4 Tips for Achieving Your Professional New Years Resolutions

4 Tips for Achieving Your Professional New Years Resolutions Although many resolutions are focused on personal developmentâ€"like losing weight or quitting smokingâ€"many of them are catered toward professional development, such as getting a promotion or finding a better job. Since New Years resolutions are notorious for being abandoned by February, its important to approach your professional goals with a concrete plan within your reach. To discover some helpful tips on reaching your own New Years resolution, consider these. Resolution #1: Get a promotion Almost every working professional believes he or she should have a promotion, but a much smaller portion is actually working toward making this wish a reality. To get that coveted promotion, you have to put yourself in a position where you truly deserve it. This means working harder, investing more time and effort in your company by submitting ideas for improvement, and furthering your education to qualify for higher positions. The latter approach can be one of the best ways to show your boss you are a true go-getter. Although you may put your heart and soul into your work, you can still take advantage of educational opportunities by considering online alternatives to further your degree. Resolution #2: Quit your job Quitting your job puts you in a slightly less favorable position than the one presented above, but it doesnt necessarily have to be a negative or dramatic step. New years are about new beginnings: out with the old and in with the new. If youve been slaving away at an unfulfilling job with little sign of advancement or improvement, quitting may be a pragmatic decision. However, if you truly believe your decision is reasonable, then be reasonable in your approach. Submit a formal letter of resignation that respectfully discusses your decision with your boss and co-workers and gives the company adequate time to find a replacement and tie up loose ends. Leaving on good terms not only benefits the company, but also benefits you when searching for a new job. Further reading at So You Want to Leave a Job You Hate. Resolution #3: Find a job Following resolution number two, finding a job can be one of the most difficult resolutions to achieve when the economic odds are against you. However, remaining diligent and assertive throughout your search will generally pay off in the end. The first thing you should do is use every resource possible to help you find a job. This could include connecting with the career services department at your alma mater, industry associations, networking groups, and former professors and peers to discover new job leads. All of these resources can put you in the right place to land the job youve been searching for. Resolution #4: Improve your professional appeal Improving your professional appeal usually goes hand in hand with any other professional goal or resolution you may have this year. To improve your professional appeal, and to avoid getting into a monotonous routine at work, you can work on your professional development by taking advantage of a number of opportunities. Education should be a number one focus, since it usually has the biggest impact on an employers opinion of you. Consider going back to school either in a traditional setting or online to enhance your degree. You can also take training courses relevant to your profession to obtain specialist certifications and give yourself extra credibility. If youre not finding any luck in the job market, consider trying out internships to gain experience and develop connections with other professionals in your industry. Making resolutions is easy, but keeping them is tough. Commit to following each step that gets you closer to a new job, and you might be celebrating next year with a better job and a promising career. Further reading at 7 Little Known Ways to Jump Start Your Career this year. Author: Jesse Langley lives near Chicago. He divides his time among work, writing and family life. He writes on behalf of coloradotech.edu  and has a keen interest in business blogging and social media.

