Alexandra Levits Water Cooler Wisdom Why You SHOULD Pull An All-Nighter

Alexandra Levit's Water Cooler Wisdom Why You SHOULD Pull An All-Nighter My editor at Penguin just sent me a new book she worked on called The 24-Hour Genius: Unlocking Your Brain’s Potential with Strategic All-Nighters, by Eric Epstein. The title and the cover of the book are very effective in that I understood the central premise as soon as I picked it up. And I immediately thought: “oh no they didn’t.” How can this be good advice? I have never pulled an all-nighter. Yes, you read that correctly. Never. Not in high school, not in college, and certainly not at work. The closest I came was working the press room at an annual tech user conference until 3AM, after which I sped back to the hotel and promptly slept five hours. Because I’m pathologically organized and an extreme advance planner, I’ve never had to stay up all night to finish a project or meet a deadline. And until reading Epstein’s book, it never occurred to me that I should choose to. Epstein doesn’t advocate a lifetime of sleep deprivation, but he does suggest that a strategically timed all-nighter every now and then can lift your career to new heights. For more on this point of view as well as my take, check out the full post on Intuits Fast Track blog.

A Professional Resume Writing Free Online Service

A Professional Resume Writing Free Online ServiceA lot of people think that a professional resume writing free online service is the best way to get a great job. Well, that's true, but it's not a guarantee. There are a lot of people out there who do the same thing over again, never achieving anything in their careers. So how can you tell if you're doing what you should be doing?The fact is that many online services do offer a way to craft a great resume. However, the problem comes when people come to believe that they are the only way to go. This is because there are plenty of ways to go about it that are extremely time consuming, yet save a lot of money. Instead of looking for a free online service, it would be far better to look for one that will charge you a one-time fee.All too often, people will think that they can go about building a resume writing free online service by following along with some sort of software. In reality, this is just a bad idea. They will waste tons of tim e and money while trying to learn the ropes. All you need to do is pay a bit of money, and then you're all set.What makes a good professional resume writing free online service? You'll want to make sure that the web site you are using offers you a resume writing service. You'll also want to make sure that you can view their samples, and then be able to tweak them to the specifications you need.Then, you'll want to write your own samples. You might not think that writing your own samples is that difficult, but they will most definitely be difficult if you are writing them without the right tools. Plus, there's no reason to choose free services if you don't have to.If you are willing to pay for your professional resume writing free online service, you'll want to make sure that the people behind it will give you the access you need. You will want to be able to read the samples and then go back and edit them. That's a lot more work than just viewing a sample from the beginning, right?Th ere is actually one web site out there that can really help you with your professional resume writing free online service. It isn't very well known, but it's called CV Writer. It's an independent business out of England, and they have an option that lets you pay a one-time fee and not have to pay for anything else.If you're serious about becoming a professional resume writer, you will need to take a good look at CV Writer. The professionals who use it have rave reviews and the simple writing services they offer are worth paying for.

