Slides from Meaning Conference - The Chief Happiness Officer Blog

Slides from Meaning Conference - The Chief Happiness Officer Blog Yesterday I spoke at the Meaning Conference in Brighton and it was one of the best events I have ever experienced. I was especially impressed by the incredibly ambitious theme and how it was covered brilliantly from so many interesting angles. I also rated the conference on twitter yesterday right after it ended: Overall, I would rate @meaningconf at 27 on a 10-scale. Yes, it was that good :-) Alexander Kjerulf (@alexkjerulf) October 1, 2012 Anyway, if anyone wantsem here are my slides. And if youd like to see Valerie again, here she is: Thanks for a fantastic event to the organizers and everyone who came and see you next year for Meaning 13. Thanks for visiting my blog. If you're new here, you should check out this list of my 10 most popular articles. And if you want more great tips and ideas you should check out our newsletter about happiness at work. It's great and it's free :-)Share this:LinkedInFacebookTwitterRedditPinterest Related

Company Culture Gets More Attention

Company Culture Gets More Attention Once you find a job you are interested in, you research things like salary and benefits. But what you really want to know is whether youll fit in with the company culture. This is when job seekers start to get discouraged. Where can you find out about a companys culture? The good news is that there are employers who are listening to what job seekers want. Some companies have begun taking steps to provide you with more information about life as an employee. (Glassdoor is always a good option too!) As you know, finding the right job requires a lot of effort. Finally, employers are doing more to help you find the information you are really looking for! Cultural  Fit Is Most Important To You Workers of all ages want to know more about what it is like to work for a new company. According to Harvard Business Reviews analysis of a Gallup survey of 1,700 U.S. workers, employees ranked opportunities to learn and grow and quality of manager/management as the top considerations for taking a new job. Image from HBR And Employers Have Finally Begun to Listen Employers are attempting to connect with candidates in new and nontraditional ways, such as storytelling videos. Rather than telling candidates what its like to work there, companies are showing them by finding new ways to share the employee experience,  wrote recruiting and talent strategies expert, Lars Schmidt, in a recent Forbes article. In Schmidts article, he highlights videos by the consulting firm, KPMG and senior home care company, Nurse Next Door, for their ability to take recruiting to the next level by incorporating the concept of storytelling. These videos go beyond a day in the life of an employee and instead address the bigger impact the company and role have on society.  Heres one example: Examples of Companies Doing More Kimberly-Clark, known for consumer products like Kleenex, launched an online quiz to help prospective employees learn what kind of thinkers they are and what types of jobs theyd best fit. Candidates also learn about the culture and values of the company and the diversity of jobs. The Welcome Original Thinkers quiz takes you through nine quick questions to assess the type of thinker you are and then shows a listing of jobs you may be interested in. For example, are you The Dreamer, The Analyzer or one of the other six types of thinkers? You can also view the profile of a featured employee with the same thinker type. Kimberly-Clarks campaign is designed to create a useful experience, especially for new graduates or early careerists looking for new jobs. This initiative is also designed to increase its brand recognition (and reputation). (I wrote about Welcome Original Thinkers here) LinkedIn Is Helping, Too! LinkedIn announced it will be rolling out new paid features for employers career pages. Their announcement states: [a]ccording to the 2016 Talent Trends Report, the number one roadblock to applying to a job is not knowing what its like to work at the company. And 60% percent of candidates say that, first and foremost, they want to know about the company culture and values. FYI: LinkedIn data finds that when candidates view LinkedIn Career Pages, they’re 2.8x more likely to respond to an InMail and 1.3X more likely to apply to an open job Employers who pay for enhanced career pages can create a new tab called Life. The Life tab can include photos and articles written by employees about life at the company. Even more good news is that job postings will have a section called Meet the team which allows you to view the profiles of employees similar to you, including their education, previous companies and skills. Learn more using LinkedIns newest features here. This Is What Job Seekers Need To Know (and do) If you are in the market for a new job, dont search the job boards just yet. Take a few minutes and figure out what you want out of your next job. If you say rewarding work is important to you, then define what that means to you and what a company would need to show to prove its culture and values. For example, do you value a company that offers training or do you want time to support community activities? Once you know what proof you are looking for, it will be easier for you to identify a company that is doing the right types of things. Now you are ready to investigate the companys career page and LinkedIn company profile. The information provided can help you assess the culture and learn more about employees who work there. Now you are ready to investigate the companys career page, LinkedIn company profile and Glassdoor reviews. You should be able to find information to help you assess the culture. You can also learn more about employees who work there. Dont Forget To Tap Into Social And if you still want to learn more, see which social networks the company lists on their career page or website. TThen go look at those profiles. Note what information is being shared and, by all means, take action by liking or commenting on their status updates. A huge advantage of social media over email is the potential to engage in conversation (real-time) with people (you dont know) who work for a company you are interested in. You can learn more about networking via social media here. Ask Open-Ended Questions The best way to get good answers is to ask open-ended questions. Heres a sample so you understand what I mean. Instead of asking does your company have centralized or decentralized decision-making, rephrase the question to: “when requisitions need to be signed, what is the process” and then, “How long does that typically take?” Dont ask are there opportunities for advancement?  Instead, ask the employer the same type of “situational questions” they are asking you in interviews…”tell me about a time when one of your employees was recognized for an accomplishment.” This post originally appeared on US News World Report On Careers

