

  27 Jan 2010 | 8:01 pm

  Image Credit Sure We’re Nerds, But We Still Need To Have Social Skills Why Does Hacking Still Work So Well? So here’s an interesting question for you: in this day and age, why is it still so easy to hack into a corporate computer system? I mean we’ve had years to invest in sophisticated encryption systems and multi-step identity verification systems. The answer is surprisingly simple – the weakest link remains the people who use the systems and a smooth talking criminal always seems to be able to get the info that he / she needs out of these people. What this realization means is that…

• How To Keep Your Team From Leaving As The Economy Improves

  Dr. Jim Anderson

  20 Jan 2010 | 8:01 pm

  Image Credit Your Team Is Going To Be Jumping Ship If You Don’t Do Something I don’t want to say that it’s been easy to be an IT Leader during the recent global economic crisis. However, as the world economy tanked and countless people in all industries lost their jobs, the one thing that IT Leaders really didn’t have to worry about was having members of their team jump ship to go to work for other firms – there were no other jobs to be had. Well as the economy improves, this is going to change. Got a plan for keeping your team on board? Don’t They Love Me? Why Would They Leave?

• Google’s Lessons For Managing Tech-Savvy Teams

  Dr. Jim Anderson

  13 Jan 2010 | 8:01 pm

  Image Credit How Does Google Solve Common IT Manager Issues? Sigh, if only we all could work for Google, right? If there is one company out there that seems to “get” IT, it would have to be Google. The stories that float around about how nice the Google campus is and all the free food and other perks sure make it seem like a Shangri-La. Hmm, but wait a minute, no matter how nice it seems, they’ve got to be dealing with the same IT Leader issues that we all are. Maybe it’s time to have a talk with their (former) CIO… It’s All About Choice One of the big…

• Doing More With What You Already Have

  Dr. Jim Anderson

  6 Jan 2010 | 8:01 pm

  Image Credit You Get No More Resources, But Still Need To Find A Way To Innovate As an IT Leader, you’ve got a bit of a challenge on your hands right now. There is probably no way that you’re going to be getting more funding or headcount in the immediate future (or at least not enough to make a difference). Yet at the same time your senior management keeps talking about the need for the IT department to start showing some innovation. Sounds like you’ve gotten yourself into yet another bind. How about if we take a look at how you can exceed your expectations using what you…

• 
  Mary Elizabeth Bradford - The Career Artisan

• The truth about the $199 resume

  admin

  28 Jan 2010 | 10:25 am

  If you type in “resume writers” into your search browser – you will see the first big sites to come up are fondly referred to by reputable resume writers as “resume mills”. These are companies with a lot of writers who generally have pretty slick websites and offer cheap resumes. I have often seen resumes offered on these sites for $199 and even “executive level” resumes offered for $299. I can’t attest to the quality or authenticity of every one of these companies but if you are tempted to save a few bucks and go with one of these mills, here are a few things to think…

• Job Search Inspiration

  admin

  26 Jan 2010 | 11:01 am

  My godsister sent me the most beautiful and inspiring 6 minute video today of Patrick Hughs. I wont spoil it by sharing what it’s about except to say the power of a positive attitude and love are truly powerful beyond belief! May Patrick be an inspiration to us all – especially during those times as job seekers we feel we are swimming against the current! http://www.youtube.com/watch_popup?v=9xwCG0Ey2Mg

• FREE Webinar: Escape from Cubicle Nation

  admin

  18 Jan 2010 | 1:17 pm

  In the past few weeks, we’ve seen numerous articles on how long it’s taking to find a new position today, the need for job seekers to be entrepreneurial and the growing trend for people to have multiple jobs concurrently. That’s why this upcoming webinar is so darn important for you to attend. It’s about how to live, survive and even thrive in this changing economy of ours. You need to attend, even if you desperately want to return to “cubicle nation.” Why? Because it’s really about taking back control of your life again. Sign up for free right here:…

• What are your 2010 Job Search Goals?

  admin

  7 Jan 2010 | 1:30 pm

  I wanted to take a moment to wish everyone a very happy new year! My husband and I just finished our goals for 2010. It was really fun to brainstorm, dream together and get on the same page! One of my professional goals is to help as many job seekers as I can start off Jan 2010 with clarity, action and results! If one of your goals for 2010 involves hitting the job market – you are going to want to have a powerful resume that clearly communicates why someone should be interested in hiring you. My resume and cover letter package is a great investment already at $579, but for the month of…

• Did you catch my free teleseminar? Recession Busting Job Search Techniques that WORK!

  admin

  14 Dec 2009 | 11:55 am

  If you didn’t catch my free teleseminar, my team has posted an audio recording of the call here: http://www.job-searchsystem.com/teleseminarrecording.htm We covered: The two barriers most job seekers hit that cause instant disappointment and anxiety – and how to avoid them. The 3 essential components you must have right to launch a turnkey and successful job search. This is the same information my clients pay me hundreds of dollars and hour to show them how to do – and its proven to work to get you quality interviews and offers. My two best job search time saving strategies that…

• 
  Women For Hire

• Watch Episode 2 of JOB HUNT

  8 Feb 2010 | 3:46 pm

  Watch Episode 2 of JOB HUNT Tuesday at 9pm on NYC Life – channel 25 in New York If you’re not in New York, visit www.nyc.gov/jobhunt for links and advice.

• Author: Lines Between Home And Work Vanishing

  8 Feb 2010 | 1:01 pm

  In his new book, The Future of Work, author Richard Donkin says the line between work and home in disappearing. Reason: technology has merged our working and personal lives. "We don't stop living when we go to work and, very often today, we don't stop working when we arrive home." USA TODAY previews the book.

• Could Hiring Uptick Be Near?

  5 Feb 2010 | 7:23 am

  Businesses are squeezing more out of their downsized workforces and inching closer to the day they start hiring, USA TODAY reports. "You're getting close to the point where the output increases will generate jobs," Daniel Meckstroth, chief economist at the Manufacturers Alliance told the paper. "I'm not sure it's going to happen in the first quarter (of 2010). But we're getting close."

• Industry Study: Green Jobs Could Double by 2025

  4 Feb 2010 | 7:05 am

  The number of clean-energy jobs in the U.S. would more than double by 2025 if the nation adopts a plan to get 25% its electricity from renewable energy sources, says a report backed by energy firms. Nationwide, 274,000 jobs would be created in the wind, solar, hydropower, biomass and waste-to-energy industries by 2025 if a 25% standard is adopted, says research firm Navigant Consulting. Those sectors now support about 196,000 jobs.

• She Was the Breadwinner; He Watched the Kids

  4 Feb 2010 | 6:26 am

  Nearly a quarter of American wives serve as the family breadwinner. Janice Min, who made $2 million a year as editor of Us Weekly before stepping down last year, writes in The New York Post that her husband, Peter, cared for their infant boys while she brought home the bacon. It worked "because I don't think either of us equates money with power."

• 
  CAREEREALISM: Because EVERY Job is Temporary

• Don’t Let a Good Message Get Lost in Poor Delivery

  sparktalk

  8 Feb 2010 | 9:00 pm

  By CAREEREALISM-Approved Expert, Emily Bennington I was in a meeting recently with a young woman who wasn’t getting her way. She was pushing for an idea she strongly believed in…but the others were less convinced. As the meeting wore on, she became increasingly aggressive. As she continued to state her case, her voice got higher and more hostile. When forced to listen to opposing views, she sunk low in her seat with her arms folded until, eventually, the meeting chairman tabled the issue altogether. As I witnessed the exchange, I couldn’t help but think if this woman were aware of…

• T.A.P. Q#433 – How Do I Answer Salary Interview Questions?

  sparktalk

  8 Feb 2010 | 9:21 am

  Dear Experts, What advice do you have when an interviewer ask what your current salary is? Do you answer? Is it better to discuss that topic later? CLICK HERE to see how experts answered this question on Twitter. Got a career question you’d like answered? Send it to twitter@careerealism.com along with your Twitter account name (you must use Twitter for us to post your question). Want to read more questions from our readers? Check out more T.A.P. questions here. Technorati Tags: career advice, career expert, career question, interview, job search advice, salary, T.A.P. (Twitter Advice…

• Interview ANTICS: What Hiring Managers Are Really Asking

  sparktalk

  7 Feb 2010 | 9:00 pm

  By CAREEREALISM-Approved Expert, Julia Erickson OK, you’ve made it past the initial resume screening and now have an interview. It could be in person or on the phone. (More and more interviews are on the phone now, and I’ve heard of Skype interviews also – better dress up for that one!) The point of an interview is to explore two main things: 1. Do you really know what you’re doing, or “is that stuff on the resume real?” There’s a lot of BS in some resumes and interviewers will ask pointed questions to determine if you actually have the skills and…

• 4 Questions About Twitter Job Seeking

  sparktalk

  6 Feb 2010 | 9:15 pm

  By CAREEREALISM-Approved Expert, Joshua Waldman A few weeks ago I interviewed a designer named Hal Thomas who got a job using Twitter. To see the replay, you can visit it here. I had MANY questions about the use of Twitter in the job search we simply didn’t have time to answer. So I’m going to answer them here. If you’re just getting started on Twitter, what’s the best way to find people that will target the people you’re looking for to build your relationships? There are essentially two ways to find people; either through their profile or through their tweets. You can search…

• The Evil Co-Worker

  sparktalk

  6 Feb 2010 | 9:00 pm

  ‘JT & Dale Talk Jobs’ is the largest nationally syndicated career advice column in the country and can be found at JTandDale.com. Dear J.T. & Dale: I have a co-worker who is always a total sweetheart when other people are present. However, when we are alone, she yells at me and calls me incompetent. I mentioned this to another co-worker, and he told me I was nuts, that everyone loves her. We do the same job, and I’m guessing she is threatened by me. I’m not sure I can hack much more of this evilness. — Francesca Dale: Hmmmm…no one else has seen this behavior,…

• 
  CIO.com - Careers

• Where has IT's Passion Gone?

  7 Feb 2010 | 9:00 pm

  When was the last time you woke up and wanted to go to work? If you could do anything you wanted, would you be doing what you're doing today? The future of IT depends on how you -- and the people who work for you -- answer these questions.

• 10 Recession-Proof IT Skills

  7 Feb 2010 | 9:00 pm

  "For people with the right skills and the right attitude, this is a fantastic time to be in the data center space," says Dwight Gibbs, senior vice president of technology at Input, a Reston, Va., market intelligence firm.

• Q&a: Microsoft's Chris Capossela

  7 Feb 2010 | 9:00 pm

  Chris Capossela's career path is a throwback, just like Dom's, the Italian restaurant in Boston's North End that his parents ran for 45 years. Capossela has been at Microsoft Corp. ever since he graduated from college some 18 years ago, working his way up from being Bill Gates' speechwriter to head of the Microsoft Project business, to his current role running marketing for some of Microsoft's most lucrative products: Office, SharePoint and Exchange, as well as their as well as their new hosted equivalents. He recently talked to Computerworld about how his family background prepared him for…

• Subtle Tips for Standout Interviews

  7 Feb 2010 | 9:00 pm

  Columnist Dave Willmer offers some advice to help job candidates fine-tune their approach to interviews with potential employers.

• How to Become a Data Center Top Dog

  7 Feb 2010 | 9:00 pm

  Top dogs in the data center come into their positions from all sorts of starting points.

• 
  CIO.com - IT Organization

• IT Hiring Jumps in January

  7 Feb 2010 | 9:00 pm

  The TechServe aliance industry group said that the addition of 12,900 IT jobs in the U.S. is "better than incremental" and a sign that corporate demand for such workers is finally growing again.

• The Deepening Data Center Skills Crisis

  7 Feb 2010 | 9:00 pm

  With a state-of-the-art data center recently opened in Atlanta, PricewaterhouseCoopers is on the prowl for a few good people. The challenge looms just about as large as the 80,000-square-foot building housing the IT infrastructure.

• Recession is Over, Time for IT to Restart the Engines

  7 Feb 2010 | 9:00 pm

  Some people are loath to come right out and say this, but I will: The recession is over, and when the numbers are all sorted, I'm guessing the experts will say we turned the corner early last fall, if not sooner.

• ERP Costs: 3 Signs Companies Are Wasting Less Money

  4 Feb 2010 | 9:00 pm

  It took a worldwide recession to start the trend, but there are signs that companies are getting ERP costs under control, according to a new report from Panorama Consulting. But there's still more work to be done.

• IT Warned to Prepare Network for Super Bowl Monday

  3 Feb 2010 | 9:00 pm

  A network security firm is warning firms to beware of network slowdowns on Monday due to employees downloading highlights of Sunday's Super Bowl and its advertisements.

• 
  Talent Insights Blog

• New Webinar: Employment & Recruiting Trends for 2010 and Beyond

  Mark Kaefer

  1 Feb 2010 | 9:01 am

  Experience is hosting a professional development webinar next week on Wednesday, February 10th. I hope you can join us and your peers for what will be an insightful presentation from Dr. Phil Gardner, the director of the Collegiate Employment Research Institute at Michigan State University. Employment & Recruiting Trends for 2010 and Beyond According to the 2009-2010 Recruiting Trends Report from the Collegiate Employment Research Institute (CERI) at Michigan State University (MSU), hiring was down 35 percent to 40 percent in 2009. And just as the turbulent economy from the passing year…

• Webinar: Engage Gen Y with Social Media

  Janet Sun

  6 Nov 2009 | 11:42 am

  I am so pleased to be hosting an upcoming webinar called “Engage Gen Y with Social Media” with my two co-presenters Kim Allenbach from Verizon Wireless and Carrie Dulay from Accenture. We’re all been adding social media strategies to our recruiting practices to brand, attract and interact with Gen Y. Below are details of the webinar, I hope you can join us! Webinar Invite In 2010, those who set a clear social media strategy and leverage new channels effectively will build robust talent pipelines for their organizations. On Thursday, November 19th at 1:00pm – 2:00pm EST,…

• Gen Y Savvy at Job Search, Craves More Info, Still Values Email

  Janet Sun

  4 Nov 2009 | 12:34 pm

  Searching job listings is a core part of every career exploration process, so we set out to learn how Gen Y conducts their job search to help employers recruit them better. For starters, the top resources Gen Y turns to for opportunities are company websites (73%), university or alumni career centers (70%), career fairs or events (69%) and job board sites (60%). Students tend to use career fairs and university career centers, while alumni rely more on company web sites and job boards. To narrow their online job searches, Gen Y typically uses two to three criteria , most often job function…

• Securing Entry-Level Employment in Tight Times

  Samantha Holland

  28 Oct 2009 | 11:50 am

  The turbulent 2009 economy has not deterred college students and recent grads from pursuing their goals. In its fifth year running, the results of our annual Placement Survey shed light on some of the employment trends surrounding the Class of ‘09 and their plans for the real world. More than 630 Gen Y’ers completed the 2009 Placement Survey (dubbed “Share Your Success with Experience”) between the beginning of June and the end of September, and 63% of respondents said “yes” when asked if they were on their intended career path. At nearly two-thirds in the middle of a recession,…

• Raytheon at the Forefront in Social Media Recruiting

  Janet Sun

  7 Oct 2009 | 10:49 am

  Raytheon has jumped full bore into social media this year with two Twitter accounts @Raytheon_Jobs (experienced hiring) and @RTNCollegeJobs (college hiring). This innovative initiative was spearheaded by Jeff Goodman, Talent Acquisition Manager at Raytheon. With over 2,000 followers, they are now one of the leading companies using Twitter to drive interested candidates directly to their employment web site. Their goal is to brand Raytheon and to engage candidates in conversations and then leverage those conversations into applications. Having posted 600+ jobs, they are able to track…

• 
  Lindsay Olson

• Golden Grant Stimulus Package and Giveaway!

  Lindsay

  3 Feb 2010 | 5:28 am

  Have you heard about the Golden Grant Stimulus package? Starting today, Golden Grahams is asking for your funniest job search stories - Twitter style. If yours is funny enough, it might just be animated like the videos below! Also - Golden Grahams has given me 12 boxes of cereal to giveaway to stress the importance of eating before meeting. You’ll also have another chance to win on the Golden Grant site, just in case you aren’t lucky the first time. How To Enter: Go to the Golden Grant site http://goldengrant.com Submit your most remarkable job experience in 120 characters or less…

• What Every PR Person Can Learn from Apple’s iPad Launch

  Lindsay

  2 Feb 2010 | 9:00 am

  This is a guest post by Alison Kenney. The buzz around Apple’s launch of the iPad last week was deafening.  It eclipsed Toyota’s recall announcement, Holocaust Remembrance Day and the President’s State of the Union address (but was probably greeted happily by corporations with bad news to announce that day, e.g. Verizon’s layoff of 13,000 employees). So one might think that Apple’s PR team is exceptional and that they pulled an amazing campaign together full of extremely innovative tactics.  Although I surely won’t be arguing that Apple doesn’t have some of the best PR pros…

• How Not To Blow a Phone Interview

  Lindsay

  1 Feb 2010 | 8:19 am

  Phone interviews have this magical way of magnifying any nervous tick and making the articulate candidate completely incoherent. Unfortunately, this necessary evil is the starting place of many interviewing processes. Here are a few simple pointers to keep in mind if you are asked to sell yourself over the phone before meeting the company in-person. Sit or stand somewhere comfortable and quiet - a space where you feel empowered and can speak freely. This means not in the car, especially during your morning commute, even if you feel like a rockstar in your new ride. And there’s not a…

• Funny Recruitment Ads

  Lindsay

  27 Jan 2010 | 7:47 am

  After reading through all those bland and boring job ads, this round-up of creative and funny recruitment ads is refreshing to see. See them all on Jacob Share’s JobMob -  117 Funniest Creative Job and Recruitment Ads Enjoy!

