How to write a job search newsletter (2 of 2)

How to write a job search newsletter (2 of 2) This is part 2.  Part 1 (what to put in your job search newsletter) is here. JibberJobber has two things you want to use to help with your job search newsletter strategy. FIRST: TAGS In JibberJobber, tag your contacts with something like newsletter.  You can have tags like: js_newsletter personal_newsletter family_newsletter professional_newsletter Get the point?  It could be anything have newsletter in the tag so the tag makes sense later. Once you have your contacts tagged, you can search for them in the List Panel (see first part of this post), and then get their email addresses (thats a premium feature) and send one big email (or, multiple emails to subsets of your list). SECOND: EMAIL2LOG This is a premium feature also.  When you send the email, send it to JibberJobber as well and you can have a history of WHAT you send to WHO, and WHEN you sent it. You can copy/paste, but this is way easier. There ya go what am I missing? How to write a job search newsletter (2 of 2) This is part 2.  Part 1 (what to put in your job search newsletter) is here. JibberJobber has two things you want to use to help with your job search newsletter strategy. FIRST: TAGS In JibberJobber, tag your contacts with something like newsletter.  You can have tags like: js_newsletter personal_newsletter family_newsletter professional_newsletter Get the point?  It could be anything have newsletter in the tag so the tag makes sense later. Once you have your contacts tagged, you can search for them in the List Panel (see first part of this post), and then get their email addresses (thats a premium feature) and send one big email (or, multiple emails to subsets of your list). SECOND: EMAIL2LOG This is a premium feature also.  When you send the email, send it to JibberJobber as well and you can have a history of WHAT you send to WHO, and WHEN you sent it. You can copy/paste, but this is way easier. There ya go what am I missing? How to write a job search newsletter (2 of 2) This is part 2.  Part 1 (what to put in your job search newsletter) is here. JibberJobber has two things you want to use to help with your job search newsletter strategy. FIRST: TAGS In JibberJobber, tag your contacts with something like newsletter.  You can have tags like: js_newsletter personal_newsletter family_newsletter professional_newsletter Get the point?  It could be anything have newsletter in the tag so the tag makes sense later. Once you have your contacts tagged, you can search for them in the List Panel (see first part of this post), and then get their email addresses (thats a premium feature) and send one big email (or, multiple emails to subsets of your list). SECOND: EMAIL2LOG This is a premium feature also.  When you send the email, send it to JibberJobber as well and you can have a history of WHAT you send to WHO, and WHEN you sent it. You can copy/paste, but this is way easier. There ya go what am I missing?

Writing a Grad School Resume Example

Writing a Grad School Resume ExampleWriting a grad school resume is similar to any other resume. The content, which should include your full name, address, telephone number, email address, and contact information for your references, should be concise and to the point. Writing a grad school resume example is easy if you follow these steps.Graduate schools are recruiting hundreds of applicants each year. When you write a resume, remember that these are formal applications, just like in college or business school. You will have to use the same format. Write your own example resume, but for a faster application process, use a written sample.Be sure that you use your best efforts to update your contact information as much as possible. You should make all contact with recruiters through email. If you must call recruiters, explain that you are only after the phone interview. You don't want to be rude. A recruiter won't hold it against you if you can't get their attention with an email or p hone call.Have a short introductory paragraph explaining why you want to apply to graduate school. Explain what you hope to learn while in graduate school. Explain why you are interested in a particular graduate program. The key to writing a good explanation is showing how your interests match up with the graduate program. This will also make it easier for the recruiters to evaluate you if they have to call.Be honest about your academic accomplishments as well as your weaknesses, so that the recruiter will know how to evaluate your CV for curriculum vitae. Your CV's should be no longer than one page, unless your college degree is in something that's listed as a 'strong' subject area on your resume. Include your educational background and work experience, if any. The details of your education are very important.A key part of creating a CV for all graduate students is your career goals. This must be your opening sentence in your description of yourself. That way, the recruiter can dec ide if they would like to talk to you. Be aware that you may be asked to provide more details in this section, like your areas of specialization.Keep in mind that your curriculum vitae will show how you went about the courses you took and your research you did in your graduate studies. This is why you want to include as much detail as possible. Be concise and as easy to read as possible. Don't mention too many details at once. Instead, list what you studied and who you worked with.The key to writing a grad school resume example is being sure to use a proven format. Remember that the recruiter will want to go over your curriculum vitae before he or she selects you for an interview. Following these steps will ensure that your CV gets you into graduate school without having to waste time writing out a resume each time.

