The Importance of Revisiting and Assessing Your Past Mistakes Building Your Future Now

The Importance of Revisiting and Assessing Your Past Mistakes Building Your Future Now Success comes from your past failures and mistakes. So it is important to look back and study major mistakes. This is not something to torture yourself withbut a project which requires you to review why you made a mistake and how you corrected it. For example, if you were at a job and you got fired for a reason that was merited ltry going back and looking at it in a critical way. Why were you fired? Have you learned from that mistake? Can you go over that mistake with someone you trust to uncover other areas of opportunity? Its all about looking at these moments as ways of learning to better yourself as a person and as a professional. We do not get better at things over night nor understand things better by merely glancing at it. We need to thoroughly review the situation and find out causes and effects. We become professionals by learning from our failures and mistakes. It is also imperative to learn from the errors of others. Always investigate. Ask questions. Probe. Reveal and uncover whats at the heart of what went wrong in a past situation. Make notes and be pensive. Come up with reasonable solutions to those failures and mistakes. And remember to never be too hard on yourselfalways consider yourself as a masterpiece in progress! We learn by earning and reviewing. Image: Kaboom Pics

Guest Post Five Ways Employers Frustrate Job Seekers and Drive Them Away

Guest Post Five Ways Employers Frustrate Job Seekers and Drive Them Away If you’re a job seeker and you’ve been on the receiving end of any of the disrespectful moves listed below, you aren’t alone. But take heart; smart employers are starting to recognize that an imbalanced job market doesn’t give them free rein to treat applicants poorly. Meanwhile, the faster you shake off the effects of these rude behaviors and move on to the next potential job, the faster you’ll get where you need to be. 1.  Broken, inefficient or non-standardized application systems. Most responsible employers ask for a resume sent as a Word file, a cover letter and possibly some supporting material like a collection of work samples or letters of reference. They ask applicants to send these by email or upload them through a simple and efficient online application system. Irresponsible employers expect applicants to download “submission apps” unique to the company, or navigate through broken links and labyrinthine online submission tools. If an employer expects you to apply by typing a hundred short answers into one text box after another, proceed with skepticism, and factor in the value of an hour of your time. 2.   Long unexplained silences. As painful as it may seem, it’s fairly standard business practice to respond only to resume submissions that pass through the first round of the selection process. So applicants should not necessarily expect an answer after submitting an application. They should, however, expect an answer after being called in for an interview. Job seekers invest a great deal of time, research, expense and travel in each interview they attend, and after making this investment, it’s reasonable to expect a response, even if just a simple letter of rejection. If the particular position or company is one that you’re especially interested in, you can (and should!) always check in with your interviewer after the fact. It’s not uncommon for employers to have huge numbers of applicants, so whether just a thank you or a simple reminder of your interest, don’t let them forget about you. Just be wary though, and red flag any potential employer who allows a post-interview silence to extend for more tha n a week or two, especially if they haven’t provided you with an expected timeline. 3.  Unexpected wait times prior to interviews. If you show up on time (five minutes early) for your interview, it’s fair to expect the same courtesy and timeliness from your employer. If you’re left idling in the reception area for thirty minutes, it means the company and the hiring manager aren’t showing very much respect for your time. 4.  Rude or baiting interview sessions. It’s never a good idea for an interviewer to ask questions like “Tell me five reasons why I SHOULDN’T hire you,” or “How old are you?” or “If you were a cartoon character/candy bar/80’s pop music star, which would you be and why?” Questions like these are baiting and demeaning, and they’re often asked on the pretext of testing a candidate’s flexibility and sense of humor. If you sense your interviewer is actively trying to fluster you, insult you or pass judgment against you, it may be smart to save your talents for a more professional employer who wants to hear about your qualifications for the job. Answer carefully and be sure to consider whether or not you think you’d fit in with the culture of the company before moving forward. 5.  Unexpected and unexplained timeline shifts. If an employer offers a timeline to a job seeker and the timeline changes, the job seeker should be kept informed. In other words, if a final decision is expected by the end of the month, and this deadline is pushed back to two or three months without explanation, the integrity and professionalism of the employer should be called into question. If you’re a job seeker and you’ve been left waiting by the phone, stop waiting. Resume your job search and move on. Find a position where your skills, commitment, and hard earned credentials will be given the respect they deserve. LiveCareer, home to America’s #1 Resume Builder, connects job seekers of all experience levels and career categories to all the tools, resources and insider tips needed to win the job. Connect with us on  Facebook  and  Google+  for even more tips and advice on all things career and resume-related.

