I Feel Like A Jack of All Trades, Master Of None. How Do I Make Progress On My Shift

“I Feel Like A Jack of All Trades, Master Of None. How Do I Make Progress On My Shift” Help from our Community “I Feel Like A Jack of All Trades, Master Of None. How Do I Make Progress On My Shift?” * Alex's career has taken him all over the world. But while his lifestyle appears impossibly glamorous, he feels isolated and financially unstable. How do you make the leap into secure employment, with an unusual career history and no idea where you want to go next? What's your career history and current job? These days, I work mostly as a freelance producer. I'd always wanted to work in the music industry, so I studied for a degree in sound design. At the time, I also recorded and released some of my own music on the side. The tracks I released ended up taking off in a big way, and I found myself actually doing the dream career I was studying for! So, I decided to leave university two years in, to concentrate on developing a career in music. How do you feel about your work? I've spent years writing, recording and producing music, and working with some fantastic artists along the way. I've also travelled the world as a DJ, which I really enjoyed. I feel I've achieved everything I wanted from my music career, and now it's time for something new. I've had the time of my life, and I wouldn't trade any of it. But there's always lots of pressure, and my workload is relentless. Over time, technology and marketing have taken over the music industry. I'm responsible for everything in my business, and I typically work seven days a week just to ensure I keep on top of everything. I hardly see my friends and family, and I do a lot of work from my own home studio. I've had enough of working alone. I often feel completely cut off from other people. I've also encountered a few slow periods recently, when I haven't had as much new work coming in. That feels scary, as I'm never sure how much I'm going to be earning from month to month. What would you like to be doing instead? While it seems most people who dream about changing their career want to go from a traditional 9â€"5 into self-employment, I'm the opposite. I'd love to find something more secure, with stable hours, reliable pay and an inspiring team I can collaborate with. Ideally, I'd like to do something that involves working with people. I've thought about going into teaching, but since I didn't complete my degree I don't know how I would move into that kind of work. I've even explored the possibility of becoming a chef, but I ruled it out after one of my contacts arranged for me to spend some time shadowing in a high-endrestaurant. While it was a great experience, the long hours and the rushed atmosphere put me off! What's the biggest obstacle in your way? While I know I'm looking for more security, I don't know what specific career path I want to take next. Being self-employed means I've learned a lot of transferable business skills, which I see as an advantage. But I don't know what kind of jobs to target, so I don't know which skills are the most valuable. I've also learned so much and achieved a lot during my career, and I don't want to skim over any of it in case it turns out to be important to potential employers. Unfortunately, the result is that my CV is long, messy and unfocused â€" I've lost count of the number of drafts I've created! It reads as though I'm making a shot into the dark, and I feel as though anyone looking at my career history would view me as a 'jack of all trades, master of none'. I've tried reaching out to my contacts to help me find new career opportunities, but because I don't know what I want to do, it hasn't led me anywhere. Now I feel like I'm at a complete dead end. I've always loved a challenge, but this one seems impossible. With such an unusual career history, no degree, and no idea what I want to do next, how can I make a move into secure employment? Can you help Alex? Have you been in a similar situation, or are you in the same boat right now? How do you think Alexcould move his shift forwards? Do you know anyone he could talk to? Share your thoughts in the comments below and click the thumbs-up button to show your support.

How To Use APTA.org Assistance With Writing Resume

How To Use APTA.org Assistance With Writing ResumeWhen you are looking for APTA.org assistance with writing resume, it is important to understand the importance of having a good resume. Resumes are a way for job seekers to make an impression on the person hiring them. It also serves as a blueprint for a future career move.All of your work experience, educational background, and work goals should be clearly stated in your resume. This information should be included for all positions you have held and that are available. As much as possible, try to be objective when looking at your resumes and list what are not going to help you land the job.Research what writing resumes are like and how it is to be written. You can easily find free tips by searching online. Then, take those tips and apply them to your resume. There is no specific science to writing a resume.To get into a job, you will need to make yourself stand out from the rest of the applicants. You must have a professional looking resume. You may want to use a template to give your resume an extra boost.The words should flow smoothly from the resume. Use bulleted and numbered lists and use bullet points to outline your job history. Be sure to check your resume for spelling and grammar errors.When you are applying for a job, the candidate who knows how to best market themselves will stand out above the rest. This is the reason it is imperative to write a well-written resume. When you do not have much time, you can always use a professional resume writer.You can also create your own resume. Write down your educational background, goals, and work history. For jobs that require extensive training, you can include details about your previous jobs.When reviewing your resume, be sure to check it carefully. Any mistakes in your resume will affect how you are viewed by the person you are applying to. Make sure your resume is completely prepared. Keep your resume current.

