Technology Rules

Chris Webster — Fri, 13 Mar 2009 19:06:50 +0000

Well this week it seems that new and emergent technologies have been crossing my screen more than any other topic.

I guess that makes sense in that when there is a strong focus on networking ,as I discussed last week, the internet will naturally look for technology to do that and as such the upgrades to sites such as Facebook will get more traction.

What is interesting though is that a number of sites have released new product updates that aren’t directly related to networking. This suggests to me that there must be a significant amount of confidence that the current economic times won’t last forever as a major investment of money, time and employees are required for such releases.

So the links that got my attention most this week are:

Jobsearch rules are meant to be broken – Another reminder that we need to not follow just a formula but look for effectiveness.

Companies Drop Talent Management Ball – Have some organizations panicked and forgotten about preparing for the future?

PCMag’s Top20 Jobsearch sites – While not employment experts PCMag have listed their top sites for jobsearching on the internet.

Free Napkin – Free Napkin is like eBay or Craigslist but for free items. When job searching and short of money this could be really useful. Not a huge range and it looks to be U.S. only at this stage but it’s a commendable idea that deserved some promotion.

PriceWaterhouseCoopers Career Help – When a company this large gets involved in providing career assistance to college leavers it tells me, apart from good publicity, they are positioning themselves as an employer of choice for the future. Which of course suggests they see a future beyond the current issues.

Augmented Reality – OK, So it’s not employment or career related but it’s cool.

Photo by Tom Woodward

Attitude Counts!

Becky Roe-Smith — Thu, 12 Mar 2009 18:48:59 +0000

While teaching one of my job search workshops recently, I heard myself say, “Goodness, jobs are really hard to come by! If you find something in your field of fascination that actually supports you and gives you what you need, you’ll be lucky!” Remember, I was speaking to a group of individuals that have many difficult barriers to begin with. Did they need me to make their situation any harder? But I did just that!

Upon reflection I discovered I needed to check in with MY OWN ATTITUDE! I was giving them one more barrier to add to the rest. I constantly remind my candidates to have a positive and constructive attitude but I have somehow fallen into some very destructive thinking. I also believe that attitudes affect others. Did I think I was exempt from the rule? Obviously!

Here’s what I’m doing differently:

Stopped watching the ”doom and gloom“ news
Searching the news for “good” news
Discovering companies that ARE hiring
Working with my candidates even harder to create stellar CV’s
Spending more time helping my candidates use their networks
Helping my candidates expand or create a network
Began expanding and using MY network
Became familiar with internet networking sites—yup I’m on FaceBook and LinkedIn. Join me!

I’m saying this is to remind you to check in with your own attitudes first when working with others. If you’re helping people prepare for the job search process in any fashion, your attitudes can be their biggest barrier!

Photo by Luis Argerich

The WorkNET » search

Technology Rules

Photo by Tom Woodward

Attitude Counts!

Photo by Luis Argerich