Bllamas, New Year resolutions, and your job search this 2012

Posted on January 17, 2012
Filed Under Employment, Finding a Job, Hiring Forecast, The Workplace | 1 Comment

We do it every New Year: ring in January 1, proclaiming change. Feeling refreshed, optimistic about the promise of a new year, we commit ourselves to a series of resolutions, regardless of whether we possess the will to follow through with them. Growing up, my proclivity for the absurd was put on full display each New Year’s Eve. As a child, and on into my youth, I relished the rather insensitive thought of making a mockery of the whole process. I would silently commit myself to incredible, extraordinary, and sometimes egregious resolutions, such as plotting the genetic sequence and splicing together the DNA of a bull and llama, creating a bllama. A “bllama,” I resolved, would be an animal with the valor and august disposition of a llama, and the innate competitive spirit of a bull. Let it suffice to say, none of my far-fetched resolutions (of which the above resolution is merely representative), ever came to fruition. So where am I going with this? Believe it or not- your career. Read more

Resolutions for your career health, part II

Posted on January 5, 2012
Filed Under Career Change, Employment, Finding a Job, Hiring Forecast, Networking, Promotion, Technology in the Workplace, The Workplace | Leave a Comment

By Courtney Sprague, Guest Contributor

While continuing with your 2012 career resolutions, these last suggestions are intended to aid you with your job search. Hopefully, these suggestions you will help you conduct a more seamless and manageable job search. It is also important to remember that searching for a job can be a full-time job, so using these few resolutions may save you time and frustration.

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Resolutions for your career health, part I

Posted on January 3, 2012
Filed Under Career Change, Employment, Finding a Job, First Job, Health, Hiring Forecast, Networking | Leave a Comment

By Courtney Sprague, Guest Contributor

50% of Americans set New Year’s resolutions each year, with many being focused on the physical self rather than the inner self (Norcross & Vangarelli, 1988, as cited by Saad, 2009, para 2). Why not take a break from the norm to focus on your career health and make the best of 2012? Setting New Year’s resolutions for your career is not just for those who are actively looking for a job, but also for those who have neglected their own career goals.

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How to stay happy at work

Posted on August 22, 2011
Filed Under Employment, Health, Hiring Forecast, Keeping your Job | Leave a Comment

As a result of the economic downturn in 2008, workers are surrounded by negative jobs report data, a rather inhospitable labor market, and a burgeoning population of long-term unemployed. In this climate, it is no surprise when workers feel a greater pressure to perform and have had to do more with less. As one might expect, many workers in such situations associate the workplace with stress and even rancor. In such as harsh economic climate, it is no surprise that CareerBuilder’s Q2 2011 Hiring Report showed that widespread salary increases do not yet seem to be on the mind of employers. In this report, 39% of respondents indicated no change between salary levels in Q2 2010 and Q2 2011. This figure, when coupled with the added pressures of a still unreliable economy and the type of fear it induces, might be connected to (or a cause for) employers reporting in another CareerBuilder survey released this past December that workers were already too “burned out” to match last year’s performance. While this paints a grim picture, workers can do some things to alleviate stress and feelings of unhappiness in the workplace. Read more

Why 2011 may be a better year for new graduates

Posted on July 18, 2011
Filed Under Career Change, Employment, Finding a Job, Hiring Forecast | Leave a Comment

This late spring and summer 1.6 million students marched triumphantly across a stage and were awarded a diploma representing countless hours of research and studying, years of steadfast dedication, and the ingestion of hundreds of gallons of caffeinated beverages. Being awarded a college degree is often seen as an important milestone and a critical gateway to an improved life. Yet, in recent times this piece of wisdom has been called into questioned. The global economic downturn led many to wonder whether   a college degree has tangible benefits during a downturn. In fact, one Wall Street Journal article dubbed the Class of 2009 as “cursed.” As I noted in a post this past January, despite a still “rollercoaster-ing” labor market, from the standpoint of economic projections and labor trends, 2011 is looking to be the best year since the dawn of the downturn, both for out-of-work job-seekers and new graduates. Read more

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