You have just seen a posting for a job that you really, really want. Your resume is ready to be emailed, you just need to fine-tune your cover letter and hit “send”. One thing is holding you up…this job is asking YOU to communicate your salary requirements. Exactly how are you going to do that? No need to worry-we offer a few tips to get you on the right track.

• Look at the job title and description of qualifications/requirements. First, do you meet all of the requirements they are asking for? Even if you only have a portion of the qualifications listed in the job description, as long as you have the majority of them, you should still apply for the job.

• Research similar positions that are out there and see what salary ranges are being offered. There are hundreds of job sites (glassdoor.com is a good one) on the internet that post salary ranges for specific positions, and some will even show what those positions make in different geographic areas. If you are able to get compensation information, that would help you as well.

• What are you making at your current job? If you are making $55,000 per year now, it wouldn’t look good to demand $85,000 for the same type of position (unless the new position has more requirements and/or is a managerial role). Yes, you will want to up the ante from what you are making, but you still need to be realistic.

• If the salary range is not listed on the job posting, contact the employer and ask what the range is. If you have a lot of experience, put your salary requirements toward the top of the range. If you are basically new to the field or only have a few years of experience, go mid-range or a little lower. You can always move up the scale once you get your foot in the door and show them what you can do.

• Never list your salary requirements at the beginning of your cover letter! Draw them in with your qualifications and achievements, then end with your salary requirements.

• Once you have done all of your research and have established the salary requirements you’re going to ask for, list those requirements, as well as the compensation package in your current position toward the bottom of your cover letter. You can even let them know that you are willing to negotiate based on your qualifications, benefit structure, job responsibilities, and advancement opportunities.

If you do land an interview, revisit your facts and research and be prepared to discuss your salary requirements during the interview. While communicating your salary requirements may seem awkward at first, presenting your information in a professional manner based on facts and research will impress the employer and hopefully get you the job you are trying for.

Beginning a career, or changing careers might not come as easily to you as it did to your friend/colleague. Having the education for a career, or even the skills needed is one thing—but getting out there and using them is another. Many people know they want a change, but just aren’t sure doing what.

This is the point where knowing how to find a career coach will help you to find the best job for you, period. Finding a career coach is not as hard as it is made out to be.

There are career coaches for all different stages in your life: high school, college, career transition, executive level, and more. On the other hand, there are people who are out of high school and college, or who have never attended school at all and need help analyzing the skills they already have. These folks need to know how to find a career coach in order to have an equal chance at succeeding. People whose education hasn’t progressed to finishing high school, or they have just finished, will need to go to the local employment office in their respective state. Each state employment office will give out the basics that are needed in terms of how to begin the search for a career coach. However, once the state employment office has gotten you started, they will help you find a career coach. This career coach may be someone who simply gets you on the path to a good job, and stays around to help for a while.

Once that career coach is gone, and moving on is something that you want to do, look around through various means to find one. Ask around—people that you know that might currently be using one should be able to guide you. Look on the Internet. Take some time to do a search—and use the term career advisor as well. There are plenty of career coaches—even executive career coaches—available.

Determining the cost that you may pay will be dependent on the materials that you find. Most career coaches now have websites. Look at their website.

Learning how to find a career coach is really not difficult. It simply takes a little bit of thought, and planning. So take the time to do your research, and ask for the help that you need. The effort will be worth it—you will have a better job, and a career that you really want.

I get asked this question all the time. I just read this article on Mashable.  Thought you might find it and the very cool/detailed infographic interesting and helpful.

“In answer to the question above, approximately 18,400,000 Americans say yes, they got their current job through Facebook. Though Zuck’s platform ranks #1, Twitter and LinkedIn don’t have shabby numbers either — 8 million and 10.2 million Americans, respectively, have gotten their jobs through social platforms….”

read the rest here.

The days of having a generic, all-purpose resume has been replaced by the need for highly developed, targeted resumes. Now you must tailor make your resume to fit into the job description offered by the employer. Targeted resumes aren’t just a necessity, they are critical to you finding long term employment. Targeted resumes put forth your best face and allow HR Managers to see exactly what you bring to the company.

