Communication Skills Resume Writing - Increase Your Chances of Getting Hired

Communication Skills Resume Writing - Increase Your Chances of Getting HiredCommunication skills are often neglected when you get a resume. A person who has an ability to communicate and build relationships can be one of the most important factors when it comes to landing a job. The right people will be able to understand the real meaning of a resume and if the information is there, they will have no problem reading it.If you want to write a successful communication skills resume, the first thing you need to do is assess your abilities and determine what you can do to improve your communication skills. Communication skills should be developed and honed to a very high degree, so that you can explain your goals and give yourself a good shot at getting hired.When you develop good communication skills, you become much more attractive to employers. They know that you will have more success if you put some effort into your communications and try to develop relationships with other people. This will lead to better hiring. Communication skills are an integral part of any career.Your resume is the first thing that someone sees when it comes to communication skills. Your skills as a communicator may have been improving over time, but your resume may be an afterthought. You can avoid this by putting some effort into communicating how your skills will help you in the workplace.The first thing you should include on your resume is a list of accomplishments in all the areas of good communication skills. They are not always listed on your resume, but they can be found if you take the time to search for them.They should be written down as part of the requirements of the job and then you can focus on listing the specific tasks you did to meet these requirements. Write down what you used to learn about the job. You may even want to use tools such as QuizGenius that will allow you to gauge your skills on a level where you can see your potential in the future.Remember that the skil ls you developed will never be enough. You also need to practice communicating and sharing your ideas with others so that they will understand what you are trying to say. This is the only way to improve your communication skills.Writing communication skills resume will not guarantee that you will get hired but it will get you noticed as a potential employee. The key is to find out what skills you have that will best match your job.

Getting It Done Versus Getting It Right

Getting It Done Versus Getting It Right Im off today, presenting a workshop called Dealing with People You cant Stand at a Florida training conference. I expect a packed house (unfortunately.) I though this would be a good time to republish this post based on  the book that inspired me.   For those of us who focus on tasks and systems, success means crossing items off your to-do list. Nothing is more satisfying at work than looking at a project and knowing that it’s on time, on budget, and adding value to the organization. We manage by goals and take pride in our ability to get things done. You’re probably task-oriented if you: Have daily goals and pride yourself on being organized Find it easy to manage projects and prioritize activities Set long-term goals for yourself and measure success by what you achieve Our personality counterparts are focused on relationships. They measure success through the quality and depth of their relationships and teamwork. Some experts estimate that 65 percent of workers and managers focus on relationships, while 35 percent focus on tasks. That feels about right, based on my observation of the workplace over the years. Both personality types are necessary for a smoothly-functioning office, as are the people in the middle who can negotiate and work with both styles. If you read my blog posts regularly, it will not surprise you to learn that I am strongly task-oriented. Tips for goal setting, tips for getting organized, tips to keep you on track â€" it’s obvious that I care about getting things done. But there are differences of opinion, even among strongly task-oriented people.   Dr. Rick Brinkman and Dr. Rick Kirschner, authors of Dealing with People You Can’t Stand, calls the two types of task-oriented people “Get it Done” versus “Get it Right.” And even though we both focus on tasks, we can drive each other crazy. For the record, I’m a “get it done” person. I believe that the shortest path between two points is a straight line. (For those who want to do the math, have at it.) I abhor procrastination, tangents, redundancy and decisions by committee. I believe in asking for forgiveness, rather than permission. Thank goodness not everyone is like me. We need rules, policies and chains of command to balance people who chew through the maze instead of running it. (You have no idea how hard it was to type that last sentence.) The conflict between the “Get it Done” and “Get it Right” people is mostly about speed. The Get it Doners have a bias toward action; they want to see progress on a goal as soon as we’ve decided on one. The Get it Righters so not feel the same sense of urgency; they care more about quality than speed. When the two types work well together, they learn to trust each other and how to moderate their natural tendencies. When they don’t trust each other or can’t communicate effectively, they become the proverbial irresistible force and the immovable object. The more the Get it Doner pushes, the more the Get it Righter digs in. It’s not a pretty sight. Drs. Rick and Rick call the frustrated Get it Doner “the Tank.” When frustrated, the Tank will lash out at whatever or whomever he considers to be an impediment to progress.   In his eyes, you’re either part of the solution or part of the problem; there’s no middle ground. If you’re the unlucky obstacle, you feel like pavement in front of a steamroller. If you feel attacked in a disagreement with a Get it Doner, the secret is to gain her respect. Tanks don’t attack people they respect, that is, people who know what they’re talking about and have the courage to stick to their guns. The first step in dealing with this conflict is to remain calm and stop the tirade (if there is one in progress.) Then calmly remind the Tank that you are both on the same team and have the same goals (I assume that this is true, and that you are not actually just being obstinate, arbitrary, or micromanaging. If you are, you deserve the tirade. Take it like a man.) Remind or inform the Tank of your very good reasons for needing to take more time. (Note: they had better be very good reasons.) Assert your authority in this situation (“My name goes on the final inspection report, and I refuse to compromise on quality.”) Then walk away, literally, or metaphorically. What if you are the Tank and frustrated by a Get it Righter? If you have someone in the office who is frustrating everyone with their slow responses and perfectionistic approach, you have a ticking time bomb on your hands. Even the most patient person can become a Tank when faced with unexplained delays or changes in minute process details. Often, the frustrated Get it Righter will shut down; she won’t help the project along or tell you what’s wrong. You get no feedback but mute resistance and hurt looks. How do you get her back on the team? The secret is to give her time and encouragement to open up and tell you what she thinks is wrong (with the current plan, the process, or you.) If you ask questions that can be answered with yes, no, or a grunt, that’s all you will get. Open ended questions (what, why , how) are the key, combined with your best expectant look and body language. According to Drs. Rick and Rick, you must give the Get it Righter plenty of time and encouragement to answer, and look like you expect an answer. This requires patience. Lots of patience. If your Get it Righter still maintains that nothing is wrong, or she doesn’t know, take a guess. “I imagine that when Rick interrupted you in yesterday’s meeting, you felt like he didn’t care about the results of your investigation. It probably seemed like he didn’t respect the time you put into the report.” Eventually, your Get it Righter won’t be able to resist the temptation to confirm your guess or set you right. Then you can start the process of winning her trust and moving forward.

