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5 Time Management Tips

Thu, 24 May 2012 18:59:38 +0000

The old saying goes that there are only two sure things in this life: death and taxes. I believe that there is a third, however: wasting (or mismanaging) time. We all do this, to some degree or another, and oftentimes it creates unnecessary stress in our lives. But what you might not realize is that there may be a reason for your poor time management beyond, well, poor time management. So, in an effort to reduce stress and make us better, more productive people, here are 5 ways to manage your time better.

Take frequent breaks. Huh? How exactly will taking more breaks make you more productive? Because working incessantly on something can fry your brain and make you distracted even when you’re “working.” By building break time into your day, you can actually focus during the time you need to.

Say no when you need to. One of the big reasons many of us get stressed out and feel like we never have time to get everything done is because we don’t know how to say no - even when we’re already swamped. Sometimes it’s not only okay but better for you to say no because you’re stretched so thin that you might end up doing a subpar job anyway.

Sleep. Sometimes, when we’re very busy, we feel the need to push through and cut back on things like sleep time. Unfortunately, starting down this path often creates more problems because your lack of sleep will cause you to take longer to complete the same tasks, which will mean more lost sleep and more time and… so on. Regular sleep will keep you on time and on task.

Eat well and exercise. If you start living a less-than-healthy lifestyle because you’re overwhelmed by everything you have to get done, your problems will only get worse. Your body needs to be taken care of. Do so, and you will be refreshed and ready when you need to deal with those time-sucking tasks.

Realize that there are only so many hours in a day. Too often, we cram our days too full because we feel like we absolutely have to get everything done, then end up angry at ourselves when we fail. Unfortunately, wallowing in anger and self-pity wastes even more time. You need to let go of these feelings and be realistic. Prioritize what has to get done on any given day over when you want to get done and start with the most pressing and important tasks.

Components of Personal Success

Tue, 22 May 2012 15:00:40 +0000

The media are full of top executives, innovators, entrepreneurs, and other leading lights who have made their marks in a wide variety of ways. You can’t browse a news website without seeing another story about the remarkable things someone like this has accomplished.

Yet these stories rarely, if ever, reveal what sets these people apart and what allowed them to reach the topmost levels of the slippery pole of success.

To remedy that, here’s a quick checklist of some components of personal success. If you work on improving these factors, you’ll almost certainly find that slippery pole far easier to climb.

Skills for Thinking and Doing

There are exceptions, but by and large the most successful people tend to be very good at the basic skills of modern life. These include:

Reading well, and widely, and retaining much of what you read.
Writing clearly, persuasively, and with proper spelling.
Calculating numbers, using simple addition, subtraction, multiplication and division. It’s helpful -if you also “get” percentages and fraction.
Identifying the essential elements of a problem, and finding an extraordinary solution.
Digital tools, such as computers, the Internet, smartphones, and whatever software seems suitable for the tasks you hope to accomplish.

Interpersonal Skills

Success comes to those whom other people like, respect, believe, and are willing to support. That’s why people with basic interpersonal skills can expect to rise higher than others without them. These include:

Listening, understanding, and empathizing with others.
Speaking well, so others understand you and care about what you say.
Taking a positive point of view, the “glass half full” approach.
Showing enthusiasm, eagerness, and a reasonable amount of courage.
Getting along with others, generating good feelings, and avoiding confrontations.
Working well with others, including both taking direction and giving direction, when appropriate.

Performing Well

The ultimate spy, James Bond, survived and prevailed by means of his knack for turning threatening situations into successes, often in an instant. Few real people can do what James Bond can, but those of us who regularly turn in high-quality work, perform well under pressure, and learn from each of our mistakes tend to earn opportunities for advancement sooner than most others. Try to:

Regularly demonstrate your intelligence, energy, and ingenuity.
Set yourself challenging goals, and meet them.
Bring all your talents to bear on each task at hand.
Work hard to complete tasks rather than quit half-way.

