Career Tips Guides

A resume is a condensed format of personal achievements and qualifications. It is the initial communication with a potential employer. A good resume is the first step in identifying and pursuing a career opportunity. The most important consideration when drafting a resume is to determine whether it will create the desired impression on a recruiter, enough for him to schedule an interview.

A resume is essentially a mode of communication between the candidate and the employer. It is expected to effectively communicate the candidate’s achievements and strengths. The resume should be planned and documented in such a way that it highlights every important detail that is relevant to the job at hand. It should make available, at a glance, a complete picture of the candidate and the special skills and abilities he has to offer the organization.

Differentiate Yourself

There is a difference between a resume for a sales job and one for a management position. In order to make the resume effective, the candidate should highlight his areas of interest, achievements, skills and abilities, in line with the job being applied for. While a salesperson should emphasize sales volume and targets achieved, an academic should emphasize his academic achievements and special honors received. The abilities and special achievements should be highlighted in a way that the candidate’s profile and the job requirements match perfectly.

Making An Impression

The most significant part of a resume is the top quarter. This part offers details on the identity of the candidate and his professional qualifications at a glance. A powerful headline helps in defining and distinguishing a candidate from others. The headline should be followed by information on special skills and expertise that makes him suitable for that particular position. The headline and details should be job specific and easily modified. The personal details furnished should be complete, leaving no room for a lapse in communication if you are chosen for the job.

Market Yourself

Marketing yourself and selling your ability to execute the duties assigned to the best of your ability is very important and should be kept in mind while drafting the resume. A candidate should be able to promote himself. After highlighting the academic and other achievements, you should sell personal achievements that distinguish you from the other contenders. Your efforts that highlight the leadership qualities in you should be mentioned. Knowledge of regional or foreign languages adds value, especially if the job involves national or overseas travel.

The Last Opportunity

The cover letter is an opportunity to impress the employer with your writing skills. The cover letter should be drafted in a way that it markets your abilities and suitability for the position. It should be a sincere effort to offer your services to the organization and should provide a brief snapshot of what you have to offer.

Your resume provides you with an opportunity for an interview with the employer. You should address your resume, complete with a cover letter, to a particular person rather than just a department. This ensures that the resume reaches the person in charge of recruiting, rather than in the in-box of a department. It is also the safest way of making sure that the resume and enclosed photocopies, if any, are not misplaced.

Tony Jacowski is a quality analyst for The MBA Journal. Aveta Solution’s Six Sigma Online offers online six sigma training and certification classes for lean six sigma, black belts, green belts, and yellow belts.

The US Navy maintains the largest marine combat force on the planet. The US Navy trains and equips young men to prevent hostility and preserve the freedom of the seas. The US Navy is famous all over the world as a symbol of discipline, unity and power.

The naval department is divided into 3, the Navy Executive Department, the operating forces and the Shore Establishment. Among the operating forces, the navy has divided the commissioned work force into two fields of expertise, the CWO or Chief Warrant Officer and the LDO or Limited Duty Officer. The LDO and CWO officer programs both involve active duty and comprise of the Select Reserve Personnel.

The LDO is senior military personnel, who is of a higher skill rating and is favored to become a commissioned officer. CWOs differ from LDOs only on the scale of authorative responsibility. Personnel opting for the LDO job could be a CWO, Petty officer of first class or Chief petty officer. Active duty of 3 years is a necessity for a CWO applying for the designation of an LDO. Any Qualified person may apply for both LDO and CWO, simultaneously. The person needs to have leadership quality, basic required military qualifications and technical proficiency.

Separate selection boards, made up of veteran navy personnel, meet at the Navy Personnel Command, to consider candidates for the active and inactive duty LDO curriculum. If a commanding officer feels an individual is not qualified for the LDO designation, the commander simply does not forward the persons name.

The person is also required to have a good moral character and should have no record of penal action under Article 15 of U.S. military rules, no Court Martial expulsion or civilian conviction or conviction by a civil court for misdemeanors in the past 3 years, as on 1 October of the year of application. Any drug or alcohol abuse will result in disqualification and is liable to be considered as a criminal offence.

