All about education

The fear of loosing a job is overwhelming every wise person. But the actual event is no tragedy, no matter how big a loss it. All the professional psychologists advice not to fall into the state of constant depression, but to work the way out of this dreadful situation. Everything depends on the level of motivation. There are two possible options for people that changed their status to unemployed: either to continue searching for another job in the sphere of prior employment, or seek luck in the fields that are unknown.

If you feel like you want to be involved in the same sphere you started in the simplest decision would be to call the competitors. Do not follow the standard procedure and submit your resume to the personnel department, but contact the authority directly, offering your services in a very polite manner. All a good boss has to know about a future employee is professional experience Tell him about your professional experience, education, personal traits and features that will help an employee to develop and professionally grow making a contribution to the company. Be sure to stay business like and try to inform the future employer only about he/she has to know, any previous failure of yours can be used as an argument to lower your cost at the job market. According to the statistics, those who change their places of employment have more chances to be promoted than those who work there all their lives. The results of the research show that those who change work have more chances to be promoted than those who work in one company all their lives. Look for a place in spheres you feel comfortable with. If you get stressed out because of the constant strain and noise in a large company, look for a place in smaller ones. Another statistics shows that employees of the smaller, but fast growing companies get to the top of a career ladder faster than those who get lost among thousands of employees in a big company. If none of the mentioned above options work for you, start looking for a part time job. You have to realize that proposals will not be piling up in front of your door; you have to hunt for them. There is nothing more important than an ability to cover the bills. In this case all the possible variants are acceptable. You can get a part-time job of a freelancer or get employed by a company in terms of a contract. This is a convenient way for big companies to control the process. The employer is responsible for the project and works o it from the beginning to the state of completion. This way you will have time to find a good full-time job.

Part-time job gives you an opportunity to cover your bills. In this case it doesn’t really matter if the job you are going to take part-time participation at is related to the field where you have previously worked. Be sure not to include this employment in your resume unless it really contributes to your list of skills.

The Information Technology (IT) industry is well known for experiencing growing pains related to the technological advancements that are the foundation of the field itself. Advancements in technology, while necessary, often force IT professionals to focus on a particular area of expertise in order to meet the specialized needs of different industries. This newfound emphasis on specialization has led to the creation of new positions within the IT field with expansion resulting in job diversification.

Not so long ago, IT managers and administrators were responsible for all facets of a company’s data systems, including development, accessibility, storage and security. These rising stars of the computer age were often single handedly responsible for maintaining the systems that businesses relied upon to function. For many, budgetary free reign was allowed for software and hardware purchasing with the singular requirement that all systems continue to run smoothly and effectively. Larger organizations often had in-house IT administrators who worked alongside the employees of companies that provided implementation services. The outsourced agents were a necessity for the maintenance of massive IT installations, while their company counterparts served to relay information regarding the purchased systems to management in a jargon free and palatable manner.

Today, the majority of small to medium sized businesses operate completely in-house. Even larger organizations are limiting outsourced personnel to the bare minimum, preferring to hire specialized permanent employees to fill the positions that were once manned by a labor force provided by another company. Upper echelon IT managers are more likely to have business heavy education and experience credentials while their subordinates may be experts in either the software, hardware, or security side of IT infrastructures, but rarely all three. With data tampering and theft becoming a major concern in recent years, the job market for data security personnel alone has risen substantially.

As we move forward into the future of information technology, the trend for a specialized workforce in the IT sector of employment will likely continue. Even educational institutions are beginning to recognize this expansive diversification and IT degree programs with an emphasis on even the most obscure facets of the industry can now be found. While the onset of the computer age has certainly resulted in the reduction of many positions in the overall workforce, the weight of its own complexity may yield new positions that can balance those losses as we move forward.

