Meet Aimee Bateman of CareerCake

Meet Aimee Bateman of CareerCake Have you met Aimee Bateman? Aimee is the founder and host of CareerCake.com.  As an ex-recruiter, Aimee has seen and experienced some of the funniest and most exciting stories, and in the first of our  #MeetMonday series, she shares some of them with us. In the first of this #MeetMonday series, we ask Aimee about cover letters, resume howlers and much more. Which one phrase made her smile when she read it on a cover letter? Why should you never use your mobile after an interview? Whats Aimees favourite social media platform? Whats her best recruitment tip? Find out the answer to all these (and more) in the video below! You can also read Aimees articles here on Undercover Recruiter or visit CareerCake.com. BONUS! Aimee is also a speaker at Social Media London LIVE! 2014 in London. Book your tickets now HERE and use Undercover for a 10% discount! READ MORE: Top 3 Tips for Working with Recruiters…from a Recruiter!

Do You Know Whom to Network With - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career

Do You Know Whom to Network With - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career By far the most effective way of getting a new job is by networking. When making presentations to large groups, I often test that tenet, and invariably it proves to be true. Therefore, networking is how people in transition should spend most of their time. For many, though, networking is a challenging task because they are introverts or they don’t know with whom to connect and network. If we took a quick look at all the possibilities, we’d see there are two broad groups: a group with which we have strong ties such as friends, family, or coworkers and a group with which we have weak ties. When asked, most people say that if necessary, they would work on improving their relationships with those in the group with which they already have strong ties. However, sociologists specializing in the field of social interactions have found certain interesting information: (1) although counterintuitive, networking with that other groupâ€"the one with which people have weak tiesâ€"is more beneficial; (2) more-novel information goes to individuals through weak rather than strong ties; (3) the reason for that is that because our close friends tend to move in the same circles we do, the information they receive overlaps considerably with what we already know; and (4) the quality or strength of interpersonal ties is based on a combination of several things such as amount of time th at the people know each other, the level of emotional intensity between them, the level of intimacy between them, the level at which they confide in each other, and reciprocal favors or services they perform for each other. The sociologists’ research revealed that most jobs were found through weak acquaintances. In fact, one study found that more than half of people who found jobs received the leading information via people with whom they had only occasional contact. This is both interesting and informative, because logic would seem to favor that such information would come rather from those with whom one has frequent contact. To support the empirical evidence, I’m reminded of an article I read that said two total strangers sitting next to each other in an airplane might end up disclosing to each other certain information that under normal circumstances would be discussed with only very close friends or family. So, the next time you go networking, don’t cling to your buddies, but start a conversation with a stranger. Who knows? It could lead to a new job.

Three Strategies to Improve Sales Success - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career

Three Strategies to Improve Sales Success - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career Excitement always increases when we are about to meet with a prospective client. We imagine the best of all worlds coming together in one meeting. But many times reality arrives in the middle of a meeting when it seems that we are on a collision course with the other party. Knowing how to avoid similar situations as well as how to handle them will turn the negative experience into a positive one. Should you be struggling with sales although you are doing everything as trained to do, there may well be a missing piece. Most training will walk you through a routine to apply to everyone you meet. But not all people are made the same and certainly do not think alike. The goal then becomes learning who each person is and to familiarize them with who you are and hopefully find a meeting of the minds. People want to know you before they know what you sell. The downside to most training is that people are handed scripts. Very few have the foresight to use only the highlights of the verbiage as possible talking points. ‘Possible’ is the keyword because frequently ‘none of the above’ applies. 1. Enjoy lively in-depth conversations with prospective clients. If on the first meeting the suggested talking points do not apply, that’s okay. It is far more important to build the rapport to be asked back for a serious conversation. Use first meetings as getting acquainted events versus a rush to make a sale. 2. Let your guard down by being professionally personal. No one likes speaking to a robot or someone seemingly without a personality. Allow the conversation to go off track to relay an experience that relates to the dialogue. Your personality will shine through. You begin to differentiate yourself from your competitors and establish a genuine personal brand. 3. Be truthful. Most people shudder at the thought of admitting when they aren’t familiar with a term or a concept. Once again, the honesty differentiates you from everyone else in your field. Apply the truth to every aspect of the conversation. In the end, the first sale doesn’t matter. What does make an imprint on your success is to be invited back for additional sales plus the provision of glowing testimonials and referrals. If you are in fact struggling with sales, there is nothing to lose by trying something new. Consider throwing away the talking points as suggested to have free-flowing conversations. Try it for a week with everyone you meet. Take note of the reactions and how the tone may be different than before. Should you notice a change for the better, incorporate the new style into your meetings. The test will be in the flow of new sales in the coming months. Give it a six-month trial period to substantiate whether the experiment works well. Put your stamp of originality on the new approach to experience the flow of the Smooth Sale! Sales Tips Examine what works well. Analyze what doesn’t seem to be working as it should. Try new strategies. Experiment with the opposite of the usual. Observe reactions of intended clientele. Put your personal touch to the conversation. Ask for feedback on how you may improve. Experiment further by implementing the better advice. Share with others the best of what you find to work well. Celebrate success!