The Recession is Bullhonkey Tess Story - When I Grow Up

The Recession is Bullhonkey Tess Story - When I Grow Up This is part of  The Recession is Bullhonkey series, where I share stories of those who have gotten hired and/or started their own businesses (or sometimes both!) since 2008.  Tess Blankenship  was in my March 2014 session of Career Camp, and  man oh man she is working the Nancy Drew angle of her career change in the best way possible! Her story shows that you dont have to put your multi-passionate self yourself in a lil box that you can have a full-time gig *and* have time to put not 1, not 2, but 3 (!) career ideas in motion. Love! I have no sad story to tell, no traumatic life changing event, years in the corporate world, decent bosses, and good payso what’s the big deal? No soul, no passion. It’s just a job and I now refuse to believe in the camp that says you should just keep any old job and live with just your free time to do what you love. I don’t want to spend the next few decades doing something that doesn’t get my creative juices flowing.   I know it all sounds so fluffy and sometimes I think it still does, but why should I settle for just a J…O…B. I have way more to give and lots to do and I love the feeling of getting so excited with my projects I lose time, feel exhausted and completely satisfied! Since life has been pretty hunky dory in my corporate job, it’s probably taken longer to get out of my own way.   I haven’t kicked the current corporate gig yet and I’m not saying I wouldn’t work for the right company (start-ups still whisper to me), but I’m testing ideas like crazy to see what sticks and what doesn’t. So what’s making me even consider ditching the corporate world? 6 key signs I see now, but missed earlier in life because I didn’t know what I was looking at: Sign #1: In high school, I was the preverbal doer, too many “irons in the fire“, multiple jobs and interests, and doing it all because I loved it. Sign #2: I applied to the School of Business in Undergrad thinking it would give me a career guarantee even though I wasn’t thrilled with typically business stuff.   I wasn’t accepted and ended up in Psychology, a more creative area, which I loved since it gave me the tools to figure out people. Sign #3:   A major career switch from paralegal to marketing manager.   This wasn’t a blind leap, I tested marketing with unpaid volunteer work to build my experience and make sure I loved it before making a major switch!   Marketing was the first job I was excited to get up for every day.   Looking back, I loved it because I could use all my creative skills, worked with interesting people and learned a ton since I was defining my role as I went. Sign #4: Through all the corporate years, I’ve always created things on the side. Painted furniture, created handmade market bags, interior and landscape design, paintings etc. Not all of it pretty and some pretty ugly. Sign #5: I’m a generalist. I accept it and own it now. I do many things well, but don’t have one deep expertise area. I’ve been told being a generalist is a strength since I can bring together seemingly unrelated ideas to create a better result â€" I’d say it’s called ‘integration’ in the fancy pants corporate lingo. Sign #6:   After over 20 years in the corporate workforce I finally realized from a previous boss, I’m really good at figuring out new things and I thrive in chaos, the type where you have to figure what the question is before you can find a solution. I love designing the stuff that hasn’t been figured out yet and I’m really good at influencing people. So what have I finally done with all these signs and my new learning of the word ‘multi-passionate’ and ‘renaissance soul’ from Career Camp? Seriously, I just learned these words no less than 6 months ago and I swear I haven’t been living under a rock! I’ve learned I need to ‘plant’ many business idea seeds to see what grows, figure out what I love and what I don’t.   For many years I’ve been planting ‘seeds’ without realizing it. I’ve planned out several businesses on paper, researched a few others and many were ‘killed’ off in the process. I’ve realized planning is good, but doing is best. Nothing makes you iterate or drop an idea like doing it. One seed I planted a year before Career Camp, was leaving my name with a bricks and mortar shop in case space became available.   Part way through Career Camp a call came from the bricks and mortar shop â€" a space was available and did I want it? Hesitant maybe, then a hell yes because how many signs do I need! So, within 3 weeks I’d launched my side gig of a vintage shop within a shop, Bella Rustico, and a month later the website with eshop and blog.     Sometimes not having enough time is your best friend because it forces you to find the answers instead of finding reasons why the answers might be wrong. Was it hard to start buying inventory for my new vintage shop â€" put cold hard cash behind my idea? You bet, every voice in my head said I was just sinking money into something that wouldn’t sell or I didn’t know my customers very well or I was paying too much on the buying end. What did I fight back with? I became my ideal customer in my mind. I bought based on my imaginary second home, an adorable bungalow. It would be filled with rustic and vintage finds, pieces with a story.   