Leadership. The key to a great workplace.

I spend my work days helping clients make career progress. In this role, I hear horror stories about subpar working environments. After a while, a person might start to wonder if there are any pleasant places to work. But I gained a new perspective as part of a market research project I’m completing. After interviewing three leaders of local organizations, all with stellar reputations as employers, I’m feeling more optimistic. First was my conversation with City Manager Darin Atteberry, who heads more than 2,000 employees and is responsible for the overall operations of our fair...

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Resume tips. From so-so to Wow!

My business writes more resumes at this time of year than at any other. My theory is that once the New Year starts, career-progress hopefuls attempt to update their own documents, yet after a few weeks of trying, decide that working with a professional may ultimately get them better results, despite the $100 to $750 fee. However these tips can help you get professional results for a fraction of the cost: Be clear on what you want your resume to accomplish. A successful resume is designed to help get you in the door for appealing opportunities. Having a defined career focus helps you...

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Making your job the one you want.

This time of year, many of us are aiming to make progress toward greater career happiness. “I want work with more meaning, a specialty that better fits my unique talents,” are hopes I frequently hear. I want this for all of us, too, yet I also understand that we need to keep putting food on the table. So after hearing their goals I’ll usually ask, “What’s your bottom line income target?” For the majority of people, it’s not much less than what they’re already earning, and often over $50,000 each year. This translates to a pay rate of about $25 per hour working full time, which is...

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Building a habit for success.

A blank slate, fresh start, and new beginning; that’s the glorious gift we’re given each time the next year begins. And you, along with me and 40% of the US population, may have defined some hopes for 2018. Yet when it comes to achieving our aims, the odds are against us: research shows that of 100 goal setters, only eight will have success. Yet there’s a secret weapon that can help us join that minority group of winners, and that’s habit. Turns out that about 40% of what we do in any given day is driven by routine. An event triggers a response and without thinking, we follow through....

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Holiday Job Searching. Give Yourself A Gift This Year.

As Thanksgiving leftovers dwindle, job seekers wonder if opportunities for the year are dwindling, too. While in some cases businesses do slow down in December, others are ramping up. Closing the year with maximizing deductions is a goal for many, so often companies aim to get new hires in place to be able to write off recruiting expenses in the previous year. If you’re in the middle of a search, or considering starting one, this may be an ideal time to put in some extra effort for these reasons: The majority of job seekers view December as a “punt” month, and pull back on hunting...

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