How Technology Is Changing Job Hunting

How Technology Is Changing Job Hunting The Rise of Social Media Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, you name it! Social media has taken over the world! However, is that a good thing? We’ve heard, in the past, of stories of the relation between Facebook and grades, but how has it affected YOU exactly?  Social Media can be an addiction. I say ‘can’ because I don’t think it has affected the entire universe. Technology, however, is increasing and affecting everyone. Everything seems to be processed through a computer these days. Individuals are able to find themselves in employment through Twitter and LinkedIn; while at the same time lose jobs due to their social media profiles. Social media is a fantastic resource, if used correctly. Nevertheless, can you image life was without such advanced technology? How did people, back in the day, find out about job opportunities? Although they are useful and relevant still, newspapers were once the key source of information. Paper applications hardly exist anymore. SEE ALSO:  World Map Of All Jobs On Twitter In Real Time Social Media as an Opportunity Then again, there is a lot of negativity in relation to the use of increased technology. But its the way individuals use technology/social media that determines technologys positive or negative impact on our lives. How do you find out of the sheer number of opportunities out there? The answer is through social media. Have you explored Twitter recently? Of course you have. Who hasn’t? The number of tweets being posted every second of every minute is absolutely mind-blowing. So if you are using Twitter to filter through useful information and find out about potential opportunities, social media presents an unlimited resource. Personal Branding through Social Media How do individuals promote themselves? They do it online! It’s quick, easy and simple!   Social engines are also fantastic for getting your voice heard. For instance, if you’re a blogger, using social media is probably the best way to promote your work. The more you blog, the more you are able to illustrate your knowledge and gain contacts. If you’ve just started a business or promoting a particular product, social media is probably the best resource to start with. Social media enables you to engage an audience. Young celebrities get unbelievably famous through YouTube! Furthermore, the usage of Skype is also on the rise. Have you heard that interviews are now being conducted over Skype? Of course you have. Social media has the potential to get you noticed without even having to walk out your front door. SEE ALSO:  How To Start A WordPress Blog To Help In Your Job Search Every Detail Counts on Social Media This then leads to my next point; some could argue that individuals are becoming lazier. Using social media is like switching on autopilot when driving a car or an aeroplane. You allow the technology to do all the talking. There’s always going to be some sort of conspiracy and criticism in literally everything; however, it is important to not let it to control you. Use it for a purpose. Use it to aid you in achieving something. It should be used as a stepping stone to reaching your goal. Use it to help yourself gain a network. Most of you already do this but, as already mentioned, social media can be difference between being employed or unemployed. Your social media profiles are perceived as your overall identity. Each and every detail that you post or upload creates a vision of you. The same concept applies when sitting in an interview. Every detail counts, even the slightest. If you’re trying to improve your employment status, ensure you keep your online profiles professional a t all times. People will notice that! 12

