New Thoughts on Job Boards for 2018

New Thoughts on Job Boards for 2018 Job boards. Should you use them? Do you use them but feel guilty? If you pay attention to career experts, they say to not waste time on job boards. But as a job seeker, this is where it feels most comfortable.   Theres a disparity somewhere and a conflict. Ive been down on job boards sometimes, but I also recognize the value of job boards.   Heres the real issue: If you spend all (or most) of your time applying to jobs on job boards, you are generally wasting your time.   Or, you are investing your time in tactics that are less likely to get you closer to landing a job (thats the more tactful way of putting it). Why? Any job seeker who has applied for a job knows about the great frustration of applying online. Specifically, uploading your resume, and then having to copy and paste info from the resume into a long form. This can easily take 45+ minutes per application.   If you do a few of these a day you spend more than half your day applying to jobs. This is mind-numbing, and for anyone who has been involved in process improvement, its frustrating. Whats worse, the stats on job boards are not in your favor. Nick Corcodilos says that less than 3% of jobs are filled by people who apply online. So spending your time on job boards is like fishing in a hole that has little-to-no fish. Maybe thats because so many postings arent real? Maybe its because the hiring decisions are generally made before a posting ever goes online? Maybe its because hiring managers like employee referrals more than random applications? Thats the conventional wisdom: dont use job boards (as a major part of your job search).   But again, were left at the conundrum! My recent experience shows that job boards indeed have value. As a job seeker I can get a thumb on whats going on and whos hiring from postings. Job boards make it easier to do competitive intelligence and learn about the landscape who is hiring, what are they hiring for? Heres a tip that  not many people talk about: the effectiveness of any job search tactics depends on many factors, including your level (executive or entry level), your location (small town or big city), your industry, etc. Let me suggest some effective ways to use job boards: Use job boards to find leads on roles for companies you might not have heard of, or openings at companies you are interested in. This is lead generation and information gathering. This is your way to keep up on what the market looks like, whats available, movement at companies, and even company changes/strategies. Use email alerts to avoid spending too much time searching on job boards. For my level and experience Ive found LinkedIn to be the best, most accurate source of real postings. You might find other boards to be better. Set up email alerts so you are just checking your email daily instead of spending time in the black hole of job boards. When you find roles, study them. In my first big job search I was looking for project manager and business analyst roles, and had never heard of product manager roles (which is what I really wanted, I just didnt know they existed). Job boards are a great place to find trending roles and things that you might not have heard about before. As you prepare for interviews (or your targeted resume, or cover letters, or even networking), print out ten postings of the title you are  interested in and study them. You should find consistent words and phrases and you might fish out something unique here or there.   All of this will help you make a better communication plan. You should pick up on jargon, and trends within your role. This is one of the best ways I can think of to quickly come up to speed on things you need to know, and be able to talk, about. And really, its okay to apply to jobs online. In my experience, even when networking into companies youll hear apply online, and then call this person. Applying online gets you in the system. My advice, though, is to not spend hours everyday applying online. Apply for jobs that you are really interested in, and then network to learn about some of the maybe jobs. The biggest problem with job boards is when they consume your job search time. Make sure you use job boards in a balanced way (implement other tactics, like networking!!), and use them in the right ways (as opposed to just finding openings and applying online!). Thats my take for job boards in 2018. New Thoughts on Job Boards for 2018 Job boards. Should you use them? Do you use them but feel guilty? If you pay attention to career experts, they say to not waste time on job boards. But as a job seeker, this is where it feels most comfortable.   Theres a disparity somewhere and a conflict. Ive been down on job boards sometimes, but I also recognize the value of job boards.   Heres the real issue: If you spend all (or most) of your time applying to jobs on job boards, you are generally wasting your time.   Or, you are investing your time in tactics that are less likely to get you closer to landing a job (thats the more tactful way of putting it). Why? Any job seeker who has applied for a job knows about the great frustration of applying online. Specifically, uploading your resume, and then having to copy and paste info from the resume into a long form. This can easily take 45+ minutes per application.   If you do a few of these a day you spend more than half your day applying to jobs. This is mind-numbing, and for anyone who has been involved in process improvement, its frustrating. Whats worse, the stats on job boards are not in your favor. Nick Corcodilos says that less than 3% of jobs are filled by people who apply online. So spending your time on job boards is like fishing in a hole that has little-to-no fish. Maybe thats because so many postings arent real? Maybe its because the hiring decisions are generally made before a posting ever goes online? Maybe its because hiring managers like employee referrals more than random applications? Thats the conventional wisdom: dont use job boards (as a major part of your job search).   But again, were left at the conundrum! My recent experience shows that job boards indeed have value. As a job seeker I can get a thumb on whats going on and whos hiring from postings. Job boards make it easier to do competitive intelligence and learn about the landscape who is hiring, what are they hiring for? Heres a tip that  not many people talk about: the effectiveness of any job search tactics depends on many factors, including your level (executive or entry level), your location (small town or big city), your industry, etc. Let me suggest some effective ways to use job boards: Use job boards to find leads on roles for companies you might not have heard of, or openings at companies you are interested in. This is lead generation and information gathering. This is your way to keep up on what the market looks like, whats available, movement at companies, and even company changes/strategies. Use email alerts to avoid spending too much time searching on job boards. For my level and experience Ive found LinkedIn to be the best, most accurate source of real postings. You might find other boards to be better. Set up email alerts so you are just checking your email daily instead of spending time in the black hole of job boards. When you find roles, study them. In my first big job search I was looking for project manager and business analyst roles, and had never heard of product manager roles (which is what I really wanted, I just didnt know they existed). Job boards are a great place to find trending roles and things that you might not have heard about before. As you prepare for interviews (or your targeted resume, or cover letters, or even networking), print out ten postings of the title you are  interested in and study them. You should find consistent words and phrases and you might fish out something unique here or there.   All of this will help you make a better communication plan. You should pick up on jargon, and trends within your role. This is one of the best ways I can think of to quickly come up to speed on things you need to know, and be able to talk, about. And really, its okay to apply to jobs online. In my experience, even when networking into companies youll hear apply online, and then call this person. Applying online gets you in the system. My advice, though, is to not spend hours everyday applying online. Apply for jobs that you are really interested in, and then network to learn about some of the maybe jobs. The biggest problem with job boards is when they consume your job search time. Make sure you use job boards in a balanced way (implement other tactics, like networking!!), and use them in the right ways (as opposed to just finding openings and applying online!). Thats my take for job boards in 2018.

