How To Improve Your Barbara Resume Writing

How To Improve Your Barbara Resume WritingBarbara, who didn't want her last name used, had never received a resume in the mail. While she certainly wasn't the best qualified candidate for the job, the circumstances surrounding her lost work experience were unique. Therefore, Barbara's thoughts turned to how she could improve her chances at the position in question.The confusion stemmed from Barbara's self-esteem issues, which stem from a tumultuous childhood in which her mother was an alcoholic and her father was an abusive figure who occasionally physically abused Barbara herself. Unfortunately, this has left Barbara with a myriad of troubles that have subsequently left her with many emotional problems. Unfortunately, despite her imperfections, Barbara did find employment at the appropriate level, which necessitated some Barbara resume writing.When people ask what should they include on their resume, the answer varies greatly from person to person. Some believe that the best thing t o include is a summary of accomplishments and skills, while others prefer to emphasize their previous jobs. Yet others still tend to overdo the hand-waving that invariably goes along with preparing for interviews and while looking for employment.Barbara's emotions were so lacerating that she didn't know where to begin. Fortunately, she had a friend who worked in HR and he listened to her plight. He was impressed by her openness to change her life to become more positive and dynamic.It wasn't a job search that changed Barbara's outlook. Rather, it was the simple fact that a job might be available in the company she had been given just two weeks earlier. This might not sound like much, but for Barbara it was a first step.Barbara made a few changes to her resume. She included a summary of her experiences and skills in the opening line and listed her skills in the second paragraph. This helped her stand out among the hundreds of applicants that she met during her short tenure as a trial employee.She was concerned that some of the applicant's chances of getting the job might be hindered due to past mistakes. However, after reading through some of the applicant's resumes, she found that Barbara didn't really have any red flags on her resume. In fact, her professional history and personal experiences were quite impressive.This conviction gave Barbara hope that she might be granted a position. When Barbara returned home, she did make a few changes to her resume. She read through her past employers' histories and learned that it took a long time for the company to act upon her application.