The Need to Know Information Aboutthe Line Cook Resume

The Need to Know Information Aboutthe Line Cook ResumeIf you are an aspiring chef, it is time to bring your talents to the fore and impress your line cook resume. The line cook position can be quite challenging but if you have the right attitude, you can make the most of your skills. Below is a quick overview of how to prepare your resume for the line cook position.First and foremost, you need to get a good head start on your line cook resume. You should know how to write a good resume for the line cook position before you start applying. It is not enough to show that you possess the necessary skills for the position - you must also demonstrate your interpersonal skills. This will help you stand out from the crowd and this can be achieved by using resume writing templates and phrases that communicate the importance of having to know people. These include information such as describing how you enjoy socializing with friends, how you find it easy to form relationships with new people, what makes you so good at making friends and more.Remember that the line cook position is one that requires you to be extra attentive to detail. In order to make sure that you are doing well in the role, you will need to produce a lot of customer satisfaction. A good strategy is to focus on the customers you serve, what they like, what is important to them and what are their concerns when dealing with your kitchen. Showing that you take great pride in making your customers happy will help you show your line cook resume that you take great care with the cooking and service that you provide.Cooking for your clients is part of the job. What is your preferred method of serving your customers? How can you go about making sure that each person receives a quality meal? In order to be a top chef, you must take pride in creating and delivering meals that make a lasting impression on customers.While you can always cook up the best recipes, you must also learn to ask questions and respond to y our customers' needs. Customers are accustomed to a certain standard of service, so it is easy to break this etiquette if you do not use the appropriate language. Showing that you can adapt your cooking skills to suit your customers will lead to great success. By asking questions and responding to their needs, you can show that you are dependable and reliable and all you have to do is follow the proper protocol.When applying for a line cook position, you should understand that you are very fortunate to have such a wonderful career in the culinary arts. As a line cook, you are in charge of cooking every meal that your customer's order. You are given food and tools and told to prepare the food in an efficient manner. The people who work in a kitchen to make sure that the food they provide is good and fresh. With this responsibility comes an important responsibility: that you do your best to make sure that the food that you prepare is the best and freshest in the business.You must prep are for your line cook resume and you must be confident in your abilities to serve food to your customers in an efficient and professional manner. If you do not know how to prepare a meal that is of the highest quality, you will need to take the time to learn. In this way, you will stand out from the crowd and this can be achieved by using resume writing templates and phrases that communicate the importance of knowing people. These include information such as describing how you enjoy socializing with friends, how you find it easy to form relationships with new people, what makes you so good at making friends and more.Remember that the line cook position can be quite challenging but if you have the right attitude you can make the most of your skills. The line cook position can be one of the most rewarding and gratifying positions in the culinary arts. Showing that you take great pride in the preparation of the best food your kitchen can produce will lead to great success.

Book review Inner skiing - The Chief Happiness Officer Blog

Book review Inner skiing - The Chief Happiness Officer Blog Inner Skiing is an excellent account of how learning occurs, but this time its not at work, its out on the ski slopes. As every skier knows, skiing can be a wonderful experience, when youre in flow, your skis obey your every command and you zoom down the mountainside. And every skier knows the flip side: When your skis wont do anything you ask them to, every other skier on the mountain seems to deliberately get in your way, and you spend more time falling than skiing. What determines the experience you will get? How do you you move from one to the other? Bob Kriegel and Timothy Gallwey have an answer, which they call the inner game, hence the title of the book Inner skiing. They talk about the mind as containing two selves: The first one os your conscious mind. This is the voice in your head telling you to Bend your knees. No BEND them. Now lean forward. Not that much etc. The second self is your subconscious mind, and its the one doing the actual skiing. Their point is, that it does a lot better without the intervention of the first self. So many of their exercises are actually designed to keep your conscious mind busy, leaving your second self free to get on with the learning. One of the main things that they do differently is that they dont tell people how to ski. In stead, they help people to focus awareness on what theyre doing, and on how it works. An example: If they see a skier who skis with his legs almost totally straight, they wont simply tell him to bend his knees. In stead, theyll ask him to focus on his knees. They might ask him to make a few turns with his knees totally straight, and see how that feels. Then they might ask him to do a few more turns, where he constantly shouts out how much his knees are bent on a scale from 1 to 10. This allows the skier to learn for himself how much he should bend his knees. I really, really like this idea. It meshes perfectly with an idea that Ive seen proposed in several different places, that you cant really teach anybody anything. You can only place people in circumstance that allow them to learn for themselves. So the key here is attention, which is exactly the same point that Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi makes in Flow: The key is to be able to control your attention. Gallwey is talking about skiing, Csikszentmihalyi is talking about achieving flow. Inner skiing has applications far beyond skiing, and the book actually contains no concrete advice on becoming a better skier. It contains advice about becoming a better learner, and that will make you a better skier. In fact, that will make you a better everything. PS. The only drawback of the book is, that it should of course have been about inner snowboarding :o) Thanks for visiting my blog. If you're new here, you should check out this list of my 10 most popular articles. And if you want more great tips and ideas you should check out our newsletter about happiness at work. It's great and it's free :-)Share this:LinkedInFacebookTwitterRedditPinterest Related

Securing the Right Job or Career Transition in the New Economy - part III - CareerAlley

