How to Conduct Your Job Search and Stand Out from the Crowd

When a job position is advertised, thousands of job seekers apply for the post. So, how do you plan to stand out from the crowd? To beat out the competition, you need to take your job search as a marketing campaign. As a competitive jobseeker, you are required to locate job positions before they are actually advertised. Marketing your skills and yourself means you have to find out people who can offer you job opportunities.

If you really want to beat out the competition, you can not wait till the employer finds you. You have to reach out to them before they find you. For that to happen, you need to polish your job search skills and make use of variety of resources to help you in the job hunting process. Once you track down those who can hire you, the next important task is to tell them what you are capable of doing. You can then meet them in person, write to them or telephone them to tell what you can do and to market your talents and skills.

When company launches a new product or a new service, it employs a strategic marketing plan. And here you are the product and you have the job of marketing and selling yourself. That is why we say, take up the job search process as a marketing campaign and act accordingly. Develop a plan and put the plan into action. It takes a disciplined approach and strategic planning when it comes to finding a job.

While you conduct the job search, you should also be aware of the different approaches that you can take to make to marketing campaign successful.

Professional networking and referral building
Getting in touch with potential employers directly
Informational interviewing
Employing agencies and recruiters
Searching for specialized job listings
Using help-wanted classifieds

Of all the above listed approaches for job search, the professional networking and referral building approach happens to be the most effective one. It can result into getting you the maximum number of referrals, leads and contacts. Getting in touch with employers directly and using the cold calling method is more likely to result into landing a job.

When it comes to marketing yourself as a product, you should be ready with an action-plan. Developing a job search strategy also needs some research on your own. By devoting some time to this strategic planning and putting in some sincere effort, you can really enable yourself to have a competitive edge over other jobseekers.

So, are you ready to launch yourself?

Getting the Raise You Deserve

Everyone who is employed will need a pay raise sooner or later. Employees need to develop some strategies so that they can get the raise they deserve. For many people, talking to the boss and asking for a raise happens to be an anxiety creating event. But, when you follow the appropriate strategies, both short term and long term, it will shrink the anxiety and get you the raise that you deserve. So, be ready to prepare yourself for achieving your salary and pay raise goals.

Developing a plan
You can not just walk in and talk to your boss about a raise. First and foremost, develop a plan and schedule a meeting with the boss for talking about the salary raise. Develop a strategy and follow the steps to be successful in achieving your raise goals.

Knowing what you are worth
When you expecting a raise in salary, it is essential to know what you are worth. Not only inside the company, but you need to determine your value outside the company as well. A good idea would be to get in touch with the human resource department and know the pay scale of those who have a similar job like yours. You can also use a salary calculator to get the pay scale that you deserve in your geographic location.

Having realistic expectations
An employer would neither pay you a salary out of the range, nor would they give you a pay raise in one shot. It may be possible that you have great talent but are hired at a lower salary. In any case, the raise in salary is not going to happen all of a sudden. Maximum number of employers considers the raise by looking at the percentage increase. So, it is also necessary for those who are employed to have realistic expectations.

Tracking your achievements and accomplishments
Remember you are not going to demand a raise. You need to deserve it to get it. Have a worksheet ready with all your accomplishments and the contributions that you have made to the company. Oftentimes, even the boss is not well informed of what you have achieved and accomplished. Bring your achievements to the notice of both boss as well as the final decision maker.

Focusing on the future
Besides showing the company your achievements till date, you also need to inform the company how you are going to contribute to the company’s growth in the future. Show how you are going to contribute towards helping the boss, the department and the company.

Understanding the employer’s position
While you are expecting a pay raise, you also need to be well informed of the company’s rules and policies. It is important to understand your boss’ feelings about giving a raise. Try to know how your boss feels about your position and standing in the department or the organization.

Finding yourself a mentor in the senior management
It is a good idea to find yourself a mentor in the senior management of the organization. Finding a mentor holding a higher position in the company will bring a number of benefits, apart from helping you to get the raise you deserve. You can start building the relationship by asking for advice from the person.

The planning and strategy will depend on the situations that may vary from time to time. With proper planning on your part, you can really enable yourself to get a salary raise and get better success in your career.

