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11 Quick Tips to Earn a Stellar Performance Review
Tweet Share on Facebook May 23, 2012 Comment (3)It's never too early to start earning a superior performance review. When you set goals and take steps to meet initiatives, you have a better chance of driving your own career. If you want a stellar performance review next year, start thinking about how you can make a positive impact at work.
In his book, Better than Average: Excelling in a Mediocre World, Todd Brockdorf offers 11 suggestions (because 10 is average) for making an impression:
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Should You Take the First Salary Offer?
Tweet Share on Facebook May 22, 2012 Comment (6)If you've been looking for a job a while and have finally gotten a nibble in the form of a job offer, you may be inclined to jump at the chance. But experts say you should hesitate, no matter how good of a salary you're offered. Employers don't tend to lay all their cards on the table with that first offer, so you're pretty much guaranteed wiggle room.
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10 Simple Tricks for Improving Your Communication Style
Tweet Share on Facebook May 22, 2012 Comment (2)Are you getting interviews but few callbacks? Chances are you have a great resume, but you might be missing that extra oomph to help you stand out during the interview. The truth is employers are on the hunt for stellar candidates that are as great in person as they are on paper. This is especially true for recent grads.
Millennial Branding, a Generation Y research consulting firm, teamed up with entry-level job portal Experience Inc. to survey more than 200 employers, to figure out exactly what they want most in young professionals right now.
The number one coveted skill among Gen-Y applicants is—you guessed it—communication. In other words, communication skills can make or break you. Consider these tips:
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5 Ways to Balance Workload And Still Impress Your Boss
Tweet Share on Facebook May 21, 2012 CommentAre you too worried about the threat of nuclear war to notice that your own house is burning down? Too often, people spend more time at work concerned with things they have no control over, to the detriment of competently dealing with the things they do.
While it may be true that rapid changes in the marketplace have kept many on edge for what tomorrow may bring, it's important to stay focused on what's happening now.
This, of course, doesn't mean you shouldn't plan for tomorrow. It just means that the best way to prepare for tomorrow is by taking care of today.
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How to Juggle Multiple Job Offers
Tweet Share on Facebook May 21, 2012 Comment (7)A job offer is usually welcome news—unless it comes while you're waiting to hear about a different job you really want with a different employer.
While many job-seekers might see this as a good problem to have, it's a tough spot to be in. And most job-seekers aren't sure how to navigate it well. After all, can you put the first company off, and if so, for how long? What should you say to the first company in the meantime? And can you take the offer but rescind your acceptance later if the other job comes through?
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How to Handle an Employment Gap
Tweet Share on Facebook May 17, 2012 Comment (7)Many of us have had periods in our work history when we were not employed. That might be due to going back to school, raising children, illness or job loss. While it might not seem like an issue from the job-seeker's perspective, it can send up red flags to employers. Gaps in your employment history without explanation make potential employers question those periods before having the chance to meet you.
Here's how to handle an employment lapse:
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5 Simple Steps to Make Your New Business Idea a Reality
Tweet Share on Facebook May 17, 2012 Comment (1)You've got this killer idea for a new business but just can't seem to take the leap. What's stopping you? Perhaps you're already secure in your current job and are afraid to rock the career boat. Or maybe you just don't feel you have the financial support to roll out your new enterprise.
For those who prefer to test the waters before diving in head first, it's best to launch a business that can start off small. Ventures with low overhead and flexible work hours are always great options for first-time entrepreneurs. A business that can be nurtured on the side—while keeping your day job—warrants a closer look. Once you've honed in on the right concept, it's time to kick things into high gear.
Here are five simple steps to make your business idea a reality on paper:
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How to Nail That Promotion You're Seeking
Tweet Share on Facebook May 16, 2012 Comment (4)Job-seekers and employees acknowledged as being unique and distinct have better chances of landing jobs and are more likely to excel in the workplace. This is an idea touched on in Mike Junge's first book, Purple Squirrel. Junge, a leadership recruiter at Google, titled his book based on the term recruiters use to identify their ideal hires—people so unusual, they are as hard to find as a purple squirrel. His book addresses how to strategically job search, ways to stand out in this economy, and how to negotiate a better salary. It also highlights how candidates can become the elusive purple squirrel—the employee everyone wants to hire and promote.
Junge believes candidates can intentionally create a career to propel them on a trajectory for extraordinary success. He explains: "Consciously or unconsciously, the majority of elite professionals use a handful of common strategies to accomplish this goal."
How can you stand out from a crowd and succeed in your job? Junge suggests the following:
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7 Deadly Interview Sins
Tweet Share on Facebook May 16, 2012 Comment (10)Having trouble getting job offers? You might be committing one of these seven deadly interview sins:
1. Being late. While occasional lateness may be excused in other situations, it's often a deal-breaker in a job interview. Hiring managers assume that you're on your best behavior while interviewing, so if you aren't on time for the interview, they'll assume you'll be unreliable if they hire you. Always allow more time than you'll need to travel so that you have a buffer in case something goes wrong.
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How to Manage Your Emotions in the Workplace
Tweet Share on Facebook May 15, 2012 Comment (2)Dealing with emotions in the office is tricky. You don't want to be branded as the person who freaks out or cries at the drop of the hat, or who uses emotions to manipulate people. Fear of being stigmatized as an emotional basket case prompts many professionals to practice what a recent Wall Street Journal article calls, "emotional suppression."
But according to a study cited in the story, pretending to be a robot and bottling your emotions can "cloud thinking, promote job unhappiness and negatively impact work performance."
So where's the middle ground? How do you express your feelings without being labeled hyper-emotional? Here are some tips from experts about how to handle your emotions at work:
