Youve Got One Chance to Make a Good First Day Impression

You’ve Got One Chance to Make a Good First Day Impression Millennials are known as job hoppers, and rightfully so. A recent Gallup poll revealed that 60 percent of Millennials are open to new job opportunities, and another report showed that on average, Millennials will change jobs four times by age 32. Certainly, with numbers like this, you might expect Millennials to be pros when it comes to making a great first impression on the new job and slaying their first-day jitters. “Actually that’s not the case,” says Sharon Schweitzer, an Austin, Texas-based business etiquette and cross-cultural trainer and founder of Protocol Etiquette Worldwide. “Some of the most common questions we get are: Is there something I can do to standout on my first day? Should I wear a suit on day one? Should I correct a co-worker or manager if I see a mistake or will I come across as a know-it-all?” Schweitzer says to make a strong first impression and put nerves at ease, there are five things that all new employees need to focus on. 1 Do Your Research and Absorb Company Culture As you would in any new venture, you find out what you’re walking into before you get there. There are certain things you can pick up through the interview process, by asking questions, and through your intuition, but do your own research ahead of time. “Before you start the first day, read and absorb everything you can find about company culture,” Schweitzer says.?“This includes social media postings, websites, employer profiles, any annual reports, and printed material. Study the leadership team and read about your new colleagues and supervisor on LinkedIn. Your purpose is to gain as much insight as possible before you walk through the door. 2 Arrive Early Showing up late for work any day is never a good idea, but it sends a critical message on your first day. Regardless of the circumstances, it conveys poor time management skills and hints that you don’t take the job seriously, even if that’s not the case. “Being on time is especially important on the first day, but arriving a few minutes early sends a clear message that you are motivated and ready to work,” Schweitzer said. “Take this time to familiarize yourself with your new surroundings and get comfortable.” 3 Dress and Groom for Success You may be the smartest and best employee in the building, but if you don’t look the part, nobody is going to take you seriously. Pay extra attention to your clothing and grooming. “Prepare your first-day outfit based on company culture and the job you seek, not the position you were hired to fill,” Schweitzer says. “In addition, have your wardrobe prepared for the entire first week in advance. Polish and repair shoes, and tailor, hem, or repair clothing. Iron, launder, and dry-clean dresses, shirts, and suits. Stock up on missing sundries. This doesn’t require going into thousands of dollars of debt, but a polished first impression will last long after your first day.” In addition, she recommends a hair trim, clean buffed nails, and clean teeth. A shower goes without saying, and skip the cologne. 4 Come Prepared When you were attending school, you showed up to the first day of class with the basics: pens, paper, books, etc. Your first day on the new job is no different. “Depending on company culture, bring both an electronic and traditional paper tablet in professional business cases,” Schweitzer says. “You may be ushered into training or ameeting immediately upon arrival. Avoid appearing hapless on day one with nothing for note taking. Do you want to send the message that theres nothing important the company can share with you?” 5 An Attitude of Gratitude Goes a Long Way You were the chosen one from what was quite possibly a large pool of qualified candidates, so be grateful for the new role and opportunity. “Remember that as the newly-hired employee, you have a lot to learn,” Schweitzer says. “Ask questions, listen closely, and be ready to receive constructive criticism. Don’t take anything personally; instead, respond to all critiques with a gracious, ‘Thank you.’” Speaking of thank you, Schweitzer also advises that you send a quick note of gratitude to those who helped you navigate your first day. It demonstrates that you’re glad to be part of the team. Join Dana Manciagli’s Job Search Master Class ® now and get the most comprehensive job search system available!