• What the Loss of Thousands of Media Jobs Means for PR

  Lindsay

  11 Jan 2010 | 11:13 am

  This is a guest post by Alison Kenney. Tens of thousands of journalists, reporters and editors lost their jobs in 2009 – what does that mean for PR? According to a September 2009 report from Unity, the news industry has shed almost 36,000 jobs since Sept. 15, 2008, and more than 46,000 positions since Jan. 1 of that year, with U.S. journalists losing jobs at three times rate of most workers. One of the obvious implications of this shrinking media landscape is that there are fewer places and people for PR professionals to pitch, prompting some forecasters to herald a sea change in the PR…

• 
  CareerSolvers

• Career Comeback-Repackage Yourself to Get the Job You Want

  Barbara Safani

  8 Feb 2010 | 9:20 am

  Recently I interviewed Lisa Johnson Mandell author of Career Comeback. Lisa is an award-winning author, entertainment reporter, and film critic who has appeared on dozens of major news outlets and even Dr. Phil. Here’s what she had to say about the new rules of job search for 2010 and beyond. 1. Tell me a bit about yourself and what the inspiration for Career Comeback was. It’s based on my own experience of successfully finding full time work in this economy, in my late 40’s. I’d been a multi-media journalist for more than 25 years and was freelancing, but found that…

• Whose Job is it to Define Your Passion for Your Work?

  Barbara Safani

  5 Feb 2010 | 4:15 am

  There is a great conversation going on over on the Punk Rock HR blog about passion and whether or not passion can be or should be measured as part of employee performance . Some say passion is generally not a term that is synonymous with work and others say that passion is not a measurable performance dimension. I have a slightly different take on this…that passion manifests itself in different ways in different people and there’s no one right way to spot it. This became apparent to me twice this week for two different reasons. I’m currently reading the book Look Me in the…

• How Far Would You Go to Find the Right Contact for a Job?

  Barbara Safani

  4 Feb 2010 | 7:12 am

  Last night I had one of those moments that every mother dreads. It was three hours past the time my teenage daughter was expected home and she wasn’t answering her cell phone which appeared to be off. She’s a pretty responsible girl, so I was concerned to say the least. The fact that I had recently written a post about a sex offender that lives nine blocks from my house probably wasn’t helping me feel more secure about her tardiness. So I did what any neurotic mother would do. I reached out to everyone I could think of to figure out where she might be. And here’s what…

• No Smoking Policies at Work: Discrimination or Social Responsibility?

  Barbara Safani

  2 Feb 2010 | 6:57 am

  The co-op board of the building I live in is recommending a new policy that prohibits new renters and owners from smoking in their apartments and requires that current smokers stop smoking in their apartments after a period of three years. While it may seem odd to some of you that a residential building would ban smoking, some apartment buildings are moving in this direction. People haven’t been allowed to smoke in office buildings for years. Yet more recently, companies seem to be upping the ante and not hiring people who smoke. Memorial Hospital of Chattanooga, TN will only hire…

• Career Management: It Takes a Village

  Barbara Safani

  25 Jan 2010 | 4:58 am

  Last week I attended the first of many college planning meetings at my daughter’s school. Jammed into the school auditorium with 200+ other neurotic parents of high school juniors, I listened to details about student entrance exam test dates, transcripts, and application deadlines. Parents who are going through this process for the second time offered advice to the newbies and shared anecdotal stories about oscillating between having true bonding moments and enlightening conversations with their children during the process and other moments where they just wanted to strangle their kids…

• 
  Modite by Rebecca Thorman

• 3 Ways to Design Your Career

  Rebecca Thorman

  2 Feb 2010 | 8:52 pm

  John Besmer confirms our meeting with “Word,” and signs off with, “Yup!” like he’s in the middle of a Jay-Z video. At the corner of corporate and hipster, I arrive to his office to discover him in a plaid button-down shirt, designer-rimmed glasses and a whole lot of Midwestern charm. I first saw Besmer in a similar uniform on stage. Ten designers shared twenty inspiration slides for twenty seconds each, but Besmer’s stood out; he was the only person to play electric guitar, read from a book and live-tweet during his – he later told me – “horribly lashed-together”…

• Can you have any job you want?

  Rebecca Thorman

  24 Jan 2010 | 4:33 pm

  Alexandra Levit has just published the book, New Job, New You: A Guide to Reinventing Yourself in a Bright New Career, which is a great resource if you’re looking for a job or trying to find more happiness in your career. And it got me thinking, one of the myths I see over and over is that job-seekers or those looking to switch careers don’t think they have the skills or experience they need. What a cop-out. Of course, any career has a set of knowledge specific to that field. As an architect you probably have some technical knowledge about the size of a door jamb as well as…

• Bloggers Are Not Writers

  Rebecca Thorman

  18 Jan 2010 | 8:23 pm

  There are exceptions, okay. But very few bloggers can actually write. Bloggers pander to a crowd trying to satisfy the hive mind. Blogging is entertainment. Many bloggers are good at marketing, building community, relationships, and especially aggrandizing self-promotion, but not writing. Crowdsourcing is a bloggers’ anthem. I remember my first blog. I deleted it. The posts didn’t get commented on and weren’t passed around. That wasn’t the point. But for bloggers, that is their mission; to create 500-word packages, bold-faced and headlined, read and digested in two minutes or less,…

• One Guy, One Girl, Two Start-Ups and a Relationship

  Rebecca Thorman

  13 Jan 2010 | 10:02 pm

  Quick, which is more difficult – work or life? Up until a year ago, both competed for my attention, each piling weight onto the seesaw to rise towards the favored position. A year ago, however, I started working at Alice and Ryan and I started hitting our stride (both of which were not without challenges, however… many, many challenges). While working for a start-up demands hours, it demands more in mental energy, and in spiky unpredictable lengths, where the only invariable is that you know work will be stop and go. This means it’s often difficult to separate work and life, especially…

• The Miseducation of a Woman

  Rebecca Thorman

  12 Jan 2010 | 7:52 pm

  Florida at Christmastime isn’t particularly warm, but it’s near tropical for Wisconsinites (of which I am finally one), so it is not the light breeze that causes my arms to hover close to my core while sitting at the pool. In fact, it is something that exists entirely in my head, and I have to consciously and decidedly lift my elbows and hands away from my hips and stomach towards the armrests so as to appear confident. The right to be a woman, in the finest sense, relies on such confidence. My two-piece bathing suit beguiles a certain flirtatious composure (it’s got polka dots), and at…

• 
  Secrets of the Job Hunt

• What HR managers want

  CM Russell

  9 Feb 2010 | 6:07 am

  I just love it when HR people divulge the secrets to getting hired. Check out this interview with Libby Sartain, Chief People @ Yahoo! Most interesting in the post are these two nuggests of advice:Question: What makes a cover email and resume 'pop' for you?Answer: In the cover email, or summary when submitting your applications through an online jobs site like Hot Jobs, we look for your personality to show through. You should be able to come up with a succinct summary of who you are, what you bring to the table, and why we should hire you...but your unique personality should 'pop.'I suggest…

• Do you look for a job like in the 70s?

  CM Russell

  9 Feb 2010 | 1:04 am

  www.laurentbrouat.com Do you still use a Cover letter and a CV (or Resume)? Do you still use the network of your close friends and only the network of your close friends? Guess what, you look for a job like in the 70s! My dad is 60 this year, and just retired from his company after almost 40 years of good work. He started working there in 1971. When he arrived in my city, he only knew my mother and had no contact at all. But at the time, he had a GSCE level which was good. The first job he got was to work for the local newspaper doing some admin stuff. He got this job because my mother’s…

• Who’s Hiring from Forbes Most Trustworthy Companies List – Vol II

  CM Russell

  9 Feb 2010 | 12:00 am

  Reposted from CareerAlley "Never trust anything that can think for itself if you can't see where it keeps its brain." - J. K. Rowling, Harry Potter and The Chamber of Secrets, 1999 Now there is a quote that not only pertains to fantasy, but also makes sense in the real world too, and you know who I'm talking about. But what about in the business world? Can a company actually be trustworthy? I say yes (even if you can't see where it keeps its brain). You've been there, you go to a store to buy a large ticket item and you get the hard sell from the salesman. Is he telling the truth or just…

• What can a jobseeker give?

  CM Russell

  8 Feb 2010 | 4:45 am

  I write often about the importance of putting on an attitude of giving (rather than of desperation) for your job search. Well I will make this post short and sweet because I could not say it better than @JasonAlba says in his latest post "QUESTION: If a jobseeker has no money, what can he give?" You must check this out to learn how to help others build their network to their next great job opportunity! What other ways have you given that have accelerated your job search?

• 5 ways to help an out-of-work friend

  CM Russell

  8 Feb 2010 | 3:00 am

  Thom Singer (www.thomsinger.com) is a networking and personal branding expert. Over the years, he has coached many friends through layoffs and corporate downsizing. A popular author, speaker and business development consultant in Austin, Texas, Singer says being laid off or in the midst of a career crisis, even with all the press coverage about the economy, can make someone feel very alone. When it happens to someone close to you, knowing how to help can be tricky. Singer has five tips to help you help them: First, be available. While it is hard to grasp when you have a job, being able to see…

• 
  Corporate Warriors

• The Pope Gets It. Executives Don't. Mindboggling or Should that be Mind Blogging

  Don Straits

  25 Jan 2010 | 5:13 pm

  I absolutely love this.  I just read a great article on how the Pope is telling his priests around the world to go forth and blog....become part of the contemporary generation and use social media to reach the masses with the messages from God.  Not only that, the Vatican has launched its own channel on You Tube.  So cool.  Way to go Pope.

• Webster's New Definition of "Consultant": Unemployed Executive

  Don Straits

  25 Jan 2010 | 3:56 pm

  For many years, when an executive loses a job, in order to show that they are still engaged in business, they create a consulting firm...albeit a firm of one.  Nothing new here.  However, over the past several months, with the recession and huge number of senior level executives in the job market, industries are overrun with consultants. Unfortunately, the word "consultant" has almost become a pejorative.  A common definition can be heard everywhere:  "A consultant is someone who steals your watch and tells you what time it is."

• Building an Internet Presence: A Story of Failure and a Story of Vision

  Don Straits

  26 Oct 2009 | 12:31 pm

  WOW, I have gotten some great stories, feedback and questions on my last post titled:  Today’s Executive, Tomorrow’s Walmart Greeter.   Building a world class presence on the internet is not easy.  It embodies numerous elements that few people understand.   Developing an authority blog is just one small piece of the total puzzle, but it is a key component.  You can have a 12-year old build a blog for you, but driving traffic and building a community is an extraordinary challenge.  In subsequent posts, we will touch on other issues in…

• Today's Executive -- Tomorrow's Walmart Greeter

  Don Straits

  7 Oct 2009 | 1:23 pm

  Ok, perhaps my view into the future is a little harsh, but it got your attention.  And there is definitely a grain of truth in it.  This post is a continuation of my dialogue on the challenges that executives face.  The last three posts generated numerous personal emails from executives seeking new positions, as well as from recruiters, HR leaders and career strategists.  What is fascinating, and at the same time unfortunate, is that the overwhelming number of executives in the market still “don’t get it.”  I am not certain why, but what…

• EMERGENCY ALERT: Many Executive Careers Will Be Coming to An Abrupt End

  Don Straits

  1 Oct 2009 | 3:55 pm

  WOW, sounds like a hurricane warning.  Maybe a Fox News Alert announcing impending doom.  But trust me, this is real.  I have been in the leadership development arena for 18 years, and I have never seen anything like what is currently going on in the marketplace. Regardless of your corporate position, whether you are currently a CEO or an emerging executive, you could find yourself without a career if you fail to heed my warning. I realize I have been hammering this in my blog over the past couple of weeks—but it is of such paramount importance I cannot emphasize it…

• 
  Total Picture Radio

• Marshall Goldsmith Mojo, How to Get it, How to Keep it How to Get it Back if You Lose It

  TotalPicture Radio with Peter Clayton

  8 Feb 2010 | 3:04 am

  Welcome to a special Leadership Channel Podcast on TotalPicture Radio. I’m excited to have back on TPR one of America's preeminent executive coaches: Marshall Goldsmith. The timing of Marshall’s books is truly remarkable: His New York Times bestseller What Got You Here Won't Get You There was released in 2007. An accurate reflection on the times and the economy? I think so. His latest book, just released this month is titled Mojo: How to Get It, How to Keep It, How to Get It Back if You Lose It (link to Amazon.com) Considering how brutal the economy and job market has been over the past…

• What Can You Do if You're Not A Natural-Born Seller? Michael McLaughlin - Winning the Professional Services Sale

  TotalPicture Radio with Peter Clayton

  5 Feb 2010 | 5:34 am

  I'm always amazed when consultants tell me they don't like (or want) to sell. Some seem to think the whole sales thing is completely beneath them. Then there are others who say they aren't good at selling. My reaction to both views is, you're kidding, right? You may be the guru in your field, but that won't put a dime in the bank if you can't sell.” Michael McLaughlin My first question, for Mike McLaughlin, "I suck at sales, now what?" A number of executives in the 40's, 50's, and beyond, who've lost their jobs as a result of the recession, will never find a job at the level and income they…

• What Do You Say When a Client or Employer Claims Your Price is Too High?

  TotalPicture Radio with Peter Clayton

  31 Jan 2010 | 10:32 pm

  If you're like most professionals, you're not comfortable with selling. It's not easy fighting the feeling that hyping yourself is somehow inappropriate. And it's worse when you have to deal with objections, doing presentations, and getting rejections — or waiting for the phone to ring." Charles H. Green Welcome to a Success Strategies podcast on TotalPicture Radio, with Peter Clayton reporting. When I came across Charles H. Green's article in RainToday (a fabulous sales and marketing resource), I immediately contacted Charlie and asked him share his insights with us. He is founder and CEO…

• Dan Roam, Visual Thinking Podcast: Look, See, Imagine, Show

  TotalPicture Radio with Peter Clayton

  27 Jan 2010 | 6:42 am

  Dan Roam is the founder of Digital Roam, a management consulting company that helps business executives solve complex problems through visual thinking. Through lectures, workshops, books, and hands-on projects with many of the world's most influential organizations, Dan has helped teams learn to solve complex problems by relearning how to see. Dan is the author of the international bestseller The Back of the Napkin: Solving Problems and Selling Ideas with Pictures, Business Week and Fast Company's best innovation book of the year - A new book, Unfolding the Napkin The Hands-On Method for…

• Gretchen Rubin the Happiness Project Podcast

  TotalPicuture Radio with Peter Clayton

  24 Jan 2010 | 8:57 pm

  "The Days Are Long, But The Years Are Short." Do You Have a Happiness Project? Gretchen Rubin had an epiphany one rainy afternoon in the unlikeliest of places: a city bus. "The days are long, but the years are short," she realized. "Time is passing, and I'm not focusing enough on the things that really matter." In that moment, she decided to dedicate a year to her happiness project. Welcome to a Success Strategies podcast on TotalPicture Radio with Peter Clayton reporting. Joining us from New York City is Gretchen Rubin, the author of The Happiness Project, Or, Why I Spent a Year Trying to…

• 
  The Writerbabe Series

• Do You Feel Competent?

  Raven

  9 Feb 2010 | 5:45 am

  Every morning, after the F leaves for work, I get up and putter around the condo planning out the myriad of tasks I can perform for the day. We bought a white erase board so that I could throw up random “to do” lists and cross them out. I want to feel like I’m accomplishing something by X-ing something off a list. Accomplishment, for me, is having stuff finished. But, I don’t feel very competent these days. And, there is a difference. Competence is about knowing you are good at something. Competence is about knowing that whatever talent you put to task,  the work will…

• Welcome New Readers! Thoughts on Holding Yourself Accountable & Any Excuse to Post My First Vlog

  Raven

  8 Feb 2010 | 5:45 am

  It’s a new year and people resolve to make changes. Are you holding yourself accountable to making those changes? If so, how? And if not – what’s stopping you? Share and Enjoy:

• The Work of Now & The Future: The Career Mosaic

  Raven

  4 Feb 2010 | 5:45 am

  Economists have dropped the bleariest of statistics to herald the coming of a lost generation – the decline of the American worker. The nature of work has changed. Enter the rise of the career mosaic.  Careers are no longer functioning in a linear spectrum that’s defined by chunks of time at a series of jobs. The average worker is leaning toward reinvention, which encourages parallel learning.  In short, workers will concentrate on the three things they are doing now instead the one thing they will be doing next. The Hiring Trap There will be jobs that get you by to supplement a career…

• A Career Pitfall for Generation Y? High Self-Esteem, Praise & The Idea of Special

  Raven

  2 Feb 2010 | 5:45 am

  Open competition…a handicap? Social media has craftily forged the unforgiving free reign of open competition and comparison. Everyone can know what everyone else is doing. These measurements of virtual (and real) success are judged in open forums and compartmentalized into numbers. Additionally, these sentiments are attached to who is more dynamic, search worthy and notable. Bruce Tulgan’s 2009 article in Financial Executive, “Managing in the ‘New’ Workplace,”describes Gen Y competitiveness as a movement born out of our formative years from constant…

• Old-Fashioned Networking: Talking to People {Guest Post by Jessica Schanberg}

  Raven

  28 Jan 2010 | 5:45 am

  Photo Credit: Michelle Brea @ Flickr This is Jessica Schanberg’s 2nd blog installment about the adventures of freelancing. Here, she talks about the economics of traditional networking. We often see people walking down the street mesmerized by their iphones texting or sitting by themselves on the internet in a coffee shop. I suggest that perhaps we need to connect with people face-to-face. Mano a mano, as they say. I’ve just started freelancing again in September and while it’s been slow at times, it has also been tremendously rewarding. I have gotten all of my jobs through…

• 
  Entry Level Careers Examiner

• Early report shows lower average salary for Class of 2010

  5 Feb 2010 | 4:43 am

  Starting salary offers to Class of 2010 new college graduates are down, compared to those offered a year ago, according to a new study published by the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE). The Winter 2010 issue of NACE&rsquo...

• Survey: College recruiting activity up, hiring down

  4 Feb 2010 | 5:30 am

  While employers plan to be more active on campus over the next three months, they have scaled back their hiring plans, according to results of a monthly poll conducted by the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE). NACE’s...

• Top 10 internship programs for 2010

  3 Feb 2010 | 8:18 am

  Vault.com has released its Top 10 Internships in America for 2010, as well as the Top 10 internship programs across a number of industries and categories, such as best perks and most unusual experiences. According to Vault research, 50.4 perc...

