Thursday, May 28, 2020

Youve Accepted the Job Now What

Youve Accepted the Job â€" Now What Great news! Youve been offered the role of your dreams, youve accepted, and you start next week. This is an exciting time, and if youve been out of work for a while it might feel like the hard work is over. Of course, its really just beginning. Soon your new job will begin, bringing many challenges, and between now and your start date you might suddenly find a big empty space in your schedule ahead. Rather than twiddling your thumbs and crossing days off your calendar, you might think about how you could prepare to commence your new role. Turning up unprepared on your first day will probably not turn out to be the best option â€" while you might meet expectations youll probably fail to make the great impression youd hope for among your new co-workers. So what can you do in advance of the big day to be sure of starting your new position in top form? Think of this as your checklist to make sure everything goes as well as it can. Refresh your skills: This may not be strictly necessary, but if youve been out of work for some time, you will want to make sure you can hit the ground running as far as your understanding of the work and knowledge of the industry go.  If youre moving into a new industry, or into a much more senior position, its virtually essential to be extra, doubly, triply sure you know your stuff. Learn names: No doubt youll have done a ton of research for the interview, but now that youre in, you can know that its worth spending even longer finding out about the company and the role. Itll be especially valuable to find out about the people youll be working with â€" if you can find staff profiles on the website, it will be beneficial to learn to put the faces with the names of management and the others in your department. While its not an absolute necessity, those who are bad with names will now find it easier to introduce themselves to others when that start as, rightly or wrongly, first impressions count for everything and a part of making that impression includes whether you can recall your new bosss name. If there is no meet the team section of the site, try searching LinkedIn instead. Take a break: This might sound like a bit of a contradiction. Shouldnt you be spending the time between the offer and your start date as productively as possible? Well, yes â€" and sometimes the best way to prepare yourself for a new challenge is to clear your mind beforehand. Especially if you have an interval before the job that can be measured in weeks or months, you will probably want a break at some point to rest up from the stressful task of searching for work. Whats more, if youre determined to put in the hours to impress in your new vocation, it might be some time before you get to take a vacation again â€" whether mentally or physically. Take some time out then you can turn up on your first day refreshed and ready to make waves. Look the part: There are all kinds of things you should bring with you on your first day, even if you havent explicitly been told that this is the case. For example, you need to make sure youre wearing the right clothes, and that means not waking up on the morning of your first day to find all your pants are in the laundry. If youre not sure what to wear, the days prior to starting are your opportunity to find out. The question of what else youll be expected to bring depends on the type of work, but for an office job youll want to carry a notepad and pen as youll no doubt have plenty to take note of. Some documentation to set up payroll would be a good idea. Bring your lunch money and youre ready to go! Arrive on time: On the list of ways to jeopardise your position early on, there are few things you could do on your first day that are more catastrophic than turning up lateso make sure you leave home in plenty of time. Its obvious enough that we shouldnt have to say it, but common enough that we feel we do. Yes, this applies even if you know where youre going. You might find theres more traffic in the mornings than there was the day of your interview, and of course it always pays to be a few minutes early as well (but not by more than about ten minutes). Its important to save the phone number of your contact at some point prior to your start date â€" that way, if you are late you can call, explain, and still hope to make the best impression possible on your first day. Author: Paul Breton is Marketing Executive with online recruitment specialists Blue Octopus Recruitment in Otley, West Yorkshire, United Kingdom.