My Favorite Things Erins Picks - When I Grow Up

My Favorite Things Erins Picks - When I Grow Up This is a brand-new series I like to call My Favorite Things, based on the popularity of the posts where I list my favorite people and products/platforms. Now Im currently sharing a room with my friend Erin at WDS, but she sent over her favorite things to share with you. As a professional photographer, a co-owner of a social media production company and as Your Blog Doctor, I know shes gonna have a ton of gems up her sleeve. Enjoy! My Favorite Things by From Small Things Im Your Blog Doctor so when I say Ive heard a lot of blogging sob stories, you know its true. Designers who never respond, graphics that wont load. And there you are stuck with a site that only kind of works for your business and your brand. You might be creating epic content everyday, but WordPress is blocking you at every turn. Honey, Im here to help. Below is a list of my not-so top secret ESSENTIAL WordPress plugins that can help you run your blog and business more effectively. These are the ones I recommend to all of my clients. Theyre little things that can have a big impact. Some of them might even make running your website a little fun so dont say I didnt warn you. Backup Buddy / Sucuri I have a confession. Before I was Your Blog Doctor, I ran a  WordPress  website that crashed. I wasnt backing the site up and I had to recreate everything from old files that were missing lots of important stuff. I learned the ultra-hard way that having an easy-to-restore backup is as good as money in the bank. Backup Buddy is a premium plugin and in my mind its the best blog backup solution fullstop. Sucuri is a sort of companion service. For a small fee, they will scan your site as often as you want for malicious code (hackers!) and if they find any they will fix it for you as well! And they do it fast.  WordPress  is a fast-growing target for all sorts of nasty people and with these two plugins in my corner, I dont have to worry. Tweetily Im so glad someone made this plugin because it solves multiple problems at once. You set it up to randomly tweet out old content to drive new traffic to your site. You get fresh new tweets and your audience sees articles that they may have missed the first time around! Automation is amazing. WordPress Ping Optimizer Im going to get technical here, but dont freak out.  WordPress  has this wonderful built-in feature called pinging. Basically every time you update your site it sends out a little beacon to let search engines and indexes know that Hey, something new is here! Used properly it can help boost your search rankings. Unfortunately, its rarely used properly. The default WordPress setting means your site is spamming pinging services every single time you update, schedule or publish a post. This can get you banned from pinging services.  WordPress  Ping Optimizer allows you to change that so you only flag search engines on a schedule you set AND lets you specify tons more services to ping so you rank faster. Digg Digg Social Bar There are tons of social share bars out there, and Ive tried them all. This is my newest favorite by the folks who made the Buffer app (which you should also be using.) Its fully customizable and includes buttons for everything that can be turned on or off. Awesomesauce. Gravity Forms If youre running an online business, dont mess around with free contact forms. Gravity Forms, another premium plugin, is easy-to-use but full-featured as well. They also offer Paypal integration so selling off your site has never been easier. Scribe SEO This is a new, premium plugin that Ive been test driving lately and have really come to depend on. The main problem with SEO is that its a ton of work. Researching keywords doesnt necessarily tell you how to implement them in a way to get your articles noticed. Scribe is SEO that is a part of your writing and editing workflow. Its not a cheap service, but if youre trying to build an audience and links to your content, definitely give it a look. Your Blog Doctor is Erin Wigger. I have been building web sites since the dark ages of the internet. In 1993 you could find me running up my parents’ Compuserve bill and teaching myself HTML on a 386 Pentium computer. I have produced web sites for Microsoft and Expedia.com, among others.  I have designed and built WordPress themes for the past five years for fun and profit. As a  professional photographer, I’m uniquely attuned to the needs of creative clients and their businesses.  You shouldnt have to do it all by your lonesome. If youre stuck on what comes next, try a Triage Session to identify what your brand and business needs content plans, social media strategy, video lessons, usability or SEO and lay out a plan to get you there.  Want to know more?  Get in touch!

Use a Resume Writing Service For Your Job Search

Use a Resume Writing Service For Your Job SearchWriting a resume is just one of the vital aspects in a person's job search. In order to succeed, one should consider getting a resume and cover letter writing service. It has been observed that most employers depend heavily on resumes. This is the reason why one should get the right tools to write a resume.Getting the right kind of materials is important to write a successful resume. Even if you have good presentation skills, the truth is that the employer will not know if you are the best one to apply for the job if you do not give them the materials that will boost your chances. One way to improve your chances is to use a resume writing service.What does it mean to provide a resume? A resume is a document written by an applicant in which he or she explain his or her past and present accomplishments, educational background, work experience, as well as his or her skills and abilities. The primary purpose of having a resume is to build c onfidence with the employer in the eyes of them.With the proper resume and cover letter writing service, you can be assured that it will be delivered to the company that you have chosen. It will contain your personal information and the application form. One more good thing about getting the services of a resume writing service is that it can save you a lot of time and energy that can be invested in the different aspects of a job search.By choosing a professional resume writer, you will get all the necessary documents needed to prepare a resume and cover letter. That is one big advantage that you get from hiring a professional. They are experienced in writing resumes and cover letters. This means that the documents will be professionally written and well-written.A professional resume writer can handle a wide variety of applicants and can find the best candidate for you. Once you hire a professional, you can rest assured that your documents will be professionally written. In addition , they know how to edit resumes and how to set it up. Many resumes and cover letters are sent out without any of the required information included. The result is that you may miss the chance to hire a perfect candidate.When it comes to submitting your documents to various companies, you need time and effort to accomplish this task. Using a resume and cover letter writing service will give you the time to research and write a resume. You also need to give time to the resume writer to work. The advantage is that you do not have to spend too much time in researching and writing a resume.