Top 5 Business Benefits of Encouraging Charity Work

Top 5 Business Benefits of Encouraging Charity Work Corporate charity fundraising challenges are not only an important part of a company’s corporate social responsibility, they can have a significant impact on your employer brand. The time and effort involved in supporting charities can bring many positive benefits. In addition to supporting and contributing to a wide range of charities, it may also bring many positive business returns. It promotes an organisation as a socially responsible business, helps make it stand out as a good employer and can have a far wider impact on reinforcing a culture of teamwork and camaraderie. This could significantly improve an organisation’s ability to attract high-quality employees, a key factor in achieving business growth. What attracts talented employees to an organisation is also what is likely to encourage them to stay and retaining staff can save money and help businesses achieve their strategic goals with less disruption. Being able to demonstrate that an organisation is a socially responsible business is becoming more important than ever when it comes to attracting up-and-coming talent. Numerous pieces of research show that that the latest generations entering the workforce care more about company ethics and the opportunity to give back to their communities than ever before. Here’s our top five business benefits of charity participation, all of which help organisations to retain the talented employees they’ve worked hard to recruit and to make the business one which potential new recruits will aspire to join. Team building opportunities Completing charity initiatives together helps people to build strong relationships with their colleagues. It’s a fantastic way to bring different people and departments together, and for senior managers and directors to connect and share experiences with their team. Some of our team recently volunteered to help transform the gardens of two local residents supported by the Papworth Trust charity. One of the key things they all said about the experience was how much fun they had all had working together. Build and maintain a supportive culture A supportive and team-focussed culture is one which many businesses strive to achieve and creates a place where people want to work. One way to help maintain and develop a culture like this is to bring everyone together through the common ‘feel-good’ factor of charity activity. Even if only a few members of staff are involved in a fundraising initiative, it can still be used to unite teams. Share stories and updates on the staff intranet and encourage colleagues to cheer them on, for example organising an office-wide send off or a welcome back event to congratulate them. Fantastic PR Charity activities will provide excellent news content for your own website and social media and can also be shared with local and trade press. Being seen as an organisation which invests in its local community will also help to attract and retain customers and can help open doors to developing relationships with key stakeholders. Finally, charity initiatives can also play a significant part in helping organisations to win prestigious awards. The Directors at  our business judge ‘Employer of the Year’ awards and one of the key things we look for are organisations which have empowered their teams to make a difference for a charity or their local community. Extra training and development opportunities Offering clear development opportunities is an important element of keeping current employees engaged and making an organisation an attractive place to work. There are many aspects of charity initiatives which can provide employees with the opportunity to develop new skills that can be included within overall training and development plans. For example, managing charity events is a great opportunity for employees to develop communication, leadership and project planning skills as well as improving confidence overall. Volunteering placements can also provide the chance to develop new skills and the opportunity to lead different teams. Introduce healthy work-place initiatives Many fundraising initiatives often involve physical challenges which require people to do training in the lead up to the event. All colleagues, whether they are taking part in the event or not, can be invited to get involved in any training initiatives held during lunch-breaks. This can help to encourage more health and wellbeing initiatives in the workplace and happy, healthy staff are more engaged and productive. When some of our team took part in the gruelling 24-hour, National Three Peaks challenge to raise money for the Arthur Rank Hospice Charity and Thrombosis UK, lots of other colleagues joined the team on their lunchtime training walks. A spin-off pedometer challenge was also organised, with a team walking in their lunch breaks until they clocked up 500 miles between them.