Monday, May 25, 2020

Designing a Beautiful and Functional Home Office

Designing a Beautiful and Functional Home Office No longer are we forced to work a 9-5 workday while trapped in drab, stifling cubicles. No, today is the age of working from home and telecommuting.  And even if you arent blessed with a career that allows you to work from home full-time, chances are you still have a home office to get your after-hours work done. Whatever the case may be, having a home office you  want to go to work in is key to having a successful career. The great thing about a home office is you can decorate it however you want â€" unlike a corporate office. Make your office beautiful and functional with these quick and easy design tips. Find a Quiet Space When you’re figuring out which part of your home you’re going to convert into your office, take into account the amount of people traffic you’ll get in each room. You might have a ton of space in your family room, but if you have kids that love watching TV or a roommate who plays video games at all hours, you might want a different area. Your home office is supposed to be a place where you’ll get work done â€" so make sure you can do that. There’s a difference between background noise and distractions. Find that area in your home where you can get work done with as few distractions as possible.  Incorporate Colors You want to avoid having too many distractions in your office space, but that doesn’t mean your office should be barren and gray. Adding some colors and fun designs to your décor will help spice up the place while giving a good sense of your personality. Paint the walls a fun color or hang up some pictures. If you have shelving units installed, put knickknacks or books on them to add a little variety to the space. Don’t be afraid to have fun with decorating â€" after all, you’re going to be spending a lot of time in your office. You might as well enjoy it.  Treat Yourself to Greens Add some life to your office â€" literally. Having plants in your office can help keep the air clean while adding some living decorations to your space. Some plants and flowers can even give your space a nice scent, making your office even more inviting. As an added bonus, having a plant in your office is shown to decrease stress and increase productivity by twelve percent. If you’re the type who has a brown thumb, there are still plenty of hard-to-kill plants you can use. Aloe plants are low-maintenance and can help calm irritated skin, while bamboo plants require little fuss to be kept alive.  Invest in a Good Chair The office is your kingdom, and every ruler deserves a good throne. Don’t settle for a kitchen chair or stiff, uncomfortable office chair. If you’re going to be spending a substantial amount of time working, you should have a chair that supports your back and encourages good posture. You’ll want a chair that’s comfortable but also sturdy. If a good office chair is out of your price range, at the very least use a chair with good cushioning and find something to help support your back.  Have Plenty of Light You don’t want to strain your eyes while working. Make sure you have plenty of light sources in your office. Put your desk near any windows so you can get plenty of natural light, which is better for your health than being trapped in a windowless room. Swap out your dark window treatments for less heavy drapery to let in more light and give your office a fresh feel. In addition to natural light, make sure you have other light sources for when you’re working after the sun sets. A desk lamp by your workspace can help reduce strain on your eyes, while a standing lamp can help brighten up the room some more.  Have a Stand-Up Desk While there are some times you might have to sit down and get work done, studies have shown that sitting down all day is bad for your health. Having an option for a standing desk can help keep your body healthy while allowing you to get work done. If space is a big concern for you, install a shelf on your wall that can support your computer and any work you do. Place it at about chest height for the best results, though you can adjust it to personal preference.  Be Organized Everyone has different methods for organization â€" find one that works for you. Since it’s your space, you have a bit more freedom with this than if you were in a corporate office. However, it’s still important for you to have a good organizational system in place. With home sizes shrinking, storage solutions that make the most of no-space-wasted design are becoming increasingly more important. Make the most of whatever space you have with customizable storage spaces. Install some cabinets on your walls to help save floor space and add shelves or bookcases for extra storage and decoration space.

