Explore options

Being in job is not always good, at times it is confining. It limits your thinking to paychecks and 6PM (when your office bells calls off the day). Now as you are out of job, you have an opportunity to explore many more options, at least until you again get into job. Thinking of things that you can do apart from the job that you have been doing till date. Who knows you end up finding something that makes your heart racing.

Title, what title?

Title means nothing. I know you find it hard to believe it, and especially if you had been in the habit of being referred as senior manager, or vice president direct sales, or whatever. But, the fact is title means a dime. Do not chase titles, rather chase your heart, and find something that you like to do. If work is of your liking then why do you care if you are called a manager or VP?

Start a business

We all have a self-starter within us; all we need to do is give a shout to call it out of the closet. If you are not getting a job then take it as a blessing and start doing something that you wanted to do all your life. Did you want to go knitting, gardening, etc.? Take up this opportunity and start your own small business.

You will be your own boss, and no one will fire you from there. Make a business plan, find an investor (if you need one), and get going.

This marks the end of this bite-size post of the series. I have kept each post small so that you can chew the information provided in its perfectly, assimilate it, and put each tip to use.

In this article, I have tried to provide a workable “feedback seeking system” which you can use to get a proper feedback. You can also modify the system, if you feel something is missing.

Step 1: Define your feedback goal

Why you want a feedback and on what? The answer to this question matters a lot. A generic feedback like, “all is good” or “there is some problem here and there, but the rest is good” will not do any good. Set a target for why you want a feedback. If you have written something then the feedback you can seek could be related to your writing style, coherence, grammatical and punctuation errors, or overall understandability. You can subdivide your work in this way and ask for feedback about the particular thing you want to know.

Step 2: Qualify your feedback source

Do not seek feedback from anyone and everyone. It will do no good. A proper feedback should come from a qualified source. Ask your senior, your client, your boss, your teacher, or anyone who is more qualified than you are on the subject for the feedback. A washerwoman’s feedback on the structure of your SQL database will serve nothing.

Do not ask your family or the closest friend who knows everything about your project for the feedback. Good or bad, it will never give you the feedback that you can use.

Step 3: Ask targeted question

Ask questions relevant to the feedback goal you set in step one. Do not pose generic question, as it will not fetch desired answer. Ask a targeted question and listen patiently for the answer.

Step 4: Promise anonymity

If feedback sought is for something or someone else then assure your source that his or her identity will be kept hidden if he or she wishes to do that. And if the feedback is about you then tell the feedback source that his or her honest opinion will not tarnish your relationship. This is very important.

Conclusion

Do not lose heart if you do not get positive feedback from all quarters. No matter how smart your source is, he or she can still be short-sighted or wrong. Show confidence in your ability.

“I am the king” Attitude

Attitude problem is one of the biggest reasons why people get laid off. There is no dearth of people who think they are invincible and a company cannot survive without them, thus they deserve a royal treatment. And thus they start neglecting or humiliating people. These are the kinds who always are found fighting with his boss or subordinates on even issues of no real importance. Avoid being such person, or the exit door will be nearer than you are imaging.

Coming late and leaving early

Your office is not your garden, so better do not treat it as such. It is unwise to reach office late, regularly, and it is doubly fatal to return from office before time, everyday. When I say before time, I do not mean you return before the designated time, what I mean is returning home without finishing day job. Do not fool yourself in believing that a 9-to-5 job means strictly 9-to-5. The work-hour does starts at 9, but thinking of its ending at 5 is crazy.

Going by the job description

If you assume you have to do only what is written in your job description then let me take the blinkers off, and show you what all you need to do to survive in the job you have. I am not talking about occasional drifts from the job description you got while joining, I am talking about doing those things that was never ever mentioned. One has to do things beyond the written (or oral for that matter) job description to survive today.

So it’s important to take time and care when writing your self review.  Allow yourself plenty of time to get the work done.  That means setting aside time everyday for a few days to work on the self evaluation.  This way you aren’t stressed, or rushing at the last minute to complete the project.  This also gives you time to go over your responses a few times, and make sure that you’re satisfied with what you’ve written.  Don’t turn in a review that you aren’t happy with.

