Habits That Will Make You Happier

The stress of looking for a new job or the necessity of getting one has a negative effect on your attitude and relationships with others.  Taking some time to review and modify your mental and emotional state is worth the time.  These are stressful times; acknowledge that fact and recognize its effect on you and those around you.

Minor changes in your daily routine will make a major difference in your life and career. Happiness is the only true measure of personal success. Making other people happy is the highest expression of success, but it's almost impossible to make others happy if you're not happy yourself. So if you are open to 9 suggestions that might counter the job search stress, click here.

9 Words to Dump from Your Resume

Think of the hundreds of resumes that cross an HR manager’s desk; a mountain of paperwork they’d rather bypass. But there are subtle ways to make your resume stand out from the rest.
 
One way is to be word wise. But first, the words that need dumping. These are self-aggrandizing words that your references may use to describe you. But if you use them, it sounds like you’re patting yourself on the back. They simply lack objectivity. They’re qualitative and can’t easily be linked to quantitative appraisals of your accomplishments. So, if you are curious about 9 words to dump and 9 to include, see the article here.

Part Time, the new normal?

With effective unemployment at 14.6 % (BLS U-6 statistic for October) due to the lack of an expanding economy, part time employment represents a practical solution.  While the thought is not pleasant, part time may become the new normal.  Lack of expansion, increased regulation and additional health benefits mandated for full time positions likely will cause an increase in part time offerings. 

Those with extended lack of employment may consider part time as a stop gap measure; the sluggish economy may translate into it being a permanent reality. More detail from an economic point of view available here.

Will your skill set last 10 years?

It has been well acknowledged that for today's workplace one should expect to encounter five to seven distinctly different job descriptions over your forty years. The dynamics of the job place and the pace of technology will present you with the 'ride of your life'.

If you are a new graduate or if you have more than 10 years 

before retirement, think about this. One job for life hasn’t been true for a while, but in the tech space even expecting to have one skill-set for life may be asking too much. Jobs may last less than a decade before becoming obsolete. So how do we cope? Since this roller coaster ride probably applies to you, read more here.

The Prophets Speak!

The Bretheren have given specific and sound counsel over many decades relating the responsibility of the Priesthood to be concerned and care for the temporal welfare of the members.

Leaders should be aware of the needs of each member, active or otherwise and utilize the Priesthood for their rescue.  Selected quotes on the subject available here.

V.I.P. Job Posting Web Sites!

While networking is the most effective source of job leads, the web can also be of value.  Search sites come in two varieties, one for employers to post opportunities and one for candidates to post resumes.  Both allow candidates to search based on personal criteria and on key words. The following sites are a place to start for finding opportunities and get a sense of what employers are looking for:

1. www.ldsjobs.org  The Church web site for employment
2. www.indeed.com    General site with good search features
3. www.dice.com    Hub for high tech professions
4. www.denver.craigslist.org    Denver Blue Collar Jobs
5. www.monster.com    Comprehensive job postings
6. www.usajobs.gov    Source for Federal Government jobs

Your Six Seconds!

So you have worked for weeks on the resume, had it reviewed by others, run the spell checker twice and confirmed proper use of words and grammar. Now it is ready for a thorough review by the hiring manager. You are hoping for a two or three minute detailed analysis - think again.

You will have about six seconds to get the attention of the reviewer and make the first cut ... to read again, or to wastebasket. It is of critical importance to be seen as a seriously qualified candidate in the top one third of the page and within six seconds.

Interested? see the full article here.