This evening I was discussing, with a law student from China, her resume. In a paragraph regarding one of her previous jobs, as a judicial intern, she wrote about her responsibilities of cataloging files, conducting research and observing trials. When I saw her this evening, I asked her for more details about that job. Well, it turned out that she was one of several interns from her law program, at her university, in that courthouse. Not only that, but she actually was the supervisor of these other interns. Even better: she was the liaison between the court and the university, meaning that she reported to one of the deans of her university regarding this intern program. None of this information appeared on her resume. I made clear to her the importance of including this information, because it shows leadership and responsibility--traits that a prospective employer wants to see.
When you are preparing a resume or preparing to attend a job interview, don't sell yourself short. Go through what you are doing and what you have done. Don't just list tasks and responsibilities. List your accomplishments as well. How can you show responsibility and leadership? How can you show that you added value to the place where you worked? Take the time to think these things through, because they will only help you later.
Showing posts with label career. Show all posts
Showing posts with label career. Show all posts
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
Mom was right
What's that old saying? "We grow too soon old and too late smart"? I hate to say it, but Mom was right after all. When I was young, she sat me down and said, "Calvin, I want to teach you Chinese, because it's important." I did learn characters from her, and I have vivid audio recollections of her excellent Beijing Mandarin. But I didn't learn as much as I should have.
Well, she was right. The good news is that having spent four months in Beijing, I can say my Chinese has improved markedly. Even more interestingly, it has improved more since I returned to the US. Better late than never, I always say. If you have a chance to learn Chinese, do so. It can only help you in your career.
Well, she was right. The good news is that having spent four months in Beijing, I can say my Chinese has improved markedly. Even more interestingly, it has improved more since I returned to the US. Better late than never, I always say. If you have a chance to learn Chinese, do so. It can only help you in your career.
Friday, June 27, 2008
"Credibility" vs. "etiquette": keep in mind the reader's point of view
I'm working on an article for Tech Republic that discusses the posting of items on forums or chat sessions. My original title was going to deal with "etiquette when posting online."
I thought about that title, and then said to myself, "Who is ever going to read an article with that title?" Is that a dull and boring topic, or what?
Then I thought some more, and said to myself, "how can I make the title more attractive?" I thought even more, and said, "Well, if people fail to follow my advice, they could end up sounding less persuasive, or more foolish."
Therefore, what about a title such as "How to protect and enhance your credibility when posting to discussion groups"? Isn't that a better title? It conveys a more concrete benefit to the reader, right? Keep this thought in mind in your own writing and presentations, i.e. try to stress how your material benefits the reader.
I thought about that title, and then said to myself, "Who is ever going to read an article with that title?" Is that a dull and boring topic, or what?
Then I thought some more, and said to myself, "how can I make the title more attractive?" I thought even more, and said, "Well, if people fail to follow my advice, they could end up sounding less persuasive, or more foolish."
Therefore, what about a title such as "How to protect and enhance your credibility when posting to discussion groups"? Isn't that a better title? It conveys a more concrete benefit to the reader, right? Keep this thought in mind in your own writing and presentations, i.e. try to stress how your material benefits the reader.
"Credibility" vs. "etiquette": keep in mind the reader's point of view
I'm working on an article for Tech Republic that discusses the posting of items on forums or chat sessions. My original title was going to deal with "etiquette when posting online."
I thought about that title, and then said to myself, "Who is ever going to read an article with that title?" Is that a dull and boring topic, or what?
Then I thought some more, and said to myself, "how can I make the title more attractive?" I thought even more, and said, "Well, if people fail to follow my advice, they could end up sounding less persuasive, or more foolish."
Therefore, what about a title such as "How to protect and enhance your credibility when posting to discussion groups"? Isn't that a better title? It conveys a more concrete benefit to the reader, right? Keep this thought in mind in your own writing and presentations, i.e. try to stress how your material benefits the reader.
