We’ve all seen the news reports on data breaches in retail. Even the President is getting involved by signing an Executive Order to combat the growing concern of identity fraud. But this security problem affects the corporate arena just as much as it affects the shopping cart. We all have to be aware that somebody is monitoring our online behavior and looking for a chance to make money somehow. That someone could be a marketer, or they could be a hacker and the effects of their motives affect our lives.
Be Aware of Security in Your Job Search
There isn’t a good way to find a job without being online somehow, unless you are in a unique situation. For most of us, an online job search brings privacy issues and the need to understand how and why security measures are important. This is a basic living skill in the world we inhabit, so it makes sense to keep an eye on developments.
Being aware of security and how it affects data becomes an asset in your career, because you have already developed an awareness that will protect your personal information and your employer’s.
Be Aware of Security in Your Career
Every business entity has security concerns. The risks of data exfiltration are high because the ability to save to “the cloud” with a single click makes it easy to put potentially sensitive information where it shouldn’t be. Staff and management alike need to be educated, and that training needs consistent reinforcement to keep data where it belongs.
Executives who maintain a respect and awareness of the challenges of data security will be ahead of the game because the discipline needed for secure habits is already there. As the responsibility in an organization increases, the security needed will also increase, so if you want to move up the corporate ladder, this skill is an asset.
A cursory look at the history of clothing shows a lot of change, and it is a fascinating way to spend some time. Who knew that both men and women wore makeup and high heels in some European courts? Clothing has always been an indicator of power, and that fact will probably never change. But when you are trying to figure out how to dress for the success of your career, there isn’t much help in the styles of the past. What matters today is the impression you make on those around you now.
There Is No Single Business Uniform
It’s a mistake to think that you can read up on business attire and get it right for a specific business environment, because every workplace is slightly different. There are some general guidelines, though, and I think the best one I’ve seen is Business Insider’s look at How To Dress Like A Leader In Any Work Environment. It identifies 5 levels of business attire, from “baseline casual” to “boardroom attire” and gives a complex subject some simplicity.
But the reality is that different regions in the world can vary on their idea of what to wear, and when. CEOs in the Silicon Valley are going to look different than a similar executive level in New York City, while the boardroom in Hong Kong has way more suits in it than the same company’s boardroom in Hawaii.
There Is A Universal Standard of Excellence
While the colors and styles may change, all higher level wardrobes have distinct similarities:
Everything fits and flatters the wearer
Everything is in good condition
Everything is high-quality in material and construction
All accessories are equally high-quality
Dressing for success definitely still matters in today’s business environment, but you need to do some research to determine what your success strategy will look like.
Why Is Makeup So Important For Professional Women?
“Age is a primary social dimension. We behave differently toward people as a function of how old we perceive them to be. Age perception relies on cues that are correlated with age, such as wrinkles. Here we report that aspects of facial contrast–the contrast between facial features and the surrounding skin–decreased with age in a large sample of adult Caucasian females. These same aspects of facial contrast were also significantly correlated with the perceived age of the faces. Individual faces were perceived as younger when these aspects of facial contrast were artificially increased, but older when these aspects of facial contrast were artificially decreased. These findings show that facial contrast plays a role in age perception, and that faces with greater facial contrast look younger. Because facial contrast is increased by typical cosmetics use, we infer that cosmetics function in part by making the face appear younger.”
This is the abstract of a research article titled “Aspects of Facial Contrast Decrease with Age and Are Cues for Age Perception,” and it should give a professional woman some good reasons to seriously consider wearing makeup at work and in profile pics. The way the study was conducted, people from the community sat before a computer and saw repeated photos duplicated side by side. The viewer chose the healthiest photo, or the most attractive, or the youngest, etc. But the only difference in photos was some slight changes in one.
Those changes were very subtle so the viewer was not necessarily aware of why one looked healthier, for instance. But the subtle changes did change perception.
