ComputerHunter.org |
|
|
|||
|
 |
Planning Your Successful Career: 15 Ideas
"Doing a good job is one of the most important ways to move up the ladder", says Dr. Don Bagin, Professor of Communications at Glassbro State College. If you are one of the many people who do a good job consistently but are not noticed by top management, here are some suggestions to help you get on the fast track: Smiling: Research has shown that people who smile are perceived to be more intelligent than those who don't. Prioritizing: Avoid spending a great deal of time on things that aren't important just because you are good at them. The person who gets ahead is the person who establishes priorities and sets aside time for them accordingly. Walking: Choose to walk rather than drive as often as possible. And when you do, walk at least ten to fifteen percent faster than you normally would. Somehow this faster pace communicates to others that you are a person with a mission who is eager to get the job done. Speaking actively: Use the active voice when speaking or writing. Listen to the difference: "I prepared and delivered the reports promptly." Compare it to "The report was promptly prepared and delivered." Although the second one told you something, many more questions were left unanswered. Knowing your boss: Get to understand your boss' personality and when to approach him or her. If your boss is a morning person, be sure that you come up with your suggestions and proposals in the morning while he is most receptive. Volunteering: While being careful not to overdo it, volunteer for special projects and responsibilities outside of your working hours and job description. Expressing gratitude: Develop the habit of sending brief notes of thanks to anyone who has made your day easier. Positively speaking: Look for positive things to say about people, especially your co-workers. Being approachable: Make yourself approachable. Let people know when and how to reach you. Following-up: After a task-assigning meeting, follow-up immediately on those assignments that were given to you. Spotting trends: Learn to spot trends that affect your company or agency. Be the first person to alert those in a position to capitalize on them. Presenting effectively: Be certain that you speak clearly and precisely when making presentations. Speak with confidence and admit honestly when you don't know, but promise to return with an answer promptly. Reading the trades: Determine which publications top management is reading, then get a copy of them so that you, too, can become knowledgeable of relevant matters. Making contact: Establish a contact person in all your referral sources. Make it a point to meet with that person so that you can get to know each other. It will help make your future contacts easier for both of you. Remembering your manners: Never forget to be polite or to follow the proper protocol. It lets people know that you mean business, that you take your business relationships seriously. Put these fifteen ideas into practice, and I guarantee you that you will see yourself progressing faster and farther than you think. Remember: When you maximize your potential, everyone wins. When you don't, we all lose. © Etienne A. Gibbs, MSW PERMISSION TO REPUBLISH: This article may be republished in ezines, newsletters, and on web sites provided attribution is provided to the author, and it appears with the included copyright, resource box and live web site link. Although advance permission is not required, please notify us at eagibbs@ureach.com when you use this article. We would also appreciate receiving a copy of your publication with the article included. Etienne A. Gibbs, MSW, Management Consultant and Trainer, conducts seminars, lectures, and writes articles on his theme: ... helping you maximize your potential. He offers management, marketing and parenting resources at http://www.maximizingyourpotential.blogspot.com
Google News - Top Stories
|
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
Change Your Life, Change Your Career And Get A New Job! Careers dictate resume format Fun At Work Leads to More Success Common sense at work: Such qualities as loyalty, energy, intelligence and hard work are certain to be in any consensus of what it takes to build a successful career. Learn Some Useful Feng Shui Career Tips As it does with every main life aspect, feng shui also provides tips and guidelines to help you improving your career. If your career is not moving on in the way you wish, that is due to a lack of balance and harmony within your environment and the elements that affect it. Feng shui career tips intend to help you reach that harmony, but besides of following these specific tips, you should try to follow feng shui guidelines for all your life areas, since your life should be balanced as a whole as well. Revitalize Your Recruiting for 2005 Happy New Year! The forecasts are in agreement: Hiring is on the rise. 2005 will mark the revitalization of our economy. In fact, hiring plans may rival 1999 statistics, when the economy was at its strongest. How to Crash - Proof Your Job Search Think you have the speed, endurance, and know-how to fix what's broken? Bet not. The smartest people in the world are those who can leave their ego at the door, and know when its wise to seek help. Job Interview Preparation - What Employers Are Looking For When an employer decides to conduct an interview with you, there are certain things that they are looking for from you. Naturally, you are likely to focus on these things during an interview, but you should remember all of the tips in this manual because following those tips is what is going to make the employers see all of those things in you. Tips for Building a Successful Career 1. Develop excellent work habits ? for example, meet deadlines and don't procrastinate. Are You Winning the Talent Wars? How many times have you heard or read, "Our employees are our greatest asset"? Writing Resumes Use a resume as a foot in the door History Reports: When Your Resume Equals, I Did This, I Did This, I Did This Do these sound familiar? Work Is A Four-Letter Word I can hear the jokes already and most of them are not politically correct. Let me throw out a word that we