Make sure that you’ve been compiling a list of your accomplishments, as that is a necessity for your self review.  Highlighting accomplishments accurate is a great statement in itself.  Not only do you have the great examples of your importance, but you also show your attention to detail by having the accurate records.  Both are fantastic traits magnified by the self review.

Remember to be honest when assessing the areas where you need improvement.  Nobody is infallible, and if you review suggests that you are, it’s a sham.  Your manager already knows that skills that you need to work on, and wants to see that you agree.  By being honest, and putting your actual weaknesses, you show that you are aware and are working to better yourself.  That’s what a boss wants.

Well, realize that most people who feel underemployed are generally dissatisfied with their jobs.  Usually this stems from either a salary that is below your standards, the lack of opportunities to express your skills, or just not enough work for you to complete.  In any situation you can find yourself feeling unhappy at the workplace.  Which is exactly why you should take this opportunity to resolve that situation.

Try making yourself more of an asset to the company.  If you find yourself not getting enough work, try asking for more.  If you’re not happy with your salary, make yourself stand out so that the company has no choice but to recognize you for your accomplishments.  Try asking your boss for more assignments, or ways that you can help out by taking on workload from other sources.  Gives you something to do, and helps you become more of an asset.

If you’re unhappy with the position in general, you can use the extra time to network.  Hit the break room, or the cafeteria and make friends with the people around you from other departments, or other companies.  Find out what opportunities are around you that you didn’t know about.  You could end up finding the job of your dreams, you just have to put in the effort to search.  If the company you’re at now isn’t meeting your standards, networking can help you find a new opportunity that will.  Anything is better than staying underemployed and unhappy.

Make sure your resume is properly up to date.  The last thing anybody wants to see is an old resume that you’ve been using for a few years.  That shows no initiative, a lack of effort, and will reflect poorly on your work ethic.  You definitely don’t want a potential boss counting strikes against you before you even have a chance to interview.

Keep your resume professional.  While I always stress making your resume unique and tailored to each job that you apply for, don’t step out of the professional mold.  Keep your font generic and readable, and stick to the standard resume format.  Just tailor the information to each job that you apply for.  That’s the best way to make a great impression.

Don’t send your resume without a cover letter.  The cover letter is the standard starting point of any application, and a resume sent without one is incomplete.  The resume only serves as a list of professional accomplishments and goals, the cover letter is where you put these into perspective with your personality.  The cover letter sells you, and shows that you are the best employee for the job.  Take advantage of the opportunity.

Finally, make your objective statement absolutely clear.  You have to have a clear cut idea of what you intend to give, and get from the job you are applying to get.  This is extremely important to a potential employer, so you want the statement to be as clear and understandable as possible.  You wouldn’t want someone tripping over the first, and most vital part of your resume.

One of the most common you’re almost guaranteed to be hit with is, why should they hire you?  This is a trick question, because they are testing out the waters, trying to decipher your answer.  The worst response you can have is a generalized, almost automated response.  Something like “I’m a motivated worker and willing to contribute to the team” is a good example of a horrible answer.  This is much too general, and a good example of what they’ll hear from almost anyone.  Be honest, and offer real reasons on why you should get the job.

What’s your greatest weakness?  Another question to test you.  Think about your answer carefully, and don’t answer too eagerly.  This isn’t a chance to admit a real weakness, but rather expose an aspect of your past that you’ve moved beyond.  Turn this around into an accomplishment.  Like admitting a weakness in the past, and how it inspired you to become better overall.

Any question about your former boss is a set up to how you’ll treat the company when your time with them is nearing the end.  The last thing you want to do is boss bash, because that makes you appear selfish.  Anyone that’s willing to trash a former employer in talking to a new potential employer, is a selfish one that could be a detriment to the overall staff.  Not to mention the last thing they want if you end up leaving that job, is for you to run around bad mouthing them.

The question of your greatest professional accomplishment can be a little tricky.  But overall that question should be seen as an opportunity more than anything else.  Really this is a chance for you to sell yourself, and accurately describe a reason why you’re an asset to any company.  Take advantage of the opportunity you’re given through the question.  Shine like the great employee you are, and let the story speak for itself.

