How to Create, Host and Promote a Professional Meet-Up Group (Pt. 1) Building Your Future Now

How to Create, Host and Promote a Professional Meet-Up Group (Pt. 1) Building Your Future Now A professional meet-up group is a powerful knowledge-based event that can build invaluable connections, find mentorship opportunities and learn from other professionals. For example, if you are in sales you can start a meet-up group that focuses on sales professionals from your immediate area or region. You can start with professionals in your niche like auto sales but it doesnt have to bethe focus is on the sales aspect itself in this case. How to Start it The easiest way to start a professional meet-up group is by inviting people that you already know. Maybe colleagues from the office or from a Facebook group you belong to. Dont think about filling the room at your first one! The meet-up group is about long-term dividends and quality over quantity. Just try to invite as many people that you have some type of professional connection. Build value by inviting a guest speakermaybe a veteran sales representative or sales guru or author. Word-of-Mouth Growth Social media will be discussed in part two of this article tomorrow, however, the most important growth you need and want should be word-of-mouth. If other professionals hear good things about your meet-up group they will want to be part of it. But that takes time and if you are patient and dedicated to making an exciting, wisdom-driven event, quality professionals will definitely come. Networking Element Although the most important element to these professional meet-up groups is the exchange of knowledge in order to growth professionally, connecting with others on levels such as business opportunities is important! Networking is still a key element to these meet-ups so always have a business card ready and some main points to discuss with others. On Being a Host If you are the founder of a meet-up group be sure that you set strong ground-rules to the event. Its your meet-up so you can invite anyone that you wish. However, always be careful with other professionals that dont have a sterling reputation. Be professional and courteous; dont maliciously leave anyone out. Also, if you find a great group of professionals over time and dont want to expand so be it! A strong inner-circle of professionals can be the ultimate group for learning and personal and professional growth. If you Want to Expand This is an equally awesome path to go down. If your meet-up group gains momentum and starts to grow find other professionals who share your vision and can help you grow it! Get someone to look after social media and another person to set-up venue logistics. If possible brand the meet-up, create a website and Facebook group page, and promote! Image: Raw Pixel

Resume Formatting Template - What Format Formating Template to Use For Your Resume

Resume Formatting Template - What Format Formating Template to Use For Your ResumeIf you are still figuring out what is needed in a resume, then you should know that there is a very simple way to find a resume formatting template that will meet your needs. You need to take some time and consider what it is that you really want in your resume. While you can include a lot of information, the information should be organized. So let's look at resume formats and how to find one that meets your needs.A resume is a document that summarizes information that you have provided about yourself. There are two parts to a resume. The first part is the chronological listing of your education, work experiences, and achievements; the second part is the functional resume or cover letter.The chronological listing of what you have done covers most of your resume. This includes your employment history, certifications, educational qualifications, and prior jobs. However, it does not always cover everything . In the chronological listing of your work experience, you will also list every job that you have had that you are currently employed to do.Your educational history covers the next portion of your resume. In the next portion of your resume, you will list all of your educational qualifications and how long it took you to earn them. After this, you will list your job experiences. At this point, your work experience should cover most of your chronological listing.When it comes to your resume cover letter, you will cover the remainder of your cover letter. The type of letter that you choose will depend on how well your summary of information will fit the rest of the format of your resume. For example, you may want to place a heading of your professional accomplishments in the space that follows your chronological listing. Or, you may not want to use this space at all.There are several places where you can place the heading or information after your summary. One is in the section where you list your qualifications. You can put this on your right hand side, where it is more visible. If you choose to place it on the space under your summary, then you need to place it to the left of your summary.Another format template that you can use for your resume is the skills required section. The skills required section should be included as a block on the left side of your cover letter.There are many other formats that you can use for your resume. This is just one that you may want to consider using. If you have specific formatting needs, then you can choose to use the format template that best suits your needs.