Your ultimate guide to house hunting in London - Debut

Your ultimate guide to house hunting in London - Debut This post is part of our ultimate guide to moving to London as a graduate.  Its one thing to have a location in mind, but how do you go about actually finding a house?  We promise: house hunting in London doesnt have to be difficult.   So, youve figured out where you want to live in London. Its a nice area, not too busy or too quiet, and theres a 24-hour Tesco in the vicinity. Perfection. However, when you come to look up properties in the area, theres one major problem. You have no idea how to go about actually looking for a place to live. Thats where this guide comes in handy. There are a few bits and bobs you need to know before you embark on your London house-hunting adventure. Dont forget to bring a bottle of water with you, because pals, this is going to be a marathon. Plan of attack A marathon is nothing without prep, ya hear me? Some self-reflection is absolutely necessary before launching into your house hunt. We recommend you consult our full guide  on where to live in London as a graduate before you continue further. If youve gone through all of that, heres a quick recap of the most important points to remember: Consider the important variables.  How safe is the area? What will your commute be like? What are the available facilities in the area? And perhaps most importantly, how much will rent be? London is divided into zones.  The bigger the number, the further it will be from the centre of London, and therefore the mores expensive your commute will be. However, this might be balanced out by the exponential growth in rent prices the closer you get to Zone 1. It will be up to you to decide what to spend on, transportation costs or rent. The areas of London youll initialy consider living in probably wont be where you end up in.  Check out the guide for some great suggested areas some of which you might have never heard of. The best online resources Inevitably, youll start off your search via the powers of the Internet. We recommend searching broadly, using multiple websites and keeping track of it all using Excel or something similar. Our secret hack? Weve been using the website Airtable as an alternative to Excel where you can upload attachments and work collaboratively with your potential housemates. Score. Here are some golden rules to follow when you begin your online search: If the property doesnt have any photos attached, dont even bother. Thats a sign of either a dodgy deal, or a lazy landlord, both of which youll want to avoid. In this case,  do judge a book by its cover. A listing with tons of detail and a friendly tone of voice will reflect pretty accurately on the room/property. When youre viewing a listing, take note of what it  doesnt  tell you. If the property piques your interest, you can ask about the missing information during the house viewing. Whats important to bear in mind is the speed of the London housing market. There is no real point looking for a place to live well in advance. Landlords generally want their properties filled up all the time, so if youre looking to move in three months time, theyll probably go for a tenant who can move in immediately. We recommend starting your search around 4-5 weeks before the big move. Spareroom This is the graduates usual first port of call. Their search engine is probably the best out of all thats available, with loads of variables you can tinker with to find what suits you. We particularly love their Buddy Up feature, where you could find a potential flatmate and team up to move into a property together. The most common options on SpareRoom are usually, well, spare rooms in properties all across the United Kingdom, studio flats, or flat-shares. Rightmove Rightmove is another search engine for potential properties. The difference between Rightmove and SpareRoom is that Rightmove strikes us as a little more adult. There are even tools on the site to figure out whether an area will have the right schools for your potential children. However, if you are looking for properties to either rent or buy, this is a great website to explore. Zoopla Zoopla is pretty similar to Rightmove. However, its worth looking on both Zoopla and Rightmove because there might be alternative properties you may not have seen on other websites. Remember searching broadly may yield more potential house viewings. Gumtree Gumtree is essentially the United Kingdoms Craigslist equivalent. Its an online marketplace rather than just being a property search engine, meaning you can find just about anything on there. Gumtree could yield some surprising hidden gems, but as with Craigslist, we would advise you to proceed with caution with any listing on Gumtree, as it isnt as regulated as other property search engines would be. All Agents Maybe you want a more traditional method of searching for a house. That means youll want to use an estate agent! All Agents is a website that rates letting and estate agents in the UK, so you dont end up with an unsatisfactory deal. A word of warning: estate agents will incur administrative fees, so youll need to factor that into your budget. Knowing somebody who knows somebody who lives in London One resource you may have forgotten about are your current network of university pals. It doesnt hurt to reach out to any one of your older friends who currently live in London by private message. After all, they might know somebody who knows somebody who needs a flatmate in a cool area. If youre the shy type, sliding into someones DMs on Twitter might be the better method for you. However, an earnest Facebook post about your search for a room in London will yield more results than youd expect! I ended up living on someones couch for a couple of weeks house-hunting, and moved into a room with some friends of friends because I posted in on Facebook. The moral of the story? When youre house-hunting in London, you gotta do it with an open mind. Not  too  open though. This brings us to our final point the house viewing. Your house viewing checklist Attention, attention: weve got an important announcement. NEVER ??  SIGN  ??  A  ??  CONTRACT  ??  WITHOUT  ??  PERSONALLY  ??  SEEING  ??  THE  ??  HOUSE  ??. This is so important! Youre going to be spending two thirds of your life at home, so youll want to make sure your house is your safe space. Take lots of photos, ask lots of questions, and bring a buddy if youre going in the evening. The house hunting process might take a few weeks, so you might need to commute from your current location, or couch-surf for a bit. We swear this will be worth it better a temporary period of slummin it for a chance at a great place to live. Here are some things you need to keep in mind: Whats the area surrounding the property like? Are bills included? If yes, which ones? And if not, how much will bills be on average in addition to the rent. How old is the property, and how well has it been maintained? Were talking stuff like damp and disrepair cos nobody wants to be dealing with any mould. Is there any communal space at all? What are the facilities like the bathroom and kitchen like? Would you have your own? If not, do these shared spaces seem crowded at all? Consider the current tenants. Are  they a social bunch? Do you think youll get on? Does the property come fully furnished? What do you have to provide yourself? Also, a reminder to ask any questions about any missing information from the property listing. Dont forget to be polite and friendly yourself, as house viewings are basically like a job interview, but like, for a house. Landlords will be looking out for tenants they can trust, after all. Bear in mind, even if you fall in love with a property, the landlord or current tenants might go for a different person. In this case, shake it off, and move on to the next one. Stay safe, and hope your house hunting goes well! Check back next week for our next post in the guide: Your ultimate guide to budgeting on a graduate salary Connect with Debut on Facebook and Twitter