often don't attach to work and yet I think it is a word of redemption, of contribution, of achievement, of community, and ultimately, of legacy. What You Need To Know Before Committing To Vocational Retraining You've thought a lot about the kind of work you want to do. The duties, the pay, the hours, the environment ? everything sounds right. According to the newspaper ads, there is a big demand out there. You find a program that sounds really good. You are all ready to sign on the dotted line. Hot Business Trends for 2004? And Beyond: Maybe One Will Turn Into a Creative Business Idea for You I always look forward to the December issue of Entrepreneur magazine. That's the issue that features the publisher's annual pick of hot businesses, markets, and trends for smart entrepreneurs ? or those who aspire to be. Some of the high tech businesses cited like mobile gaming or online learning tend to require six and seven figure start up costs. This can seem daunting (although not impossible) for the person just venturing into self-employment. So I've decided to focus on the markets, trends, and businesses that speak to someone operating on a somewhat more limited budget. Let's start with hot markets: HOT MARKET: Middle-Aged Women Since I've recently entered my last year in my 40s, I thought it only appropriate to start with this group (although like most boomers, I still have a hard time thinking of myself as anything close to "middle aged"). Not surprisingly, products and services for women in their 40s and 50s that center around anti-aging and menopause are hot. The magazine cites such promising areas as counseling, exercise spas, yoga, smoking cessation programs? any product or service that helps women stay healthy and feel good about themselves ? both inside and out. The reference to smoking cessation got me thinking? Residential treatment facilities for other forms of substance abuse are common- place, but I've personally never seen a retreat, spa, or other residential-type place specifically aimed at people who need help quitting smoking, and who would benefit from doing so outside their home environment. I'm picturing morning walks, meditation, massage, support groups, good food, and of course, lots and lots of punching bags! HOT MARKET: Toddlers/Tweens/Teens According to market research firm Packaged Facts, last year 5 to 14 year olds spent $10 billion on food and beverages. Other favorite product areas for kids are sports, fashion, music, and technology. And apparently home décor and remodeling isn't just for adults anymore (who knew?). Stores like IKEA and Pottery Barn are starting to selling home furnishing products aimed at teens. With baby boomers having more discretionary income with which to spoil their grandchildren, babies and toddlers have also become hot markets. Online start-up ELittle Luxuries offers designer baby furniture and more than 600 other upscale baby items. (http://www.eLittleLuxuries.com) HOT MARKET: Overweight People After reading how much kids spend on food and beverages, it's no surprise that 15% of children and teens are overweight. But we adults have them beat. A whopping 64% of Americans are considered obese or overweight. Businesses that offer products and services to help people slim down and develop more healthy habits are the most obvious. But entrepreneurs willing to think outside the "solve the problem" box by looking for ways to make overweight people's lives easier verses trying to fix them, will also do well. HOT MARKET: Metrosexuals With the enormous appeal of stylish soccer super star David Beckham and shows like Bravo's Queer Eye for the Straight Guy where gay men help straight men with fashion, grooming, home décor, and social skills, a growing number of heterosexual men are allowing themselves to tap into their fashionable side. One enterprising guy who jumped into the metrosexual market early has seen phenomenal growth. With $20,000 and a dream, Tom Granese launched Regiments, an online store that sells high-end grooming products for men. Less than two years later, Tom opened his first storefront in Dallas with a projected $210,000 in first year in-store sales. HOT MARKET: Hispanics The Hispanic market is certainly nothing new ? in fact it's made Entrepreneur's list for many years now. The magazine cites opportunities in anything from food and entertainment, to financial services and Web services. Now let's look at two of Entrepreneur's picks for hot trends in 2004? HOT TREND: Outdoor Living Spaces Into gardening or design? According to Joanne Kostecky of the American Nursery & Landscape Association, and president of her own garden design company, the concept of outdoor living rooms that is so popular in the south and some urban areas is beginning to reach the rest of the country. The fact that more consumers are investing in courtyards and elaborate gardens means the gardening and outdoor design businesses are bound to grow! HOT TREND: Fast-Casual Food Health and taste conscious consumers on the go are turning to fast- casual restaurants and chains. In my own small town of Northampton, two of the more popular joints are benefiting from the fast-casual boom. One serves upscale burritos (my favorite is the Thai burritos) and the other is a hip soup, salad, and sandwich joint that opened in a greatly remodeled former Taco Bell restaurant. Idea: Back in my old softball days I always wished someone would cater to all those hungry players and fans by starting a high quality food wagon. Other Hot Trends? Boating and water sports, the hunger for low- carb foods (a trend being taken seriously by restaurants, grocery stores, and food manufacturers), oils and sauces, and multiculturalism which includes the gay and lesbian markets. Hot markets and hot trends lead to hot businesses. Here are some of Entrepreneur's picks? HOT BUSINESS: Children's Enrichment Programs With so many parents in the workforce, more kids than ever before are engaged in extracurricular and after school activities. If you like the idea of working with kids, you can opt to open a physical location like a gym, dance or art studio, or camp, take your program into the schools, or provide private lessons. If you think opening your own place is financially