The Blind Spot Preventing You From Finding a Career You Love

The Blind Spot Preventing You From Finding a Career You Love If you’re like most people, you began attempting to figure out your ideal career direction by first reflecting on who you are and what you want in life. You considered past experiences, took self-assessments, and tried to imagine what new career would be right for you. This is a natural starting place, since any career path needs to relate to the person who is going to be walking it. However, using this approach contains an inherent blind spot that will hinder your ability to find career clarity. That blind spot? Neglecting to lean on and utilize supportive people! Yes, your career should revolve around you, but basing your career choice solely on your personal knowledge and thought processes limits your access to new perspectives and ideas that could just give you the breakthrough “Aha!” that you’ve been wanting. The access point to expanding your horizons is to include other people in your process. Add these five interpersonal strategies to your wheelhouse, and you’ll move towards a great career fit with more speed and precision than you would on your own. Interview for  information All the online research in the world can’t tell you what it’s really like to work in an industry. Informational interviews give you a chance to learn from people in the field, as they describe their day to day experiences and give you advice on industry pros and cons and what it takes to succeed. Stories from your interviewee’s work life or those of their colleagues can give you insights into whether an industry is or isn’t for you. Find hidden gems One-to-one interviews aren’t the only way that other people can help your career search. A second way people can help is by sharing information on industry resources. While it may seem like Google holds all the answers, there can be resources you don’t even know to search for. Industry-specific job boards, smaller local groups that relate to particular topics, and hidden Facebook groups are all resources that you’ll only discover if you connect with people in the industry and ask them for information. Build your network One real downfall of relying on internet research is that you’re only going to see the same information that everyone else sees. To go farther, you need to actually go out and talk to people. Not only can they give you information about resources and industry life, they can introduce you to others who can help you and connect the dots for you. Remember, opportunities always flow through people. The more people you talk to, the more opportunities you’ll find. Get through the rough spots Figuring out your career direction can be a challenge, and you can get stuck in parts of the process you didn’t expect and don’t know how to work through. At that point, it’s helpful to reach out to a career coach or a career counselor who specializes in helping people figure out their career direction. Working with this kind of person means that somebody else will be by your side, guiding you through the process, looking over your shoulder, and helping you move forward. Boost your confidence Other people can be fabulous resources for information, opportunities and connections, but a less-obvious way they can help your career search is by boosting your confidence. People you connect with will often be encouraging and supportive, giving you momentum into that new career direction you’re thinking about. As you reach out and connect with people, it’s important to remember that not everyone will be helpful. Be wary of people who have an obvious agenda for your career, or who are perpetually down about everything, including your opportunities. Be careful, but don’t let a few bad apples keep you from enjoying the richness that is available when you get out of your house, away from your computer, and connected with other humans. The resources are there waiting for you, but you need to be the one to step out and ask for the help you need. When you do that, you will move past the blind spot of isolation and get on your way to figuring out what you want to do with your career.

My plan to stop second-guessing myself

My plan to stop second-guessing myself A few weeks ago, I wrote about how I was overhauling my time management strategy. And believe it or not, things are getting a little better. I have integrated my email and my to do list, which saves a lot of time moving information around my computer. And I have consolidated my work calendar and personal calendar so that I dont schedule any more interviews during date night with my husband. But it takes time to switch how you do something. And a certain level of self-confidence, too. This reminds me of when I played professional beach volleyball. I was always working on something new like being able to make my jump serve hit the left line of the court. But there was a saying, Dont practice in a game. Which means, You miss a lot while practicing, so dont do it when it counts. In fact, when you do something you dont really know how to do in a game situation, you do it worse than you would do it if you were in a practice situation. This is all true for work, too. The culprit of my time management situation is how much time it takes to write a good post and run a blog in general. But as I learn to manage my time as a blogger, there is no non-game time because I post almost every day. So I find that I have the stress of trying to do a jump serve I cant really do, in a well-attended game situation. What I find myself doing a lot is second-guessing myself about what matters on my blogger to-do list. How often should I link when theres a blogger I like? How often should I comment when theres a post I like? Do I need to chill out? The problem with second-guessing oneself in blogging and in volleyball is that it wastes time and destroys focus. When you have a clear plan, you dont second guess as much. This weekend Im going to do what everyone should do when they start a new job: Get very clear on what is important so you know what to-dos you dont need to do. Instead of worrying all the time about the blog, Im going to make a list of my blog priorities, and create a new blog schedule. And Im going to get some more sleep. My husband tells me that last night, in the middle of the night, he said to me, Wake up, wake up. Dont you hear the baby crying? And without waking from my sleep, I said, Yeah, yeah, okay. Ill link to his blog in the morning.