The draw towards this industry is the multimillion-dollar campaigns, and the glamour surrounding the promotion of products and the clients it represents. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics ( http://www.bls.gov/ ), non-supervisory workers in advertising and public relations services made $633 a week on average in 2004. Companies in the advertising and public relations industry arrange advertisements for other companies and organizations and propose campaigns to encourage the interests and image of their clients. This industry also includes media representatives, radio, television, and the Internet. It also includes display ads, direct mail, billboards and other tangible media. The demand for educated advertising professionals is on the rise as technological advances give advertisers more options for the media on which they advertise.

You can earn an a advertising degree at public and private colleges and universities, as well dedicated technical schools that offer career specific programs. Specialty schools often offer two-year degree or certificate programs in advertising. Traditional four-year college and university programs offer advertising programs within other majors such as communications, business or art programs. Most people starting out in an advertising career will be required to hold a bachelor’s degree with a liberal arts background. Bachelor’s degrees are not required for entry-level positions in the creative department. Assistant art directors, for example usually need at least a 2-year degree from an art or design school. Although assistant copywriters do not need a degree, obtaining one helps to develop the superior communication skills and abilities required for this job. Entry-level positions in the industry include account management, media coordinator, or market research. Internships, in conjunction with your education, will help you get a job when you graduate. Completion of an internship is often a necessary requirement for many advertising firms. In addition to an internship, course work in marketing, design, statistics and accounting can help get you ready for employment in this field.

As a Career Consultant, I work with clients on all the tools and techniques that are needed to succeed in the job search – including interviewing skills. One thing I have noticed over the years is that candidates often get “trapped” in certain interview questions that are designed to make them say something negative or self-defeating (which generally leads to rejection). Indeed, job-seekers are not even aware of how negative many of their answers sound at interviews! So, I instruct all my clients to “never say anything negative, or anything that could possibly be construed as negative!” Candidates can avoid being disqualified by stating all their answers in positive (or, at least, neutral) terms.

The following are some of the most commonly-asked interview questions, along with suggested approaches for answers. It is important that job candidates practice these responses until they are able to handle all the questions effectively.

Why do you want to work here? How can you help our company? Why should we be interested in you?
Answer is always based on information you’ve researched in advance about the company and their needs.

If you were choosing someone for this job, what kind of person would you select?
Answer is to generally state your own general qualifications, without being too “obvious.” Leave out the details.

If you could have any job which one would you want at this company?
Answer has to do with the most general description of the job – NOT A SPECIFIC TITLE.

What weaknesses do you have for this job?
TRAP QUESTION. Never state anything negative! Answer is to ponder for a while and then state that you can’t think of any weaknesses that would compromise your performance at this job; or negatively impact your performance of the job’s responsibilities.

What do you expect to get in this job that you haven’t gotten in you current/previous job?
TRAP QUESTION. Do not say anything negative. State that your current/previous jobs have met or exceeded your expectations. With the new position you would hope to have broader responsibilities and make greater contributions.

What do you see as your future here?
I would expect to be contributing at higher levels and have increased responsibility over time.

Are you considering other positions at this time?
TRAP QUESTION. Simply say “yes.”

How does this opportunity compare?
From what I’ve heard so far, very favorably … and I would like to learn more.

What other companies/opportunities are you looking at now?
As I’m sure you can appreciate, I’m not at liberty to say as I am still in discussions with these companies. I need to protect their privacy, as I would for your company under similar circumstances.

What are your short and long term goals?
Short range: To secure an appropriate new position where I can apply my skills and experience to increase the company’s productivity and profitability.
Long range: Assume more responsibility and make greater contributions over time for my employer.

What motivates you?
Focus the answer on your core values, and also on the values and priorities of the company you are interviewing with (which you should have identified through your preliminary research).

What have you done to improve yourself during the last year?
Talk about professional development, training programs, educational curricula, study in your field, on-the-job training, skill-building, relevant books you’ve read, etc.

How do you spend your spare time?
Say something inoffensive, apolitical and innocuous. (reading, exercise, travel, home projects, gardening, family activities, home projects, etc.)

Tell me about your health.
My health is excellent.

If you could re-live your last 15 years, what changes would you make?
Nothing is perfect, but overall I would say that I’m quite satisfied with the way my life and career have developed – so I wouldn’t make any significant changes.

