Karl Parkinson
Amongst all the reports of a credit crisis, a crisis in banking, a crisis in high street finances and other Defcom2-type warnings, there is yet another crisis lurking in the background that has greater long-term implications for the future of UK PLC
Duncan Freer
Chancellor Alistair Darling
Duncan Freer
Desperate times call for desperate measures, and the Chancellor
Duncan Freer
Chancellor Alistair Darling
Duncan Freer
Despite the doom-laden economic picture of a worldwide economy in meltdown, our love affair with oil has not been diminished. In fact, the oil and gas industry is one of the biggest growth industries globally, and the race to find more reserves of black gold continues 24 hours a day.
The price of a barrel of oil has plummeted by more than 60% since July 2008, which is good news for consumers at the pumps but was initially bad news for the oil industry. However, in the UK that cut in profits may have been softened somewhat by new government proposals including tax changes and incentives published as part of the Chancellor
A. Nutt
The level of difficulty in becoming a massage therapist in Canada is directly related to the amount of time you have to offer to it, the level of commitment you have towards the goal and the amount of money you can afford to spend on the education and certification process.
Where to Begin
Becoming certified in massage therapy in Canada is no small undertaking, some disciplines require upwards of three thousand hours or more of actual ‘contact’ education. If you are taking classes outside of the providence in which you wish to practice, or if you move - you may be required to add even more hours of contact training to stay certified. This means that you may need to actually be performing massage in the classroom atmosphere for as many as three thousand or more hours before you are even eligible to sit for your certification exam.
If you were looking to make a quick career change, or to be able to dive right into to making money in your own business venture, then massage may not be the road for you because it takes hours and hours of technical training and a perfect understanding of the body and its mechanics. Make no mistake about it; there is no fast route to becoming a certified therapist.
If you are aware and prepared to handle the level of commitment necessary to fulfill the certification requirements, then it
Stephen Van Vreede
Over the past year, I have been on a quest to dispel as many myths as possible when it comes to job hunting, in general, and to the resume, in particular. Unfortunately, with all the online job posting sites available, these fallacies have a way of taking on a life of their own and even manage to fool many good resume writers and career coaches out there.
One of the most frustrating to me is in regard to self-employment and resumes. For years now, job seekers have been told that if they have a self-employment background that they need to downplay it or even leave it off from their resumes entirely. The original premise was that companies look down on self-employment and almost regard it as unemployment. In other words, it looks like a
Stephen Van Vreede
With the bleak outlook that the media are giving to the job market in 2009, as a job search coach and resume writer, I am hoping that out of it we can finally put to rest some misconceptions that I believe have really been plaguing professionals for a while and that have a lot to do with the improper outlook many of us have in regard to our careers.
For one, I am hoping that we can finally put to rest the idea that some company will protect you and provide for you for your entire career. Personally, I don
Lisa Jenkins
If you’re on a reality television show that means you’re lucky enough to be on TV, which is almost reason enough to audition for reality television - a chance to be on TV! Here are three tips for those who are heading out to a reality TV casting call.
1. Almost Famous
After auditioning for a reality television show you get catapulted into an industry that many people only experience from the comforts of home by watching it on TV. However, if you are selected, you get a chance to join Angelia Jolie, Clint Eastwood and Tom Cruise by enjoying a smaller version of that sort of fame during your time on a reality TV show. While for most people being on a reality television show represents the classic 15 minutes of fame, for others it means a large segue into a very closed-doors industry. Not everyone’s experience in reality television ends up the same, but for any single person in reality TV, it means a chance to be seen by the public in one of the most sought after positions in media that exists today. Also, for those who are particularly memorable or win competitions it can mean becoming a more permanent fixture in the media. It can lead to future jobs and allows you to meet people you would never otherwise have met. While for most people, being in reality TV means being famous for a small period of time, it represents an amazing experience and a microcosm of a dream for many people - a chance to be on TV.