The Intern Queen Speaks

The Intern Queen Speaks Lauren Berger bills herself as the Intern Queen, and her book All Work, No Pay: Finding an Internship, BuildingYour Resume, Making Connections, and Gaining Job Experience   is a practical guide to how and why to get an internship. In her experience, only about 20 percent of students pursue internships in and right after college. Here are the five benefits she attributes to internships, and why you should pursue on if youre a student.  You get a hands-on education. College is great for learning principles of your chosen career, but by definition, it can’t teach you how to do the job. (The exception is vocational training, which is about hands-on skills and buy the way, does almost always require an internship.) You learn in two ways when you work at a company: you get to perform the tasks you’ll be doing on the job, and you get to observe seasoned professionals doing their jobs. This is the one time in your career when these professionals will consider it part of their job to teach you; once you’re hired as a worker, you’ll be expected to hit the ground running. Take advantage of the opportunity to learn while you can. You have the opportunity to network and meet people in the industry who can be helpful throughout your career. Of course, that means you have to be memorable (for the right reasons.) People will remember how competent you were, how cheerful and energetic you were, and how reliable you were. Fall down in any of these areas, and you may have hurt your chances in the entire industry, let alone the company where you worked. Show up, do good and make friends. You have the chance to add real substance to your resume. Most student resumes list experience that builds character, but not often skills.   If your resume experience consists mostly of jobs waiting tables or working in retail, your internship is a way to add real skills and projects. Employers think of internships as a way to prove you’re willing to invest in your own career, writes Berger. Internships add professional references to your resume. This is another reason to do a great job, no matter how menial the tasks you are given. If your manager or the company owner is admired in the industry, her word will mean a lot to your future employers. The more people you work for and with in the company, the more people will recognize your name when it comes up in the future. It’s a great reason to volunteer for as many projects and teams as you can. Pursuit or Elimination of the job you’re doing as a career goal. Berger is absolutely correct when she says that you learn as much from jobs you don’t like or succeed in as you do the jobs you love. Knowing what you do well and enjoy is an important part of determining your career path. Berger writes, “No matter what the outcome, you will leave an internship more informed than when you walked in.” Berger says that she sees more internships available because companies laid off so many workers during the recession. Is that your experience? Do you have an internship this summer? Email me or comment if you do, or if you have   a great story about a past internship.

Simple Ways to Practice Self Care

Simple Ways to Practice Self Care It is so important that we show compassion for other people, which is becoming more evident these days. But how often do we think to treat ourselves with the same level of kindness that we might show to someone else? One of the best things that we need to start to do, for a better mind and body, is to take some time out, and always remind ourselves that we are worth some love and time to ourselves. For some people, implementing some elements of self-care into your day can seem a little inconvenient or even intimidating, as there are always so many other things to be doing. You might think that you don’t have time for things or feel like other things need to take a priority; sometimes, that really can be the case. But when you put the needs of others before your own, then it can be at your own detriment; you can’t pour from an empty cup as the saying goes. There has been a lot of research into self-care and having it as part of your routine. The research has shown that is can reduce stress, reduce the chance of mental and physical illness, and can increase productivity, and make you feel happier. So is there any other reason that you need to do just that? Here are some simple ways that you can look after yourself better, and apply some more self-care into your life; self-care is not selfish. Eat healthily and mindfully How often are you sat to eat a meal, or possibly not even sat, and you’re trying to read something, send a text, or watch something on your phone? Thus multitasking can’t be good for us, and it stops us from having the simple pleasure of just sitting there enjoying a meal. If you had someone round, you would sit with them and eat. So why don’t we always do that when we are alone? A simple thing to do is to allow yourself to indulge in a meal without having any distractions. Unplug Places like Instagram and Facebook can be fun and have some great benefits of staying in touch with family and friends. But it may not make you feel better when you are comparing your worst day to everyone’s perfected online versions of themselves. We all know that people are only going to shout about the positives, but it can be hard, and comparison is the thief of joy, as they say. So take some time when you don’t go online or on social media. Allow yourself a weekend free from it, for example, and see how you feel. Treat Yourself Treating yourself can mean different things to different people; what is important is that you do something about it. It could be something small like allowing yourself to have that last cookie after dinner. But it could be more elaborate, depending on you and your needs. For example, you could look up 5 great spa treatments and then make appointments to have all of them done. You could treat yourself to a new items of clothing, or a day out doing something you have always wanted to do. So however treats look to you, make sure that you do treat yourself from time to time. Move Exercise is something that can go a long way to helping you to feel energised and happy. When you are active, you really can get increased feelings of happiness through the hormones that occur after exercise. If you are someone who doesn’t really like the gym, then it is important to remember that exercise doesn’t have to mean the gym. It can be any kind of physical activity, from dancing with your friends, enjoy a morning hike, or doing some yoga at home. Gift your inner child It can be fun to be a bit childish sometimes and remember the simple things that we enjoyed when we were younger. Being an adult can be tough sometimes, so going back to your childhood can be really enjoyable. What were some of your favorite things to do when you were younger? Was it something like making ‘perfume’ and potions using flowers? Or how about toasting marshmallows or making s’mores? When you treat your inner child to something, then it can help you to be happy and will give you all the feels as you step back in time a little, and remember positive and happy things. Keep it simple and it will make a difference.