Should You Learn A Trade Or Head To College

Should You Learn A Trade Or Head To College Should you learn a trade or head to college? This is often the most fitting question for people around the age they are required to start supporting themselves. We all need to fly the nest at some point in our lives, and the willingness to do this is often hand in hand with the ability to. That means that it pays to research your options, or to help your child research theirs. The most informed choice you can make will always likely be the correct choice. There are many paths you may travel down after you finish school. You might throw yourself into your hobby, and try to make a living from that. It’s not uncommon for eighteen to twenty year olds to get lucrative jobs through a personal portfolio or list of experience. You might choose to enter the military. There are certainly good careers to be found there, and plenty of stability if you engage with the entire affair. You may decide to head to college. This is one of the default options for many people, as college plan are often figured out long before graduating for some people. However, the question remains. Should you learn a trade or go to college? What are the difference? How do you know if you’re cut out for either one. Might you regret choosing one over the other? We have a few assorted and loosely affiliated tips to potentially help you answer this question. They are as follows: Consider The Timeline There is something about this choice that is slightly disingenuous. It suggests that now is the only time in which you may make this decision. While a degree undertaken in your early twenties is of course preferable to one taking in your early thirties, it’s important to consider if you would be best served with some time after your high school graduation. College is not exactly an extension of school. It is a lesson in independence, something that you may never have truly tasted. Combined with a demanding course, this can cause some people to burn out or suffer from stress related illness. There is absolutely nothing wrong with sitting back for a few years and working in your hometown. You might choose to work and supplement your understanding with night courses, building your self-efficacy and reliability piece by piece until you gain a solid work ethic. Then, alongside the savings you have accrued, you are likely to find an excellent pursuit that you might not have originally thought of taking part in. This builds your competence. Then, maybe one or two years down the road, you might consider to learn more about your current trade, or then go to college a little more of an adult than you are now. Consider Your Attitude Many people want to go to college due to the partying lifestyle and ‘free love.’ It’s not always the best idea to do this however, especially considering the extortionate costs of going to college in the first place. It’s likely you’ll take out a massive loan in order to do this, with your parents or guardians co-signing responsibility for the loan. If you go bankrupt due to a lack of income or earnings, your student loan will still need to be repaid. For this reason, it’s absolutely essential you view university through an education-first standpoint. Never go there to party and relax for three years. You will regret it for the next decade. However, if you truly desire to learn more about something, university can be a great option. More and more though the normal bricks-and-mortar institutions are less than the premium. Many much cheaper online courses can be found online, lending you credibility and for a much reduced price point. All in all, it depends on your attitude. You should never force yourself to college for a fear of missing out. You should never do it because all your friends are going. You should never do it because you simply want to wait to work. You need to be one thousand percent sure that you’re interested in a course before you take it. Alternatively, consider looking into a foundation course. These are often one or two years long, and come at a fraction of the price of a full degree. However, they yield little in qualifications aside from eligibility for a full degree, so be sure to consider this option with care. These are usually reserved for those potentially looking to specialize heavily, such as in engineering or other options. The Prevalence Of Skills College has become something that is seemingly the default for people to visit and try to earn a degree out of. This has flooded the market with graduates, waving degrees at job postings and still struggling to gain any recompense from doing that. It’s not simply a cultural meme that graduates find themselves working at Starbucks, it’s true. Without the ability to intern for hours and stand out in your field, you’ll notice that job roles will dry up. A degree does not keep the strength it once did. This has led out for a true calling in specialized skills. There is nothing blue collar about this. Skills are the backbones for which society is formed, not thousands of people talking about their liberal arts degrees. This isn’t to disparage those who attend college, but you can only talk through abstract problems long enough before practical skills are needed. If hoping to push through and educate yourself on something with artistic or debating merit, consider simply reading heavily and learning a skill for a year or two. Then, if it’s something you’re passionate about going into, you will have secured this in your mind and have something to fall back on if nothing comes of it. Alternatively, consider studying STEM subjects or high-value degrees that are guaranteed  to at least help you get a foot in a door. With these tips, you can be sure that the overall decision to learn a trade or go to college is wise, and the two options bind each other to an outcome that makes the most sense and wisdom. That sounds pretty good to us.

