How to Set and Achieve Your Career Goals (Pt. 2) Building Your Future Now

How to Set and Achieve Your Career Goals (Pt. 2) Building Your Future Now Doing something that you love for a career is absolutely a possibility! Some people out there may be skeptical because a job is a job right? And sometimes we definitely have to hustle and work jobs we dont really likeand that isnt necessarily a bad thing in regards to ultimately doing what you want. So where do you start setting and achieving your career goals especially if you arent doing what you are passionate about? Think positively Its easy to get bogged down by negativity. We live in a world with lots of depressing news in the media. The best thing to do is building your positivity. Think good thoughts and wish people well. Watch inspirational videos and hang out with people who are accomplishing what they want in life and live life in a positive way. Focus on the Career you want Even if you arent at a job that you dont like (or feel you arent headed down the right path of a career you want. First off, assess why you dont like your current jobwhat dont you like about it? Now think about the people you work with: is there anyone that you can learn something from? Is there a leader or manager that can help you in anyway to find another opportunity that you like? You will be surprised that something amazing can come from something miserable! Write down your career goals now! Take a few moments to write down what you want from your job. Be truthful. Now, write down what you like doing. Do you like art? Do you like technical work? Do you like being social and networking? You will be surprised how easy it is to find a bit about what you really want to do by writing it down. Now think about how you can start working towards the career you deserve. Help others even you dont know what you want to do Still not sure what you want in a career? No problem. One of the easiest things to do is go out and help others with their dreams! Reach out to people in your community and even online! Ask how you can help people with their careers and achieving their goals. Work with them and you never knowyou may find out what you are passionate about and ultimately find your career! Image: Absolut Vision

Saving Money Building Your Home Business

Saving Money Building Your Home Business One of the best things about starting a home based or web based business is that the start up costs involved are much less than they are with other types of businesses. For one thing, you don’t have to lease office or retail space. For another, you can usually run the business by yourself, so you don’t have to worry about finding the money to pay employees! Of course, while definitely cheaper, starting up your home business isn’t ever completely free. You are still going to need some basic supplies and equipment to get started. These costs can definitely add up if you aren’t careful! Here are some things that you can do to keep them low. Saving on Internet Every home based business needs a smooth and reliable internet connection. This means that you are going to need more bandwidth than you would normally need for personal use. The last thing you need is for a Skype session with a client to get glitchy or time out because someone else in your home decided to watch Netflix or do a Google Hangout. More bandwidth usually means spending more money but if you shop around you can usually get companies to price match competitors. You can also use coupon and discount codes. A lot of  great internet promotion codes are available here  and at other online destinations. Saving on Hardware You might love your ChromeBook or your cute little notebook PC. We get it: those machines are inexpensive, lightweight and great for personal web use. You will need to have something more robust for your company though. You’ll want something with its own dedicated and sizeable hard drive. You’ll want a large processor so you can run several applications and programs at once. It will cost some more money for a good machine, but don’t panic if you can’t afford something brand new. Many of the big box stores and online portals like Amazon sell refurbished and floor models for deeply discounted prices. Note: do not buy used business electronics off of eBay or Craigslist. You could end up with something riddled with malware or that doesn’t even work! Refurbished models have been tested, cleaned and rebuilt by pros and are the safer and more reliable option. Office Equipment Here is what you need to have in your office space (in addition to your computer): a desk, a good chair, a filing cabinet, and a good printer. There are lots of places to get your furniture for really low prices. IKEA, discount shops, the Goodwill, Craigslist, garage sales, etc. These things do not have to be fancy, but they need to be functional and sturdy. To save money on your printer, go for an all in one laser printer. These are large machines, yes, but they will be very handy for those rare times that you actually do need to scan something in or fax something to someone (you can fax over phone lines now, fyi). These instances will be rare, but happen often enough that trying to fax from Kinkos or the library will just be a hassle. It’s also important that you go for a laser printer instead of an inkjet. It will last much longer than an inkjet printer will last. You’ll also yield more printed pages out of your toner drum than you ever will from an inkjet cartridge. These costs balance themselves out in the long run. Helpful Hint: to save up money for new toner cartridges, divide the cost of the toner by the number of pages it will print. This will give you your printing cost per page. Then, every time you print something, simply pay for it! Put the coins into a piggy bank or jar. Then, when you need a new cartridge, cash in the coins at the bank and viola! You’ll have enough on hand for a new cartridge without it feeling like a burden! There are lots of ways to save on the things you need. We talked about discount codes, refurbished equipment and buying used here. What are some of the things you’ve done to save money on your home office/web business startup costs?