2 Key Resources for Crafting and Telling Your Story - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career

2 Key Resources for Crafting and Telling Your Story - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career Id like to recommend 2 books that that can help you craft and tell your personal brand building story on your blog or website. Ginny Redishs Letting Go of the Words: Writing Web Content that Works and Patrick Hanlons PrimalBranding: Create Zealots for your Brand, Your Company, and your Future offer strong, relevant insights plus dozens of useful examples and tips to help you build and communicate your personal brand. A visual guide to writing online If youre looking for ways to tell your personal branding story online, youll like Ginny Redishs Letting Go of the Words: Writing Web Content that Works. For over 5 years, Letting Go of the Words has become the standard of online writing and website design. Its a book that experienced web designers frequently return to for inspiring examples and fresh perspectives. Ginny Redish is an internationally known website usability expert who has presented her ideas at web design and user experience conferences around the world. Letting Go of the Words succeeds because it doesnt just tell you how to improve your online writing skills, it shows you how to take your writing and your website   to the next level of writing and layout. Letting Go of the Words contain hundreds of annotated examples showing actual websites that demonstrate the dos and the donts of effective online writing and layout. Colored icons and call outs draw your attention to problem areas or examples of best practices at work. Just by reading the captions and viewing the large-scale illustrations and call outs, youll gain a fresh perspective on organizing and editing your writing and simplifying the presentation of your ideas online. Here are some of the ways Letting Go of the Words will help you improve the way you tell your story online: Brevity. Youll gain a fresh respect for why and how you should edit your message down to the minimum words needed to tell your personal branding story using short words, short sentences, and short paragraphs. Eliminating clutter. Website clutter often accumulates slowly, and isnt noticed for the readership killer it really is. Youll discover new ways to inventory your blog and website, eliminating readership-killing distractions that detract from your message. Guiding your reader. Youll find out why subheads, call-outs, and lists are so important in engaging readers and maintaining their interest. Planning your website. Letting Go of the Words guides you through the process of creating visitor personas and organizing your site to deliver the information and experience your visitors are looking for. Good news! Best of all, last week, a second edition of Letting Go of the Words appeared, rewritten to reflect the latest user experience research and trends in online copywriting and website design. 7 ways to tell the story of your personal brand Many books about personal branding describe the importance of using stories to build your personal brand, but Patrick Hanlons PrimalBranding: Create Zealots for your Brand, Your Company, and your Future.   is unique because it decodes the DNA of brands and shares 7 specific ways to create the story of your personal brand. After researching and analyzing the stories associated with the leading business brands, Hanlon outlines 7 codes, or techniques, you can use: Creation story. Base your brands story on how your firm came to be, such as the origins of Apple Computer and Hewlett-Packard in garages behind Silicon Valley homes. Creed. Strong brands, like the United States Constitution, are usually associated with a core set of beliefs, or basic principles that guide behavior. Icons. Hanlon describes icons as concentrations of sensations, like sight (Apples logo) sound (Intels chimes), or smell (Cinnabon), associated with strong brands. Rituals. Rituals are signature repeated patterns of behavior, like the way worship services are organized, store visitors are greeted, or product packaging (like Tiffanys blue boxes), that set brands apart from their competition. Pagans, (non-believers). Strong brands often dont stand for something as much as they are created in opposition to other brands. In other words, Apples Macintosh brand needs Microsofts Windows as its enemy, and the rise of Protestantism required Catholicism. In an election year, of course, the power of pagans is even more obvious.   Sacred words. Strong brands are often associated with the specific words used to rally followers, such as the Vietnam anti-war movements Hell no, we wont go! Leader. Finally, Hanlon shows how strong brands often have a charismatic leader that symbolizes the firm, no matter how large it becomes. The impact of the leader often extends long after their death, as examples like Ghandi and Steve Jobs show. After describing the DNA builders described above, Hanlon provides detailed suggestions and tips for employing 1, or more, of the DNA strands into your personal brand. Letting Go of the Words and Primal Branding are recommended additions to your personal branding library which should include books Making Ideas Happen, The Power of Habit, and Dans Me 2.0: 4 Steps to Building Your Future. Whats your favorite brand-building book? Share your comments and   suggestions! Author: Roger C. Parker encourages you to download his free workbook, 99 Questions to Ask Before you Write Self-Publish a Brand-building Book. You can also use his online form to ask questions about writing and publishing.

The Double Edged Sword of Working With Family

The Double Edged Sword of Working With Family If your family has their own business, the question of whether or not to work with them will inevitably come up at some point. Society has many views on young people joining their familys business. Some say college grads are under qualified. Others think that the next generation are getting hand-outs, even though they are probably making a modest salary. As you may know from reading this post my family has their own business so this thought definitely crossed my mind. I also have close friends who work with family and it seems to be both a blessing and a curse. Many parents wont allow their children to work for the family business until they have gained the necessary experience and proven a passion for the business. Other parents seem to lay a guilt trip on their children to join the business. Its a really tough decision to make and it can have a huge impact on your relationship with your family. If you are in this situation here are a few things to consider: -Do you have the skills and desire to manage the demand? -Are you OK with blending your personal and professional life? -Do you mind receiving work related phone calls early in the morning and late at night? -By joining the business, would you be fulfilling your own legacy and dreams or your parents? -Would you be more valuable to the company if you got outside experience first, and then joined the company? -Are you considering working for the family business because you assume you will get more second chances, more pay, more days off, and work less hours? If so, re-consider because the opposite is probably true. -Have family members joined the business in the past? If so, how did that turn out? -Can you handle working with people who know all of your hot buttons? -Are you ready to accept criticism for your work from your family? -Will joining the company continually challenge you, stretch your mind and interest you? -Are you ready to talk about money daily-the most sensitive topic in most relationships? -Are you willing to challenge the status quo to make things better, even if it is difficult? I think the scariest part about joining the family business is the possibility for disagreements to ruin relationships or break families apart. It happens more than you would think. In my family, it caused a six year separation from my immediate family and our extended family. Its pretty hard to fire a son, or quit your parents business because there is so much personal baggage at stake. Yet everyone has to do what is right for them to be happy and advance their careers. I also think that parents are the toughest bosses (I cannot even imagine working for my parents right now!): they have much higher expectations for you than they do of other employees. Parents are likely to think they have the right and obligation to push you harder, to hold you accountable, and to make you learn lessons the hard way. Again, I think that working for your parents can be the best and the worst of situations. I think that you would learn more about work ethic, dedication, and dealing with your emotions than you would working for anyone else. At the same time, make sure youre not putting your dreams aside to make someone else happy. Also make sure you have a backup plan if things dont work out!

