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Your #Career : How To Tell The Difference Between A Career Pivot And A Distraction…When you’re Unhappy at Work, Quitting for Something Else can be Tempting. But here’s How to Tell If you’re Chasing a Rabbit or Heading Down the Right Path.

March 27, 2018/in First Sun Blog/by First Sun Team

Rather than look for a new job, Chon put her energy into volunteering at Dawg Squad, a Los Angeles rescue organization, taking head shots of dogs to help them get adopted. The photos became so popular that pet owners asked Chon to photograph their dogs, and eventually ad agencies sought out her work, too.

Chon soon realized that her side hustle wasn’t just a distraction from her full-time job, but an opportunity for a purpose-driven career pivot into pet photography. “I realized I was at a crossroads when I started have to turn down opportunities because I had a day job,” Chon says. “I started to think, What would happen if I could put 100% of my attention into this side business?”

BE INTENTIONAL

What makes Chon’s experience a successful pivot is she deliberately moved toward something, not away from something, says Alison Cardy, career coach and author of Career Grease: How to Get Unstuck and Pivot Your Career. When you only focus on moving away from something, such as a job you don’t like or career that doesn’t satisfy you, you’re more likely to jump into something that is familiar and feels secure, such as going back to school or starting a business, and that can be a big distraction, Cardy says.

It’s important to take time to understand what you want from your career, and to consider whether you know what you want to do, or if you’re feeling stymied. “If you know what you want, by all means, go for it,” Cardy says. “But if you’re feeling stuck or confused, that is a good signal that it would be helpful to bring in some support.” But, she says, if you seek assistance from a career coach, be sure he or she specializes in helping people figure out what they want to do, not the just how to navigate the nuts and bolts of a job search, because if you don’t know where you are going, all that information won’t be helpful.

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APPLY REVERSE ENGINEERING

We often confuse passion and purpose, says Melissa Bradley, managing director of Project 500. “You might be passionate about something, but will it get you to your goal?” she asks. And what exactly is your goal? Rather than using an activity to determine your goal, Bradley recommends using metrics to define what will change externally when you reach your goal. Bradley started her career working with low-income families in Washington, D.C., and transitioned into policy work but found she couldn’t make as large of an impact on bringing equity and equality to people of color. “Policy work was a distraction,” she admits, noting she is back to working directly with community members. She helps them receive the training and support they need to advance their businesses and improve their communities.

STAY LASER FOCUSED

Distractions are all around us, and it’s easy to follow a job opportunity that looks or sounds good down a rabbit trail, even when it’s not the right fit for us, says Robb Holman, founder and CEO of Holman International and author of Lead the Way. “You want to make the best career decision that is the most efficient and effective use of your time,” he says. Before pursuing a new opportunity, he recommends asking these five questions:

1. Does it help me achieve my priorities?
2. How much time and effort will this take?
3. Will it help me to gain new skills or improve existing skills?
4. Will this opportunity evolve into something I truly want to do?
5. What is the short-term and long-term payoff?

If your answers to these questions aren’t all positive, it might be best to let that opportunity pass, he says.

DISTRACTIONS AREN’T ALL BAD

Don’t discount every distraction, warns Tracey Adams, PhD, founder of ThriveOn Seminars. “Career development isn’t linear anymore,” she says. “You don’t move up, you move to different organizations.” If you’re unsure about your next career move, Adams recommends asking yourself what brought you joy to do as a child.

For instance, when Nerea Gibson, a molecular biologist working in the biotech industry, found she couldn’t get into a PhD program, she went back to an early interest, fashion design, and started designing wallets and bags as a respite from everything else in her life. Gibson decided to leave her full-time job when she realized she was putting equal amounts of energy into her design work as her full-time job. “The passion, design, and potential were too great for me to ignore,” Gibson says. She started her company Aeren Waters last year and was invited to present her designs at London Fashion Week last fall.

We can label distractions as bad, or we can label them as getting more information about who we are today, says Adams.

FastCompany.com | March 27, 2018 | BY LISA RABASCA ROEPE 4 MINUTE READ

Your #Career : On Thin Ice ( #JobTermination) ? …. Have you Ever Wondered If you Were on Thin Ice at Work? You are Doing your Job, Contributing to the Company and Even get Good #PerformanceReviews . But Something is Different.

March 26, 2018/in First Sun Blog/by First Sun Team

Have you ever wondered if you were on thin ice at work? You are doing your job, contributing to the company and even get good performance reviews. But something is different. You can feel it, but you can’t quite pinpoint it. Maybe you were left out of a meeting. Or someone made an odd remark to you. You wonder if you’re being paranoid, if you are making a mountain out of a molehill.

To write my book, “Fired: How to Manage Your Career in the Age of Job Uncertainty” I interviewed 65 people who lost their jobs. I asked them if they saw it coming. The vast majority of them said they were completely shocked. Then, I asked them if looking back, they could see some of the signs. With hindsight being 20/20, many of them were able to identify warning signs that their jobs were in jeopardy.

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One of the biggest signs was changes in interaction patterns at work. For examples, meetings were canceled or removed from their calendars. Co-workers avoided them or cut conversations short. There were even out of the blue comments like “Are you still here?” or “I hope you quit before I have to fire you.” Most of the time, the people I interviewed said they brushed off the comments and kept working. But in hindsight, they could see that these were signs they were about to be let go.