8 Sure Signs Youre Facing a Burnout - Classy Career Girl

8 Sure Signs Youre Facing a Burnout Absolutely everyone is prone to burnout. While it’s true that routine and repetition can be good for you, they’re less good when they’re preventing you from growing or you’re repeating stressful tasks. Everyone needs a break â€" that’s why your job gives you vacation days. Is it time for you to request a week off? 8 Sure Signs Youre Facing a Burnout 1. You’re a Wreck on Sunday Nights On an ideal Sunday night, you’ll feel like you enjoyed your weekend. You’ll get everything ready for the next morning, hop in bed, and get some sleep. If you waste most of your Sunday dreading Monday, you’re losing a whole day to burnout. You should be able to take one day at a time without feeling like the future is oppressing you. 2. You Feel Like You Aren’t Getting Anything Done You’re working and working and working… toward what? You should feel accomplished after you complete something, not like you were drowning and you finally reached the surface, only to be dragged back down again. You’re probably not celebrating your accomplishments enough, and it’s causing you to feel weary about work. 3. Your House and Your Desk Are Messy Everything feels frantic and disorganized because you don’t have enough time to properly keep track of the state of things. You’d rather escape than take pride in your environment. You don’t care about setting yourself up for a smooth next day, because you already have an inclination that it won’t be so smooth. A little bit of apathy might be rolling in. 4. You Feel Like You Haven’t Slept in Weeks Stress is a huge sleep killer. The stress of your burnout may be preventing you from getting the kind of sleep you deserve â€" where you lay down in bed and you’re gone from the world for 7 or 8 hours and you wake up feeling brand new. If your thoughts are keeping you up at night, particularly regarding work, its time for a break. [RELATED: 10 Ways to Beat Work Stress and Burnout] 5. You Just Don’t Care Anymore The project didn’t turn out right, and so what? If the passion and the drive around there anymore, you’re not going to have the same eye for detail and innovative, creative process you once had. Burnout interferes with your ability to do your job the best you can. You’d rather make sure things are over with than done right. 6. You’re Late, and You Leave Early Your office feels oppressive. It’s a place you’re forced to go to do the things you need to do, rather than an environment that allows you to achieve the success you want for yourself. Going to work feels like going to the DMV or getting your taxes done by a slow and droning accountant. Work should never feel like that â€" you should be able to take pride in it. 7. Your Pants Fit Differently During burnout, people have a tendency to see fluctuations in weight. Working too hard can cause you to forget to eat properly, whether that means eating too much or too little. It’s the distraction and the need for convenience that interfere with your ability to live a healthy life. Nothing should come second to your health. 8. Your Favorite Thing to Do is Hide You hide in the office. You hide on the weekends. You want a big portable tent to disguise yourself with whenever someone approaches you. You just need some peace and quiet somewhere. Your career might suffer for it, and your personal relationships might face the same fate. You should be out in the world communicating and enjoying your interactions. If you’re feeling really burned out, you have options. You can take a long vacation. You can come to compromises with your employer about a better work-life balance. You can totally switch careers if you feel as though your current job is interfering with your ability to be happy. As long as you make positive changes, no matter how big or small they may be, you’re doing something to better yourself and improve your quality of life.

All-new launch for my company. Hooray!