What is a Professional Resume Writer For?

What is a Professional Resume Writer For?In order to ensure your resume is both convincing and professionally written, you should always have a professional writer to produce your resume. If you are looking to write an objective statement for a resume, you will first need to know what type of resume you are looking for. Do you want one that is an essay or do you prefer one that is more conversational? The type of resume you write will influence how well it will be received by your employer.There are plenty of ways to be able to write an objective statement for a resume. Of course, you can also ask your colleagues and friends to do it for you if you do not have the time. If you are sure you do not want to take on this job yourself, you can hire the services of a professional resume writer.What is a resume? Basically, a resume is a document that contains all the pertinent information about you and your qualifications for the position that you are applying for. The most basic form of re sume is one that is a single page, but there are many forms of resumes that you can choose from. An objective statement for a resume is the statement that helps other people determine if you are indeed a good candidate for the job.This means that the resume has provided information that will help the recruiter, who will then begin to evaluate you. The other important point is that the resume must also be accurate and up-to-date. It is important to give the correct details about yourself, but it also helps if the facts are updated on a regular basis. When someone reads your resume, they should be able to easily see if your facts are still accurate and up-to-date.In order to write an objective statement for a resume, a professional resume writer will first provide you with an outline of what you are required to include. You will be asked to list your educational background, your employment history, and other relevant information. These details are taken from the cover letter that you will be given in order to make your resume stand out in the crowd.You will be asked to provide such details as your salary history, salary expectations, where you got your education, and your past jobs. This information will be used to help determine your worthiness for the job. It is important to write such an objective statement for a resume, as the recruiter will use the information to determine your worthiness and therefore your level of success.Once the recruiter has taken all of the information in the resume and used it to determine your worthiness, he or she will then go through the materials with a fine-toothed comb to see what else is available. This includes looking for inconsistencies. For example, your grade point average may not match the information that is provided on your resume. It is therefore important to not only show what you have accomplished so far, but also to provide all the relevant information needed to make the recruiter feel comfortable.In writing an obj ective statement for a resume, it is important to be honest and detailed. Your resume needs to be based on factual data, but it also must be able to convince the recruiter that you are a very good fit for the job. The objective statement for a resume is very important to all hiring managers.