How To Evaluate Your Business Idea and Make It A Success

How To Evaluate Your Business Idea and Make It A Success Getting an idea and dreaming of growing it into a business is something we all have been through at some point or another. Some stick to making it a reality, whilst others fade away. But it is only a matter of time before you realise two things 1. The idea you have is in your mind only 2. Starting a business is a lot of work in itself (even the smallest start-up) When I started careergeekblog.com in 2011 I didnt think of it as a business, yet I evaluated the idea to see if its worth starting a careers blog, whether I had the time to write the articles, share the knowledge and more importantly, if anybody would read it. And in the same way, you need to evaluate your business idea. In this article I will show you two resources you can use to evaluate your business idea and one very good resource to start-up. So, how do you evaluate a business idea? The very first question you need to answer is whether you have the passion, time and determination to see the idea through. Think about it carefully; I have seen so many start-ups in the career industry fail because the founders couldnt see it through. You dont need to be working on a start-up full-time at the beginning. You can work on it 3 hours in the evening after your job; this way you can keep your job to pay your bills and work on the start-up in your free time to slowly make it a reality. It will mean your revenue generation will be slow the start, but its a trade-off you have to make. Once you get over the first hurdle, the rest is purely business. Questions like, do you have the skill to do it? or have you thought about what resources you will need? and many more, are part of the evaluation process. MOO.com have put together this interactive flowchart to help you evaluate your business idea. I have put it through a test and strongly recommend it to anyone. It questions your every step and urges you to think about various things like resources, customers, skills, sales, markets, etc. Some things that a passionate entrepreneur may not necessarily think about. Because he or she is more focussed on the idea. Click on the image to use the interactive flowchart to evaluate your business idea. OK, so you have evaluated your business idea and now want to make it a reality. On the trip to starting a successful business you will come across various hurdles, a lot of them come in the form and shape of documents and buzzwords. For example, do you have a business plan? , what is your marketing plan? or are you looking to hire talent? all of which make you answer the same way,  I will think about it later. CLASSIC START-UP FOUNDER. You cannot start-up that way, because that is starting to fail! Instead, here are some resources to help you get your start-up dream in order these have been taken from the MOO Startup Toolkit. Writing A Business Plan Even if you don’t  need  investment, it’s often a good idea to write a business plan to ensure you stay on the right track. When you’re faced with a hundred (or more!) decisions to make and paths to choose, and you find that you can’t actually remember what your aims actually are, a business plan should help to reel you back in. If you need funding, potential investors will want to know what they’re giving their money to, and Read more What Makes a Business Truly Remarkable? Having an ok business is ok. You’ve branched out, made the leap into being a business owner, and you’ll be doing what you love every day, and that’s ok. But what about being remarkable? Running a business that’s leagues better than ok. A business that inspires people to leave the 9-5 herd and go out alone, just like you did. A business that does more, and is more, than it has to be. A business that isn’t just a business, but something that people eat, sleep, breathe, and live. A remarkable business. Think of the most remarkable person you know. What is it that sets them apart from the other people in your life? Whether it’s because they go the extra mile, they’re Read more Marketing Your Start-up on a Tight Budget The way you market your business can shape everything from the way your brand is perceived, to the customers you reach, and (ultimately!) how well you do: without being able to reach your customers (and potential customers), you probably won’t have a business for long. However, marketing can get pretty pricey. You only have to turn on the TV to see the lengths that companies go to in order to promote their brands â€" and when you’re running a start-up, excessive spending isn’t (usually!) a good thing. Your marketing plans should encompass everything from your brand and your USPs, through to your story  Read more Here is the full list of resources you can gain access to by clicking on the image below. So now that you know how to evaluate your business idea and with links to some business start-up resources, I hope you can dream your dream and see if it is worth taking the plunge. Sometimes failure is as sweet as success, because the lessons you learn are invaluable. Not that I suggest you should fail. If you liked this article, share it with your network by using the social media buttons below you might just help someone! And if possible, thank MOO.com for creating these rockstar resources for you. 9