Targeted resumes enable a job seeker to market their skills by addressing a specific concern for the company.  It allows them to see how your skills and past experiences will fit in closely with what they require. They also use targeted keywords that closely fit and attract attention to the needed qualifications for the position. You should play up your strengths and focus your attention there, but do not dismiss your past failures, embrace them and take responsibilities in them. But you don’t have to make them the focal point.

Chances are your resume is an all-purpose resume. What everyone likes about the all-purpose resume is that its broad and captures the wide appeal of employers. But saving time is not important, if you really want that job you have to have a complete targeted resume for each position you apply for. But don’t toss that original resume just yet, you still can use it as your base for completing your targeted resume.

Steps to creating a targeted resume

Use your all-purpose resume to build off of, this will save you some time in creating a brand new resume every time you apply for a job. It’s actually fairly easy to take your existing resume and tweak it to fit your needs. So here’s how you proceed:

Create your all-purpose resume

Think of everything that you’ve done in past jobs, experiences, education, clubs, sports teams, anything that you could use as a basis for who you are. Your all-purpose resume is the heart of your resume, employers will never see it but it will allow you to paint a lush picture of your overall capabilities.

Review the job requirements

If you find a job you are interested in, look over the job requirements in the ad. Review the requirements and see how your education and experience stack up with what they are looking for. You want the job to be a good fit and this is an important step of the process. Use the job requirements as your basis for altering your all-purpose resume. Highlight what the job requirements highlight. Tailor make your resume to fit what the company is looking for. Be careful not to overindulge.

Develop your targeted resume

When finished with researching requirements, you need to actually alter your resume. Look over your existing resume to see how you can alter it into the final product you will send to HR Managers. Add secondary keywords, accomplishments, training and skills to round out the resume. Your all set, now you just need to ace that interview.

Yes, it’s that time of year again.  In just a few weeks, many corporate professionals will be attending holiday parties with their coworkers. Time to kick-off your heels and celebrate another year towards retirement, right? Wrong.

Even though you are attending a “party” there is still etiquette you need to follow to ensure that your reputation and job are intact on Monday morning.

Make sure your spouse or significant other is actually invited to the event before you show up with him or her on your arm. As many companies are scaling back their celebrations due to tough economic times, some are only having parties for their employees – no guests.

• If your party is at a colleague’s home, take a small gift with you for the host/hostess. A holiday bouquet or goody that can be shared at the party would be sufficient. Only take a bottle of wine or other alcoholic beverage if you know your host is serving alcohol during the party.
• Know the dress code for the evening…and then abide by it. Even at the office party, what you wear can affect your coworkers’ and bosses’ perception of you. Wearing clothes that are too low cut or revealing is a no-no at a business function.
• If there is a meal, whether sit-down or buffet, remember your table manners. If there is more food available at the buffet, make sure every table has already had their first trip to the food line before you make a second. Always take the time to thank the wait staff and others who are serving you during the party.
• While there may be alcohol served at the party, this is not the time to see how much “holiday cheer” you can consume in one evening. As you are happily mingling with others, be conscious of how much you are drinking. Too much drinking, leads to too much talking which leads to nothing good on Monday morning.
• If there is mistletoe at the party, steer clear. Although this is a holiday tradition that has been around for years, stealing a kiss from the wrong person under the mistletoe can lead to an awkward situation or even worse, a possible reprimand for sexual harassment (yes, we’ve heard of this!).
• Network, network, network! Very rarely is there a time where all levels of an organization are together at once and there may be many new faces to greet. Try to meet colleagues in other departments and if you have the chance to rub elbows with the CEO, simply introduce yourself, thank him/her for the party and move on. While networking is okay, cornering the CEO to give him a 5-minute version of your resume is not.
• Lastly, in today’s world of social media and smart phones, you can almost bet there will be a few pictures taken during the party. If you are asked to be in a picture, smile and keep it professional. Even though some of your coworkers may be your “friends” on social media sites, you don’t want inappropriate pictures of you being fed to others throughout the company.