Lets Get You LinkedIn

Lets Get You LinkedIn  According to the 2013 Jobvite Social Recruiting Survey: “Anyone not leveraging social referrals is behind the curve”.    This 2013 survey also shares the following statistics:  94% of recruiters use or plan to use social media in their recruitment efforts 78% of recruiters have made a hire through social media LinkedIn remains the king of searching (96%), contacting (94%), vetting (92%) and keeping tab of candidates (93%) If you are a job seeker still weighing the benefits of joining LinkedIn â€" you need to put aside any and all hesitations and get on board. Leveraging LinkedIn during a job search can drastically impact your job search â€" for the better.   Employers are using social media more and more to recruit candidates; LinkedIn clearly tops their list. If you are not on LinkedIn you are missing out on many possible opportunities, while proving you are ‘behind the curve’. The most important sections of your LinkedIn profile are: your profile picture, your headline, and your summary. These three places in your profile  are the first items a prospective employer reviews and they are proven to take up the majority of each  reader’s attention. (TheLadders report). You also want to ensure your LinkedIn profile is content and keyword rich to ensure you rank appropriately in site searches.   Hiring personnel regularly vet candidates through the site by conducting keyword searches. Finally, make sure your LinkedIn profile is complete and perfectly polished.  The profile needs to act as your bio and your resume; it should infuse your unique ‘voice’ and personality while selling your select skills. LinkedIn profiles that are “complete” receive 40% more opportunities than incomplete profiles, and LinkedIn profiles that are keyword optimized rank higher in searches.  Jobvite’s 2013 survey also reiterated: “Recruiters are also placing increasing importance on candidates’ social profiles: 42% have reconsidered a candidate based on content viewed in a social profile, leading to both positive and negative re-assessments”. Don’t risk turning off recruiters with a profile that doesn’t shine!  If you don’t yet understand the power of LinkedIn or know how to leverage it during a job search â€" I can help. Recently awarded  Outstanding Canadian Online Profile Developer from Career Professionals of Canada and having worked for LinkedIn as a Contractor â€" I’m well-armed to develop robust profiles that raise your visibility and searchability on the site. My services also include resources on how to effectively use and engage with the site moving forward.    Visit my LinkedIn profile online to learn more about my unique offerings: ca.linkedin.com/in/adriennetom

