Careers Articles

Article / Updated 08-10-2022

Your unique promise of value and your personal brand statement are closely linked; the statement is an expression of the promise. Both of them focus on what your target audience expects from you; they create an expectation of what you can deliver. These pieces of your personal brand profile are probably the most important (no pressure!), so you want to take your time and get them right before you start to communicate with your target audience. Identifying your unique promise of value Your unique promise of value is a promise that you make to your target market that your brand will fulfill. It’s the personal aspect of your brand that is aligned with your mission and values. Your promise of value is the essence of what you have to offer and guides you in how you live your personal brand. It clarifies and communicates what makes you special — what makes you different from other people. Crafting this promise requires understanding your values, interests, strengths, and personal qualities and using them to distinguish yourself. Lida Citroën, in her book Reputation 360 (Palisades Publishing), offers this advice when crafting your brand promise: Your brand promise should look something like this: “In order to be known for (your desired brand qualities), I will hold myself out to others in this way: (your behavior, actions, attitude); and I will demonstrate authenticity in this way: (how you will let people see you as real, genuine). I will know my brand promise is working when I see this: (benefits, goals you hope to achieve).” You must be able to live up to your promise of value. You’re always better off under-promising and over-delivering to those you serve. Your brand promise is what you want to be known for. It can be the promise of value of who you are today or it can be written as who you aspire to become. Here’s an example of a unique promise of value: I am known for my creativity, enthusiasm, and intelligence by serving each client with respect, giving them individual attention, and treating them with unconditional positive regard. I am an expert in my field and use my knowledge to help my clients and students excel. My clients appreciate my solid, grounded approach during times of transition and trust my guidance through the process. Move from your promise to your personal brand statement After you’re satisfied with what you’ve developed as your unique promise of value, you can turn your attention to writing the all-important personal brand statement. When you work on your own statement, keep in mind the central themes that emerge and think about your attributes. Then, envision your best self! To begin your thought process on what your brand might include, answer the following questions: What three or four keywords describe your essential qualities quickly and clearly? What is your essence factor, the core of who you are? “I know I am in my element when __________.” What is your authority factor, the knowledge that you hold and skills that you possess? “People recognize my expertise in _________.” What is your superstar factor, the qualities that set you apart? (This factor is how you get things done or what you’re known for.) “People comment on my ability to ___________.” Pepper your statement with “wow” words When writing your personal brand statement, you want to use words that best describe what you offer. The words you use should highlight your emotional attributes and motivate you so that you can deliver that brand to your target audience. Then, to communicate the action in your message, add key verbs like the ones listed here. Accomplish Analyze Articulate Budget Calculate Capitalize Classify Close Collaborate Communicate Conceptualize Conclude Decrease Demonstrate Distribute Educate Empower Engineer Enhance Examine Exceed Generate Identify Influence Integrate Listen Manufacture Mastermind Maximize Navigate Network Organize Pilot Pioneer Prospect Rebuild Redesign Reengineer Rehabilitate Simplify Slash Sold Strategize Supervise Systematize Teach Transition Upgrade Drafting your statement To give you a sense of what a personal brand statement could look like, here are examples: I am passionate about the development of people and am able to lighten the mood with my humor. I enjoy bringing that competitive spirit to solving my clients’ key advertising problems. The continuous challenge to learn fuels my love of accumulating knowledge. Driven by the energy of connections to others, I apply my solid intelligence as the interpreter of complex issues to create practical solutions while bringing a sense of fun into every situation. Grounded in my core beliefs, I identify the patterns and am able to look strategically into the future with a global perspective. Analyzing the DNA blueprint for my clients, I act as the bond between science and business to find opportunities by joining people and businesses through unique value-added insights. Acting as the conductor to the orchestra of people that I lead, I bring the pieces together to close I am the visionary sales leader of the South American practice. my customers count on me to navigate the complexities of multinational business. I am admired for not only how I lead my high-growth business but also for my work in the community in creating pathways out of poverty for those that I serve. My own statement reads this way: I bring creativity and enthusiasm into the lives of professionals using my expertise in career development and personal branding with an intelligent, customized approach. Gather keywords to use as a starting point for writing your statement, and then let it simmer until you know how you want to express yourself.

