Archive for the 'World Of Self Improvement' Category

Looking for a Job Using the Web to Win

Sunday, January 10th, 2010

A modern job search campaign is by nature pretty complex. While the net has offered a variety of new channels, it also creates increased competition for choice jobs and potential challenges for job hunters.

Job search needs to be thought of as a personalized, highly targeted marketing process where you are the product. Your resume is an ad. Your extended network of associates is your source for information.

So where does the web fit in? At AA-Careers, we just posted a job on a popular job board and got 600+ applications in a calendar week. For a single position. That’s increased job hunting competition.

Had a suitable candidate contacted us ahead of our posting that ad, they could have gotten the position prior to getting all that competition. How? By knowing someone at our office who became aware of the job prior to posting. Everyone knew about of the job for at least 9 days before it was posted. Who in your network might know of a job that’s coming available soon?

Be careful to check your application materials thoroughly before submitting them. When we did an analysis of the 650 resumes, we found a large number of errors. 63% of the applicants were easily eliminated with a fast triage process. How? The same way any HR professional would. By passing over resumes where the objective didn’t match our job. By eliminating candidates whose cover letters gave us reasons not to employ them, like "I know I’m overqualified but I really need a job". By eliminating job hunters whose documents that didn’t open properly. And by passing over prospects who didn’t bother to spell check their cover letter and/or resume.

So the good news is that job sites give you a feel of who is hiring, and for what kinds of jobs. But once those jobs are posted, the competition is intense. You can still compete, if you have a well honed resume, designed to appeal directly and clearly to the recruiter. And if you have practiced interviewing – so you don’t stumble at a critical point.

Another downside to be aware of is how quickly and easily you can be looked up on the net. As we Googled several candidates, we ran into some personal web pages that were in questionable taste. Nothing insane, but enough to sway our thinking about who to hire.

AA-Careers provides a all-inclusive set of services for Bay Area job seekers, providing our clients a personal career consultant, a managed job hunting campaign, modern tools like a personal website, video, highly targeted resume, and much more. Let us know if we can help you.

Be careful out there, and good hunting!

When the Matchmaker Goes to a Dating Service: Great Expectations

Saturday, July 4th, 2009

My sisters characterize me as Miss Matchmaker, due to the fact that’s a my natural job. I definitely suggest singles try joining Great Expectations. No way around it, serendipity happens when you’re not looking. Good matchmakers, like Great Expectations Milwaukee the pioneer in dating, understand their members individually. They setup effective social encounters between friends, and that’s dating done right. It’s an underrated task providing big promise by developing working marriages till “death do us part”.

day in day out I have dispensed more than my share of recommendations on the web and in my local column. What you’re reading won’t be rehashed advice. You know all that. Pay attention to what your date has to say, be cool, try not to be uncomfortable, be frank and (important) steer clear of grading dates on a checklist. Take it breazy, and take your time! Encourage magical moments if it feels right. Here’s a big no-no: don’t exacerbate things hoping to come off as something is not you. Consider ramifications if the acquaintance becomes deep, then you have no choice but to come to terms. But here’s the secret to dating, I’ve always recommended Great Expectations Milwaukee. Yes, matchmaking is naturally what I have practiced for as long as I remember. My great successes with singles around me developed my brand of sorts. The results are everywhere.

First of all take Rebecca and George with their flock of little ones. Take a stab at who pegged them to eachother at a Brewers game once upon a time, and the result is apparent. Fernando and Caroline also fell for eachother at first sight when I set them up at a barbecue a few summers back. And of course my soririty sister Amanda and her perfect match, Teddy. It’s no secret this adorable pair get hitched in Vegas next September. These two love birds built their love via Great Expectations, on my suggestion.

So I have kept busy and extraordinarily resourceful as well! But all this time, while I’ve been the art of assisting single friends realize the attitude needed to build a life together with someone, I neglected my personal dating life. Can you guess what goes down when the dating expert requires a matchmaker? I have Great Expectations Milwaukee dating service, because being specialized in an area it raises expectations. Perhaps these sentiments has kept me from really getting serious about dating. If anyone does, I understand that you can’t exist in this world by yourself. So here I am, taking my own advice by quality singles.

Vanessa Hetrick

Expert Matchmaker

Is Being Bald the Current Leading Fad?

