• Five tips to help you become a much better communicator
• Q & A with The Vocational Coach
• College Senior's Survival Guide - Dec. 2004
• Demand Attention and Land the Job

Five tips to help you become a much better communicator

Betty Pierce Zoller, founder and president of ZWL Publishing, Inc., offers five tips you can use to immediately improve your communications skills:

Get rid of "mind erasers." A good example is "but." Any time you use this word–e.g., "I'd love to go to lunch with you, but..."–the listener tends to disregard everything you've said prior to "but." Instead, use conjunctions such as "however" or "instead."

Keep a pocket dictionary on the front seat of your car. Use traffic jams to bone up on words you don't know–but should. The English language contains more than 600,000 words, but most people use only about 1,200 in everyday conversation. Enrich your word power today!

Take a hint. When people look preoccupied or act as if they don't welcome conversation, don't try to force it on them. Don't waste time trying to converse with colleagues when they are incapable of giving you their full attention. Instead, ask them when they will be available to hear you out.

Stop apologizing. Studies have shown that women, especially, hedge and apologize too much in inappropriate business situations. Don't preface your news with a sentence like "I'm sorry to tell you this, but..." Such introductory remarks weaken what you are trying to say.

Q & A with The Vocational Coach

Craig,
I have a boss who constantly micro-manages me. I feel so frustrated. The whole company in fact is run this way. What should I do?
Manny

Dear Manny,
A person who manages in this way usually has a combination of insecurity, fear and or inexperience. Combine this with an overall system which practices this harmful approach of management and you have a very challenging environment. Make a plan now to transition out to an environment where you feel more creative and more alive.

Regards Craig

Craig,
I really dislike my current job but I have lots of bills and see no way out. I do have some money in my 401K but that’s saved for retirement. Suggestions?
Ann

Dear Ann,
People only retire when they don’t like what they are doing. Cash in your 401K now to fund a move into more fulfilling work and then you won’t have to worry about saving for a retirement you will no longer need.

Regards Craig

Craig,
I plan on following my passion of restoring old cars. The problem is I am not sure I can financially support my family in the first few years. Suggestions?
James

Dear James,
First, congratulations on moving towards what you want in your vocational life.

Figure out the minimum cash flow that you will need for the first few years and then figure out the maximum potential cash flow you can bring in for your new business.

What can you do to close the gap? Aside from the financial analysis which you should do, what other types of services and products could you sell around your love of cars? Many of us ponder ways to make more money doing the things they just left vs. those new activities which bring them passion!

Regards Craig

Craig,
I am a full time student and only 22. I found this site by accident. I am writing because I am in school and have no idea what I want to do when I get out. I don’t want to become lost later in mid-life. What should I do?
Jennie

Dear Jennie,
It’s great that you are now pondering this issue. It’s never too early to move towards what you love to do. What are you interested in? Do you have abilities in those areas?

Do you know how to gain abilities in the areas which interest you?

Ponder this and you will be well ahead of the rest of us in mid-life!

Regards Craig

Craig,
What’s the difference between doing a job JUST for money and doing a job you love?
Name Withheld

In one way or another, all of us end up renting our behaviors to someone else for money. The secret is to make sure you love what you do and then you won’t be able to tell the difference between your work and your play.

Regards Craig

Craig,
I do not like what I do but I am afraid to sacrifice what I have to quit and try something new? What does a person like me do?
Andy

Andy,
What could you first sacrifice this week on a small scale to get started?

Sometimes it just takes a little practice here, a little change there, to realize that you can live with less of what you don’t want right now.

Regards Craig

Craig Nathanson, The Vocational Coach, is the author of “P Is For Perfect: Your Perfect Vocational Day,” by Book Coach Press. He publishes the free monthly e-zine, “Vocational Passion in Mid-life.” Craig believes the world works a little better when we do the work we love. He helps those in mid-life carry this out. Visit his online community at www.thevocationalcoach.com where you can sign up for his next Tele-class coming up on January, 26th

College Senior's Survival Guide - Dec 2004

Once a year, your boss grades your performance and decides if you deserve a raise. You meet, and he reads you your completed evaluation. That's it! It's final, without any of YOUR input. (Since you're just starting out, you don't have much work experience to use as a weapon for negotiation.)

