June 2008 - Posts

• Qualities of Good Presidents and Good Employees

  I love this post from Michael McKinney at Leading Blog . It’s based on a new book from Alvin Felzenberg, The Leaders We Deserved (and a Few We Didn't): Rethinking the Presidential Rating Game . Felzenberg devised six criteria to best describe various Read More... Posted Monday, June 30, 2008 7:00 AM by AlexandraLevit | 0 Comments Filed under: Best Practices, Management, Personal Development, Professionalism

• Career Lessons from Bill Gates

  So Bill Gates is preparing to retire as CEO of Microsoft . Gates and his childhood friend Paul Allen founded Microsoft on April 4, 1975, in Albuquerque, New Mexico, to make and sell BASIC interpreters for the Altair 8800, an early computer that was sold Read More... Posted Friday, June 27, 2008 7:00 AM by AlexandraLevit | 0 Comments Filed under: Attitude & Motivation, Creativity & Innovation, Current Affairs, Entrepreneurship, Management, Ownership & Initiative, Technology

• Easing Commuter Shock: The New In-Demand Perk?

  I was recently interviewed for Yahoo! Hot Jobs for a story on how the continuing upward pressure on gas prices is forcing many workers to change how they get to their jobs and to seek added benefits that offset commuting costs. In a recent survey by the Read More... Posted Wednesday, June 25, 2008 7:00 AM by AlexandraLevit | 0 Comments Filed under: Compensation, Employment Trends, HR Issues, Daily Life, News and Politics

• 5 Ways to Make HR Love You

  Admittedly, staying on HR’s good side is probably not at the top of your list of managerial priorities, but HR has the power to make your life easier…or very difficult. Over at HR Capitalist , Kris Dunn has five great tips for how managers can make HR Read More... Posted Monday, June 23, 2008 7:00 AM by AlexandraLevit | 0 Comments Filed under: Best Practices, HR Issues, Management

• Boost Your Earning Power with the Power of Language

  Did you know that the most accurate predictor of earning power is literacy? Literacy does not just mean being able to read, but also refers to your command of written language. I recently read an article by Steve Kaufmann at LingQ , a company that provides Read More... Posted Friday, June 20, 2008 7:00 AM by AlexandraLevit | 2 Comments Filed under: Continuing Education, Handy Resources, Personal Development, Productivity, Professionalism

• What Defines Success?

  Lately, I’ve been thinking a lot about success at work, and how it means different things to different people. When I first graduated college, I thought success was setting and then achieving a goal to reach a certain level. But for someone who is naturally Read More... Posted Wednesday, June 18, 2008 7:00 AM by AlexandraLevit | 0 Comments Filed under: Attitude & Motivation, Ownership & Initiative, Personal Development, Plans, Hopes, Goals

• Go Home with Some of the World’s Most Successful Entrepreneurs

  Have you ever wondered how super-successful business owners with millions of customers get started? Surprisingly, many don’t spend years toiling in Fortune 500 brand powerhouses, some had no money or no connections going in, and some weren’t even trained Read More... Posted Monday, June 16, 2008 7:00 AM by AlexandraLevit | 0 Comments Filed under: Cool Careers, Entrepreneurship, Business, Work

• Employees Sent to the Parking Lot?

  I heard a preposterous story about a CEO who arrived at his new company – a medium-sized business with about 100 people in his location – and proceeded to order all of the employees into the parking lot. “You all are to stay out here until further notice,” Read More... Posted Friday, June 13, 2008 7:00 AM by AlexandraLevit | 0 Comments Filed under: Office Politics, Ownership & Initiative, Personal Development, Personal Marketing, Reviews & Promotions

• At the End of the Day, You Have to Be Yourself

  Last week, I gave a talk on twenty-first century recruitment and retention at the American Society of Training and Development’s annual conference in San Diego. While I was there, I attended a few “train the trainer” sessions on improving your technique Read More... Posted Wednesday, June 11, 2008 7:00 AM by AlexandraLevit | 0 Comments Filed under: Attitude & Motivation, Communication, People Skills, Professionalism

• Why Work Sucks and How to Fix It

  Can you imagine a workplace with no pointless meetings, no boss hovering over your shoulder, and no punishment for arriving at 9:05AM? Two online friends of mine, Cali Ressler and Jody Thompson , have just released a new book based on their popular Results-Only Read More... Posted Monday, June 09, 2008 7:00 AM by AlexandraLevit | 1 Comments Filed under: Attitude & Motivation, Creativity & Innovation, Employment Trends, Business, HR Issues, Life Balance, Productivity, Work

• Get By With a Little Help from Your Friends

  Although 2008 has been pretty good so far, 2007 was a doozy, and it has taken me a little while to recover. I’ve experienced a crisis of confidence, and only recently started talking to my friends about it. My radio show co-hosts, Christine Hassler and Read More... Posted Friday, June 06, 2008 7:00 AM by AlexandraLevit | 1 Comments Filed under: Attitude & Motivation, Communication, People Skills, Personal Development, Troubleshooting

• Ladies Who Launch Abound

  As many of you know, I am writing a new book on drastic career change to be published by Random House/Ballantine Books in 2009. I've been scouting out potential interviewees for a few months now, and I've noticed a very interesting phenomenon. There is Read More... Posted Wednesday, June 04, 2008 7:00 AM by AlexandraLevit | 1 Comments Filed under: Career Change, Employment Trends, Entrepreneurship, Life Balance

• Read the Clues Before You Take the Job

  Far too often, I see or hear about people jumping into new job situations, either because they’re desperate to be employed or because they get overzealous after a really good interview. But rushing into a job is like rushing into a relationship – a lack Read More... Posted Monday, June 02, 2008 7:00 AM by AlexandraLevit | 1 Comments Filed under: Job Hunting, Networking, Troubleshooting, Work