How to Become a Chemist

The major responsibility of chemists is to conduct chemical researches, seek new information and develop a range of materials including drugs, adhesives, synthetic fibers, cosmetics, lubricants and paints among others. Right from food and medicine to computers and plastics, chemicals are used in almost everything we use in our daily life. Trained chemists are responsible for understanding the properties of all these chemicals and manipulate them.

Chemists are also involved in petrochemical processing and improved oil refining among others. They perform these tasks with a view to conserving energy and decrease pollution. Many of the professionals are involved in research and development work of chemicals. While conducting these researches, chemists study the composition and the properties of matter and the governing rules of the mixture of elements. One field of the research field is applied research where chemists are required to formulate new processes or make modifications to the existing ones.

To become a chemist, computer proficiency is also required. Computers are extensively used while performing experimental analysis, simulation and modeling. Very often, these professional choose to specialize in a particular field of their interest – analytical, macromolecular, medicinal, organic chemistry, physical chemistry, theoretical chemistry etc.

Educational Requirement & Training
The minimum requirement for entry level jobs is a bachelor’s degree in chemistry or a relevant field. Candidates who aspire to become a part of a research project should possess a master’s degree or a doctoral degree in chemistry. In addition to the degree, candidates also need to undertake courses in computer science and mathematics to make the most of their careers as a chemist. Today, there are numerous colleges and universities across the United States offering chemistry degree programs for aspiring candidates.

Career Prospects
According to the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics, the employment growth rate for chemists’ job is expected to grow as fast as the average of all occupations, increasing at the rate of 9% between the years 2006 and 2016. Job prospects will be quite good for chemists with an advanced degree and a few years of working experience. Employment opportunities will be created even as a large number of chemists reach the age of retirement or leave the field for their own reasons.

Annual Salary
The salary of chemists ranges between $41,053 and $51,288 annually. With a few years of working experience under the belt, chemists can earn around $57,000 annually or more. Salaries of professionals also vary depending on the geographical location.

How to Become a Drug & Alcohol Counselor

This is very unfortunate to see that dependency on alcohol and drugs is increasing in our society. When individuals are addicted, professional help is required. Drug and alcohol counselors are specially trained professionals who use a variety of techniques to help the affected overcome their addictions and dependency. These counselors are, therefore, responsible to help the addicted deal with their problems and help them lead a better life.

Oftentimes, the counseling is provided to the addicted people in groups. However, drug counselors also hold one-on-one sessions, depending on the requirements. Comparatively, group counseling is more beneficial in terms of group discussions, getting feedbacks and interacting with one another about different experiences. Besides counseling, drug and alcohol counselors also conduct multiple programs targeted at preventing addictions of alcohol and drugs.

Training & Educational Requirements
A bachelor’s degree in drug and alcohol counseling is the minimum requirement to become a counselor. To make a successful career, candidates need to have a master’s degree. Extensive coursework and supervised clinical experience are a part of most of these degree programs. Besides being equipped with the degree, candidates also need to be equipped with the latest therapy and treatment research methods.

In addition to the degree in drug and alcohol counseling, licensing requirements also need to be met. Obtaining of license depends on the state where professionals practice their occupation. 3,000 hours of supervised clinical training is required, aside from the master’s degree. Apart from that, professionals also need to adhere by ethical standards and codes and need to pass a state examination.

Today, degrees in drug and alcohol counseling can be obtained both via campus mode and online. Students need to select an option according to their requirements and preferences. Online education gives a lot of flexibility to students and also saves a lot of time and money.

Career Prospects in Drug & Alcohol Counseling
According to the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics, the employment growth rate is expected to grow faster than the average of all other professions, increasing at rate of 34% between the years 2006 and 2016. As the awareness about drug and alcohol addiction increases, more and more people turn to counselors for treatment. This increasing requirement also creates good job opportunities. More job positions will be created, as a large number of drug and alcohol counselors reach their age of retirement and take transfers due to their own reasons.

Annual Salary
Salaries of drug and alcohol counseling may vary depending on the work location and working experience. These counselors earn an annual salary ranging between $40,173 and $51,106. With growing experience and skill, the salary of these professional can go beyond $60,000 per year.

