November 2006 - Posts

• Beware the Job Interview Confessional

  CollegeRecruiter.com has a great post on topics to avoid during job interviews. According to Steven Rothberg, you should avoid topics such as sex, politics, and religion unless they are directly relevant to the position (they almost never are) as well Read More... Posted Wednesday, November 29, 2006 7:00 AM by AlexandraLevit | 0 Comments Filed under: Best Practices, HR Issues, Job Hunting, People Skills, Professionalism, Work Attachment(s): http://www.salon.com/tech/feature/2003/05/20/job_interview/story.jpg

• Give More Than You Get

  Jim Durbin provides this week's CollegeRecruiter.com BlogSwap article on networking. Thanks, Jim! Every good networker knows that the principle of having a solid network of friends and contacts is to give more than you get. The idea is a simple one - Read More... Posted Tuesday, November 28, 2006 7:00 PM by AlexandraLevit | 0 Comments Filed under: Networking, Personal Development, Professionalism, Work

• Dos and Don'ts for Effective Meetings

  When I was waiting for the elevator at Edelman the other day, I noticed a handy checklist about running effective meetings hanging on the wall. The checklist listed helpful tips like preparing the agenda in advance, confirming attendees via Outlook reminders, Read More... Posted Monday, November 27, 2006 7:00 AM by AlexandraLevit | 0 Comments Filed under: Best Practices, Management, Productivity, Daily Life Attachment(s): http://www.cartoonstock.com/newscartoons/cartoonists/jsi/lowres/jsin42l.jpg

• Interview with Paul Phelan: English Teacher Abroad

  Twenty-four year-old Paul Phelan from Canada is an English teacher at Qiongzhou University in Wuzhishan City, Hainan, China. I spoke to him about his cool job for my new book on dream careers . Here are some snippets from his interview: How did you start Read More... Posted Friday, November 24, 2006 7:00 AM by AlexandraLevit | 0 Comments Filed under: Career Change, Cool Careers, Discovering Your Passion, Work

• Your Career is a Journey

  I’ve recently had the privilege of speaking on a few panels on the topic of finding meaningful work. Our audiences were current college students, and I think events such as these really give undergraduates a good feel for the many different, and undoubtably Read More... Posted Wednesday, November 22, 2006 7:00 AM by AlexandraLevit | 0 Comments Filed under: Entry Level, Discovering Your Passion, Personal Development, Goals, Plans, Hopes, Work, School Attachment(s): http://www.oregonhighways.org/images/windy_road%20copy.jpg

• CollegeRecruiter.com Blogswap: Everyone Loves a Free Lunch

  Over the next few months, we’re going to be doing a blogswap with CollegeRecruiter.com . This means that while I will still continue to post several times a week, you will also be treated to the wise musings of guest career bloggers. We’re kicking things Read More... Posted Tuesday, November 21, 2006 7:30 AM by AlexandraLevit | 0 Comments Filed under: Current Affairs, Business, Job Hunting, Personal Development, Work

• The One Skill You'd Better Look For

  When employers talk about desirable skills they look for in new hires, they usually mean things like writing, data analysis, interpersonal communication, and project management. But what about the ability to LEARN? I’m not kidding. Let’s say a twenty-something Read More... Posted Sunday, November 19, 2006 7:00 AM by AlexandraLevit | 3 Comments Filed under: Best Practices, Business, Management, Productivity Attachment(s): http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/1/16/Jigsaw_pieces.jpg

• Who's Who, You Say? Keep On Walking

  Another thanks to Dave Lorenzo and Larry Bodine , who pointed me in the direction of an informative piece by Bob Weiss in ABA's Law Practice Today , about the steep downfall of the Who’s Who directory. “It used to represent a comprehensive resource of Read More... Posted Thursday, November 16, 2006 7:00 AM by AlexandraLevit | 0 Comments Filed under: Business, Networking, Work

• The Internship Is The New Entry-Level

  This week in the Chicago Tribune, Carolyn Bigda discusses the phenomena of the internship as a gateway to a full-time job. Now while this is not necessarily new, the cache of the internship has definitely increased in recent years. In fact, I was pretty Read More... Posted Tuesday, November 14, 2006 7:00 PM by AlexandraLevit | 2 Comments Filed under: Entry Level, Employment Trends, Job Hunting, Goals, Plans, Hopes, Work, School

• What Does the Election Mean to You?

  By now, the news has sunk in that the Democrats have taken over Congress, and everyone’s talking about what will happen next in Iraq. But what, if anything, does it mean for your earning potential? In USA Today, Sue Kirchhoff and Kathy Chu speculate about Read More... Posted Sunday, November 12, 2006 7:00 AM by AlexandraLevit | 0 Comments Filed under: Continuing Education, Current Affairs, Employment Trends, Business, School Attachment(s): http://media.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/photo/homepage/hp11-7-06ddd.jpg

• Is Working Hazardous To Your Weight?

  CareerBuilder.com has reported the results of a recent survey, “Work and Health 2006,” which indicate that nearly half of all workers have gained weight on the job. Forty-six percent of workers report they have gained weight since starting their current Read More... Posted Friday, November 10, 2006 7:00 AM by AlexandraLevit | 4 Comments Filed under: Employment Trends, Daily Life, Work

• Universal English Buzzwords

  Thanks to Dave Lorenzo at Career Intensity for posting about the twelve most persuasive words in the English language (according to Yale University ). They are: Easy Results Save Discover Guarantee Safety Health Love Money Need Proven You It’s interesting Read More... Posted Wednesday, November 08, 2006 7:00 AM by AlexandraLevit | 0 Comments Filed under: Communication, Creativity & Innovation, Handy Resources Attachment(s): http://indyvoter.org/img/original/heart_money.jpg

• Reach Out and Write That Resume

  Bill over at Employment Digest has an excellent point this week that deserves to be shared, and that is that resume writing doesn’t have to be a solo gig. Although the resume may be the single most important document you ever write when it comes to your Read More... Posted Monday, November 06, 2006 7:00 AM by AlexandraLevit | 0 Comments Filed under: Entry Level, Communication, Job Hunting, Work

• What Does Ambition Buy You?

  One of the first things I learned in Psych 101 was that temperament and personality are established by the age of three. And it’s true, traits like ambition are clearly visible in little kids. There’s the four year-old boy who won’t come to dinner until Read More... Posted Saturday, November 04, 2006 7:00 AM by AlexandraLevit | 2 Comments Filed under: Life Balance, Ownership & Initiative, Daily Life, Goals, Plans, Hopes Attachment(s): http://img.timeinc.net/time/daily/2005/0511/ambition.jpg

• Scary Workplace Personalities

  Did any of your co-workers manage to scare you more than usual this Halloween? According to staffing firm Accountemps , ghosts and goblins that traditionally make their appearance on October 31 may have office counterparts whose behaviors bedevil their Read More... Posted Thursday, November 02, 2006 7:00 AM by AlexandraLevit | 2 Comments Filed under: Attitude & Motivation, Employment Trends, Daily Life, Workplace Humor