Getting Laid Off Take Advantage of Your Benefits!

Getting Laid Off Take Advantage of Your Benefits! I got some brilliant comments on the post from yesterday titled HP Layoffs From reinkefj: I’d also suggest to IMMEDIATELY get medical and dental appointments. Assuming that your benefits are tied to your employment, it’s time to find out what problems you have. (Physical problems; everyone has problems! Unemployment might be the least of them. If you have a problem, NOW is the time to find it not when COBRA runs out.) Ditto for ALL family members. QUICK, time flies. From Katy: And cash in what’s left of your FSA funds before you lose them. Drugstore.com has a great FSA area where you can order easily. With last minute doctor appointments, eye exams, new glasses and prescription renewals we were able to use up most of our FSA when my husband got laid off a couple weeks ago. Is this advice to help you gouge the company, or take advantage of something that you shouldnt? Absolutely not. You have paid into the system, you still have benefits, so USE THEM.  Seriously, life isnt going to get easier during your unemployment make sure you take advantage of what the company committed to you. Not doing it is like the company handing out a new car to everyone as they leave and you not taking it. Its there, its for you, take it. Thanks Reinkefj and Katy, for the insight! Getting Laid Off Take Advantage of Your Benefits! I got some brilliant comments on the post from yesterday titled HP Layoffs From reinkefj: I’d also suggest to IMMEDIATELY get medical and dental appointments. Assuming that your benefits are tied to your employment, it’s time to find out what problems you have. (Physical problems; everyone has problems! Unemployment might be the least of them. If you have a problem, NOW is the time to find it not when COBRA runs out.) Ditto for ALL family members. QUICK, time flies. From Katy: And cash in what’s left of your FSA funds before you lose them. Drugstore.com has a great FSA area where you can order easily. With last minute doctor appointments, eye exams, new glasses and prescription renewals we were able to use up most of our FSA when my husband got laid off a couple weeks ago. Is this advice to help you gouge the company, or take advantage of something that you shouldnt? Absolutely not. You have paid into the system, you still have benefits, so USE THEM.  Seriously, life isnt going to get easier during your unemployment make sure you take advantage of what the company committed to you. Not doing it is like the company handing out a new car to everyone as they leave and you not taking it. Its there, its for you, take it. Thanks Reinkefj and Katy, for the insight!

Creating a Beowulf Resume

Creating a Beowulf ResumeThere is a lot of information out there about creating Beowulf resumes and a lot of it is conflicting. It can be quite confusing, but there are a few tips that will make creating a Beowulf resume a little easier.First, make sure that you create a Beowulf resume that is really about your experience as a B.E. What the person reading your resume needs to see is something that is consistent with the information they will receive from other sources.Second, what you want to avoid is spelling mistakes. Beowulfs in the stories about their battles were all likely worded using not only their names but also by themselves. If you are copying or using the names, be careful not to insert unnecessary spaces. Include all of the names.A common mistake is to not write them all out at once. To make things look uniform, divide each list into paragraphs. Use different colored paper to separate the paragraphs so that it looks like each Beowulf is standing next to an individual par agraph. When you have them all written out, you will then work on making the descriptions consistent.Make sure that the descriptions focus on the relevant skills that you have for the job. Make sure that they highlight the one thing that you are good at. This will make it much easier to make the employer think that you would be a great fit for the position.A Beowulf resume should not necessarily be the same as any other type of resume. It is different and it should reflect that. Make sure that you spend some time editing your resume to make it unique. The more unique your resume is, the better.To make sure that your Beowulf resume is unique, consider which types of skills you should include in the descriptions. If you are good at writing, you may want to include that. Make sure that it includes something that is directly related to the job.Once you have created your Beowulf resume, make sure that you give it to the person that you are interviewing with. In most cases, they will not need to have anything to do with you to recognize the resume, but if they do, you want to make sure that they can read it and recognize your work from previous jobs.