The unfortunate reality is that many people are aware of an impending termination before the employee is told. Human resources, security, information technology, the supervisor’s manager may be notified that the dismissal is coming. Sometimes word leaks out and others become aware.

Knowing someone is about to be let go is awkward. It’s hard to “act normal.” People generally don’t want to be fake or lie, so they avoid. Others make nervous jokes.

The lesson here is: Pay attention to changes in interaction patterns at work and listen to that little voice inside of you telling you something is wrong. Then develop an exit strategy and a back up plan in case you need them.

Dr. Nancy Koury King is a guest author on the FSC Career Blog (https://www.firstsun.com/fsc-career-blog/) & is a participating member of the FSC LinkedIn Network ( www.linkedin.com/in/fscnetwork ) .

As mentioned above, her publication of the book, “Fired: How to Manage Your Career in the Age of Job Uncertainty” & is available on Amazon below.

https://www.amazon.com/Fired-manage-your-career-uncertainty/dp/1978407130

FSC Career Blog (https://www.firstsun.com/fsc-career-blog) | March 25, 2018

Your #Career : What #Recruiters Pay Attention To When They Look At Your #SocialMedia …Great REad!

March 26, 2018/in First Sun Blog/by First Sun Team

You probably already know recruiters are looking at your LinkedIn page, but what about your other social media platforms? You know, the ones where you post pictures of your latest vacation, share what you had for dinner and occasionally tag your friends in memes. Why, you might wonder, would a recruiter possibly be interested in viewing things like that?

As it turns out, those personal details are precisely why recruiters and hiring managers keep tabs on applicants’ social media accounts, says career coach Hallie Crawford. “It can help them get a more accurate idea about who you are outside of your resume–a more personal view into your life,” she explains. “A resume can tell them your qualifications, but your social media profile can help them determine your personality type and if you would be a good fit for company culture.”

Plus, recruiters are looking for red flags–risqué photos, bad language, signs of drugs use–that would show them you’d be a less than ideal man or woman to have in their offices.

So now that you know why they’re looking, how about knowing what they’re looking at?

FACEBOOK

According to Crawford, recruiters and hiring managers are concentrating their efforts on two sections of your Facebook page–your “about me” section, and your photo albums.

About Me: “They will want to see how you describe yourself and if it matches up [fusion_builder_container hundred_percent=”yes” overflow=”visible”][fusion_builder_row][fusion_builder_column type=”1_1″ background_position=”left top” background_color=”” border_size=”” border_color=”” border_style=”solid” spacing=”yes” background_image=”” background_repeat=”no-repeat” padding=”” margin_top=”0px” margin_bottom=”0px” class=”” id=”” animation_type=”” animation_speed=”0.3″ animation_direction=”left” hide_on_mobile=”no” center_content=”no” min_height=”none”][with] how you have described yourself in your cover letter and resume,” Crawford says. Any discrepancies could cost you points pre-interview. What’s more, Crawford says, “they will also be looking for proper spelling and grammar” in this section, to see how seriously you take those skills.

Photos: When it comes to your photos albums, “a hiring manager will be checking not only your photos but also your descriptions,” Crawford warns. “A hiring manager wants to see if you represent yourself in a professional way.” To come off in the most positive pre-meeting light, “you will want to avoid using profanity, sexual or drug references,” Crawford says.

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TWITTER

Who You’re Following: “Recruiters like to see if you have any mutual connections and if you are connected with others in your industry,” Crawford explains. Following others in your industry is a smart thing to do no matter what–watching their feeds can give you a scoop on a new job opening, company announcements, the latest tech and much more.

Tweets: “Recruiters will be checking to see if you share useful information, if you share information relevant to your trade or if you just use tweets to fight with others,” Crawford says. If you’re applying for a job, take a look at your tweeting history and consider deleting anything that won’t show your best–and most thoughtful self to a potential employer.

INSTAGRAM

Followers: Recruiters will check out the kind of followers you attract, Crawford says. Plus, they’ll want to see “how friendly and social you seem to be with your followers,” she says. What you say to them and what you say back, she explains, “can also give them insight [into] your personal relationships and if you would be a good cultural fit for the company.”

Pictures: You probably figured this, right? But recruiters are looking to see more than your photography skills (or lack thereof). “They will want to see how you represent yourself,” Crawford says. For example, “if you are at a party, do you represent yourself in a dignified way?” Crawford asks, or, “do you post things that others would consider inappropriate?”

This article originally appeared on Glassdoor and is reprinted with permission.

FastCompany.com | March 26, 2018 | BY JILLIAN KRAMER—GLASSDOOR 3 MINUTE READ

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Your #Career : How To Sell Yourself For A Job When You’re #Overqualified …Sometimes Being Too Experienced can Work Against You. Here’s What you Can Do to Prevent that from Happening.

March 24, 2018/in First Sun Blog/by First Sun Team

When it comes to job searching, we often hear how difficult it can be for recent graduates, who are somehow expected to have years of experience straight out of school, to even be considered for an entry-level position. What happens when the situation is reversed, and your years of experience begin to work against you? How can job seekers set themselves up for success when recruiters keep telling them they are overqualified for positions they’re interested in?