15 Questions To Test Your Hostility Level - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career

15 Questions To Test Your Hostility Level - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career Answer these questions (honestly no one will know but you): 1.  An office mate eats a sandwich with a whole lot of onions a. I consider his odor might increase my chances for a promotion b. I consider telling him he’s stinking up the place 2.  My IT consultant leaves after fixing my computer it goes down the next day a. I call him up and tell him what a miserable job he did b. I call him up and let him know what happened 3. I am waiting in the express line at the bank that says: “loan payments only.” a. I check my voicemail and Facebook account for updates b. I look ahead to see who’s got a deposit slip or cash in their hands 4. The news is filled with stories about the number of foreclosures in the US a. I believe people who can’t pay their mortgages knew they were taking out loans they couldn’t repay b. I believe a lot of people were victims of bad loan deals or lost their jobs unexpectedly 5. There have been times when I was very angry with others a. I was always able to control any desire to lash out physically b. I have impulsively hit or pushed someone 6. An online news source discussed the causes and costs of drug addiction a. I wish society had more effective prevention and treatment options b. People involved with substances get what they deserve 7. The emergency room is jammed up with uninsured people a. People who don’t have healthcare insurance are irresponsible b. Healthcare insurance is priced out of range for many people 8. I sometimes argue with a colleague or customer a. I occasionally use profanity, its common now even on television b. I rarely use curse words or off-color language 9. A driver cuts me off on the road a. I honk and consider speeding up to return the favor b. I decelerate to put some room between our cars 10. Something extremely important must be done at work a. As usual, I take it on myself so that it’s done right b. I ask a co-worker if she can pitch in 11. Frequently I let an angry feeling a. Come and go, because it avoids making a big deal out of something small b. Be the catalyst for my speaking my mind; it’s not good to hold anger in 12. Someone criticizes something I’ve done a. I feel annoyed b. I try to decide if there is merit in the criticism 13. I overhear an unkind comment about me a. I typically forget about it after a short while b. I think about it for hours, sometimes longer 14. My co-worker is asking a lot of questions about a project we’re starting on a. I assume shes trying to be proactive and solve some problems that might be ahead b. I assume she’s not capable or confident about her part of the project 15. My friend expresses an ignorant belief about politics a. I set him straight b. I let the comment pass Scoring: Hostility has three categories. Each one: cynicism, anger and aggression are represented by five of the questions in the quiz. See below to rate yourself (the answer in parenthesis is the hostile one). For each category, if you score just 0-2 points, you’re doing okay (zero being ideal). If you’re scoring higher, you now have some insight into why your career or business may be sputtering. Cynicism: 3(b), 4(a), 7(a), 10(a), 14(b), Anger: 1(b), 6(b), 9(a), 13(b), 12 (a) Aggression: 2(a), 5(b), 8(a), 11(b), 15(a) Want some tools to help you lower your level of hostility? (And no, none of them involve deep breathing or meditation). Email me: Nance@NanceRosen.com Author: Nance Rosen is the author of Speak Up! Succeed. She speaks to business audiences around the world and is a resource for press, including print, broadcast and online journalists and bloggers covering social media and careers. Read more at NanceRosenBlog. Twitter name: nancerosen