An LDO is also supposed to have the educational knowledge and experience in geological science, submarine warfare technology and aviation warfare. The LDO needs to exhibit resource-management qualities amidst staff corps and thus needs to be classified after sea warfare training, under CWO Surface Warfare, CWO Submarine Warfare, CWO Aviation Warfare and CWO Staff Corps. A CWO selected as a LDO is appointed in the permanent grade of LTJG of the Navy.

A newly recruited LDO is assigned as Division Officer or as a Technical Assistant, though a LDO cannot control a carrier or battleship. The LDO can also land in an onshore position. Warrant Officers or Staff Officers are always in their combat uniform, except in an offshore navy manuever. An Unrestricted Line Oficer and an LDO wear similar uniforms, with their ranks displayed on the sleeve.

A LDO and URL differ only in terms of age and combat experience. An LDO will often be seen wearing ribbons and warfare medals earned for his experience while on off shore warfare duty.The medals earned are not valour medals, but are good-will medals given to an LDO as a token of appreciation for his long term service.

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So, you have finally moved beyond the prescreening phase and have landed the job interview! Your resume set the stage to get you in the door, and now here is your chance to ice the cake. The interview, as you are well aware, is what will either move you towards completion of your goal - or it will be the last step in a lengthy series of steps you have already undertaken. Question: how can you succeed within the interview?

Assuming that you have appropriately prepared yourself for the interview, then the interview should be easy. However, despite all of the preparation, even the best falter when sitting down face to face with a hiring manager or human resources staff. It is one thing to outline who you are on a piece of paper (the resume), it is something else to actually explain who you are in person and face-to-face with another person. The one question most of us dread having to answer is: “Tell me about yourself.” Do they want to know where you previously worked..or where you were born? I mean, there are just so many ways to go with that unbelievably dreaded question. Here is a quick tip: the “tell me about yourself question” is simply asking you to “tell me why you are sitting here, today, interviewing for this specific job?” That is it, nothing more.

So, what are the 4 steps to succeed within a job interview? The best career advice, as it relates to job interviews, career development, etc., is one that encourages the candidate to creatively customize the steps. So the following steps below apply regardless if you are seeking a position as an educator or a computer programmer, a manager or a salesclerk. The most important thing to remember is that every interviewer has a particular goal in mind. If you use these 4 steps, then you are likely to cover all the bases.

The four steps specifically deal with how you manage your response to the interviewer’s questions. Did you catch the word “manage” as it was used in the previous sentence? Yes, I am talking about how you manage the process - - take control of the interview - -. So, when the interviewer asks you a question (i.e., tell me how you handle an angry customer) here are the four steps, as promised:

1) Provide a brief description of the situation: “One of my customers was unhappy with our XYZ widgets.”

2) Add some detail to describe the specific task or role you were assigned to deal with the situation: “I was responsible for dealing directly with our department’s major clients and so, I was charged with turning the situation around for this unhappy customer.”

3) Provide one or two key action steps you took to handle the situation: “I contacted the customer directly and requested feedback. I authorized a refund or future discounts to this particular customer.”

4) As a RESULT of your action steps, what happened? “As a result of the refund and discount, the customer increased their orders by 25%.”

The four steps may be interchangeable - - you describe step 4 (the results) prior to step 1 (the situation), however, the key is to be able to list specific results that were gained. Most importantly, the results have to be tied directly to your action steps. Interviewers are looking for RESULTS, not just generalities (”I think I would make a good employee for your company”; or worse yet, “I am good with clients because I enjoy relating to others.”). They need hard facts, verifiable data. And you are the most qualified candidate who is prepared to give it to them.

A bit of caution: please do not create a script to memorize these 4 steps. Ok, if it makes you feel comfortable, and better prepared, then you can write specific responses to the typical interview questions and follow the 4 steps above. Review it, then throw the script away. What is important is that you remember the 4 steps and can apply them to your own career success stories.

The best type of job interview is one that unfolds into a content-rich discussion of how your specific qualifications match the needs of the company. It is important for the interviewer to be able to see how you fit within the company environment and culture. Of course, one interview may not provide all of this detail - - but you want to give yourself a good head start. Succeeding within the interview requires extensive preparation, an understanding of how to tailor your capabilities within the scope of the company’s needs, and your ability to provide details related to how you can provide desired results as a future employee.