While the annual holiday party can be a great time to socialize with your colleagues, the bottom line is that you need to remember that an office party of any type is still about business. Don’t overindulge in alcohol, put lampshades on your head and pose for pictures, or stalk the CEO the entire evening – you don’t want to be the one with the red face at the water cooler on Monday morning.

 

 

While the holiday season is supposed to be full of “good tidings and cheer”, we all know that this is not something that comes easily to many of us. Between long lines in stores, wallets that grow empty as the season goes on, and angst over what to get the person who isn’t happy with anything, the “cheer” part of the holiday season sometimes goes by the wayside, especially in the workplace. However, there are things you can do to make the holiday season less stressful and more enjoyable for you and your coworkers.

Know your staff and their holidays:

If you are a department head, you should have an awareness of what customs/traditions your employees follow during the holidays. Saying “Merry Christmas” to the Account Manager who celebrates Hanukkah can be offensive, even if you don’t mean for it to be. If you take your staff to lunch as a holiday gift, try to organize the luncheon on a day when they are all present. Some staff may take days to celebrate holidays in their own cultures/religions, rather than the customary Christmas Eve and Christmas Day dates that most companies shut down.

Gifts for coworkers:

Many of us already have too many people on our shopping list during the holiday season, and adding coworkers to that list sometimes puts us over the edge. If you have a group of co-workers you feel you need to buy a little something for, suggest drawing names and doing a gift exchange. Set a strict price limit, and encourage the co-workers to give gift ideas (within the price range) to help the buyer find something appropriate for that person. If you decide to buy for someone outside of the gift exchange, make sure you set up a special time away from the workplace to exchange gifts. Or, forgo the gift giving completely and instead do a cookie exchange or potluck with your coworkers to keep the mood festive. Both options cost less and still give you the holiday social time with your coworkers.

Gifts for the boss:

This is a tough one. If you are the person who has been assigned the task of organizing the gift for the boss, there are a few things to remember. First, salaries are not the same. Find a gift where everybody can chip in and not have their wallets cleaned out. Set a limit (maybe $10/person) and if people want to give more they can. Have a card at your desk ready to go so when your coworkers bring you their donation, they can sign the card before they leave. Be prepared for those who may not want to donate and don’t badger them. Finally, when you are ready to present the gift to your boss, gather everyone together and give the gift to your boss as a group.

Gifts for clients:

Before you even think of giving a gift to a client, make sure you are very clear on the gift-giving/receiving policies for your company, as well as your client’s. Many companies have established strict guidelines regarding what types of “gifts” can be exchanged between customers and suppliers, buyers and sales associates, etc. While some companies have a zero-tolerance policy on receiving any type of gift, they are not opposed to business luncheons. If this is the case, take your client out for a nice lunch and express your gratitude in words instead of a gift that could get you, or them, fired.

By following some of these simple guidelines, you can make your holiday celebrations in the workplace light on the stress and heavy on the cheer!

Finding the right Social Media balance takes more than just knowing how to update your profiles. Firing off quick Twitter updates or Facebook comments will not get you noticed on job boards or help you find open positions.

If you’re not receiving the right kind of attention through Social Media, you should change your strategy. You must be able to connect with your Social Media peers. It’s not as simple as it seems and you must be diligent.

Learning on the fly can be hard, but these tips will help you on your way:

1. Update your LinkedIn profile with the most accurate, up-to-date information.

I cannot advocate this enough – you need to a strong representation of your talents, skills and experience in order to have a fully functional LinkedIn account. Review your Summary and Specialties areas with appropriate keywords, phrases and any information prospective employers look for. Have past coworkers give you quality recommendations. Return the favor with similar recommendations from people who have helped you. Build your network by inviting past colleagues and friends who you want to stay connected with.

2. Post your resume to the right online job board.

You want to be highly visible on job sites so that HR managers can find your resume. Some HR managers search job boards, LinkedIn and niche job sites – you need to have your resume in the right place so that when the opportunity comes along you have your resume where people can find it.