When is a bank not a bank

When is a bank not a bank When it is The Bank? As in the Bank of England! The employment opportunities at The Bank are very different from those in domestic or investment banks and I have just been on a careers day to find about what’s on offer. I’m going to mirror the structure of the day by debunking some common myths and misconceptions? Myth 1. The Bank is only looking for Economists. Wrong, The Bank recruits from a wide range of disciplines. How about these for some examples? What about ICT? Yes, plenty of opportunities and you don’t have to be graduating with a degree in  Computing or Information Technology in order to be considered. Apparently music and geography graduates  often have the right mental skills to take very fast to programing! Interested in regulation? There are  fascinating prudential regulation roles. The Bank has to regulate UK domestic banks, the UK operations of international banks and insurance companies. A background in law is ideal preparation, but plenty of graduates from other disciplines have also found exciting roles here. Apparently you can expect early responsibility and within a few years you might find yourself negotiating with the CEO of an overseas Bank or on a plane to visit him or her, perhaps on the other side of the world. Myth 2. There aren’t many opportunities, and you really need a Masters. It turns out that there are a plethora of ways in which to engage with the Bank of England. Opportunities exist for university students to attend insight days, then there are six week long summer internships for first years, thirteen month placements for students after the end of their second year, second year eight week long summer internships and the graduate scheme. Some of these schemes are substantial. This year 25 first years have been recruited, 38 year-long placement students have joined and 71 new graduates will be coming. Generally Masters graduates join the Bank and work in the same way as first degree graduates, although they may make slightly faster progress. It is true that there are some jobs for which Masters Qualifications are required. These are typically the vacancies requiring “hard-core” Economics and there are some opportunities to get Bank funding for relevant Economics Masters. Myth 3. The Bank is stuffy and traditional. This didn’t seem to be the view of the graduates we met; they talked about the pleasure of working with a bunch of really clever people doing a job which matters to the country. It is certainly true that massive changes are planned for the recruitment round starting in September this year. For the first time The Bank will be looking to develop relationships with the people who join on internships and it will be offering graduate jobs and even Masters funding on the back of this early engagement. It’s also about to unveil a new Central Bank Post Graduate Diploma for which its graduates will be expected to study. Myth 4? The pay doesn’t match market rates. This one it seems is true. Graduates joining the Bank do considerably less well than their peers who opt to go off to investment banks. The Bank isn’t looking for second tier in term of ability, so what persuades the brightest and the best to join? It seems that graduates share a passion for “service”. They want to contribute to society and to make a difference. Some will follow a route to the Bank which has involved working for charities or other Third Sector organisations, others will have looked at the investment banks and decided that the way of life they offer is not for them. There is no culture of long hours at The Bank, work life balance is considered to be very important and while its offices lack the opulence of some City investment banks, consultancies and law firms, they are pleasant. There is a thriving choir and orchestra, a gym on site, a doctor, a restaurant and the excitement of knowing that buried underneath you is a lot of gold! Interested? What do you impress at The Bank recruitment process? An intellectual curiosity, and an interest in financial markets is important. You need to be prepared to express an opinion and to evidence your ability to work collaboratively in a team. An enthusiasm for and an ability to innovate is also a plus. You’ll need a 2.1 and 300 UCAS points (260 for the IT stream). If you don’t have this, but can explain why not, don’t be deterred from applying, but make sure that you  give details about why things didnt work out for you academically  quite as you might have planned. Has this made you think about The Bank in a new way or encouraged you to think about it for the first time? Then look out for insight days. You do an online application and then a video interview. Video interviews are definitely the next big thing in recruitment so it even gives you a chance to practise your skills ahead of the rest of the pack.

Key Things to Consider When Writing a Civil Engineering Resume

Key Things to Consider When Writing a Civil Engineering ResumeWhen writing a good civil engineering resume, there are key things to consider. There is always the prospect of not getting called for an interview. Here are some tips to consider.First of all, you should know that your skills may be very well suited for the job at hand. It will help to understand what kind of job you are looking for. If you're looking for a career in development, then you'll want to focus on what you can do to make yourself more marketable.What kinds of projects do you need to work on? Do you need to relocate? How many years experience do you have? These are all things to consider.Next, you should find out what your skills and your needs are. Sometimes this can be challenging to figure out. Some people just aren't willing to talk about their lives and their hopes and dreams. You have to find out what it is that you want.Then you should see what sort of skill requirements are required. You should be able t o explain why you're looking for this position. Do you want to work with computers or would you rather design bridges?You should be able to tell how much experience you need to have in the industry. This is important because they want to see a record of your experiences. If you're qualified, it helps to have previous work experience. Don't worry, they won't judge you for a short stint of unpaid internships.Also, it helps to have a certain type of education, as a civil engineer, it's necessary. You need a degree from a good university. You should also have some work experience, as it is beneficial to your resume.So, you should start by considering what your needs are when writing a civil engineering resume. Then you should be sure to consider the things you should include in your resume.

