5- Steps to Improve your Presentation Skills during Job

At some point in your career, you might have to stand up and present to a room full of people. And when you do, you'll find that it's not as easy as it looks. So to help you do it, read these tips and hints to improve your presentation skills. So you've been handed a suite of new projects to manage. What's next? Take these 5 steps to make sure you don't end up working around the clock and pulling your hair out while you're at it.

Prepare with care

To give a great presentation, you need great preparation. Start, by thinking about your topic and the audience and what they are most interested in. Then list your key points and write down the general structure of the presentation ahead.

If you need to, write down every word that you want to say and memorize it. Experienced presenters don't need to do this. But if you're a little nervous or you're new to presenting, then by writing everything down it will boost your confidence and settle your nerves on the day.

8-Things to do if you hate or not like your boss

In a world where your boss changes more often than your address, at some point in your career, you will end up with a boss you hate. Hating your boss has all sorts of side benefits. Like making your life miserable, adding to your stress, and probably lowering the quality of your work. Bosses are generally not a favorite personality and yet they play a major role in your career growth. Here are eight things to do if you do not like your boss.

1. Like Your boss

Stop looking at him through a filter that makes you despise him all the time. Learn to appreciate his good qualities. The more you dislike him, the more you will dislike him because then you will be ignoring most of him positive traits.

Eight Things To Do and Five Things Not To Do During Your Job Loss or layoff

Whether you are recently lost you job or just feeling a bit uncertain about your job security in these tough economic times, following 8+5 points can help you to get back on your feet quickly in the event of a layoff or job loss.

Eight Things To Do

1 - DON'T PANIC

You may have lost your job but you have not lost everything. You are a skilled individual and will work again. Do not ever lose sight of these two simple sentences. Do not let yourself fall into a spiral of negative thinking. Think back to all the other people that you know of that have lost jobs in the past and are now successfully employed.

How to Write Follow-up Thank You Letter After Job Interview?

Remember a very few people bother to send thank you letters - this can be your edge! Try to follow these hints when writing thank you letter.

1.     Keep your letters short and simple - usually one page is enough.

2.     Help the interviewer remember you by referring to specific points discussed in your

3.     interview: show that you were listening and mention something that will

4.     refresh the interviewer's memory of you

5.     Be sure your letters are professional, for example: typed, no errors, on quality paper, etc.

6.     Send your letter within one day - do not put it off!

7.     Emphasize your qualifications, especially those that are most relevant to the position

8.     Provide any information that was overlooked during the interview or that which was

9.     specifically requested by the interviewer

10.  Express your continued interest and enthusiasm for the position

How can I return to work after a career break?

Getting back to work after a significant break can seem very daunting. Many people who find themselves in this position just don't know where to begin and are often faced with barriers that other jobseekers don't come across…..

There are many reasons for taking a break from your career, but generally they fall under voluntary, such as taking an extended holiday, or involuntary, for example experiencing redundancy. The third category contains women looking to resume a career after maternity leave.

All situations require slightly adapted job search tactics, so take a look below to see how to make your return to the market a successful one.

15 Myths and Misconceptions About Job-Hunting

How much of a job-hunting expert are you? Read over these 15 myths and misconceptions about job-hunting and see how many of them you believed in and how many you knew were incorrect……..

 Once you know the truths about job-hunting, you should have more job search success -- and less stress.

Myth 1: Registering at Several Internet Job Boards Will Result in Multiple Job Offers
One of the most prevalent misconceptions in job-hunting is that job-hunting on the Web is some magic elixir that will result in employers lining up to interview you. While job-hunting on the Web should be one component of a job search for most job-seekers, it should not be viewed as having any higher success rates than applying to help-wanted ads in the newspaper or trade magazines. Only about 5 percent of job-seekers obtain jobs through ads.

Filling the Job - It Ain't Over 'til It's Over

The first runner-up gets the job many, many times.That's right. The number one finalist often falls out, and number two is hired…….

It's every company's headache...after what's often a lengthy process, they think they're about to close the file on the position when suddenly it's an active search all over again.

For recruiters, it's a nightmare...for all the reasons above and because recruiters don't receive the bulk of their fee until the candidate is placed. There's also usually a guarantee on the candidate, meaning if he or she falls out within a period of time after the start date, payment is refunded to the client.

How can I stay motivated during my job search?

When you set out on your job search, it's rarely possible to guess how long it will go on for. As time passes, the rejections mount up and the budgets get tighter, it's easy to become disheartened…….

