Careers

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  Penelope Trunk's Brazen Careerist

• Shifting the balance of power. (Mainstream media stinks.)

  Penelope Trunk

  5 Nov 2009 | 11:43 pm

  I wake up Wednesday at 4am to a phone call: The Guardian, in London, asking for an interview about my miscarriage twitter. Then a half-hour later, an Irish radio station. And then the phone kept ringing. I tell Now Magazine (I think it’s basically People magazine for the UK audience) to call back after I got the kids off to school. I ask my housemanager to come early because I can't handle the sleep deprivation and the early-morning interviews and school lunches all in one morning. I block out the morning to write a thousand-word essay for the Guardian to justify tweeting about my…

• First, be honest about what you want

  Penelope Trunk

  1 Nov 2009 | 10:08 pm

  Someone once asked me to think of a moment in my childhood that was really nice. I thought of one. Wait. You think of one, now. Quick. Just any one… So I thought of a time:  it was in my grandparents’ huge yard with fruit trees and flower gardens and grass for running. And it was so peaceful. What you remember as really nice tells you something about where you belong. Whatever you thought of, learn something from that. Where I belong is in nature. And in quiet. When I lived in New York City, I spent most of my time in Central Park and the Brooklyn Botanical Garden. Most people who…

• We overestimate the gap between nonprofit and for-profit jobs

  Penelope Trunk

  29 Oct 2009 | 11:06 pm

  My ex-husband worked in the nonprofit sector for a while. And you know what? He rarely got health insurance. At one point, we were completely stressed out about not being insured, and he asked his boss what everyone else was doing, and she said, “Can’t you get insurance from your spouse? That’s what we do.” That’s appalling. Being a non-profit is no excuse for treating people poorly. And it’s not just benefits—It’s pay, too. Paying way below a living wage is elitist—as if working in a nonprofit is a rich kids’ playground that your parents fund. Luckily, the…

• Asperger's at work: Why I'm difficult in meetings

  Penelope Trunk

  29 Oct 2009 | 8:27 am

  Eighty percent of adults with Asperger Syndrome do not have full-time work. This not because they can’t do the work. It’s that they can’t manage to be socially acceptable while they get the work done. ‘ Countless studies show people would rather have pleasant and personable co-workers than a co-worker who is always right. I try to keep this in mind each day, and consequently, I spend a lot of time planning my interactions. But sometimes my plans fail. To give you an idea of what I’m talking about, I’m going to walk you through my most recent parent-teacher conference. Which was a…

• Why men should give women flowers

  Penelope Trunk

  27 Oct 2009 | 10:57 pm

  Here’s the deal with giving flowers. Women like receiving flowers. Men think flowers are stupid. Men think: Flowers die, they don’t do anything when they are alive, they are expensive, and they are a cliché. Men know that women in general like flowers, but men also believe that women they know personally do not like flowers. The women they know are the exception to the rule. I think it’s safe to say that mostly women are reading this post. Women are reading to figure out how to get the men in their lives to send flowers. Here’s what it’s going to take: Bottom line impact. Yes, the…

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  Simply Hired Blog

• Simply Spooky

  Simply Hired

  4 Nov 2009 | 2:13 pm

  Simply Hired had quite a great time at our annual Halloween party last week. The office was decked out, we had plenty of food to munch on including bat wings (jerk chicken wings), deviled eggs, dirty toenails (Cajun pumpkin seeds), and dirt (chocolate fudge parfait), and of course, there were plenty of games! The Simply Hired employees came to the party dressed to impress in all sorts of costumes. Attendees included Duck Duck Goose, Michael Jackson, a T-bone steak, Russell from Pixar’s Up, a Simply Hired International cowboy, and Simply Prime - the most powerful Transformer of them all (who…

• Revamped Employer Resources Section

  Simply Hired

  3 Nov 2009 | 6:11 pm

  Simply Hired is announcing the launch of our new and improved Resources section for employers. This Resources section (http://www.simplyhired.com/resources) provides valuable tools and updated information for employers to improve their job listing visibility and more effectively recruit qualified candidates online. This starter set of the new resources section includes: SEO and Social Media Guide - This guide shows you ways in which you can get your jobs more visibility on search engines and social media sites. The recommendations in this guide apply both to Simply Hired’s JobRank as well…

• Maintaining Your Career Expertise

  Simply Hired

  2 Nov 2009 | 5:11 pm

  Employers today are facing an increasingly difficult market. Consumers are becoming more cost-conscious while maintaining high standards, competition both domestically and abroad has increased, and new technology is constantly being created. Because of this, employers need to hire employees that go above and beyond the job requirements of a given position. Employers now must find someone who can perform well in a position at this point in time and who will continually stay up-to-date with the newest technologies and best practices in their field so that their skills do not become passé. In…

• The Interview Questions that Haunt You

  Simply Hired

  30 Oct 2009 | 2:59 pm

  In honor of Halloween, we’re going to focus on possibly the most frightful part of the job search process: the interview. Similar to sitting through a horror movie, interviews may induce heavy breathing, uncontrollable sweating, and flashbacks to moments that make you cringe. To help you prepare, here is a list of some of the common questions that an HR Manager may ask you during an interview. Tell me about yourself. Why did you leave your last job (or why are you planning to)? What are you looking for in a new job? Why do you want to work here? What relevant experience do you have? What…

• Top 15 Best and Worst Places for Job Seekers – August

  Simply Hired

  22 Oct 2009 | 4:04 pm

  Simply Hired just released data on the best and worst metro areas for job seekers from August. This data is based on the number of job seekers for each unique job in metro areas around the U.S. Top 5 Best Metro Areas for Job Seekers Burlington - Plattsburgh – 1 unique job for every 3 job seekers El Paso (Las Cruces) – 1 unique job for every 3 job seekers Paducah - Cape Girardeau - Harrisburg – 1 unique job for every 3 job seekers Omaha  – 1 unique job for every 5 job seekers Washington, DC – 1 unique job for every 5 job seekers   Top 5 Worst Metro Areas for Job Seekers…

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  Marty Nemko

• How to Make Peace with Working in a Bureaucracy

  Marty Nemko

  2 Nov 2009 | 4:13 pm

  Whether working in a company, nonprofit, or government agency, many employees are frustrated with the politics, lack of autonomy, and slow pace of getting things done.But most employees are too scared--often understandably--to quit and become self-employed or to work for a tiny company, where job security is an oxymoron and resources are what one seeks rather than has.So what's a wage slave to do? Of course, there's no perfect answer but I had a client today who now feels more willing to stay in his corporate job because of a suggestion I made: When experiencing your bureaucracy's…

• Relentlessness: The Key to Success

  Marty Nemko

  29 Oct 2009 | 6:50 pm

  I keep finding that successful people have, in addition to intelligence, one key quality: relentlessness. They latch on a goal and then persist in a comprehensive attack on it.For example, if I aspired to the long-shot career of sportswriter, I'd:identify the 20 sportswriters I most admire. For each, I'd read five or ten of their most recent articles, taking notes on what I most wanted to emulate.then write to each of them, explaining how much I admired them, and would include the aforementioned examples. I'd ask if they would offer me career advice and/or feedback on articles I've written.

• Holiday Presents, Bah, Humbug! (There's a Better Alternative)

  Marty Nemko

  26 Oct 2009 | 11:43 pm

  Exchanging presents at Christmas (oops, also Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, Ramadan, and Winter Solstice) is a practice that is ripe for replacement, at least for those of us who already have too much stuff.Instead of giving more stuff to clutter your recipients' lives or for them to have to shlep back because it doesn't fit or they hate it, why not, in the recipient's name, give a donation to the charity of your choice?The charity I'm currently hot on is SmileTrain. Millions of kids in developing nations have cleft palates. That makes them not only very unattractive, shunned by children and later by…

• America's Forced March to the Left

  Marty Nemko

  21 Oct 2009 | 10:42 pm

  The drug-induced anti-authority, anti-discipline, hippie era of the '60s combined with America's drubbing in Vietnam and the spectacular birth of the Black Power and feminist movements led America to become ever more contemptuous of right-of-center thought.Because that is more a movement of passion than of reason, it has--outside the hard sciences--rapidly accelerated in zeal, power, and influence, which has led to leftist thinking dominating society's mind molders: the colleges and the media: including most of the major newspapers, book and magazine publishers, and TV news networks, led by…

• Making a Living at Garage Sales, Yard Sales, Moving Sales, and Estate Sales

  Marty Nemko

  18 Oct 2009 | 11:06 pm

  I predict that you could make a living from garage sales, yard sales, moving sales, and estate sales, as follows:Every week, consult local newspapers and websites to find the upcoming garage, yard, moving, and estate sales. Especially note those in middle- to upper-class older neighborhoods. Why older? Because their residents are more likely to have been there for years and thus have more good stuff to sell. Use maps.google.com to print out a map of the area, and put an X on the locations of all the sales you plan to visit.On the first morning of the sale, plan to arrive at your first stop at…

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  On the Job by Anita Bruzzese

• Could a Union Be Coming to a Cubicle Near You?

  4 Nov 2009 | 7:39 am

  My Dad was a blue-collar worker. His favorite job was working on the railroad, but the only job I really remember him having was at an oil refinery in Oklahoma. It was a dangerous, dirty job, but he never complained. He worked at that oil refinery for several decades, until one day they closed it and laid off more than 900 people in my small town. It was devastating, but I think my father took it especially hard because he had served for many years as the union's president.Guys would call our house at all hours of the day and night, looking to my Dad for some guidance on what they would do…

• 2 Big Myths About Work You Need to Ditch

  28 Oct 2009 | 8:22 am

  When I was writing my last book, one of the things I focused on was that the world of work was different than the world outside of work. OK, this isn't exactly an outstanding revelation to many of you, but to lots of people, it is.When people are at work, they think it's sort of an extended living room. They believe that they can say and do anything they want, because, by golly, this is America. Home of free speech, independent living and 450 cable channels.But the truth is, when you go to work you sign an employment contract, and that gives the employer the right to expect certain things…

• 4 ways to keep your confidence during a job hunt

  21 Oct 2009 | 9:22 am

  I hear from a lot of people who are out of work. In the early stages of job hunting, I've found most people are usually pretty confident. They know they have valuable skills and have worked hard -- what employer wouldn't want to hire them?Then they get initiated into this job market.Months later, the confidence has left their voice. They're angry, depressed, frustrated and demoralized. I'm no psychologist, but I do my best to provide them with career information that might help them. Still, it's frustrating for me to see so many great people feel so bad about themselves because they can't…

• Could telecommuting be a career mistake?

  14 Oct 2009 | 8:36 am

  While a lot of people think telecommuting is the answer to all their problems, sometimes you have to be careful of what you wish for. At the same time, this difficult job environment may mean that you have to work even harder and smarter if you're not in the office everyday. Here's a column on the subject I did for Gannett:While telecommuting is more common than a decade ago because of advances in technology and more flexible workplace cultures, the tough job market has made some telecommuters nervous as they worry that the lack of face time and presence in an office may make them more…

• How to Survive Working for a Jerk

  7 Oct 2009 | 8:23 am

  I used to have a boss I detested so much I used to envision her falling down a manhole -- not to kill her, but just injure her enough to put her in the hospital long enough for me to find another job.After I interviewed Kathi Elster and Katherine Crowley for my Gannett column, I realized I wasn't alone in feeling so desperate when it comes to a bad boss. Here's the column:There is probably nothing that impacts the quality of a job like a boss. Get a good manager, and you like going to work every day. Have a bad boss, and you don’t even want to get out of bed in the morning.If you’ve ever…

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  The Inside Job

• Will Productivity Kill a Job Rebound?

  5 Nov 2009 | 11:29 am

  Gary Becker says not.

• Unemployment Extension Clears Senate

  4 Nov 2009 | 2:29 pm

  The Senate passed a final procedural hurdle today in the move to extend unemployment benefits.

• White House: 650,000 Jobs Exist Because of Stimulus

  30 Oct 2009 | 8:16 am

  New reports will show the recovery spending is having the intended effect.

• Unemployment Extension to Get Senate's Attention Next Week

  23 Oct 2009 | 2:05 pm

  The stakes are high for a federally funded benefits extension that has been delayed in the Senate.

• Why a Hiring Tax Credit May Not Help

  21 Oct 2009 | 1:59 pm

  Lawmakers are considering a new tool, but it won't solve the real problem.

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  Everyone's Blog Posts - talent revolution

• "Crush It": A Quick Book Review

  Chris Reed

  If you haven't yet read Gary Vaynerchuk's new book, "Crush It," then stop reading this and go buy it. Right now. It's a fantastic book, a short read, and it is overflowing with ideas. As soon as I finished reading it on Monday, I found myself pacing through the house. Involuntary pacing. And, I'm more psyched now than ever. Join me.

• Inside the Executive Mind

  susan fawcett

  I have had the privilege of poking into the minds of some great executives. One of my favorite clients had a saying that Fawcett was going to “shrink your mind”. I’d like to think I helped expand minds…not shrink them…but who cares what it is called. It is the same thing, no matter what you call it. Actually, I like to think it of it more of a journey we take together….it just so happens that the land that we are exploring is their mind, their emotions, their fears, their ambitions, their hopes, their dreams. It is my job to enter that world with the utmost respect…even…

• How freaked out are you in this new jumbled up work world?

  susan fawcett

  Seth Grodin: “It used to be easy to tell if someone was an entrepreneur. Either you had a full-time job or you ran a business. So we could treat employees the same (health insurance, no moonlighting) and assume that the few that didn't have jobs were full-time freelancers or entrepreneurs. It used to be easy to figure out who did the buying at an organization. The purchasing department did. So we knew who to call on. Now, of course, it's all jumbled up. Everyone is a journalist, of course, but just a few do it for a living. Everyone is a freelancer, or, at the very least, always looking for…

• Twitter Lists and Personal Branding

  Jon Gillespie

  If you missed it, Twitter Lists came out last week. Quick overview: You can create a list of Twitterers ("Great Nature Photographers", "People I'd Like to Have Dinner With", "Restaurant Companies that Get Social Media" etc.). You can search and subscribe to someone else's list. That's it. Let me tell you something: It's a critical innovation, and if you are serious about personal or business branding, you'd best start paying attention, because here's how it will play out: -- A lot of people will create a lot of lists, and the best lists will identify thought leaders, influencers, and experts…

• The Best Marketing Strategy Ever

  Amanda Hite

  Sorry gang, the battery on my Flip died at the end! What I didn't get to finish saying was: "The people that work the hardest to demonstrate to people they CARE will be the most likely to win" and of course to tell you to "Have a wonderful, wonderful, wonderful, Tues-day!" I knew I'd dig Crush it because I'm a big Gary V fan. What I underestimated was the impact reading it would have on my team. The book inspires you to relentlessly chase your passion, to be authentic and to leverage social media to build your brand. One of the best money shots in the entire book: Chapter 9 "The Greatest…

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  Jobacle

• More Unemployment Relief on the Way

  Andrew G.R.

  6 Nov 2009 | 3:52 am

  There's another $24 billion in economic stimulus money coming to the unemployed folks who need it most.The new bill provides 14 additional weeks of benefits for people who have exhausted their unemployment bennies or are on schedule to.  The length of unemployment pay varies from state to state, averaging around 33 weeks.  If your state is in really bad shape, with an unemployment rate of 8.5 percent or above, you will be entitled to an additional six weeks.Approximately 2 million people are expected to be aided via the new monies.  It will now be possible to collect…

• 6 Annoying Things Millennials Do @ the Office

  Andrew G.R.

  5 Nov 2009 | 6:30 am

  I have always preached that too much is made about Gen X vs. Gen Y in the world of work.  Generalizing an entire generation, regardless of when they were born, is totally unfair.  One can easily sit back and accuse Gen X of being a bunch of anxiety-ridden control freaks who spend too much time sulking and complaining about work at Happy Hour. Or that Baby Boomers are technologically irrelevant and should be forced into early retirement (or at least coerced to take some social media classes!).  It might not be right, but that doesn't mean it isn't fun to write about. Here are…

• Unemployment Rate Could Dictate Changes in Congress

  Hilary Guinn

  4 Nov 2009 | 9:00 am

  If you are like me, you are asking yourself daily “Is the economy EVER going to get better?”. I'm beginning to feel there isn't a person in this world that has the answer. (IF you do, contact me. That valuable information could make us millions!!). I wake up every morning wondering if this will be the day that I get called into “the room” where you are given your pink slip and then tossed out the door with nothing more than your small box of belongings, a false apology, and the strong urge to run into oncoming traffic.

• Tapping Into Creativity at Work

  Andrew G.R.

  4 Nov 2009 | 6:00 am

  Embrace Your Right-BrainI don’t often think of “creativity” and “business” in the same sentence. Of course there are businesses in the creative sector, but I’m talking about jobs in which most people toil day to day. These folks are rewarded for analytical thinking, decisive actions and level-headedness. Too much creativity might get you marginalized.But as an artist, business owner and corporate-world survivor, I think there’s a place for being creative in business. My feeling is that thinking creatively can unblock those stuck points. You know what…

• 4 Reasons to Re-Read Resumes of Current Employees

  Andrew G.R.

  3 Nov 2009 | 5:00 am

  The companies we work for are often so blinded by what we can do for them today, that they forget what we have done before.  With the understanding that each of us is hired to help a company achieve their goals (not our own), I still believe that forgetting the past and only looking towards the future is a mistake.The solution is simple.  Re-read employees resumes every six months.This exercise helps managers paint a more complete picture of the employees working for them.  If organizations ignore the past, I propose that it creates several problems which can be detrimental to…

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  Standout Jobs

• Testing New Standout Jobs Site

  Ben Yoskovitz

  6 Nov 2009 | 1:43 pm

  My apologies for the intrusion, but we’ve revamped the Standout Jobs site and I have to test if all the parts are moving the way they should. So far so good…

• The New Standout Jobs Website

  Ben Yoskovitz

  5 Nov 2009 | 6:32 am

  Welcome to the new Standout Jobs website. This is a significant departure from our old site which a much simpler, leaner design. It also speaks to the transition we’re making from a technology company to a service-oriented company. We recognize that many of our customers and companies out there need more hands-on knowledge and help with social recruiting. And we want to make sure that people realize that we can offer that level of knowledge, help and implementation in the realm of social recruiting. I’ve always believed that recruiting should be given a higher priority within most…

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  Brazen Careerist

• Daydreams: Dissatisfaction With Your Life?

  Jun Loayza

  6 Nov 2009 | 1:00 pm

  The small conference room is sweaty because of the amount of nervous people crammed into it. A Fortune 500 client is in the room, and the team is presenting our results for the past 3 months. A quarterly review - our chance to justify why a client should keep paying us money for our work. … Lights flash and I’m standing in front of a crowd of people. I pick up my guitar, hit the chords, and the crowd sings along to my music. Cameras flash, camcorders record, and I bask in the glory. I get ready to play my solo and… “Jun… Jun… It’s your turn to…

• How Do You stay Positive In Your Job-Search?

  saberak

  6 Nov 2009 | 1:00 pm

  This post is inspired from a recent conversation with @JRMoreau, @mehnazt & @abroman (all on Twitter) It’s a tough slog out there for a lot of us looking for job, and have been at it for a long time. There has been much blog-writing about what people can do to keep themselves clued-in and busy while seeking a job. From volunteering, to unpaid internships, to professional networking events, there’s lots out there you can use your time toward, in a manner that is relevant to your professional goals. But I’m no saint, and neither are lots of other job seekers out there. I know that…

• What The Phoenix Suns Can Teach Your Brand About Using Twitter

  David Mullen

  6 Nov 2009 | 1:00 pm

  More marketers are recognizing that social media brings value to their brands’ marketing efforts. And along with the interest in social media comes questions, like: What kind of information could we share through social media that our customers would even care about, but also would provide value to our organization? How do we measure success and return on investment? Can we trust our employees to represent our brand well within social media networks? I asked these three questions to Jeramie McPeek, vice president of digital for the Phoenix Suns, during Internet Summit ‘09…

• Art vs. Advertising

  sarahjlwest

  6 Nov 2009 | 1:00 pm

  Last weekend a group of artists took to the streets of Manhattan, in a battle of art and advertising. This is the Second round for the ‘New York Street Advertising Take Over’ (NYSAT2), where artist are white washing and taking over the bill-boards of NYC. Last weekend a group of artists took to the streets of Manhattan, in a battle of art and advertising. This is the Second round for the ‘New York Street Advertising Take Over’ (NYSAT2), where artists are white washing and taking over the bill-boards of NYC. In what the New York Times calls “a bizarre cat-and-mouse game,” the art…

• The Question: What Long Term Impact Will The Recession Have On You?

  next.great

  6 Nov 2009 | 11:00 am

  Maybe you’ve watched your parents worrying about their retirement. Perhaps you had to take out another college loan. Or had to settle for a less desirable job if you found one at all. But what everyone from marketers to economists want to know is what kind of affect will this have on you long term. Will you become a saver? Cut back spending? Eschew the materialism that characterized previous generations? Or when things get better will you perpetuate the practice of conspicuous consumption that your predecessors were so good at? What long term impact will the recession have on you?

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  About.com Job Searching

• Employment Background Checks

  6 Nov 2009 | 10:00 pm

  What do employers want to know before they hire you? You might be surprised at how much they want to know and how much they check. Employment background checks are being conducted by employers more frequently than in the past and some employers will confirm, very thoroughly, every detail of your resume or application. Employers may also require a pre-employment physical examination to determine the suitability of an individual for a job. In addition, companies are concerned about negligent hiring lawsuits where employers can be held responsible for injuries caused by an employee, if they…

• Unemployment Over 10%

  6 Nov 2009 | 2:04 am

  The unemployment rate hit a tough milestone last month, reaching 10.2% for the first time in 26 years. Since the start of the recession, payroll employment has fallen by 7.3 million jobs. In October, non-farm payroll employment dropped by 190,000 jobs. Over the past three months, job losses have averaged 188,000 a month, however, declines are much smaller than they have been - last winter and spring job losses were over 600,000 a month. Among the unemployed, those who have been out of work 27 weeks or more increased to 5.6 million. On a related note, the Senate and House have now passed…

• Check the Newspaper Help Wanted Ads

  4 Nov 2009 | 4:30 am

  With all the focus on online job searching, it's important to remember that some employers recruit the old fashioned way.   Smaller local companies don't always post on job boards or on their company web site, so you may not find their job openings online.  Instead, they  advertise in their local newspaper or pennysaver. In fact, I'm seeing more help wanted ads in my local newspapers than I have in a long time.   Since the recession began there had been mostly line ads and not many of them.  My Sunday paper had quite a few display ads like we used to see every week.  Plus, some…

• Senate Unemployment Extension

  4 Nov 2009 | 12:20 am

  November 6 Update: President Obama has signed the unemployment extension legislation. Unemployed workers should check with their state unemployment office for details on when payments will start being made. The extension provides for 14 weeks of extended benefit coverage for every state and an additional 6 weeks, for a total of 20 weeks, in high unemployment states where unemployment is over 8.5%. November 5 Update: The House voted to approve the unemployment extension today. The next step is for the President to sign it.   After that happens, check with your state unemployment office for…

• Unemployment Extension

  3 Nov 2009 | 10:00 pm

  November 6 Update: President Obama has signed the unemployment extension legislation. Check with your state unemployment office for details on when payments will start being made. The extension provides for 14 weeks of extended benefit coverage for every state and an additional 6 weeks, for a total of 20 weeks, in high unemployment states where unemployment is over 8.5%. Share Your Unemployment Story Read Unemployed Worker Stories November 5 Update: The House voted today to approve the unemployment extension. The next step is for the President to sign it.   Once it's signed, check with your…

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  The Work Buzz

• U.S. loses 190,000 jobs in October

  Today the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) released new data and reported 190,000 jobs were lost in October. Although that figure means 190,000 people lost their jobs--a reality no one can be pleased about--it is a better figure than the 219,000 jobs lost in September. Look back to a year ago, ...

• Should CEOs Post Photos on Facebook?

  My co-worker over at The Hiring Site sent me an interesting article this morning about a CEO named Chip Conley posting some questionable photos on his Facebook site. I think it's going to spark an interesting discussion... Background: Conley is the CEO and founder of Joie de Vivre, a company that ...

• Would you take a pay cut for job security?

  While catching up on the news yesterday, I read this interesting article on CNN.com. The author, Jessica Dickler, interviews Stephanie Jenkins, who had a background in hotel sales and marketing but now works for a senior living Alzheimer's community. When she saw jobs in health care were growing while hospitality ...

• Video: Best jobs for your personality

  Thinking of a career change? Watch our newest video to learn what types of jobs best match your personality. Related posts:How to wish your boss, “Happy Boss’s Day” I think “The Office’s” Michael Scott best described the role...Are Job Seekers Going to Extremes? Now, I know the economy is bad — ...

• Ask The Work Buzz! Full-time mom returning to work

  Judi writes: "I am 54, recently divorced and desperately looking for work. I have a lot of job experience, however, I spent more of my adult years raising my children. I have been diligently applying for work for about 12 weeks and have not been offered one position. I’ve adjusted my ...

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  Escape From Cubicle Nation

• 10 ways to stimulate the economy with your brain

  Pamela

  5 Nov 2009 | 10:58 am

  I don’t know about you, but I get mighty tired of reading newspaper articles and blog rants about the effectiveness/ineffectiveness of stimulus money on our economy. What makes me frustrated is that we waste hours a day fighting with each other about things outside of our control, instead of using our own brains to do something about our local economy. So here is my list of 10 things you can do, right now, to stimulate a small corner of your local economy without spending a dime: Mentor a new business owner.  If you know how to build an effective website or display goods more…

• Spreading the addiction of the TED conference one city at a time

  Pamela

  30 Oct 2009 | 2:24 pm

  There are few things that get me fired up late at night like watching TED videos. For the uninitiated, TED stands for Technology, Entertainment, Design, and is a conference that takes place once a year. The videos from TED are shared free on their website, and the talks are enough to get you standing up with your fist in the air, clutching your heart with tears streaming down your cheeks, or doubling over with laughter. TED is undertaking a new initiative which is to encourage local communities to sponsor their own events, called “TEDx.” We are hosting ours here in Phoenix,…

• Last chance to attend live Escape from Cubicle Nation workshop in 2009

  Pamela

  28 Oct 2009 | 4:20 pm

  The fabulous and enthusiastic crew from last week’s Escape from Cubicle Nation Workshop in London. Photo by the handsome and talented TMSRuge. I communicate on Twitter so frequently that I just realized some blog readers may not know that my last live Escape from Cubicle Nation workshop will take place on Wednesday, November 4 at the Hotel Belamar in Southern California.  I will be joined by the fabulous and talented Colleen Wainwright, otherwise known as Communicatrix, who is an amazing resource for branding and social media. This will be my last workshop of the year, and the last…

• Response to Chris Brogan about Overnight Success

  Pamela

  25 Oct 2009 | 4:05 pm

  Sitting in the Dallas airport after having spent the weekend speaking and participating in Milana Leshinsky’s Coaching Millions Super Summit, I watched Chris Brogan’s 3-part video series on Overnight Success and felt my heart melt. I related to so much of what he talked about, since I have spent so much time this summer on the road, promoting my book. Getting out in front of people is critical, spreading the message of hope and connection through entrepreneurship is imperative, and creating a powerful business model that serves people well and provides well for my family is a…

• The beauty of dirty laundry

  Pamela

  19 Oct 2009 | 2:38 pm

  At the management conference I attended in Pärnu, Estonia last week, we had a speaker from Denmark, Morten Lund,  a long-time entrepreneur who had, among other things, made good money investing in Skype. As he launched into his presentation, he said: “I have founded over 88 startups. And at the moment, I am bankrupt.” Due to a failed investment in a newspaper business in his native Denmark, he had lost a lot of money. But, he said, he actually was feeling quite good. He was spending lots of time with his four kids, whom he obviously adored. And he remained passionate about…

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  Lisa’s Generation Relations Blog

• How Millennial Moms Are Different from Older Generations

  admin

  3 Nov 2009 | 6:25 pm

  Hi All, Clearly I have been swamped! My blogging time has suffered, but there’s only so many hours in a day… I came across this article a week ago but just now getting around to telling YOU about it. See? I am behind. I spoke at the big SEMA event in Vegas yesterday, and then head to Philly on Thursday to speak at the Annual SOPHE Conference. Lots happening!! Oh, and my new book, Millennials Into Leadership, is coming out in 2 weeks. I need to clone me right now. Here’s the scoop: So much time is spent on discussing Millennials (aka Gen Y) as kids and/or young 20-somethings,…

• Several Hot Companies Hiring Run By Generation X or Millennial CEO’s

  admin

  26 Oct 2009 | 9:25 pm

  Hey All! The job market may be tough, but there are some hot companies that are hiring in this economy…and according to Fortune’s new 40 Under 40 list, these companies are owned or run by members of Generation X or Millennial (aka Generation Y) CEO’s…yes, people under 40. And are they all tech startups funded with new VC money? Uh, no. Oh, and did I mention quite a few of the CEO’s only list a high school diploma as their highest education level completed…or a Bachelor’s degree? CNNMoney.com published this article last week, so check it out. Quite a…

• New Podcast Show Features Millennials Making a Difference

  admin

  21 Oct 2009 | 5:40 pm

  Hi All! I’m so excited to announce the launch of my new podcast show, Millennials In Motion! It went live today so check out the interview. Each month I’ll conduct interviews with Millennials (aka Gen Y) who are impacting business, entrepreneurship, music, entertainment, politics, sports, education, society and more! I’ll also interview organizations and services who support young people in a variety of important ways. http://millennialsinmotion.podOmatic.com/ My first episode is with Millennial entrepreneur, Ryan Healy, co-founder of BrazenCareerist.com, a career management…

• 50 Free Resources to Find a College Scholarship, Loan or Grant

  admin

  14 Oct 2009 | 1:43 pm

  Hi All, I was contacted by a blog UniversityOnline.org because they thought their article entitled “Top 50 Free Websites to Look for Scholarships” would be of interest to my readers. Their blog focuses on resources to obtain an online education, but this article is not specific to scholarships for online educational institutions. Here’s the intro to the article and a few of the college scholarship resources on their list. To see the entire list of 50, click here: Trying to find a scholarship to fund your college education can seem like the equivalent of finding a needle in a…

• How to Start Working Before You’re Hired

  admin

  11 Oct 2009 | 10:25 pm

  Hi All! The following is a guest post written by Kevin Donlin, co-author of Guerrilla Resumes. Since 1996, he has provided job-search help to more than 20,000 people. Author of 3 books, Kevin has been interviewed by The New York Times, USA Today, Fox News, CBS Radio and many others. This article is entitled: How to Start Working Before You’re Hired and gives Millennials, and even older generations, currently seeking a job words of encouragement AND some solid tips. Keep reading! If you’re looking for the toughest place in America to find a job, try Michigan. The state, hammered…

• 
  CareerDiva

• Don’t take it out on Muslims

  telleve

  6 Nov 2009 | 5:17 am

  I got a sinking feeling in my stomach when I heard that the man who shot to death 12 people at a military base was supposedly a devout Muslim. Nadal Hassan allegedly committed a horrific act at Fort Hood, TX, and that should be condemned. But there’s been a tendency by some in this country to take the actions of one individual of a certain religious affiliation and blame a whole group of people. Muslim groups anticipate a backlash. The Council on American-Islamic Relations put out a statement last night urging Americans to stay calm and united. The group’s National Executive…