Feeling Stressed When Writing a Resume

Feeling Stressed When Writing a ResumeHave you ever been asked by an employer to sit down and look at your resume, ask yourself do you feel stressed when writing a resume? There is a difference between feeling stressed and feeling anxious when writing a resume.What is the difference between stress and anxiety when writing a resume? When you write your resume you are speaking and writing to a future employer that you hope will hire you, you are trying to get the best job possible. So, why is it that some people cannot seem to write a resume that they feel confident about and get an employer to call or email them?When you are not necessarily looking for a job right now, but are looking for a promotion or raise in your current position or a job that requires a college degree, you may feel that your resume does not contain enough relevant information to give you an opportunity to get the job. This is where stress comes into play. You feel stressed that your resume may not be good enough and you may start to worry that you will not be hired because you do not have the resume that the employers want.Now think about that stressful situation for a second. Now that you know why it is that your resume does not show what you need it to show, what can you do to get that stress and anxiety out of your life? You are going to have to do some introspection and work on that resume so that you do not get stressed anymore.First thing you want to look at is bad information on your resume. You want to take a look at the things that are written that you feel will make you look bad or not be hiring for the job. Start by saying a few things to yourself like: 'I don't know how to write a resume. I don't feel qualified to do this job.'The next thing you want to do is sit down and talk to a professional and find out some tips on how to get the job. Don't jump in there and just fire off your resume without having a firm understanding of the information needed to get the job. The other per son will also have an understanding of how to write a resume that they feel will get the job that they are applying for.So what is it that can get you out of a stressful situation? It is knowing the difference between what makes you anxious and what makes you feel stressed. When you are stressed you will not be able to focus on what you are trying to do and you may end up with more anxiety than what you were originally trying to achieve.With that in mind when you are writing a resume, remember that you are trying to do two things, get the job and calm your nerves. You need to have the right mindset and stay focused.