After 17 years of management, I created a new path to reach my Career Vision by launching Beacon Career Management, LLC. Are you seeking career assistance? Then visit Beacon Career Management to receive a complimentary weekly Career Success Guide filled with advice and tips.

A Portfolio career is a relatively new terminology in the corporate arena. However, many people have been practicing it for quite a while now. A portfolio career is a combination of several work profiles such as contract work, general employment and home business. People, who are unable to make ends meet even with full time employment, or those who lack job satisfaction in their existing occupation, are generally on the lookout for other opportunities that can gratify their requirements. Usually, such people have one full time job profile and apply elsewhere on either a part time basis or establish a home based business. This not only gives them extra earnings, but also gives them the opportunity to use their talents and be more resourceful.

The general state of unemployment and people being pink-slipped has given a push to portfolio careers. Depending upon individual skills and interests, they can choose to employ themselves either part-time or on contract basis. The traditional notion that a full time job provides job security, which lasts an entire lifetime, no longer exists. With increasing globalization and technological advancement, there is a rapid decrease in the requirement for human resources since machines carry out most of the mechanical tasks. Today, personnel are hired on project basis, instead of the conventional long haul method. This is done because the company hiring the employee wants to save on its costs.

To Find The Appropriate Portfolio Career

To know exactly what it is that you would be interested in, it is important to weigh your preferences according to the following:

-Make an analysis of the kind of work you enjoy doing; for example, managing people?s wealth and funds or interacting with people or any other preference.
-Study the work that you have done so far and scrutinize the skills you have had to use while doing that job. Take care to list the innovations you applied on your earlier job. This will bring you closer to your job of finding the correct portfolio career.
-List the other sectors and job profiles in which you have a better chance of implementing your originality. Take closer look at those hobbies and interests, which have the potential of becoming income generators.
-If your friends are also interested in a portfolio career, you could get together and come up with suggestions of revenue generating work options.
-If you are planning to do more than one job at a time, make sure that at least one of them is a ‘no-brainer’ kind, so that both of them are easy to manage. However, if you are confident about handling two difficult job profiles at a time, you can just go ahead.

Qualities Required For A Portfolio Career

Individuals with skills such as adaptability, or are self-starters, able to shoulder risk tolerance, undertake multi-tasking and the capability of working under pressure, are right for portfolio careers. People who have the will to adjust, and are prepared to re-schedule their work calendars, are ideal candidates for this kind of work. Single women and mothers especially are known to handle several things at a time and as a result, the portfolio career scenario proves ideal for them. For a portfolio career it is important to have ample time on your hands, otherwise it would not be possible to do more than one job in a day.

Those who want to try their hand at portfolio careers are advised to first develop a skill that is in demand or which suits some sector of the industry. If people are not able to handle a full time job and other part time ventures together, yet want to get involved in a portfolio career, have the option of undertaking several part time ventures.

Tony Jacowski is a quality analyst for The MBA Journal. Aveta Solution’s Six Sigma Online offers online six sigma training and certification classes for lean six sigma, black belts, green belts, and yellow belts.

Does anyone ever like cold calling? Or do you need to have a skin as thick as hide not to feel the rejection of a slammed phone? Maybe it’s not the kind of fear that would be classified under the head of ‘paranoia’ but it is definitely very much a part of every salesman’s life. Unfortunately, it is not supposed to be, so either people do not own up to it or laugh at others when they do.

Equally unfortunate is the fact that people tend to give you advice if they know you have a horror of making that first call to a stranger. Each one is worse than the other. How can you not feel the trepidation of intruding into a person’s space when you don’t know him from Adam? You would never have done it if you weren’t getting paid for it. Then, there’s always the underlying criticism, especially from your superiors that it is your fault. The success is because of what they taught you, the failure is always yours and yours alone. Then the admonition about just accepting it and not being bothered by it. How on earth does one handle a slap in the face? This might just be a figurative thing, but the rejection is loud and clear.