2. Self Improvement
Reality television has many formats and one such popular format is that of self improvement. For example shows like The Biggest Loser, where families and individuals compete to see who can lose the most weight offers prizes to the winning team. However, the shows biggest prize is easily the improvement of the quality of life these teams and individuals experience in becoming more healthy and improving their self esteem through weight loss. This one example is a clear cut indication of how reality television can help its contestant through self improvement. However, there are other reality television shows where the self improvement aspect of the program might be harder to identify. There are many prize and competition style shows with monetary and other highly sought after prizes offered to winners such as cars or clothes. However, many competition style shows also offer a segue into the industry the show is based on allowing the winner access and notoriety in an industry where it is their dream in which to work. America’s Next Top Model awards modeling contracts, American Idol offers singing contracts, Project Runway moves no-name designers into the industry within a blink of an eye and Top Chef offers much of the same. These shows provide self improvement opportunities through the career choice of the contestants and in many ways represents the only way in which those contestants might have been successful in the industry. Additionally, shows like Fear Factor provide not only a monetary prize but the chance to overcome a particularly paralyzing fear. Nanny 911 improves the family dynamic of struggling families. While reality television is largely seen as a way to gain some quick fame, it is also a way to grow and self improve.
3. The Big Prize
While self improvement and fame are large factors behind why people audition for reality television the obvious financial factor behind winning a competition style show is hard to ignore. In winning a show like Survivor, contestants are awarded a one million dollar prize. Shows like Deal or No Deal also offer large monetary prizes to winners and shows like The Price Is Right or Wheel Of Fortune are much the same. Winning a reality show where money is the main prize allows people the chance to move from one financial demographic to the other, perhaps allowing them to completely alter and change their way of life.
Winning a big cash prize is a major reason why people invest the time to attend reality TV casting calls plus there’s the potential for fame and other perks. Learn from Lisa Jenkins how to ace reality television auditions on JobMonkey - a free website for ambitious job seekers.
David Alan Carter
I once asked an old hunter what his secret was for bagging the elusive wild turkey. He told me, first you have to think like a turkey. You have to understand that turkeys like the company of other turkeys, they seek security in brush, and they’ll gamble with that security for a shot at food or a mate. Think like a turkey, prepare your hunt accordingly, and bag the prize. Ahhh.
Years later, someone asked me how to win a job with a prime employer. I told him, first you have to think like the hiring official. You have to understand that the hiring official is likely doing an onerous task - sifting through piles of like-sounding resumes looking for a gem. The hiring official understands profits and losses. He understands the direction the company is moving in. Ideally, he wants to find a candidate who understands all those things, too. Why? Because that candidate will make him look good to his superiors; business grows, he keeps his job, maybe gets a raise. Think like a hiring official, prepare your hunt accordingly, and bag the prize.
It’s funny how everything in life is a lesson - if we’re in the mood to learn.
First Impressions - Bad
Because your resume objective is the first thing the hiring official will read, he’ll be using that opportunity to quickly size you up. Let’s pretend for a moment that your resume objective reads like this… Seeking a challenging position offering competitive compensation, limited travel, and advancement opportunities to senior management. Well, you’ve just written your own personal fairy tale. Not only have you failed to think like a hiring official, but that hiring official will actually be using his wingtip shoe to compress your resume to the bottom of his trash can while uttering expletives that will clear the reception area of every last salesman.
First Impressions - Good
Let’s try another example. This time, let’s pretend you’ve done some research on the company in question. And that you’ve honestly appraised your own skills and identified those that would be most valued by this company. And that you’ve determined that personal fairy tales don’t keep a company in business - profits do. Now, your resume objective reads like this… Entry-level position in Finance which could fully utilize a technical expertise in database design and strong drive to maximize corporate profitability in a competitive global marketplace.
Wow. In a single sentence you’ve drawn a straight line between a key ingredient of the job position and your skill set, acknowledged the company’s bid to go global, and signaled your understanding that profits are key to everybody keeping their job–including (and most importantly) the person reading your resume.
Home Free?
If jobs were handed out on nothing more than resume objectives, you’d be dry cleaning your suit for the Monday morning office tour. But of course, there’s more to the hiring process than just writing a killer resume objective. The important thing is that you’ve put yourself in the game. There are other critical elements of the resume, to be sure, and the door can still slam shut for a number of reasons. But you’ve made it over the first hurdle in the screening process.
You’re cocked and loaded. And there’s a big bird in sight.
Need a bit more help with that resume? Former recruiter David Alan Carter evaluates and ranks the web’s most popular online resume builders, as well as affordable professional resume writers, at the website http://www.bestresumeservices.org/