12 Tasty Out-of-the-Pizza-Box Ways to Eat Pizza

12 Tasty Out-of-the-Pizza-Box Ways to Eat Pizza Pizza is the one of the most popular comfort foods in America.   In the last month, a whopping 93% of Americans have eaten this warm, gooey satisfying dish.   With national pizza month â€" October being right around the corner, it’s time to take pizza worship to a whole new level.   Here are a dozen out-of-the-box ways to get your pizza fix. Why should dough have all the fun?   For a fun twist, put your pizza toppings on a different bottom. Pizza Fries When you pair one comfort food with another comfort food, what do you get?   The ultimate comfort food!   That’s what you get when you top French fries with all the cheesy saucy goodness that you would normally find on pizza. Zucchini Pizza Boats For a low-carb spin, use zucchini boats to hold your pizza toppings.   Simply slice the vegetable lengthwise and layer on sauce, cheese and your other favorite pizza flavors.   Naturally gluten-free, these boats will send your tastes buds sailing on an ocean of deliciousness. Pizza Stuffed Mushrooms Another healthy “crust” option is a mushroom cap.   A mushroom cap makes the perfect bowl for you to pile high with pizza goodness.   To make a meal of it, use large portabella mushrooms; you’ll have perfectly sized personal pizza portions.   As appetizers or for potlucks, use baby bellas or white mushrooms to create bite-sized bits of heaven. Pizza Nachos Mexican and Italian cuisine come together in this multi-cultural dish.   Crispy tortillas make the perfect bed for pizza toppings.   Give your toppings a Mexican flair as well.   Instead of Italian sausage, try chorizo and swap bell peppers out for jalapenos.   Pizza Quesadillas Nachos are not the only Mexican dish that can get an Italian twist.   Traditional quesadillas are filled with meat, queso fresco and veggies.   Keep the meet and veggies, swap out the queso for mozzarella, add marinara sauce and you’ve got a pizza-fied quesadilla.   Pizza Pasta Bake This kid friendly dish will be a family dinner favorite.   Elbow macaroni, fusilli pasta, or mini shells make this pasta bake easy for little ones to eat.   Mini pepperonis will kick up the fun factor. If you want to stay a dough traditionalist, but you’re ready to get creative with presentation, try these variations. Pizza Dip with Bread Sticks Dips are great for parties but chips and salsa are overdone and while veggies and ranch are refreshing they don’t have indulgence-factor that makes a really great party food.   Pizza dip with breadsticks fulfills both our need to dip food and our need to feel slightly guilty for indulging.   Pizza Pinwheels Pizza pinwheels are fun bite size way to present pizza.   Forgot those frozen pepperoni rolls!   Pizza pinwheels will be the new favorite after school snack.   If you are feeding them to adults, jazz them up with gourmet flavors like spinach and artichoke or buffalo chicken.   Deep Dish Mini Pizzas Deep dish pizza is synonymous with Chicago.   The history of deep dish pizza is a long one, beginning in 1943.   Exactly who invented the deep dish version of pizza is debatable, but what is not debatable is how delicious it is.   You can easily make your own mini deep dish pizzas using a muffin tin and crescent rolls.   Braided Pizza Loaf This recipe looks as good as it tastes!   When you need to impress some guests or just want to have an extra special dinner at home, a braided pizza loaf will make your table look fancy.     It only looks like it would take an artist to pull this off.   It reality it’s easy but go ahead and take the credit anyway. Pizza is not just for dinner anymore and I’m not just talking about cold pizza  for breakfast.   Here are some recipes that will make pizza the start of your next brunch. Pizza Frittata or Quiche Frittata and quiche are both baked egg dishes that take their que from ingredients added to them.   Quiches have a crust whereas frittatas do not.   Diced tomato, mozzarella cheese, sausage and Italian seasonings bring the pizza flavor home in this dish.   Scrambled Egg Pizza If you’ve got left over pizza, don’t just toss it in the microwave or eat it cold.   Instead, tear it into bite size pizzas and fry it up with some scrambled cheesy eggs.   You won’t be disappointed! Now you have enough recipes to eat some form of pizza for nearly half of national pizza month.   I think it’s time to stock up on mozzarella, pepperoni, and pizza sauce!

