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Your #Career : 4 Warning Signs Of The Next Recession—And How To Tell If Your Job Is Safe…Recessions are Cyclical, and There are some Foreboding Signs to Watch. Now’s the Time to Hash Out How Much you’re Worth to your Employer.

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The U.S. economy may have added more jobs last month than experts had predicted, but while that’s something to cheer, it isn’t cause for getting too cozy. A recent J.P. Morgan economic model, based on a broader range of indicators, puts the chances of a recession occurring within the next 12 months at roughly one in three.

question mark signs painted on a asphalt road surface

Recessions, after all, are cyclical. So the question is less whether we’re in for another one than when. I’m not an economist, but my many years in the staffing industry have taught me that there are some warning signs. Here are four potential pressures to pay attention to.

1. AN AGING WORKFORCE COULD SLOW THE ECONOMY

A report published last month by the National Bureau of Economic Research(NBER) claims that, based on historical trends, a 10% increase in the number of Americans over 60 slows per capita GDP growth by around 5.5%. In the last 20 years, census data shows that the U.S.’s older population grew by 16.8%, putting us on track for slower growth over the next two decades. (Just last week the New York Times noted that slower economic growth seems to have become the new normal across the developed world.)

“This dramatic shift in the age structure of the U.S. population,” the NBER study’s authors write, “has the potential to negatively impact the performance of the economy as well as the sustainability of government entitlement programs, and could result in a decline in consumption for the population as a whole.”

 

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2. THE UNDEREMPLOYMENT RATE IS STILL AT 10%

It’s usually fluctuations in the unemployment rate that get the most press, but theunderemployment rate—which describes those working part-time but who want full-time work, plus people who’ve stopped searching but still want a job—remains at 10%, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). That suggests there’s a significant chunk of recent college grads and experienced professionals out there who are still finding it tough to land jobs that meet their skill levels.

3. THE TEMPORARY JOB MARKET IS LEVELING OFF

Temporary staffing companies are typically the first to see growth after a recession. So when hiring rates in that market start to slow down—or, as happened this June, when hires actually decline—it can be a sign of a downshift in the economy. The decrease in the use of temporary workers is usually related to cost-cutting measures, since these are more expendable workers than full-time employees for companies that need to tighten their belts.

4. AUTOMATION IS NO LONGER A DISTANT POSSIBILITY—IT’S HERE

Surely by now you’ve heard the premonitions about robots taking your job—and you may not know quite what to make of them. But according to a 2013 University of Oxford study, nearly half of current U.S. workers are at risk of being put out of work by automation within the next two decades. It’s true that forecasts like these can sound overblown or just too distant to do anything about. Yet nearer-term estimates suggest they’re worth thinking about now. Some experts say 5 million jobs are due to be automated within just the next five years. And it’s conceivable that rising layoffs across multiple roles and sectors, thanks to advances in artificial intelligence, could contribute to a recession sooner than we may imagine.

THREE QUESTIONS TO FIGURE OUT WHETHER YOUR JOB’S AT RISK

So what can you do about it? It’s normal to feel anxious or even helpless in the face of economic forces you can’t personally control. But there are a few things you can do right now to weather the next downturn, whenever it arrives.

It starts by getting a handle on how competitive you might be in a job market that’s suddenly a lot tighter than it is today. To help you do that, ask yourself these three questions:

1. Does your job tie directly to how the company makes money?
In order to keep you on the payroll in hard times, your employer will need to validate that you either save or make the company enough money to justify your cost. If you can’t explain how your work impacts profitability, you could be deemed expendable.

So spend some time quantifying your accomplishments, and tie some facts and figures to what you do. The average employee usually costs a company 130% to 140% of their salary. So if you make $60,000 a year, the real cost to your employer is $78,000 to $84,000 year. It’s much easier for an HR rep to do that math—factoring in benefits and other expenses—than it is for the average employee to estimate their own value to their company. But you can still get a rough sense of it.

Keep track of the number of customers your work supports (directly or indirectly) and estimate how much revenue they generate for the company. What would happen if your job function went away? Would the ability to deliver to customers properly be severely impacted—by how much, and by which measures? Create a list identifying what functions would go unfulfilled, needs unserved, and deadlines missed in your absence, then work backward from there to estimate the potential impact on revenue. Even rough, back-of-the-envelope arithmetic like this can be useful to you.

2. Do you fall in a knowledge sweet spot for your skill or industry?
When companies go through a restructuring, their goal is to reduce the cost of the workforce while hanging onto the highest level of knowledge and skills that they can. This usually results in layoffs of the overpaid and the inexperienced.

Do your homework on open platforms like Glassdoor, PayScale, and Salary.com to find out where you fall in years of experience and pay grade for your role. If your salary is a lot higher than average, you could be eliminated in order to save money. If you’re paid a lot lower, it’s possible that your skills aren’t valued enough by your employer and your job could be outsourced or divvied up among temporary or freelance workers.

If you think you might be overpaid, now is the time to bring your expertise up to par. Identify your specialty, then invest in some coursework to help you become even more of a subject-matter or skill expert—just make sure your area of specialization is actually in demand. If you’re on the lower end of the pay scale, you should do the same thing. The rule is simple: The more you know and the more you can do, the more valuable you’ll be to an employer that needs to cut costs.