10 Reasons to Start An Online Business in 2020 CareerMetis.com

10 Reasons to Start An Online Business in 2020 For years, you have resisted the temptation of turning your business to the online mode. While the examples of turning a small business running from a brick and mortar store into massive success are too many, you thought it to be too complex, cumbersome and full of challenges. Since you know so little about the technologies that make the web, you always are shown the idea of a warm adieu. After all, your business was always running as usual.But these days the drop in sales seems to be more frequent than earlier. This off-season seems to be more punishing on your business than just a couple of years ago. Never you had such a lazy peak season as you are experiencing now. So, you are really considering online presence as a viable alternative to revive your business. Is this the most opportune time? Haven’t you already missed the flight of online success?evalBefore the weight of such questions once again takes away your decisive will, let’s explain why 2020 is actually the best time to start an online business. Let us explain some of the most credible reasons.1) Thriving Web PopulationAs of last January, there were 4.388 billion active web users around the world, as reported by Statista. This is more than the number of people in the whole world. At least half of the households now have at least have one or multiple internet connections. The latest growth of on-demand businessapps is an outcome of this.On the other hand, still, 45% of people are knocking at the door to remain connected online. So, besides a thriving online population, millions of people for the first time are coming online.Among the existing online population, only a minority is actually habituated with online purchases and orders. The people who are yet to become online any time soon will be a fresh market for e-commerce ventures and businesses across the niches. These together make the most opportune online audience that new e-commerce businesses can target. 2) Consumption of Online Content Is Higher Than EverWhether it is the digital content on social issues or chat messaging with distant friends or social media campaigns or simply finding the best purchases in online furniture stores, the online content rich with information, advice, explanations, recommendations, and insights is continuing to shape online behavior, opinion and actual actions like purchases.The exponential growth of online content in volume, variety, and vividness created more engagement opportunities for businesses than ever before. If you are a new online business, simply by providing unique and engaging content to your target audience you can enjoy popularity and make a dominating brand presence.Irrespective of the business you are in or the niche you represent, your customers are mostly supposed to search for answers online as an increasing number of people find online purchases and interactions more convenient than ever before. The increasing number of people rely on online reviews for making a pu rchase decision.evalLast but not least of the impetus is provided by the search engine. The leading search engines including Google are increasingly getting smarter to accommodate people’s search intent and context when ranking content or listing businesses. This is creating more opportunities for the new and startups and ensuring a level-playing field for businesses of multiple sizes and brand value.3) Ensuring Unmatched ScalabilityIn the world’s major cities and commercial hubs, the real estate prices are soaring high and for the new businesses and startups, the crunching resources and soaring prices continue to make big obstacles. This is when the online business opportunity opens up with a comprehensive solution. Compared to establishing an offline brick and mortar store, often starting an online business with a business website is way cheaper as an option.While the first is less scalable and capital intensive, the online business can just start with a simple website and gro w up to a big e-commerce business with operations spread all over the world. Many big e-commerce stores of today just started as a small online venture and over the years scaled up as the business continued to grow and flourish.As the online audience for a business is spread across all over the globe and doesn’t have the constraint of location and timing, it can easily get popular with little effort if the products and services can connect to the right audience who really need them. Local products and innovative goods produced in different parts of the globe can just be popular among the audience in faraway places.evalWith an online business website, you don’t need to pump in huge amounts of money at the very beginning. You can just have a working website in the beginning and develop it further and add more features and functions over time. You can gradually allocate more budget as the business grows.4) Unmatched Flexibility and FreedomThe freedom and flexibility is a great sell ing point that makes many offline businesses convinced. The ease of controlling businesses and remaining informed about the business process without budging around the feet is a great advantage that makes businesses choose an online platform.Thanks to the super-fast connectivity, real-time technologies, and advanced communication systems, the difference between the online and offline business are decreasing at a rapid pace and so-called offline business operations are also finding online platforms more helpful. The entrepreneur of an online business can just take care of his operation while working on a laptop sitting in a cafe. This is also creating a more flexible, free and least stressful environment for the employees and management while always ensuring optimum productivity.5) Highly Cost CompetitiveFor every brick and mortar store, there are several unavoidable cost factors. From maintenance and overhead cost to store employees to real estate prices to lease commitments, there are plenty of costs involved in offline business operation.In complete contrast, online businesses have the least requirements of inventory and stocks, maintenance tasks, employees