Personal BrandingAugust 27th, 2008 by Martin Buckland
What is Personal Branding? It is one of the most talked about career management tools available to all individuals and entrepreneurs. Defined as, the process whereby people and their careers are marked as brands. A compilation of feelings, perceptions and qualities that are recognized by others when they see you or hear your name. Personal Branding gives you an opportunity to market yourself by sharing with others a consistent message and image of yourself encompassing your reputation, credibility, expertise and value add to a potential employer. To fully understand a “personal brand” consider the following names: Martin Luther King, Pierre Elliott Trudeau, Oprah, Ghandi, Tiger Woods, Richard Branson and Helen Keller. You have had the opportunity to share in their achievements and their expertise and know who they are, but you also know what they stand for and what they believe in. Each of these people have a clearly defined personal brand as does Charles Manson! Dan Schawbel, an expert on personal branding, provides advise on building a powerful personal brand by following these four steps: discover, create, communicate and maintain. If you Google “personal branding” Dan Schawbel’s name will fill the page, only behind Wikipedia! This didn’t just happen by chance. Career Distinction Stand Out By Building Your Brand, was written by William Arruda and Kirsten Dixson, two of the world’s leading Personal Branding Consultants. It is an excellent resource detailing the concept of personal branding. Check out Chris Brogan’s “My Best Advice About Personal Branding” for more great information on personal branding! You won’t run out of information on this topic or related topics. See Paul Chaney’s Personal Marketing. Your personal brand is the image you present and how are you perceived by others. If you are interested in furthering your career you must be able stand out from the competition. You can start by managing your personal brand, your authentic image that will represent your passions, your strengths and what it is that makes you a distinctive and influential individual. Stand out from the competition! As a Certified Professional Branding Strategist, Career Coach and Resume Writer, I have the expertise to assist you in defining and communicating your personal brand.  Print This Post
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Beware of DistractionsAugust 20th, 2008 by Martin Buckland
Recently I had a discussion with a colleague about a blog I had written, Job Interviews and Tatoos and was surprised that the feedback I received was their belief that most potential employers have a negative perception when it comes to tatoos and body piercings. It is highly likely that many of these people are also sporting tattoos and possibly body piercings too allbeit, discreetly, as most professionals understand that any potential distractions should be eliminated. Have you seen the Tide-To-Go Interview commercial of a man being interviewed that has a large stain on his shirt? An exaggeration, yes, but still a great example of an interviewer faced with a distraction. The interviewer is unable to concentrate, (hearing instead, “blah, blah, blah, blah”), on anything the job candidate is saying because the stain on the front of his shirt is too much of a distraction. So too can a sloppily dressed person, a loud shirt, tatoos or body piercings create distractions. It is impossible to make a good first impression if something is getting in the way, a distraction! When conversing with someone sporting a tongue piercing, are you able to look them directly in the eyes or are you staring in their mouth? If you meet someone with a large tatoo on their arm, do you notice the “snake picture”, (and you hate snakes) or will you see a well dressed, sophisticated, confident person? You love the brightly coloured polka dot shirt that the job candidate is sporting and whether you want to know where it was purchased or are you are thinking that it is not appropriate to wear to a job interview, it is a distraction and is taking away from focussing on the candidate and their talents. Yes, some distractions will be negative, but whether negative or positive, it is the distraction that is the problem. So if you are entering into any meeting and want to exude a professional, confident and highly successful impression, hide the tatoos, remove the obvious body piercings, change the mohawk hair style, don a conservative suit and make sure you are wearing a clean shirt!