5 Reasons To Never To Use an Infographic Resume (Examples)

5 Reasons To Never To Use an Infographic Resume (Examples) Spread the loveThe resume is the most important document in your job search. Its the first impression you make on a potential employer. You can be qualified for a position but if your resume isnt polished you wont get called for the interview. Many job seekers turn to infographic resumes in hopes of standing out from the competition.When should you use an infographic resume? NeverThis is almost always a terrible idea. No hiring manager is basing their decision around how well you design your resume. Your resume shouldnt look like an art project which is what many infographic resumes end up looking like.We will go through the reasons why you should never use an infographic resume.Infographic Resume Example:5 Reasons Never to Use an Infographic Resume#1 ATS OptimizationMost employers today use whats called an ATS (Applicant Tracking System) to automatically screen resumes. The ATS have a very hard time reading infographic resumes which means the resume could be automatically rejected .ATS resume scanning software is designed to scan a resume for work experience, skills, education and other relevant information. If it feels the resume is a good match for the position, it gets sent forward to the hiring manager. Those which dont meet the qualifications are rejected and the resume is never seen by a human.ATS Resume Test  You can see how your resume performs in an actual ATS scan with our Free Resume Review:Free Resume Review#2 Resume TailoringYou need to be tailoring your resume to each position you apply to. That includes changing some of the content (Summary, keywords and work experience) to better match the job posting. Sending the same resume to every position you apply to is not effective. It does take some time to tailor your resume but you will really start to notice those call backs.Infographic resumes are very difficult to tailor. Changing the design or adjusting the text could be challenging with an infogrpahic resume.Stick to a standard resume format. We wrote a good post here on which resume format to use.  #3 Unusual FormattingHiring managers only look at a resume for an average of 6 seconds.  They quickly scan for relevant experience, skills and education. No hiring manager is going to sit there and try to dissect your resume and figure out where the information theyre looking for is.When looking through hundreds of resumes per day they want to see a resume that fits a traditional format so they can quickly find the information theyre looking for.#4 UnprofessionalHow do you dress for an interview?You want to appear as professional as possible. You wouldnt wear a tie dye shirt to an interview to stand out from the competition would you?This is the same reason you wouldnt turn your resume into an art project. You want to appear professional at all times during your job search.#5 Focus on ContentUnless youre a graphic designer, its hard to create an infographic resume. Many job seekers put to much focus on the design of the r esume rather than the actual content. Your experience, skills, education and achievements are what gets you the interview not the design of your resume. Focus on writing a resume that really helps you stand out from the competition.So what does a good resume format look like?Here is a good example:Closing ThoughtsAvoid using an infographic resume for the reasons we laid out above. Many job seekers think it helps give them an edge, but it could actually be doing more harm than good.Hiring managers also prefer a traditional resume format.Focus your attention on developing a resume that highlights relevant skills and experience rather than colors and graphics.Best of luck with your job search! 5 Reasons To Never To Use an Infographic Resume (Examples) Spread the loveThe resume is the most important document in your job search. Its the first impression you make on a potential employer. You can be qualified for a position but if your resume isnt polished you wont get called for the interview. Many job seekers turn to infographic resumes in hopes of standing out from the competition.When should you use an infographic resume? NeverThis is almost always a terrible idea. No hiring manager is basing their decision around how well you design your resume. Your resume shouldnt look like an art project which is what many infographic resumes end up looking like.We will go through the reasons why you should never use an infographic resume.Infographic Resume Example:5 Reasons Never to Use an Infographic Resume#1 ATS OptimizationMost employers today use whats called an ATS (Applicant Tracking System) to automatically screen resumes. The ATS have a very hard time reading infographic resumes which means the resume could be automatically rejected .ATS resume scanning software is designed to scan a resume for work experience, skills, education and other relevant information. If it feels the resume is a good match for the position, it gets sent forward to the hiring manager. Those which dont meet the qualifications are rejected and the resume is never seen by a human.ATS Resume Test  You can see how your resume performs in an actual ATS scan with our Free Resume Review:Free Resume Review#2 Resume TailoringYou need to be tailoring your resume to each position you apply to. That includes changing some of the content (Summary, keywords and work experience) to better match the job posting. Sending the same resume to every position you apply to is not effective. It does take some time to tailor your resume but you will really start to notice those call backs.Infographic resumes are very difficult to tailor. Changing the design or adjusting the text could be challenging with an infogrpahic resume.Stick to a standard resume format. We wrote a good post here on which resume format to use.  #3 Unusual FormattingHiring managers only look at a resume for an average of 6 seconds.  They quickly scan for relevant experience, skills and education. No hiring manager is going to sit there and try to dissect your resume and figure out where the information theyre looking for is.When looking through hundreds of resumes per day they want to see a resume that fits a traditional format so they can quickly find the information theyre looking for.#4 UnprofessionalHow do you dress for an interview?You want to appear as professional as possible. You wouldnt wear a tie dye shirt to an interview to stand out from the competition would you?This is the same reason you wouldnt turn your resume into an art project. You want to appear professional at all times during your job search.#5 Focus on ContentUnless youre a graphic designer, its hard to create an infographic resume. Many job seekers put to much focus on the design of the r esume rather than the actual content. Your experience, skills, education and achievements are what gets you the interview not the design of your resume. Focus on writing a resume that really helps you stand out from the competition.So what does a good resume format look like?Here is a good example:Closing ThoughtsAvoid using an infographic resume for the reasons we laid out above. Many job seekers think it helps give them an edge, but it could actually be doing more harm than good.Hiring managers also prefer a traditional resume format.Focus your attention on developing a resume that highlights relevant skills and experience rather than colors and graphics.Best of luck with your job search!