3. How strong are your relationships at work—with your managers as well as your peers?
Layoffs create a lot of uncertainty and feelings of guilt for those who survive the cuts. Employers will try to keep those employees they feel have a positive mind-set and those they’re most comfortable working with. The idea is that those who remain can rally together and keep their spirits up.

So your relationships across the organization matter. Reach out to managers and coworkers to see how you can help take tasks off their plates or make their jobs even a little easier. When you alleviate pain or solve a problem, you’re appreciated. Your ability to step up and help others feel better about their own jobs will be remembered when the business takes a hit and it’s time to review the headcount.

Today, every job is temporary, and a trait that could most determine your employability over the next decade is your ability to learn. If you aren’t growing and developing your skills according to market demands, the risks to your career may quietly pile up. That would be true even if you never had to worry about another recession ever again.

J.T. O’Donnell is the CEO of CAREEREALISM, a site for “job shoppers.” Her company hosts the new web video series, The Job Shop, which each month showcases the employer brands of companies to more than 1 million professionals seeking new opportunities. Follow her on Twitter at @jtodonnell.

J.T. O’DONNELL 08.09.16 5:00 AM |  FastCompany.com

 

Your #Career : 7 Jobs Paying $100k/Year That You’ve Probably Never Heard Of…As Jobs have Become Scarcer and Harder to Find, People are Getting More and More Creative in their Career Pursuits.

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Everyone’s trying to figure out how to make a living. Often, that means working awful, low-paying jobs (or two, or three) in order to put a roof over your head, and food on the table. But jobs come in all shapes and sizes, and if you’re willing to do the gross, the difficult, or the downright stupefying, there are high paying jobs out there, ripe for the picking.

costanza-golf-ball-768x580

As jobs have become scarcer and harder to find, people are getting more and more creative in their career pursuits. That means jobs are being created where none or few existed before, and many people are eschewing traditional employment arrangements to make a career freelancing or starting their own small businesses. Thesecan be high paying jobs in their own right, but there are still ways people are making upward of six figures doing things that very few people realize were even out there.

Unusual, but high paying jobs

As for those strange, unorthodox jobs, there are plenty out there. You just need to know where to look, and perhaps to be willing to do some things that other people aren’t. Perhaps you’d be willing to get some close, personal contact with lonely people? Or put your life on the line as a human bomb detector? Hell, you can even make a decent living diving in and out of ponds on golf courses. There are a lot of opportunities out there if you know where to look.

Here are a handful of high paying jobs that you may not have even realized existed.

1. Professional snugglers

Happy couple snuggling on a bed

Happy couple snuggling on a bed | Source: iStock

Willing to sell your body, but not willing to go for all-out prostitution? Well, you can get into the professional snuggling game and pull a pretty good salary. Of course, there’s no guarantee you’ll make six-figures, but there are apparently an awful lot of lonely people out there who will shell out big bucks for a little human contact. As far as high paying jobs go, it can get a lot more difficult.

 

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2. Personal shopper

A personal shopper at work

 personal shopper at work | Source: iStock

Perhaps you’ve heard of personal shoppers, but in all likelihood, you probably haven’t spent any time actually considering hiring one. But it’s an actual profession, and some personal shoppers can pull in more than $100,000 annually from their clients. Essentially, you’re paid to shop — tracking down and finding anything and everything your client needs, so they don’t have to.

3. Hand model

Hands on display at a Hairdressing Exhibition held at Olympia, London

Hands on display at a Hairdressing Exhibition held at Olympia, London | Fox Photos/Getty Images

George Costanza had “exquisite hands,” and if you yourself have some exquisite body part, you can put them to use as a model. The world needs body part models, in the same way it needs bikini models. Wrist watches and shoes don’t sell themselves, after all. In fashion hot spots like London, New York, and Los Angeles, you can make a decent living if you’ve got the parts.

4. Golf ball retrieval

Couple preparing for another round of golf

Couple preparing for another round of golf | Source: iStock

Golf is expensive, and running a golf course isn’t cheap either. So, how do you get all those golf balls back from the driving range and fairways that end up in the water? You’ve got to pay someone to go after them, and if you’re up to do the job, you can actually make a very good living. Check with your local course to inquire about their needs for ball retrievers.

5. Bomb detector

Metro Transit Police Special Response Team member patrols the Metro Center station with Sabre, an explosives detection dog

Metro Transit Police Special Response Team member patrols the Metro Center station with Sabre, an explosives detection dog | Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

Someone has to sniff out potential threats in public places or conflict zones — like bombs. And if you’re willing to do it, you can make upwards of six-figures. If you’re serious about becoming a bomb detection specialist, you can look at opportunities with local police departments (typically in bigger cities), the military, and government agencies like the FBI.