• Tweet your trysts not your cysts

  telleve

  5 Nov 2009 | 4:30 am

  People, have you lost your minds? I don’t mind if you tweet about bowl movements or your latest sexual escapades, but why would you disclose information about your health, or your family members’, or a friend’s health on Twitter or any other social networking site? Lately I’ve noticed a disturbing trend. Many of you are baring it all in cyber space — and I mean everything from cankers to cancer. And that could spell doom if you’re looking for a job or trying to buy insurance folks. Here’s a sampling from Twitter on what some of you are disclosing…

• Fat guys get break in politics, but not the workplace

  telleve

  4 Nov 2009 | 5:11 am

  The race for New Jersey’s governor points to an ongoing problem in this country — it’s ok to discriminate against fat people. Leading up to the elections yesterday, and even today, the fat jokes have been flowing on the Web about 5′11″, 550 pound Chris Christie who challenged incumbent New Jersey Gov. Jon Corzine: This from a website called Power Line on Christie’s win: “The fat man sings in New Jersey.” Can you imagine if after Obama won the election you saw a headline that said: “The black man sings.” Another site referred to…

• Waiting tables is man’s work too

  telleve

  3 Nov 2009 | 5:29 am

  Would you want a man serving you dinner when you’re out at a fancy restaurant? The owners of a high-end group of steakhouses thought you wouldn’t, and they were barring men from such duties since 1938 in the name of tradition. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission announced yesterday that Lawry’s Restaurants Inc., which operates Lawry’s the Prime Rib, Five Crowns and Tam O’Shanter Inn, settled a sex discrimination class action lawsuit for $1,025,000 for failing to hire men as food servers. The Pasadena, CA-based company operates restaurants in Los Angeles,…

• Buy a butcher, baker or candlestick maker a cup of coffee

  telleve

  2 Nov 2009 | 6:25 am

  Many of you are considering a career switch and that’s a great thing. But before you do too much research into a new profession, I would do one thing ASAP — take someone in that field out for a cup of coffee. Why? No matter how many books or articles you read about a career, no matter how long you spend on the Internet researching a profession, you’ll never know what it’s really like unless you talk to someone in the trenches. And I mean talk, not email folks. This point was driven home for me during the weekend when I was attending a Halloween party at my…

• 
  Employee Engagement Zingers

• David Zinger’s 13 Eclectic Leadership, Management and Engagement Mix

  David Zinger

  6 Nov 2009 | 10:15 am

  Stay Informed I trust you will enjoy some of these fantastic sources and resources of information. WORK. Why you are not ready to find a new job even when you say you are ~ Scot Herrick http://bit.ly/1G24yZ Very Funny. “The The Impotence of Proofreading,” by Taylor Mau. http://bit.ly/3J3YRN GIVE THANKS. Sherri Fisher. Wonderful Article. Thanks to Gratitude! http://bit.ly/1qH7Bl ASK. Dick Richard’s story. Ask for a house…you just might get two houses. http://bit.ly/3M8S3z Everyone is not Somone. Who is your someone? http://bit.ly/9627r 525 Slides from Tom Peters. His…

• Sustaining Employee Engagement: Cal Ripken, Jr. – Get In The Game

  David Zinger

  6 Nov 2009 | 4:52 am

  How to Play Everyday Not a fan. First off, I want to own that I am not a big fan of using sports analogies or examples to create engagement in the workplace. I think we often have too much “rah rah” motivational stuff leaving us feeling more depleted than motivated. A long drive. A few weeks ago, I had to drive about 4 hours across the open Canadian prairies so I went to the library and looked for a book CD to listen to during the drive. There wasn’t much selection so I finally grabbed a book by Cal Ripken, Jr., Get in the Game: 8 Elements of Perseverance That Make The…

• David Zinger’s 14 Eclectic Engaged Workplace Resources

  David Zinger

  5 Nov 2009 | 7:02 am

  14 Informational Gems I search over 450 blogs so you don’t have to. Here are some gems I uncovered in the plethora of information available.  I bold little snippets that I think are especially good. Read the master, Jerry, on workplace positive reinforcement. http://bit.ly/F4LlJ GET THE HAPPINESS QUOTE. J. D. Meier with a plethora of happiness quotations. Great collection. http://bit.ly/3TRqks VIDEO: Recession Thoughts from Tom Peters – On Lending Officers and The World of Finance http://bit.ly/2lt0NT Tom Peter’s newest book is coming – The Little BIG Things: 163 Ways…

• Zany Zingers: Zane Safrit and David Zinger on Employee Engagement

  David Zinger

  5 Nov 2009 | 1:49 am

  Listen in Friday Nov 6 at 9:30 Central Time Upcoming Radio Show Guest: David Zinger, founder of Employee Engagement community By Zane Safrit: David Zinger joins us Friday, November 6 at 9:30 AM, Central to talk about creating engaged employees. David is a leading expert on employee engagement and strength based leadership. David founded the Employee Engagement community on Ning and it has grown to over 1400 1600+ members whose common passion and expertise for creating engaged employees make it a lively and useful community. He is a management consultant with over 25 years of experience. David…

• David Zinger’s 19 Links and Lessons for the Workplace

  David Zinger

  4 Nov 2009 | 5:02 am

  From Radical Brevity to Compassion at Work Here are 19 recent powerful and poignant links and lessons for employee engagement and the workplace: Practice Radical Brevity. Tim Sanders. http://bit.ly/3pk7d4 7 lessons from marketing for HR. (i.e. Design and Brand Matters) http://bit.ly/43wBsp Wash Your Hands. Seth Godin – The Data Decision Collison. http://bit.ly/ZmKEx Intersection of good design Venn beauty, usefulness, and durability come together. http://bit.ly/9OYWC David Henderson. Wonderful cups of coffee idea. Pour out the recognition. http://bit.ly/74eqt Get the picture. Feature…

• 
  J.T. and Dale Talk Jobs

• The Next Job You’re Going To Hate

  jtanddale

  4 Nov 2009 | 7:33 am

  Dear J.T. & Dale: You experts keep saying to “network.” Most jobs I’ve gotten by networking have turned out very badly for me. I won’t go into details, but they often ended in lack of advancement, being knifed in the back by a supervisor or other not-so-nice happenings. I have a long list of industries I’ve been in and know I have no desire to work in again — finance, insurance, retail, any type of food service, any job requiring answering phones or being on the computer all day and sales (including all the titles that try to hide that it’s a sales…

• Why Won’t Recruiter Give Me Time of Day?

  jtanddale

  4 Nov 2009 | 7:27 am

  Dear J.T. & Dale: There is one recruiter who has a lot of the high-end jobs I qualify for, but for some reason she has yet to respond to me about any of those listings. Why hasn’t she contacted me? Is it rude to call her and ask if I have been considered? — Lynne J.T.: Most recruiters are overwhelmed with applicants right now. So, just calling or e-mailing once isn’t good enough. I would contact her and ask what is the best way to get considered for the positions she has available. In particular, inquire as to whether there’s a process she likes new applicants to…

• Rehearse Before You Sing: The Mock Interview

  jtanddale

  27 Oct 2009 | 1:04 pm

  Dear J.T. & Dale: When May came around last year, my wife was ill and I was worn out and felt that I needed some time to regroup, so I voluntarily resigned my position. Six months ago I was ready to look for something new but have been unable to find a position. I’ve had some interviews, but they have gotten me nowhere. I am thinking about doing a mock interview for help. Any advice would be welcomed. — Chris Dale: The job-search process comes down to just three steps: Spotting openings, getting interviews and getting offers. The problem is that each step requires a different…

• Am I Too Old to Find a Job?

  jtanddale

  27 Oct 2009 | 12:58 pm

  Dear J.T. & Dale: I’m an experienced, educated manufacturing manager who was downsized at the age of 62 in July of last year. I have been working daily through networking, Web sites and headhunters to find a new position. My wife thinks it is my age; although I don’t want to believe that, she may be correct. I do not want to retire — I am healthy, in good shape and have a lot to offer. What can I do? — Doug J.T.: Lately we’ve had a lot of people write in about age discrimination. Sure, age could be a factor, but I really think it’s more a reflection of the bad…

• A Different Ladder to Climb

  jtanddale

  21 Oct 2009 | 8:00 am

  Dear J.T. & Dale: I was laid off recently after almost 20 years as a project manager. I’m not sure how to answer the question about what my career goals are. I’m at a point in life where I just want a job to carry me to retirement. I’ve already been on the corporate ladder, trying to reach the top, and it’s too stressful. Plus, I’m a single mother with an elderly mother to take care of, so I already have two ladders I’m climbing. — Victoria Dale: Your message reveals an underlying assumption about corporations: “Only eager ladder-climbers need…

• 
  All Things Workplace

• Behavioral Change: Fun Theory Part 3

  Steve Roesler

  6 Nov 2009 | 5:03 am

  When it comes to going viral, Volkswagen and their ad agency DDB Stockholm appear to have hit the jackpot. Their new campaign, "The Fun Theory", is a series of experiments captured on video, to find out if making certain activities more fun can improve people’s behavior toward the environment. By the way: it's an actual contest as well. You can enter your own fun theory video and win some decent money. Among the experiments: does turning a set of subway stairs into a real-life piano encourage people to use them? The answer is "yes": 66% more. Another experiment asks whether making a trash…

• Behavioral Change: Fun Theory Part 2

  Steve Roesler

  5 Nov 2009 | 4:18 am

  People love to have fun. The comments, emails, and tweets about The Piano Stairs confirmed that folks would be much more inclined to change their behavior if there was some fun involved. So, to reinforce the notion, here's Part 2. It involves a common dilemma: How do you get people to want to throw away their trash in public places and keep things nice and clean? I give you: The World's Deepest Rubbish Bin

• One More Time: What Do People Want At Work?

  Steve Roesler

  4 Nov 2009 | 9:44 am

  Getting the very best (or most) from employees has become the holy grail of business. Millions of  dollars are spent to determine how to achieve a state where workers function at high levels of productivity and, supposedly, satisfaction. Every employee survey I've seen over the past 30 years shows the same results as this, conducted in 2007 by Towers Perrin. The survey population was 90,000 employees, worldwide.What do Employees Want? The #1 element on a global level was an employee's belief that senior management was interested in his or her well-being. Imagine. Employee's relate their…

• Changing Behavior: The Fun Theory

  Steve Roesler

  2 Nov 2009 | 10:46 am

  That headline ought to confuse the search engines. Why does nearly every corporate meeting about "behavioral change" end up with some kind of a solution that involves sanctions or carrot-and-stick incentive programs that can only get bigger and more expensive to have any impact over the long run? Which leads me to: "How can we make something so much fun that people can't not do it?" Here's a look at The Fun Theory in action:

• Leadership, Choices, Decisions, Relationships. . .

  Steve Roesler

  1 Nov 2009 | 9:01 pm

  What you put into your mind will determine your thoughts. Here's the best way to jump-start your thinking for the week: The November Leadership Carnival, compliments of host Dan McCarthy. Scroll through the topics and the authorities behind them, and bump up your leadership game:Start off with Wally Bock presenting Let’s hear it for the role models posted at Momentor.Next up is Mary Jo Asmus presenting Choosing posted at Mary Jo Asmus.Anne Perschel presents Never Waste A Good Recession posted at Germane Insights.Steve Roesler presents Team Leaders: Do You Do This? posted at All…

• 
  FORTIFY YOUR OASIS

• Even though it's not Friday ...

  Rowan Manahan

  15 Oct 2009 | 4:59 am

  I got an email from a nice man called Randy in Perrigo's PR firm (remember Perrigo? They're the guys with the dancing scientists): RSS Readers may need to click through to the post Anyhoo, apparently they're still at it at Perrigo. I usually bin these emails after the first generic, badly-written paragraph ["Dear space space Rowan. I have readed your blog and think ..."], but Randy's writing style held my eye and I was glad I clicked through: RSS Readers may need to click through to the post Not your typical corporate video. I do hope that Perrigo's CEO is in there somewhere (maybe doing the…

• PowerPoint turns 25

  Rowan Manahan

  14 Oct 2009 | 8:05 am

  [click to enlarge] Robert Gaskins wrote a proposal for PowerPoint (then called 'Presenter') and the product was released into the wild in 1984. Three years later, his company was acquired, kit and caboodle, by Microsoft because they reckoned that the market for "desktop presentation" had the same potential as the "desktop publishing" sector. In the meantime, we have all been subjected to a gazillion bullet points and most audiences reflexively wince and brace themselves for the onslaught when they see a person fiddling with a laptop, a USB stick and a data projector. Last week, I had the…

• Finding a job is a full-time job - Part 2

  Rowan Manahan

  4 Oct 2009 | 11:30 pm

  A good chat with Mr Tubridy on RTE Radio, talking about where to find a job to apply for – because recruitment advertisements seem to be elusive little beasts these days. You can find the entire programme here or just listen to the job-hunt piece (about 9 minutes) below: RSS Readers may need to click through to the post. Low-key, passive, private job-hunting is not going to cut it any more folks. As Mr T. says, "Where hope once came seeking you out, you must now seek out hope." Waiting with bated breath for the perfect job to appear in your favourite newspaper, or on your favourite jobsite,…

• Wisdom

  Rowan Manahan

  28 Sep 2009 | 4:32 am

  Really liked this RSS Readers may need to click through to the post

• Education - 3Rs + ...

  Rowan Manahan

  25 Sep 2009 | 12:00 am

  Fabulous RSS Readers may need to click through to the post

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

• The Passion to Thrive

  Jon Gordon

  2 Nov 2009 | 4:54 am

  The strongest may survive but it is the passionate that will thrive. Whether I’m speaking to an NFL team, school principals, or leaders of world class organizations such as Pepperidge Farm, Citizens Bank, and Northwestern Mutual my message is the same: If you want to be successful today you must load your “Energy Bus” with passionate people…. and most of all you must be passionate yourself. In the past you could be lukewarm and mediocre and still be successful. Not anymore. Now, in today’s competitive environment, your passion and your purpose must be greater than your…

• Play to Win

  Jon Gordon

  26 Oct 2009 | 6:12 am

  There was a time in most of our lives when we had no fear-that feeling when we jumped from the jungle gym and slammed our little bodies to the ground. Perhaps it was when we went on our first roller coaster, or when we were in high school or college and felt that there was nothing we couldn’t do. No goal was unattainable. We were an unstoppable force that would think of something and then make it happen. Then, as time goes by, the world tells us more frequently that we can’t do what we want. The doubters laugh at our goals and try to persuade us from going after our dreams. They…

• Tying Your Shoes and other Boring Keys to Success

  Jon Gordon

  19 Oct 2009 | 4:31 am

  Two weeks ago I wrote about Keeping Your Eye on the Ball (click to read article) and incidentally mentioned how while playing tennis I had blisters on my feet. This prompted Randy to respond on my blog and share the following funny comment. “Jon, excellent post. But…blisters? I was reminded of a Coach John Wooden principle that first you have to teach your players how to tie their shoes correctly — no one can play well and persevere with sore feet! THEN, you can keep your eyes on the ball!!” As someone who has also studied the leadership of John Wooden I knew I had…

• The Power to Change

  Jon Gordon

  12 Oct 2009 | 5:35 am

  In The Shark and The Goldfish, Gordy the goldfish is forced from his safe, secure and comfortable fishbowl and finds himself in an ocean of change and uncertainty. It’s a path that many of us can relate to. Change happens all the time and when it hits we’re forced to move from the comfort of the known to the discomfort of the unknown. It is during these times that we come face to face with our greatest fears—which too often sabotage our joy, confidence, productivity and success. Change turns our world upside down and leads to negative thoughts, actions and outcomes. But Sammy the Shark…

• Keep Your Eye on the Ball

  Jon Gordon

  5 Oct 2009 | 4:28 am

    I’ve recently become addicted to tennis. I was glued to the television during the US Open and try to play every chance I get. Originally I was forced to play by my wife, who needed someone to practice with, and my son who at the age of 9 has decided he wants to be the next John McEnroe. But now I love the game and my goal is to be the first unranked 40+ man to win the US Open. In my pursuit of greatness I’ve taken a few lessons and when playing I try to implement what I’ve learned. I tell myself: Keep the racket low. Move the feet. Bend the knees. Rotate the hips. Low to high. Follow…

• 
  College Recruiter

• Unemployment Rate Tops 10% - 26 Year High

  6 Nov 2009 | 7:20 am

• One Speaker and Exhibitor's Impression of OnRec / Kennedy Information 2009 Fall Conference

  4 Nov 2009 | 1:46 pm

  I had the good fortune of attending the OnRec / Kennedy Information recruiting conference in Chicago this week. I was both a panelist on a session about how employers can use mobile marketing for recruiting and CollegeRecruiter.com had a booth in the exhibit room. The session was well attended and seemed to be well received by the attendees. Most had little to no experience with cell phone text messaging, keyword advertising, mobile web sites, or any other components of mobile marketing. Virtually all, however, seemed to realize that the future of on-line recruiting will be on web-enabled…

• Report: 2009 Grads Who Interned 64% More Likely to Have Received Permanent Job Offers

  30 Oct 2009 | 11:48 am

  It is probably of no surprise to anyone involved in college recruiting that new college graduates who had internships prior to or even after graduation fared far better in their efforts to find permanent employment after graduation than did their counterparts who didn't intern. The National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE) just released its 2009 Student Survey. The report shows that just 19.7 percent of the Class of 2009 who had applied for jobs had one by the end of April. As dismal as that one in five percent may be, it was even worse for those who had not completed an…

• Another Job Board Hacked

  29 Oct 2009 | 9:42 am

  The job board operated by U.K. newspaper The Guardian was reportedly hacked this past weekend and about 500,000 resumes and other information valuable to identity theft scum walked out the door. The response from The Guardian? Pathetic. They recommended that their users buy fraud prevention services. I wouldn't be surprised if The Guardian received commissions on the sale of those services, which would make this intolerable situation even worse as The Guardian would be profiting off of the inadequate security measures that it chose to put into place. A number of job boards have been hacked…

• 5 Advantages of Attending Brand-Name College

  29 Oct 2009 | 6:00 am

  Attending a name-brand college or university will give you the following professional advantages over those who attended schools which are less well known: It will be easier for you to get interviews and job offers at prestigious big companies. Big companies will offer you more favorable starting positions and higher salaries. People at big companies will have a more positive initial impression of you even if they haven't yet seen your work. It will be easier for you to get involved in a more promising start-up company. It will be easier for you to get admitted into name-brand graduate…

• 
  Career College Central

• University of Phoenix Responds to ProPublica/Marketplace Investigation

  Career College Central

  6 Nov 2009 | 7:48 am

  The University of Phoenix has responded to ProPublica's recent story on its enrollment practices, calling it "nothing more than a series of anecdotes." ProPublica reported the story with Amy Scott of Marketplace. The story reported that University of Phoenix students who enter associate degree programs graduate at a lower rate than students at comparable for-profit institutions. The story incorrectly said that 37 percent of Phoenix students who begin two-year programs ultimately graduate. ProPublica corrected the story to reflect the accurate figure, which according to the…

• Catching Up to Canada

  Career College Central

  6 Nov 2009 | 7:48 am

  VANCOUVER, B.C. -- Caveats about the data aside -- and there are plenty, admittedly -- the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development's heavily used rankings on countries' college outcomes place Canada at the top of the list for the proportion of citizens with a postsecondary credential. So when President Obama, in a speech to Congress in February, set a goal of having the United States get back to the top of that ranking by 2020, "that means that you're trying to bump us off," Noel Baldwin, a policy and research officer at the Canada Millennium Scholarship Fund, told a…

• Hispanic Higher Education: Closing the Gap

  Career College Central

  6 Nov 2009 | 7:47 am

  The University of Texas-El Paso (UTEP) is one of the most binational of America's big universities. Some 90% of its students come from the borderplex -- the Texan city of El Paso and its much larger sister-city, Ciudad Juarez, on the Mexican side of the Rio Grande. More than 70% of its students are Mexican or Mexican-American. read more

• "Stealth Applicants" Deemed Biggest Recruiting Challenge for Colleges Seeking Increased Adult Student Market Share

  Career College Central

  6 Nov 2009 | 7:47 am

  Hoboken, New Jersey (Nov. 5, 2009) -- While record numbers of adult students are seeking advanced credentials due to the economic downturn, they are displaying a new preference toward anonymity in the recruitment process. The number of adult prospects considered to be "stealth applicants," or those applicants that a school has never had contact with prior to application submission, and other propensities of adult students were revealed at a recent convening of higher education administrators orchestrated by EducationDynamics. read more

• Florida's Keiser University Expands with New College of Golf in West Port St. Lucie

  Career College Central

  6 Nov 2009 | 7:47 am

  PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. -- Keiser University, an established, regionally accredited Level V Ph.D. institution, has entered the $76 billion golf industry with the addition of the Keiser University College of Golf in west Port St. Lucie. Arthur Keiser, Ph.D. has been recognized as a leader and national expert in career focused, workforce driven education in Florida for over 30 years, however, the College of Golf is a first for the statewide university best known for its healthcare, business and information technology graduates. read more

• 
  Execpundit

• Book List: Five for Time and Place

  7 Nov 2009 | 4:03 am

  Penelope Lively picks five books "that excel in depicting a particular time and place."That's an interesting criterion. Some quick additions:Berlin Stories by Christopher IsherwoodThe Bonfire of the Vanities by Tom Wolfe

• Quote of the Day

  7 Nov 2009 | 4:00 am

  Having a family is like having a bowling alley installed in your brain.- Martin Mull

• Entertainment Break: Keith as TR

  6 Nov 2009 | 6:52 pm

  The best scene from The Wind and The Lion: Brian Keith and John Huston

• 10 Career Mistakes

  6 Nov 2009 | 3:55 pm

  The post on my 10 career mistakes is up at U.S. News & World Report

• Men in College

  6 Nov 2009 | 2:20 pm

  Writing in The Wall Street Journal, Richard Whitmire discusses "Why aren't more men going to college?" An excerpt:Economists at both the Department of Education and the College Board agree that, to ensure high future earnings, men and women have an equal need for college degrees, and yet only women are getting that message. The numbers are startling. This summer the Center for Labor Market Studies at Northeastern University published the results of a study tracking the students who graduated from Boston Public Schools in 2007. Their conclusion: For every 167 females in four-year colleges,…

• 
  WebWorkerDaily

• WWD Screencast: Firefox 3.6 Tab Previews

  Simon Mackie

  6 Nov 2009 | 3:30 pm

  With the new beta of Firefox 3.6, new tab previewing functionality has been made available in Firefox — you can preview tabs using the “List all tabs” button, and you can see a preview when using Ctrl-Tab to switch between tabs. These two new features are not enabled by default, so you’ll need to go to the about:config page and toggle “browser.allTabs.previews” and “browser.ctrlTab.previews” to “true” (either right-click on the entry and hit “Toggle”, or just double-click the entry). I made a quick screencast showing how…

• 5 Most Popular Posts on WebWorkerDaily This Week

  Simon Mackie

  6 Nov 2009 | 3:00 pm

  Just in case you missed any of them, here are the five most popular posts on WebWorkerDaily this week: Does Multitasking Make You More Productive? It’s easy to think that just because you’re a demon multitasker, you’re automatically productive. But is that really the case? Karen investigates. Google Dashboard: Find Out What Google Knows About You Google has just released Google Dashboard, a window onto all of the data it stores about you. What Is Google Wave, Anyway? New e-Book Explains Charlie introduces “The Complete Guide to Google Wave.” 7 Handy iPhone Apps…

• Thanks to Our WebWorkerDaily Sponsors!

  Edit Staff

  6 Nov 2009 | 2:00 pm

  We’d like to say thanks to this month’s WebWorkerDaily sponsors: FreshBooks: Look Professional with FreshBooks.

• Web Office Suites: Complementary and Coopetive Technologies

  Will Kelly

  6 Nov 2009 | 1:00 pm

  My recent post “5 Web Office Considerations: Beyond the Buzz” garnered some thought-provoking comments, which got me pondering on the proper place for the web office suite (whether it is ThinkFree, Zoho or Google Apps) in today’s world. As a technical writer by trade, I have fairly strong opinions as to how a web office suite can fit into the workflow of a team publishing moderately complex documents, spreadsheets, and presentations. I do believe that a web office suite and Microsoft Office don’t have to be “natural enemies in the wild” and can coexist to…

• New MacHeist nanoBundle Is Free

  Simon Mackie

  6 Nov 2009 | 12:00 pm

  MacHeist is well-known for packaging together and heavily discounting some great Mac apps. As reported over on TheAppleBlog, though, the latest MacHeist bundle, the “MacHeist nanoBundle” will cost you precisely nothing — zilch, zip, nada. The bundle contains six apps that would normally collectively retail for $149: ShoveBox — A clippings organizer that lets you capture, view, organize and edit data. WriteRoom — A simple, distraction-free word processor that Sam wrote about here. Twitterrific — A Twitter client. TinyGrab — A screenshot utility that I…

• 
  The HR Capitalist

• Hey HR Pros! Stay Classy When You Have Jobs and Nobody Else Does...

  Kris Dunn

  6 Nov 2009 | 11:41 am

  If you're lucky enough to be working for a company that has jobs to fill and candidates to source during this downer of an economy, take a deep breath - a lot of your peers aren't in that position.  It's a great (make that the preferred) position to be in, and chances are you're going to see more candidates than usual, although I've written in the past that I still believe the true passive candidate is hunkering down where they are, rather than looking for a new gig in this economy.  After all, if their company hasn't had layoffs, why would they take the…

• Why I Work Where I Do...(and on a related note, the launch of DAXKOnation)

  Kris Dunn

  5 Nov 2009 | 8:56 am

  I started my career by working for Fortune 500's as a HR pro, and life was good.  I was young, smart (my opinion, maybe no one else's) and in need of an environment to learn the business of HR.  The Fortune 500's I worked for provided great tools (Cingular), mentors and a cowboy frontier (Charter - 70 locations and 3,000 employees in my client group from 14 different companies slapped together by an acquisition happy Paul Allen) to learn from. In every one of those situations, the inevitable happened.  Bureaucracy crept in, and the job didn't feel as…

• HR: The Perfect Choice to Defend Talent From Work/Life Balance Issues...

  Kris Dunn

  4 Nov 2009 | 1:26 pm

  I posted yesterday on the work ethic required to be a star, and more importantly, the fact that I continue to run into super sharp people who say they want to be stars, but won't put in the time to outwork others and are outraged/miffed when told that's what it takes.  Bottom line - if you want to be the Bono (U2) of your field, you probably shouldn't think leaving or checking out at 4:55 is your god-given right. Tim Sacket commented with this, which I thought was significant enough to call for a post of its own: "Interesting that as HR Pros, we are suppose to be the…

• Being a Star - Either Put In More Hours Than Others, or Start Eliminating Stuff (But Stop Whining)...

  Kris Dunn

  3 Nov 2009 | 8:31 am

  Being a star - everybody wants to be one, but few want to (or perhaps can) do what it takes to be one.  I'm reminded of the fact that most stars become stars because they simply outwork all the people who won't do what it takes to become world class.  Ryan Estis reminded me of that this week: "Bono is a Rockstar.  I was fortunate enough to see the U2 360 Concert recently.  And it was Passion on Purpose on display.  And all of that Passion and Preparation translated into a monster Performance. Its a real pleasure watching artists, who take so much pride in their craft,…

• Interviewer Sabotage: The Worst Candidates Hired at Google Do the Best in their Jobs...

  Kris Dunn

  2 Nov 2009 | 6:00 am

  Maybe you should be scared when all the folks who interview a candidate in your company come back with high marks.  After all, GROUPTHINK is alive and well in every company, including yours.  Don't tell me it's not, because it is.  Heck, I work at a great place and it's alive and well here.  It just happens, it's human nature.  We like people like us.  Aren't they great? Could it be that when some folks like the candidate, and some find him/her to be repulsive to the point of questioning your ability as a recruiter, that you've found a STAR?  Google…

• 
  Forbes.com: Career News

• The Weekly Layoff Report: A Busy Week

  6 Nov 2009 | 1:56 pm

  Johnson & Johnson leads the pack, announcing that 8,000 jobs will go.

• Self-Reinvention Nation

  5 Nov 2009 | 1:24 pm

  A new study suggests that a surprising number of Americans want to start new careers.

• Seven Rules For Succeeding As A Brand-New Leader

  4 Nov 2009 | 1:35 pm

  You must do certain things even before you start the job.

• Should You Go Back To School?

  4 Nov 2009 | 1:13 pm

  To find out, evaluate your goals and aspirations and take a hard look at the practicalities.

• Where The Jobs Are: Clean Tech

  2 Nov 2009 | 3:00 am

  Earn a living making the world more livable.

• 
  Sylvia Ann Hewlett

• 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…

• How Cisco Created Their Own Talent Incubator

  Sylvia Ann Hewlett

  20 Oct 2009 | 1:50 pm

  While there's been a lot of discussion about how the recession may be over, to many organizations and their employees, the view ahead is still one tough slog. The zeitgeist says it's far too early to dream about constructing your ideal job; survival trumps career development. Yet that's precisely the kind of thinking that will cause talented workers to tune out, turn off and, as soon as the economy picks up, take a hike. In researching my upcoming book, Top Talent: Keeping Performance Up When Business Is Down, we found that the number one reason that talented people love their jobs —…

• In Hard Times, Re-Commit to Flex Time

  Sylvia Ann Hewlett

  12 Oct 2009 | 8:55 am

  A major milestone is within reach: By October or November, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, women will outnumber men in the workforce for the first time in U.S. history. While I'm naturally delighted to see something approaching employment parity, I'm much more concerned about the reason for this historic reversal — and its ramifications. Women are gaining the vast majority of jobs in the few sectors of the economy that are growing. That's the good news. Although 80 percent of the 5.1 million people who have lost their jobs in this recession are men, women have not been…

• Are Your Best Female Employees a Flight Risk?