However, this is exactly the time when you need to dust yourself off and put in more hard work than ever. One of the main attributes of a successful job seeker is persistence. Here's a few tips to help you stay positive:

Start as you mean to go on - The first 30 minutes of your day are golden. The thoughts you think and the actions you take during this critical time affect your performance levels for the rest of the day. Instead getting up late, set your alarm as if you were going to work, have a shower and take a walk to get some fresh air in your lungs.

3 words that will kill your job search

It's not unusual for job seekers to reach a point in their searches when they stop hoping to land a coveted job and resign themselves to consideringany position.......

 In theory, this "I'll take anything" attitude sounds promising: Less selectivity means greater possibilities, right?

Not so fast. Before spending precious time applying to jobs for which you're not qualified, consider these ways that a cast-your-net-everywhere tactic can backfire:

Strategies For Older Workers to Market Themselves

Just because you may be entering retirement age does not mean that you are too old to work if you still want (or need) to. In fact, many companies are looking to the Baby Boomer generation and beyond to fill in roles that require years of experience………

So if you're looking to come out of retirement, or simply want to switch jobs and are at an age that some might consider older, don't put yourself out of the game. Instead, take on a few of these strategies to help you market yourself so that you can obtain the same great opportunities as your younger counterparts.

5 Secrets to Jump Starting Your Job Search Today

It isn’t easy staying focused and motivated in a job search. You send countless resumes that no one responds to, recruiters don’t call you back, companies that claim to be hiring aren’t interviewing, and your professional networks simply aren’t generating leads. What’s the average job seeker to do?.......

For starters, you can stop doing what the average job seeker is doing and start doing what works. Here are five easy-to-implement strategies you can use right now to jump start your job search and outperform the job market.

Seven Tips on Navigating Sticky Workplace Conversations

No matter how you might try to avoid them, at some point in your career you will need to have difficult conversations with your boss…..

 It might be asking for a raise, delivering bad news or explaining you can't get all of your assignments completed. How you handle these conversations can make the difference between a positive or negative outcome.

Jodi Glickman, a former Goldman Sachs investment banker and founder of Great on the Job LLC, has written a new book,Great on the Job, which delves into how to have an effective communication strategy at work. She provides step-by-step guidelines on handling tricky situations.

5 Attitudes In The Workplace To Get You Ahead

You are looking for attitudes in the workplace to become your career booster. You are possibly past your first year mark at work. You have somewhat learned the ropes of your position but you feel you are slowing down…..

So, what are some of the attitudes in the workplace that can help you get ahead at work? These are many positive attitudes that can help you do that. In fact, the value of these attitudes is that they make you moremotivated and hence, give you a career boost.

These are the 5 career booster attitudes in the workplace to get you ahead:

1. Enthusiastic
I know, how can you ever feel enthusiastic about work especially when you already feel sluggish with the same work after a few years? It is precisely this reason that I ask you to be enthusiastic. To be enthusiastic at work is about a mental state. You need to make the decision to be enthusiastic. Start by saying I will be an eager participant in this project or task.

Attack your task with energy. Do not drag your feet. The more you tell yourself, “This is so boring”, or whatever the excuse maybe the worse you will feel. Get interested in the work and the energy will come naturally. Then decide to be eagerly involved. Being enthusiastic and energetic are attitudes in the workplace that can get you ahead. You cannot get ahead without energy.

2. Efficient
Strive to be the most efficient worker in your team. According to Webster’s Universal College Dictionary, to be efficient means “performing or functioning effectively with the least waste of time and effort.” When you are effective, you are producing the intended result. When you are efficient you do it with the least waste of time and effort. That means you are capable and competent.

If you carry with you the attitude in the workplace of constantly striving to be the most efficient worker, then you will sooner or later get ahead in your career. You will get a career booster because you are the most capable and competent on the team.

3. Excellence
Of the 5 attitudes in the workplace, this one probably calls for you to give yourself some pressure. A little pressure is good since it makes you push yourself harder. Strive for excellence in everything you do. Do not be contented with good. Go for great.

Exceed expectations by knowing that good is sometimes not good enough. Give everything your utmost best. You will naturally see how this becomes your career booster. When you strive for excellence in everything you do, you quite naturally surpass others in your work. That gets you ahead.

4. Early
Have you ever thought about being early as an attitude in the workplace that can get you ahead? Yes, especially when your workplace practices flexible time. Many people take flexible time for granted. They stroll in and out at their own pace, not knowing they have probably wasted productive time.