First off, ensure that you know the situation.  If your company is basically on fire and jobs are falling left and right, and not even your boss seems to be safe, probably not the best place for a raise.  But if things seem fairly comfortable, with a few worries here and there, you could have a good shot.  Just make sure you don’t paint a target on your back by asking for more than the company will think you deserve.

Asses your worth to the company before asking for a raise.  If you find people have been laid off or fired in your department, but you have survived the scrutiny, there has to be a reason for that.  Asses your accomplishments and your skill set, so that you can see why the company values you.  This will give you good groundwork to make use of in an argument for why you deserve a raise.

Finally, using your track record as a resource, go in and ask for a raise with your previous accomplishments as your foundation.  Be prepared to get rejected, after all it’s recession, and this is more of a long shot than anything else.  But be courteous and stay positive, and illustrate this isn’t a deal breaker for you, as to whether or not you’ll stay with the company.  You’d just like a raise or a promotion for your continuing efforts in helping the team strive for success.  Make that point evident, and you’ll be fine.

But if you want to be a writer, the first step is making sure you have the skills.  I’m not necessarily talking about the degrees you think you need, but rather the knowledge.  If you want to be a freelancer you absolutely need the Associated Press Stylebook.  It’s a listing of everything you need to know for journalism trends concerning grammar, spelling, and how you should write a journalistic article for any topic.  It’s your writing bible, so keep it with you while you write until you know the facts inside and out.

Start up a personal blog.  This will serve for a resume of sorts, where you can continually update your personal accomplishments and day to day musings.  Your blog will serve as a good introduction to employers, and could even earn you extra money in the process, from advertising.  Not to mention it’s a free and easy way to hone your writing techniques, something you desperately need to do at all times.

Keep a list of your goals around your work area, so that you can keep sight of your target.  That way whenever you’re feeling less than motivated to be a successful writer, you have constant motivation.  Never stop working toward those goals, and keep them close to your heart.  Anything is possible if you’re willing to work for what you want.

Finally, now that you’re set to really get started, look for work.  Submit your writing to websites, there are a plethora available for freelance writers.  In the beginning be prepared to work for low money to develop a good work history, or even free at times.  But once your history is more reputable, the better jobs will consider you.  The more of a name you can make for yourself, the more valuable and expensive your services will become.

The first thing you should know about being good at making small talk, is to stay away from controversial subject matter.  Stay away from political news stories, and religious views, etc.  These are typically topics that people have very strong opinions about, and if yours happen to be different, it can spark a fairly heated debate.  A heated debate is not what you want to be on the opposite side of, when you’re chatting with your boss at the water cooler.  Instead focus on more simple things, like personal experiences.

Show genuine interest in what the other person has to say.  This is key, as anybody will know if you’re feigning interest to perhaps gain favor with that person.  Care about what they have to say, and offer good insightful as well as courteous input in return.  By genuinely caring and giving good positive input from your perspective, you make a positive connection.

Try to keep a list of news stories or popular movies that have recently come out, in your mind.  This way you’ve got good topics to bring up, and ones that most people are well aware of.  Plus movies and common news stories are good safe topics that almost anyone can connect to, and have a lighthearted conversation about.  Lighthearted friendly conversation that can easily be enjoyed by anyone is the key.  The better you get at small talk with your coworkers, the more well known you’ll be around the office, and that gives your work a better chance at being noticed.

Start of by knowing your audience.  The format of an email to a colleague, opposed to one directed at your boss, you’ll find are written a different way.  Think about how well you know the person, as well as how they fit into the company ladder, as each point will affect your tone throughout the email.  But no matter how well you think you know a person, never get too informal.  Don’t compromise your professionalism for anything.

Know what you’re writing about, before you compose the email.  If it’s an answer to a question, make sure that you know the answer forwards and backwards.  The worst thing you can do is give an incorrect answer when someone has come to you for help.  So do your research!

Keep the purpose of the email in mind, and stay on topic with that purpose.  You want the email to just be a quick question or answer.  Something that a person can read with ease, take what they need, and then move on to getting more work done afterward.   You don’t want your email to serve as a distraction, not at work.