Hiring managers might challenge you by saying you’ll be bored and leave for a better-suited position, or your compensation expectations won’t be met.

In these situations, your context will influence your course of action. Let’s examine what you can do when you’re considered to be overqualified.

Here, you must explain your motivation for applying to a position that you might seem “overqualified” for on paper. Highlight “how the organization can benefit from your experience, and how taking this position can advance your own skill set,” says Alan Zelnicker, executive recruiter. If the job scope is more narrow and the compensation is less than your old position, you must emphasize what you can contribute in terms of added value and what you can get from the role.

How to respond: Make an important mind shift

Going into any interview, you should always project confidenceand take on the mind-set that recruiters are getting a great deal from you, rather than going in feeling like you’re overqualified for the job. You have to drive the power seat and never feel like you’re getting the short end of the stick. Instead, adopt the mind-set that any company would be lucky to have you! Without seeming arrogant, remind recruiters that the learning curve involved with your onboarding will be cut in half, leaving you more time to learn the organization, and giving you a competitive edge.

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How to respond: Re-evaluate compensation

Managing expectations around compensation is a separate conversation. You need to be realistic and accept that sometimes you’ll need to take a step back. Whenever possible, make a direct touch point with the hiring manager over the phone to talk about compensation. This way, you can form a personal connection, and you can articulate all that you have to offer. As mentioned before, what is the win-win negotiation for you that makes taking a pay cut worthwhile?

SITUATION NO. 2: YOU’RE SWITCHING CAREERS/INDUSTRIES

How to respond: Highlight your new career path

It is not uncommon for people to switch industries or careers. In fact, millennials report switching jobs four times in their first 10 years out of school. When working with recruiters, highlight any new credentials you’ve earned to demonstrate your commitment toward this new path you’re taking. Emphasize your desire to learn and retrain to create a new path forward for yourself.

How to respond: emphasize the rudimentary

Though you may have 20 years of experience in one field, you must demonstrate to recruiters that you’re ready to check your ego at the door and learn about a whole new world. That being said, relevant and rudimentary skills can always be transferable and should be considered as your added value.

How to respond: know your worth

When discussing salary, make sure to mention that you’ve done your research, you’re aware of the industry standards, and are comfortable with what these types of roles typically offer.

“Fall seven times, stand up eight.”–Japanese proverb

What not to do: The worst thing you could do is tell a recruiter you’ll take anything just to get a job. Though this often may be the truth, people want to see that you possess the right enthusiasm and fit for the role. You must always sell your skills and highlight how you are the perfect candidate for the job.

Your resume: If you’re having trouble getting through the door and you think your resume might be the culprit, there are some workarounds to try:

If your resume demonstrates work dating back more than 10 years, consider consolidating your experienceand only keeping what is still relevant today
If you have multiple designations and education, consider only keeping what is relevant to the jobyou’re applying for and removing anything that is redundant
Consider reformatting your resume in a way that tells a new story

If you can demonstrate how a role will help you develop, and show how you can be an asset, then don’t let a recruiter persuade you that you’re overqualified! Remember, you need to maintain your confidence throughout the process and let your resiliency guide you as you continue your search.

This article originally appeared on Glassdoor and is reprinted with permission.

FastCompany.com | March 23, 2018 | BY STACY POLLACK—GLASSDOOR 3 MINUTE READ

Your #Career : 5 Reasons You’re Not Hearing Back from #Recruiters (Prospective Company)……There is So Much About the Recruitment Process that is Beyond Any of your Control. Control the Parts of the Process that you Can, and Take the Rest in Stride!

March 23, 2018/in First Sun Blog/by First Sun Team

Not hearing back from recruiters can chip away at our confidence and motivation to continue a job search.

Rather than getting discouraged, let’s look at some common reasons recruiters might not be calling you back and discuss your possible course of action to see better results.

1. Your Resume

Your resume is the first critical step to getting you through the door. Some common resume mistakes include:

Format: Color, pictures, funky fonts, wasted white space, misaligned paragraphs, and inconsistency all create an unfriendly experience for a recruiter

Grammar: 58% of recruiters will automatically dismiss a candidate over typos. Make sure to always print your resume out and have someone read it over!

Content: Your professional story and accomplishments should stand out immediately on your resume. If the bullet points are not relevant to the job, it will serve as a distraction.

Consider your resume as a marketing piece that is constantly evolving. Don’t wait until you are unemployed to build your rockstar resume, as this should be a continuous practice.

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2. Your LinkedIn Profile

Think of your LinkedIn profile as an extension of your resume, and landing page for recruiters to see what you’re all about. When it comes to LinkedIn, two red flags for recruiters include:

Having an incomplete or unprofessional LinkedIn page: Your profile is a reflection of your personal brand. Having a sloppy, incomplete, or unprofessional page will leave a bad first impression with a recruiter.
When your resume and LinkedIn don’t align: If the dates and titles on your LinkedIn don’t match up, this will raise concerns with recruiters and make them question your level of detail, or how truthful you’ve been about your work experiences.

Make sure your LinkedIn profile has a dynamic headline with up to date and accurate information. Like your resume, it must be perfectly formatted, with a professional headshot, and no typos! Highlight your achievements and make sure your skills are listed. There are so many ways to up your LinkedIn game, so don’t miss out on this low hanging fruit!