Four Ways to Develop Your Teaching Skills

Four Ways to Develop Your Teaching Skills Working in education is a rewarding career, but it can also be quite a challenging role to take on. It’s your responsibility, as the leader of your classroom, to make sure that your students are learning and advancing their knowledge and skill sets. If you want to succeed in your position, then it’s important to continuously be developing your abilities as a teacher. The minute that you settle for mediocre standards, or get too comfortable, that’s when you may start to slip and not perform to the best of your ability each day in the classroom. Read on to discover a few ways in which you can advance your teaching skills, and therefore find more success in your job. Take a Course There may come a time when you feel as though you’re getting bored in your current teaching role. Instead of becoming frustrated or choosing to disengage, find ways to improve, so that you can get ahead in your career. Challenge yourself by taking a course in your free time, such as the school district leader certification online, which will help you to develop your expertise as an educator. After completing this advanced certificate, you’ll be able to apply for higher-level jobs that will require you to use your newly learned leadership skills. Ask for Feedback You can also learn a lot by hearing what other people have to say about your teaching skills. Don’t be afraid to ask for feedback from your peers and students so that you can work on improving in areas where you might be falling short. Take advantage of the relationships that you have with other teachers, and exchange tips and experiences so that you can all improve together. Instead of taking these comments personally, use them to help you become a more skilled teacher. Reflect Daily Another way to develop your teaching skills is to be constantly evaluating your own performance. Take the time to reflect daily about what’s working, and what needs to be changedâ€"both in the approach that you take with your students and in the lesson plans that you’re delivering. Not only should you think about what you could be doing differently, but also take action and revise your style regularly, so that you can continue to progress over time. Take notes throughout the day about the modifications that you want make to your lesson plans or classroom delivery, so that you can review them later. Master Your Content The better you know your content, the more confidence you’re going to have when teaching. Therefore, make sure you set aside enough time to prepare each lesson plan in advance. Understand what you’re going to be talking about so that you can work on delivering the content in an even more engaging and interesting way for the students. Conduct research and get your questions answered ahead of time; therefore ensuring that you’re well equipped to get up and teach in front of the class. Conclusion Use these tips to develop your teaching skills so you can continue to move forward in your career. Be sure to monitor your progress, so that you know what factors are having the greatest impact on your performance.