Address everyone formally, and never make the email about your personal issues.  The last thing you want to do is drone on about something that’s making you angry at work.  Just stay on topic, keep it short, and remain professional and courteous.

-Try keeping a list of achievements as you accomplish them, as that always comes in handy later.  This way you have detailed evidence for why you’ve been a good employee this term.  Having the facts to back up your claims is always a very important thing to have on your side.

-With that great list of achievements you’ve been keeping, now you can make use of it in the actual writing of your review.  On almost any personal review you’ll notice many categories seem very redundant, almost as if they’re asking for the same information multiple times.  Take that list of achievements and decide which fits into each category the best.  Have a copy of your job description on hand so that you can better distribute them into the right categories.

-Try to find a comfortable middle ground when you rate your actual performance level.  You don’t want to show that you feel you’re a perfect employee.  Otherwise your boss will feel you believe you’ve hit your peak.  In which case if your boss doesn’t agree, you almost make yourself expendable by looking like an employee that’s given all they have to offer.  Don’t mark yourself too high or too low.  This way if you’re one of the top employees you show that you feel you have room for growth, so that you can become even better.

If you find yourself waiting till the last minute to accomplish tasks, working from home may not be for you.  You need to effectively manage your time.  The last thing you’d want is to be up against a deadline that looms ever closer, that you shouldn’t have to worry about.   If you don’t think you’ll be able to manage your time without a boss checking in every once in a while, this may not be the career for you.

Make sure that you have the space in your home to create an adequate working environment.  You don’t want to be converting an area like your living room, or bedroom.  Both are full of distractions and can lead you to unintentionally losing focus when working.  You  have to ensure that you have the room to make your own office.  A place where you can be free from non-work related distractions.  A sanctuary of at home production to where you can always accomplish your goals.

Also, you need to be a very self motivated person.  You have to make a lot of decisions for yourself when you work at home.  You only have yourself to fall back on, which means you have to keep yourself positive and goal focused.  Part of that is avoiding the temptation to get personal tasks done when you’re supposed to be working.  Try to avoid household chores or things you wanted to get done while you’re working.  This will lead to longer term distractions which can lead to major procrastination on your part.  That is absolutely always bad.

Taking those thoughts into account, you are better prepared to make your case.  Start out by making an appointment with your boss for a personal meeting.  Springing a situation like this on your superior is never a good idea.  Talking money is not a great surprise conversation for anyone, and your boss won’t appreciate being sprung with that at all.  So ensure you avoid that confrontation, and set up an appointment to meet with them, but don’t tell them the situation just yet.

Try to have the meeting take place in a different area than the boss’ office.  In their office they are the master of the domain, and will act as such, creating a power shift from your arguments to theirs.  So try some neutral territory, like a working lunch.  Take your boss out and have the meeting at a restaurant, that gives you a good level playing field, and if you offer to pay for the meal, a happy boss to start out with.  Otherwise you can always try a neutral meeting room around the office, or an empty break room.  Anywhere but the boss’ office is good for making your case.

Practice your argument for why you feel you deserve a raise.  This way you know the points you want to make, and will appear prepared and knowledgeable about the situation at hand.  Also it gives you an opportunity to answer any arguments your boss may have, through your understanding of the facts.  But remember to always be courteous, this isn’t a “give me a raise or I’ll leave scenario“.  This is just an opportunity to outline your worth to the company, and your hardworking nature which makes you feel worthy of a raise.

Finally, just be cautious to not cross a line that your boss wouldn’t appreciate you crossing.  Stay courteous and professional, and overall positive even if the meeting doesn’t go the way you want.  Your boss already knows whether or not they want to give you a raise before you’re even having the meeting, this is just a chance to take some initiative.  If your boss doesn’t want to pay you more, you’re not going to get it, so don’t take that personally.Feeling that you deserve a raise for your hard work is all well and good, but bringing about the fact is a fine art.  You have to time your approach perfectly and ensure that you are well prepared to make your point in outstanding fashion.  Anything less can lead to an uncomfortable confrontation the likes of which you’d want to forget.  Or worse, could lead your boss to think it may be time to look for a different employee happy to work at your pay level.