3. Update LinkedIn status bar along with your job board resumes.

LinkedIn sends weekly emails to your connections which gives a summary of the activities their connections are involved in. Updating your status allows these connections to know that you are actively looking for a new position.

Recruiters who browse job sites also get weekly updated resume notifications. Whenever you update your resume or save a new one, it gets posted to the job board, allowing HR managers to see your resume more often. Get your name out there!

4. Network!

Talk to your family, friends, colleagues, or anyone. Talk to anyone who might know of an open position with a company you like. You can have them make introductions through LinkedIn to the appropriate person within their company. Many people find their jobs through networking situations, so it’s always a good idea to talk to people and explain that you are interested in their company or open position. Don’t rely on email. You want to be able to actually speak with the right person – putting a face to a voice or an ear to words will go a lot further than simply emailing someone.

5. Create your professional online identity.

This is a combined effort of Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook and Google+ in a coordinated effort to showcase your talents, skills and expertise. Building yourself up online gives you credibility beyond simply seeing a resume. If HR managers can find out pertinent information about you online, it will improve your chances.

 

 

With the recovery finally on, people are looking for job options that will be around for while. So what kind of options do job seekers have when it comes to long-lasting careers and what type of careers should be avoided?

Job gains have averaged 125,000 per month but there are still industries that will take a tumble. So here are the industries you should shy away from:

1. Data processing and hosting services

Many of these jobs are being shipped overseas, so if you’re not a high-level IT professional, you should probably look for new employment options. Many companies practiced cost-cutting procedures so some of the jobs may stay here.

2. Apartment rental and home buyers

Apartment rental peaked in 2005 but with a wave of mergers and acquisitions among large apartment complexes, these jobs are being phased out. Lagging construction will keep the need for new apartments low until more apartment complexes are built.

3. United States Postal Service

The U.S. Postal Service has been usurped by email and competing companies such as FedEx and UPS. The post office is considering closing some offices and reducing staff to meet budget requirements. This is on top of the 147,000 jobs that have been cut since 2007.

4. Soft drink companies

This industry received a wealth of growth as new products were pushed to market, but now the same products are experiencing blow-back as the industry overgrew itself. It now seeks to pull back the reigns on existing products to make way for traditional drinks.

5. Wired Communication

As more companies go digital and the number of cell phone users increases, less wired services will be offered. This means a drop in the number of wired customers and an overall drop in the industry. Some phone companies are offering internet service in order to offset this, but the gains will be minimal.

Everyday life is all about bargaining and negotiating to get what you want or need. Whether at work, school, or home, you will always find a time of day where you will need to rely on your best negotiating skills, especially if you are trying to get ahead or make a point.  

When asking for a salary increase, your negotiating skills need to be developed, sharpened, and communicated in a professional manner.  One of these skills is showing confidence in your request and approach.  If you are lacking confidence when you ask for an increase, your boss may see that you also may lack confidence in showing that your work is worth getting a raise. 

To truly show confidence in your negotiations, you must be prepared.  Before you sit down in front of your boss to negotiate a new salary or benefits (i.e. and extra week of vacation each year), consider the following:

•  Define your goals before you start the negotiating process. What is the highest/lowest monetary amount you are willing to accept? If you can’t get an extra week of vacation, would you settle for 2-3 days of additional vacation time?
• What have you prepared to prove your worth/point? Do you have quantitative examples of your achievements in your current position?
• Have you practiced HOW you will ask for a raise or enhancement to your benefits package? What is your introduction to the situation going to be? Create an agenda for your conversation and use strong keywords that will make a point. Try to prepare for any objections or questions that your boss may fire back at you and come up with concrete answers to prove your point(s).
• Don’t only practice your words. During negotiations of any type, your body language is also important. Are you able to keep your language in check if the discussion grows heated?  While eye contact is a great tool, staring down your boss with a scowling face to get what you want is not.  
• What is your stopping point? How long will you fight before you know your request is a lost cause?
• Are you prepared for the fallout if your boss denies all of your requests?  Are you okay with just going back to your to your office and continuing on with no extras?  Will you threaten to look elsewhere for employment, and if so, will you be prepared if your boss encourages you to take your career elsewhere effective immediately?