3. You’re not qualified

Unfortunately, you simply might not be qualified for the job you’ve applied to. It’s possible that not all the criteria required for the job was not listed, or the needs of the job have changed. Take the time to properly evaluate the position and consider if there is a strong enough alignment between your credentials and job requirements.

If you’re not qualified on paper, but know you could still add value to the organization through this position, you can always try bypassing the recruiter by reaching out directly to the hiring manager through LinkedIn. This way, you can sell yourself directly to the decision makers and demonstrate how your work has consistently led to successful outcomes.

4. The job was put on hold

Candidates can often make it far down the interview process before the organization decides to put the job on hold. Reasons for this can vary from lack of internal agreement about the role, hiring freezes, or changing needs of the organization.

Ideally, the recruiter should communicate any changes, but unfortunately, this is not always the case. There is not much you can do besides follow up with the recruiter and tactfully ask for an update.

5. An offer was made to another candidate

The competition for most jobs is fierce! Typically, a recruiter will consider a handful of candidates before narrowing it down to one person. Additionally, an internal applicant might have appeared and been given preference for the role.

6. Your interview didn’t go as well as you thought

Evaluating ourselves and our performance objectively is quite challenging, even for the best and the brightest of us. Think back to your interview, and really reflect on how things went.

The only way to really make sure you’re performing at your best is to prepare, prepare, and prepare! Ask for feedback whenever possible or consider having a friend do a mock-interview with you. Constructive criticism is important and the sooner you understand where you’re going wrong, the sooner you can make improvements!

There is so much about the recruitment process that is beyond any of our control. Though it can feel like a personal hit when a recruiter ignores your efforts, remember that a big organization can receive up to 900 applications for a single job posting. Control the parts of the process that you can, and take the rest in stride!

Stacy Pollack is a Learning Specialist with an MA in educational technology. She is passionate about building leadership programs that engage and contribute to the success of her organization. She loves to share her perspective on job hunting, career building, and networking for success. Connect with her onLinkedIn or Twitter.

GlassDoor.com | March 20, 2018 | Stacy Pollack

Your #Career : How To Ask Someone To Refer You For A Job (And Not Irritate Them)…Sometimes you Don’t Have any Insider Connections to your Dream Company. Don’t Let that Stop You from Asking for a Referral.

March 16, 2018/in First Sun Blog/by First Sun Team

You probably know that referrals are the best way to get jobs.

As someone who works with a lot of students going through the job search, I’ve collected more data points on what types of messages work well, and what messages don’t when you’re asking for a referral.

Let’s talk about the cold message–when you contact someone you don’t know who works at a company you’re interested in. This is the toughest message to send. You’re literally reaching out to a stranger who is probably busy and not expecting someone they don’t know to ask them for help on getting a job. Not only that, you also don’t want to come off as annoying.

But keep this in mind: Anyone who’s held a corporate job for more than a year, and especially for those in the tech industry, know that cold emails or LinkedIn messages with a request to “set up a phone call to learn more about [fusion_builder_container hundred_percent=”yes” overflow=”visible”][fusion_builder_row][fusion_builder_column type=”1_1″ background_position=”left top” background_color=”” border_size=”” border_color=”” border_style=”solid” spacing=”yes” background_image=”” background_repeat=”no-repeat” padding=”” margin_top=”0px” margin_bottom=”0px” class=”” id=”” animation_type=”” animation_speed=”0.3″ animation_direction=”left” hide_on_mobile=”no” center_content=”no” min_height=”none”][company x]” is normal. In fact, they’ve probably done it themselves.

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However, cold messages can be annoying. To avoid irritating the person on the other side of your message, use the following templates when you’re cold contacting someone with the intention of asking for a referral.

COLD MESSAGE TEMPLATE

Hey [Name],

My name is [Your name] and I saw this [name or role and insert link to the job posting] opening. I’m really interested in this role and all that is going on at [Company]. I read about [mention some positive news about the company from their blog or press article], it sounds like it’s an exciting time and there’s a lot going on! I’d love to chat with you more about [Company].

A little bit about me:

I’m currently a [your role at your company]. I’m responsible for [describe what you do].

Previously, I was a [role at previous company]. In my time there I [describe what you did]

I’ve attached my resume for detailed context.

Would you be for up for a phone call in the next couple of weeks? If so, I can send over a handful of time slots.

Thank you!

– Your name

This is a good cold message because it shows you’ve done research on the company, introduced yourself without overwhelming a stranger with your life story, and specified a request. As an added bonus, you’ve agreed to take on the hassle of coordinating times to chat.

The template is in email format, but you may not have someone’s email address for a cold message. If that’s the case, reach out with this message through LinkedIn. If you do, break up the template message into a few messages so you’re not sending a wall of text over LinkedIn.

If someone writes back to your cold message, they may or may not be willing to talk to you on the phone. If they’re open to a call, send over a handful of time slots to try to make it easy for them to find a time that works for them. Make sure you do some research to ask good questions about the role and company before you get on the phone. After the call, send a follow up email to thank them for the call and ask for a referral.

Here’s a good way to craft the sentence to directly ask for a referral:

If you have time and are willing, can you help submit my resume for the [role–include link to job post]?

