April 2008 - Posts

• Fine-Tuning Your Personal Brand

  Since we often talk about differentiating yourself in a crowded market around here, I thought you might like to know that twenty-something branding phenom Dan Schawbel recently launched a new magazine, Personal Branding . As you might guess, the magazine Read More... Posted Wednesday, April 30, 2008 7:00 AM by AlexandraLevit | 1 Comments Filed under: Best Practices, Handy Resources, Job Hunting, Personal Marketing

• The One Time It’s Okay to Gossip

  What’s the one time it’s okay to gossip? When you’re looking for a job. Discussion of your job search should not be reserved for close friends/family or headhunters or official networking events. If you’re looking for work or thinking about looking for Read More... Posted Monday, April 28, 2008 7:00 AM by AlexandraLevit | 4 Comments Filed under: Career Change, Job Hunting, Networking, People Skills, Plans, Hopes, Goals

• Everyone is Helpful in His Own Way

  I love watching George Carlin specials on HBO. Even after all of these years, his cynical, grumpy-old-man schtick is still funny to me. The other night, I saw an episode in which Carlin commented on how ridiculous it is when you are in mourning, or going Read More... Posted Friday, April 25, 2008 7:00 AM by AlexandraLevit | 0 Comments Filed under: Office Politics, People Skills, Daily Life, Work

• The Secret of My Success

  Here’s a disclaimer before you start reading this post. I’m not writing it to brag or leave you thinking that I’m the greatest colleague or employee of all time. I’m trying to make a point, so I hope you will look at it in that light. Now that said, I’ve Read More... Posted Wednesday, April 23, 2008 7:00 AM by AlexandraLevit | 0 Comments Filed under: Best Practices, Communication, People Skills, Productivity, Professionalism, Work

• Don’t Let Rejection Get the Best of You

  Over at Employment Digest , Kit Samuels talks about how you can turn a rejection from a job into a second chance at a future opportunity. Bill suggests that you let go of your anger as soon as possible and e-mail a simple, clean, professional response Read More... Posted Monday, April 21, 2008 7:00 AM by AlexandraLevit | 0 Comments Filed under: Emotional Intelligence, Job Hunting, Ownership & Initiative, Professionalism, Troubleshooting

• Branding Isn't Everything

  In the blogosphere, we love to throw the term “branding” around. Well, I’ve had almost ten years of marketing communications experience, and branding – what it means and how to do it – has been burned into my brain from a young age. I have been very careful Read More... Posted Friday, April 18, 2008 7:00 AM by AlexandraLevit | 0 Comments Filed under: Attitude & Motivation, Communication, Ownership & Initiative, Personal Marketing, Professionalism

• 4 Tips for Scoring Your Dream Gig

  It’s finally here. My new book, How’d You Score That Gig?: A Guide to the Coolest Careers and How to Get Them , has just been released! The book starts with a quiz that tells you your job personality – be it an adventurer, creator, data-head, entrepreneur, Read More... Posted Wednesday, April 16, 2008 7:00 AM by AlexandraLevit | 0 Comments Filed under: Career Change, Cool Careers, Discovering Your Passion, Entrepreneurship, Ownership & Initiative, Work

• Career Issues When You'll Live to 100

  Ben Casnocha brought back to life a very cool commencement speech given by David Mahoney at Rutgers University in 1996. Mahoney, then chairman of the Dana Foundation , a brain research organization, provided some compelling tips about why young people Read More... Posted Monday, April 14, 2008 7:00 AM by AlexandraLevit | 0 Comments Filed under: Career Change, Current Affairs, Life Balance, Ownership & Initiative, Personal Development, Work, Plans, Hopes, Goals

• What if YOU are the Jerk?

  Bob Sutton’s book, the No A**hole Rule: Building a Civilized Workplace and Surviving One That Isn't , has been generating buzz since it was published last year. Sutton, a professor of management science at Stanford University , argues that a**holes—those Read More... Posted Friday, April 11, 2008 7:00 AM by AlexandraLevit | 1 Comments Filed under: Communication, Emotional Intelligence, Office Politics, People Skills, Professionalism, Troubleshooting

• Is Your Mom Following You to Work?

  Anita Bruzzese has an interesting post on mothers’ influence on career success . Anita cites the work of a psychologist, Stephan Poulter, who has written a new book, The Mother Factor: How Your Mother's Emotional Legacy Impacts Your Life. The book’s thesis Read More... Posted Wednesday, April 09, 2008 7:00 AM by AlexandraLevit | 0 Comments Filed under: Attitude & Motivation, Emotional Intelligence, People Skills, Personal Development, Work

• Starting a Business? 4 Mistakes People Make

  Over at Employee Evolution , Natalie discusses common mistakes people make when starting a business. According to the U.S. Small Business Administration , over 50 percent of small businesses fail in their first year and 95 percent fail within the first Read More... Posted Monday, April 07, 2008 7:00 AM by AlexandraLevit | 1 Comments Filed under: Creativity & Innovation, Entrepreneurship, Productivity, Project Management, Plans, Hopes, Goals

• Coping with Techno-Insecurity

  Back in 2005, my husband had a desktop PC custom designed by a store called Microcenter here in Chicago. Since then, we’ve been using this machine for nearly all of our home computing needs. For me, this adds up to a lot. Like most people, I spend hours Read More... Posted Friday, April 04, 2008 7:00 AM by AlexandraLevit | 1 Comments Filed under: Current Affairs, Productivity, Technology

• The World Beyond 9-5

  Remember when you were a kid and stayed home from school because you were sick? Remember how weird it was to watch all those daytime TV talk shows and think, “so this is how the other half lives.” Remember how it was even stranger when you accompanied Read More... Posted Wednesday, April 02, 2008 7:00 AM by AlexandraLevit | 2 Comments Filed under: Employment Trends, Life Balance, Technology, Daily Life, Work