Start early at work. Some of my most productive days are those that I start early before the phone rings and before my staff walks in with questions. Clear your emails from last night, craft that important email when there are no disturbances.

5. Easy
Make every effort to be the easiest to work with in the office. Now, I am not saying compromise on your need for excellence. For example, this means not to complain and grumble each time there is a team meet. No one likes to work with someone who nags all the time.

When you are easy to work with, you make working enjoyable for the rest too. Such attitudes in the workplace is welcomed everywhere and you make yourself a competitive edge of any team. This competitive edge is your career booster.

There is no need for complicated plans to get a career boost. Simple steps with these attitudes in the workplace can get you ahead in your career.

Giving a Stalled Job Search a Jump-Start

After graduating in 2007 from Loyola Marymount University, Rachel Jones was laid off from two jobs consecutively in her chosen field, public relations. In the grueling nine-month job search that ensued, she sent her résumé to more than 130 employers, initially applying for just about any opening she could find—from office assistant to movie-production coordinator. She also sent the same generic cover letter to every employer……

"It's easy to fall into a routine of just copying and pasting in a new company name," the 24-year-old says.

It wasn't until Ms. Jones started focusing on junior positions in her field and writing introductory notes tailored to specific opportunities she was aiming for that things started to turn around. She started receiving more interview invites for jobs she actually wanted. In August, she landed an account-coordinator position at a small Los Angeles public-relations firm.

For many out-of-work professionals, finding a job in today's market requires far more effort than it did in the past—and a lot more stamina. Last month, the Labor Department reported that it takes unemployed workers an average of 27.2 weeks to land a job, up from 19.1 weeks in September 2008 and 16.7 in September 2007. But career experts say there are several ways job hunters can revive a stalled search.

Taking a highly targeted approach, as Ms. Jones eventually did, is one strategy. Another is to focus on obtaining leads to unadvertised positions where the companies seek out their own applicants. Relying solely on job-board listings, which have been shrinking, isn't enough these days. There were roughly 3.3 million jobs advertised online last month, compared with 4.4 million in September 2008 and 4.7 million in September 2007, according to the Conference Board, a research firm.

Many employers have cut back on advertising jobs online because they are overwhelmed with applications, says Bradley G. Richardson, a partner at executive-search firm Kaye/Bassman International Corp. in Plano, Texas. Instead, they are relying on word of mouth and referrals to draw a more manageable number of applicants, he says. That requires more networking on the part of the job seeker—even tapping into people you don't know well.

After getting laid off from a market-research firm in November, Jon Evoy says, he devoted most of his time to applying for positions he found online. "It's easier to sit in front of your computer and just start looking for jobs as opposed to pounding the pavement," he says.

But then a month passed during which Mr. Evoy, 30, says he failed to land a single interview. The lack of interest prompted him to shift gears. He reached out to everyone in his network—even people he hadn't spoken to in years. One was an advertising professional he had met two years earlier at an industry event. Kaplan Thaler Group Ltd., the New York agency where she worked, wasn't hiring at the time, but she agreed to set him up on an informational interview with a colleague who was a director at the firm.

Meanwhile, Mr. Evoy followed another bit of advice career counselors recommend to boost a lagging job search. He made a point of keeping up with news and trends in his target industry to identify potential job opportunities. When he came across an article in a trade magazine about how the firm he did the informational interview with had won a big client, he sent the director a congratulatory email and asked if the firm would be hiring soon to meet the new demands. He received a reply tipping him off to a coming job opening. He applied and got it. Later, Mr. Evoy learned that an employer he did a free-lance assignment for during his job search contacted the advertising firm and put in a good word for him—further proof of the power of networking.

A drawn-out job hunt also can give out-of-work professionals the time they need to fill a skills a gap—which in turn can jump-start a hunt. During her 10-month search last year, Laura Perry says she noticed many openings in her field, communications, required or preferred expertise in social media—something she lacked. "In my previous job, they had not embraced social media at all," she says.

So Ms. Perry, 54, attended a conference on the subject and later volunteered to create a Facebook page for a local hair salon. She went on to build Facebook and LinkedIn pages for the Los Angeles chapter of the Executive Women's Golf Association, of which she is a member. She also created a Twitter account for herself and tweets about the communications industry.