6 Secrets For Six-Pack Abs And Successful Job-Hunting - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career

6 Secrets For ‘Six-Pack’ Abs And Successful Job-Hunting - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career Pick up any fashion magazine today and you’ll quickly notice that all the male (and even some of the female) models, in addition to being in obviously excellent physical condition, sport impressive “six-pack” absâ€"regardless of the product they are modeling, e.g., shirts, blue jeans, underwear, etc., and the manufacturers are trying to sell. In the fashion industry “six-pack” abdominal muscles (abs) are referred to as the “moneymaker muscles,” and there is a very good reason for that: Slim, trim models who are obviously in excellent physical condition, as indicated in part by their well-developed abs, simply sell products. I mean, when is the last time you saw a successful fashion model with a “beer belly” hanging out of an open shirt a manufacturer was marketing? Like never, right?! Moneymaker muscles of the business world In many ways, like fashion models, job seekers who are professionally “slim and trim,” and in obviously excellent “shape,” have a distinct advantage over those who are not. I’ll explain this in more detail below, but first, let me ask you a question: Have you ever wondered how fashion models manage to get, and then maintain, such finely toned bodies?   What is the secret to “six-pack” abs, for example? Actually, there are six secrets to getting (and keeping!) “six-pack” abs: Stay lean (little or no body fat!) Maintain a steady metabolism Work out regularly and correctly with weights View  the abs as being an integral component of a “core” group of related muscles, e.g., lower back, buttocks, etc. Maintain repetition in an exercise regimen Maintain   variety in a regular exercise program Now, let’s look at each of these six secrets and see how they apply to both fashion models and job seekers. Lean One of the best-kept secrets in developing “six-pack” (“washboard”) abs is the fact that you must first ensure that your total body fat is maintained at about %. No matter how many sit-ups, leg lifts or stomach crunches you do, if theres too much fat overlaying the muscles the abs will never be seen no matter how developed they become. The same goes for you when it comes to landing a new job. Everythingâ€"and I do mean everythingâ€"you present today must be lean. Why? In part, because we live in a texting and Twitter world. Powerful messages that carry a lot of impact must be delivered in 140 characters or less! So, no matter how powerfully developed your skills are, if they are covered with a “layer of fat,” they will never be seen, heard or read! Here is how to start making sure your job-hunting efforts are lean: “Slim down” your résumé, your cover letter and the answers to interview questions. No matter how good you are, no one is going to read a two-page résumé filled with paragraph after paragraph of text. Create a clean résumé with plenty of effective white space and “Twitter”-like bullet points that carry impact, in order to expose the “six-pack” abs of your career to the reader. The same goes for an interview. Tone down your rhetoric and make sure your answers to question are brief, concise and very much to the point. Why? Because if you don’t it can derail you on the spot! Let me give you an example of what I’m talking about here. Recently I had a hiring manager with a $5 billion company make this comment about a candidate she interviewed: “I would ask him a question and he would wax on poetically forever with his answer. It got to the point where my eyes were glazing over. (Surprise! The candidate wasn’t selected for the job.) Maintain a steady metabolism People who sport “six-pack” abs generally keep their metabolism steady and even. They accomplish this by eating smaller, more frequent meals throughout the day. As a job hunter you should take the basic same approach, and here is how: Maintain a steady pace. For example, if you are launching a direct mail campaign, send out, say, just three letters a day. Doesn’t sound like many, but at the end of the week, thats 15 companies you will have reached out to and by the end of the month, 60 companies. When you follow up with each company days after you have sent   the letter, you are able to find relevant information on each company and have three effective follow-ups. (There is much truth in the biblical proverb, steady plodding brings much progress.) Work out regularly and correctly with weights Abdominal and cardiovascular exercise, alone, will not develop impressive “six-pack” abs. An appropriate, effective weight-lifting routine needs to be weaved into the entire process. Weightlifting develops power and bulks the muscles, which of course include the abs. When it comes to job-hunting, you “bulk up” your “career muscles” by having quantifiable accomplishments and achievements. What have you done to make a company money, or to save a company money, or both? How can this be expressed in terms of dollars, numbers and percentages? The core As I said above, “six-pack” abs-sporting models develop their entire core group of muscles, not just their abs. Likewise, the core of an effective job-hunting campaign consists of all aspects of your marketing approach and materials. For example, I have seen candidates spend days on their résumés just to blow an opportunity by using an ineffective, lame Thank-You letter/note, or being ill-prepared for an interview, or by leaving bland, boring, lame voice mail messages! Maintain repetition Just as sit-ups a day wont develop a “six-pack,” neither will just one connection with a company spark an interview. These days hiring managers are frazzled, sometimes beyond belief. To say that some are stretched very thin is to engage in gross understatement, and responding to your communication usually is not on their list of “top 0” things to do that day. It takes repetition to break through the clutter, to gain “mindshare” of the hiring manager and to help him/her understand why he/she should speak with you. (This process of repetition in marketing, by the way, is referred to as a “touch plan,” and it is crucial that every “touch” deliver maximum value to the recipient of that “touch,” e.g., a hiring manager.) Maintain variety Doing sit-ups alone will not develop the abs into the “money making muscle” for models, and today, one job-hunting technique will seldom land you the “money making” job. In a powerful and effective career search, you must utilize all channels to market, which include, among other things, a direct mail campaign (which is working the best right now), picking up the telephone, effective networking, selectively applying for positions online, etc. (The major problem with applying online for jobs is that, for many job seekers, it tends to become the principal job-hunting activity, not just an integral part of an overall job-hunting strategy/approach. That’s similar to a model just doing sit-ups and expecting to develop “washboard” abs!) Clearly, becomingâ€"and staying!â€"a top, successful fashion model is certainly not easy. As we’ve seen, it takes a lot of hard work and an unflagging dedication/devotion to establishing and maintaining a strict regimen of oftentimes repetitive exercises and key tasks. Believe me when I tell you that the same general approach and principles apply to becoming and staying a top, successful job seeker in today’s extremely challenging job market. If you’re not now adhering to (and practicing) the six principles (or secrets) outlined in this blog that will brand you as a top candidate, then your next move is obvious, isn’t it? And who knows, maybe now that you know the secrets of developing physical “six-pack” abs, you might also decide to start working on those for yourself! Author: Skip Freeman is the author of “Headhunter” Hiring Secrets: The Rules of the Hiring Game Have Changed . . . Forever! and is the President and Chief Executive Officer of The HTW Group (Hire to Win), an Atlanta, GA, Metropolitan Area Executive Search Firm. Specializing in the placement of sales, engineering, manufacturing and RD professionals, he has developed powerful techniques that help companies hire the best and help the best get hired.