If after the first cold message you get a response, but a phone call doesn’t work for them, they may reply back with, “What questions can I answer for you?” If this happens, send over a few, specific questions over email. Once you get a response to your questions, send a follow-up thank you email, and ask directly for a referral.

If you aren’t at a company right now, mention the productive things you are doing that are relevant to the role you’re going after. This could be an online course you’re taking, volunteer/consulting work, side project, etc.

DON’T BE AFRAID TO ASK, YOU’RE ONLY HOLDING YOURSELF BACK

If you’re getting gun-shy about sending a cold email because you don’t want to come off as an intrusive nuisance, don’t be. It’s common practice, particularly for those working in tech.

I’ve always been surprised by how helpful people who I don’t even know have been in my career. It all started out with a cold message. So don’t be afraid to take the first step to reach out to someone–as long as you’re not annoying. You’re only getting in your own way of the job you want if you don’t ask.

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FastCompany.com | March 16, 2018 | BY DJ CHUNG—HACK CAREER 4 MINUTE READ

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Your #Career : Three Ways You’re Self-Sabotaging Your Next Career Move And How to Stop…Be Honest with Yourself, you Know you’re Ready for a #CareerChange, so Why Haven’t you Taken the Next Step? What’s Stopping you From Moving Forward?

March 13, 2018/in First Sun Blog/by First Sun Team

You can have clarity. You can have a 5-year plan plastered to your mirror. You can know exactly what you want to do and when. You can have a Rolodex of contacts and know the best people in your industry.

But, if you’re holding onto your fear of fill-in-the-blank, you’re probably self-sabotaging your career more than you realize.

Be honest with yourself, you know you’re ready for a career change, so why haven’t you taken the next step? What’s stopping you from moving forward?

It’s not that your resume isn’t as perfect as you’d like it to be, nor is it that you don’t know how to market yourself for your next position. Though those are plausible burdens, it’s much deeper than that.

Here are three subtle fears that are causing you to sabotage your next career move.

You Fear Getting Rejected

You might be struggling with this, if the question, “Why would they hire me?” has stopped you from applying for job openings that excites you, or if the thought of not getting a response back has stopped you from setting up informational interviews with people you’d love to meet.

Granted you might not want to shoot your shot at a position that requires 10 years of experience if you’re barely on the cusp of year two. But, the fear that you might not be good enough is normal. And, plaguing yourself with what I call the “Out of My League Syndrome,” simply because something is different or new, isn’t the most effective way to land the job of your dreams.

In a perfect world, we would ask whoever we want for whatever we want, and we would receive a, “Yes, absolutely,” every time. But, in our imperfect world, no one is free from rejection. It happens to all of us. It’s inevitable, so embrace it. Understand that it’s a necessary evil to achieve success and learn to see rejection as redirection, rather than a setback.

Rejection always leaves you with two options: you either let rejection defeat you or you regroup and keep going. But, don’t count yourself out before you try.

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You Fear Treading in Uncharted Waters

If you have a job that looks good on paper or if you’ve outgrown your current position but feel pretty comfortable in your career, the fear of uncertainty probably has kicked in more than you’ve noticed in your job hunt. Deep down, you don’t completely like the idea that you’re moving from familiar ground into unknown territory.

If you’ve had thoughts like, “What if I get a job and I don’t like it as much, or what if I don’t get paid as much?” Then, you’re a member of this club. When it comes to landing a new job, you’ve probably put in less effort than you’re willing to admit to yourself. Rather than dedicate intentional time to discovering the next best career move, you might coast through your job search, soothing yourself with excuses like, “I just don’t have enough time.”

Unfortunately for you, your lack of consistency and momentum is holding you back from making the career change you so desire. Your first step is to acknowledge that you feel this way. Then, accept that all you can do is put your best foot forward, and repeat, one step at a time. Do your research and talk to as many people as you can before jumping into your next position to ensure it’s the right fit for you.

If that’s not enough and if you want to get as much guidance as possible to safeguard you from making a wrong turn, get a career coach. Career coaching helps you fill the gap between where you are and where you want to be in your career, with a concrete step by step system to help get you there. Find a career coach that understands your needs and who can steer you in the best direction.

You Fear Failing

This is one I used to struggle with, and you can blame growing up in a Nigerian household for this one. Growing up, I was told failure is not an option and success is not a choice. Success is a requirement. So, as you can imagine, that created an insurmountable amount of pressure.

If you’ve ever felt like, “What if I do all this work to get a new job and I fail? What if it doesn’t work out?” Welcome to the party. That fear of failure, probably has you applying to 30 jobs a week, sending off your resume to all who cares to listen just so you can end up somewhere and deem yourself successful. But that isn’t the best approach. It’s impossible to show that you’re the best candidate for every position you desire when you aimlessly apply to that many jobs at once.

Be selective in your approach, and take your time. Don’t let the fear of failure rush you into something that won’t ultimately make you happy.

More importantly, don’t let the fear of failure keep you stagnant either. Failure, like rejection, is inevitable. At some point, you will fail. But, the faster you fail, the closer you get to success.

So, whenever you start to feel these subtle fears creep up your shoulder, ask yourself two questions: First, “Do I honestly like where I’m at now?” And, secondly, “What is the worst that can happen if I move forward in this direction?” If the worst that can happen is better than where you are right now, get out of your comfort zone and take the risk.