  Sylvia Ann Hewlett

  5 Oct 2009 | 12:01 pm

  One of your company's most powerful competitive weapons may at this very moment be cleaning out her desk — or contemplating doing so. Can you afford to let her go? In researching my forthcoming book, Top Talent: Keeping Performance Up When Business Is Down, we found that in the wake of last year's financial crash, high-powered women were more than twice as likely as men — 84 percent compared with 40 percent — to be seriously thinking jumping ship. And when the head and heart are out the door, the rest of the body is sure to follow. Women are falling victim to two types of…

• 
  Marshall Goldsmith

• Build Your Self Confidence Like a Leader

  Marshall Goldsmith

  30 Oct 2009 | 11:38 am

  This week's question for Ask the Coach: What can I do to build my confidence in my capabilities as a leader? You won't get to the top without self-confidence; to build it, you have to believe in yourself. Don't worry about being perfect — put up a brave front and do the best you can. That's it in a nutshell. Here's a little more background for you. Last year, as I often do, I taught a seminar for MBA students at the University of California at Berkeley's Haas School of Business. A second-year student approached me and told me he'd read my book What Got You Here Won't Get You There. "In…

• How Entrepreneurs Should Handle Succession

  Marshall Goldsmith

  15 Oct 2009 | 7:42 am

  This is second of two columns in which I address, in collaboration with my good friend and colleague, Dr. Steven Berglas, the unique challenges that entrepreneurial family businesses builders face in leadership succession. The first post describes how entrepreneurial founders can unwittingly sabotage the succession process. Entrepreneurs who create and build businesses from scratch are nothing if not street smart. They know business, as well as the trends that impact businesses. I am not certain that all successful family business founders know this statistic: most (60-70%) of all family…

• Why Entrepreneurs Sabotage the Succession Process

  Marshall Goldsmith

  8 Oct 2009 | 12:50 pm

  This week's question for Ask the Coach: In your book, Succession: Are You Ready? you describe the challenge of succession for the CEOs of major corporations. What unique challenges do you see for succession in entrepreneurial family businesses? My good friend and colleague, Dr. Steven Berglas, and I are currently writing a book that addresses this specific question. Given major demographic trends in the United States, this topic has become more critical today than at any time in our country's history. Millions of aging Baby Boomers who have founded businesses are now past or approaching the…

• Why You Should Choose an Internal Successor

  Marshall Goldsmith

  17 Sep 2009 | 11:11 am

  This week's question for Ask the Coach: I'm getting ready to move on. Should I look for my successor inside the organization or find a candidate on the outside? Developing a great successor is one of the most important accomplishments that a CEO — or any senior-level executive — can achieve. But, what's best for your organization, and for you? Should you develop an internal or an external successor? There are many reasons, both personal and professional, to invest in development for an internal candidate. To start, if a new CEO comes from outside the company, the board will expect…

• Don't Give Up on Change

  Marshall Goldsmith

  4 Sep 2009 | 7:12 am

  This week's question for Ask the Coach: Change is hard. It takes forever and I don't even know if it's working. Any tips for making this process easier? Change takes longer than we think and the process is difficult. Acknowledging these facts can make your attempts more successful. My co-author Dr. Kelly Goldsmith, Assistant Professor of Marketing at Northwestern's Kellogg School of Management, and I researched why people give up on their goals. We discovered that there are five common reasons. Understanding these roadblocks will help you apply some preventive medicine — and increase…

• 
  John Baldoni

• Use Humility to Improve Performance

  John Baldoni

  5 Nov 2009 | 6:43 am

  I've written before about the importance of humility as a leadership trait. But, as was recently pointed out to me, humility is an important trait in employees, too. When people act humbly, they are acknowledging their limitations and accepting that they cannot go it alone. This mindset is valuable to a team because it serves as an invitation for others to help. Humility, however, is not an excuse for slacking. It also means having the willingness to help others do their jobs when the need arises. It is a means for allowing different personalities to coordinate with each other. Rick Hensley,…

• How to Create Clarity Amidst Uncertainty

  John Baldoni

  29 Oct 2009 | 12:15 pm

  Companies have the right to demand that employees pay attention to their jobs — it is a base requirement for performance. However, as the recent incident involving two Northwest Airlines pilots illustrates, when other issues are pressing, employees lose focus. As the story goes, the pilots were trying to figure out the new Delta scheduling system that now governs what flights they're assigned. (Delta acquired Northwest last fall.) In doing so, they overshot their destination by 150 miles and did not respond to repeated queries from flight controllers. As reported in the New York Times,…

• Developing Your Leadership Presence

  John Baldoni

  21 Oct 2009 | 2:30 pm

  What about when you are pushed in front of the microphone or given very little prep time for something like an introduction of a guest speaker? This question came from Tonya in response to my previous post on developing your leadership pitch. Here's the quick answer, you walk to the microphone and you smile. You take a moment to size up the audience and then you say what you have to say briefly and to the point. Most importantly, as they advise running backs who score touchdowns, act like you have been there before. The great ones hand the ball back the referee; the wannabes whoop and holler.

• The Smart Way to Influence Your Boss

  John Baldoni

  14 Oct 2009 | 1:21 pm

  How can I sell this idea to my boss? This is something that executive coaches hear regularly. It usually comes from someone seeking to lead from the middle. To begin to answer this question, let me tell you a story. Ronald Reagan is credited with hastening the end of Cold War between the USSR and the USA. While he had long preached nuclear disarmament, his argument gained personal impetus after watching the made-for-TV movie, The Day After, which depicted the destruction of Lawrence, Kansas, after a nuclear blast. The movie, according to The Dead Hand, a recent history of the Cold War era by…

• Three Questions to Remove Ego from Decision Making

  John Baldoni

  8 Oct 2009 | 6:30 am

  As President Barack Obama wrestles with the issue of what to do next in Afghanistan, there is absolutely one thing he cannot do: Make it personal. That is precisely the mistake that his predecessor, Lyndon Johnson made when escalating the war in Vietnam. Again and again, as is made clear by listening to tapes of him in the Oval Office, Johnson personalized the war not as the United States versus North Vietnam (or Russia and China), but as LBJ against the world, be it the enemy abroad or those inside his administration and throughout the nation who protested the war. Let us be clear,…

• 
  Evil HR Lady

• So, How's That Working For You?

  Evil HR Lady

  30 Oct 2009 | 1:23 am

  After reading everyone's horror stories about crazy punishments for getting sick, I'm really interested in hearing from the people who create and/or enforce these rules. I know you must be out there.Does it really decrease absenteeism? Does your turnover increase? What is the reasoning behind it? Was it HR's idea, or the CEOs or Finance? Have you calculated the costs associated with this policy?I'm really interested. Honest. I'm pretty sure the people who comment aren't all just making up stories, so there must be HR out there who enforces these things. Tell me how it's going.

• Exempt Day Swapping

  Evil HR Lady

  27 Oct 2009 | 10:29 pm

  What impact does pay periods have on exempt employees who wish to make up time? If an employee takes a couple of hours off but desires to make up the time, why does it have to done in the same pay period? To put us in context, the majority of the staff are exempt, we currently get paid on the 5th and 20th of each month, have vacation and sick buckets and work 9/80 with every other Friday off. I ask this because a couple of employees worked on what would have been 'Off Friday on 10/9'. One of the employees had a scheduled sick day [medical apt] for the following Friday which would have been…

• A Job You Can't Take

  Evil HR Lady

  27 Oct 2009 | 6:15 am

  Should I accept an interview for a position in a location to which I would never (could never) move? Or should I state it in the cover letter or phone interview and risk being passed over by someone willing to relocate? The position is primarily project management with few, if any, direct reports (other than coordinating tasks with other groups). My intention is to request to telecommute from several states away (as the company website cites flex-time and telecommuting as benefits). I realize that the career benefits sections of corporate websites typically are lip service, but should I try…

• MD activity at work

  Evil HR Lady

  20 Oct 2009 | 8:05 am

  Is an employer allowed to hand you a thermometer and tell you to take your temperature at work? Can they send you home if you have a temperature?And now it's time for the big disclaimer: I am not a lawyer. I do not pretend to be a lawyer. I am not an expert on law. I don't pretend to be one. This is not legal advice.I see this as one of those you can't win situation. If you allow people who are sick to work then their co-workers will be writing me saying, "Can't the company require sick people to stay at home? I don't want to get infected?"There are some things to think about. 1. If they send…

• The Hazards of Being Dependable

  Evil HR Lady

  15 Oct 2009 | 4:20 am

  I am a production manager at a trade org/not for profit.I love my boss, who is a great guy, but not the best manager. As long as things get done, he’s satisfied, but procedures and work flows have suffered.About 80% of all projects cross my desk. I can get anything done and I pride myself on being very capable. The problem is no one sees me as a manager or leader, just another worker bee.My boss has often praised me and told me he’d fight for me. But it’s been 2 years since my last raise and I’m getting very unhappy about my role and my compensation. The raise (or the lack thereof) is…

• 
  What Would Dad Say

• 10 Ways You Can Improve Your Website for Boomers

  wwds

  6 Nov 2009 | 4:50 am

  Ed. Note. Sure, these are not new.  Maybe. Consider it a reminder, then. 1.    Use bigger fonts.  Not ginormous ones, just slightly bigger. 2.    Use black fonts.  We can’t read orange, or faint fonts either.  Just you wait. 3.    We all have ADD.  Just remember that. 4.    We all have ADD. Just remember that!! 5.    On your order page, or checkout page, have a number to call when we have trouble. “Confused, something wrong? Call now:555-555-5555.” Here’s the deal, if this results in way too many calls for you to handle, doesn’t it say something about your order…

• Fortune: Steve Jobs, Business Person of the Decade

  wwds

  5 Nov 2009 | 6:52 am

  Was anyone else close?  I mean, really.  All over the country in R and D labs, corporate boardrooms and motivational sessions there is one question for everyone:  “What Would Steve Jobs Do?” Congratulations Steve…keep it up.  PS: Don’t you ever die…or retire.  You make too many contributions by just doing what you are doing. And, just for fun, I have an internet buddy who is Steve’s doppelganger.  Anyone know who this is? It’s Brad Shorr of Words Sell, Inc, out of Chicago. You can find Brad here.

• ShitForBrainsJobBoards. Just Stop.

  wwds

  5 Nov 2009 | 5:23 am

  I’m pissed. Seriously.  What does it take?  What DOES it take? I mean, we know how to help job seekers.  Yet, ShitForBrainsJobBoards continue to “help” jobseekers by showing old jobs, out of date jobs, scam jobs, postal jobs which are jobs you have to buy application forms yeah right, duplicate jobs and the list of crappy things they do goes on and on and  on.  Your favorite ShitForBrainsJobBoard is still out promoting hard, buying ads because they need you to stop by and get frustrated.  YOU use it.  Stop using them now. Seriously. They don’t care about your needing a job. …

• “I Should Have Seen It Coming.”

  wwds

  2 Nov 2009 | 3:47 am

  Today’s insight comes from “UsedToBeMe”–from her blog. A word first: I’ve never met her but I enjoy reading her blog for several reasons. Like millions of people not like me, she is a hard working mom, trying to manage her nottohelpful husband (identify with that ladies?), and a too-stoopid-to-live attorney boss who makes her do incredibly stupid things, and a semi-dysfunctional family who intrudes on her sanity and safety, AND two daughters who she affectionally calls “the dramas.” I think her girls must have names but on her blog she simply calls…

• The Life of an Entrepreneur: Is it for You?

  wwds

  30 Oct 2009 | 5:02 pm

  Ed.Note: Since this blog began, I have met quite a few career coaches, resume writers and HR folks, I find all of them very interesting and insightful about the world of work. Even better, I have learned a lot from each of them. When they invited me to join a new community called the Career Collective, of course I said YES, especially after I found there were no dues, no rules and no demands. Every month, they post a question and invite ‘the collective’ to write on it. This month’s topic was on the issue of entrepreneurship, a topic near and dear to yours truly. At the end…

• 
  Karen Burns, Working Girl

• Surviving The Boss From Hell

  Karen Burns

  4 Nov 2009 | 10:03 am

  Okay, so you still have a job.  Yay! But your boss is a bully.  Or lazy.  Or incompetent.  Or racist.  Or a lech.  Or……just a bad boss.  Boo. If so, check out today’s regular Wednesday post over at U.S. News & World Report.  There just might be something there that helps.

• Job Search Tips From Experts

  Karen Burns

  2 Nov 2009 | 1:52 pm

  Looking for a job involves a lot of detective work.  Like any Agatha Christie character, you constantly follow clues.  You interview many people.  You start down promising paths, learn they’re not going anywhere, and then try new ones. Hercule Poirot thought he was the greatest detective in the world and haughtily refused all help, but modern jobhunters can and should benefit from observing how others tackle the jobhunt mystery.  You won’t look for a job exactly the way someone else does, because you are you, but you can learn from the experience and ideas of…

• Gifts For Career Women

  Karen Burns

  30 Oct 2009 | 12:11 pm

  Working Girl has long thought that her humble book (”The Amazing Adventures of Working Girl: Real Life Career Advice You Can Actually Use“) makes an excellent gift. It’s unbreakable, easy to mail, and inexpensive.  It will never go out of style.  It’s the perfect pick-me-up for that woman you know who’s just starting a career, or who’s “between jobs,” who’s discouraged about the job she has, or who’s getting back into the job market after being away.  So it was pretty darn nice to learn that Marie Claire magazine agrees! …

• Chitchat Can Pay Off

  Karen Burns

  28 Oct 2009 | 4:07 pm

  A job offer is the end result of a very successful human interaction, wouldn’t you say? Very successful human interactions depend, to a large degree, on chemistry. Chemistry happens when people feel at ease in your presence. How to make people feel at ease?  You can be at ease yourself (relax).  You can look pleasant (smile).  And you can indulge in that good old tried and true social lubricant: small talk  Some tips for how to be a small talk master over at today’s U.S. News & World Report post.

• Contest Winners Announced

  Karen Burns

  26 Oct 2009 | 11:24 am

  Check out Melissa’s The Job Quest blog to find out if you won the book giveaway.  Even if you didn’t win, it’s fun to read about other people’s weird jobs……

• 
  Satisfying Career - Happier Life

• Clean Tech gets Millions in Funding – The Jobs for the next decade could be here

  Shweta Khare

  2 Nov 2009 | 10:45 am

  The new agency (Arpa-e) received initial funding of $400 million through the federal stimulus act. In all, 37 grants were handed out to small business, research groups and large corporations in the first round of funding for a total of $151 million. Awards included $2.2 million to University of Minnesota researchers working on organisms that use sunlight to convert carbon dioxide into sugars, and another organism to create gasoline and diesel from the sugars$9 million to du Pont to produce an advanced biofuel from seaweedAnd in the SF Bay Area:Envia Systems, based in Hayward, received $4…

• Where are the jobs?

  Shweta Khare

  2 Nov 2009 | 10:42 am

  The newspapers and the TV news takes us on a roller coaster ride almost every week – the stock market is up, recession is abating, we’ll see fewer job cuts and the next week there is a turnaround – the job cuts this month had been higher than ever before, there are signs of economy getting back on track but there are no new jobs being created. Stock market ups and downs must not be a direct tally to how employment problems are in this country at present.Even the big bankruptcies are not behind us (see the latest CIT bankruptcy filing report); just as the economic pundits are making a…

• Difficult Coworker

  Shweta Khare

  2 Nov 2009 | 10:33 am

  Your workplace might have the best workers and the team dynamics is one to envy; but still all humans are different and quite often we come across coworkers who make our workplace less than enjoyable by their pesky presence. In fact, I can most definitely say that most of us have come across at least one or more of such a not-so-pleasant workplace situation – dealing with difficult people at the workplace.Such individuals must be dealt with depending on the situation you face and in no way should continue to be the reason for your miserable life at work. Here are some tips on how to deal…

• I don’t get recognized for what I do

  Shweta Khare

  5 Oct 2009 | 10:54 am

  “For many years I have put in long hours, including many weekends. I have put my energy and soul into my job and the organization. I have brought profits to the team; but I have never been recognized for it.”AJ said and was almost ready to quit working for those who didn’t care what he had done for them; but of course is ready to change with some advice.You could give a quick advice saying “hey, it is the self-marketing era; go toot your own horn.” But it does not work for everyone, some people are not good at it and some too shy or uncomfortable to do so.Before you barge out of the…

• As an Entrepreneur, I am like a Mom – Always Busy, Never Done

  Shweta Khare

  5 Oct 2009 | 10:53 am

  The beauty and attraction of getting to run ones own business is that it is yours and you can take it where you want it on your own time. You might have the cool notion of working on your time and knowing when to get off; but in reality there is always so much to be done that you always have the feeling of never having done enough!It is hard to draw boundaries between work and personal time especially when a lot is going around especially in the initial and mid stages of a growing venture. For an entrepreneur it is not easy to strike that “balance” which we all talk about because most of…

• 
  Manager Skills And Management Development - Articles

• Stay Focused on Your Core Genius

  6 Nov 2009 | 1:30 am

  I believe you have inside of you a core genius... some one thing that you love to do, and do so well, that you hardly feel like doing anything else. It’s effortless for you and a whole lot of fun. And if you could make money doing it, you’d make it your lifetime’s work.

• Appearance Counts

  5 Nov 2009 | 1:30 am

  According to a study I read, the way we look has a direct bearing on our paycheck. Employment data from 7,000 adults was analyzed. Interviewers divided the group according to looks and then compared what those working similar jobs in each category were paid. Those who were below average in appearance earned less than those rated “average.” Those who rated average earned less than those who were rated “above average.”

• Lesson #2: Know Where to Draw the Line

  4 Nov 2009 | 6:00 am

  Spielberg is a hands-on director, known throughout Hollywood for liking things done right and done his way. Everything from the film’s budget to a specific camera angle had to have Spielberg’s seal of approval. But, he is also widely respected by his peers for knowing where the boundaries lie and when it isn’t appropriate to cross them.

• Lesson #4: Push Your Limits

  4 Nov 2009 | 6:00 am

  Until 1993, the lion’s share of Spielberg’s work was confined to the world of make-believe. He dealt with sharks and aliens but had yet to conquer the difficult genre of serious real-world drama. He wasn’t sure what the results would be, and many doubted his potential to crossover, but he was determined to try nonetheless.

• Steven Spielberg Quotes

  4 Nov 2009 | 6:00 am

  The thing that I'm just scared to death of is that someday I'm going to wake up and bore somebody with a film. I'm not really interested in making money. That's always come as the result of success, but it's not been my goal, and I've had a tough time proving that to people. I dream for a living.

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  Newly Corporate

• 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…

• 10 Lessons from Creating an iPhone Application Start Up (Part 1)

  Brandon Henak

  28 Sep 2009 | 8:14 am

  This is the first of a two part series 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 and got 10 great lessons for young professionals looking to start their own businesses or develop mobile applications!  Lessons 5-10 will be posted this Wednesday. A lot of people ask me about my experience as a first time application developer and new business owner. They…

• The Dream Home: PMI = a Starbucks a Day

  Brandon Henak

  3 Sep 2009 | 9:29 am

  With all the young homeowners jumping into the market to get their $8000 in Obama cash (which is just driving up the cost of a house $8K-16K, but that is another matter), I have gotten a number of questions about what the right size for a down payment is and what costs are involved. We have a great analysis of what the tradeoffs are for different downpayment percentages in “The Dream Home (or Condo): Saving for a Down Payment” from our Dream Home series. Many of the questions though, are specifically around PMI or Private Mortgage Insurance.  If you have a loan with less than 20%…

• Friday Amusement: Office Pranks

  Jennifer Robinson

  28 Aug 2009 | 4:01 am

  It’s Friday!  Hells yeah! TGIF. Have you had a long week?  Do you need something to laugh about in your cubicle?  If you’re in a prankster mood, here are some classic office pranks and some things you can do to rile up office zombies. Staple your reports in the wrong corner Swap the regular and decaf coffee – This is EVIL! Play with the auto-correct on your co-workers computer.  Configure the word “and” to change to “It’s 5 o’clock somewhere” Put tape over the mouse optics Cut your fingernails or toe nails Unplug a co-worker’s…

• 
  Michael Lee Stallard

• ASTD Webcast Download: Neuroscience Implications for Leadership

  Michael Lee Stallard

  4 Nov 2009 | 11:37 am

  Last week I did a webcast for members of the America Society for Training and Development (ASTD). The webcast covers select research findings from the field of neuroscience and their implications for leadership, productivity, innovation and employee engagement. ASTD is the world’s largest association dedicated to workplace learning and development professionals.  The webcast and slides are available at this link. (Note: clicking on the link will begin an automatic download of the webcast and slides.)

• Peter Drucker’s Kind of Leader

  Michael Lee Stallard

  1 Nov 2009 | 10:47 am

  I don’t normally post on Sundays, but today I’m making an exception.  Today is Frances Hesselbein’s birthday and in her honor I’m posting a chapter I wrote about her from my book Fired Up or Burned Out.  Mrs. Hesselbein is the chairman of the Leader to Leader Institute.  Recently, she was appointed a Chair for the Study of Leadership at West Point. Mrs. Hesselbein, thank you for your tireless efforts to advance leadership, your passion for inclusiveness, for kids, and for leaders in the social sector.  And thank you for the personal encouragement you’ve…

• Employee Engagement Conference, Free ASTD Webcast

  Michael Lee Stallard

  27 Oct 2009 | 4:23 pm

  This week I’m chairing the Human Capital Institute’s Employee Engagement Conference in Boston.  During the conference  I promised to share some free resources with conference participants. Here are links to the Employee Engagement Network, the Forum for People Performance Management and Measurement and the New Talent Management Network. If you like the stories and ideas I shared at the conference, you’ll love the book.  Here is a free pdf download of  Fired Up or Burned Out. The free book download is only available through Friday so hurry! I’m posting my slides…

• Virtual Leadership

  Michael Lee Stallard

  23 Oct 2009 | 12:24 pm

  I just returned from speaking about values-based leadership, employee engagement, productivity and innovation to students and faculty at Illinois State University.  Here a link to an article on my presentation.  While visiting my alma mater, I had the good fortune of interacting with Dr. Jim Jawahar, the Chair of the Management and Quantitative Methods Department, and several of the department’s outstanding faculty members.  During the discussion, we identified several areas of shared interest.  Over the coming weeks I’ll be writing about what I learned. To begin, Assistant…

• Task Excellence + Relationship Excellence, Both Are Essential

  Michael Lee Stallard

  18 Oct 2009 | 5:20 pm

  I recently attended a meeting where it seemed that everyone was focused on the people or relationships in a business and believed that doing so would bring success.  Don’t believe it.  Great leaders focus on achieving BOTH task excellence and relationship excellence.   This dual focus produces sustainable superior performance.   Managers who are solely task focused eventually burn people out.  Managers who are solely relationship focused don’t set sufficiently high performance standards and challenge the team to accomplish them.   Managers who focus on task and relationship…

• 
  msnbc.com: Careers

• Supreme Court to hear labor board case

  2 Nov 2009 | 8:52 am

  The Supreme Court said Monday it will decide whether two people can do the work of five when it comes to resolving labor-management disputes in the workplace.

• Your Career: Turning dreams into reality

  1 Nov 2009 | 3:50 pm

  Is passion enough to fuel your career dreams?

• Swine flu poses a costly decision for millions

  1 Nov 2009 | 12:17 pm

  For millions of Americans the rule is simple: If you don't come to work, you don't get paid.

• The key to dealing with lousy boss: negotiation

  1 Nov 2009 | 10:44 am

  A longtime executive coach  insists that you can overcome any boss problem with skilled negotiating.  Most supervisor screw-ups stem from a boss's inability to make decisions and communicate a set of goals, he maintains.

• Worker: I was fired for wearing ‘God’ button

  28 Oct 2009 | 8:18 am

  A former cashier for The Home Depot who has been wearing a "One nation under God" button on his work apron for more than a year has been fired, he says because of the religious reference.

• 
  Gautam Ghosh on Human Resources

• Find and know your experts using social tools

  Gautam Ghosh

  4 Nov 2009 | 2:38 am

  Interesting article in the WSJ how social technologies can help tap into and be aware of an organization's expertise systems. To date, most such systems are centrally managed efforts, and that's a problem. The typical setup identifies and catalogs experts in a searchable directory or database that includes descriptions of the experts' knowledge and experience, and sometimes links to samples of their work, such as research reports.But there are gaping holes in this approach. For starters, big companies tend to be dynamic organizations, in a constant state of flux, and few commit the resources…

• RiseSmart CEO Sanjay Sathe on the new direction

  Gautam Ghosh

  3 Nov 2009 | 4:28 am

  I've already interviewed Sanjay Sathe once last year, and that was at a time when RiseSmart was trying to establish its own JobConcierge service for senior management. RiseSmart is now trying to establish an outplacement service too. When it recently got $ 4.6 million in VC funding it seemed like a good time to catch up with Sanjay again and to understand what is in the future for RiseSmart. Here are Sanjay's answers to some questions I sent to him via email: 1. What is RiseSmart planning to do with the latest VC funding? At this point we’ve proven the business model of our…

• Changing the name of the Blog

  Gautam Ghosh

  29 Oct 2009 | 9:50 pm

  This is just an administrative post :-) I realised that the focus of this blog has moved from purely HR to aspects in the new way of working within Organizations - that impact organizational design, structure, systems, tools, processes and development. Hence thought that a name change was in order :-) Hence my moniker for this New Way of Working is Organizations 2.0 - focussing on how people, communities and companies are integrating this new approach to working :-)from Gautam Ghosh's Blog |Follow on Twitter | Connect on Linkedin | Become a fan on Facebook | Join the HR Professionals'…

• Knowledge Work and Collaboration

  Gautam Ghosh

  29 Oct 2009 | 9:41 pm

  A very insightful article in McKinsey's What matters column on the challenges of measuring productivity of collaboration in Knowledge workers, and also insightful comments. Primarily the article argues that while technology is deployed - productivity of collaboration is different than the way productivity is measured in the traditional deployment of technology. The article states: Our research suggests that improvements depend upon getting a better fix on who actually is doing the collaborating within companies, as well as understanding the details of how that interactive work is done. Just…

• Tweeting Better than Facebook within Organizations

  Gautam Ghosh

  26 Oct 2009 | 5:31 pm

  Interesting post in the Blogspotting blog :) SocialText CEO Eugene Lee argues that Twitter might be a better model than Facebook for next-gen communications within companies, so-called Enterprise 2.0. Facebook's trouble? Reciprocal friending. The problem, he says, is that employees on corporate social networks start collecting friendships of execs. "Because the Rolodex is public, it becomes a matter of VP trading cards." A preferable model for corporate relationships, he says, is Twitter, where people lend their attention, not necessarily their friendship. In…

• 
  Networking Effectively by Scott Bradley

• 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…

• Free 52 Page Report On Blogging + Personal Branding

  Scott Bradley

  6 Apr 2009 | 8:09 am

  My buddy @DanSchawbel has written an awesome report on blogging and personal branding. I highly recommend that you go pick yourself up a copy as there are many many golden nuggets that he shares in the report. I read it last night and even I learned some new things! Click Here To Get The Report

• 7 Reasons Why The Recession Is Good For You

  Scott Bradley

  19 Mar 2009 | 12:24 pm

  This week I wrote an article for The Toilet Paper Entrepreneur on the 7 Reasons Why The Recession Is Good For You . In light of all of this "doom and gloom" talk we all are hearing in the news, I want to share this article with you as my loyal readers because I appreciate each and every one of you. Feel free to share it with your network if the message resonates with you! Enjoy! *Disclaimer: I work directly with Mike, the author of The Toilet Paper Entrepreneur who runs the site, and manage all of his social media marketing initiatives

• 
  Personal Branding Blog - Dan Schawbel

• A Personal Branding Tale Part 2

  Chad Levitt

  7 Nov 2009 | 4:15 am

  You have been working at your new job for six months and you are really enjoying being with this company. The job challenges you and you have responded to every challenge so far. You have created a reputation for yourself with your co-workers as reliable, consistent and accountable. You have shown the ability to think strategically and have executed on all tasks that have been given to you. Because of your solid reputation, you were recently asked to work on a new project that will have manager level exposure and help determine the future vision for the company. You will have a very minor…

• How Book Titles Build Personal Brands, Pt. 1

  Roger Parker

  6 Nov 2009 | 12:14 pm

  Choosing the right title for your book is one of the most important decisions you’ll ever make. The right title does more than just sell the book, it can launch a personal brand that creates endless opportunities while pre-selling follow-up books and a wealth of other profitable products & services. One of best examples of this is Sarah Susanka, whose Not So Big House title launched a powerhouse personal brand that has taken her far beyond her origins as a residential architect. Sarah Susanka and her “Not So Big” title provide a perfect model of personal branding success…

• Reference: Impersonation Policies for Top Social Networks

  Jacob Share

  6 Nov 2009 | 4:15 am

  I hope you never have to worry about anyone trying to impersonate you online, but just in case, here’s a handy reference for the major social networks. Twitter From Twitter’s Impersonation Policy: “The best way to report impersonation submitting a web request from the Support home page–be sure to select impersonation from the dropdown box!  Once you’ve submitted your ticket, we’ll email you a ticket confirmation with more information. You can check on your ticket status anytime by visiting your Twitter Support home page and clicking on  “check on your…

• Building Relationships Organically – Part 4

  Liz Lynch

  5 Nov 2009 | 4:15 am

  Step 3: Convert All things being equal, we prefer to do business with those we know, like and trust. And all things not being equal, many of us would still prefer to do business with those we know, like and trust. I heard this said at a panel discussion recently and I couldn’t agree more. The question is: How can we allow that know, like and trust to happen effortlessly and automatically so that networking doesn’t seem forced, fake, or time-consuming? Over the past few weeks, we’ve explored how we can tap into the natural ability we each have to build relationships organically, letting…

• Twitter Introduces New Personal Branding Tool: Lists

  Heather Huhman

  4 Nov 2009 | 2:35 pm

  Within days of introducing Twitter lists into public beta, an estimated 6.5 million lists have already been created. This begs the question, which Dan Schawbel asked on Nov. 1, does it matter how many times you’re listed? As of this writing, I am on 96 lists. Impressive, right? Perhaps, if they were all in line with my personal brand. How do others perceive you? The sign of a strong personal brand is when others perceive you how you want to be perceived. I have a dual personal brand (which is absolutely my own fault): entry-level careers expert and public relations pro. So, I’m included…

• 
  Information Technology Dark Side

• Book Review: The CSS Anthology

  David Christiansen

  2 Nov 2009 | 7:12 am

  I’ve never felt skilled when it came to crafting the look and feel of an application. There were two components to my feelings of inadequacy: 1) Not understanding CSS and 2) Not being terribly artistic. The CSS Anthology has really gotten me past #1, and as a result I’m discovering that I am better than I thought at making a web site look good. Here’s what I like about this book: It starts with the basics. I think a lot of my struggles with CSS were the result of never learning the basics. The first chapter of Anthology, “Making a Start with CSS” was really very…

• Make It Little: Building a successful company in a micronomy

  David Christiansen

  16 Oct 2009 | 7:28 am

  I gave this presentation at Indy Ruby Brigade on Wednesday and was able to record it. Make It Little: Building a Successful Company in a Micronomy from David Christiansen on Vimeo.

• Find Gimme Bugs by NOT Running the App like the Devs Do

  David Christiansen

  14 Oct 2009 | 6:49 am

  A few weeks ago I found a javascript bug that was really just a silly mistake by the developer, but it was one that could have easily gone undetected. I found it because when I run the app locally, I always run it at this url: http://localhost:3000/trisano This dev runs the app like this: http://localhost:3000 His javascript made assumptions about the url that were never-false when run his way, but were immediately broken when run mine. So, while this probably sounds like a simple thing, it’s a good,routine practice to NOT run the application you’re testing just like the…

• Two test cycle case studies

  David Christiansen

  2 Oct 2009 | 7:12 am

  I’m beginning to believe test cycle duration is a critical factor in the risk of a project: the longer the test cycle, the higher the risk. What exactly is a test cycle? Here’s my definition: test cycle(n): the shortest possible calendar time that it takes to start the test environment, prepare for a test, execute the test, collect and analyze the results, report bugs, recuperate, and start the next cycle To illustrate how this affects risk, let’s consider some real projects I worked on. Printing Policy Documents I managed a project that made massive changes to a policy…

• I learned a new testing oracle today from a DBA!