How to Problem Solve Like a Hacker CareerMetis.com

How to Problem Solve Like a Hacker â€" CareerMetis.com What do you think of when you hear the word “hacker”? Maybe you visualize a hooded figure in a dark room with light emanating from a screen of code on a laptop? Or do you picture movies where someone has to break into the enemy computer system to steal encrypted data?The first scenario with the dark figure is an exaggerated representation of only a small percentage of hackers. The classic plot point from action or spy movies is a dramatization of hacking and rarely happens, if ever.In reality, hacking is a problem solving tactic. It may be forever tainted with a negative connotation, but it’s actually a system for innovation and iteration. Hacking means to build and test, pushing boundaries along the way. While this can be used for malicious activity, hacking itself isn’t inherently bad.evalYou may be surprised to hear that Mark Zuckerberg of Facebook is actually a hacker, and has cultivated the “Hacker Way” into Facebook’s culture and management. Because most hackers a re idealistic people with positive dispositions, some of Facebook’s best products were a result of hacking.To be more specific, hackers develop code and build prototypes to test. After testing, they analyze the data and tweak their programs. They repeat this process until the desired outcome. No time is wasted setting up meetings or putting a cohesive project together. The trial-and-error method can start with the basics.In the case of Facebook, hackers quickly release and get insights from smaller, targeted iterations of services. This is more efficient than trying to do everything all at once, because it’s easier to control and makes it possible to focus on one or few things at a time. It is also in this way that startups and entrepreneurs can get their feet off the ground.Due to their problem-solving nature, hackers can be looked to for guidance and tips when it comes to resolving issues. Whether in the workplace or at home, the same strategies can be used across most problem s. For example, preparing for the worst case scenario and trying multiple solutions are tactics you can employ when facing an obstacle.For more advice like this, see the infographic below. Panda Securitycompiled direct quotes and actionable tips from hackers themselves. Some are fictitious, some are criminal hackers, and others are simply tech-savvy individuals with knowledge of hacking. Nonetheless, their observations and wisdom can help you problem solve like a hacker.Source : PandaSecurity.com

Lingo - The Chief Happiness Officer Blog

Lingo - The Chief Happiness Officer Blog Funny parody of a consulting company website: Our creative team will come up with design and marketing ideas you never even thought of. How could you? You dont have the talent we do. Dont take it personally. Thats our job. Thats what we do. We do stuff. Most consulting companies just provide regular marketing solutions. Not us. We provide groundbreaking solutions. Our marketing solutions are newer than anyone elses, and they sound better because we give them cool titles like Global Awareness Paradigms, and Market Consciousness Philosophies, and Creative Product Re-development Support. When we deliver your new designs and business strategies to you, theyll be in really snazzy binders that look nice sitting on big, round meeting tables, so youll think you got your moneys worth. When your project has been completed, well give you several follow-up phone calls to give the appearance that we even remember who you are or what we sold you. From huhcorp.com. Thanks for visiting my blog. If you're new here, you should check out this list of my 10 most popular articles. And if you want more great tips and ideas you should check out our newsletter about happiness at work. It's great and it's free :-)Share this:LinkedInFacebookTwitterRedditPinterest Related

A Resume Cover Letter Sample Will Help Your Cover Letter Stands Out

A Resume Cover Letter Sample Will Help Your Cover Letter Stands OutAn employer's way of determining whether to hire you or not is to first check your resume cover letter sample. At this point, you do not have to worry about whether your cover letter was actually read and understood by the employer. A well-written cover letter will probably be deemed as a 'good' candidate for the job.On the other hand, if your cover letter does not impress the employer, he or she may ask the following questions to determine why: Is your cover letter 'interesting'? Did you use the correct format for your job application? How did you spell your name?Employers always want to be sure that they know exactly who they are hiring before hiring them. Before sending out your resume cover letter sample, make sure to conduct an interview with the prospective employer. In this way, you can get a better idea of whether your cover letter makes sense in its format and grammar.Sometimes, you can still improve upon you r resume cover letter without actually wasting any money on hiring a professional writer. A resume cover letter can be made to appear creative, neat, and very effective. For example, try using photographs of you in different positions as well as your awards, accolades, and achievements. Such images can really help to portray you as a winner.You should also keep in mind that, when hiring an employee, it is vital that you always have an updated version of your resume cover letter on hand. This way, whenever you need to make a change to it, you can simply do so.In order to make your resume cover letter stand out from the rest, you can include professional graphics and fonts, special headlines, and lots of big-bold writing. The easiest way to do this is to copy it directly from one of your old resumes.The only drawback with writing your own resume, cover letter is that it may take longer for you to write. In some cases, it will take you three to four times as long as it would take to wr ite a copy of your resume.Overall, if you make use of a resume cover letter sample, you can rest assured that your potential employer will see that you are sincere about wanting the job. This will also allow you to demonstrate the professionalism that you possess. No matter what type of job you are applying for, there is no reason why you should not take advantage of using a resume cover letter sample.