The bottom line is that you need to be prepared before you enter into any type of negotiations at home, with your supervisor, or with a colleague or client. Successful negotiations aren’t just about getting what you want, but more about building stronger relationships and having the confidence to ask for what you deserve and/or are worth. If you’re able to get some or all of what you asked for, well…that’s a bonus!

(Guest post by Maria Rainier who blogs about education and online degrees)

 

Google+ may not yet possess the charms necessary to attract the hundreds of millions of users boasted by its competitors, but it still has strong features to woo users who give the service a chance. As a social networking service, Google+ strikes an ideal balance between casual and professional styles, giving the user potential to grow their contact list through social networking or the sharing of interest-based information among similar users. Google+ already attracted over 50 million users, yet it has some of the most outspoken detractors of any social media service.
Why is Google+ such a divisive entity? In my opinion, it comes down to user loyalties among the well-established social networks: some people enjoy Facebook and Twitter for what they have to offer and others want something different. I’d like to briefly explore the pros and cons of using Google+ based upon three criteria pivotal to all social networking services: content, design, and privacy.
Content
The content on Google+ is largely generated by users sharing their information because they’re eager to share the information with their friends. Because Google+ has such a small active user base relative to other social networks, the users on Google+ have to extend extra effort to search out contacts with similar interests. Unlike on sites like Facebook, you won’t be slammed with a barrage of content from thousands of users to sift from. Due to Google+’s optimal filtration systems, you might not have much activity at all on your stream (similar to a Wall or Newsfeed feature) when you first set up your Google+ profile.
People evaluating Google+ can choose to view this from a positive or negative perspective. On the one hand, the small user base presents an ideal setting for users to found new organizations, networks, and contacts among like-minded people looking to make meaningful connections. On the other hand, people might be turned off by the effort they must put into searching for and cultivating a rewarding contact pool. Google+ tries to ease the burden of searching for new contacts by transferring contacts from other Google services (Gmail and Google Reader, among others) to your contact lists, but if users will have to put time into searching for users outside of their sphere of familiarity.
Design
Fans of Google+ will likely point to its gorgeous design as one of its best selling points, and for good reason. When put side to side other websites, social media or otherwise, people will notice Google+’s refreshingly clean interface, free of spammy advertisements and product plugs from random vendors. The interface itself is surprisingly user-friendly as well, enabling the user to toggle between the sites many functions with ease. You can view updates in your stream, manage the organization of your contacts through the circle feature, browse what’s the latest buzz in the blogosphere, or just browse the web, showing your friends the content you like with the “+1” button.
On the downside, people fresh to the social networking scene could be easily overwhelmed by Google+’s wide array of features. Google+ works best for people already seasoned in social media usage who know what to expect from any similar service. Even with the sleek design, Google+ could turn off many new users who want simplicity over variety.
Privacy
Perhaps the most contentious aspect of Google+ is its take on user identity. Google+ users are required to give their full names in order to start a profile, and more importantly this information will be displayed for all other Google+ users to see. Of course Google+ users enjoy comprehensive privacy strictures that prevent non Google+ users from seeing their profiles at all, should they choose to hide them from public view. The main issue with the full name requirement rests with social media users who wish (or need) to remain anonymous in order to post content online. For instance, say that a progressive social policy blogger has a day job in a politically conservative work environment. In order to keep their job, the blogger writes their work under a pseudonym. That blogger wouldn’t be able to realize the potential of Google+ without revealing their name, and thus exposing their identity to those who could act against them for their beliefs. It’s a strong argument against the policy, but in the end Google contends that it will create a space for more open, honest, and personable connections between users.

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Author Bio:
Maria Rainier is a freelance writer and blog junkie. She is currently a resident blogger at First in Education where she writes about education, online colleges, online degrees etc. In her spare time, she enjoys square-foot gardening, swimming, and avoiding her laptop.