All-new launch for my company. Hooray! My company just launched, all-new, at BrazenCareerist.com. For those of you who have been asking for the past year: Whats your business model? You can read about it on TechCrunch. If you want the full pitch, you can read the press release, (and you should know that all last week, when I wasnt blogging, I was writing six thousand versions of our press release.) Heres some advice for everyone who is starting a company: Write your big press release first, before you do anything at all. And then work backwards. Map out the milestones you need to make the press release come true, and that tells you how to run the first stage of your startup. To be clear: we did not do that. I mean, if we did, our press release would have had to say, Ryan Paugh announces that he has just made it through two years of Ryan Healy and Penelope Trunk fighting tooth and nail over totally irrelevant details of building a social network that is a career management tool for the next generation workforce. Then Ryan Healy and I would rewrite that press release ten times because Tech Crunch announced that they are sick of people using the term next generation and Ryan doesnt want to use it but I think its fine because its in a different context. (LinkedIn is for gen x. Brazen Careerist is the job site for the next generation, demographically speaking. ) Then there would be a quote from Ryan Healy that says, If I had known that we were going to expand from being a blog network to a full-blown social network then I would have never put up with the insane amount of rewriting that Penelope made me do to have a guest post on her blog. I tried to write a normal launch blog post where I take a victory lap, but I think you know that Im not the type. I do feel really, really proud of what weve done. Brazen Careerist is a site that lets you build your network the way its supposed to happen: through genuine conversation. Most of you have watched me go through total hell to get this company off the ground. A lot of you wonder why I do it. The reason is that I truly believe that becoming an active participant in a professional community really will change your life. I was really, really lonely. I was a new mom, and I had a failing marriage, and I moved to a city where I knew no one. I started blogging, and it was a lifeline to me. Not only did it provide fun, stimulating conversation, but it reminded me that Im great at business, and I should be doing a business. Talking within the context of a community helped me find myself again, and the process of posting ideas helped me announce to the world what I am really good at, and sometimesactually, most of the timethose things go hand in hand. (So its no coincidence that the new launch of Brazen Careerist provides tools so that anyone can have this experience of defining yourself by posting your ideas.) I convinced Ryan and Ryan to move to Madison to do a company with me. They knew from the beginning that the main goal for me with a startup was to have fun. And when they arrived in Madison, the thing that was most jarring to them was how weird and isolated I was. Its not how I seem on my blog. I know that. I mean, most people think I am weird on my blog but not that weird in person. The thing is that Im actually more weird in person. So a lot of what our startup has been is all of us learning to adapt to each other (the company is basically a Penn State fraternity and me. Not kidding.) I didnt realize I had Asperger syndrome until Ryan and Ryan kept pointing out the weirdness I have. I realized they are the same things my son goes to therapy for. People ask me a lot to write about Asperger syndrome. I am hesitant because I am still working out how to deal with it. One thing I know, though, is that friends are very very hard. People like me because Im smart and interesting, but I am hard to be friends with. I dont quite understand the process. A lot of times people will say, You think your blog readers are your friends, but theyre not. This is probably true, but I dont get it. The blog has gotten me through one of the toughest times in my life. Today I have a great company, solid funding, a great household arrangement, and a good-for-me boyfriend. I didnt have this a year ago. I had a mess on my hands. And I was so so grateful to have a community on the blog to talk to. The community talks about work when I want to talk about work, and the community talks about personal stuff when thats what Im thinking about. So. Okay. I am scared to do something now. I am telling you thank you because this community feels like my friend, even though I know it is evidence of mental oddness that I think this. I know I am so lucky to have a community that is so smart and insightful that the comments section is exciting to read. I know thats rare on the Internet. So every day I feel lucky, and what Im scared to do is ask you for more. But Im doing that now. Im doing it because I think you know that the last eight years of my career has been dedicated to building the Brazen Careerist brand and the company around it. And now with this launch, we need a lot of people to try out the idea that you can control your career by building strong networks through conversation and talking about your ideas. If everyone who subscribed to my blog signed up at brazencareerist.com, the launch would be deemed a huge success. So, Im asking you to do that now. Go sign up. And then let me know what you think. And thank you so much for sticking with me through hard times so that on this really exciting day you are here to share it with me.

