Jobs, Career and Money

Whether you just graduated high school or you’re struggling to find a career that keeps you satisfied, there’s no doubt that deciding on a career path is one of the most important decisions you’ll ever make. However, making up your mind is difficult when there are so many enticing options that you could take.

Even something that seems adventurous and fulfilling could turn out to be a nightmare job. So, how do you decide on the path that makes you smile every day when you go into work? The following looks like the scientific formula for conducting an experiment, and indeed it is. A job is an experiment, the problem is predicting the outcome that supports your initial research. Here are a few ways you can narrow the list down and pinpoint the career that is perfect for you:

1. Identify the Project.
Your first step to deciding on the right career path is to identify what you’re trying to accomplish. This means putting your goals in writing, putting a timeframe to them, and signing the paper. By scheduling a timeframe, you’re allowing yourself to structure the job search process. Signing is just a way to commit yourself to the process.

2. Know Yourself Inside and Out.
Take a sheet of paper out and immediately start jotting down your interests, skills, abilities, and passions. What are you good at? Is there any talent you have? What are some things that interest you? Are you passionate about anything? The list can be as long as you want it. In fact, the longer, the better.

3. Research Options.
Once you’ve made a list of your interests and skills, organize the list by degree of interest. Take the list and divide it in half: one list is things you’re most interested in and the other list is not quite as interesting. Research the first list. Beside each item, list what type of occupation, opportunity, or career you could have by pursuing this particular subject. Also, research and list the type of education or experience that’s necessary to pursue this field.

4. Evaluate Your Options.
This is the biggest step. This is the step where the majority of your list will be eliminated and narrowed down to just a few fields. Start off by evaluating the list and identifying the advantages and disadvantages of each career you’re considering. For instance, if some of the occupations require you to travel and you don’t want to be away from your family then you may want to dismiss it as a possibility. If some require you to work eighty hour weeks and you want to start a family then it’s probably not the best fit for you.

Choose something that makes you feel right. If your eye keeps wondering to a particular career then I would do more research on that one. Talk to others about the career choice and ask for their input. Be open to criticism. Also, research the different salaries with the career options. Let’s face it, you’re in this for money too, so let that be another deciding factor.

5. Choose One of the Options.
Normally, the hardest step in deciding what career path to take is the actual decision. You’re never sure if you made the right choice and you’ll always question whether there was something else out there that better suits you. The good news is that if you’ve already performed Steps 1 through 4 then you’re ahead of the game.

The decision is narrowed down to just a few career options. There are a few things that you can take into consideration to help with the decision. How high up were some of the career choices on your original list? The higher you listed them, the more passionate you are about them. Could you see yourself working this particular career twenty years down the road or is this just something you’re temporarily interested in?

In each career, it’s also important to keep in mind how much potential you have to climb the corporate ladder and grow within the company. You don’t want to be stuck in one spot the rest of your life.

6. Develop a Plan.
Once you’ve made the hard decision, you must set up a plan in motion and implement it. Most importantly, this includes your time frame. Write your goals and time frame down on paper. Most of the time when you write your goals down then you intend to stick by them. For instance, by next Spring you want to be working at this particular career at a salary of $45,000 per year. If you’re a recent high school graduate, plan out what courses for the major are necessary in order to graduate and pursue the field.

Plan how you intend to get the job. For example, send out ten resumes every day for two months and prepare for a minimum of two interviews every week. This is a great way to track the numbers and keep a numbered log of your progress. Your plan and goals should be long and short term. The short term is the actual process of obtaining the position while long term will analyze where you are in ten years and whether or not you’re meeting or exceeding your personal and company goals.

All humans are born with the desire to succeed. We want to be good in the things we do in life; our hobbies, our careers, our families and even our personal dreams and aspirations. Many people search their entire lives for success. Some work so hard they become over-achievers, always wanting that next piece of achievement. Others are content in the simple pleasures and the minor victories in life. What kind of person are you?

Here are 15 great quotes to help inspire you to success:

1. Men are born to succeed, not fail.
Henry David Thoreau

2. That some achieve great success, is proof to all that others can achieve it as well.
Abraham Lincoln

3. People seldom see the halting and painful steps by which the most insignificant success is achieved.
Anne Sullivan

4. The dictionary is the only place where success comes before work.
Mark Twain

5. Ones best success comes after their greatest disappointments.
Henry Ward Beecher

6. It’s simply a matter of doing what you do best and not worrying about what the other fellow is going to do.
John R. Amos

7. There is only one success - to be able to spend your life in your own way.
Christopher Morley

8. What would you attempt to do if you knew you would not fail?
Robert Schuller

9. Success seems to be largely a matter of hanging on after others have let go.
William Feather

10. Success usually comes to those who are too busy to be looking for it.
Henry David Thoreau

11. Success is the sum of small efforts, repeated day in and day out.
Robert Collier

12. Success is not the key to happiness. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you will be successful.
Albert Schweitzer

13. People rarely succeed unless they have fun in what they are doing.
Dale Carnegie

14. Success is never wondering what if.
Karrie Huffman

15. The first and most important step toward success is the feeling that we can succeed.
Nelson Boswell

Here’s to wishing you the best of success in all you do!