Ms. Perry added that social-media experience to her résumé and says what she learned helped her talk intelligently in interviews with employers—and she was able to point to samples of her work in this area. In July, she was hired as director of communications for the school of nursing at University of California, Los Angeles, where part of her job is to manage the school's presence on Facebook and other social media Web sites.

In a recession, another way to put a job search back on track is to push your boundaries. That means including employers of all sizes and in more cities—even if that requires considering lower-paying positions at small, unknown firms.

Following a layoff from a midsize publishing company in February, Brian Rushton Phillips, 37, embarked on a search for a creative-director position in the Toronto area paying annual salary of $85,000 or more.

"I began lowering my expectations [for pay] once it became clear that the market wouldn't accept it," he says. In August, he accepted an offer for such a job but from a small publisher in New York that pays about $15,000 less than he earned in his last position. But he says he is happy to have a job, particularly one in the field he wants to work in.

If other changes aren't helping refresh a job search, check for something as minor as a misspelled name or grammatical gaffe in your resume or cover letter. Job seekers should bear in mind that in a cutthroat market, employers are less inclined to ignore such errors, says Brad Karsh, president of JobBound, a career-coaching company in Chicago. It's critical for job seekers to take the time to carefully proofread their resumes and every cover-letter submission, or have someone else do it. "The slightest mistake of any component of your job search can destroy your chances," says Mr. Karsh. "This needs to be a flawless process."

by Sarah E. Needleman

This article reprinted in full without permission for the purposes of education and research, as permitted by Section 107 of the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976.

New Grads Must Be Creative in Job Search

Michael Jugenheimer considers himself lucky. He has a job.The 22-year-old from Danielson, Conn., received an offer on his graduation day from Grinnell College last month. It was payoff for a search that began in October…..

Jugenheimer won't be using his studies exactly as he envisioned, but he's thrilled. In his new position he will help raise money for Marist College in Poughkeepsie, N.Y. As of June 22, he'll be employed, and that is a victory in this economy, where 6.8 million people are looking for a job, the highest on record dating to 1967.

At the outset Jugenheimer interviewed with consulting firms specializing in community development projects. In school he had focused on global development studies — the impact of economic, political, and social change on the environment — as he pursued his economics degree. Some of the companies had projects in developing countries, while others worked on low-income housing in the United States.

However, he found the competition fierce.

"I would go on interviews and I'd be competing with people who had a master's degree or people who had experience," he said. "I realized I need to be looking at jobs that I have tangible direct experience in."

Around January, after a few months of interviewing, Jugenheimer changed course.

After assessing his skills, he recognized that he had accumulated significant experience in fundraising at Grinnell, a 1,600-student liberal arts college in central Iowa. He helped bring in money working with the college's alumni relations staff, assisted with phone-a-thons and joined a program that encouraged graduating seniors to donate before leaving the college.

With that experience, he began sending resumes to nonprofit groups, colleges and universities. The strategy worked. He had several interviews, some callbacks and the job offer on graduation day.

Jugenheimer did just the right thing by focusing on his skills and identifying employers that were looking for what he had to offer, said Catherine Byers Breet, a Minneapolis area job recruiter for companies, who also offers job coaching services to unemployed workers.

He was successful in finding a job because he realized he wasn't qualified yet for a job in the area of his studies, but he did have skills that are suitable for something else, at least for now, Byers Breet said.

"(Recent graduates) need to be realistic about what they're qualified to do," she said. That sometimes means taking a longer view of their career by accepting an entry-level job first, with the thought that it will help them get to their perfect job later.

Simply put, job coaches and college career advisers say it means the unemployed must think more creatively and broadly about how their particular set of skills can be used.

Three things Byers Breet said will help a job search, whether or not you're a recent graduate:

1.     Define your skills and identify the type of job that you want. Write it all down and then research the jobs that fit your skill set. Several Web sites allow you to plug in skills, to produce a list of appropriate jobs, among them: http://online.onetcenter.org.

2.     Identify the gaps between your skills and your ideal job. This may force you to realize you're not ready to step into the dream job right now. You may need to enter something more suitable to your skills that could be a stepping stone to where you want to be.

3.     Once you figure out what's realistic, focus your resume and cover letter appropriately. Get help if you need it. At some point, you'll need to get off the Internet and start networking with people. The Web can be a very good resource for many aspects of a job search, but nothing replaces meeting people who know people.

Networking is imperative in a competitive market, said Christian Garcia, director of the University of Miami's Toppel Career Center.