Taking those thoughts into account, you are better prepared to make your case.  Start out by making an appointment with your boss for a personal meeting.  Springing a situation like this on your superior is never a good idea.  Talking money is not a great surprise conversation for anyone, and your boss won’t appreciate being sprung with that at all.  So ensure you avoid that confrontation, and set up an appointment to meet with them, but don’t tell them the situation just yet.

Try to have the meeting take place in a different area than the boss’ office.  In their office they are the master of the domain, and will act as such, creating a power shift from your arguments to theirs.  So try some neutral territory, like a working lunch.  Take your boss out and have the meeting at a restaurant, that gives you a good level playing field, and if you offer to pay for the meal, a happy boss to start out with.  Otherwise you can always try a neutral meeting room around the office, or an empty break room.  Anywhere but the boss’ office is good for making your case.

Practice your argument for why you feel you deserve a raise.  This way you know the points you want to make, and will appear prepared and knowledgeable about the situation at hand.  Also it gives you an opportunity to answer any arguments your boss may have, through your understanding of the facts.  But remember to always be courteous, this isn’t a “give me a raise or I’ll leave scenario“.  This is just an opportunity to outline your worth to the company, and your hardworking nature which makes you feel worthy of a raise.

Finally, just be cautious to not cross a line that your boss wouldn’t appreciate you crossing.  Stay courteous and professional, and overall positive even if the meeting doesn’t go the way you want.  Your boss already knows whether or not they want to give you a raise before you’re even having the meeting, this is just a chance to take some initiative.  If your boss doesn’t want to pay you more, you’re not going to get it, so don’t take that personally.

Well!

PR stands for public relation, and press release is a very important tool to accomplish the public relation goal. We will not go deep into describing public relation in this blog post, suffice it to say that unlike advertisement, which is a direct communication from the company, public relation is the third party endorsement of a brand or company.

The essence of successful PR campaign lies in the anonymity of the company who created or ran the campaign. Most of the news that you read in the newspaper is actually a direct outcome of PR.

Why should I write a press release

Well, press releases are written to communicate to the general public the recent developments in the company in question. And by development I mean meaningful development, and not developments like these: your boss moved up to another position, or your CEO just sneezed. Developments that make news should be newsworthy. Some eminent personality of BBC (perhaps, I cannot be sure of who he was) once said,

“If a dog bites a man, it is not a story, but if a man bites a dog it is news.”

Following the lead many companies create the artificial “a man biting a dog” stories to get press coverage, and it get covered.

Why?

Journalists get either paid to do that or they are stupid enough to not separate wheat from chaff.

For whom should I write a press release?

As with any form of corporate communication that goes outside the corporate boundary, the ultimate target audience of a press release is the general public, but this is not what we should be primarily concerned with while writing the press release.

If we do so, our press releases will not be taken. The direct target audience of a press release is the journalist who is going to do his story based on the press release that we will send him about us. If the journalist is not impressed, our press release will hit the trash bin sooner than it should.

The general public is the indirect target audience of a press release. Their interest should also be at back of your mind while writing a press release, or else, why would you write one?

A parting thought

When I started writing this post, I thought this will be a single stand-alone post on press releases, but after reaching to this point I felt, I will not be doing justice to the topic, if I do not cover every aspect of press releases, and this gave me an opportunity to write at least three more posts on the topic. So, be on the look, and meanwhile send in your suggestions either here through the comment box or mail me on bikram [at] biksy [dot] com.

First off, and I can’t stress this enough, dress the part.  If you’re interning at a big time corporation, and you see the rest of the interns dressed anything but professionally, do not follow their example.  Buttoned shirt and tie should be a no brainer for every day that you are there to intern.  This way your appearance meets your attitude, creating a good impression that you are there to work and to learn.  That’s what companies want.

Get to work before the boss.  That way you can show that you are committed to the tasks at hand, as well as learning everything you can.  A boss will put more into your internship if you show the initiative to take advantage of everything they have on offer.

Know the easy stuff, like making coffee, working a copier and fax, the simple office tasks in and out.  There’s a certain amount of grunt work that interns are meant to do, and all of these fall into those categories.  The faster you can work through them, the faster you can get down to the real aspects of your job.

