10 Bad Habits to Leave Behind in the New Year

In order to make room for the great new work habits you’re resolving to adopt on January 1st, be sure to ring out any bad office practices. And, yes, procrastination is on the list, so reading this now instead of later is a great first step in the right direction.
Here are some tips for banishing common office behaviors that can get in the way of success.
1. Put off procrastination…now
Overwhelmed by the difficulty or size of a pending chore? Make use of calendars and computer alarms to plan out and schedule small pieces of big projects. Doing a little at a time is usually easier than tackling a whole project at once – and always more productive than putting it off ’til you’re “up to” a big challenge.
2. If your system’s broken, fix it
Do you clean up your act every few months only to find your folders empty and your desk a mess again in no time? If you’re constantly unable to find things, you may be trying to adhere to a filing system that doesn’t work for you. Notice where your various papers naturally end up and base a new categorization scheme on what works for you. Continue reading …
Article by Laura Frongillo and courtesy of Salary.com&reg

How Would You Rate Your Chances of Securing a Job?

Opinions do vary, but on the whole, the general consensus is that the economy is looking up and that jobs are not going to be as difficult to find as they were during the past 18 months. But that’s no reason to rejoice if you’re a college graduate or in your final year of college, because irrespective of how the economy’s doing, you need to have a few special skills to secure a decent job in today’s world. So how do you know if you have what it takes to find suitable work after graduation? Well, you could answer a few questions to find out:

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CIA Actively Recruiting Arab and Muslim-Americans

One of the benefits of being an owner of a job board used by college students searching for internships and recent graduates hunting for entry-level jobs and other career opportunities is that you get to witness first-hand the recruiting challenges faced by a wide variety of organizations.
Think that your organization has a hard time recruiting the talent that it needs? Put yourself in the shoes of the Central Intelligence Agency. In addition to the widely divergent views about the organization, it continuously needs to recruit hundreds of very diverse people if it is to fulfill its mission. To help meet those recruiting goals, recruiting leaders from the CIA recently visited Detroit. Why Detroit? Watch this video:

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Entry Level Jobs in Rhode Island

While the economy has been slowly improving, the job market is still tougher than it has been in many years. This especially hits recent college graduates hard, so they have to use every resource available in order to find entry level jobs. A great tool for them to use is CollegeRecruiter.com, which at the start of December, had 483 entry level jobs posted by employers in Rhode Island.
One entry level job is for people in the Lincoln, RI area, there is an opening for an entry level IT developer at the Amica Mutual Insurance Company. The firm, which employs over 3,000 individuals, is looking for a candidate who has a bachelor’s degree, strong written and verbal communication skills, and is able to work as part of a team. Although Amica will provide training, they would like someone with knowledge of web based technologies, databases, off the shelf solutions, as well as experience working in a mainframe environment. Amica offers its employees medical, dental, and life insurance as well as a pension.

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Internships in Rhode Island

College students realize how difficult the economy has made the job market, but not all of them are being proactive, doing everything they can to increase their marketability to future employers. While studying, good grades, and extracurricular activities will help, they will only take a student so far. That is why they should find internships while they’re still in school to gain the experience that employers are looking for. CollegeRecruiter.com is one of many great resources students can use to find such internships. At the start of December, employers in the state of Rhode Island had posted 74 internship opportunities.
One such internship is in Providence, for RED, a division of Sony Music. RED performs marketing and sales operations for 47 independent record labels, as well as some Sony artists. Interns will work as part of the company’s street marketing program, all the while gaining experience in tour, online, lifestyle, and retail marketing. Qualified candidates will be highly motivated, and have excellent communications and computer skills.

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When Do You No Longer Need a Personal Brand?

I wondered about this question when I read Penelope Trunk’s comment on Nicole Crimaldi’s blog, Ms. Career Girl.
I’m 42 years old. I have had a very successful career, and I can be judged on my track record. So I don’t need a personal brand.
So, newsflash, you never hear me writing about my personal brand because I don’t need one. I am not at the beginning of my career, I am not trying to figure out what I stand for. I am not trying to explain to people how they should view me.
While I’m normally not a follower of Ms. Trunk, her comment got me thinking: Is there a certain point in life when you no longer need a personal brand? Is it an age, or more of a milestone?