Now you're expected to sign this evaluation -symbolizing that you're in total agreement. They got you. If you don't sign, you'll be making waves, which will probably come back to haunt you in the future.

My suggestion is to sign your evaluation and, before the ink dries, ask what you need to get promoted the following year.

Get these goals in writing and meet throughout the year to track your progress. If all goes well, how can your boss deny you your money?

And here's a little secret. No matter when you're up for review, your raise is always determined in September. That's when the next year's budget is planned...including salaries!

So be sure to meet with your boss about your progress right around Labor Day. You'll be fresh in his mind when you need to be.

But the best thing about your review is once it's over, you get six months of total freedom. There's no way your boss will remember early screw-ups by next year.

For example, say your review falls in October. Come winter you could do naked cartwheels down the hallways with a flaming road flare sticking out of your butt. But as soon as the temperature rises, it's back to buckling down and puckering up.

Particulars: Release date is September 15, 2002. Publisher is Ten Speed Press in Berkeley, CA. 160 pages, paperback. Cost is $10.95. ISBN #: 1-58008-443-5. Available at www.tenspeedpress.com and stores nationwide. For more info about Fred Pollack, go to www.fredpollack.com

Demand Attention and Land the Job

(ARA) - With thousands of workers nationwide actively seeking employment, there's no denying that today's job market is tough. So what does it take to get noticed by employers and land a job?

Some job seekers have found success through attention getting techniques such as sending fruit baskets to hiring managers, delivering resumes in pizza boxes or showing up at interviews with a box of Krispy Kreme donuts.

While these gimmicks have worked for some, it is not always the best approach to landing a job. "If you know the HR manager or the person who will be reviewing resumes, modify your approach based on what you know about that person," suggests Jeff Taylor, founder of Monster, the leading global online careers resource. "Go the extra mile if you know the decision maker favors those who show initiative. If not, then take a more professional approach."

A solid resume is, of course, a good way to get the attention of a hiring manager. Because everyone these days -- whether already employed or actively seeking work -- has a resume ready to show prospective employers, job seekers must find ways to offer tangible evidence of their skills in order to stand out from the crowd. Providing potential employers with a portfolio of your best work is just one example of how to differentiate yourself from the other candidates. Showcasing materials produced for other jobs, internships, classes and/or volunteer work, is a great way to illustrate your skills and experience.

When you don't know who is going to be reviewing resumes, you have no way of knowing how the person might react. Commonly, the resumes delivered in a pizza box are the first to be discarded. Of course, there are the exceptions. If a company is making a concerted effort to target someone with specific skills -- and there are a lot of other job seekers with those same skills competing for the job -- a more unorthodox approach might be necessary to stand out from the crowd and get the company's attention.

But, if the pizza box isn't your style, here are a few tips on how to get noticed, while keeping your professionalism intact:

• Apply to jobs that match your skills and experience: Write a targeted cover letter and modify your resume so that it illustrates how you are the best fit for the job. Convince the hiring manager why you should be considered for the job.
• If you know the hiring manager's name, consider a voice mail or e-mail: Your message should entice the hiring manager to take another look at your resume. The goal is to have the hiring manager contact you.
• Get to know the top recruitment agencies in your area: The majority of these agencies post jobs on careers sites such as Monster on behalf of their clients.
• Work your network: Do you know someone at the company who can make an introduction? Do you know any of its customers? Suppliers? Former employees? You won't have a referral every time, but it is worth the extra effort to try to find one.

When contacting employers, use an approach that reflects the reasons why you think you should get the job. Whatever you do, be polite -- and don't do anything to get attention that will affect your long-term career. Today's lean market calls for extraordinary methods and it is increasingly important for job seekers to be more proactive and thoughtful in their employment search.

However, even when deciding to use unconventional tactics to get the attention of an employer, it's important to remember the old standbys. Tweaking resumes, brushing up on interviewing skills and regularly attending networking

Courtesy of ARA Content