How to Make Yourself Three Times More Likely to Get Hired

According to a research conducted by the executive search industry, it has come to light that the first person interviewed gets the job only 17.6 percent of the time. On the other hand, the last person interviewed gets the job almost 56 percent of the time, which is more than three times of the first person interviewed getting the job. So, what are you thinking now? Are you really going to make yourself three times more likely to get hired?

Well, we are not going to end the discussion at that. But we will also talk about the reasons behind this interesting fact. It is probably in human nature that we are wary of or are a little apprehensive of accepting the first choice offered. Another reason can be the corporate inertia. The sense of urgency may not be strong enough when the search begins.

So, if you want to increase the your chances of landing jobs three times, you can try to position yourself among the last candidates interviewed, and certainly not being among the first. In the light of the executive search industry study, aged ads can be a good option to get interviewed among the last candidates. If you come across a help-wanted appeal, you can wait for around 10 days before you respond to the requirement.

When you get a call from an interviewer, you can try to push the day of appointment as far as possible. There are numerous other studies that have been conducted to throw more light on the issue. One study has revealed that Monday is the worst day of getting interviewed for a job whereas the worst time for being interviewed is late afternoon.

Let’s move one step further and examine some more results of researches. According to a research, around 2/3rd of the time the best qualified candidates do not get the job offer. And the people selected for the job often have less than 50 percent of the job qualifications.

Candidates who get the most job offers are intimidated least, promote themselves best and listen the maximum. In addition to having formal qualifications, strong listening skills are required to increase your chances of getting the job. To get the job offer, candidates need to give a masterful presentation. Likability plays an important role. So, you are responsible for compelling the employer like your candidacy. And when you want the employer to like you, one important thing is to listen to them attentively.

How to Get Rid of the Fear of Public Speaking

Human fear is of many kinds. But the one that heads the list of all is the fear of public speaking. According to Forbes, the fear of speaking before the public is actually the fear of being embarrassed in front of people. Oftentimes, speakers have the feeling that the audience is going to judge them and they are worried about how they going to sound while they speak. To check the fear of speaking in front of a public, it is crucial to analyze those fears and prevent them from causing anxiety.

Conquering Public Speaking Embarrassment
Public speakers who are engulfed by fear may face different problems. Some of the most common fears while giving public presentations are as follows.

Fear of forgetting the words
Fear of falling
Fear of looking strange
Fear of facing the audience’s judgment

To start with the speaker can practice giving the public presentation in front of a mirror, as many times as possible. The point is to envisage what the audience actually sees when a public speaker gives a presentation. Try to envisage a positive outcome and practice more and more. When you run through the entire talk, it enables you to become familiar and alleviates many of the fear that of looking foolish to the audience or making mistakes in front of the public while delivering the presentation.

Tips for Public Speaking
It is all a mental exercise which prepares you to give presentation before the public. If you keep on doing this exercise, it makes you more confident and you get rid of the fear. Public speakers should try to develop a positive mindset. Think not of the public as your opposition, but as a partner in the speech. All that the audience wants is that you give a great presentation. And the audience is actually wishing for it.

While speaking to a large public, imagine that you are in talk with just one person. Imagine a person who you are comfortable with. Imagine that this person is present right at the edge of the stage. And keep talking.

Fear of Speaking in Public
Sometimes the usual fear of speaking in public turns into a public speaking phobia that can affect as many as 75% of the public. This phobia can also lead to panic attacks even when the speaker addresses a small audience.

To get rid of public speaking phobia, speakers can take help from the following –

Aromatherapy
Soothing Music
Meditation
Visualization Techniques

Using the above mentioned relaxation techniques can really help speakers get rid of the fear of speaking to a large public. If you are ready to handle the situation, it is never going to be a difficult task for you.

Five Career Resolutions for Being Successful

Having a successful career needs a lot of careful planning, an eagerness to excel, persistence and courage. While everyone else is planning their New Year resolutions, why not plan some career resolutions to follow in the New Year. If you are ready to give your career high priority, it is definitely going to have a positive affect on your personal life, family and relatives as well. If you have made up your mind to make five most important career resolutions, you should also be ready to keep them. There can be more career resolutions that just. However, these five resolutions are the most important ones of all others that you can make.