It got so much easier after I bought the first couple pieces, it felt like greasing the skids and I got into the groove. Yes, it was intense and a lot of work to start up! I had to find and remake the inventory, style the space, set up all the business pieces like a license and resellers permit and come up with a business name.   I launched the website, plus launched into two social media channels I had zero interaction with before just to test it out and learn.   Every month I try to focus on one social media channel to learn a bit more and dial it in a bit better. I’ve learned you have to invest your precious limited time to test a business idea, even in a small way, because it’s an investment in YOUR future!   You will always learn from it and a paper only test won’t cut it. I’ve built business plans for other people, I’ve given away my time as a volunteer for tons of worthy groups, but never invested much of my time in my business ideas. I’ve always believed the surest way to succeed is to fail fast and often.   Failing is just learning what works and what doesn’t so you can change directions!   Where else am I investing my time to test business ideas?   Drought tolerant landscape design. I recently moved and designed my front yard with all drought tolerant landscape.   I’ve designed previous landscapes for myself and self-studied so I was comfortable working through the design process.   People continuously passed my front yard and would comment on how great it looked or ask about plant types as it was being transformed.   I casually mentioned to my husband that if so many people were loving it, maybe I should do design work maybe… but I didn’t do anything. The tipping point was several months later when a lovely note landed in my mailbox. A neighbor I’d never met said she loved my front yard and if I could share who did it.   HELLO! this was a ‘sign’ I couldn’t ignore!   My crazy thinking was, I could go out on a limb and offer my design services for free… pilot my design skills to build up my portfolio, see if I could replicate my design process and interpret someone else’s wish list.   So I called left a message and emailed my offer half hoping she’d accept and half not.   She did accept my offer!   I mapped out my design process, questions to ask and figured out a software program I could learn quickly and went into test mode. Where did I land with my landscape design test? A landscape design my portfolio client absolutely loved the first time, a reference book with plant maintenance, how to work with contractors, how to manage a landscape budget and even several vetted landscape contractor references.   All the materials I wish would have been handed to me at the beginning.     I didn’t realize how much information I already knew until I started putting it all together.   She’s working on installing it now and I’m still helping her along the way with the contractors.   I picked up a 2nd landscape portfolio client with double the project size, super picky wife and completely different design requirements. Where did I land? They again loved the first design and even loved the things they didn’t ask for, but I suggested after listening ‘between the lines’. What else am I testing? Local classes.   I’ve taught before, but not these type of classes and I’ve never had to pitch what I wanted to teach.   So I pitched two classes in less than 60 words each without already having created the class content, but knowing I could if they were accepted.   Total excitement and an ‘oh crap I have to create a real class’ moment when both were accepted for launching next spring. Drought Tolerant Landscape Design and a productivity, time management type class, “How to Do it All just not at the same time.”   Where does the productivity class fit in? I want to test to see if my long time personal study translates to sharing it with others.   Will my style, material and approach connect? Do I even like teaching this topic?   I hate hearing two things, “I don’t have time” and “You can’t do it all”. Why? Because you have enough time, but choosing how, when and where to spend your time is where we usually get bogged down. All this boils down to I’m still figuring it out, but now I’m feeling really great that I’m experimenting in different areas. I’m building proof of where I want to invest more time, what works for me and in the end hopefully leaving the corporate gig forever. Tess Blankenship is the shop owner of Bella Rustico, vintage decor that  tells a story and currently testing business concepts for drought tolerant landscape design and productivity with a class on How to Do it All- Just not at the same time. Shes still tied to a full time corporate gig, but ready to ditch it for creative, passion filled work on her own schedule! Follow her on Twitter, Instagram  and/or Facebook. Registration for Career Camp is technically closed, but we dont start for another week and, well, I can talk to the boss about letting you in if youre interested in joining us. Email me at michelle(at)whenigrowupcoach(dot)com and Ill send ya the password to check out the sales page and get yourself a virtual sleeping bag!

