Employment Digest

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The various resume software offered, particularly on the internet, can seem very attractive to job seekers; especially to those not comfortable writing resumes. At first glance resume writing software can provide a number of perks and can appear to be the perfect solution to many job seekers.

There are some disadvantages to using software, however; and before utilizing it to create a resume, a wise job seeker will take a few moments to compare both the advantages and the disadvantages of resume software.

Software for writing resumes is also commonly known as resume writers, resume creator, resume maker and resume builder.

Advantages of Resume Software

No Experience
Resume writing software can be a welcome relief to job seekers who are uncomfortable with the idea of drafting a resume from scratch. Resume writing software can provide a step by step foundation, where the job seeker needs to only answer a few questions about their work history and experience and they almost instantly have a resume.

Quick & Easy
Resume writing software can provide a quick and easy resume. For job seekers pressed for time, using resume creation software is a perfect choice. With this option there is no longer any need to labor over a resume, trying to put the information in the correct places and choose the right wording. Resume writing software practically does all the work for the job seeker.

Affordable
Resume writing software, such as a free resume maker, can be irresistible. The idea of obtaining a resume that is quick, easy and free can be hard to pass up, particularly when professional resume writers charge a fee to craft a personalized resume.

Guarantee
One further benefit of using on-line software is that it is instantly available as a download onto your computer. In common with most on-line products they normally have a no questions asked 100% money back guarantee.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Roger_Clark

Bridge jobs fill gap between work and rest

Just short of his 60th birthday, Sandy Blovad left his high-powered job in California to move to suburban Lake Worth.

But Blovad isn’t kicking back on the golf course. He’s working.

Blovad, now a teacher, has a “bridge job,” a new name for a new trend in the world of work. Bridge jobs fill the gap between full-time careers and full-time retirement.

After decades of 65 being synonymous with a career’s end, the picture is changing. Many people now phase into retirement, working at jobs that aren’t always just about the paycheck — and often past their 65th birthday.

“Boomers have a different mentality about retirement than their parents,” says Blovad, who turned 65 last month. “They think younger and out of the box. They’re healthier, too. I’m an active guy who runs and plays tennis. As long as I’m healthy, I want to work.”

A slew of studies shows the bridge job trend will mushroom as Baby Boomers — the oldest wave turns 61 this year — march steadily toward Social Security. Those 78 million Boomers, who already changed how America works and plays, will now change how America retires.

As of last year, the number of workers older than 55 reached the highest level ever recorded, 24.6 million, according to Challenger, Gray and Christmas, an outplacement company.

An AARP survey indicates that number will grow with 80 percent of Baby Boomers expecting to work, at least part time, during traditional retirement years.

Increased longevity is part of the reason. Funding 20-plus years of retirement is daunting, especially without traditional pensions and a shaky Social Security system.

In addition, thousands of people from their mid-50s to 60s are forced to find bridge jobs after losing their paycheck to downsizing, mergers and company closings. But money isn’t their only motivation.

“If I stopped working, I’d shrivel up and die inside,” says Carol Ann Liebman, 64, who, with a partner, opened a gift shop in Deerfield Beach after 30 years in the fashion business. “I need to be out, involved and feeling productive.”

Seeking challenges
Many Boomers edging toward the traditional retirement age of 65 agree, and for good reasons.

Compared to their parents, they’re better educated and healthier. After decades of working, some still thrive on a challenge and think they have something to offer.

But Boomers want bridge jobs that work for them, not just jobs that offer work.

Some want less responsibility and more control over their lives. Others seek jobs that tap into personal interests or offer fewer or flexible hours. Some look for a social outlet. Others crave meaningful employment.

“I think many people in this generation are looking for something more substantial,” says Marc Freedman, author of Encore: Finding Work That Matters in the Second Half of Life. “They want to do work they can be proud of and look forward to.”

Take Blovad. As executive director of a California Jewish Community Center, he rubbed shoulders with lots of people, some wealthy and powerful. He made a six-figure salary. Now he teaches mostly Haitian immigrant children at a Delray Beach charter school.
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Younger boss, older worker by Karl Ritzler

Cooperation, communication can overcome age differences

“Whippersnapper.”

“Old coot.”