and financial risk factors.When running an online business, you can actually make products available for delivery after the customers place orders. This provides the flexibility and ease of maintaining stocks. Instead of keeping stock of each and every product variation, an online business can make products available as and when orders are placed. This flexibility down the line reduces procurement cost, shipping cost and maintenance cost for the business. Moreover, the online business model does away with most of the overhead costs.Source â€" Pexels.com6) Become Big Brand Without So Big OperationOnline business creates a level playing field for both big brands and small businesses. In fact, without having a big brand image a small startup only on the merit of content and unique product offering can genera te huge interest and in a small span of time can really become a success.There have been several crowdfunded unique products and offerings that in the last few years just became a global success starting as a small startup. By establishing credibility a small business can actually lift its brand image and can be seen among the top options for the buyers.7) Online Business Suits Particularly Unique ProductsAny business having a unique product or service in mind can only thrive when it can reach its target audience at a faster pace. Online business helps a business reach the target audience all over the globe at a quicker pace.evalSome companies purely thrive on the differences between cultures and ethnicities. For instance, a native Colombian bag produced from local raw materials can become popular as a fashionable item in faraway countries. Now, while traditional business channels will take months of time and a huge investment to reach a global audience, an e-commercewebsite and onl ine marketing can quickly generate traction. 8) Smarter Business With a Lot of AlternativesFirst of all, online business is a smarter business. Secondly, the online platform allows for unparalleled opportunities and avenues to generate revenues with little stakes. Since it is the digital presentation of your business and cool features that will represent your business and allow customers to interact, you can completely avoid the risks of physical storefronts, inventory, and several other overhead costs.Online businesses at different stages can embrace different marketing techniques to reach out to the audience. You can just start with content marketing with expert-written content and create a niche presence on the search engine ranks and gradually can promote your business.The best thing about online business is that you have a plethora of business models at your disposal. Besides selling all traditional products and services, you can also take advantage of innovative online busine ss models. As an aggregator of different services, you can provide multiple services to people and generate revenue through that.Similarly, without really producing products, you can have a dropshipping business with little investment. From content marketing to e-learning to online guide to e-commerce to development services, there are all sorts of business options for different creativity and expertise level. eval9) Sharpen Your Skills OnlineNot all business aspirants have the same level of skills and expertise. Based on your intent, business interest, and aspiration you can choose business niches and can further sharpen your skills and expertise online. For every niche, you have several great training and knowledge platforms.The e-learning websites, curriculums and platforms like Udemy, edX, etc can help you strengthen your skills and fine-tune your expertise level to start a business. For example, if you have an offline store selling interior decoration service, training on virt ual reality and augmented reality can help you incorporate innovation to present your services in a more engaging manner.When it is already established by various studies that lack skills and expertise make many businesses suffer from achieving growth, it is of utmost importance to do away with this negative impact by availing online training at different levels. For example, just when you need to look for investment, a crash course on crowdfunding and angel investors can be immensely helpful. Online business always allows you to develop your skills as you grow and face new challenges.10) Faster and Secure Online PaymentsFinally, when it comes to payment, online businesses enjoy the advantage of fast-paced and secure payment processing. Since it is extremely important for a business to help customers pay for the purchases effortlessly, this remains a crucial consideration for every offline and online business.Unlike the offline business that mostly depends on limited payment methods , an online store can accept customer payments through numerous gateways and methods as it suits to the customers. From allowing customers to avail wallet apps, net banking, credit and debit cards and services like PayPal, several online businesses increasingly offer Cash on Delivery option.Since an increasing number of business transactions depend on online payment methods, turning to the online platform even became a lucrative option for traditional offline businesses. It has been established that easier and effortless transactions help to fuel growth and encouraging businesses in online sales. Faster connectivity and rapid growth of credible and reliable payment gateways like Google Pay, Apple Pay, PayTM and the likes are working as a boost for online businessesmore than ever before. So, as far as online businesses are concerned online payment allows easier payment processing than earlier.ConclusionFrom the above-mentioned discussion, it is clear that starting an online business is now way easier than ever before. You have loads of business opportunities and business avenues to take on the online business opportunity. Almost every condition for a successful business is now present to fulfill your online business aspiration.Whether you have already a traditional business or are starting a new business, an online store or a web portal can be the best way to put your efforts to produce a faster and comprehensive business outcome.