Securing the Right Job or Career Transition in the New Economy - part III - CareerAlley We may receive compensation when you click on links to products from our partners. We are ready for any unforeseen event which may or may not happen. George W. Bush Author Byline: D. Lawton Author Website: http://www.CareerConnected.com Securing the Right Job or Career Transition in the New Economy part III Part III A Method to Make your Job Search More Productive Part III of a 4 part discussion on the job market In your quest for the right job or new career, havent you asked yourself: Is there a way to break from the pack and secure opportunities from the 90% of unpublished job listings? For the answer, consider how job counselors and outplacement firms help displaced workers to shorten their unemployment cycle. These groups of former employees are provided tools to directly target companies, create and promote a persuasive resume package and target decision-makers and hiring managers, It all adds up to positive results! Step One: The Planning Stage Make a list of your most marketable skills and identify how your skills or job history may have contributed to a companys financial success or productivity increase. Leverage your work history. If you have recently developed skills in an in-demand occupation, think about how you can leverage your work history to provoke discussions of employment. Put yourself in the position of a hiring manager. Think about how you can potentially change or improve the way a firm has done business. Why is an in-demand skill so important? If your major job skill or occupation has lost its market appeal or if there is a shrinking market for your job, the length of time it may take to secure a position with your mix of skills can be more challenging than expected! For example, if you were skilled in a technology that has become obsolete, do you have an in-demand skill? Only you can honestly answer this question. If this is your profile, then it may be time to consider a plan B, which may entail rebuilding your skill mix with more marketable, in-demand skills. With the new marketability comes the need to re-strategize your approach to connecting with hiring managers. What if you are a recent college graduate? If youre a recent college graduate you may want to target companies that hire entry-level workers. Perhaps you can leverage the experiences you learned at an internship or extra-curricular activity to give you an edge in the occupation you are pursuing. Step Two: Connect with your Resume Now its time to get connected with business contacts! Create your cover [sales] letter and include a compelling yet brief discussion of how you have positively contributed to the success of a prior employer. Remember to include a brief statement that persuasively explains why you are in a job search. Know and Stick to your Target Should you consider resume blasting? Never! Why use an elephant gun to shoot a mosquito? Instead, do your research and send resumes only to those companies that fit your target profile. Heres the method: 1. Assemble your targeted company profile: Selectively choose companies in an industry vertical that allows you to leverage your strengths, ambitions, and passions. 2. Research. Take the time to study the companys web site and press releases. Find some key attribute about the company that you can talk about in an interview. Show a prospective employer that you have taken the time to understand key issues relating to their business. 3. Seek an introduction. Find out if you know a friend, friend-of-a-friend, relative, business, civic or secular associate that works at the firm, is a trusted vendor, or a board member. In short, try to secure an inside contact. 4. Kick the tires. Use financial websites to check the health of a prospective employer. Is the company in an expansion mode? That may indicate an eagerness to hire new productive talent! Are they in a hold mode? Perhaps you have a specialized know-how that may enable them to replace a vacated position. 5. Polish your pitch. Always be ready to talk about how you can contribute to a companys profits or leadership in their industry. Put together a 30-second elevator pitch that highlights your successes. Direct Mailing and Emailing of Resumes A common formula for persons in a job search is to mail and/or email 1,000 to 1,500 resume packages per $50,000 in income.A worker who once earned $100,000 or above is eager to send out 2,000 to 2,500 resume packages to rescue their career and secure a salary close to their prior level! Be prepared to make follow calls for the correspondence that you have sent out. Show job contacts that you are a serious candidate for employment. Other factors that influence how many contacts you may need to make in order to generate interviews and a job offer: The position and occupation desired Salary needs and current market conditions Industry Indicators: trends that impact employment growth in your job sector Additional factors to consider: Age, sex or national origin discrimination. U.S. sponsorship requirements. Switching career paths or industries. Past history of being downsized or fired Anatomy of a Job Search Consider this sample job search: To obtain 10 interview requests: Send mail/emails to a 1000 job contacts. Average response rate = 1% With your ten responses, success in creating three interview opportunities. Work hard to convert an opportunity into an offer. If the above fails, start again. Cost of Unemployment and Mitigating Factors [$40,000 salary example] Three months out of work = $ 10,000.00. Six months out of work = $ 20,000.00. Nine months out of work $ 30,000.00. Twelve months out of work $40,000.00. Debt builds up. Savings dissolve. Skills may go obsolete with extended unemployment. How can a jobseeker effectively deal with all these challenges and meet their goal of obtaining new, well-suited, well-paying employment in a timely and efficient manner? CareerWizPro can help! Part IV 11-Securing-the-Right-Job-or-Career-Transition-in-the-New-Economy more How much are you worth? Article courtesy of the Recruiting Blogswap, a content exchange service sponsored by CollegeRecruiter.com, a leading site for college students looking for internships and recent graduates searching for entry level jobs and other career opportunities. Good luck in your search. This is a Guest post. If you would like to submit a guest post to CareerAlley, please follow these guest post guidelines. Visit me on Facebook //