Article / Updated 07-19-2022

If you’re applying for a software development job, always presume that many of your fellow programmers will apply for that job, too. Here are ten ways you, and not just your résumé and cover letter, can stand out to your potential employer and get you an interview. Have a professional headshot Use a professional headshot, taken by a professional photographer, as your profile picture on all of your social media profiles. Don’t use a good selfie you took of yourself while you were on vacation. Instead, get some recommendations for a photographer from friends, colleagues, and even your social media connections. Then dress professionally (at least from the waist up), get well-groomed, go to the photography studio, and get headshots that will show you’re a professional. Once you get the photos and you’ve decided on the ones you want to use, put that headshot on all your social media profiles to create a consistent brand for yourself. If you already use a professional photographer to take family portraits on occasion, here’s a tip on how to save some money on a professional headshot. Gather the family to get some pictures done for relatives and ask the photographer if you could get a couple of headshots for yourself as well. You should already be professionally dressed and groomed, so an additional headshot or two of yourself will cost you little to nothing extra — probably the latter if you’ve been using your family photographer for a while. Establish a GitHub profile to showcase your programming skills If you don’t have a GitHub profile to interact with other software developers, sign up for free on the GitHub website. A GitHub profile not only gets you access to other developers, it also affords you the opportunity to demonstrate your programming abilities. If one or more people who work at an employer can find your GitHub profile and can see the type of code you’ve written as well as the projects you’ve contributed to, they’ll have much more confidence that: You can write code. You are a good coder. You can actually do what you say you can do on your résumé. If you have a GitHub profile but you haven’t worked on any projects there in a while, now is a good time to get more involved so you can make it as impressive to prospective employers (and other programmers) as you can. Get plenty of referrals One big benefit of LinkedIn is that you can get and ask for plenty of online referrals, which LinkedIn calls recommendations, and post them on your LinkedIn profile for anyone to see. But you shouldn’t just rely on people to give you recommendations on LinkedIn — you should already have plenty of people you could ask who would be happy to recommend you for a programming job. So, ask those people if one or more people will write you a recommendation letter to send with your cover letter and résumé. The hiring manager or team manager may be a bit confused at first with all the papers included in your envelope, but then realize that you have plenty of people who are happy to recommend you and talk with company management about you. That added proof that you’re well-regarded in the industry will get your résumé and cover letter noticed. Referrals are not a panacea because you still have to make sure your résumé and cover letter look great, but including referral letters will make it much more likely that whoever is reviewing résumés looks at yours. You can show your appreciation by writing a recommendation letter of your own and send those to your friends and colleagues who recommend you. After all, your friends and colleagues may need recommendations for a job or other position they want. Have a video résumé on social networking sites We live in an age where it’s easy to make videos and post them online, so it’s a good idea to post a video résumé starring you on all your social media websites. You can hire a videographer to professionally produce your video résumé, but you can probably do it yourself using your webcam. Just be sure to practice talking naturally into the camera so you come off as authentic and genuine. When you’re ready to record, it’s a good idea to wear at least a shirt and tie (if you’re just sitting down) and groom yourself so you look professional. You can put a link to your video résumé in your printed one. When people reviewing your résumé type in the link, they should see a brief video that not only features you talking about who you are as a programmer and your experience, but also shows some of your personality so the viewer can get to know you a little bit. If potential interviewers feel like you’re someone they want to work with after they watch your video résumé, don’t be surprised if you get a phone call or email message asking to set up a phone screen or an in-person interview. You should shorten the link to your video résumé so people don’t have to type in a long and complicated URL in their browser’s address bar. One popular site for shortening a URL is Bitly. Create your own YouTube channel to show off your programming prowess If you want to go one step further with your videos and stand out not just to potential interviewers but to the software developer community at large, include your video résumé on your YouTube channel. This channel should also include several videos that show off your personality and expertise. A YouTube channel that you promote regularly on your other social media and software developer websites like GitHub will start to get you followers. What’s more, people at your prospective employer will look at your YouTube channel and think, “Wow, this person is teaching hundreds of developers on YouTube, so this is a good person to have on our team. This is someone who not only knows their stuff but will help our other programmers learn and grow.” Your YouTube channel may not only attract followers but may also prompt people to send comments asking if you’re looking for a job. If you decide to start looking for employment, you can create a video that says you’re looking for a job and feature that video on your channel so you can generate leads. Have a good blog to show your programming expertise Programming requires you to type code, so you should have a good blog that shows your coding expertise either in your preferred programming language and/or a variety of programming languages. A blog, such as the Simple Programmer blog you see below, can include instructional articles about how to perform a task in a specific language; discuss tips, tricks, techniques, and trends in software development; and include articles from guest authors who talk about their areas of expertise. If you design your blog so you feature your desired search keywords prominently and frequently, Google will have an easy time finding your blog when people search for those keywords. Don’t forget to promote your latest blog posts on your social media and software developer websites, too. You may find that during the interview, one or more interviewers will ask you about the blog because they’ve been reading