Thursday, June 4th, 2009

Men have consistently been self conscious about going bald, nonetheless these days being bald is becoming a fashion trend. Numerous of this generation’s male celebrities are having bald heads. People can find many of the trendiest up and coming stars with bald heads, by choice. There are also loads of elder movie stars that are not covering up the reality that they are becoming bald. These looks are outstanding for men, that don’t want to care about becoming bald. The additional wonderful advice for men that are losing their hair, is that there are currently loads of advanced hair solutions, then ever before.

Should people need inspiration that being bald is appealing simply look at Vin Diesel, Howie Mandel, Bruce Willis & Andre Agassi. All these men are some of the most fashionable men in America, & they are all bald. Whether bald by decision or by nature, baldness should make people look astonishingly acclaimed & attractive. When men are bald and confident, they are exceedingly sexy. Just like any fashion, being bald is all about attitude. When you are bald you need to have a positive attitude, then you may have no issue attracting women.

If you are becoming bald, but you are not yet hopeful with your latest expression, there are various therapies out there. Several hair loss remedies, assist you grow back your own natural hair. When you grow back your own hair, it will look & feel effectively natural. Growing back your own hair will help you look & feel younger, and can often help you feel even more confidant. Growing back one’s own hair is an excellent option, because you will continue to look like yourself, just younger.

For the reason that growing one’s own hair again is not an option, there are of course many advanced hair therapy that will aid you get a full head of hair back. No matter what kind of baldness problems you are having, rest assured that there is a hair loss cure that can apply for you. Some of the advanced hair therapies are more involved, & it can be a longer time before you have a full head of hair. Countless men worry, about their hair looking natural after they use all these advanced hair treatments. Be sure to communicate to a doctor or the person doing the hair treatments, to make sure you absolutely understand the results.

The most important thing regarding hair loss, is that you feel natural & comfortable. If you feel gorgeous bald, do not care about buying hair loss remedies. If you are self conscious about your thinning hair, you are not alone. If you do your research, & pick up the leading hair loss treatment for you, you’re sure to feel great with your hair. For hair loss advice and treatments, visit Advanced Hair Studio.

The Veiled Gift of Envy

Friday, June 13th, 2008

I once spent a year obsessed with another writer’s success. Envy whispered in my ear, “You should have what she has and right now.” I was aghast at my obsession, especially given that I didn’t particularly like her book, and yet envy wouldn’t go away. It was (almost) comical how each time a fresh wave of envy broke over me, there she would be, her name in an email, her book dropping out of a bookshelf at my feet, an invitation to be on a panel with her in my PO Box. Instead of trying to block out the envy as simply something bad, sinful, or shameful I went deeper for a change.

I sat with envy, probing it, turning it over, trying to get at the heart of what was so important to me about this writer or her work. What I slowly (oh, how slowly) discovered: I was envious of the support system she had created while I was stuck in a pattern of doing everything all by my lonesome. What I wanted was to collaborate creatively with others. Zap! Almost overnight, my envy shrunk and my passion for new ventures ignited.

Envy’s favorite phrase is, “If only.” If you have a present case of “If only,” give your “if onlys” some air time. Make a list. If I only had that job, her buns, his house, then I would be powerful, sexy, happy.

Using your list, ask yourself the question spiritual teacher and best-selling author Oriah Mountain Dreamer teaches. “It doesn’t really interest me if I have (insert one of your “if onlys”), what I really want is ____.” As in, “It doesn’t really interest me if I have enough time, what I really want is to feel at peace.” Or “It doesn’t really interest me lose 20 pounds, what I really want is to feel comfortable in my own skin.”

Let’s say you discover you really want peace. Using a tool like one I adapted from my mentor, friend, and master coach Molly Gordon, check in with yourself each night and ask, “When was I most peaceful today?” Next, recall when you were least peaceful. Jot these moments down–I keep a special journal Molly gave me for this purpose. Do this every night for a month. You’ll find several things happen. You start to look for and create more peaceful moments each day. And by creating a record of your choices and looking back on it after a month, a tremendous amount of information about how you commit and oppose peace will come into your awareness. I’ve been keeping my record for about 6 months now and I find it a powerful tool for change.

Perhaps you have a story that envy means you are bad, shallow, not spiritually evolved. What if envy is a sign post, pointing you to the next step in your life’s path, and warning you where you might have lost track of your deepest longings. What if envy is a signal you have been sucked too deeply into the culture’s story of what is important–in the case of American culture, the more money and stuff you have, the more important you are. What if envy is a gift–if you are just courageous enough to wrestle the gold from its sticky, grasping hands.