A Day In The Life Of An English Student

A Day In The Life Of An English Student It’s not all takeaways and books! This is a day in the life of an English student. Image by 24 Oranges I wake up relatively early â€" well, for a student anyway â€" and wrap myself in as many layers as possible because the house heating only manages to keep one of the kitchen cupboards warm. I go downstairs and make the much needed tea so that I can function for the day. Then I usually get straight back into my bed and read whatever book is being lectured on this week. I don’t move for about an hour. Some of my housemates start to wake up. We have communal tea in the kitchen and talk about how much we need to clean and tell the landlord that there are things growing out of the ceiling. We get ready and walk to campus for a midday lecture. I almost always forget to bring the book along with me, admittedly sometimes on purpose because they are really heavy, but otherwise because I have left it in my bed hidden under all the layers I was wearing earlier. So I spend the lecture trying to work out which part of the book we are actually talking about and trying to write at super speed to explain theories and interpretations for my future exam-taking self in my notes. Before going home we stop off in the library, which is like a giant furnace in my University. Our books are always on the very bottom underground floor, which is slightly creepy and probably hotter than the Bahamas. We hunt down some reference books from the lecture, ready for an upcoming essay, and so that we feel like we are being studious and prepared. I get back home and make some motivational tea. I put even more layers on and spend some time procrastinating with my housemates. This usually consists of making weird meals out of whatever we have left in the fridge, watching something terrible on TV or discussing serious topical issues like what we are going to wear out. I go back to my room and spend a few hours working on an essay that is due and do some more reading. I only have 6 lectures a week so I have a lot of free time, but then an awful lot of reading to do as well. Once I feel like I’ve done a reasonable amount of work for the day, we all make some more tea. I accidentally end up procrastinating on the internet, usually Facebook or ridiculous news articles on the life story of Julian Casablancas. After a while I move on to doing something more constructive, so I start to plan my posts for the GKBC Writer Academy. If there is one thing that I have learned from being at university, it is the power of planning. Working out what I am doing beforehand has saved many hours in the library. The evenings usually consist of cooking something really badly and doing something with my housemates. If there is a deadline, we convene in the living room with copious amounts of tea, biscuits and blankets. That is a day in the life of an English student. Think of it as lots of reading and even more tea.

Tips For Writing Resume With a Little Work Experience

Tips For Writing Resume With a Little Work ExperienceWriting a resume can be a task that is filled with difficulty, but with the proper information and tips you will find it an easy and less stressful process. In today's world where time is a valuable commodity it is extremely important to have the best resume possible. While it might seem difficult to create a great resume it can be done and many times the work involved is a lot easier than you might think. So how do you go about writing a resume that makes an impression?First you must know what kind of information you need to include in your resume. You need to make sure that your information is all focused on what you have done or what you have to offer. Before you even begin thinking about writing a resume, you should sit down and think about what information you should include. The information you include on your resume will be your first impression in the eyes of your future employer.Another tip for writing resume with little w ork experience is to keep your resume concise. While you do not want to get bogged down in too much information, you do not want to either. As well, keeping your resume short and simple will help to increase its effectiveness. Don't write your entire resume in one sitting; however, writing several pages each day is a good way to increase your chances of success.When you are writing resume with little work experience, you will also want to know that your resume is targeted towards specific jobs. This means you should not list every job that you have ever held or what school you attended as this can be very time consuming. Instead, focus on what you have been hired for and specifically tailor your resume to the job you are applying for. In other words, if you were hired to write a cover letter, this is a good time to include this information on your resume.Speaking of covering letters, another tip for writing resume with little work experience is to put as much information as possible on your cover letter. This does not mean that you have to write an 800-word essay on the first page; however, you do want to have something on your cover letter that will catch the eye of the person reviewing your resume. Again, this is also a good time to include additional information on your resume.Finally, when writing resume with little work experience you want to make sure that you take the time to learn the proper English grammar. You can find many tools online that can help you learn the proper usage of grammar and spelling. This should not be taken lightly, because there are certain phrases that you can put on your resume such as 'Graduated from'Taught ESL' that you don't want to put wrong.Also, it is extremely important to make sure that your resume includes your contact information. Although you want your contact information to be included, you also do not want it to be included in a manner that is confusing. In other words, while a telephone number is fine, you do not w ant to use an email address instead.If you follow these tips for writing resume with little work experience, you will find it much easier to write a resume that looks professional and is as useful as possible. In other words, a resume that your future employer will be able to read and use.