• 5 reasons job seekers should use Twitter

  2 Feb 2010 | 8:08 am

  Still not convinced you should be on Twitter? Teena Rose of Resume to Referral just published an e-book, “How to Get Job Leads Fast Using Twitter: How to Use Twitter to Network, Mine the New ‘Underground’ for Jobs, and Connect wi...

• Survey: Bad career advice abounds; co-workers most common culprits

  1 Feb 2010 | 7:11 am

  Thinking about tapping your peers and colleagues for advice on how to get ahead? You may want to reconsider, a new survey by The Creative Group suggests. Nearly six in 10 advertising and marketing executives said they have received bad career advi...

• 
  Jake on Jobs

• 10 Not-So-New Year's Resolutions

  Jacob Greene

  18 Jan 2010 | 7:45 am

  I don’t make New Year’s Resolutions on January 1.  I’m too amped up, too emotionally charged.  Making promises on the morning after New Year’s Eve is like making group vacation plans at a high school reunion (“Dude, I miss you guys.  We should all go to Thailand next year…I mean it.  Who’s down?”). Your heart is crushing the breakfast buffet but there’s still a “Do Not Disturb” sign hanging on your brain. In order for resolutions to stick, the brain needs at least two weeks to conduct due diligence – to separate promises made in the moment…

• Hollywood, Music City, and Social Rounding

  Jacob Greene

  7 Dec 2009 | 7:54 am

  Los Angeles and Nashville are both entertainment industry towns.  LA has movie studios.  Nashville has music studios.  Star sightings at Starbucks are common occurrences in both cities.  Waiters and bartenders work for small tips and big dreams…. You get it. In Music City, as in Hollywood, perception is paramount and image is everything.  However, the images crafted by aspiring country artists would get them laughed out of Los Angeles (and vice-versa).  The reason: Social Rounding.  In LA, people round up. In Nashville, they round down. What does…

• Business Owner Tweets About His Day, Wonders Why Nobody Cares

  Jacob Greene

  10 Nov 2009 | 7:42 am

  Over the past couple years, many business owners have been hesitant to embrace social media because of the perception that Facebook, Twitter, etc. are full of useless social updates. “OMG, the mall is so crowded.” “Got to work late, already dreaming of lunch.” Execs didn’t want to waste time sifting through unproductive “here’s what happened to me today” tweets.  Those updates weren’t going to help them build their brands or drive revenue. Here’s where the irony kicks in. After a year of positive press for social media, many of those skeptical business owners are…

• Gen Y Set to Turn 30, Confusion Set to Ensue

  Jacob Greene

  21 Oct 2009 | 6:17 am

  I am about to turn 30.  Like many members of the Pop Culture Generation, this advancement in age has me confused, anxious, and curious.  Gotta face the facts - I'm a different guy than I was right after college.  Not better, not worse, just different. I spoke about several differences between "early-20's me" and "30-year-old me" a recent conference...    

• Ideas for the Creative and Unfulfilled

  Jacob Greene

  7 Oct 2009 | 8:07 am

  Many young professionals lie awake at night, convinced that our creative talents are being stifled.  Our lives have become too formulaic and we feel as though our energy is being zapped by uncreative careers.  The “lie awake” phase is not healthy.  The lack of sleep is not healthy.  The frustration is not healthy. The subsequent cycle of food, alcohol, and infomercials is not healthy.So, how do we shake it? How do we find something to think about in bed that’s more inspiring our own self-pity and recycled episodes of “Real Chance at Love”?   I…

• 
  Administrative Arts

• Links Roundup – February 4, 2010

  Jodith

  4 Feb 2010 | 1:44 pm

  Here’s my non-so-weekly links roundup, listing all the links I’ve shared on Twitter in the last couple of weeks. 11 Common Blunders in Web Design Want to make an Appointment out of an Outlook email? Drag it from the list to the little calendar. http://bit.ly/wa5iH Getting Your Name Off a Hiring Blacklist – WSJ.com http://bit.ly/dfv0xv Abstract Thoughts Prompt Literal Physical Responses – NYTimes.com http://nyti.ms/afTmW8 Webinar: Building a Better Relationship with Your Boss http://ow.ly/16tQUH All About Workplace Relationships: Enter to Win http://ow.ly/16tQUI The…

• Ask the Admin: Becoming a Virtual Assistant

  Jodith

  4 Feb 2010 | 1:00 am

  I received this e-mail from Andrea: On my personal day off, I’ve been thinking about leaving my cubicle assistant job–where I’m basically working as assistant for a bank via a real-estate holding company–and making it a start-up business for myself.  I want to become a virtual admin assistant with an added value of research assistant (so I can use my librarianship degree). Any advice, such as your read of the market for such a business in this economic climate? Any insight is welcome! Thanks for a very timely question, Andrea. With the current economic crisis, many…

• Ask the Admin – What More Do I Need?

  Jodith

  3 Feb 2010 | 1:00 am

  I received this e-mail from Kathy: I have a AA in Business Administration with a concentration in management, a bookkeeping diploma and a administrative assistant diploma and I still have a hard time getting an administrative assistant job. As for experience I would say i have the bear minimum because of where I live. What do I need to do in order to get an administrative assistant position? It sounds to me that with your education you should be able to qualify for an entry level assistant position.  You’d qualify for more with more experience, probably.  The main problem at the…

• Ask the Admin: Staying in Touch While Traveling

  Jodith

  2 Feb 2010 | 1:00 am

  Lisa sent me the following e-mail: Do you have any tips or advice for communicating daily, weekly or priority items when traveling for weeks at a time. Thanks for your e-mail, Lisa.  As it happens, I worked for 3 years for one boss who traveled almost 50% of his time, so I learned a great deal about how to keep in touch while he was traveling. Make Sure You Have a Plan If you have a boss who travels frequently, you need to have a plan in place to make sure the two of you stay in touch while he’s out of the office.  Make sure you sit down together a day or two before he leaves to…

• Gmail Now More Secure

  Jodith

  1 Feb 2010 | 1:00 am

  I had a question last year about security on Gmail, Google’s e-mail system.  Previously, any mail you opened or sent was not sent securely, so it could be intercepted by a third party.  In 2008, Gmail added encryption for Gmail, but it wasn’t the default setting, so most folks were still sending mail unsecured. The good news is that after China hacked many Google Gmail accounts earlier this month, Google decided that the benefits of keeping mail secure was more important than any slow down in opening and sending mail.  So Gmail now has encryption turned on by default.  If you…

• 
  Who`s and What`s Concerning Your Career; Blog by Resume to Referral

• Two Cover Letter Secrets YOU Can Use In Tough Times

  Guest article by Jimmy Sweeney, Author of the new, Amazing Cover Letter Creator The global job market is about as tough as it’s been in several years. Here are two cover letter secrets you’ll want to take advantage of as soon as I share them with you. Secret #1: Powerful Networking Cover Letters Open the Door To [...]

• Three Simple Job Interview Tips That Work!

  Guest article by Jimmy Sweeney, Author of the new, Job Interview “Secret” Today it’s more challenging than ever to land a great job. It’s possible you’ll have to go through several interviews before you find the position you’re looking for. You might feel a knot in your stomach, your pulse rate jump, and your hands suddenly [...]

• Searching For a Job? Network and Stand Out From the Crowd!

  Networking is the best way to find a job in our current economy and it helps you to stand out from the crowd. Although it may take time to establish a network of colleagues, networking has great rewards if done correctly. The Merriam Webster’s Dictionary defines Networking as: “the exchange of information or services [...]

• Resume Tip: It’s All About The RESULTS You Can Deliver!

  Guest article by Jimmy Sweeney, Author of the new, Amazing Resume Creator Are you problem solver? Someone who can save the company money? Someone who can make the company money? A person who can organize and categorize without effort? If so, step up and sell those skills. What do you do well that will bring the [...]

• The Secret to Writing a ‘Must-Read’ Cover Letter!

  Guest article by Jimmy Sweeney, Author of the new, Amazing Cover Letter Creator Want to draw attention to your cover letter? So much so that the hiring manager can’t put it down? Here ’s the secret. Meet the employer’s needs. Show him or her how you, the job seeker, can benefit his or her company––if you’re hired to [...]

• 
  The Young Professionals Blog

• New Pittsburgh job search resource-jobsearchinpittsburgh.com

  JobSearchingStrategies.com

  9 Feb 2010 | 5:50 am

  JobSearchinPittsburgh.com is a new resource for those searching for jobs in the Pittsburgh and surrounding areas. If you or someone you know is looking for a job in the Pittsburgh

• How to Do Your Taxes For Free, Even if You’re in High School

  The Financial Student

  9 Feb 2010 | 5:00 am

  If you held a job during 2009 and received a funny looking piece of paper in the mail called a “W2″, you might just be able to get some money back from Uncle Sam. All

• Personal Brands: Be Ready to Answer This

  Personal Branding Blog - Dan Schawbel

  9 Feb 2010 | 4:30 am

  In Sunday’s New York Times, the least likely person in American business is interviewed in the Corner Office column. She’s Susan Docherty, who “leads” General Motor’s

• Two FREE Covergirl Products via Text (2/10)

  Free Sample Freak

  9 Feb 2010 | 4:23 am

  You can grab two free product samples via text starting 2/10 from Covergirl. I am assuming that this starts at 12 am….so I’ll be trying to stay up late tonight and

• Sometimes Love Changes

  Ophelia's Webb

  9 Feb 2010 | 4:00 am

  Before I got married – way back at the tail end of the last century – people used to tell me that marriage takes work. I was sure I knew what they meant: Work to stay faithful,

• 
  10 Good Minutes

• Episode 50: Lori Mousseau, Campus Recruiting Manager, Ernst & Young

  10goodminutes@gmail.com

  8 Feb 2010 | 3:00 am

  Lori Mousseau discusses the key components that recruiters are looking for in the initial 10 seconds that they take to review a resume. To download this podcast, click here Lori begins with some factors that catch a recruiter’s eye in the 10-12 seconds they take to look over a resume: GPA, education, grammatical and spelling errors, versatility, and short and concise information. The GPA is very important to include on resume, because recruiters will assume the worst if it is not. Cumulative and major GPAs should be included, as well as an expected graduation date if you are still in…

• Episode 49: James Connolly, Product Line Manager, Nike

  10goodminutes@gmail.com

  1 Feb 2010 | 3:00 am

  James Connolly discusses interview tips and career advice that help young professionals “look beyond the obvious” and leverage their existing skills and abilities. To download this podcast, click here James explains that many young professionals struggle to distinguish between obvious observations and the insights that those observations provide. For example, Nike observed many Chinese basketball players playing outside, and this is what James calls an obvious observation. But, outdoor courts are very different in the way a shoe interacts with hardwood floors in comparison to concrete,…

• Episode 48: Jim Cassio, Author, Green Careers: Choosing Work for a Sustainable Future

  10goodminutes@gmail.com

  25 Jan 2010 | 3:00 am

  Jim Cassio describes what green careers are and walks listeners through some resources and opportunities. To download this podcast, click here Jim explains that green jobs refer to jobs that are good for the environment, but it is difficult to determine what exactly this constitutes. A green economy requires sustainability and a full understanding of what it takes to preserve and protect the environment. Green jobs can be even more competitive than others, and require significant education and training. One misconception is that green jobs are available to anyone who looks for them, but…

• Episode 47: Steve Rushmore, President and Founder, HVS

  10goodminutes@gmail.com

  18 Jan 2010 | 3:00 am

  Steve Rushmore discusses the importance of a cover letter and how it can make a difference in the application process. To download this podcast, click here Steve explains that cover letters are your introduction, and allow you to have a creative approach to quickly describe who you are and what you can do for the employer. Steve reads the first paragraph of every cover letter, but only about 5-10% of the cover letters interest him enough to finish. A bad cover letter focuses on what the company can do for the person rather than what the person can do for the company. Steve advises that it is…

• Episode 46: Debbie Marquardt, Marketing Director, Procter & Gamble Professional

  10goodminutes@gmail.com

  11 Jan 2010 | 3:00 am

  Debbie Marquardt provides listeners with interviewing advice and discusses how to display yourself as a good fit for a potential employer. To download this podcast, click here Debbie’s first pointer is that preparation is very important for success. You need to work before the interview to (1) identify what the company is looking for and who will be interviewing you, and (2) to search within yourself to know what you want to communicate about yourself to the interviewer. Think about what your strengths are and how you are you uniquely qualified for the job. There are also general…

• 
  Career Girls!

• What Would You do with a Million Dollars?

  Nicole Crimaldi

  8 Feb 2010 | 11:41 am

  Welcome to Ms. Career Girl’s shortest blog post ever.  I had some really interesting conversations this weekend that really got me thinking. I’m sure you’ll hear more about these soon.  Here’s one fragment for you to chew on for today. What would you do if you were given $1,000,000 right now? (Tax free, no strings attached) How would this money change your life?  Your career?  Would it change the types of people you date? Would you move?  Would you feel more confident? What’s the first thing you would buy? Would you give any away? Money is a really…

• The Senior Series: On Cover Letters, Cliches and Mistakes

  Nicole Crimaldi

  4 Feb 2010 | 5:59 am

  They are dreaded and mis-understood by most: cover letters. Do people actually read these things? How do you make yourself stand out? How do you position yourself correctly? What would a recruiter say? First read Rich DeMatteo’s answers to these common cover letter questions. Rich is a staffing and recruiting professional who also has is masters in Human Resources Development. He is the founder of an awesome blog you should subscribe to, cornonthejob.com. Do you think cover letters are a necessity? Any Tips? Cover letters are only necessary because every other job candidate is sending…

• One Strategy to Find Out What You Want to Do

  Nicole Crimaldi

  3 Feb 2010 | 4:54 am

  Yesterday I did 3 out of 5 resume reviews for the “Fab Five” who are part of The Senior Series. The resumes were great!  The students’ energy energizes me! One of the girls, Carey, had an excellent resume.  She goes to Georgetown, she has tons of awesome internship experience and her resume is well put together.  The only thing it lacked was focus.  She reminded me of myself. Many Young Professionals Don’t Know what they want to do Whether in terms of a full time job or an entrepreneurial venture, a majority of us are stuck.  There are SO many options out there,…

• Is Independence Your Motivation for Career Change?

  Nicole Crimaldi

  2 Feb 2010 | 5:45 am

  Happy Book Review Tuesday! Today is week 2 of talking about Alexandra Levit’s new book, “New Job, New You.“ What do you think is the biggest reason people want to change careers? Alexandra Levit found that it was independence. But this path isn’t as easy as it sounds. The SBA says that two-thirds of new businesses survive at least two years, but only 33% survive four years. Being an independent business owner is, in my opinion, in your DNA. Is Independence your Motivation for Change? Are you constantly thinking up ideas for new businesses, services, or products? Does…

• Monday Must-Reads: Career McNuggets

  Nicole Crimaldi

  31 Jan 2010 | 8:34 pm

  Possibly THE best blog post I’ve ever read. How Recruiters Read Resumes in 10 Seconds or Less What would you find out if you were eavesdropping on corporate recruiters? On Company Loyalty… considering leaving your company? Do a Sunday Night Gut Check. Simplifying Simplicity with Five Simple Questions. Tweet This! Share this on Facebook Share this on Linkedin Stumble upon something good? Share it on StumbleUpon Share this on del.icio.us Digg this! Share this on Reddit

• 
  Work/Life Fusion

• Cumulation

  9 Feb 2010 | 3:35 am

  You aren't what you do but what you do can make you happyI reckon this is especially true of work and careersDo you see a cloud, a collection of water droplets or an accumulation?[Image courtesy of d-wade on Flickr.com]Why leave it to the end of your career to explore...What I have doneWhat it adds up toCumulative ideasHow what I do makes me feelIt's never too late to look at your experiences but imagine just for a moment...What if I started right now...?All the best,Paul+++ work/life fusion: understanding an individual's values, talents and goals and applying them to the pursuit of personal…

• Hold that thought!

  4 Feb 2010 | 3:00 am

  Whatever it was,don't let it go just yet.Where would it take you,if you held it just a little longer.Once you let it go it might be hard to get back[Image courtesy of Jakob E on Flickr]What is it asking you to explore?Just WordsMoral Support for Your CareerWhat's stopping you?+++ work/life fusion: understanding an individual's values, talents and goals and applying them to the pursuit of personal success +++

• Just Words

  27 Jan 2010 | 2:55 am

  "When all looked sour beyond words, some delightful 'break' was apt to lurk just around the corner.” Amelia EarhartThis has definitely been true in my experience but they're just words right?Sometimes you need a lot more to keep going.When you have tried everything, done everything you can; in that moment it's hard to imagine words that can help.But these are more than just words.Simple expressions like this are living experience.Someone wants you to know what got them through.They're sharing what they have learned with you.In the hope that what worked for them might work for you too.That…

• Interview with Sara Lopez

  18 Jan 2010 | 9:30 am

  Once in a while I get to hear a new career story and share it with you on this blog. This is one of those whiles. I enjoyed talking to Sara so much - and she tells her story so well - that I'm even leaving in her plugs for her favourite brand of soymilk. You'll see why that's an important part of Sara's career story as you read on...Please tell us your name and where you come from?My name is Sara Lopez, but most people just call me Lopez. I was born in Miami, Florida but am hanging out in Ohio right now.What's your job and why do you like it so much?I’m not really sure what my official…

• Your Career in 2010

  13 Jan 2010 | 9:00 am

  The conversation here has always been about individual careers, that's been the intention at least.It may have taken a number of twists and turns but that's what happens when you're learning, so that makes it OK.There have been a few mistakes and dead ends along the way too. A big one always has the power to make you wince but even big mistakes count for something.On an exploration like this, every experience has the potential to lead somewhere.But a photographer might call it a career opportunity...[Image courtesy of martin cleary on Flickr]2009 was a big year of change for a lot of careers…

• 
  Rod Colon: CEO of ME, Inc.