articles on it. So, the blog acts as an extended interview that shows people at your prospective employer that you write well, can articulate your points, and that you’re an influencer and leader in the programming community. Update your blog regularly with new articles. If you haven’t updated your blog even in a couple of months, your articles will start to look stale, and you’ll give the impression to your interviewers that you’re inattentive and don’t follow through. Produce a podcast and/or vlog If you want to go all-out to promote your expertise and personality, then add an audio podcast or its video equivalent, the vlog (short for video log), to your blog and YouTube channel offerings. The vlog can be posted to both your social media websites, your blog itself, and/or your YouTube channel. You may also want to have your podcast on sites that host podcasts such as Libsyn. If you’re the host of a podcast, it’s likely you won’t talk during the entirety of each podcast. (The length of a podcast will vary depending on the topic.) Instead, you’ll be talking with other people and creating a lot of connections. You’ll also show that you’re involved in the developer community. As you build influence and a loyal listenership and/or viewership, you may become a celebrity among developers. Your popularity will make it easier for you to get the job you want because companies want to hire a famous software developer to work on their teams. Point to mobile apps you’ve already developed in app stores If you’ve published one or more apps in an iOS or Android app store, don’t forget to include this information in your résumé and cover letter, and ensure that any interviewers can easily find a link to the app on your social media profiles, blog, and YouTube channel. Showing that you’ve developed one or more apps gives interviewers proof that: You can write code just like your résumé says. You can develop software through the entire life cycle from design to publication, which shows you can contribute to the programming team and the company. You’re a winner. (So go get a chicken dinner.) If you haven’t built an app before, there are plenty of tutorials online — all you have to do is type build ios app or build android app in Google and you’ll get a results page full of tutorial links so you can get started. After you create and publish an app, produce a “making of” video on your YouTube channel. This video should tell viewers about the app, how you developed it, the discoveries and drawbacks you had during development, and what your plans are for the future of the app. That last part will show potential employers that you take care of your customers and keep thinking of ways to make the app better for them. Write and self-publish a book The one tangible thing you can bring with you to your interview, other than copies of your résumé, is a copy of a self-published book. It can be difficult to write books for major publishers unless you already have experience with them as a technical editor, you coauthor a book with a lead author, or if you’ve self-published a book. It’s easier than ever to publish and distribute a self-published book. You can sell your book as an ebook on websites including Amazon and Barnes & Noble as well as publish printed copies to give to people and sell on Amazon. The wikiHow website shown below gives you step-by-step instructions about how to write and publish your own book. A book can make you a little bit of money, especially if you take the time to study successful self-published authors — for example, look at Andy Weir, who self-published the novel The Martian. More important, the book serves as an advertisement for your services that shows interviewers that: You committed the time, money, and effort to write and publish a book. You’re a published authority on a given topic because not very many developers have self-published a book (though one coauthor of this book has). You have writing skills, which could help you make more money in your new job if you’re a technical writer as well as a programmer. After you publish the book, don’t forget to promote it not only in your cover letter and list it in your résumé, but also on all your online media and social networking websites. What’s more, if you have the book listed on Amazon, then include a shortened URL link to the book page so interviewers can see it; the interviewers will appreciate a short URL to type because Amazon page URLs are almost as long as lines to get on popular Disneyland rides. Speak at developer and business events You may not have thought about speaking at events, or maybe you don’t want to think of it because the fear of public speaking, or glossophobia, is considered by some (perhaps including you) to be worse than death. If you want to get up the courage to speak but don’t know where to get training, go to the Toastmasters International website and find a club in your area by clicking the Find a Club button in the upper-right corner of the screen. Then search for your nearest club in the Find a Club webpage. Toastmasters International is considered the premier organization for professionals to learn how to speak effectively and become better leaders. After you select your club, you can attend a meeting for free if there are no current restrictions to joining a club. (Some clubs have restrictions and the website will tell you if that’s so.) Once you decide to join, you can sign up as a new member for only $65 (this is subject to change); renewals cost $45 per year. It may take you some time to get yourself where you want to be as a speaker, but once you gain enough confidence, you can start looking for speaking opportunities at local or regional events. Check with Meetup events for software developers in your local area and ask the event coordinator about speaking opportunities. The same goes for local chamber of commerce and/or Rotary club meetings, though you’ll probably have to produce a different presentation for those business-oriented audiences. No matter where you speak, you’ll likely have members of companies in the audience who may be impressed with you. After your presentation, one or more people may ask for your card so you can speak to their employees and/or recommend you as a speaker for a large developer conference (so make sure you have business cards with you!). Some people may be so impressed with your leadership abilities that they’ll ask you if you’re looking for a job. Before your speaking engagement, ask the event coordinator if you can record your presentation on video. Then you can make that video available for wider viewing later on your social media and/or online media websites. A large developer conference may record all speakers on video and give you the URL to the conference website so you can include a link to your presentation online as well as in your résumé and cover letter. Your future employer wants to see how you’re unique so don’t be afraid to show off your programming skills in a way that highlights your abilities.