8 Extremely Productive Things You Can Do When The Office Internet Is Down CareerMetis.com

8 Extremely Productive Things You Can Do When The Office Internet Is Down It’s something we’ve all experienced. The internet goes down and the office grinds to a halt. These days the internet is an integral part of all office work and its outage can seriously mess up our tasks, our productivity, and our day.Without the access to the internet we can’t access emails â€" that means leaving customer and client queries unanswered. We can’t use any files or software stored in the cloud. And we can’t use the online apps we’ve become increasingly reliant uponâ€" apps that help us manage our projects and our internal communications and so much more besides.Address your Poor Internet Connection ProblemevalFirst things first.Your internet connection should be completely reliable. If you’re having long-standing problems with your internet, you need to remedy the problem as soon as possible.Your company should have a fast and secure internet connection. Any problems with connectivity means a huge drop in productivity. Whilst a few hours every few weeks ma y seem insignificant, when you add up all of the employees and all of the lost working hours, you may find that those little internet problems are more costly than you thought.Both in terms of money and meeting deadlines, a poor connection poses problems for a business. Contact your IT team and make sure someone is on the job.But if you already have your best people troubleshooting and rectifying the problem, you can focus on being as productive as possible during this internet downtime. Here’s how.8 Extremely Productive Things to Do When the Office Internet is Down1) Look for Offline Tasks in your To-Do ListevalTake a look at your to-do list. There may be tasks on there that don’t require the internet. And there could be tasks that you’ve been putting to the bottom of your list for months on end.evalMake a list of blog topics for the next six months. Get out the whiteboard and ask your team to brainstorm ideas for your next project. Make a to-do list for tomorrow.Do a brain d ump, getting all your thoughts and ideas down onto paper in order to categorize and clarify them.Your options might be limited but there’s always something useful you can do that won’t require the internet.2) Use Your Phone DataIf you have plenty of data to spare, you could use your phone to keep up to speed with emails and correspondence. It’s not always easy to use your phone for work tasks. But it’s a good idea to deal with any urgent jobs if you possibly can. 3) Correspond in the Old Fashioned WayevalWe’re so used to communicating by email that we’ve almost forgotten there are other ways to do it. Make your way around the office and speak to colleagues face to face. Get answers to your queries and some good old-fashioned social interaction too. As long as your systems aren’t reliant on the internet, you could also pick up the phone and give your colleagues or clients a call. You could even set yourself a mini project â€" calling clients to request their feedback an d developing a plan of action for ways to improve your services.Or pick up a pen and send hand-written thank you notes to clients or suppliers who you value. It could help to nurture and sustain those relationships.4) Reschedule Your Staff Meeting for Right NowOn a regular working day, it can be hard to find a time when everyone is available. Make the most of your internet outage to get up to speed with your colleagues.Without the internet, video conferencingwon’t be possible and you won’t be able to consult any online documents. But if you’ve been meaning to catch up with office-based colleagues or you have a meeting in the diary for later in the week, move it to right now.There’s no time like the present. Follow up with your teammates on what they’ve been working on. Discuss the next steps for your project. Take the opportunity to discuss any concerns or any new ideas.eval5) Take StockWhen we’re rushing our way through the day, answering emails and plowing through our to-do lists, we don’t often get a chance to take stock. There just aren’t enough hours in the day.But sitting back and taking a good look at the bigger picture can be invaluable for your work and your career. Think about your current projects. Are they on track? Will you meet deadlines? Is there anything you could do to improve your working processes?evalBe brave and ask yourself some even bigger questions. Look at things from a more personal work perspective. Where do you see yourself in five years’ time? Is your career currently on track? What goals could you set for yourself? Taking stock can help you to gain greater focus and work with more productivity over the coming weeks, months and years.6) Invest Some Time in Your Professional DevelopmentAn internet outage is a great time for some professional development. Use this opportunity to brush up on your knowledge and skills. This would be easier with the internet. But it’s still possible without.Dig out any industry refer ence books you have to lie around the office. Or pick up a magazine detailing the latest industry developments. Or sit down with a more senior colleague and pick their brains.If you regularly have problems with the internet, think ahead. You can download articles and podcasts to listen to offline and have a learning library at your disposal no matter the status of your internet connection.evalA little self-led training or research is a great use of your time.7) Get OrganisedThey say that an organized workspace leads to an organized mind. Clear your desk of clutter. Organize your papers. File and recycle anything that doesn’t need to sit on your desk.Take a look at your computer. File documents away in the right places. Move things off your desktop. And delete anything that you no longer need.You could go even further and spend some time organizing the whole office. Archive old files from your filing cabinets. Move the photocopier to a more convenient place. Or reorganize the stati onery cupboard. And if you really want to roll up your sleeves, get to work with some disinfectant wipes (especially if its flu season) and rectify any nagging health and safety issues. A clean and safe workplace means employees spend less time off sick. These tasks may seem inessential but they could boost your whole team’s productivity by making their work easier and more efficient when your internet is back up and running.8) Take a BreakIf all else fails and you really can’t find anything else to do with your internet downtime, take a break. It could actually help your productivity.Chatting with co-workers will help you to learn more about them. Did you know that Lauren loves snowboarding? And did you know that Dave has two kids? Understanding who your colleagues are outside of the office will help you to forge supportive and productive teams. And even a little alone time can work wonders. A hot cup of coffee, a walk around the block or just a little daydream out of the windo w.Giving our brains a breakfrom work can make us more productive, motivated and creative. It can even help us to be better at decision making.So relax and take it easy, safe in the knowledge that you’re giving your brain and your long term productivity a boost.Internet downtime is never a good thing for a business. You want operations to run smoothly all day, every day. But when you’re faced with an internet outage, there are ways to keep busy. Take stock, make plans, tidy up and invest some time in yourself and in your team.It might not be your ideal workday but try to stay productive whenever you experience internet connection problems. You’ll get more done and, by taking time to think of the bigger picture, you could end up being even more productive once your systems are back online.