• Reciprocity - Networking's Great Equalizer

  6 Feb 2010 | 9:18 am

  Reciprocity -Networking’s Great EqualizerBy Rick Frishman and Jill LublinNetworking Magic: ISBN: 1-59337-020-2 In life, we all try to get things from each other; that’s how the world works and has always worked. From ancient times, we have been a people who belonged to tribes and clannish groups. We built societies in which we lived, worked, and raised families together. In these societies, each

• Rod Colon’s Job Search & Networking School Tuesdays @ 8pm (EST) Conference Call

  5 Feb 2010 | 6:28 am

  One Time Registration Fee: $100.00 Includes the book Win The Race For 21st Century Jobs ** Limited Seating - Register NOW **Tel: 732.367.5580 Develop a bold new approach to finding a job and win the race for 21st century jobs. Corporations are consistently planning ahead developing new clients, however professionals seldom do.  The solution for each professional is to view their career as a

• The Power of Differentiation for the CEO of ME, Inc.

  4 Feb 2010 | 3:54 pm

  The Power of DifferentiationBy Rod ColónExcerpt: Win The Race For 21st Century Jobs: Put CEO Power Into Your Job Search And Your CareerClose on the heels of personal branding is the need to understand the marketing principle called differentiation. For now, think of it as “advanced branding.”When you’re in business (and you are), differentiation says that your product or service stands out

• Why Invest in a Coach? You Can Do It All On Your Own...Right?

  4 Feb 2010 | 8:20 am

  As The CEO of ME, Incorporated, Why Invest In A Coach? You Can Do It All On Your Own – Right?Can you really? Can you really look into the mirror and pick yourself apart…hmmm. A Coach can!A Coach has the magic which comes from a high level of training and breadth and depth of life experiences. They operate out of a unique blend of mentor (teacher), akin to a guide who knows the trails and

• The Goal For The CEO of ME, Inc.: Develop A Diverse Network

  2 Feb 2010 | 6:47 am

  Networking Diversity By Rick Frishman and Jill Lubin In building a network, create a multifaceted superstructure that includes contacts who possess a wide variety of skills, interests, and backgrounds. Fill your life with outstanding network members whose help can quickly be accessed so that their expertise will be available to you when you need it. Make your network diverse. Fill it with top

• 
  Blue Sky Resumes Blog

• What Posh Spice Knows About Starting a New Gig

  Louise

  13 Jan 2010 | 3:12 pm

  Before Tuesday night’s American Idol premiere, I knew precisely 3 things about Victoria Beckham (aka Posh Spice): 1) She used to be the in Spice Girls. 2) She’s married to David Beckham. 3) She’s a clueless and cold-hearted clothes hanger with no personality. I have no idea where I got that last one from because I have never paid the woman one iota of attention, but there it is, in my brain anyway. Or there it was until Tuesday night when she appeared as a guest judge on my favorite guilty pleasure TV show. And then a funny thing happened … I found I kind of liked…

• How to Resign With Class

  Louise

  12 Jan 2010 | 2:23 pm

  If you’ve been following the entertainment news over the last few days, you’ll know that NBC plans to deal with the failure of Jay Leno’s new show by giving him his old time slot back and pushing Conan O’ Brien’s Tonight Show back to after midnight. Not surprisingly, Conan isn’t happy with this. He’s been waiting to take over the Tonight Show for years - indeed, he had a contractual agreement with NBC to do that. And he apparently turned down offers over the years in order to inherit the famed Tonight Show. So now to have his show pushed back just to…

• It’s All in a Name … or Is It?

  Louise

  7 Jan 2010 | 2:21 pm

  I’m happy to be one of CareerRealism’s Twitter career experts. We answer job seeker questions in 140 characters or less, but today’s question seemed to call for a more detailed answer. Here it is: I am in job search mode, and have decided to take the opportunity to transition into another field. It is a role I have performed in the past but not titled. Advised by professionals/experts in the field, that it is feasible. However, although my targeted resume has gotten to the hiring managers, and even some interviews, I do not get offers because I lack experience. How do I find…

• How to Find a Job in Just 18 Minutes a Day

  Louise

  30 Dec 2009 | 5:46 am

  According to the US Department of Labor, the average job seeker spends 18 minutes a day looking for a new job. It would be great if I could fulfill the promise of my title and tell you how to succeed doing the same, but of course I can’t. Because 18 minutes a day IS NOT ENOUGH! Until I replaced my PC a few months ago, it took about that long for it to warm up in the morning! My hobby is drawing and I’m currently working on a still life done in colored pencils. I’ve spent more than 18 minutes on just one of the grapes! My big business project right now, as some of you know,…

• Advice to a Friend on Starting Her Business

  Louise

  22 Dec 2009 | 5:41 am

  I was emailing back and forth with a friend the other night who is starting up a small business. She was struggling with writing copy for her website and wanted to know what I thought. Seeing her agonize over the process reminded me of something a very wise ex-colleague said to me when I was getting to ready to launch my business. I had gone to him for an opinion on our business plan. He said: There are two things you need to know: 1) Everything will take longer and cost more than you originally think. 2) You will never get it right the first time, so you might as well just get started and…

• 
  Sweet Careers

• Free resume review service update

  Sweet - aka Grace Kutney

  7 Feb 2010 | 4:27 pm

  Due to health concerns related to my pregnancy, I have had to be hospitalized. As a result, I am unable to continue the resume and cover letter review service at this time. I sincerely apologise for the inconvenience that this causes any of you. Please know that I hope to eventually have the free service up and running at full capacity, with the addition of more services, later in 2010.

• Find Your Recruiter and Find Your Job Vol 4

  Sweet - aka Grace Kutney

  30 Jan 2010 | 11:11 am

  Guest Author: CareerAlleyWebsite: http://careeralley.com"All you need for happiness is a good gun, a good horse, and a good wife." - Daniel BooneSo what does a telescope and Daniel Boone have to do with Recruiters and job search? It's all about leaving the search to the experts and while you don't need to be Daniel Boone to find your next job, you should leverage the search experts to help you find your way. Many times (although not always), recruiters have job opportunities that have not been advertised (either in newspapers or on job boards). This is true not only for the high level…

• What Matters Now

  Sweet - aka Grace Kutney

  26 Jan 2010 | 6:31 pm

  Guest Author: Emily Bennington is the author of Effective Immediately: How to Fit In, Stand Out, and Move Up at Your First Real Job. She hosts a popular blog for career newbies at www.professionalstudio365.com and can be found on Twitter @EmilyBennington or via email at ebennington @ msn dot com.Inspired by Seth Godin’s recent e-book “What Matters Now”, I decided to give the topic some thought myself. What better time to ponder these questions than at the start of a new year, right? If I had been invited to participate in Seth’s book (I wasn’t), I would have written about something…

• The Top 10 Worst and Most Common Interview Mistakes

  Sweet - aka Grace Kutney

  19 Jan 2010 | 8:03 am

  Guest Author: Nikki Ruth, CV writer and founder of job interview coaching company My CV and Me. Nikki has over 10 years experience conducting job interview coaching and she is an active blogger.Website: My CV and MeA big part of a successful interview is avoiding simple mistakes. Below are some of the worst and most common interview mistakes that even the most intelligent graduates make and how you can avoid them.1. Not being prepared - If you really want the job, you need to do some homework. There’s no point in turning up on the day and crossing your fingers. You need to show the…

• The Seven Deadly Sins of the Job Search - Lusting After the Wrong Job

  Sweet - aka Grace Kutney

  12 Jan 2010 | 10:24 am

  Guest Author: © Copyright, 2009, Nicole Dukehart. All rights reserved. Used with Permission.Website: http://thejobawfultruth.wordpress.com/2009/10/08/the-job-awful-truths-the-7-deadly-sins-of-the-job-search/Your “dream” job is available, you’ve crafted a fantastic resume, sent it over to the proper contacts and now all that you hear are the crickets chirping! Could it be you are lusting after a a job you really want, but are not yet qualified for? How realistic is the focus you have on the position you are entertaining? Are you maybe a little overzealous about this new position, so…

• 
  Success Circuit

• Success at Any Age Is Great

  Shane Hudson

  8 Feb 2010 | 4:00 am

  This is a guest post by Paul Sabaj, a loyal reader of Success Circuit. He has previously written Goals and Success. I love reading the posts in Success Circuit and find the stories fun, inspiring and motivating. I also notice that the theme tends to run to the young at heart. I just wanted to remind people that success can come at any age as long as you’re willing. While I love reading of the person who is under thirty I am also impressed with those like Ben Franklin who did a lot of what he is famous for after the age of forty. Men like Ray Kroc of McDonald’s fame started at fifty two…

• Success Is NOT About Money

  Shane Hudson

  7 Feb 2010 | 1:03 pm

  How many times do I have to say it?! Success is not about money. Money is just a (albeit nice) bonus of Success. Why do I mention this? Well, Success Circuit is meant to be about helping you to define what success is, see other peoples success and reach your own. People have mentioned to me that I am straying from this subject. Well, that may be the case but I believe that all the posts are somehow linked… so shortly I shall be adding a section to each new post (and maybe the old ones) explaning how it relates to success. However, as I do value everybody’s opinion I will try to…

• Get Your Story Featured In A Book

  Shane Hudson

  4 Feb 2010 | 12:52 pm

  There are a lot of successful readers of Success Circuit and that is something I have always been proud of (and no, I am not talking about the big named “stars” that sometimes read Success Circuit, I am talking about YOU). However, today was the first time I realised that other people took notice of the other readers here at Success Circuit. I received an email from Scott Gerber a young entrepreneur columnist for Entrepreneur Magazine and founder of AskGerber.com which I believe is scheduled for launch during the Spring. The email had some information about AskGerber but what…

• Goals and Success

  Shane Hudson

  2 Feb 2010 | 10:34 am

  This is a guest post by Paul Sabaj, a loyal reader of Success Circuit. This is his first guest post on Success Circuit so please comment and let him know what you think! Hopefully we will have many more from him in the future. Goal setting has been around for a long time. When you look at some of the great minds they have all had a plan and set some goals with a time line to reach them by. Goals without time lines are just dreams. When you look through out history from the Bible, where it says,” Those without a vision will perish”, to today when Tony Robbins talks of goal setting. There…

• Interpreting Song Lyrics

  Shane Hudson

  18 Jan 2010 | 3:27 pm

  It is obvious, isn’t it, that all songs are written with meanings… that they are symbolic? Some songs do not hide any of the meanings, some do. But no matter what the song, it MEANS SOMETHING! Meaning is very important to me, why? Because at its essence is always a purpose, understanding or even just a simple question. If you are a parent then you have probably said (I know my parents used to say it all the time!) “Stop asking Why!”, during the early years of life most of us ask questions which are vital to our development… these could include questions about why…

• 
  Office Hero Headquarters

• A fast way to search within files

  6 Feb 2010 | 1:22 pm

  DocFetcher is a downloadable utility that searches for text within files. Read this review at MakeUseOf for more information. If you need a fast utility to search for file names--not text within files--then try Everything.

• How to fill out PDF forms that aren't interactive

  6 Feb 2010 | 12:58 pm

  FillAnyPDF.com is a ..."website where you upload your PDF form and link to it so other people can fill it out and sign it online. No software is needed. Any PDF form can be used, even if it's not 'interactive', so you can get started right away. You can even invite a group to fill out your forms and track the results."

• Here's what you need to create an invoice in a hurry

  3 Feb 2010 | 5:59 pm

  Maybe you're doing a one-time freelance project and need to submit an invoice for the work you did. Go to BillPDF to enter your billing information and then print it out as a nice formatted invoice. It will look like your accounting department handled this for you.

• A definite contender for best free screenshot software

  27 Jan 2010 | 5:40 am

  The developers of Screenpresso claim this free product takes the best from screen capture tools. Some of the features include the following:Store up to 100 screenshots sorted by dateSave screenshots in PNG, JPG, GIF, BMP formatsCapture entire screen, region, windowImage effects: drop shadows, borders, reflexion, color background Drawing tools: rectangle, ellipse, numbering, etc.

• Robert Rules of Order cheat sheet

  26 Jan 2010 | 5:39 am

  Attorney Jim Slaughter, a Certified Professional Parliamentarian and a Professional Registered Parliamentarian, provides a cheat sheet of the Robert's Rules of Order and of the Sturgis Parliamentary Procedures. Both are available in PDF format too. New and experienced board members may want to consider keeping a copy handy for their next board meeting.

• 
  LU Career Center to Go

• Career Book: Cover Letter Magic, 4th edition

  LU Career Center

  7 Feb 2010 | 2:04 pm

  Cover Letter Magic, 4th edition This book contains trade secrets of professional resume writers. Use simple, step-by-step techniques to make your cover letter stand out from the competition, create attractive and relevant electronic and printed cover letters, transform your cover letters from average to stunning, and learn the "nine types of cover letters" and which will work best for you. Book also includes 130 full cover letters and dozens of excerpts written by professional resume writers. Catalog Code:RE-Ge.3001

• New Book: The Overnight Resume

  LU Career Center

  7 Feb 2010 | 9:52 am

  The Overnight Resume Information you'll find in this book: *How to beat other jobseekers at 1,000 to 1 odds *How to launch a full-scale job search within 24 hours *How to access the hidden job market where the best jobs are *How to beat resume-sorting softward Catalog Code: Re-Ge.1008

• Career Event: Shine Light, More Light Conference

  LU Career Center

  2 Feb 2010 | 12:18 pm

  Date: Sunday, February 14 Time: 11:30 am - 3:00 pm Location: TBA Registration deadline: Feb. 8 - Register online here. Join dozens of extremely interesting, accomplished, wise and witty alumni and current faculty for valuable insight on life, careers, and the pursuit of happiness after Lawrence. Whether or not you know what direction you are headed, take advantage of this unique opportunity to learn from those who have gone before you. For more information, see: http://www.lawrence.edu/alumni/shine_light/invitation2.html

• WorkForce Career and Internship Fair

  LU Career Center

  2 Feb 2010 | 7:05 am

  Date: Thursday, February 18 Time: 4:00 - 8:00 pm Location: Marquette University (transportation will be provided) Deadline to sign up for the fair is Wednesday, Feb. 10 in the Career Center. Wisconsin's Premier Career and Internship Fair Since 1991, Wisconsin's 20 private and independent colleges have joined together to give employers a yearly opportunity to meet college students and recent graduates who are seeking internship and professional careers. Take advantage of this terrific opportunity to meet highly qualified candidates interested in you and your organization. For more information…

• Recruiter: Student Visit to Direct Supply

  LU Career Center

  1 Feb 2010 | 10:12 am

  Date: Thursday, February 11 (during reading period) Time: TBA Location: Direct Supply, Milwaukee, WI Transportation provided - sign up by Feb. 8 in Career Center "Direct Supply is a Milwaukee-based, innovative company devoted to the success of the senior care continuum. The Direct Supply umbrella now cares for every critical area of eldercare, providing everything from equipment and eCommerce to design, industry advocacy and more. Every day, in everything we do, our mission is to enhance the lives of millions of Americans in Long Term Care." For more information about Direct Supply career…

• 
  Sweet Careers

• Free resume review service update

  Sweet - aka Grace Kutney

  7 Feb 2010 | 4:27 pm

  Due to health concerns related to my pregnancy, I have had to be hospitalized. As a result, I am unable to continue the resume and cover letter review service at this time. I sincerely apologise for the inconvenience that this causes any of you. Please know that I hope to eventually have the free service up and running at full capacity, with the addition of more services, later in 2010.

• Find Your Recruiter and Find Your Job Vol 4

  Sweet - aka Grace Kutney

  30 Jan 2010 | 11:11 am

  Guest Author: CareerAlleyWebsite: http://careeralley.com"All you need for happiness is a good gun, a good horse, and a good wife." - Daniel BooneSo what does a telescope and Daniel Boone have to do with Recruiters and job search? It's all about leaving the search to the experts and while you don't need to be Daniel Boone to find your next job, you should leverage the search experts to help you find your way. Many times (although not always), recruiters have job opportunities that have not been advertised (either in newspapers or on job boards). This is true not only for the high level…

• What Matters Now

  Sweet - aka Grace Kutney

  26 Jan 2010 | 6:31 pm

  Guest Author: Emily Bennington is the author of Effective Immediately: How to Fit In, Stand Out, and Move Up at Your First Real Job. She hosts a popular blog for career newbies at www.professionalstudio365.com and can be found on Twitter @EmilyBennington or via email at ebennington @ msn dot com.Inspired by Seth Godin’s recent e-book “What Matters Now”, I decided to give the topic some thought myself. What better time to ponder these questions than at the start of a new year, right? If I had been invited to participate in Seth’s book (I wasn’t), I would have written about something…

• The Top 10 Worst and Most Common Interview Mistakes

  Sweet - aka Grace Kutney

  19 Jan 2010 | 8:03 am

  Guest Author: Nikki Ruth, CV writer and founder of job interview coaching company My CV and Me. Nikki has over 10 years experience conducting job interview coaching and she is an active blogger.Website: My CV and MeA big part of a successful interview is avoiding simple mistakes. Below are some of the worst and most common interview mistakes that even the most intelligent graduates make and how you can avoid them.1. Not being prepared - If you really want the job, you need to do some homework. There’s no point in turning up on the day and crossing your fingers. You need to show the…

• The Seven Deadly Sins of the Job Search - Lusting After the Wrong Job

  Sweet - aka Grace Kutney

  12 Jan 2010 | 10:24 am

  Guest Author: © Copyright, 2009, Nicole Dukehart. All rights reserved. Used with Permission.Website: http://thejobawfultruth.wordpress.com/2009/10/08/the-job-awful-truths-the-7-deadly-sins-of-the-job-search/Your “dream” job is available, you’ve crafted a fantastic resume, sent it over to the proper contacts and now all that you hear are the crickets chirping! Could it be you are lusting after a a job you really want, but are not yet qualified for? How realistic is the focus you have on the position you are entertaining? Are you maybe a little overzealous about this new position, so…

• 
  Dan Erwin on Brainpower

• Why Is Defense Secretary Gates So Successful? And What Can You Learn From That?