6. Ufologist

Amateur ufologists point out a UFO's flight path

Amateur ufologists point out a UFO’s flight path | Hector Mata/AFP/Getty Images

Nobody’s going to pay you to go out and stare at the sky, looking for flying saucers. But if you can manage to make a serious career in other areas — engineering, aerospace technologies, astrophysics, etc. — people may start listening to your theories, and you will be able to command speaking fees, or sell some books. There are famous scientists out there who have done it, and have become some of the world’s foremost ufologists.

7. Adventurer

Indiana Jones | Paramount

Indiana Jones | Source: Paramount

Want to be a real-life adventurer, in the vein of Indiana Jones? People manage to turn their passions for exploration and archaeology into careers, many earning quite a bit of money. A common way to become a professional adventurer is to start leading expeditions, or work as an academic with access to grant money to get out and explore the world. It’s not easy, but people do it.

Follow Sam on Facebook and Twitter @SliceOfGinger

 

CheatSheet.com | July 23, 2016 | Sam Becker

Your #Career : The Perfect Career? Why There’s No Such Thing as a Dream Job…Holding on to the Idea that You Will One Day Find your Dream Job is a Quick Way to Set yourself Up for Disappointment. You’ll Never be Happy if you Continue to Believe this. Instead, you’ll be Tired, Frustrated, & Bitter.

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After graduating from college, you may have had high hopes of finding the perfect job. You’ve probably heard friends and acquaintances brag about how dreamy their jobs were and how they can’t believe they’re getting paid to do what they do. You wanted what they had, so you embarked on a search for your own perfect job.

Free- Men in Socks

However, your hopes were quickly dashed after working at a series of crappy jobs and dealing with one too many horrible bosses. A job may seem perfect in the beginning, but that feeling usually doesn’t last long. Here’s why there’s no such thing as a dream job.

Your job satisfaction is up to you

A job is what you make it. It can be a truly miserable experience, it can be just OK, or it can eventually turn into a dream job. It’s all about your attitude. You can make small changes to make your job as close to a dream job as possible, but it will take some effort.

Career expert Allison Chesteron says we are each authors of our careers. It’s up to you to carve out a satisfying career path. She had this to say on her blog:

A “dream job” sounds like a fantasy. It belies the true messiness, the yearning to wander, the serendipitous nature of what it means to author a career. The term seeks to tie all the frayed ends up in a perfect little bow, failing to acknowledge what it means to take your future into your own hands and create it from scratch. It’s a fatuous term that doesn’t belong in the lexicon of career discovery and job search. It’s a fallacy. Don’t let it fool you.

 

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All jobs have flaws

There are no perfect jobs because there are no perfect people. You’ll encounter people from time to time who will make your workday miserable. They may even make you question your chosen field. You aren’t perfect either. Your feelings about your work will likely change from day to day and from week to week. These feelings can (and often do) color the way you view your job.

Dr. Alex Lickerman, Psychology Today contributor and founder and CEO of ImagineMD, said our imperfection is the reason why our jobs will never be ideal. “The real reason no job can ever be perfect is because we won’t ever be perfect,” Lickerman said. “We’ll always have a constantly shifting life condition that makes today seem awful even though yesterday we felt great doing the exact same thing; we’ll always keep making new mistakes; we’ll always on occasion fail in a big way; and we’ll never be able avoid having others dislike our work.”

There will always be something wrong no matter where you work. So if you’re job hopping in search of the perfect job, you’ll never find it. Once you let go of the idea that there is a perfect job out there, you’ll be able to find happiness at work or at least be somewhat satisfied.

You’re setting yourself up for disappointment

Holding on to the idea that you will one day find your dream job is a quick way to set yourself up for disappointment. You’ll never be happy if you continue to believe this. Instead, you’ll be tired, frustrated, and bitter. And these feelings will eventually become evident when you go on job interviews, further diminishing your chances of finding the right job.

You’ll miss out on opportunities

Putting your happiness on hold until you find the perfect job will also cause you to become overly focused on the future. Consequently, you could miss out on good opportunities right now. Maria Tomaino, job search strategist and associate director of alumni career development at Florida International University, said focusing too much time and energy on the future is almost as bad as living in the past. It’s just as important to focus on your current moves.

There’s no such thing as a dream job. The mentality of ‘if I was just doing ___, then I’ll be happy’ is not only untrue, but dangerous thinking. Why? Because it’s a hypothetical. It lives in the future. It’s not reality. That’s a lot of pressure that you are putting on yourself. That’s a lot of power you are putting into a job. It’s precarious thinking; always looking to the future and not being in the present. It puts our blinders up: To think the only path is that “dream job” path and makes us miss other opportunities that come our way.

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CheatSheet.com | July 20, 2016 | 

 

Your #Career : Job Search, Throw Me A Line – I’m Drowning! ….. You Must Establish your Brand & Envision a Target. If you are Persistent & Completely Engaged, You will be Successful. Also Understand that a Proactive, Self-Managed Job Search is Not an Overnight Process.

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Work your network – secure referrals through people you know and target companies and key decision makers that will refer you to opportunities in the “unpublished” job market.

