20 Feb 10 A Job-Search Guide to Help People Over 45 – XII

Your Curriculum vitae is your strategic weapon that you can use to deal a deadly blow to your competitors while securing your position with a prospective employer. Hence, it better be good. You should always focus on sharpening your weapon (keep your résumé up-to-date) which may require you to take some classes. Let’s move forward and see what needs to be done to nab the job that was not “claimed” to be suitable for a 40 plus individual.

Show you can evolve

No one likes anything static, not even you and so does your employer. The main reason why he wants young people in his team lies in the fact that young people have up-to-date knowledge and they are ready to evolve. Show the same degree of commitment by taking extra classes to train yourself. Enroll to some vocational courses or training classes that will put you at par with youth in their 20s, in terms of technology and knowledge. Mention this on your CV, your prospective employer will take notice of it, and you will get duly rewarded for your hard work with a job and better salary.

Talk about experience

If you have not spent 40 years of life daydreaming or sleepwalking then you definitely have accumulated some kind of skill set that will make the job you are applying a piece of cake for you, well at least easy. In your résumé talk about your experience from the related fields, this along with your commitment to evolve with time (read above) will give you an edge which will be hard for your younger competitors to surpass.

Keep it Up-to-date

Do you know what the first company you worked with call itself these day? Or do you know who has taken the ownership? Are these details in your résumé? Contact the companies that you are mentioning in your CV under experience or past employer columns and ask about their names, locations, phone numbers, and people in charge. Finding it may or may not be difficult. It depends upon the kind of companies you worked in. If those were big corporate giants then you may be knowing their details already, but if they were small setups then you need to visit their office or call your old colleagues for the detail.

Always remember, nothing is impossible not even at this age. Well, I meant almost nothing. You cannot put toothpaste back inside the tube from which it has been squeezed. Try it, you cannot. But getting a job is far much easier than that. Talk to you in the next post, till then keep looking and stay calm!

Tags: Corpora, Curriculum Vitae, Cv, Deadly Blow, Extra, Job Guide, Job Help, Job Salary, Job Search, Knowledge, People Finding, Phone Numbers, Piece Of Cake, Prospective Employer, Search People, Skill Set, Train, Young People

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11 Nov 09 Finding Business Contacts

In a struggling economy, networking should be a top priority for you, especially if it hasn’t been in the past. You need business contacts, no matter where you are on the chain. Through business contacts, you open up the possibility that you will be able to find better work. Your business contacts are also great to have should you ever lose your current job. Basically, these are professional associates from different organizations that you regularly keep contact with.

But to get business contacts, first you have to find them. A business contact can be remarkably useful down the line in your career. These relationships are great because they are mutually beneficial. Think about your skill set and what you could offer to help someone else. From anything like advice, to career prospect options, what do you have to give?

How much you can commit to providing will dictate what sort of business relationship you can form. As business contacts are a two way street, you have to have something to bring to the table. Try using websites like LinkedIn. They are social networking resources for professionals and can be a good start for anybody.

Make sure you have business cards with you all the time. Whenever you’re in the appropriate scenario, like a work related conference or event, they will be very useful. Meeting people is great at the moment, but you need a way to keep in contact beyond. A business card is the fastest and easiest way to do just that. Not to mention it’s the most professional route. Professionalism always gets you bonus points.

Remember to keep your ears open all the time. Pay attention in the break rooms, and when you’re eating lunch. You could find a great new business contact in a different department. Somebody you were completely unaware of, and someone you could benefit from.

From there it’s as simple as maintaining the relationship. If you want to be able to get trusted information from them, you have to provide the same. Don’t hesitate to inform them of news around the company. From job openings, etc. Let them know what’s going on around you, and the opportunities available, and they will do the same.

Tags: Bonus Points, Business Card, Business Cards, Business Contact, Business Contacts, Business Relationship, Career Prospect, Ears, Lunch, Meeting People, Networking Resources, New Business, Pay Attention, Professional Associates, Professionalism, Related Conference, Relationships, Skill Set, Social Networking, Top Priority

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20 Oct 09 Formulating A Career Action Plan

Creating a career action plan is important for everyone. No matter the career, your planning will be better served with a CAP. This will give you a comprehensive guideline that you intend to follow. By having this path set before you, you can be better aware of your goals. Making the path allows for you to keep sight of what you want out of your career, and the ways to accomplish those goals. So it only makes sense to sit down and write one out.

The career action plan is exactly what it sounds like. A well laid plan on how to get your career from point A to point B, and beyond. You should have a well researched path that you intend to follow. One that works for your skill set, and commitment. You’ll have to take into account the workload you’re willing to accommodate, and how you intend to achieve your intended ends.

Following the typical CAP format you should start out by mapping your objectives. Write down what you hope to achieve, from pay scale, to promotions, to education. Figure out what you want to put in, as well as what you want to get out of your career.

From there, in the next section detail all of your previous experience, and the skill set that you’ve developed. Whether through work history, or education, write down what has set you up for your career.

Now you calculate your weaknesses, and honesty counts here. Nobody is going to be looking at this play besides you, so be honest. Failing to record a truthful account of your weaknesses leads to a plan that might not work for you. So figure out your shortcomings so that you may learn to work around them. That’s all part of your plan, and you’ll be better set by knowing where you may fall short, so that you can prevent that, or work around them.

Finally you plot out your goals. Take the information you have already written, and maneuver how it fits into the goals you want to achieve. In this step you can map out exactly how to go about making your goals come to fruition. Through careful planning here, you’ll have a good idea of what you need to do, and a decent time table of when you can expect to accomplish some of those goals.

Tags: Cap, Career Action Plan, Career Plan, Career Planning, Education, Honesty, Leads, Maneuver, Path, Promotions, Section Detail, Shortcomings, Skill Set, Sounds, Work History, Workload

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20 Feb 10 A Job-Search Guide to Help People Over 45 – XII

Show you can evolve

Talk about experience

Keep it Up-to-date

20 Oct 09 Formulating A Career Action Plan

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