Maybe your gap in employment wasn't as bad as this fellow's (I don't think there's much I can do for him)—but it's an issue I very often encounter with my clients. It may be an extended period of unemployment, a return to work from family leave, or a move from current employment back to an earlier career. Whatever the reason, well-constructed resumes can help to address gaps effectively. Try these tips Here are some quick tips from career experts, which I have used myself: Create what’s called a “hybrid” résumé, which includes both your skills and your job history. Start out with the transferable skills you can offer a employer and examples of your most notable and relevant accomplishments, rather than with your chronological job history. Use terms that are most relevant to the jobs you are applying for, not so much those of your past positions. Describe volunteer or temp work, special projects, training courses, memberships or self-improvement during … [Read more...]
Importance of Personal Brand in Marketing Your Business
My thanks to colleague and mentor Susan Finn, for rising to my call for guest bloggers! Her post continues the personal brand theme I started last month, with the importance of using a professional headshot. You probably think that you are in the business of ______ (fill in the blank: jewelry making, selling insurance, massage therapy, graphic arts). But really, you are in the business of marketing your business. Right now, there are people who need your goods or services. It is up to you to help them find you. Therefore, marketing is not what you do to sell your goods or services, it’s something you do FOR your potential clients. As we all know, with the internet, social media and the constant pace of 24/7 business, it is more critical than ever that a person or company brands and promotes effectively. Your personal brand, product or service might be the most awesome on the face of this earth, but if customers can’t find the value—the unique value—they are unlikely to … [Read more...]
How I succeeded in business…without really trying
If you’re a small biz owner—or if you are just thinking about opening a business--you need to know this important piece of info: almost 50% of all businesses fail within their first five years. >Gulp<. How did I ever survive? Lately, I have been thinking about this, because I have done some mentoring with college alumni, other young editors just starting their own businesses, and a small business group I once helped to lead. Folks are always asking me how I got started and to share my suggestions for success. Here’s a few. Take a workshop. They don’t have to cost too much, or take too long. In fact, when I first started, I took a free SEED workshop from my local Small Business Development Center that was only a couple of weeks long. I learned how to write a business plan and to figure out what to charge for my services, and I got to meet and talk with other entrepreneurs like me. Network, network, network. And did I mention networking? Yeah, I know. You’ve heard it … [Read more...]