You won’t — or shouldn’t — hear that kind of exchange on the job.

In the new multigenerational workplace, what could have been a name-calling confrontation between an older worker and a younger boss is more often a partnership that capitalizes on the bosses’ and employees’ different experiences and strengths.

Age doesn’t make a difference.

Jeremy Crow, 25, is the supervisor of the Magnolia home theater ministore inside the Best Buy in Buckhead. Three of his five direct reports are older than he is.

“I go to them for as much as they come to me,” Crow said. “I understand they have more knowledge” about the products. He also incorporates that knowledge base in training for all employees.

Crow has been with the company for about four years in several roles and departments, including a job as an assistant manager. He also has a bachelor’s degree in psychology.

“I was taught how to communicate effectively, how to motivate people,” he said.

Other workers such as Chris Petersen, 36, haven’t been at Best Buy nearly as long, but they have more knowledge about high-end home theater products.

“[Crow] uses me as a resource quite a bit, especially where a customer has a 3- or 4-year-old sound system,” said Petersen, who has been in electronics sales for 12 years. “He knows the current product, but not previous ones.”

In addition, Petersen said, he has the experience to close the deal, especially on more expensive purchases. A large-screen, high-definition television set can cost as much as $15,000, and speakers can go for $1,000 or more.

“The more you do it, the better you get,” Petersen said. “Very rarely do I run into a situation I haven’t dealt with before.”

Crow’s and Petersen’s situation is becoming more common. One-fifth of employed adults are older than their bosses, according to a survey last year by Randstad USA, an Atlanta-based staffing company.

And that number is likely to increase as more older workers say they plan to stay in the work force even after they retire. This year, an average of 4.6 adults turn 65 each minute, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. That rate will almost double by 2025.

A well-documented retirement boom has begun already, as the oldest baby boomers (people born between 1946 and 1964) begin to take early retirement and approach the age for traditional retirement. A 2005 Merrill Lynch study of baby boomers’ retirement plans found that more than three-quarters see themselves doing some sort of work during their retirement years.

There are some potential pitfalls ahead. The Randstad survey found that three-quarters of older workers (age 55 and older) said they relate well to younger workers, but only 56 percent of all employees said they relate well to older workers, and 77 percent said younger workers do not seek advice from employees older than 50.

A report by the Center on Aging and Work at Boston College points out that a multigenerational workplace is hardly a new phenomenon.

In agrarian societies since the dawn of time, children, parents and grandparents worked side-by-side on the farm as a matter of survival. And even after the Industrial Revolution began, children often were employed in factories alongside adults, who often worked until they dropped dead.
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Regardless of your profession, learn how to market yourself

Reality TV isn’t really my thing, but Fox Network’s latest offering about a wrestling maven-bikini model-turned-television-anchorwoman got me thinking about how we market ourselves. This young woman confesses that she may not have the years of training for the job, but she has always wanted to be an anchorwoman. She figures that demonstrating her “talent” on this show will help her secure that dream anchorwoman job.

I’d never think of participating in a reality TV show as a means to fulfilling a career wish, but, judging from all of the “American Idol,” “So You Think You Can Dance,” etc. hopefuls, many people do.

But most of us aren’t bikini models who want to be anchorwomen, and no one I know has gone on a reality TV show to achieve their career goals. The best way to succeed in business is to market yourself effectively.

Even the most savvy business executives must successfully market themselves. It doesn’t matter how much time, effort and money your organization puts into marketing campaigns. If key personnel come across disengaged and lackluster, it will affect your company’s success.

Friends sometimes come to me for career advice. These folks are successful, well-educated, experienced businesspeople. They’re hard workers, intelligent and dedicated, yet they don’t always market themselves as well as they should. During our conversations, I ask to see their resumes and cover letters, and am surprised to see how often these wonderful people are downplaying their best assets.

In all fairness, it’s not the easiest thing to sing your own praises. Easy or not, in order to market ourselves, our skills, and our companies, we have to learn how to do it comfortably.