A Job vs. a Calling - Kathy Caprino

A Job vs. a Calling   I recently read a very thought-provoking article by Michael Lewis, columnist for Bloomberg News, about the difference between a “calling” and a job.   He had some very powerful insights about the differences.     Here’s the article (it’s certainly worth a read, especially in today’s times): A Wall Street Job Cant Match a Calling in Life     What struck me most deeply were two sentiments: “There’s a direct relationship between risk and reward. A fantastically rewarding career usually requires you to take fantastic risks.”   and   “A calling is an activity you find so compelling that you wind up organizing your entire self around it often to the detriment of your life outside of it.”   I couldn’t agree more.   Over the years, I’ve worked with a good number individuals who dream of having a fantastic and thrilling career, but in some essential way(s) aren’t willing to embrace or take on what’s required to achieve it.     What is required?   Here’s a list of traits and characteristics that I believe are essential to having a fantastic career (or following a calling):                     Boundless energy and commitment                   A large reserve of hope and faith                   Self-esteem and self-confidence to know that your dream is achievable                   Openness to learn from your mistakes and to get help when needed                   A healthy dose of reality about what’s necessary to succeed on this path                   Risk-acceptance and tolerance                   The belief that you can’t live without pursuing this career                   A very tough skin   I agree with Michael too that neither way is better (a job or calling); they’re just different.   “There are costs and benefits to both.”   You may have a job you enjoy (or can live with) yet know that what makes you feel passionate and powerful is not your job, but outside interests and experiences.   The key is to follow a path (either personally or professionally) that lights you up on the inside, and motivates you to be all you can be.   I’d love to hear your thoughts and insights: 1)             Are you involved in a job or a calling?     Which works best for you? 2)             If you feel you have a fantastic career and professional life, what did it take to get it? 3)             What advice can you give for others about the benefits and risks to having a job vs. following a calling?  

Carve out the time for a successful career change - Hallie Crawford

Carve out the time for a successful career change When I’m working with a career coaching client, one of the very first things I ask them is how committed they are, on a scale of 1-10, to finding their dream job. When they tell me they’re anything less than a 10, we discuss why, and how we can move it up to a 10. The reason is, and I know this from experience, that if you don’t carve out the time to make this transition a priority in your life-it will never happen. I had a group coaching client once who really started out with a bang. He was making great progress towards clarifying his career direction. He even had a list of possible career ideas he needed to research. And then he slowed down. I checked in with him and he said, “Work’s just been so busy.” I told him that I understood and asked him, in 6 months if he was still in the same job, and hadn’t made progress towards another career, how would he feel? He said he not feel very good about it. We sat down, talked about his list of career ideas and started to cut them down. We created a schedule for his research. This action step is exactly what I’m suggesting for you. Carve out the time in your schedule. We are all busy, that’s not an excuse. You must find the time in your busy schedule to devote to this work, even if it’s just an hour or two per week. Whatever it is, make the decision and stick to it. Ask yourself what the price or cost is for not doing something about this? In 6 months if nothing has changed, how will you feel? Then look at your typical weekly schedule and figure out when you can find the time for this. Is it one evening a week after work for a few hours? Is it early Saturday morning before the kids get up? Or do you want to use some of your lunch hour for time away from the office to go to a coffee shop with your computer and do some work? Find a way that works for you with no excuses. Remember, there’s a difference between an excuse and a reason. You should know the real difference in your heart. Career Transition Coach P.S.  Get one of the most information-rich career newsletters on the web delivered straight to your email inbox! Check our our  Free Newsletter  to help you along your  career journey  today!