Adunola Adeshola coaches young professionals to get unstuck in their careers and land jobs they’ll love. She’s also the founder of employeeREDEFINED.com, a career site for millennials who secretly feel stuck in their careers.

Forbes.com | February 15, 2018 | Adunola Adeshola , WOMEN@FORBES

Your #Career : 8 Books every #JobHunter should Read Before Sending out #Résumés ….These Books Go Beyond the Nuts & Bolts of #JobSearching (#Interviewing, #RésuméWriting ) & Help Readers Find their True Passion & Motivation.

March 13, 2018/in First Sun Blog/by First Sun Team

The job search process can be confusing and intimidating, not least because you’re trying to choose from a seemingly infinite number of potential career trajectories.
Plenty of authors have published guides for overwhelmed job seekers. We selected seven of the best.
These books go beyond the nuts and bolts of job searching (interviewing, résumé-writing) and help readers find their true passion and motivation.

It doesn’t matter whether you’re a college student or a mid-level professional — making a career change can be intimidating.

Get some guidance from the pros.

Sure, sending out cover letters and going on job interviews is panic-inducing. But perhaps the scarier part is figuring out what you really want to do and how you can best contribute to the world.

The good news is you’re hardly the first job-seeker to find yourself in this position. There are tons of books geared toward people just like you. Below, we’ve highlighted seven of the best, so you can launch into your job search with confidence.

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‘Designing Your Life’ by Bill Burnett and Dave Evans

This book, by two Stanford professors of engineering, is a bestseller for a reason: It’s at once reassuring, empowering, and enlightening for anyone in the throes of the job-search process.

The most important takeaway is that there isn’t just one career path out there for you. You probably have lots of passions, and you can definitely have lots of jobs.

The authors share anecdotes alongside exercises to help you figure out which careers would suit you best — like “mind mapping” and “Odyssey planning.” It’s a fun and very actionable read that helps you see the careers forest for the trees.

Find it here »

‘How to Win Friends and Influence People’ by Dale Carnegie

Nearly a century after its original publication, this book continues to be a megahit among people looking to be better with … people.

In fact, Warren Buffett says the book helped him overcome his social awkwardness and ultimately changed his life, Business Insider’sRichard Feloni reported.

The late Carnegie advises readers on how to have smoother interactions with others — perhaps most importantly, by letting them talk about themselves. Feloni rounded up some of the other core lessons, like acknowledge your own mistakes and avoid criticizing, condemning, or complaining.

Whether you’re gearing up for job interviews or networking events, Carnegie’s classic advice is a must-read.

Find it here »

‘Pivot’ by Jenny Blake

Blake is a former Googler who’s “pivoted” — i.e. changed career directions — multiple times, once when she was working at the tech giant, and again when she left to launch her consulting business. And she knows how scary it can be.

“Pivot” guides readers who are confused, intimidated, or just plain curious through the step-by-step process of figuring out what you should do next — and then doing it. She’s nothing if not cautious, telling readers they should run some tests to make sure, for example, their startup idea is viable or this is really their passion.

Blake also has advice on building your network without feeling slimy, by “drafting,” or taking on extra projects from someone who works in your desired field. It’s a practical, highly re-readable guide for anyone at any stage.

Find it here »

‘The New Rules of Work’ by Alex Cavoulacos and Kathryn Minshew

If you’re looking for people who “get” the modern-day job search — and how frustrating it can be — look no further.

Cavoulacos and Minshew are the cofounders, and COO and CEO, respectively, of popular career advice and job listings site The Muse. In “The New Rules of Work,” they break down the process of landing your dream job into accessible steps, from networking to interviewing to moving up the ranks at your company.

Some highlights from the book: a template for cold-emailingsomeone at your dream company, a fresh take on post-interview thank-you notes, and advice on how tokeep from stagnating in your current role.

Find it here »

‘What Color Is Your Parachute?’

The most popular job-search guide ever has been revised every year to reflect the realities of modern work.

The late Bolles (who was an Episcopalian minister) covers the basics — résumé writing, interviewing, networking — but also helps readers pinpoint their ideal career through the “Flower Exercise.”

Barbara Safani, president of the career-management firm Career Solvers, told The New York Timesin 2014 that the book has stayed relevant because Bolles “focuses not only on the job search process but the emotional and psychological side” of job hunting.

Find it here »

‘Insight’ by Tasha Eurich

Before you head into a job interview and start pitching yourself to a hiring manager, you’ll need to get a better handle on who exactly you are, in terms of your strengths and weaknesses.

Eurich is an organizational psychologist who helps people overcome obstacles to professional success — and the biggest one, she argues, is being oblivious to your flaws and mistakes. The problem? Self-awareness is key to success at work.

“Insight” guides readers through the process of knowing themselves just a little bit better. Each chapter juxtaposes an anecdote about a struggling client Eurich has coached with relevant scientific research, and ends with some practical exercises readers can use in their everyday lives.

These exercises — like inviting someone to a meal and asking them to tell you everything that’s wrong with you— take courage. But Eurich’s experience suggests that, if you do take her advice, you’ll be better positioned to advance in your career.

Find it here »

‘Why We Work’ by Barry Schwartz

In this relatively short read, Schwartz, a psychologist at Swarthmore College, explains how human motivation works — and doesn’t work.