Thursday, May 21, 2020

Remote Work Job Search Guide How to Find a Remote Job - Career Sidekick

Remote Work Job Search Guide How to Find a Remote Job - Career Sidekick Remote Work Job Search Guide: How to Find a Remote Job Remote Job Search / https://www.edenscott.com/blog If youre starting a remote work job search or wondering how to find a remote job, then this article is for you.After working as a recruiter for 5+ years, Im going to share how you can find full time remote jobs so you can work from home and ditch that painful commute!Well start with how to find remote opportunities to apply for (Part I). Then in Part II, well look at how to make employers want to hire you for these highly-competitive positions.There are a couple of big mistakes people make when looking for remote jobs, so Ill cover those too so you dont waste any time and only take the steps that are MOST LIKELY to get you a remote job quickly.Lets get startedHow to Find Remote Work Jobs: Part I Where to Find Jobs to Apply ForAs a Recruiter, I focused on full time/permanent positions, so thats what Im going to write about here how to find a full-time remote job.However, everything Im going to share can work for finding a part-time remote job, too!Her e are the best tips for how to search for remote jobs and find remote positions to apply for:1. Choose the Right Industry/FieldIf you want to find a remote job, you need to be looking in a field of work where its possible to work remotely.So before you search for remote jobs, its really important to think about your career path and whether its going to allow for remote work.And if not, youll need to adjust.Some jobs just CANT possibly be remote.For example, if youre a nurse thats working with patients, youre going to need to show up each day, right?So look at your education, work experience, and overall background, and think about which industries and fields of work align with that, while actually allowing remote work.And then go pursue those opportunities.Here are some very common fields where remote work is at least possible/feasible. This is not an exhaustive list, just some ideas to get you started:Phone salesCustomer support (phone, email, etc.)Graphic designProgrammingWritingM arketingSocial Media ManagementAdministrative support (sometimes)Data entryResearch (sometimes)2. Research Companies Before ApplyingApplying for random jobs and hoping they offer remote positions isnt a good strategy.You need to know who youre applying to, and what their track record is of offering remote work (if they offer this at all).Keywords you can search for when looking for positions online:RemoteTelecommuteFrom homeThings to try to notice and pay attention to during your research:How long have they been offering remote roles?What percent of people are remote?How long does the average remote person stay? etc.The bottom line is: Its going to be much easier to convince employers to let you work remotely if theyre already letting other people.You want the path of least resistance. You dont want to spend years trying to convince some stubborn, old-fashioned employer to let you be their first remote employee, right? That sounds TOUGH.3. Look at 100% Distributed/Remote CompaniesTh is is one way to make sure youll have a remote position if hired.Some companies are 100% remote or distributed. Everyone is home-based.While its still not extremely common, there are a number of startups and technology companies set up like this.Last I checked, Automattic, the tech company that makes the software that this website CareerSidekick.com is built on (called WordPress), is 100% remote. And I believe they have 100+ employees!Heres a map of their employees around the world, from their website:4. Look at Start-Ups (Even if Theyre not 100% Remote)With some Fortune 500 companies like IBM calling their remote workers back to the office, many smaller companies and startups seem to be embracing remote work right now.Heres a good job board for startups only:https://startup.jobs/And you can find more by searching, Startup Jobs or Startup Job Boards on Google.5. Search Remote-Only Job BoardsThis is different than looking for 100% remote companies in this tip, youre searching for jo b boards that only feature individual roles that are remote.They might be with companies that arent primarily remote companies, but thats okay.As long as they offer remote jobs, thats what were looking to find!We have a list of the 50+ best tech job boards, which might be worth a look overall since tech is one of the most common places to find remote jobs but first, we recommend these three specificremote-only or remote-focused job boards:https://www.flexjobs.com/https://weworkremotely.com/https://remotive.io/find-a-remote-job/https://remoteok.io/6. Compile a Master-List of Remote EmployersAs you do this research and search for remote positions, start building a master-list of employers that allow remote work.Even if you dont see a relevant job right now for that employer, put it on the list so you can check back later!If you keep adding to this Master List through your career, youll have an easier and easier time of finding remote positions to apply for.You can look on individual c ompany pages to see if any positions mention the option to be remote.You can search employer reviews on sites like Glassdoor, specifically looking for keywords like remote.You can ask around in your network, too. Ask colleagues and friends if their companies allow remote work, and for what types of positions.If youre committed to finding remote work its worth building this master-list and adding to it each time you find a new employer offering remote work!7. Network Like CrazyJoin Facebook groups like RemoteLikeMe.You can also look at LinkedIn groups but I personally have never found good, active LinkedIn groups on any topic other than job searching. Facebook groups are just much better communities, for now.Then, talk to people who are working remotely and ask them if they have any tips.Ask for one simple thing to start. (If you ask for a huge favor upfront, people arent going to help you).Ask if they have one tip, or if they did any one particular thing that helped them find a remo te job.As you build your Master-List of remote opportunities (mentioned above), try to build a network of people who are working remotely or interested in finding remote jobs, too.Youll be able to help each other, youll hear about more opportunities, and youll gain good knowledge on how to convince employers to hire you for these jobs!