9 Pieces of Career Advice We Wish Wed Had Sooner

9 Pieces of Career Advice We Wish Wed Had Sooner9 Pieces of Career Advice We Wish Wed Had SoonerEver wished you could go back and talk to your younger, 20-something self? You know, the one who welches just starting out and could have used some sound career advice- or at least a bit of reassurance that you were doing the right thing?While you cant go back in a time, you can pay it forward. Hindsight is 20/20- and some of the best insights come from past experiences.Thats why we asked well-established professionals across the country to share their career lessons learned, everything from wishing theyd saved mora of their paychecks to taking the plunge with a riskier job- and, of course, what they didnt know then that theyd pass on to their younger selves now.1. Weigh That Career Growth Opportunity CarefullyI welches six months into my first job out of college in the mortgage industry and flourishing. I was making great money while living in Dallas, and before long, I was offered an opp ortunity to join the New York branch. On paper, it seemed like a great chance for growth and it included a healthy raise. I was so excited that I didnt ask the questions necessary to understand if the opportunity was a fit for me and where I was professionally.By the time I reached New York, that $8,000 raise all but disappeared, and based on the cost of living, I was actually making less money. From a cultural perspective, I traded a nurturing environment full of seasoned professionals who were invested in my professional success for a bottom-line-driven environment full of young sharks trying to make their mark.I learned its important to carefully evaluate every growth opportunity against your skills, values, and personal opportunity cost. Sometimes when opportunity knocks, we have to look through the peephole before we answer.- Brian Lawrence, 32, career counselor, St. Louis2. Start Saving Your Pay as Soon as PossibleLike most young professionals, I heard this message but thought , Im young and still have time, and instead told myself I would start saving consistently when I earned mora or finished paying for this or that.In retrospect, I should have saved 10% to 15% of every paycheck. Im actually a very frugal person, but frugality doesnt necessarily equate to money in the bank if youre not actually putting it there. I could have saved thousands upon thousands of dollars by now at age 35- Chaz Pitts-Kyser, 35, author of Careeranista The Womans Guide to Success After College, Alexandria, VA3. Acknowledge When its Not a Good Career MatchWhen I was in my 20s and working at my second job out of college, I realized three months in that it wasnt the right place for me. But when I was offered a great opportunity to move from the Bay Area to Boston for another opportunity that I was excited about, I decided to stay at my current job because I thought leaving would make my resume look flaky or non-committed.My advice to my younger self? If a job really isnt working out, find something new and change. Life is too short. Its the random experiences that make life exciting and will lead to new opportunities.- Jennifer Hill, 38, cofounder of Sixty Vocab, Hoboken, NJ4. Always Dress With Success in MindI started my first geschftliches miteinander, specializing in entertainment for weddings, out of my college dorm. I was setting up meetings with my clients at McDonalds because I didnt have an office, and I also dressed like a typical student- less than professional. I didnt understand why I wasnt getting any business, even though I was one of the best DJs in town.Then a mentor suggested I lose the college attire, and meet clients in a more professional setting. To my surprise, my business started booming I booked over 4,000 events per year before I sold the business. I have since launched nine successful companies- and I am forever grateful to that mentor.- Clay Clark, 33, CEO of Thrive15, Tulsa, OK5. Job-Hop More ThoughtfullyThe biggest mistake I eve r made was grinding through my 20s thinking that a job would ever make me feel wealthy. Ive worked several horrible jobs, including selling timeshares at a resort and corporate real estate jobs that were absolutely soul-sucking. However, they did serve a purpose in my journey to doing what I ultimately desired to do write books, mentor people, and speak on the topic of personal development.If you feel stuck or are growing resentful of your work situation, the solution isnt to simply quit your job and find another one. Suck it up for a little bit longer, and research what it is you actually want to do. Once youve identified your dream situation, begin working toward that end result- while financing it through your existing job.- Brenden Dilley, 32, self-help author and life coach, Phoenix6. Its Okay to Follow Your GutI started my first successful business when I was a junior in college with my roommate. We were driven and passionate about our idea, but we hadnt finished our undergrad uate degrees, so we were working with advisers who were older and all held MBAs.What I should have known was that no amount of education would replace the insight my friend and I had into our business because it was our business. But I was young and lacked confidence, so I was too often swayed from my common sense by people who I assumed were smarter because of their degrees. Ive since learned to trust my instincts because theyve proven more valuable than an MBA ever could.- Sara Sutton Fell, 40, CEO of FlexJobs, Boulder, CO7. Dont Force Yourself Into a Bad Career MoveOne of the biggest mistakes I made was allowing an employer to decide my career direction. I really liked the company that I worked for, but there were only two possible mid-level positions that I could be promoted to. Instead of taking the leap to look for more fulfilling work elsewhere, I convinced myself to squeeze my talents into one of the positions.After a few months, I realized that I had made the wrong decision - and I had to change jobs almost immediately after the promotion. I could have saved myself and the company time and money if I had been honest with myself.- LaTisha Styles, 31, investment analyst, Atlanta8. Never Sell Yourself ShortI went to a state university and majored in economics, and my GPA wasnt the best. Because of that, none of the major financial companies would take a second look at my resume. When I was just entering the job market, I assumed the candidates with high GPAs who got the high-paying jobs were smarter than me- and I convinced myself that I should be satisfied with getting any job out of college.It was a big career mistake, because I then limited myself to the types of jobs I pursued, effectively accepting lower salaries and doing double the amount of work as those who were making more than me.- Yi Wang, 30, financial consultant, Westchester, NY9. Success Isnt Just Found in the Big PondAs a new college graduate, I chased the money and the title, partially be cause I thought that it was proof of success- and because my student loans werent going to pay themselves. Over the next 10 years, my income grew, the bonuses were bigger, my title was more superior, and my work was more fulfilling. However, with all of that came a tremendous amount of stress and worry about succeeding at the next level.Then I started a family and my view shifted. I previously commuted over an hour each way, so I could have the better salary and opportunity with a larger company. I was on track for senior-level management, but I saw my family less and less. Earlier this year, I came to the end of my rope.Recently, I accepted a position with a smaller company, just 10 minutes from my home. The salary is less, the company is smaller, and there is no race to the top because I am already there. The stress is less, and I am truly happy with my decision to make this fundamental change. Now I just wish I had done it sooner.- Michelle Brammer, 33, marketing and PR manager f or an advertising firm, Middletown, DEMore From LearnVestDo You Have What it Takes to Be a Wide Achiever?3 Ways to Tell You Need a Career ChangeHow Much of My Paycheck Should I Save Each Month?Photo of two women in meeting courtesy of Shutterstock.