Article / Updated 07-19-2022

How you choose to structure your business as the landlord depends in part upon your willingness to share its future and yours with others. Forming a corporation is a fairly complex legal endeavor that involves the following steps: Choose and register a name for your corporation that complies with state requirements. Write and file your articles of incorporation. Write bylaws to govern corporate operations. Issue stock certificates to your [email protected]’s owners and investors. Obtain any business licenses and permits required by your state and local governing bodies. You can take any of the following three approaches to form your corporation: Do it yourself. If you’re the sole owner of the business and don’t intend to add owners, seek outside capital, or do business in multiple locations, you may be able to incorporate without expert assistance. Use a third-party service. Hire a reputable, local attorney. Outsourcing to a business-formation service Numerous firms offer services to help you form a business entity. Three of the best known are Legal Zoom, Rocket Attorney, and The Company Corporation. Others include Inc Authority, and Directincorporation.com. Before using a service, check with others who’ve used it, and expand your search to include LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter. Find out how they’re regarded by the Better Business Bureau and local consumer protection organizations to determine whether any complaints have been filed against them. Keep in mind that these firms are ordinary retailers who tend to advertise low prices “Starting at …” for only a few of the services you need. Comparison shop. Find out what’s included and what’s not. Get a price quote from a reputable local attorney, as well, for comparison purposes. Make sure you get a price quote that covers everything you need to form your corporation. Hiring an attorney and accountant We recommend that you hire a reputable, local attorney to guide you through the process of incorporating your business and an accountant to manage the corporation’s payroll, taxes, and financial reporting for several reasons, including the following: Your attorney can help evaluate your specific needs for the area where you’re setting up shop and recommend the best business structure to meet those needs. Choosing the wrong business structure may imperil your personal assets and limit your tax benefits. Your attorney makes sure all documents are filed properly with the right government agencies and in a timely manner. Your attorney can refer you to experts in accounting, banking, financial planning, insurance, and web design. A good business attorney will have an ongoing professional interest in your success. Your accountant keeps the books and creates and files financial reports in compliance with federal, state, and local laws. Running your operation as a corporation As complicated as forming a corporation is, running it requires even more attention to detail. You must fulfill the obligations of corporate governance, which include: Paying yourself and other owners and investors salaries or distributions Holding at least one director and shareholder meeting annually Typing up and filing minutes from those meetings Updating the bylaws Practicing generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) — standards and procedures for recording financial transactions and producing financial reports Producing and filing an annual report with your Secretary of State Preparing the corporation’s annual tax return

Article / Updated 07-19-2022

Copyright © 2015 AARP. All rights reserved. Once you get that job you are seeking after 50, you need to negotiate the terms. Negotiations are best when both parties work toward an arrangement that’s mutually beneficial. Don’t approach negotiations with a hiring manager as an adversarial relationship. Follow these suggestions instead: Wait. Let the hiring manager offer you an amount, and then take a day or two to consider. You may be able to renegotiate for more if you don’t think the first offer was fair, but you will need to have your reasons down pat. Know your value. The more you learn, the more you earn. Research salaries for the position you’re applying for in that area of the country. Three good places to start are Glassdoor PayScale Salary.com Be prepared to tell them what you want. If you get a lowball offer, simply say something along the lines of, “I was expecting an offer more in the $_____ to $_____ range. How did you arrive at the offer?” Speak in “I” statements. “I” statements are difficult to argue against, because all you’re saying is what you think and feel. Ask questions. It’s okay to ask the interviewers how they came up with a specific dollar amount. Inquiring minds want to know. Don’t refuse an offer outright. Don’t fall for the trap of thinking you need to answer yes or no. Keep the conversation going until you hear an offer that sounds fair. Speak in terms of value. You may say something like, “If I were an average employee, I would be happy with your first offer, but I don’t think you’re looking for someone who’s just average.” Then go on to explain why you’re better than average. Don’t back down. Give the conversation more time to percolate instead of reluctantly accepting an offer or turning it down. Take your time. There’s really no hurry. Don’t issue an ultimatum. An ultimatum traps you and the interviewer, providing neither of you with a graceful, face-saving exit. Keep the conversation going until you’ve succeeded in meeting the needs of both sides. Be sensitive to the employer’s needs and current circumstances. If the company is hurting, be open to making concessions that meet the company’s current needs but that solidify your future position. Negotiate all financial aspects of employment in person or over the phone. Be sure all details of your employee benefits package — including any special adjustments you’ve been granted — are clearly stated in writing in your contract or offer letter.