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5 Tips for Your First “Real” Job

Great things to get out of a job whether you like what you’re doing or not…
1) Get involved in activities outside of work. Now that you are no longer in school and don’t have endless hours of homework, studying, and group projects to complete, you may find yourself with a lot of free time. Ideas for activities to keep you busy include alumni groups, local networking organizations, professional organizations related to your field, a second “fun” job, volunteer programs, or recreational sports leagues. Being involved in something outside of work gives you something to look forward to in the evenings or on the weekends and is a great way to meet new people and expand your network. Whether you’re reconnecting with people at alumni events, earning extra money at a second job, or giving back to your community through a volunteer program, you will have the opportunity to share your time and talents with others outside of the workplace!
2) Keep learning and developing your talents through formal or informal education. If you have the opportunity to go back to school and earn an additional degree while working, take advantage of it! While many companies are cutting back on their tuition reimbursement programs, you may have to find other ways to continue learning. Attend meetings in your industry, participate in free webinars, network with experienced professionals in your field, and find a few blogs to read regularly that interest you. All of these are alternatives to traditional classroom training. Continue reading …
New Grad Life is the only blog solely dedicated to providing free resources to recent college graduates or soon-to-be grads for topics such as job hunting, resume/interview help, networking tips, money management, and more.

I Wrote Your 2010 Career Resolutions for You

When it comes to work, many of us have the same resolutions. We figured we’d save you the time and type them up for you. If you truly want to get your career on the right track or just have a better attitude towards work, we recommend you start off slow, picking one or two of the items below and building from there. These were my resolutions in 2008, and they’re pretty much the same this year!
Set a Deadline on “Perfecting” Your Resume
The longer you wait to send it out, the longer it will take you to land a new job. You need to get it error-free but not at the expense of never finishing it. Resumes are fluid. Do not be afraid to hit the send button.
Narrow Down What You Want to Do
Just saying that you want a new job is a temporary solution. You must ask yourself the hard questions. You also need to rely on family and friends to give you an unbiased view at what you are good (and not so good) at.
Stop Reading This Website
Ok. I really don’t want you to give up your Jobacle addiction but I would like you to take more action and do less research. Trolling 15 career Websites a day is not likely to make you a happier person at work. You’ll only get somewhere if you employ what you learn. If you’re always reading, when will you find the time? Continue reading …
Article by Andrew G.R. and courtesy of jobacle.com – your cure for carbon copy career advice!

Six New Year’s resolutions to revitalize your job search in 2010

2009 was a long and challenging year for jobseekers. Unemployment reached record highs, and competition for jobs was fierce. If you had trouble landing your ideal job, you weren’t alone.
As we cross into 2010, it’s a natural time to take stock of your 2009 job search: what worked, and what didn’t; what time was well spent, and what time was wasted. If you were using methods that didn’t give good returns on your time and energy, now is the time to drop them.
Then, resolve to channel your fresh start and high energy into new habits designed to get you into your ideal job in the coming year. Here are six recommended resolutions to make your job search successful in 2010.
Article by, Sarah and courtesy of RiseSmart.com – RiseSmart: Search Smarter. Rise Faster.

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Seven Job Search Strategies that Worked in 2009

As we wait for the ball to drop in Times Square and hope for a better job market in 2010, I’m hitting the pause button…and taking a quick look at the last 12 months. Clearly, these were not the easiest of times in the labor market–but I’ve watched a lot of people land great jobs. Over the course of the year, I reviewed over 200 resumes from job seekers across the U.S. during a stint as a resume reviewer for Microsoft; I spoke with job applicants at employer fairs and facilitated a job seekers group in New York City. In the process, I saw many success stories.
Here are seven strategies that I’ve seen work in 2009.
1. Writing resumes for the “electronic eye.” As many online applications are read by scanning technologies before they are viewed by humans, start your resume with a summary of keywords and phrases that line up with job qualifications.
Tip: Check out the free Career Hub Insider’s Guide to Resume Writing

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