I have a friend who has worked for a highly specialized company for 20 years. During our conversation – and in his cover letter – he seemed embarrassed that he’d been with the same company for so long and couldn’t offer more diverse experience. As I continued to question him, he mentioned that he’d been promoted multiple times, substantially increasing his responsibilities each time. He’d learned relevant new business skills on the job and through industry-related courses. None of this was in his cover letter. What I see is a dedicated, loyal, valued employee – a real find in a crowded marketplace of job-seekers.

In contrast, some people look great on paper, with dazzling credentials and experience, but when you actually meet them in person, they’re, well, underwhelming. It’s great to have an introduction letter that sizzles, but you also need to demonstrate your winning personality face-to-face.

Regardless of your profession, think of yourself as a marketer with a primary goal of promoting yourself. To successfully grow your business (or land your dream job), you first have to sell yourself.

Selling your staff

Doing business is all about building personal relationships. I could work with any law office or bank in the state. I choose my professional contacts based on their experience, sure, but my decision also is based on their personalities. Unless they’re the only game in town, I have to like them in order to hire them. And I work with people who convince me – through their personalities and their willingness to meet my needs – that doing business with them will be a pleasant experience.

When a company wants to hire a marketing agency, there are many competent firms that can design an ad or place a story in the newspaper. Besides possessing a certain skill set, does the agency’s staff impress you with their personalities? During a new business presentation, I highlight our agency’s capabilities, but I also sell my staff and myself, demonstrating to potential new clients what sets our agency apart from the dozens of other qualified firms in the state.

It’s also important to consider where you’re marketing yourself.

Think of the audience you’re targeting for your own personal marketing campaign, and decide how you can connect with this key demographic. If you’re looking for a new job as a nurse, it’s wise to attend health-care seminars, professional meetings and other events to meet people, network and demonstrate the skills, experience and compassion that you offer. If you’re a corporate lawyer looking to increase your portfolio of small local businesses, you should be marketing yourself at chamber of commerce events and small-business expos, meeting people and demonstrating what you’ll offer that the law firm down the street does not.

We often recommend a “surround sound” approach for our clients, meaning they should deliver consistent messages through a variety of channels to effectively reach their target audiences. Market yourself the same way.

If you’re looking for business, it’s not enough to place an ad and sit back, waiting for your telephone to ring. Attend networking events, volunteer somewhere that allows you to showcase your skills, meet with people, and demonstrate your confident, winning personality.

By the way, the wrestler-bikini-model-anchorwoman’s show was canceled after only one episode. I’m sure, however, it’s not the last we’ll hear of “Anchorwoman” Lauren Jones.

One of the greatest advantages to living in the world in which we live is that we are offered an incredible amount of choices with regard to our careers and our futures. If we were alive hundreds of years ago, our fates would have been decided virtually from birth; we would follow in the footsteps of our parents, regardless of our suitability for the task, unless they happened to have the money to send us to one of the many universities that were in operation at the time. Destiny was essentially predetermined.

Clearly, that is no longer the case because men and women of all ages have the freedom to determine what it is that they want to do with their life. When that goal is clear-cut and straightforward, it’s simple. All we have to do is focus in on what we want to do, format our resumes and/or portfolios appropriately, and get on with it.

So what if it isn’t that simple? What if you have multiple ideas of what you want to do with your life?

The good news is that you don’t have to forget about one of them. If you are attempting to pursue multiple career goals, here are a few tips to help you.

When you are attempting to pursue more than one career, you are going to find yourself in competition with people with that particular career as their only goal. They might have taken great care to structure their education, their resumes, and their prior employment experience in the interest of achieving that one goal. Before you step into the ring, be sure that you have the qualifications necessary to compete.

First, you must keep a separate resume for each career goal. This is important because not every employer is going to be looking for the same thing in an employee, and your resume and application materials should be customized to best emphasize your abilities for each career goal you are seeking. This is commonly known as writing a targeted resume.

Secondly, you should build and maintain a network. When you are attempting to pursue multiple careers, you are going to want to have a network that is going to allow you to succeed in each of them. If you are thinking, “I don’t know how to network” relax. Networking is a piece of cake. All you have to do is allow yourself to be available socially, particularly for events related to the field you are attempting to enter. There are also many online opportunities on websites such as LinkedIn, Ryze, and Biznik.

If you can carefully follow the steps listed above, there is no reason why you should have to place limitations on your future.