Resolution # 1. Make Career Planning a Top Priority
To get career success, it is very essential to assess your career, to know where exactly you are heading. Like you schedule and devote specific time for other important life activities, you need to devote some time to review your career as well. You can pick a long weekend to have a look and assess your career goals and how you need to go about achieving those goals. Yes, there are other priorities in the life of an individual. Try to make your career a top priority. If you start ignoring your career, it can have its toll on your personal life, bringing unhappiness to your entire family and friends.

Resolution # 2. Be Ready to Find Yourself the Ideal Career Path
There is a mountain of a difference between a job and a career. When you actually enjoy doing your job, it leads to a career. Many times, people do their job but they do not have contentment and satisfaction. Yes, there can be several reasons behind that. But if you are unhappy with the career you have chosen, it is about time you made a career change. Making a career change decision takes a lot of courage. However, there is nothing wrong with making such a decision. All that matters is whether the decision you make is right or wrong. So, take a look at you hobbies, interests and passions and find out a career that you actually like and are passionate about.

Resolution # 3. Make Sincere Effort to Find a Better Job
To find yourself a new job, you need to prepare yourself and fine tune your job hunting skills, resume writing skills and interview skills. Initially, when you are out in the job market, you may be a little apprehensive. But if you have prepared yourself well, you will definitely find at least one job offer which is better than the last one. Make use of the job hunting tools, put in sincere effort and polish your skills of job hunting to land a better job position.

Resolution # 4. Position Yourself for a Promotion, Raise or New Job
It is really good news if you say that you like both your job and the employer. Now, the career resolution that you need to make is to ready yourself to get a pay raise or a promotion. Measure your work performance and achievements and try to build your personal brand. When you are able to set yourself apart from others, on the ground of your achievements, you will position yourself for a raise or a promotion.

Resolution # 5. Obtain New Skills, Education & Training for Career Advancement
When you are ready to learn and acquire new skills, age can never be a bar. Acquiring advanced skills and education is an essential ingredient of making a successful career or making a career change. So, even if you need to go back to school to obtain required education, you should not be discouraged. Keep striving to enhance your skill set, academic qualification and training for career advancement. What’s more, you can always opt for online education programs or distance education without disturbing your work schedule. Obtaining education online also saves you both time and money.

Now that you know that five important career resolutions, prepare yourself to not only make these resolutions but also be ready to stick to them. Following these career resolutions will definitely move you up the success ladder. And when you have a better career, your life too is going to be better and happier.

How to Become a Registered Nurse

It is interesting to note that registered nurses constitute the largest occupation in the healthcare industry. They occupy around 2.3 million jobs. Job opportunities for registered nurses are very good and more jobs will be added in this field over the next decade. The role of a registered nurse is that of a health educator for families, individuals and communities. Major job responsibilities include helping patients cope with illness and improve their lives, prevent diseases and promote health. [Highest Paying Nursing Careers]

Registered nurses or RNs perform their work abiding by the state rules and laws. However, their daily responsibilities are determined by their work setting. They provide direct patient care, observe patients, assess patient conditions, note the symptoms and also notice the progress in patients. Registered nurses can choose from diverse career possibilities.

Hospital Nurses
Office Nurses
Home Health Nurses
Public Health Nurses
Occupational Health Nurses
Head Nurses or Nurse Supervisors

Educational Requirement for Becoming a Registered Nurse
Candidates who want to become registered nurses should possess a bachelor’s degree in nursing, an associate degree in nursing or a diploma in nursing. A Bachelor of Science degree in nursing (BSN) is required to make a successful career in the field of nursing. There are several colleges and universities across the United States offering a bachelor’s degree, which takes 4 years to complete. An associate degree in nursing may take 2-3 years to complete. The associate degree is offered by numerous community colleges and junior colleges. Those who wish to obtain administrative positions should pursue a BSN or a Bachelor of Science degree in nursing.

Nursing education is comprised of both classroom teaching and supervised clinical experience. Candidates gain the clinical experience under the supervision of qualified and expert instructors in hospitals and other healthcare facilities. Clinical experience can be gained in maternity, pediatrics, psychiatry, surgery etc.