(More on that last topic is coming up in the next part of this guide, so keep reading).8. Know the Difference Between Remote and Work From HomeMake sure youre using the right keywords when trying to find remote jobs to apply for.Typically, positions listed as remote will allow you to work from around the world, or at least within the country or within the timezone. (For example, a position listed as remote might not let you work in Europe, but theyre likely to be okay with you being based in Florida.Whereas, positions listed as work from home are more likely to want/expect you to be in town.Youre allowed to work from home, but theyre less likely to be okay with you living across the country or in another country. And they may want you to come into the office sometimes (For example once per week).This doesnt happen with true remote positions, except for maybe a quarterly or annual meeting where the company flies everybody in to get some face-time!There are exceptions to this rule but thats what to expect in general with these different keywords in online job postings.How to Find Remote Work Jobs: Part II Convincing Employers to Hire You in the InterviewIn Part I, we covered how to search and find remote jobs to apply for.Now lets look at how to actually convince them to hire you in the application, cover letter, interview and more.These jobs are competitive and youll need to have a plan for how to stand out and impress these employers. Fortunately, Im going to share multiple ways to do this.9. The Hiring Process is Your First TestThe minute you begin communicating with an employer for a remote position, theyre paying attention to how you communicate and respond!These skills are super important for a remote job, so realize that this back-and-forth communication is your first test.Communicate clearly, and make sure your messages arent vague or confusing.And be attentive/responsive! Dont let messages sit or slip through the cracks. Respond to everything in a reasonable timeframe. Try to respond within 24 hours, and within 4 hours during regular business hours.10. In Interviews, Prove Youre a Self-StarterCompanies offering remote jobs want to hire people who are self-motivated, so you absolutely need to show them this.In your interview, give examples of how youve taken responsibility for your work in the past without needing instruction or close supervision.Show that you dont wait for your boss to tell you each little thing to do you identify problems on your own and solve them, you find opportunities and pursue them, and you make suggestions for how to improve the company.Stories about a time your boss was ou t sick or traveling, and how you handled it, are always great.Here are a couple specific questions you might hear on this topic:How do you make decisions?Do you prefer to be micromanaged or given more room to work?What type of boss do you work best with? (This is similar to the question above; just another way you might hear it asked)Why will you do well in this job?Whats your leadership style?11. Be Honest and Clear About What You WantIf youre talking to an employer about remote opportunities, and this is exciting for you, be honest about it with them.Dont try to hide it or feel pressure to act like its no big deal.I interviewed for a job a few years ago with a companythat was completely remote/distributed, and I REALLY wanted this job.But I wasnt honest with them about how exciting this was to me.In fact, I didnt even tell the truth about how I found them when they asked, how did you hear about this job?(I had found them because I was searching specifically for remote opportunitie s but I tried to make it sound like I just stumbled across the job).While you never want to sound like you ONLY care about the job because its remote, its okay to talk about why youre attracted to working remotely!Tell them youd love a chance to work remotely because you think its the future of how companies will operate, and you feel itll make you more productive and more successful in your work.12. Be Ready to ACE all the Common Interview Questions Companies AskThere are two reasons this is so important.Companies are going to ask you a lot of questions about why you want to work remotely, to make sure youre pursuing this for the right reasons. Theyre initially skeptical.Remote jobs get a TON of applicants so its very competitive. That means theres no room for mistakes in the interview!So be extra-prepared for all the top questions employers ask.You can find a list of the top 14 questions and sample answers HERE.And then be ready for questions about why you want their specific job, and why you want to work remotely too.Questions like:Why do you want this job?Why did you apply for this position?Why do you want to work remotely?Have you worked remotely in the past?Tell me about a time you worked with little or no supervision?You need to stand out and be memorable in the interview if you want to get hired for a remote job. Theres always competition for these positions!13. On Your Resume, Show Your Communication Skills and Ability to Hit Goals On-TimeWhen it comes to writing your resume to get more interviews for remote positions, youll want to highlight a