Jennifer Anthony is President of the Accredited Career Writers Association International and her career articles have been featured on hundreds of websites including CareerBuilder, MSN Careers, AOL Jobs, CNN, Net-Temps, TelCoa, and Telework Recruiting.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Jennifer_Anthony

11 Tips That Guarantee Your Job

Don’t get a job just because you can’t write a good employment cover letter?

Do you think that someone else less capable than you is getting employed just because his cover letter was better than your’s?

Maybe yes because cover letters play a very vital role in your job employment.

Cover letters actually let the reader read your mind!!

Here are 11 Tips on writing a good, professional Employment Cover Letter. These are some basic tips. You will find complete set of tips with tips on stylizing your employment cover letter in my website.

1.An employment cover letter should create interest in the reader to go through your resume.

2.Don’t make your employment cover letter very long. The reader might just not read it after seeing such a long letter. Express more in less words. Don’t make your letter repetitive.

3.Tell them what you will do for the company and how willing you are to help the company and how you will help them. Don’t write a big essay on how you will do that, make it a small paragraph. Tell the company what you specialize in and how a professional like you will help the company.

4.Show them how interested and willing you are to help the company through the employment cover letter. Get all the information about the company and show how enthusiastic you are towards the company.

5.Try making your employment cover letter as different as possible. The reader will have hundreds of cover letters to read. So its quite understandable that he will just have a look at the cover letter and select you if he thinks you are among the best. So try to tell him that you are the best in every possible way.
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How To Create Multiple Income Streams By Leo Babuta

What do you do if you have one main client and for some reason the work from that client dries up? Perhaps the client goes out of business or goes in a different direction or just has a lull in business?

Your main source of income is then gone. Which is why it’s crucial for anyone who relies on their freelance revenues to have multiple streams of income.

That’s easier said than done, of course, as many freelancers have two or three main clients and are happy to focus on those alone. But as many experienced freelancers will tell you, that’s a mistake.

Today we’ll look at a few different ways to set up multiple streams of income to make your freelancing business more stable and ensure that you’re living the freelancing good life for years to come. Please note that the following are just different options you can choose — I’m not recommending you do all of them.

1. Have multiple clients. If you rely on one main client, slowly start branching out to new clients. That doesn’t mean to add a bunch of new clients willy-nilly, but to gradually add good clients, one at a time. You need to ensure that these clients fit with you, that you work well with them, that they don’t give you too many headaches. If the client fits those criteria, keep them. If not, dump them (professionally and nicely) and move on. But aim to have a wider variety of clients as well, as you don’t want a single unfortunate event (say the collapse of an industry) to wipe you out too.

2. Have a full-time job. You may already have a full-time job, and if so, my recommendation is not to quit outright. You might downsize your job, if you don’t really need the income anymore, but it’s often smart to keep the full-time job in some capacity just to ensure that you have that regular paycheck coming in. You could cut back on your pay and responsibilities, though, and work from home if possible.

3. Have a part-time job. If you don’t have a full-time job, and don’t think getting one will work for you, consider a part-time job. If you have valuable skills, often a part-time job can pay good money and offer you the flexibility you want so you can continue to freelance.

4. Get a contract. This may seem the same as freelancing, but I’m talking about a different kind of contract from freelancing. Freelancing tends to be on a per-assignment basis, while other contract options could be on a monthly rate for performing certain services, for example. I’m working on a contract with a non-profit organization to do some work for them on a monthly contract. The good thing is that you can do contracts and freelancing at the same time.

5. Start a blog. I’ve done this, as have many others of course, as a way to market my writing and to share my knowledge with others. And I make some decent cash from it, from ads, that adds another revenue stream. It can take awhile for a blog to make any money, as with any business, but I think it’s worth the effort.

6. Create a product. If you currently provide a service as a freelancer, you provide the service once and get paid once. Then you have to provide the service again to get paid again. However, if you can turn your service into a product, you can do that once and get paid many times. For example, you could create a DVD or podcast explaining how to do something (design a web page, for example), or a workbook or other kind of instruction manual. If you have a popular blog (like Freelance Switch), you may be able to sell merchandise. Set it up once, and collect an income stream thereafter.
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Little things count in job hunt

Landing a job is not just about your credentials and experience. Sometimes it’s the little things that stand out and make you a desirable candidate.