Quiz Is Your Resume Under-Formatted

Quiz Is Your Resume Under-FormattedQuiz Is Your Resume Under-Formatted10 ways to tell if your resume is lacking the visual cues recruiters look for.Design matters. Yes, even on a resume. And the way to design a Word document is to use formatting cues to guide the readers eyes. Here are some ideas on how to consider (or reconsider) what your resume looks like.1. Where do you place your contact information?A. I start my resume with it at the top of every page.B. I place it in the footer so its the last thing they remember.C. I only place it in the body of my e -mail to create a layer of privacy.2. How does the resume begin?A. I start the resume with an objective that indicates what I want to do next in my career.B. I start with a headline so readers know what I have to offer - something like Global Sales Manager.C. I just start the resume with information on my fruchtwein recent job. That is what people want to know about.3. How dense are the paragraphs describing your job duties?A. I only use bullets, no paragraphs.B. The work I have done is complicated to describe, so I typically write a paragraph with eight to 10 lines.C. I keep the paragraphs to four to five lines for easy reading.4. Do you have too many bullets?A. I have lots of career accomplishments, and I understand bullets are the best way to highlight these.B. I typically use between four and six bullets under each section.C. I dont like to use bullets because I would rather just include the information in general text.5. How big are your fonts? A. I typically use a 10-point font for the text (or an 11-point font for Times New Roman). I might use a bigger font for my name or section heading.B. I have a lot of information to include, so I use a font that is smaller than 10 points so I can get it all in.C. I use a 12-point font so it is easy to read.6. How wide are your margins for white space?A. One-quarter to one-half inch I have a lot of information to include so I dont have a lot of space for wide ma rgins.B. Whatever the default is I dont know how to adjust the margins to properly create a two-page or a three-page resume.C. One-half to one inch I know I need white space, so I make my margins wide.7. How are you using text in bold, underlined or italics?A. I never use these because I think they make the resume look too busy.B. I strategically use all of these to highlight the things I think are most important on the resume.C. I pick one of these formatting designs and use for all of the things I want to highlight.8. How are your technical skills presented?A. I only include technical skills in which I have recent experience and that I can use right away.B. I show all of my skills so it is clear that I have a long history of technical knowledge.C. I put this information at the top of the resume because these are skills I use all the time.9. How is community leadership included?A. I am most active in my church so I include that full information.B. I used to be active, but not recen tly, but I will still include the information.C. I will only include activities that show real leadership, commitment or use of business skills.10. How do you format older work that is still pertinent?A. I include full information of my work history so people understand everything I have done.B. I have to include older work because some of my best career accomplishments happened earlier.C. My most recent jobs have the most information, and the details become less important for the older jobs.Answers1 A. The person who is reading your resume is also reading others. Dont take a gunst der stunde that they will get mixed up.2 B. The reader needs to understand right away what you can do for them. This can be challenging if you have skills and experience in more than one area. An effective resume is focused.3 C. People tune out when there is too much text in a paragraph. The challenge is to get a clear summary of what you have done in just a few sentences. It is called tight writing.4 B. If too many bullets are used, they lose their original purpose to highlight specific facets of your professional background. Dont mix duties and accomplishments with the bullets.5 A. Choose font sizes carefully so the resume looks clean. A 10-point font is standard. If the font is smaller than that, it becomes difficult to read. A larger font does not give a very executive look.6 C. Margins should be set up so the format makes optimal use of the space. (For those who answered with B, heres how to adjust margins In Microsoft Word, go to File, then to Page Setup. It will give you options for changing top, bottom, left and right margins. If the top and bottom margins are too small, you take a chance of printed text slipping off the page.)7 C. Design elements can strategically highlight certain words. You might bold and/or italicize your job titles so they stand out, such as Controller. Or it might be better to highlight your industry experience with Citibank, Wells Fargo and Ban k of America. When using these enhancements, less is more.8 A. Your next employer only cares about current technical skills. If you have expert-level skills you can include Advanced Excel or Oracle Financial Module Power User. IT skills typically go to the bottom of the resume. If you are an IT executive, you will be hired because of your management skills, not your IT knowledge.9 C. Many people take on leadership roles such as member of a board of directors for a community organization. Leadership is more important than membership. Include these roles if they are current or recent. Do not include the actual name of your church or temple that information is actually illegal for a recruiter to keep on a resume.10 C. Employers are most interested in your recent work experience. That information should be written in the most detail for your current job, then less detailed for older jobs. Sometimes it is appropriate just to show the company name and job title (without dates) as the foundation of your career. If some of notable career accomplishments occurred earlier in your career, you can include them under Selected Career Accomplishments on the first page.The most important part of developing a resume is to determine a writing strategy that matches how you want to be perceived. Make sure the content of the resume positions you properly, and then take time to focus on the formatting. Its the best way to tie everything together.