Help With Writing Objective On Resume

Help With Writing Objective On ResumeHelp with writing objective on resume is a very important aspect of the resume. When you are choosing a subject for your resume, make sure that you write down the specific objective of your new job and make sure that it is not vague.Most companies are using this as an important part of your resume. If you do not have it written down, you can choose to explain to them what you want to do in your new career. It is also important to ensure that you write your objective on your resume with exactitude.Do not use 'as an observer'to gain information about the company'. These are fine for students but not for your resume. They are not detailed.It is quite easy to find help with writing objective on resume. Just visit the internet. There are many websites that can provide you with a lot of help.You can get detailed help with writing objective on resume through software programs as well. You can download one right now and make your resume as good as new.The resume serves as a tool for career development. When you do not have a detailed resume, it will be a very difficult task for you to search the internet and find the help that you need.Employers expect their applicants to look for information before they interview them. They may ask the applicant if he/she is aware of a specific product, or they may ask to know about the person's background if the applicant is not aware of it.You should not look at an essay as a means of selling yourself. Itis not. Your objective on your resume should highlight exactly what you are looking for and give the reader an idea of what kind of employee you would be.

You have to spend a little to get a little sometimes

You have to spend a little to get a little sometimes There is a lot of great free advice available today. The Internet is chock full of articles and free newsletters. But the old adage if it seems to good to be true, it probably is still rings true. If you have been trying to read and implement all this good advice and it isnt working, you might need help. If you still have questions, how will they get answered? You might need to collaborate with others in you field to get the real answers. So, you just need to pick up the phone and call people. Oh, it isnt that easywhy? You dont know who to call Join a professional group or association. There are hundreds around. Just investigate and find one that seems like a good fit. They probably will require you pay a membership fee or to attend the meetings, they may ask that you pay a non-member rate. Where else can you surround yourself with experts? There are continuing education programs available. Learning will increase your knowledge, marketability and network. Enroll now! There are seminars, webinars, teleconferences and the like on-line and in person. Get in tune with who is offering these services. You may want to see if there are testimonials or ask around to see if anyone has any recommendations. Last, but not least, if you still are stuck in a rut and need help, hire a coach/ consultant. If you havent been able to do it on your own, you might need that extra support and push to make the changes. Managing your career is an investment. Learn how to become the best you can be, continuously. Invest in YOU!

Happy Holidays

Happy Holidays Happy Holidays from Career Coaching 360! Happy Holidays from Career Coaching 360! December 2, 2008 by Career Coach Sherri Thomas 3 Comments Happy Holidays! I wish I could remember the professional football players name who said to me while we were both volunteering at the same charity event, When youre blessed you GOTTA GIVE BACK! My parents have been my greatest role models in this area which is why I live my life (and have built Career Coaching 360!) based on this principal. Here are four (4) ways Career Coaching 360 is paying it forward this holiday season. Kiva.org   -A portion of all Career Coaching 360 sales goes to Kiva.org (my favorite charity!)   Together, our proceeds and donations have added up to over $5,000 to help improve the lives of others in third world countries!   View all of the Career Coaching 360 customer sale donations. Served in Iraq   -One of my friends, Ryan, just returned from Iraq serving in the Navy Reserves.   He asked for help with his resume which got me thinking we need to help these guys!   Anyone who is serving (or has served) in Iraq gets a deep discount of 70% OFF the Resume Success Toolbox! Habitat for Humanity -Last Wednesday, I closed up shop and spent the day volunteering with my parents at Habitat for Humanity (Im pictured with my Mom in the photo!)   We sawed lumber on a cold, rainy day to build a home for a family in Phoenix from Ethiopia!           Salvation Army Career Coaching 360 is participating in the Salvation Armys Adopt-A-Child program and giving toys, clothes, and presents to local children in need of holiday cheer. If YOU are paying it forward (with time or money) let me know!   Simply send me a photo and a note telling me what youre doing to help others this holiday season If youd like to expand your professional network, then join me(!) and the Career Coaching 360 community on   and       P.S.   “CAREER CHANGE BOOT CAMP”   is coming in January!   Youll get loads   of strategies, scripts, and examples to fast track your career change!   More details to