Job Journal, Success Stories and a Job Seekers Strategy Ego

Job Journal, Success Stories and a Job Seekers Strategy Ego Recently I wrote a post about the idea of a Job Journal and the power of recording your past successes to help you communicate your value to people in interviews, on resumes, etc. Mary Lou Hely left a great comment: I’m a believer. The PAR statements make a critical difference in both keeping you from feeling like a loser for not having a job, and for positioning yourself as the ideal job candidate on your resume. I kept putting off the effort. I guess subconsciously I didn’t really believe I had any successes. But, finally one day recently, I just buckled down and started making notes of my successful experiences with each company I’d worked for. My brain hurt at the end of the day, but it completely changed my approach. I then took the rough notes, fine tuned them into brief, succinct PAR statements and transferred them to one of my resume versions. It’s pretty powerful let me tell you. What a boost of confidence it gave me! What a powerful statement it gave my resume! On my resume, instead of a long boring list of every job and responsibility I had, it zooms right into where I added the most value. I can pick and choose from my PAR statements to customize the resume for the type of job I’m targeting. It’s a GREAT exercise for every current and future job seeker. I hadnt thought of this exercise as something to help you change the way you think about yourself, or how you communicate (except that you can more effectively communicate your value props), but Mary Lou reminded me of how low you can get in a job search and that doing something like this can remind you that YOU HAVE SELF-WORTH! Heres what Id suggest, if you were my job-seeking client: Put off everything you had planned to do today, except for any phone calls that you have to make, and spend the entire day brainstorming wins and past accomplishments. If you can, like Mary Lou, get such value, isnt that worth the entire day??  She mentions: It can help keep you from feeling like a loser, It can completely change [your] approach, It can add meaty content to your resume, indeed, give your resume a powerful statement! Give you a BOOST of confidence! Give you PAR statements you can pick and choose from how powerful is that?? Awesome thanks for sharing Mary Lou! Brad Attig, a career coach, also left a great resource on developing your PARs.  Check it out here, and read his comment here. Job Journal, Success Stories and a Job Seekers Strategy Ego Recently I wrote a post about the idea of a Job Journal and the power of recording your past successes to help you communicate your value to people in interviews, on resumes, etc. Mary Lou Hely left a great comment: I’m a believer. The PAR statements make a critical difference in both keeping you from feeling like a loser for not having a job, and for positioning yourself as the ideal job candidate on your resume. I kept putting off the effort. I guess subconsciously I didn’t really believe I had any successes. But, finally one day recently, I just buckled down and started making notes of my successful experiences with each company I’d worked for. My brain hurt at the end of the day, but it completely changed my approach. I then took the rough notes, fine tuned them into brief, succinct PAR statements and transferred them to one of my resume versions. It’s pretty powerful let me tell you. What a boost of confidence it gave me! What a powerful statement it gave my resume! On my resume, instead of a long boring list of every job and responsibility I had, it zooms right into where I added the most value. I can pick and choose from my PAR statements to customize the resume for the type of job I’m targeting. It’s a GREAT exercise for every current and future job seeker. I hadnt thought of this exercise as something to help you change the way you think about yourself, or how you communicate (except that you can more effectively communicate your value props), but Mary Lou reminded me of how low you can get in a job search and that doing something like this can remind you that YOU HAVE SELF-WORTH! Heres what Id suggest, if you were my job-seeking client: Put off everything you had planned to do today, except for any phone calls that you have to make, and spend the entire day brainstorming wins and past accomplishments. If you can, like Mary Lou, get such value, isnt that worth the entire day??  She mentions: It can help keep you from feeling like a loser, It can completely change [your] approach, It can add meaty content to your resume, indeed, give your resume a powerful statement! Give you a BOOST of confidence! Give you PAR statements you can pick and choose from how powerful is that?? Awesome thanks for sharing Mary Lou! Brad Attig, a career coach, also left a great resource on developing your PARs.  Check it out here, and read his comment here.