  Dan Erwin

  16 Feb 2010 | 3:00 am

  Robert Gates has been startlingly successful as Defense Secretary, yet the odds were that Republican Gates would not be successful in a Democratic cabinet.  Why has he been so successful?  What unique, transferable skills does he have that anyone can develop and use? Gates is an unusual professional in many ways.  He has been advising Presidents for 35 years: Ford, Carter, Reagan, Bush One, Bush Two and now Obama.  Significantly, he is the only member of Bush’s cabinet to be asked to stay on in the Obama cabinet.   I’ve encountered many analyses of his…

• Quotation of the Week: Matt Bai

  Dan Erwin

  5 Feb 2010 | 3:00 am

  Watching (Obama’s) party take a pounding is not the worst thing that could befall Obama politically.  In fact, you could argue that rather than shudder at the thought of a more balanced Congress, Obama and his aides should embrace it. --Matt Bai, from Tyranny of the Majorities, Sunday New York Times Magazine   Matt Bai has never been one to take the pundits too seriously.  Furthermore, when he goes against conventional wisdom, he’s always got a great argument and often right on.  He’s got a great argument in this article, and I hope he’s right. Bai suggests…

• Why Has Colin Powell Changed His Mind on Gays in the Military?

  Dan Erwin

  4 Feb 2010 | 10:02 am

  Just a week ago, pundits were criticizing Obama for his stance on gays in the military and quoting Colin Powell’s recommendation on "don't ask, don't tell" from 17 years ago.  This morning the Washington Post reported that yesterday Powell changed his mind and said that he thinks the “restrictive law” should be repealed. What caused Powell to change his mind?  The retired general ticked off three reasons for the change.  He commented that along with the generational change, came attitudinal change, and that society is increasingly…

• Initial Jobless Claims Climbed Unexpectedly

  Dan Erwin

  4 Feb 2010 | 8:59 am

  Last week’s figures from the department of labor indicate a slight increase in jobless claims.  Claims were up to 480,00 from last week’s 472,000. Business Week suggested that the figure indicates companies lack confidence that the economic recovery can be sustained. Since the unemployment figure is expected to remain at about 10% over the year, that will impact consumer buying as well as organizational hiring.  This will be a slooooowwww recovery. As I have indicated previously, initial jobless claims may be the best statistic on the recovery.  Again, here’s Mark…

• What My Grandson Learned About Lying

  Dan Erwin

  4 Feb 2010 | 4:40 am

  This past summer my thirteen-year-old grandson, Evan, brought a stack of books to the family’s summer lake place, outside of Nisswa, Minnesota.  He had applied to several Massachusetts schools and was thrilled to be admitted to his first choice.  The books were to be read before school started, so they came with him.  Typically, if a family member has a book or two with him/her, I've got to see what it's all about.  This was a fascinating stack of books.  And to think, he was just going on fourteen!  WOW!  I was ready to be a kid…

• 
  8hours.com blog

• Apple IPAD and Hitler’s response

  Tim

  28 Jan 2010 | 10:24 am

  Before I dwell into Hitlers parody of Apple’s Ipad, there has been a cult following for the movie Downfall(German: Der Untergang).   The movie was released in 2004 and depicts the final days of Adolf  Hitler in his bunker. The movie was a nominee for the Academy Award in the best foreign film category.  Now for the [...]

• Happy New year

  V

  1 Jan 2010 | 2:32 am

  Wishing our readers, viewers, advertisers, contributors and everyone who helped increase our audience 1000% in 2009 a very very Happy New Year.

• Millions Lose COBRA subsidies today.

  V

  1 Dec 2009 | 12:12 pm

  Millions of laid off workers will lose their COBRA subsidies today. The subsidies that ran out today were provided to workers starting in March 2009, for nine months, and paid 65% of a person’s health insurance. COBRA subsidies will continue for people who started after March for a period of nine months. Anybody who signs [...]

• What Google knows about you

  Tim

  25 Nov 2009 | 2:06 pm

  Ever wonder what Google knows about you ?  Now there is an easy way to find out.  Google just released a tool called the Dashboard Privacy tool. Essentially it is a collection of everything that you do on Google in one place. Most of us can probably recall what we did … but logging into [...]

• “Real” Unemployment rate: 17.5%

  Tim

  19 Nov 2009 | 9:08 pm

  There was a story on  CNBC today that the “real” unemployment was 17.5%. That is nearly one in 5 Americans that are out of jobs. Scary joke …but i thought we are already past Halloween. Curious … I dug around to see where this number came from and if there is any merit to it. [...]

• 
  talent revolution

• I've Gotta Feeling That Today's Gonna Be a Good Day!

  Amanda Hite

  Ever since Bill aka @culturedude and Susan @culturebabe brought this video to my attention I've been playing it to launch every session I do and sometimes just to start or energize my day.It reminds me of a concept Kathleen Wood, who provides growth strategies to Leaders and Businesses has been working with us on called "The Power of One." To learn more about "The Power of One" visit Kathleen's blog here.

• Do you have an exit strategy for your inner critic?

  susan fawcett

  I don’t have to meet your inner critic…I have my own. I’d offer to share him with you, but something tells me you aren't going to take me up on my offer. Just as well, because I've put mine on notice. It was a tough conversation actually.When I told him that his position was being eliminated, he was silent…which is not at all like him. He’s usually not at a loss for words…in fact, quite the opposite...he hardly ever stops talking and has no problem talking over me. But he was unusually quiet. I reminded him that we had talked about this numerous times and that this shouldn't have…

• Bourbon & Branch

  Chris Reed

  Sometimes, a little journey into the past helps us see the present. Enter, San Francisco. Late last night, @sexythinker and I returned home after two days in that amazing city. The topic that made the trip possible was, of course, Social Media. However, one stop we made has helped solidify some of my thoughts for those who are beginning to enter the Social web. Bourbon & Branch, a self-described “glimpse back on the 1920s and the era of Prohibition,” was that one stop. To keep my description of Bourbon & Branch brief and not-so-eloquent, let me just say that it’s a very cool…

• Kirk Wins Illinois Republican Primary

  Gerard Bean

  boots the chemist shopping In the first midterm election of the year, with the U.S. Senate seat once occupied by President Barack Obama up for grabs, voters sent a moderate five-term congressman from a wealthy suburb to face off against a 33-year-old state Treasurer who used to play basketball with the president. Mark Kirk, the Republican congressman, won his primary by nearly 40 percentage points, according to the Associated Press. His Democratic opponent, Alexi Giannoulias, beat former Chicago Inspector David Hoffman–a relative unknown–by five percentage points. The election comes less…

• FOOD FOR THOUGHT - IS FAILURE A FORM OF SUCCESS?!

  Allen Kimmitt

  What is failure? What is success? Is success when you have achieved your goal and reached the end of your journey; or is it the systematic process of reaching that destination? If it is a systematic process there are moments where we will not achieve our intermittent goals as we designed. There may even come a point when achieving the end result is in doubt. So we stop pursing our original goal and change course. What if the new course takes us to places we didn’t plan on, delivering achievements that satisfy our sense of accomplishment and worth? Does this equate to success? Let’s assume…

• 
  The Creative Career

• Speaking at Chicago PR: Get in the Loop

  Allie Osmar

  4 Feb 2010 | 9:28 am

  I’ll be speaking next Friday, February 12 at Chicago PR: Get in the Loop, presented by PRSSA of DePaul University. If you’re planning to attend, swing by and say hello. I love to meet students and help out where I can—whether that’s lending advice from my own experiences, connecting students to people who may be able to help them in their careers or passing on a resume to some of the agencies in Chicago. See you there! ShareThis

• On Company Loyalty

  Allie Osmar

  26 Jan 2010 | 12:22 pm

  Here’s something I’ve been meaning to write about for some time, in part because it’s something that I’ve dealt with personally. I remember having a serious conversation with my friend, Kevin, the summer we both started PR internships in Chicago. We talked about the industry’s turnover rate (about 17.5% in the Midwest at the time—employees are often motivated to make the shift for larger salaries, a better fit in corporate culture or new locations), and we discussed our goals to break that mold and have a solid stay within a single agency. Alas, while Kevin has…

• Untemplater Founders, Jun Loayza and Monica O’Brien

  Allie Osmar

  11 Jan 2010 | 7:15 am

  Monica O’Brien blogs at Social Pollination, and she recently wrote a book by the same name. She currently does marketing consulting for small companies. Jun Loayza is the cofounder and chief marketing officer or Viraology and president of socialmediamarketing.com. You can find him at junloayza.com. Untemlater started after Jun wrote a blog post called Tell me the truth: Can Gen Y Team Up? The post was a call to action to bring individually successful people together to see what they could do together. Untemplater is now a company with six founders covering topics around six basic…

• New Job, New You – An Interview With Author Alexandra Levit

  Allie Osmar

  4 Jan 2010 | 11:50 am

  back in 2008. She’s back again to talk about her latest book, New Job, New You: A Guide to Reinventing Yourself in a Bright New Career. The book features stories from real people who have reinvented their own careers. Find out more about Alexandra Levit at alexandralevit.com, and read more about her new book at newjobnewyou.com. SHOW NOTES There are seven motivators that may lead you to seek a new career: Family Independence Learning Money Passion Setback Talent A few of the questions that we covered: How do I overcome the fear of making a big change? Where do I start? What are the…

• Self-Promotion for Introverts – an Interview with Nancy Ancowitz

  Allie Osmar

  23 Nov 2009 | 9:03 pm

  “In many cases, and especially as you get up the ladder in the work world, you really often can’t tell an introvert from an extrovert—because many introverts who are far along in their careers have developed certain social skills, have developed public speaking skills, and you really can’t tell us apart.” —Nancy Ancowitz Nancy Ancowitz is a business communications coach and author of Self-Promotion for Introverts: The Quiet Guide to Getting Ahead. She spent twelve years on Wall Street as a marketing head for major financial firms. While there, she took a…

• 
  The Insider's Interview Blog

• Feb 9, Retail Job Interview Questions and Answers Guide

  8 Feb 2010 | 8:53 pm

  Prepare for retail job interview questions using these interview answer guidelines and advice. Know what to expect in your retail job interview and be ready for success.

• Feb 4, About Phone Interviews

  4 Feb 2010 | 5:43 am

  Phone interviews are the all important first step in the hiring process. You need to plan and prepare for them carefully. Know what to expect in the phone interview and handle it like a professional.

• Feb 1, Pre Interview Checklist

  1 Feb 2010 | 7:26 am

  Use this interview checklist to make sure you have everything you need for your job interview. Be well prepared and stand out as the most confident and professional job candidate.

• Jan 29, Interview Clothing in a Recession

  29 Jan 2010 | 12:42 am

  Current interview clothing. It can be tricky to know what to wear to your job interview in a recession. Follow this advice from the professionals and make the right impression in your interview.

• Jan 23, Top Interview Questions and Interview Answers

  22 Jan 2010 | 10:50 pm

  Know the top interview questions you will be asked in your job interview. Prepare excellent responses using the sample interview answers as your guide.

• 
  The Hiring Site

• We Ask, You Win: Share Your Biggest 2010 Recruitment Challenge and How You Plan to Navigate It – and You May Win a Garmin!

  Mary Lorenz

  5 Feb 2010 | 1:00 pm

  How are you navigating your biggest recruitment challenge this year? Share with us for the chance to win a Garmin GPS Navigator! (See what we did there?) With a new year comes new hope for improved economic conditions, but it also often comes with new challenges – as evidenced by CareerBuilder’s recent survey about the staffing challenges employers anticipate having this year.  Among the challenges mentioned are the ability to provide competitive compensation, maintain productivity levels, and retain top talent. (Any of this sound familiar?)  In light of these results – and in an…

• Employment News for the Week of February 5

  Mary Lorenz

  5 Feb 2010 | 9:25 am

  While you were busy trying to stake your claim on the phrase “Who Dat,” (prematurely?) accepting a scholarship to USC, or matching wits with Bill O’Reilly, here’s what was happening in the world of hiring and recruiting this week… How (not?) to resign in 140 characters or less New series finds out what happens when CEOs stop being polite and start being real step into their employees’ shoes Thanks to this, employees can now take justice into their own hands.   You might be a productivity killer (and not even know it).   Teamwork: 1, Talent: 0 Wellness benefits take a…

• Employers Who Say “Yes, and…” to Improv Comedy Gain Serious Benefits

  Mary Lorenz

  4 Feb 2010 | 7:13 am

  Oh, Patti Stanger, once again, your wisdom has unwittingly transferred over to the world of recruitment and talent management…I’m referring of course to TV’s Millionaire Matchmaker, who I’ve once likened to a talent recruiter in how she is often challenged with finding a happy medium between giving her clients what they want and what they need – even when the two don’t always align. In Tuesday night’s episode, however, Patti exhibited the qualities of a manager who understands the value in providing opportunities for employees to develop the skills that will not only help them…

• Six in Ten Workers Laid Off in Last Year Have Found New Jobs, According to CareerBuilder Survey

  Amy Chulik

  3 Feb 2010 | 2:13 pm

  Resilience is not only found among the Oceanic 815 survivors of “LOST” — who returned to TV last night after five seasons of battling hostile island dwellers, a mysterious smoke monster, and the bounds of space and time  — but in taking a look at CareerBuilder’s updated survey among more than U.S. workers, it’s also evident among many workers who have been laid off in the last 12 months. Although Bureau of Labor Statistics job loss numbers could be in the negative range for January, unemployed Americans continue to be steadfast in their job searches, and,…

• Productivity, Compensation, and Retention Top the List of Employers’ Staffing Challenges, Says New CareerBuilder Survey

  Amy Chulik

  1 Feb 2010 | 1:09 pm

  Amid news of strides toward economic recovery and growth in 2010, organizations are still facing a myriad of staffing challenges this year, according to a new CareerBuilder survey conducted in November 2009 among more than 2,700 employers. Employers listed a number of factors with which they are struggling — covering everything from handling worker burnout to strengthening their employment brand. In looking at employers’ responses, it’s also evident that many of these challenges are interconnected. What are survey respondents’ top five staffing concerns? 1. Providing…

• 
  Career Adventure

• Making Lemonade: Must-see stories of liberation after layoff

  Kristi

  4 Feb 2010 | 6:15 am

  Laid off, I was standing on a little tiny platform waaaay up in the sky. Looking ahead, I saw this wide, beautiful expanse of opportunity. East, west, north — all blue sky and cloudy landscape. Idyllic. But unlike in past job searches, I didn’t feel like I had the momentum that I once had. When I turned around on that platform, the space behind me was just as empty. And let’s not mention looking down. Because gee, that’s a flipping long way to fall. So when I ran across this fantastic video, I saw myself. If you’ve been laid off, you may see you too. And if you…

• Book Review: New Job, New You – Alexandra Levit

  Kristi

  3 Feb 2010 | 5:17 am

  Alexandra Levit started her career as so many new grads do with a pretty simple decision: she chose PR because she liked the communications classes she took in school, and for its lifestyle — good salary, big city location. But she didn’t stay there. Levit leverages her experience in creating her own success story for her new book, New Job, New You: A Guide to Reinventing Yourself in a Bright New Career. New Job, New You tackles the thorny issue of transitioning to a new career from all sides, and is a comprehensive guide to the entire process, from examining why a career change…

• Changing Careers: Interpreting Career Trends in 2010

  Kristi

  1 Feb 2010 | 4:46 am

  A great career choice today may not be the best choice a few years from now. There are hundreds of factors that affect your employability, many of which are linked to the job market. By keeping an eye on the trends in the marketplace, you can be ready to respond as factors are changing, and proactively manage your career for long term success. Here are three types of trends to keep an eye on, to keep you moving forward around obstacles and over speed bumps. Employment Trends The Occupational Outlook Handbook is compiled by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, and is comprised of hundreds of…

• When a resume just won’t do: Writing your CV

  Kristi

  27 Jan 2010 | 4:43 am

  Your standard resume may not cut it. Professors and other educators, researchers, scientists, and those applying for jobs in Europe and Asia may need to use a Curriculum Vitae (also called CV or Vita) to make the right impression. CVs are not-so-subtly different than resumes. Although brevity and strong language is still of value, a CV may stretch over ten or more pages. The CV also places a much greater emphasis on education, which appears at the top of the document and goes into great detail about the focus of your studies, awards, honors and distinctions. If you’re not sure if a…

• Keep Learning for Free: iTunes U

  Kristi

  26 Jan 2010 | 12:43 pm

  When was the last time you attended a really great seminar? The kind that left you thinking, wondering, researching? Making plans and to-do lists? When was the last time you had time? Here’s your chance to kick start your education – iTunes U. iTunes U is a subsection of the iTunes platform that specializes in bringing you free lectures, classes, discussions and seminars by audio (sometimes video). Not sure where to start? Check out listings by category — math, medicine, literature, engineering. Today, on the home page, “For the Love of Wisdom” features a number…

• 
  Flex Jobs

• Temporary Post Used For Theme Detection (f56c2460-50d1-4833-8e9b-09c28dc4439a – 3bfe001a-32de-4114-a6b4-4005b770f6d7)

  admin

  8 Feb 2010 | 9:26 pm

  This is a temporary post that was not deleted. Please delete this manually. (a02758c9-68f6-42b0-b1ad-0e8e1db5a69f – 3bfe001a-32de-4114-a6b4-4005b770f6d7) [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

• Technology Manager, Knowledge Horizon E-Learning Pvt Ltd, Pune, India.

  admin

  1 Feb 2010 | 9:41 pm

  Knowledge Horizon is a multi-national organisation that promotes excellence in all aspects related to training and e-learning. We offer a wide range of products in the e-learning domain including... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

• Expert UI Developer/Flash Programmer, Sony, San Diego.

  admin

  29 Jan 2010 | 8:03 pm

  Sony Online Entertainment LLC (SOE) is a recognized worldwide leader in massively multiplayer online games which have entertained millions of players around the globe. SOE creates and delivers... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

• Flash Designer/Programmer, Creaa Designs, Mumbai.

  admin

  18 Dec 2009 | 6:29 am

  We at Creaa Designs are a highly skilled team with extensive experience in the Indian web design industry. Our mission is to help our clients create a compelling web presence through high quality... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

• Senior Software Engineer, GlobalEnglish, Chennai

  admin

  10 Dec 2009 | 8:36 pm

  GlobalEnglish is an international company with a global perspective and workforce. We’re diverse, both culturally and geographically, but we share a common passion for innovation, technology,... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

• 
  Career Management Alliance Blog

• Wherever. Whatever.