8 Tips for Being a Productive and Efficient Freelancer CareerMetis.com

8 Tips for Being a Productive and Efficient Freelancer With improved technology and easy access to internet services today, freelancing has become the next frontier for many workers.With an enviable freedom, it’s the better option for many workers who may desire some leeway to work at their own pace without being pushed around by a boss It’s indeed an exciting venture. But what does it really take to thrive in this new field?The difference between being a highly successful freelancer and “just getting by” lies in your productivity.In turn, your productivity will rely on how efficiently you use your time and how effectively you make use of outsourcing and resources.This article analyzes 8 tips that will help you be your own boss while at the same time being as productive and efficient as possible. Let’s get to it!1. Avoid postponing TasksevalYou’re now your own supervisor, and enjoying your freedom more than ever before. This is okay, but with it comes the temptation to pile up work for a later time. This is risky for you beca use you will often end up with too much to do within a short span of time.Just like Sunday night before school, you don’t want the stress of deadlines, which often lead to rushed tasks and poor work.The rule to follow here is simple: Don’t put off till tomorrow what can be done today.2. Be realistic with your capabilitiesevalAvoid picking up tasks that you know you won’t be able to do due to your incapability or constraints of time. Remember it’s always better to fail to book a task than take it up and fail to deliver to the expectations of your clients Make sure to research and purchase some of the following equipment for a computer workstation:Ergonomic ChairVertical Mouse and KeyboardStanding DeskFootrestWrist Rest Anyone who has been in the service business knows that some clients are better than others. Some clients are just plain nuts, and only experience can tell you how to detect these types of clients beforehand.Nonetheless, once you find good clients, be sure to tr eat them correctly. You’ll want to hold on to these clients as if they are gold, as they will lead to recurring income, referrals, and an overall positive experience.For the crazy clients, make sure to cut ties with them quickly, but in an amicable manner. You don’t want to burn bridges, which will lead to negative reviews and all types of headaches, but you want them gone, as they are a drain on your resources.The 80/20 rule dictates you will likely spend 80% of your efforts on 20% of your clients. Identify those clients and seek to mitigate them.6. Niche downOne of the best ways to make efficient use of your time is to have previously established SOPs On the other hand, if you pick a smaller niche and stick to specialized services, you will have most of the work done beforehand. A lot of you work will be able to outsourced easily, since you’ve establish your SOPs beforehand and have already vetted and trained potential workers to assist.So, consider picking a particular area in which you have experience, and where the revenue potential is high, and start to specialize in that. This will not only make your fulfillment process quicker and easier, but will make landing new clients a breeze At such times, instead of turning away your customers, it would be better for you to aim to hire more people to help you out. Just ensure that they possess the desired skills and abilities.8. Set long term and short-term goalsGoals are crucial for staying productive and efficient. Without them, chances are you will not fulfill on your client work as much as you need to maximize income. Short term goals include daily and weekly workloads, while long term goals include yearly income, revenue growth, client retention, etc.Don’t just set goals and accomplish them, but regularly circle back to your goals and see how you should adjust them. Don’t get stubborn, learn from your experience and feed that knowledge back into your decision-making process.CONCLUSIONBeing a freel ancer is a career unlike any other. With both heavy responsibility but also increase freedom, it can be a double-edged sword. Working to get a solid and efficient process in your work day can decrease stress while also increasing your earning potential.Following these 8 tips should help you along the way to a productive and lucrative career as a skilled freelancer, but don’t just read about it, BE about it. Now go crush it!

Im speaking in Curacao in April - The Chief Happiness Officer Blog

Im speaking in Curacao in April - The Chief Happiness Officer Blog You may remember that I spoke in The Dominican Republic last October (where they forced me to wear a suit for the first time in years) and in April Im going back to the Caribbean. MAN, I love my job :o) In fact, this time the whole company is going, to deliver the keynote and a full-day training at The X-Factor Experience Business Master Class in Curacao. From the web site: Designed to give implemental insights and hands on learning experiences by keynote speakers/trainers operating in Europe and the local market, the X-Factor Experience Business Masterclass will provide you with the ability to put classroom knowledge into real-world practice immediately. So take your career to the next level and join us from April 2-4, 2012, where you will get the unique opportunity to gain practical tools and be able to network and share ideas with peers in a non-competitive environment. Its going to rock! 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