  David Christiansen

  1 Oct 2009 | 6:35 am

  Well, he’s really more of an all-around data super genius, but anyway I learned something cool from him: The Principle of Least Surprise In other words, if the software could behave in multiple perfectly legitimate ways (based on all the other stuff in the context of the application), then you should go with the one that is going to surprise the user the least. I like this as a test oracle and as a tool for advocating bugs. In my environment at least, it’s easier to get iffy bugs fixed if I can provide alternative solutions that are easier to understand (i.e. less surprising to…

• 
  Career Opportunities

• You are unique. Act like it!

  career@welchwrite.com (Douglas E. Welch)

  6 Nov 2009 | 10:37 pm

  You are unique. Act like it! By Douglas E. Welch Listen Discuss this column and podcast on the Career-Op Community Site Here is a little experiment. If you work in an office with cubicles, stand up on your desk and look out over the office. What do you see? If you work in an building with individual offices, walk down a line of offices and notice what is happening within. What are people doing? How are they dressed? What sort of decoration do you see? Now that you have done this experiment, let me give you a way of evaluating what you see. When you did your observations, did everything look…

• Get Career Opportunities Via Email

  career@welchwrite.com (Douglas E. Welch)

  29 Oct 2009 | 11:20 am

  You can receive Career Opportunities content directly in your email box. Use the form or link below to subscribe via email. Enter your email address: Delivered by FeedBurner Subscribe to Career Opportunities: Helping to Build the Career You Deserve by Email From Career Opportunities with Douglas E. Welch Get more great content on Podcasting, New Media, Gardening, Los Angeles Events and Technology at WelchWrite.comGet Career Opportunities Via Email

• Your career needs a holiday

  career@welchwrite.com (Douglas E. Welch)

  23 Oct 2009 | 3:02 pm

  Your career needs a holiday By Douglas E. Welch Listen Discuss this column and podcast on the Career-Op Community Site Win a Tom Bihn Checkpoint Flyer laptop sleeve from TechNewsRadio.com.Send email to technewsradio@gmail.com with the Subject Line: Tom Bihn Giveaway to enter today.Contest Ends November 1, 2009> It might seem a bit too soon to be thinking about “the holidays” — yet with Halloween only 2 weeks away they are rapidly approaching. For those working to “Build the Career You Deserve” the holidays might seem like a time yo slack off. Business will be…

• What I’m eReading…Grassroots Innovation

  career@welchwrite.com (Douglas E. Welch)

  19 Oct 2009 | 9:04 pm

  Another theme in the list of blogs and web sites I follow is innovation. Grassroots Innovation is written by Greg Eisenbach and a variety of innovation topics on a regular basis. Recent posts include “Yuck, the great contraction”, “Low cost beer packaging” and “The Dalai Lama’s Business Book.” Direct link to blogs and posts in this “What I’m eReading…” bundle Related articles by Zemanta Sharing Google Reader Shared Items with your Twitter followers (welchwrite.com) What I am eReading…Eat, Drink and Be Merry!

• Recently “Noted” Items from my reading

  career@welchwrite.com (Douglas E. Welch)

  19 Oct 2009 | 12:43 am

  From Career Opportunities with Douglas E. Welch Get more great content on Podcasting, New Media, Gardening, Los Angeles Events and Technology at WelchWrite.comRecently “Noted” Items from my reading

• 
  Applicant

• Californians Get Screwed, Again

  Mark

  4 Nov 2009 | 11:10 am

  I often find myself saying – I wish I lived in California. But that’s about to change. As most of us already know California has gone deep, and by deep I mean deeeeeep in debt. They are trying to find ways to keep their head above water and are coming with every possible ways to do so. Recently, they ran a “Great California Garage Sale” which took place on Aug 28 and 28, 2009. Although many were mocking their ideas, it seems to have paid off as they raised $1.6 million in sales. The state of California is trying a new tactic now – borrowing money from tax payers.

• An Entrepreneur’s Guide To Choosing a Business Structure

  Mark

  3 Nov 2009 | 10:51 pm

  Let’s face it – we all want to own a business, choose our own hours and not have to listen to anyone tell us what needs to be done. Before the internet, starting a business was a real pain. The operating costs were too high. For example, if you were to open a store, you had to pay rent, electricity, sewage and everything else that relates to having a physical location for a business. Now you can have a booming business right from your home. Whether you provide consulting, writing service or have a big online store, the operating costs can be cut in half. Besides, it’s always…

• 15 Best Schools To Get an Online Degree

  Mark

  2 Nov 2009 | 8:01 am

  One of the things about being unemployed is you’ve got time. You can either be stupid about it and waste it buying beer and watching TV with whatever is left in your bank account, or you can utilize that time in finding work and diversifying your career options. Many job seekers who are out of jobs fail to realize that there are more possibility in changing your career than there was a couple years ago. Online education has become the next big thing among people who are too busy to go to school, older people, people wanting to expand their education and above all people who are out of…

• Top 30 Online Resume Services (Resources)

  Mark

  29 Oct 2009 | 8:32 am

  Looking for work isn’t something you want to become an independent expert in. So it makes sense to employ the services of people who do this for a living. So we’ve compiled this list of the top 30 online resume services and resources dedicated to bringing you a better resume. Some are free. Some are inexpensive. Some will set you back a few hundred dollars. But if any of them have the chance to get you the job you’ve been looking for, they’re all worth a closer look. 1. CareerPerfect : An industry leader in resume writing that boasts a 99.9% customer satisfaction rate…

• 10 Ridiculously Genius & Creative Recruitment Ads

  Mark

  28 Oct 2009 | 7:16 am

  If you are a job seeker and you didn’t know this, you should – employers are as desperate to find a qualified applicant as you are to find a good paying job. Everyday thousands of ads are thrown in our face and quite a few of them are recruitment ads. Unless you are looking for a job you probably won’t notice them but there are quite a few that circulate the web, the newspapers, television and radio each day. Some we simply tend to ignore cause they are the “same old, same old” kind. However, there are a few that grab our attention. We’ve already covered…

• 
  Where Great Workplaces Start

• I.T. Solutions for HR Professionals

  greatworkplace

  3 Nov 2009 | 11:15 am

  John C. Rowland, Manager of Managed Services for Thinsolutions, talks about how using a managed service provider can help your organization. Posted in Training & Development

• Determining Employees’ Value to Your Organization

  greatworkplace

  27 Oct 2009 | 8:36 am

  Measuring performance may be a challenge for organizations this year.  Some employers could find themselves using a performance measurement system that may not accurately measure what top performance looks like during a challenging economic year, particularly if performance and value of contributions has historically been determined by financial impact or the meeting of organizational, team and individual financial and budgetary goals.  It’s possible that this may be the year that organizations will need to look beyond this scope and re-identify how employees’ value is defined.

• Want to Reward Your Employees? Change Their Job Title…

  greatworkplace

  29 Sep 2009 | 11:47 am

  Looking for a way to reward your valued employees? Consider changing their job title. A new study by Pearl Meyer & Partners shows that employers can use job titles to retain and reward high performing employees. The study suggests that many employers title jobs with great flexibility and allow for alternative job names. For instance, many employers assign titles of Manager, Director, and Vice President to not just employees with supervisory responsibilities – but also those that have significant responsibilities in the organization and are individual contributors. In this way, employers…

• 200 Sample Social Media Policies and Ideas

  greatworkplace

  22 Sep 2009 | 8:52 am

  Social Media is still a relatively new and cloudy area in regards to employee and employer privacy and security. The lines of what is appropriate and what is inappropriate are still quite gray, however several companies are ammending their existing policies to include guidelines for social media use in the workplace. We found 200 policies, tips, and ideas for coming up with your own social media policy – just remember, not all policies are created equal. Make sure you create guidelines that fit the culture of your workplace…there certainly are no “one-size-fits-all”…

• The Keys to Creating an Innovative Organization

  greatworkplace

  15 Sep 2009 | 6:47 am

  Innovation. It’s an important characteristic of our NorthCoast 99 winning workplaces, helping them create a leading edge in their workplaces and products or services.  These winning workplaces have mastered creating cultures that facilitate employee creativity and idea generation.  Numerous studies suggest that innovation not only increases employee engagement and intrinsic job satisfaction, but is a strong predictor of organizational success. But what organizational factors truly contribute most to innovation? What does it take to create a truly innovative organization?  Research…

• 
  Bailey Workplay The Alchemy of Soulful Work

• Anthropology in Business and Industry: A Synopsis

  Chris Bailey

  28 Oct 2009 | 1:35 pm

  As I’ve talked with folks about my academic training and work in the field of business anthropology, one common response I get is: “Wow! That’s cool! So, what in the world is business anthropology?” One of my assignments this week was to read a chapter written by Marietta Baba from a book called Applied Anthropology: Domains of Application and write a synopsis. I immediately saw it as an opportunity to post information on the field based on the writings of someone I greatly respect. I know it’s lengthy but hopefully it gives a sense of the history behind the…

• Six Criteria For A Healthy And Effective Workplace

  Chris Bailey

  26 Oct 2009 | 6:26 am

  Sick and tired of being sick and tired about work? While indicators for workplace health my be declining, all is not lost. Ellen Galinsky at the Families and Work Institute notes there are six ways organizations can promote a healthier and more effective workplace. As a manager or executive, how does your organization rank based on these criteria? learning opportunities and challenge a good fit between work and personal life autonomy having a supervisor who supports job success economic security a work climate of respect and trust More from the CNN Health article…

• Five Things My Running Routine Has Taught Me

  Chris Bailey

  2 Oct 2009 | 7:21 am

  A little over a month ago, I was inspired by Alex, my business partner at BaileyHill Media, to start running again. Way (way, way) back in the day, I used to be fairly in shape. In college, I could run a decent eight minute mile but through the intervening years I stopped running regularly. Oh, I tried to pick it up again every so often, but I’d find an excuse to stop and let myself get out of shape again. As with all men who find themselves getting older, we begin to see our friends cope with health issues and weight problems. And then we wake up one day, look in the mirror and say (or…

• Seeking A Sponsoring Organization For Applied Research

  Chris Bailey

  28 Sep 2009 | 10:51 am

  For those of you who may not know, I’m currently a master’s candidate in Applied Business Anthropology at the University of North Texas. My broad focus is working with organizations and helping them better understand their internal employee cultures. The capstone of the program is a practicum where students work with a sponsoring organization to design a research project to solve a very real problem. For me, I have two potential areas of interest and am searching for organizations which might satisfy one or both project possibilities. This will be a great opportunity for any company to…

• How Much Does Talent Really Matter?

  Chris Bailey

  24 Sep 2009 | 7:00 am

  Recently, I’ve come across some interesting thoughts on the nature and necessity of talent. This morning, Zig Ziglar at Great Management asked Does talent always prevail? And the answer is, “No.” In his article, Zig tells the story of Peter Vidmar, Olympic gold medalist, and why he succeeded when other athletes were more talented. Here’s a quote from Vidmar’s coach: Peter is not particularly talented. I’ve had boys who were more gifted physically, with more kinetic awareness, strength and flexibility. But Peter surpassed them all because of his singular…

• 
  JobMob

• The Funniest Article Ever About Job Interview Tips

  Jacob Share

  5 Nov 2009 | 11:00 am

  Steinar Skipsness created a fake office so he could understand how to succeed in job interviews. He filmed the whole thing, and the funny results led to 20 great job interview tips that are true anywhere in the world. This video is just one hilarious example of what went on: Click here to view the embedded video. I enjoyed Steinar’s work so much that I contacted him with more questions about it: 1) Where did you get the idea for the project? The idea sparked from seeing a friend of mind go on a few unsuccessful interviews. I consider him a really outgoing sharp guy, he was getting…

• A Complete Guide: How To Make An Israeli CV Out Of Your Resume

  Jacob Share

  2 Nov 2009 | 12:00 pm

  Immigrating to Israel or making aliya? Here’s what you’ll need to prepare your resume for the Israeli job market. This is a guest post by Leah Aharoni. As you are embarking on your job search in Israel, the first order of business should be putting together a well-built CV. CV (in Hebrew korot chaim, sometimes abbreviated as קו”ח) stands for Curriculum Vitae and it is the Israeli equivalent of the familiar resume. While your existing resume already contains much of the information that Israeli hiring managers will want to see, you’ll need to make certain changes to…

• 7 Ways Birthdays Can Affect Job Search

  Jacob Share

  29 Oct 2009 | 3:00 am

  Today is my 34th birthday, so let’s take a look at how birthdays impact the job search process. Your birthday When you become legally able to work Growing up in Montreal, the minimum age to work a full-time summer job legally is 14 (it still is today) and I took full advantage, starting my first job working the summer of 1990 in the shipping department of our sportswear family business. I was lucky that I didn’t have to look for that job, and I remember how good it felt to get my first paycheck earning exactly $5.00 per hour (minimum wage back then). If you’re curious, the…

• Lindsey Pollak: How Students and Graduates Should Be Job Searching Right Now

  Jacob Share

  28 Oct 2009 | 12:00 pm

  Gen-Y Career and Workplace Expert and bestselling author Lindsey Pollak explains how the keys to student job search success might be through your local coffee shop. And a lot of what she says rings true for other job seekers as well. To listen to the podcast, press the Play button to begin streaming the audio or else right-click the Download link and choose “Save as…” or “Save link as…”. [See post to listen to audio] Download the MP3 [ 29 Minutes - 43 MB ] If you’d like to find out more about the podcast before listening, read on. She’s been…

• 25 Creative Ideas To Make Your Workplace Look Really Cool

  Jacob Share

  26 Oct 2009 | 2:00 pm

  Get inspired daily in your work or job search by using some of the most creative office tools and gadgets that designers could come up with. What if someone took all the objects in your office and exchanged them for designer versions? Have the coolest work area Pacman stapler Who doesn’t want one? Pencil tree Even if you used regular lead pencils, this would still look neat. Delete key eraser Gets the job done, just like on your screen. Blackboard memo board Small enough to take with you. Connected fountain pen This pen would take notes, then email them or send them as text messages.

• 
  The Career Key Blog

• Job Outlook for Careers Matching the Social Holland Personality Type

  Juliet Wehr Jones, J.D.

  2 Nov 2009 | 10:41 am

  It’s no surprise that careers matching the Social personality type are growing quickly with our aging population needing health care and our expanding community, education, and family needs.Although school districts nationwide recently suffered cuts in both teachers and counselors, prospects vary sharply by geographic area. While tenured professor positions are as difficult as ever to get, college and universities are increasingly relying on adjunct and other non-tenured positions to serve increasing numbers of students.These are just a couple of reasons to do your information interviews…

• 4 Positive Actions to Make Your Ideal Career a Reality

  Juliet Wehr Jones, J.D.

  22 Oct 2009 | 10:11 am

  If you’re choosing a career or making a career change, infusing your decision-making with a positive approach will help you move forward. What are you doing right? And how can you choose a career direction that uses more of what works for you? Here are 4 actions to take in your positive approach:Find what “works” within yourself; each person has something that works.Focus on what you want your reality to be. Your focus = your reality.When making a decision about your future, take with you what was best about the past. You will be more confident and secure making a future career move…

• Lobsters, Chefs, and Career Exploration

  Juliet Wehr Jones, J.D.

  19 Oct 2009 | 11:18 am

  I just read an inspiring career exploration story about a would be chef and high school senior, Chelsea Ciomei, who lives on Deer Isle in mid-coast Maine. According to a story in the local newspaper, the Island Ad-Vantages, she helped organize student volunteers to prepare and serve a “top chef” fund raising dinner for the Island Culinary and Ecological Center (ICEC). Several very high profile chefs donated their time to this event.ICEC’s “long term goal is to provide culinary and ecological education and training that will lead to job opportunities for Island young people, and open…

• Focus on What Career Interventions Work at CANNEXUS 2010

  Juliet Wehr Jones, J.D.

  15 Oct 2009 | 12:58 pm

  One of our scientifically valid assessments, The Career Decision Profile, will be in the spotlight at January's CANNEXUS 2010, the premier national career development conference in Canada. "Measuring the Impact of Career Interventions: How Do You Know It Works?" is especially relevant given this challenging budget environment. Every dollar has to demonstrate results.Felicity Morgan and Joan McCurdy-Meyers from the University of Toronto Mississauga Career Centre will be presenting at 10 a.m. on Tuesday morning (Jan. 26) of the conference. I took the liberty of quoting the abstract below from…

• Career Counseling in Workforce Development is Cost-Effective. Who Knew? We did.

  Juliet Wehr Jones, J.D.

  9 Oct 2009 | 8:40 am

  Linking the terms cost-effective and workforce development (or any government enterprise) is a risky business these days - but I'm going to go out on limb here because I'm armed with "think tank" report! Earlier this year, The Brookings Institution issued a report on how to make U.S. workforce development more cost-effective, focusing on One-Stop career centers. Among the conclusions:One main ingredient to getting job seekers reemployed quickly in training programs giving a “high return” (in salary, benefits, skills) is:Expanding assessment and counseling for potential trainees.The Career…

• 
  The CareerXroads Annex

• Déjà Vu All Over Again: The 2009 Social Media Conversation is But an Echo of the Internet Past

  Gerry Crispin

  6 Nov 2009 | 1:45 pm

  If Social Media is keeping you up at night, relax-- You've just been there before. (As we approach ERE's SM summit for what I'm sure will be an valuable day of conversation, I thought this commentary from our November CareerXroads Update might be interesting.) In 1996, just 13 years ago, the Internet was at a tipping point - not so new that we couldn't see its promise but also not so accepted that we couldn't imagine its dangers. As the debate raged on, the Bureau of National Affairs (BNA) and the Society of Human Resource Development (SHRM) conducted a broad-based survey of several…

• Speed bumps and time warps

  Gerry Crispin

  28 Oct 2009 | 7:00 am

  8am on a dreary, rainy grey Wedenesday in a small corner of northern New Jersey. Lots of trees past their peak as I look outside from a brightly lit Panera Bread breakfast nook. I'm sitting by a very fake but still enjoyable fireplace. The fog and drizzle cloak whatever is left of the trees' color. I just backtracked 6 miles from the One Stop in the city of Dover, NJ to connect to Panera's wifi. Soon I'll spend a couple hours in conversation with 60 plus out of work professionals this morning. Dover is in a time warp- less than hour and a half drive from where I live…

• #EREExpo2009- Conference Season Opener Tough Act to Follow

  Gerry Crispin

  14 Sep 2009 | 9:32 am

  The 19th ERE Expo held last week in Hollywood, FL was well done. Included among the many images I took home Friday was: - A Little Giveback. Kudos to about 4 dozen players and a bevy of sponsors who stepped up to support another great poker tournament managed by last Wednesday by Jeremy Langhans on behalf of the ERE Foundation. The charity raised $10,000 for its global children's educational initiatives. Unfortunately,Jason (Slouch) Davis and I were taken out early by one of the Atlanta Sourcing Mafia, Eric Jaquith,...in the same hand. There will be a rematch. The best hand of the night…

• Sources of Talent -09: The View Down Under

  Gerry Crispin

  7 Sep 2009 | 1:31 pm

  Source of Talent, 09 is an extraordinary (free) report published the last week by two Australian staffing experts ‐ Phillip Tusing, Destination Talent and Michael Specht, Inspecht. I admit to being somewhat biased about the study because Philip and Michael surveyed an area CareerXroads has long been passionate about‐ Sources of Hire. Mark and I were given an advanced copy and our initial analysis of the report is included, although in a slightly different form, as a Forward to their report. The study provides for the first time International comparative data - and it is a delightful…

• Evidence Print Must Be Getting Desperate.

  Gerry Crispin

  20 Aug 2009 | 1:05 pm

  I get quoted often. Most recently in Tuesday's WSJ. It was one line. No biggee (unless it is the first time- and then of course I would bring it to mom and frame it). It wasn't my first, so I eventually post the link in a specific area of my website. Then, this morning's first email arrived: Great news can drive business - and there's no better way to promote your business than with a custom reprint from Dow Jones Reprint Solutions! In case you missed it, below is the link to the article: Keeping Skills Sharp Through a Long Layoff August 18, 2009 What can a reprint do for you? - Promote your…

• 
  Career News

• The MBA Network: An essential resource for Career Success

  30 Oct 2009 | 2:15 pm

  The network you cultivate while an MBA student remains a vital and important tool for job success. In fact, most MBA alumns claim the MBA network is AS important as the management skills and tools gained during the program. According to a recent survey by the Association of MBAs, fifty percent of the respondents found a new job through word of mouth, highlighting the importance of networking. Personal referrals and recommendations continue to be a key source of new business with sixty percent of new business being attributed to their MBA network.  Further, networking doesn’t just help…

• Tips for Getting a Raise in a Tough Economy

  25 Oct 2009 | 6:11 pm

  1. Be specific for what you are asking for, such as a 5% pay increase. 2. Frame things in the positive and stay upbeat. 3. Present value. What are you doing that's above and beyond what is expected? 4. Highlight your recent work. Bring in examples to show off. Be as specific as possible as you highlight your contributions (time savings, increased productivity, growth in sales). Be your own self-advocate. 5. Remember that an employer might be flexible about other things besides straight salary, such as more vacation time or the ability to work a few days from home. 6. Consider deferral. If the…

• Getting a Raise in a Tough Economy....

  21 Oct 2009 | 10:58 pm

  The Career Exposure Network offers Tips for Getting a Raise in a Tough Economy A tough economy is challenging for all employees. Take some time to conduct a reality check of your professional life advises JillXan Donnelly, president of The Career Exposure Network. Maybe your department has been downsized. Do you have additional responsibilities? Are you doing more than one job? Be prepared to talk about your added responsibilities: How your contributions have help make your company/department successful and how your contributions make you a vital part of the organization. Outline quantifiable…

• The MBA Network: An Essential Resource for Career Success

  20 Oct 2009 | 12:34 pm

  The network you cultivate while an MBA student remains a vital and important tool for job success. In fact, most MBA alumns claim the MBA network is AS important as the management skills and tools gained during the program. According to a recent survey by the Association of MBAs, fifty percent of the respondents found a new job through word of mouth, highlighting the importance of networking. Personal referrals and recommendations continue to be a key source of new business with sixty percent of new business being attributed to their MBA network.  Further, networking doesn’t just help…

• Job Search Strategies: “Six Degrees” to a New Job

  13 Oct 2009 | 7:46 pm

  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 school -- Alumni network at your school -- College/Alumni Career Centers -- Private and…

• 
  Steve Pavlina's Personal Development Blog

• Creating Abundance – Video

  Steve Pavlina

  5 Nov 2009 | 1:35 pm

  Yesterday morning I woke up with the idea of recording a video blog on the topic of creating abundance. A little later I checked our forums and saw a request for me to post something more comprehensive on the topic of abundance. Well, I thought… that’s a pretty blatant synchronicity! Is it possible to use the Law of Attraction to manifest true abundance in your life, including financial abundance, social abundance, and more? Absolutely, it is. In this 35-minute video (split into 4 individual clips for posting on YouTube), I explain why people so often fail in this area, and I…

• A Few Updates

  Steve Pavlina

  2 Nov 2009 | 10:42 am

  Here are some updates I want to share with you. Conscious Growth Workshop DVDs I received the initial DVD masters from the videographer — 8 DVDs total for the whole weekend. I’ll start watching them this week to see if any additional edits are needed to create the final product. After that I’ll need someone to design a cover/package for the DVDs and then get a bunch of them duplicated so we can start shipping them. For anyone who pre-ordered the DVDs at the workshop and paid via credit card, your card won’t be charged till the DVDs actually ship. It’s hard to say…

• Juicing and Physical Training

  Steve Pavlina

  1 Nov 2009 | 7:18 pm

  For most of the past year, I’ve been starting my day with a green smoothie for breakfast, but lately I’ve been getting back into juicing. I piled up a lot of experience in a short period of time when I did my 30-day juice feast a year ago. (I’d originally planned to go for a 92-day juice feast but decided to stop after 30 days.) Drinking fresh juice has many benefits. With the fiber removed, fresh juice digests very easily, so you don’t have to expend as much energy on digestion. This extra energy then becomes available for your body and mind. When I incorporate a lot…

• Separation

  Steve Pavlina

  25 Oct 2009 | 4:51 pm

  It’s time to let you know about a big personal change that’s happening with Erin and me. We’ve decided to separate, and we’re planning to get a divorce. We came to this decision very consciously, and we’re separating amicably because we can see it’s the best thing for both of us. We intend to remain good friends and continue working together, so as far as our blogging is concerned, it’s going to be business as usual for the time being. Why? Over the years we’ve both noticed that our goals and desires were pulling us in different directions. When…

• Conscious Growth Workshop #2 Registration Opens

  Steve Pavlina

  20 Oct 2009 | 5:53 pm

  I’m delighted to announce that we’re now accepting registrations for the second Conscious Growth Workshop, January 15-17, 2010 at the Flamingo Hotel in Las Vegas. In fact, we already received the first registration while I was still editing the workshop pages. The first Conscious Growth Workshop earlier this month was such an unqualified success that I started the process of booking another event less than 48 hours after it ended. It took a little while to select the meeting room and get the paperwork signed, but we’re good to go now. Workshop Details All the workshop…

• 
  ERE: Inside Recruiting

• Máy ảnh số - G-Shot P831 cho mọi người

  Tiếp nối dòng G-Shot, Genius vừa đưa ra model P831 với thế mạnh duy nhất: giá rẻ. Cũng hội tụ nhiều chức năng tiên tiến, P831 rất thích hợp cho người dùng phổ thông, gia đình, không quan trọng nhiều về chất lượng hình ảnh.

• Miếng vá Office 3 năm tuổi có thể ngăn phần lớn vụ tấn công

  Theo báo cáo mới công bố gần đây, người dùng Microsoft Office có thể ngăn tới 3/4 số vụ tấn công nhằm vào bộ phần mềm này nếu chạy miếng vá đã 3 năm tuổi.

• Game Online: Gian lận & chống gian lận...

  Đã lâu lắm rồi mới có một hội thảo đặc biệt như “An ninh phần mềm” do Hiệp hội An toàn Thông tin (VNISA) phía Nam phối hợp cùng Sở TTTT tổ chức. Đây cũng là lần đầu tiên đề tài bảo mật trong trò chơi trực tuyến được đưa ra thảo luận.

• 
  Bob Sutton

• When is the change going to be over?

  Bobsutton

  4 Nov 2009 | 7:54 am

  An executive my wife knows reported one of her people recently asked her this question.  The last couple years have been tough on all of of us, and especially tough on people who had assumed that the future would be an imitation of the past.  Of course, the answer is that the change will never be over. More so than ever, a boss's job is to prepare his or her people by developing expectations that there will be constant change, while (as I wrote in HBR), providing as much prediction, understanding, control, and compassion as possible.I wonder, what else can a boss do to help…

• The Baboon Troop that Mellowed Out After the Alpha Males Died

  Bobsutton

  2 Nov 2009 | 8:35 am

  I got an email last night from a former student (thanks Hendrick!) who wanted to let me know that Stanford's Robert Sapolsky had done a WNYC radio show called "New Normal?" (listen here) where he described his 2004 article with Lisa Share on a troop of baboons -- which became more peaceful (or at least less nasty) after the alpha males died.  It is amazing stuff, and more evidence that being a jerk and having power go hand in hand.  Here is a link to the original academic article (which I was able to download for free). It is short and quite accessible, and just…

• Intuition vs. Data-Driven Decision-Making: Some Rough Ideas

  Bobsutton

  1 Nov 2009 | 10:22 am

  A Stanford undergraduate doing a case analysis on using intuition versus systematic analysis wrote me an email last night to get my thoughts on the difference between the two, especially in light of the work that Jeff Pfeffer and I did on evidence-based management.  Below is my lightly edited response.  This is just off the top of my head (is it mostly intuition?).  I would love to hear your thoughts on this distinction -- if it is useful, how the two concepts fit together, when one is more useful than the others, and so on: I don't think that intuition and…

• I Am Just Like You

  Bobsutton

  30 Oct 2009 | 9:31 am

  A few days back, I wrote about David Dunning's book Self-Insight, which presents a compelling case that there are numerous impediments to self-awareness and that many of these roadblocks are mighty difficult to overcome. I am now on the last chapter, which contains some interesting ideas about how to increase our awareness of how skilled or unskilled we might be at things and our awareness of how others see us.  Dunning points out that a host of studies show that one major impediment to self-awareness is that people see themselves as unique -- usually as superior to others -- …

• Reducing Interruptions and Saving Lives: New Study on Drug Treatment Errors

  Bobsutton

  28 Oct 2009 | 9:21 am

  I have written here and other places on Amy Edmondson's wonderful research on how, when nurses feel as if they have psychological safety, they openly talk about and try to correct drug treatment errors, but when they work in a climate of fear, they are afraid to even admit when they have made mistakes -- which led to a rather bizarre finding in Amy's early research that in nursing units where people felt safe, even compelled,to talk about and learn from mistakes, they reported ten times more errors than in a nursing unit where the supervisor slammed nurses who admitted or where…

• 
  Three Star Leadership Blog

• Book Review: Keeping Up in a Down Economy

  Wally Bock

  6 Nov 2009 | 3:43 pm

  Wisdom, Examples and Ideas in Bite-Sized Packets<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/threestarleadership/priq/~4/DIE9V-8nwVo" height="1" width="1"/>

• 11/4/09: Midweek Look at the Independent Business Blogs

  Wally Bock

  4 Nov 2009 | 12:51 pm

  Every week I select five excellent posts from this week's independent business blogs. This week, I'm pointing you to posts on leadership battles you fight within yourself, execution, infectious workplace diseases, helping confidence grow, and casual conversation in the workplace.<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/threestarleadership/priq/~4/c-sG9jIoHmA" height="1" width="1"/>

• Feedback is the Boss's Job

  Wally Bock

  3 Nov 2009 | 1:48 pm

  More than half of American workers say they don't know whether their performance is up to standard. Their supervisors should be ashamed.<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/threestarleadership/priq/~4/y3Wwywy2IlU" height="1" width="1"/>

• 11/1/09: Leadership Reading to Start Your Week

  Wally Bock

  1 Nov 2009 | 7:10 am

  Here are five choice articles from the business press to start off your work week. I'm pointing you to articles about Yum Brands, Netflix, entrepreneurship, alignment, and greed.<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/threestarleadership/priq/~4/fwpMEryRCPU" height="1" width="1"/>

• Book Review: Awesomely Simple

  Wally Bock

  30 Oct 2009 | 3:16 pm

  A readable, high-level view of business that should give you some good ideas.<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/threestarleadership/priq/~4/J9bnPt18tkQ" height="1" width="1"/>

• 
  riveting rosie

• Sorry It's Been So Long

  Rosie Reilman

  23 Oct 2009 | 3:21 pm

  Wow, it's been a LONG time since I've posted anything. I wonder if anyone really reads this anymore. I've seen a steady flow of incoming search traffic - but not sure how many people are sticking around since I haven't updated in months.I just don't know what direction to take this blog anymore. My job transition has been pretty good and very different. My new job keeps me away from the computer more - which is refreshing but at the same time frustrating because I'm not able to keep up with the networks that I had previously.But never fear, there is always ways to utilize your time and that…

• Hiking Through Life's Uphills

  Rosie Reilman

  5 Aug 2009 | 7:40 pm

  Back in May, I had the pleasure of driving a good friend of mine back to the Appalachian Trail. She's hiking it from start to finish and stopped off on her way past Charlotte for a week's worth of rest. I drove her back to her journey and the whole way we talked about her experience. See, Rachel is a recent graduate and, like most graduates, they have no idea what they want to do with their lives once they leave college. Though, not many people choose 5 months of hiking in the wilderness to help them figure that out...We had some awesome discussions about our connectivity to the earth - how…

• Future of Online Collaboration?