Paying attention to detail, leaving an impression at the interview and conducting a proper follow-up go a long way.

So how do you go about it?
First, prepare a focused, targeted resume and cover letter. Absolutely no typos tolerated. Make sure you use key words and phrases in the industry that recruiters will look for in your resume. For example, if you are applying for a publishing job, “editor” and “writer” are important catchwords.

Make your resume succinct and easy to read. Don’t leave the reader asking questions. If you have an uncommon name, and it is difficult to tell your gender, perhaps you want to provide hints in the resume by adding a middle name, said Darlene Cook, career strategist and coach at Resumes and Beyond in Baltimore.

Depending on how much creativity the job entails, you may want to jazz up your resume and cover letter by highlighting your accomplishments and experience before listing the chronology of companies you have worked for and your schooling.

“People are designing wonderful envelopes and letterheads,” said John Hawkins, president and chief executive of Aloysius Butler & Clark, an advertising and public relations company in Wilmington.

Once you’ve been invited to a job interview, find out the latest news about the company: Did it just merge with another company? What is the organization’s mission?

When it comes time for the interview, show up on time. Dress appropriately in a business suit.

“Too many people come overdressed,” said Barry Schlecker, president of The Network Group, a job search firm in Wilmington. “It’s not a date - it’s a business interview.”

Some experts suggest you practice a short answer for obvious questions such as “Tell me about yourself?” or “Why do you want to leave your current job?”

If the job is in online sales, or requires a lot of public speaking and presentations, some companies expect you to pitch a sales idea to a group of interviewers. If you know you may be asked to do a presentation, you should prepare one. Candidates particularly good at making presentations may want to take this opportunity to talk about themselves.

“I have seen people who do a PowerPoint presentation that shows you whatever they have done in their life,” Hawkins said. “It shows capability and ingenuity.”

Schlecker said, “Be prepared to say nice things about yourself. Be positive without being cocky.”

During the first interview, avoid any mention of salary expectation, benefits or vacation schedule. It’s way too early to start negotiating.

Also, if asked why you left a company or your opinion about your employer, avoid being negative.

As soon as you leave the interview, send thank you notes to each interviewer. Notes are polite and distinguish an applicant from others vying for the same position, writes Max Messmer, chairman of Accountemps, a national staffing company and author of Managing Your Career for Dummies.

More than half of the 150 senior executives polled by Accountemps said they prefer handwritten notes; 44 percent said they prefer e-mail.

Then give the company time to decide. When it gets closer to the deadline, call about the status of your application.

If the company offers you a job, be prepared to negotiate. Don’t immediately say “Yes” if you have not had a chance to think about it.

If the answer is “No,” don’t fret. The best way to get better at interviewing and job searching is through practice.

“I don’t think there is anything wrong if you don’t get a job to say, ‘Can you tell me why I didn’t get the job?’ Is there something you can do to help me in my next interview?’ ” Schlecker said.

If you make a good impression, the recruiter or hiring manager will be honest. That person may even keep your resume on hand for future openings or refer you to another department.

Taking Ownership of Your Career Path

I had an experience today that became the catalyst for the topic of this week’s column. I had lunch with a career coach who commented that one of his clients expected him to do the work for him. When I asked him what he meant, he said that the candidate seemed somewhat entitled and really hadn’t done his homework in preparation for their meeting. The candidate had the expectation that the career coach would be able to get him his next job. Hearing my business friend describe this scenario really struck a chord with me.

During the course of my work week, I generally interview several candidates who are referred to me through my business contacts, my clients, or oftentimes who are referred to me through friends. I always try to be helpful within my own time constraints, but do like to set aside time to give back to those who want to come in to talk to me & who have asked for advice. What I’ve noticed over the years, is that many people have not done their homework or research with regard to the topic they wish to discuss. This is a major mistake, whether you are talking to an executive search consultant, or you are going to a job interview… you must do your research before you take a meeting. Even today, I spoke to a woman executive who formerly worked as a production executive & is now the head of a non-profit media company. Her experience in interviewing people has been quite similar. People approach her for help with potential job openings & yet don’t know what types of jobs are out there or where their skill sets fit. It seems as though when it comes to looking for a job, or embarking on a new endeavor many people are rendered helpless!

