Although the US job market has seen some glimmers of light (more in some industries and geographical areas than in others), the future–both near and long term–still clearly holds challenges for many of us. If you’re not currently in an employment situation that’s stable, satisfying and financially sufficient for your needs, you might be tempted to throw up your hands and say, “That’s it! I’m stuck and there’s nothing I can do to make things better.” While understandable, that admission of defeat doesn’t achieve anything except to let you vent some of your frustration. It might be true that one person alone can only accomplish a certain amount, although a number of people in history have shown how amazingly much one person can achieve. However, I prefer to look for support in pursuing challenging goals and keep an open mind about where that support might come from. I encourage my clients to do the same, because sometimes really great results can come from doing that. ... Read more

We’ve probably all seen a variety of jokes based on the “good news-bad news” theme, which has been around a long time. Some of them even lean more than a little toward the depressing or macabre side. As I’ve said before, I’m essentially an optimist (or as I like to call it, a realistic optimist), so I tend to enjoy and pass along those that steer more toward hopeful or genuinely amusing situations. Sometimes that approach requires a fairly large amount of flexibility and imagination. In the case of the subject of retirement planning, ... Read more

The term “empowerment” (as well as related variations) has become more than a little overused these days, and I was somewhat skeptical when I ran across an article called “The Empowered Employee is Coming: Is The World Ready?” (guest post on Forbes.com blog by J. Hagel, S. Gandhi and G. Rodriguez). However, it turned out to be a long but fascinating and very thoughtful article that has a lot to say about topics related to employee recruitment, employee retention and satisfaction, and employee productivity. ... Read more

I don’t normally pass sad news along in this blog, but I think anyone who has been or will be a job seeker in the future might want to know about the recent passing of Mark Hovind, the founder and driving spirit behind JobBait.com. One of my professional colleagues posted information about this on an e-list we both belong to, or I might not have heard about it yet myself. From all accounts, Mark was the kind of person anyone would be proud to know and grateful to for his many efforts in the world of employment. He worked extensively with very senior-level executives but also made time for what was apparently a considerable amount of volunteer “giving back.” ... Read more

Those of us who write resumes often like to use the concept of core competencies–possibly as a keyword-rich section of its own, maybe woven into the thread of the resume through concrete examples of the competencies, or in numerous other ways. I’ve certainly done this with my clients’ resumes many times over the years, and I thought I was pretty conversant with what the concept involved. That was before I got curious and started researching the ... Read more

Obviously, you’re not likely to win (capture) every job you apply for during your job search, any more than you will win every game you play outside of work that involves competition. The odds are against achieving 100% success all the time. So sometimes you are going to ... Read more

Okay, so I made that up. There’s no such thing as a job search and industry trend crystal ball. Nevertheless, that’s one of the responses I received to a recent survey question about how I could do more to help clients–that is, he/she mentioned something about a crystal ball, and I added the rest! I have never been a fortune-teller, not in this life or any other I may have had. Facetiousness aside, what I would personally do and would recommend to the person who submitted the comment (the survey responses were anonymous) is to consult as many reputable and hopefully reliable sources as I reasonably could and base my actions on that.

Keep Up to Date with Occupation or Industry Trends

Whether it’s related to the occupation or industry you’re currently in or one you’re considering switching to, you need to stay on top of current and newly emerging trends... ... Read more

You’ve all seen those article headlines: 10 best, 10 worst, 10 steps to take or avoid, top 10 vacation spots and so on. That’s because we’re apparently suckers for lists (sometimes the number isn’t 10, but the concept still works). For serious job seekers, however, the lists of topics such as best and worst places to live, look for employment, etc., can provide useful information–as long as they’re considered rationally.  

The 10 Worst Cities for Finding a Job

  An article by Danielle Kurtzleben on U.S. News & World Report (Jan. 20, 2012), gives one take on the situation. The writer notes that “vicious cycles of debt and irresponsible lending helped to cause the Great Recession, and now another vicious cycle of housing weakness and unemployment is keeping many cities from recovering.” Those of you living in California probably won’t be surprised but also won’t take much comfort from the knowledge that 7 of the 10 worst cities are in California, including the top 5.

What Does This Gloomy Economic Picture Mean for You?

Obviously, if you live in or near one of the listed cities... ... Read more

Banging your head against a brick wall and hoping to punch-through by sheer will-power is not recommended. However, persistence in pursuing your job search and career management plans can pay off, and the alternative–giving up–doesn’t offer anything that’s really worth having. As The Executive Blog puts it, “Believing in yourself is one way of improving yourself, mastering your craft, and engaging others to try out what you have to offer them. By all means, don’t be blinded by hopelessness. Giving up on what you tend to do best isn’t as easy as you may think. Rather, it will just make you miserable. So, why do it in the first place?”

Persistent Job Search versus Pig-Headed Stubbornness

... Read more

Job seekers who are scheduled for interviews often assume they’ll be dealing with interviewers who know what they’re doing. Not necessarily. What’s more, those interviewers might have hidden agendas that you as a job seeker have no clue about. That being said, you increase your chances of making it through the first interview and into the second round if you keep some interview preparation do’s and don’ts in mind. (Note: Any direct quotes below are from an article called “What’s Wrong with Interviews? The Top 50 Most Common Interview Problems,” by Dr. John Sullivan.)

Interview Do’s: Things you should always do

... Read more