out of reach, think again. While $12,000 is no small sum of money, it's a lot less than a lot of people might expect they'd need to shell out to start their own dance studio. But that's how much former dance student turned instructor Archer Alstaettter dug up in cash and credit cards to found Dance Emotion in Irvine, California. That was five years ago. Today Archer's studio has 500 clients and expects 600-plus to be enrolled by spring. You go Archer! HOT BUSINESS: Home Improvement Remodeling, refurbishing, and redecorating are all the rage. There are some 30 cable shows on home improvement alone. And home improvement isn't all about décor. Worth noting are businesses that help home owners maximize the space they have as well as those making homes more accessible to an aging population. (To read about a unique, highly successful, and legitimate home business opportunity that matches home owners with reputable home repair contractors go to http://www.ChangingCourse.com/hrnsuccess.htm) HOT BUSINESS: Yoga & Pilates According to Entrepreneur, companies are bending over backwards to cater to the growing market of people practicing yoga. Clothes, mats, DVDs, music, and classes aimed at seniors, pregnant women and children as young as three are just a few products and services aimed at this growing market. And with a reported 47 million Americans taking Pilates, a work out that builds abdominal muscles, opportunities abound for gym owners and instructors alike. If you like the idea of teaching Pilates, studio owner Maria Leone recommends starting out by keeping overhead low. She suggests renting space for one-on-one sessions from a small gym or chiropractic office. Fees for a typical Pilates session range from $50 to $70 an hour. Meditate on that! HOT BUSINESS: Upscale Pet Services According to the American Pet Product Manufacturers Association, Americans spent an estimated $31 billion on pets in 2003. A few of the luxury services cited include pet hotels complete with heated floors, limousine rides, day cruises, and personal shoppers. And apparently the spa trend has extended to the pet world with exfoliating treatments, aromatherapy, liposuction (I kid you not), and chiropractic services. HOT BUSINESS: Outsourcing Outsourcing is one of those good new-bad news things. If your job is being eliminated because it's cheaper for your company to outsource functions like HR, accounting, and network security, then outsourcing is a bad thing. Outsourcing is particularly hot in IT ? and when it comes to outsourcing jobs overseas, it's also controversial. The good news for freelancers is the federal government plans to open 850,000 jobs to outsourcing, with $85 billion in federal IT contracts to be awarded over the next three years Other Hot Businesses: Spas, organic foods, online matchmaking, senior care, wireless, tech security, and voiceover IP (VoIP). If you believe as I do that it's better to be the boss, than to have one, why not make 2004 the year you start putting your entrepreneurial plans into action? You don't have to quit your job or mortgage your home to get the ball rolling. You might resolve to do some research, start putting together a business plan, take a course on marketing, glass blowing, woodworking, web design, or whatever sparks your fancy, get certified to teach yoga, buy a book on how to launch a successful on-line business, start a Barbara Sher style Success Team? or just order a subscription to Entrepreneur. If you don't already subscribe to Entrepreneur you can do so at http://www.Entrepreneur.com. The site also features a ton of free resources for anyone who already is ? or dreams of ? working for themselves. For other free resources for people who want to start their own businesses visit http://www.ChangingCourse.com/newbiz.htm Okay, but what if you don't see a trend, market, or business here that speaks to you? Then find the one that does! I had a client who is crazy for horses and photography. It took me all of 30 seconds on Google.com to find a group called the Equine Photographers Network. In addition to their conference this February in Florida, the group offers a free public online discussion group with over 700 members who range from top-of-their-field working pros to amateur photographers to magazine editors and writers to horse owners, all interested in improving their equine photography skill and knowledge. Learn all about the Equine Photographers Network at http://www.EquinePhotographers.net. The way to find the "hottest" business idea for you is to get in touch with the passion that burns the brightest in your heart. Then make 2004 the year resolve to you take those first bold steps on behalf of your dream! What Every Employee Should Know About How to Overcome Boredom Do you find yourself easily becoming bored or tired at work for no apparent reason? If that's the case, then pay close attention. Research has shown that fatigue and a worn-out feeling are often caused by unproductive mental attitudes. If this describes your case, read on to learn six ways you can overcome boredom. Avoid Your CV Always Ending Up in the Bin Cover Letters must grab the reader's interest so that they immediately want to learn more about the writer (you). Outsmart Other Job Seekers by Showing These 5 Key Strengths Getting an appointment for an interview these days is an accomplishment. It indicates that you have a good resume, and/or that networking has paid off. Bravo. Now for the all-important in-person phase of the process. Job Interviews: Plan Your Appearance to Make a Great First Impression Your personal appearance is a critical component of that all-important first impression when you walk into the room for your interview. Building Performance Trust You can have outstanding ideas, yet never leverage them into winning at working results. That's because the secret behind those ideas lies in performance. Yours. Do You Have a Hotsy-Totsy Resume? I begin this article with a bit of slang description. What do I mean by a "hotsy totsy" resume? I mean one that does the following for you, the job seeker and a possible employer. Tips for Requesting a Raise You probably think you deserve a raise. But does your boss think so?
|
|
|
|
|
Comment by John S. Baick