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Resume Writing 101-26August 18th, 2008 by Martin Buckland
When was the last time you updated your resume? Most of us only think about a resume when we need one and it then becomes a huge task! Especially if you have been with the same employer or owned the same business for several years. Even more important than your career history on your resume, are the details that are required in order to highlight your accomplishments. These specific details are necessary but may be difficult to recall years later. Reducing costs, increasing sales, increasing efficiency, but by how much? Managing a team, working with customers and suppliers, but how many? What was the gross profit on that sale two years ago or what was the total value of the project you worked on five years ago? I’m not suggesting you have a polished resume ready at all times but I do recommend that you keep notes with detailed information that will be available to you when you need it. Noting and reviewing your accomplishments on a regular basis is also an excellent exercise in personal growth increasing your self-esteem, confidence and motivation. When you experience your next great accomplishment in your career, write down the details! You never know when you may need them. Print This Post
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TeamworkAugust 15th, 2008 by Martin Buckland
Teamwork really is a critical key to success whether in the workplace, at home or on the football field. Last night, at the first ever regular-season NFL contest played on Canadian soil, the Buffalo Bills showed everyone at Rogers Centre how it’s done. Their confidence, talent and most of all their teamwork led them to a victory of 24-21 over the Pittsburg Steelers. This was the first of an eight-game series that will see the Buffalo Bills at the Rogers Centre in Toronto for a total of three pre-season games and five regular-season games. Without a great deal of teamwork behind the scenes, this first time ever event could not possibly have come to fruition. Wikipedia’s description of teamwork seems appropriate to note; ”Teamwork is the concept of people working together cooperatively, such as a football team. Projects often require that people work together to accomplish a common goal; therefore, teamwork is an important factor in most organizations. Effective collaborative skills are necessary to work well in a team environment.” Congratulations to the Buffalo Bills and Pittsburg Steelers and their teamwork, which resulted in a great game for the fans in Toronto and also to those who worked as a team behind the scenes to make it all happen! Print This Post
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Google Job SearchAugust 14th, 2008 by Martin Buckland
Your online job search is likely to be focused on job boards such as Monster or Workopolis but there is a tool that you likely use every day that is also one of the best job search resources in the world. Yes, it’s Google! Willy Franzen has an excellent post, How to Use Google to Find a Job. The following are just a few tips he shares that could help in your online job search using Google. When you use quotes in Google, it allows you to search for an exact phrase. If you search, jobs in Toronto, the results will include all types of pages including the words jobs and Toronto. If you search, “jobs in Toronto” your results will include only those with the exact phrase and will provide you with more specific information. If you put ~ in front of a search term, it will search for the words you use as well as similar search terms so Toronto~jobs will also provide results for careers, employment and other like terms. In order to narrow your search, you can use - in front of the search word so Toronto jobs-monster-workopolis will not include results after the -. If you are searching for a specific company but can’t find their career page, type in site:http://companyname.com careers (leave out www.) You may also want to change careers to jobs as some companies have a jobs page and some a careers page or try ~careers.com search Narrowing the results in your search can also be successful if you use site:.edu before your keywords to search jobs at colleges and universites. Or searching for jobs at non-profits, try site:.org in your search and for results in a specific country, Italy, try site:.it with your keywords. If you find your job search results are outdated you may want to add to the URL that you have found in order to get results within a specific time frame. Each piece of the url after an & has a different meaning. If you add, &as_qdr=d3 at the end of the url your results will include the past three days. &as_qdr=w2 will include the last 2 weeks and &as_qdr=y1 will include the past year. Search tips that work with Google searches also work with Google’s blog search, which may provide some additional information if you’re looking to get in-depth dirt on what it’s like to work at a specific company. So don’t overlook Google in your online job search as it can help you find anything you would on other job search sites and maybe more! Print This Post
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Personal and Professional - Women in BusinessAugust 12th, 2008 by Martin Buckland
HEART Business Journal for Women has just launched their premier edition which offers tools to guide you in your personal relationships and professional career. Their “men allowed” philosophy is further to their research and a survey of men, which resulted in the majority stating that this magazine would act as a resource to help them better connect with the females in their lives. Described as a “fundamental guide to finding harmony in work and life providing support and mentorship for women as well as insight into the metaphysical elements of a woman for men”, this publication is a must read! The following excerpt is from HEART’s “What We Do For Our Readers”: “Each issue of HEART Business Journal for Women® will inspire, empower, and motivate professional Canadian businesswomen to pursue their life goals and dreams. We provide women in business with the tools they need to find and follow their optimal life path, both personally and professionally. In addition, our online network of professionals connects corporate and entrepreneurial women in business from all over the globe, creating a support system and facilitating mentorship. It is imperative that women enhance their relationships with one another allowing them to leverage their individual uniqueness and strength.” Check it out. This truly is an impressive publication with much to offer both personally and professionally! Print This Post
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Bizarre Behaviour in a Job Interview!August 8th, 2008 by Martin Buckland
In a recent survey, OfficeTeam asked executives to recount the most embarrassing job interview moments they had heard of or witnessed. Yes, in a job interview, the time you really want to put your best foot forward. The opportunity you are given to present an exemplary first impression! The following are just a few of the responses: “The candidate sent his sister to inteview in his place.” You’ve heard it so many times because it is important, “You never get a second chance to make a good first impression”. Print This Post
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Resume Writing 101-25August 7th, 2008 by Martin Buckland
Your resume contains a wealth of information that will be used to present yourself as the best candidiate for the job in the eyes of the hiring professional. It can also contain information that you may not realize will create a negative impression to a prospective employer. The heading on your resume displays some critical information consisting of your contact name, address, phone numbers and email address. Hear are a number of reasons why a professional hiring manager may choose not to peruse your resume beyond your email address.