Professional Growth

Those at the top get there because, in part, they steadily expand on their native talents and past experience. Don’t be content just to keep doing what you already can do. In addition, try to:

Regularly learn new skills and technologies.
Steadily broaden the areas in which you can function and perform well.
Seek to expand your range of contacts and knowledge.
Identify and develop more of your potential.

Career Development

Beyond simple personal and professional growth, the most successful people make efforts to plan their career trajectory. They pay attention to where they are, and where they’d like to go. To do this, they tend to:

Set a series of short- and long-term career goals, and work toward them.
Identify the specific steps they must take to advance along their planned career trajectory.
Commit to the actions likely to get them to their goals.
Measure their progress at regular intervals.
Make “course corrections” changes as necessary to maximize their progress.

Winning Attitude

People who have reached the top of the heap usually exhibit a level of passion and desire the rest of us rarely match. Sure, it’s easy to be passionate after you’ve achieved success. But that’s getting it backwards. Successful people know that an important basis for achieving success is to feel the passion first. To do this:

Expend maximum energy on the work and goals before you.
Show a positive, helpful, hopeful attitude toward the future.
Communicate your willingness to participate in projects, join teams, and support others in their efforts to be successful.

How to Deal with Unemployment on a Resume

Mon, 21 May 2012 15:00:19 +0000

For a while there at the beginning of this year, it was starting to look like we were entering a new period of job growth that would drastically slash the unemployment rate and herald the rebirth of prosperity.

And then it stopped. Or at least it slowed down dramatically. The most recent jobs report showed that tens of thousands fewer jobs were created than expected, leaving unemployment hovering over 8 percent.

Doesn’t sound like good news, does it? But at least in one way, it can be beneficial for you if you currently find yourself hunting for a job. How? Because being unemployed isn’t as big of a stigma right now as it has been in the past.

Still, that doesn’t mean that you should call attention to gaps in your employment if you don’t have to. For small gaps in your job history, try only listing the years that you were employed at a company on your resume and omitting the months. Unless you’re expressly asked to do otherwise, it’s generally considered okay to do this, and it can be great if you’ve been unemployed for less than a year, because a prospective employer might not ever know there was a gap in your employment.

Unfortunately, recent reports show that unemployed Americans are searching for an average of 28 weeks before they finally find work, and you probably know lots of people who have been looking for far longer. What do you put on your resume if you have this kind of hole?

You were “self-employed” or “freelance.” Have you written for any blogs since getting fired? Helped a friend with taxes? Shown your cousin how to paraglide? Obviously that last one is a bit of a joke, but if you’ve done anything that can even loosely be considered work in your field, tack it on to the resume. Now, don’t include this if it’s simply not true, or if you don’t feel like you can talk it up, but if you’ve done any kind of work during your unemployment downtime, it can be a great way to fill that hole.

Include classes - even if you were teaching yourself. Education typically isn’t as good as “real work,” but it shows that you were continuing to work on your skills in your off time. If you managed to earn a degree or certificate, it can even help you qualify for higher-level jobs, depending on your line of work.

Don’t be afraid of volunteer work. Again, it’s a way to show prospective employers that you kept active and involved, and didn’t simply give up and sit on your couch all day. If you can find a way to include volunteering that relates to their business, even better.

Lying is out, but so is overexplaining. Especially on a resume. The time to talk about your unemployment - if it comes up - is at the interview. Focus on the positive - what have you learned? How have you made yourself a stronger employee?

Getting Back Into Your Field: Re-entering the Workforce and/or Your Previous Career

Fri, 18 May 2012 15:00:32 +0000

In today’s job market, any candidate who has been temporarily out of work (whether for child-rearing, lay off, or any other reason) or who has been working on a different career track for the past few years faces tougher-than-normal scrutiny when looking for work along their previous career path. With so many highly-qualified applicants for every decent job, hiring managers simply don’t want to take the time or trouble to consider anyone whose career history is even slightly off-target from the position they’re seeking to fill.