few key things:1. Try to show that you communicate well with team members, your boss, and members of other teams.Show you coordinated with people in projects, communicated clearly, etc.If you led meetings, projects or other efforts, mention that.Mention anything that shows off your communication skills.Youd want to put all of this in your resume bullets and your employment history section.Heres an example of so mething you might say:Led multiple projects while coordinating efforts across three teams and 20 employees. Maintained project deadlines and milestones through frequent communication using chat, phone, video, and in-person meetings.2. Show off your ability to hit deadlines and be on-time with goals.If you want a company to hire you for a remote job, you need to show them youre going to deliver results, and do it on-time.So on your resume, try to put a few bullets showing how youve delivered great work on-time or ahead of schedule.Along with putting this type of info into your bullets and work history, consider writing a brief resume summary section to show off these abilities too. (This is instead of an Objective at the beginning of your resume, which is generally a waste of space for most people).14. Leave Personal Reasons Out of ItThis tip is super important for finding a remote position.Dont bring your personal life and problems into the conversation when describing why you want the job!If you say you have two young kids at home, youre basically just telling the employer your workplace is going to be ultra-distracting and unproductive.Im not saying to lie, but the first thing you mention when talking about why youre excited to work remotely better not be personal needs/reasons, or you wont get the job most likely.This is true on your cover letters, your interview answers and everywhere else youre communicating with employers and hiring managers.15. Show Companies How Remote Work is Good for THEMIn general, employers dont care about your personal life and needs. They want to know whats in it for them.(This is just human nature people are self-interested. And hiring managers are people, too)So, if you want to get a full-time remote job, make the conversation about THEM just as much as its about you.Talk about how youre more productive at home, how youll be able to work more because you wont be commuting, etc.Those are things that will directly benefit them.Ma ke sure you take their perspective and think about their side before hopping onto a phone interview or going in to meet a company.16. Have a Great Home Office Setup Ready to UseIf youre going to be doing video interviews, or even if not, employers are going to want to see your home office (or at least hear about your setup).If you tell them youre ready to work remotely, they want to hear about how this will go!So make sure you have a quiet, great-looking space with plenty of room to work distraction-free to show off and talk about with employers.If you dont even have a designated workspace thats clean, organized and ready to go, then you really need to put a bit more time into thinking about why you want to work remotely, and how badly you want this.Consider getting a good webcam and microphone or video calls.Buy a nice desk or table.Make sure your internet connection is super-fast.Take the extra steps to get yourself ready BEFORE landing the job, and youre far more likely to get jo b offers from employers for remote positions.This will make you seem more confident in the interview too, because when they ask about these topics, youll be excited to talk about it rather than nervous/timid.17. Dont Leave the Planning Up to ThemShow them you have a plan to succeed after they hire you.This includes your home office setup (mentioned above), but also HOW youll use that setup to succeed.How will you learn the role and get up to speed quickly?How will you communicate with the team on an ongoing basis?Phone calls arent enough. Show employers you plan to make the extra effort to integrate with their team and company culture via video chats, instant messenger, etc.(This will depend on what the company already uses. This is a great question to ask in the interview.This might also include visits to the headquarters or a regional office during the first year.Ask what other people have done, and make suggestions/take initiative to show youre thinking about this.Dont passively wait for them to dictate how everything is going to be.Employers want to hire people who take action and take initiative for their remote jobs. They want self-starters.Show them this, and youll immediately boost your chances of finding a fulltime remote position!How to Find a Remote Job Quick InstructionsMake sure youre working in an industry or field where a remote job is possibleResearch companies before applying to learn about their history of offering remote workApply to startups; they tend to be more open to a remote work arrangementSearch online for remote or distributed companies; these companies are completely remote, from the CEO to entry-level workersSearch online for job boards that focus on remote jobs onlyShow employers youre a self-starter and that you take initiative in your workShow employers you have great communication skills and are able to hit goals on-time in your workDont mention personal reasons when explaining why you want to find a remote job; talk about ho w you feel youll be more productive and be able to focus on your work more when working remotelyMake sure you have a great home-office setup so you can show employers that youre ready to produce great work for them in a distraction-free environmentHave a plan in place for AFTER youre hired. How will you learn the role, meet the team, stay connected, etc. Dont leave this entirely up to them; you need to take initiative if you want to convince employers youre ready for a full-time remote job