How Highly Successful Leaders Drive Innovation CareerMetis.com

How Highly Successful Leaders Drive Innovation â€" CareerMetis.com Photo Credit â€" Pexels.comInnovation has become an overused, hollow buzzword.Quite the opposite.Martin Reeves, head strategist at BCG’s think tank in New York, offers some startling statistics:The average lifespan of a public company is now just 30 yearsEmployees can expect no more than 15 years of tenure in their current companyThere’s a 30% chance that your business will fail in five yearsClearly, as a leader, trying to surf trends won’t cut it anymore. As I’ve mentioned in my recent interview with the Huffington Post, you have to genuinely, aggressively, passionately innovate â€" your strategy, your value proposition, your culture, and your products.As in, what sort of culture does your leadership inspire? Below are some descriptors to get you thinking:Cautious or inquisitiveServing the C-Suite or serving your customersReactionary or strategicCompetitive or connectedBe honest with yourself.Because where you are stylistically is likely a direct reflection of your company c ulture.evalOften, our approach to challenges evolves as a means of survival. And once the energy is set in motion, it can be tough to undo. But it can be undone.EVALUATE YOUR PEOPLEWhat kind of work does your team produce â€" good, or ground-breaking?If you’re at the good end of the spectrum, you’re not alone. And again, it’s likely a by-product of the classic big business culture in which so many of us function. Where individuals matter more than teams; and where only ideas from senior leadership make the cut.So, now that you know where you are, where do you want to be?evalI suspect that if you really think about it, the roadblocks in your company’s culture have been disturbing you for a while now.HOW, THEN, TO SHIFT THE PARADIGM?Author, leadership consultant, and entrepreneur Margaret Heffernan professes that the secret lies in chickens.In her famous TED talk, she quotes a six-generation productivity study that compares a group of diverse hens to a group of continually han d-picked “super chickens.”While the diverse group of hens thrived and grew more prolific, the super chickens destroyed each other. Literally.So, what do these chickens have to do with your team’s ability to innovate?Let’s break it down:Super Chickens = High Potential EmployeesDiverse Chickens = Blended TeamCould it be that the days of relying on an uber-talented SME or a hand-picked first-string senior exec are gone? Check.evalAccording to Malcolm Gladwell, in his podcast Revisionist History, the phenomenon isn’t just showing up in the corporate world.He asserts that sports teams and institutes of higher education are also more innovative when driven by a culture of what Gladwell calls “weak-link networks” Jean Oelwang, CEO of Virgin Unite, said that honest dialogue is a new power, the new success, the new sexy.So, what exactly might this look like?Consider 50+-year-old company, WL Gore. The creators of the material Gore-Tex, and countless other inventions, the culture is known for its focus on innovation. But with a few unique twists.1. There’s No Set HierarchyGore refers to his company’s structure as a “lattice-work”, one of the original matrixed organizations.And when team members from different sections of the lattice come together on a project, they make it a point to distinguish between questioning someone’s idea and questioning the person.By taking the personal element out of it, everyone is free to speak their minds about the work.2. Many Employees Have Been Around for 20+ YearsAnd they’re still active in ideation. In fact, the millennials onboard call them the “Wise Ones”.Whether virtual or in-person, their project teams are multigenerational. Again, everyone has their place. Everyone’s contribution matters.Which brings me to my last point about WL Gore.3. They Don’t Call Their Culture “Innovative”They don’t offer Googly perks like free food and onsite dry cleaning.HR refers to their culture as “conscious”. Meaning, it empowers the individual to mindfully question and create. And amazingly, leaders and associates READY TO LEAD LIKE AN INNOVATOR?Start with these five actions that Stephen Covey coined the “Innovator’s DNA”…Question: Challenge conventional wisdom at every turn, especially when it’s uncomfortable.Observe: Scrutinise everything about your business as though you’re seeing it for the first time.Network: Seek out people who are utterly different from you (and your team) to spark some constructive conflict.Experiment: Tweak, twist, bend, flex, and move in ways that might seem outlandish to see what results emerge.Connect: Don’t limit your sight to your industry, or your comfort zone. Use your vision to connect the dots on a universal scale.Wondering if the approach will work? Personally, I love concrete examplesâ€"especially those coming from outside the corporate world. So I’ll leave you with one.In the late 1950s, a breakthrough American TV series called The T wilight Zone tackled taboo topics like aliens and time travel.The writer and creator, Rod Serling, felt it gave him the perfect forum to question the country’s political status quo.“I found that it was all right to have Martians saying things Democrats and Republicans could never say.”How will you rethink your world?

Job Search Research Tools Part 1

Job Search Research Tools Part 1 I love doing research on the Internet and I frequently direct my clients to job relevant resources on the web. But for certain research, you just can’t beat the public library. Some of the best research tools online are fee based, but you can gain access to these same resources in book form at your local library. Whether you need to search for recruiters, networking leads, or decision makers, the library can provide priceless (and free) access to numerous search-relevant materials. Below are a few of my favorites:The Corporate Directory of U.S. Public Companies contains essential financial and business data for over 11,000 U.S. public companies. The directory is the only publication to provide salaries and ages of officers and directors as well as their full names and titles.The Encyclopedia of Associations is a comprehensive source of detailed information on 22,000 American associations of national scope. They also publish an International Organization listing of 22,300 associatio ns and a regional, state, and local organization listing with 115,000 entries. Included in the reference book are addresses and descriptions of professional societies, trade associations, labor unions, cultural, and religious organizations.Kennedy Guide to Executive Recruiters published annually, this national guide includes recruiter names, addresses, phone and fax numbers, and web and email addresses. An international version of the book is also available.The Directory of Top Computer Executives concentrates on organizations that have the highest potential to be supporting large IT functions. For an organization to be listed it must have a full-time VP, Director, or Manager of IT; have a multi-user host computer; or have more than 75 deployed PCs in the U.S. or 25 in Canada. The Directory lists the top-ranking individual over the IT function, such as the CIO or VP, Director, or Manager of information technology. In addition, second-level managers (which directly report to the top executive) include the manager of software development, manager of operations, manager of networking/data communications, manager of microcomputers, and the manager of technical support.Check back tomorrow for some more great tools!