Schwartz argues that people are motivated by purpose and meaning, i.e. the chance to achieve great things. There’s no evidence to suggest people are motivated primarily by money. But most companies — from education to law — incentivize workers with financial rewards anyway.

As you’re moving into the next phase of your career, you’ll want to learn more about what makes employees excel and what makes an organization great. Schwartz’s insights are invaluable in that domain.

Find it here »

Bonus Read: Resume DNA by John Singer

For every position that interests you there are dozens, possibly hundreds of applicants. You need to make yourself stand out — but how? Resume DNA: Succeeding in Spite of Yourself is a practical blueprint for navigating your way through a complicated, competitive job market.

You’ll learn to identify the qualities that distinguish you from your competition, write cover letters and resumes that demonstrate why you’re a good fit, deliver an opening statement that enables you to control the interview, work your network and pilot a proactive search in the “unpublished” job market, and much more. With humor and warm encouragement, Resume DNA: Succeeding in Spite of Yourself reminds you of what you’ve already accomplished . . . and teaches you how to leverage those accomplishments as you make your way up the career ladder.

Find it here: https://www.amazon.com/Resume-DNA-Succeeding-Spite-Yourself/dp/1627873848

Businessinsider.com | March 13, 2018 | Shana Lebowitz

Your #Career : 7 Ways to Make Your #Resume Easier for #Recruiters to Process…So, like Anyone Faced with a Whole Lot to Do, Recruiters take Shortcuts. Instead of Looking through Every Single Application Carefully

March 12, 2018/in First Sun Blog/by First Sun Team

Getting recruiters to thoroughly read your resume is a luxury you have to earn. By making your resume more skimmable for recruiters, you’ll position yourself as a strong candidate worthy of being taken seriously.

It’s easy to think that after all the work you’ve put into perfecting your resume, recruiters will at least spend the time to thoroughly reading it through from start to finish. Unfortunately, this is usually not the case. Recruiters are generally very busy. Resume writing blogger and long-time recruiter Steve Wang says,

“During my more busy weeks, sometimes I have to fill as many as 15 positions at once, and when each position gets over a hundred applicants, I can only afford to spend a minute or two on each resume.”

So, like anyone faced with a whole lot to do, recruiters take shortcuts. Instead of looking through every single application carefully, they’ll simply skim through each resume to see which ones might be worth taking a closer look at. Because of this, it’s crucial that even a quick glance at your resume will leave readers awestruck. With this in mind, here are some techniques you can dish out to make your resume super easy for recruiters to skim through and understand.

Use Standard Headings

I get it, you want to get fancy with your headings to stand out from the pack, but doing so can have the unintended consequence of making your resume way harder to skim. Recruiters are used to reading the same old headers over and over again. If you change “Work Experience” to “Work Background”, that can throw off a recruiter’s rhythm – even if it’s just a little. So when it comes to resume headings, stick with what is tried and true.

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What Skill Sets do You have to be ‘Sharpened’ ?

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Digitize Your Numbers

When it’s time to decide whether to spell out numbers on your resume, you might find yourself in a dilemma where you’re unsure whether to use APA or MLA style rules to approach this common concern. While it’s great that you’re paying attention to this type of detail, it’s a lot simpler than you think. Just write your numbers as digits to make information like numerical achievements nice and easy to spot. Whether you follow APA or MLA protocol is the least of anyone’s concerns here.

List All Your Skills Separately

Some job applicants like to intertwine their skills with their job experience. If they used skills A, B, and C while working for Job X, they’ll mention those skills in the same section of the resume that describes the job. While this is certainly a fine way to format your resume, it’s still important to have a separate section that lists out all your skills in their entirety.

Use Short Bullet Points

One to two lines is an okay length for bullet points. If they get any longer though, not only will your resume become more difficult to understand, but it can also hint that you’re trying to get at too many different things at once. Instead, keep your bullet points short, sweet, and to the point.

Choose the Right Template

Some resume templates do a far better job than others at making your content aesthetically pleasing and easy to understand. Make sure that the template you use is taking full advantage of techniques like bolding, USING ALL CAPS, italics, underlining, and even colors to make information like job titles, company names, and dates more distinguishable from one another. Here’s what I mean:

Job title, Company Name, New York, NY May 2016 – Present

This would be considered hard to read. While everything is bolded and italicized to differentiate the entire line from the rest of the resume, individually the job title, company name, location, and date are hard to distinguish.

Job title, Company Name, NEW YORK, NY May 2016 – Present

Here the formatting is far superior. The job title, company name, location, and date all have their own unique style, which makes everything much easier to discern.

If you’re ever unsure about whether a particular resume template might be easier to skim than another, simply test them out by skimming them yourself.

Align Dates to the Right

Keeping all your dates to the right allows you to create a clear timeline of your resume. If a recruiter wants to check to see if you have any work gaps, all the recruiter needs to do is look over to the right and all the dates will be lined up as clear as day.

Begin Each Job Description with a Summary

In some cases, even though each individual bullet point on a resume may be easy to comprehend, sometimes they don’t paint a clear picture of the job applicant collectively when put together. This difficulty is exacerbated when bullet points describe assorted one-off achievements at a particular job. To alleviate this issue, it’s often a good idea to use your first bullet point to give a short summary describing what the core of your job is all about. This way, recruiters can better contextualize how your later bullet points fit into the bigger picture of what you do.