Sunday, May 17, 2020

Critical Comparison - When Comparing Yourself Goes Wrong -

Critical Comparison - When Comparing Yourself Goes Wrong - When you are comparing yourself to other women and their lives â€" success, relationship, business, career, health, looks â€" this is when critical comparison can come into play. Women often compare themselves to other women who may share similar qualities. These comparisons of qualities can be healthy, especially when you are looking to see what you can duplicate, but when you make unreasonable comparisons to other women who have achieved high levels of success, it can create doubt and anxiety about your own progress in life  and make yourself less than others. The reality is that we measure ourselves against others, it does not create more for our lives. Fortunately, there are ways to combat our inner critic and shifting the focus when comparing yourself with these tips: Self-Talk The first step towards changing the critical comparison is to be aware of what you are saying to yourself. Self-talk is that inner dialogue that you say silently to yourself, about yourself and about others. And the biggest thing about that inner dialogue is that you can beat yourself up better than anybody else can. Nobody will be as harsh on yourself as you are. Your inner self-critical voice is so common that you may not even notice when it is present.   Think about when you have compared yourself to another. What have you said about yourself?   What words are you using, what is the energy behind the words? Whether the words are internal or external, in a conversation or not, it doesnt matter, because its all energy. Receiving  It is the energy you are putting out there, and an energy that you are literally placing on yourself.   You determine what you will or will not receive. The real magic is about receiving and receiving without judgement. If you have no judgement of anything, including yourself, then you get to look at everything for what it is, not for what you want it to be, not for what it should be but just for what is. You have to be willing to receive if you truly want the life you desire. What are you willing to receive? How do you begin to receive? You start by caring and nurturing yourself and changing the self-talk to be more positive and uplifting. Reframing  Reframing will assist you in becoming your best friend and your biggest cheerleader. For example, don’t say “I’m so stupid,” or, “I am such a dummy” to your inner critic! Reframe the dialogue from self-judgement to compassion. If you are having trouble thinking of what words to use, imagine what a compassionate friend would say to you in this situation. Reframing is about you and how you are treating you and learning to “be kind” to you. It is easy to forget about the things we already have and being grateful for your talents and gifts. Duplicating When you are looking at your life, maybe you are not where you want to be. What would you like your life to be? What do you want to create in your life? Look around and see what qualities you desire? What would you like to duplicate from other people and their life, career, health, or relationship? Be specific about the qualities as you may not want to duplicate everything from that person.   You may only be seeing a small percentage of what they are willing to be vulnerable enough to share about themselves. Many people present an image to the world, and their inner world may not match what they are presenting. Yet, we compare our inner self to what people are projecting, showing us their outer self, which is insanity. Focus on your life and what you desire.   Shift your focus to investing in yourself and your life. This guest post was authored by Cathy Dool   Cathy Dool is a business and marketing strategist as well as Conscious Wealth Wellness coach with over 35 years’ experience. A thought-leader, she is the co-owner of consulting and training business, and also operates her family’s multi-million-dollar heavy truck and trailer dealership which is now celebrating its 44th year of business. Cathy is a Being You facilitator, a specialty program of Access Consciousness. Cathy’s greatest passion is teaching others how to live deliberately and create consciously while achieving their desires.    