Seeking New Career Options Consider Being A Pharmacy Tech

Seeking New Career Options Consider Being A Pharmacy Tech The need for all kinds of health care professionals continues to experience strong growth.  If youre considering new career options, one position youll want to consider is a pharmacy tech.   Heres why and some tips on how to get started. Pharmacy Tech Outlook If you have an interest in pharmacy, you probably know the requirements of becoming a fully licensed pharmacist.  But its worth looking at the benefits of opting for a pharmacy tech. Strong job growth projected.  Estimates are for 10% annually through 2024. Plentiful job openings now.  As of this writing, popular job sites typically have around 20,000 pharmacy tech positions listed Unlimited geographical opportunities.   Whether youre a city type or ready to find a more relaxed setting, there are job opportunities virtually everywhere. Short time required to become certified.  Its possible to become a certified pharmacy tech ready for employment in less that a year. For anyone dissatisfied with their present career or job, those are all important factors in choosing that new career. What To Look For Whether its a pharmacy tech or some other career path, the options for pursuing a new career today are much better than in the past. Especially for the already-employed.   Getting your education and certification online is now an accepted option.  That means most anyone can fit it into their schedule, plus the tuition is generally much less than at a traditional college. There are, of course, some things to watch out for.  As you look at your options, be sure to consider these: Academic Support Have you ever tried to learn something on your own just by reading a book?  Then you know the value of having qualified advisors who are available when questions come up.  So be sure to check both the schools literature as well as recent student reviews to confirm that youll have that needed support. As a plus, they should also provide career guidance as well as assistance in getting your testing and certification completed.  When you finish the program, you want to be fully ready for employment. School/Provider History Weve all seen the stories in the news of shady schools who are interested in little more than your tuition dollars.  While there are no sure things anywhere in life, doing thorough research on the school will definitely shift the odds in your favor.  How long have they been around?  Whats the percentage of their students who have successfully completed the program? Tuition and Other Costs The cost of an education is always an important factor in selecting a provider.  As you search, youll find quite broad variation.  While its probably true that the highest priced isnt necessarily the best, you may want to be wary of programs with suspiciously low tuition.  It costs less to provide a quality education program online, thats true.  But the provider has expenses and deserves to have a positive financial reward themselves. A Great Example Summarizing from above, the key points to look for are: Academic support. Flexible program that allows you to complete in a relatively short time. Reasonable costs. School reputation. We did some checking on this ourselves.  And we found that the New York Institute of Career Development meets all our criteria.  Theyre part of the Distance Education Company, which has been around serving up world-class education all over the world since 1910.  So even if you dont choose their pharmacy tech program, youll want to take a look at their offerings and policies to get a good idea of what to look for. Good luck in your new career! . Image credits. Main.    Pharmacy tech

On Catching The Wave To The Future

On Catching The Wave To The Future I grew up in SoCal.  If you live in LaLa land, as it is affectionately called, odds are that you either are a surfer, or you know one.  In LaLa land, in more ways than one, everyone wants to catch the next wave. If youve ever watched a talented surfer, you know how much skill it takes.  If youve ever tried surfing, you know what happens if you lack those skills.  And theres a lesson in surfing that applies to life in general, the future, and how you will meet that future.  How to see the next big thing before it arrives. A Lesson From The Surf As with most things, its easy to underestimate what it takes to achieve excellent results.  The skills of the talented surfer are easily missed because of the elegance of their ride.  But that seemingly perfect ride is preceded by careful observation. They wait and watch the patterns and signs, reading the signals that the casual observer misses. If they start their run too soon or too late, theyll either miss the wave or have the wave break on top of them.  Only when their observations, timing, and commitment to act come into harmony do they rise and ride. And everyone is able to hear the signals if they listen.  Anyone can catch the next wave, with the desire and determination to do so. The Wave To Your Future All around you, right now, the waves of technology, social trends, business cycles, and much more are sending you signals. Those are advance hints of whats ahead.  Tune into them, and youll have the opportunity to see and react to the next big thing, before its the next big thing. The most successful entrepreneurs in the world are also some of the keenest observers.  Its that habit of continual observation thats fueled their success.  They heard the messages of their observations, and took action to catch the perfect wave to their future.  As Jim Rohn said, We must become sensitive enough to observe and ponder what is happening around us. Be alert. Be awake. Let life and all of its subtle messages touch us.  Often, the most extraordinary opportunities are hidden among the seemingly insignificant events of life. If we do not pay attention to these events, we can easily miss the opportunities. The alternative is to be complacent and let the waves toss you where they may.  The choice is yours. The Signals Are Talking Have you ever found yourself asking the question, I wonder whats next?  Its time to take the next step and answer it.  And then take action.  Because the best leaders, the most successful in business are those who develop those abilities.   In her book The Signals Are Talking, author Amy Webb sums it up clearly: The only way forward is to pay close attention to the fringe, to listen for signals, and to democratize the tools of futurists so that more people are prepared for whats to come . . . Id recommend getting a copy of her amazingly entertaining and enlightening book to awaken yourself to the possibilities around you.  But whatever you do, make sure you learn to listen to what the signals are saying.  Its far better to ride the wave than to have it crashing over you. . Images via pixabay.