Are Franchises Really More Successful Than Independent Businesses - Work It Daily

Are Franchises Really More Successful Than Independent Businesses - Work It Daily We hear a lot of questions on this topic. Is there an accurate answer? Let’s look at some of the data. According to the International Franchise Association, franchise companies often have a revenue advantage over independents. Sometimes a very large advantage. In the food and retail sectors, for example, franchises make up only fifteen percent of the business units, but they receive 40% of the revenues. Do the math â€" these franchisees average much more revenue than the typical independent business. This seems like a huge difference. Is there any logic to it? Of course there is. If not, why would thousands of people thoroughly research franchises each year and then decide to invest? No rational person would pay the franchise fees required to open a franchise unless they saw a clear benefit to the franchise system. What kind of advantages are there? We usually focus on three: 1. Franchises provide a proven system. They have already figured out what works and what doesn’t. They know what demographics need to be, how many employees you need, what kind of advertising works best. The franchise company learned their lessons the hard way â€" by making expensive mistakes. They already tried advertising that doesn’t work. When you become a franchisee they will share this information with you. In a snap, you have access to all of that learned experience. 2. Franchises provide support and training. Remember, the franchise companies make more money when the franchisees make more money. They have every incentive to help the individual franchisee succeed. Good franchise companies get this. Because of this, most franchise companies have employees with the sole task of supporting the franchisees. Typical areas might be IT support, Sales Training, Advertising, Accounting, and Human Resources. Imagine the cost of an independent business trying to hire experts to give advice in all of these areas! 3. Before you invest a single dollar into a franchise, you can find out all about it. This is the advantage that gets people’s attention. With an independent business you have to make a lot of assumptions as you do your business plan. You really have no way of knowing if those are realistic. With a franchise, there are many other franchisees who have already started this exact same type of business. They are all a resource to you. As part of your research you have the right to call as many of the existing franchisees as you like and find out what their experiences have been. It is a federal regulation that the franchise company gives you a list of every franchisee, including the phone number. You have no need to make an assumption that might not be accurate. If you aren’t sure, just ask some existing franchisees. They will tell you if you are on the mark or not. These are some of the reasons franchises are more successful. But let’s look at actual data. According to a study by the accounting firm Arthur Anderson, 96.9% of franchise units were still successfully in business five years after opening. Similarly, a study by the U.S. Small Business Administration found the average franchise had five times the first year revenue of the average independent business. If you think about it, it all makes sense. We would all expect a business with more support, more training, and a more proven way of doing business to have the best chance of success. It turns out the numbers back this up: Franchises are more successful than independents. Your Next Step First, watch my short video below where I elaborate a little more on this topic. Then, opt in on the next page to receive access to my FREE video archive. This library includes eight different tutorials that will teach you how to own a franchise the right way. FREE ACCESS ? Franchise versus independent business image from Shutterstock Have you joined our career growth club?Join Us Today!