Client Case Study Carrie Lamanna - When I Grow Up

Client Case Study Carrie Lamanna - When I Grow Up Um, do you know that Ive coached hundreds of women since I started offering dream career guidance in 2008? And that these women are freakin rock stars, leaving soul-sucking jobs and traveling the world and launching creative, grown-up businesses and simply doing work that fits their lifestyle goals? Well ya do now and youll hear their stories firsthand in my  Client Case Studies series!  Carrie was an unhappy academic when we first started working together back in 2012. Since then she quit her job, got a bridge job, had said bridge job company go under, started freelancing, and launched her dream business! The mom of 2 small kids, shes finally giving herself permission to do what shes passionate about. I adore her! Why did you decide to work with me, a creative career coach? I had always thought of myself as a creative, artistic person, but my career path had taken me in a very different direction than I intended. Instead of using my writing to express values and beliefs as I had done in high school and college, I found myself in an academic space that values detached, analytical writing and rule-following over everything else, and that is sooooooooo not who I am. I needed someone who could help me get my mojo back and figure out a new career path that would allow me to use writing as a means of self-expression and cultural and political protest. What were you doing work-wise when we started our sessions? I was an Assistant Professor of English specializing in writing studies. In other words, I taught academic writing and rhetoric. What was your biggest takeaway from our time together? That I have the right to love what I do for a living and that I can define for myself what makes for a legitimate career. I spent so much of my working life believing you had to choose your career from a set list handed to you by your parents or some school career counselor. I wanted to write and teach writing on my own terms, but didn’t believe it was possible. I always told my students they had to write what what they were passionate about or they would never learn to love writing, but I couldn’t give that permission to myself. Was there anything else you tried to do as a career between the time we stopped our sessions and what you do for work now? If so, how did it inform your current business? Sort of. I knew I was leaving my university job at the end of the spring semester, so I applied for a job at a virtual assistant company called Zirtual, thinking it would be a filler job for the next year until I could start my own writing coaching business. Well…the “too long; didn’t read” version is that the company went under three months after I was hired, just as my health insurance coverage was supposed to start. That experience solidified something I learned during our sessions together: working for someone else does not give you job securityâ€"that’s an illusion. So, after a day of wondering around the house trying to figure out what to do next, I started recruiting clients and working on my website. What would you tell someone now that was in your shoes when we first started working together? Whats your best tip to allow them to make a grown-up living doing what they love? 1.) Your happiness is not for sale. When we work for someone else, it is a sales transaction. They agree to pay you for a certain amount of your time and expertise, but they should never be allowed to take your happiness. Sometimes this means you have to create your own job, your own unique career path in order to do what you love. 2.) People will pay you to do what you love. For a long time, I was afraid of asking for “too much” when pricing my services, and all of my first clients ended up telling me I wasn’t charging enough. I think we have to market to ourselves first so we can believe in our own worth. Whats on the horizon for your business? Wed love to hear about any upcoming offerings or goals! I have been working with a small group of writing coaching clients over the past year, and have officially launched my coaching offerings! I work with women who are beginning a new project or writing practice after a period of writer’s block or who need a partner to help them develop the courage to start writing seriously for the first time. If all goes according to schedule, I’ll offer an online writing course in January for women who are working on overcoming their self-doubt and self-censoring so they can rediscover their courage and voice and write without fear.