The Can You Include Ghost Writing on a Resume Diaries

The Can You Include Ghost Writing on a Resume Diaries Committed Show that you're devoted to your work, begin to finish. Writing a strong and compelling resume summary can dramatically increase your odds of being called in for in interview, so it's vitally important you know how to make yours stand out from the crowd. When it is not directly about the job, leave it out. Be prepared when you visit the interview. A professional resume critique may be exactly what you need to work out what's missing from your resume and what should go. Contrary to other kinds of writing, copywriting demands an understanding of what entices people to react to promotional materials. Writing a resume can be fraught with a great deal of little concerns when it has to do with etiquette. At this time you don't need to become into a lengthy dissertation describing every position you've ever held, but you do have to at least briefly note the kind and quantity of experience you have in the particular f ield of expertise pertinent to the job that you're seeking. If you've been freelancing for a little while and are trying to find a conventional position, it can be difficult to create a resume to encompass all of your experience. No matter whether you're on the lookout for an entry level job or larger career advancement, you most likely already understand how important your resume can be in your search to discover the ideal job. Someone straight out a PhD program is going to have an extremely different objective than a person who has 5-10 decades of industry experience. New Questions About Can You Include Ghost Writing on a Resume Which format you select will depend, in part, on the sort of work you've performed and whether you will continue in the exact field. The resume header format that you select, should forever at the starting of the webpage. You know the fundamentals of writing a resume how to format it, the overall order and how much time it ought to be. It's not ove rly hard to use a template. As a consequence, there is a sizable demand for freelance writers. There are a lot of ways to seek out clients as a self-employed writer. You sign up as a writer and pick the articles you wish to write. Busy folks are always searching for writers. You already know that you want to self-edit your work. Concentrate on anything applicable to the job which you are applying for. Actually, in regards to first resumes and job applications, the idea ought to be to deal with the process for a learning experience. Also, when you have a distinctive knowledge or skill set, you may have the ability to earn more. Our tips below can help you create a very simple summary that will certainly grab the interest of the employer. Once more, if you keep a professional Twitter page, you might include it compliment your resume. The best choice is for you to get a personal website you may link to, or possibly a portfolio for the recruiter, who will definitely be con sidering checking the caliber of your work. Understanding Can You Include Ghost Writing on a Resume So, you're want to create distinct entries for each position. You will almost surely be asked about it. Don't forget that if it has to do with listing contract work, for example, work is always superior than ignoring it. In the event the work post asks for a salary requirement, don't offer a number or just a range. The Hidden Treasure of Can You Include Ghost Writing on a Resume Refuse Firstly, know it's possible to always say no. Many resumes go through HR initially and they're not experts in your area. You're returning to classic employment.