Theres a Guy on LinkedIn Swears Hes Elvis

Theres a Guy on LinkedIn Swears Hes Elvis “Theres a guy works down the chip shop swears hes Elvis / But hes a liar and Im not sure about you”  Lyrics by Kirsty MacColl In pre-social media days the traditional hiring process was thus: Advert in paper, CV posted with covering letter, interview, second interview, offer negotiation and then references. Pretty linear stuff with information shared between a fairly restricted number of players and usually confined to a discussion on professional competencies and achievements. In the past CVs could contain embellishments (or sometimes downright lies) and only the most fastidious of hiring companies and the most honest of referees would challenge any potentially dodgy data. Stories of such hoodwinks or blags are legion and I suspect mostly apocryphal but whos to know how many senior and successful professionals previously managed to achieve moves up the career ladder with the odd little white lie or exaggeration on their CVs? Online profiles help transparency Today however we expose multiple aspects of our lives across sites such as Facebook, Linkedin, Twitter, Blogs, Instagram, Foursquare and many more. Savvy employers are able to tune in to and survey these online personalities and achieve a much more complex understanding of who are, or who we purport to be, without the need to ever read a CV. In some circumstances this has even taken a more sinister or intrusive direction with stories of employers asking employees or prospective employees to hand over passwords to social media accounts so they could vet even the information we have chosen to remain private to certain circles of friends, connections and followers. Recently two US senators have asked for an investigation into this practice and Erin Egan, Facebook’s chief privacy officer, has issued a statement to users highlighting their right to refuse these requests. Our professional profiles, which advertise our skills and experiences on sites such as LinkedIn for networking, promotional and career advancement reasons are necessarily more open than the social biased sites such as Facebook. This openness means they are there to be judged and shared online by colleagues, peers, competitors, clients and employers. Woe betide anyone considering bending the truth or bigging up their achievements without the evidence to back it up as they can be quickly challenged and exposed. Nothing irks quite so much as someone taking undeserved credit for something and if found out the action taken against the usurper is likely to be very public and impossible to keep a lid on. Never reveal sensitive or confidential information The other big no-no is revealing information on profiles which others may deem sensitive or even confidential. The recent case of HR Manager John Flexman fired because of his Linkedin profile seems to hinge on two key items of contention. First that Mr Flexman was advertising himself as interested in career opportunities which is employer objected to. Second that he published company data that was deemed sensitive. I understand Mr Flexman’s court case against his employer is ongoing and many social media commentators are waiting with baited breath to see how this pans out as the repercussions may be significant. Similarly users should avoid employing outlandish corporate gobbledygook on their profile to describe their fairly prosaic skills and services. A bit of spit, polish and marketing sparkle is perhaps fine but go too far and you run the risk of online ridicule. Staff augmentation service? I recently had a good chuckle at a tweet sent to over 3,000 followers by an industry voice (and then retweeted onwards by many more) raising an arched eyebrow at a recruitment agent describing their “exceptional staff augmentation service” available to clients. What was going through their mind when they wrote that particular piece of copy I have no idea but it clearly didn’t have the desired effect of accurately describing what they do but rather made them look a tad ridiculous. The most bizarre and wrong-headed use of misinformation and deception used online that I’ve come across (so stupid I thought it was made up) are the foolish users who choose to create bogus profiles in the hope that they can solicit useful industry information from unsuspecting networkers. For instance recruiters who hope that their false profiles will be approached with job opportunities, which they can then in turn act upon. How many flavours of stupid is that? At some point they are always “outed” and in one stroke they drag their profession through the mud, destroy what reputation they may have had and make themselves pariahs. Not to mention the distracting effort it must take to maintain the subterfuge. Online profile guidelines So when honing your online profile it’s probably best to stick to the following guidelines: Sticking to the truth is always the best policy Employment dates should add up, job titles should be truthful, responsibilities and achievements accurate, qualifications comprehensive Use a photo that is actually you; not a cartoon character, album cover or movie star (I’ve seen them all) Use plain English as much as possible and avoid too much corporate speak Be 100% sure that you’re not posting any information that your employer, past employer or clients may deem sensitive or confidential If your employer has a social media policy take care to ensure you abiding by it Be mindful of the difference between what is appropriate on a site like Facebook where your friends are and what is appropriate on a site like Linkedin which may be seen by employers, colleagues and clients Promotion and polish to make your profile look as good as possible is fine but mendacity is not: “There ain’t nothin’ more powerful that the odor of mendacity” Big Daddy in Tennessee Williams’s Cat on a Hot Tin Roof Related: What Does Your Online Persona Say About Your Personal Brand?