I thought about that title, and then said to myself, "Who is ever going to read an article with that title?" Is that a dull and boring topic, or what?
Then I thought some more, and said to myself, "how can I make the title more attractive?" I thought even more, and said, "Well, if people fail to follow my advice, they could end up sounding less persuasive, or more foolish."
Therefore, what about a title such as "How to protect and enhance your credibility when posting to discussion groups"? Isn't that a better title? It conveys a more concrete benefit to the reader, right? Keep this thought in mind in your own writing and presentations, i.e. try to stress how your material benefits the reader.
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
Joe Pruitt, of DevCentral, discussed my Computerworld article
Joe Pruitt, host of DevCentral, recently discussed my Computerworld article on career suicide. A video of Mr. Pruitt is at
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BB0SDlvoSMA
Here is a link to Mr. Pruitt's blog:
http://devcentral.f5.com/weblogs/dcdaily
The Computerworld article
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BB0SDlvoSMA
Here is a link to Mr. Pruitt's blog:
http://devcentral.f5.com/weblogs/dcdaily
The Computerworld article
Joe Pruitt, of DevCentral, discussed my Computerworld article
Joe Pruitt, host of DevCentral, recently discussed my Computerworld article on career suicide. A video of Mr. Pruitt is at
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BB0SDlvoSMA
Here is a link to Mr. Pruitt's blog:
http://devcentral.f5.com/weblogs/dcdaily
The Computerworld article
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BB0SDlvoSMA
Here is a link to Mr. Pruitt's blog:
http://devcentral.f5.com/weblogs/dcdaily
The Computerworld article
Friday, June 13, 2008
I'm takin' heat for my "interview" article lol
Wow...talk about asbestos suit lol. A few days ago, at Tech Republic, I wrote an article on "The 10 best ways to handle a job interview" http://blogs.techrepublic.com.com/10things/?p=363 A number of people commented, and much was made of two specific tips. One was to occupy oneself if one arrived early, and the other was to write a thank you note afterwards.
A number of people raised issues, but Tech Republic subscriber Oz_media stands out. His/her points were that instead of occupying oneself, it's better to talk and joke with the receptionist, as well as others who are walking by, to show that one is already "part of the company." Conversely, doing work is rude, and what about all the time needed to shut down the computer when it's time for the interview?
My response: yes, it's fine to establish rapport (in fact, one of my ten points is to treat support staff there, including receptionists, with courtesy). So yes, making conversations is fine. On the other hand, going overboard might be taken negatively, in that your talking too much takes that person away from his or her job.
As far as occupying oneself: it's good to show that one uses time wisely. One need not have a computer on to do so. What about entering notes in your Blackberry, or even a paper tablet? As far as computer use, I agree that if you need 20 minutes to shut it down, and thus delay your interview by 20 minutes, that's a problem. But if you shut it down say five minutes before your scheduled time, what's wrong with that?
The other issue involved sending a thank you note. Several subscribers said such a note would be ridiculed, and that it's insincere. I responded to these concerns a couple of ways: first, I said that if people responded negatively to my thank you note by not hiring me or giving me a job offer, maybe that's not the kind of place I would want to work at anyway. Second, is their concern the thank you note per se, or only the INSINCERE thank you note. Third, are we too concerned about what other people think, vs. doing what's right?
Consider the process of preparing to have a job candidate come for an interview. If you're part of the interview team, you have to take time out of your day to prepare, and for the interview. You might have to review resumes, including the one of the person who's coming in. Afterwards, you have to spend time evaluating the candidate, either by yourself or in meetings with others. In other words, holding the interview takes time and effort on your part. Would you really react negatively to a candidate who, after the interview, tells you that he/she appreciates the time and effort involved in that interview?
What are your thoughts?
A number of people raised issues, but Tech Republic subscriber Oz_media stands out. His/her points were that instead of occupying oneself, it's better to talk and joke with the receptionist, as well as others who are walking by, to show that one is already "part of the company." Conversely, doing work is rude, and what about all the time needed to shut down the computer when it's time for the interview?