Thursday, May 14, 2020

7 Things You Have to Know Before Building Your Online Business CareerMetis.com

7 Things You Have to Know Before Building Your Online Business Original Image Source â€" Depositphotos.comIt’s safe to say we’ve learned a lot about online business over the past few years, and we love sharing those lessons with other aspiring business owners.We started our first successful business, a health and fitness blog, in 2015. But before that, we had another health and fitness blog that didn’t go quite as well. We didn’t really know what we were doing, and didn’t end up making any money.The good news is we learned a lot, and we were able to take all of those lessons and use them to turn our next blog into a six-figure business.evalIt was when we started making $10,000+ per month from that business that we knew we were onto something. We had learned so much about running an online business, and we wanted to share that value with the world.That led us to start our next business, Create and Go, where we teach people how to make money blogging. Since then, we’ve gone from making six figures per year to making six figures per mon th.The content we share on Create and Go is a culmination of everything we’ve learned over the past four years about running a successful online business.In this post we’ll start with the basics by sharing 7 things you have to know before building your online business.1) Be prepared to workevalAchieving business success isn’t going to happen by accident, and it isn’t going to happen overnight. You’re going to have to work hard for it.Now that we make six figures per month, an outsider could look at our business and see how much money we make and often we travel and think that building this business was easy.But what you don’t see is the hard work that went into it.evalWhen we were first building our business, we gave it everything we had. We put everything else in our lives on hold, including having any kind of real social life. And for people who love to be social and have fun, that was tough! But we knew this business was worth it.Getting to where we are today took yea rs of hard work. For a long time, we worked many more hours on the business than we had every worked in our full-time jobs.This was especially true after we left our jobs before we had started making money from our business. We had risked everything to make this thing succeed, so we had no choice. We had to make it work. And that meant spending all of our time totally focused on the business.By this point we’ve learned a lot about how to work smarter, not harder. And we’ve built a team to help us keep things running smoothly. But make no mistake, we still work hard to keep our income-generating business running and growing.2) You have to have a planevalThere are so many moving parts when it comes to running a business and if you don’t have a clear plan, it’s easy to get lost. Many people get overwhelmed by everything there is to do and just end up giving up.In order to get organized and create a plan for yourself, do a brain dump of everything you think you’ll need to acco mplish in order to get your business up and running. And once you’ve done that, start prioritizing them.Don’t get lost in the busy work â€" just work on prioritizing the task that will have the biggest impact on your business right now.In the beginning, this is going to mean getting your website up and running. You can’t accomplish everything else until you’ve completed this step.Once you’ve got your website up, you can prioritize creating content and driving traffic.Whatever one task you’re prioritizing right now, give it 100% of your focus. Don’t be worrying about other tasks you’ll need to complete or brainstorming new projects. Just commit to the task at hand.If you’ve planned correctly, you’ll already have figured out what task comes next and you’ll be ready to dive in when you finish your current task.Finding the right productivity toolsto help you stay on track will be a game-changer.3) It’s not about youYour business is not about you.evalI know this i s going to come as bad news for those of you trying to build businesses around something just because it’s what you love to talk about. But it’s something you need to hear.No matter how good your content is, it’s not going to help your business unless it’s actually the content that your audience wants and needs.When we started our first health and fitness blog, we made it all about us. We shared the content that we were passionate about, and then we didn’t understand why people didn’t want to buy the awesome product we had created.The second time around, we did things very differently. When we started our successful health and fitness blog Avocadu, we knew what we had done wrong with the first blog and we avoided making that same mistake again. We made the blog all about our audience. We used keyword tools to figure out what it was that people were searching for online, and we created content using those keywords.evalAnd once we did it that way, people were eager and exc ited to buy the products we created for them.4) Your email list is your biggest assetSocial media followers are great and all, but the real number you want to look at is the number of people on your email list. We’ve found time and time again that it really is true what they say â€" the money is in the list.Most of the sales we make for both affiliate marketing and our own digital products comes from our email list.Not only do we generate more sales from our email list than through our blog posts, it also gives us the opportunity to get to know our audience more.If you’re starting a business, setting up your email list should be one of the first things you do.Here’s a quick step-by-step for setting up your own email list and getting people to sign up:Sign up for an email service provider.ConvertKit is what we use and recommend to our audience.Create a freebie.This is the free offer that people will receive when they sign up for your email list. They need some kind of incentive !Build a sales funnel.Whether you’re selling your own product or an affiliate product, create an email funnel that new subscribers will go through. Most of the funnel is valuable free content, but it ends with you selling them something.Once you have your email list, it’s important to nurture it. Email your subscribers regularly with valuable free content so every time you have something to sell, they’ll already be paying attention.eval5) You have to invest in yourselfOne of the biggest things separating successful businesses from the rest is that they are willing to invest in themselves. This is something we learned early on in our own business.There is so much free information available online. And if you’ve got an awful lot of free time, you could certainly attempt to sift through it all and piece together the big picture without paying a dime for information.But at the end of the day, you’re wasting a lot of time, and you aren’t getting the full picture.Real business es aren’t giving away their best information for free. They are giving bits and pieces of what you need to do. But they aren’t telling you how. They’re saving their best information for paying customers.We invested close to $15,000 in business coursesand software when we first got started.Yes, $15,000 is a lot of money. And certainly not everyone needs to spend that much. But now that we earn six-figures per month, that initial investment doesn’t seem like all that much.You’ll see a much bigger return on the investment for money spent on real education than you will on the time spent trying to piece together all of the free information out there.6) Go all-in on one social media platformThese days it seems like way too many business owners equate social media followers with success. That’s simply not true. Any social media platform or traffic source is only valuable if it’s actually driving traffic and sales to your website.When we started Avocado, and subsequently Crea te and Go, we decided to go all in one Pinterest, and really focus and driving as much traffic as we could from that one traffic source.That is what ultimately inspired us to create our course Pinterest Traffic Avalanche.We knew that being amazing on one platform would be more profitable than being okay on all of them.Which platform you choose will depend a lot on the demographics of your target audience, as well as simply which platform interests you. For example, while we chose to focus on Pinterest as a traffic source, there are also businesses in our niche who are killing it on Instagram and driving a lot of traffic.The key thing, however, is that they are going all in on Instagram and not getting stuck in the weeds of every other platform out there.Once you choose a platform, go all in. Invest in a course or training to learn as much as you can about the platform, and create a strategy based on what you’ve learned.Remember, once you’ve mastered the platform and have streaml ined your strategy, you can move onto other platforms to maximize your traffic opportunities!7) Don’t forget to share your storyYes, your reader landed on your blog because of the valuable information you have to share. But let’s be honest, they can probably find similar information on another blog.So while the information you’re sharing might have brought them to your blog in the first place, it’s not enough to keep them around. Readers are going to keep visiting your blog time after time because of your story.Your story is what sets you apart from other blogs and truly makes yours memorable, and it’s what helps you to connect to your readers on a level that is deeper than just that of teacher and student.Sharing your story also helps to add credibility and expertise to your business.Sure, we could just share blogging and business tips at Create and Go. And the information we shared would be just as valuable, but people wouldn’t take it as seriously.By sharing the story of the first blog we had that totally failed and our successful health and fitness blog Avocadu, we’re adding creditbility to our site and showing readers that we really do know how to make money online. We aren’t just repeating information we’ve learned from other educators.Finally, sharing your story inspires people to take action. The reason that so many people have purchased our blogging courses is because they know the journey we’ve gone on to get to where we are today, and they can picture themselves going on the same journey with their business.Final ThoughtsWe’ve learned a lot about online business over the past few years, and we learned many of these lessons the hard way. We literally had a business fail because we didn’t know the things shared in this article.Starting an online business is no small feat. And no matter how prepared you are, you’ll go through ups and downs and you’ll have days where giving up doesn’t sound so bad.But now that you’re arme d with these lessons, you’ll be able to go into online business confidently and knowing you’re ready to handle anything that comes your way.