Nursing Job Opportunities
According to the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics, the employment growth rate for registered nurses is expected to grow at a faster rate than the average of all professions, through to the year 2012. More job openings will be created as a major number of experienced nurses leave the occupation for their own reasons. As the total elderly population continues to grow, there remains a continuous requirement for nurses. There is no dearth of employment opportunities for registered nurses. They can land jobs in nursing care facilities, ambulatory clinics, home health agencies, physician’s clinics, hospitals, public health departments etc.

Annual Salary
The median annual salary of a registered nurse is around $48,090. The annual salary ranges between $40,140 and $57,490. Those employed in general medical and surgical hospitals earn the highest salary. The average salary for registered nurses working in nursing care facilities is around $43,850.

Master of Accounting & Finance Management

If you are interested to make a career in the field of accounts and finance management, you can specialize in this field by obtaining a master’s degree of accounting and finance management. The master’s degree trains students in specialized topics and the technical aspect of accounts and finance management. Students can not only obtain the degree via campus mode, but they can also opt for online master’s degree. Acquiring the degree online gives students the flexibility of working around their own schedules and attending classes at a time which is convenient to them.

A management degree in accounting and financial management does not only provide students with an in-depth knowledge of the subjects, but the degree program also broadens their skills and understanding of related fields like marketing, commerce and investment. Whether it is experimental research or theoretical study, the online master degree provides expertise in the entire methodologies of accounts and finance as well as their effective application to contemporary business.

The coursework for a master’s degree in accounting and financial management will include –

Capital planning
Budget solutions
Analyses of taxation related theories
Disciplines of management accounting
Understanding of corporate accounts
Investment laws, theories and ideologies
Maintenance of international finance
Ethics of finance and account management

Job Prospects
The master’s degree enables you to acquire multiple job positions. Some of the positions you can take are as follows.

Accountant
Account Manger
Budget Analyzer
Auditing Officer
Account Investigator
Banker
Consultant
Loan Agent
Taxation Manger

Employment opportunities await both in government and non-government organizations. Candidates with a master’s degree in account and finance management can land jobs in finance consulting companies, corporate account departments, capital sector, taxation sector, banks etc. The master’s degree helps gain expertise and understanding of money management and budget creation. The degree can also help candidates become a writer for publications on business and accounts.

Becoming a Legislator

Government laws need to be developed and passed from time to time. Legislators are those government officials who create and pass laws for a variety of purposes. These laws are created at different levels including the local level, state level and federal level. The major responsibility of legislators is to set up rules and regulations, government policies and create laws. These professionals hold their job position after being appointed or elected. Formulating new legislation is not an easy task. In fact, it requires comprehensive study done by legislators regarding various issues. There are supporting individuals while legislators conduct their research using multiple sources. Preparation of bills and amendment is also done on the request of legislators.

In order to gain support for their proposals, legislators also make use of promotional methods. Before developing laws and government policies, legislators have the responsibility to actually identify the requirement for new legislation. These professionals also show their activeness by participating in party caucuses. Apart from this, legislators are also responsible for responding to correspondence from constituents and other members of the government and officials. Often times, legislators function as the liaison among the federal agencies, state agencies and district agencies. These professionals also spend their time communicating with organizations relating to legislation.

Besides speaking at legislation related organizations, legislators also remain in close touch with committees that have a keen interest in legislation and legislative procedures. Becoming a legislator does not mean you are going to hold only one particular position. In fact, a legislator can function and perform their role as a county commissioner, council member, state senators and representatives.

Educational Requirement & Training
A bachelor’s degree is the minimum requirement to function as a legislator. Besides being equipped with a bachelor’s degree, legislators should also fulfill other eligibility criteria including their age, residency and citizenship. Legislators obtain their position after being selected by voters. Therefore, these professionals endeavor to gain local support by participating in community programs and services. To make the most of their career, candidates need to keep them abreast of the state laws, rules, regulations and policies. These professionals are active participant at debates, hearings and committee meetings.

Career Prospects
According to the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics, the employment growth rate for legislator positions will experience little or no change between the years 2006 and 2016. Job market for legislation positions may vary from one state or region to another. More jobs are expected in this field also due to the reason that a good number of legislators have reached their age of retirement or leave the field for their own reasons.

Annual Salary
The average salary of a legislator is $39,000 per year. Annual salaries of legislators vary depending on the work location, years of experience, industry, employer etc. With growing experience and skills, legislators earn a higher salary and other additional benefits.