The strange thing is that it is not just the newcomers who are beset by these fears. Scratch the surface and you’ll find veteran salesmen also break out in a cold sweat if they find they are being rejected rudely. Just making more calls is no salve to a bruised ego. The hurt just gets pushed in - it doesn’t disappear. Unfortunately, traditional sales programs are built for rejection. They teach you to push your way through any little gap and you get pushed right out again. Customers don’t like pushy people. Wouldn’t they listen to you if you asked ever so nicely instead of launching off on to a sales pitch even before he has time to say Hello? Wouldn’t you rather he asked you what your product was all about for a change before you gave him your prepared sales pitch? Could it just be that you don’t have the right tools or means to get you this kind of reaction?

So, instead of feeling guilty, tell yourself that the rejection of cold calling is not your fault. It is the fault of the way it is being done. Maybe it needs a subtle approach, a certain savoir faire for it to work. Maybe selling techniques in today’s world are outdated and need to be relooked at and reformulated so to speak to make them relevant and successful. So, once again, say “It’s not me - it’s not my fault.” Deep down inside of you, you know that it isn’t. That you are not to blame for people saying No or Sorry. You might continue to do it, to follow the same old approach but you’ll be doing it as a job, without feeling you are not performing to some standard that you have to reach.

More information on general sales training

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The popularity of golf has really taken off in recent years. To accommodate the many people who play, take lessons, watch, or read about the sport, golf employment has become much more readily available, in a variety of interesting businesses.

Golf courses: There are many more golf courses in operation today than there was twenty years ago, and every one of them offers dozens of golf employment opportunities. In order to run smoothly, golf courses need groundskeepers to care for the turf, operators and technicians for the equipment needed on a golf course, instructors to provide training for the golf course’s members, and managers to make sure everything runs smoothly. Additionally, many golf courses have clubhouses and golf stores, both of which require sufficient staff in order to provide members with their conveniences.

Golf resorts: Golfing vacations are becoming more and more popular, as the explosion of golf resorts has indicated. A golf resort requires all of the same staff as a golf course does, except that a golf resort is often bigger and therefore requires more employees. Additionally, a golf resort needs a larger establishment to house their guests, and with a bigger building and more services comes a larger staff: housekeepers, front desk employees, and an expanded kitchen staff all contribute to the success of a golf resort.

Golf schools: As golf becomes more and more popular, more schools are opening every day to teach the sport. These schools are a wonderful source of golf employment for those who would rather teach the sport as the next best thing to playing it themselves.

Golf stores: There are a variety of retail businesses that sell golf equipment, clothing and accessories. Some stores, such as those small stores located in golf course clubhouses, may sell only products that relate to golf. Other stores, such as large sports stores, sell equipment and clothing for a variety of different sports, golf included. Both types of stores offer excellent opportunities for golf employment, as they both have a need for sales associates who know about golf well enough to give their customers the best service possible.

Community centers: Believe it or not, your neighborhood community center may be able to provide you with golf employment. Community centers frequently offer residents fun, seasonal programs, such as classes on art, dance, and golf. Even if your community center doesn’t already offer a golf program, you may be able to get a job just by suggesting one.

Junior high or high schools: Extracurricular activities are an important part of most junior high and high schools. Whether you are a teacher or just a golf enthusiast living in the area, you may be able to score a part time job by suggesting golf lessons or a golf club as an after school activity.

Golf publications: Most people wouldn’t think of it, but golf publications offer another source of golf employment. There are at least a half-dozen golf magazines on the shelves of any well-stocked bookstore, and every one of them needs writers, editors, and photographers who know all about golf.

On your own: Golf is an industry that leaves plenty of room for entrepreneurs. As an experienced golfer, you can offer private golf lessons, meeting your clients wherever they enjoy golfing the most. You can also translate your knowledge and experience into written form by publishing biographies about famous golfers, travel guides that discuss the pros and cons various golf resorts around the world, or even how-to manuals for golf enthusiasts who want to learn more about the sport.

As you can see, there are many places of employment for golf enthusiasts. The golf industry is so popular that anyone with the right education and experience will never have to worry about having reliable golf employment.

Andy West is a writer for SDGA. San Diego Golf Academy is a premier golf school with five locations across the United States. To learn more about golf employment, please visit http://www.sdgagolf.com/golf_careers.php .