Sunday, May 10, 2020

Is There Any Such Thing As Being Too Good On The Job - Pathfinder Careers

Is There Any Such Thing As Being Too Good On The Job - Pathfinder Careers Is There Any Such Thing As Being Too Good On The Job? After the economic collapse, many companies stayed afloat with a core group of employees who were the “go-to” experts that they couldn’t live without, after all the other personnel had been let go. But you know what? These bosses found out that they could continue to “make do” with the reduced staffing levels and still keep things moving. After all, overhead expenses (read: salaries) were kept low because a certain group of people were shouldering the burden of the work… and they kept at it, day in and day out. But beyond just handling additional work that is the direct result of being short staffed, some people simply do more in their jobs than others. Not everyone can be an on-the-job super hero who always seems to have a superhuman ability to get a phenomenal amount of work done without even breaking a sweat. But these overachievers can and do pay a price. Sometimes, doing too much can be your undoing.   Some bosses might feel threatened by someone who is super-competent in their job, and worry that you are after their job next. Others might be concerned that you’ll get bored and start looking for new opportunities.   But the worst are the abusers the supervisors that are only too happy to keep loading you up with additional work… in which case, you become their dumping ground for unwanted or undesirable projects. And don’t forget about how other employees might perceive someone who is outdistancing them on performance levels.   Co-workers might start seeing you as a “brown-noser” looking for ways to suck up to the boss, or even worse, they are worried about how awesome you are performing because it can cause management to have increased scrutiny to their own activities to see why they arent at that same level. It is a tough situation. You always want to do the best at your job because ultimately, its your performance that is what you are judged by in your annual reviews. And there IS a silver lining of being really good at what you do:   You cultivate a brand of excellence and action, demonstrate competency, and learn new things. But more importantly, you become indispensable.  The job may be eliminated, but you wont be. Are you a top performer? What challenges have you experienced by being best-in-class at what you do? What benefits have you realized? Love to hear your stories!

Friday, May 8, 2020

Writing Resume in HTML Format

Writing Resume in HTML FormatThe best way to write a resume in HTML format is to make sure that the page you're compiling has enough content and pictures to create an eye-catching document. Keep in mind that you can use images for a more professional look, if you're concerned about people seeing your resume and not looking at it, which is fine too.If you're just starting to write a resume and looking for ideas, keep in mind that you can find a lot of free information and tools online. All you need to do is type the name of the company you want to get a job at into Google and there you'll be greeted with tons of info on this company's resume writing tips and tricks, and this includes how to make a resume in HTML format.You should begin by creating an outline of the document online, before actually starting writing the resume. Your outline should have the things that should be included in the document, such as the name of the company, contact information, dates of employment, positions , and any other pertinent information that's relevant to the position that you're applying for. Also keep in mind that it's important to get a document online in your hand, so that you can easily save it and see what the document looks like without having to go back and edit it every time you get a new piece of information.While you're developing your resume, remember that you don't want to include keywords or keyword phrases to aid you in your resume writing quest. Instead, try to stay away from keywords, and focus on main subjects, and make sure to stick to your topic of choice. Keep in mind that people will judge your resume based on the information that you've included, so remember to keep it simple and focus on the most important things that you have to offer.Using HTML in resume writing also allows you to include more pictures. Having pictures in your resume is a very effective way to make a first impression of the company. People aren't going to read your resume without seein g a picture of you, and they won't judge you without seeing you face.Also remember that it's important to have a resume in HTML format that has a good font. Using an italic font will take the reader out of the document and make them think that you aren't serious, but having the right font makes the whole document much more readable and easy to read.Make sure to keep your resume in HTML format and just make sure to have it posted online. This way people will be able to read your resume and see that you're actually serious about getting the job you want. Remember, these are just some of the tips you need to know about writing a resume in HTML format.