Resume DNA Cover

Excerpt from the book “RESUME DNA – Succeeding In Spite Of Yourself” by John Singer

I recently coached a client who had gone through our program and possessed all of the necessary tools to start his job search. He was a self-proclaimed procrastinator, and in one of our coaching sessions, he started to break down emotionally. He admitted that he was not applying himself in his job search. He had been unemployed for three months; the wolves were at the door, and he felt paralyzed. He spent his entire day robotically applying for positions online (a “reactive” job search) and was admittedly exhausted from what he metaphorically referred to as “treading water in the middle of the ocean.”

I asked him if I could join him for a moment in the big blue sea. His expression shifted to a confused look (much like yours at this moment), and I told him that I wanted to be right there by his side. How’s the water? Is the sun shining? (Don’t worry—this is not a “Footprints in the Sand” analogy.) He started to play along, and he asked me if I had brought sunscreen. I told him that there might be more than just choppy waters on our horizon. I bothered to look in all directions and spotted a small sandy island about two kilometers away. Why don’t we use the same energy and determination that we are expending to keep our heads above water to instead swim toward our target?

You must establish your brand and envision a target. If you are persistent and completely engaged, you will be successful. Also understand that a proactive, self-managed job search is not an overnight process. Work your network – secure referrals through people you know and target companies and key decision makers that will refer you to opportunities in the “unpublished” job market.

Only you can make this happen. To quote Robert Frost, “The best way out is always through.”

Excerpt from the book “RESUME DNA – Succeeding In Spite Of Yourself” by John Singer

 Available on Amazon

 

FSC Career Blog | July 12, 2016

 

 

 

 

Your #Career : 2 Things That Could Keep You From Landing That Job Offer…“It’s Happened Over & Over. I Practice. I Study. I Do everything Right. But Then I Don’t get the Job. What’s Wrong with Me?”

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Leah was discouraged with her job search and hired me to help her. “I’m really good at what I do, but I’m not a dynamic interviewee,” Leah told me during our first meeting. “My resume gets me the telephone interview. That gets me the in-person interview. But then I never get the job offer.”

Room Interior

She took a sip of coffee and sighed as she set her cup on the table. “It’s happened over and over. I practice. I study. I do everything right. But then I don’t get the job. What’s wrong with me?”

 

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Some times, like Leah, a candidate can do everything right when it comes to preparing for an interview. And after reviewing what Leah had been doing as prep work, she had done a great job. But for many hiring managers, there are often other attributes they look for in candidates during job interviews that might not be specifically called out in the job posting.

A friend of mine sums up these unstated attributes quite well. He says he looks for “attitude, aptitude, and promotability.” In other words, he looks for someone who has a positive attitude and is energetic, who is intelligent and has the ability to learn new things, and who has long-term potential with the organization.

While a hiring manager can see some of these characteristics by reading the job candidate’s resume, most are attributes that come across while interviewing someone in person. Leah and I conducted some practice interviews. Her problem? Even though she was highly professional and had good qualifications, she seemed “flat” during her interview. With each passing minute, Leah’s energy level decreased and her voice became more monotone.

Leah just wasn’t selling me on her passion and drive for the job. She also wasn’t conveying work examples to show her determination to take on more challenging work and learn new skills. So we took a break from our mock interview and discussed those additional attributes hiring managers often look for, but which usually aren’t listed on most job descriptions.

Leah caught on quickly, and I could see her energy level increase as she began telling me stories about the various projects she had led and the results she was able to achieve. She also provided me with examples where she had proactively contributed to improving processes and described what she had done over the last year as part of her personal development plan.

Guess what? As she was telling me all this, Leah became more and more excited, and her passion for her work became clearly visible. This was exactly the energetic attitude she needed to get across to hiring managers during job interviews!

Sometimes it isn’t a lack of prep work that keeps you from obtaining your dream job – it might be that you’re not exuding enough passion or energy for the position. So consider ways you can demonstrate these attributes through your non-verbal communication as well as the examples you provide during interviews.

Lisa Quast is the author of Secrets of a Hiring Manager Turned Career Coach: A Foolproof Guide to Getting the Job You Want. Every Time.

 

Forbes.com | July 11, 2016 | Lisa Quast

Your #Career : Unemployed? Use This Trick to Deal with a Tough Job Search…Welcome to the Job Search Doldrums. The Longer you’re Out of Work, the Harder it is to Stay Positive & Keep your Motivation Up.

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Being unemployed is a drag. Tales of “fun employment” aside, life after a job loss – especially one that comes without any warning – is often rough both financially and emotionally. In the days after you’re let go, you’re likely busy updating your resume, adding contacts on LinkedIn, and sending out cover letters. But after an initial spurt of activity, you may get frustrated if your job search efforts don’t seem to be yielding results.

If your résumé is hard to read, no one will.

After a few weeks of unemployment, your resolution to meet up with your old co-workers for coffee turns into a commitment to keeping up with the Kardashians. Your goal of applying for two or three jobs per day suddenly seems too ambitious – now you’re barely applying to two or three jobs per week. And you can’t remember the last time you put on real pants (no, pajamas don’t count) and left the house.

Welcome to the job search doldrums. The longer you’re out of work, the harder it is to stay positive and keep your motivation up. The unemployed are more likely to report being treated for depression than people with full-time jobs, a 2013 Gallup survey found, with the rate of depression increasing the longer someone has been out of a job. Those who’d been unemployed for half a year or more also reported being less happy and were more likely to be socially isolated than people who had jobs or hadn’t been out of work for months.