  Threshold Consulting

  8 Feb 2010 | 7:17 am

  For years, it’s been said that the only constant is change, an idea that goes way back to Greek philosopher Heraclitus. And while it may be true that change is always with us, there is a truer idea that has even more relevance to our lives and careers: “No matter where you go, there you are.” The title of a mediation book by Jon Kabat-Zinn, and variously used and attributed as a quote, this idea came to mind, today, as I watched this great video, by William Arruda at personalbranding.TV. Why Personal Branding? from William Arruda on Vimeo. Sure, the opening seconds highlight the…

• Job Seeker Frustrations, Make yourself Accessable

  Chesapeake Resume Writing Service

  8 Feb 2010 | 6:35 am

  I know that another think that frustrates job seekers is the lack of response they receive from HR. I recently encountered a situation with a client that can and will prevent potential employers from contacting you. She had an automated spam blocker and response section on her e-mail. The problem was that the ISP she was using for e-mail did not make the spam blocker user-friendly. I had to input it my information multiple times over the course of a week. Be advised, employers will not be nearly as patient and will move on to the next candidate. Make yourself accessible. You may say, we’ll…

• Cover Letter Distinguishes Job-seeker

  Quintessential Resumes and Cover Letters

  8 Feb 2010 | 6:25 am

  At a time when social media is becoming an increasingly important part of the job search, some observers are downplaying the role of the cover letter. While it’s true that some hiring decision-makers don’t value cover letters, others find them vitally important. Lynn Franklyn, HR manager for Wegmans Food Markets, was recently quoted in Fortune on cover letters: I usually go right for the cover letter, because resumes are all very similar. I look for a candidate to engage me and to really get a glimpse of who that person is. What do they know about the organization? Can they clearly define…

• Keeping Resume Confidential

  The Career Doctor Blog

  8 Feb 2010 | 4:00 am

  Anonymous writes: I don’t think its smart to have my resume for all to review, how I can I post my resume and keep it confidential? The Career Doctor responds: There certainly is validity to wanting to be discreet about job-hunting when you are currently employed — you wouldn’t want your current employer to do a search for a position and get your resume from one of these job sites. The good news is that many job boards now offer you a confidentiality option — thus your resume is still out there getting viewed, but you control who actually knows it is your resume. There are a few other…

• What a Touching Influence

  groundededge

  8 Feb 2010 | 12:00 am

  As I shared with my job search group, I have been looking for jobs, for now on 13 years.  That is a lot of phone calls, a lot of emails and a lot of touchpoints with my clients. Being self-employed is closer to unemployed, I guess that is why I have a natural connection with the job seeker that is seeking a solution.  How can you not want to help someone that is genuinely looking for a new gig, that is really looking for a solution?  This is my threat to the employed out there – an unemployed friend or former colleague calls you – give them a minute will you?  Listen. …

• 
  MPLOYR Blog

• 800 teachers receive possible layoff notices after deficit forecast

  Eugene Gregorio

  20 Jan 2010 | 1:34 pm

  Warning letters were sent to 800 teachers yesterday by the Vancouver School Board to notify them of possible layoffs for the following school year. This comes after the VSB forecast a deficit that could be as high as $36.3 million. David Weir, communications manager for the VSB, said the 800 letters serve to “cast a wide net” for any worst-case scenarios. A final decision on cuts will be made in April, following the funding envelope the VSB receives from the B.C. government in mid-March. Are you getting laid-off work? If you are looking for a way to earn extra income from home on a full…

• Funny ways to get fired

  Philippe Desrochers

  6 Jan 2010 | 3:25 pm

  Feel like your career is on life support? You are not alone. There is a cure. “Can you please tell me some funny stories about how people have gotten fired?” I was actually asked this question. I have great stories but none of them compare to these. Here are ten stories courtesy of Jack Knight at FreelanceSwitch.com. - Grab a portable boombox and loudly play Eye of the Tiger as you walk around the building. When you get to the conference room where your boss is having one of his meetings, jump on the table and proceed to dance erotically. When the song ends, flip off your boss,…

• 29 Secrets to Creating Wealth in Tough Times According to King Solomon

  Eugene Gregorio

  20 Dec 2009 | 11:15 am

  Creating wealth is something that is hardly imagined especially in tough times, but evidence has shown that there are those who thrive no matter what the economic conditions are, by discovering opportunities and having the courage to take action in spite of their fears. Then there are those who become paralysed and take on a victim mentality. The wisest King who ever lived, King Solomon provides us with solid timely tested secrets on how to Create Wealth In Tough Times. These secrets have been used by millionaires and billionaires to create wealth. Below is a summary of few of the twenty nine…

• Two sure-fire ways to stand out

  Philippe Desrochers

  24 Aug 2009 | 12:39 pm

  “How do I differentiate myself from the competition in an interview?” This is one of the most popular questions that I receive. There is a way to stand miles above your competition. It is very simple but takes some work. Pay close attention. 1Sweet Spot: Landing your coveted position requires that you meet the requirements of the job posting. This is a no brainer. But most people forget to talk about passion. I never understand why companies do not require passion as a requirement for a position. I figure it’s because so few have it. In fact, a recent Gallup pole showed that…

• Top books that will shape your career

  Philippe Desrochers

  17 Aug 2009 | 12:41 pm

  Q: Can you recommend any books that would help in my career? A: Here is a list of the best books I have ever read that will help you advance in your career. Figure Out What You Want Way of the Peaceful Warrior by Dan Millman. You no longer have to struggle in your life. This book will teach you how to listen to your intuition … that peaceful voice that knows what is right for you. This read will inspire you to forge ahead on your own path and no longer be influenced by society. The Celestine Prophecy by James Redfield. By paying attention to the coincidences in your life you will access…

• 
  A. Harrison Barnes

• Choose Your Frames of Reference Wisely

  Harrison Barnes

  8 Feb 2010 | 10:09 pm

  I spent the summer following my first year of law school working at the Department of Justice (the “DOJ”) in Washington, DC. The entire summer and the events leading up to it resulted in one of the strangest experiences I have ever had. After I got the job with the DOJ, I was required to undergo a security clearance with the Federal Bureau of Investigation. After contacting and questioning many people I knew in the past, the FBI also required me to take a physical and a drug test. In late spring, I went in for the physical when I was studying for my final exams. It was like…

• The Importance of Disconnecting from Your Work

  Harrison Barnes

  8 Feb 2010 | 12:27 am

  Some of the happiest, most well adjusted, and most effective people I know are also people who have a profound ability to disconnect from their work.  They can disconnect rapidly and put themselves in another state of mind which does not involve work.  People who come to mind include Richard Branson, who set records in balloons, captains of industry who leisurely golf their days away, men in bars who slap each others’ backs while drinking martinis and making deals, or CEO’s of companies in their early 60s who run marathons. One of the most important things you can do for…

• A Textbook of Theosophy

  Harrison Barnes

  6 Feb 2010 | 9:20 pm

  ‘A Textbook of Theosophy’ first published in 1912 and among C.W. Leadbeater’s most famous works, describes in a lucid manner the evolution of life, man, the planet and our prime purpose here. Considered as one of the greatest occultists of the 20th Century, Leadbeater guides the reader thorough the challenging path of Theosophy. The book contains a strong message and can benefit you immensely. –Harrison A TEXTBOOK OF THEOSOPHY By C. W. LEADBEATER TABLE OF CONTENTS Chapter I: What Theosophy Is Chapter II: From The Absolute To Man Chapter III: The Formation of a Solar System…

• If You Want to Earn More, You Need to Be Worth More

  Harrison Barnes

  5 Feb 2010 | 11:07 pm

  Your financial requirements and what you would like to earn have nothing to do with what you are worth in the market.  In running my various organizations, I have hired superstars from the very best universities with the very best work histories who ended up contributing next to nothing to the organization.  I have also hired people who started out making close to minimum wage, and whose contributions were so great their salaries doubled, and in some cases even quadrupled.  Several years ago, the contribution of one of our departments, which was then around 10 people, was so great I…

• Learn from Every Experience You Have Ever Had

  Harrison Barnes

  5 Feb 2010 | 1:50 am

  One of the greatest things you can do for yourself is to learn from every single experience you have ever had.  Each and every day you are having experiences, and you choose what to do with them.  The wisest people are the ones who see every experience as an opportunity to learn.  Smart people can transform even the smallest experiences into lessons that drive them to become better at everything they undertake in the future.  You, too, can learn from your experiences and, in so doing, benefit tremendously. In every experience, there are things that did and did not work for you. Your…

• 
  Resume Writing Help by Creating Prints

• The Resume as Part of Your Social Media Job Search Campaign

  Rosa Elizabeth Vargas

  20 Jan 2010 | 10:50 pm

  The resume still has its place in this web 2.0 craze. In fact, it is an even more vital tool. Wether your job search campaing includes social networking sites, blogs, wikis, an online portfolio, your web personna is dependendant on what you write down on that resume.

• Spruce Up Your Resume in 30 Minutes or Less

  Rosa Elizabeth Vargas

  20 Jan 2010 | 11:30 am

  How would you feel if you had a nicely polished resume that projects and elevates your level of professionalism? More confident? I bet! Crafting a dynamic resume that is also a great selling tool takes more than 30 minutes. Yet, with the following quick and easy visual and marketing ‘style over’ tips, you Will begin to distinguish yourself from the job search mob.

• Know Your Value: Don't Undersell Yourself on Your Resume

  Rosa Elizabeth Vargas

  12 Jan 2010 | 10:39 pm

  So what is the formula to writing a resume that shouts value? You need to identify the impact of what you do day in and day out. Compare your performance to that of others who don’t meet or exceed expectations. Look at your job from the employer’s perspective and not yours!

• Resources for Job Seekers for 2010

  Rosa Elizabeth Vargas

  31 Dec 2009 | 5:19 pm

  There is no denying that this year has been extremely difficult for many of us. Many people have been out of work and many still looking for work. However, I’d like to advise you to take some time today and over the next few days to especially focus on what you do have! Often times when we are challenged financially, we realize that the true treasures in life we already have -- our families and friends.

• A Resume Critique You Can Benefit From

  Rosa Elizabeth Vargas

  15 Dec 2009 | 11:43 pm

  See how another job seeker received resume feedback via a resume critique. See if you can adapt these tips and improve your own resume.

• 
  JOBCIRCLE.COM - CIRCLEBLOG

• Tweeters Beware! Is Your P***word Safe?

  Matt Shelly

  8 Feb 2010 | 7:56 am

  By Todd Bavol, The Job Search Ninja. CEO, Integrity Career Transitions Reports are literally coming out as we speak about a file-sharing scam involving Twitter which I thought my job-hunting friends might want to know about. According to a report just out, Twitter has discovered a number of rogue file-sharing sites set up purposely to skim usernames and passwords. The torrent sites in question, which are usually used to download music, films and television programmes, have been used to steal the e-mail addresses and login information of users and Twitter has become one of their targets. While…

• Stop Procrastinating…No, Now! Not Later!

  Matt Shelly

  5 Feb 2010 | 6:31 am

  By Todd Bavol, The Job Search Ninja. CEO, Integrity Career Transitions We’ve all heard the old saying ‘procrastination is the thief of time’, and boy whoever first came out with it certainly wasn’t wrong. Procrastination doesn’t only eat away the minutes and the hours, but the weeks, the months and the years. Before we know what’s hit us, a whole lifetime has passed and we’re still saying ‘I’ll do it tomorrow.’ I can’t quite make out whether some people are just born procrastinators or if it’s something they pick up from others when they’re young or just learn for…

• Unemployed? That’s No Excuse For Not Improving Your Skills!

  Matt Shelly

  3 Feb 2010 | 6:46 am

  By Todd Bavol, The Job Search Ninja. CEO, Integrity Career Transitions Having talked a couple of days ago about the benefits of updating existing skills and learning new ones while you are in employment, I got to thinking about the kinds of things that the unemployed can do to improve their chances of getting back into and remaining in the workplace. Of course, any devoted but unemployed job seeker will already be spending much of his or her time in trying to track down those often elusive job opportunities. There are, however, other things that they can be doing alongside this which will…

• What’s So Great About Learning New Skills…And Updating Your Existing Ones?

  Matt Shelly

  1 Feb 2010 | 11:52 am

  By Todd Bavol, The Job Search Ninja. CEO, Integrity Career Transitions You don’t have to listen too hard or for too long to anybody in the careers field before you’ll hear them talk about the importance of learning new skills and keeping your existing ones up-to-date. Why do we make such a big deal about it? Lots of reasons… First of all, why do businesses employ people? Basically, it’s to help them solve problems. Okay, that’s fair enough, but how are you going to do that effectively if your skills are out-of-date? The solutions that you come up with are likely to be entirely…

• Jobs Gone Wild! Career Fair Draws Over 6,300 Jobseekers

  Marisa Cogan

  29 Jan 2010 | 12:07 pm

  Yesterday we hosted one of the largest job fairs that Philadelphia has seen in quite a while. Over 6,300 jobseekers descended upon the Wachovia Center, most of them before the event even began. If you were watching Fox 29 yesterday (our partner for this event), you may have seen coverage of the event, and the aerial shot of the huge line that formed outside and rolled all the way to the Spectrum next door. Jobseeker after jobseeker entered the event, all with their own story and all looking for a break in their job search. Over 55 companies attended the event, including our sponsors:…

• 
  Girl on the Brink: Surviving Desperate Times with Desperate Measures

• Day 248 — Snow Days for Ann

  gotb

  7 Feb 2010 | 9:00 pm

  We got 30 inches this weekend! On a normal weekend, I usually get about 8. Before the big snowstorm hit Friday evening, I got to go home early from work. I enjoyed sipping a glass of wine and watching all the fluffy frosty flakes fall from the sky. The next morning, I felt like Alice in Winterland—Jack Frost nipping at my toes and a whole lot more. I wanted to make snow angels. Then, I looked outside. Horrors to find so much snow covering the walkway, sidewalk and my ex husband’s new used car. I shoveled for a good long while before I realized I needed a different strategy. Then,…

• Day 257 — Snow Me

  gotb

  5 Feb 2010 | 4:58 am

  When confronted with a humongous snow storm, it forces me to cogitate. That’s because snow presents serious questions. The bigger the snowstorm, the more serious the questions. There are job-related questions: Will my office close? Will I get to leave early? Should I work like crazy and get as much work done as possible, or should I take it home? I see parallels between that last question and my dating life. Should I go out tonight and get as much sex in as possible, or should I cancel and wait for another opportunity? I can’t take sex home because I’m trapped in my house with my ex…

• Day 256 — Double Job Fun

  gotb

  3 Feb 2010 | 3:11 am

  For some girls, one guy is never enough. For Ann, one job is never enough. Yes, Ann is looking for extra work. While she’s thrilled to be taken off the unemployment roll, she’s got one little problem. Ann is making $20,000 less than in her last full-time job. That’s a significant drop in wages, given that her cost of living keeps rising. How to plug the income drain guides Ann to explore quick employment opportunities. You might say she’s in an “I-don’t-know-if-I’ll-go-through-with-it phase,” but she’s applied for [fill in the blank]. Let…

• Day 255 — Work Pleasures

  gotb

  1 Feb 2010 | 3:52 am

  Click on the picture for some snow pleasure. Now that I got a full-time job, I can’t wait to get to work, even on the weekend. No matter! You make out of life with whatever it presents you. This weekend, good old Mother Nature presented me with snow. Not a lot but enough to sculpt visions of a better tomorrow and maybe evening (wink, wink). As you can see, I got to work right away. As my boyfriend likes to say, “Time is money.” I agree, from the top of my thigh highs to the bottom of my butt cheeks. [All this unemployment stuff has left me without underwear, but I haven't…

• Day 251 — Ann Gets a Job!

  gotb

  28 Jan 2010 | 9:00 pm

  I start my new job today, after 15 months of being unemployed–the longest spell of not working, except for the time-out I took to have kids. All I can say to the employers who passed me up or never gave me the time of a phone call, here’s what you’re missing. That’s what I looked like when I celebrated my job offer. I look much more like a schoolmarm in the office. In my new job, I’m an editor for an educational publishing company. Lots of instructional design stuff, with a dynamic international component. A small company (under 100 employees) but one that…

• 
  CareerGuide101.com

• How to screen your candidates

  3 Feb 2010 | 2:38 pm

  By: Lauris RennerAs recruiters, we have a natural tendency to go easy on our candidates, especially during the first screening. We’d prefer to treat them deferentially, as if they were royalty and we were Barbara Walters. To avoid confrontation, we ask superficial questions and accept clichés for answers. Or worse, we simply tune out the answers we don’t want to hear. Unfortunately, there’s a downside to "fluff" interviewing: We end up working with a lot of poor-quality job seekers who can potentially wreak havoc on our performance—and our reputation as recruiters.

• Candidate Control:The key to recruiting Success

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:18 pm

  Candidate Control: The Key to Recruiting Success By: W.L. Renner Like any other professional service that deals with the public, recruiters continuously struggle with the issue of control. The same way doctors wrestle with “patient control” and lawyers boast about “client control,” so recruiters agonize over “candidate control.” If you look at recruiting realistically, you’ll recognize that you can no more “control” the actions of another person than you can control a speeding vehicle that’s hydroplaning down the interstate at 70 miles an hour in a driving rainstorm. That…

• Control Your Career: Make sure you work for you

  2 Nov 2009 | 4:32 pm

  By: Don RobinsonWe Work For Money Every employment choice you make from your first job through retirement effects your career. Let's be real: you work for money. When you have money, you work for causes. People who work in lower paying jobs that have more intrinsic value to them make enough money to sustain themselves doing what they want to do. That's perfectly acceptable--enough money is there to work for that cause.

• Basic steps to career advancement

  22 Oct 2009 | 2:28 pm

  Basic Steps For Career Advancement By: Lauris Renner Being the best at what you do is very important when it comes to career advancement, having the drive and ambition to reach your goals is also just as important. Advice in a person to become the best at anything he or she does is easier said than done, this article will provide you some useful pointers you can follow when you are trying to get a job, change your current career or simply become the best at anything you do.