SHOWSTOPPER Road Map to Rocking Your Trade Show

SHOWSTOPPER â€" Road Map to Rocking Your Trade Show When Khristian Howell aka the-friend-who-Jess-Swift-brought-with-her-to-SURTEX-and-by-the-time-they-left-we-were-all-crying-on-the-street-because-we-loved-each-other-so-much told me about a new product she was working on and asked me to take part, I said, Duh! Then I said, Whats it about, chica bonita? (which I realize should come before the Duh, but you know how I feel about the s-word (should!)). She responded, SHOWSTOPPER is a 14 week email series designed to help exhibitors put all the planning on auto-pilot.  Two or three times per week an email with a specific action item will arrive directly into the inbox.  I invite participants to simply concentrate on and execute this one goal.  This will simplify the preparation process and break it up into manageable pieces.  Most importantly, this will give artists the tools they need to do the juggling act between preparing for the show and creating lots of new fantastic work. I really believe this tool will help take the guess work and anxiety out of the preparation process.  My sincere hope is this will help more artists believe that they CAN make this happen for themselves! Clearly, I am crazy excited! The crazy-excitement was contagious, and I was even more psyched to be interviewed by Khristian around the confidence-building piece of being part of your first show. Love her! So, when it came time to launch, I thought an interview with Khristian would be great. Thankfully she agreed and hopefully you will too! 1. Your first show was SURTEX at the Jacob Javits Center in the spring of 10 (where I met ya!). What was the biggest roadblock you faced in taking the plunge and putting your money where your mouth was? You named it. The green stuff.  It really came down to dollars and cents.  Doing a trade show is a HUGE investment!  During the decision making process my inner dialog would go back and forth between I can totally do this and How the #$*@@ am I going to afford this  It is super scary.  In the end, I really had to learn to trust myself.  If this was to be what I really wanted to do for a living, I would have to take the leap.  Much of my business, like many others, is all about exposure.  There are so many great artists out there, but if the right people dont see them, it really doesnt matter how great the art is. Today I understand fully that if I dont invest in myself, I cant really expect others to do so. 2. Whats been the best thing thats come from showing at SURTEX? Well, there are several.  One of them is a reaffirmed belief that I can make it in this industry.  I was overwhelmed by the response to my artwork, presentation, and professionalism.  The best part about all of that is I was really just being me.  I felt so comfortable in my own skin, and it was amazing to get confirmation that I was moving in the right direction.  The other thing that excites me about doing shows is the relationships that are created both on a business and personal level.  It was so amazing to be in the same arena with people in my field who I had long admired.  Then to meet them and see that they are just like me was the icing on the cake.  Id spent so long putting certain people on a huge pedestal, and thinking WOW Ill never be like them. The truth of the matter is, I am just like them right now, because we all have to start somewhere.  It was great to know that we all have the s ame struggles.  It is even better to have a new wonderful community to share in the wonderful triumphs as well. 3. Looking back, what do ya wish you knew about showing at SURTEX that you learned by being there? This is a tough question for two reasons.  1. I am not good at looking backwards.  I just want to move forwards.  2. Honestly, I feel really great about my first showing.  Of course there are things I will do differently this time around.  However, that is not because I feel I did something wrong last year, the changes for this coming year only have to do with personal growth.  I spent about a year and a half really digging and doing research on the show, the buyers, the exhibitors, and licensing.  I walked the show one year, attended many of the seminars, and sought out the experts in the field.  By the time I was ready to show, I felt really READY!  The one major thing I have changed is that I am constantly saving for the shows.  I have a dedicated savings account just for it! 4. Youre a photographer and surface designer, but have also recently been focusing on helping other artists prepare for their first show. What drew you to switching gears a bit? Oh this was not planned at all!!  When I came home in May from the show, I was emotionally drained.  Id just spent a good six months pouring over every detail regarding marketing, contracts, logistics, shipping, lodgingoh and that little thing of building a huge art collection from scratch!  I was so overwhelmed (in a good way) so I just started to write. I wrote until four am on the Sunday after I got home.  When I was finished, I realized I had just Confessed all the things I had gone through to get to the show.  Then I thought of all the materials out there on doing trade shows, Ive never seen anything from someone like me, a first-timer.  So I organized what essentially was  a huge journal entry, called it Confessions of a First Timer (keep it clean people) and blogged about it a few days later.  Thenthe questions started comingand I started answering.  The questions were the motivation behind SHOWSTOPPER, and thats pretty much that. 5. And heres the required question: What did you wanna be when you grew up? A business owner so I could spend each day on my own terms, traveler and dancer.  Two out of three aint bad.  Need to start working on that third one again! If ya wanna get your hands on SHOWSTOPPER, then click here (or or any of the links that Ive previously linked the name of the product to). In full disclosure, I get a lil somethin somethin if you buy the product from this link, but I always promise to only pimp what I absolutely stand behind! From what I know about Khristian her passion, her drive, her talent, her spunk and what I know from our interview, this is definitely a must-have resource for anyone looking to get in on their first show. Its never too early to start planning!