You might have held some part-time jobs while you were still in college, but most people don’t get their first “real” jobs until after graduation. You’ve bought some work clothes, polished your resume and you have dreams of a six-figure salary. The reality, however, is that even though you’ve completed college, you are still considered an entry-level professional. With all of those student loans to pay off, though, here are five tips for earning more money after graduation.

1. Don’t Be Afraid to Negotiate Salary & Benefits

Employers these days are focusing most of their energy on retention. It costs much more to train new employees every six months than to offer more money to employees who plan to stay a while, so if you think you’ve found your dream job, don’t be afraid to negotiate salary and benefits. As a degreed professional, you already have an opportunity to make more money after graduation, but you can increase those chances through negotiation. Let prospective employers know that you’re looking for a long-term career that can meet your goals.

2. Avoid Accepting the First Offer on the Table

The early bird might get the worm, but if you accept an employment offer too readily, you might be cheating yourself out of a higher salary. Employers are looking for graduates with confidence and expertise. If you accept a job that’s offering you $5,000 less than what you’re actually worth, you can kiss advancement goodbye, which means that you won’t be earning more money after graduation. It’s much better to thank the employer for his or her offer and to request forty-eight hours before making your decision.

3. Consider More Than Just Salary

Contrary to popular belief, how much you make is not limited to salary. How much paid vacation time are you offered? When do your benefits kick in? Are you eligible for company perks like cars, airfare, an expense account or advancement? Things like that can lead to a fulfilling career valued at more than just a yearly salary. When you’re considering your job prospects after vacation, make sure that the benefits are clearly spelled out before you accept the job.

4. Start By Setting Performance Goals

According to BankRate.com, employers are moving toward pay-for-performance in 2007, which is something you need to consider. Our society demands productive employees, which should be a goal if you want to earn more after graduation. Focus on performance goals that will put you ahead of your colleagues, which will in turn put you in the running for better money. While your annual salary might increase by only 3% every year, other incentives such as bonuses will continue to increase, making your job all the more valuable.

5. Always Work Hard to Communicate

An ambitious employee will always make more money after graduation than one who is comfortable in an entry-level position. Keep the lines of communication open and constantly inquire about ways to improve your position. Ask exactly what performance is required to get a raise each quarter, and strive to meet those levels of achievement. Continue to go above and beyond the call of duty, and you’ll make far more money.

Making more money after graduation may not be a priority in your life, but if you’re struggling to pay off student loans and will need to provide for yourself immediately, follow the above tips. And one last piece of advice: Don’t take the first job you’re offered. Interview for several positions and carefully consider every dimension of each. That’s the only real way to improve your income potential straight out of college.

When attempting to negotiate salary and benefits with an employer, you should be aware that it is a delicate situation. If you back off too quickly, you could lose out on more money or better benefits; however, if you push the issue too far, you’ll wind up without a job at all. Following are several helpful tips on how to negotiate salary and benefits.

1. The Earlier the Better

When interviewing for a new job, your prospective employer should already know the salary and benefits you are requesting. Most professionals put salary objectives on their resume while others prefer to discuss it in person; either way, the sooner the employer knows your bottom line, the better.

There is no reason to waste your time or the employer’s when your salary and benefit requirements aren’t compatible. Further, you will establish early on that you have an objective, which will give the employer a heads-up that you plan to negotiate the first offer.

2. Maintain a Respectful Decorum

You shouldn’t enter into salary and benefits negotiations with the mindset that you are doing battle with an adversary. Instead, approach it from a mutually beneficial standpoint; higher salary and better benefits equal a more productive employee. Never make demands or issue ultimatums because, not only is it counter-productive, but employers will not waste time with someone they don’t consider a team player. If you notice that the employer is getting peeved, back off right away. You’ll have to use communication and interpersonal skills to gauge your progress.

3. Look at the Big Picture

It is rare for an employee to be offered both salary and benefits commensurate with what he or she desires. Something will have to go give, so you should be sure to look at the big picture. For example, let’s say that an employer’s final offer is 15% lower than your objective. Right off the bat, you might not be interested in the offer because it is significantly lower than what you desire. However, analyze other aspects of the job. For example, is there an employee evaluation in six months? If so, you could easily close that 15% gap just six short months into your employment. Things like that should have bearing on your final decision.