• A Stress Survival Guide for HR Managers and HR Professionals

  7 Oct 2009 | 11:08 am

  By: Don RobinsonA Stress Survival Guide for HR Managers and HR Professionals Ten Stressors and Five Management StrategiesIn today's 24/7, constantly changing, merging and consolidating, "do more with less" work environment the letters "HR" could as easily stand for "Hub of Reorganization" as for "Human Resources." And, in fact, it's the intersection of these two organizational dynamics - human exchange and systemic change - that accounts for the inherent challenge and performance pressure for the HR Manager and other human resources professionals. When a person, over time, is confronted by…

• 
  Awake @ The Wheel

• 8 Timeless Rules For My 8-Year Old Daughter

  Jonathan Fields

  8 Feb 2010 | 9:01 am

  [Expanded & updated from the original post that appeared on this day 2 years ago today] Driving home with my organic, soy chai latte in hand, today, I began to wonder what the critical lessons I should be teaching my daughter were. She’s only 8, but I wanted to make sure I got my most treasured thoughts down, to capture my deepest wisdom. So, not wanting to be late, lose my thoughts or spill my chai, I whipped out my iPhone, began to type in one hand, while steering with my knees and balancing my chai in the other (Joking, people…I actually steered with my navel, not my knees.

• The 4 Delusions of Entrepreneurs

  Jonathan Fields

  6 Feb 2010 | 8:03 am

  Ask an aspiring entrepreneur why they’d kill to make the jump and, without fail, four of the top 5 reasons will be: Freedom Control Money Passion They dream of working their own hours, not having to report to “the Man,” skipping though fields of money, loving what they do every moment of every day and changing the world. All great aspirations. Question is - How much is real, and how much is outright fantasy? Let’s take a deeper look at the 4 big entrepreneurial motivations, bust a few myths and open a few eyes: 1. Freedom. First let’s break it down. What do…

• LiftOff, Third Tribe, Troll-Gates and Paid Conversation

  Jonathan Fields

  5 Feb 2010 | 3:32 pm

  Every once in a while, I like to highlight people doing cool stuff for entrepreneurs. Over the last few weeks, I’ve had a few friends launch or make me aware of some very cool entrepreneurship, career evolution and business trainings or projects. I’m sharing them because I’m betting you guys barraged by garbage promotions, trainings and products revolving around entrepreneurship and business-building all the time and I’m happy to do a bit of vetting and bring to you people and solutions I trust (FYI – I am not a JV partner in any of these, nor do I get any money…

• What’s With The Mini Business Cards?

  Jonathan Fields

  4 Feb 2010 | 5:42 am

  I first saw them circulating about a year ago… Those mini-business cards, about the size of a tear-off on a flyer at the supermarket. Sure, they’re cute. They’re different. But, here’s the problem. They’re built to lose. Just like the millions of flyer tear-offs that people take, then promptly lose or throw out, because there’s not logical place to keep them. So, somebody explain to me, why would you go and take a business card that’s designed to fit into a spot where other business cards are found, where people remember to look for it, and transform…

• You CAN Do That: What Happens When You Dare to Dream

  Jonathan Fields

  2 Feb 2010 | 10:22 am

  It starts when we’re kids… We get an idea in our heads about something we’d love to do. Something completely “out there.” Somebody nobody else has done before us. Our stomachs spin with the possibility of bringing our vision to life; we become possessed…obsessed. But, then come the dream killers. The naysayers. Those who go glumly along, willing to guide what they are and are not capable of by the often misguided, untested wisdom of those who’ve come before them. Those who’ve tried and failed. Or, more likely, never bothered trying. Because they…

• 
  Gradversity: Breaking Into The Entry Level Job Market

• Worst Job Hunting Tweets (Feb 1-7, 2010)

  Trevor Wilson

  8 Feb 2010 | 6:32 pm

  This is the first edition of a new feature on Gradversity which will highlight some of the worst job hunting Tweets from a given week. I’ve always been a big fan of learning through the experiences of others, so I hope that you can learn what not to do from these “wonderful” examples. In order to provide (at least a little) anonymity, I have declined from posting the users name or linking to their Twitter account. No sense compounding the problems for these poor souls. Beware! There is some off-color language in some of these tweets. Consider yourself warned! On with the…

• Gradversity Quick Tip #33: Listen

  Trevor Wilson

  5 Feb 2010 | 9:43 pm

  When interviewing, listening is just as important as speaking. Many things can be learned just by listening to an interviewer and observing their body language. While the ability to speak confidently in an interview is key to landing a job, listening is a lost art which can improve your chances overall.

• The David Kiely Saga: How Lack Of Awareness Can Destroy Your Reputation

  Trevor Wilson

  4 Feb 2010 | 7:03 am

  This has to be one of my favorite stories of the year (so far). David Kiely, an employee at Macquarie Bank got caught looking at dirty pictures while one of his coworkers was being interviewed on live TV. As it turns out, he wasn’t aware of what was going on, or that his screen was in the camera’s direct line of site. Here’s the video: For those of you who missed it, fast forward to the 1:00 minute point and watch the monitor that is immediately to (our) left of the interviewee’s head. Unfortunately, this is a reputation nightmare for Mr Kiely. His accidental viral…

• Job Interview Fail (Video)

  Trevor Wilson

  3 Feb 2010 | 10:02 pm

  An amusing look at how to fail a job interview. It goes without saying that you should not try any of this in a real interview. I hope it provides a little humor in your day. Enjoy!

• A Good Time To Try New Things

  Trevor Wilson

  2 Feb 2010 | 9:06 pm

  The following is a guest post from Lorraine Russo courtesy of Recruiting Blogswap From the New York Times The reason I am posting excerpts from this article is that I hope you will be as inspired as I was. If you feel stalled in your job search and feel like your options are dwindling, please give this article a read. As the saying goes, “Necessity is the mother of invention.” At the Ballard Farmers’ Market in Seattle on a recent weekend, passers-by could be forgiven for thinking John Morefield was running for political office. Smiling, waving and calling out hellos to everyone…

• 
  The Career Doctor Blog

• College Major for Two-Year Degree

  9 Feb 2010 | 4:00 am

  Kris writes: I am a high school senior ready to graduate and I only have the grades to go to a 2-year community college, and I don’t really know what I could major in that would require me only 2 years! Please help me with some ideas. Thanks a lot! The Career Doctor responds: First of all, let me say that community colleges are great places — I taught at one for a few years while getting my Ph.D. — and you should not feel desperate. Students who attend community colleges usually follow one of two routes — they either go into a career that only requires an…

• Keeping Resume Confidential

  8 Feb 2010 | 4:00 am

  Anonymous writes: I don’t think its smart to have my resume for all to review, how I can I post my resume and keep it confidential? The Career Doctor responds: There certainly is validity to wanting to be discreet about job-hunting when you are currently employed — you wouldn’t want your current employer to do a search for a position and get your resume from one of these job sites. The good news is that many job boards now offer you a confidentiality option — thus your resume is still out there getting viewed, but you control who actually knows it is your resume. There…

• She Wants to Know Interviewing Do's and Don'ts

  7 Feb 2010 | 4:00 am

  Joan writes: I could not find anything specific to interviewing do’s and don’ts on your site. Can you help? The Career Doctor responds: Interviewing is perhaps the most critical point in job-hunting, where the job-seeker has to use persuasive communications skills to show that s/he is the perfect candidate for the position. And we have quite a lot of information and resources on interviewing. But, because you asked, here are just a few of the most critical do’s and don’ts of interviewing: Do your research and know the type of job interview you will be encountering. And…

• Cover Letter for Career Changer

  6 Feb 2010 | 4:00 am

  Christie writes: I’m looking to change my career. Do you know of any links where a person may find help with writing a cover letter? The Career Doctor responds: Every once in a while when I get an email like yours, I wonder if you’re pulling my leg, but because cover letters are my first love — and for the sake of other visitors — let me answer your question. My site, Quintessential Careers, has a plethora of resources on cover letters. My partner and I wrote the book on cover letters — literally — in Dynamic Cover Letters (third edition). For everything…

• Career Choice for High-School Student

  5 Feb 2010 | 4:00 am

  Leah writes: I am a student in high school and I have no clue what I want to do when I get older, if you know of any sites or anything please inform me of them. Thanks a lot; this has really been bothering me lately and I really don’t know what else to do…. The Career Doctor responds: Leah, the good news is that you have many years to figure out exactly what you want to do with your life — and even then, most experts predict that people will change their careers five times over their lifetimes… so, take a deep breath and relax. What you should really do is examine your…

• 
  Quintessential Resumes and Cover Letters Tips Blog

• Resume Needs to Make Instant Connection with Reader

  9 Feb 2010 | 9:45 am

  Wrapping up our series on The Interviewable Resume by Linda Matias of CareerStrides.com: The resume is a vital piece to any job search. As companies scramble to find the ideal candidate, they use the resume to screen candidates. Done right, a resume builds an instant connection with the reader and helps steer the course of the interview in your favor. If you submit a resume that piques the curiosity of the reader, he or she most likely will ask questions based on the information you provided on the resume as opposed to relying solely on a pre-packaged questionnaire. That’s how you know…

• Cover Letter Distinguishes Job-seeker

  8 Feb 2010 | 6:25 am

  At a time when social media is becoming an increasingly important part of the job search, some observers are downplaying the role of the cover letter. While it’s true that some hiring decision-makers don’t value cover letters, others find them vitally important. Lynn Franklyn, HR manager for Wegmans Food Markets, was recently quoted in Fortune on cover letters: I usually go right for the cover letter, because resumes are all very similar. I look for a candidate to engage me and to really get a glimpse of who that person is. What do they know about the organization? Can they…

• Resume Should Showcase Your Top Selling Points

  7 Feb 2010 | 9:43 am

  Continuing our series on The Interviewable Resume by Linda Matias of CareerStrides.com: Though you may share the same job title with many other people, your accomplishments and how you carry out your responsibilities are what distinguishes you from other qualified candidates. Focus your resume on not only what you did but also how well you did it. By design, what makes you interviewable are the same strengths you need to market on paper.

• Don't Let Your Letter Ruin Your Chance for an Interview

  6 Feb 2010 | 9:11 am

  Wrapping up our series on a survey on cover letters conducted by Robin Ryan, author of Winning Cover Letters. Ryan quotes Human Resource Manager Barbara Baker, who concisely summarizes the best cover-letter strategy to follow: “I’ve hired over 1,200 people. I’ve seen so many mistakes — too long, too short, general, non-specific content, some even state the reasons they were fired. A great cover letter boils down to this — a simple direct letter that mentions how their skills relate to performing the position applied for.” “Many people write such a…

• Resume Needs a Consistent Message

  5 Feb 2010 | 9:41 am

  Continuing our series on The Interviewable Resume by Linda Matias of CareerStrides.com: Don’t try to become all things to all people. If you are a CEO, don’t add a statement that indicates that you are willing to be a Business Manager. If you are a Sales Manager, don’t indicate that you are willing to take on a position as a Customer Service Representative. Get the picture? Determine what you are selling (and looking for) before you put one word to paper.

• 
  Career Success!

• 3 Masterful Keys for Time Management and Work Life Flexibility

  Career Success!

  8 Feb 2010 | 7:22 am

  Weekly Wisdom on the Work/Life Merge with Judy Martin Contributing Expert and Career Success! Partner Faced with a daunting task of completing a new project, spending time with my niece and preparing to meet with a client, I must be in a flexible state of mind. Flexibility in our personal lives and work lives takes planning. It is often our own minds that clutter the playing field with confusion, rather than taking the time to prioritize and get organized. We have to own our personal style of flexible work life practices whether we work for ourselves or a company. And how we…

• What is Your Unique Promise of Value?

  Career Success!

  7 Feb 2010 | 4:56 am

  Personal branding guru, William Aruda, defines "Brand" as "your unique promise of value."  Take a look at this very well done 4 minute Video of William's take on the importance of understanding and clearly communicating your personal brand: Dubbed the personal branding guru by the media and clients alike, William Arruda is a sought-after speaker on the topics of branding, career advancement, social media and employee motivation. Combining his twenty years' corporate branding experience with his passion for the people, he founded Reach, the global leader in personal branding. William…

• Overwhelmed by Networking? Focus on Strategy, Not Just Tactics

  Career Success!

  5 Feb 2010 | 8:36 am

  Weekly Smart Networking Wisdom of Liz LynchContributing Expert and Career Success! Partner Are you heavy on tactics and light on strategy when it comes to networking for your business? You'll know if you're feeling at all frustrated that the time you've put in is far outweighed by the meager results you've gotten out. Trouble is that when we get into this situation we think we need to do more, and we look for solutions in the form of other tactics that we might not have tried yet. But imagine if you took 5 random ingredients from your refrigerator and threw them into a sauté pan. What…

• "How to Wow" - Tips for Amping Up Your Image and Personal Brand

  Career Success!

  4 Feb 2010 | 5:02 am

  Career Success Radio ShowInterview with Frances Cole Jones, Author of "How to Wow - Proven Strategies for Presenting Your Ideas, Persuading Your Audience, and Perfecting Your Image"Carrie and I interviewed author Frances Cole Jones on the Career Success Radio Show, which was broadcast this past Tuesday, on the subject of "How to Wow" and positively influence your colleagues, employers, potential employers -- even your competitors.  Frances talked about her book, "How to Wow" with offers easy-to-follow advice, amusing anecdotes and immediately employable tips and techniques for "Wowing"…

• Creating New Habits and Changing Old Ones - A Career Success Tip

  Career Success!

  3 Feb 2010 | 10:52 am

  Weekly Wisdom on Effectively Managing Change with M.J. Ryan Contributing Expert and Career Success! Partner A carpenter decided to change careers. He had two children and his wife was expecting twins. They needed a larger house, and he needed a job that made more money. He went to his boss to explain. The boss was reluctant to see him go, as he was a very fine carpenter. But the carpenter was determined. Finally the boss asked if he would build just one more house. The carpenter agreed. And he did build the house. But preoccupied and distracted with his family and his future, he just went…

• 
  Movin' On Up

• Text Messages Crossing the Line?

  Brie Hobbs

  3 Feb 2010 | 7:04 am

  Cell phone text messaging has changed the way we communicate, the way we operate, and even the way we do business. It’s direct and instantaneous. And, with more than a third of the world texting, it’s becoming a more prevalent and often preferred means of communication. But, like most technological advances, text messaging can have some unintended consequences. According to experts, “textual” harassment or sexual harassment that occurs via text messages is on the rise in the workplace. With text messaging becoming a part of everyday business more and more, is it affecting you at work?

• Poll Indicates Optimism About Economy

  Miranda Wilson

  2 Feb 2010 | 2:27 pm

  The year of 2009 is behind us, and 2010 is charging full steam ahead. As the economy continues to show signs of improvement, economists are predicting it will only be a matter of time before businesses and jobs start ramping up again. In January, a total of 652 people responded to our survey, “Are You Optimistic About the Job Market?” Of those who took the survey, 53.4% said they are optimistic about the job market this year, while 46.6% said they are not. These numbers are an improvement over a similar poll that we took in March 2009. On that survey, more than 1,200 readers voted. Of…

• Professional Lessons from the Barnyard

  Brie Hobbs

  27 Jan 2010 | 2:55 pm

  Some days, the hustle and bustle of cube life doesn’t seem all that different from a barnyard full of animals. The gossip group around the water cooler sounds like a henhouse full of clucking chickens. Your cube-mate’s laugh breaks your concentration like the hee-haw of a mule. And, the papers stacking up around your desk make you feel like a tired work horse. But, despite the negative attributes your daily routine may share with a brood of barnyard animals, if you look closely, there are also positive characteristics you can learn from all creatures – great and small – to improve…

• Before You Go On PTO (Paid Time Off)

  Jennifer Kenley

  22 Jan 2010 | 9:20 am

  Coming back to work after taking some time off is never fun, especially if you’re coming back after a fabulous vacation. But, as sure as the morning sun rises each day, going back to work is inevitable. What you do before you go on your paid time off however, will be the difference between coming back to a mountain of work and sliding back into your normal work routine with ease. Recently, I had to take some time off for a tonsillectomy. I know, not necessarily a stay at the beach, but still a planned event that required a number of necessary days off from work. So, I made a plan ahead of…

• Before the Job Hop: First, Face Yourself (If You Dare)

  Movin' On Up

  21 Jan 2010 | 6:48 am

  Of late, the news is focused on low employee job satisfaction. The lagging economy and resulting layoffs have fueled that focus. While job satisfaction appears to be at an all time low, the number is at a stand still. In 2008, best selling author Patrick Lencioni who wrote The Three Signs of a Miserable Job referenced a Gallup poll revealing that 75% of employees hated their jobs and 35% had checked out. Some of the most common reasons employees leave their jobs are: Personality conflicts with their supervisor/co-workers Salary and/or benefits package No advancement opportunities Lack of…

• 
  SmartLemming.com

• Smart Lemming Diary: More Changes are Coming

  Lori Grant

  8 Feb 2010 | 10:43 am

  May 8, 2006 My CEO has a lot going on. He’s getting more funding from our lead investor; he’s changing the Sales Compensation Plan, and changing the organization structure. Since my promotion at the end of March, we’ve been addressing operational and budget issues. On the funding issue, my CEO’s presenting our additional funding needs, so that’s in play. The comp plan has just gone through Management Team review with a number of key issues that he has to solve. And the org chart? There’s a change he intends to make in Sales that involves me, but it’s…

• Smart Lemming Rundown Podcast: February 8, 2010 (Episode 3)

  Lori Grant

  8 Feb 2010 | 8:30 am

  Click the red play button to listen to the podcast now, or subscribe to it by clicking the “download” button. To subscribe to the RSS feed for this podcast, paste http://smartlemming.com/podcasts/smartlemming-rundown.xml in your RSS reader (we don’t yet have it in iTunes). The Smart Lemming Rundown is a shortcut to career management success by recommending three business books that help you: How you can construct a realistic path to enduring success. How you can defend yourself in office politics or collect political power in a way that’s not selfish. How to forge an…

• The Priority Matrix Tool for Prioritizing Your Life - Free Template Download

  Lori Grant

  1 Feb 2010 | 11:01 am

  In my latest Smart Lemming Rundown podcast, I discuss how much I love a new tool that I discovered in the book, Passion at Work by Lawler Kang and Mark Albion. Creating Structure in Time Management and Workload I have seven projects that I spend my time on. I found myself feeling randomized, since I didn’t the structure I was looking for. What should I work on Saturdays and Sundays? What’s job number one during the work week? Does family trump everything else? I needed answers, so I could be more productive. I needed to create order out of chaos. Over the weekend, I created a…

• Smart Lemming Diary: Feeling Validated with Kind Words and Salary Increase

  Lori Grant

  1 Feb 2010 | 9:00 am

  March 25, 2006 You know what I like about my CEO? He’s sincere. He always wants to do the right thing by his standards. He always follows through. Originally, my CEO floated a 10% raise to accompany my promotion to VP of Marketing. While I was half joking about checking the salary data that I purchased for my job offer negotiations back in July 2005, my CEO remembered he had market salary data too and was eager to review it. He wanted to ensure that I was receiving market value for my base salary. Justifying His Second Raise Amount Early this week, my CEO told me that his big goal was…

• Smart Lemming Rundown Podcast: February 1, 2010 (Episode 2)

  Lori Grant

  1 Feb 2010 | 8:00 am

  Click the red play button to listen to the podcast now, or subscribe to it by clicking the “download” button. To subscribe to the RSS feed for this podcast, paste http://smartlemming.com/podcasts/smartlemming-rundown.xml in your RSS reader (we don’t yet have it in iTunes). The Smart Lemming Rundown is a shortcut to career management success by recommending three business books that help you: Find your core purpose in life, one that adds meaning and fulfillment to your work life. Avoid making mistakes at work that make you look bad to your peers or manager. Learn the…

• 
  Professional Resume Services

• How to Turn Limp Affirmations Into Mantras for Success!