My response: yes, it's fine to establish rapport (in fact, one of my ten points is to treat support staff there, including receptionists, with courtesy). So yes, making conversations is fine. On the other hand, going overboard might be taken negatively, in that your talking too much takes that person away from his or her job.
As far as occupying oneself: it's good to show that one uses time wisely. One need not have a computer on to do so. What about entering notes in your Blackberry, or even a paper tablet? As far as computer use, I agree that if you need 20 minutes to shut it down, and thus delay your interview by 20 minutes, that's a problem. But if you shut it down say five minutes before your scheduled time, what's wrong with that?
The other issue involved sending a thank you note. Several subscribers said such a note would be ridiculed, and that it's insincere. I responded to these concerns a couple of ways: first, I said that if people responded negatively to my thank you note by not hiring me or giving me a job offer, maybe that's not the kind of place I would want to work at anyway. Second, is their concern the thank you note per se, or only the INSINCERE thank you note. Third, are we too concerned about what other people think, vs. doing what's right?
Consider the process of preparing to have a job candidate come for an interview. If you're part of the interview team, you have to take time out of your day to prepare, and for the interview. You might have to review resumes, including the one of the person who's coming in. Afterwards, you have to spend time evaluating the candidate, either by yourself or in meetings with others. In other words, holding the interview takes time and effort on your part. Would you really react negatively to a candidate who, after the interview, tells you that he/she appreciates the time and effort involved in that interview?
What are your thoughts?
I'm takin' heat for my "interview" article lol
Wow...talk about asbestos suit lol. A few days ago, at Tech Republic, I wrote an article on "The 10 best ways to handle a job interview" http://blogs.techrepublic.com.com/10things/?p=363 A number of people commented, and much was made of two specific tips. One was to occupy oneself if one arrived early, and the other was to write a thank you note afterwards.
A number of people raised issues, but Tech Republic subscriber Oz_media stands out. His/her points were that instead of occupying oneself, it's better to talk and joke with the receptionist, as well as others who are walking by, to show that one is already "part of the company." Conversely, doing work is rude, and what about all the time needed to shut down the computer when it's time for the interview?
My response: yes, it's fine to establish rapport (in fact, one of my ten points is to treat support staff there, including receptionists, with courtesy). So yes, making conversations is fine. On the other hand, going overboard might be taken negatively, in that your talking too much takes that person away from his or her job.
As far as occupying oneself: it's good to show that one uses time wisely. One need not have a computer on to do so. What about entering notes in your Blackberry, or even a paper tablet? As far as computer use, I agree that if you need 20 minutes to shut it down, and thus delay your interview by 20 minutes, that's a problem. But if you shut it down say five minutes before your scheduled time, what's wrong with that?
The other issue involved sending a thank you note. Several subscribers said such a note would be ridiculed, and that it's insincere. I responded to these concerns a couple of ways: first, I said that if people responded negatively to my thank you note by not hiring me or giving me a job offer, maybe that's not the kind of place I would want to work at anyway. Second, is their concern the thank you note per se, or only the INSINCERE thank you note. Third, are we too concerned about what other people think, vs. doing what's right?
Consider the process of preparing to have a job candidate come for an interview. If you're part of the interview team, you have to take time out of your day to prepare, and for the interview. You might have to review resumes, including the one of the person who's coming in. Afterwards, you have to spend time evaluating the candidate, either by yourself or in meetings with others. In other words, holding the interview takes time and effort on your part. Would you really react negatively to a candidate who, after the interview, tells you that he/she appreciates the time and effort involved in that interview?
What are your thoughts?
A number of people raised issues, but Tech Republic subscriber Oz_media stands out. His/her points were that instead of occupying oneself, it's better to talk and joke with the receptionist, as well as others who are walking by, to show that one is already "part of the company." Conversely, doing work is rude, and what about all the time needed to shut down the computer when it's time for the interview?