Who Is Misleading Us About Resume Writing How to Talk about Managing Interns?

Who Is Misleading Us About Resume Writing How to Talk about Managing Interns? Using Resume Writing How to Talk about Managing Interns So for each field you're trying for, you need to have an entirely separate resume. It's an incredibly different phenomenon from just visiting the shop and buying something. Of course if you're asking for a particular job, it's simple enough to amend a resume to incorporate an objective that matches the work description. As a guideline, you don't need to use each bit of the formula for your resume objective. The Bad Side of Resume Writing How to Talk about Managing Interns All you have to do is ask! Google, for instance, received about 20,000 resumes weekly. New Ideas Into Resume Writing How to Talk about Managing Interns Never Before Revealed Was the sole reporter chosen to create exclusive wellness edition of the newspaper. For example, say a candidate proved to be a prosperous intellectual property lawyer and now wishes to create the trans ition to public relations. If you've had a job or internship experience before, your supervisor or boss is a good reference. A good way to start is by acquiring a summer internship, so kudos to you for doing the ideal things to construct the basis for your career! For freshmen and sophomore students, it's often about feeling they don't have a thing to include on a resume. You are aware that an excellent sense of humor is important in all things. You will get a general sense of the highlights. Fellows are given a stipend for the summertime. It's your choice to present your interns direction so they can learn from their mistakes and produce much better work for you and your team. You may not best guide your interns until you know the things that they want from the experience. The polling intern will be given a stipend. It's very different from the normal ecommerce play in which you open up a shop and sell stuff online. In addition, there are a few practical methods to he lp you craft a successful resume. A great deal of sites were just attempting to sell me their templates. Above all else, you would like your resume to be simple to read. Making a career change is a challenging decision for the majority of people, especially if you're already mid-way or more into a career in another area. Writing a resume for an internship can be challenging, particularly if you're just starting to enter the professional world. The Most Popular Resume Writing How to Talk about Managing Interns While you may not be in a position to provide every intern the precise experience they want, you will be in a position to serve them well provided that you understand their preferences, curiosities, and regions of interest. Finding an internship is a good method to test different fields, discover new jobs you may be interested in, or gain valuable expertise in your areas of interest. Many employers are currently on the lookout for a URL to an on-line portfolio or even your Twitter handle to find a better feeling of who you are. Potential employers recognize the worth of interns who are ready to work hard for the interest of learning more regarding the industry. So when making a change, you will need to demonstrate to the employer that you've got the transferable experience and abilities that will make you successful at work. Before you jump into writing down all of the wonderful talents you've got, let's learn somewhat more about what skills employers typically search for on a resume and see whether it is possible to incorporate any in your skills section. At the conclusion of your internship, you'll have relevant experience to assist you decide whether a career in writing is the proper alternative for you. You first wish to take a look at your prior experiences and and make sure the absolute most relevant experiences have the most thorough explanations.