Resume Personal Branding Best Practices Part 3 - Consistency - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career

Resume Personal Branding Best Practices Part 3 - Consistency - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career Your resume creates a unique part of your personal brand. Your resume is used for a very specific purpose to get interviews. While you might use other branding tools to help your job search, your resume is still the central personal branding vehicle in your job search. The third part in our series of personal branding best practices deals with consistency. Sure your resumes brand sets the readers first impression, but its not the only thing employers check in the process. Eventually, if employers are interested in you, theyll read the rest of your resume. Theyll talk to you and meet you, if they want to consider you. Employers routinely check social media profiles as well. So your resumes personal brand cant stand alone. This also means that your personal brand needs to be consistent with other information employers see about you and what you say when during phone and in-person interviews. Consistency with goals: This should seem obvious, but unfortunately its one of the most common resume branding mistakes I see, due to candidates trying to be all things to all people. Your personal brand has to be consistent with your goals If your brand is inconsistent with your goals, its next to impossible to reach those goals. For example, if youre looking for a job as a customer service manager for a cable company, brand yourself that way. Consistency with employers needs: If your personal brand doesnt clearly show that you meet a specific employers needs, why would that employer contact you? When there are job shortages, companies arent forced to hire just anyone instead hiring managers look for candidates who specifically fill their own individual needs. You could be the best candidate out there, but if you cant clearly brand yourself as solving a specific employers needs, you give the impression that youd be a great employee for some other company. Consistency with social media: This is one of the toughest consistency tests to pass, so its an area of improvement for nearly every candidate. Its critical because over 90% of employers report checking social media profiles before making job offers. While resume customization can brand you to be consistent with a specific employers needs, you cant customize social media profiles for an individual reader. Its a challenge because your resume can be dynamic, but your social media profiles are static. To accomplish consistency with social media, your profiles have to be broad enough to cover all of the types of jobs you plan on applying for. If youre applying for every job on the map, you wont be able to achieve this but if your job search is focused, you can accomplish social media consistency with your resume. Consistency with Google: Most employers do a Google search on candidates before making an offer. Some run Google searches prior to granting interviews. If you dont know what a Google search reveals about you, then youre going into job search blind You could be doing everything right to get your next job, but Google searches could blow it for you. Its not only unflattering information that can affect your search. When Google searches reveal information thats inconsistent with your personal brand and resume, it raises employer doubt If you were reviewing resumes where approximately 40% contained lies, wouldnt you doubt inconsistencies identified via Google searches? Solution Manage your online brand to be consistent with your resumes brand. If its not, then get some content out there that is consistent. There are many moving parts involved with job search. Those separate parts can work together to strengthen your brand. Alternatively, those separate pieces could work against each other, causing confusion and doubt in your readers eyes. So its time to do a self-check: Is your resumes personal brand consistent with other information employers use to evaluate candidates? Or are these individual data sources working against each other, making your job search more difficult? Author: Phil Rosenberg  is President of  http://www.reCareered.com, a leading job search information website and gives complimentary job search webinars at  http://ResumeWebinar.com. Phil also runs the Career Central group, one of Linkedin’s largest groups for job seekers and has built one of the 20 largest personal networks on Linkedin globally.