  Rosie Reilman

  29 May 2009 | 12:30 pm

  Really cool things being developed over at Google that were announced this week. Check out Google Wave. The presentation is a little long but really cool to see some of the features that it can do. It combines blogging, social networking, email and document sharing.

• What Do Your Words and Spending Habits Say About You?

  Rosie Reilman

  26 Mar 2009 | 8:12 am

  A couple of weeks ago at the 8th grade youth group session where I volunteer weekly, we talked about gossip which got the kids thinking about how we use our words. One girl even questioned, "So if we can't talk about each other then what will we have to talk about? The weather?!" It's interesting that at 13 kids don't even know what to talk about besides the goings on of their peers. Granted, they're teenagers but how many coworkers do you know that all they do is talk about everyone elses' business. Then last night we talked about social justice and it really got me thinking about how we use…

• A Call for Help for a Friend

  Rosie Reilman

  26 Mar 2009 | 5:58 am

  Dear readers,I wanted to write you about my friend Kristin who is participating in Team in Training. Team in Training (TNT) is part of the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society and they ask people to train together for an athletic event while raising money for people who suffer from blood cancers. Kristin is currently training for a triathlon, her 3rd actually through TNT, and currently is actively raising money for her event. She and I were at dinner last week and were talking about her fund raising. How hard it is to ask people for money when the economy is the way it is. I know times are hard…

• 
  Bigg Success

• Beware of Being Too Kind to Your Customers

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

  5 Nov 2009 | 11:00 pm

  A recent MSNBC article says there aren’t many shopaholics left due to the recession. Then it explores how retailers are responding to frugal consumers for the upcoming holiday season, which accounts for up to twenty percent of annual sales for many of them. Last year, holiday sales were down 3.4%. This year, even more Americans are dealing with job loss, fear of job loss, wage cuts, a drop in home prices and a rise in credit card interest rates. ___ ___ So what will consumers do? What's a retailer to do? Working twice as hard but not making anymore Let’s start with retailers.

• 5 Lessons from Baseball to Be a Hero in Business

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

  4 Nov 2009 | 11:00 pm

  With Game 6 of the World Series upon us, we found a fascinating article from Time entitled Sport: A Game of Inches. It’s from July 1957. ___ ___ It’s about George Robert Tebbetts who gave 53 years of his life to Major League Baseball – first as a player, then a scout and, finally, the manager of the Cincinnati Redlegs (as the Reds were known at that time). He is better known by his nickname: Birdie. How did he get his nickname? No, it doesn’t have anything to do with the use of his middle finger! The article says that his aunt observed that he had lips like a bird.

• Are Entrepreneurs Born or Made

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

  3 Nov 2009 | 11:00 pm

  It’s another age-old nature / nurture question – are entrepreneurs born or are they made? Can the essential skills be taught or do you have to learn from experience? ___ ___ There’s a great book by Richard Goossen called Entrepreneurial Excellence: Profit From the Best Ideas of the Experts. He’s lined up some of the greatest minds on entrepreneurship. He concludes that you can be taught some things but entrepreneuring is mostly learned by doing. The science of entrepreneuring For years now, colleges have been teaching their students the general principles of…

• 4 Keys to Facing Challenges with Confidence

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

  2 Nov 2009 | 11:00 pm

  No storm lasts forever. That's just as true of financial storms as it is natural ones. However, in the midst of a storm, that knowledge may not offer much solace. The news has been full of storm clouds. Among other indicators, unemployment is rising. There is one thing you can do to face challenges like this with confidence – prepare for it in advance by keeping your options open. Here are four ways to do that: ___ ___ Visibility Insure that people see you doing what you do best. Is your job "outbound" so you're clearly visible to customers? If so, capitalize on that…

• Does Your Career Affect Your Lifestyle or Vice Versa?

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

  2 Nov 2009 | 8:23 am

  Here’s a story we’ve been told our whole life: ___ ___ You choose a career. You get a job. It pays the bills. Life is good. You live happily ever after. If you’re lucky. Because … If you’re lucky, you love your job. If you’re lucky, your work is stimulating. If you’re lucky, there is room for growth in your chosen career.  If you’re lucky, you earn enough from your job to support your desired lifestyle. If you’re lucky, your job also affords you time to enjoy the fruits of your labor. If you’re lucky, you realize that luck is…

• 
  My Global Career

• Are You Ready to Escape from a Corporate Job?

  Rusty Weston

  5 Nov 2009 | 10:01 pm

  In a weak economy the tendency is for workers to hold onto their jobs a bit longer than they would otherwise prefer. Is it possible that in a downturn the best thing to do is counterintuitive – quitting corporate America to freelance, start a business or return to college? Better now than never – even if you don’t succeed. In her book, Escape from Corporate America, Pamela Skillings, a career coach and blogger, says that moving back and forth between solo ventures or startups and corporate jobs is “really the only way to develop, learn and grow.” Why not take a…

• Six Tips for Newbie Freelancers

  Michelle Goodman

  3 Nov 2009 | 10:01 pm

  I fled the cube 15 years ago to work as a freelance writer, and I’m happy to report that I’ve yet to be evicted from my home or wind up on food stamps. As a result, I’m constantly asked to share my top tips for would-be and newbie freelancers. Here are a few of my tried and trues: Turn down some of the gigs. Don’t automatically accept every project you’re offered. Instead, choose a handful of topics and industries to specialize in. Building a niche or three makes you far more marketable. Besides, some jobs are so downright miserable that you’d be better off…

• Seven Things to Say After Hearing You’re Fired

  Jim Camp

  1 Nov 2009 | 10:01 pm

  Let’s talk about getting fired. So the boss calls you in to her office. Things haven’t been going well lately at the company. Sales are down. So is new hiring. You take a seat and your boss says, “I’m sorry to have to tell you this, but we need to let you go.” What do you do? What do you say? What should you not say? Here’s the first question: Do you want to keep this job? If you do, what’s the best way to try and paint a picture for your boss that portrays your remaining at the company in a positive light, and creates a vision of you as an employee…

• Who Moved My Job?

  Mark Kobayashi-Hillary

  29 Oct 2009 | 11:01 pm

  Who Moved my Job? is a short story about globalization and the migration of work throughout the world. I’ve written several more formal books on the subject, and my next book is entitled Talking Outsourcing so you can guess what that’s about, but I wanted to try exploring some ideas of migration by using a story. The English sheepdogs who live on Manor farm find that they are charged with training some new foreign dogs who join them on the farm. They are eventually replaced by the newcomers and they need to find how the skills they learned in the country might be applied to life…

• 5 Steps to Repurposing Your Career

  Amy Dorn Kopelan

  27 Oct 2009 | 11:01 pm

  Despite the numbing loss of over millions of jobs – and the worst job market since WWII— young professionals, job-seekers and career changers can and do get jobs today. They are accomplishing this by adapting to a morphing workplace, determining how they can add value to the industries and jobs that matter now, and swiftly repurposing their skills. The first step towards this success is a network – but one that goes far beyond an electronic Rolodex of contacts. We at The Guru Nation have seen greater results when job seekers can plug into a knowledge network of experts who can provide…

• 
  Marketing Headhunter

• Door-to-Door Selling: "Timing is Everything."

  Marketing Headhunter.com

  31 Oct 2009 | 5:10 pm

  ATLANTA, GA - Tonight's Halloween, and our neighborhood is packed with kids.  My wife and I have five kids, so Halloween is one of the most eagerly anticipated holidays of the year.  I'm the candy guy in our house; When the doorbell rings, it's my job to give out the candy to trick-or-treaters.Obviously, everyone's in a festive mood ... At roughly 6:00pm, the little kids start to arrive.  It's the usual mix of pirates, ghosts, princesses, etc.  Smiles all around.  You know the drill.Then at roughly 6:45pm, two co-eds from our local high-school ring the…

• Twitter and B2B marketing: A simplification.

  Marketing Headhunter.com

  22 Sep 2009 | 6:19 pm

  ATLANTA, GA - I read somewhere that a great blogger will never start a post by making excuses for why he hasn't been blogging.  Good thing I'm not a great blogger.As discussed last month, I have started devoting considerable time and attention to Twitter.  My reasoning is basically this:  Nearly 90% of my blog's traffic comes from Google, so once you have arrived at this page, statistically speaking, you are most likely to read one post and then call me, email me, or subscribe to my newsletter.I'm simplifying things, but that's what happens 90% of the time.And…

• What I like most about self-employment.

  Marketing Headhunter.com

  29 Jul 2009 | 8:35 pm

  SEATTLE, WA - What you are looking at is a fine example of lazy blogging!  It requires almost no time or originality on my part, yet you'll enjoy yourself for the next couple of minutes and maybe even send a link to your friends.  Call it McThought Leadership.  Mark Twain would be proud. The video you're about to see features Amazon's Jeff Bezos explaining why his company bought Zappos.  Frankly, it's hard to imagine that Zappos was so good at customer service that Jeff Bezos admired them enough to acquire them.  But that's what the man says.  Does Mr. Bezos…

• Web Usability: "Keeping an Eye on the Competition"

  Marketing Headhunter.com

  8 Jul 2009 | 5:53 pm

  DETROIT, MI - My friend, Kevin Ertell over at RetailShakenNotStirred has a great post on web usability titled "Is elitism the source of poor usability?"According to Kevin, "Most sites are still achieving single digit conversion rates even though customer intent-to-purchase rates are 20% or higher in most cases."  Kevin suspects that this problem stems from sites being too complicated for the average user.I'm sure he's right.  And it's not that users are stupid; it's that the average consumer gets hit with +5000 commercial messages a day and they just…

• Print Advertising and Reputational Search

  Marketing Headhunter.com

  20 Jun 2009 | 6:14 pm

  FUNNY STORY: From June 2005-March 2009, I was the only recruiter in America to advertise in Internet Retailer magazine.  Online retail is my target market (for now), and Internet Retailer is my industry's flagship trade publication.  Every month my ho-hum little classified ad was in the back, rain or shine, and every month no other recruiter's was.  For 45 months.  Imagine.I'm not bragging.  I'm not.  I'm just amazed, that's all.It was like getting away with murder.  And it's not like my marketing strategy was some big, complicated thing:  Every…

• 
  Business Pundit

• This Week’s Links

  Drea

  6 Nov 2009 | 10:15 am

  Money hacker: The wealthiest kids in the world (via Wall Street Fighter). The Big Picture has a scary US unemployment map (2004-present). Alice Schroeder analyzes Buffett’s Burlington purchase–and claims he’s not as all-out bullish on the economy as he sounds. EcoSalon has the stories behind ten popular organic brands (eg., which ones are independently run, and which ones are owned by large corporations). Speaking of green…how green is your pet? (New Scientist)

• This Week’s Weird Jobs

  Drea

  6 Nov 2009 | 8:17 am

  Our current sad economic state has been dubbed a number of things. The Great Recession. The he-cession. The credit crunch. One thing, however, it clear. It’s not the Porncession. Because that industry is doing just fine, thank you very much: 1. LA: Driver for the BUS (Driver for the BUS) Adult Day Care needs a Driver BP class. Monday to Friday. Pay – $ 45.00 • Location: Driver for the BUS I know that driver for the BUS makes sense in other languages…but in English, it’s just plain funny. 2. LA: Dream job for the right person… could it be you? Dream job for the…

• Why Dilbert Tweets

  Drea

  6 Nov 2009 | 3:52 am

• 7 Sinister Ways Freemasons Control Our Country (And Why It Could Be Bull…)

  Julian

  5 Nov 2009 | 4:42 pm

  Nearly two hundred years ago the founder of the Rothschild banking empire proclaimed: “Give me control over a nation’s economy and I care not who writes the laws.” Read on for an overview of the ways the Freemasons are said to control business, politics, indeed, the entire country – and why they might not. 7. Rhodes Scholarships What they do: The Freemasons select and indoctrinate the finest minds of every generation by giving them Rhodes Scholarships to Oxford University, where they have access to the best teaching and others sympathetic to Masonic ideology. Rhodes…

• Women Want More: A Book Review

  Drea

  5 Nov 2009 | 1:46 pm

  In 2008, the Boston Consulting Group ran a lifestyle survey of 12,000 women in 22 countries. Their survey findings inform the conclusions in Women Want More, a book that details the burgeoning women’s consumer market. Each chapter includes statistics, company stories, and anecdotes from individual women. Readers finish the book with an idea of how women behave as consumers, and how to gear their products for success in the female economy. Authors: BCG Senior Partner Michael Silverstein, who wrote Trading Up (2003) and Treasure Hunt (2006). Co-written with BCG Partner Kate Sayre. Recommended…

• 
  One Louder

• The 24 year old that designed the Windows 7 screen

  HeatherLeigh

  6 Nov 2009 | 9:25 am

  This will make you feel old and stale if anything will. Because Chuck Anderson is amazingly talented. And 24. Yeah, 24. When he was born, I was staying out too late, smoking cigarettes and going to keg parties hoping that the police didn't show up. But anyway. (Don't refer to him as a kid, Heather. Don't refer to him as a kid) He's the awesome talent that designed the Windows 7 home screen. In this Gizmodo article, he talks a bit about the process.  

• Arrington, please

  HeatherLeigh

  5 Nov 2009 | 12:16 pm

  For the educated (by Gawker media) reader, how much of this do you think is driven by an actual business issue and how much is driven by hubris? At what point is one embarrassed by actually behaving like a "diva"? A one hour mistake and Arrington is seeing red, and flipping out about MSN being less blue. Seriously.

• Enough with the stickers already!

  HeatherLeigh

  28 Oct 2009 | 4:33 pm

  Once upon a time, Microsoft employees got t-shirts. Many, many t-shirts. It got old, as things are wont to do. Seems that Moore's law applies to tech company swag as well. Because in much less time, I've gotten sick of stickers. Arghthestickerspleasemakeitstop. Everything is not a sticker opportunity. And where the hell am I supposed to put all of these stickers where funny sayings are replaced by Microsoft product names? On my car? Are you kidding me? (I am just not a bumper sticker kind of a person) Every time I go to my work mailbox, I get a sticker. In the last week, I have…

• Productive stress

  HeatherLeigh

  20 Oct 2009 | 5:15 pm

  In a conversation today, I used the phrase "appropriate and productive stress." Stress is the bully of the moment; anything that puts weight around your middle at least gets serious consideration for that title. Three of four Americans are significantly stressed? That makes me a little sad. Mine is situational, and for good or bad, kind of under my own control. I feel fully capable of getting done what I need to get done. Time is my enemy of choice. And then there's the plain old personal stress (and not much of that to speak of at the moment). But we won't go there. Stress is…

• Really, Yahoo!?

  HeatherLeigh

  20 Oct 2009 | 11:05 am

  Sometimes fact is stranger, in that it's harder to explain, than fiction. And a global company in Yahoo!'s position should know that the interwebz are global. So the Hack Days lap dances? Is there really any explanation that makes it OK? Not only the gyrating, but also the really lame PR-awareness. First, let me be clear about something. I don't have a personal problem with stripping, as long as nobody is being subjugated. Under the best of circumstances, it's a living. I really don't care what people do in their personal lives; we all make choices. Don't care about David Letterman,…

• 
  Career Hub

• 4 Steps To Make Your Networking Effortless

  Sital Ruparelia

  6 Nov 2009 | 6:33 am

  I Hate... I hate formal 'networking events.' The ones where you have to 'work a room.' I hate 'networking breaks' at seminars and conferences where you have people madly collecting business cards and staring over your shoulder (instead of looking...

• Could Technology Be Derailing Careers?

  Norine Dagliano

  5 Nov 2009 | 6:36 pm

  Is anyone else beginning to feel like they are always chasing after the train, only to discover when they finally catch up they were on the wrong track? Yes, I’m of the “Boomer Generation;” I attended a three-room school house...

• Using Your Network To Find Job Opportunities In A Tough Market

  Sital Ruparelia

  5 Nov 2009 | 9:04 am

  About 4 months ago I began working with a bright, talented lawyer shortly after he was made redundant. Like every client I work with in this market, from the outset I explained the importance of focussing his job search campaign...

• Network Much?

  Louise Fletcher

  5 Nov 2009 | 8:51 am

  Guest posting today is Julie Bauke, author of 'Stop Peeing on your Shoes: Avoiding the 7 Mistakes That Screw Up Your Job Search.' You can follow Julie at www.twitter.com/juliebauke. No matter who I am speaking to- large groups or an...

• K.I.S.S. Your Job Search

  billiesucher

  4 Nov 2009 | 12:53 pm

  Looking for a job? Are you familiar with the K.I.S.S. principle? Curious about its origin, I did what people do -- a Google search. It seems that the acronym K.I.S.S. was first coined by Clarence Leonard (Kelly) Johnson, a lead...

• 
  The Monster Blog

• The Job Search Isn’t Over Until the Offer Is in Hand

  Jane Allerton

  5 Nov 2009 | 6:34 am

  About 10 days ago, I began a second and final round of interviewing, and everything went swimmingly. I was thrilled when the recruiter called to say there was a job offer in the making. But sealing the deal with this recruiter has been a bumpy ride.   Usually the recruiter would have relinquished the offer process to the firm’s hiring manager or HR department by this point. The problem is, I have questions about the offer, which means the recruiter has had to chase down answers. Trying to untangle the phone conversations, I requested to see everything in writing.   And so,…

• Career Boomerang: What If Your Job Search Brings You Back to a Former Employer?

  Jane Allerton

  3 Nov 2009 | 6:20 am

  In all the months spent researching and searching for permanent full-time employment, who should emerge as one of my top targeted firms? My former, former employer. Not the one that laid me and hundreds of othersoff about 6 months ago, but the firm I voluntarily left more than a decade ago. Recently they opened a branch just 20 miles from my home – a civilized commute in my congested part of the world. Since I have a solid track record with the firm, and I thrived in their culture, I never hesitated to contact them again. And through the magic of networking, it’s likely that…

• 3 Steps to Prepare for 3 Job Interviews in 3 Days

  Jane Allerton

  29 Oct 2009 | 5:05 am

  Sometimes when it rains, it pours. Last week, I was fortunate enough to land 3 interviews in as many days. Other job-seeking friends are reporting an increase in activity too. In some cases, it is because firms want to spend their remaining Q4 budget by bringing someone on board. In other cases, the companies are gearing up for their Q1 hires now. Whatever the business rationale, I welcome the opportunity to interview, although it does require some pre-work. Here are the 3 fundamental steps that I use to prepare for interviews:   1. Read All Available Public Domain Information  …

• Pair the Job Search with Underemployment to Keep Your Head Above Water

  Jane Allerton

  27 Oct 2009 | 5:09 am

  Over the months, I have taken on some part-time jobs to earn what I can while trying to find permanent full-time employment. Like many other workers in this recession, I have resorted to something called “underemployment.” In this case, it means taking on additional hours or part-time jobs.   One of my underemployment positions has me teaching courses at a local business skill development center. Given my many years of teaching sales and technical folks in all manner of courses, I find this enjoyable, straightforward work. I’ve been leveraging this teaching relationship to…

• 4 Ways to Work with a Recruiter in Your Job Search

  Jane Allerton

  22 Oct 2009 | 10:05 am

  Could the job market be heating up? I’m hearing from more recruiters, and many of my unemployed friends are reporting the same news. While the number of contacts by recruiters is encouraging, it is more important to work with a few recruiters that have a reputation for quality placement practices. Once you are in contact with a recruiter, how do you decide which recruiters are worth your time and energy? Recruiters work for a finder’s fee -- the hiring firm pays the recruiter for filling the open position. But by managing your relationship with the recruiter, you can get in front of more…

• 
  Lisa Rosendahl

• Leaders, Who Are You?

  Lisa Rosendahl

  3 Nov 2009 | 4:00 am

  Leaders, who are you?  Who are you, not as a leader but as a person? Where are you in your life, what do you value and how does this impact or inform your leadership? It's not a question of "if" this impacts or informs your leadership, it is a question of "how." Really, it is. In her post, Be Who You Are, writer Becky Robinson shares her life today and her three beautiful daughters and writes, "As I write about leadership, I bring all of who I am." She writes, "discovering and defining who we are includes understanding and accepting our unique…

• Leadership Development Carnival

  Lisa Rosendahl

  2 Nov 2009 | 4:00 am

  Ghost and ghouls tucked safely away until next year, we can begin looking to November happenings. Right around the corner is Veterans Day, Thanksgiving and the countdown to Christmas - do you believe it? Well, believe this - the November Leadership Development Carnival is up and you won't have to look far - I will take you there. Who is the host? Well, none other than Dan McCarthy. Dan is hosting this month's Leadership Carnival at Great Leadership. And what a host he is! Dan says, "There's no bottom of the treat bag dum-dums in this edition - nothing but full-size snicker…

• On NOT Making a Decision

  Lisa Rosendahl

  31 Oct 2009 | 7:00 am

  Leaders make decisions. Knowing how to make a decision is a key leadership trait. More important than making a decision however, is knowing when NOT to make a decision. Tired, overwhelmed, underwhelmed, reactive, or on the defense? Feeling let down, put down, or simply down and out? Want to make a point, create some noise or grab the control you feel like you have lost? Feeling the pressure to make it quickly, yet your inner voice is telling you to wait? Listen to your inner voice. Take 5 (or 24), tend to yourself and don't make that decision until morning. Photo Credit iStockPhoto 

• Talent, Power Rankings and a Frightful Read

  Lisa Rosendahl

  29 Oct 2009 | 4:00 am

  What a week! I started the week at the Talent Management Summit in Chicago learning from others who have their spot light on talent retention. From focusing on performance management systems and talent reviews to high potential discussions (you do have them don't you?!), the presenters shared their positive experiences and lessons learned. I met twitter and blog friends Charee Klimek, Sharlyn Lauby, Jason Seiden and Michelle Cardinal in real life - and I met two new Twitter friends, Ann Farrell and Keri Fagel. I met a bunch of others and have their business cards to prove it.

• My Heart for Yours - One Year Later

  Lisa Rosendahl

  28 Oct 2009 | 4:00 am

  My husband had heart surgery one year ago today. He has had an amazing recovery with his capstone achievement last month - completing his first in-line skating marathon, the Northshore Inline Skate Marathon from Two Harbors to Duluth. It follows the Grandma's Marathon route. He finished it in 1:48 with an average speed of 15 MPH. His goal was to beat 2 hours - goal met! Below is what I posted last year:  My husband had open heart surgery this week. He had a valve and part of his aorta replaced. A congenital defect discovered in an otherwise healthy man. A big deal, a very big deal.

• 
  The Chief Happiness Officer

• Friday Spoing!

  Alexander

  6 Nov 2009 | 6:40 am

  Where can I go and try this? Looks like fun! Have a happy weekend :o)

• The Happiness Hat will hurt you until you smile

  Alexander

  2 Nov 2009 | 1:37 am

  Smile, dammit: This is not meant to be taken seriously – this is art. Or social commentary. Or both. The Happiness Hat was created by Lauren MacCarthy, who calls it: A wearable conditioning device that detects if you’re smiling and provides pain feedback if you’re not. Frowning creates intense pain but a full smile leaves you pain free! The first in a series of Tools for Improved Social Inter-Acting. To me, this is a great commentary to the pressure to be happy that exists in society today. There seems to be a sense that “if you’re not happy, there’s…

• Friday Spoing

  Alexander

  30 Oct 2009 | 4:53 am

  This Friday it’s really more of a Spoooooooooooooooooing :o) Have a happy weekend!

• A question for ya

  Alexander

  28 Oct 2009 | 11:29 am

  I have a simple question for you: What’s the one thing you wish your manager understood about you, which still hasn’t sunk in with him/her? I ask because I’m giving a ton of presentations to groups of managers about happiness at work these days and I’d like to give them an even better idea of where managers and employees often don’t connect or misunderstand each other. So what do you think? What doesn’t your manager seem to get about you? Please write a comment, I’d be very happy to know your take on this! Great comment: Marks says “I wish my…

• Hooray, it’s Monday!

  Alexander

  26 Oct 2009 | 4:28 am

  Below there’s a message for all my Danish readers. For everyone else: I bet you’re sorry NOW, that you weren’t born Danish, huh :o) We’re launching a new web site (in Danish) for everyone who’s lost their happiness at work and would like it back. Har du mistet arbejdsglæden? Og vil du gerne have den igen? Er du en af de mange danskere, der engang har været glad for sit arbejde, men lige nu har glemt hvordan det var at glæde sig til mandag morgen? Vi har nemlig lavet en lynhurtig lille video netop til dig, der har mistet arbejdsglæden – og gerne vil have…

• 
  Managing Leadership

• Roundup: Catching up

  Jim Stroup

  6 Nov 2009 | 4:22 am

  A lot of interesting stuff has been going on over the past few weeks. A good bit of it touches on themes we’ll likely be visiting, here, soon, so let’s take a closer look at some of it: Daily reading. Almost every source cited here, today, is on my daily reading list, and if you are a serious-minded practicing manager, then surely Michael Wade’s Execupundit should be on yours. See what he has to say about getting to the heart of the matter, and about how to approach the question of why you are in charge. National moods. Please see this WSJ piece reviewing two books, one of which applies…

• Normalizing

  Jim Stroup

  9 Oct 2009 | 9:04 am

  As you develop your personal philosophy of management for application in your personal workplace circumstances, it is helpful to recall just how personal it really is. That is, while you may feel that your eyes are opening up to new ways of calculating outcomes and building relationships at work, and of perceiving comprehensive frameworks for determining the relevant factors and the necessary contributions and collaborations, your colleagues may be moving along a different track at a different pace than you. One of the most problematic consequences of following template approaches to…

• Philosophizing

  Jim Stroup

  8 Oct 2009 | 1:53 pm

  When you begin each interaction, encounter, or relationship at work with an examination of what result you want to flow from it you will eventually, as we have been discussing, find it necessary to investigate what your colleagues want to accomplish, as well. If you pair this with a resetting of the perspective from which you conduct your assessment, you will, as we’ve also noted, begin to discover new factors bearing on the issue, and new ways they can be employed to uncover new solutions and approaches. But you will be doing something else, as well: over time, you will be developing your…

• Comprehending

  Jim Stroup

  7 Oct 2009 | 5:05 pm

  When you are approaching interactions or assessing relationships at work, as we have noted, it can be useful to reframe the context in which you are considering these issues, to be sure you have developed the perspective that works best all around. Let’s take another very brief look at that. If you, per yesterday’s example, have an immediate need for a task to be performed, the easiest thing to do is simply to relieve that tension: issue an order to whichever appropriate junior first comes to mind, and forget about it until the deadline arrives. With so few factors impinging on the…

• Perceiving

  Jim Stroup

  6 Oct 2009 | 5:02 pm

  We’ve been talking over the past few days about the basis for establishing relationships and managing interactions at work. The basic premise is that you should always ask yourself what you want to accomplish, what objective you want to advance, what purpose you want to serve whenever you deal with coworkers – whether they are your peers, your juniors, or your seniors. Moreover, you should consider that question from their perspective as well. In doing so, you want to bring to light how your various answers can influence or alter your individual responses to the interaction. The ultimate…

• 
  Employment Digest

• Best Cover Letter? It’s the One That Gets You a Phone Call!

  EmploymentDigest@gmail.com

  6 Nov 2009 | 6:23 am

  You know you need a cover letter, but you’re not sure how to write one. You’ve searched on Google, found some templates, but you’re not sure which one you should use. That’s... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

• Make Your Example of a Cover Letter Into an Offer Pulling Engine

  EmploymentDigest@gmail.com

  5 Nov 2009 | 6:20 am

  It may feel odd to back on the job market. You may be like one of many who didn’t see it coming. With unemployment at 9.4% (oops, it just ticked up again didn’t it?) you’ll find... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

• Questions to Ask an Interviewer

  EmploymentDigest@gmail.com

  4 Nov 2009 | 6:17 am

  Job seekers usually ask themselves what interview questions to bring when preparing for their interview. These may be a crucial part in giving the impression that they are interested in the job... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

• Do You Have Too Much Experience – Are You Too Over Qualified Even For Self Employment

  EmploymentDigest@gmail.com

  3 Nov 2009 | 12:32 pm

  Experiencing one of the most dreadful things in your professional career, receiving a pink slip and then being laid off from your company can take its toll on the family, marriage, and finances.... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

• Is Your Cover Letter Denying You Your Dream Job?

  EmploymentDigest@gmail.com

  3 Nov 2009 | 6:14 am

  There’s (still) a recession out there, and the competition for jobs remains fierce. Unfortunately, the biggest challenge for many job seekers is not competition, but communication. Because your... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

• 
  Six Degrees

• UNEMPLOYMENT RATE 10.2% HIGHEST IN 26 YEARS

  Dave Mendoza

  6 Nov 2009 | 8:06 am

  By Lucia Mutikani WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. jobless rate unexpectedly jumped to a 26-1/2-year high of 10.2 percent last month, adding to pressure on the Obama administration to do more to tackle unemployment even as signs of recovery mount. The Labor Department said on Friday that employers cut 190,000 jobs in October, more than the 175,000 markets had expected but fewer than the 219,000 lost in September. Taking some of the sting out of the report, job losses for August and September were revised to show 91,000 fewer jobs were lost than previously reported. While that hinted at…

• Bay Area Tech Company Needs to Hire 200 Recruiters & Sourcers, One Year Contract

  Dave Mendoza

  2 Nov 2009 | 11:31 am

  PLEASE NAME SixDegreesfromDave as your referral! – and my interest in doing so solely to track stats on the best means to communicate such information. I have no vested financial or any other interest other than helping my colleagues in the industry. Given what I am aware of with regards to the company brand, it is a worthwhile endeavor to apply. I stated I would remain confidential in regards to disseminating the client of the contact, hence my effort to lead you to the appropriate channel. I am not the conduit for receiving resumes, however, the contact below is: APPLY TO CONTACT:…

• Meet Suzanne M. King, her Name’s On The Door” at King Executive Search

  Dave Mendoza

  1 Nov 2009 | 8:31 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. “Since I’m used to working with C-level executives and minding their tightly arranged time schedules, I can be very concise and quick to prioritize a problem and how to handle it. Sometimes, a person who is not yet at a C-level or new to their decision-making function, needs more time to marinate in the available options before making a call. In this case, that…

• Soviet Fashion Show

  Dave Mendoza

  1 Nov 2009 | 3:00 pm

• Choice is still not an Option?

  Dave Mendoza

  1 Nov 2009 | 2:59 pm

• 
  The Chad Enjoy the Game

• Explaining the National Labor Exchange

  Chad Sowash

  2 Nov 2009 | 2:01 pm

  After nearly three years of operation The National Labor Exchange and it’s partnership of state workforce and corporate stakeholders has proven tremendous and widely held success throughout the nation. Improved labor market efficiencies, advocacy, shared information and simply providing more real jobs to job seekers throughout the nation are merely a few important measures of success. Video: Explaining the National Labor Exchange (3:09) more… Social Bookmarks Hide Sites

• Jobs are free – humor

  Chad Sowash

  29 Oct 2009 | 12:53 pm

  Okay so I had a few minutes of fun with xtranormal a really cool text to movie site.. It’s easy and a blast! This is my “Jobs are FREE” attempt at comedy ;o) Social Bookmarks Hide Sites

• Hacked!