Article / Updated 07-19-2022

Why not infuse your portfolio with your personal brand? A portfolio is a collection of documents that validate your accomplishments and professional achievements when you go on a job interview (or when you meet with a new client). This tool helps you remember all that you have done in your past to build your personal brand. Portfolios provide evidence of your credibility. Having possession of your documents not only provides proof of your work to use as a marketing tool but gives you the confidence to speak to your brand. Your portfolio may be compiled in a section of your file cabinet, scanned into an electronic file on your computer, or put into a file box. These days, portfolios are often saved to online repositories — such as Espressowork.com/ and, for creative work, Behance.net — that provide electronic access to all these documents. Follow the steps at Wikihow to create your own portfolio. But even as society moves away from paper and toward the computing cloud, it’s a good idea to create a portfolio binder that contains paper copies of documents that demonstrate who you are. Sharing such a binder with a prospective employer or new client is an impressive way to highlight and prove that you have done what you have said you could do on your resume. This printed portfolio is especially helpful for people who need to show writing samples or visual representation of their work. Credit: Courtesy of Stephen M. Ross School of Business, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI Here are some things to include in your portfolio: Your branded resume Your branded biography Letters of recommendation, at least one or two of which are current Sample projects Articles that you have written Past business cards Academic degrees Certifications and licenses Employee reviews A list of key successes from your work A list of awards you have received Volunteer service documents A list of professional contributions, such as committees you have chaired or evidence of how you have contributed to your profession Thank-you notes you have received Social networking site profiles Print copies of multimedia presentations you have created

Article / Updated 06-23-2022

Focus your resume on job experience that's relevant to a specific position to improve your chances of getting that job. Having relevant job experience is always a big plus in employers' eyes. If you have too many jobs in your background, you can structure your resume to highlight pertinent job positions and omit or deemphasize others. An unfocused resume or job history may indicate to others that you lack commitment. It’s a reason not to hire you. Focus your resume to draw attention to your relevant job experience. Separating relevant jobs from other jobs If your resume looks as though it will collapse under the weight of a mishmash of jobs unconnected to your present target, you can eliminate your previous trivial pursuits. Group the consequential jobs under a heading that says something like "Relevant Work Experience Summary" or "Professional Experience." What if this approach solves one problem — the busy resume — but creates another, such as a huge, gaping black hole where you removed inconsequential jobs? Create a second work history section that covers those holes, labeling it "Other Experience." Grouping temporary jobs Dealing with an unfocused career pattern on paper is easier when it’s done under the banner of a temporary service company. Here are some guidelines for this type of treatment: List the temporary services company as the employer. You choose one job title that covers most of your assignments. Identify specific assignments under the main title. Give the dates in years next to the temporary services firm, skipping dates for each assignment (as shown below). What if you work for several temporary services at the same time? The simple answer is that you use the same technique of dating your work history for the temporary service firms, not for the individual assignments. This dating technique is a statement of fact; you legally are an employee of the temporary services firm, not of the company that pays for your temporary services. When excess jobs or focus isn’t a problem, you may choose an alternative presentation for a series of short-term jobs. The alternative doesn’t mention the staffing firm(s) but only the names of the companies where you worked.

Cheat Sheet / Updated 04-25-2022

Before you head off to basic training, you should be familiar with a few basic items, such as military ranks, chain of command, and military time. You also want to make sure that you know the rules of being sentry.

Cheat Sheet / Updated 04-20-2022

To run a bed and breakfast (B&B) inn, you need to take care of business issues first, then go about the business of caring for your guests. To make sure guests get the best impression of your B&B, train everyone who answers the phone, get rooms ready the right way, and do the prep work for the "breakfast" part of the service. You also need to keep important phone numbers handy for those unexpected but inevitable problems.

Cheat Sheet / Updated 04-08-2022

The secret is out: Working from home can be a sustainable, successful option for professionals in today’s global economy. As you jump into working from home, be sure to follow a few pieces of important advice, as well as some virtual meeting etiquette.

Cheat Sheet / Updated 04-07-2022

Wouldn’t it be nice to boost your productivity and performance at work without having to put in extra hours or break your back in the meantime? Being effective at what you do takes a little bit of planning, some basic tools, and a lot of positivity.