With the internet access we have today, doing the appropriate research is so easy. There is no excuse for not taking the time to google a company, or even an industry. Find out who the leaders are in that industry & what constitutes their backgrounds. If you are interested in the television business or the film industry, or the gaming business… whatever it is, find out which associations or organizations represent them - Get the meeting schedules & attend the networking events that most of them do provide. Conferences are a great way to get to know a business & will give you a great overview. Also, you can google any business & you will come up with most of the information you need to inform you of a next step. The truth is that an executive with whom you are meeting, or a search consultant or even a career coach, cannot tell you what to do or in what field or particular job in which you are interested. This you must find out for yourself, for your own happiness & success. Granted, someone can give you feedback, & offer you an objective opinion about certain things, but you must find out what types of jobs are available (most companies have a job bank on their website), the responsibilities that comprise a daily work day, & then decide if that’s what you want to do. And, if you don’t have the background, what would be the chances of breaking into that particular area? Is it returning to school, or is it starting in a specific job that tracks to the place in which you want to be? Try to speak to someone working in a company or in a particular position in which you have interest. Writing letters to a particular executive, emails, & referrals through friends oftentimes is enough to get an exploratory meeting.

This is not to say that one doesn’t need guidance and advice from the experts. What I do want to emphasize is that you can come to the table prepared, having done the appropriate investigation & research needed to give you a base from which to proceed. Making yourself knowledgeable gives you such an advantage in making the right decisions for yourself.

So the operative advice is: do the homework. Investigate and research as much as possible, and try to come up with your own gameplan. It will make for a stronger person & certainly give you a stronger sense of self.

Getting back to the basics

Diane Domeyer started working as a recruiter back in the days when a well-thought-out cover letter always accompanied the résumés that landed on her desk.

These days, the executive director of OfficeTeam, a Menlo Park, Calif.-based staffing company, says recruiters are lucky if they receive a full sentence in an e-mail instructing them to review a résumé or electronic portfolio that’s included as an attachment.

That, she says, can give recruiters a bad impression of the job candidate.

“We need to go back to the basics,” she says.

Technology makes it easier to send out hundreds of résumés to employers all over the word. It also allows job candidates to take part in job interviews via computers and share their talents through blogs and portfolios.

But, according to Domeyer and other top recruiters, Internet tools are not an acceptable replacement for time-honored, job-hunting strategies.

Recruiters say candidates who get the jobs they want follow a few simple rules that have more to do with common sense – and common courtesy – than technology.

Here’s what they suggest:
DO

* invest the time to develop a strong résumé that not only reflects your goals and strengths but also your professionalism. An OfficeTeam survey found that 84 percent of executives polled said it takes just one or two typographical errors in a résumé to discard a candidate. It’s important to ask several people to review a résumé before sending it out.

* “A résumé is often the first contact an individual makes with prospective employers,” Domeyer says. “It’s like a first impression.”

* follow up with the hiring manager who receives your résumé. Domeyer says verifying receipt of important information shows a candidate’s initiative. At the very least, send a short message that may serve to encourage a manager to review your credentials.

Once you make contact, ask about the next step in the hiring process. If you’re told that semi-finalists will be invited for an interview in one week, Domeyer says call back in a week and one day.

* take an inventory of your image, as you only have one chance to make that first impression.

Your clothes, manners or overall look should not sabotage your chances for success, says image expert Susan Morem, president of Premier Presentation Inc., Minneapolis. You should look the part you want to play, she adds.

* make time to network. If you actively are job seeking, share with others in your industry the fact that you’re open to new opportunities. If you don’t have several interview lined up, start setting up informational interviews, says Steven Rothberg, founder of CollegeRecruiter.com.

* cast a wide net. Rothberg says many job seekers make the mistake of only reviewing large online job boards. In reality, only a small fraction of jobs available are posted, he says. If you want to use the Internet, check out sites geared to specific fields, trades and geographic locations. Don’t forget newspaper and trade publication ads and most importantly, networking opportunities.

DON’T
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