  Chad Sowash

  29 Oct 2009 | 9:33 am

  I was HACKED.. but now I’m back! - Chad Social Bookmarks Hide Sites

• DirectEmployers SEO clarification

  Chad Sowash

  14 Oct 2009 | 11:50 am

  Sometimes mere perception can prove not to be “mere” at all.. Being a non-profit we (DirectEmployers Association) take our knocks every now and again, regarding industry perceptions, although we generally just ignore the ignorance. Generally mind you, not always.. Lately the ignorance has been focused on our new automated SEO platform, Direct SEO. A few have questioned our SEO experience and others have questioned whether a non-profit could handle what is involved with SEO platform maintenance. Well today I’d like to try and educate the ignorant. RE: Experience…

• Is BumpTop the next step?

  Chad Sowash

  5 Oct 2009 | 6:13 am

  Even since seeing the movie Minority Report I’ve been patiently waiting for touch screen computing. Then Microsoft started teasing me with these incredibly cool Surface videos a couple years ago which about sent my surpressed geekdom over the edge. Then came iPhone.. THANK GOD! But that wasn’t quite enough.. It still wasn’t my PC and even though Microsoft showed us, through the Mojave experiment, that Vista was “cool”, it just wasn’t cool enough. Windows 7, released later this month, complete with a touch screen and BumpTop software may have users ever so…

• 
  Lindsey Pollak Career Blog

• One Way to Help the “Lost Generation”

  Lindsey Pollak

  2 Nov 2009 | 7:00 am

  A recent BusinessWeek cover story called today’s graduates “The Lost Generation,” citing statistics that young people who graduate in recession years continue to earn less over the long-term course of their careers. This weekend, New York Times columnist Bob Herbert addressed the same issue, writing: “These recent graduates have done everything society told them to do. They’ve worked hard, kept their noses clean and gotten a good education (in many cases from the nation’s best schools). They are ready and anxious to work. If we’re having trouble finding employment for even…

• Are You Building Your Career Pyramid?

  Lindsey Pollak

  18 Oct 2009 | 3:36 pm

  I had the complete joy today of having absolutely nothing to do. It was pouring rain, SeamlessWeb delivered bagels and coffee directly to my door, and my husband and his best friend had plans to watch nonstop football. So, I camped out upstairs in our apartment — computer turned off! — and read pretty much the entire Sunday New York Times cover to cover. In addition to reading Bono’s op-ed, a review of Gail Collins’ new book about women and, as always, the wedding announcements (“the sports pages for women”), I came across an interview with Carol Bartz, the CEO of Yahoo.

• Virtual Internships: A Growing Trend and Great Opportunity

  Lindsey Pollak

  14 Oct 2009 | 9:35 pm

  This is a guest post by my friends Lauren Porat and Cari Sommer, co-founders of Urban Interns. The job hunt is fierce. But a phenomenal new type of internship is on the rise, and it’s one that will boost your skills while at the same time allow you the flexibility of working from home and on your own clock. Employers are turning more and more to virtual interns, and we’re seeing a real rise in this on UrbanInterns.com. In fact, The Wall Street Journal published a story about this a few weeks ago. Other advantages of a virtual internship? You don’t have to go to school in a major city to…

• Recommended Event: Forté Forum Webinars: The MBA Value Proposition

  Lindsey Pollak

  13 Oct 2009 | 1:10 pm

  Thinking about an MBA? Participate in one or more of Forte Foundation’s webinars to help you get on track for an exciting career in business. Join the Forte Foundation, one of my favorite organizations, for an upcoming webinar to gain all the information you need to know about the MBA value proposition. Connect with MBA graduates working in non-traditional business careers, learn more about MBA programs abroad, and hear from women of color who’ve sought their MBA. The Forum webinars will put you in touch with successful businesswomen who can provide you with the answers you’re…

• Video: Tips for Studying Abroad

  Lindsey Pollak

  8 Oct 2009 | 5:14 am

  Studying in Australia still ranks as one of the best experiences of my life. I’d also credit it as an early indicator that I wanted to work for myself: While I was abroad I discovered that I loved building my own schedule, meeting new people and constantly adapting to changing circumstances. If you are considering studying abroad, check out this new video I recorded for FNC iMag on the campus of Columbia University. If you haven’t considered studying abroad, I hope it inspires some wanderlust! Image: Falling Pixel

• 
  The Anti Pimp

• How to get a headhunter/recruiter to read your email

  The Anti Pimp

  5 Nov 2009 | 6:25 am

  It takes me 6 months to read a novel but I can read an email in 5 seconds.  What’s the difference?  I have NO idea what’s coming next in the latest John Grisham book I’m reading so I take my time and read it…taking in every word as if it were the last in the book.  I don’t want to get to the middle of the book and realize that haphazardly skimmed an important section and missed a major portion of the plot.  Again…so I read slowly. Emails are all the same…seriously.  If you are following your 8th grade English standard “General Business…

• How to get a credit from T-Mobile

  The Anti Pimp

  3 Nov 2009 | 7:23 pm

  If you’ve all been reading for the last few months you are well aware of my recent switch to ATT from Crackberry (service through Sprint) and I couldn’t be happier.  My wife has T-Mobile and she’s been a loyal customer for years…multiple…like almost TEN.  Today (11/3/09), T-Mobile’s entire nationwide network went down for almost 3 hours (and still may be down at time of this post).  I did what any loving husband would do and called T-Mobile and asked for some sort of credit.  I was offered $1.66.  No kidding. It’s apparent that T-Mobile is one of…

• The Age of Stupid

  The Anti Pimp

  2 Nov 2009 | 11:37 am

  After the numerous discussions about “digital legacy”, I still don’t understand the need for arguing via a public forum.   Is getting the last word so important that you’ll risk your entire reputation on it? It’s unfortunate that I’ve visited one of my favorite online communities (read – user generated content.  Bulletin board of sorts for people in my industry) only to find multiple people flaming each other over a cross word issued via a post.   It’s so bad that users are deleting accounts to get away from it.   I’m all for open…

• I was prepared to be pissed

  The Anti Pimp

  30 Oct 2009 | 5:18 pm

  Today I stopped at one of my new favorite places – The Apple Store.  After my most recent trip to California, my MacBook Pro has been weighted down with a ton of high res images and I needed a place to off load them safely.  I hit up my Apple using developer buddies and they suggested the Time Capsule.  Get this…this thing not only comes with an ass load of space (ONE TERABYTE) but it’s also got an 802.11n wireless router.  Whooopity doo!  I know….but after having a gigantor for a desktop with 900 miles of cables, I was ready to go a little bit more compact.  No…

• WTF is your real job??

  The Anti Pimp

  28 Oct 2009 | 8:15 am

  Stop trying so hard to be rock and roll.  Rock stars are just rock stars.   They don’t try..the just fu*king are.  If you have to spend more than 3 sentences explaining what you do, re-think it, cut it down and own it. I don’t think anyone has ever had to ask Lenny Kravitz – “So..what do you do for a living?” You know who you are…so do I.

• 
  HR Daily Advisor

• Share Your Opinion with 155,000 of Your Closest Colleagues

  stevebruce

  6 Nov 2009 | 12:00 am

  Have you had a “eureka” moment lately? How about a penetrating insight into the HR profession? Or maybe just strong feelings about an issue of the day that you just can’t keep to yourself? Well, here’s your chance to share.

• Recognition: The Secret to Retaining Top Employees

  stevebruce

  5 Nov 2009 | 12:00 am

  How much does employee turnover cost American business each year? According to the DOL, about $5 trillion, says Mike Byam, author of The WOW! Workplace. Fortunately, he adds, effective recognition strategies can help keep turnover at bay.

• Top 5 Employee Recognition Myths

  stevebruce

  4 Nov 2009 | 12:00 am

  The biggest obstacle to building an effective employee recognition strategy is false assumptions, says Mike Byam, managing partner of the Terryberry Company, an employee recognition firm. His five myths appear in his new book, The WOW! Workplace.

• How to Halt 'Pattern Absence' Abuse Under FMLA

  stevebruce

  3 Nov 2009 | 12:00 am

  Once employees are certified for intermittent FMLA, the Monday-Friday absence pattern begins, and there's nothing you can do, right? Not so, says HR Manager Barbara Dahlen.

• 'I've Learned How to Manage Intermittent Leave Abuse'

  stevebruce

  2 Nov 2009 | 12:00 am

  Has anybody out there had problems with intermittent leave? HR manager Barbara Dahlen asked. Her audience's response at the recent SHRM Annual Convention and Exposition in New Orleans was loud and long. “Oh, yes!”

• 
  The Chin Family in Asia

• China National Day Floats

  20 Oct 2009 | 8:26 am

• Drawing Contest

  4 Oct 2009 | 6:36 am

• Drawing Contest at Borders Books

  4 Oct 2009 | 6:35 am

  Here is a collage of pictures of Ming and Mei at the recent Borders Books Drawing Contest...

• Sports Day 2009

  30 Sep 2009 | 1:25 am

  Ming and Mei won Silver Medals at this year's School Sports Day.

• Ming and Mei's 1 Day Internship

  12 Sep 2009 | 8:02 pm

  Ming and Mei shadowed me at work last Friday at the NUS (National Univeristy of Singapore)intern recruiting event.  They helped out all day with collecting student names and handing out company brochures to students.  They also gave the introductions in front of a couple of hundred students.    

• 
  CEO Blog - Time Leadership

• Getting Results: Five Absolutes for High Performance

  Jim Estill

  2 Nov 2009 | 9:03 am

  I recently read Getting Results: Five Absolutes for High Performance by Clinton O. Longenecker and Jack L. Simonetti.Everyone of course is interested in getting results, so although the book does have a short chapter on why we need results, I don't think we need to be sold.The book comes up with five absolutes to get results:1. Get everyone on the same page - Focus on the purpose of your organization.2. Prepare for battle - Equip your operation with tools, talent and technology.3. Stoke the fire of performance - Create a climate for results.4. Build bridges on the road to results - Nurture…

• New York Marathon

  Jim Estill

  1 Nov 2009 | 5:27 pm

  Even though it is only 8:30, I am tired. I ran the NY Marathon today.The day started at 5. Up to catch the bus to Statten Island. This involved walking about 8 blocks from the hotel in a light rain. Then wait a bit on the bus, drive for about an hour (made the marathon seem like a long way). Then we got unloaded into a waiting hour for about 3 hours. It was about 45 degrees F.The grounds where people waited were wet (although the rain had stopped by then) so I stood. More creative people had shower caps over their shoes. Many brought plastic to sit on.I knew we would be waiting so I had a…

• Growing @ The Speed of Change

  Jim Estill

  30 Oct 2009 | 4:52 am

  I recently reread Growing @ the Speed of Change by a friend of mine, Jim Clemmer. When I say I recently reread it, I actually read it before it was published to give comments to the author. See my FTC Disclosure. The subtitle is Your Inspir-actional How-To Guide for Leading Yourself and Others Through Constant Change. One thing I love about Jim Clemmers' books (and he is a prolific author), is his liberal use of quotations, such as:"knowing is not enough, we must apply, willing is not enough, meanwhile we must do.."Goeth 1749- 1832 The basic theme of the book is how to thrive in turbulent…

• Purpose

  Jim Estill

  27 Oct 2009 | 5:49 am

  I am just back from a 4 day retreat with YPO. Awesome time. Good people.I re-read "Purpose - The Starting Point of Great Companies" by Nikos Mourkogiannis. An excerpt from the book:"Leadership is the ultimate advantage. When it's present, it makes all other advantages possible. And poor leadership can turn even the best advantage into a disaster. If leadership is genius, then it is only effective because it is tightly linked to management. Leadership does not float in and out of an enterprise linke an inspiring butterfly coming in the window; its's not charismatic words and great deeds served…

• The 25 Hour Day and Sleep

  Jim Estill

  26 Oct 2009 | 3:22 am

  One Success Habit that many people sent me for my book (and I need more so email me your Success Habits at jimestill at gmail) is Rise Early. The problem is that another Success Habit is "get enough sleep" (not too much but not too little either). So if you want to wake early, you need to go to bed early. I see a tendency among many people (myself included) to stretch the day by staying up. It seems many of us have a 25 hour clock - not 24 hours. If the sun did not tell us when we were supposed to be awake, we would continually progress an hour later every day. Shifting the whole day. I…

• 
  THE M.A.P. MAKER

• Is your purpose greater than your challenges?

  Curt Rosengren

  6 Nov 2009 | 8:03 am

  Even in the best of times, life can be bumpy. Challenges are a part of life, and the better equipped you are to overcome them, the greater your potential. One factor that adds rocket fuel to your ability to blast past problems is to really want to reach what's on the other side of them. When you care more about what you are trying to do than you do about the unpleasantness that the challenge brings up, you're motivated to find a way past it. In a recent blog post, Jon Gorden puts it this way. “Your purpose must be greater than your challenges.” I love that way of thinking about it. When…

• Just say no...to saying no

  Curt Rosengren

  5 Nov 2009 | 5:00 am

  I'm always fascinated when I go to the doctor and they tap my knee to test my reflexes. The doc gives a tap with the little rubber mallet and up bounces my leg like it has a life of its own. Some people's tendency to say no reminds me a little bit of that reflex reaction. They automatically shoot down their dreams, cut down ideas, and stonewall possibilities, all with those two little letters. No. "No, that won't work. No, I can't because... No, no, no!" Don't get me wrong. I'm not opposed to saying no. Saying no has it's place. A suggestion like, "Hey, lets walk across this busy eight-lane…

• Are you cheating the world of your gifts?

  Curt Rosengren

  4 Nov 2009 | 8:54 am

  As I've said many times before, I think finding passion is one of the best investments in your career you can make. It energizes you, makes you more confident, and fuels your persistence. The flipside of that is that wedging yourself into a box that doesn't fit who you are (which is what most people do in their careers) can drain your energy, leave you feeling off balance, and make you reluctant to show up to work tomorrow, let alone stick with it for the long term. There's one more thing that happens when you don't pursue a path that aligns with what lights you up. You cheat the world of…

• Staying focused: Why it's hard, and what to do about it

  Curt Rosengren

  3 Nov 2009 | 5:00 am

  You know those machines they use for drawing lotto numbers, with numbered ping pong balls bouncing around inside? Sometimes my brain feels like that. Dozens of little brain pong balls bouncing around and demanding my attention. Needless to say, focus can be a challenge. So I was especially interested in this article on the brain science behind why it can be hard to focus, and what to do about it. It turns out that focusing is less about maintaining attention and more about managing distractions. Putting the brakes on when those distractions pop up, as it were. Unfortunately, the area of our…

• Live into your potential with the Rule of Yes

  Curt Rosengren

  2 Nov 2009 | 9:14 am

  Have you ever found yourself looking at something you would really like to do and responded with, "Yes but...?" Yes, that's a great idea but... I'd really love to but... The variations are endless, and every time you say it, you strangle your potential. I want to encourage you to banish that combination of words from your vocabulary forever. In her brilliant book, Improv Wisdom, Patricia Ryan Madsen offers an alternative to, "yeah but." The alternative is "yes and." The book takes a look at how the principles of theatrical improv can apply to our lives. One of those principles is the Rule of…

• 
  Work Happy Now!

• The Hard, The Fun, and The Beautiful – Double Whammy Edition

  Karl Staib - The Work Happy Guy

  5 Nov 2009 | 6:50 pm

  (Can’t see the video? Then try watching it at Work Happy Now – The Hard, The Fun and The Beautiful – Double Whammy Edition) Where we are free to talk about the hard, the fun, and the beautiful of our work week. My brain has been cloudy this past week. I’m right in the middle of a good blog post and this fog comes over me. I never really get writers block, but I do get “the fog.” I can still trudge through and get it down, but it’s hard. When this happens I do wish it away and I shouldn’t because it’s a part of the process. Navigating the fog can be fun if I just slow…

• 5 STEPS to Success

  Karl Staib - The Work Happy Guy

  3 Nov 2009 | 7:00 pm

  Sid Hurlbert is a renowned public speaker, who teaches the art of “What to say & How to say it” using his STEPS method. When I first heard of Sid I had no idea who he was, but after reading his website, talking to him in person, and attending his two hour seminar, I’m confident that this man is on board with the Work Happy Now cause. One of his seminars is called “Fun at work…WORKS!” He has been teaching what we’ve been talking about. I have to admit he’s done it for a lot longer than I have. Sid uses a method called STEPS. It’s simple and easy to use – just the way…

• Unconventional Guide to Self Acceptance

  Karl Staib - The Work Happy Guy

  1 Nov 2009 | 9:27 am

  This post was inspired by Chris Guillebeau’sUnconventional Writing Contest. What holds you back from accomplishing your dreams? If you could pin down the one thing that is keeping you from reaching your most glorious dreams where you travel like Chris Guillebeau, make money like Oprah, or work a crowd like Bill Clinton… What would it be? Your education? Your relationships? Your… It’s none of those things. It’s your fear. The fear within you is holding you back from making your dream life a reality. Now I’m not claiming to know it all; I myself have been guilty of giving in to…

• The Hard, The Fun, and The Beautiful – Puffy Smile Edition

  Karl Staib - The Work Happy Guy

  29 Oct 2009 | 6:18 pm

  (Can’t see the video? Then try watching it at Work Happy Now – The Hard, The Fun and The Beautiful – Puffy Smile Edition) Where we are free to talk about the hard, the fun, and the beautiful of our work week. Connecting with like minded people has been the theme of this week. So many people tell me to connect with others who are different than me. I know that it’s good to have different people in my network, but having like minded people has been more important. I was on a teleconference this past week for a membership site. I talked about the importance of building your core…

• When Do You Decide Whether or Not You are Happy at Work?

  Karl Staib - The Work Happy Guy

  27 Oct 2009 | 6:31 pm

  When you just got a raise? When you had a fight with a co-worker? When a client tears you a new one because they had a bad day? When you completed a tough project? When you slept 4 hours the night before? There are so many ways to judge our happiness at work, but it really requires a focused mind to reflect and decide on the right things. You have to take your present moment emotion out of it and look at the big picture. Really look at the work that you do, the people you work with, and how you are developing yourself at work. Most of us decide we hate our jobs when things are terrible, but…

• 
  Digital Recruiting

• Social Web v. Destination Sites

  Sinead Bunting

  6 Nov 2009 | 4:07 am

  Hey there, I'm back after a bit of a break - on hols and busy busy at work. Here's something I wanted to share which is really interesting - its a post noting how traffic to brands destination sites is declining compared to the rising traffic on social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter. Its all about the content and where its being consumed i.e. in the social web and less so at a brands own website. Is the writing on the wall for a company's website? Maybe not just yet, but it does reinforce the fact that clients should be engaging with their target audience where they are consuming…

• The RECaid Treasure Hunt; Thursday, 12th November, 2009

  John Whitehurst

  26 Oct 2009 | 4:33 pm

  Follow the trail of Farringdon's secrets and watering holes - two hours of light mental and physical exercise with socialising thrown in. Compete for prizes against teams from recruitment comms agencies and media.Help raise money for this worthwhile cause, in support of industry colleagues who have fallen on hard times.Thursday, 12th November, 2009 (from 18:30). £100 per team of 5 (including drinks, refreshments, and treasure).The RECaid Treasure Hunt has been devised by Ri5, and tested and declared fair and fun by experts.To enter please contact Karen Williams…

• One day and two events you can’t afford to miss

  Matt Alder

  11 Oct 2009 | 3:58 pm

  This year has certainly been a memorable one and not often for the right reasons. However, despite times being so tough for our industry, it’s great to see that over the last few months so many people have come together via Twitter to network and collaborate on creating a more positive and innovative future. The point the social media naysayers always seem to miss is how much Twitter and other social media platforms actually enhance face to face interaction rather than stifling it. To prove this there are not one but two face to face events running in London on Thursday 19th November that I…

• If Architects Had to Work Like Web Designers

  Alex Hens

  28 Sep 2009 | 11:13 am

  I came across (well - was pointed to it from twitter) this fantastic piece. I'm sorry to say it struck soooo many chords with me, but at the same time the satisfaction I got from reading someone else conveying a pain and frustration I've all too often felt compelled me to copy and paste it here for our 4 readers to enjoy too (hoping that at least one of them was involved in website project conception -> delivery). You can read the original here on DigitalSurvivors.com enjoy :) If Architects Had to Work Like Web Designers Please design and build me a house. I am not quite sure of what I…

• Did You Know 4.0 - "Shift Happens" updated for 2009

  Matt Alder

  16 Sep 2009 | 10:16 am

  I blogged the original version of this video way back in 2007. Great to see it updated.....well worth watching

• 
  growing changing learning creating

• Entering possibility space

  Tom Haskins

  6 Nov 2009 | 3:12 pm

  Most people on the planet are outside of possibility space. They have yet to awaken from dreaming up what they are convinced is realistic. They are missing out on all the freedom that is to be found in possibility space. I'll call where they are at "captivity space" to contrast their experiences with possibility space. In captivity space, we act as if it's been said "Behold, I make all things old". We already know how familiar most things are and what they mean to us. The majority of our experiences are the "same old same old". We live inside our habits, routines and predictable occurrences…

• Why it's so difficult to awaken

  Tom Haskins

  5 Nov 2009 | 12:45 pm

  As you're reading this, it probably seems like it is really happening that you're reading this. Now that you're to the next sentence, there is some continuity with reading the first sentence that gives you some historical perspective. With that ongoing stream of experiences and more of the same by the time you're reading this third sentence, your mind will predict that there will be more reading here much like what has already occurred. All this seems very realistic. You are really doing this reading of these words that are really here to be read. There's no indication that you are dreaming…

• Rethinking nodes in networks

  Tom Haskins

  3 Nov 2009 | 7:53 am

  When we're making a study of a network or formulating an explanation for outcomes produced by a network, we need things to examine. We are prone to make a "thingy" of nothing or of an ongoing processing. Alfred North Whitehead coined the term "misplaced concreteness" to separate his "process philosoph" from all the scientific studies that had made things of processes in order to study them objectively. In the Prince of Networks, Graham Harman characterized Whitehead as the grandfather of Bruno Latour's Actor Network Theory. Latour takes exception to scientific explanations that add a false…

• Missing interfaces users and edges

  Tom Haskins

  2 Nov 2009 | 6:26 pm

  Our eyeballs can see nodes, but not connections unless they're hard wired. Most connections are subtle, hidden or implied without taking form. As result, there is excessive attention on nodes, as Ailsa recently explored on her blog: Exploring the dark wood. In the comments I added there over the last few days, I explored some connections to Bruno Latour's Actor Network Theory. Since then I've been reflecting on what else is missing in all this exploration of connections. Interfaces, users and edges came to mind. When systems are closed they lack interfaces. They seem to be for internal use…

• 28 inches and counting

  Tom Haskins

  29 Oct 2009 | 10:30 am

  The forecast for 18 inches of snow had me running every errand for the week on Tuesday. Once the snow arrived, I've shoveled the walks and driveway 3 times so far. The snow is expected to end after 48 hours of continuous accumulation at midnight. We've got 28 inches so far and expect another ten. At least the Colorado Rockies dd not make it into the World Series this year. I'll get back to blogging here next Monday, Nov 2nd.

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

• “What are you working on?” Show your co-workers with Twitter-esque microblogging tools (but not Twitter)

  Sarah

  6 Nov 2009 | 6:46 am

  We’ve seen the value of microblogging sites such as Twitter for sharing short ideas, links, and personal updates, but that kind of website is wayyy too public for business collaboration. (Think about all the secret projects, private sales figures, and other sensitive matters that you’d prefer everyone keep in nice, secure, private, trackable emails.) Nonetheless, there is a need for a new way to talk to colleagues — something informal, real-time, attention-based, and inclusive…. something a lot like, well, Twitter. In all honesty, your people may already be using services such as…

• Prep for a surprise interview with quick-but-deep Internet research

  Sarah

  5 Nov 2009 | 4:39 pm

  The scenario: You’ve been called in to interview with a company that you know virtually nothing about — and the interview’s tomorrow. While you’re excited that they want to recruit you, you’re sweating bullets at the thought of giving meaningful answers about this mysterious organization. The answer is quick, simple, and painless. Just turn to your computer. Research nowadays is easy, and often free. There are a wealth of great sites and services that specialize in getting you up to speed on an organization. Here’s the RiseSmart guide to making the most of the 24 hours before your…

• Don’t let your email inbox dictate your day, goals or actions

  Sarah

  3 Nov 2009 | 1:03 pm

  Instant communication is a fact of business life these days: emails, Twitters, texts and more pour in through our computers, phones and Blackberries as quickly as we can process them. It’s enabled unprecedented productivity and global teamwork in our time, but there is a growing backlash against this breakneck pace — and the imperative of email. The “quest for the empty inbox,” some experts say, is hijacking our productivity and hampering our ability to concentrate on longer-term strategic goals. The confusion starts at the very top. In a recent Variety article, “Execs are Inundated…

• Helping hiring managers conduct better job interviews

  Sarah

  28 Oct 2009 | 1:15 pm

  My worst interview ever, as a hiring manager in an editorial group, went perfectly… on the surface. I didn’t know it had actually been a complete disaster until the candidate called me up two hours later. Was he calling to thank me, or had he possibly left something behind? No. The candidate suavely asked me to dinner that evening. I stammered, “You do understand that I am the supervisor of the position you interviewed for, right?” “Oh, yes,” he replied, “but I had so much fun speaking with you that I thought you would like to go on a date with me as well as consider me for the…

• Making “sexting” a turnoff in the workplace

  Thom

  25 Oct 2009 | 11:39 pm

  Just when you thought it was safe to walk by your co-workers’ cubicles without a blindfold, a new technological menace may be coming to a small screen near you. It took years for employer-employee etiquette to merge into manageable desktop rules regarding pornography and social Web sites. Now, “sexting” has arrived to threaten the workplace environment. Too Much of Too Little Speeding ever more quickly to a Blackberry or iPhone near you, accompanied by innocent chuckles:  well, you don’t really want to know.  And that’s the problem.  Too much of “too…

• 
  Escape From Corporate America

• Time for a Career Break? Your Sabbatical Guide

  Pamela Skillings

  3 Nov 2009 | 6:45 am

  Have you ever fantasized about quitting your job to travel the world? Maybe you don’t have to wait until retirement to experience the joys of the wanderer’s life. I wrote about the benefits of career breaks in Escape from Corporate America and I recently had the opportunity to meet some experts on the subject of how to take a successful sabbatical. Corporate escape artist Sherry Ott and her partners run a fantastic web site called Briefcase to Backpack — it includes valuable advice on asking for and planning a sabbatical and inspiring stories from people who have taken…

• Dream Jobs and Job Nightmares — Work-Related Dream Analysis

  Pamela Skillings

  30 Oct 2009 | 3:35 am

  During this week leading up to Halloween, a holiday designed to let you live out your secret fantasy or nightmare for the evening, I have been plagued by weird dreams about work. I decided to do some research and  it turns out that bizarre work-related dreams are very common. But what do they mean? According to self-proclaimed dream analysis experts, if you are dreaming regularly about your job, it’s a good sign that your subconscious is trying to tell you that you’re overworked or feeling overwhelmed by career issues. This is why I have now scheduled an overdue vacation so I can…

• Dream Job Posting — Chief Strategy Officer for Well-Funded Start-Up

  Pamela Skillings

  19 Oct 2009 | 7:59 am

  I love nothing more than connecting a talented person with a dream job. So when a client asked me to help him find someone for a senior position, I jumped at the chance to do some matchmaking. This is a perfect example of the hidden job market at work. This position isn’t being posted on the job boards. You have to be tapped into the right network to even hear about it. And I know that someone out there in my extended circle is a perfect fit. Could it be you? About the position: The job is Chief Business and Strategy Officer for a NYC-based technology start-up with venture financing.

• Do You Have the Right to Moonlight?

  Pamela Skillings

  16 Oct 2009 | 8:22 am

  Image by c@rljones via Flickr That may sound like a silly question — especially if you need a second (or third) job to pay your bills. However, many companies reserve the right to control whether their employees can earn extra income after hours. Workforce Management presents the employer’s side of the debate — starting off with the fact that companies are legally entitled to fire workers if second jobs affect their ability to be “present, prompt, and prepared” at their primary jobs. I strongly believe that you have the right to a life (and even revenue streams)…

• Career Advice from The Rachel Zoe Project

  Pamela Skillings

  13 Oct 2009 | 8:45 am

  Okay, so I have been known to watch The Rachel Zoe Project. Don’t judge me. I can’t really tell you why I find it fascinating as I am pretty much a fashion idiot and most of the “characters” on the show are really annoying. Maybe it’s because the show has proven to be a fount of fabulous and cutting-edge career advice in action. For example, let’s look at Taylor’s genius strategy for getting promoted from her role as Rachel’s assistant to become the head of “branding” for Rachel Zoe Inc. (I’m not convinced Taylor knows exactly…

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  life@work

• Unemployed? Use Your Time to Learn Essential Skills

  Heather Mundell

  3 Nov 2009 | 4:44 pm

    If you're looking for work, you've probably been told to turn job seeking into a full-time job itself.This message has its heart in the right place (i.e., get off the couch and turn off the TV), but in reality, I know few job seekers who literally spend 40+ hours per week in their job search efforts.Unless you've got small children at home, chances are you've got a bit of extra time that you could spend in any number of ways - surfing the Net, buying groceries, planting bulbs, going to the gym. But this time is your opportunity to learn essential skills that regularly you don't have time…

• Green Jobs - What They Are and How to Find Them

  Heather Mundell

  29 Oct 2009 | 9:44 am

  The Career Collective is participating in Job Action Day! Members have written posts that provide workers and job seekers information, ideas and concrete steps to secure their futures in a changed economy.Follow our hashtag #careercollective on Twitter!Is there anything cooler than green these days?According to a new study by Clean Edge, a green-industry research firm, "clean tech" jobs are on the rise: "We are just at the beginning of the 'clean tech' job creation era" and that renewable energy, environmentally-friendly building and manufacturing, and all aspects of energy efficiency will…

• How Not to Be a Cookie-Cutter Job Seeker

  Heather Mundell

  7 Oct 2009 | 9:55 am

  As a member of a new community of career coaches and resume writers called the Career Collective, this post is one of many responses to the question, “Are you a cookie cutter job seeker?” I encourage you to visit other members’ responses, which will be linked at the end of this post by the afternoon of October 9. Please follow our hashtag on Twitter: #careercollective.There's only one you, and if you're a job seeker, now's a good time to emphasize that.You know the bleak statistics about how many job seekers there are for every opening right now (it's six, in case you've been avoiding…

• Working Less Actually Works

  Heather Mundell

  25 Sep 2009 | 11:28 am

  Hurrah! In my desperate online search for anything that could be construed as positive news related to employment issues, I found Sue Shellenbarger's article, "If You Need to Work Better, Maybe Try Working Less".For the last year we've been hearing only about how people are either working all of the time, or not working at all. Now a four-year Harvard Business Review study that will be published in October reveals what many of us already know - taking breaks yields numerous on-the-job benefits. Working all of the time has become a habit that is unsustainable for most people over a 40-year…

• Price Hike Coming...Act Now!