"Our message has been to prepare as early as possible, open your mind and keep all your options open," he said. Students are reminded to look at their career more broadly, understanding that the first job may not end up being the ideal, but it's still experience for a year or two and it will always look good on the resume.

A recent survey by the National Association of Colleges and Employers found that just one in five of this year's college graduates who had applied for a job were hired. The survey of more than 16,500 graduating seniors at 840 colleges and universities, also found that 40 percent of responding seniors know that their first job out of school may not be as lucrative as they had hoped.

Jugenheimer said expectations vary depending on the career and cost of living in the city where a job is located, but many of his classmates would likely accept a $30,000 to $35,000 salary to start. That's near the U.S. Bureau of Labor statistics estimate of the average privately employed U.S. worker salary.

Getting a paycheck for now and worrying about larger career aspirations later is how many recent graduates are approaching the job search, said Josh Burdick, 22, of Winchester, Mass., another Grinnell graduate.

"You get out there and find some way to pay the bills," he said. "Once you get started, it's much easier to keep your ear to the ground and learn about more opportunities."

Burdick was offered a job during finals week by the Urban Land Conservancy in Denver. The offer came only after multiple in-person and telephone interviews.

The conservancy is a nonprofit organization that buys real estate and buildings in urban areas and redevelops it. Its work includes establishing affordable housing and revitalizing neglected areas neighborhoods. He will be focusing on research projects assessing the effectiveness of federal housing programs.

Burdick is thankful for the experience it will offer and sees it as a steppingstone. He hasn't given up on that youthful dream: "I'd like to leave a physical mark on the world and build something."

by David Pitt

This article reprinted in full without permission for the purposes of education and research, as permitted by Section 107 of the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976.

Tips for a Successful Phone Interview

The phone interview has become the most popular way in which companies reduce the candidate pool for any particular job….

  And while they seem easy, they might be the hardest step in the job search process.  Most applicants are confident going into the phone interview, but find out quickly just how unprepared they are.  Here are some tips to help get you from the phone interview to a face-to-face meeting. 

Find a quiet space.  This is harder than it looks,especially if you already have a job.  You cannot participate in a phone interview from your work desk without everyone in the office knowing you are looking for a new job.  At the same time, hearing “tall white chocolate mocha for Fred” in the background is not the best way to endear oneself to the interviewer.  If you take the interview at home, you can’t simply apologize for a barking dog or crying baby and expect to move on in the process.  You must find a quiet place for the phone interview.  It shows the interviewer respect, it allows both parties to hear one another completely, and it reduces the amount of distractions that could cause you to make costly errors when asked difficult questions. 

Listen carefully.  You cannot rely on body language to help you get through the phone interview.  This becomes difficult during a conversation when you are unsure if your answers are satisfactory.  As a result, job applicants always find themselves always over-answering the question, trying too hard to please the interviewer and often times seeming desperate in the process.  At the same time, it is often common for the interviewee to talk over the interviewer when they excitedly want to answer the question.  Listen very carefully.  Make sure the interviewer is finished talking before jumping in.  Listen for verbal cues that will help you determine if your answer is satisfactory.  In the end, the best bet is to go with your gut and keep your answers quick and to the point. 

Dress appropriately.  Sometimes, rolling out of bed and participating in a phone interview actually hurts your chances of getting the job.  Sure, unless it is Skype, the person on the other end can’t see you, but a phone interview already makes it difficult to keep things formal.  If you are dressed in your pajamas, you might end up acting too informal on the phone and unprofessional in the eyes of the interviewer.  People act differently when dressed professionally.  While you don’t have to wear a suit and a tie, your attire should put you in the mood for what is one of the most important steps of the job search. 

Cheat.  The one thing a phone interview allows you to do is work off a script.  While you don’t want to make it obvious that you are reading off a paper (use your own words and maintain a conversational tone), it is very helpful to have a cheat sheet in front of you –information about the company you are interviewing for; questions you want to ask the interviewer; and answers to important questions about your experience.  People get nervous on phone interviews when they realize it is not as easy as they thought, so sometimes a quick reference guide on your computer makes it just a little easier to stay focused and get to the next round. 

Beyond that, the usual tips apply – research the company; prepare to answer questions about your greatest strengths, weaknesses and obstacles you had to overcome; be prepared for the all-important “do you have any questions” portion of the interview”; and always follow-up by thanking the interviewer for his or her time and addressing any portions of the interview you might want to elaborate on further to help your cause.  This should help you be in a better position as the interview process moves further into the live rounds.   

Jon Minners, Vault.com