Tell me about your greatest achievement/disappointment in your life.
Give one personal example (like meeting your spouse and getting married; putting yourself through college and graduate school; or saving-up to buy your first house, etc.). Then give your best professional accomplishment story. As for the disappointment, give an answer similar to the one above, implying that “overall, I would say that I’m quite satisfied with the way my life and career have been developing, so I really can’t think of any major disappointments.”

What did you like best/least about your last job?
TRAP QUESTION. Never state anything negative! Explain what you liked best. Then say that while every job has its challenges, you have been fortunate enough to learn and grow professionally in each of the positions you have held.

In your last position, how much of the work did you do on your own, and how much as part of a team? Which did you enjoy more?
Talk in terms of your flexibility and adaptability – your ability to work in whatever mode seems appropriate to the situation. Make it clear that you have been equally effective in teams or working independently, as each case demanded. You enjoy both; it’s more about what will work best for the project and the company at that time.

What are some of the more difficult problems you have encountered in your past jobs? How did you solve them?
Tell two or more pre-prepared accomplishment stories. Keep it POSITIVE!

Did you ever make suggestions to senior management? What happened?
Say “yes.” Tell some accomplishment stories and results, in which you positively influenced senior management.

At your previous job(s), what did you think management could have done to make you function more effectively as an employee?
TRAP QUESTION. Never state anything negative! Say that the employer was very good in providing resources and support to your position, and that you have no complaints about this.

What has kept you from progressing faster and farther in your career?
TRAP QUESTION. Never state anything negative! State: “I don’t know what could have given you the impression that I am dissatisfied with the progress and pace of my career. I am quite satisfied with where my career is at this point in my life. However, I am ready to take on greater challenges.”

What else should we know about you?
Tell one or two more of your best accomplishment stories. You can also repeat how well-suited you think you are for the opportunity, and how interested you are in the job.

Tell me about the best/worst boss you’ve ever had.
TRAP QUESTION: Never state anything negative! Say that while every boss has been different, you have worked productively with, and learned something from, each one. (Be prepared to give some examples of what you have learned.)

Everybody likes to criticize. What do people criticize about you?
TRAP QUESTION. Never state anything negative! Say that you can’t think of any criticisms you have received from colleagues on the job. Of course, there have been areas for development – such as when your supervisors would have given you your “employee review,” and they might have made a suggestion for improvement. State that you have always taken these kinds of suggestions seriously and have taken steps to make the improvements that were requested, and that this has made you stronger as a professional. (State at least one example).

Everyone has pet peeves. What are yours?
TRAP QUESTION. Never state anything negative! Turn this question around, by talking about your high professional standards. Your only “pet peeves” are with yourself – pushing yourself hard and not accepting mediocrity, for example – or how you are always striving to reach your full potential on the job, etc.

What is your leadership style?
Talk in terms of your flexibility and adaptability – your ability to lead in whatever mode seems appropriate to the situation. Explain that it’s more about what approach will work best for the project and the company at that time. Give an example or two, demonstrating different leadership styles, using your accomplishment stories.

Are you geographically mobile? (or) Are you willing to put in a lot of extra time?
Ask for clarification – what exactly does the interviewer mean? Then, according to their answer, either say, “that would be no problem at all,” or tell them “you’d like to give it some thought and get back to them within 24 hours.”

You don’t have the experience/background for this position. How could you handle it?
Say you’re confused by their comment, that you’re quite confident that you DO have the experience and background for this position, and that you’re a very strong match for the responsibilities. Ask what specifically concerns them about your background; what’s missing in your experience? (Sometimes the interviewer is just testing you.) Re-state your qualifications as needed, tying your accomplishment stories to the employer’s requirements.

You’re overqualified for this position, aren’t you? (even if you are slightly overqualified)
State: No – I see a lot of challenges in this opportunity, and I’m sure that I would find the work extremely interesting. Give some examples of what you mean, and talk about the new dimensions of experience and skill that you would bring to the position, almost as though you would expand the level of contribution in this job, thus making it more than it is at present.