  Heather Mundell

  17 Sep 2009 | 3:35 pm

  I've been busy here at Dream Big Coaching behind the scenes, coming up with new ideas to help me offer the best value possible to my career coaching clients.I've also been musing on the fact that I have not raised my rates in three years.So beginning October 1, I'll be offering new clients a choice of several new coaching packages that are designed to give them the results they are seeking - at a new (and higher) price. Current clients as of October 1 will be "grandfathered" at the current, lower price they now enjoy.So if you've been thinking about hiring a coach because, for instance,…

• 
  StellaCommute

• Extreme Telecommuting With Kids

  5 Nov 2009 | 6:33 am

  Sometimes I watch "House Hunters International" on HGTV and see folks buying houses on the beach in some South American country and I think to myself, "Heck, if they have an airport, why couldn't I do that?"As it is, Stella is very far away from her place of employ, and there's nothing that would prevent me from going somewhere even more pleasant than where I am and working. Except that I have kids who need to go to school, and I just wouldn't want them to have to struggle in another language in a small town in another country. And where I live I'm surround by family who make my life…

• Why Wired Employees Are Good

  3 Nov 2009 | 1:12 am

  I'm really fortunate: my job requires me to stay on top of the more fluttery edges of the online communication so I get to explore Twitter, Facebook, augmented reality, and whatnot as part of my daily work. But it turns out that my willingness and interest in these things may also make me a better employee.At least that's what they think at the delightfully named Gruntled Employees. The part I like the best: "They also know that what they say reflects upon them and their company."That is so true. The fact is that in this modern age, your personal online profile and your professional online…

• The Telephone as a Pandemic Survival Tool

  2 Nov 2009 | 10:49 am

  I am not a germophobe, really. But I'm glad every day that I get to do a lot of what I do over the phone and through the interwebs. Why just today, I was phoned into a meeting where one third of the other participants seemed to be coming down with something or recovering from something. Yuck. Newsflash: You don't have to be in another timezone to call into a meeting. If I'm calling in, maybe the sick people could stay holed up in their offices and phone in, too? If you're experiencing an outbreak of illness, use your telecommuting tools to keep people from congregating together and sharing it…

• Today Is a Good Day

  28 Oct 2009 | 5:36 am

  To telecommute, if you live in the Bay Area. What a nightmare. If you have a robust telecommuting program in place, you can handle unexpected snafus like this relatively easily. If not, you end up with an office full of people for whom it took three hours to get to the office to get back on the internet.Stellacommute...there's no place like home.

• Sometimes Changes In Routine Don't Increase Your Productivity

  26 Oct 2009 | 5:13 am

  Ah, gentle readers, it seems like just last year that Stella was ruminating about her broken finger and taking small breaks (ha ha, get it) from blogging and being able to type 80 words a minute. Oh, wait, it was just last year. And now Stella is coping with a family fracture: the littlest Commute broke both bones in her arm in a fall off playground equipment at school.Aside from the obvious maternal concern that I'm experiencing over Baby Commute's injury, there is the non-trivial disruption to my home-based office that has occurred. The good thing is that it has reconfirmed my most…

• 
  Martial Development

• Chuck Norris Gets His Facts Right?

  Chris

  6 Nov 2009 | 10:00 pm

  Did you know? In 1982, Chuck Norris was choked out by the famous Gracie Jujitsu family. A decade later, everybody started copying him. We now know this phenomenon as the UFC. (pg. 57)   On the set of “Walker, Texas Ranger,” Chuck Norris once took a live rattlesnake by surprise. Then he set it down on the ground, and grabbed it again. The director fleed the scene in terror. (pg. 2) Chuck Norris is half Irish, and half leg. (pg. 20) In the interest of full disclosure: I owe Chuck Norris a favor. It was by introducing his “facts” to the mainstream audience back in 2006, that…

• Watch “The Men Who Stare At Goats” Free Online

  Chris

  3 Nov 2009 | 12:00 pm

  Maj. Gen. Albert N. Stubblebine III: The key to all of this…it has nothing to do with bending metal [spoons]…Lord Mercy, if I can do that with my mind, what else can I do? It wasn’t clear whether they thought I was nuts. In any event, the reaction that I got was, “we’re not very interested.” But as Jon Ronson’s investigation shows, they were in fact very interested. During the last few decades, the United States military has conducted a series of experiments in psychic warfare. On the record, these attempts to create superhuman “warrior…

• How to Defend Yourself Against Wild Animal Attacks

  quote

  31 Oct 2009 | 12:41 pm

  If you’re being chased by an angry bull, and then you notice you’re also being chased by a swarm of bees, it doesn’t really change things. Just keep on running. How to Fend Off a Shark Hit back. If a shark is coming toward you or attacks you, use anything you have in your possession—a camera, probe, harpoon gun, or fist—to hit the shark’s eyes or gills, which are the areas most sensitive to pain. These nose is not as sensitive as these areas. Make quick, sharp, repeated jabs in these areas. Sharks are predators and will usually only follow through on an attack if they…

• The Martial Artist’s View of Freedom

  Chris

  29 Oct 2009 | 10:00 pm

  You’ll never know what freedom really means, until you’ve been pinned against the wall with no hope for escape. Google defines freedom as “the condition of being free; the power to act or speak or think without externally imposed restraints.” Popular culture and public schools promote this childlike view of freedom, wherein our supposed inherent rights are actually another person’s liabilities. By declaring health to be our inalienable human right, we would compel a doctor to treat us; by asserting the right to a minimum standard of living, we compel another to provide…

• Chuck Norris on God and Guns…Mostly Guns

  quote

  27 Oct 2009 | 3:42 pm

  From Chuck Norris’ recent column in World Net Daily… God and guns were so important to our founders that they established our protection to exercise them in the first two amendments to our Constitution-–the uninhibited and unrestricted freedom to choose our own religion and bear our own firearms. But, more and more, these pillars of American life and liberty are being attacked and abandoned, not only out of sheer bias but ignorance of our founders, the Revolutionary period and our Constitution. Instead, these pivotal American rights have become the brunt end of cultural jokes…

• 
  Avocationist

• 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.

• How to know when you have outgrown your job: Lessons from a Rock Star (plus a special invitation)

  Avocationist

  9 Jun 2009 | 3:16 am

  Do you ever get a feeling that your job has lost its luster? A job that used to motivate you now requires you to get yourself pumped up before you do it? Check out what I learned at a No Doubt concert this weekend - how to know when you have outgrown your work. Watch until the end for an invitation to a series of classes I'm offering (you can also get more information here).

• Find Out What the 20% of People Who are Passionate About Work Know That You Don’t

  Avocationist

  8 Jun 2009 | 9:19 am

  Photo courtesy Joshua Rappeneker Want to do something different, but can't figure out what it is? Or how to do more meaningful work without jeopardizing your lifestyle? Join me for a special tele-class this Wednesday night, June 10th at 5pm ET: Don't wait to test-drive your dreams (How to start now without quitting your job). It's free for my newsletter subscribers. This tele-class is part of a series I'm offering to take you from "I don't know what I want to be when I grow up" to "I would never have been able to envision how rich my life is now." Sign up now because there are a limited…

• The Suprising Secrets of Business Travel (Hint: It Can Be Fun)

  Avocationist

  28 May 2009 | 6:39 pm

  Business trips suck - we all know that. But did you know that business trips and lunch breaks can be 2 of the best times to find fun? On my first trip to Hong Kong, I learned that they can be great times to try out new interests - the first step towards developing your calling.

• 
  The Blog of Author Tim Ferriss

• How to Hold Your Breath Like David Blaine, World Record Holder (and Now, Me)

  Tim Ferriss

  30 Oct 2009 | 9:35 am

  Last night, world-famous magician and endurance artist David Blaine taught me how to hold my breath. For four months, David held the Guinness world record for oxygen-assisted static apnea (holding your breath after breathing pure oxygen): 17 minutes and 4.4 seconds. His record was then surpassed by Tom Sietas on September 19, 2008. David’s record for doing what I’ll describe is between 7 and 8 minutes. I was born premature and, unlike David, I couldn’t then remember the last time I held my breath for more than one minute. It has always been my physiological Achilles heel.

• How to Breakdance 101: Unleash Your Inner B-Boy

  Tim Ferriss

  25 Oct 2009 | 5:54 pm

  An impromptu b-boying lesson at home after some Bulleit bourbon. Don’t drink and dance. Breakin’ 2 did it. It was 1984 and I was convinced I would be a professional breakdancer. Alas, I was seven years old, and I looked exactly like this reader who left a comment on my tango instructional post: Tim, I’m pretty impressed by your achievements in tango, but what about tips on your first love? B-boying is a sport I’ve watched and attempted for years. Sadly, the minute I go from uprock to six-step I look like a two-year-old trying to find spilled jelly-beans. I don’t…

• Sneak Peek: The New and Expanded 4-Hour Workweek is Here

  Tim Ferriss

  16 Oct 2009 | 2:34 pm

  The 4-Hour Workweek was first published April 27th, 2007. I did my best to cover all of the bases when it debuted, but there were gaps. Though I included cases studies of families using lifestyle design, for example, it was hard to find more than a few the first time around. Not anymore. Things have changed. There are more than 30,000 comments on this blog, hundreds of people have shared their successes and failures via detailed e-mail, and both case studies and experiments continue to flow in from around the world. This doesn’t mean that the current edition doesn’t do the job…

• Random Episode 6: How Kevin Rose and Glenn McElhose Got Scammed in China – Ha!

  Tim Ferriss

  8 Oct 2009 | 1:03 am

  Total length: 20 minutes. This is a weekend edition of Random. It is a happy-hour special of Chinese scams. How did Kevin and Glenn get totally screwed by Chinese “art students”? More important, how do you avoid getting scammed while traveling? This episode lays out one of the most common scams and explains how to spot similar set-ups worldwide… Show Notes from Glenn: - Open intro with weird light: Kevin shooting a laser into a “7 Cups” vessel. Animation by Tynan. - Yin Bar, Beijing – http://www.theemperor.com.cn/ - Travel Website: www.virtualtourist.com

• The Best Decline Letter of All-Time: Edmund Wilson

  Tim Ferriss

  7 Oct 2009 | 7:07 am

  (Source: Crooked Timber) Edmund Wilson, recipient of both the Presidential Medal of Freedom and the National Medal for Literature, was one of the most prominent social and literary critics of the 20th century. He realized, like most uber-productive people, that, while there were many behaviors needed to guarantee high output, there was one single behavior guaranteed to prevent all output: Trying to please everyone. He had a low tolerance for distraction and shunned undue public acclaim. To almost all inquiries, he would respond with the following list, putting a check mark next to what had…

• 
  Hire-Engineers

• Analog FAE Engineer, North Dallas, DOE

  David Herrmann

  29 Oct 2009 | 1:20 pm

  Analog FAE Engineer, North Dallas, DOE Join an award-winning manufacturing and design company with a track record of consistent profitability growth for more than 15 years. Bring your analog circuit design expertise and FAE skills to this global manufacturer and supplier of high-quality electronics products with established clientele in the consumer electronics, communications, computing, and industrial markets. In this key customer-facing role as Field Applications Engineer, you will maintain relationships with engineering contacts, sales representatives and distributor field personnel.

• Senior IP Telephony Engineer (Network Architect) – $75-90K – Dallas, TX

  David Herrmann

  22 Oct 2009 | 10:21 am

  Senior IP Telephony Engineer (Network Architect) – $75-90K – Dallas, TX Link your career path to this growing award-winning telecommunications company changing the face of VoIP telecommunications. The Senior IP Telephony Engineer will design, implement, and handle on-going maintenance of the IP backbone in a fast paced VoIP Internet Telephony Service Provider (ITSP) environment. The IP backbone is a highly complex, multi-site network and requires Softswitch (e.g. Freeswitch, Broadsoft), Cisco, Kagoor, Juniper, Covergence, etc. expertise and routing design expertise including BGP…

• Product Line / Business Manager (Semiconductor Industry), North Dallas area, Salary DOE

  David Herrmann

  20 Oct 2009 | 1:26 pm

  Product Line / Business Manager (Semiconductor Industry), North Dallas area, Salary DOE Growing, vibrant Semiconductor firm is seeking a Product Line manager with some P&L responsibility! Will manage one the company’s major Product lines. The position has approximately 7 Direct reports. Thirty percent of the role will focus on management of product and process development strategies. This will involves interfacing with Marketing, Engineering and manufacturing. Will monitor industry trends. Thirty percent of the role will focus on customer specific issues, sales support, quality…

• Senior Software Engineer, 92-104K

  David Herrmann

  15 Oct 2009 | 10:42 am

  Senior Software Engineer, 92-104K This well-established, small but growing firm is seeking a senior software engineer to help with higher level applications associated with Video Communication electronics. Ideal candidate will come from a telecom, video communications, hardware or electronics design environment and can hit the ground running with intranet based development. The work involves developing web interface controls that tie in with lower level embedded Linux applications. The primary focus of this job is application software development for their client and customer interfaces.

• Systems / Applications Engineer (Scientific Sensors) – North Dallas – 70-75K

  David Herrmann

  15 Oct 2009 | 9:40 am

  Systems / Applications Engineer (Scientific Sensors) – North Dallas – 70-75K Projected Opening for a position that will work, qualify and validate the performance or effectiveness of highly complex application specific sensors, instruments, algorithms and sub-systems deployed to authenticate engineered material configurations. Interested candidates who have the skills listed below please send your MS Word formatted resume to resume [at] alynpatrick [dot] com. Knowledge / Skills / Experience Requirements: – Working knowledge spectroscopy, electronics, optoelectronics and…

• 
  One Day, One Job

• Scripps Networks

  Willy Franzen

  6 Nov 2009 | 7:39 am

  If you haven’t checked out our post on Personal Finance and the Job Search, do that now. We’ve just added a special one day offer to get our job search training course Found Your Career for free. Exactly a month ago we featured Charm City Cakes of Food Network fame, even though they’re not hiring. It was my birthday (so today is my 1/12 birthday!), and I wanted to talk about what to do when a company has zero interest in hiring anyone. If that post didn’t work for you, we have another way to get closer to the Ace of Cakes—working for Scripps Networks. They’re…

• Steiner Sports

  Willy Franzen

  5 Nov 2009 | 7:23 am

  “Ball game over! World Series over! Yankees win! THEEEEEEEE YANKEES WINNNNNNNNN!” Although I was watching tv and not listening on the radio, I heard John Sterling’s call in my head as soon as Cano threw to Teixeira to get the 27th out and a 27th World Championship. As you can probably guess, I’m a huge Yankees fan, and I’m in a great mood. Since we’ve already covered entry level jobs with Major League Baseball teams, entry level jobs with the YES Network, and plenty of other entry level jobs in baseball, today we’re going to take a look at Steiner…

• The Wrap

  Willy Franzen

  4 Nov 2009 | 7:45 am

  I’m going to be brutally honest with this one. When I landed on the The Wrap’s Home page, I immediately clicked the back button. I thought that I had landed on one of those Google Money Maker scam pages (it’s all because of the font choice). After processing what I had seen, I decided to take a second look. Despite their poor design choices, The Wrap is a legitimate site—if a site that covers entertainment industry analysis and breaking hollywood news can be considered legitimate (I kid). Now, The Wrap shouldn’t be confused with gossip sites like TMZ or Perez Hilton,…

• Fanzter

  Willy Franzen

  3 Nov 2009 | 7:38 am

  One thing that I find really exciting is the fact that there are cool startups popping up all across the country. Yes, Silicon Valley and the Pacific Northwest are still the primary places for technology focused companies to open up shop, but that’s becoming less and less true. That’s why I was intrigued by Fanzter—they’re web products company based in Collinsville, CT. Considering the fact that I’m from Connecticut and have never heard of Collinsville (it’s near Hartford), you have to consider it an unusual location for a startup (they would tell you…

• Personal Finance and the Job Search

  Willy Franzen

  3 Nov 2009 | 6:21 am

  Today (Friday, November 6th) is the last day to sign up for Ramit Sethi’s I Will Teach You To Be Rich Bootcamp. Keep reading for more details, and take note that if you sign up today from the links on this page and forward your receipt to willy@onedayonejob.com, we’ll enroll you in our job search training course Found Your Career for free (a $152 value). Before I started One Day, One Job, I was a recent grad without a job and without an idea of what I wanted to do. I had a lot of time on my hands, and I wasted most of it doing a…

• 
  Slim Pickins' Pork

• New Book (Zuni Cafe) and for the love of sage

  2 Nov 2009 | 12:55 pm

  After a few days off, I decided that my next foray into the world of cookbooks will be The Zuni Cafe Cookbook by Judy Rodgers, who owns and runs the restaurant of the same name in San Francisco (which I happened to visit in August).Like any good San Francisco cook, Judy Rodgers worked in Chez Panise under Alice Waters, and, unsurprisingly, this cookbook reflects her passion for local ingredients and simple foods. Unlike most new American cuisine how-to manuals, the cookbook and cafe tilt a bit more Italian than French, although her experience in French restaurants certainly is evident as…

• Back to the Grill

  25 Oct 2009 | 5:24 pm

  My grills are mad at me, and for good reason. My recent adventures with The Cooking of Southwest France did not afford many opportunites for cooking over the open flame.To rectify that, in the break before my next cookbook adventure, I went back to a classic, beer butt chicken.The particular recipe I use is pretty basic, so and any rub recipe will work (I like mine, which uses summer savory, a great addition):Once they've been rubbed, you know the drill-in goes the beer can, and off to the grill they go. I don't think my sense of humour is that juvenile, but this sight always makes me crack…

• Today was a good day

  23 Oct 2009 | 6:09 pm

  Cheers!

• Saving the Best for Last: Cassoulet and The Cooking of SW France

  18 Oct 2009 | 6:21 pm

  As the title indicates, after reading The Cooking of SW France it become apparent that cassoulet, more than any other dish, personifies this region's culinary soul.Hearty, simple, complex, rustic, elegant, are all words that come to mind when tasting a good cassoulet. The problem, as Wolfert notes, is that there are as many versions of this simple meat and beans dish as their are French grandmothers.I decide to give the slightly unorthodox Catalan-version a try: duck confit? non, sausage? oui (let's not get crazy, this isn't some fusion cassoulet here), and finally, lamb:That's about 3 lbs.

• Duck + red wine + fried cornmeal=Heaven

  15 Oct 2009 | 2:45 pm

  Sometimes there are recipes that are so rich, so unctuous, that they practically jump off the page screaming "cook me!"My most recent foray into The Cooking of Southwest France resulted in precisely one of those dishes, duck cooked in red wine, referred to as a salmis (the recipe can be found here).Like some other dishes I've cooked, this requires little more than meat, red wine, and time. The actual component that sent it over the top, however, wasn't in the dish itself, but in the pan fried polenta that served as the basis of the stew:Good? You bet; this one's definitely going on the steady…

• 
  MeatHenge

• French Grocer - Marathon Texas

  Dr. Biggles

  3 Nov 2009 | 4:06 pm

  Editor's note: Joe Bob and JLee continue on in their West Texas walkabout. We had breakfast at Marathon Coffee Cafe. Um, huevos and such. NBD. Cozy joint. They serve Big Bend Coffee (roasted in Marfa) here. And they sell the beans. If you're camping or touring, and you have brought the 'proper' equipment, get your beans here. And make it yourself, the right way. Get everything else at French Co. Grocer, Hwy 90 & Avenue D. They got wi-fi, ice, beer and food and medicine and love. We loaded up on stuff and headed to Big Bend Ranch State Park. Sorry no pictures. But I will tell y'all we saw many…

• The Ice House / a drive through booze load up station - Ozona Texas

  Dr. Biggles

  2 Nov 2009 | 2:56 pm

  Editor's Note: Yay, another fine post from JLee and Joe Bob's trip to West Texas. I like the part where you can see they're selling portable carport thingies as well as booze & ice. 600 bux? We came across a few of these on this trip. Now, I've seen drive-up, window service liquor stores. These are drive-thru. You can load up cases and cases of stuff, and a whole lotta ice. I'm sure there's a story behind this way of doing business. I surely appreciate being able to just drive right into the store. Jlee

• Butterball's Table-Top Turkey Deep Fryer, made by Masterbilt - A Review

  Dr. Biggles

  1 Nov 2009 | 7:35 am

  Earlier this year I received an email from a large ad agency, a man wanted to know if I was interested in reviewing Butterball's new table-top deep fryer for turkeys. Hmm, free fryer and it's large enough for a turkey? Duh. We'd chatted via email a few times for over a year, wasn't just some nameless droid in a cubicle somewheres, actually had a personality and seemed to get Meathenge. Butterball's version of the Masterbilt turkey fryer wasn't out yet, was going to have to wait a few months, no big deal. It finally arrived! Pretty darn large box, pretty darn large fryer. I opened it up and…

• The Famous Burro - Marathon Texas - Drinking !!!

  Dr. Biggles

  31 Oct 2009 | 8:09 am

  Editor's Note: OoOOoo, drinking booze in Texas, ain't that just the best? JLee & Joe Bob head in for some cool refreshing beverages. This place doesn't serve food til 6pm. We got here at 5. Decided to drink for an hour. Only a couple other people there, so we got to hog the bartender. Matt, the NICEST bartender in West Texas. (see him at their website) Had a great selection of everything. I had my first Shiner Bock ever. It was frosty goodness. A shot of Macallan 18. Tried some local made pale ale from the tap. Then we ordered food. Hmmm. I had roasted pork, Joe Bob had chicken curry. Maybe…

• Hot Pit BBQ - Del Rio Texas

  Dr. Biggles

  30 Oct 2009 | 4:39 am

  Editor's Note: Here's another installment of JLee and Joe Bob's trip to West Texas. They've been back now for a week or so and we've got some insight to what's going on in BBQ there. Pretty cool trip, eh? Remembering McBee's in Hondo, a very swell brisket. Very moist, proper smoke. Lotsa side carbs here. Appears I am eating off Joe Bob's plate, pacing myself. I'm wondering if we're just getting lucky, or if there's better cows this year. This sauce was sublime. Joe Bob ended up putting it on the beans even. Requisite Dr. Pepper, if there's no RC Cola. JLee & Joe Bob Hot Pit BBQ 309 Avenue F…

• 
  One Day One Internship

• Bamboo Sk8

  Willy Franzen

  6 Nov 2009 | 7:58 am

  When I was in college, I lived in a rundown house with 9 other guys. Pretty much all of them rode skateboards. Most people would have a coat or shoe rack at their front door. We had a skateboard rack. I was the one guy who didn’t ride a board, because I did not want to suffer the embarrassment of coming home bloodied and with ripped clothes. I kept my action sporting to crawling through gorges to find undiscovered fishing spots. Now, I’m not sure where my buddies bought their skateboards, but I’m pretty sure that had they known about Bamboo Sk8, they would have considered…

• Steiner Sports

  Willy Franzen

  5 Nov 2009 | 7:31 am

  “Ball game over! World Series over! Yankees win! THEEEEEEEE YANKEES WINNNNNNNNN!” Although I was watching tv and not listening on the radio, I heard John Sterling’s call in my head as soon as Cano threw to Teixeira to get the 27th out and a 27th World Championship. As you can probably guess, I’m a huge Yankees fan, and I’m in a great mood. Since we’ve already covered internships with Major League Baseball teams, internships with the YES Network, and plenty of other internships in baseball, today we’re going to take a look at Steiner Sports.

• I Hire Interns at Southwest Airlines… Ask Me Anything

  Willy Franzen

  4 Nov 2009 | 11:02 am

  A little over a year ago we featured internships at Southwest Airlines. It’s been one of our more popular post, and it’s resulted in some active discussion in the comments section. Luckily, someone from Southwest has chimed in to answer some of the questions of One Day, One Internship readers. His name is Greg Muccio, and he is the South West Airlines Team Leader responsible for short-term staffing including college relations and hiring for their NoLimits Intern program. He previously worked as a Senior Recruiter supporting the hiring needs of areas such as Finance, Internal…

• The Wrap

  Willy Franzen

  4 Nov 2009 | 7:54 am

  I’m going to be brutally honest with this one. When I landed on the The Wrap’s Home page, I immediately clicked the back button. I thought that I had landed on one of those Google Money Maker scam pages (it’s all because of the font choice). After processing what I had seen, I decided to take a second look. Despite their poor design choices, The Wrap is a legitimate site—if a site that covers entertainment industry analysis and breaking hollywood news can be considered legitimate (I kid). Now, The Wrap shouldn’t be confused with gossip sites like TMZ or Perez Hilton,…

• Fanzter

  Willy Franzen

  3 Nov 2009 | 7:45 am

  One thing that I find really exciting is the fact that there are cool startups popping up all across the country. Yes, Silicon Valley and the Pacific Northwest are still the primary places for technology focused companies to open up shop, but that’s becoming less and less true. That’s why I was intrigued by Fanzter—they’re web products company based in Collinsville, CT. Considering the fact that I’m from Connecticut and have never heard of Collinsville (it’s near Hartford), you have to consider it an unusual location for a startup (they would tell you…

• 
  Cube Rules

• Serendipity Saturday, November 7, 2009

  info@cuberules.com (Scot Herrick)

  7 Nov 2009 | 1:00 am

  Blood Moon (November 2nd, 2009 – South America) by Kopfjäger The Blood Moon looked good from North America, too. ©  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.

• Why you are not ready to find a new job even when you say you are

  info@cuberules.com (Scot Herrick)

  6 Nov 2009 | 1:00 am

  Most people think that if the unthinkable happens — they get laid off or their company goes belly up — that they are immediately ready to look for another job. I know this because Robert Half published a survey that asked — and 82% of the respondents said they were ready right now. Next, they asked this question: “When did you last update your resume?” That’s when things got interesting: …if they lost their jobs tomorrow, only 20 percent had updated their resumes in the last three months. Forty-four percent hadn’t revised their resumes in more than…

• Are you signed up for Cube Rules News?

  info@cuberules.com (Scot Herrick)

  5 Nov 2009 | 2:15 pm

  The November Cube Rules News is going out at 1 AM Eastern Time Friday morning. If you haven’t signed up for it, here’s what you’ll miss: How to get ready for unexpected career changes This article, for our free subscription holders, discusses the four major change areas in your career that can unexpectedly change. Plus, what to do to get ready in case that unexpected change comes. 3 answers to interview questions you need right now This article, for our paid subscribers, examines the changing interview environment. While I talk about there being only three answers to every…

• How to be a star employee on social media

  info@cuberules.com (Scot Herrick)

  4 Nov 2009 | 1:00 am

  When it comes time for hiring managers, managers within your company, or business partners to find out about you and your work, social media is the first place people go. Famously, we Google the name and the fun begins. Much has been made of the boss firing the employee after the employee disses the boss on Facebook along with many other examples. That won’t be repeated here; Cubicle Warriors don’t do dumb things like that. But what if you wanted to represent yourself as the star employee you are right now? How would you do that through social media? Here are five suggestions. Use…

• Why being a Cubicle Warrior gives you an unfair advantage

  info@cuberules.com (Scot Herrick)

  3 Nov 2009 | 9:32 am

  When you pay attention to your work environment and have a good understanding of what you want out of a job, you get an unfair advantage over those who don’t. You put your career on offense while most others are playing defense. By learning and using Cubicle Warrior skills on the job: Cubicle Warriors get better performance review ratings The people you work with, for the most part, know how to do their jobs. But doing the job well and being smart about how you approach the job are two different things. Cubicle Warriors understand that their SMART goals need to be negotiated to protect…

• 
  Epic Living

• Don't Be Charmed By Security

  Epic Living

  30 Oct 2009 | 1:17 pm

  Even with the economic conditions here in the States, specifically the employment situation, many still seem to be charmed by security.  I'm alluding to security in the form of career/work.  Now certainly, some have all but concluded that security is a myth.  But I find many career/work pilgrims are disturbed by current trends. I used to be in that group, but am now a freak of the not-so-weird variety.  Why?  I entered my period of mass disruption almost 4 years ago.  Back then many felt certain about the future.  Now... Well, let's face it, life (all things in) has never been…

• A Great Conversation About Winter Wtih Sting

  Epic Living

  28 Oct 2009 | 5:11 am

  Coinciding with the release of his new disc, If On A Winter's Night, I've posted this conversation with Sting.  Over my life I have connected with Sting on multiple levels.  This interview is a wonderful glimpse. Hope you enjoy.

• The Problem With Small Getting Large

  Epic Living

  26 Oct 2009 | 12:26 pm

  One of my favorite merchants in the town I live in, is not one of my favorites anymore. They once were small and engaging, but now world domination seems to be the order of the day.  No more "we'll search and see if we can get it" or "haven't seen you in the store lately."  I miss being Eric to them.  The problem with some entrepreneurs is they are trying to fill a void by being "uber-successful."  What is forgotten is what get's left behind-the customer. By the way, the void above is rarely filled by getting large.  I'm appreciating small these days.

• So Many Masks, So Little Time

  Epic Living

  23 Oct 2009 | 8:48 am

  I've written and taught about wearing masks before, but this post (The Joy of Quitting) from Seth got me thinking.  What if we burned our masks (the type that suck away our authenticity) in some great fire? Politicians tend to be prone to mask wearing.  Ironic as that may be, since they really are supposed to be servants of the citizenry.  This is soberly played out in the video clip link of President Nixon in Seth's post.  The pre-speech interaction and honesty is worth the view. When you wear masks to "project" or to deceive, you are taking a poison pill.  A pill that takes life very…

• The Calling-Red Pill Versus Blue Pill

  Epic Living

  21 Oct 2009 | 12:30 am

  Came across this post (via Dan Schawbel on Twitter) from Yahoo Hot Jobs and felt inspired to include the video clip above.  It's from the Matrix.  The classic scene between Morbius and Neo, where a pill of blue and a pill of red are offered to Neo.  Essentially, stay dead with the blue or wake up with the red. My intention here is to alert you to #5 on the list from Yahoo.  I totally disagree with the writer's assertion that not everyone is called to something.  Granted, some may not know, some might have forgotten or some may be trying to kill it.  But everyone has a calling. Sadly, we…

• 
  The Change Blog

• Focusing Your Mind On The Difficult

  Armen Shirvanian

  4 Nov 2009 | 5:48 am

  Image courtesy of jin.thai Competitively, that which is easy gets you very little. If it is easy, anyone can do it, so it is of low value. Tying your shoes in a special way will get you no recognition from anyone except maybe a kindergartener. Doing a couple of simple math problems to review for a placement test won’t help you much. The point of tests and the free market is to separate those that go a bit further. Average Difficulty Actions Lead To Adequate Gains Doing items at a medium level of difficulty will get you somewhat valuable gains. Running 3 miles to train for a…

• Planning is Good, Doing is Better

  JC

  30 Oct 2009 | 6:15 am

  Image courtesy of Muha A few months back, during a conversation with one of my mentors, he said something that I will remember for the rest of my life.  “All this planning and focusing is good, but doing is better” was the exact phrase that came out of his mouth.  It hit me like a ton of bricks.  It was one of those “aha” moments we get every so often. Now the reason he was saying this to me is because I had been working on a semi large project for that past month or so and I was really close to finishing it.  However, I had stalled somewhat and found myself in a state of…

• How Getting Used To Silence Can Help Your Productivity

  Christopher R. Edgar

  26 Oct 2009 | 6:25 am

  Image courtesy of anoldent Sitting alone in a quiet place can be a difficult experience.  Without distractions, we can feel bombarded by unpleasant thoughts and emotions.  All the ways we’re unhappy about ourselves and our lives come raging back into our awareness when there’s space for them to come up. It’s no surprise, then, that our culture is hostile to silence.  Everywhere we go, it seems, we’re confronted with some kind of noise—whether it’s background music in stores and restaurants, cars and airplanes going by, or something else.  And when we’re alone, we often find…

• Why You Struggle to Connect With Others

  John Anyasor

  19 Oct 2009 | 6:15 am

  Image courtesy of James Jordan In this day and age, it’s quite apparent that people are connecting everywhere. From the local pub to the cafe across the street, from the stands at the little league baseball field to one of the seemingly infinite number of online chat rooms, people are constantly connecting with each other. Gone are the days of never talking to strangers. Gone are the days when people proclaimed that all chat rooms are dangerous. Gone are the days when your social circle was limited to your coworkers around the water cooler. Thanks to our advances in communication, we…

• 3 Shortcuts to Faster, Easier Change

  Ali Hale

  15 Oct 2009 | 5:17 am

  Image courtesy of Sator Arepo It takes time to make positive changes in our lives. Often, it’s not the external circumstances which are hardest to change – but our internal state. It only takes a few seconds to hand in your resignation letter and quit your job, but it can take months of slowly building your courage (and your emergency fund) before you get to that point. And all too often, we feel as though we’re not making any real progress at all. Perhaps we’re trying to change a habit, but keep slipping back into old ways. Maybe we’re not sure what we want to…

• 
  Alexandra Levit's Water Cooler Wisdom

• Dream Job Spotlight: Andrea Rubin, Director of Marketing, Yelp.com

  Alexandra Levit

  5 Nov 2009 | 5:00 am

  I love profiling fabulously successful young professionals, and this time around, I decided to feature someone under 30 who has made it to the top ranks of a very twenty-first century organization.  Check out Andrea Rubin, Director of Marketing and Community Management of Yelp.com, talking about how she got to this point in her career:

• AMEX Study Shows Small Business Optimism

  Alexandra Levit

  2 Nov 2009 | 5:00 am

  For the first time since September 2007, the majority (55%) of small business owners have a positive view of the economic environment and its impact on their ability to grow, according to the American Express OPEN Small Business Monitor.  Concurrently, more firms are at risk of going out of business (17%) than six months ago (11%), due in part to personal funds being tapped out: one-third (32%) say they are using personal or private funds to manage cash flow challenges. While there appears to be a widening divide between healthy and struggling businesses, even the healthy businesses are…

• Is America Losing Its Competitive Edge?