Professional Image is All About Perception
Like it or not, people judge us by what we look like. Then they’ll judge us by how we act and sound. They have to make that judgement call because all they can see is the way we look and act and sound. So it makes sense that your professional image is based on outward appearances. OK, so I may be biased because I admit, I’m a makeup hound. I love all things hair, makeup, and accessories. I was loving life in the 80’s with the big hair, bright makeup, bracelets, and bows (even though I do look back at pictures and cringe sometimes). However, not all women want to fuss with makeup in the morning– and I get that.
Women working in the corporate world have many more options on dress and appearance than men do. You’d think that makes it easier, but it actually is more challenging because it’s so easy to choose the wrong option. It’s a good idea to study the workplace you are operating in carefully, dress for the position you hope to be promoted to, and look healthy & reasonably attractive in both real life and profile pics. Sad, but true. How you look professionally counts.
This study shows that you can increase a positive perception of your image with a little bit of makeup, so there’s proof that makeup is a good success strategy for professional women. And I’m not just saying that because I still have my Color Me Beautiful palette from 1985. Ahem.
What Kind Of Investment Are You Putting In Your Career?
It isn’t difficult to end up in a job that leaves you wondering what you were thinking when you took it. But there still were investments that you made to be in that position, right? Here’s some thoughts on how to evaluate those investments, and what to do if you aren’t happy with the current return on your investment.
Investments in Your Job Today
Everybody invests three things in their career: time, money, and effort. But they vary widely on both the quantity and quality of what they put into it.
Time invested includes how long you looked for your job, how long you’ve worked at your job, and how many hours you work. Time adds up in small increments, and the accumulated effect of the time you invested is valuable. You have experience when you have spent time doing something.
Money invested can range from buying a paper to look at the job listings to buying the Job Search Success System. Your interview and working wardrobes, transportation costs, professional workshops; if you spent it to get or keep a job you invested it.
Effort invested is harder to calculate. You can spend time at a training session and get nothing out of it because you were not really thinking about improving your skills. Effort means you have invested more than time or money — you put energy into it.
Improving Your ROI For Your Future Career
Professional development is all about adding effort to the money and time you invest in order to improve your return on that investment. You could buy that Job Search Success System, for instance, and invest money. You may even invest a little bit of time skimming the contents. But until you put effort into applying what you learn, you aren’t going to see much improvement.
You don’t have to buy anything to improve your ROI for your future career because you already have time and money invested to some extent. Add some appropriate effort to what you have and you will see positive change. It may take some more time or money, but those are useless without what you add to the equation.
Beat The Competition With The Job Search Success System
Competition is unfortunately part of the picture in searching for a job. It’s also part of the picture in keeping your job and being promoted.The Job Search Success System has more to offer than getting your foot in the door; the skills you learn will help you be successful throughout your career as you struggle to keep up with the market.
In addition to finding that job, there is coaching on:
how to figure out what you really want out of your career
how to become the acknowledged expert in your field, boosting your income and potential
how to negotiate for salary increases of 10% and more — up to 50%
communication tips
efficiency tips
project work, consultation work, and adding income streams
The more skills you have, the more options you have. When you are actively seeking to improve your skills, it benefits you now and in the future. It also benefits those around you because you are setting a standard of professionalism that will enhance your workplace. Even if you would decide that you are not ready to invest in a tool like The Job Search Success System, pay attention to the things offered in the package. Those are skills you need to develop somehow in order to keep up in the marathon that is a career.
I did say “marathon” instead of “race”. That is because the goal isn’t really to be the first one past the finish line: the goal is to get across that line, getting and keeping a job until promotion to a better job. You might not be as fast as some of the other runners, but if you keep at it, you will get there!
In order to advance in your career or show improvements on your resume, you need to make sure that you are constantly trying to better yourself and your skills. Employers want to see that you will make their company a more profitable place. Whether by awarding you with a promotion or giving you the job in the first place, you need to show employers the value you offer by doing something to enhance your career on a daily basis. You will be surprised how simple it can be to improve and develop skills, which may in turn lead them to give you the job or the promotion.