However, if you use the right strategies, you can usually make this situation work out well. Here are some ways to earn the best chance of being hired for a job that’s not directly in line with your recent career trajectory:

1. Ask your personal contacts, your friends and your family about possible connections that can lead you toward the career specialization, industry, or companies you’re aiming for. When you simply apply to publicly advertised jobs, you’re competing with people who have the straight-line, uninterrupted career path you lack. But when you find out about a position through personal contacts, you have a leg up on most of the other candidates, and your lack of recent career-specific background may cease to be a problem.

2.Prepare your case for overall career relevance. Think long and hard about your off-target history, and develop solid reasons why those recent activities - either the work and goals you have been accomplishing, or the non-work activities you have been pursuing - have a lot of relevance and carry-over to whatever position you’re now hoping to obtain. Put together a simple, clear, compelling story that explains why your off-target background makes you a better candidate than before.

3.Consider joining an association, special interest group, club, or local organization that will bolster your connections with the jobs you’re hoping to win. As you introduce yourself around, make sure your new acquaintances understand the kinds of jobs and the companies you’re hoping to work for, and why you’re well suited for them.

4.Investigate key employees and managers at any of the companies where you would like to work. Make personal contact with some of them and ask for their help in finding out about the work they do, the industry, and so forth. This kind of informational interview provides you with an unmatched opportunity to ask questions and improve your knowledge. You might also discover what firms are hiring, and what qualifications will most interest those hiring managers.

5.Consider reconnecting with faculty members, other alumni, and friends from your most recently attended school. Friends - even those with whom you have lost contact - can sometimes be a great help in finding work. Instructors and professors are often very well-connected with private firms in their fields of specialty. Graduates may also have contacts they can share. At some schools, this kind of networking is well-established and even a point of pride - graduates know they can reach out to any other graduate and be welcomed and helped. If necessary, you may want to take a few courses in areas where you are weakest.

The better you understand the skills and knowledge needed to be a prized contributor in your chosen field, the more powerfully you can make a special effort to strengthen your candidacy in ways that will be most highly valued.

What’s Too Casual for a Casual Business Dress Code

Thu, 17 May 2012 15:00:08 +0000

Casual business attire? Mad Men this isn’t.

Most people are thrilled when they hear business casual. No need to spend hundreds - or thousands - on nice suits or business-appropriate dresses. You can be comfortable wearing clothes that are already in your closet and not worrying about taking forever making yourself presentable.

But what does “business casual” really mean? Sure, you can wear khakis and a button-down, but what about jeans? Is that skirt too short? That top too revealing? Where is the line drawn?

Unfortunately, what “business casual” means is different to everyone, and unfortunately not every company has a dress code. And don’t think you can just get away with going the opposite direction and dressing up - in some workplaces, suits will make you stand out in a bad way.

The best way to know what to wear is to observe those around you and mimic the general style that the majority of them are wearing. There are some outright no-nos that pretty much count across the board, though.

Revealing clothes. Something is not appropriate for a work environment if people can see your midriff, down your shirt, or up to your rear end. And for guys, pant waists that go below your underwear aren’t any more acceptable.

Offensive logos. You might think that shirt with the dead baby joke is hilarious, but that doesn’t mean it’s something you should be wearing to work.

Ripped, torn, or otherwise ratty clothing. Basically, you don’t want to look like you’re in a band from the ’80s. Even relaxed clothing should look nice and relatively professional.

Shorts. While there are some specific offices that allow shorts, they are generally not acceptable. And even in offices where they are okay, wearing shorts is going to label you as a particular kind of person. This isn’t necessarily bad, but you have to know this going in.

Wifebeaters and other tanktops. Do I really need to elaborate? Not appropriate for work.