How to Write a Linked In Resume Writing Program

How to Write a Linked In Resume Writing ProgramDo you know how to make a linked in resume writing a success? Most people who use linked in resume writing do not always get the best resume that they could have hoped for. What are some tips that you can follow to help with this?Do not base your strong resume off of any other person or organization. If you have been working for some company for a while, you can list your achievements and accomplishments from them. Make sure that they have sent out the resume in the first place. Just by listing some of your successes you will look like an authority in your field.Focus on your career goals and what you hope to achieve in the future. It is very important to think about what you hope to accomplish at work or at school before you even put together your resume. Getting a few thoughts in your head before you begin using resume writing software will help a lot.Link your resume by making sure that there is a link between it and your company or o rganization. One way to do this is to add an addition to your career page that shows a link back to your company. This can be done through either a header or by adding a link. This link is always pointing to the company's website.On your career page, you can also include links to your past jobs and a link to your most recent position. Some people even use links to their social media sites to show them off to their fans. Make sure that you add links to your LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube accounts to show how much your prospective employer respects you and wants to keep you in their organization. If you have any issues with them not accepting your resume, explain this to them and let them know that it is not their fault and you just need to update your profile.Make sure that your linked in resume writing includes specific training and experience. You want to make sure that you include all of the relevant information that will prove to your employer that you are knowledgeable of the job opening and willing to learn. Include experience for the specific job opening that you are applying for. Some jobs call for more experience than others. Find out if the position requires specific experience to apply for and make sure that you list all of your previous experiences.By following these tips, you will be able to put together a quality resume that is well thought out and written to impress your company and give yourself a chance to land the job that you have applied for. Make sure that you understand the way that the linked in resume writing program works and follow these tips to get the best resume possible.

The Strong Action Verbs for Resume Writing Pitfall

The Strong Action Verbs for Resume Writing Pitfall Additionally, it provides the outcomes of your actions. You will discover a very good collection. It's possible to also use FOGG index to understand the attribute of your document. Now, whenever you have a substantial word list available, you can become down to revamping before posting your resume online. The Importance of Strong Action Verbs for Resume Writing Your selection of words play an important function. Resume action words supply an assortment of advantages. Power words permit you to demonstrate your abilities and the strengths you possess. They are used for several reasons. The Strong Action Verbs for Resume Writing Cover Up Since a lot of the jobs would require you to be efficient in a team. The organization would like to observe how experience you're and whether you have the proper experience for the job. As a way to impress a possible employer, just about any word on your resume needs to pack a proverbial punch. Seriously, if you're employing any of these terminology, you want to create a change today! If you're asked a question which you don't know, inform them that you're not certain, take assistance and then continue with the answer. If you've got fundamental clear, it is going to be easy that you tackle the difficult, tricky questions too. A Secret Weapon for Strong Action Verbs for Resume Writing Budgeted cared for action, to ensure you have. The best method to do so is to use strong action verbs on your resume that demonstrate your particular skill collection. The Ideal Strategy for Strong Action Verbs for Resume Writing In doing this you will receive their attention and hopefully get that interview. Skills like an introduction to publicize your r sum and expert handyman cover letter, please let your work interview resources. The Chronicles of Strong Action Verbs for Resume Writing Unless you get a fantastic reason to enlarge your variety, the below success verbs ca n cover most bullets you are able to think about. More precise words may also add a little formality to your actions, she states. Quite simply, a sentence doesn't need to contain an adjective. If your language is the very same as everyone else's, it is going to be difficult for you to stand out. The Secret to Strong Action Verbs for Resume Writing It's possible for you to describe the very same bullet point in several ways, so opt for the way that makes you and your accomplishments sound the very best. You have a distinctive experience and a distinctive career story and you ought to be using your own words to describe that on your professional resume. If you've got a particular skill, make sure others know that if they want help, you're the one they ought to call. What to Expect From Strong Action Verbs for Resume Writing? You may also use two action verbs should they go together. Thus, make certain that you use powerful action verbs. What's more, you must avoid overusi ng the exact same verbs. The most suitable action verbs also get rid of the demand for adverbs, and sometimes, adjectives.