5 Steps to an Employer Brand Story

5 Steps to an Employer Brand Story Stories have been in this world for a long, long time. Ever since the first human beings started to communicate with another, the art of storytelling was formed. Knowing exactly when it started is a myth… until of course we (finally!) develop the first ever time machine and travel back in time to figure it out. While waiting for the future, we’ll help you find your way through the tales of employer branding with storytelling. What’s your story? First of all: What story do you want to tell? Finding your personal or branded story is harder than it seems. It will take a bit of digging, before you get to the actual core. Reflection is key, so we recommend you take a look at your brand and analyse it until there’s nothing left to analyse. Use brand identity models (Hofstede, Kapferer or Keller for example) to get a grip on your analysis. Guidelines are essential, because trust us, you might get lost along the way. If all goes well, you’ve followed the steps and got to the end, DON’T STOP THERE! We repeat: do not stop right there. You’ll only have an internal perspective, so you have to gather different point of views. Both professional and personal opinions will help develop your story and brand identity even more. Head-to-mid-to-tail Right. If you’ve found your story and explored it with the models we described in the above paragraph, you’re ready for the next step. Having an interesting story or brand identity is not enough. Sure, with the help of both a brand identity model as well as different external opinions, you’ve concluded a main brand story. The next step is to make a proper story out of it. All good stories have a head-middle-tail structure. So, we stick with the old Greek, and do exactly the same. Besides the “head-to-mid-to-tail”, the almighty Aristotle also used three key features that make up a perfect story: Ethos Pathos Logos. We totally understand that you’re not fluently speaking Greek, so let’s translate that: credibility, psychology and reasonability. We’ll advise you to keep these three key features in mind, whilst restructuring your brand story. Human characters The introduction of characters within your story can really take your brand to the next level. However, doing so (in the right way) can be difficult. Some characters will forever have a certain image attached to them. You literally can not think of the brand without thinking of the character. These examples have deeper values than just being a pretty face. Just sticking a face on a product will therefore not work. To create an engaging communication with your audience, an emotional human aspect should be added. An excellent example of a successful character of a brand is Mickey Mouse. The Disney tune immediately started to play in your head, didn’t it? Walt Disney himself created this creature in 1928 and it has been a success ever since. MMs really took humanizing features to a new level. The coloured characters all have different emotions that stand out. Yellow for example is shy and always positive, whilst Orange is always stressed and looking over his shoulder. Red, for that matter, has no fear and is confident no matter what. See, we can even learn something from them! What’s next? You’ve developed your story, from head to tail, including characters with emotions. Cool. Nice job. Does it stop here? Of course not. This is where so many companies screw up. They’ve put up this lovely story and then just leave it there. NO! You have to tell the world! After all, this is the story that will set your brand apart. You should treat your story like a marketing campaign. Discover where and how you want to share your story and develop the right content for the right channels. You could also encourage interaction with your audience, by using a puzzle, prize or question. Update, update, update! Do us a favour and evaluate your story every now and then. Aspects such as major changes within the company might change your brand story. So keep it up-to-date! Here’s another golden tip: Use your story to attract talented candidates by including current candidates. Updating your story with your current team is essential, so why not let them play a part in your story? By doing this you are keeping your brand up to date and relevant. Potential candidates will see this, and will want to become a part of your brand. There you have it: five steps to create an engaging story. By the way: do you realise you’ve been a part of this story? Whilst reading this article and gaining new knowledge, you’ve become a part of our story. So, welcome to the family and please: spread the story-love!

Recruitment Transparency Another Look at Realistic Job Previews Marla Gottschalk

Recruitment Transparency Another Look at Realistic Job Previews Marla Gottschalk Organizations have a multitude of priorities to balance. However, the effort to strategically recruit and retain the best and the brightest remains a top concern. A business cannot move forward without the right people and being sure the right people find the organization is a major step. Transparency and talent When considering workforce goals, any organization can positively impact recruitment efforts by embracing the concept of transparency. Transparency can affect the way your organization is perceived by your employees   and the surrounding external environment. Not unlike other key brand issues, an organizations reputation in this arena is built through accepted behaviors and business practices. The process can help you attract and retain needed talent. Transparency as the new normal A by-product of the social media revolution and an over-riding emphasis upon sharing, transparency is evolving into the new normal. A clear marker concerning organizational culture, transparency is a here to stay, need to have corporate attribute. Bridging the transparency gap can help organizations attract future leaders and drive innovation forward. Businesses can begin addressing the issue with the very first contact points they have with candidates during recruitment. Realistic Job Previews Realistic Job Previews are not a particularly new concept (Premack Wanous, 1985). However, RJPs have been well researched and fit perfectly into the evolving trend of transparency in the world of work.   They serve as a vehicle to accurately portray your organization and the job in question. RJPs exist in a number of forms, including printed materials or brochures, video, or in-person format. Whatever the form, RJPs should offer a snapshot of required tasks, responsibilities and potential cultural demands of the position in question. (See two excellent video RJP examples here and here.) In most cases, RJPs are utilized early in the recruitment process but can be utilized at any stage of the process. The benefits are there Transparency can bring meaningful rewards on both sides of the recruitment equation. To begin, an RJP puts an applicant in a better position to make an informed decision about the job in question. Organizations share the potential benefits, including an opportunity to hire better suited applicants and the possibility of impacting early turnover. The best RJPs offer enough useful information for applicants to appropriately self-select out of the recruitment process. This includes information on topics such as skills required for success, and day in the life issues such typical schedules. Other topics helpful in an RJP might include, ambient work environment, physical requirements and information about the culture of the organization. What to consider when building an RJP: Always portray jobs accurately. Discuss both the positives and the potential negatives of any position. This becomes even more crucial if a job attribute appears to be related to early turnover. Discuss career paths.   No one should have to guess where their role might take them in the future. Be open concerning the possibilities and limitations related to potential career paths. Touch upon unusual job characteristics. Include information on tasks or working conditions which may cause applicants to reconsider the role. Unusual physical or schedule requirements should be reviewed early in the process. Reveal any possibility of relocation. If the natural progression of a role is to relocate frequently or during the first years of employment, share this with applicants. Reveal travel requirements. Applicants need to be able to assess the real impact of travel on their lives. Never hold back information or adjust the estimate unrealistically. Dont sabotage your recruitment efforts before they start begin your employee relationships with a healthy dose of honesty. Dr. Marla Gottschalk is a Workplace Psychologist. You can find her on Twitter and Linkedin.