We have all the information we need. We’ll be in touch.
Take the initiative. Ask such questions as: “Where do I stand? Am I being considered as a strong candidate? When should I expect to hear from you, or would you prefer that I contact you in a day or two? What is your time-frame for making a final decision? Is there anything else I can provide to facilitate the process?” etc. Then re-state your strong interest in the position and your confidence that your background is an ideal match to the job.

In conclusion, I strongly recommend that you prepare for your interviews by studying and practicing these answers. Get someone to help you, by doing a “role play,” in which your friend can be the interviewer and you can play the part of the job candidate. You will reduce your anxiety, boost your confidence and perform much better if you “know your lines” in advance! And remember – never say anything negative in a job interview!

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Permission to Reprint: This article may be reprinted, provided it appears in its entirety with the following attribution: Copyright © 2006, Ford R. Myers and Career Potential, LLC.

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Ok, you have posted to every internet job board and every job on Monster, CareerBuilder, and HotJobs. You’ve followed up with calls and networked until you are blue in the face. Each Sunday you take the newspaper and apply for every job in your field with little to no results. Well try some unique ways to find a job.

Send Half of Your Resume
Find a company you want to work. Write a great cover letter on why you are a good fit, pointing to the enclosed resume. Don’t seal the envelope and don’t enclose a resume. They’ll think the resume fell out in the mail. They will call and engage in a conversation. Sell yourself shamelessly.

Write A Prospecting Letter
Make use of the power of direct mail. Locate 5-10companies. Write up a letter to your contact network and ask them if they know anyone who works at any of the companies on your list. When a contact says they know someone on your list, send them your resume and ask them to forward it their contact or ask permission to send it yourself.

E-Mail Chain Letter
Create a list of 20 companies you want to work for and send an email to everyone you know to see if they know anyone who works at these companies. Ask them to contact you if they do, so that you can ask for a referral. Finally, ask them to forward your email to 10 more people. However don’t do this if you’re currently employed!

Distribute A Booklet
Write a booklet with information relevant to your industry and give it away. Everyone loves free information and this demonstrates your expertise. Give the booklet away electronically and advertise it to newsgroups where hiring managers will see it.

Call Human Resources
Sounds crazy, right? Call the human resources department. Ask them what outside agency or third-party recruiting firm they use. They will ask you why do you want to know. Tell them that their company is not currently looking for someone with your skill set right now the agency may be dealing with other firms, so you are looking for a recommendation. They may very well ask you for an interview. If not at least you do get a lead. They would love to save the agency fees. Also being recommended gives you special attention. Send them a thank you note.

These are guerrilla tactics that can give you better results. Be sure to stay toned for another 5 creative tips.

Acting courses come in various shapes, sizes and most importantly costs. How do you know which is a good one? What I have below is a list of requirements, some obvious, some not, so when you are looking for a course the more of these boxes they tick the better. Some points may not be as relevant as others, but all are, to some degree, valid and worth considering. The order is no indication of importance – thats up to you.

A good acting course will give you a thorough appreciation of the filmmaking process. This will allow you to access and develop so many vital tools. It will give you understanding of how to create a character which is rounded and believable on screen. Understanding the technical process will hopefully help develop your confidence in front of the camera, if you know what a director wants, it should be easier to give it to them. Therefor any knowledge regarding the technical aspects of filmmaking will be to your advantage.

Any acting course should have be a positive learning environment. The classroom should be a forum for ideas and criticism, where no one is afraid to open up and enthusiasm encouraged. Large class sizes are not always a bad thing they give you the opportunity to network and make a few friends too.

Look for acting courses that provide script analysis and understanding as part of the curriculum. The script is your starting point and being able to see which characters work better than others or are more believable and three-dimensional, will enable you to work more efficiently with the director or writer.
The course should also highlight the difference between stage and film scripts, being good at understanding one doesn’t automatically mean you’ll be as competent with the other.

Even a film acting course can contain information and techniques for stage acting, they are quite different, but some aspects of stage craft can prove useful in front of the camera.