Pros And Cons Of Getting An Online Finance Degree - Work It Daily

Pros And Cons Of Getting An Online Finance Degree - Work It Daily Online education has become popular in the past several years. As technology improves, so does the quality of online education programs. Colleges and universities have started to accept the online teaching method more and more. Both teachers and students are getting more familiar with the process too, and have been doing some truly innovative things in online classrooms. There are still many people who can’t take online education seriously, because it’s a comparatively new method. They don't yet believe in its credibility. Should you get an online finance degree? Learning finance online can be very difficult because of how complicated the field is. Just like any other subject, getting a finance degree online has its advantages and disadvantages. In spite of the fact that students receive as valuable an online education as the campus-based one, there are still some things to be considered that will help you determine if an online finance degree is suitable for you. Take a look at these pros and cons of getting an online finance degree and decide for yourself. You may even be able to come up with a few new pros and cons. The Pros Of Online Finance Education Here are some of the pros of getting an online finance degree: Flexible Schedule Online studying is very flexible for people who work or have a family. Students may use course materials whenever it’s convenient for them. There are deadlines for submitting assignments that students have to meet, but they can always use their leisure to prepare their homework. With this educational method becoming more popular, many more universities and colleges start offering online programs. Students can choose to receive a certificate, a bachelor’s or a master’s degree at many accredited universities and colleges. Incredible Accessibility When studying online, students don’t have to rely solely on the notes they’ve taken in class, because they have all of the lectures recorded. This makes it much easier to go back and review whichever lectures you had the most trouble with or are interested in most at any time. No Commute Perhaps the most important advantage of studying online is the fact that you can study almost anywhere. It can take much more time to get to school for commuters. Online students can spend that time studying instead of travelling. Multimedia Since online education is based on technology, it’s pretty natural that there are a lot of different content platforms involved. Many courses that are led online offer video and audio presentations, word documents, slide shows, and interactive material. That makes it easier to be interested in the material and helps students learn more quickly. The Cons Of Online Finance Education ...And here are the cons: Less Interaction The role of lecturers is very limited in online education. They guide students through course materials by giving them pre-recorded instructions, rather than providing them with actual teaching. Interaction is very important for learning, since many questions may appear. And if not discussed on the spot, they may remain unsolved. Technology Requirements Sometimes people don’t have access to the proper technology, which stops them from choosing an online degree. In some cases their computers might not be up-to-date with the newest technology. Lack Of Socialization A very important feature that online education lacks is social interaction. Traditional face-to-face learning provides the opportunity to socialize basically all the time, while online education is very limited in communication. On the other hand, it takes much more effort to contact and communicate with other students when studying online, which can actually build good communication skills. Let’s face it: it gives a completely different feeling to studying at home than to be at the campus. Seeing the rest of the students passionately discussing matters that interest them can be very inspiring. If a person wants to experience everything life as a student has to offer, online education is not a suitable option. Current Lack Of Universal Credibility Receiving online finance education has gained more credibility in the past years. However, there are still many people who consider online platform much easier than traditional education, which means that there might be employers who wouldn’t hire people with an online education, or would rather choose someone with a traditional education. There are pros and cons that have to be considered when choosing to study finance online. Taking into account how difficult studying finance is, a person has to be very devoted to the process in order to get value out of the time at school, in-person or digitally. Enjoy this article? You've got time for another! Check out these related articles: Should You Consider A Career In Finance? Do You Need A Financial Fitness Routine? Should You Consider a Career in Financial Planning? Photo Credit: Shutterstock Have you joined our career growth club?Join Us Today!