Multiple Jobs From Same Company On Your Resume

Multiple Jobs From Same Company On Your Resume How to include multiple jobs from the same company on your resumeThis is how to format a resume for multiple orts at the same job. So youve been promoted or changed positions with an employer, and youre unsure how to present this on your resume. There are two ways to format your positions stack the job titles under the employers anthroponym, or create separate position descriptions.Approach 1 Stack the job titlesThis strategy is good if you would like to emphasize your highest-level position and show promotions within the organization. Include the overall date range for your employer next to the company name and location, followed by a list of positions in reverse chronological order (most recent first). For exampleCOMPANY NAME - City, State, 2/01 to presentStore Manager, 8/03 to presentAssistant Manager, 5/02 to 8/03Clerk, 2/01 to 5/02To emphasize your promotional advancement, lead your position description with something like Promoted to store manager to... and then describe the challenges and responsibilities that you assumed with your promotion. Be sure to include a bulleted list of achievements, which can reflect your contributions from any of your positions.On your Monster resume, you can keep one employment listing by including your highest position in the Formal Title field, and then explaining that you held other positions in the Work Description section.If you held numerous positions (five or more) with one employer, the above list of job titles will start to take up valuable space on your resume. Summarize your early job titles using one line of text. For exampleCOMPANY NAME - City, State, 2/01 to presentStore Manager, 8/03 to presentAssistant Manager, 5/02 to 8/03Early Positions Student Intern, Clerk and Retail Sales Rep, 2/01 to 5/02Approach 2 Create separate position descriptionsIf each of your positions is strong and relevant, separate the job titles and provide individual position desc riptions. This approach is a great way to reveal your achievement history according to position and time frame. Pay attention to how you format these jobs so that you dont appear to be job-hopping. By keeping the overall date range next to the employers name and indenting the job titles, the reader will easily see that you moved around within one organization. For exampleCOMPANY NAME - City, State, 2/01 to presentStore Manager, 8/03 to presentDescribe responsibilities and achievementsAssistant Manager, 5/02 to 8/03Describe responsibilities and achievementsClerk, 2/01 to 5/02Describe responsibilities and achievementsOn Monster, simply provide a new employment entry for each position.Draw attention to promotionsHighlighting your promotions shows potential employers that your previous supervisors valued your work performance. Even zur seite hin gelegen moves suggest you were able to handle diverse responsibilities. Here are a few ways to describe your promotionsRepeatedly recognized fo r top performance through fast-track promotions and selection for high-priority initiatives.Earned promotion following superior performance and demonstrated ability to quickly learn and master complex concepts.Established an accomplishments-driven career highlighted by rapid acceleration to increasingly responsible positions.Achieved promotional advancement from earlier positions.Get your resume reviewedShowing off a promotion or lateral move indicates to hiring manager that youre invested in your professional developmentand companies like to see that. But thats not all your resume needs in order to be effectiveNeed some help?Get a free resume evaluation today from the experts atMonsters Resume Writing Service. Youll get detailed feedback in two business days, including a review ofyour resumes appearance and content, and a prediction of a recruiters first impression. Its a quick and easy way to make sure your resume is clear, organized, and ready for the job search.

The Biggest Myth About Things to Put on a Resume Exposed

The Biggest Myth About Things to Put on a Resume Exposed On a resume, it does not have any place. Member area The excellent resume builders online will provide you with a members area that you could join. Obviously you wouldnt wish to violate the privacy of any particular person competing for the exact sort of job. Psychological Services Attending college and leaving home for the very first time may be a remarkable stressor on a person. Whispered Things to Put on a Resume Secrets The options are endless with 100s of unique places she could wind up working. Maybe you are earning a career change into a totally new profession. Actually, in regards to first resumes and job applications, the idea ought to be to take care of the process for a learning experience. Choosing Things to Put on a Resume Ensure that yur resume contains everything the employer has to be convinced that youre a great match for the position. You ought to find specific job opening posted by a particular business you would love to submit an application for. Have a look at our 8 job skills you ought to have page to find some of the things which employers are commonly on the lookout for. One of the absolute most important features of your resume to a prospective employer is your employment history.