Career Corner Interview Tips from ReFocus on Careers - Face-to-face Interviews Conduct the Interview Part III - Hallie Crawford

Career Corner Interview Tips from ReFocus on Careers - Face-to-face Interviews Conduct the Interview Part III I recently spoke to a great networking and career search group, Re:Focus on Careers, about creating a kick ass elevator speech. Keep an eye out for all of these free interview tips in my Career Corner posts: Conduct the Interview Have your own agenda and know where the interview should be heading. This will give you confidence and help you move from one area of questioning to the next. Remember: Most interviewers are as uncomfortable as you are. They just want the position to be filled as fast as possible. If you can put the interviewer at ease by helping things move smoothly, youll improve your chances of being hired. Remember the following: 3. Communication skills. Good grammar and articulate speech are essential. If this is an area where youre weak, work on it. Practice on your family, practice in front of a mirror, record your voice, take classes do whatever it takes to become a more effective communicator. If you’re interested in having me speak at your next event about finding a career you love, go here: www.halliecrawford.com/appearances.html. I’d be happy to discuss! Certified Career CoachCareer Speaker

How to Write a Great College Students Resume

How to Write a Great College Students ResumeAs a College student or your current college student, you have a lot of important tasks to do each day. You want to get the maximum out of your time and it can be hard to figure out which of these is the most important. Well, here are some tips that you can use to help you write the great college students resume.Start writing college students resume samples as soon as you are done with your classes. You want to get started right away and ensure that you're going to be focused on the important things that you need to cover. While you're writing the resume samples, you need to make sure that you really focus on the most important aspects so that you are doing what is best for you.College students are in a unique position, they have an extremely limited amount of time in which to write their resumes. Therefore, you need to make sure that your resume is going to give off the impression that you are enthusiastic and passionate about what you do. Keep in mind that your resume is the first thing that people will see and as a result, you need to give it the best look possible.The great thing about great college students resume samples is that they provide you with enough information that you don't have to worry about giving the right information on the paper. The best part about a resume is that you have an incredible amount of time and for this reason, you really want to make sure that you get the information out in front of the right people. That is why you want to use sample resumes that are easy to read and you don't need to worry about the formatting.College students are busy and they do not have a lot of time to go through resume samples. In order to be successful, you need to think about the things that you need to include and how you are going to present it. Although you have a limited amount of time, you still want to make sure that you include the most important information.There are many different samples that you can find online for college students. Just make sure that you are doing your research before choosing any particular one. You also want to make sure that you are using the proper format for the resume and not a block in the middle. This will only make it difficult for you to read and your chances of getting hired will be much lower.Use these resume samples that are provided by various companies so that you don't waste a lot of time on them. You really want to make sure that you are using the ones that are going to give you the best results. The great thing about using these samples is that they allow you to write the resume that you want and they don't require you to pay a lot of money for them.