Tips on How to Present a Resume

Tips on How to Present a ResumeIf you're trying to find the answers to the question, 'how to present a resume?' you'll want to read on. The tips in this article should help you get started on the right path to your next promotion.First of all, if you are new to the job market or if you've been out of work for a while, it's important that you know the basics about your professional skills. Read through the sections of your resume and check to see if you have those skills listed correctly. Most companies will look for a certain amount of expertise in a given area.Also, ask yourself about your career experience. If you have a lot of experience in one area of industry, include that information as well. For example, if you are someone who has lots of experience working with computers, that might be something to note in your resume. Another example is that if you know a great deal about the intricacies of the medical field, that could be an area that you can list as a plus.Of course, if yo u are looking for some tips on how to present a resume, the most important thing is that you get started with your resume as soon as possible. If you don't get it completed until it's too late, there is a good chance that you will be considered out of date before you even get the chance to put your best foot forward.Once you have your resume finished, make sure you're happy with it. If you are not happy with it, you will want to take the time to make changes. Don't just go back and redo the sections that are incorrect. That would be crazy!A job applicant will sometimes apply for a job using the same paper size as other applicants. It's a good idea to look over each section of your resume and see if you can match it up to the same paper size that the rest of the applicants are using. If not, you can use one sheet of the same paper size as the other applicants and then re-apply in the next round. Make sure you do the same thing for the names of each company.When you're finished, take the time to review your resume. If you need to, you can make more changes or add to the ones you've already made. There is a good chance that the employer you're applying for will have already noticed your previous resume so it is probably best to leave them alone.If you have any questions about how to present a resume, please don't hesitate to ask. These tips should help you get started with your career as soon as possible.

FREE Teleseminar Job Searching with Social Media for Dummies - CareerEnlightenment.com

Event DetailsDate: Wednesday, December 7 Time: 5:30pm Pacific/8:30pm EasternAccess: All you need to participate is a phone.  Register here  and we will send the call-in number and access code to you via email prior to the call. Also, enrolled participants will receive a FREE MP3 downloadable recording of this session following the seminar.*Career Studios are owned and operated by Chris Perry Dorothy Tannahill-Moran

Technology The Next Language You Need to Learn

Technology The Next Language You Need to Learn Technology: The Next Language You Need to Learn My biggest fear: I’ll end up being an ancient dinosaur. You know, the ones that never adapted. We all know what happens. They get left behind. They are considered irrelevant and too onerous to be useful. LinkedIn recently published an article about the top 25 hottest member skill sets and how recruiters/employers can hire for them. No big surprise here: Almost every single skill listed has a technology component. On Twitter, recruiter Steve Levy took the social media airwaves to ask this question: The answer is, invariably, YES. As much as new tech might frighten us, and as much as we might not understand how to use it or how it works, embracing technology as the next language you need to learn is going to be critical for future jobs. As an example, I never learned how to write HTML language.   That means I had to find a trusted and reliable web designer who could take care of any revisions or trouble shoot issues taking place on my website. Am I frustrated as a normal do-it-yourself-er? You bet. But I am staring at my own technology weakness in the face and realizing that while I am in a good enough position to hire someone to take care of this need on my behalf, job seekers aren’t usually so lucky. Fluency in technology is becoming a core (and assumed) skill set. Not possessing any kind of technology language  proficiency  in this very tech-oriented world essentially throws job seekers back into the “dark ages.” But I always say it’s never too late for an old dog to learn new tricks. You just have to WANT to learn. It’s always easy to say you don’t want to… and believe me, you won’t. But if you go into learning technology with a willingness and patience to master the concepts and processes, you’ll succeed. Technology is the next language you need to learn… If you want to land your next job, it’s time to step up your game so you can compete.