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An insider‘s perspective – career research
For years I’ve touted the virtues of career research interviews as a way to define great fit career paths. These are conversations with people who have already succeeded in areas that interested career seeker, allowing them to gain an insider‘s perspective on what another’s work life is really like. They are, by far, the most effective route I’ve come across to choosing a career niche. So I guess I shouldn’t have been surprised when my business advisor suggested that I have some similar conversations with individuals who have succeeded as entrepreneurs, as a way to shorten the learning curve...
read moreFort Collins Startup and ARTup Week
At age 12, I started my first business, selling strange baked-dough sculptures at a roadside stand. The product served no purpose other than to be weirdly ornamental, and of the few people who stopped to check them out, most thought they were cookies. I only sold a few, but it was enough to motivate me to pursue other entrepreneurial endeavors down the line, including my current business, Career Solutions Group, which celebrates its 20th anniversary this year. According to a Gallup poll, the majority of workers—61%–dream of owning their own enterprise. If you’re among them, you may...
read moreLet your “star” shine!
Not long ago I met with Jennifer Spencer, a business consultant with the Larimer Small Business Development Center in Fort Collins. The SBDC is my go-to for when I need some fresh ideas on how to improve the results of my service business. This time I wanted to brainstorm ways to increase the flow of leads, as they’d dropped off when I moved out of my high visibility location on Mulberry. “If they can’t see your sign, then it’s all about gold stars and reviews,” Spencer told me. She then went on to explain how many of us now approach fulfilling many of our life needs as if we’re shopping on...
read moreDo you love your job?
This being the week of love, it may be interesting to know that on average, only about 15% of people love their jobs. Yet overall, only 33% of people love their lives. And while aging can be a downer for many, turns out that the older we are, the happier we’ll likely become: 36% of those ages 50-64 are happy, as are a whopping 41 percent of adults ages 65+. This could be because they don’t have to go to work! But if hi-ho, hi-ho, it’s off to work you must go, Meg Selig, MA-Ed., author of Changepower and a regular writer for Psychology Today, offers tips on how to up your on-the-job happiness...
read moreResume 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...
read moreIt’s all in how you look at it.
With a goal of career improvement on the list for many this year, I’ve been sharing ideas about job crafting—steps you can take to boost your satisfaction at work without necessarily changing positions. In the past 2 weeks, I’ve talked about tweaking who you work with, how you work with them, as well as shifting your job tasks to make your professional life more pleasant. This week, we’ll cover how to change your mindset to make the job you’re doing seem more meaningful. As an example, in a former work role, I served as a customer service rep in the complaint department of a tourism company....
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