Getting recruiters to thoroughly read your resume is a luxury you have to earn. By making your resume more skimmable for recruiters, you’ll position yourself as a strong candidate worthy of being taken seriously.

Glassdoor.com | March 12, 2018 | Posted by Peter Yang

Your #Career : #CareerAdvice #Salaries -4 #Benefits You Can #Negotiate (and How to Do It!)…When it Comes to Benefits, it’s Important to have a Clear Sense of Where you can #Negotiate .

March 11, 2018/in First Sun Blog/by First Sun Team

Remember — negotiations are a collaboration, not a contest. “I always appreciate creative requests,” Kuntzmann says. When it’s time to negotiate, be prepared, be gracious and be confident — you can do this!

As you consider what you need most out of a new position, salary is an important component of your compensation picture — but it’s not the only factor. A guide published by Northwestern Mutual titled Changing Jobs? Top Financial Considerations Beyond Salary cites data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics to solidify the claim: “Salary typically accounts for just 70 percent of an employee’s total compensation. Benefits make up the remaining 30 percent.”

When it comes to benefits, it’s important to have a clear sense of where you can negotiate. Ellen Kuntzmann, Director-Talent Acquisition for Integrity Staffing Solutions advises: “When speaking with a hiring manager you will want to understand what benefits can be negotiated vs. what is fixed. For example, smaller companies may not be able to adjust medical benefits but would be more likely to offer additional PTO.”

This is where you want to do your research and be clear on what you’re after. Also, recognize what constitutes “fixed benefits”; you’re unlikely to negotiate your way into a program the company doesn’t offer. So it’s probably not a good strategy to target transportation benefits if the company doesn’t offer that. But you might be able to negotiate a bonus or higher base salary by touting your merit. You can then use that extra pay to underwrite your transportation expenses.

Kuntzmann advises: “Things which are often negotiable may include work hours such as 4×10 hour days, span of control for your function or work location if you want to move to the corporate office or have family in a different branch that you may be supporting. Be sure to ask for any changes to benefits you are looking for in a concise, focused one-time request. Once you get agreement on one change or benefit, asking for additional may be perceived as not fully focused on what you want.”

A few other benefits you may want to consider negotiating for?

1. COBRA

One benefit that Kuntzmann notes may be worth pursuing is COBRA benefits. This is short-term healthcare that covers you and your family during transitional times. Kuntzmann points out: “If you are between jobs or are leaving your current job for a new role, you may ask for your cost of COBRA to be covered by your new employer until your medical benefits go live.”

2. Telecommuting

Telecommuting can help foster fit for many employees. But some employers have not caught the wave. Maybe it doesn’t suit their business model, or their leadership isn’t open to it. Telecommuting can be a great job perk, but if you’re targeting it as a key benefit for job fit, it’s in your best interest to learn whether or not your prospects are open to it.

If you learn that it’s an option, Kuntzmann offers this advice for negotiating a telecommuting arrangement: “The key to remote work or telecommuting is to be specific — is it one day a week or one day a month?”

3. PTO

PTO is commonly negotiated as a means to better foster job fit. Kuntzmann explains: “PTO is what I’m most often asked to negotiate. Some companies have ranges that they offer based upon tenure, and others may allow you to use time already allotted for a personal vacation that’s already been paid for without utilizing paid time as part of your offer negotiation.”

4. Bonus or Stock Pay

Kuntzmann explains that if you’re going after a particular benefit when you negotiate your salary, don’t assume that you need to accept a lower base pay to negotiate that benefit.

However, this might be true in the case of additional compensation. Kuntzmann explains: “I’ve often negotiated higher bonus or higher stock for a candidate for a lower base pay.” So if you find that the base pay offered is lower than what you’d expected, it might make sense to negotiate for an additional bonus or stock.

Remember — negotiations are a collaboration, not a contest. “I always appreciate creative requests,” Kuntzmann says. When it’s time to negotiate, be prepared, be gracious and be confident — you can do this!

Glassdoor.com | March 9, 2018 | Posted by Eileen Hoenigman Meyer

Posts

BE INTENTIONAL

APPLY REVERSE ENGINEERING

STAY LASER FOCUSED

DISTRACTIONS AREN’T ALL BAD

FACEBOOK

TWITTER

INSTAGRAM

SITUATION NO. 2: YOU’RE SWITCHING CAREERS/INDUSTRIES

1. Your Resume

2. Your LinkedIn Profile

3. You’re not qualified

4. The job was put on hold

5. An offer was made to another candidate

6. Your interview didn’t go as well as you thought

COLD MESSAGE TEMPLATE

DON’T BE AFRAID TO ASK, YOU’RE ONLY HOLDING YOURSELF BACK

You Might Also Like:

‘Designing Your Life’ by Bill Burnett and Dave Evans

‘How to Win Friends and Influence People’ by Dale Carnegie

‘Pivot’ by Jenny Blake

‘The New Rules of Work’ by Alex Cavoulacos and Kathryn Minshew

‘What Color Is Your Parachute?’

‘Insight’ by Tasha Eurich

‘Why We Work’ by Barry Schwartz

1. COBRA

2. Telecommuting

3. PTO

4. Bonus or Stock Pay