All of the above training and coaching will hopefully be provided by industry veterans or experienced professionals. Most courses will provide a resume for their instructors, but if no information is provided about the people who will be coaching you then the internet can provide quick and easy access to a persons professional background.

A good acting course will be able to supply you with plenty of testimonials from previous students to help you decide if its the right one for you. Don’t be blinded by one famous alumni, better a school produces a lot of good working actors than one superstar.

If you are to get a thorough understanding of the life of an actor your course should give guidance on auditions, including such aspects as monologues, casting call requirements and even details on agents. Lets not forget that they should be realistic and give you an incite into how to survive the arduous life of an actor.

Well thanks for taking the time to read my article. Acting courses really can be useful, even for experienced actors, I hope its been helpful.

If your looking for acting audition tips this is a good place to start, It’ll give you a few things to consider though because of space its not totally exhaustive, so just consider this a starting point.

Acting auditions can broken down into roughly three sections, The Preparation, The Performance and The Result. We’ll look at all three which will give you enough ideas to make you a little more relaxed about the whole process.

THE PREPARATION

Preparation, as any job interview book will tell you, is essential.
Firstly, do as much research as you can, be it the character you going to play, the director, the company or even the writer. It will show  thoroughness and dedication that could be the deciding factor in your favor.
Secondly, make sure you know your monologues, you should have practiced them out loud in front of a variety of people to get as any opinions as possible, if you can’t get a wide range of opinions you may find it useful to record yourself(video or audio), this gives you the chance to evaluate your own performance from a slightly different perspective.
Thirdly, know exactly where the location of the interview is, how long it takes to get there and arrive early. This allows you to relax and find some where to warm up.
You could be hanging around for a long time so take a book, some water and food or something like an ipod to keep you relaxed and occupied.
When in the audition environment it pays dividends to be nice to everyone, remember, todays rival actor could be tomorrows hot new director. This Don’t be intimidated by the other actors auditioning with you, they will be just as nervous as you are. even if they appear cocky that doesn’t make them a better actor than you!

THE PERFORMANCE

First impressions count, so upon entering the acting audition room be confident, positive and friendly. It may be helpful to remind yourself that these people in front of you are on your side, they actually want you to be great! Its good to be as open and personable as possible because you want the director to want to work with you personally as well as professionally and any advantage is an advantage.
Try to keep any questions you may have to a minimum, these are busy people and too many questions can seem overly ingratiating.
Your initial monologue should not really be more than two minutes long, have others prepared, these should show your range and diversity, and also have a longer monologue prepared, just in case the Director requests it.
The director may ask you to reread after direction, so good listening skills are important, at this point its better to ask questions than to assume that you know what the director wants, accepting direction also requires flexibility, so don’t stick too tightly to the same old way you’ve done the reading in the past.

THE RESULT

No article on acting audition tips would be complete without a word or two about rejection.
As you have read there are many ways that you can improve your chances of getting a role, but most actors will get turned down for most jobs most of the time. You could do all of the above and more and still be overlooked, but you should not take this as a comment on your ability. It just indicates that the casting panel thought that someone else  was more suitable to that particular role at that particular time.
If you do get called back for a second audition then well done. The same basic rules apply with a few subtle tweaks that will have to wait for another article.

Thanks for taking the time to read my acting audition tips and I hope it gave you a few things to think about.

1) Approach finding a job as if it were a full-time job, because it is. If you had a job, you would report to work at the same time each day (like 8 am), take an hour (or less) for lunch, and quit at the same time each day (like 5 pm). You would work five days every week. And you would work hard to accomplish as much as you could because your career depended upon it.

When you are searching for a job, you should follow the same type of schedule because your future depends upon it.

Treating your job search like a part-time hobby guarantees that it will take longer.

So, begin tomorrow by reporting to work and spending the day on tasks that lead to a job.

2) Approach finding a job as if it were a project. That means you should set goals for yourself, make plans, and monitor your progress. You should apply all of the tools and skills that you used in your last job to the project of finding your next job.