  Ed’s Note: Here is another wonderful article by my favorite success coach, Jack Canfield, author of Chicken Soup for the Soul and the Dream Big success series.As most of you know, applying the Law of Attraction has completely changed my life. Jack explains it in a simple, easy-to-use way. Hope you have some takeaways from [...]

• The most common mistakes job seekers make

  With unemployment rates still looking dismal, it’s important to make sure you’re putting your best foot forward. One easy way to do this is to learn what the biggest mistakes job seekers make are, and how you can avoid them. Paying this extra attention to each part of the job seeking process should increase your [...]

• 10 critical mistakes to avoid when writing your resume

  After talking with so many people, I know many of you work and work to create the perfect resume, only to look it over when you are finished and realize your resume doesn’t say, or reflect, just what you want it to. And often times, that keeps you from being called for interviews. I’ve included a [...]

• The five biggest mistakes you can make on a cover letter

  Your cover letter is one of the most important documents you will write in your job search. Some argue that it’s equally as important as the resume. Of course, every job will place a different amount of weight on the cover letter, but however important the cover letter is to an employer, there are [...]

• What to do when a friend asks for a job recommendation

  In this difficult economic time, everyone knows someone who is unemployed. With the jobless rate in the US at a staggeringly high percentage, it is understandable to feel a strong conviction to help in whatever way possible. What if you are working for a dynamic company that is flourishing and looking to expand? What if [...]

• 
  IMPACT Hiring Solutions Career and Job Search Blog

• What Will YOU Do Different In Your Job Search?

  Barry Deutsch

  8 Feb 2010 | 12:17 pm

  Let’s start with Benjamin Franklin’s timeless definition of insanity: “You keep doing the same thing over and over hoping for different results”. Do you really believe that wishing and keeping your fingers crossed will make a difference? Why? Everyone knows you’ll just get the same mediocre, inadequate, inconsequential results again – so why do most candidates keep doing the same thing? Let’s pretend for a moment you buy into the Definition of Insanity and you decide you’re going to try something different this month in your job search. What will YOU do different this month…

• 3 Simple Absolute Musts In A Job Interview

  bradremillard

  8 Feb 2010 | 9:23 am

  Interviewing is an art more than a science. Like most art, there are the Van Gogh’s and then there are those that work hard but never reach a professional level. They may still be good, just not good enough. I think that is the way most candidates approach the interviewing process. They think they are good, when in fact, most are not good enough. This is especially evident when a candidates tells me, “I’m getting interviews but just not getting the job.”  To me, that rings out loud and clear, you need to take a look at your interviewing skills. Here are three things I…

• Job Search is Taking Longer – Duh!

  Barry Deutsch

  6 Feb 2010 | 2:19 pm

  Does it feel like you keep falling back in your job search to square 1? In a front page article in New York Times today, the point was made that the average timeframe for conducting a job search is now 6 months. Executive and Senior Management Job Search is typically 2X-3X the average professional job search time period. Although this is NOT earth-shattering news, it does reflect a confirmation in a well-known publication of the obscene length of time it is taking most job seekers to find a new job. Here’s the bad news: not only is it taking longer to conduct a job search in one of the…

• How to Give Your Resume a Booster Shot

  Barry Deutsch

  5 Feb 2010 | 8:34 am

  Your resume needs a booster shot. No longer is a simple 2 page resume enough to capture interest. It’s boring. It’s mundane. It’s ineffective at fully telling your story (especially if you missed the last dozen or so blog posts that Brad and I wrote about putting together a good resume and cover letter – cycle back and read some of the posts first). Along comes the explosion of social media/social networking and like magic – instant resume booster shot. So, if social media/social networking is so darn powerful, why are so few executive and managerial job seekers NOT using it…

• What are Job Search Best Practices?

  Barry Deutsch

  4 Feb 2010 | 9:44 pm

  Do you know the core best practices of conducting a job search? Could you rattle these off the tip of your tongue right now? Here’s the killer question – are you executing flawlessly against these best practices in your current job search? If either you don’t know the core best practices and/or you are not executing flawlessly against them, your job search could be taking 2X-3X longer than necessary. In our work with over 200,000 candidates over the last 25 years, we’ve discovered that most candidates are not up-to-speed on the latest job search best practices, nor is there an…

• 
  Now Possible

• Death Sentence: regulations, insurance and politics slow advance of personalized medicine

  Bruce Kasanoff

  19 Jan 2010 | 1:21 pm

  It’s a death sentence for some, a recipe for pain and anguish for others. Just as science reveals new medical advancements that can halt pain and suffering, a wall of bureaucracy and outdated perspectives condemns patients to suffer needlessly, or sacrifice their lives. Much of our medical system is based on treating diseases, not individuals. There are approved protocols for certain conditions, and should a physician or other healthcare provider stray beyond these protocols she exposes herself to malpractice and other liabilities. Yet, advances in genetic research and other…

• Why your site needs a Mindset button

  Bruce Kasanoff

  12 Jan 2010 | 8:26 am

  With nine trillion web pages (a rough estimate) and growing, the Web already overwhelms many of your potential customers. Companies need to reinvent the way they attract and serve customers. One way to do this is by putting a Mindset button front and center on your site. A Mindset button lets a visitor tell you in a single click what’s on their mind, right now. It is a pulldown menu from which visitors can pick one option. For example, a high-end retailer might include the following options: - Looking for the lowest prices - In a hurry - Try to match an existing item - Exploring the…

• Amazing miniaturization technologies

  Bruce Kasanoff

  11 Jan 2010 | 6:22 am

  A local company here in Connecticut, Valtronic Technologies, specializes in miniaturizing medical devices invented by other firms. In other words, they take great ideas and make them small enough to have revolutionary uses. Firms hire them to accomplish this. Check out this slick Amazing Tales handbook.

• Quick! Find the best (obscure) iPhone app

  Bruce Kasanoff

  8 Jan 2010 | 6:27 am

  There are somewhere between 100,000 and 125,000 iPhone apps. I use about 60 of them, and altogether have probably scrolled through perhaps a thousand on the App Store. That means I’ve never seen the vast majority of apps. There’s just no user-friendly way to do this. Sure, you can search and/or browse for apps, but neither function works very well. What I’d really like is to be able to teach a computer to search for apps that meet my criteria and taste preferences. The app challenge is an example of much bigger challenges to come. NetFlix ran a much-heralded contest to…

• How many illnesses are there?

  Bruce Kasanoff

  7 Jan 2010 | 12:53 pm

  What if there are billions of human afflictions, not a few thousand? What if our perception of illness has been over-simplified by the limitations of the human brain? Surgeon and author, Dr. Atul Gawande, recently said, “A doctor today deals with 300 to 500 diagnoses.” But there are signs that human diseases are far more complex - and numerous - than our healthcare system has generally acknowledged. When Iceland-based genomics pioneer deCODE filed for bankruptcy late last year, it had spent $600 million and still failed to come up with any sort of “blockbuster” genetic…

• 
  Mystic Madness

• Risk Love And Trust

  Amit

  9 Feb 2010 | 1:04 am

  Love is the strongest of emotion and this is the reason that people don’t mind taking any level of risk in it. The biggest thing in any relationship is trust which has the capability to move mountains and stop oceans. Love and trust combined together form an integral part of relationship. And when issues happen it is only love and trust that stands out to maintain a sane and healthy relationship. But problem happens and that happens with everyone. Love and trust has the potential to stand the test of ... Related posts:Deep And Short Romantic Love Poems – True Love Poems For…

• Positive Affirmations For Success

  Amit

  7 Feb 2010 | 12:01 am

  When you have set yourself on the journey of excellence you cannot deny the power of positive affirmations for success. Affirmation is a declaration that something is true and you need to make yourself believe in the power of it. Human mind by its very nature gets distracted and demotivated by scores of external factors that hold a potential to deviate person from his goals. A positive affirmation offers a ray of hope to continue with our zeal to achieve the best and drive ourselves continuously on the road of ... Related posts:Positive Self Talk – Guiding Thoughts You Need Do you talk…

• How To Deal With Mean People

  Amit

  6 Feb 2010 | 4:54 am

  How to deal with mean people is an art that you have to master to create a niche for yourself in this fiercely competitive world. You will agree that you have to exist in this world amidst people from all lifestyles. There can also be mean people. Relationship Management is what you should be able to offer your clients, external or internal. You may easily pass a comment at others but find it difficult to digest when remarked at you by people.        The world does not provide any relief to ... Related posts:How To Deal With Difficult People Much has been said about…

• Never Get Too Old

  Amit

  5 Feb 2010 | 3:05 am

  The philosophy that circles around the vary logic of never get too old is not that of your age but of attitude. Ask yourself a question – How many days do you think average healthy human beings live? and try to answer it in 5 seconds. Maximum people thought this figure to be between 80,000 days to 2,00,000 days. If you take the average age to be around 65 years the answer comes out to be approximately 24,000. Yes, it is close to twenty four thousand days only and there ... No related posts. Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

• Relationship Break-Up Advice: Stay Calm

  Amit

  4 Feb 2010 | 2:21 am

  The best practical relationship break up advice one can ever have is to stay calm and look for the amicable solution. Getting into relationship is easier, but maintaining it is no child’s play. During the pink days of relationship, we often forget that our partner is a grown up individual with his or her own set of mannerism and pattern of thinking. These are bound to be as different from each other as the individuals themselves. Neglecting this very fact creates the difference of opinion; and cracks start developing in ... Related posts:How To Stay Calm In Any Situation There are…

• 
  Yahoo! Hot Jobs Career Tools

• 5 Ways Volunteering Can Help You Get a Job

  5 Feb 2010 | 12:00 am

  There are a lot of obvious benefits to volunteering for your favorite charity -- a sense of accomplishment, giving back to others, gaining perspective, and meeting new people. You can also find business benefits, and ways your efforts can help land

• The Best Majors for Making $100K

  4 Feb 2010 | 12:00 am

  Want to get the most bang for your tuition buck? Although not all graduates wind up making top dollar or working in their field of study, some majors -- mainly those steeped in math and science -- are more likely to lead to a six-figure salary. Sure,

• Own the Interview: 10 Questions to Ask

  4 Feb 2010 | 12:00 am

  For many job seekers an interview can seem too much like an inquisition. That's usually because they're doing all the answering and none of the asking. "Somewhere in the interview you have a chance to impress the employer on your own terms and see if

• 5 Top Careers for Active People

  4 Feb 2010 | 12:00 am

  Most people dread the idea of boring work, but some particularly crave the adrenaline rush of a high-energy job. Whether it's physical or mental activity, or a combination of the two, challenging work is essential for career satisfaction to some. Wit

• Temp Worker Increase Spurs Hope for Job Recovery

  4 Feb 2010 | 12:00 am

  In a signal that the job market may be inching toward recovery, employment by temporary staffing firms has risen for the past several months. "That's a sign that business owners are facing more demand and more need for work, yet they are very thinly

• 
  Dr. G's - Eyes wide Open

• Why interview coaching pays

  admin

  9 Feb 2010 | 3:38 am

  If you’ve seen any of the shift happens videos you’ll know the stat that young adults joining the world of work today are likely to have 14 different roles by the time they’re 38. Sounds a little scary and improbable? What the figures were not clear on was whether these would be different careers or different roles. In my view, it probably refers mainly to different roles and there are likely to be some career changes thrown in as well. So, what’s this got to do with interview coaching? Firstly, if there are going to be so many role changes, there are going to be lots…

• Thoughts on how to get - and stay - motivated! by Kara Wirt

  Kara

  1 Feb 2010 | 2:21 am

  There are lots of different ways that you can improve motivation in all aspects of your life. I would suggest that perhaps the most effective and measurable way is to set goals for both long-term and short term achievement. It is also important that you have a support network around you to help you and encourage you to achieve these goals (they must have some understanding of what you are trying to achieve in order to do this effectively). An example of this is that I train for rowing every morning and evening, before and after work and all morning at the weekends. It can get pretty tough…

• The cost of red tape in schools

  admin

  31 Jan 2010 | 9:50 am

  I was talking to the Head of Careers at a school this week. During the discussion, she mentioned that one of her biggest problems is arranging work experience.  I can understand that as it involves liaising with many businesses in the area, twisting a few arms, calling in a few favours - all the kinds of things that MP’s are good at. In the middle of the conversation though, she mentioned something that I found staggering … Her school spends £10 K per year arranging these work experience opportunities for year 10’s. Guess what the money gets spent on? Travel or perhaps…

• Transitions and changes for young adults

  admin

  30 Jan 2010 | 8:36 am

  Today, I’ve been writing some new content for our series of webinars aimed at helping careers advisors at schools to provide a better quality of career advice. The webinar has to do with “preparing for change and transitions”. In thinking about it, it strikes me that young adults need to realise that some of the changes  they face are entirely predictable whereas others are far less so. For example, we know for sure that on leaving school, we will either go to University or some form of further study or we will (try to) enter the world of work. These are entirely…

• Career advice for young Gordon (Brown)

  admin

  24 Jan 2010 | 2:09 pm

  Believe it or not, the prime minister was once a teenager. Spots, at least as awkward as he is now etc. If I were his career advisor at the time, what would my advice have been? If I had been good enough to spot his need for power, I would have advised politics. A great place to be if you’re keen on power. If your top motivation is power, think no further than politics. Of course, it’s all dressed up as doing good for others, blah, blah, but politicians are generally there because they love the sound of their own voices, the expense accounts and the lack of accountability. If…

• 
  JIST's Job Search and Career Blog

• Emotional Intelligence Helps Families Cope with Unemployment

  9 Feb 2010 | 6:12 am

  The stress, change and flood of emotions associated with unemployment aren’t limited to those who have lost their jobs. Often, families and significant others experience their own sense of turbulence when loved ones have been downsized.This reaction is a common but sometimes problematic for job seekers in the midst of their transition, warns Lisa Caldas Kappesser in her recently released book, The Smart New Way to Get Hired: Use Emotional Intelligence and Land the Right Job.“Although family members and loved ones often mean well, they can be an obstacle during the job search. They want to…

• The Best Jobs for Renewing America

  5 Feb 2010 | 6:11 am

  Last week, several of JIST Publishing’s authors attended the University of Wisconsin's Careers Conference in Madison. Author Laurence Shatkin, Ph.D., delivered a presentation about the best jobs for renewing America. During the presentation he discussed which “opportunities will emerge in certain key sectors of the economy: infrastructure, green technologies, education, information and telecommunication technologies, health care, and advanced manufacturing.”For those who were unable to attend the conference, the Wisconsin Center for Career and Education Research has posted a video of…

• How to Elevate Your Interview Performance

  4 Feb 2010 | 5:56 am

  Generally, when most job seekers reflect on their last interview, they can think of at least one instance—and probably many more—when they should have said or done something different. This includes many people who are offered jobs after their interviews. Had they made greater impressions or mentioned information that was particularly enticing to the employer, they may have been able to sweeten their initial job offers or afforded themselves more leverage in negotiations.In their recently released book Cover Letter Magic, Fourth Edition, acclaimed professional resume writers Wendy Enelow…

• New Book Unveils How to Create Résumé Magic

  2 Feb 2010 | 8:01 am

  Too many people wait to renovate their résumé until they become unemployed, decide it’s time to change jobs or hope to score a promotion. In such situations, people often feel pressured to whip together a résumé as quickly as possible and forego giving it the strategy, artistry and editing a résumé requires to make the candidate stand out from competitors.In her recently released book Résumé Magic, Fourth Edition, career coach Susan Britton Whitcomb warns people about the dangers of slapdash résumés. “A quickly thrown-together résumé reflects the quality of work you will put…

• What Are the Best Majors for Your Personality?

  27 Jan 2010 | 5:34 am

  Choosing an academic major can be tough—particularly if your education and career plans clash with your personality. For example, imagine a free-spirited student full of creativity. Now imagine this student trying to complete—let alone excel—in classes that require him to crunch numbers and input data all semester.For students with an artistic personality, this scenario is a nightmare. More conventional-types of students, however, would thrive in classes that allow them to work with details and numbers. Simply put, one major isn’t right for everybody.Laurence Shatkin, Ph.D., believes…