There are many other things that specific workplaces don’t allow, and there are probably workplaces where these “no-nos” are perfectly fine. What it comes down to is learning the culture of your office. When in doubt, aim for the middle.

Letting Projects Ripen

Tue, 15 May 2012 18:19:34 +0000

Some projects move easily toward completion. Others are more difficult, contain hidden obstacles, encounter resistance, take lots more time, or turn out far worse than you planned.

There could be many possible reasons for these differences, but a big category of likely reasons is contained in an image of projects I like to call “ripening.” Like a piece of fruit, projects progress along a spectrum of “readiness.” When projects are fully ripe they yield to easy efforts and produce satisfying results. When they’re unripe, there’s little or nothing you can do to make them turn out well.

Some people attribute this “ripening” to a process of unconscious preparation and development that goes on in your head, rather than in the project. And that’s certainly one possibility. But “ripening” covers a lot of other project characteristics, many of which are undeniably external and objective.

The most obvious example of this is something like a timely report you’re asked to prepare on a fast-changing situation. If you prepare it now for presentation next week, there’s a good chance your report will be out of date by the time you deliver it. The project won’t be “ripe” - that is, ready for you to work on it - until you get much closer to your scheduled delivery date.

Here are some suggestions for determining whether or not a particular project is “ripe” enough for your best efforts:

1. Does it contain all the necessary data? In fast-changing environments, you won’t know the details of most current situations until the last possible minute. In complex situations, there may be days or weeks of data gathering and analysis required before a project is ready for you to start work. In any case, starting to crunch the numbers before all the numbers are in place is a classic case of working on a project before it is “ripe.”

2. Do you understand all the forces at work in the situation? If you’re not crystal clear about what’s going on, and exactly how each change you make will impact the overall picture, the project is not yet “ripe” enough for you to take action.

3. Are your skills and interests properly attuned to the project? Because you’re not a robot, your level of intelligence, ability to think and plan, creative juices, even your mood and other personal aspects vary greatly from week to week, day to day, even hour to hour. If the skills, talents, and abilities you require to perform well on a specific project are not peaking when you start work on it, you may be better off to delay your efforts until you can forge a better alignment between what you’re capable of doing and what you are trying to accomplish. Let the project “ripen” a little more you’re a better fit for its demands.

4. Are you fully focused on the project? Few of us face only one responsibility or challenge at a time; we normally attempt to juggle lots of projects all at the same time, and focus on each one if, as, and when necessary. If you’re currently too caught up in any one of your other projects, this may be the wrong time to tackle the one you’re now considering. You may produce better results by postponing some or all of your work on it until you can concentrate more exclusively.

Why Teamwork May Not Always Be Best

Wed, 09 May 2012 14:30:41 +0000

People skills. Collaboration. Group projects. Teams. Lately, business seem to have fallen in love with the idea of employees working together. The theory, apparently, is that two heads are better than one, and anything over three can’t help but produce something of genius.

In some ways, this point of view is understandable. After all, one person can have a crazy idea and just run with it, but if there are others around, they can rein that person in. Plus, with a group, things will be vetted as they move forward, making it more likely that the best ideas will rise to the top like the proverbial cream, right? Not necessarily.

The Loss of the Lone Genius

What all this togetherness doesn’t account for is the simple fact that some people just work better when they are off by themselves. In fact, more and more research is showing that some of the most creative individuals in any field are introverts that work far better when they are allowed to have privacy and freedom from interruption. These are “lone geniuses” who, by their very nature, just aren’t people who join with others. They are able to interact to the extent that they can share and advance their ideas by talking with people, but actually evolving those ideas with the hands-on help of others often ends up being detrimental.

For these people, solitude itself may actually be the thing that encourages their innovative and sometimes even outlandish thoughts. Freed from others, they don’t get sidetracked by the social dynamics that are intrinsic to working in a group. There will be no bombastic and charismatic group leader that keeps them quiet because they aren’t as good at speaking up in groups. No fear of rejection holding them back from proposing their more outside-the-box ideas, which often need time and space to evolve into something digestible for people who don’t have their imagination.