How To Say No and Still Preserve Your Relationships

How To Say No and Still Preserve Your Relationships Earlier this week, I did my first ever Facebook Live event, which turned out to be both fun and productive. That’s because I had the pleasure of interviewing my friend, the fabulous Caroline Webb, and she shared some great actionable advice from her new book. Caroline is the author of ‘How To Have a Good Day’, and an expert in how people can use behavioral science to improve their everyday lives at work. Caroline has been doing this for over 15 years, first as a partner at McKinsey where she’s now a Senior Advisor, and now through her own company, as CEO of Sevenshift. Since the interview was 46 minutes long, I’ve included just one bite-sized segment of the interview transcript below. It contains my favorite piece of Caroline’s actionable advice from the Productivity section of her book where Caroline tells us how to create more time by learning how to say “no” something I need in particular! and to do it in a way that also preserves our relationships. Here’s the nugget on May:Caroline, I’d love for you to tell us some of your great wisdom and insight, particularly around how we “create more time”, or get more out of the time we have. And then some insights about our relationships; I have so many clients that say, “I could do so much, except for those other people getting in the way, what do we do about them?” Then, I find that so many of my clients are also dealing, underneath all of it, with confidence. We are all confident about some things, and not confident about others. So I’d love for you to talk a little bit about confidence. Then, everyone please stay until the end, because Caroline is going to share with us the two sure-fire ways to have a good day, or at least a better day then you were going to have, right? You promised you were going to share. Caroline:I did. I will. I promise. Yes. May:Yes, she always does what she says. You heard it here. Okay, so let’s start with this time element. As I said, you and I both coach a lot of clients, some of these are extremely senior people, as in, CEOs, or other C-Suite executives, and oftentimes, for my clients, they’re taking on new, bigger assignments, and they go from doing a huge job to doing an even huger job. And the one thing that they say is, “how do I create more time?” Caroline:Well, there are lots of different components to a good day. If you think about those days when you look back at the day and you feel great about it, it’s usually some combination of three things. One is that you feel like you have done things that matter to you, and second that you feel good about what you’ve done; whether it’s because you’ve had amazing conversations, or you’ve done your best possible thinking, or you’ve made a real impact. Then there is definitely something about whether you have enough enjoyment and energy left in the tank at the end of the day. You know, whether you feel like going through it all again the next day. So the book is gathered around seven building blocks that feed that definition of what a good day is, and sort of the general theme that sits behind all of my work, which is that we have a little bit more control than we tend to think. That’s why it’s a good place to start, to ask about how you create more time in a day, because it feels like it’s the most fixed thing ever. May:So, in the productivity section of your book, and there are over 100 great pieces of advice that you can just put into action immediately from the book, my very favorite of those 100 plus is something that I have a lot of trouble with. It’s about how to say no, and still maintain good relationships. Caroline:Yes, I think when we’re talking about those moments, those days, maybe those years, when we feel overloaded, we’ve got too much to do, it helps to really be aware that everything we say yes to is a no to something else, right? Because we do have limited hours in the day. May:I have to write that down, because it has to sink into my brain. You’re right. Caroline:So, sometimes, we fear saying no because we don’t want to have the difficult conversation, but as a result we’re saying no to something that actually we should really be saying yes to, because it’s more important. Maybe it’s more important to something that’s deeply meaningful for us, or maybe it’s more important for other good reasons. But it’s getting into the mindset that every yes has a no attached, and every no has a yes attached. May:Yin and yang. Caroline:Yes, and actually there is a way of saying no that deals with the reason that most of us avoid saying no, which is that we don’t like being unpleasant to people. Suppose you’ve committed to go to a meeting and then suddenly you have to pull out; you realize there’s just no way you can honor other commitments that are really, truly critical to you unless you extract