Active vs. Passive Candidates Recruiting on Baseless Merit

Active vs. Passive Candidates Recruiting on Baseless Merit Here’s a topic that’s near and dear to my heart: recruiters’ and employers’ preference of sourcing and hiring passive (non-job-seeking) candidates over active (job-seeking) candidates, and discrimination against the unemployed or anyone seeking employment. Sixteen years ago, I worked for a New York City ad agency that was sold to a larger company and, along with many other employees, I was laid off. As I began to embark upon my new job search, 9/11 happened, leaving the city and much of the country in a deep recession. I tried to look on the bright side â€" certainly there were people who were dealing with much worse than I was. But nevertheless, I was unemployed, and unfortunately stayed that way for many months after. When I eventually reentered the workforce in the recruiting industry, I soon discovered what could have been one of the contributing factors to my long stretch of unemployment. Many recruiting firms often sell clients on the fact that they only recruit passive candidates, and many employers simply demand it. Over the next several years, I worked job searches for clients who would only hire candidates who were already employed. I sourced candidates for recruiters who wouldn’t even consider them if they weren’t currently working, even for positions that had gone unfilled for long periods due to their specialized skill requirements. And through it all, I wondered…am I now contributing to the same cycle of unemployment that I had been caught in a few years ago? Discrimination based on employment status is nothing new in the recruiting world. Recently, it became enough of an issue for states like New Jersey, Oregon and Washington, D.C. to pass laws outlawing it. But in most states, employment status is not a protected class. Even if it were, how many unemployed workers have the time, money or drive to pursue a lawsuit against a potential employer who insists on hiring passive candidates? How would they even prove that their state of unemployment affected the employer’s decision not to interview them? And assuming they could, let’s not overlook how a legal victory in their favor would affect their future job search. The perception In the working world, there are many perceptions that are held so tightly that they often take years, even decades, to break. One of those is the perceived notion that passive candidates are superior to active candidates. Active candidates are desperate, and there must be some deep-rooted reason why they’re unemployed. If they had the skills and drive to be successfully employed, they already would be. If they were willing to work hard, they would have channeled that passion into their job search. Passive candidates are comfortably employed because they deserve to be. Luring them away from their current employer with a better salary and benefits will certainly result in a better hire than someone who is willing to accept anything. Unfortunately, none of these are true. The reality Have you ever known a good employee to lose his or her job? Have you ever worked with a bad employee? Of course! Everyone who has held a job can answer “yes” to both of these. So what makes so many recruiters and hiring managers associate “employed” with “better employee” and “unemployed” with “lesser employee?” Certainly there are occasional cases of employees losing their jobs by their own fault, then not being able to get rehired for good reason. But there are far more excellent employees who have lost their jobs by no fault of their own, and are willing to do whatever is necessary to reenter the workforce and prove themselves. Any recruiter or hiring manager who disqualifies candidates based only on employment status without taking into account previous work experience, education, skill set, personality, drive and determination is doing their employer a huge disservice. Substituting any or all of these qualities with the simple requirement of being currently employed is a quick and easy path to a bad hire, thus forcing the employer to start the search process over again from square one. Furthermore, only considering passive candidates increases the chances of hiring job hoppers, who are only interested in salary and perks, and will jump ship again as soon as a better offer comes along. Active candidates are far less likely to take a job offer for granted, and more likely to work that much harder to impact the company, enhance their skill set, assimilate into the company culture, and prove their worth to the employer who was willing to give them a second chance. There are few employees who are lucky enough to retire without ever having experienced a day of unemployment. Those of us who have been unemployed know that if every employer only hired passive candidates, a layoff or termination would mean the end of one’s career and a bleak financial future. It’s therefore up to recruiters to consider both active and passive candidates for job searches, and to educate clients on the benefits of recruiting based on skills, experience and culture fit as opposed to employment status. After all, the more active candidates that rejoin the workforce, the more passive candidates that will exist for the next job search!