4. Give the Employer a Reason

If you are attempting to negotiate salary and benefits after you’ve already started work — for example, one year later — your negotiation platform is slightly different. At that point, you have had an opportunity to demonstrate your skills in the position for which you have hired, which may or may not give you a bargaining chip.

Evaluate your strengths and weaknesses and document the progressive, positive changes you have made. If the number of employees under your command has increased, this is a significant negotiation benefit. If you can give your employer hard data that shows you have been a major asset to the company, you’ll be more likely to obtain a raise.

Further, you shouldn’t assume that your employee has noticed everything that you have done. He or she oversees a large group of people.

5. Get it in Writing

If you have been offered a higher salary or better benefits, make sure to get that promise on paper right next to your employer’s signature. As I’ve mentioned before, employers have a lot on their plate, and they may not remember making such a promise. Others are unscrupulous and may try to back out a few weeks down the road. As soon as you have been promised something concerning compensation, have your employer draft an agreement to that end.

Here are a number of online job search engines out there claiming to get you a job with a series of easy clicks! Even with the best sites, this is not the case. You have to know how to use the search engine, you have to treat job hunting seriously, and you can’t rely on online searches alone. Here are some tips and guidelines for the best job search-engines online right now.

1. Monster.com - All of you have probably heard of Monster. They are one of the largest job sites online. They’re also an excellent resource, if you keep the following things in mind. First of all, unlike in the commercials, posting your resume is not the only/last step. Posting your resume is the first step.

Generally, you will get NO responses from posting your resume on Monster. You have to be the active one and search job postings and apply from there. Searching on Monster is very easy and often self-explanatory. If you are looking to stay in one location, my search tip would be to search the location for jobs of all categories—don’t limit yourself by category choices unless you have a very specific job in mind.

If you check back everyday wading through all the jobs won’t be that daunting. Some jobs pop up under categories you might not have expected, by expanding your search you will find more opportunities. Also, unless the company is confidential, make sure to do some research on the company.

Monster offers a cover letter on file feature, but make sure each time you send a cover letter it is specific and personalized to the company and job you are applying for. Monster also keeps track of your resume submissions, which is a very good tool. However, make sure you print out the job description you applied for. Sometimes the job is removed and when a person calls you to set up an interview you will want to know what job you applied for and what skills you should sell in the interview.

Note: Yahoo HotJobs and MSN CareerBuilder offer similar searches and tools. However, both carry more spam, scam jobs and old, recycled job postings. Monster does have some scam postings, but there jobs are rarely old or recycled.

2. Craiglist (find the location you’re looking for on right sidebar) - Craigslist is quickly becoming the hot new search engine. Craigslist doesn’t just offer job postings, but a variety of other postings. However, their job postings are always original (no recycled jobs) and very location specific, so if you are looking to stay in one location, and there is a craigslist for this location, this is a good site to check on a regular basis.

It doesn’t have the volume of jobs posted on Monster, but number of jobs also depends on your area and the career field you’re in. Craigslist also lists part-time jobs and internship type jobs. A very good resource to check a few times a week. There are some scam jobs posted (especially in the TV/Movie/Video category), but if you use common sense you should be able to weed them out.

Craigslist does not offer a resume-sending tool, but this can be a good thing. Write a solid cover letter with personal touches and specific company-specific items and you may engage the employer more than a form-Monster application.

3. State Government Jobs (under government jobs, click by state/location, then pick your state. A list of city/county websites for your state will be listed) - This is an excellent resource for anyone interested in government, or would like to apply your current career/skills to a government facility. (For example, all cities/counties employ secretaries, clerks, etc…) A wide variety of jobs—anything that makes a county/city run! Again, a very location-specific tool, but you can also search locations you would want to work for.

4. Education - Not just for teachers, but anyone interested in working at a school (see sections for support staff). Choose your state, then search accordingly. Many schools go through REAP now, though not all.

These are some of the best search engines on the net right now. If you have a particular company you’d be interested in working for, find their webpage through a search. Most large companies will have a human resources page with a listing, or a specific employment page.

With every online posting it is imperative you follow the instructions listed in the posting. If they ask for no phone calls, don’t call. If they want a cover letter, make sure to send one. If they want salary history, references or examples of your work, supply these things. If instructions aren’t followed most employers will toss the resume without even looking at it.

Make yourself stand out without being gimmicky. Follow the rules of job application, but highlight your best assets to the company. Tune your resume and cover letter to each company/position you are applying for. Finding a job is a full-time job, you won’t get the job you want without taking the time to work at it.