“Using cognitive behavioral skills, people can overcome some of the negative thinking that may be holding them back and making it less likely to succeed in their job search,” Strunk said.

It’s not clear whether unemployment triggers depression or other psychological problems, or if “unhappy or less positive job seekers are less likely to be able to get jobs in the first place,” according to Gallup. In either case, job seekers who are struggling to keep their spirits up need a way to turn things around. Now, researchers at Ohio State University have pinpointed specific skills that might help depressed job seekers find work.

Unemployed people who used skills taught as part of cognitive behavioral (CB) therapy for depression were more likely to find a new job, according to the study, which was published in the Journal of Clinical Psychology.

“Searching for a job is difficult in any circumstance, but it may be even more difficult for people who are depressed,” Daniel Strunk, an associate professor of psychology at Ohio State and a co-author of the study, said in a statement. “But we found that there are specific skills that can help not only manage the symptoms of depression but also make it more likely that a person will receive a job offer.”

Seventy-five unemployed people participated in the study. Each took two surveys, three months apart, completing a variety of questionnaires designed to measure symptoms of depression and other psychological variables, like brooding and a “negative cognitive style.” They were also asked how often they used cognitive behavioral skills, like rethinking negative thoughts or breaking up overwhelming tasks into smaller chunks.

The more a person relied on cognitive behavioral skills, the greater the likelihood of their depressive symptoms improving in the months between the two surveys. The unemployed people who used CB skills were also more likely to have received a job offer in the intervening months than those who didn’t draw on those coping techniques.

 

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“The people who got jobs in our study were more likely to be putting into practice the skills that we try to teach people in cognitive therapy,” Strunk said. The study didn’t ask whether people had learned their coping skills in therapy or not, but Strunk said most likely came by those skills without additional help or guidance.

“Some people just naturally catch themselves when they have negative thoughts and refocus on the positive and use other CB skills,” he said. “These are the people who were more likely to find a job.”

Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) teaches you how to overcome negative thinking so you can respond more effectively to life’s challenges and stressors. While it’s frequently part of the treatment for conditions like PTSD, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and depression, the techniques practiced during CBT can “help anyone learn how to better manage stressful life situations,” according to the Mayo Clinic.

In the case of the unemployed, relying on CB skills may make it easier to deal with common job search frustrations like hearing, “Thanks, but no thanks,” from a prospective employer. “Rejection is so much a part of the process of job seeking. Using cognitive behavioral skills are an important way one can deal with that,” Strunk said.

The researchers want to conduct more research into the link between CB skills, depression, and job search behaviors. For now, the study results suggest that job seekers, especially those who are depressed, may benefit from either drawing on their natural coping skills or working with a therapist who can help them learn new strategies to manage the stress of being unemployed and find a new job.

“Using cognitive behavioral skills, people can overcome some of the negative thinking that may be holding them back and making it less likely to succeed in their job search,” Strunk said.

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CheatSheet.com | July 7, 2016 | Megan Elliott 

Your #Career : Job Hunting? 5 Red Flags That Tell You a Job Sucks…A Promotion is Great & so is Advancing your Career, But to Make those Things Worth It, You also Have to be At a Company that’s a Good Fit for You & your Future Goals.

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In the midst of a job search, it can be easy to get frustrated and take the first offer that comes your way. Maybe you’ve been laid off and desperately need to start getting a paycheck again. Perhaps you’re looking to get a pay raise and are looking to switch companies to make it happen faster. Whatever your motivation, it’s easy to fall into the trap of believing the companies have all the power. Yes, they’re ultimately the ones with jobs to offer. However, you have just as much choice in the process, and it’s important to keep an eye out for warning signs that a company might be a dud.

Free- Direction Rail Tracks

A promotion is great and so is advancing your career, but to make those things worth it, you also have to be at a company that’s a good fit for you and your future goals. In addition, you need to make sure that your next potential employer has a plan for long-term success. It might be difficult to know those items line up 100% before taking a job, but there are definitely warning signs out there for when a company might not be poised for long-term success. All you have to do is look for them.

Job search: Company red flags

So what are some warning signs that a potential job might not be all that it’s cracked up to be? In many cases, it begins with taking a closer look at the company itself. The Cheat Sheet talked with Jesse Siegal, vice president atThe Execu|Search Group, a recruitment and workforce management firm, to get a better idea of what to watch for as you’re researching potential new jobs.

“With unemployment being as low as it is, we’re looking at this as a candidate-driven market,” Siegal said. “If they’ve got choices, they should make sure they’re making the best ones they can.” The following warning signs don’t mean you should write off a job or company immediately, but do signal that it might be wise to dig a little deeper, and see if there’s a good explanation for the lapse. If there’s not, it might serve as a reason to choose an equally tempting offer from another company.