Typo’s will also take you out of the running when it comes to creating a good impression. The general consensus among recruiters is an unwillness to make allowances for mistakes of any kind. So be sure you put the effort in to ensuring your resume is professional and accurate. Take the time to obtain a professional critiqe of your resume or invest in the services of a Certified Professional Resume Writer. But before you contact anyone, be sure you establish a professional email address! Print This Post
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ReferencesAugust 6th, 2008 by Martin Buckland
You have presented an impressive cover letter, an enticing and professionally written resume and you are contacted for the job interview. Once there, you are nothing less than brilliant during your interview in front of a panel of three! So why was that the last time you heard from them? One of the most common reasons a highly qualified job applicant is eliminated as a candidate is a BAD JOB REFERENCE! Potential employers are going to check your references so be sure your due dilligence goes beyond the cover letter, resume and job interview and secure those positive job references before you apply for a new position. As a Certified Professional Resume Writer, Career Coach and fearless networker, I never miss an opportunity to get a reference. Here is just one of the many references I have received: “On relocating to Canada from the UK, I realized that without employment experience in the new country I needed an all important edge to find that new career. My old résumé was out-dated and not tailored to the employment requirements in Canada. I researched and contacted several résumé writing services but Elite Résumés from the very outset was different. You treated me professionally and with integrity but most importantly you treated my time as a valuable commodity. The all important interview process where your expertise and experience left no career stone unturned, was a process where I surprisingly learned a great deal more about myself. The great attention to detail and effort you applied resulted in a résumé where all my experience and skills were clearly specified far beyond anything I expected. After the résumé writing process, I discovered the real value of choosing Elite Resumes. The numerous phone calls to check on my progress and always being ready to offer valuable assistance and advice were greatly appreciated, especially from someone with vast experience and a network of human resource organizations and contacts. You referred me to a network group where I found the job notice for the position I secured. It was this advice and knowledge combined with the résumé, which led me down the path to new employment in Canada, meeting many of my career expectations in five short weeks. I feel sure this would not have been possible without the services and added assistance you offered me.” — J Richmond Print This Post
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Baby Boomers and Their CareersAugust 5th, 2008 by Martin Buckland
It is impossible to surf the web and not find an amazing wealth of information on career-related issues, especially those related to baby boomers. Here are just a few articles that I believe are valuable, informative and above all, entertaining: In the National Post, Three-minute visions of your retirement years. Jonathon Chevreau writes an interesting article about Charles Feaver and his retirement project, Young-Retired.ca, a video magazine created to help Boomers in the workforce envision their future retirement. In Forbes.com, Recession-Proof Jobs. Tara Weiss discovers the 10 most recession-proof jobs based on a database of 4,000 posted jobs between November 2007 and July 2008. This along with an abundance of other available surveys lists sales representatives at the top of the list. In the Hartford Courant, Ten Career Mistakes for Boomers. Joyce Lain Kennedy writes about 10 mistakes to avoid to ensure your success in a continued career beyond your retirement years. In ExecuNet’s CareerSmart Advisor, Managing Your Career Through Effective Planning. Steven Landberg offers some interesting statistics and proven benefits in documenting a career plan. “Are you satisfied to just let your career happen or are you willing to invest in proactively planning and managing your most important asset?” Canada.com story, Retirement takes on new meaning by Derek Sankey, Canwest News Service writes, “Baby boomers coming up to retirement age are often choosing modified work patterns rather than outright quitting”. And many are embarking on entirely new or second phase careers, which has lessened the panic of organizations scrambling to initiate programs to retain and entice employees in response to the talent and skills shortage due to the forecasted mass exodus of baby boomers from the work force. Print This Post
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