My response: yes, it's fine to establish rapport (in fact, one of my ten points is to treat support staff there, including receptionists, with courtesy). So yes, making conversations is fine. On the other hand, going overboard might be taken negatively, in that your talking too much takes that person away from his or her job.
As far as occupying oneself: it's good to show that one uses time wisely. One need not have a computer on to do so. What about entering notes in your Blackberry, or even a paper tablet? As far as computer use, I agree that if you need 20 minutes to shut it down, and thus delay your interview by 20 minutes, that's a problem. But if you shut it down say five minutes before your scheduled time, what's wrong with that?
The other issue involved sending a thank you note. Several subscribers said such a note would be ridiculed, and that it's insincere. I responded to these concerns a couple of ways: first, I said that if people responded negatively to my thank you note by not hiring me or giving me a job offer, maybe that's not the kind of place I would want to work at anyway. Second, is their concern the thank you note per se, or only the INSINCERE thank you note. Third, are we too concerned about what other people think, vs. doing what's right?
Consider the process of preparing to have a job candidate come for an interview. If you're part of the interview team, you have to take time out of your day to prepare, and for the interview. You might have to review resumes, including the one of the person who's coming in. Afterwards, you have to spend time evaluating the candidate, either by yourself or in meetings with others. In other words, holding the interview takes time and effort on your part. Would you really react negatively to a candidate who, after the interview, tells you that he/she appreciates the time and effort involved in that interview?
What are your thoughts?
Thursday, May 1, 2008
Should I have told?
In my Computerworld article "5 Easy Steps to Career Suicide," I relate an incident in which I call a client company and reach a person there that I haven't done work for previously. I tell that person that "Carl" (my client contact, and therefore a co-worker of this person) has been pleased with my work. The person said in response, "Why should I care what Carl thinks?"
In other words, one person in the organization is "dissing" another person to me, an outsider. This remark demonstrates a lack of unity and professionalism on the part of the person I called.
As you can guess, that call really went nowhere. Afterwards, I didn't do anything in follow up. However, I'm wondering if I should have told "Carl" what this person said. On the one hand, it's good for him to have a "heads up." Also, that person never really expected that remark to be confidential. On the other hand, might "Carl" "shoot the messenger?" And, does it make me a tattle-tale?
What do you think?
In other words, one person in the organization is "dissing" another person to me, an outsider. This remark demonstrates a lack of unity and professionalism on the part of the person I called.
As you can guess, that call really went nowhere. Afterwards, I didn't do anything in follow up. However, I'm wondering if I should have told "Carl" what this person said. On the one hand, it's good for him to have a "heads up." Also, that person never really expected that remark to be confidential. On the other hand, might "Carl" "shoot the messenger?" And, does it make me a tattle-tale?
What do you think?
Should I have told?
In my Computerworld article "5 Easy Steps to Career Suicide," I relate an incident in which I call a client company and reach a person there that I haven't done work for previously. I tell that person that "Carl" (my client contact, and therefore a co-worker of this person) has been pleased with my work. The person said in response, "Why should I care what Carl thinks?"
In other words, one person in the organization is "dissing" another person to me, an outsider. This remark demonstrates a lack of unity and professionalism on the part of the person I called.
As you can guess, that call really went nowhere. Afterwards, I didn't do anything in follow up. However, I'm wondering if I should have told "Carl" what this person said. On the one hand, it's good for him to have a "heads up." Also, that person never really expected that remark to be confidential. On the other hand, might "Carl" "shoot the messenger?" And, does it make me a tattle-tale?
What do you think?
In other words, one person in the organization is "dissing" another person to me, an outsider. This remark demonstrates a lack of unity and professionalism on the part of the person I called.