Best Resume Writing Services

Best Resume Writing ServicesIf you have read this article, you are most likely looking for the top tips on how to write a perfect resume and make it stand out in a crowd. You can easily find these tips and hints by just doing a Google search or simply surfing through online resume writing services.If you are looking for the services, then start your research by looking through various categories and see which of them are the best. You can either ask the recruiters from the various companies that offer resume writing services or you can contact people who are already in their ranks. The more people who are on board the more reliable it will be.Also, keep in mind that not all of the companies offering resume writing services are the same. Many of them offer a wide variety of services ranging from designing resumes to conducting interviews. But, what they may have in common is that they will not be able to give you the best services out of the box. This means that you will have to be mo re flexible to take advantage of their services.Try looking for various programs and seminars that are conducted across the world that are related to resumes. If you manage to secure a slot at one of these seminars then you can start from there. It is also important that you spend some time in building your network so that when you need something special, you can grab it.To help you achieve this, you should spend some time marketing yourself to other resume writers. All you have to do is create a website or get a blog that is aimed towards making it easier for resume writers to submit resumes. You should also provide the quality content that can capture the attention of prospective employers.Of course, once you have done that, you should start providing solutions to queries of your resume writer. The solution might not necessarily be in the form of filling out resumes but can also involve testing the resumes and analyzing their language and content to determine if it is appealing en ough to the readers.Even after you have tried the best resume writing services, there will always be a little bit of work left to do. Since you will need a little bit of time to focus on these projects, you should try to hire an agency to handle the rest of the task for you.The last thing you need to consider is the rate that your resume writing will be done for. While there are firms that offer this kind of service, you should make sure that you find a company that can charge reasonable rates. These rates will be the basis for the wages of your writers.

Insight - The Chief Happiness Officer Blog

Insight - The Chief Happiness Officer Blog Ive had the chance to speak about two different topics over the last week. Yesterday I presented Appreciative Inquiry to a team of social workers from a danish municipality, and a week ago I spoke at a conference on motivation and happiness at work in call centers. And today I realized how similar the two subjects are. Many key insights apply to both and many of the key assumptions are the same. This reflects in part the fact, that much of our thinking in happiness at work is indeed inspired by appreciative inquiry but I also think that there is a deeper connection. That AI and Happiness at Work are two different expressions of the same values and outlook on life. An outlook that bases itself on: * The positive * What I can do * What we can do togehter * Dialogue as a way of thinking together * Our individual, basic freedom In the end, the good life is the one where you focus on the good stuff, start with yourself and work with others to do good. Thanks for visiting my blog. If you're new here, you should check out this list of my 10 most popular articles. And if you want more great tips and ideas you should check out our newsletter about happiness at work. It's great and it's free :-)Share this:LinkedInFacebookTwitterRedditPinterest Related

3 Executive Resume Must Haves

3 Executive Resume Must Haves 3 Executive Resume Must Haves To be effective a resume needs to convey value. Immediately. Early in your career you may have been able to get by with a basic employment history. However, once you reach the executive level, or are targeting those rolls, demonstrating value becomes critical. Unfortunately, most of the resumes that come across the desks of recruiters and hiring managers are boring lists of duties and responsibilities. Nothing to motivate the reader to set up an interview. The good news, is that if your resume does demonstrate value and engage the reader you will stand out from the pile of other candidates. In a good way. If you’re targeting executive roles these are 3 things your resume must have. Quantifiable Results Employers expect senior professionals to do more than manage a team, run a department, or be responsible for a sales region. They want to know what you’ve done that’s had an impact. The best way to demonstrate value is show how you’ve made money, saved money, saved time, anything that’s had a positive effect. While quantifying results may be easier in some professions, like sales, if you take the time to “dig deep” you can come up with results. Leadership Abilities A results-driven resume that shows the impact you’ve had on your organization is a good start. But, once you’ve reached a certain level, you also need to demonstrate your leadership abilities. Being a leader is more than running a department. Even if you’re not overseeing a staff of 10 you need to think of times when you’ve provided supervision, guidance or direction. Maybe you’ve been a team leader or trained new staff. If the new staff has excelled under your mentor-ship better yet. Modern Format It’s well known that “Content is King” when it comes to resumes. Having said that, an outdated, lackluster format won’t serve you well. Your resume will be much more effective if presented in an eye-catching, easy-to-read document that communicates your value immediately. Today, resumes are quickly reviewed for experience, keywords, and skills. Recruiters spend 6 seconds, according to The Ladders. While employers told CareerBuilder they spend 2 to 3 minutes, that’s not much longer. So make sure critical elements will be seen by a reader scanning your resume. While recruiters and hiring managers probably won’t expect strong resumes from new grads, once you reach the senior level they become more critical. Objectively evaluate your current resume. Will your resume attract and engage a potential employer? Does it immediately convey value? You can bet the resume of your strongest completion does.