1. The website is outdated

If the website of a potential employer looks like it hasn’t been updated since AOL was the email server of choice, it might serve as a warning that the company isn’t up to date. Maintaining a current website with the latest updates can be expensive and time-consuming, especially since most companies can’t afford to keep a web developer on the payroll full-time. However, if it’s clear the website hasn’t been updated in 15 or 20 years, “It may speak to how that company appreciates technology,” Siegal said.

If your industry isn’t dependent upon current technology, this might not be a deal-breaker. But it might be a reason to look a little deeper at how the company plans to keep current, especially if they’re not paying attention to the driving force of the internet.

 

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2. They’re not active on social media

This can go hand-in-hand with the philosophy on keeping an updated website, and not every firm will be as present on social media as a Silicon Valley startup. However, most companies will maintain a Facebook or Twitter page, if only to share company updates or promotions and allow their customers to reach them through another medium. “Not every industry is going to be as active on social media as another, but it does resonate with an audience,” Siegal explained.

For the most part, companies will need to have some presence on social media to compete in a new media landscape. If the company you’re looking at doesn’t have a Facebook page, they might have a good reason for it — or it might be a sign the company isn’t prepared to compete online. Either way, it’s worth investigating, Siegal said.

3. They get bad press — and a lot of it

If a company has been around for more than a few years, it’s not totally abnormal for them to experience a bit of bad press for one issue or another. But if a firm is consistently finding itself in the headlines for all the wrong reasons, it might be a sign that it’s unwilling or unable to remedy deep-seeded issues. “If there are articles all over the internet about an organization’s questionable practices, it may be best not to be affiliated. If the negative press is severe enough, working there could even hinder your ability to get hired in the future,” Execu|Search stated in a release.

Siegal went on to explain that if you see negative news about the company you might apply to, do some extra searching to see if you can spot any patterns, either in frequent problems or underlying themes. Finding multiple instances of employee wrongdoing could speak to larger problems within the company that haven’t surfaced yet — and you might not want to be employed by them when they do.

4. There are numerous customer complaints

Bad reviews on Yelp and the Better Business Bureau are a dime a dozen, and sometimes are simply sour grapes that’s largely undeserved. However, it’s worth your time to at least look at what customers have to say about the company in question. If there are more complaints than praises, it could serve as an initial warning.

Common sense tells us that people are motivated to write reviews when they’ve had an excellent experience, or a truly horrible one. Most times, there’s a little more motivation to write a scathing review, meaning you’re more likely to see those pop up online. “You’re going to want to take them with a grain of salt, but you shouldn’t ignore them,” Siegal said. As with bad press, analyze the complaints for trends and patterns. If you don’t see any, it might add up to nothing. If you do see recurring issues, however, it might mean that the company has systemic issues at play.

5. Employees complain, too

With online resources like Glassdoor and PayScale, it’s becoming easier than ever to get on-the-ground feedback about what it’s like to work for certain companies. Based on current and previous employee input, you can learn about the average pay, office culture, and other elements that go into working at a certain company. If a quick search pulls up a company profile with numerous employee complaints, you probably want to tread cautiously before accepting an offer.

“A lot of times, the people who write on Glassdoor are the people who had a negative experience,” Siegal said. However, he also said that numerous complaints — especially about similar problems — are a signal that a company might not be prioritizing the needs of its employees. If you appreciate feeling like an office drone, that might be fine with you, but in most cases you want to know that you’ll be respected in your new position.

What should you do with these signs?

As Siegal mentioned, it’s important to fully vet a company before heeding one or a few of these warning signs and rescinding your job application. After all, it’s impossible to know everything about a company from a few Google searches. “We shouldn’t lose the human element to job searching,” he said. “A lot of times, there’s more to it than what you’re reading online.”

When possible, seek out employees from the company in question and talk with them about their experiences. If you can do this before even stepping into an interview, that can only help you in the long run, Siegal suggested. “Talking to actual people to confirm the things that you’re reading — or maybe to refute the things that you’re reading — is really important,” he said.

After that, if you still have some reservations but proceed with the interview process, take the opportunity to ask human resources about your concerns. Siegal doesn’t suggest doing so in the first interview, but if you make it to subsequent rounds, don’t be bashful about asking the questions you have in an appropriate, professional way. “You’re in the driver’s seat,” Siegal said. “It’s your career, it’s your future. It’s better that you ask it up front than wait and find out the hard way.” And as long as you’re respectful and present your concern in a constructive way, it can be another litmus test about the company’s culture. “If a company is offended by asking the question, then that in itself could be a red flag,” Siegal said.

Follow Nikelle on Twitter @Nikelle_CS

CheatSheet.com | July 7, 2016 | 

Your #Career : The 15 Best Freelance Websites to Find Jobs…Whether you’re a Programmer, Designer, Expert, College Student or Something in Between, there’s a Freelance Platform Out there for You. Check out the Sites Below to Get started Today!

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Whether you’re looking for another way to pay the bills, seeking more professional development opportunities or just love the freedom that freelancing offers, there’s no question that millions of people have discovered the benefits of professional freelancing. As trends like the digital nomad lifestyle grow in popularity, the number of freelance resources out there has increased as well.