yourself. But you think, “Oh, I don’t want to have that conversation.” There is a way of having the conversation, whether it’s over email or in person, which is kind of all but guaranteed to ensure that you have a better conversation, and it goes like this. The way it works is that, if you’re trying to pull out of that meeting, you normally say, “I’m so sorry,” imagine you’re typing the email. May:Yes, “huge apologies”. Caroline:“I’m so sorry, huge apologies, I’m so sorry, blah, blah,” the challenge with that is that what you’re doing is you’re subtly putting the other person’s brain on the defensive. When people are on the defensive, they are not going to respond in as expansive or generous or thoughtful a way. May:You’re right, of course not. I didn’t realize I was doing that. Caroline:So what you do instead is, first of all you start with warmth. You often forget to do this when you’re freaking out about saying no to someone. You start with, “I hope everything is coming together well for the meeting, it’s going to be really great, important, blah, blah, blah.” Then you say your ‘yes’, what is it you’re saying yes to? “It’s really important to me at the moment to…” I don’t know. What is your yes? May:Well, I was working on my book at that time. Caroline:Okay, right, so, “On my side, things are going great with the book, there is a lot going on, it’s quite intense, and no complaints, but it does mean,” and this is where your ‘no’ comes in, “It does mean that I’m having to make some tough choices about what I’m doing, and I’m so very sorry” â€" then you get to say sorry. May:So I get to say sorry? Caroline:You get to say sorry. May:But not first. Caroline:But just not at the top. May:Okay. Caroline:And then you end with warmth â€" again, we often forget to do that. Say, “I do wish you all the best. If there is anything I can do, if there is someone else I can send in my place, blah.” So it can be a tiny bit longer, but not that much longer. The trick is just that you don’t start with the negative. People often say to me, “Well, this positive no,” as it’s called, “Don’t people kind of know what you’re going to say?” And the answer is yes, probably, they’ve probably guessed that the reason that you’re getting in touch or that you’re talking to them is that you’re needing to extract yourself from a commitment. But the very fact that you start with something that is warm, and then you talk about something that is important to you, in a positive way, it can’t help but pique their interest. We know that that’s how the brain’s reward system works; it responds to a lot of things that are not at all what we’d normally think of as rewards, and it includes information and novelty. So, you pique someone’s interest. It’s not that they won’t be disappointed, it’s not that they’re not sorry that you can’t do this thing- May:Yes, exactly. Caroline:-but your ‘no’ lands in a brain that’s in a fundamentally different state, so to speak. May:Right, it’s open to that, and it’s open-minded. Caroline:It’s more open-minded, it’s what, in the book, I call ‘discovery mode’ rather than ‘defensive mode’. May:Ooh, I like that, discovery mode, yes. Yes. We should all be in discovery mode more of the time. Caroline:Yes, so discovery mode is when your brain is more focused on rewards than on threats, and then very subtly saying the things you’re excited about, even though it means you’re needing to say no, it’s enough to off-set the negativity. May:Yes, and I think also, I know that when people have to say no to me, it helps if they explain. If they just say ‘no’ then I have to guess; do they hate me? Is it that my thing is stupid? Whatever it is. So I think that might also help. Caroline:Absolutely, and you’re absolutely right, to explain. So the thing to try out is just to re-sequence your email, and not to start with ‘I’m’ sorry’. Absolutely say sorry, but just start in a different sequence. I often end up typing and having to like, space, space, space, where I add in. Start with warmth â€" what is it you’re saying yes to, and why is it important? What is it that you therefore, with regrets, with huge apologies, have to say no to, end with warmth. May:Yes. Terrific. So that’s my favorite tip. You should read her book and see what your favorite tip is. I’m dying to know. Watch the full interview where we talk about the following topics: Creating more time Through “single tasking” (5:20) By saying no in a way that preserves relationships (11:50) How to handle difficult people (17:20) How to feel and convey confidence (29:10) Two sure-fire ways to have a better day (38:20) Download the full interview transcript (PDF) Learn more about Caroline’s work here I hope you find these actionable ideas as useful as I did! Now, I know this is a different format from my usual blog posts, so leave me a comment to let me know what you think. And in the meantime, have a good day!