Dont Make These Mistakes on YOUR Cover Letter

Dont Make These Mistakes on YOUR Cover Letter I am helping a friend find a Part Time Office Administrator and have shared some of the basic job responsibilities with select groups on LinkedIn.   In my messaging,   I said: For more details email me your resume and a super cover letter explaining why you are the perfect fit! In my mind, I thought I was pretty clear that the cover letter should be super and explain why they are the perfect fit.   Perhaps I wasnt very clear.   This is one of the cover emails I received: This is clearly a template and parts were victim of cut and paste. How can I tell?   Different font types and sizes appear throughout the email. Here, I have highlighted 8 of the thoughtless mistakes that can be avoided. 1. Different font style (appears smaller and this is the first thing I see when I open the email) 2. Again, different font style.   Clearly typed in as part of a form or template. 3. Varying sized text 4.   5. This font style is different 6. Not sure what school this refers to, but it clearly has nothing to do with the job I was promoting. 7. The email had the persons name, but no telephone number or signature for me to easily contact the candidate or know anything more about the candidate. 8. This candidate expects me to call?   Isnt she the one who is looking for the job? Shouldnt she be following up with me? She stated that her aim was to meet with me What a cover email/letter should contain: Why you are interested in the job and the company Who told you about the job (if applicable) or where you heard about it Examples of use of specific skills mentioned in the job posting Information that would make the reader believe you are genuinely interested in working for them Using these points, you will show you know how to follow directions, you are a thoughtful communicator and will set you apart from the many job hunters out there. Here are some additional pointers on writing a kick a$$ cover letter.   No, it might not get read, however, if it does, it should knock the readers socks off, not bore them or annoy them. What About the Cover Letter Grad Em, Hook, Line and Sinker And for a collection of sample cover letters, one of the best resources available is on QuintCareers.