As you must expect, this is an important project. The sooner you complete it, the sooner you gain a promotion into a job.

3) Be your own boss. Set expectations for what you need to accomplish, provide direction, and monitor your work.

Meet with yourself once each week to evaluate your performance. I recommend doing this by writing two reports. The first is a candid evaluation of what you accomplished during the previous week. The second is a description of your plans for the coming week. Your plans should include your goals, actions, and priorities.

The first time that you write these reports, write an evaluation of what you have done so far. Describe the results that this effort has produced. And compare these results with what you wanted to have.

Next, map out a realistic plan for the next week based on achievable goals. For example, you could set goals for the number of people you will call, the number of networking meetings you will attend, and the research you will conduct.

In the coming weeks, compare the results that you obtained during the previous week with the goals that you set. For example, if you planned to attend twelve networking meetings and you attended only two, you should a) explain why this happened and b) plan actions that will correct such a difference. You should also analyze why you missed your goal because this provides insights on what you need to do differently. For example, Your goal (e.g., of attending twelve networking meetings) may have been set too high. Or maybe there are things you can do that will make it easier to achieve your job search goals, such as car pooling with a friend who is also looking for a job.

Finding a job is a full time job. Work through it with a plan and the support of a good boss (yourself).

I wish you the best of success.

A teachers resume should be a brief document in which you provide as much as evidence as you can to the employer that you will be a good teacher.

Basically a resume should contain your full name, campus and permanent address, telephone numbers and email addresses. Apart from that a teaching resume should include the following information:

A clear cut career and job objective which shows your sense of direction to the employer.

Your teaching resume should have the names of each of your employers and your corresponding job titles.

Mention the number of staff that you manage (if applicable).

Highlight the list of subjects and the age of the pupils that you teach.

Mention some of the teaching and learning methods that you use, field trips, discussions etc.

Mention your responsibilities in curriculum developments.

Highlight how you develop pupils with practical, creative, academic and social skills by balanced learning programs.

Mention any administrative duties in your work place.

Your methods and procedures for setting and marking home work, course work and exams.

How you did assessment of pupils work.

How you are maintaining relationships with other teachers, parents, counselors, social workers etc to improve the activities of pupils.

Mention how you are working, advising and guiding pupils on personal and academic problems and issues, caring responsibilities.

Highlight any extra curricular activities that you organized and the result of it.

Highlight any other achievements that have benefited your department and obviously your organization in general.

You work for a company that has been going through a lot of changes and upheaval.  Word is going around about lay-offs and you worry you will be next. If you’ve been an exemplary employee and the lay-off is not because of anything you’ve done, be sure you ask these three questions as you are being handed your Pink Slip:

1.    Ask for a Letter of Reference.  You can use this to help you land that new job because it will be beneficial to have a letter that praises you and your accomplishments.  This will show future employers that your termination was a business decision and not because of any wrong-doing on your part. Most people forget to ask about this, and it is difficult to try to go back later and ask for one.

2.    Ask about severance pay. You are not automatically guaranteed this unless it was stipulated in your employment contract when you were hired.. Typically, one week of severance is given for each year of service to the company, but this can be negotiable. And, especially if you’ve recently finished an important project, been honored or achieved a major goal, be sure to remind them.  It may buy you another week of severance pay they weren’t planning on giving.

3.    Are you entitled to unused vacation pay? In most cases, the answer is no. Some companies allow you to roll over your unused time from one year to the next, while others have a use it or lose it policy. Most companies will explain their rules in the employee handbook, but asking to be paid for your unused vacation pay just may earn you a few extra dollars you could use right now.

You may not get any severance or vacation pay, and you especially won’t if you don’t ask for it.  Don’t forget, this is a very difficult situation for your boss, too, so he or she may be willing to give you more than had been planned on. You’ll never know unless you try, and the worst they can do is say no. If the moment passes, chances are you won’t have another opportunity to ask these questions again. Knowing ahead of time what to ask for may give you the confidence to speak up for yourself at this difficult time.  Good luck!