As you can guess, that call really went nowhere. Afterwards, I didn't do anything in follow up. However, I'm wondering if I should have told "Carl" what this person said. On the one hand, it's good for him to have a "heads up." Also, that person never really expected that remark to be confidential. On the other hand, might "Carl" "shoot the messenger?" And, does it make me a tattle-tale?
What do you think?
Monday, April 14, 2008
An embarrassing e-mail
I received a note from someone today, in reaction to my Tech Republic article on avoiding e-mail blunders http://blogs.techrepublic.com.com/helpdesk/?p=56.
This person had received, from someone he knew, a note in error. The sender did not mean to send it to this person, but rather to someone with whom the sender was having an affair. The person who e-mailed me wondered if he should have let the sender know, then concluded he probably shouldn't, because of the resulting embarrassment.
I don't know how to answer this person, so I'd like to get your comments. From my perspective, I see two issues:
- addressing and sending too quickly
The person mentioned in the email probably didn't check the address field. If they have predictive fill-in, it's easy to send a message to the wronge person.
- relying on e-mail in the first place
Putting such intimate thoughts in an e-mail is questionable by itself. One doesn't know if the note will be forwarded, and in addition, the contents of e-mail are generally open for being read by others. Rather than putting dangerous or sensitive thoughts in e-mail (and I'm not advocating that you have an affair), think about simply asking the other person to call.
This person had received, from someone he knew, a note in error. The sender did not mean to send it to this person, but rather to someone with whom the sender was having an affair. The person who e-mailed me wondered if he should have let the sender know, then concluded he probably shouldn't, because of the resulting embarrassment.
I don't know how to answer this person, so I'd like to get your comments. From my perspective, I see two issues:
- addressing and sending too quickly
The person mentioned in the email probably didn't check the address field. If they have predictive fill-in, it's easy to send a message to the wronge person.
- relying on e-mail in the first place
Putting such intimate thoughts in an e-mail is questionable by itself. One doesn't know if the note will be forwarded, and in addition, the contents of e-mail are generally open for being read by others. Rather than putting dangerous or sensitive thoughts in e-mail (and I'm not advocating that you have an affair), think about simply asking the other person to call.
An embarrassing e-mail
I received a note from someone today, in reaction to my Tech Republic article on avoiding e-mail blunders http://blogs.techrepublic.com.com/helpdesk/?p=56.
This person had received, from someone he knew, a note in error. The sender did not mean to send it to this person, but rather to someone with whom the sender was having an affair. The person who e-mailed me wondered if he should have let the sender know, then concluded he probably shouldn't, because of the resulting embarrassment.
I don't know how to answer this person, so I'd like to get your comments. From my perspective, I see two issues:
- addressing and sending too quickly
The person mentioned in the email probably didn't check the address field. If they have predictive fill-in, it's easy to send a message to the wronge person.
- relying on e-mail in the first place
Putting such intimate thoughts in an e-mail is questionable by itself. One doesn't know if the note will be forwarded, and in addition, the contents of e-mail are generally open for being read by others. Rather than putting dangerous or sensitive thoughts in e-mail (and I'm not advocating that you have an affair), think about simply asking the other person to call.
This person had received, from someone he knew, a note in error. The sender did not mean to send it to this person, but rather to someone with whom the sender was having an affair. The person who e-mailed me wondered if he should have let the sender know, then concluded he probably shouldn't, because of the resulting embarrassment.
I don't know how to answer this person, so I'd like to get your comments. From my perspective, I see two issues:
- addressing and sending too quickly
The person mentioned in the email probably didn't check the address field. If they have predictive fill-in, it's easy to send a message to the wronge person.
- relying on e-mail in the first place
Putting such intimate thoughts in an e-mail is questionable by itself. One doesn't know if the note will be forwarded, and in addition, the contents of e-mail are generally open for being read by others. Rather than putting dangerous or sensitive thoughts in e-mail (and I'm not advocating that you have an affair), think about simply asking the other person to call.
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