How to job search when youre over 50 -

How to job search when youre over 50 - Ageism grips many in the job hunt. No one doubts it can be more difficult for more experienced workers to land new opportunities and you feel stuck in a  job search rut. Some overlook your application because you are deemed overqualified, and others discriminate because they believe older workers will demand too much money. Still others worry that you are not technologically savvy and many employers are concerned workers over 50 are not flexible enough to keep up with their quickly changing priorities. The best way to  get a job when youre over 50  is to address and overcome all of these concerns in the job search and application process. If you are concerned your age may be preventing you from landing a job take the following steps to stay relevant in a fast-changing workforce: 1.  Apply for Appropriate Jobs When you apply for jobs you are clearly overqualified for, you encourage employers to wonder how long you will be willing to stay in the position before bolting for something better. They dont consider you relevant for these positions, even if you would be thrilled to take the job. If you want to be considered for positions,  apply for jobs youre not overqualified to do. Consider shifting your focus to a new industry if your field is not hiring, but do not send hundreds of resumes for entry-level positions if you have 20 years of experience if you want to hear back. 2. Be Upfront About Salary Needs In order to successfully stay relevant regarding strategy, you need to stay in-the-know about expected salaries for the positions that interest you. Research sites such as  Glassdoor.com  and  Salary.com  and talk to people in your field to assess target salaries for each organization where youd like to work. Most applications will ask for target salary, and if you can comfortably answer with a relevant range, it may help hiring managers feel more comfortable calling you for an interview with the understanding that they could afford your asking price. 3. Demonstrate You Understand and Use Technology If you think LinkedIn is the latest video game craze and youve stayed off of social media because its not for people like you, you may as well be holding up a sign that says too old for todays workplace. Embrace technology, get a Smartphone and learn how to use social media tools to get a job. Employers are turning in greater numbers to social media because they are finding better candidates there and the technology saves them time and money. Think of these tools as an extension of your in-person networking activities and as an opportunity to grow the number of people who know, like and trust you enough to refer you to speak to someone they know for an information meeting or a job. 4. Be Flexible A stereotype about older workers is that they are more likely to want to do things how theyve always done them in the past and may not be open to change. One way to overcome this stereotype is to incorporate and highlight problem solving, creativity and ability to learn new skills in your application materials. Describe your recent accomplishments and how you used current techniques and approaches to overcome obstacles. Incorporate keywords in your application materials to indicate you are up-to-date on the latest thinking in your field. If you are having trouble fulfilling this suggestion, it may be time to take a class to help you pick up the newest information you need to know. An added benefit: when you engage in continuing education related to your field, you demonstrate your interest in learning new things, which will help you overcome stereotypes and help you land a job faster. More advice 10 Reasons You Arent Getting the Job Remarkably Easy Ways to Expand Your Network Things You Should Never Say in a Job Interview Originally appeared on AOLJobs.com.