  Alexandra Levit

  28 Oct 2009 | 5:00 am

  A new survey released by my Business Roundtable committee, Project Springboard, reveals that the United States is at risk of losing its competitive edge and American workers’ economic potential by not addressing business’ growing demand for a better educated and better trained workforce. American workers’ unmet need for further education and training is exacerbating today’s unemployment problem and portending long-term trouble for workers and businesses – even after the economy recovers. The survey shows a glaring and growing need for workers with higher levels of skills and…

• When a Goal Flops

  Alexandra Levit

  26 Oct 2009 | 5:00 am

  Have you ever pursued a goal only to eventually realize that it’s just not working out?  This has happened to me, and I can tell you there’s nothing more frustrating.  After all, we usually don’t achieve goals because A) we purposely set them aside to focus on something more important or B) we get too busy (or lazy) and don’t give them the time and attention they deserve.    But what about the times when we do everything we should do to make something happen, and we’re persistent about it, but despite herculean efforts we just don’t see results?

• Your Career is a Corporation

  Alexandra Levit

  22 Oct 2009 | 5:00 am

  I recently had the chance to talk with Martin Yate, one of my most-admired authors in the career advice space.  Martin and I chatted about how most of us will work for nearly half a century, changing jobs roughly every 3-4 years.  We agreed that now is the time for all professionals to take charge of their own careers.  Here was Martin’s advice: “Certain transferable skills like communication, time management and organization, teamwork, creativity and leadership are transferable and sought by all employers in all professions and ease the transition from one job to…

• 
  MN Headhunter/Nerd Search

• Twitter Lists As A Networking Tool

  MN Headhunter

  5 Nov 2009 | 11:45 am

  One of the most frequent questions I get from (new) users of Twitter is who I should I follow. A great question and I would usually forward them to a directory like Twellow (for categories and/or location) or Twitterholic (for location and number of followers). There are lots of Twitter apps for this but they are for me the easiest to use and describe and they can get immediate results. But Twitter rolled out Twitter Lists and it has become my new best friend of the moment. Rather than go through the many, many followers of someone I like, respect, follow, or find interesting to see who they…

• Is Lack of Focus Dragging Your Resume Down?

  MN Headhunter

  4 Nov 2009 | 1:11 pm

  The following post is courtesy of the Recruiting Blogswap From: Jessica Holbrook How many of you can honestly say you know exactly what you want to be when you grow up? Maybe you already have it figured out, and maybe you are already living and working it. If you are, does your resume know that? I work with clients every day and speak to hundreds of job seekers every week that have no idea what they want to do. I ask, “Well, what do you want to do?” Then I receive the blanket, “I just need to feed my family.” Or, “I just need a job—I don’t care what it is.” I understand the…

• Do you know who you are... on paper?

  MN Headhunter

  3 Nov 2009 | 1:36 pm

  The following post is courtesy of the Recruiting Blogswap From: Jessica Holbrook Do you know who you are ... on paper? Thanks to an amazing membership with Career Directors International, I had the distinct pleasure of hosting a booth at the most recent National Careers Job Fair.  Three hours of job seekers pouring in through the doors and my assistant and myself providing free resume analyses.  I spoke to 100+ job seekers and found one common thread among them all—they had no idea who they were … on paper. I must have repeated the phrase, “What do you want to do?” a hundred…

• Increase Relevant Traffic To Your Career Site w/ Content Re-purposing

  MN Headhunter

  31 Oct 2009 | 2:00 pm

  The following post is courtesy of the Recruiting Blogswap From: Nicole Bodem Chief SEO Geek for Arbita One of the biggest challenges with blogs is coming up with new and fresh content on a regular basis and you are not alone, note the date on my last blog post. It’s especially challenging in this economy where resources are completely tapped. One solution is to use a resource called The Recruiting blogswap. The Recruiting Blogswap is a FREE service of job board, CollegeRecruiter.com, but is used by an international collection of job boards, recruiting blogs, and other career sites. How it…

• Job Search Marketing Toolkit – Interviews

  MN Headhunter

  28 Oct 2009 | 4:46 pm

  The following post is courtesy of the Recruiting Blogswap From: CareerAlley Interviews. Sounds fairly easy, all you have to do is talk about what you’ve done and how that relates to the job opportunity. In fact, the interview is the hardest part of the job search process and the single largest reason why people don’t get the job. Yes, you must have a great resume with relevant experience, but can you interview? But interviewing is not just talking about yourself, it’s asking the right questions, giving the right answers and expressing yourself in the right way. Today’s installment in…

• 
  FreelanceFolder

• Five Ways To Find Revenue Sharing Opportunities

  Laura Spencer

  6 Nov 2009 | 5:38 am

  A few weeks ago, we posted an article about how to maximize freelance income. In that post, I got an excellent question from one of our FreelanceFolder readers in the comments — they wanted to learn more about earning income through revenue sharing.You may be asking yourself the same question.In this post, we’ll explain all about revenue sharing and show you five methods that you can use to find and initiate revenue sharing opportunities. We’ll also help you recognize and avoid some possible revenue sharing traps.What Is Revenue Sharing?In most projects, you are paid for the…

• Calling All Freelancers On Twitter

  Ritu

  5 Nov 2009 | 1:40 pm

  Have you ever wondered how many freelancers in your specialty are on twitter? Well, Freelance Folder is going to help you find out.As most you already know, Twitter recently launched a new feature called Twitter Lists. Here at Freelance Folder, we’ve been hard at work compiling lists of freelancers on Twitter so that our readers can benefit by following freelancers in a particular field.We recently finished compiling a list of freelance designers (web design, graphic design, typography, etc.). Next, we will be creating a list of freelance writers and so on and so forth.If you are…

• The Basics of Freelancing on the Go

  Laura Spencer

  5 Nov 2009 | 7:19 am

  Are you a mobile freelancer?If you’re trying to live the freelance dream, chances are that you answered “yes” to the previous question, or are at least thinking about it.The old stereotype of the freelancer who works alone in his or her home office is changing. The image is being replaced by a newer, more mobile freelancer.In this post we examine the growing trend of “freelancing on the go” and the essential tools that make it possible. Read on to find out just how easy it is to become a mobile freelancer.What Is Mobile Freelancing?For a large number of…

• 3 Fail-Proof Rules for Creating a Viral Post

  Ritu

  4 Nov 2009 | 6:18 am

  If you want to be successful on the web, you need an audience. This is true whether you are a designer, writer, developer or a freelancer in any other field. Without an audience, success is hard to come by.Most freelancers maintain a blog that they use for promotional purposes. A writer writes articles consistently to showcase his/her writing skills, a designer showcases his designs, and so on and so forth.In this article, we will explore three practical ways that you can create content and titles that are bound to take off. If you can make your blog more popular, more freelance work is right…

• How to Get Started with Twitter Lists

  Laura Spencer

  3 Nov 2009 | 7:23 am

  Can you benefit from the new Twitter Lists feature?If you’ve been using Twitter to search for jobs and make professional contacts, then Twitter’s new list feature can help you to better organize the tweets of those you follow. It can also help you find interesting groups of people to keep track of.Over the past few weeks Twitter has been testing the new Lists feature with a portion of its users and, although it is still in Beta, last week they made Lists available to everyone.In this article we’ll take a look at how Twitter Lists can help your freelance business and how you…

• 
  Keppie Careers by Miriam Salpeter

• Great links for job seekers

  Miriam Salpeter

  6 Nov 2009 | 7:01 am

  In winding down my “scary story” posts, I wanted to share some links to some fun posts that my Twitter friends shared in the past week. I have posted a slew of scary (and funny) and scarily funny job search horror stories – take a look at this LINK and scroll down to experience the full scary impact! @ExecuSearch shared 10 spooky jobs & the salaries that come with them via @CBforJobSeekers Want to know how other employees would describe their bosses? (Glinda the Good Witch? Wolfman?) What the scariest part of their job is? @CareerBuilderPR shares THIS LINK to their…

• Job seeker – beware!

  Miriam Salpeter

  4 Nov 2009 | 8:17 pm

  Have you been following our job search and hiring manager horror stories? I wanted to share these because they are good reminders to job seekers that “buyer beware” applies to them while out on the hunt. Have YOU ever experienced a scenario like this? Share in the comments! This story from Doug a job seeker: I was laid off from a job and had been offered a job earlier that week. Didn’t really check the new agency out. When I sent out an email saying you now can find me at this new agencies, I instantly started getting phone calls and emails saying, “You should have talked to…

• Horror stories from the employer’s perspective

  Miriam Salpeter

  3 Nov 2009 | 9:05 pm

  Have you been keeping up with horror story week at Keppie Careers? Where job seekers and hiring managers have a chance to share their tales of woe, in hopes that we can all learn something? Today, we have two stories from the hiring side! This story from Chuck Smith On the verge of offering the candidate a job, our client checked one last reference. Unable to reach the named “previous manager,” our client called the candidate. In turn, the candidate produced the reference in minutes. Only problem was that the caller ID for the manager was the SAME one the candidate had called from! You…

• An interview story to remember, Part VII

  Miriam Salpeter

  3 Nov 2009 | 5:43 am

  This is a post from last year. I think it is worth re-telling, as it fits our theme of “horror job search stories,” with a funny twist! Sometimes, even the best laid plans don’t go as planned… Case in point, a new client of mine whose job search is in full swing. His resume is top-notch, cover letters targeted and linkedin profile updated. He has started being invited for a lot of interviews, which is very exciting (for him and for me!) Having worked in one place for his entire (lengthy) career, the interview is a stress point, and we have discussed and prepared to face this…

• Vet your prospective boss – dig up some dirt, pt VI

  Miriam Salpeter

  1 Nov 2009 | 8:48 pm

  Have you been keeping up with horror story week at Keppie Careers? Where job seekers and hiring managers have a chance to share their tales of woe, in hopes that we can all learn something? This is a story originally left as a comment on a previous post. I thought it was too good not to share! I was invited into an interview in a major city and I when I saw the agenda, I could not believe the schedule. It was an all-day interview, which lead me to believe they were just using that time to find things wrong with candidates and to be overly critical. Nonetheless, I went to the interview and was…

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

• October Comments

  Banquet Manager

  6 Nov 2009 | 2:55 am

  Here's some of the Banquet Manager's favorite comments from readers in the month of October.  Thanks for adding your voice to this blog and keep them coming.On "New York Bar Serves Up Wine in Baby Bottles"Manker said:"Gives new meaning to "bottle fed" ! :)On "What the F*%$ Did She Say" Purplegirl said:   "Some corporate genius decided the hosts should tell you all that stuff instead of the servers, and the hosts get their asses reamed if they're caught not doing. They also get reamed if anybody stands at the door for more than five seconds without being acknowledged. I imagine…

• The World's Rudest Restaurants - Part 2

  Banquet Manager

  4 Nov 2009 | 5:00 am

  It bears noting that restaurant people are not necessarily “people” people. Some are in it solely for the food, or for the money, and would rather be in the kitchen, or in the backroom counting cash, than out here dealing with all your nonsense. Others are just moody eccentrics.Kenny Shopsin, whose namesake Manhattan luncheonette—since closed—was the subject of a New Yorker tribute by Calvin Trillin, had, among many house rules, a ban on parties of five. (No splitting the group into two tables, either. That would get you ejected.) Yet people loved Shopsin’s, even if Shopsin’s…

• The World's Rudest Restaurants - Part 1

  Banquet Manager

  2 Nov 2009 | 3:00 am

  On rude waitstaff, belligerent maître d’s, scowling chefs, cranky banquet managers and the people who love them.By Peter Jon Lindberg, Travel+LeisureThe stereotype of the surly Parisian maître d’ may be losing currency nowadays, but for the determined efforts of one man: Philippe Pinoteau, owner of Le Baratin, a bar à vin/bistro in the 20th Arrondissement.A skilled sommelier and manager, Pinoteau is even more adept at making his customers feel like so much terroir. A friend once showed up with his wife 17 minutes late for a reservation.There was an empty two-top in plain view, but…

• Scary Halloween Food

  Banquet Manager

  30 Oct 2009 | 2:00 am

  I wonder if my chef can do better than these scary foods...probably not!Octopus SaladWatermelon BrainScary Gingerbread ManCupcake EyeballsKiller Pop TartFingers-in-a-BlanketMashed Potato GhostsKiller Rat CakeCold Cut Skeleton HeadHappy Halloween... Share Like this story? Share it with your friends and family on Facebook. Share

• You Never Setup The A/V Equipment!

  Banquet Manager

  28 Oct 2009 | 5:00 am

  That's what the complaint letter said. That's what she bitched about. That's what the "banquet manager" got his butt reamed out about. Only 1 problem...that's not what happened.There was a stupid little 30th surprise birthday party planned for our outside deck. They wanted a screen and projector setup so they could put on a slideshow of the birthday boy's baby photos. Give me a break!Anyway, it was getting cold and damp outside and we set everything up except the $2500 projector. We had that inside the room, still in the box, to protect it from the elements.When the mom showed up a half hour…

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  JibberJobber Blog

• Don’t Use Outlook as a CRM/PRM

  Jason Alba

  6 Nov 2009 | 4:45 am

  A couple of weeks ago I went to Orlando for a conference.  When I got back to my office my computer was rebooting. I think it had been rebooting for days. In fact, it was stuck… and each time I tried to restart it I either almost got it to start (in Safe Mode) or it would remain hung in the rebooting process. Finally, I took it back to the place I got it and they replaced the hard drive.  Diagnosis?  Unfixable, hard-drive failure… Cool – I got a new hard drive – probably faster and better! Uncool: I had to reinstall EVERYTHING on it. I loaded Camtasia (for webcast…

• Twitter in the Job Search? Definitely. Absolutely.

  Jason Alba

  5 Nov 2009 | 7:19 am

  There are lots of books on Twitter right now – I was supposed to write one of the earliest but I was in the middle of rewriting I’m on LinkedIn — Now What??? and I wasn’t sure I wanted to write another technical book that would have to be updated every year!  I opted to not do that but instead create hands-on, visual webinar recording that shows you how to use Twitter. Twitter for Job Seekers (the video) is specifically designed for professionals in a job search. It is a 1 hour and 24 minues (and one second) video, walking you through what Twitter is, and how to use…

• Facebook for Executives

  Jason Alba

  4 Nov 2009 | 4:38 am

  It’s been a while since I helped write I’m on Facebook — Now What??? Jesse and I have been talking about getting a second edition out early next year, and I’m excited to get a more current book out (although Jesse says the book is still quite relevant, which is cool). My mind has been in Facebook lately as I prepare a 90 minute presentation called FACEBOOK ESSENTIALS FOR EXECUTIVES: Meet the “new” Facebook.  You can sign up at the Experts Connection website (click the link above) – I’m really jazzed to share what I’ve learned –…

• JibberJobber Competition

  Jason Alba

  3 Nov 2009 | 3:34 pm

  Over three years ago I knew about direct competition.  I’m not talking about spreadsheets, I’m talking about companies who have websites that are very similar to JibberJobber. I haven’t blogged about competition for a few reasons, but it makes sense to blog about them now. The first competitor launched the week after we did, in May of 2006.  It was called Isabont, but has since been renamed to Virtual Job Coach.  I had a phone conversation with the founder that November and found him to be a nice person. For a while it was just Isabont and JibberJobber – we did a…

• Job Search Confidence and The Smell of Blood

  Jason Alba

  29 Oct 2009 | 5:12 am

  Monday I blogged about not ever allowing one person to have control over my income again.  Thom Allen has seen me go from job seeker to business owner and professional career manager over the last few years.  I was surprised to see this in the comments from him: I have seen [Jason (me)] change over the past few years. Oh boy… here it comes… what exactly has changed?  I’m still the same brilliant (lol) person I was three years ago.  He continues: He’s more confident, which is probably a far cry from where he was when he started JibberJobber. Hm.  Interesting…

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  Talent Technologies

• Video – Benefits of The Leadership Challenge

  admin

  21 Oct 2009 | 3:23 am

  The Leadership Challenge is the world’s most popular leadership training programme. In this video Jim Kouzes explains the benefits participants can hope to receive from the programme and also gives a glimpse of the findings of the tens of thousands of studies into leadership he has conducted worldwide. Management training Thailand, Talent Technologies Talent Technologies offers The Leadership Challenge exclusively in Thailand. Talent Technologies also offers management training in Thailand and South-East Asia.

• Square pegs in round holes

  admin

  19 Oct 2009 | 4:24 am

  Talent Technologies helps companies in Thailand and South-East Asia improve their organisational performance. In this article we look at a problem that is all-too-common in companies. When managers end up in roles that play to their weaknesses we call this the ’square pegs in round holes’ syndrome. In this article we explore how companies can tackle this problem that is at the root of most performance issues. As both Gallup and the Corporate Leadership Council have identified through their research of tens of thousands of workgroups, the opportunity to do what you do best is the…

• Hearts and minds: helping change happen

  admin

  12 Oct 2009 | 3:04 am

  Say the phrase ‘change management’ to most people in companies, and the chances are their reaction will be negative. Images of layoffs, extra work, internal conflicts and problems invariably come to mind. Yet the reality is that most companies need to change, and usually, fast. Business units need to be restructured, new systems need to be put in place, different processes applied, or a new strategy implemented… …The requirements for change go on. Yet, why is it, that when change management programmes are rolled out, they inevitably fail? As John Kotter discovered from…

• The world’s #1 tool for career development

  admin

  11 Oct 2009 | 3:03 am

  Little-known even among HR professionals, there is a tool available to companies that can dramatically boost career development and, with it, the long-term success of their teams. The Highlands Ability Battery, with over 90 years of development, is possibly the best-kept secret in talent management at the moment, while being regarded as the ‘gold standard’ of psychometric testing. What makes Highlands so special? First of all, almost all psychometric tests are based on an individual’s personality. Highlands, instead, discovers an individual’s talents, based on the 90…

• Empower your people with this free seminar!

  admin

  7 Oct 2009 | 1:41 am

  As we have seen in a previous post, one of the consequences of the downturn is that employees may be reluctant to take action due to a fear of making mistakes which in turn may push them closer to the dreaded ‘exit door.’ The resulting inaction may be seriously depriving companies of opportunities or slowing down team performance. One way managers can deal with this is to redouble their efforts at empowering their people, thereby boosting morale and tracing a path to individual and team accountability. The Accountability Experience The Accountability Experience is a one day…

• 
  Delightful Work

• Trust Your True Calling Gut Feeling

  Tom Volkar

  5 Nov 2009 | 8:15 am

  Copyright © 2009 Tom Volkar. Visit the original article at http://www.delightfulwork.com/true-callings/trust-your-true-calling-gut-feeling/.Here’s a way for you to shorten the amount of time you spend before starting to work a true calling.   Like most good things in life making a bold, strong start is half the battle. You have a pretty good idea of what your true calling probably is right now. If you are not yet enjoying the fulfillment and prosperity of working a true calling maybe it’s time for you to simply trust your gut.  Gut feelings are a much more reliable source…

• Money and Authenticity

  Tom Volkar

  26 Oct 2009 | 4:22 pm

  Copyright © 2009 Tom Volkar. Visit the original article at http://www.delightfulwork.com/money/money-and-authenticity/.What do you think is the greatest indicator of wealth generation with a true calling? Is it doing what you love? Is it doing what you want to do? Is it being who you are? I’m not going to tell you here.  You’ll have to go over to Barbara Swafford’s interview of me and read my answer in the comment section of this post. It’s one of the better answers I’ve ever given because the question about true calling and money was so good.  Do you have…

• Big Link Rally Is Live!

  Tom Volkar

  15 Oct 2009 | 5:20 pm

  Copyright © 2009 Tom Volkar. Visit the original article at http://www.delightfulwork.com/true-callings/big-link-rally-is-live/.Friends, I am very appreciative of your support and interest in my brand new home.   Big Link Rally has been in the works for months now and it now lives! Please have a look and be the first to comment on my inaugural blog post.

• Uniqueness Your Grandest Gift

  Tom Volkar

  11 Oct 2009 | 4:11 pm

  Copyright © 2009 Tom Volkar. Visit the original article at http://www.delightfulwork.com/true-callings/uniqueness-your-grandest-gift/.Your grandest gift is your blessing of uniqueness.  You are one in 6,789,819,852 people in the world.  Out of those almost 7 billion folks you are the one who is best equipped to create a profitable business following your true calling. Look to the right of this post.  You’ll find a gift I’ve written in celebration of your uniqueness.  It’s a True Calling Guidebook that gives you 9 powerful compass points to work the true calling…

• Is Your Business Authentic?

  Tom Volkar

  6 Oct 2009 | 5:17 am

  Copyright © 2009 Tom Volkar. Visit the original article at http://www.delightfulwork.com/true-callings/is-your-business-authentic/.You may have noticed the hullabaloo around authentic business building lately. Most businesses can’t pull it off because it’s like trying to put a suit on an ape.  No matter how sharp the suit the ape wearing it is still a monkey. If 60-80% of your employees are unhappy in their work it’s impossible to be an authentic business without expressing authentically.  To make such a business authentic they’d have to say, “We hate our…

• 
  EffortlessHR Blog

• Managing Change

  Lola Kakes

  6 Nov 2009 | 2:12 pm

  The elections are finally behind us and the political ads are over – at least for now.President Obama has reiterated that he is an agent for change – change in how government works, change in who we are in the global experience, change in many other ways.So, what is change? All organizations go through change.There might be a change in management, or a change in policy, change in staff, change in location, change in customers, and even change in size of the organization as in mergers and acquisitions.We even face change in our personal lives – change in marital status,…

• Health Care Reform – Some thoughts

  Lola Kakes

  9 Sep 2009 | 9:51 am

  What’s a small company to do if required to offer health insurance? This is a question many small business owners are facing. The federal government is gearing up to tell the American business owner: When or how to form a union When to provide paid sick leave When to provide paid family medical leave and When to provide health care benefits All of these issues are important – not only to the business owner but to the employees that they hire. There are really three perspectives that we need to look at: The HR Perspective The Business Perspective The Government Perspective The HR…

• Understanding Diversity in the Workplace

  Lola Kakes

  8 Sep 2009 | 2:52 pm

  As a business owner, consultant, and entrepreneur I have been told by many small business owners that “diversity” is really only applicable to larger businesses.When asked what diversity means to them (the small business owner), many respond it is about differences in race or gender.It is not about making the workplace a better place in which to work, but more about following the law. I believe that diversity is really about being open to the global community and being prepared to respond to inquiries and ideas from a diverse community.If one truly understands the diverse culture…

• Carnival of HR for July 08

  Aaron Queen

  8 Jul 2009 | 6:00 am

  EffortlessHR is honored to be hosting this week’s Carnival of HR. Thanks to HR Minion for keeping track and organizing the carnivals! As this is our first time hosting the carnival, please forgive any mistakes. Plenty of posts came in this week, so without further delay, let’s get going: Jason Seiden was the first to submit his article and writes about how social media is blending our personal and professional lives, making it harder to hide behind corporate facades in his post entitled “Ethics, social media, and… “profersonalism” Susannah from Advorto…

• EffortlessHR.com Introduces New Pricing Model

  Aaron Queen

  2 Jul 2009 | 1:34 pm

  We have been hard at work with our new pricing plans and are proud to announce that effective today, you can find our new pricing at http://www.effortlesshr.com/ Our lowest cost plan is just $29.95/month and includes a full featured online HR Software solution. Let us know what you think and if we are crazy or not for offering the most affordable Online HRIS in the world. Related Articles Archos Vision PMPs get UK pricing, August release Windows 7 pricing: Some users fume as the rose-colored discounts … Windows 7E pricing for limited time Source: Effortless HR Software's HR Blog |…

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

• Round 2 of “If your survey says so…”

  Sarah Thomas

  4 Nov 2009 | 10:11 pm

  In a recent post I questioned if a survey’s credibility was damaged if its results supported those who have paid for it. It generated some interesting comments like this one: It does boil down to how the survey results are presented and the prupose behind this. And that’s coming from some one who surveys for a [...]

• Google street view to update Australian photos

  Sarah Thomas

  2 Nov 2009 | 5:00 pm

  Make sure you hook up your grey water hose and water your front lawn, trim the hedge and maybe plant a few pansies - Google cars will be coming down your street this Summer capturing images for the Street View feature of Google Maps. Despite concerns about privacy as Asher Moses discussed in the Sydney Morning [...]

• Onrec Kennedy Recruitment Summit: Paul Harrison from Carve on Social Search

  Adelaide

  2 Nov 2009 | 6:58 am

  Paul Harrison, Managing Partner of Carve Consulting, will be speaking at the ONREC Kennedy Recruiting HR Summit on Wednesday, Nov 4: 9:30 AM - 10:15 AM in Concurrent 3. Paul, one of just a handful of international speakers at the event and a regular participant in European Social Media conferences, is delighted to be able to [...]

• Blog comments - to be or not to be?

  Sarah Thomas

  22 Oct 2009 | 3:59 am

  Discussing with a client recently about whether they should have comments on every page of their blog (which is actually a combination of a blog, a community hub and a website but is actually really just a blog) or to only allow comments on a few with moderation but on some without or not at [...]

• Vegemite makes 2.0 mainstream but at what price?

  Sarah Thomas

  19 Oct 2009 | 5:40 pm

  Here’s my (collectors?!) jar of Vegemite’s iSnack2.0 which I couldn’t help buy when I saw it at Foodland (at a significant discount) yesterday. And there’s no danger of this jar ever being opened given my family made their own decision on an appropriate name based on their taste test of the original Name Me jar: But seriously, [...]

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  Rehaul by Lance Haun

• You Don’t Have To Blog To Rise Up

  Lance Haun

  3 Nov 2009 | 10:05 am

  I know this is a crazy post. I know my blog has certainly helped me rise up. Other’s blogs have helped them rise up. I am going to an unconference that is going to focus on HR people who are interested in blogging. Someone may ask me if they should start a blog. In the past, my answer was an unhesitant yes. Of course you should. Why shouldn’t you? The real question is how do we get you going and exposed as quickly as possible. Now? My answer depends on a number of factors. In some cases though, my answer is going to be no. What gives? I haven’t soured on blogging nor do I…

• 38 Free Ways To Self-Destruct

  Lance Haun

  2 Nov 2009 | 10:13 am

  Almost a year ago, I reviewed what I considered to be the most entertaining career book on the market: How To Self-Destruct. I don’t know if anything will beat it in that department. Not only is it entertaining but it is also useful. Jason is also releasing a new book this month as well. Jason is a generous but busy person and I know this first hand. So when I saw that he is giving away How To Self-Destruct, I knew I wanted to spread the word about it. Here’s the message from Jason: General managers, HR VPs, training directors, event planners, team leaders, association…

• Where I’ll Be Next Week

  Lance Haun

  30 Oct 2009 | 7:49 am

  If you are in the Midwest, consider yourself lucky: I may be coming to a city near you! There will be content next week per normal but I will be driving a small rental car all over the Midwest while it automatically posts. Here’s the agenda: What am I thinking? I fly into Indianapolis Tuesday afternoon. I am planning on hitting some dinner with my buddy who lives there but I do have some flexibility. I drive up to Chicago Wednesday morning to go to Fail Spectacularly (yes, you can still RSVP and it is absolutely free). If you are in Chicago and you don’t have other plans, you…

• HR Southwest Part 2: Most Of What You Fear Never Happens

  Lance Haun

  29 Oct 2009 | 11:11 am

  Editor’s Note – Today’s post is brought to you courtesy of Dustin Henderson, co-founder of MeritBuilder. Dustin went to HR Southwest conference last week to cover the show for us. You can follow him on Twitter. Thanks! HR Southwest (the 2nd biggest HR show in the US) is over. I thought I would take a few moments and summarize my thoughts on the show. Luckily I tweeted most of the stuff that was on my mind because to be honest my memory is beginning to fail me. For the full twitter experience search twitter for #HRSW. In hopes of making his recap a little more interesting I…

• The Power To Act

  Lance Haun

  27 Oct 2009 | 9:37 am

  Yesterday afternoon, I got on the phone with Dustin and we were talking about a partnership call we had coming up. The conversation transitioned into what tremendous untapped potential the HR and talent functions in organizations have and how exciting it is to just meet with people who understand that. How getting people together and pushing great HR ideas across industries is a powerful force. In the past, I used to frequently have these conversations and then go back to regressive HR systems that took all the will in the world to just fight through on a daily basis. I imagine many of the…

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  HRM Today Featured Posts

• Most Companies Don’t Measure the Bottom-Line Impact of Diversity Programs

  Erik Samdahl

  6 Nov 2009 | 4:31 pm

  While most companies agree that diversity issues in the workplace deserve attention, not many have a clear and consistent definition of just what “it” is, according to i4cp’s latest study. The results are now available to i4cp members. The study found overall, only about 1 in 5 (21%) study respondents have a broad and inclusive definition of diversity, while 17% admit they have no definition at all. Higher market-performing organizations are more likely to define diversity broadly, with 28% reporting they include all diversity groups in their definition, compared to only 15%…

• How to Lead Change by Example – 5 Tips for HR Professionals

  HR Transformer Blog

  5 Nov 2009 | 4:10 pm

  This is a summary of an original article published by Strategic HR Review. In an economic downturn and subsequent recovery, change is inevitable for every organization. Effective Change Management is often a mix of the strategic and the practical. It can encompass everything from ensuring strategies are aligned, to making sure your