Lessons from the Outfield on How to Run a Business

Lessons from the Outfield on How to zulauf a BusinessLessons from the Outfield on How to Run a BusinessLessons from the Outfield on How to Run a Business RossheimWhether youre managing a major league baseball team with a nine-figure salary budget or a small business with a six-figure payroll, your talent and how you manage it makes all the difference in how to run a businesssuccessfully.With that in mind, lets look at some of the greatest baseball movies of all time for lessons in maximizing small-business talent managementin the 2010s.The Rookie Stage a Big Comeback In the 2002 based-on-a-true-story flick The Rookie, Dennis Quaids Jim Morris tosses off his hard-luck past to return to the mound at age 39 and surprise everyone with a 98 mile-per-hour fastball.If your business can harness the right talent, you might be able to overcome tough odds imposed by the long, deep downturn of the 2000s and have another shot at the bigs.The small employers that are getting the best people are thinking big and have thrown recession mentality off the train theyre not trying to hire people on sale, says Roberta Matuson, principal of Matuson Consulting and author of The Magnetic Workplace.To attract interest from top talent, youve got to communicate what sets your company apart from the competition. The whole concept is to be different as a company, and you have to let people know what youre doing differently, says Matuson.Small businesses get an edge in the war for talentby scouting for promising people in creative ways.Very small firms can promote themselves by partnering with classes at local colleges and universities, says George Cook, professor of absatzwirtschaft at the Simon School of Business at the University of Rochester.Baseball Takeaway Swing for the fences to hire the right talent. Moneyball Talent Management by the NumbersWho are your best prospects and where in your organization might talent be deployed less than optimally? Take a nod from Brad Pitts Billy Bea ne in Moneyballand look to the numbers to discover your competitive people advantage.Think of Jonah Hills Paul DePodesta. Dont depend entirely on hunches gained through the interview processand references hand-picked by the candidate.In interviews, we look at how people carry themselves, how they tell their stories, says Kevin Meyer, a senior consultant with Hogan Assessments, a provider of talent measurement tools. A scientific instrument gives you more systematic answers about how people can perform.The numbers that come out of behavioral assessments can help you focus your talent searches on what will most likely matter to your businesss bottom line. Among other things, interviews are a measure of social skills, which are important for sales, for example, says Meyer. But in many roles, being witty or charismatic is less relevant.You may also want to consider hiring moneyball marketing talent to mine your data and tap into new markets as well as old opportunities that you might h ave missed.Baseball Takeaway Use data to tap outfield talent.Field of Dreams If you Build a absatzwirtschaft Team, Customers Will ComeAs the owner and creator of a product or tafelgeschirr, its all too easy to believe that your baby will attract all the attention by way of its intrinsic beauty.But when it comes to running a business, if you build it, they will come is really just a magical philosophy best left to fantasy films like Field of Dreams.Some businesses dont always see the value in marketing, says Karen Mishra, professor at the Meredith College School of Business in Raleigh, N.C. Marketing seems intuitive, so the owners try to do it themselves. With no professional marketers on board, thats a mistake.So if youve been sent to the showers in the early innings by disappointing sales volume, rebuild with a long-term investment in the stuff of sustainable growth hiring marketing talent.Its all about pulling the talent in toward you, where employees love to work and customers lo ve to do business, says Matuson.To recruit top marketing talentwho likely will be tempted by bigger enterprises with more to offer up front, dangle the opportunity to be a strategic partner in the business.Small businesses give their marketing people much more authority than large corporations do, says Roger Beahm, professor of marketing at Wake Forest University. Just make sure that your marketing leadership does take part in the companys top-level decisions, not just marketing matters.Performance-based pay often given lip service by large corporations can be a lot more meaningful in a small business context. Let marketing talent benefit financially, and in a public way, from the fruits of their labor, says Beahm.Baseball Takeaway Make a winning play for marketing talent.