Free- Man at Desktop at Night

There are plenty of guides for striking out on your own, but as a freelancer, getting higher-paying gigs isn’t just a matter of signing up on popular platforms. You’ll have to branch out, establish a great portfolio of past work and maybe even prove yourself through tests that showcase your skills. Here’s a list of the 15 best sites to find work as a freelancer.

1. Upwork

With over 1.5 million clients, Upwork (previously oDesk) offers something for every type of freelancer. It accommodates both short- and long-term projects, hourly or per-project work and expert-level and entry-level engagements. Regardless of where you are in your career, Upwork is likely to have something for you.

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2. Toptal

With a distinctly different approach than the other services on this list,Toptal is for seasoned, talented freelancers. Passing Toptal’s screening process gives you unparalleled access to meaningful projects with great clients (JPMorgan, Zendesk, Airbnb, etc.) and fair compensation (no low-bid contests). You’ll also be able to join the Toptal community for frequent meetups and tech events.

3. Elance

Elance removes a lot of the hassle that comes with freelancing. You’ll be able to make a profile right away without jumping through any hoops, enjoy payment protection to ensure you’re always paid for the hours you work and more.

4. Freelancer

Unlike most other platforms, in addition to offering millions of projects, Freelancer allows you to compete with other freelancers in contests to prove your skills. If you’re competitive and confident in your expertise, it’s a great way to showcase your abilities and attract more clients.

5. Craigslist

Although most people see Craigslist as just a platform for buying and selling miscellaneous things, it’s actually a great source of freelance jobs. You can easily browse for local offerings if you prefer something in-office, or you can search by major cities if you prefer working remotely.

6. Guru

This site lets you easily showcase your past work experience and offers a daily job-matching feature to make sure you don’t miss out on any good opportunities. The Guru Work Room lets you easily manage all your work.

7. 99designs

A platform for freelance designers, 99designs lets you compete in design contests and get feedback as clients choose the best ones. It’s a great way for talented designers to prove their talents.

8. Peopleperhour

This is a great platform, focusing on freelancing for web projects. If you’re a designer, web developer, SEO specialist, etc., peopleperhour is definitely worth checking out.

9. Freelance Writing Gigs

Whether you’re a writer, editor, blogger, publisher or any combination of those, Freelance Writing Gigs is a great option for freelancers who have a way with words.

10. Demand Media

Demand Media is a platform for creative types, including writers, filmmakers, producers, photographers and more. You work with the site to create unique content, engage audiences and promote your talents.

11. College Recruiter

As the name might suggest, College Recruiter is for college students or recent graduates looking for freelance jobs of any type. In addition to being a source for part-time work, it can be a great way to jumpstart your career.

12. GetACoder

This site is for freelance writers, web designers and programmers — exactly what small businesses need to get a website idea off the ground. GetACoder offers millions of smaller-scale projects to choose from.

13. iFreelance

This platform accommodates some of the usual suspects of the freelancing world (writers, editors, coders, etc.) but also features freelance marketers as well. Unlike other sites, iFreelance lets you keep 100 percent of your earnings.

14. Project4hire

With hundreds of project categories, Project4hire makes it easy to identify jobs that suit your skillset, without scanning through large volumes of posts. It’s great for coders, consultants, designers and more.

15. SimplyHired

With a wider range than most other freelance platforms offer,SimplyHired is perfect for everyone from salespeople to construction workers. It includes a blog with hiring tips, a company directory and location-based search.

Whether you’re a programmer, designer, expert, college student or something in between, there’s a freelance platform out there for you. Check out the sites above to get started today!

Entrepreneur.com | May 12, 2015 | Anna Johansson

Your #Career : 7 Face-to-Face Networking Mistakes That Could Kill Your Professional Image…While Face-to-Face Networking can result in Prospects(Jobs) Gravitating to you, it also Holds the Potential to Drive Them in the Opposite Direction. Could your Networking Habits be Turning Off other Professionals & Causing you to Lose Out on Business(Job) Opportunities?

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Despite all the online ways to link up with potential clients, I still believe making in-person connections needs to be a part of every business person’s networking regimen. When you’re face-to-face with people, you can form bonds more easily because they get a more complete picture of who you are through your voice, body language, and appearance.

networking

That’s powerful and wonderful … unless you get careless.

While face-to-face networking can result in prospects gravitating to you, it also holds the potential to drive them in the opposite direction. Could your networking habits be turning off other professionals and causing you to lose out on business opportunities?

Avoid these networking no-nos:

1. Interrupting conversations. “How rude!” That’s what I think when someone walks up without apology and interrupts a conversation I’m having with another person.  Although discussions won’t typically be too in-depth at networking events, it’s still in bad taste to cut off conversations between others.

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2. Practicing the “hard sell.” Want a surefire way to make connections eager to avoid you? Then push your products and services right from the start when meeting them. Doing so makes you appear aggressive as well as desperate—definitely not the impression you want to make!

3. Complaining. Remember, you’re there to connect with other professionals. While commenting on the venue location, décor, hors d’oeuvres, or other amenities can help ease you into a dialogue with someone, it can have a negative impact if your words are uncomplimentary. Others might perceive you as snide and ungracious.

