I found the whole thing sort of frightening, but fortunately the workers didn't seem to pay too much attention to it one way or the other.

However, over the years I've wondered why I thought the "zero defects" campaign was so outlandish.

I kind of do the same thing to myself.

About a month ago, my daughter Maggie was a guest blogger on Contemporary Working. Check out what she wrote in Find a Job. It was about her year long job search.

I was supposed to follow up the next week with parenting words of wisdom... about patience, support and encouragement. I waited for a few weeks and then things began to heat up. Maggie had a few interviews and was invited back for second looks. The stars were aligning -- I felt something good was about to happen so I waited a bit longer.

What did he do?

Read on ...

Scott Bornstein, from suburban Minneapolis, was using what he thought was a well written resume, but without results. "Every time I sent it out, people would suggest changes to make. When I handed it out at a job fair, they'd say, 'Thank you' and file it away immediately." He wasn't getting called by employers.

1. Don't drink too much: A couple drinks to "lubricate" the situation is okay. But whether it's a professional or social event, you don't want to completely let your guard down.

Read the full article

Article by Willy Franzen of One Day, One Internship and One Day, One Job

Read the full article

Article by Willy Franzen of One Day, One Internship and One Day, One Job

Read the full article

Article by Willy Franzen of One Day, One Internship and One Day, One Job

Consultant and leadership coach, David Rock, has come up with several methods to help people do their jobs more efficiently by helping them to first understand how their brains process their different day-to-day tasks. In his book, Your Brain at Work, Rock uses the experiences of two characters, Emily and Paul, to illustrate his points.

I - Fear of a new boss

Some people love to find ways to intimidate their co-workers. They think it gives them power in the workplace, and they think it makes them less vulnerable to the threats of demotion or job loss. Others live in constant fear of those intimidators, attempting to avoid them in meetings, in empty hallways, and anyplace where direct, uncomfortable interaction might be required. But what do you do if you happen to be one of the intimidated and suddenly must report to an intimidator? As hard as it might be, face them head on. Just as you would if they were a scary-looking dog and you had to walk right up to them and pat 'em on the head. Don't stutter or shake or sweat, or they'll sense your fear and bite the hand that pats them. But, approach them, afraid or unafraid, and be your best, calm, centered professional self.

Although school districts nationwide recently suffered cuts in both teachers and counselors, prospects vary sharply by geographic area. While tenured professor positions are as difficult as ever to get, college and universities are increasingly relying on adjunct and other non-tenured positions to serve increasing numbers of students.

These are just a couple of reasons to do your information interviews and research about careers close to home. For more tips about researching and choosing an education career, see my blog post about it.

I spoke to a candidate today, whose job search strategy was "the same thing I did 7 years ago". When I asked why he felt what worked 7 years ago would work well today, he listed these reasons:

• It's what has always worked for him
• A CEO complimented him on his good resume
• Of his friends, he was considered the expert in how to search for a job

This illustrates an interesting phenomena...while many job seekers realize the job market has dramatically changed, most still won't change their strategies. This unfortunate fellow fought change, tooth and nail, even after discussing how much the job market has changed and how much more competitive it is, especially in his field, Pharmaceuticals.

All things being equal, we prefer to do business with those we know, like and trust. And all things not being equal, many of us would still prefer to do business with those we know, like and trust. I heard this said at a panel discussion recently and I couldn't agree more.

The question is: How can we allow that know, like and trust to happen effortlessly and automatically so that networking doesn't seem forced, fake, or time-consuming?

Over the past few weeks, we've explored how we can tap into the natural ability we each have to build relationships organically, letting nature take its course without injecting anything artificial into the process to force them to blossom more quickly.

Usually, older and more experience, mentors provide coaching and serve as role models for neophytes who turn to them for advice on how to build and manage careers. This role is important to the success of individuals and organizations.

Mentoring is taking on a new dimension as increasingly younger careerists are performing that vital service for their older bosses and associates.

9 questions that will take your brand to the next level:

1. Can you state your three most relevant and compelling brand attributes (adjectives that describe you)?

My top three brand attributes are:

2. Do you know what those around you think is your greatest strength?

Those around me consider my greatest strength:

Your career does not get better until you make it better. This involves work. Yes, you may tell yourself that the work is hard to do. But isn't staying in a career (or job) that is draining your energy and taking away from your quality of life harder?

Getting out of a rut is all about taking action to move yourself forward. You decide what you want and then you put a plan in place to get it. You see it, you believe it, and then you achieve it.