10 Resume Accomplishments To Get You Noticed (Examples) - ZipJob

10 Resume Accomplishments To Get You Noticed (Examples) Spread the loveOne of the most important things a hiring manager or recruiter looks for in a resume is accomplishments. You really need resume accomplishments over everyday tasks  to get your resume noticed.Many people think they dont have specific accomplishments they can point to. Many also think that its hard to find specific accomplishments in their industry.This is just not true and in this post, we’ll show you 10 simple ways to turn your everyday duties and responsibilities into accomplishments that will land you that interview.What are  Resume Accomplishments?An accomplishment on a resume is something that shows how you went above and beyond everyday tasks to achieve something. This could be specific accomplishments that you have achieved throughout your career. These may be financial, a special award or recognition, or simply an initiative in which you demonstrated leadership.Many job seekers make the mistake of listing job duties and responsibilities over achievements. Man y times, their duties can be reworded to sound like an achievement.Here is an example of a responsibility on a resume:Responsible for seeking out new marketing campaigns to increase revenue.Lets see this reworded to sound like an achievement:Increased revenue by 26% by implementing new paid marketing channels including Google Adwords, Adroll and Bing Ads.  See the difference? The second description shows an actual accomplishment with quantifiable achievements. This is much more effective than the first description.Here are 10 other ways you can easily list your resume accomplishments to make yours standout.10 Resume Accomplishment Ideas and TipsVocabularySimply improving the vocabulary on your resume can make a responsibility sound like an achievement. You should never use the term “responsible for” on a resume as it can never really sound like an achievement. You should instead use powerful action verbs that hiring managers love to see.Here are the top 5 words hiring managers l ove to see on a resume according to a Careerbuilder survey. Achieved Improved Trained Managed CreatedExample:Improved return on ad spend by 22% through A/B testing and optimizing various landing pages.Heres a great post we wrote on the best words to use on a resume.QuantifyYou should be using numbers wherever possible as this catches the attention of a hiring manager and really makes any description sound like an achievement. You can find ways to quantify your experience regardless of what industry youre in.Example:Created engaging content such as info-graphics and videos which drove 2,000 leads in the first month.Awards, Certifications and CompetitionsAre there any awards or certifications you received on the job? If so, be sure to include these awards on your resume. If you participated in any company competitions and did well, include it. This is an excellent way to standout and catch the attention of a hiring manager.Example:Won first place in the annual sales challenge out of 34 participants.Selected for Special ProjectInclude any project you were  selected to work on b ecause of your performance or knowledge. This really shows the employer that you stand out from your other colleagues. You should also quantify this wherever possible.Example:Selected as one of three employees to work on a the [Project Description].Exceed ExpectationsWas there a time where you not only met expectations or a quota but exceeded it? If so, it should be included on a resume. Many make the mistake of simply listing out the responsibility and not bringing attention to specific accomplishments.Example:Exceeded sales quota by 50% through producing engaging content using our social media accounts.Cut CostsHiring managers love to see specific examples of a way you decreased expenses. This could be anything from negotiating better terms or refining a process to be more efficient and less costly.Example:Reduced our cost of goods 13% by negotiating better terms with our suppliers. TrainingEmployers also love to see when you trained employees as it shows that you were trusted and knowledgeable. This really comes off as an achievement even though it may be a responsibility. Don’t forget to quantify it and mention the amount of employees you trained.Example:Trained 23 new employees on various functions and processes including [ Whatever you trained them in].LeadershipLeadership in anything also shows an achievement. You weren’t chosen to be in charge of something because of poor performance, but because you’re extremely skilled or knowledgeable on something. If it was something off the job like an association, for example, you can include it in the interests and activities section on your resume.Example:President of the ABC  Association of Engineers  since 2014.PresentationsWere you asked to speak or do a presentation at any time? If so, this is an excellent achievement to include on your resume. It shows leadership and confidence which will help make you s tand out over the other candidates.Example:Selected to present our new software in front of 3,500 people in attendance at the annual shareholders meeting.  Ask AroundYour colleagues are sometimes the best source to help point out some of your achievements. Youd be surprised at the things that really make you stand out which you may have overlooked. Dont sell yourself short, get as many achievements you possibly can on your resume.Resume accomplishments over responsibilities will really help you stand out and land the interview. The tips and examples above should help you come up with some resume achievements. Remember that quantifying (using numbers) on your resume is the easiest way to portray yourself as an “achiever” rather than just a “doer”.Thanks for your time and good luck with your job search!

What American Idol Can Teach Us About Career Advancement - Work It Daily

What American Idol Can Teach Us About Career Advancement - Work It Daily I guess by writing this post, I am admitting I watch American Idol, and not only do I watch it, but I enjoy it thoroughly. The reason I do is because I enjoy seeing people do what they love to do, especially in such a supportive arena. If corporate professionals followed their dreams like these young adults and even teens are doing on Idol, I believe the world would be a much more positive place. What can American Idol teach us about career advancement? One thing it can teach us is that to be successful, it is important to know who you are and lean on your strengths in whatever you do. One of the contestants, Scotty McCreery, is a country music singer. That is who he is, his voice, his roots, everything about him. In my opinion, American Idol is focused mostly around a pop music theme, and it would be very easy for someone like Scotty to try to sing pop music, specifically some of the more popular hits on the radio right now, to try to gain popularity votes, however he refuses to do that! Every single song he sings is either country, or he sings it in a country music style. He even sang Stevie Wonder’s hit, “For Once in My Life,” with a country twist and everyone loved it. So whether or not you like American Idol, it can teach us a lot about advancing our career. Seventeen year old Scotty McCreery has shown us the following are key elements to success: Know your strengths and utilize them. Stay true to yourself even when there is pressure to change. Be passionate in everything you do. Being a country music fan myself, I’d like to say thanks for the great music Scotty, and thanks for the career advancement inspiration! Photo credit: Shutterstock Have you joined our career growth club?Join Us Today!