Why I Wont Be Reading Your Cover Letter -

Why I Wont Be Reading Your Cover Letter -We recently had an open position we were trying to fill and I was amazedor should I say appalledat the blanket responses we received from job seekers. qualifikation candidates sent us titelblatt letters describing experience they possessed that was completely irrelevant to our opening it was the same as someone having a degree in veterinary medicine but seeking employment as an IT director. Did these job seekers really think that going on and on for paragraphs about irrelevant experience was going to make me want to read their resumeor even more sointerview them?I think I understand the dilemma here Truly active job seekers are sending out countless job applications as quickly as humanly possibleprobably exasperated by the sheer volume of applications they feel pressured to submit. Its not a shot-in-the-dark game, people. Or a game of numbers. I truly dont believe its a situation where you have to submit 200 applications to receive two call-ba cks. What it comes down to is a matter of focus and relevancy. Can you make the correlation between your experience and career background and what the employer truly needs? Ill give you a perfect example.We occasionally will have openings for certified or professional resume writers. We place an ad for the opening online with some very specific requirements and ask that the candidate respond with valid and convincing reasons why he or she would be the best fit. Some candidates go on and onalmost endlesslyabout having authored books, written articles for medical journals, or their technical writing experience. None of which has anything in common with resume writingother than the word writing. This is frustrating to hiring managers as they are wading through hundreds of job applications. It almost seems like a waste of time. I find myself thinking, Why cant they tell me what I need to know? I specify in the ad that I need to know about criteria A, B, and Cand whether you possess thos e skills. Ninety-nine percent of job seekers fail to address their experience in these areas. Why? I am not sure if its laziness or a result of being overwhelmedbut what I can tell you is that youre only hurting yourself and your chances for an interview.I know that when youre submitting as many applications as you can you may feel hurried, rushed, or like you dont have the time to make a customized submittal. Truth be told, youre wasting more time if you dont. Take the time to specifically address each requirement, and provide the hiring manager with the absolute most relevant experience you have that matches the requirements of the position. You may be surprised at the results.Jessica Holbrook Hernandez is an expert resume writer, career and personal branding strategist, author, speaker and President/CEO of Great Resumes Fast. She creates high-impact, best-in-class, resumes and cover letters that transform job searches into interviews and ultimately job offers. For more informatio n about professional resume writing or to read more career and job search related articles visit http//www.greatresumesfast.com or call 1.800.991.5187.

Of Maternity And Me-ternity Leaves

Of Maternity And Me-ternity Leaves Last week, author Meghann Foye caused an uproar when she wrote in the New York Post about her belief that every woman deserves sabbatical time. Sounds pretty innocuous on its face until you learn that her new novel is called Meternity and was inspired by her envy of working moms who took time off work during maternity leave to care for their newborn children. The main character in her new book fakes her own pregnancy in buchen to get the me-time she craves. Ms. Foye wrote I couldnt help but feel envious when parents on staff left the office at 6 p.m. to tend to their children, while it was assumed co-workers without kids would stay behind to pick up the slack. You know, I need a maternity leave I told one of my pregnant friends. She laughed and we spent the afternoon plotting my escape from my 10-hour days, fake baby bump and all.Of course, that didnt happen. But the more I thought about it, the more I came to believe in the value of a meternity lea ve which is, to me, a sabbatical-like break that allows women, and to a lesser degree, men to shift their focus to the part of their lives that doesnt revolve around their jobs.In her piece for the Post, Ms. Foye compares non-moms need for personal time to new moms need for their maternity leaves.unleashing an outpouring of attack and criticism via social media. Mothers took to the web to respond the fact that their maternity leaves were hard work, with nothing sabbatical-like or me-focused in any way. Ms. Foye ultimately pulled out of two scheduled interviews on TV as a result of all the negative attention.Ms. Foyes argument is that when a woman has a child, a break to focus on other aspects of life comes naturally. However, for those women who remain single and/or childless, that time never comes at least in a socially acceptable way.While some of her words were unfortunately chosen, we suspect that Ms. Foye was mostly looking for a clever title and controversial spin to her boo k so that she and Meternity could stand out. However, in making some of her comparisons she unfortunately pitted mothers against non-mothers. Of course all people need to figure out work-life balance, and it can be challenging for men, women, non-mothers and mothers alike. Most of us, at some point in our careers need to take time to examine the other areas of our life besides work to make sure we are taking care of ourselves, and working towards something that still makes sense to us.Ultimately, in a statement issued through her publisher, Ms. Foye wrote I have tremendous respect for women who take time away from building their careers to raise their childrenAnd I totally get it when moms who return to work need to leave by 6 they have a second job waiting for them when they get home after working all day. My concept of meternity is designed to introduce and support the notion that all women deserve the opportunity to take stock and re-examine their goals in order to birth a life t hat works for them. Moms need it, and so do the rest of us who are trying to figure out the work/life balance. More than anything, all women moms and those who arent need to support each other.We couldnt agree more. Women face enough challenging issues in the workplace and world, without wasting energy on attacking each other.Fairygodboss is committed to improving the workplace and lives of women. Join us by reviewing your employer