The Secret How to Get a Job - Jane Jackson Career

The Secret How to Get a Job - Jane Jackson Career How to get a job.   What is the best job search strategy?   There are many good strategies to get your name out there and your resume noticed, however there is a secret and the key to that secret is Networking!What do Job Seekers do to find a job? Here’s the ‘old’ methodology: job seekers post their résumés on job boards (seek.com.au, mycareer.com.au, monster.com, jobsdb.com, etc.) Then they searched those boards for jobs of interest or those in which they thought they would perform well and responded by applying online.Companies with openings posted their jobs, and reviewed the best résumés from candidates and the HR Managers or Internal Recruiters would interview the ones who appeared to be the best fit.If those candidates weren’t able to make the grade, companies might then hire a 3rd party recruiter (or two or three) to find more potentially suitable candidates, some of whom were taken from those same job boards’ résumé databases, and others from the pool of “p otential candidates” who were sourced from competitors. (Candidates always love to receive a call from a ‘headhunter’!) Sooner or later someone would be offered the job and the rest would be history.Many things have now changed post GFC. Companies move slower and much more cautiously now, and have very different expectations. With the recovery going well in Australia, not so well in other countries, taking on additional headcount is not something taken lightly.While some people still get hired by answering job ads, only a very small percentage of new hires today are the result of someone applying online to a public job posting. Whenever I conduct a job search workshop and ask attendees how they secured their previous job, more often than not the most show of hands would be for that magic word: “NETWORKING!”The old networking methodologyWhen it comes to how to get a job, you may be wondering how Networking works and how a job can materialize through those efforts.Most peopl e think this: meet with as many people as possible and talk with everyone they know or have a connection with. They speak with family members, friends, neighbors, business associates, clients, former customers, school and university alumni, church members, etc. When they run out of personal connections they attend “networking events” organized by various business networking associations, chambers of commerce, professional associations and the like.They exchange business cards with strangers at those events and then set up meetings with them. They let all whom they meet know they are “in transition,” and ask them if they have any advice to provide, or if they know anyone who either has a job, or can lead them to someone else who has a job.They make as many connections as possible through these events and also on “LinkedIn” and keep expanding their network willy nilly.Sooner or later, they expect they will hear about that perfect job that won’t be advertised anywhere. So oner or later they to tap into the “hidden job market.”Networking to get a job in all the wrong placesWhat you have just read shows a basic flaw. Too often those who are keen to get a job are spending a great deal of time meeting with lovely people who can’t help them, or have absolutely no connection to the industry or position that they are seeking.These people would like to help but don’t know how! They may not understand specifically whom you’d like to meet, or what companies you want to get into.Those official “networking events” (often held at local coffee shops, hotels or bars) are attended by other job seekers.Of course it’s good practice to set up meetings with the people you meet and get together for coffee. Any social individual will enjoy “networking” with friends, family members, or other people going through their own job transition and share war stories. This can be comforting, and certainly is better than staying at home in front of the computer s imply making online applications for advertised roles.They can fill up their Outlook calendar with “networking meetings” and feel they are making progress … that they are doing the right things.However, has all that sort of networking taken them any closer to securing a job?   Ive mentioned Strategic Networking in a previous post, this expands upon it.Many job seekers waste their time networking with people who can’t really help them. Why not make those time consuming networking efforts more effective?Make a list of target companies likely to have jobs you are interested in based on your industry and job function, and then focus your networking activities on reaching the decision-makers in those companies.Does that sound easier said than done? Well, take the follwoing step-by-step approach and I’d love to hear your comments on how it works for you!To build your confidence and network effectively to find a job, you need  How to Build Confidence  It’s Easy as One â€" Two â €¦.Create your target company list and identify specific people at those companies that you want to meet. Then take this ridiculously simple two-step approach.Send an introductory email, and then make a follow-up phone call a few days later. It’s a basic sales technique. And it’s a matter of numbers (how many times you do this for how many companies) when it comes to your success rate.In order to ensure a greater ‘hit rate’ consider the level of connection you have (if any) to the people you are approaching. Did a contact provide the name to you or did you research it online yourself?The most effective level of connection is a personal referral. If you meet with someone who gives you a name in a target company and says, “you can mention my name” â€" then you’re off and away! The higher up your referring contact is, the better the response most likely will be.The next best level of connection is a common group or association â€" for example, you both belong to the same Professional Association or LinkedIn industry group or you both have something else in common.The third level of connection is simply that you share a common industry. Modify your approach depending on the level of your connection to your target.One: your introductory emailTo make things simple, here is a template for you to adapt according to your requirements to help you get a job. Open with how you know the person.Then mention your background and career goals. Then ask for some guidance and advice. Be short and to the point. Be complimentary, and non-aggressive.You are NOT asking for a job, you are asking for help and advice. For example:Subject: Introduction from (Referral contact)Hi (target name):I met with a mutual friend of ours, (name of your contact,) yesterday and (he/she) spoke very highly of you, and suggested that I make contact with you.I am a (your professional background) with a passion/expertise in (your area of expertise.) I am very interested in speaking and netwo rking with anyone with experience in this area.The reason I’m contacting you is that I would like to talk with you and find out more about your professional experiences. Your advice and expertise would be much appreciated.Would you be willing to spend a few minutes with me on the phone … or perhaps informally meet for a coffee at your convenience?I look forward to hearing from you.Many thanks and best wishes,(Your signature, mobile number and your LinkedIn profile â€" make sure it’s a good profile!)This email is short, to the point, complimentary and states what you are hoping for. No nonsense, just to the point without asking for a job.If you don’t have a contact who has referred you, even if you have found someone you would like to network with through LinkedIn,a compliment about his or her impressive profile may get your foot in the door.Two: your follow up callIf you have not received a response within 3-4 days, pick up the phone and call your target â€" do your detectiv e work to find out the number. You can try www.pipl.com, which is a useful tool to find emails and phone numbers.Failing that, use Google, the yellow or white pages or call around until you are successful! If you get their voice mail, be prepared and leave a message!The message should state that you are calling to follow-up on the email you sent … and then re-state the content of that email.Give them your contact number clearly and don’t call again after that. If the person doesn’t respond after the two-step approach you can assume that they don’t want to talk to you … so move on. You can’t hit the jackpot every time. As I mentioned earlier, it’s a matter of numbers.Follow up, follow up!As you will meet with more and more decision-makers (or people who can refer you to those decision-makers) your network of key people in your industry will grow.They all tend to know each other and are “well-connected.” You want to be at the right place at the right time â€" and rem embered by those key people when a new and unpublished opportunity opens up somewhere.Stay in contact with your network with updates on your job-seeking activities, express your gratitude for their time and advice and let them know you are still exploring your next career step.If you meet with someone they referred you to, make sure you thank them for the introduction. All this effort will assist in long-term success in today’s highly competitive job market to get a job!Give it a try, allow yourself time, and let me know how things progress!