Resume Writing For Multilateral Organizations

Resume Writing For Multilateral OrganizationsIf you are a business owner and want to improve your business skills then resume writing for multilateral organizations is a great way to do so. By writing a quality resume that includes your knowledge, experience and ability in the business field you will be able to improve your chances of getting a job with one of these companies.While most companies are well aware of the requirements of a job interview, not many of them have ever seen a resume before. If you want to make it through the interview process then your resume has to be very convincing. The employers do look at resumes as long as they meet the basic requirements, which includes showing professionalism and your interest for the company you are applying to.There are several ways you can use to write a great resume for multilateral organizations. One of them is to write it yourself. Another way is to hire an expert to do it for you. Or you can even hire a professional to do it fo r you.When writing your own resume there are some basics you need to keep in mind. First of all you should list your relevant education and work experience and other qualifications that make you qualified for the position. After you know how much experience you have and which companies you have worked for you can begin your resume writing. Your resume will only need about three to four pages to include all of the important information.Since writing your resume can be time consuming, it is always a good idea to get it written by someone else. This will make it easier to read and understand because the information has been organized in a more logical and structured way. There are two main types of resume writing for multilateral organizations; one being by a professional or a company, and the other being by an individual.The professional type of resume can be easily formatted and can be written in just a few hours. They also come with many templates that can be used by you or by someo ne else. For this type of resume you should use plain white paper and a professional font and layout to make it easy to read.Writing an individual resume can be done by anyone who knows how to spell and write. The most important thing to remember is to stay focused on the information you have to offer. It is a good idea to put a sentence or two that mentions what your strengths are. Make sure you include your previous employment history so you can show examples of your previous work history.Once you have your resume ready then it is time to submit it to the companies that are going to conduct a job interview. There are a lot of things to consider when writing a resume for a multilateral organization. You should know that it takes a lot of hard work and determination to produce a well-written resume for this type of business.

Much Better Meetings - for Danes - The Chief Happiness Officer Blog

Much Better Meetings - for Danes - The Chief Happiness Officer Blog We are extremely proud to be able to announce our newest product, which is called Much Better Meetings. Basically, meetings often suck and make people unhappy at work. I talked to a friend today who says he has a doctors note to the effect that any meeting longer than 10 minutes gives him a nosebleed. Much Better Meetings is a complete system, ready to install in any meeting room, which helps you plan and facilitate effective, structured, fun meetings. However, Im afraid its only available in Danish so far under the name of Meget Bedre M?der. Read all about it at www.megetbedremoeder.dk. Depending on the interest we get an English version may be coming soon. 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

Small Company Leadership

Small Company Leadership The corporate giants a fading or falling.   Where will new job opportunities lie? In small companies.   If youve never worked in a company with fewer than 1,000+ people, now is your chance! Great Leadership addressed the issue of leadership differences between large and small companies. In the post, Dan McCarthy cites a landmark leadership development study which indicates that great leadership is formed from these experiences: 1. Job changes 2. Challenging, stretch assignments (without changing jobs) 3. Other people (good bad managers, mentors, coaches) 4. Hardships (learning from trauma, failure) 5. Other (programs, books, etc…) If you are seeking your next opportunity within the small company sector, ALL of these leadership growth opportunities exist, never fear! There are many benefits to working in a small company as well as Keppie Careers post pointed out: Improved work/life balance Less political Better company culture Think about what is important to you in your next company and job.   Think about creating a description of what the best company would look like (great idea from The Daily News Tribune).   You may find that bigger is not always better!