Jennifer Louden is a best-selling author of five books, including her classic, The Woman’s Comfort Book, and her newest, Comfort Secrets for Busy Women. She’s also a creativity and life coach, creator of the Inner Organizer, and a columnist for Body + Soul Magazine. She leads retreats on self-care and creativity around the country. Hear her live on Martha Stewart Living Radio, Sirius Channel 112 every Sunday at 8 am Pacific, 11 am Eastern. Visit her world at: http://www.comfortqueen.com and http://www.jenniferlouden.com

How Breaking Routine And Unexpected Acts of Kindness Can Energize Your Day!

Thursday, June 5th, 2008

Sometimes life becomes so routine, we don’t have to think about a thing we’re doing throughout the day. We’re programmed to run on automatic. It’s important to shake things up every once in a while to get the creative juices flowing, give us an added boost of energy or give us something to concentrate on for a change.

When routine sets in, particularly in relationships, we can’t always see the impact it has until we throw a new ingredient into the mix. This week, I ventured outside of my regular routine, and performed a very unexpected act of kindness. The results were terrific!

Picture it, Cicely, 1945 … oops, wait, wrong story …

Picture it, Northern Ontario, Winter 2004. It’s Friday morning, snow is falling, there is a nip in the air and neither my husband nor I want to get out of our toasty warm bed to get ready for work.

We go through the same exercise every morning. We both wait for the other one to get up first to turn up the furnace, then he heads to his washroom to get ready and I go into my office to meditate for half an hour.

This morning, however, neither of us would budge. He didn’t want to get up, shower, make breakfast and prepare lunches, and I didn’t want to meditate, go through my agenda for the day and start prioritizing my long list of outstanding tasks. We were stuck.

I must have been desperate or temporarily insane because I suddenly blurted out, “Hey! You get up and get ready and I’ll make you breakfast today!” He was stunned at first and didn’t say a word, then started laughing, “Yeah right. What about your meditation?” For anyone who knows me, there are two things I don’t do … cook (unless I’m in a real bind) and deviate from my routine.

I insisted I was going to cook for him … anything he wanted. Eggs, bacon, you name it! There will be no meditating today. He hesitantly agreed and headed for his washroom, wondering if his dear partner had been possessed during the night and lost complete leave of her senses. The last time I made him breakfast was, hmmm, let’s see … when was the last time the Oilers won the cup?

I whipped up a hearty breakfast and while he ate, he repeatedly commented on how he couldn’t believe I had done this. He thanked me several times.

Once I had finished in the kitchen, I went to my room to start getting ready for work. I could hear him singing and talking to himself in the kitchen. I called out to him, “You’re happy, aren’t you?” and he answered, “My baby made me breakfast!”

It was amazing how performing a small task for the benefit of someone else made such a BIG impact! My husband was excited and happy, and I felt fantastic for making him feel appreciated and loved.

For the remainder of the day, I was a fireball. I joked with everyone at work and had them laughing and feeling great. The day flew by. I accomplished loads of work and had tons of energy.

When my husband got home from work, he told me about his great day, how he was zinging off one-liners at the guys and making them laugh, and how good he felt, mentally and physically.

Changing our routine and experiencing an act of kindness elevated both of us mentally, physically and emotionally. It is no secret that change and giving to others boost our energy levels, but we get so caught up in daily living that we easily forget. We fall into the comfort zone of habit.

Today is a new day. What can YOU do differently? Take a different route to work? Part your hair on the left instead of in center? Take the stairs instead of the elevator? Whatever it is and no matter how small, change makes a positive impact.

What can YOU do for someone else today? Something completely unsolicited and without expectation. If you’re going through the drive-thru at the coffee shop, pay for the coffee for the driver behind you. If you see someone struggling with her bags at the grocery store, lend a hand. The simplest act of kindness will reap big rewards for the giver, receiver and everyone they touch throughout the day.

EzineArticles Expert Author Laurie Hayes

Laurie Hayes is a Life Strategy Coach and owner of Where the Heart Is Life Coaching. She works with people who want to live life more authentically and on purpose. She can be reached at http://www.wheretheheartis-lifecoaching.com