What this really comes down to is the idea that the world needs both kinds of people. For every charismatic genius like Steve Jobs, who worked best when pushing others to understand and realize his dreams, we need an Isaac Newton sitting alone under an apple tree working out the concept of gravity. Or, to put it a different way - Steve Jobs isn’t Steve Jobs without his own Isaac Newton going off alone to really think about things and work on the project alone.

Unfortunately, with the rise of “groupthink” in companies due to the desire to have everyone working together all the time, “lone geniuses” seem to be out of fashion, and it’s something we may come to regret.

Looking to Love Your Work

Mon, 07 May 2012 20:43:23 +0000

Ever watch kids play? Most of the time, they’re intensely focused, giving it their all, and very close to shrieking or laughing with pleasure.

Adults at work? Not so much.

The difference comes not just from the ages, or from the external pressures that impact adults at work much more than kids at play.

Among the biggest differences are how much more closely kids’ play meshes with and engages their basic interests, preferences, and sources of pleasure. But this seems natural, since most times kids choose what they’re going to play, while adults most often work on tasks and projects handed to them by supervisors.

Unless you’re independently wealthy, it’s undeniable that (in the words of the classic lyric): “you’re taking what they’re giving ’cause you’re working for a living.”

However, despite what you and everyone else may think, you may not have to accept quite as many unwanted job elements you do. In many jobs, there is room not only for pushback, but for choice. And the more deeply you can tap into your unique personality, skills, and abilities, the more likely you are to find work that’s well suited to you, work that fewer people are capable of doing as well as you. That’s an advantage, because when fewer people can perform a job well, it generally carries more prestige and pay.

These simple truths offer a strategy for upgrading your job situation to be more personally satisfying. Here’s how to do it:

Phase 1

Start by re-learning who you are and what you’re most capable of doing well. Think back to your childhood, then your teen years, then your early adulthood, and so on until you reconsider the present. Look for patterns, themes, and tendencies. Were you always good at math? Did you find it easy to see the best way forward? Were you unwilling to give up on certain goals? Did you frequently lose track of time during one or two of your activities?

The person you were in years gone by offers wonderfully accurate clues to your inner nature, native skills, most exciting potential, and deepest interests.

These are the elements you should try to incorporate into your working life, starting right away.

Phase 2

As you discover clues to your nature, skills, potential, and interests, look for ways in which all these elements might mesh, combine, or synergize. For example, if you are interested in colors and shapes, have a naturally strong memory for visual appearances, and want to know more about the ways people interact - both positively and negatively - with their spaces, you might bring all these elements into play in a career such as interior decoration or architectural design.

It takes a while to absorb enough clues about your unique personality and skills, and even more time for them to gel into possible new career directions. So allow plenty of time, but don’t let this effort languish, either. If any of this were easy, you’d already have done it. So keep pushing, even if it seems at times you’re making little progress.

Phase 3

Re-Invent yourself for a better job or career. Once you know more about what you love doing, begin blending the various job possibilities associated with them in search of a new way to earn your living. Without leaving your current job, for example, you can engage with others on your team, and with your supervisor or manager, to explore options for expanding or changing your current job description. You could ask to use different procedures or tools, or to handle different responsibilities.

The key to loving your work more to utilize more of your inner nature, native skills, most exciting potential, and deepest interests.

Can Blogging Help Your Job Search?

Tue, 24 Apr 2012 15:35:12 +0000

You’ve likely heard about companies firing their employers for complaining about their jobs (or sometimes even just mentioning them) in their personal blogs. What you don’t hear as much about are the success stories. People who attract the attention of employers through their blogging.

Why would blogging make employers think that you’re the person for them? Maintaining a blog requires a certain kind of skillset and can translate into a number of workplace environments.