Finally, do the best you can.  Internships are really you volunteering your time, but don’t think that just because you aren’t being paid you shouldn’t work hard.  Being a hard worker with a good attitude and willingness to get the job done will put you into the memory of your coworkers and boss.  That can be invaluable when you’re looking to get a job somewhere down the line.  Not to mention top performers in internship positions can even be offered full time positions from the companies they are interning with.  Work hard and you just may get yourself a job.

First off, education is your friend, so in reinvigorating any career, participating in new educational opportunities is a must.  Go back to school part time, get an associates degree in some aspect of your field, or go further, go for a masters degree.  Anything that helps you understand the field better, and that also helps you show others you’re well qualified for today’s job market.

Volunteer to help network yourself, as well as learn vital new skills.  Opportunities like internships at major companies are always available, and go a very long way in helping you get vital career skills as well as get your name out there.  The connections you make with other people while volunteering together could prove invaluable down the line.  So always look to make new social connections, and look for new opportunities to learn new skills.

Finally, make the most of a new job opportunity once you receive one.  Work hard, and show that those educational experiences paid off in full.  Show the boss that you’ve become a very important component of the team that they can’t do without.  Nothing says that like excelling at your job, and earning the recognition that you really deserve.

1. Research, research, research.  Make sure you know the in’s and out’s of every single detail of the meeting.  Make yourself an expert, so that if you have visual aides during a presentation, you know all of them without having to look.  Or if there are packets of statistics to be used during discussion, make sure you know the important stuff like the back of your hand.  Knowledge is key to presenting yourself as a valuable, informed employee.

2. Participate in the meeting by offering useful information or helpful suggestions.  Don’t try to take control of the meeting, as the idea is to get yourself noticed in a good way.  Coming off as a control freak is not your aim at all.  So just offer positive insight whenever the situation presents itself.  But don’t try to force yourself into every open dialogue.

3. Show up a few minutes early to the meeting.  This shows preparedness every time.  Nothing makes you look worse to the big wigs than showing up to a meeting involving them late.

4. Follow up on anything that you promised during the meeting immediately.  If you said you’d deliver a report after the meeting, make sure that it’s the first thing you do afterward.  Nothing makes you look worse than when you promise something and don’t come through.  Always keep your promises, especially when they were made in front of a room full of people.

Below, I am giving a handful of writing tips that will help people like me read more on the Internet, by the way, most of the people on the Internet are like me only.

1. Use Headlines, headings and subheading that make sense. Keep clever lines safe for print.
2. Use simple words. No one like using a dictionary when scanning through the Internet.
3. Use short sentences to convey the idea.
4. Use short paragraphs. Paragraphs that run into 10s of sentences are strict no-no for the web.
5. Write a proper paragraph; one idea per paragraph.
6. Break the articles into small chunks by using headings and subheads.
7. Make your text more scannable by making important keywords bold, italic or by underlining it.
8. Use lists like this one, wherever it is possible. It is easy to go through a list than a 10-sentence paragraph.
9. Use objective language. Do not make your article sound like a promotion material.
10. Link old articles or blog-posts on your domain to retain visitors for long.

Rather, try to work with your boss, understand them, figure out what they’re going for at their job.  In a way understanding what makes them tick, so you can work through the problematic times and ensure that they are fewer and farther in between by playing to what your boss is looking for.  Part of the strategy is making yourself into a great employee, as your boss in most cases is less likely to give you unnecessary hassle if you are a star performer.

The key to becoming a star performer is the way that you carry out your work.  The most commonly found workers are just the workhorses, who do what is asked, no less no more.  The problem with these people is that the management needs to constantly be giving them new projects and goals because they don’t take the effort to think for themselves.  By ensuring you are not one of these people, and instead of just doing what is asked, anticipate your bosses needs.  Go the extra mile, instead of completing a report and waiting for your boss to show up or ask for it, deliver it personally so that they don’t have to take time out of their schedule to complete such a simple task.  Little things like that can make an unbelievable difference.

By anticipating your bosses needs, and delivering your work through those means, you can look forward to starting a better relationship with your boss.  With that renewed work relationship you’ll understand each other better, likely leading to less stress and fewer confrontations when the deadlines are against you.