4. Being all “me, me, me” and not taking an interest in others. Sure, you’re doing great things and everyone should know more about that. But you’ll do yourself a greater service if you forgo making yourself the center of attention and instead listen to what others have to share about their businesses. By asking open-ended questions and turning a keen ear to their needs, you can assess whether or not they may be a viable prospect. And then later you can follow up to share more about what you can offer them.

5. Having a few too many cocktails. Woot! Yes, networking functions often come in the form of mixers with a bit of a party atmosphere. But I’ve seen otherwise polished professionals turn into hot messes because they didn’t control their alcohol consumption at events.

6. Speaking ill of someone else in the room or about your clients. No, no, no. Don’t EVER do this. You never know who knows whom. Need I say more?

Despite all the online ways to link up with potential clients, I still believe making in-person connections needs to be a part of every business owner’s networking regimen. When you’re face-to-face with people, you can form bonds more easily because they get a more complete picture of who you are through your voice, body language, and appearance.

That’s powerful and wonderful … unless you get careless.

7. Dressing like you don’t care. Although many networking events are relatively casual, take care not to go too far with the informality. If you’re not sure what the dress code is, I recommend erring on the side of slightly overdressed. Worst-case scenario will be that you look a tad more professional than everyone else. No one will think less of you for that.

Done with attention to making a first-rate first impression, face-to-face networking can open doors to lasting professional relationships. Put your best, most engaging you out there every time—and take care to avoid networking missteps that could turn off prospective customers.

While face-to-face networking can result in prospects gravitating to you, it also holds the potential to drive them in the opposite direction. Could your networking habits be turning off other professionals and causing you to lose out on business opportunities?

 

Forbes.com | July 5, 2016 | Nellie Akalp, Contributor

 

 

Your #Career : 7 Ways To Make Your LinkedIn Profile Job Search/Contacts Ready…There’s a Lot of Great Advice Out there on Using LinkedIn to Find Jobs/Networking. This Post is Different because I Include Actions to Make your Search so Fruitful that the Jobs/Contacts Find You.

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Here are your 7 Ways:

1. Get Your Headline Right

Although the search algorithm at LinkedIn is a closely guarded secret, one thing many experts agree on is that the words in your headline play an important role in how search results are ranked and displayed. That means you need to make sure the most important words hiring managers and recruiters would use to find are included in your 120-character headline. One way to identify all the right keywords is to go to indeed.com, put in the title(s) of the job for which you are searching and look for the words that come up over and over among the job listings.

 

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2. Grow Your Network

It’s as simple as this: The more connections you have, the more frequently you show up in search results. This makes some people nervous – connecting with people they don’t know. Let me allay your fears. LinkedIn provides a way for you to remove, block or report a connection if they become a problem. So the risk of accepting connection requests from people you don’t know is low. You also get to see the full profiles of first- and second-level connections. The more connections you have, the more full profiles you will see – making it easier for you to check out hiring managers and others you will meet before those interviews!

3. Follow Desired Companies

Get clear about your ideal employers and follow their company pages in LinkedIn. This keeps you up-to-date on what they are talking about – giving you great fodder for your interview. Some of their posts can also include the names and other information about your potential hiring manager or others who could help you open doors in the company. And LinkedIn allows you to follow 10,000 companies – that’s probably a lot more than your full list of targets.

4. Use the Alumni Feature

Including your education in your profile does more than show potential hiring managers what degree you earned from what school. Perhaps more importantly, it gets you on the radar of hiring managers who are your fellow alumni. But the alumni search tool works both ways. Get familiar with this extremely valuable feature. It is one of the best ways to find warm leads inside companies. By searching on your alma mater, you can find people who also went to your school. Then you can reach out, asking them for an informational interview or finding out if there is someone in the company to whom they can connect you. It’s the antidote to cold calling.

5. Add AKA/Common Misspellings

Save some of those 2,000 characters in your summary for a section called AKA/Common Misspellings and include all the different ways people may spell your name, your nicknames, maiden or married names, etc. That way, people can find you whether or not they know exactly how to spell your name.

6. Get Your Skills In Order

Literally. Sure, LinkedIn endorsements seem silly. Most of us have been endorsed for skills we don’t want to be known for – or we don’t even possess. The challenge is that even though we roll our eyes when we think about endorsements, they matter. A New York Times article underscores this, quoting Bill Peppler, a managing partner at the staffing firm Kavaliro. He seeks out the most endorsed person with specific skills in a particular city: “It’s hard to know how meaningful that will be in the long run, but to me, it makes them one of the most influential people in that region for what they do.”

7. Be Redundant

Take every opportunity to repeat all the keywords for which you want to be known. Make a list of them. Then prioritize them and add them to all parts of your profile. Make sure they are in your headline, summary and all relevant experience sections, too. Include an additional section at the bottom of your summary called Specialties. Repeat your keywords there, separated by commas.

These easy-to-implement actions will help you get found and make you more attractive to the hiring managers and recruiters who hold the key to your ideal next job.

William Arruda is the CEO of Reach Personal Branding and host of the Reach Interview Series. His full podcasts are available here.

Forbes.com | May 18, 2016 | William Arruda