You have to know how to market… Obviously great for marketing positions, but really in any industry where you might be creating a presentation about something for your bosses (or their bosses), this is a great skill to have.

…and network. The way to get more hits on your blog is that same way you get ahead in the business world: network with the right people who are able and willing to lend a helping hand in exchange for you doing the same.

You have to be able to build and maintain relationships. In other words - people skills. Sure, you’re dealing with your readers virtually, but a lot of the same manners and protocols apply that do in the work place. Good people skills are always a sought-after skill.

You have to be able to clearly communicate. This applies to, oh, just about every job anywhere. Unless you’re working completely alone, you’ll need to talk to coworkers, delegate effectively to people below you, and explain to your superiors why you did or didn’t do what they asked of you. People who communicate well tend to do well.

You have to know your field. Successful blogs tend to be niche blogs where a person has a lot of good information about a particular field. Chances are, if an employer is excited about the prospects of hiring you from your blog, it’s for a position in the field where you are an “expert.” And how did you become known as an expert? Your blog!

A blog can be particularly helpful if you are trying to change fields or looking to advance your career. You may have experience and expertise that doesn’t show up in your resume, but will shine through on a blog.

But before you list your blog on your resume, make sure it will help your job hunt. Does it look professional? Is it error-free? Do you have only positive things to say about the industry in which you are looking to be hired? If you’re not sure, get an outside opinion, preferably from a mentor within your field.

Use Twitter for Job Hunting

Fri, 20 Apr 2012 18:26:12 +0000

The advice is well known: as soon as you’re back on the streets, looking for work, you:

Update your resume
Tweak your LinkedIn profile
Browse the job boards
Apply to every open position that makes sense
Tell family, friends and professional colleagues that you’re looking

But there’s more you can do: Although Twitter is best known for silly, superficial, in-the-moment communications among people who know each other personally, it’s increasingly coming into use as a networking medium among people who have never met.

With Twitter accumulating active, involved users at a breath-taking pace, there are starting to be ways to use this communications channel for job hunting - ways that didn’t exist just a short time ago.

These include:

1) Tweet your needs to your friends and followers. It’s smart to use Twitter to let everyone in your network know you’re back in the hunt for a good position. Not only may you reach people not included in LinkedIn, Facebook, and your other networks, people who tweet are often an active, plugged-in group. In many cases, your contacts on Twitter will quickly offer you strong leads, or at least useful contacts, you can pursue as you search for your next job.

2) Add a photo to your Twitter profile. Since job searching on Twitter is likely to involve people who have never spent time with you (at least not recently), the value of a headshot is immense. It lets people evaluate your character - or at least think they can - and remember you more easily than they ever would without that kind of visual cue.

3) Cast as broad a net as you can. Networking is a numbers game, so getting more people thinking about you and your search for a new position is going to increase your chances of making a useful contact and parlaying it into a job offer.

Search Twitter for such people as:

Alumni of your school(s)

Career coaches

Human resources personnel

Experts, consultants, and networkers in your industry

Moderators of relevant chat rooms and job boards

Recruiters

Reporters who cover your industry

Specialty bloggers in your field

Tweeting to key people in these positions can directly or indirectly help you discover a position, or an organization looking to hire. What’s more, staying in touch with people like these will help you get and remain current in your industry, as well as understand more about any individual company you decide to target.

4) Follow the tweets coming from organizations where you’d like to work. There may be both official and unofficial messages that will help you identify upcoming relocations, new products and services, mergers, acquisitions, divestments, and internal reorganizations - any or all of which may lead to openings that you are qualified to fill.

It’s great when you can offer yourself as a candidate for a position even before the organization begins to search.

5) Tweet like a professional. Think in terms of your old, your present, or your new boss, and keep your tweets on a level that you’re willing to have them read. Personal issues, nights on the town, conquests, failures, silly thoughts, and embarrassments are all better reserved for face-to-face conversations with friends, rather than broadcast to the Twitterverse.