Practice: This is simple, but if you continue to practice the skills you already have, then you will become more proficient and they will become more impressive to employers.
Networking: This is another simple thing, but so very important. You need to make sure that employers know your name so that when promotions come up you are one of the first names that come into their head. Make sure your name is prominent on successful projects, that your initiative to move up the ladder is known, and that you introduce yourself to those attending meetings with you, especially when interacting with the company’s executives.
Training: Look for training and professional development opportunities in your industry that would help you develop new skills or enhance yourcurrent skills. Training by professionals can be a great way to learn and become impressive. If the training is especially applicable to your job, employers may even pay for part or all of the training.
There are so many things you can do to improve your career and resume. If you feel you are not improving, then take the time to ask yourself what you have been doing lately to add value to your career, as well as create a plan to further your skills and expertise. In today’s competitive job market, it is essential that you show employers the value you add to the company, every single day.
A common question asked during an interview is “Why Did You Leave Your Last Position?” A friend of mine who worked in Iran during the 1979 revolution offers an easy answer: his resume always says “civil unrest.” While that is a concrete and completely honest answer, most of us don’t usually have such a perfect answer when asked that question during an interview. Futhermore, the answer can be even more difficult if you are still in your current position and interviewing for a new position at another company.
If the questions “Why did you leave your last position?” or “Why do you want to leave your current position?” come up during an interview (and they will), your answers should be brief and honest. Simply stating that you are looking to advance your career or enhance your skill set are easy answers. You want to talk about using your skills, especially new ones you might have acquired through additional education or on-the-job training. You could also mention that you are looking for a position with more advancement opportunities and responsibilities.
What if the reason you are leaving is because of harassment, horrible policies, downsizing, or that your last boss was a complete jerk? Pretend it never happened. Under absolutely no circumstances are you to mention anything negative about you supervisor, your company, or anyone you have ever worked with. There is no possible way to complain without looking bad to the interviewer, so avoid it at all costs. If for some reason the interviewer knows that there was a situation at your last job, answer his questions truthfully, without giving a lot of detail, and direct the focus of the interview back to your qualifications for the job he is interviewing you for.
When interviewing, you want to leave the impression that you are ambitious, hardworking, and the best candidate for the job. Before you interview, take the time to rehearse concrete answers as to why you’re looking for a new job and how your skills, experience, and work ethic make you the best candidate.
How To Answer "Do You Have Questions For Me?" Like A Pro
When you are finished with your interview, it is not uncommon for the interviewer to ask you one final question, “Do you have any questions for me?”This is one of the most dreaded questions an applicant may be asked. There is a war that goes on inside most peoples’ heads when this question is asked: “If I don’t ask any questions, will they be offended because I don’t want more information?” or “If I ask too many questions, will it seem like I wasn’t paying enough attention?”
These are not uncommon thoughts that may be running through an applicant’s mind. Hopefully, by the end of this post you will have a better idea of how to handle when this question is thrown to you, and you will be able to answer it like a pro.
Be Honest: If you truly do have questions, then go ahead and ask. If your interviewer didn’t want to know your questions, then they wouldn’t honestly ask. Employers expect that you will have questions. Do your homework before your interview and have a few questions prepared.
Be Appropriate: Don’t ask inappropriate questions or questions that are silly or funny. It will annoy your interviewer and can make them feel like you are wasting their time.
Don’t Repeat: Pay attention and don’t ask questions that have already been answered. It will only make you seem incompetent and like you don’t pay attention. If the only questions you’ve prepared have already been addressed, you can go into more detail, or just let the interviewer know that any questions you had coming in to the interview have been addressed.
These are some good guidelines for answering questions. However, if you don’t have any honest and relevant questions, then you can always simply tell them that you have no further questions and look forward to hearing from them. This is a perfectly acceptable way to end the interview and leave the interviewer with a impressive picture of the value you would offer as an employee.
